the work of hands...

I have a goal to be intentional about "making" this summer. Whether that be with yarn, fabric, wood, paint, or food, I have some aspirations.

First of all, I absolutely go a bit crazy when I have a project languishing for too long, That means I have a few things that I absolutely want to get done before we start back to school in August. First of all, I have a pair of socks that I knitted for Brad. I finished the second sock while we were in Tennessee in May, but forgot my dpn's so I couldn't finish the toe. And it's STILL sitting in the project bag now a month later! What?! That's definitely a priority. Not because Brad needs wool socks in the summer, but because I only have several rounds left on that darn sock and it needs finished!

I also want to knock that large crocheted afghan out of the park over the next three months. It's already quite large, but my goal was to make it huge so that multiple bodies could snuggle under it. I was working along at a very nice clip until I ran out of yarn and had to order more and then, subsequently, lost my momentum. I'm using this pattern by Attic24.

Another fun crochet project was the market bag. I literally made that entire thing in under 24 hours, start to finish. I used this pattern, and I love how it turned out. It's a bit bigger than I thought, but that just means I can fit more things into it. This was a practical item for me to make, and I do plan on using it when I visit the little farmer's market we have here in the summer. But I could also see this bag being very useful for the beach as well.

Lily is currently making a crocheted rug out of thrifted sheets. I made another thrift store run yesterday morning for more sheets. One of our local thrift stores sells flat sheets for $1 each, and you really can't pass that up, especially when you have a use for them. I bought enough sheets for her to make her rug, as well as enough for me to make one.

I also have a collection of vintage, thrifted pillowcases that I want to trim with a crochet trim. This will probably not be done this summer, but it's definitely on my list of creative "to-do's." I love the look of these pillowcases. In addition, I bought that charm pack last spring because I wanted to make a quilt. Not an over-the-top quilt, but, rather, just a plain, simple patchwork quilt. I've only ever quilted a few smaller projects, so I think intimidation has been preventing me from actually cutting into that fabric. That's silly though, isn't it?

Handiwork has become a very important pastime here in our home. I suppose it has something to do with me sticking the kids in their highchairs at the age of one with oversized paint brushes and non-toxic paint. They've always just seen the process of creating from both Brad and myself, so I suppose that they would just naturally assume the same habit. In the above photos, the sewn doughnuts, the woven candle mat, the rag rug, and the yarn on the spindle are all projects that Lily completed or is working on right now (plus many, many more.) That girl can create up a cloud of dust when she gets in the frame of mind to do so. She's always got her fingers into a project of some sort. Ian is more interested in working with wood or repurposing things (he gets that from him dad and a bit from me.) He made me the wooden coasters from a tree he cut down behind our house and gave them to me as a Mother's Day gift.

So, yes, we spend a lot of our time making things here in our home. Maybe that's foreign to some people, but I honestly couldn't imagine not making that a priority for our family. And I am absolutely certain that it is essential to me and my peace of mind. It's a big part of how I express myself. I just feel like I must create. Which is one of the reasons I have recently took up watercolor painting again this summer. I used to paint in high school and college and my hands-down favorite medium was watercolor. I recently started a nature journal which I am head-over-heels in love with because it is enabling me to practice painting again and learn and record so much about nature (which is another favorite topic of mine.)

Now I suppose I need to find the time to pursue all of these creative goals/projects this summer. I have a rather good feeling that I will not accomplish near what I would like to because I do spend most days out-of-doors in the summer. But there are always rainy days and nights around the campfire which lend to the "making" mood.

Some other crafty plans I have...

I love this Chevron Crocheted Bag

These would be great for storage.

I love this shawl by Cherry Heart.

I need one of these on the side of my barn.

studio progress

I spent some time getting my new space set up yesterday. It's mostly done, yet the walls are still quite bare which definitely will change over time as this space evolves into what I've been envisioning.

In the meantime, it's definitely functional and so much nicer than working out of closets and drawers and bins. It is glorious to feel organized and to have a dedicated creative spot.

creating

Lily has been spending many of the rainy day moments at the table with her glass beads and wire, creating pretty things. "Mom, this is sooooo relaxing," she has said to me multiple times in the last few days.

Yesterday, while we were in town, we had to stop so she could buy more jewelry-making supplies. It was so cute, watching her stand in the beading aisle, trying to decide which beads she could afford with her money, picking out the correct gauge of jewelry wire, and so forth.

"Golly, she looks like me when I'm surrounded by yarn," I thought, quite amused.

Her creativity has blossomed over the last few years. That makes me very happy. I'm excited about where this all may take her as she grows up. Brad and I are definitely encouraging her to keep pursuing her creative interests. I have always kept crafting/art supplies plentiful and accessible in our home. That may have something to do with her interest, but I think God has really just made her naturally bent to be a creative, right-brainer. I see it in how she learns in her schooling lessons too.

Right now she is building up a little inventory of jewelry in the hopes of setting out some of her wares at the fall festival I have a booth at in September. I think she'll do well. She's actually really impressing me with what she is making.

I recently started to give private crochet lessons. I had my first official lesson today with a woman and her two daughters. They are homeschoolers as well, and I had met her when our kids took a Spanish class together last summer. I was a bit nervous. But I gave myself a pep talk this morning (Amber, you can do this. Crochet is one of your passions. You know a lot about it. You are good at it. You CAN teach it.), and we had a great time during the lesson.

Well, I think I need to go indulge in a nap. Why do I feel like I need a nap everyday??? I used to think naps were such a waste of precious time. But something happened about two years ago and nap-time became a much-coveted thing in my life. Maybe it's age? I don't know. Brad doesn't understand how I can waste time during the day to lie down for an hour or so, but it's so good, so cozy, so cuddly. Sometimes, no, most times it is just what I need to energize myself for the rest of the day. I don't drink coffee to stay awake. I take a nap. That's probably a healthier route anyway, don't you think? {Wink}

The Art of Homemaking - Making Our Lives Beautiful

As keepers of our homes, we have an opportunity to bring beauty into our homes and into the lives of our family members and anyone else who graces the thresholds of our homes.

As someone with a creative spirit, I appreciate this aspect of homemaking.

It's about seeing beauty in the little things. Searching with eyes open and ears tuned until the beauty is found.

Beauty in the common, ordinary things. Because it is absolutely necessary to slow down long enough and open our eyes wide enough to see the beauty that lies within the common. Skim back the mundane and dig deep into the soil of extraordinary. Little hidden gems from the Father that are available to those who breathe deep and slow enough to find them.

A vase of field grass and wildflowers picked by little hands.

Freshly cut lavender from the garden and its calming, nostalgic scent.

An old family heirloom, a crazy quilt pieced together in 1924, now hanging on an old chippy white quilt stand.

Ave Maria playing softly in the background, bringing calm and peace through the beautiful notes that were spilled forth onto paper so long ago.

A basket of cookbooks, the pages full of nourishment for the beloved family.

Little hands mixing up the flour and sugar and eggs.

The gift of growing our own food. And the beautiful diversity of the tastes and smells of those foods.

A new passion strummed out over the strings of a guitar.

A stack of handmade, crocheted coasters.

 

A boy's wild imagination wrapped up in the pages of a page-turner.

A stack of freshly washed bath towels, stacked up neat.

A pitcher full of last year's hydrangeas from a dear friend's garden.

A sink full of warm, sudsy dishwater.

Gleaming wooden floors that smell clean and feel smooth under the feet. (Oh, this one rarely happens so it's a true gem when it does!)

Beauty is around us. God gives it to us to inspire us, to motivate us, to invigorate us. God's creation is full of beauty and creativity for God is the Father of creativity after all. Look at what He's made. His creation exudes beauty and diversity and color and art.

This is how to find joy in the midst of the mundane. This is how to find beauty in those tasks that have the tendency to be boring and routine and dreaded.


We look for the kernel of beauty that exists in it. Each of our tasks as homemakers has that gem hidden somewhere in it. We must look for it. And then the mundane is no longer mundane.

God is the One who plants that desire for expression in our souls. He is the One who plants the seed of creativity and art in the soul. And it is a gift that He gives to us to share with those around us.



So we can look at our homemaking as a way to express that art. The art of home. The art of making our homes beautiful expressions of His gifts to us. And these gifts are not the ones that line the shelves of the local home store. These are the gifts that line the shelves of our heart, that mean the most to us, the can be seen only with a little digging and work.

Come, Thou Fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy, never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.
Teach me some melodious sonnet,
Sung by flaming tongues above.
Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,
Mount of Thy redeeming love.

 He is the fount of every blessing!

James 1:17 - Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.



Linking up here...

Far Above Rubies
Time Warp Wife 
Growing Home