A Good Thing

You would think that now I am retired that I would have all the time in the world to do what I want but there are always those things that are NEEDS - and there are so many distractions here - lovely friends, lovely scenery -  that I really need to get myself more disciplined; once I started thinking of all the upcoming events, proposals that are due and details that I need to take care of I truly began to panic (just a little) which was a good thing because it made me buckle down a bit. 

After writing things down and prioritizing all the lists and giving myself deadlines, I've been able to accomplish a bit more, check a few things off the list and calm down just a little - of course, having a darling man to beckon to your call makes life good; I do have to remember that and make time to enjoy him and appreciate all the lovely things he does to take such good care of me.  It also helps to have a baby fix whenever we get the opportunity - our two little grandsons live within a half an hour and I'll drop everything in a heartbeat to spend time with them;  I miss the others in our family terribly especially when they get together for family celebrations, it really hurts that we can't always join in the fun since we were so used to being the "go to" house for a multitude of birthdays and  all the other family celebrations.  Making memories for our grandchildren is such a great pleasure and privilege and I miss planning special meals and surprises for everyone in our wonderful family and extended family that are far away; what a true blessing it is to have your children grow into kind, generous and hard working adults who take such good care of the grandchildren that you adore.  We are very blessed and I thank God for this every day.

Lately I've been working through the things on my list, some of which are for an upcoming show at ArtWorks in Beaufort at the beginning of October.  The group's name is FAB (Fiber Artists of Beaufort) and I'm SO fortunate to be a part of this creative group - this will be a fun event so please come if you will be near the area.  As time draws near, I will be posting more information about this event.

In August, I will be teaching two workshops in Portland, Oregon and in preparation, I have been working on yet another vest.  It is so easy to get lost in the details and such a surprise once the garment is finished, really - no matter how you imagine it ahead of time, it is always different since the felted pieces have their own ideas about placement.  In addition to wet felting, I'll be showing some tips on how to use the Embellisher to enhance your felt work - so fun and easy.  

I have no idea why I keep creating these elaborate and fancy pieces - only thing I can think of is that in addition to being fun to make, maybe "Her Majesty" was in a royal court in a past life - makes me smile to think of that, especially when I know that they didn't wash their clothes very often so they may have looked pretty, but then again there are other things to consider  . . . .   A good thing that silk and wool can be washed!