It's all about CREATIVITY

 It's the end of the week! How did that happen? There was so much going on that I just went from one thing to another, and well, here it is - FRIDAY!!

OK - so I didn't get as much done as I wanted yesterday, but I did have fun, and that's what life is all about. I watched one of the presentations for Quilt Canada (in french), and it was great. Amazing how much I still remember after all these years. And it's not even my first language. When I was listening to the French radio station the other night, they were talking about Zoom sessions where you could just converse with others in french. I must find out more about that. My writing will never be good, and that's OK - I don't want to write in french, but I'm a bit rusty in oral French. 

Why is this such a big deal? I'm supposed to be doing presentations in the fall in French, and I need to brush up. And I do NOT know all the sewing terms in french. So if anyone out there speaks French and knows sewing terms, let's talk. 

Well, after watching that presentation, I spent a good part of the day in the live (virtual) demos put on by the stores, and then I shopped. So far, I'm just window shopping - not for windows, but browsing what each store has to offer. I've found a couple of things, and yes, the shipping is higher than what I would like to pay, but what the heck - I would have spent more money if I went in person, so I'm going to buy a couple of things later today. 

There is just a small suggestion that I'd make to the organizers. The list of live demos is a bit convoluted, and I keep getting into the wrong session. It should be listed by TIME SLOT, not by store. That way, today being Friday, I can just look at the Friday sessions, not the way it is now. But overall, I give the Quilt Canada team a HUGE THUMBS UP. They have done an amazing job. I was into one of the galleries to see the quilts as well. It's very well done. I'm impressed. 

I put my wireless earbuds on and started "watching" Quilt Canada. And while I did that, I got a customer quilt done. 

Customer quilt - DONE

It's trimmed and ready for pickup! 

I got all the fabric pressed and cut, and I have 30 more pillowcases ready to be sewn together. Yeah!!! I have one more small quilt to get done, and then I have the next batch of stuff done for MIL. Oh yes - if she is going to sew, I will keep prepping stuff for her. 

30 more pillowcase kits

OK -- here's what happens when you have a brain fart. I'm participating in the Barn Block Quilt-a-Long at Thimbles and Things. The bonus this month is to make a very complex paper pieced block. I'm reducing the size of the blocks from 18" to 9". We received the 18" block pattern. I thought I would be clever and recreate that in EQ8 so I could print the pattern out for a 9" block. 

Oh boy - I looked at it and started to draw and thought - "why am I reinventing the wheel?" So I sent a note asking for the file so I could resize it. Then I walked the dogs. Hmm - it's a paper pieced pattern, I can simply reduce it by 50%, and I'll be good. 

So when I got home, that's what I did. Thankfully before I started to piece the block, I tested the size. Hmm - NOT the right size. Then I realized that the original was also wrong. I had printed "fit to page," NOT actual size. 

I had to reprint the original, and then I reduced it by 50%, and now it's perfect! Of course, the seam allowances are wrong, but those are easy enough to add on. 

And here's my reduced pattern. Now to figure out what color goes where. 

My paper pieced pattern

Thankfully, we have one more month to get this block done. I was able to cross one more thing off The Task Master yesterday, and I have FOUR things that NEED to be done, and that will leave four things that can wait. I might just get it all done by the end of the weekend. I'll see how it goes as there are some scheduled things over the next couple of days. But overall, I feel in good shape. 

Oh boy -- it seems that we have a neighbor gone rogue! I was almost home, and Murphy was freaking out because of a squirrel. She tries so hard to be good (OK - she doesn't), but if I don't see the squirrel first and start saying "NO" to her, she goes crazy. So I was telling her to calm down and stop barking like an idiot. One of my neighbors accuses me of swearing at the dog and being a bad dog owner. Seriously???  What is her problem? And then she made a comment that I didn't really grasp at first, but after I thought about it - it was a RACIST comment.

Using her arm to encompass not just me but our house, she said, "we were NOT her peeps.". Well, thank goodness for that! I want to walk over and give her a piece of my mind, but it's not worth the trouble. But we really need to be careful what we say and to whom. It's easy to tell someone, "don't let those kinds of comments bother you," but you know what? It made me feel angry and upset for part of the morning. I'm over it now, but seriously - am I supposed to just let Murphy pull and yank on the leash? I should have offered for her to walk Murphy when the squirrels are out. 

Sigh........................

On a happier note, I found the article about creativity from John Cleese. You need to read this. It's the FIVE things that he feels are important to make your life more creative. Check out Number 2 and Number 3. Both of them are TIME. Yes - we need time to play. 

What's really scary is that when kids are small, they are supposed to have playtime to learn to explore, be curious, get creative, etc. However, their lives are filled with screens and organized activities that they don't have time to make houses from leaves and sticks. Not only do they not have time, but they are taught that leaves and sticks are not good enough. They need to have LEGO or whatever. 

I might have said this before, but what exactly is creativity? I was asked that question in an interview for a sales job. WHOA! That took me aback. What does creativity have to do with a sales job? Well, I've learned that creativity is not making quilts or coloring in a coloring book. Creativity is the ability to play, learn to make mistakes, recover from mistakes, solve problems, explore, and not be afraid to make mistakes. I did get that sales job, and I had to be very creative as I solved problems, like what to do when the cables for a computer didn't get shipped and other crazy situations. 

So do yourself a favor. Book some time where you can just play. Play with your fabric, your threads, your sewing machine, and other tools. You do NOT want to make something perfect. You are here to make mistakes with fabric choices, color, techniques. And that's how you're going to learn. Don't go for something large. Make small projects - about 9 by 12". I hope to do a bunch of that over the summer, and of course, I'll share that process with you. OH YES --- the project just came to mind. OK -- so start collecting odds and ends of STUFF in your favorite color. By odds and ends, I mean stuff that you could attach (or photocopy on fabric) so you can attach to a small project. It could be trim, ribbons, buttons, fabrics, etc. 

I made myself a note so I won't forget that. I'll start collecting today so you can see what I mean. 

Well, it's time to get the day rolling. 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!