Studio welcomes me...

This is my studio and it is welcoming me with open doors! I feel a spring in my step just knowing I can get into making my creative messes. As you can see I do have a lot of sorting and organizing and putting away to do but at least the door is open.
I usually don't spend much time in here when the weather is cold and nasty as I am not motivated unless the sun is shining and I am toasty warm. Yes, of course I have heat and air conditioning in my studio but that is not the same as sunshine coming in through the windowed french door.
Today I spent a bit of time working on a birthday gift for my sister. I actually have two sisters with April birthdays. They were born 12 months and 12 days apart and spent their younger years being treated like twins by our mom. Of course both of them are younger than me.
I also put some paint on my new journal I am working on. I am inspired by the Somerset magazine "Art Journaling". I have no artistic drawing or painting skills however I do have a love for colors and collage. I realized while reading the magazine that I never even doodled in my life. While growing up I was not allowed to doodle, or twiddle my thumbs for that matter, because it was considered a waste of time and showed no intelligence as per my mother. Yes, now I realize that she was "different".
Actually my mom was very creative and was always crafting, sewing, cooking, canning and talented. She was left handed and I think that is why she was so creative. I am right handed as a side note. One year we all went collecting pine cones on our property in the mountains and then mom spent the summer wiring all of them together to place around the outside frames of the windows of the cabin. I loved the look of them. I remember her hands being pricked from the sharp pine cones but she perservered and completed every window. I think there were at least a half dozen on the cabin front.
I learned lots of crafting and sewing from my mom. Thank you mom. She is flying in heaven.
So sometimes I struggle with artistic endeavors but I am not giving up. I think I can learn to doodle and hopefully draw even at this stage of my life. I just need to remember that there is no perfection and that everything is a learning experience. I certainly have lots of artful supplies as I like to be prepared for whatever when it hits.
My wonderful husband built my studio and carefully measured every nook and cranny and counted all my storage containers to build them in perfectly and mainly to be organized as he HATES clutter. Nice try honey...I love to squeeze more stuff in every space possible. He even put an electrical outlet in the ceiling over the island for glue guns and such so I wouldn't get tangled in the cords. He made certain that I have doors that close off the studio and no one ever has to see my mish-mosh.
I really love my studio and having my very own space to be creative in. I think I shall go and splash some more paint on some paper and plan the next step to the birthday gift.
Happy creating everyone and thank you for letting me ramble on.
Saucy Chick Sherry

A new Monday...

A new Monday and the end of another month...March. How quickly the days pass by. We have beautiful sunshine and a slight breeze. We also have extreme tree pollen and the allergies are raging. Other than that it is breathtaking living here in the pines of Northern California.

I actually wrote down a To Do list last evening. I am not good at doing this as I think I should just be doing the items and not writing them down. My husband has always advised me to list them out and then I won't forget them. Hmmm... So far my list hasn't included one thing I have done so far this morning. You know the routine of breakfast, dishes, laundry, floor sweeping, gathering trash and whatever else comes along. So on that note, I better get busy working on the items on my list.

I do hope everyone has a wonderful Monday and the remainder of March.

Creative pursuits...

This is my husband's idea of creative pursuits. He is a master car guru and racer and used to race professionally. We don't own a stock vehicle and I am very glad about that as I do love cars too.

As for my creative pursuits you can see that I like to stay busy and create things as well. My etsy site has some of my creative endeavors. I usually make things and then donate them to worthy causes or give them to family and friends. Since I am not working a 9-5 job since last September I am hoping to subsidize my crafting budget with sales through http://createology.etsy.com (a shameless self promotion here).

I am giving a lot of thought and design time to my next dozen comfort dolls as my first dozen arrived safely and are on their journey to different women's shelters. It is such a rewarding feeling to be of support to someone else and hopefully bring smiles to their lives.

I am also extra excited as my Co-founder Saucy Chick Lorraine is coming home from wintering three weeks early this year. I am totally looking forward to spending our days together being creative and beading, gluing, sewing, wire-wrapping etcetera all while we share stories and laugh and cackle and vent and generally carry on. This is how we perfected the Saucy Chicks that we make and sell as well as donate to the local oncology department of the hospital. We currently have two "Bunny" Saucy Chicks on etsy for your review just in time for Easter.

Oh dear I really must clean up the studio before Saucy Chick Lorraine gets here soon. We will need lots of room to spread our wings and be creative. Well, maybe tomorrow I will work on that task. Cleaning and sorting and organizing is not my strong suit but my co-founder's.

I am seeing lots of new buds and sprouts and daffodils blooming in anticipation of winter ending.

Happy sHopping and Happy Spring to all.

Comfort Dolls Project

Oh what a feeling of joy I have today. I finally took the time to thread my needle and make a "bakers dozen" comfort dolls for battered women. They are getting mailed today and will soon have new owners to love and comfort.

This is a project founded by Pat Winter that I just happened to find one day while blog reading.
I was perusing blogs one day and of course did not leave my bread crumbs so had no idea where I had been or how to get back but my blog journey led me to http://www.comfortdolls.blogspot.com/ and I just knew I had to participate.

So I thought for several days and realized I had to make a “bakers dozen” so I could give one to Pat Winter who began this project and then of course a dozen to be sent off to a receiving women’s shelter. What was I going to make and how were they going to look and what would they be? I decided on my butterfly theme and began cutting out butterflies from fabrics. Some how I thought of the ribbon bodies and they just had to have sparkle and beads in them. I also had to put a heart on each one and then of course a charm.

I am certain that I will be making more comfort dolls in my future as I have lots more ideas in this createology mind. My Saucy Chick createology co-founder will be making them with me when she returns from wintering elsewhere. I emailed the photos and info to her last night and she was very excited to get busy on making more.

What a heartfelt and wonderful project this is. Thank you Pat Winter for thinking of this and working tirelessly to accomplish this goal.

I am very fortunate to have this opportunity to hopefully bring a smile to someone's life.

Creatively, Saucy Chick Sherry

Friday already???

Well, I can hardly believe this is Friday already. I remember Monday, then it was Wednesday and now suddenly it is Friday. My goodness the time is flying by this year. I know the old adage that as we age time passes more quickly but I have lots of younger...much younger...people feeling the same and commenting on how fast the days are flying by.

I just had to show the pictures of this little red shoe. It is a size 5 and my daughter wore this shoe when she was very young and adorable. She actually had two of them...a right and a left and she wore them as a pair. I however only have this one shoe left. My grandmother had the other shoe as a remembrance but through the years after Grandmother passed away the little red shoe got lost from its mate. To this very day I just love this little red shoe and of course my daughter, now grown, so very much. I keep this red shoe displayed in my dressing room and I smile every day when I look at it and remember the times she wore it. I still have a passion for shoes and especially red shoes.

Today is the official first day of Spring and our weather here in Northern California was absolutely perfect! Blue skies, sunshine and happy daffodils blooming everywhere. Our little stretch of highway along town has thousands of daffodils that are blooming and making drivers smile. However, we are well aware of the changing mood of Mother Nature and we are on alert for rain and snow by this Saturday night. Yes, it will smash the daffodils as it does every year but somehow they seem to bounce back and look happy no matter what.

I have enjoyed this week even as quick as it came and went. I hope each of you have had a wonderful week and will continue to have many more wonderful weeks ahead.