Time to Be Creative

This weekend was a busy one but one taken at a snail's pace. There was the perpetual laundry basket to empty and other seasonal items to freshen up, like the tablecloth for a small round table on the summer porch upon which now sits a glass dish and the largest Aloe Vera plant one could ever imagine. More exciting than that is that it has two "babies" in the pot. Life is good. It always finds a way to perpetuate itself.

Within the last several days, we visited some garden centers. A love of plants, bushes, and trees is something that I share with Mr. Cummings. I saw a promising looking Blue Hydrangea. I hope it is still available when we return. I am on the lookout for some types of houseplants that I enjoyed growing in other years. I avoid Fuchsia, like the plague, only because it seems to attract Mealey Bugs.

This curtain was fun to make. I prided myself on being able to piece "scraps" together to make this. When I learned that it was too short, I simply added some wide lace I'd collected at some time or other. It is fun "making do" and coming up with something that suits my personal aesthetics! The fabric has maxims and words to live by.
Photo by James Cummings

In addition to my Green Thumb projects, I have been busy in the sewing room. On Saturday, I fashioned a curtain for the front door's window. It was too short so I added lace. It is eclectic. I like it and so does Jim. Yellow is a color that is always welcoming! Perhaps that is why the Pineapple is so often used as a symbolic welcome.

Jacobean Appliqué in full bloom - by Patricia Cummings
Photo by James Cummings

                                         


This morning I finished a Bell Pull. This is an item that I made based on an antique that I found. The more vibrant colors I used and all of the embroidery make it special. I placed a sleeve for hanging it, on the back. It was a challenge to find a place to hang this but for now, it is keeping me company in my office.

The last few days have been mellow. I have enjoyed getting into the studio to be creative and to think about finished all the very many projects that are waiting there. I am happy to be off of Facebook and other social media interfaces, at least for now. I feel better "centered" on my work when not sidetracked by the world's issues and problems. They will always be there. People seem to live for "drama," don't they? Only by turning my back on all of that for awhile, provides me the creative space I need and that money cannot buy.

I hope that you will say "Yes" to carving out large chunks of time for your own creativity. Nothing much (original) ever happens in a group. I believe that it is in working alone that we can begin to sort it all out, "it" being all we need to know to be creative artists. There is that word again, "creative." I hope that for you the word is as powerful as it is for me and means creating something from your own vision, not just a copycat version of someone else's creative work. Be happy! Be engaged with your work! Listen to your inner Muse, and then let a vision of something beautiful that only you can make, based on your own experience and expertise, result in an end product you are proud to show as your work.

Creative projects do not have to be perfect. They just have to represent a part of YOU. Get busy! Enjoy life! It's the only one we have.

Patricia Cummings