Soul Song Sunday: These Waters

Part of my goal for 2016: Shine, Soul Song Sunday posts will feature some expression of my spiritual thoughts or feelings of late. Poetry, prose, image, quote, or song, these posts will be my imperfect hallelujah, and open prayer.

Tonight I am sharing a poem which was inspired by a few words spoken in church last week, words which caught my ear and grew to something within me. Here is that something.


These Waters

These waters are washing our

homes into the fields and the

fields, the red rocks, the heathered hills

into our homes.

These waters are rising above our

fault-lines and sight-lines and

love-blinds. Our eyes are

turning starward, Godward,

holy silent cries.

Give me stilts to stand on.

Give me cupped hands to bail.

Light the striatious places with un-fleeting light.

Let my child and my neighbor be among the

survivors when

These waters are receding, riven clans and

fractured nations deep in mending pull. And

aired, dried we lie down in the Sun.

Love,

Words, and the Power Thereof

I love words. This is not news. I have spent a good portion of my life choosing my words, both written and spoken, carefully, sometimes getting it wrong but, I'd like to think, more often than not, choosing words which uplift, paint images of beauty, and inspire. Words have power. They are magic, of a sort. The new novel I began writing this summer is based on that theme. And, though it has been set aside in deference to personal crises for several painful months (see previous post), I am beginning to feel the power of the words calling to me again. 

Ira Glass said that to become great at an art, whether writing or any other form, one must produce a huge volume of mediocre work-in other words, practice work- before mastering that art. And that's total muddled paraphrasing; my apologies Ira. But the gist is that, as I prepare to go back to school as a an English major with an emphasis in creative writing, as I get back to work on my second novel, as I tell people that I hope to work in the book publishing industry, calling my daily to-do lists and one-sentence quasi-daily journaling my "writing" will no longer suffice. I tend to write in bursts, cycling through several weeks of productivity, poetry, outlines, and actual manuscripts, before succumbing to the demands of ordinary life and losing my momentum, which, once lost, is so nimble and flighty a being as to be difficult to capture once more. As in all things, I struggle to find a balance. 

Goal: post a snippet here daily, whether a sample of some fiction from my past or present writing life, the result of a writerly exercise, or the unsolicited opinions and advice and deep thoughts I typically share. Anything more expansive than a to-do list. 

Will you hold me to it, blogland? I do thrive on positive attention and expectations. 

xo

Saturday Market Photography

     Recently, my sweet hubby and I took a risk. We took a big risk. after almost twelve years of saying "We're going to do this someday," we closed our eyes and jumped... and started a photography business of our own.
     Brian has always been a photographer. Me? I have always had equal passions for both writing and all forms of visual arts. It's often been difficult for me to choose one path to pursue... I learned the medium of photography (and learned to love it almost as much as he does) by photographing alongside him. We used to work together for a studio in California and the first time we shot a wedding side-by-side we knew it was something we might like to do for ourselves someday. So when we decided together, three months or so ago, that the time had come for this...I decided to narrow the range of things I was pursuing on my own* (most of them half-heartedly; how many ways can a mind and heart divide?) and be in this with him. Together.
     Note to readers: Being a self-employed family = hard. Finding out we're pregnant two months after opening business = extra hard. Forging ahead anyway = what feels right.
     How does it work, you ask, working with your spouse? When we can each be humble enough to acknowledge that he is better at some things and she at others...it works pretty well. Weddings, we photograph together. High School Seniors, Families, Engagements? That's him. I have a better way with children and newborns, and am hoping to soon shoot my first maternity session and birth (ala Lynsey Stone or Patience Salgado). Landscapes, macro art, etc. we both enjoy and have begun to sell at our local downtown Saturday market.
     Which brings me to the whole point of this post. I wanted to share a few shots we did last Saturday, when we set up a background in our market booth and, with the combination of our winning charm and a big sign that said FREE Market Portrait, pulled in some fun families and pairs from the crowd for spur-of-the-moment Mother's Day photographs. This was so much fun. I love to meet new people and get to know their stories... these are some of my favorite shots of the day:

     I hope you, gentle readers, at some point in your lives, get the chance to support someone, and be supported by someone you love in pursuing a dream. It brings joy.

xo

*An explanation: Writing is, and has been for many years, my number one passion and dream (outside of Mammahood). Words still occupy a major portion of my day, everyday. The things I have set aside, for now, are my Etsy shop (more thoughts on the average American consumer's inability to value handmade goods at a later date...), and the opening of my Spoonflower shop. For now, those forms of art will just be for me. 

Operation Quit Pinterest : Abort! Abort!

     Gentle readers, you know I love me some Pinterest. And, web-savvy intellectuals you all are, you probably are also aware of the recent controversy-bordering-on-public-uproar regarding Pinterest's terms of service. If you're not, you can either click these links for three well-written, thought-provoking articles on the topic from Huff Post, Scientific American, and photographer Kirsten Kowalski, OR (and this is obviously the better choice) you can continue reading here and find out how the whole 'To Pin or Not To Pin' movement has affected ME.

 
    Confessedly, I have been hooked on Pinterest from my first login, and I never thought much about the how or why of its existence. It seemed so obvious. Pinterest is pretty. Even if people Pin ugly things, somehow Pinterest remains pretty. And functional and distinctive and clean...all the aesthetic adjectives I love. I signed up, clicked that 'I agree' box on the terms of service without bothering to read them because, seriously, who does? and stayed up way too late Pinning all the pretty things.
   
     I soon recognized the importance of Pinning from the original source (also from the permalink of a blog post rather than the home page of the blog) and tried to always do so. Otherwise, how can anyone find the original designer/creator of an image? (For example, it just took me over half an hour of research to discover the origins of the 'Pin All the Things' comic above--the very funny blog Hyperbole and a Half--and still  I could not post the comic from its original source because no one pinned it from its permalink source code. So annoying!) I never Pinned too many of my own creations or images, as per the (late) Pinterest Rules of Etiquette, and I never said anything mean about anyone else's Pins. In other words, I was a good little Pinner. And Pinterest was good to me. It entertained, it drove traffic here, to my little corner of the blogosphere, it replaced all my cookbooks, and it made me feel all hip and trendy and in the know all at the same time.
   
     But when I woke up one morning last week, Brian was deeply engrossed in an article he told me I wasn't going to like. I had to read it of course; I can't ignore opportunities to turn my nose up in disgust. But he was right. I didn't like it.
   
     The article was another blog post from Scientific American. And it laid out in front of my face all the ugly details of the Pinterest terms of service that I (and so many others) had not bothered to read. Like the sentence that said Pinterest owned exclusive rights to copy, reproduce and sell anything I Pinned, without permission, royalties, or even credit given to the original creator/artist, even if I was Pinning a work that wasn't mine and, therefore, I had no right to relinquish the copyright in the first place. That was the ugliest sentence of all. Copyright is a touchy issue with me and I am a fierce protector of intellectual property rights. If I make it, I think of it, sew it, draw it, design it, write it, photograph it, sing it, film it, etc., then I want the credit. And I want the cash. How could I go on using Pinterest, knowingly giving away other artists' work when I don't even burn CDs or DVDs because that is so obviously wrong?  How many artists had I compromised by Pinning their images, thinking I was helping to promote their art? I had to ask the question Kalliope Monoyios was asking: Did Pinterest exist simply as a means to dupe the public into amassing a giant library of images for the use and monetary gain of a powerful corporation? I made up my mind to quit Pinterest, and blog about it, thereby inspiring 2.5 other people to also quit.
   
     You astute readers may have noticed, however, that this post is titled Operation Quit Pinterest: Abort! Abort! Because a few mornings later I woke up to this lovely email in my inbox:

     I allowed myself a little pajama-clad dance of joy before stopping to wonder...is this enough? Do I know enough about what this email is really saying to trust in Pinterest once again? What are the real intentions behind the legal turns of phrase? By accepting this email at face value am I, essentially, just checking that 'I agree' box without understanding what I am agreeing to one more time?

     

     And that's where I am now. I have, hesitantly and carefully Pinned a very few things in the last couple of days, but I can't seem to muster the same Pin All the Things enthusiasm I used to own with geeky pride. Not yet, anyway. I have some more research (including pondering Glendon Mellow's followup article for Scientific American), and some tedious reading of terms of service to do. I guess Operation Quit Pinterest is not so much aborted as it is put on standby...I'll let you know, blogland. I'll let all 2.5 of you know.

What are your thoughts on the Pinning or lack thereof?

xo

 

Peek!

   Another little sneak peek from my Spoonflower designs! This is one of my favorites. Shop should be open mid-March, and I'm thinking that might call for a giveaway!
 

xo

Mamma In Winter

Dear Blogland Beauties,

    Two days ago, when I began writing this post on being a Mamma in the long days of winter, my perspective was skewed. I was tired. I was letting worries (no more than the common, everyday things) overwhelm me. But just as I was about to click 'publish', something changed. My sweet husband came home and kissed me. I heard our children in the other room playing wildly, but happily, together. And I looked up from my screen to the window to see the thin fingers of an orange sunset veiled by softly falling snow.

   Two days ago, I was here: Breathing deeply and trying to remember that bitter winds and ugly winter muddy-slushiness are no one's fault, least of all my children's. And that if I'm tired, it's my own fault for staying up late, eating ice cream and watching Downton Abbey while wallowing in my own woes.

   I don't know exactly how a kiss, a laugh, and a sunset changed me, but I do know that those small blessings came from one who knows me and knows my needs. I changed my attitude, looked outside myself and found humility in the knowledge that I am loved, and inspiration in the wisdom of so many of you in the blogosphere. What I read and felt gave me the strength to continue to be Mamma (the good version) through the long days of winter once again.

  

 Here are a couple of links to posts I loved:

          :: 100 Ways To Be Kind To Your Child (Creative With Kids)

           :: When Parenting Means Steering Into the Skid (Simple Mom)

   And eventually, spring will come again. I promise.

xo

   

p.s. What do you think of the new blog look? The background = a little sneak peek on my soon-to-be-opened Spoonflower shop. So excited!

My Path

This illustration, from LilyMoon, one of my all-time favorite Etsy artists,

sums up so much of how I feel about my life and its beautiful, but often unexpected turns.

And I definitely feel I have encountered myself on the journey.

I don't know why this just spoke to me today, but there you are. That's the power of great art. To illuminate and illustrate the mortal experience, unite through the commonalities of human nature, and soothe the soul.

I hope you have encountered yourself on your beautiful, unexpected paths.

xo

5 Minutes With a Fabric Designer Part 4

I still have four interviews from Quilt Market that I haven't posted yet! I think I'll get one more in before delving completely into posts on Christmas goodness, craftiness, and general yuletide merrymaking cheer.

How about Mark Cesarik?

Part of an ever-increasing presence of talented men in the traditionally female-dominated sewing/craft and design industry, Mr. Mark Cesarik was showing his second fabric line at fall QM, and was, quite frankly, a refreshingly real person to talk to. (Wait, that sounded like a dis on the other people at QM. It wasn't meant to be, just a compliment to Mark.)
Anyway...

Mark's first line with Free Spirit Fabrics was Calypso Swing (which he used to decorate for his wedding- so pretty!)  and his latest,  Morning Tides is a collection of Zenned-out blues and cheery yellow-oranges with a beachy feel. He and his wife, Cara (also super cool), run a design operative called Sew Bettie over at Spoonflower, and Cara, I hear, is the talented stitcher behind Mark's samples, including this rad (did I just say rad?) embroidery:

Love it.

So, once again, let's enter a world wherein I pretend to be a journalist who has done her research (ha!) and nice people pretend not to notice and talk to me anyway.
Ladies and gents, Five Minutes with Mark Cesarik.

Me: Okay, so I'm talking with Mark Cesarik (am I saying it right?)

Mark: Yup.  Says-uh-rick.

Me: Oh good. Okay and his collection is called  Morning Tides with Free Spirit Fabrics and your first collection was...

Mark: Calypso Swing. A lot of grays and pinks and that was my first at Spring Market in Salt Lake.

Me: Oh, yeah! I know  Calypso Swing. And how was it received?

Mark: Pretty well. I was pretty green...and I'd never done Quilt Market...I didn't know yet a lot of the designers...even the sales reps for Free Spirit didn't even know who I was, so it was just a really good learning experience, but this second time around has been a much better experience, you know...I know people, people know me. I've had a lot more traffic in my booth, it's just...like anything else, I'm getting better at it. I was real green the first time around.

Me: I've noticed there are a lot more men coming into the design industry...

Mark: There are.Yes, me and David Butler and we've got Jay [McCarroll] and, obviously Kaffe [Fasset],  who's like a champion of the industry...yeah it does seem that, you know, when I tell some of my friends that I grew up with who don't have any idea about anything to do with this industry, I tell them I design fabrics and they're like, "Oh...hmmm...well, we're gonna go watch the football game." And, you know, I like that stuff too. But I think that there's a really growing market, not only for women who like to buy more masculine fabrics for men- and I'm not saying that my fabrics are overtly masculine because they're really not-

Me: No, I think they're really universal...

Mark: Yeah, they're kind of androgynous... but I do feel, well, I don't see why there wouldn't be a market for it. Especially when fabric is not just for quilts, but also for apparel and things like that.

Me: Yeah, I feel like the stereotype of this being a women's industry is starting to fall...

Mark: Yeah, and more than that- the stereotype of it being an older women's industry...there really are some really hip people...and that's the thing about Free Spirit too is I think they're right on the cutting edge with the designs they're putting out...because it's really, well I look at it as art.

Me: Yeah. Now your wife said your background is in fine art.

Mark: Yep.

Me: Do you think fine artists are finding more of a...utilitarian outlet through fabric design? Is that what led you  here? A more accessible format?

Mark: Ummm, well I went to the Art Institute of Chicago, I studied painting and drawing, but I found my way...sort of accidentally into this through design- my day job is as a graphic designer. And, yeah I guess it is a really good outlet...for me, it was really natural because of my design background and because, frankly, I'm good at using the kind of software where I can create digital designs- that's my bread and butter. So it was a really natural transition and frankly, the freedom that it allows you is something that's been really rewarding, I mean I literally -when I go into a new collection- I have no restraints...I have nobody telling me what they'd like to see, they just say give me something that we haven't seen.

Me: They want you-

Mark: Exactly-

Me: -all over your designs.

Mark: So that's the beauty about it. I mean I literally feel like I get to doodle for a living.

Me: That's awesome.

Mark: It's really an incredibly rewarding experience. I just start from scratch and I doodle and I see what I come up with- and, even as a graphic designer it's not the same, I mean I'm working under constraints...certain guidelines...and this- I just get to do whatever the heck I want to do. So it's incredibly rewarding...especially when I get the sample yardage. It's really nice.

Me: Okay, so I like to close up with a couple of non-generic questions...so what is your favorite kind of ice cream?

Mark: Ohhh, hmmm...

Me: Or do you even like ice cream?

Mark: Oh, are you kidding? You know, it's hard for me to say a favorite everything, but if I had to choose my  favorite...it would be Ben and Jerry's Milk and Cookies.

Me: Oh, yeeeeah. Yeah that's good stuff.

Mark: Yeah, it's quality...I'm a traditional vanilla and chocolate guy... I like chocolate chip cookie dough...but the Milk and Cookies Ben and Jerry's...it butters my bread.

Me: Awesome. And last one- what is your favorite movie?

Mark: My favorite movie...hmmm...I can give you...

Me: Or book- we can go movie or book.

Mark: Well, again I have a hard time naming one thing, but I'll say...my three favorite. Empire Strikes Back, because not only is it a great movie, but it just takes me to a place...when I was a kid...uh, gotta put Ghostbusters on there...because who doesn't like Ghostbusters?

Me: Yeah, well, who you gonna call?

Mark: Who are  you going to call? Ghostbusters, right? That's the answer. And then...let's see...third favorite- I'm gonna go ahead and put True Romance on there.

Me: True Romance. Okay.

Mark: Because it's a great story and...

Me: Is it visually inspiring to you?
(why do I love that question so much?)

Mark: Uhhhh...viscerally I would say because it's kind of a violent, fast paced movie, but at the heart of it is a love story and just great acting...have you seen True Romance?

Me: (Drat! Found out!) No,  I have not.

Mark: Oh, okay, it's actually sort of a remake of a movie called Badlands with Martin Sheen and Cissy Spacek...it was written by Quentin Tarantino and it's got an amazing cast... you got Gary Oldman, Christopher Walken, Christian Slater is the main character...

Me: Oh, I'm a Christian Slater fan.

Mark: Well, who isn't? Slater. He could've been the modern day Jack Nicholson if he hadn't made bad decisions...movie wise. But yeah, I'd put those three on there and on any given day it might be different...but Empire Strikes Back would be on there for sure because it just takes me back to when I was a little kid.

Me: Yeah, you and my husband would get along.

Mark: Well, we're probably...your husband and I are probably around the same age. I used to dress up as Luke Skywalker, although, as I've gotten older I've learned to appreciate Han Solo more...as you get older you'd rather be Han Solo.

Me: Well, yeah. Because he's the cool one.

Mark: The super cool one. He gets the girls and all that.



Thanks Mark, for taking the time to interview with me- I had a lot of fun. You, dear readers, can learn more about Mr. Cesarik by visiting his website, markces.com (check out his mixed media gallery- I like the elephant) or his blog, markcesarik.blogspot.com.
You know, for some strange reason, I'm craving bread and butter.

xo

Jan Brett Book Love

Maybe it's the snow. 

But it can't be the snow. Because, really there's never a time when we, the dwellers in this little downstairs house don't feel the need to surround ourselves with books. Illustrated books in particular.

But there has definitely been an increase in snuggle-storytime-cat-nap sessions lately...

It must be the snow.

And I find we come back to the illustrators we love again and again: M.Sarah Klise, Maurice Sendak, Holly Hobbie and Lillian Hobban... and always, always, always...Jan Brett.

The Mitten, The Hat, Trouble with Trolls...

...Annie and The Wild Animals, and my faaavorite:

And last Friday night, thanks to my lovely friend Liesel (amazing aspiring illustrator herself), without whom I never would have even heard about the event, the kids and I got to meet her. Not Liesel...well, I mean Liesel was there...but Jan Brett. We got to meet Jan Brett, who was here in Missoula on her Home For Christmas 2011 tour.

Look at us!

As always seems to be the case with me when I meet celebrity-type figures whom I admire (ahem,  the Alison Krauss incident of  '02), I stood there with nothing more intelligent to say than "We are such big fans," and every question I ever wanted to ask her stuck in the back of my throat. Which, I suppose, was not a bad thing for the hundred or so people standing in line behind us, waiting to get their books signed and very politely  not rolling their eyes or groaning while the kids and I took more than our fair share of Ms. Brett's time with our little photo session.

So rather than pepper her with questions like "When did you discover your artistic voice?" or "What made you decide to write and illustrate rather than work with other authors?" or "Why a hedgehog?" I opted to get our signature,  mumble my insipid, generic compliment, and then stand off to the side ogling and taking pictures like a mom-blogger-paparazzi.

And then head outside with Liesel and her kids to grab a shot of the whole crew in front of the Jan Brett tour bus.

Yup, those are signed posters in the kids' hands and Jan Brett buttons on their shirt fronts. We're our own little fan club. And our little club thanks you for stopping in Missoula, Ms. Brett. And for the beautiful, snowy day, snuggle-up stories you've given to us all.

xo

Home Again, Home Again

Hello blogland. I'm home.

True to my word, and despite temptation to do otherwise, I have not written a post in over three weeks. It's been enough to send me into a serious non-blogger mindset (and by non-blogger I mean someone who doesn't photograph everything she makes, does, eats, reads, etc...all while thinking up quirky and clever titles for posts and hearing the content sentences form in her mind). But I'm about to get over that. I might, in the next few weeks, have to backtrack and share a couple of the things I was tempted to blog during my hiatus, like a beautiful Fall Festival with my little ones, but for now, I have soooo much to say about my trip to Houston for Quilt Market.

Ahhh, Quilt Market...with your hustle and bustle and schmancy hotel stays...your seriously huge convention center show floor that is really not friendly on backs and feet... and most of all, your rows and rows of crafty eye candy. 

Behold: 

(Lark by Amy Butler)

 (Seriuosly cute embroidery patterns by Penguin and Fish)

(A Dia de los Muertos themed booth by Alexander Henry)

(Anna Maria Horner's Loulouthi now in flannels and velveteen- hullo? To die for.)

And there's more. Soooo much more. But one thing I actually did  in the blogger mindset while at market was interview a half-dozen or so designers. Like, in person. (I know, right?) So I'm holding back those photos for when I post the interview series (which I'm calling 5 Minutes With a Fabric Designer) starting next Monday. Yay!

Now on to the eye candy outside the convention center.

The thing about going to a conference or a trade show like Quilt Market is that if you have any interest at all in the city that you're going to, don't get your hopes up to see any of it. Unless you extend your trip and plan ahead, you're really only going to see a hotel room, a couple of restaurants and a convention center floor. That's just not why you're there. But Saturday in Houston, I had a rough day. 

Raw honesty time.

I mentioned in my pre-market post that I was going to Houston to teach a school house (mini workshop) with Sandi. What I  didn't  reveal was that my reasons for attending were actually threefold. 

1.) The school house. 

2.) A chance to hob-knob a little with the awesome peeps who will (hopefully) someday soon want to publish a project book I've proposed. 

3.)I was also going to QM to show a portfolio of my own artwork to fabric manufacturers, with the hopes of one day becoming a fabric designer myself. 

Items one and two on the list went well. Really well. Item three...As any artist/ writer/ photographer/creator-of-anything can tell you, this takes guts. I'm not tooting my own horn here, it's just a fact. Putting yourself on a piece of paper and asking a stranger to tell you how you've fallen short, in the hopes of improving and growing, is an emotionally draining process. And being a thousand (ish) miles away from my husband and children- my true comforts and strengths- while doing it, quite frankly sucked. 

I felt weakened and beaten down, even though I know in reality it made me stronger.

Anyway...point. What was my point? Oh, right. Saturday was a rough day. And after a party and a dinner where I had to keep a smile on my face, and a cab ride back to the hotel to save my aching feet, I just needed to be alone for awhile and do something creative. So I changed into jeans and flat shoes (hallelujah for flat shoes) grabbed my camera and set out into the night. I didn't go far (don't worry Mom and Dad). Actually, I mostly stayed inside. The Hilton we (by 'we' I mean Sandi and I and Sandi's mom Jodi and the adorable Sarah Jane) were in had these amazing blown glass sculptural light fixtures that I really wanted to photograph...

I did go out a little...

...to take in the calming night air. 

It's amazing to me, having had my creations under the microscope all day long, how the thing that healed me most was to create more.  Even if it was a different medium. Even if the end product was nothing to write home about. The process of seeing and capturing something visual from my own point of view is always transforming. As is writing about it here.

Thanks for reading my ramblings, blogland.

Oh, and if you were one of the attendees at our school house and you heard me mention the free embroidery patterns, they are coming. I promise. They should both be on my 'make' page by Saturday, so keep checking back.

Fabric designer interviews start next week. I think we'll kick it off with Sandi Henderson (c'mon, you knew that was coming) and the one and only David Butler. 

xo

Grimm With a Chance of Giveaway

A few weeks ago my big sis texted me to ask if I wanted to create a piece for another group show at Cella Gallery, the art gallery just down the street from where she and her husband live in North Hollywood. I hemmed and hawed a little...I've just got so much on my plate at the mo' (including finding random opportunities to slip British slang into my everyday dialogue)...but when she told me what the show was, I knew I wanted in: artwork inspired by, and actually created on the surface of copies of Grimm's Complete Fairy Tales.

Each artist chose a specific tale to use as their theme and went to work in his or her own style. I chose "The Goose Girl"...

...admittedly less out of devotion to the brief tale woven by Grimm 1 and Grimm 2 than to the much more expansive tale with Grimm roots as told by Shannon Hale, YA author extraordinaire ( I hope that's not cheating).

 The show opens October 8th so I need to get my finished tome mailed off tomorrow, but I wanted to share first. If any of you happen to be in the LA area, oh blogland beauties, I'm sure the show would be well worth attending, as any event at the Cella always is.

Aaand speaking of Grimm Brothers and their curiously grotesque charm, Halloween is fast approaching. Can you believe tomorrow is October 1st? It's almost time to start pulling the box of All Hallow's Eve decorations out of the garage. But first, I think we will have a little giveaway- a handmade Halloween decoration for you:

One lucky reader is going to win this hand-stenciled burlap flag bunting made by me (out of recycled materials, by the way- that burlap used to be sandbags).

Here's how to enter:

1. Follow me on twitter (@amberjunek) and send out this tweet to your tweeps:

Giveaway! Cute Halloween banner on @amberjunek's blog- http://amberjunestudios.blogspot.com!

2. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, come back here and leave a comment on this post telling me what your favorite thing is about fall. Be sure to include the link to your twitter account so I can see your tweet. 

That's it!

I will keep the comments open until Sunday evening at about 9pm (MST). Then I'll go through your comments, choose my favorite, and announce the winner here on Monday morning.

See you soon!

xo
-------------------------------
COMMENTS NOW CLOSED
THANKS!

Creative Cycles...and Photography

It's taken me years to figure it out...years of feeling like a quitter or a flake every time I set a project aside because I've felt the overwhelming (literally- can't sleep at night) urge to start something else...but about two years ago I finally realized, I'm a creative cycler (did I make that word up?). It's the only means I have of describing my mad methods for managing my seemingly endless store of ideas (I realize that sounds a little egotistical- okay a lot- but it's true. I've always had more ideas than I know what to do with). For weeks, or even months at a time, I'll feel the need to throw all my creative energy into drawing and painting and collage. I'll walk around with a sketchbook in my handbag and at least two drawing pencils and one paintbrush sticking out of my hair at all times. Then, slowly, that inclination will begin to fade and I'll sit down to write. And write and write and write-poetry, fiction, children's stories-this is why I have a series of three novels in the works that will probably be in the works for the next four or five years. And I've learned to be okay with that. Because the muse will always come around again. After I write for a while, my sewing machine and embroidery hoops call out to me. My stacks of fabric and rolls of ribbon and jars of buttons beckon and for the next few weeks I happily stitch away.

And lately, I don't want to do anything, or go anywhere, without my camera.

Yesterday I finished a dress I've been working on. I'm really happy with how it turned out and I wanted to both wear it and photograph it myself, so today, the kids and I set off, picnic basket in tow, to do a little tripod/timer photography, Esther-from-the-sticks style.

I spent so many years just shooting on auto because I was kind of afraid of the whole tech end of photography, but now that I've actually started listening to my husband when he starts in on aperture and ISO and blah, blah, blah (love you honey), it's starting to make sense. And I'm experimenting. And you know what? This photography thing is really, really cool.

Two things I learned in the last couple of days and one I learned long ago:

 1. My dress form's breasts are much perkier than mine. I suppose she hasn't spent a cumulative total of more than three years nursing babies.

Note to self: adjust future designs for Mamma sag.

2. If I really want to capture images of my children being who they are-no poses, no pretense, no fake smiles- all I have to do is set the camera on a tripod and let them take turns with the little remote control. 

They loved it. And I love the images we ended up with.

(Oh, alright. So I have the remote in that last one. Still, that's my sweet girl.)

3. There's time in my life for all I've been blessed with the ability and desire to do. But I have to be patient. I have to remember there is so much beauty to be found in the rhythm of my home and family and the adventures of everyday. To find inspiration in a life well lived, I first must live it. 

And let the cycles come as they may. But don't forget the camera.

xo

Self-Portrait

Lately, I feel an awful lot like this little bird...

...sitting on big things...things that have to do with my family, my art, my writing.

Ideas churning in my mind. Hopes and determination high.

And, also, if I were a bird, I would most certainly be this stylish and fluffy, with a curly tail and doe eyes.

I'll share some of those big ideas soon...when they're closer to hatching. 

xo

Book Love

Everyone once in a while I come across a children's book that I instantly love. It usually happens when both the story and the illustrations speak to me separately as artistic labors of love AND they enhance each other's beauty when combined. These books call out to me from the library/bookstore shelves and I almost don't have to read them to know I've found one. In the past, it's been Suddenly One Day and This is Just to Say, among many others, but until this week, I have never before fallen in love with a book I can't even read...because it's in Spanish.

Yet here it is:

Using my extremely limited and very patchy Spanish translation skills, I know that this is a story about a boy name Fonchito...and The Moon (y la luna). (wow, I'm good.)

There's also something about a la nina mas bonita  (beautiful little girl, I think) named Nerieda, whom Fonchito wants to kiss.

And that's about as far as I get. I'm not even sure where the moon comes in, but I just know that if I could read it, I would love it. The ilustraciones de Marta Chicote Juiz tell me that much.

I haven't been able to find the story in English anywhere, so I suppose I will either have to scope out the Spanish skills of friends and acquaintances or improve my own.

Anyhow, the moon and stars have been on my mind quite a bit since our backyard camp-out, which we repeated last night with friends and star-gazing and constellation mythology all thrown in the mix. A good time was had by all, although, I have to say, for coziness and memories, I prefer the homemade blanket tent to the ol' North Face Rock 22. We'll have to revert back next time.

I linked up the post about our original camp-out to the Carnival of Outdoor Play at The Nurture Store. You should click on over and check out some of the other fun ideas for outdoor learning-through-play adventure.

And go to the library. Maybe you'll hear a book call out your name, in English or otherwise.