Creative Ventures of 2014

Or, "assorted drawings from the past year". They are very few and far in between, to my great disappointment.

 

Let's kick things off with Tom Hiddleston as Henry V!

 

 

I rather like this drawing. A lot.

 

The Tom Hiddleston kick continued with a portrait of the self-same man:

 

 

This is also one of my favorite drawings. I had never drawn quite such a large grin before, or so many teeth. Hence it was an experience. This was finished in Colorado.

 

 

For Christmas I did this for my uncle. He had a cat who was 17 years old named Leo (and this drawing was just in time, because the same cat ended up getting sick and had to be put to sleep a couple of months later. O.o)

 

Along similar lines, but not the same as the drawings, is the big projects of 2015: hand-piecing a quilt. Apparently I can never do anything by halves, because instead of doing something relatively easy I decided to start with a hummingbird pattern.

 

 

This is an antique quilt that my mom has had in her possession for over a decade. In all of my searchings on the internet I haven't found another one like it (unless one was to paper-piece it, and that version just doesn't look as interesting). Apparently every other pattern that looked interesting wasn't fiddly enough.

 

 

This is part of my take on it....at first I was going to attached each row as it was made, but I was having trouble getting my points to line up in a satisfactory manner. Now I'm piecing the rows with the idea of ironing them and then piecing the rows all at once. I think the points will turn out okay once the whole thing is done and quilted...but we'll see.

 

My grandma hand-pieces hexagon quilts, the English flower garden pattern, and has made several over her lifetime. My mom hand-quilts, and usually has one project or another in a frame. I've machine-pieced several projects, but have never quilted or hand-pieced anything before. Considering the familial tendency towards quilts, this gravitation towards an old-fashioned project has seemed very natural.

 

Otherwise, I have either (a) not had time or (b) not made time as far as my art is concerned for the past several months. It's not that I don't want to, or I don't care....but I have a difficult time staying focused on projects. I have two large drawings sitting in a sketchpad waiting to be finished, and tons of ideas...but it's hard to get it all down when one gets home from work and wants to go riding instead, or bathrooms need cleaned, or floors haven't been swept in two weeks, or there's a sinkful of dishes, or lunch hasn't been prepared for the next day, ad infinitum.

 

I think the moral here is that I need to learn to manage my time better. And to start drawing for me again instead of for other people.



Twenty-Fourteen: A Recap (Part 3)

October 2014

As mentioned before: my Aunt Amy and I had been talking back and forth about plans post-ranch, and she suggested (especially since her boss had offered the job) that I could apply to work at her office. My life motto at the time was 'well, why not?' (one good thing about the summer is that it seemed to make me a little more daring), so I sent in the application, had an interview over the phone, and was looking for a place to live. Amy or I would find a place online, and she would go check it out for me. By the time I was ready to leave the ranch on October 5^th, we still hadn't found a place. So I decided to drive to her place, stay for 2-3 days, finish up the application process, and try to find a place to live. That didn't give us much time, but it was at least something.

Wonder of wonders: the day after I drove there we found a little quadplex about 5 minutes from the office (I finally got pictures of it around Christmas).

Looking in the front door...

Kitchen area!

Living room....

There's a fireplace too!

Upstairs...

There are windows to open so that all the warm air will heat up the upstairs

Mine bed

The "craft room" (currently it's littered with fabric and the makings of a quilt)

The next two weeks were very fast paced: I drove home on the 9^th, spent the next week and a half packing, and my parents helped me move on the 20^th. (Happy birthday to me…) Mom and Dad stayed for the remainder of that week helping me move in and such, and on the 27^th I started working for State Farm.

The learning curve for State Farm has been a fairly sharp one. The first week was completely overwhelming, of course, but as of December 17^th I was officially licensed in Property and Casualty and am becoming more confident in what I can do at the office.

I will say that initially, when my aunt mentioned possibly working for State Farm, my reaction was 'ugh'. The idea of sitting for 8-9 hours a day staring at a computer screen didn't sound like my idea of fun, especially after spending most of my working life in moderately to extremely active jobs. So I thought that I would give it a year, and if I didn't like it at the end of the year then I could do something else.

But now I'm not so sure that I could uproot myself so quickly after doing so once. And the job is a lot more interesting than I initially gave it credit. There's a lot to know, and a lot to do, and each day brings something different to the table. I'm discovering that I really like the area—it reminds me a bit of home, though for some reason the first question I get when people learn that I've just moved is 'have you adjusted to the culture shock yet?' (If 'culture shock' is measured in 'lack of good dentistry', then no, I haven't quite gotten over that yet.)

The job is sedentary, yes, but I've been making up for that in walking 4-5 times a week. Usually I can get in at least two miles over my lunch break, and if the sun is still up at 5 I can go to a little state park nearby to squeeze in another mile or two. I've found a place to ride horses, and the owners are incredibly nice and welcoming people--basically they say 'come over and ride whenever you want whatever you want!' and it's great. There is also a little mare on one of my walking routes, and I would desperately like to find the owner (partially to see if they would mind my playing with her, and partially to find out why she still has one foot shod while the rest are barefoot. Anyway.).

It's a little strange living alone, to be sure, though after the initial shock of quietness it's really not too bad. It's nice to be able to come home, cook a little dinner, work on some projects, and shut everything down by 9 PM. The only issue is the possibility of turning into a hermit…but I'm so peopled-out by the end of the day that it's nice to not have to interact with anyone (unless I go ride) On Thursdays I've been invited to attend a women's Bible study, and most weekends I spend cleaning the house or cooking for the rest of the week (I try to cook ahead so I don't have to worry about lunch prep) or going for a hike or plugging away at whatever project I happen to be working on.

Speaking of projects, I've begun what I'm informally referring to as 'the year-long project': a quilt that is completely hand-pieced. It's in a hummingbird pattern, and based off of an antique quilt top that my mom is currently finishing. I didn't have the actual pattern, so I drew one looking at pictures and working off of the measurements Mom gave me. All the fabrics are somewhat old-fashioned: small floral prints, larger floral prints, polka dots, muted solids, etc. I've mostly been cutting out the pieces for now…but it's going to be something of an undertaking. The biggest thing to remember is to not get in a hurry, and to realize that it's probably going to take the better part of the year just to piece it. I've thought about making it queen-size…or maybe just a lap throw to start. We'll see. XD

And that just about brings us up to date…I'll try to blog when I think of it. I haven't been taking any pictures lately…to be honest, when it's just me and I don't have a subject (usually it was the dog, or a horse, or people at the ranch) every picture I take seems kind of dull. It doesn't help that 90% of the time for the past month it's been gloomy, rainy, cloudy, and cold out. I'm not complaining, mind—but just letting y'all know why there are no pictures.

With that said, keep a weather eye out, and I'll try to come back before another 8 months lapse again!

One's True Place (and projects)

"How, then, does one find one's true place?
It does not need finding. One's place is wherever one happens naturally to be. And only gnawing resentment can make it dishonorable." 

-- C.W. Gusewelle

 Charles Gusewelle, succinct as always. There's a reason that he's one of my favorite writers.

I've been somewhat down in the dumps lately for a variety of reasons. There's some other minor stuff, but it boils down to feeling like I'm stuck, waiting for something to happen, and not knowing how to get out of it. Or I have so many ideas and options creating- and business-wise that I freeze up and do none of them.

This, my friends, is a distinct problem. It's worse than procrastinating, because with procrastination there's a guilty pleasure in letting things slide with the intent of 'getting to it later'. With freezing up there is no pleasure; just a vague sensation of doom and wasted time.

Add feeling stuck to a sensation of doom, and what you have is a downward spiral of non-productive angsting about the future. That's why I was rather inspired after coming across the above quote this morning.

Last night, I wasn't inspired at all and spent most of my time flaking around on the internet, but not before forcing myself to start a project that I've been meaning to do for ages: make a Kindle cover.

While in Colorado I started making a leather one, but what with all the flooding and evacuation nonsense I kinda had to set it aside. My Kindle has been cover-less since I got it in July, and I'm always worried that it'll get hurt somehow. This, then, is the finished product (made using this tutorial):

  

It's not as solid as leather would be, but it serves its purpose well. I also couldn't figure out how to make it stand up for a good 10 minutes.

I did eventually figure it out though. XD

 

The original pattern didn't call for any kind of padding, so I cut some quilt batting for a little extra protection against the chipboard. Some of the measurements seemed to be off, too, because the chipboard was WAY too big and the section under the kindle seems a little narrow, but it still worked.

I'm also continuing my kefir soda experiments. Last week I ordered some glass soda bottles after an attempt to make ginger ale in mason jars turned syrupy and nasty. The bottles have a rubber sealed cap attached with a wire clamp, so I'm hoping that the lack of air will help it to stay fizzy and not change consistency again.

I've already done the above with a cream soda (a teaspoon or so of vanilla extract in kefir water) and it turned out pretty delicious. I've gotten a taste for kefir like I didn't have earlier this year, and I can't get enough of the stuff. :3 (Everyone else, on the other hand, thinks that it's nasty. More for me!)

Horse-wise....well, I'm not going to take up blog-space by blubbering or complaining about the current stage of horse-less-ness. Our farrier (and my best friend's dad) has offered to let me ride one of their mares whenever I'd like. She's a paint, about 10-12 years old, and blind. Her real name is Nina (or Grace, depending on who you ask) but I've always just referred to her as 'the blind mare'.

If you look closely you can see the film over her pupil--the eye on the other side is atrophied.

She's a real sweetheart, and SO incredibly trusting--if I point her in a direction and tell her to go, she'll go in that direction until I tell her to stop (or she trips on something ^^;). She knows that when I check her, that means to go slow and feel out the terrain because something has changed. I would never take her on a trail ride or any other place where the terrain changes constantly, but she can walk along roads or across a bean field with no trouble and as long as I keep an eye out she does superbly. Several times I've come across a ditch or dip and, after a check, she'll take little careful steps until we're past it. It's pretty amazing.

I've ridden her twice in the last week, and have come to the realization that I really don't miss the riding as much as I do just taking care of a horse. It's strange to me to get her out, ride, and put her back without fussing or feeding. She also has some stall quirks such as pawing the ground and turning in circles, so she has to be hobbled in her stall. She doesn't mind the hobbles, and it keeps her from being destructive, but....meh.

Anyway. Life is slow and I usually wildly oscillate between being depressed and/or uninspired to bucking up and making myself quit having pity parties. XD

The Latest Project

What do you think it is?

Hmmm?

Okay, maybe this one gives it away...I've taken up bookbinding!

(Quick backstory here: my brother had a friend from college who made a sketchbook for my brother's fiance, and to be quite honest it wasn't that good. Each section of pages (or signature) was like 20 pages messily folded in half, nothing was glued, etc. I'm not saying mine is fantastic or anything, but seeing that made me think 'well, I could do better than that' so this is my shot at it. *takes a breath* No offense if that friend reads this blog. I know he doesn't, though, so I should be good.)

This is just printer paper, folded in half, torn, and folded in half again to form a quarter-page-sized booklet. Each signature is 4 pages, and I think there's 8 signatures. The thread is normal polyester, two pieces folded in half so there's 4 threads total. I just used Elmer's glue for the binding because I don't have any other glue on hand. 

See the glue on the edge there? That turned out to be a mistake--it dried into a hard edge, and now the spine is wonky. But I think I know how to avoid that next time.

The cover is some scrap fabric over cardboard (the back of an old sketchbook, actually), all glued again with Elmer's. It seeped rather badly through the fabric, so I'll have to figure out a less messy way for the next time. 

I have a TON of old sheet music for craft use lying about, so one sheet became the endpapers.

And the inside is just printer paper. I think next time I'd like to use watercolor paper, or something of a similar heavier stock. 

On a side note, this entire project (including tearing and folding the paper) probably took me around an hour. The use of a hair dryer to speed up the glue drying helped immensely, but it wasn't NEARLY as hard as I thought it would be. I watched the original Planet of the Apes while assembling the pages (and tried very hard not to be shocked by the '70s--they had a fascination with butts back then. I saw more of Charleton Heston's backside within an hour and a half than I ever desired to see in my entire lifetime. *shudders*), and the cover took maybe half an hour to put together. 

You know what this means, right?

MOAR BOOKBINDING (and less Planet of the Apes)

On a random note, church was canceled yesterday due to an ice storm. Hence, no notes from the study. But fear not, we will be up and running by next Sunday, provided there are no more ice storms. 

On another random note, I'm still waiting to hear back from this one dude ranch in Colorado. *bites nails* All the people they called have told me that it's almost a certainty that I'll get the job...BUT THE SUSPENSE. *flails*

Job Applications, The Sequel

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I disliked writing out job applications. But I have put my nose to the grindstone and finished six in that time period...so I guess it doesn't matter if I don't like it, they still had to be done. 

Plus, who knows what crazy awesome opportunities may open up through said jobs? 8D They're all for dude ranches in Colorado, Montana (I think), and a kid's camp in Illinois. I'm really leaning towards a couple of them for sure, but it all depends on who responds. *crosses fingers*

This might seem like a random career change, but really it's not...when I was 18 I applied for a job out West, didn't get it, and haven't had an opportunity to apply since then. Now I can, and I'm really looking forward to whatever comes out of it. 

Tonight, because I was excited about the prospects of getting a job out West (yes, I know, I might not, but I'm still excited), I started looking up Western clothing on Pinterest. None of these things are ones that I would buy...but I'd probably make something inspired from them.

These are all from an Etsty shop called True Rebel Clothing. It's pricey, but definitely an interesting place to get ideas.

I'm getting somewhat obsessed with drapey, twirly skirts. Considering I hardly ever wear skirts, this may be a problem. On the other hand, this may be just what I need to get the sewing machine whipped out and in operation again.

Some Recent Projects

Last week I took off from work. Originally I was supposed to go with Mom down to Florida, but because I'm sick and we didn't know what I had I just stayed home, both from Florida and from work.

(I went to the doctor on Friday, was diagnosed with acute bronchitis, and put in a regimen of powerful antibiotics. Sigh. Mom thinks I'm developing asthma, because in the mornings I cough so hard I can hardly breathe and have to gasp for air. Ees kinda scary...but I have an inhaler for those moments so thus far it's all good.)

Since I was off work all week, I pretty much did nothing aside from piddle around doing this and that. Though I did make pierogis for the first time, and they turned out delicious. They were way easier to make than I thought they would be, too...let's just say the frozen ones will never be an option again. 

I also made a few things for the heck of it--not as much as was planned, but a few things. 

Item #1: (yet another) denim skirt

I've kinda got these things on the brain. My inspiration was found on Pinterest, but said inspiration was also made out of jersey fabric instead of denim. It still turned out okay. Next time I'll do two tiers of the vertical panels for continuity's sake. Otherwise it's very comfy and I can't wait to wear it more this fall.

All the strips were leftovers from a previous project where I made a blanket for my bed (that cut down on a lot of the prep time), and the entire thing was put together with my serger. I love that thing to death, man. It makes clothing projects go by SO much faster.

Item #2: personal pumpkin pies

Another Pinterest-inspired thing...though I made it with butternut squash instead of pumpkin. And they rather shriveled up upon cooling, to my dismay...but they still tasted deliciously like pumpkin pie. 

Item #3: button earrings

And ANOTHER Pinterest inspiration. I spend way too much time on that website. 

These were taken late at night, hence the mediocre quality...but you get the idea. They jingle pleasantly when I wear them and are just fun.

I've been having fun wearing them, at least. ^-^

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Last Saturday I took some senior pictures for a friend of mine from church--after they're edited I'll be posting them up here. I think they turned out really nice and I can't wait to post them. She's pretty excited about them too (aren't you, Lizard? :D)

For brevity's sake...

"...they called him Bossuet."

Wait, wrong quote. Ahem. Les Mis, step over for a bit.

So I'm on a schedule (self-imposed, really, but still important) to finish several projects. But in the meantime I figured I'd ramble about random stuff, but keep it all somewhat concise.

First off, I got an awesome teapot yesterday!

It's from the Adagio Tea company, and while it looks small and flat it holds 34 ounces and is made of cast iron, making for a nice, heavy pot. It will last me forever and never ever break ever.

I love the finish. It's just so aged-looking. :3

I did have a problem with a spill (the spout was plugged with paper or something, and the tea was spilling out from under the lid. Once it got unplugged it was fine).

Last night I got commissioned to repair a ton of jeans and make some skirts...thus, this is what my room currently looks like:

Am I the only one who thinks it looks like my bed threw up all over my floor? Those are the scraps and contents of a body-bag (okay, it's an under-the-bed storage bag, but it's the general shape and size of a body-bag) of fabric...it's a good think I saved them, all things considered, but it's SO messy.

These are the holey jeans. There's about 7 pairs here, with another slung over the back of my desk chair and two more freshly patched and stuck in the bag of 'completed' items. I get a lot of time to sit and listen to sermons while sewing.

(I'm currently listening to this series on Luke. I just finished part 29 out of 100 last night...it's so cool. I love Mark Driscoll.)

And! And and and! Last week I went shopping for some clothes at a second-hand store (albeit a very classy second-hand store). While poking around I found this awesome black leather bag/backpack. It was brand new, incredibly soft with a large interior, and bolted to the wall so it wouldn't get stolen. XD So I admired it and petted it for a bit, checked the price tag, and decided that I wasn't going to spend $75 on a bag. I went home with some clearance-rack stuff instead. (Yes, I'm cheap. I'm okay with that.)

So two days ago, after I came home from work, Mom said that something came for me and was sitting on my bed. Lo and behold....it was the bag! She had heard me talking about it and got it for me...I have a great mom. :3

So here it is in all its lovely soft slouchy majesty!

There are SO many pockets...and the interior is enormous. And it's so soft that I just want to cuddle with it. I needed a bag upgrade rather badly--my current/old bag is an army messenger style thing that my grandpa used in WWII. And while it's done a fabulous job, it's starting to rot and shred away in places and I'm just waiting for the straps to give way one day. O.e

Last but not least: The Hobbit is going to be a trilogy! At first I was skeptical, because The Hobbit isn't THAT long. But I've been reading through the Appendices at the end of Lord of the Rings and read The Quest of Erebor...and I can't WAIT to see how it all works out. There's so much material and stuff going on in the background that I'm happy they get the chance to tell the entire story without feeling the need to cut bits out so we aren't sitting through two 4-hour movies (though I wouldn't complain at all. Just sayin'.). 

So I'm now excited about that, even more so than I originally was. Yee. :3 

Now it's off to patch stuff...wish me luck and I'll try to update somewhat soonish.

Necessity

It's the mother of invention, yo.

Just thought I'd let ya'll know.

Anyway. I found today after talking to a friend of mine that the stirrups on the new saddle are rather dangerous, being metal without any grip. They don't keep the feet from slipping forward and make it harder to sit properly. (That's why my feet were slipping around so much yesterday--it wasn't all leg position after all!) 

After poking around a bit online I found that metal stirrups are commonly sold with either rubber grips (these 'clip' on through the slats in the stirrup) or suede grips (these wrap around and are secured with velcro). 

Suede:

Rubber:

Since I'm cheap and impatient, I decided to make my own.

Originally the idea was to make the suede/velcro version. But I cleaned out my box of leather scraps recently, and I don't remember what I did with the leather, and my velcro has been missing for a while. So instead, I took a pair of old work gloves (with permission) and whipped out an impromptu pair of stirrup grips.

I think they turned out rather well too!

The little X of thread is around the slats in the bottom, to keep the pad from shifting while riding. I really like how it's still padded (there's 2 layers of leather)--it just feels nicer than a single flap of leather.

And the not-so-pretty bottom...eh, it works. I figure that these will work until I can get/make some better ones that actually, y'know, match the saddle. 

I've become rather vain about tack matching now. Having a nice saddle does that, I guess...

Bloomers!

Remember that dress I dismantled? Well, I finally went ahead and made those bloomers. They were ridiculously easy when it came down to it. 

I really love the crocheted bit before it flares out--it's kinda like wearing fishnet, but not really. ;)

I also love how the flared bit was built in and I didn't have to sew it on separately. Because let's be honest--flares and ruffles look pretty, but they're a pain to sew.

All this needs for now is an elastic waistband (considered a drawstring, but I don't have a string and have read that they're a hassle when trying to use them in costume). 

I'm finding that if I leave my serger or sewing machine out, I'm much more likely to actually sew with them. I repaired 3 shirts before making these (they've been on the 'to do' list for months). Maybe the machines should be out on a more permanent basis. Hmmm.....

So anyway. There's the nightly project...I'll see about making a slip in the next few days. Or draft a corset. Or something.

Project of the Evening

It sounded better than 'business of the night', or something similar. O.e

So! Tonight's project was to start (and mostly finish) a set of pillows that my aunt commissioned me to make for her living room. It turned into an opportunity to use brocade/upholstery fabric for the first time, sew with both the serger and the sewing machine, use up some antique buttons that have bee in the jar for AGES and probably will never be use otherwise, and get this project off my back.

I mean, I like sewing. But every time I'd go into my room I'd see the fabric and think 'oh, I need to do those tonight!' Aaaand then they would never get done. Go figure. XD

Time spent: 3 1/2 hours

They aren't completely done--but all they need right now is fusible interfacing on the inner flap to hold it closed (which I have) and snaps to hold the flap closed. 

The fabric was a little too heavy for this purpose, but they turned out good. I think gold piping would have made them look even better too...maybe next time. 

I's pretty pleased. ^-^

And now, to quote The Pioneer Woman...

I'M JUST KEEPING IT REAL!

Have I mentioned I love my desk, by the way? I was able to set up the serger, sewing machine, computer (for the pattern) AND have just enough room to pin the fabric pieces. Squee. 

Actually, I had to move the sewing machine and haul the serger over onto the main part of the desk to use it, otherwise the serger would vibrate so furiously that the threads would tangle and snarl. I may or may not have had to re-thread the machine after a snarl episode. O.e

There's a reason that the thing has been referred to as 'the sewing machine from hell'. Anyway.

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When playing around with my new dress the other day, I took a few profile-type self-portraits just for the fun of it. I treated most of them with black and white filters, but figured I'd toss a couple up here in color and black and white. Just cuz. XD

Yes, I know my eyelashes are long. No, I don't wear makeup. *contemplates starting a FAQ page*

I really enjoyed figuring out the hairstyle--I hardly ever do messy buns, and this was after working for 8 hours. It held up very very well.

This is my personal favorite. I dunno why...originally it was going to be the only one up here, but go figure.

 So here it is in color. I prefer the b&w because it covers up my farmer's tan. XD

I hardly ever smile in self-portraits, for whatever reason. Meh. Yet another thing to work on, I suppose.

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In other news, I bought 5 more strawberry plants today. And we have a huge tractor tire that needs filled with dirt so we can plant said strawberries in a nice raised bed by themselves. And I have little baby plants coming up in the herb garden. *glee* And I picked a plastic bag full of nettles and strung them on embroidery floss behind the stove to dry. That's for yet another project--but hopefully a simpler one than the pillows. 

AND I put an order in to the Bulk Herb Store last night! I's excited. I've been creepin' on that website for months, deciding what I could grow myself and what I would order from them if I had to (plus putting tons of their recommended books on my Amazon wish list). The plunge has finally been taken. It's a modest order, consisting of:

~Marshmallow root (for binding pastilles)

~A mortar and pestle (for grinding stuff, obviously)

~Jasmine green tea

~Bentonite clay toothpaste kit (because normal toothpaste is kinda nasty and it's a good way to try out the bentonite clay)

I've decided that I want to be that crazy herb lady someday. Or just the crazy lady who has the information or an answer for almost any question people might have on homesteading and the like...herbs is just a way to get started, in my opinion.

Anyway...I think I've rambled enough for one night. It's been a long day--a long week--and next week doesn't look to be slowing down much either. *drags off to bed*