Quiet Time

Crafting can be so therapeutic. 

You likely know that I get easily overwhelmed by crowds, and I always need some "me" time after a large event. This morning I went to this awesome craft show/flea market that featured really eccentric artists. It was fun, but at times the crowd was so thick we couldn't move at all. Throw in the fact that some people came in costume, and you wind up with me wedged between some very tall, face-painted folks, grateful for the warmth provided by body heat but needing them all to back off!

I walked in the door about 3 hours ago, and since then have been crafting in silence. There is something so calming to me about focusing on a creative project. I sat and cut out pieces for a few more sample Jammie Bears for about an hour and a half. The only sounds in the room were my scissors cutting through the fabric, the heater warming me up, and the occasional attention-demanding meow. 

This is one of the things I love about living alone. That I can sit quietly for three hours doing my own thing, despite needing to do laundry, clean the kitchen, and generally tidy up. Because if I don't get to those things, who cares? As long as Lily's litter box is clean and she is fed on time, she couldn't care less about the rest of the place. 

In a couple weeks I'm doing two craft shows with my mom. Our table theme is Babies. Using yarn from my stash and that people have me, I've been churning out little crocheted baby outfits and accessories. I've also been trying my hand at sewing more, and I'm getting more confident with it. I'm hoping the Jammie Bears will take off. I love repurposing things, and I think the sentimental value is really strong. 

I think I'm going to try to sneak in a basket of cat toys on the baby table as well! I still have a bunch of catnip socks to sell, and I've started creating a new toy - a crocheted rattling egg. So far it's been tested by two felines and they approve. 

Mom asked me to come up with a way to display the little baby accessories we are making at the show. I've decided to repurpose a framed cork board into a pretty, fabric covered board, and then somehow attach clothes pins that can be used to hang booties and bibs and hats. This project got underway a little while ago and the paint is probably dry by now, so off I go...

Let's hope for a good week. Someday I will be able to quit my job and craft full time for money!

Boring Divorced Old Cat Lady

Something has been nagging at me for a long time now, and I never wanted to actually put something out there to the "universe" (ie Facebook), because I know it will sound like I'm fishing for compliments, and I hate when people do that. So I'm turning off comments on this post because I specifically DON'T want it to seem like I'm asking for an ego boost.

I've been going through this whole "reinventing myself" thing for about 14 months now. I've realized that on Facebook, which is my social media outlet of choice, I basically talk about my cat and crafting. So for months now I've been thinking, what must people think of me? Thirty-something, divorced, main companion is a cat, has old lady hobbies... I know, the next question should be "why do I care what people think?" Well let's face it, we are social creatures and we all care what other people think, even if we say we don't. So in my head, people are pitying this pathetic, divorced cat lady. (Did I mention divorced? It seems to be a theme of my self-consciousness.) 

I've always been a creative person in one way or another.. It's just that for many years I didn't allow myself the time to devote to my hobbies. I felt like that would be selfish, although in hindsight I see that wouldn't have been true. So I'm really enjoying being creative now through my crafting... I had the best time decorating my apartment, I love that I'm learning to sew, and this whole "upcycling" movement is right up my alley! But then there is the nagging voice in my head saying that it's lame and it's boring, and I think I must be portraying my Facebook-self as lame and boring. 

And what hasn't helped over these 14 months are the comments people say that reinforce my own negative stereotypes about myself. "You should talk to a therapist about your crafting obsession," "You've turned into an old woman," and "You need to get out more," to name a few. It's sad because the things I've used as a creative outlet to get through a difficult time are also making me self-conscious! I mean, seriously - throughout the most difficult time in my life I didn't turn to drinking, or any type of smoking, or overuse of antidepressants - I didn't even gain back all that weight I lost! (Ok, I gained a small percentage but that was just over the holidays...) My drug of choice was creating things and making things beautiful! So why am I self-conscious about it? 

I've heard too many times that the things I like to do are boring. That's what really sticks with me. I'm boring, and who wants to hang out with people who are boring? Hence I keep to myself more, and it's a nasty cycle.  

However - then there are little things that other people say that have a huge, positive impact. People have sent me personal messages to tell me I am inspirational. Can you imagine? People have told me they admire my creativity. People actually purchase things I make. Someone told me I am one of their favorite people to follow on facebook, and one of the only ones he hasn't "hidden." People come up to me at work and tell me they look forward to seeing what crafts I post, and they check their newsfeeds every night to see if I add anything new. Fellow cat-lovers reach out to me online and in person to say how much they enjoy my commentary about Lily, and the pictures and videos I post of her. (She's developed quite a following!) And my favorite thing that has been happening recently is when people share pictures or ideas for crafts on my wall, or in private messages, and say how they saw it and thought of me. 

So a big thank you goes out to the people who have made such a positive impact in my life through these comments or actions to which you may not have given a second thought. 

And as for my stereotypes, I think I need to work on redefining these labels I insist on giving myself. 

Eclectic Comfort - A Small Business

It's a sad day when I don't feel well enough for crafting! That's how this whole week has felt. Winter has kicked my ass for the second time in two months.

On the bright side, I'm working on expanding my business online! After a season of craft shows at which people were always asking if I sell online, I decided to create an Etsy shop. I used my blog title, Eclectic Comfort, as my business name, because I really love the feeling it conveys. Right now I mostly have things listed that didn't sell at the craft shows, and I'm slowly adding new things. For Christmas I received several pattern books and materials to try some new crafts, so this spring you can expect to see more sewing and quilting projects for sale!

This is one of the books I received as a Christmas gift - Mollie Makes Woodland Friends. It has some adorable projects I couldn't wait to try!

So far, I made these little guys.. They were more time consuming than I realized they would be, but they came out so cute. 

I was also so excited to create my first quilting project with tools I got for Christmas - a cover for my Kitchenaid Mixer! I wish I had done a proper blog to document it, but I only have a few pictures to show you. 

 

And here are some other random photos of gifts or custom orders I made over the past couple months.

 

 

Definitely more blogging to come. I will have lots of projects to share!

Happy New Year!

I resolve to blog more often! For now, I'm announcing the launch of my new Etsy shop! 

Please visit at www.etsy.com/shop/eclecticcomfort

Blogging from the Craft Show

I'm at a craft show today, hoping to thin out my stock of cat beds and other creations! Thought I would use the time to share something I was working on last week. A while back I picked up this antique lamp base at a yard sale to refinish for my mom. She has a spinning wheel and spins her own fiber into yarn, plus she has a dedicated craft room that it will look great in. 

It needs to be rewired, and I still need to work on that. It also didn't have a lampshade, so I picked up an inexpensive one with an interesting shaped frame and discarded the old stained fabric. 

I started collecting vintage lace and handkerchiefs at estate sales to make into a shade. I traced the lampshade frame onto a piece of fabric to use as a pattern, and then arranged the lace and hankies overlapping each other. 

I hand stitched all of the edges of lace together to make one solid piece of layered fabric to cover the frame. Then I used hot glue to secure to the frame. I think it looks great! I might add a bit of ribbon on the top and bottom edges to make it look more finished. I can't wait to see how it looks with the light shining through the lace. I'll make sure to post a picture when it's all rewired. It's going to be a Christmas gift, so shhhhh! Mom doesn't know I blog. 

One other thing I'll show today is the cheesecloth ghost I finally made. I've been wanting to try this for years! I can't say it came out quite as good as Martha Stewart's, or looks quite as recognizable as a ghost, but I still like it. 

The process is to saturate cheesecloth in liquid starch and lay over a form that will create the ghost's body. My form was made of a tall mug with a ball of tin foil perched on top, and thin dowels sticking out the side for arms. I couldn't find liquid starch anywhere, so I made my own with just cornstarch and boiling water. It worked great. I wasn't sure if I should ring out the cheesecloth or leave it totally saturated. I left it saturated, so it took about 24 hours to fully dry. 

Long Time No Blog

I miss blogging! I've been MIA because I really haven't been working on any grand projects, but now I'm thinking - it's my blog, so if I want to write about something less grand I'm going to! I think I have a couple readers, so I hope that doesn't disappoint you. 

Here's what's been going on. I've booked myself silly with craft shows this fall, and I've been making some stock for them. I am not focusing solely on cat beds and toys because I like to make other stuff too. I have a bunch of crocheted baby hats I made last year and a little sweater set I made this year. The sweater was actually intended as a gift but it was too big so I made another! So just in case it looks familiar to anyone, that's why. Here are some photos of my work: 

I also made some little critters that I just sold to a friend via facebook! I am so excited! 

And then there was my favorite little guy, who is not for sale! 

Although I could make more if someone wanted one. 

I will also be bringing these little mason jar sewing kits to the craft shows. I've sold a few so far. I think they are the perfect little gift for a kid to give their mom for the holidays, so I'm keeping them affordable at $5. 

I have one other project I want to finish before the next craft show, which is turning some of those mini shutters I got a while back into holiday decorations. I have all the materials, but I need the time and space to paint the shutters. Hopefully that will be this weekend and I can post pictures. 

Something else I was busy with last month was a volunteer project for a group called Click for Babies. It's an organization that promotes awareness about Shaken Baby Syndrome, and they were collecting purple infant hats all through September. I roped in about 6 other people to contribute, and in all we created nearly 30 hats. Here's a photo of most of them. 

Please disregard my messy desk. 

I guess it turns out I had more project related things to write about than I thought. Here's a pic of Lily "helping" with a crochet pattern, to end this post with a smile. 

The Ultimate Compliment

Over the weekend I had some friends over for a craft day, and one person walked in and said, "It looks like Pinterest exploded in here!" I considered it a huge compliment, especially coming from a fellow crafter. 

Then of course the ultimate compliment is this stamp of approval from the queen of the house: