Good Friends

Tonight I had a few girlfriends over to play games.  It was just a small group of us, but I had the most wonderful time.  You know how good it feels when you are around honest, open, and good people?  It makes you just almost giddy inside to connect with others who "get" you.  I'm soooooo thankful for the many friends Heavenly Father has blessed me with in my life, and hope to always continue cultivating those and new friendships.

Similarly, last weekend a group of 8 of us went on a retreat to Tyler Texas' Memory Lane Inn.  The Inn is an old early 1900 house that has been completely renovated inside.  It was GORGEOUS and comfortable.  We had such a wonderful time together.  We may not have gotten as much crafting done as we would have liked, but it's all about the camaraderie, right?  My recently published friend (can you tell how proud of her I am?), Alisa Noble was my suite mate (she's so easy to stay over with--no snoring, not an overly light sleeper.)  Also part of our awesome group were Marie Jenkins (an amazing talented lady who knows a lot about living); Cami Dilsaver (a strong, independent woman with a heart the size of Texas...and then some);  Liesl Milford (a Louisiana-bred hoot and a holler all rolled up into one funny gal) Dana Suza (truly and ARTIST--she sees life through an amazing pair of eyes), and Shannon Martinson (Pink Fish Designs jewelry crafter).  Most of these gals are friends I met just from being involved in various art groups and projects in the area.  I am always in awe of the creative talent that surrounds me.  I even get envious at times--but then I have to remember we all have different talents.  I, for example, have excellent penmanship.

But the best part of the retreat wasn't just being there for 3 days devoted wholly to creating, although that in itself is pretty noteworthy.  The amazing stories I heard from these women's lives filled me with such gratitude and admiration.  As I listened to one lady recount the horror of her son being burned by a car explosion in a mechanic shop (and the months and months of pain and hardship they went through afterward),  I felt such a love for this woman.  The things she'd gone through had been really really hard, but she was so gracious and strong in sharing.  I admire the strength she's gained from going through this, and other difficult life challenges.  I also felt my heart fill with compassion as I listened to another woman recount a part of her life when her children were very young.  Her husband, unfortunately, chose to take his own life, leaving behind a family with no form of support.  It wasn't enough that she had to fight through the grief, sorrow, and even anger of the situation.  On top of that, she was then faced with the realization that she was the SOLE provider for these young babes.  I listened to her stories of the multiple jobs she took on, just to provide food and shelter for the children--going down the way, pulling her kids in a wagon, trying to sell dried flowers.  At one point, even her own brother-in-law and his wife tried to come and "help" her by offering to take her newborn baby off her hands.  Can you imagine?  She clung tightly to those little ones and never slept more than a few hours a night, making sure she did everything in her power to keep them safe and well.  When I see a woman overcome such hardship and not only survive, but come out victorious, I am filled with the deepest feelings of respect and kinship for her.  It makes me feel better as a woman, to know there are others out there who have difficult life problems, but are overcoming them beautifully.  It's as if they're saying, "We're all in this together, Honey."

To See My Creation in a Larger Format, Please Click Here

As I'm going along in my life trying to overcome problems new and old, it's such a boost to my spirit to be with other women who are facing their own challenges--but are succeeding.  I'm thankful to those who open their hearts up wide enough for me to have a peek inside and share with them.  That is such a privilege.

Catching Up on Creativity

Lately I've been in a "finish it" mood.  I've got dozens (no exaggeration) of crafty projects either unfinished or still in a "to do" pile.  In an effort to organize, I've been trying to finish these projects up little by little.  Besides, I paid good money for the classes to learn how to create the project.  It's like money wasted if I don't actually CREATE the project.  So, today I am showing you a few of the projects I finished this weekend.

LE BELLE BOUTIQUE

This was the only class I took at Paper Cowgirl this year.  Cindy Gilstrap is an oh-so-talented lady who lives just down the road in McKinney TX.  Incidentally, she will be teaching this class again in October at one of our favorite vintage-inspired boutiques, Smitten, on the downtown McKinney square.

The skirt of the dress was created from strips cut from a vintage dress pattern.  I inked the edges with chestnut roan colored ink before gluing them to the styrofoam half dressform adhered to the canvas.  I believe Cindy mentioned that Cerri of Little Pink Studio sells these at her shop.

On the bodice, I used old primary school lined paper Cindy brought with her.  I liked the pinstripe effect they brought to the dress.  This spoke vintage French fashion to me.  Additionally, I decided to create a neck ruffle and pearl "buttons" to complete the blouse.  I really like how those little details added something special to the outfit.

I surely liked the finished product.  Thanks, Cindy!  Now, if I could ever get my dining room makeover complete, I'd have somewhere to hang this cutie.

PRIMITIVES

My other big project I completed this weekend was my "Prim" doll.  A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to be able to attend an AMAZING 3-day workshop at "The Church" in Dallas.  Debbie and Shea are the most talented and gracious ladies around.  If you haven't heard of them, they're this mother-daughter duo from California, who we were lucky enough to receive a few years ago in our Texas Heartland.  Shea's husband is in real estate and together, they had the vision to restore an old broken down Methodist church (we're talking, windows shot out, animals living inside, rusty plumbing) into an unforgettable studio and home.   Aside from being astounded by the beauty and grace of their home, I enjoyed great friends, great food, and great classes during the retreat.  Colleen Moody taught us how to make a doll, like the "Prims" she is known for.  It was actually a pretty arduous task and took more time than most "class projects" do.  But, I'm not complaining.  I feel like I really LEARNED something completely new for the first time.  Though I didn't complete my doll at the retreat, I finally got her finished up this weekend!  I'm thrilled that I even managed to get the wings sewn on properly.  

Here is the overall finished product.

This is really my favorite part:  the underdress stuff.  I used a sleeve from a dress I'd had, to create her bodice and hanging down slip under her skirt.  Under her slip are a pair of bloomers I fashioned from another odd piece of clothing I had.  It had chenille dots and delicate tat work that made for lovely bloomer legs.   My mom would be so proud of my bird wearing a slip, as she thinks it's immodest the way nowadays most women (including myself) fail to wear slips under their dresses.

Here you can see the back of my bird's dress.  What initially attracted me to the sleeve I used as the bodice (which just happened to fit around her perfectly) were the little pearl buttons.  They were the perfect thing!  I added some velvet trim to the top of the bodice (which was really just cheap Wal-mart ribbon I had soaked in    a potion of red food color and brown tea to get that perfect peachy color.)  I also had a piece of CZ chain I'd received from the generous Shea to add a little BLING BLING.  Jewelry always completes a look, in my opinion.

And the "crowing" achievement:  her crown.  The base is Dresden trim.  I added vintage accordian folded sheet music, a vintage pin, a few "diamonds" and my favorite color of Stickles--Platinum.  My crown is actually quite basic compared to some of the crowns the other ladies created for their birds!

Any ideas for names?  She needs a name.  I can't just keep calling her "bird".  

So, that's it for now, but I've got other projects to finish and blog about.  I'll keep you posted!

Friendship

Today I just wanted to state how very thankful I am for good friends.  Really good friends.  Friends who love me for ME.  I don’t have to pretend I’m something more than what I am.  They accept me with all my faults and love the good they see in me.  It’s hard to find friends like that when you’re an adult.  I’m so thankful Heavenly Father has blessed me with great and lasting friends.  Their love and kindness give me strength when I am weak and make my heart feel lighter when it is weighed down with sorrow and discouragement.  Thank you to my friends for your love.  You know who you are.  At least, I hope I’ve let you know how much I love and appreciate you so you DO know who you are.

Thinking of how thankful I am for friendship, I altered a couple of Vintage cards with two quotes that I like.  (Click on image to see it larger / more clearly.) Enjoy.



And a fun one:

Creatively Challenged?

Ever feel creatively challenged?  Can’t seem to get your mo-jo flowing?  What causes you to feel this lack of inspiration?  What do you do to alleviate these symptoms? 

I think we all must surely go through this at times. It's part of being a creative personality.  Just like a performer, no one can exhibit her talent all the time!  That's not even reasonable to expect of ourselves.  I know I've been ever-guilty of thinking I had to create a marvelous work of art each and every time I go into my studio.  Not so.  (Heck, I’m lucky if I can create a marvelous work of art ONE in ten times I go into the studio!) 

One thing that I've noticed works for me is to (borrowing a phrase from Nike) "just do it."  That is to say that when I'm not feeling the least bit inspired, I often just get into my studio and make myself work on something more mundane. Maybe it's just organizing my space. Or perhaps it's just picking up that old project I've been meaning to finish but was too "inspired" doing other things to mess with. Whatever the case, when I tell myself that I'm not really "creating" per se, I find that I can get started. And wouldn't you know, before I have a chance to realize it, that fickle ol' creativity sneaks in and I'm off and running again! Happens every time! 

Thanks to Debbie Mumm for the pictures!  Don’t you  just love her cute images?!