Is this a trend???

I won't bore you with the details of how my FitBit logged 21,000 steps yesterday. Let's just say the girls were happy, I got some errands done and I used my gym membership! If I do that for a couple of days, I'll be right on track! Phew - I CANNOT get so far behind that it's not possible to catch up. One of my teammates suggested that I could change the end date. WHAT????  NO WAY - when I make a commitment I could NEVER change the end date. Unless something very significant got in the way. But to change because I'm behind? NEVER. That's where I kick it up a notch and get back on track.

I feel that's what is happening in life today. Something needs repair - throw it away and buy something new. You don't like your job? Get a new one. No one wants to buckle down and try to fix things. It drives me crazy. But then that's the pioneer spirit in me. If it can be fixed - why not fix it? If it means buckling down and adding a few more miles to each day - then do it! I love having a stretch goal. It's darn motivating and I've already been to the gym this morning.

I do laugh when I go to the gym early in the morning. I've always parked near the far end of the parking lot. Most other people covet the spots right by the door. Why?? You're going to the gym to exercise - a few more steps won't kill them. And the weather this morning? It's like spring outside - very unusual for our part of the country.

Adding steps by parking away from the door

On one of my walks yesterday, I ended up at Indigo. This is like a smaller version of Barnes and Noble. I took a browse through the craft section to see if there was anything new. There used to be a fair number of quilting books. Yesterday, I think I counted less than 10 including duplicates. There were lots of books on embroidery (mostly hand), books on knitting and crochet (mostly knitting) and then I noticed this kind of book. Now I know they have been around for a while, but it was pretty obvious yesterday. Could this be a trend????

The books were about the MAKERS, not the projects. Or about styles, but no projects. This first one was about why we make things.

Making a Life by Melanie Falick

 The next one was about local makers. The crafts covered beer, furniture, soap, etc. Many, many different crafts.

Toronto Makes by Randi Bergman

The third book was also about artisans and their various crafts.

Made to Last by Vanessa Murray

Each of those books was beautiful. They were hardcover and they were very expensive! Although all the books are getting to be expensive.

There are several magazines by Stampington & Company - Where Women Create and Where Women Cook. These are simply inspirational - there are no patterns in those magazines and there are no projects - just pictures and stories about the makers.

Is the trend to just read about people and techniques but not to make? The same as being a professional student - when do you just let loose and say - "I'll use my creativity and imagination and the skills that I've learned so far and just make and explore?"  Imagine that statement coming from me - a quilt teacher!!!  I love to teach, but I want to teach people the basics and then let them explore. Let them bend the rules of the pattern and go for it!! I certainly do NOT want anyone to be like me. I'm too darn difficult!

I think as a society, that we're losing our curiosity. What happens if I do this? What happens if I change the color of my project? What happens if I eliminate a part of it or make up a new block? We're so set to follow formulas. How will anything new be created if we just follow what already exits?

So after I snapped those pictures in the craft section, I wandered over the craft magazine section. There were TWO American quilt magazines. The rest were knitting, cross-stitch, crochet, die-cutting or quilt magazines from Britain or Australia!!! Now that says something! I know that the book stores do NOT have a say in what comes to them, but it's based on sales. Again, there was quite a selection of inspirational or motivational publications. Oh my goodness - that's so scary that people need to get their inspiration from a magazine. Don't get me wrong - I do sometimes - I love all these magazines, but reading them or browsing them is not allowing my brain to do its job and come up with its own inspirations. But we are all different and I get that.

Where are the quilt magazines? 

Speaking of teaching, I taught a pillowcase class last night. One person dropped out so I just had one student. She is 13 going on 30. What a dynamo! She learned rotary cutting in a flash (a wee bit of practice is still needed) and she was bang on with a straight seam. Meticulous with the ironing, although she just had a birthday so she's not a Virgo. Anyway, she was a pleasure to teach and I expect to see her in more classes. She has her own sewing machine as well. Which I'm sure will get upgraded if she spends more time sewing.

Pillowcase class

I spent a great part of the day learning new software and a tablet, instead of a mouse. I'll save that story for tomorrow. Learning software is always a "FUN" experience. How much of the manual should you read versus just playing around? Actually, I'll be blogging about the software later this month so you don't get to see that part tomorrow, but the tablet? You get to see that.

OH - I should say something else. If you DO NOT have your iPad or tablet or phone in a protective case, run out and get one. I was sitting on a kitchen chair with my iPad Pro (it's a big one). It's in a case. My legs were propped up on the rungs of the kitchen chair, the iPad was sitting in my lap and next thing I knew, it fell on the floor. A corner of the iPad hit the ceramic floor and then it fell flat on its screen. I had a MAJOR moment of panic. I picked it up, the video I was watching was still playing and there wasn't a scratch of a dent on the thing. The corner of the case just needed to be snapped back in place. If you do NOT have a case - get ONE. That would have cost me hundreds and hundreds of dollars to replace.

I'm just waiting for my FitBit to charge back up and then I'm off for a walk with the girls. It's going to be a long day as I'm out for the entire day and the evening. It's my first class for the dressmaking course that I signed up for! We're making skirts this semester. I can hardly wait!!

Speaking of learning new things - here's a story about a couple that lives in the US. They needed to downsize. Have a read on how they did it. I LOVE it and what a perfect way to get rid of their possessions.

On that note, I'm out of here.

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!!