Category: On a Personal Note

Personal stuff that doesn’t fall under a quilting category. This is about me.

Disclaimer: I did not make these rules.

Cowtown QuiltsLeave a comment

refrigerator 001

Rules of the refrigerator

  1. Do not put anything on The Rule Maker’s side area of the refrigerator.  His area includes the shelf where the blue pitcher resides.  If you put stuff on that shelf, it will be removed by The Rule Maker, regardless of the fact that the area under the ice maker houses only Spicy V-8 (because that’s where it goes) and the rest of the refrigerator is crammed full.
  2. The only thing the large glass bowl with the blue lid sitting under the milk is allowed to be used for is The Rule Maker’s Famous Salsa.  No.  Matter.  What!  Do not try to sneak a use for it with something else; this will upset the goodwill of The Salsa Bowl’s master to the point where he will be pacing in circles near the refrigerator and will eventually find another container for the perpetrator substance and will replace it with The Rule Maker’s Famous Salsa.  The Salsa Bowl will always live in the spot where it is in this picture.  If we have too much milk, no matter.  It can find another place or rest on top of The Salsa Bowl.  If there is room elsewhere in the refrigerator, something else can go there, but The Salsa Bowl cannot.  
  3. Do not poke fun at The Rule Maker or the rules of the refrigerator or His rules.  This will lead to an unpleasant ending. 

How to get out of a creative rut, aka my 2 minutes of glory…

Cowtown QuiltsLeave a comment

Last week Mark Lipinski contacted me and asked if I would be willing to do a 2-minute segment on his radio show, Creative Mojo.  He wanted me to talk about how I get out of a creative rut.  Me?  Why me?  And, what’s all this talk about a creative rut?  I have to admit that I felt like I didn’t have much to contribute when he first asked me, and then the more I thought about it, some things that perhaps I do differently from others probably helps me stay out of a creative rut.  The problem is… how do you explain it all in 2 minutes?

First off, let me explain that I was raised a poor kid.  We didn’t have much, so we had to be creative in making up our own fun.  Lack of things forces you to use your imagination to creatively come up with a solution for that which you lack.  For example, I was the youngest of 5 kids in my house.  We seemed to keep everything, but sometimes that glue would dry out.  Mom would take flour and mix some water in it to make glue for us to use.  It might have been different if we’d had the money to just buy more glue, but we didn’t.  So, how many filthy rich people do you consider to be creative?

I was fortunate to be raised with a sense of humor.  My dad was the oldest of 15 kids.  When the masses of us get together, there is a ton of  jokes, tricks played on others, and laughter.  We can act very childish, but it’s good-natured and cheap fun.

Also, remember that I’ve had some of the strangest experiences in my lifetime.  Take, for example, the $&!# on top of the chest of drawers story.  You have to keep a sense of humor through all these experiences, or you will make yourself crazy.  Several years ago, I lost my mother; my dog, who was also my best friend; my daughter’s Godmother and left my job only to not get another when we moved that year.  Actually, all that had happened in the span of about 6 months.  I had 6 eye surgeries in 18 months (it’s been almost 7 months now since my last eye surgery).   On top of all this, I have gotten some pretty scary migraines over the years.

Through my grieving and health experiences I have had a lot of time to think, and when you think too much, it can make you crazy as well.  Or, your mind will go into an altered state to try to turn your focus into a healing direction.  Sometimes this is as basic as getting in touch with your inner child (yes, I know… cliche… and another is on its way).  You’ve heard the saying, “when one door closes another opens”?  Well, I’d like to believe that is what happened to me.  There were a lot of signs that it was time for a new direction in my life.  Looking back, I’m glad my life turned out the way it did.  I’m happier now and more at peace with myself and life than I have ever been.  And, I’m okay with acting like a kid now, too!

THAT is what I was thinking of today when I tried to explain how to get out of a creative rut.  For me, the mundane routine of day-to-day life can get me into a rut.  I had a lot of stress in my life in the last 10 years, stress that was making my body revolt and basically kidnapped my spirit when I lost so many things I felt were important in my life.    My routine and my spirit were broken, so my creative mind took over.  You, too, can stimulate your creative mind, but in a healthier way.

When I was training to be a school teacher, I learned that I could best reach all my students by having them use as many of their senses as possible.  If they don’t “get it” one way, take them to an altered way of thinking through one of the senses that is not dominant in that child.  Have you ever noticed how your memory is better if your emotions are involved?  When we get so busy with our day to day lives, we tend to be cognitive instead of emotional.  Our rational side is that nasty little voice in our heads that tell us that we can’t do something, it’d be stupid, we’re not good enough.  But, when we focus on our senses (touch, hearing, seeing, tasting, smelling, and feeling) our emotions get aroused.  Think about all the social events where food is involved.  Do you remember any of those events?  What do you remember about the ambiance of the room?  What did you smell and taste?  Who was talking?  Do you remember what people said?  What were you feeling?

So, today I had 2 minutes to tell people to get in touch with their inner child, to play and explore things in a way that is not “routine” for them, to use their other senses.  If you’re an artist, your strong sense if most likely visual.  And, if you are in a rut, take a break from your visual cues.  Do something else for awhile.  Close your eyes and let your creative mind take you to new places using one or more of your other senses.  Finger paint with pudding.  Listen to music and dance.  Sleep. Dream.  Write down some ideas.  By the way, writing is also a tactile/touch sense.  Okay, so your cognitive mind is telling you that you are not capable of doing a good job.  So what?  Do it anyway and have fun.  Keep your sense of humor and go play!!!  You will feel like a child again, and it will feel wonderful!

creative adult

 

You can read more about Mark Lipinski and his show, Creative Mojo here.

And, you can listen to how I stumbled through 2 minutes, probably not making any sense at all, by listening to the Creative Mojo Podcasts.  Look for the one for Jan. 16th here.   It may not be up yet; I’m not sure how long it takes for them to post.   I’m at about the 25/30 minute mark (no pun intended).  But, really, you should listen to the whole thing.  He’s got some good stuff to listen to, especially while you’re quilting.  😉

There’s $&!# on top of the chest of drawers!

Cowtown Quilts3 Comments

You’ve heard the saying, “Truth is stranger than fiction,” haven’t you?  As a military wife, my life has been full of events that can be described as stranger than fiction.  I married young.  When I say young, I mean “teenager young.”  And, I am still married to the same guy after all these years and everything we’ve been through.  Being military means you “get” to move around a lot.  This isn’t as glamorous as it sounds, but we’ve had our share of adventures.

I was married young, and I had children young, so I didn’t get much of a chance to grow up before I had kids.  However, one thing is for certain.  I took my responsibilities very seriously as a parent.  I have always been that way, taking responsibilities seriously, and to a fault.  I may not have been the best parent, but I was the best I could be.  I read all the how-to-parent books I could get my hands on.  Lacking maturity, I tried to be the best self-taught parent I could be.  But, God has a sense of humor, and children, in my opinion, are born with personalities intact.  Oh, sure, you can try to shape and mold them, but they will end up who they are because of a mixture of the personality they are born with and the way they were raised.

Being a military spouse also means that sometimes your spouse will be deployed overseas and beyond for extended periods of time.  That leaves you to raise your kids alone during this time.  When my oldest was 5 and my youngest was 2, my husband was deployed for 6 months to Japan.  Lucky him!  While he was gone, I moved place settings on the table around so that I could reach each child easily.  This becomes important as a “helping” parent.  I sat at the head, or some call it the end, of the table with a child on each side of me.  I was so happy when my husband came back that I fixed a nice supper and served it on good china.  Don’t ever do this the first night your husband comes home after being away for so long.  Not only will you be too busy and too tired to enjoy him, it is easier to just pick something up to eat or go out to eat and then come home to relax.

Our “perfect” supper was soon to be ruined by an angry 2-year old who didn’t like being moved down a notch on the seating arrangements.  She threw her china plate onto the vinyl flooring that we had in base housing, and it shattered.  My husband then looked at me and said, “Is this what you’ve been teaching my children to do while I’ve been gone?” <sigh>

This 2-year old was the second child, the strong-willed child, the one took up all my energy so I never gained weight when she was small, and the one I didn’t have any answers for nor had a clue how to discipline her to get her attention.  You have to find their weak spot.  My oldest child loved being alone in her room with a book, so Time Out didn’t work for her.  My youngest loved being around others and in their business, with her fingers under the bathroom door when others were using it.  So, Time Out, as I LATER learned, did work for her.

My children have taught me a TON over the years.  Not only did I shape their personalities, but they molded mine as well.  Not long after the China Plate Revolt, my husband came home in the middle of the day.  He NEVER came home in the middle of the day.  I was trying my best to potty train her.  I even succumbed to the M&M Bathroom Bribe – you know the one, where you give the kid and M&Ms for each successful potty pee or poop.  I said I’d never do that, but I did.  Before you have children of your own, there are a lot of things you say you will or won’t do as a parent, and then reality sets in.  Such was the day my husband came home in the middle of the day…

I was busy in the kitchen and hadn’t checked on the kids in almost 10 minutes.  I knew better than to let it go that long, but they were making happy noises, so surely they hadn’t gotten into anything.  It’s when they are quiet that you have to be worried.  When I went to check on them, I could not believe my eyes.  The 2-year old was on top of the chest of drawers with nothing on from the waist down.  Next to her was a pile of poop, obviously hers.  The drawers were all open with clothes strung all over the place.  I can only imagine this is how she got up there.  There were toys scattered all over the floor of the bedroom.  The 5-year old had a tube of Desitin in her hands, Desitin that she had smeared all over 3 walls.  Do you know what Desitin is?  It’s that greasy stuff you put on babies’ bottoms when they have diaper rash.  Do you know how hard that stuff is to remove from walls???

I was in shock and very upset.  As a good mom, the first thing I did was get the 2-year old down from the top of the chest of drawers (safety first) and then I went out to the hallway, shut the door, hugged my back to the wall with my arms outstretched and hands clinging to the wall, and counted to 10.  I needed to be calm before braving that room.  Before I got to 10, in walks my husband.  I was so upset; I didn’t hear him come home.  I asked him what he was doing home, and he said he was changing out of his uniform and into civilian clothes because the colonel was having a Goodbye Party off the base.  I was trying to hurry him along, so I could get back to the mess in the bedroom.  Also, I didn’t want him to see the mess, because I didn’t want him to think I taught our children to do THAT, too, while he was deployed.

I don’t know why God plays these tricks on us, but the timing of events was impeccable that day.  Just about the time that he was emptying his pockets of the change he had and was getting ready to take it into the 2-year-old’s bedroom to put in her piggy bank, there was a loud crash; the sound of a ceramic piggy bank breaking.  My husband asked, “What was that?” to which I replied, “I didn’t hear anything.”  Trying to hurry him along, I offered to take the change and put it in the bank myself.  He wasn’t having any of that and was going to see the kids before he left.

<pause and sigh>

You know… there is one thing you should NEVER do if you don’t want someone to do something.  Don’t tell them not to do it.  Foolishly, I blocked the entrance with arms spread wide and said, “Don’t go in there!”  Idiot me.  Now he was insistent that he was going in there.  He moved me out of the way, swung open the door, eyes skirting the room and then the disbelieving bulge came from his eyes as he jumped back.  “There’s SHIT!!!  On top of.  The chest of drawers!!!  HOW?  Did it get up there?”  At that point in our marriage, after he had accused me of teaching our kids to throw china plates and other ill behaviors, I figured I had nothing to lose.  If he hadn’t yet figured out this parenting thing was hard work, he was not living in the real world.  I replied, “Well, darling, I put it up there just for you!”   Stunned, and not having time to deal with what he had just witnessed, he left.

So, onto the next task at hand, clean up the shards of ceramic piggy bank and the coins small enough for a toddler to choke on.  Right as I was finishing up the Bank Bamboozle, and before I was able to put a diaper, panties, or clothing on the bottom half of my 2-year-old, her Godfather shows up from his secret mission in El Salvador, him and his 2 kids who were several years older than mine.  You just can’t make this stuff up, folks!  Seriously!  He had gifts for the kids, but I couldn’t let them out, because the 2-year old was half naked.  Finding this out, T (my 2-year-old’s Godfather’s son) decided that he HAD to run outside and look into the window of the notorious bedroom.  <sigh>  What can you do?  I then was able to get her dressed and there were no more misadventures that day.  You know how bad things come in threes?  I was waiting for a 3rd unexpected visit that day, but we never got it.

The lesson learned from this was humbleness.  Before I had kids I was a “cool chica.”  What happened after kids was that my hair wasn’t what I aimed for and neither was life.  Life can throw you some curve balls, but in the end, the experiences are what makes it worth it.  Yes, I have had a lot of unbelievable experiences and stories to share from my life, but, looking back, I wouldn’t change a thing.  What has happened to me has made me into a better person, one who is more patient and accepting of others.  At the time it wasn’t funny, but God was probably saving my kids’ lives.  😉  Now I can look back on it, shake my head because we tend to hear about stuff like this happening to others and not us.  And I can laugh my fool head off, especially when truth is stranger than fiction.

*Editor’s Note & Disclaimer: The Desitin Daughter is now a published author.  And the 2-year-old?  She is now a Paramedic who has cleaned up more than her fair share of poop and people’s messes.  She is also studying to be a doctor of Chinese Medicine.  So, be patient, Moms.  There’s hope yet for both you and your kids!

How NOT to machine sew a binding onto a quilt

Cowtown QuiltsLeave a comment

A couple of days ago, I finally finished quilting my UFO Letter Challenge Quilt (Letter Challenge) and still was not happy with it.   I think I just wanted to get it done, so I tried a couple of shortcuts.   Here is the link to Part 1 of my experiment (How NOT to machine sew your binding onto your quilt, pt. 1) and here is the link to Part 2, the results (How NOT to machine sew your binding onto your quilt, pt. 2).  My apologies for parts of the quilt that I was talking about being cut off.  Once again, I set the camera to “roll” and then got in front of the camera, so I could not see that I needed to zoom out.

As you can see I was not happy with the results.  In fact, I had to lay it down and walk away from it for a couple of days before coming back to it.  I did not like the quilting, but I was not about to frog it (rip it, rip it, rip it out), so I just added more quilting outline stitches around the applique.  I can live with it now, I think.

Letter Challenge 001

Remember, as you are learning how to quilt to not be afraid to try new things.  You learn by trial and error; what you like and what you don’t like, what works for you and what doesn’t.  Even after you think you’ve got it mastered, you will still be learning new things.  And, what works for one person may not work for another.  So, don’t be afraid to take a risk and just try it.

New Chair

Cowtown Quilts1 Comment

So, imagine this chair in your quilting studio and all the threads that it would collect.

I got this chair as a Christmas present last year.  It was one of the best gifts I received.  I love it to this day.  For whatever reason, it makes me feel important, like I am an artist.  However, the fabric seems to catch all my lose threads.  I’m okay with that, and it really doesn’t bother me, but I’ve had this French Country damask fabric that has been patiently waiting to be glorified in something.  Originally I was going to make a purse from it, and I might still do that.  But, I really do love it as a decorating fabric, so I chose to add a feminine touch to my studio by covering this chair with it.  And, here is what it looks like now.

studio chair 001

This is just a slip cover over the seat and back.  Here’s one of the back. Can you see the fabric tie with the black’s sister fabric that matches the front of the seat back and the seat ruffle?

studio chair 004

And, here’s a better look at the black fabric on the seat.

studio chair 005

New decorations make me feel like I have a new studio.  I love that feeling!

P.S. The fabric is Olde World Style by Monique Dillard for Maywood Studio

Quilt Retreat

Cowtown Quilts2 Comments

One of the guilds I belong to had a quilt retreat this past Saturday.  It was my very first quilting retreat EVER!  I thought to myself, “What on earth am I going to do for almost 12 hours at a quilting retreat?”  I mostly have longarm quilting to catch up on, so I had to really think about what to bring.   A friend suggested I bring something I hadn’t been able to work on in quite some time, some of my UFOs.  Well, I have a couple of those, so I took along plenty of stuff, sure I’d finish each and every one of the 4 items in my bag.  As it turns out, there is a LOT of socializing at these retreats and not as much work gets done as you might expect.  Actually, in my case, it was AVOIDANCE.  I started this quilt over a year ago and, after volunteering on the board of 2 separate quilt guilds and in between all the eye surgeries, this project got pushed aside, balled up, messed up, and out of the way on so many occasions that I had forgotten about it.  At this point, I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to finish even what I did on Saturday and this project would be pushed to the back burner again and again.  And, it probably will, because I just have too many ideas floating around in my pea brain, demanding my attention.  It can get really frustrating, and I try to avoid quilting challenges, because that just sets my mind awhirl once again.  But, I am SOOO happy that I got this portion of the quilt done.  It will be the foundation for future dabblings to add to the quilt.  So, here is a sneak peek of what I worked on Saturday.

 

 

 

And, here are some pictures of folks who also attended the retreat.

      

 

If you are a quilter and haven’t yet attended a retreat yet, you should try it!  Even if you walk away with only one thing completed, you will feel like you’ve accomplished a lot!

She’s a handy girly whirly

Cowtown Quilts4 Comments

My husband does not have a handy bone in his body, but I do.  The way my siblings and I were raised, we learned to live with what we had and to fix things.  My husband, on the other hand, is a super chef (at home, not as a career), and I am not.  I cook out of necessity, not because I enjoy it.  My husband has a knack for flavors and creating some of the most scrumptious dishes.  As for me, I sew and fix things.  What more could a husband ask for?  And, when I do fix things, my husband says, “She’s a handy girly whirly!”  He acts like he is amazed at the things I fix.  Of course, I am amazed at the things he can cook!  So, anyhow, this is my latest project.

As you can see, we are in the basement – I call it the dungeon.  That is where my longarm quilting machine resides.  I never seem to have enough counter space, so I built this countertop to sit on top of my 2 cubicle bookshelves.  It serves a double purpose as a work desk for me, as I have a drafters chair that rolls right into place in the middle.

Since the bookshelves are 36 inch square, I took a piece of plywood and had it cut at the hardware store to 3 ft x 6 ft.  I then added trim along the sides that would extend a bit along the bottom of the counter to hold it in place on top of the bookshelves. When I added that trim, I left about 1/8 of an inch lip on the top to insert my cutting mats to hold them in place as well.  I then added some measuring tape sticky note tape stuff along the edge that I bought from JoAnn Fabrics and Crafts.

It serves its purpose fairly well, but I still don’t feel like I have enough counter space.  I am planning on and saving up to finish the dungeon and have added power tools and hardware gift cards to my Christmas wish list.    Others might think I’m weird for wishing for power tools, but I don’t want to feel like I’m in a dungeon while I work and create.  And, I know my husband isn’t going to finish it, nor do we have the $$$ to hire it out.  So, it’ll be me, on my own.  I think I will line 2 of the walls with low bookshelves or cabinets.  Not only will that provide storage, but it will also provide that much needed counter space.  I can also hang shelves on the wall when it’s finished, and there will be a ledge that will run along the corner, so all of that will help.

My dream is to have a small kitchenette and bathroom down here.  The kitchenette would be a great place for me to dye fabrics.  And, of course, the bathroom would be handy for this handy girly whirly.  But… I don’t have a clue how to do that nor the muscles for doing plumbing.  Anyone know someone who would be willing to do plumbing for charity?  😉

As for my latest quilting project, I wanted to work on curved crosshatching.  For whatever reason (I guess it’s the freedom that comes with it), I love quilting charity quilts.  The fabric can be some of the most God-awful stuff and it may not be perfect, but it’s a cheap way for me to practice, practice, practice.  After I got in to quilting this a bit and realizing how much time it was taking up, not to mention the fact that this would probably go to a male child, I realized that curved crosshatching is not the thing to put on charity quilts.  Ever!  I didn’t want to rip it out, so I continued on my merry way.  This was a beautifully pieced quilt, and I could have done so much more and better with it.  But, lesson learned!  And, as I like to say, “It’s all (life) a learning process.”  We make mistakes and hopefully learn from them, and in the mean time, it’s not as bad as we think.  As for this one, if I hadn’t done custom quilting on it like this, I probably would have just done an edge-2-edge, which would have done nothing to add to the piecing on this quilt.  But, then, I’m not sure this did, either.

Where does the time go?

Cowtown Quilts2 Comments

So… I haven’t been posting much on here lately because I have been preoccupied with what seems like a gazillion other things demanding my attention right now.  This past week has been swallowed up by me working on an artist portfolio.  Ever seen an artist portfolio for a quilter?  Neither have I, but since I have bills to pay and a porch that needs repair, I am trying to sell my turtle quilt.  S.ave O.ur S.eas is the name of my turtle quilt, and here is a picture of it.

This quilt is roughly 7 1/2 feet tall by 8 feet wide, so it’s a bit bigger than this picture.  I love my quilts and have a hard time parting with them, but this one is so big and I really have no place to hang it other than the basement.  The county I live in is building a new community center and in need of art by local artists.  What better place for this to hang than a community center where children from 1-100 years old will get to look at it.  Well… that or a library or museum or…

Anyhow, they are asking for a portfolio with an artist statement, artist bio, artist resume, 3 art career references (I have super references for teaching in the public schools, but nothing for quilting), a CD with 10 images of your item, etc. etc.  I had to think what I’ve accomplished as a quilter and that nasty little voice in my head tells me that I’ve accomplished nothing, that I’m a loser, and that my work sucks.  So, it’s been a rough week as I’ve tried to pull something, anything out to put down as documentation.  This is what I came up with in my portfolio.

 

All the information is in there, and I added a tri-fold brochure of some of my other work.  I don’t feel like I stand a ghost’s chance in heaven of getting a commission on this, but, like I said… I need the money and I have a 50% chance of them saying yes.  Gotta take the chance!  If I get nothing else out of all the time I put into it this week, I will have learned some marketing skills and now know how to put together a presentation folder.

As for what else has been going on, my quilt guild meeting is Tuesday.  Remember that “Letter Challenge” Quilt I was working on that I didn’t like the colors and didn’t think it would qualify for the challenge and then decided I would quilt our names into it?  Well… I still haven’t gotten it done, and it doesn’t look like I’m going to get it done.  I can’t seem to finish it with the colors in the house that I have there, so I need to swap that out before I can quilt it.  I’ll post pictures IF/WHEN I get that done, but I have a sneaky suspicion that it won’t be in time for Tuesday’s meeting.  I still need to finish that charity quilt I’d started.  Hopefully I will have that done by Tuesday, because our quilt show is coming up before the next meeting, and they need all the charity quilts they can get for the show.  I’ve tied up the loose ends for our last speaker (I’m the Programs co-chair for the guild) and still haven’t gotten back to the Opportunity (raffle) Quilt for 2013.  I’m hoping to finish that by mid-November so it will be ready for unveiling on December 4th.  So, my apologies for not getting back to the blob (I mean blog) lately.

Hope you had a great week!