The journey continues

Do you ever get so far behind on something that it just becomes embarrassing, and you just want to hide?  That happens to me way too often, and only recently have I begun to understand why I do it….Perfectionism!  Perfectionism used to seem like a positive thing to me.  I used to strive to be perfect in basically every area of my life, and that’s good, right?  Not so much!  As I’ve gotten older, I realize how crippling it has been in my life.  I avoid doing things (including keeping up with my blog) because it might not be good enough. I procrastinate because it’s easier than facing the fact that I am not perfect, do not do perfect work, and will not write on my blog as perfectly as I aspire to.  People will be disappointed in me.  Which, in my mind, is a fate worse than death.  (My people-pleasing problem is tied to this but is a topic for another day.)  I want my blog to be a success, have lots of readers, and I want it to mean something more than just a place to show what I’ve created.  I want to work through my battle with perfectionism, self-doubt, crippling fears, and hopefully help others along the way.  So, I thank you if you’re still hanging on for the ride.  It will continue to be bumpy at times, but hopefully I will be brave enough to not let fear and perfectionism (which are one in the same) stand in my way. 

Here is one thing I’ve made in the past few months.  There's much more, but I can't do it all today.  

I love my wine cork wreath.  I got a nasty burn from the hot glue on the very first cork I glued down.  It was worth it.  

I love how the read and purple wine stains stand out.  Imagine how boring it would look if all the corks were from white wine.  

I'll be back soon with more fun creations and pieces of my journey.  

For Christmas, my kids gave me the most incredible, heartfelt gift.  With the help of a photographer friend of mine, they reproduced my favorite photo from when they were 7 and 4.  They are now 18 and 15, and my main goal is to be the best mom that I can possibly be.  I have fallen short of that goal on countless occasions.  I have been impatient, said insensitive things, and struggled with incessant worry to the point of smothering overprotection.  In spite of that, they are the two most amazing people God ever put on this earth.  They make me laugh every day.  They make any room brighter with their presence alone.  They remind me daily to not take things so seriously.  And they have grown into exquisite human beings.  I am so proud of them.  They are simply my two favorite blessings.   

The original photo on the left was taken by Cherished Moments Photography, Olympia, WA in 2000.  The one on the right was taken by Nancy Steele at Picture This Photography, 

West Linn, OR.

Merry Christmas!

I hope you are all enjoying this special day with family and friends. It is such a busy time of year, it's nice to be able to relax and enjoy all we have been working toward for the past couple of months.  Here are some of the things I made this month.

I made this for a friend to give to her mom.  There is a charm for each of her grandchildren with names and birthdays on the back.  I'm putting something on Etsy so people can do a special order.

I made one of these for my mom 2 years ago, but she lost the original.  This is the new one, which is far better than the original.  My soldering skills have improved since then. The photo is of my mom and dad on their honeymoon over 50 years ago.  I adapted the poem from Robert Sexton.  Dad passed away almost 4 years ago, so I wanted to make a special memory piece for her.

I made this for my sister.  The photo is of Elliott, my great-nephew and her grandson.  I made her one 2 years ago, but it needed updating.  He was here with the rest of my family yesterday and kept us laughing all day.  So full of spunk!

This one is for my nephew's girlfriend, Ashley.  This photo is of my nephew, Aaron, and his son, Elliott.  It was taken the same day as the adorable cowboy shot.  As soon as I saw this photo, I knew it had to be a pendant for her.  

That's all for now.  Soon, I will be adding some fun pendants I'm working on using vintage pin-up girl photos...so fun!  

I'm so excited to share these adorable pillows I made!  I'm NOT much of a seamstress.  In fact, it takes me a long time just to remember how to use my sewing machine each time I get it out.  So when I found this wonderful tutorial to make poinsettia pillows similar to the ones at Pottery Barn, and they required no sewing (well, a few stitches by hand), I was in.  I went to Home Goods hoping to find some neutral pillows so I wouldn't have to make that part.  These were the find of the year!  They are actual holiday pillows and the perfect background for my poinsettias!  The poinsettias were a bit time-consuming to make, but it was worth it!

Here's the link to a great tutorial if you want to give them a try.
http://spartan-living.blogspot.com/

I'm back!

I was so excited to get my blog up and running in August, but then things got busy and it was the first thing to go.  For those of you who are following, thanks for your patience!  I thought I'd get back into it by sharing some of the things I've done this week.  

I made these pendants for my friends, Wini and Holly.  Holly had a beautiful baby boy 6 weeks ago, and I wanted to surprise the new mommy and the new grandma with photo pendants of baby Davis.  

I was so excited to get to see Davis and deliver the gifts today.  He is absolutely adorable, and such a sweet, calm baby.  Look at his bright, wide eyes look at his mommy.  What a sweetheart! 

More to come VERY soon!  I promise!

Lessons from the first half of my life...

As I prepare to celebrate my birthday tomorrow, I started thinking of some of the life lessons I've learned thus far.  Many have only become clear to me over the past year and have been a lifetime in the making.  So, here are the lessons I've learned in the first half of my life!  (fingers crossed...)

• Never apologize for your beliefs.  If you truly believe in your position, you should not be threatened by opposition.  Not everyone is going to agree with you, but it’s nobody else’s business what you believe in your heart.

• Be direct.  If you are upset, let it be known now…not later.  If you wait and bring something up later, the statute of limitations is in effect!

• Say no and mean it!  Don’t get pressured to do something out of guilt. 

• Don’t just forgive….forget!

• You aren’t supposed to connect with everyone.  You meet some people who you have a connection with, but others you won’t no matter how hard you try.  That’s okay!  We have different tastes in food, clothing, movies, and a thousand other things.  It’s okay to be selective with people, too. 

• We outgrow some relationships.  I don’t mean marriage, because if you outgrow that, you aren’t trying.  But with friendships, some are there for life.  Those are the friends who can finish your sentences, who know your secrets, and who love you anyway.  Some, however, are in our lives for a time, we learn from that relationship, and we move on.  No guilt necessary. 

• There is little you can learn from doing nothing. 

• Fear is lethal and self-destructive!  Conquer it and never let it win. 

• Treat yourself like you do those you cherish most.  Love yourself, nurture yourself, and give yourself a break.  Compassion, rather that disdain for your own shortcomings is very freeing! 

• Stay away from toxic people.  They are the ones who leave you feeling worse after you have spent time with them.

• You can’t “fix” people.  They are responsible for their own actions and it isn’t your responsibility.

• If you’re worrying about other people’s business, you’ll never be happy. 

• Life isn’t as serious as your mind makes it out to be.  Don’t waste your time over-analyzing things, because there’s about a 99% chance that you are completely off base!

• Don’t waste your time and your life worrying about what other people think of you.  They are too busy worrying about what everyone thinks of THEM to focus that much attention and thought on you. 

• LOVE truly is all that matters.  

I made this for my sister-in-law, Kate!  She and her fiance' Brian are getting married in less than a month.  This was one of my first mixed-media pieces.  It was so fun, knowing that I could do whatever I wanted.  There's a lot of freedom in that.  

I wanted to make her a special pendant, but the words were just too small.  So I cropped them off and made this.  I didn't get a good photo of the back, but it has their wedding date...9/10/11!  Isn't that just a fun photo?  They are so cute!!