A New Channel

 Hello everyone I hope you are all well and enjoying the last bit of the er...summer. It has been a funny one hasn't it?  I keep seeing people now sharing posts about the start of Autumn and so on and I think is that it!  Is that all we are getting this year, and then I have to remind myself to embrace the seasons whatever they may be because after all it is nice that we get them.  It does give a bit of variety to the year so I am going to focus on that. 

Now about a month ago I started a new youtube channel as I don't how or to what purpose but my other channel has some sort of block on it, probably due to hacks or something that I know nothing about?? Anyway I decided to start over with a new one, I have left the other videos up for now so people can still use them but if you haven't already can you hop over and follow my new channel here...  Beyond the sewing Room

So this post here is my latest one, I show how to make a fabric storage box without an actual box, it is all just made from fabric scraps.  The pattern I show just uses A4 paper and it is really easy, another cheaky ask is this, if you watch any videos can you let run to the end please.  I have noticed that the watch time is either half or less of the videos which means that people just skip and watch bits of them and this a bit disheartening when you have put the time in making them.   

What I tend to do is watch youtube videos  of the people I follow while I am ironing, it is my treat and makes ironing less of a chore, I always do it on a Sunday and take my laptop and catch up on the vlogs I follow whaile I get all the washing sorted for the week.  It works for me, although I do know a lot of young people don't iron any more, this I can't get my head around as I like to see everything looking well pressed and cared for and I dont think you get this with things that are not ironed. So as I was saying doing it this way passes the time in a fun way and I do tend to watch videos right through as I am not sat over the laptop skipping.    Also if there is anything you would like to see on my channel please let me know here, or in the comments on youtube and I will try to include it in future videos.

This past week I have read Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert, now I have mixed feelings about this one.  I did enjoy it in a way but I also had moments of thinking it was very repetitive and a bit out there.  The thing that jumped out at me from it mainly was the idea that if we are meant to be makers and creators then we should just do it rather than thinking about the results, productivity and also how things are reccieved.  We should just do it, because it is what we are meant to do and it makes us happy.  Now I have always been a maker and I know that lots of you are too, a lifelong maker of all sorts of things and I have lots of interests.  However somewhere along the way we get sucked into this idea that we should be making more of it, making it profitable, having more sucess with it.  That can be a killer for everything that we want to do when we start measuring it all based on other peoples ideas on how valuable it is.  Is it worth our time, and also can we make a living from it?  

So this really  hit home for me as I am currently making a living from my making, and I am constantly aware of what other people are thinking about it, is it good enough, are people bored with it, how can I improve, what next etc.  Well this book did spell out the realization that regardless of whether or not I make money from making, or how many other people appreciate it, watch or like, I am still going to always want to make things so I may as well just do.  A funny thing is quite often when I have been making and it may have been with scraps, or painting or whatever it may be Ihave had the question from famliy members 'what are you going to do with that now?' as in are you going to list it etc.  So we are conditioned to think that everything we do has to have a monetary goal, a bit sad I know becasue much as I want to continue making as a living I still want to just do it for me too and not lose that joy.

A few years ago someone did say to me aren't you afraid that if you sew for your job you won't love it any more and it will spoil your hobby?  Well it has not done that but I do need to lose this preoccupation with how it can support me.  Gilbert does say in the book not to expect your creativity to support you, it's great if it can do that but just don't expect it.  She is talking of writing in her case but I suppose it can be applied to whatever it is that you love to do.

So that is my little ramble for today, I would love to know your thoughts on this if you have felt something similar and now I am off to create.  Take care. 

August so Soon

 Hello everyone I hope you are all well.  I am finding the days are rushing past me this year so sorry for my absence on here.  I have a few sewing things to share but I have to keep most under wraps as I am making lots of things for an event.  I have managed to get some sewing done for me so I will share some of that. 

Most recently I made the Kielo wrap dress again with fabric that I bought way back in March!  I made it a shorter length as I only bought 1.7m I was being careful so as to not have lots of waste, making everyday has made me really concious of fabric waste and if you have followed me in the past you will know that I like to get things out of the least amount possible.  It worked and the dress is still below the knee so this is plenty long enough for me.  The first one that I made as a sample was full length and I really don't wear dresses that long as a rule.

This made me laugh, this dog was after his ball, I didn't know it was by my foot until after and the dog must have waited patiently it would appear while I had my photo taken. In this photo I am wearing my newish white sneakers that I was reluctant to wear due to all the rain we keep having.  I have now given up and strted wearing them anyway as trying to keep them pristine white is possibly not going to happen.

Still with the emphasis on not wasting fabric I made the top of the tilly and the Buttons Joni dress as a top. Now I had lots of little bits of a really nice jersey leftover from a dress I made for work  and the top is made from all these little bits.  I did do a video on it so if you would like to see it and haven't already it is here Joni Hack to top video .  I have worn it twice already so it was a good use of my time, as sometimes I do find I spend ages on a garment and then never want to wear it and that is a shame.  I do have to say that all my Joni dresses have been worn a lot as I do  find it a very flattering shape.

I look a bit startled in this image, also finding lots of needing many lights for filming this past month due to all the dark clouds and rain. Unfortunate to be using extra energy in summer months so lets hope it improves soon.

In other sewing I also made a strappy dress for a minerva post and a tshirt reworked form a burda mag pattern to my own liking, unfortunately I can't locate those images at the moment.  I have so many sewing project photos on my laptop currently I have to keep moving things.  Hopefully I can share them all with you later after the event in September.  

Recently I got back into doing more sketching again, I am enjoying this as a  switch for my brain from all the sewing.  While I do love sewing I think it is good to vary activities to give your brain a break from repetitive tasks, also to add in new things to keep learning.  Today I have given myself a little treat of a new art book I will share that in a future post.  My aim is to work through the activities in this one.

In fiction reading I have recently read Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin, I loved this book and read it over a couple of days while on holiday.  Sometimes I find that books that have been hyped are not that good but this one really had me hooked, it is about gaming and friendship in a nutshell but don't let the gaming bit put you off as the characters are really interesting and likeable. I also read the Whispering Muse by Laura Purcell, good but not as good as the last one and The confidence Solution a non fiction book.

On the TV we have recently watched A Small Light on the the Disney Channel about the Anne frank family and the people who helped to hide them.  That was really good and also The Crowded Room also very good. 

I also have to confess that I went to see the Barbie Movie and I found it funny, clearly not for children really but I do think that has been made clear by all the promo and trailers so can't really understand why people are now saying it wasn'r for their young children, no that is why is was 12PG. All very silly but funny as I think there is a lot of serious stuff so it doesn't hurt to have a laugh occasionally. I went with two friends and former collegues from School, so three ladies in their fifties all wearing pink!

We are away in few weeks for a weekend so I am hoping there will be some sunshine for that, I am wishing you well wherever you are.  Back soon.

Simplifying Things

 Hello everyone I hope you are all having a good week wherever you are I am trying to keep  things simple here and doing more decluttering, this time I am branching into digital decluttering too.  Just now, as in a few minutes ago I have just closed my Etsy shop.  I have been on the fence about weather to do this for some time and it is odd as I just listed a number of little brooches a few days ago and my husband said I thought you were stopping with that?  Well I kept putting it off as it seemed a shame, even though I hardly ever got any views or sold anything.  However it was one of those things, even though it didn't make anything it had this invisible thread so I had to check just in case there was a sale and I needed to post something, or I would be thinking maybe if I just made more things I would get more views etc.  In the end I have just accepted that it is just one more thing I don't need to have on my mind, plus Etsy just passively makes money from me and others every time our listings renew, then a big chunk if we are lucky enough to make a sale. So that is that, my husband did joke the other day that if I do decide to close it I have a good stash of birthday gifts ready to go.

Now I only check Facebook for the groups I am in these days, so a caravanning one and a frugal group so that doesn't take up much time but I do have a little look on instagram but I have to say I am not checking that as much anymore either.  I do need to post on it for some makes as a work thing, but I am not falling down the rabbit hole of spending ages on it. Someone said to me the other day oh you should go on tick tock too, no I thought enough!  There are just too many platforms now, we need to live in the real world too.  

I have been feeling very exhausted recently and I do think that having a bit of a fractured focus may be in part to blame.  That  feeling that sometimes I am forgetting things, or being distracted is possibly just having too many thoughts, loops to keep up with.  So for this next month I am going to do things differently and try to get back in to a more relaxed routine, relaxed meaning I will have set times for posting things I need to, a bit of a detox from it other than work related posts and getting back to my old pen and pad lists which are much more fun in my opinion. 

So I can continue to clear and sort one cuboard at a time but from on I will be slowing the social media input too.  

Here is a little image of a family of ducks that I tried to capture, I didn't spend too long over that as I wanted to enjoy watching them rather than taking the picture. That is the direction I am going in.

Well after that strange ramble I will share with you what I am reading this week, I actually started it last week and it is Circe by Madeline Miller.  I am enjoying it now that I have settled into it, and I have enjoyed a few Greek Myth retellings recenlty.

On TV I have watched Inside Man, I found that interesting too and we do tend to watch a series over a few nights.

That is all for today, a rather odd non sewing post this time, take care.