Okay, as much as I love the idea of this blog, it ain't going to happen. I get that now. Last year's "A Year in Pictures" was doable, in part, because I took a break from school. Even when I took that torch back in hand in the fall, it was subject matter that I was pretty familar with.
My first exam score was a D. This is not okay. So I'm looking at my schedule, at all the big things & little things I've taken on, and I have to streamline. One of the things that gets put on hold is that which falls under "art for fun" categories.
It sucks. Besides this blog, there were other blog ideas. Writing ideas. Good ones, too. But school comes first, for now, and the blogosphere will be here after the degree is complete.
Thanks for playing, blog readers. I'll be back.
-C.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Bad Blogger
Oh, blog. How I've neglected you. I looked at the calendar and realized that the month was nearly over. Having a daily picture blog kept me on task. I planned on doing this one weekly, but apparently that is not enough to keep me on the ball. I still really like the themes of this blog; I've just got to find the motivation to stay with it.
I've been mucho productive with the yarn projects, though:
I'll revisit this project. Later. I've got another scarf to punch out...
-C.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Me & Yarn: a history
The first time I crocheted anything I was about 9 years old. A visiting family friend, whose name I cannot now recall, was crocheting dishcloths. Watching her fingers & yarn fly around so quickly was fascinating to me, and I begged to be taught. Given that she was right-handed & I was left-handed, this proved to be a challenge. And after she left, I bought a book with patterns in it, but couldn't make sense of the shorthand, and so I discarded my hook and moved on to other interests, which is easy enough to do at 9.
I've never been a particularly gifted visual artist. Can't draw for a damn, can barely write my own name legibly. Scenic design and graphic arts for the theatre were my nightmare classes, and my sewing sampler for costume design was laughable. Lighting design made some sense to me, but just barely, and the only thing I could master with a camera was point & click. I chalked up yarn crafts in that same category of things that other people would do well, and I could just enjoy & admire from a distance.
Fast forward a decade or so. I'm working a full-time and a part-time job. I'm going to school to pursue a second degree. I'm exhausted and plagued with insomnia and mild depression. In talking about how busy I was, the question was asked of me, "What do you do in your spare time?"
And I drew a blank. It occurred to me that I had no outlet for my stress, especially since I no longer smoked and rarely went out to the clubs & bars that I frequented in my 20s. I had filled my life with so much, and so much of it was good, don't get me wrong. But I had not really found a way to relax.
So I looked into hobbies. And found a crochet book with left-handed instructions. I bought a set of hooks and a couple of balls of yarn. And I was enthralled. I started out learning to make a slip knot, then a chain, then a single crochet stitch. I moved on to more stitches, making mostly dishcloths & scarves. I grabbed a pair of knitting needles, too, which has proven more difficult to master & yet no less appealing. I knit or crochet while waiting for the buses, riding on the trains, during lunches and breaks, while watching DVDs.
It's been more than just something to do. Yarn crafting has taught me a great deal about myself, about my need for perfection, and how stifling that can be. About the value of persistence and patience (seems to be a lesson to be learned & forgotten & learned all over again, no?). About how valuable it is to take a few moments every day for something pleasing, and about the zen of repetitive activity which can help get me out of my bad moments just long enough to let them wash over me. Some hooks and needles, some fiber, a few pattern books, and time and love.
It's just that cool. And the colors are pretty, too. Love it.
-C.
I've never been a particularly gifted visual artist. Can't draw for a damn, can barely write my own name legibly. Scenic design and graphic arts for the theatre were my nightmare classes, and my sewing sampler for costume design was laughable. Lighting design made some sense to me, but just barely, and the only thing I could master with a camera was point & click. I chalked up yarn crafts in that same category of things that other people would do well, and I could just enjoy & admire from a distance.
Fast forward a decade or so. I'm working a full-time and a part-time job. I'm going to school to pursue a second degree. I'm exhausted and plagued with insomnia and mild depression. In talking about how busy I was, the question was asked of me, "What do you do in your spare time?"
And I drew a blank. It occurred to me that I had no outlet for my stress, especially since I no longer smoked and rarely went out to the clubs & bars that I frequented in my 20s. I had filled my life with so much, and so much of it was good, don't get me wrong. But I had not really found a way to relax.
So I looked into hobbies. And found a crochet book with left-handed instructions. I bought a set of hooks and a couple of balls of yarn. And I was enthralled. I started out learning to make a slip knot, then a chain, then a single crochet stitch. I moved on to more stitches, making mostly dishcloths & scarves. I grabbed a pair of knitting needles, too, which has proven more difficult to master & yet no less appealing. I knit or crochet while waiting for the buses, riding on the trains, during lunches and breaks, while watching DVDs.
It's been more than just something to do. Yarn crafting has taught me a great deal about myself, about my need for perfection, and how stifling that can be. About the value of persistence and patience (seems to be a lesson to be learned & forgotten & learned all over again, no?). About how valuable it is to take a few moments every day for something pleasing, and about the zen of repetitive activity which can help get me out of my bad moments just long enough to let them wash over me. Some hooks and needles, some fiber, a few pattern books, and time and love.
It's just that cool. And the colors are pretty, too. Love it.
-C.
Monday, January 4, 2010
January: Yarn, and more yarn....
From my recent visit to Jo-Ann.
Every skein of yarn in the store was on sale.
EVERY SINGLE ONE!
Friday, January 1, 2010
Things I Love 2010: The Latest Blog
The 2009 blog/art project was "A Year in Pictures". For 2010, I decided to try something similar, but with more focus. So here is "Things I Love: 2010". Here, I will devote each calendar month to something that I truly love, and offer written commentary to go with photographs, both ones that I take and ones that I find. Thanks for joining me, friends, and enjoy!
Here is the (tentative) list for the year:
January: Yarn
February: Opera
March: Felines
April: Books
May: Coffee, Tea, and Beer
June: Friends
July: Restaurants
August: Freebies and Cheapies
September: Puzzles and Maps
October: Autumn
November: Baking
December: Chicago
Here is the (tentative) list for the year:
January: Yarn
February: Opera
March: Felines
April: Books
May: Coffee, Tea, and Beer
June: Friends
July: Restaurants
August: Freebies and Cheapies
September: Puzzles and Maps
October: Autumn
November: Baking
December: Chicago
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