Do Sewing Machines Have Birthdays

This one certainly does. Happy Birthday my friend. I hope you have an absolutely fabulous day.

It's Better Together

Collaboration keeps popping into my mind. Everywhere I glance there are signs. If I wasn't looking I'd trip over them. People painting together in the park on my way home. Posts or blogs about women collaborating. Everywhere, people are doing it together. All these signs make my heart sing a little tune. I know I want to collaborate with others creative souls, on something. I just don't know on what and with who.

I'm excited by the prospect. I've got a few thoughts floating around but nothing solid. There's some amazing women out there who I'd love to team up with. Writing seems like a possibility, collage seems like another. Perhaps those are just the things I know though. Perhaps there's another totally new idea just waiting to surface.

I'm sure it's just a matter of time till an opportunity presents itself. I'm letting the universe guide this one.

Do You Hear It?

The noise. That incessant noise. Questioning. Doubting. Dismissing.

You know what I'm talking about don't you? The "little voice" inside your head? The one that tells you that you're not enough, won't ever be?

I decided at the start of the year that the "little voice" had to go. I decided it was time for a new mix tape. So I painted what I was thinking. I took all the negative messages that I wanted to get rid of and I let them explode out of my head. Then I thought of all the new messages about myself that I wanted to internalise, and I did exactly that. I put them in my body.

I really love this painting. For lots of reasons.

• I love the symbolism of it.
• I love the size of it. It's so much fun to work on big canvases.
• I love the adventure of it. It's the first time I've ever attempted to paint a face. I'm actually not happy with the way the face looks at all but I'm so pleased with myself for taking a step and giving it a go.
• I love that I hung it in the spare bedroom. I didn't hide it away in my studio where only I can see it. I put it out there in the house for the whole world to see. Since I put it up I've started hanging lots of my creations around the house. It feels so nice to have a house filled with art, including my own. I feel like I've taken another step forward in putting my intention out there.

I just have to remember to read it more often. To really internalise the words. To allow them to become the new soundtrack to my life.

Why don't you leave me a comment with an affirmation that you like for yourself. I'll pick someone out next Friday and make you a collage with your affirmation. What do you think?

Are You Coming To Summer Camp With Me?

Did you go to camp when you were growing up? I spent a week of almost every holidays of my youth at camp, first as a camper and then as a leader.

I was very fortunate to spend a number of years working at summer camps in the USA. I first travelled to the USA after finishing high school and worked in Colorado and Missouri at a ski resort and then at summer camp.

After University I traveled to Michigan to work at summer camp and then went on to teach outdoor education through one very cold winter, all at Camp Storer.

From there I spent 6 of the most wonderful months of my life in Florida working at Camp Winona. My days consisted of craft, swimming, eating, napping and playing. We lived on a beautiful lake in a magnificent forest. We worked hard. We stayed up late. We made lifelong friendships. We opened young people's eyes, hearts and minds. We changed lives including our own. I heart camp!

So I'm going back to camp this summer. Virtual summer camp. A Rosy Outlook is hosting it. It's going to be so much fun. People are going to teach classes on their blogs and there'll be lots of other fun activities. Go visit her and sign up. Go on. Come to camp with me.

A Magic Elixir

I don't usually play along with Eye Spy but today's theme and Curlypops got me in the mood.

I've been concentrating on healthy eating and losing weight lately which has meant some major changes to some of my previous habits. Evenings are still a time when I look for a little after dinner grazing. Instead of trying to deprive myself which I could never sustain I've just changed the types of things I eat. I couldn't have made it this far without crumpets and milo.

My other magic elixir now that the cooler weather is here is my bucket of wool. I love knitting and crochet but only ever partake in these activities in the cooler months. I look forward to the arrival of autumn and nights spent sitting on the couch with a project in hand. Knitting and crochet soothe my soul. I love their rhythmic nature. I've got quite a few projects planned for this season.


If you want to check out everyone else's magic elixirs pop over to Bug and Pop. Time to get back to my crochet. Perhaps first, a little snack...

A few of My Favourite Things

Parcels are coming your way soon if you've been expecting something from me. Yay, happy mail.

So looking forward to this weekend. I'm catching up with the ladies who lunch, going to check out the Sisters' Market and taking myself on an Artist's date. I'm into my first week of the Artist's Way and loving it. I'm really glad I decided to give it a go.

Kootoyoo was talking about shaking things up at her place and feeling a little bit stale. I'm feeling it a little here at Tinniegirl too. Needing an injection of something but not entirely sure what it is.

How about you? Are you feeling inspired at the moment? What's inspiring you?

I'm pretty taken with some gorgeous blogs at the minute. I love tangled sky studio and her encaustic paintings. I can't wait to give this technique a go at some stage. Check out this gorgeous painting. I'm also loving Paper Crown. Sarah's work is so gorgeous.

It's all about paper, paint and glue with me at the minute. Remember last year when I said it out loud? I want to be an artist and a writer. It's come back to me this past few weeks. That heartfelt passion. That truest desire. I'm soaking up inspiration from people who paint and collage, and people who write about their creative journeys. As always Kelly Rae Roberts is feeding my soul and her close friend Mati Rose is a delightful new discovery. I've also only recently started listening to Craftcast regularly and I'm loving it.

I've been drifting I realise. Floating along, exploring my creative ideas and following them wherever they've led me. It's been so much fun but in some ways it's turned me in the opposite direction to where I really want to head. A little side road that I've been happily skipping along. I wonder too if perhaps it's an aversion. A subtle way of giving in to my fears and denying my heart's true calling by focusing on a different idea, glancing in a different direction.

It was the Stitches and Craft Show that got me thinking about it. Thinking about where to go next, how to take my business to the next level, what the natural extension of the Tinnie concept would be. I can see the path clearly but what I've realised in the last month is that I don't want to take it.

It's an interesting place to be. Knowing that an idea has so much potential and just needs lots of drive, energy and passion. At the same time having this overwhelming instinct that something isn't right, that I'm taking a wrong step. It's been quite amazing to have these conflicting energies dancing around me. It's certainly not all bad though. There has been so much learning. About taking risks. Believing in my ideas and my creativity. Trusting myself, my instincts and the universe. More and more I'm recognising what it is I've needed to take from this part of my journey and knowing that it's OK to let go now that I have what I need.

It can be hard to let go of an idea though. For lots of reasons. Fear of never having another great idea. Ownership. Ego. Fear of making a mistake, a wrong turn, a regrettable decision. We get so caught up in the idea that everything has to last forever. I certainly do.

I'm not sure what all this means for me and for Tinniegirl. Well, actually, I am. I'm just not quite ready to say it out loud. Stay tuned. Change is coming.

Oooh, Luckie

I've just put the last of the Luckies in the shop. There's only 15 left so if you want to get your hands on one pop on over to the shop and get Luckie.

Learning To Fly

I was telling Ms L yesterday how sick I was of feeling unhappy. She asked me if I was going to stop being unhappy then. Such a simple question. It makes perfect sense. If you're sick of being unhappy then stop it.

This morning I woke up with the weight of the world resting firmly on my shoulders. The conversation of yesterday must have planted a seed deeply in my subconscious somewhere and after dragging for a while I decided to be happy. Just like that. I'm still sad too but I'm happy. I'm OK. Life is good. I'm lucky.

It's was so easy to let recent sadness catapult me right back to feeling lost and confused and feeling like life will never change, that I'll never fulfill my dreams.


But today I didn't feel that way. I felt happy. I saw new pathways unfolding and felt new ideas starting to form. I enjoyed the amazing sunshine and warmth. I smiled and laughed and imagined all sorts of wonderful creative dreams coming true.

Painting

and thinking, and dreaming, wishing, hoping, and imagining. The journey continues.

Flat

It's pretty flat around here at the minute. I'm feeling restless and bored, lost and disoriented. It's to be expected after the events of the week. Grief is such an overwhelming emotion. So consuming. It seeps into every corner of your being, taking hold of everything. So many memories, overwhelmingly wonderful and searingly painful. We rode the roller coaster together. That's how it is with true friendship.

So many questions now. So much anger, confusion, regret. In amongst it so many smiles and quiet happy thoughts. Memories of laughter, deep and heartfelt conversations, drunken nights, camping trips and creative dreams shared.

I know that time is what's needed. Time will soften the sharp stabbing pain of loss, bring peace to my aching soul. The memories too will soften, I know this cause I've ridden this ride before. It almost feels like a betrayal to know that it's going to get easier, to want it to happen. Wanting it doesn't make it happen though. Time is the only cure for grief.


In the meantime I'm soothing my soul with creativity and cuddles. Thank you universe for both these wonders. Thanks too for all your kind and thoughtful messages of support.

Cups

"From now on I hope always to stay alert, to educate myself as best I can. But lacking this, in future I will relaxedly turn back to my secret mind to see what it has observed when I thought I was sitting this one out. We never sit anything out. We are cups, constantly and quietly being filled. The trick is knowing how to tip ourselves over and let the beautiful stuff out."

Ray Bradbury

Ladies Who Lunch

A fabulous date with three wonderful women. Sunshine, kitsch ambience, gifts, great conversation and comfort food. Just what I was needing.

Life

One of my oldest friends passed away on Sunday night. I have neither words to express my grief nor capacity to speak of anything else. I'll be back soon.

What Emma Said

Long ago in a land far away a Tinnie set off on a great adventure. Off to live in a new place with a wonderful creative woman. Around the same time that happened TinnieGirl was thinking about writing a post about her love of tins, about why she loves new tins as much as vintage ones, about why creating Tinnies is such a wonderful thing to do.

Sometimes other people articulate exactly what you want to say so eloquently that you don't need to say it yourself. Here's what Emma said:

"...have i mentioned i have a thing for tins? not really? well i do, i think i have around thirty of them now both vintage and new ones. the more shabby and battered a tin is, the more interesting it is. it has a story, it has been used, it hasn't sat on a shelf and gathered dust, it has lived (well, as much as an inanimate object can live...). although i do love the idea of new tins and giving them their own story, so that one day they will go and live with someone else, someone who would treasure them as much as i did..."

Thanks Emma for the gorgeous photos and perfect words.