When I started the portfolio project, one of the things I wanted to do was to get myself into the habit of paying attention to the ways that I incorporate creativity into my daily living. In an effort to keep myself accountable for doing this, and to share some of the fun things I'm working on, I plan on starting a new feature for this space - show + tell tuesday. So, here we go! These are a few of the things I've been having fun with this week.
For quite some time, I've been wanting to learn to use a sewing machine. A lovely new fabric shop and sewing lounge - fleur fabrics - opened here in the city not too long ago. The talented owner, Jenny, offers a number of really fun classes, so I decided to just go ahead and sign up for one. She's a really fantastic teacher - super patient with a beginner like me! Next up is a class on making a stuffed lamb for Thea, and then I might try the cloth diaper class she offers. If you're local, and you haven't stopped in, you absolutely must go check out the gorgeous space and beautiful fabrics. Click here for the fleur fabrics blog and more information about classes.
onesies + baby t-shirts
A friend's baby shower was this weekend, so I decided to try my hand at decorating a onesie and side-snap t-shirt for her gift. I used the Sukie Iron-on Craft Pad for the designs. I did a bit of practicing, and it was fairly easy to do once I had done a few samples.
cupcake paper carnation
Once I made those onesies, I tried a new project prettily wrapping up my friend's gift - a cupcake paper carnation to top the package. The idea was Martha Stewarts, although the instructions I followed didn't quite work, so I had to adapt them to get the look I was going for. It was fairly easy to do - I used a couple sizes of cupcake papers and a tiny brad to arrange the flower "petals" and attach it to the ribbon. Viola!
vegetarian minestrone soup
Because Thea has a number of suspected food allergies, John and I have had to get a bit creative with our menus. Right now, dairy, eggs, soy, peanuts, and chocolate are all "forbidden foods." For the holidays, John gave me a yummy cookbook, and this soup recipe has been one of my favorites. It's a good way to get a good mix of vegetables, protein, and carbs into my diet. The first time I made the recipe, I didn't have the exact ingredients on hand, so I improvised. The results were so good, that I've continued to use my adapted recipe each time I've made the soup.
How have you been expressing your creativity this week?
If you're up for sharing, leave me a link so I can see what you've been up to!