Sunday, August 15, 2010

A Celtic Nameplate, a Quilting Sampler, and a Tree

It's time I showed some pictures of the WIP projects I have been working on over the past month. Since the Celtic Lady finish, there have not been any new pictures... Shame on me.
Yet, I have been working on new things. Most of them are still in progress (of course!), but one, surprisingly enough, has been finished. Here it is...

This is something I made for my daughter. For now, she is using it as a bookmark; it can also go in a frame or, perhaps, as a sew-on tag on the blanket. I liked stitching the letters - simple, yet intricate.

Another project I have been working on over the past month is the Quilting Sampler. Here it is - still unfinished, but pretty close to completion:




There is still some outlining and writing to be done, as well as a couple of stitches here and there, but - the majority of work is completed. One thing I am happy about completing here is the border - boy, my eyes almost crossed from stitching all these yellow-and-blue triangles. It's nice to go back to stitching and outlining the dolls in the center. And the small hearts above remind me of cookies.
In the space above the big heart in the center it will say, "From the Heart." Once it is finished and framed, I will donate it to the Charity Auction at my niece's church. I hope to get it done by the next weekend.

Finally, one day I sat down and wanted to do something different - and came up with this:



Suddenly I just wanted to stitch leaves, don't know what came over me. I did not even draw a specific design, except a brief outline of the tree on the canvas tote bag. Hopefully, I will complete this idea after the Sampler is done and framed.
Next week, I'll be working (hooray!), and the kids are starting school, but still hope to get some stitching done in the evenings.

Thursday, August 5, 2010

It's August....

Wow, time really flies. It's August, soon the new school year will start (again!) and the children will come back from their vacation... It'll be noisy and happy(?). Or - stressful? Probably all of the above. Hoping for some nice mix there.
I'm stitching, stitching, stitching and have nothing to show for it. For some reason I do not feel like showing my WIP of the sampler, I really want to get the whole thing finished before I post the picture. Is it professionalism speaking? or something else?
There is one thing I am struggling with still  - inspiration. I do not know what I want to do with  myself. For a while, I have been thinking that it's teaching that inspires me, so I've gone to college and got my degree in Child Development. I started working for Headstart. But now, after everything that's happened, I do not feel that inspiration any more. Or, maybe, I have never had that inspiration, and the events just brought it to light.
The question remains: what do I do with myself? Stitching gives me comfort... Reading inspires my thinking.... Talking and writing relieves the pressure of thoughts. Should I be a stitcher? A reader? A writer? A therapist? Strictly speaking, I am already the first three. I don't get paid for it, but then again, not many people do. To become a therapist, I would have to go back to school.
I see inspiration in the works of other stitchers - and I want to be just like them, feel like their pictures and blogs feel - kind, cheerful, happy! But I am not like them. There is something missing in me... or something added? - that does not allow me to feel that happiness.
What do I want? Honestly, I want peace and comfort. I want to stop worrying about all the mundane everyday problems. This is something that is up to me. No amount of education can solve that...
And that is my DAILY DRAMA post!