Cutting and Sewing

For me, quilts are usually free-hand affairs. I could probably save time and the occasional blister from not-sharp-enough scissors by using a rotary cutter but that's not my style. I made this quilt over the past couple of weeks as a gift for a soon to be new baby in the family. I love playing with color and patterns and as I worked on it I realized how much making this quilt captured the spirit of most of my creative endeavors.

It starts with inspiration and excitement about a new idea. The early stages take planning and cutting fabric and, in this case, figuring out how many squares and triangles to cut. After planning, the work begins. Sewing the same seams over and over isn't as exciting as scheming about the design, but it is a necessary part of the process. After some of this practical work, I have to figure out whether my idea will actually come together and determine if I need to do more sewing and cutting.

In nearly every project there is a moment, or moments, of doubt. I see my original vision disappear and worry that my free-hand approach will lead to disaster. There are times when it does but more often I keep working and the project turns a corner. The results of my work become something better, though different, than what I imagined. When I can see my work turning into something I love, I again feel the excitement about the project. Then there are the finishing touches like quilting, binding, snipping threads which can take just as long as the rest of the work.



I often wish that I was more inclined to follow a pattern that would always yield precise, predictable results. But I can't keep myself from jumping in and forgoing step by step instructions for my own ideas, challenges and whims.

How do you find joy in creating?

What Did You Make Today?

One night last week when I got home from a yoga class, Ray was watching a community television station from Fresno California on his ipad. He was excited to then be able to watch the station on our TV. It wasn't a program he really wanted to watch, but a chance to appreciate the work he did to make this possible. This is not my area of expertise or interest and as I try to explain I will inevitably say it wrong. Basically, Ray wrote the code which allows community television stations to livestream their channels. While software development is creative work that I can't always wrap my head around, I fully appreciate the satisfaction of making something and seeing it work.

There isn't a lot of overlap in the things that Ray and I enjoy making, creating and tinkering with. He uses his mind and a keyboard*, I am drawn to hands on creation. Mixing flour and water, kneading dough, cutting and stitching. No matter what tools, ingredients, or materials you use, there is a satisfaction in unlocking the secrets of a process so that all you need is your brain and your hands to make it happen. Whether you are cooking, painting, or writing code, the challenge of solving the puzzle and honing your skills brings a sense of self reliance and satisfaction in actively making parts of the world. It doesn't have to be complex or extraordinary.

After admiring his work for a few minutes I asked Ray to please turn off the TV and he turned to me and said, "What did you make today?" My husband should know better than to ask me this with a tone that implies that I probably didn't make anything nearly as worthwhile.

I paused before remembering, "Bagels."

The bagels were the antidote to days of dreary rain and gray and disheartening temperatures in the 30s and 40s. I used this recipe from Wayward Spark (I baked mine in the oven). It doesn't take a lot of time but it is a two day process which is ideal if you are suffering from a rainy week or need something that feels like a bit of a project. The bagels were as good as many that I have bought from bagel shops.

For me, making food is often as much about deliciousness as tangible creation. Sometimes the importance of the end result is not that you have a bagel to slice open and spread with cream cheese or a community television station that everyone can watch online, but the feeling that you get from making it happen.

So, what did you make today?



*Ray also builds bicycles and brews beer so this is over simplifying the scope of his creative work.

Creative Moments

When I wrote, last week, about beginning something new I mentioned that creativity is always a process of learning and making. I want to remind all of us how important it is to enjoy the process because the final results are rarely guaranteed to be what you expect.

The above photographs came from enjoying a quieter moment in the kitchen, appreciating the light and the chance to focus only on mixing and stirring. It was a break from all of our time outside enjoying a truly perfect spring day and I worked with the window open. Maybe all that fresh air was too intoxicating because after I put the quiche in the oven all of the filling leaked out of the pie crust and the tart pan. Needless to say the process was much more gratifying than the unfilled quiche.

For last night's dinner, I burned the chickpeas when I thought they were just simmering away. It might be true that the more you make, the more mistakes you will make. It is also true that when you are comfortable making and not too attached to the results these mistakes are just little bumps in the road. Just get up and try again.

Begin It

Last week brought a hint of spring and along with the all the fresh air, open windows and warm sun, it also brought me inspiration to get going on some new projects. I made a pair of pants for Amos from Anna Maria Horner's book Handmade Beginnings. Most of my clothes making experience has been sewing skirts for myself and I rarely follow a pattern. I'd like to be able to make more clothes and starting with little pants that don't need to fit perfectly seemed like a good way to go.

How satisfying to make something useful and wearable for Amos! And to make something that turns out the way I had hoped on almost the first try (my actual first try turned out much too big, but he will be able to wear them eventually). The pattern is easy, makes one reversible pair of pants, and was a great excuse to combine fun fabrics. When I think about why I like to make things, so often I come back to the satisfaction of creating something, especially when that thing is also useful.

It has taken a long time for me to be able to take an idea and make it successfully in the first few attempts. I value the process and the learning experience that comes with so much making and I always have more to learn. Right now, though, I want to celebrate the importance of just starting somewhere. Surely there is something you have been wanting to try creating. There are always a hundred reasons to put it off or not do it at all. Sometimes these delays are unavoidable but the longer you wait, the less likely you are to take the time to use your hands and experience the satisfaction of creating.

So, in honor of spring, when nature starts fresh and begins creating everything anew, I urge you to listen to the birds, smell the sweet breezes and jump into whatever creative project you have been waiting to start.

P.S. I saw this video and love the idea of trying and working on something for 100 days. More inspiring projects here.

P.P.S. It is really hard to get a picture of Amos (and his pants) that isn't blurry because these days he is always on the move.

The Dexterity of Experience

I needed a new notebook, so I sat down to sew one over the weekend. I've many of these coptic bound books since I learned the technique in college. I hadn't made a new one in a few years, but fortunately my fingers remembered just how to guide the needle. All of the small tricks I had picked up over time to make the process easier and create better results, came right back. It feels good to realize that I actually do know what I'm doing and I am developing creative skills.

I recently saw this clip from Ira Glass (thanks Kathie!) which really spoke to the challenge of creating and truly realizing your creative potential. It reminded me that practicing and working through the awkward stages of creating are crucial. Every sentence you write, every photo you take, every stitch you sew, every recipe you try, every mile you run, or whatever craft you are practicing, is part of your creative work. It might be messy at first, it might not be that good for a while, you might feel like you are not getting anywhere. Keep going.

Eventually, things will click, you will make something that turns out as you had hoped or better. And you will reach the point when your fingers can guide the needle with the dexterity of experience.