next on the list: the office

Usually I am in bed by now, because by this point in the day, my mind shuts down and I drift off to sleep. And I'm old. Today, however, I had a raging headache, fell asleep for 3 hours, then thought it would be a brilliant idea to have two caffeinated cups of tea at 7PM. Biiiiiiiiiiiiig mistake.

It is now after midnight and my mind has transformed into a friggin' craft circus.
WHAT PROJECT SHOULD I DO NEXT? It keeps saying. Painting? Sculpture? Quilting? Glass? Dental crap? Nah... I think I'm into redecorating my office space.

OK. When I say redecorate, I'm not talking about getting rid of my treasured shit in favor of new fancy shit that I won't use purely for the vanity of it. I love my space and my shit. But lately the dark orange paint is getting on my nerves. The room has always been dark orange, I never 100% liked it, but I worked around it. Now it just seems heavy as hell.

Like when you go to a restaurant, your eyes are bigger than your stomach and you get everything covered in Alfredo sauce, type of heavy. After awhile you stop and think, oh man... I can't take any more of this f***ing sauce.

My gosh, take a look at all this shit. There's a damn pig under my desk.

So here is what I'm thinking. Lose the dark orange. I think I'm going to do a faux-brick white-washed wall on the only exterior wall, which also has a window... goodbye forever to the stupid brown blinds, because I f***ing hate blinds. The desk is going to change a little. It's going to have some areas fixed because a bunny nibbled the bottom. Also, all of the cubby-areas that were painted orange will go white, or a sunny yellow color. The sliding stained glass panels... I might do another set in shards of light colors that I have collected over the years.

One wall will hopefully be just floor to ceiling art. I don't want to loose all the colors I have in here... just lighten the walls to make it feel bigger. Some furniture will have to be rearranged... things will get cleaned out, reorganized or donated. I'm not sure on the closet space yet. I made a shelving unit in there and everything behind it is that damn dark orange. Maybe I should just not cut corners, take it down, repaint and assemble again.

The ties will be hung and color coordinated. LIKE YOU HAD ANY DOUBT ABOUT THAT.

Not sure where I should start, to be honest. Maybe with just repairs of the desk first, and go from there. I think this will be a pretty cheap but very dramatic change for the better!

much success! a guide for goal achievement and such

So lately I've been hitting some of the goals I set out for myself, like paying off my student loans, making fun stuff for people, and .... that might be the entire list. (high five ya'll)  People have been asking me "DAMN JILL, how you be doing that?"** So I thought I'd share some tips on how to, you know... accomplish goals.

Here are my thoughts:
1. Believe in yourself, damnit. You have no idea what you're capable of, so go ahead and try something new. I was asked this weekend to run a 10k race with a friend. I have never run that far in my entire life. But I had two choices: Yes or no. If I said yes, I'd either fail or succeed. So why not try? And guess what, I did it! Here's another example: I wanted to go to dental hygiene school. But as a nine-fingered 30 year old, I put the doubt in my mind that I would most likely fail. But I also promised myself that I'd do whatever it took to reach my goal. True, I sacrificed a lot. But now I'm a full-time dental hygienist and part time educator. Who would have thought two years ago that I would be where I am today? Honestly, not me. There's no reason why you can't try something new, so stop making excuses!

2. You'll fail sometimes. But who gives a shit if you fail? Most likely, you'll be the only person who gives a shit. But instead of being all pissed off at yourself, just remember: You didn't have to go out on a limb and try. But you did! Be proud of trying something new. It takes balls, and now my friend, you've got balls. Be proud of those balls! Do you think I woke up one day and was like I'M GOING TO SEW A MOTHERF****** QUILT AND MAKE A SHIT TON OF STUFF OUT OF TIES!!!? Nope. Friends, I've been sewing since before I could drive. I've had MANY MANY sewing fails, including a shirt that LITERALLY split open at the seams while I was at a party. I've even machine sewed my thumb by accident. But did I give up? Naaah.

3. If you fail, then don't beat yourself up. You're human, not a damn robot. Life is full of ups and downs. You know the expression when it rains, it pours? Guess what: THAT EXPRESSION IS PURE BULLSHIT. It makes you think that when one shitty thing happens, then other shitty things will pile right on top of it until you're covered in shit. Here's what people don't tell you: The rain brings out the beautiful colors in life, like the brightness of the leaves on trees after a rainstorm. Which means, sure: Bad shit is going to happen. But take a look at everything  around you. When you take a minute to realize how fortunate you really are, the one shitty thing happening can't ruin your day like it use to. 

4. If you want to feel like shit, then go right ahead and feel like shit. Or be happy if you want to be happy. The lesson is, don't let anyone tell you how to feel. You're your own person. Don't let others dictate your feelings or make you feel small.

5. Treat others how you want to be treated. You know how I go around being nice to everyone? Guess what? It's because I'd also like people to be nice to me.  I have a real problem with people that are shitty to others, either because they judge a book by their cover, they are prejudice against their race, religion, sexual orientation, or hell, because they're nerdy, overweight, skinny or whatever the case is. We're all human, damnit: Nothing makes you superior to the person you're judging.

So, that's my life advice. Technically I'm allowed to give advice now that I'm in my thirties. But hey, just remember: You're taking advice from a person who has zits, twirls, wears children's hats, gets nose bleeds, hangs out with butterflies and mimics a child eating ravioli. You're welcome.

**More like, "good for you", and no mention of a question asking me how I did these things. 

MOTHER mold

I worked hard to get the first part of the plaster mother mold finished on Monday night. I built up a bed  underneath my rubber mold so I could work on it horizontally instead of vertically. I WISH I DID THIS IN COLLEGE. Because it was so much f***ing easier to do than working on it vertically! I built up cut walls that extended about... oh, one inch or so from the edge of rubber mold, and made a running key. (This will ensure that the second part of the plaster mold will align and lock into the first part. HUZZAH!) I mixed by first batch of plaster and applied the first "splash" coat: It's just a super even, thorough coat of plaster. Once it hardened, I started making my hemp birds-nests.

You're probably like... dafuq? Check it. I mixed up my second batch of plaster, dipped one of these 'birds-nests' into the plaster, then applied it to the mold. This will give the mold a bit more girth and strength. I actually had to mix up a third batch because the birds-nests soaked up so much moisture from the plaster!

top, l: plastalina cut walls w/keys. top, r: plaster mold setting. bottom, l: side one, finished! bottom, r: another view!

After about an hour, I stood the mold up, got rid of the plastalina cut walls, and cleaned up the edges of the plaster mold.

Yesterday, I was going to do the second half of the mold, but I was working on homework, then ate steak and lost all of my ability to function like a human being. Tonight, I need to make sure to apply A LOT of coats of Muphy's Oil Soap to the edge of the existing plaster mold before I start the second part. This will put a barrier in between the two parts of the mold, and they won't stick together.

VERY. IMPORTANT. STEP.

Then, I'll throw on the second part of the mold and be done! With the mold that is. I still need to cast in resin. I'm hoping to do that one of these nights.

So little time.

rubber molds in the summer heat

So I really didn't document the first part of my mold making process, mostly due to the fact that I had one hand sunk in dental grade alginate. It's hard to maneuver a camera when you have a box attached to you. Ha! That sentence sounded horrible.

But I'm so glad I wrote that entry, because luckily, my college studio-mate pointed out that rubber was a suitable mold to cast resin in, not plaster. So it was back to the drawing board! I had to revise my two-part plaster mold into a two-part rubber mold. Slightly more complicated, but hey... I love mold making, so the challenge was accepted.

So back to Blick I went on Friday, and picked up Smooth-On Rebound 25 rubber and plastalina . But before I could strap on my gloves and mix the rubber, I had to do a little thinking... was I going to just paint the rubber on when the plaster hand was free standing? Or should I work a little more on my prep and make a pour-able mold? The pour-able mold won out by a landslide. Yes, it's a ton more prep-work and there is a slight risk that your mold will bust a leak and rubber will go spewing out all over the place... but the results and the stability of the mold would be worth it. What can I say. I'm a rebel risk taker. Not.

the mold, plastalina and aluminum with keys

On Saturday, I built up a bed of plastalina (it's an oil based clay that doesn't dry or shrink) to rest the hand on in a horizontal position. The one benefit of working with plastalina on a 90+ degree day is that it gets super pliable and soft with the heat. Then I used some aluminum flashing to make a quick and easy flex mold. It's so much easier than cutting and clamping wood together, fo realz. I used the plastalina to fill in the gaps, and to mask the bottom 50% of the plaster hand. Then, I pressed a couple marbles into the clay, and made some indentations to make keys. Keys are super important, because they will ensure that the mold aligns properly when you're ready to cast. Sounds easy, but that prep work literally took me five hours.

I sprayed the mold quickly with Ease Release so that the rubber wouldn't adhere to the plaster hand. Then it was all measuing, mixing and pouring from there! The Rebound 25 is a great 1A:1B ratio, so it takes the guesswork out of measuring. The first part of the mold came out better than I expected, so Saturday was a win in my book!

pour #1 after it had set for 12 hrs. ready to de-mold!

top left: before removing plastalina. top right: after. bottom: rubber with keys clearly a success!

On Sunday, I completed the second pour of rubber. I basically did the same steps all over again... built up a bed of plastalina, secured the aluminum flex mold, mix, pour, wait. When the rubber had set, I stood the hand/rubber mold up. I noticed that all of the plaster on the base of the hand wasn't covered, so I decided to mix a small batch of rubber and cover it up. Totally worth it in my books. I'll add some pics of that with my next post.

Today I'm hoping to make the first 1/2 of the plaster mother mold. Wish me luck!

don't be jerky.

While I was in the midst of being proud of my increased sewing productivity on Sunday night, I noticed that my trusty sewing machine was getting a little loud. Actually it was getting A LOT loud. I guess it kinda sounds like this: k'chunk, k'chunk, K'CHUNK, k'chunk, K'CHUNK... And it was jerky.

NO NO NO. Not JERKY. You know, JERKY!

[jur-kee] characterized by jerks or sudden starts; spasmodic.

It also started shaking as the speed of the stitch got progressively higher. I think my poor machine was trying to tell me something: So I decided to take my pride n' joy to Modern Vac & Sew for a little tune up. I'm sure it will be well worth it for the amount of sewing I do. I'm going to call them later today to find out the diagnosis, and hopefully they might give me a time frame on when I can pick it up!

Last night I started piecing together the wine bags. And I'm glad I did, because it took me about two hours to pin the straps and the interior fabric to the exterior! And, since I had extra tie-ends, I ended up piecing together nine new bags. Now when I get my machine back, I'll be ready to roll!

WANT.

Photo courtesy of the amazing Allie Brosh: Hyperbole and a Half

I've been on a clean-the-house kick. What does this have to do with art, you ask? Well, damn! Hold on bro', I'll get to it... I've been washing walls, baseboards, spackling, painting, touching up shit and basically making things look and smell all kinds of fresh. I still don't know why I'm on such a kick, it probably has to do with how distracted I get. But once I fix stuff up, then I start thinking about decorating. That's like, a natural girl-thing to do right? I'm such a cliché.

So anywho, my BIG fix-up project will be our third floor. I probably won't even start it until the winter, so it makes me wonder why I'm thinking about it so much. It's an enclosed loft-ish space with a damaged ceiling, a bad paint job, and ceiling fan that looks like it might fall off at any moment. Not to mention the Moe damage. My fuzzy bunny has basically chewed his way around the room, gnawing at the baseboards and any wooden furniture standing in his adorable way. It's adorably horrible.

Now usually when I plan out these projects, I start by mapping out a course of attack: Estimating the amount of rollers I'll need, how much spackle, the paint color, blah blah. But yesterday, again for some friggin' reason unknown, I was all like "I really want to hang up a bunch of really funny or crappy cross stitches up there once I'm finished painting." And then a monster was born. And the monster was called Jill Looks On Etsy All Day For Geeky Cross Stitches.

And here is only some of what I found.
My God. The creativity is just amazeballs.

Hey Girl, by DefiantDamsel

Clerks II, by DefiantDamsel

Don't Do Coke, by knitforvictory

 

Dat Shit Cray, by LaughingStitchesByC



Moonrise Kingdom, by bobby2scoops

YOU IS FINE, by OhTriviality

Shut Up And Make Me A Sammich, by Stitcharific

NYAN CAT, by risibleitinerant

I could literally keep going all day. I think I might be getting obsessed. If you're looking to purchase me an obligatory wedding present, consider a wacky cross stitch. I'd rather have those than new dishes.  See? I told you the back story about all the cleaning shit was worth something.

glasstacular!

Recently, a dear friend of mine asked me this: Would I be interested in making a stained glass window as a present for her sister's wedding? I promptly answered no. HAH! Fooled you. Of course I said yes, could you ever believe I turned that down? Silly goose.

My first task was to take measurements. There are four windows in their main living area, which let in a beautiful amount of light to the open space. After talking with the two nearly-weds, it was decided that two hanging panels would be created for the inner-most windows. I settled on the measurement of 11x20 per panel, and will eventually create a 1-1/2" frame, making the total dimension 14x23.

 When designing something that is obviously not for yourself, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. Firstly, like I already stated, you are not designing it for yourself: Your likes and dislikes may come into play and influence the final piece, but it should not dictate the design. It was really important for me to ask them what they would like... and of course what they would not like. You don't want to spend all your time and effort making a giant peacock out of glass and find out that they hate birds. Then your friend who asked you to do this is no longer your friend because you asked her to pay for the failure peacock glass and she said no. And the couple is obligated to hang the glass, which eventually causes them to fight to the point where they divorce.  The glass gets sold at an auction for $5.00, and you're living in van down by the river, warning others about peacocks and glass. FAILURE. After conferring with them, they did both point out something I found interesting: The painting hanging across the room that the both admired: It was a copy of Gustav Klimt's The Kiss. They also mentioned that besides neutral colors, they both liked pops of color, like blue and red.  It's an awesome coincidence that both colors appear in the painting, and I drew further ideas from that as well.

My next task was to design the actual window itself. Well... windows, since there are two panels. I decided to study the painting, just concentrating on the lines and shapes.  I came up with a geometric, mirror-image non-representational design that I hope they'll really like.  I will try to morphs the design a little along the way while I'm working on it. I'd like to see some more lines and circles appear so the two panels look slightly different.  (I'd share the design, but I want it to be a surprise!)

I also made a test selection of Spectrum glass colors for the panels, all inspired by The Kiss. Tomorrow I'll be prepared for my shopping adventure, since I'll be driving to Warner Stained Glass up in Allentown, PA to pick out the colors.  If you haven't been there, it's quite a sight to see, and they have a remarkably HUGE selection.  Here's to new projects, and I'll keep you updated along the journey!

i'm drowning in fabric.

Holy hell.  There's so much fabric... so so much fabric.  Let me tell you what I did which the oodles of fabric this weekend. I went home and began bundling my fabrics, but the stack fell on top of me.  I survived the weekend by eating mother's preserves and retained my sanity by dribbling a basketball that was barely within reach of my one free hand.  I made a game of it.  Seeing how many times I could bounce the ball in a day, then trying to break that record.  When the police came to search the house, I called out, but they didn't hear me.  Desperate, I used a little fourth-grade chemistry to build a rocket, which I attached to a vacuum cleaner cord.  I launched the rocket which wrapped around a support beam.  I then switched on the cord retraction on the vacuum cleaner, which pulled me to safety.

No, not really.  That's from an episode of The Simpsons.  I'm actually really excited about my progress, although it sounds super boring: All of my fabric (5 1/2 yards of muslin and about 8 yards of assorted scrap fabric) was rinsed, dried and pressed.  I even took the time to rinse like colors together.  I don't even do that with my own laundry.  I cut the muslin down methodically: first into sixteen 11"x45" strips.  Then each strip was cut into seven 5-1/2"x11" strips... then into two hundred twenty-four 5-1/2"x5-1/2" blocks.  Lemme tell you: ROTARY CUTTERS ARE AMAZING.  Sounds like a lot of work, doesn't it?  Well, according to the directions I'm following, it's not.  I'm on step 2.

PS... I have this thing to do at work that I've been putting off since last Thursday.  I'm trying to do it now, but it's just too boring.  I know I'll get it done today... but I keep thinking about how cool the quilt will be.  OK... I wrote that last bit around 11:30.  It's now 12:46 and I still haven't done it yet.  But I did get a cup of coffee.  Now it's 12:53.  Maybe I'll just try tomorrow.

frustrated.

I've been trying to upload a damn photo of my damned stained glass, and I can't get the damned thing to upload in the right direction.  DAMNIT damnity damn.  I've been so friggin' frustrated this week (and by this week I mean pretty much all of last week, this past weekend and today) with my lack of... well, ANYTHING!  I had all these lofty plans to do SOMETHING and basically none of it got done.  Trying to demo the backsplash in the kitchen?  Fail.  Starting the mounting for the stained glass?  Fail.  Starting the two little side-by-side paintings?  Semi-fail.  Exercise?  BIG FAIL.

I need to get my friggin' act together.  Today.  NOW.  These are my plans.
Work:  Retype all the recipes I've printed out the past year.  Yes, you read that right.  I will do this at work.
Gym:  I will run 3.1 miles and stretch like hell before and after.
Art: I will paint the negative space on the side-by-side paintings.
I will also research where to by the solder patina I need.
I will also revise my stained glass frame drawings, as I was stupid and did not measure the glass before.  I thought each panel was 10x10.  Yeah, it's actually only 9x9.

Time to hold my self accountable for stuff.  Time to get this shit done.

I need his help.

sketchy sketchums.

This morning in an attempt to play catch-up, I was going to blitz through all of my work and write a new blog post!  My attempt was thwarted however, when I got into work and realized that the phones are down.  And so is my internet connection.  Then to my obvious joy and delight, I saw my USB thingy sitting in my purse.  Therefore I am typing this post at work, and I’ll upload it later from home.  Don’t be jealous of my brain skillz.

So no, I did not get in my copper foil over the holiday weekend.  But that didn’t stop my productivity!  Would you like to hear what I did?  OF COURSE YOU DO!  Why else would you be reading the ramblings of a crazed hamburger-addicted girl?  (I had three hamburgers over the weekend, now I have meatbrainitis.) 

I sketched out a design for two small paintings that I would like to do.  The canvases I have are 5”x5”, and the design flows from one panel to the other.  I’ve been fiddling with similar design patterns for awhile, and it’s something I’m excited about!  Think organic/geometric windows with a touch of intestines.  You read that correctly.  I’m still debating what medium to use (acrylic or oil) but I know that I’d like to somehow incorporate wax.  Should be a fun project to start later on!

I also rustled up four paintings that I completed a while ago.  I’d like to look into getting frames for them and hanging them up around the house.  One painting will have a standard frame, but the other is a triptych.  I don’t know what my obsession is with triptychs, but it looks like that one will have to be custom made too.  Damnit.

I started drawing a design for the light box that I’ll be building to house my stained glass piece.  I really hope that I can plan this out and execute it properly.  I might need more brain skillz to figure this one out.  Or maybe another hamburger?

And lastly, I am going to be starting a tie-messenger bag for my sister!  She’s in her last year of grad school, so I thought I’d make her something pretty that she can bring to class.  I hope I can sketch out the right dimensions and make it work!

schnitzel, stained glass and hurricanes.

Holy schnitzel Batman!  I fell off my blogging wagon for a couple of days.  Many apologies.  I figured I'd do a brief recap of my extravagant filled birthday weekend.  And by extravagant, I mean hurricane/tornado induced hysteria.  Onwards!

Thursday was my 28th birthday.  It was also the 10 year anniversary of my first day of college.  It was also the 28th anniversary of my mom's c-section.  I thought I'd throw that in there since she's always asking me if I want to see her scar.  I find myself getting off track of this recap in mammoth proportions.  Onwards, once more!

My day was spent yelling at stained glass and crafting with my good friend Lauren.  After telling the stained glass to go f*** itself numerous times, we carried on to Michael and made a quick stop at the Salvation Army.  I got some supplies at both places for my next project... secrets, secrets!!  I spent the rest of the weekend tracking the hurricane, succumbing to tornado warning instructions, and riding my bike taking videos of the flooding and damage.  I also watching numerous episodes of gypsy weddings.  That s*** is ridiculous.

I realize that I haven't set a goal for myself to actually finish cutting and foiling The Beast... I'll say by Sunday, September 3rd.  The design has changed slightly, but I still think it embodies much of what I want it to.  Look at me, using big words!   This post also feels naked, so I think I'll just upload a picture of myself.  Your welcome.

PS... the cucumber soup tasted like glorified vomit.

foiling the beast.

left panel

You know what I just realized? I can type in different colors if I want. It's about to get silly up in here. ... on second thought, no it's not. That took me entirely too long to type. Screw colors.

right panel

Last night I finished cleaning and foiling the right panel pieces that I had previously cut. Tonight I'm going to finish up the pieces in the middle panel, which I already cleaned last night. Then... onto cutting the new pieces... SHIT, that is scary! I'm terrified of messing up.  Maybe I should do some practice pieces first so I don't throw a fit if I break a piece. Good idea...

beginning the beast.

As of yesterday, I re-started working on the stained glass piece... I think from now on, I'll just call it The Beast.  Here is my original sketch for the piece:

The sketch was made before I went glass shopping, but luckily most of the colors are almost exactly the same. I chose opaque glass for the project for one main reason: The triptych will eventually be back-lit, so I thought using opaque glass would give the piece a really unique glow.  However, I couldn't find an opaque glass in the purple/fushia category, so I decided to go with a deep fushia translucent glass.  I thought it would contrast really nice with the opaque colors, and will definitely give a focal point to the finished piece.

Here is what I'm starting with.  The pieces that are in white are the ones that have already been cut.  All of the spots that are blank... well, those are the ones that I still need to cut.  The blue and black glass is still on back-order for the time being (FROWN) but I check the site every day to see if it's back in stock.

In the meantime, I'm going to clean and foil all of the pieces I have already cut.  Yesterday I finished the left panel.  I forgot to take a picture though... I hope to get them all cleaned and foiled by Wednesday, which is my first goal date.  I'm hesitating on setting a final goal date until I can get my hands on the materials I need.  Don't judge me.

MUST CONQUER THE BEAST!!!!!!
(that's what she said.)

hot sauce and bunnies.

I just realized how sad my other posts look without pictures.  So here's a shot of me gazing into the future and reading the words that you're seeing here.  Nah, I'm just thinking about cookies, fried chicken and hot sauce.  I had two of the three for lunch today.  Guess which?!

Last night I sewed the bases for both purses and fully completed the front panels, buttons and all.  High five!!  I even had time to choose the tie flap (which will be sewed to the back panel) and cut out the fabric for the back panels, too.  I'm working hard to get back on track to finish up everything by my goal date of August 21st.

As I mentioned, my next project will be to complete a stained glass piece that I started back in April of last year, and promptly abandoned one month later in May.  There were two main reasons that I put the project on hiatus.  A handful of the pieces are extremely complex to cut, and at the time I was not successful in scoring and breaking those pieces properly.  I quickly exhausted my glass supply on mistakes.  Also, my bunny Moe developed a habit of running and jumping on to my kitchen table where I was working.  Twice, he skidded onto the table and sent glass pieces a'flyin and a'breakin.  But I can't stay mad at my fluffybuns.  How could you stay mad at this?

This glass project cannot be rushed: But when it comes time to do so, I will set a goal date.  I have run into a little snag so far: Two of the colors that need are currently out of stock, and they cannot be placed on back order.  I'm not sure how this will affect the piece, or my ability to reach my goal.  But I guess we'll see when I start it up again! 

f-f-f-f-f-faaaaaaaaaaaaaaail.

Yesterday was a whole bunch of fail.  But I feel oddly content about it.  Maybe because I was busy until 11pm at night doing other things I mentioned in my post yesterday... grocery shopping, going to the gym, cooking, spending time with friends and family and (oh joy!) banking.

The gnocchi was a fail.  The whole dinner was pretty much a soupy-potatoey mess.  It was still pretty tasty... But the two hours I wasted on making glorified mashed potatoes was a downer.  Sewing the bases/straps to the purses?  Fail.  Didn't do it.  Making a list of the supplies I need for the glass?  Win!  I ended up ordering 1/2 of the things I needed because... FAIL, two of the items are OUT OF STOCK.  Let's hope that I can actually get those piece of glass, or I will be in big trouble on the next project.  On the plus side, I ordered a new glass cutter, too.  I'm hoping that it will help cut down on the glass breaking into pieces after I score it.

Today there will be no time to work on those projects because... WIN, I'm going to the Phillies game with the DTGP's. 

balancing act.

Something just hit me.  No, not a flying tomato nor was it Lou.  It's this: My next goal date for completing two new purses is August 21st.  In between now and then, I'll have only two nights during this week to work on them.  I might have some time on the weekend, but I'm not quite sure as to how much I'll have.  Could this be a potential problem?

I want to be able to successfully set goals and meet them, but how does one balance those tasks with other daily responsibilities?  Grocery shopping, work (HAH), spending time with friends and family, going to the gym, personal upkeep... hey, I like to try to look nice every once and awhile!  Don't judge me for wanting to color my hair and paint my nails blue. 

Maybe for this project, I'll set smaller daily goals to see if I can accomplish them.  Today I'll be sure sew the ties for the base/straps together and make a list of things to order for the stained glass.  Of course, I'll be doing all of this after I make AND EAT my first batch of handmade gnocchi, with spicy sausage and Swiss chard.  See details below.

great success!

s-u-c-c-e-s-s, that is how you spell success.

TA-DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!  Peppers added and painted in, varnished and ready to go! I'm excited that I've finished project #2, and I'm ready to conquer the next battle!  I decided to sew another two tie-purses as my 3rd task.  I'm hoping that while I'm doing that, I can take a look at my stained glass project and figure out what other supplies and materials I'll need to finish the job.  Hopefully by the time I'm done the purses, I'll have those materials in hand and I can begin to finish what I started!  I'll set my next goal date for finishing the purses as..... August 21st.  Let the great experiment begin...

distractions.

Today I decided to start a blog to chronicle the things that could inspire me... I wonder if chronicle is the right word to use there?  Any who, moving right along... there are so many things I encounter every day: Sounds, sights, flavors, textures.  But sometimes I still lack the drive to create and craft about these interesting things.  Why is that?  Here's one answer I thought of.

Sometimes I tend to go on crafting binges.  Maybe I'm a bi-polar crafter.  (No offense to people with bi-polar disorder, obviously.)  And by that I mean, I'll go crazy getting supplies, planning out and starting a new project.  I'll start creating, get excited... then slack off and not finish.  Why can't I finish what I've started and why do I lack the drive I need?  And why (OH WHY) do I get so distracted by the Food Network?!  Maybe because right now, I'm on a cooking and grilling binge.  Seriously, creating art you can eat is almost as satisfying as seeing your painting hanging on a wall.  And it's delicious.

Well, that's where Mr. Blog comes in.  Maybe I'm just not taking it all in like I use to.  That's what she said.  Sorry, I had to put that in there.  That's what she said.  OK, I'LL STOP.  My thoughts are this: Stop and look around every once and awhile... that rusty piece of shit car... look at the colors and textures!  Can I emulate those in an encaustic painting?  How about the piece of bark that's falling off the tree, or the texture of the bark on my skin?  Can those things inspire me to finish my current project and stop slacking off?  Hopefully I can can chronicle them all here.  See?  Chronicle was the right word in the first place.

So what is my inspiration for the day?  Right now it's a mural I'm assisting on downtown.  I'm really excited to go down there and help.  It makes me think about projects that I'd like to do, too.  And in the end, isn't that what keeps me going?  The thoughts about what could be done in the future, while enjoying things now and still living in the present?  I hope so.  We'll see, shall we?