what can you do out and about?

portable crafting projects completed

Maybe some inspiration for what can be created with just wire, a crochet hook and some pliers?

lacking focus

clutch of fidget rings in brass and copper with furnace glass

Time has most definitely not been of the essence recently, mainly due to an enforced run of solo parenting for the last week. When I'm not parenting I've generally been too tired to create, and this makes me more exhausted and in turn I get little other than the immediate childcare stuff done in a day ..... and so on! It becomes a catch-22 until I get some unfettered "me-time" to reboot. We've been mainly home-based too so I've not even been managing any portable crafting moments despite having a new waistcoat on the (circular) pins.

However, a few evenings ago I sat down at my desk and worked on two projects. Somehow the metal obeyed my command, I only shattered one glass bead during rivetting and the pair of fidget rings shown above were the end product. There's also a new flotsam wire and fibre brooch on the go but it needs a repeat felting so no pics so far.

Having some new projects on the go certainly helps me banish the crafting blues, and I've found it helps with life in general. I feel calmed and productive amidst the chaos of my role in family life, a job with no reference, feedback or career pattern. I guess this mother's little helper is fibre or metal plus assorted tools!

PS: they're fidget rings cos the glass rivet section sticks up a bit and is great for fiddling with, all rings should have a fiddle section!

in person

meet me here on sunday!

pace hots up for portable crafting

collection of portable crafting projects to go

As personal time runs out I rely more and more on making my crafting portable so I can pull out a project to work on while I'm running errands or doing the mum stuff. I'll be selling at the spring Got Craft? fair at the Legion Hall (on Commercial Drive @ E6th Avenue in Vancouver, 11am to 5pm) on Sunday, May 3rd so I have some prep to do for this. I also have a birthday to get ready for - somehow I don't think that even if I knit like the wind will I have the sweater top left ready for wrapping. I'm onto the armhole shaping on the front, having completed the back and one sleeve so it would be a possibility if I didn't also have a million other tasks to complete.

For the first time at a craft fair I'll have some supplies to sell. I have spare wire beads in addition to the wire crochet cuff kits to put out on the table so come on down all you DIY'ers.

earth day - ebbandflo is doing her crafty bit

I've always been a thrifty gal, my mother's influence from her own rationing and wartime in London experiences have helped shape me as someone who hates to discard. Even my craft studio is built around semi-conservation/upcycling principles - a lot of my crafting materials are stored in those transparent plastic boxes which prepared salads come in. They are ideal since they stack, are easily labelled, are lightweight and the contents are seen readily.


However, I'm not as quick as some sellers of handmade to jump on the eco bandwagon. I've made a few tagging changes to fit in with the Etsy perception of 'being green' (when in Rome, .....) but I'm still uncomfortable with whooping up eco credentials. I try to incorporate green-ness in everyday life and crafting but I'm no eco-warrior. The spotlight above brings together some of my more thrifty, upcycling projects and the new design of felted flotsam cuff above incorporates handspun 'sweepings' (from Yummy Yarn) with brand new wire (it's almost impossible to upcycle wire though my flotsam brooches do use up the odds and ends of all kinds of handcrafting offcuts). I love working with sea glass and am slowly working thru a stash of machine knit wool swatches for felting which my mother gave me.
With a little thought it's possible to work some earth-saving practices into your crafting life!

new balls please!

Spring must be around the corner. I suspect this not because the sun is peeking out from behind the many clouds but my studio got an impromptu clear out last week after I ranted at how messy my desk was.
So this morning (my child-free morning!) I'm starting things off with freshly brewed coffee, some new fuzzy balls to play with (not mr ebb btw, who is the only 'cloud' in my day since he's working from home!) and a blog post about how efficient I'm going to be today (ho hum - catch me on Twitter to see how I'm doing thru out the day).
First off is this blog post (ta da!) and then I'm going to pair the fuzzy balls with some beautiful fluorite beads and silver spacers to make another choker (I really like this length though I will lengthen on request!).
After that I have piles of admin to do.
Sometimes it's just not possible to portably craft 24/7 as the desk time catches up.
... and today is one of those days! le sigh

raccoon mums and more ....

It occurs to me that portable crafting might just be the way forward.
I've been musing over the Globe and Mail article I blogged yesterday about raccoon mums (or moms). Although I'm not quite sure why 'raccoons' (is it the nocturnal nature of a the solo time a la the little bandit, or is it the dark circles round the eyes following so little sleep I wonder?), I do think that making your sanity saver more mobile is one way that a few more hours of shut eye can be reclaimed.
Instead of crafting away into the wee small hours uninterrupted why not pack up your goodies and 'interrupt' kiddo's playtime with a few rows of knitting? They can quietly haemorrhage after a fall while you calmly finish another inch of pattern I'm sure.*

So my ideal portable raccoon-saving kit would contain;
1. a craft project with all trimmings
2. one of those super small wireless enabled notebooks
3. chocolate
4. a camera
What would your ideal portable sanity saver be?
No, there aren't any prizes.

*Yes, I was joking. Read my previous posts for tips on quick pack up of portable projects.

nocturnalism now has a new name

... and the new name is 'raccoon mum' as per this article from the Globe and Mail, which was twittered to me by @yoyomama (who incidentally write a great email bulletin).
I suppose since I've spent a goodly chunk of my Wee Guy's life so far in a sleep-deprived haze it's no wonder that I get most of my writing/crafting/business admin done after he's gone to bed. My studio is right next to his room so sometimes this 'me' time is interrupted by snatches of conversation about his day as he drifts off into dreamtime. Occasionally he joins me for a while, bringing a book or toy to amuse himself with quietly while he gets sleepy (and he does! sleep is a great hobby for all of us).
I would prefer to have an evening again but I also appreciate that I would go nuts if I had to try and cram all the things I do want to do into daylight hours. Being a mum has also taught me that I really do value my solitude, my absolute solitude, and I'm getting better at communicating this and defending rather than apologising for it.
solitude = headspace = reboot = better mothering
photo above: sawing metal in the wee small hours

portable prep

Yarns and knitting pouch sitting near the exit, ready to be grabbed for a day out with the wee guy.

PS: the finished result is here below, a pair of lacy felted wrist warmers.

how do you craft?

So, how do you pull it all together and manage a few crafty moments in your day? How does it all fit together in your family life? Whether you're a stressed new mum following the 'sleep when the baby sleeps' mantra or the follower of a very active out-and-about preschooler it can be a real juggling act to try keep that ounce of sanity going by snatching a creative moment or two in the day's itinerary.

Recently I found some inspiration from an article run in the Etsy blog, The Storque where seller Nikki aka BabyBelle talked about her studio and how enmeshed in family life it is. Far from the usual unfeasible "Quit Your Day Job" (!) series, this article actually addressed the ins and outs of working at home and weaving it around normal family duties. It turns out that there are a whole slew of work-at-home mum articles available here ....... maybe you can find some nuggets of inspiration in them too!