Looking at all I have done

In the past year, I have done various projects.  I got a bit more serious in understanding written knitted pattern.  I also got into an adventure with drawing.  In the few classes that I took for drawing, I learned a lot.  I also liked being pretty much the only one doing the drawing.  I also saw that the basic class that I had so long ago was really an introduction.  In that class, I did not really got deeply into drawing.  I learned a lot during that classes and I do not regret having taken them.  I had practiced a lot too!

It was a year where I tried a lot of new things.  I was able to put my hand into new things and tried many things.  I liked that very much.  I want to do more now that the hamster wheel of experimenting have started.  I have tried and got hooked with the cross stitches and embrodery maybe a year and a half but I have done a lot all by myself in that area.  I guess that the next logical step will be to go a level up in that area.

A year of breaking new ground.   It is something that need to be celebrated.  I get out of my confort zone especially with the drawing.  I knew many things but mainly details and not really the basic.  Now, I have started to see the basic and I feel that, in the end, will be able to experiment with it, as I like to do with everything that I learn.  I guess that I like learning new skills.  I just have to discover how to link all those new skills and see if I can connect them all together.  I have to make sense of those techniques and see if I can use them intelligently.  I feel that all that learning is a bit disconnected right now.  I may be aspiring to unity in variety.  Next year may be the year where I find the connecting thread to my expanding learning...

Wearable art

I am not really into fashion.  I do not like logo.  What I am discovering lately?  Well, I knit a lot.  I have done a few garnemt: 4 poncho children size, 2 set of leg warmers, a set of fingerless glove, a few scarves and a few tuques.  It won't end there.  I have a lot of projects to do in that area.  I do not have a style but I think that it is not that important.  I think that I am hooked in doing. 

I do not only want to do knitting.  I also got hooked with tye dye and the various similar products in that category.  I have tried various ones.   I have not really tired of it.  I think I will stick with the tye dye and the one that is in a can.  I had good reasult with both of them and I am ready to experiment more on this.  It just fun to put the colours on the textile.  I had tried the various pattern too and a very few free hand style.  I think I will want to do more improvisation and testing, to be more on my own.

Maybe my own style will grow out of it.  I guess it will only take a bit more times.  For sure, I will have to do some more discoveries.  It is something that I don't know much about.  Not at all familiar with fashion.  On the other hand, maybe, it can be a good thing that I don't know much.  It may enable me to go in directions that other would not go.  I observed that I learn a lot by doing and testing the ideas I have in my head.  The learning in that ways seems to stick more into my memory.  I do not think to end in a museum.  It is not my goal.  I guess that making is my ultimate goal.  Be it becoming my style or being void of anything.  It is just that I discovered another way to express myself.  It is something where I am able to do and where I don't feel like an alien.

Something for a day off

I found some edible craft in this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB93VxrK3DY
I like the muffins with the sheep, the owl and the panda.  I also love the one with the orange and watermelon.  It is the kind of project to do while on a day off, not being stressed out.  It gives ideas too.  I see it as a starting point to jump and play with food!  Well, not with hands and eating.  It is more playing with food to do something that will be eaten later.  I will not be able to do many of the projects in the video like the cow or sheep (I am not sure which is which).  But I like the idea to shape gellatin into various shapes.  I like that idea and I am tempted to play and test with this.

This kind of video is also fun in a context of festivity.  I am sure all those items could be done in a group setting, giving a kitchen big enough to do it.  For sure, it will get a sugar rush to all the participants after the party!  It is only bad on the sugar level in the blook stream.  No worry for the alcohol level!  But thinking about it, small amount of liquor could be incorporated even if I doubt it will enhance the result.  It will crash the party.

All in all, it is nice to see some fun projects that can be done in the kitchen.  The most hard is to wait in the chilling period.  It can't be skipped, of course but better to do it a little bit in advance.  I think I will go back to watch it.  Time to takes notes and maybe jolting some ideas in the mix!

Peoples that are themselves

 I am the first to admit it: being around people is not my strong point.  I avoid the crowd, whenever I can, where ever it is.  One on one person meeting is okay.  But when there is an interesting person, I do not shy away.  By interesting person, I am talking about a person like the one talking in this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFpuzba4Tus
That man talk about old guitars.    He seems to be authentic, approachable and is passionate about his interest about guitar.  I may not share his passion about old guitar but what I like in him: his individuality.  He is a person that go down to his interest and not bother about what other people think. 

There was no critique about his lifestyle in the video.  It is  not the point anyway.  He have something to say and he look confident.  He know his stuff and share with people who are also passionate as he is.  It is nice to see a video like that.  I like that kind of person that is happy by something that he like.  The world need a bit more of people who are more interested in their passion.  It is better than going to war.

I think it is great to listen to this guy.  What I liked the most: when he say to play with old guitar.  I agree that musical instrument are not good at gathering dust.  Guitar are meant to be play, whatever the age of the instrument.  Having fun with a possession, especially when you know how to use the item, it is a precious moment.  Why just look at it?  Just looking at objects seems to be akin to the collections of a museum.  Playing a musical instrument is an intangible work of art.  It bring appreciation and I find it a creative outlet.  Playing for ourselves or for other, it does not matter.  The important is to enjoy the moment of music expression!

Rock painting: I wonder and other products

When I go craft shopping, I always wonder if items are good or not.  If it is worth to use a particuliar product or not?  I am at the point of wondering if rock painting kits are worth to try and test (https://www.amazon.ca/Creativity-Kids-Hide-Seek-Painting/dp/B071FK9TFC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1545015716&sr=8-1&keywords=rock+painting+kit)  I think I am now ready to try it.  I guess the kit is not that essential except to have an idea on how it is done, an introductory package.  A good kickstart is always good: it lead to getting more confidence and experience under the belt.

I also often wonder if crafting products are really worth it or not.  There are times where I imagine opening a crafting labs where various crafting kits would be tested and evaluated.  I wonder if it would be a fun process to do, on the long run.  Recently, I was able to see an activity were some products were tried by some children.  There was some more popular than others.  I was able to see the crayola crayon melter (https://www.amazon.ca/Crayola-Crayon-Melter-Melting-Gift/dp/B07B7W5S5F/ref=sr_1_6?s=toys&ie=UTF8&qid=1545016968&sr=8-6&keywords=crayola+crayon+melter)  I do not know if it was due to the heavy use but I was not impressed with the result.  It had been heavily used, so I may be biased.  I am not ready to buy a kit and test it further.  If there is another occasion to test it further, to see if my perception is justified, I will do it for sure.

Experimenting and testing can be fun.  Hitting the less good products is less fun.  If often lead to the impression of waisting money.  I would like to see a place where there is unbiased evaluation of some products.  If it does not exist, I wonder if I would be good at it?

Christmas t-shirts

It is always good to get inspired by other doing crafty projects.  I did not made those t-shirts but I find them quite inspiring:

There was two choices for those t-shirts.  The other choice was a llamas.  But those reendeers are quite nice.  It can be personalized and the results is quite personal.  The reendeer head and antlers are made of felt.  Well, it is opening new area to explore when it comes to t-shirts creation.  It is always nice to have my mind blown and new doors of creation opening up.

I like getting a jumpstart from something that I didn't expected.

Children Looming kit -- Well the result

I did not do this one but it is an interesting result (not perfect but interesing):

I like the colours.  I will be able to find the yarn for that loom and that match this one.  It is not a large loom.  As the result is seen, it is a sqare one.  Here is the loom itself:

I show both side.  I may try it at a later date but I am more interested in the result.  It is different of what I tried with other looms.  A small bag could be made with two piece of woven pieces, if it can survive the sewing.  It is worth of experimenting.

I will miss this place!

I feel nostalgic before time.  This saturday, it will be the last time I will go to this place:

I was there for the last two years on many saturday morning.  The place have it's charm.  I was feeling great there, at ease.  Now, next years, I will go somewhere else for most of my saturday mornings.  I just hope it will be as cozy as shown on the pictures.

Some interesting way to shop gifts!

Going in places where there is physical or speech therapy is always enlightening.  It can gives ideas for gifts.  It is something I found out this past few days.  I don't think that leaving trays of toys around, in the corridor, is good per say.  It was just instructive for the passerby.  I found, well it is more a popular toy that children had played under my nose.  They show an interest in it.  Here is the box:

 Here is a peek inside:

The pieces to makes the birds have some small magnetic point to get all stick together  There is a stand shown here and there is two trees that hold the stand.  We only see one.  There are place to put the birds on the pegs.  No gadget, made of wood and simple to play.  It last a long time,  There are times where I think it is the kind of toys we should return to, as gifting goes.  Those kind of toys is more of an investment and can last for a long time.

New ways to play with snow!

Well, the pictures speaks for themselves!  Can be better stick some snow to the trees than rolling the snow into balls and a snowman.  It does not stick to the trees but it is cool to look at!

Autism / Asperger

I got my label.  It is official.  I had done the tests and it is crytal clear.  I am not happy to have a label but it explain a lot.  It explain a lot of my past.  It also makes me angry because no one had seen it before.  No one had seen it even if I had seen psychologists in a children specialized hospital.  I am also angry to my first grade teacher that saw my lack of interest in others.  My label makes her right in what she saw in me.  I also feel that a lot of people had failed me and maybe I failed myself.  I have not clicked on that sooner.  It would had saved me a lot of trouble if I had the help I needed back then.  It would had helped some of my entourage too.

I also saw a psychologist as a teenager.  I am not angry with that psychologist.  She had helped me more on some aspects of my life.  At least, it was her that connect me with a dream journal.  My dream journal had been a corner stone of my life.  It was also nice to talk to that psychologist.  She had the knack with younger people, well with me.

Now that the process is done, I feel better.  It explain it a lot.  Now, the next step.  I probably will move on and be able to explain my unconventional behavior.  It will  save me a lot of trouble in a social context.  It would be nice to have a person who would speak for myself.  It would be something nice because my personal speaker would explain everything better.

I am a bit curious how it will affect me now that I have the label.  I wonder if this will come with some advantage, even if I am an adult.  I wonder if it will improve my life.  It relate more to the future, anyway and in a sense, it does not change much.  The future is always unknown, so it does not change too much.  I don't think I will wait for long to see what that label will bring to me.  For the rest, time to return to create and do some craft!

Latch hook with horse that have an arror in it.

Just finished the latch hook with the horse that have an error in it.  I switched two colors and realized too late the error.  I patch it the best I could with some yarn.  Here is the result, raw and uncut:

Here is where I cutted the excedent yard that was too long:

It look really good after the excess yarn is removed.  The yarn I added is really visible at the top of the head, around the ears and above the eye.  I have another kit and this time, I will not do the mix up!  I have my lesson!  It is a big project with many colours and I guess that the various tones had mixed up, well, it is true for the two colours that I mixed, at least.

Here is the back of that horse:

I find this side more interested and more good looking.  It show a little bit less that some yarn had been replaced.

Making a discovery

Saturday, at the place I usually go, I discoverd something that I did not expeced.  There is a closed place that was open that day.  I entered it and discovered that it was leading to office.
Here what I am talking about:
First, the entrance look like the front of a house:

Once entered inside, there is a big room that lead to the various offices:

There was more office there that I thought it would.  I would never had guess there was office in there.  It was nice discovering that.