I've been struggling this month. The glass wouldn't talk to me, I had no motivation, it was too cold to be in the studio in the evenings, no new pieces woke me up in the middle of the night demanding creation, my ACTUAL job is heavy on my soul and overall, I've just been .. meh... (plus, it's winter and I should be hibernating anyway). It's been incredibly discouraging. Thankfully, My Favourite Guy was home for a bit (finally), the GrandBug and Daughter came to visit (nothing like toddler energy to remind you how old your body is while at the same time energizing the hell out of you) and I had plenty of pieces to run through Dragon, so there have been bright spots and soul-soothers along the way.
And then....
Friday evening, a friend came over to walk me through the website she's building for me (and tells me I can actually do myowndamnself at some point.. [I am not convinced]) She was patient and kind and made it all seem manageable (and her vocabulary contains the same salt as mine and that ALWAYS makes me happy). Even though I'm a total derp at this marketing shit, she took it all in stride. I definitely owe her drinks...
Yesterday, I got a delivery of some SUPER cool cutouts from my FAVOURITE water jet glass-cutter-outer-person, Fuse Muse Fused Glass (who happens to be in Manitoba of all places!) and it released a flood of inspiration and creation... I built 10 new pieces and started designs for three more. (which means I had to go back to FMFG and order some more cutouts. *facepalm*).
And then today:
I built the base pieces for three new pieces (different from the ones I designed yesterday) and, in the Chicken Express drive-thru, I created another piece in my head (shut up. I don't question where I get inspiration, thank you very much) that will present its own challenges because I need to include a thermometer in the final form (PS, the thermometer will NOT visit the Dragon) (PPS, ChickEx - please remind your folks that wings and thighs are DIFFERENT parts of the bird!)
I got a thank you from a dear one who received the piece that I made for her (it is one that literally woke me up in the middle of the night and then Would.Not.Leave.Me.Alone until I successfully made it... [more on that piece later]) and I was reminded that my art actually speaks to other people.
and:
I went shopping.... in a store... for the first time in, like... MONTHS.... (I'm lazy folks, I've become accustomed to my personal shopper). I could hear my cousin in my ear (check out Organizing by Oz, you will NOT be sorry), as I wandered the aisles of our local Harbor Freight, looking for organization and storage solutions. The studio space has become less than welcoming lately, and I feel like that's part of the block. It's the garage, so the House is encroaching on the Studio and things are just piling up all over the place. It's hard to get to my glass and quite frankly, I forget what I have to work with beyond what I can see, or what I remember I have. I did buy a couple items, but I also took pictures and measurements of other things that could really help me consolidate and make better use of what little space I have right now. It's going to take some time, but at least I have an idea of what solutions are out there.
I consolidated about 10 containers of scrap and shards and frit, I finally put the Second Act Glass box to use and I gave almost everything else a place and a space of its own. All the Little Things that help my pieces sing are now organized, labelled and Right.In.My.Face, so when I'm building, I don't have to wander around to find them (or remember that I actually have them to use).
It feels good to have be creating again....
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