Tag: handmade

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Watercolor Purge

This Summer required extra Weekend Therapy to unpack everything we went through the last two years. When it started, I was still feeling floored that we had shut down the year prior, let alone the ups and downs of the most recent school year.

My summer friend on 35 mm

So I took pictures, traveled a bit, walked around aimlessly, rode my bike, binged TV, obsessed over listened to true crime podcasts, hung out with the kids, talked to my counselor, and watercolored. I think it accomplished the goal of coming to terms with all of the transitions, and I felt ready to finally start to hope and plan for the year ahead…however unpredictable it might prove to be.

My own counselor is helping me realize that we often think of self-care like we can put rest in some reserve for later when our lives explode again. But alas, it’s not so easy! Self- care is an ongoing process, and in the down-time of summer I’m learning to use my energy to process the past, and develop sustainable self-care habits for the busy future.

Anywho, at the end of the day (or summer) I have a cautiously optimistic readiness for the school year and a big ol’ pile of photographic and art prints! I went the summer taking pictures of my watercolors and then gifting them to people who will find them meaningful. And after ordering some magical giclee prints, I’ve decided to motivate my self- care practice by starting to sell them!

It all started with this first illustration of a book store near my cousin’s house in Columbus. She started out our summer with her beautiful neighborhood!

More to come on this if I can ever for the life of me figure out the interwebs, but if the site looks a little different it will be a sign I’ve figured it out!

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Rope Basket Weekend Therapy

So here’s the deal: when your 19-year-old kid asks you to do some plant-related business with her, you don’t ask questions. As is true for many parents, we are in a new phase of kin bliss following the tumultuous years in which I thought my teen might be a sociopath my child was claiming her independence. After years of careful grooming, my daughter is in her first new place and has embraced my love of all things houseplants.

Being that making is my therapy, it has actually be a really awesome outlet for me to have a reason to craft plant-related things for our little endeavor. While I am the middle-born-flower-child, she is the first-born-rule-follower-turned-rule-maker, making us the perfect pair for a little entrepreneurship!

You can check us out on Facebook or Instagram if you’d like, under Plant Plug 757! In the meantime, I’m crafting up new plant-related goods with rope planter covers for the last few days of my Spring Break!

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Collage Self-Care

Mini collages based on our Legitimate Rights…

Legitimate Rights, Marsha Linehan in DBT Therapy:

  1. You have a right to need things from others.
  2. You have a right to put yourself first sometimes.
  3. You have a right to feel and express your emotions or your pain.
  4. You have a right to be the final judge of your beliefs and accept them as legitimate.
  5. You have the right to your opinions and convictions.
  6. You have the right to your experience – even if it’s different from that of other people.
  7. You have a right to protest any treatment or criticism that feels bad to you.
  8. You have a right to negotiate for change.
  9. You have a right to ask for help, emotional support, or anything else you need (even though you may not always
    get it).
  10. You have a right to say no; saying no doesn’t make you bad or selfish.
  11. You have a right not to justify yourself to others.
  12. You have a right not to take responsibility for someone else’s problem.
  13. You have a right to choose not to respond to a situation.
  14. You have a right, sometimes, to inconvenience or disappoint others.
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Easter crafty

First of all, get a Cricut.

Second, if you are in the saintly way or Catholic, check out Tiny Saints because they’re adorable. I love a good collection and these little charms can be picked based on any lucky recipient’s personality so they’re super personal little gifts. I may or may not have found a couple for myself too.

Had the craft therapy itch this year even though my babies aren’t so little anymore. I put little faces on some plastic eggs with my new, amazing, magical Cricut. Then pulled out the hook for these mini hats. They were crazy easy and fast- I love how they turned out! The kids loved them too, well really, they mainly loved the money inside the eggs, but I’ll take it!

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Winter Break is Over Ya’llllll

For real, it’s been amazing! A stay-cation with the kids and hubby (for half of the week), holidays, family, empty calories, and plenty of break-therapy craftiness. Note that the exclusion of lesson planning, deep and educational industry article reading, e-mail fretting, and general housework is sincere and deliberate.  And it was worth it.

Two things I’m excited to continue going back to post-holiday and break unconsciousness:

  1. I’m dipping my toes in the world of Etsy! Scary!
  2. I found an awesome stitch-a-day that I’m joining. Whoop! Check it out and I’ll keep posted.  Check out 1 Year of Stitches here! http://www.brwnpaperbag.com/1-year-of-stitches-2017/