Craziness

I can't believe how much time and thought I put into selecting just the right clothes.

Hieronymus at home

 

From the files

The DNA panel is complete. Despite all of my math and measuring the image came out about an inch shorter than it should have. I didn't notice until I was past the point where I could have made a saving change. It bugs me today; I won't see it tomorrow.

Doing a glue test to determine the best way to adhere the paper dolls. That's the last experimentation. Then I just have to mount and adhere the text.

Here are some things I stashed to share.

Ellen Jewett creates amazing sculptures.

Isobel Currie is a 3D embroiderer. Check out her website. This is my favourite.

Building blocks

Yesterday's lists are in the trash. Photo 51 is assembled, all of the DNA pieces have been constructed and the testing has been done on the dolls.

Another day and it will be complete except for the work that needs to be done after it is mounted on stretcher bars.

Lists on my desk

I am a list maker. I don't think I could ever manage the variety of tasks I need to do every day without my lists.

Here's a taste of the lists on my desk today.

Groceries:

Shredded Wheat
sesame seeds
poblano peppers
cottage cheese
cheap cheddar
wine

SAQA retreat admin:

show and tell assignments
menu confirmation
list of general/emergency stuff we might need

SAQA retreat talks:

review website
slides for Google talk - check on history
talking points for pm
talking points for Sunday

Indoor cycling:

figure out what Leslie will teach on 11th
plan for next week
lecture for next week
Saturday?

Ivory Tower:

Photo 51
Jetset the organza
colour the paper dolls - his feet?
dress the dolls
tube for DNA

Mitochondrion:

hemoglobin!!!!

I routinely finish lists and am happy to savour the accomplishment and trash the list. Here's one of my favourite recent achievements. It has gone to its new home with my mother who has named it Hieronymus. This is a fantastic pattern. I recommend it to anyone with basic crochet skills. It would make a great baby gift with the eyes swapped out for felt.

Is it the yoga?

Almost a month ago a friend and I decided to try yoga. We are both active - she is a personal trainer and a Pilates instructor, I go to her classes and teach eight indoor cycling classes a week and we both cycle outdoors when we can. Neither of us had taken a yoga class before so we did what we always do - jumped in feet first and have been taking three classes a week in addition to our other activities. I think we have settled on instructors and class times that suit us and will probably continue along those lines for the foreseeable future.

I am surprised that I am making the commitment to continue because I can't honestly say I enjoy the classes. But I love the puzzle of figuring out what to do and how to do it and hours and days later my brain is still buzzing with ideas about a pose and how I might do it better. And I think I am seeing a difference in other areas of my life. I seem to be sleeping a little better and am getting even more done around the house and with my art. Perhaps the most noticeable effect is that I seem to be more resilient to stress and things going wrong. Case in point: I spent much of yesterday afternoon and part of this morning working on the centrepiece of the Ivory Tower piece. It involved making lots of components and assembling them carefully. I had all the pieces made and was mid-way through assembly when something out of the ordinary happened - the freezer paper templates wouldn't release from the fabric they were stuck to. I tried everything but the stickum was so effective that it tore the fabric. I had to start over and make a bunch of pieces again. Some of them took three steps to reproduce. At another time I would have walked away and found a way to distract myself. Instead I just got back to work without missing a beat.

I think it is the yoga . . . but the sun helps too.

Hello, old friend

I haven't written a blog entry in over a month but it isn't because I have abandoned my intention to do so. Some days it feels like the blog is a friend who I can only see occasionally. I store up things to tell it. And there's lots to tell. Let's start now and work backwards over the next few days.

Today I have been thinking about how much I enjoy problem solving and how wonderful it is to have the resources at hand to make the solutions possible. In the last hour I have:

Used three circular templates to draw circles on fabric so that I could cut out perfect pieces. I have a whole set of the templates - I don't know why I bought them in the first place but they came in handy today.

Used a cute little wheel to add an extra 1/2 inch to the circumference of one circle. Ditto on not knowing why I bought it.

Found some fantastic wide basting tape that made construction much easier. I use basting tape to make zipper installation easier. I'm not sure why I bought the wider variety.

Pulled silk chiffon and black tulle from a random bag of sheers. They created exactly the effects I wanted.

Used a lot of Mistyfuse to stick layers of sheers together. I bought a large supply of Mistyfuse a couple of years ago but had never dipped into it. I had gotten by until now on the amounts that come in small envelopes.

It is not a stash - it is a resource.