Journaling the Studio Tour Journey
Today I will start recording here this last month prior to the opening of the Studio Tour, it is October 9, 2024. Writing gives me an outlet away from sewing and I love journaling many aspects of my life. I know this one is a big one for me.
In one month the Over the Mountain Studio Tour that I am part of will start! I am not near ready for it. I was accepted in February and was so excited to start this new journey. The months went by and here I am working at full speed to be prepared for it! One thing I am learning already is that I should have started working much earlier! I have been working constantly since September and to be honest 2 months is not enough to do a lot of things when everything's made by only me! No fairies or little mice are helping me here. From the cutting, sewing, ironing, to the last stitch…it is only me behind it all!
But I wanted to do it. I want to see how it is, I wanted to see what I could make, create and just learn from this experience. The only way to know if I like it is by doing it, so here I am learning and experiencing this new journey as an artist and maker to the fullest, hoping to give my best.
Today is October 9. It is just after 9 am and I managed to come to my sewing room early. I need to finish the last tote bag. The sun shines through the windows, and everywhere you look in my room there is a pile of mess! But I like to call it a happy mess…somehow it makes me feel better. Different projects waiting to be assembled and fabrics everywhere…I try to keep the mess under control but it is hard. I just want to sew and create.
I have been working in blocks, for example: this week is tote bags and kiss lock bags. Next is Christmas cards, a few weeks back it was wallets. In that way my mind stays focused or my mind will wander to all sorts of places and ideas and I feel the need to go for those ideas before they escape my mind and soul! So working in blocks with themes has been helpful. I have a calendar…that I sort of follow, it gives me structure to my master sewing plan…
This morning I have roughly 2 hours to work before I go to my other work. I work at our local fabric store. I love that job but right now I wish I could just stay in my studio.
I finished the last tote bag today. I have more ideas for tote bags but for now I have 4 made and that is good for the tour. But tonight I hit a wall of tiredness. After coming from work and while cooking dinner I just felt so tired…I had to lie down and rest. My body is tired. My lower back hurts and I feel like I just want to rest. But after my short nap I feel the energy back so I will jump into sewing at 9:22 pm and see in about 2 hours if I could make something.
7 am Saturday morning October 12. I could sleep later but I can not. I woke up at 6:30 am today. In the soft almost dark light in my sewing room I could see my last project on my sewing table. Yesterday I stopped making bags and jumped into sewing an idea. It is great to dive into an idea but at the same time I know it will take longer and wont see the project finished too soon. But I just wanted to sit with my fabrics, my ideas and let it evolve. The connection to an unknown project but holding onto an idea that hopefully binds everything together has a thrilling feeling to me, a challenge, it feels like I am creating something nobody has done before. It is my own and that makes me feel a special energy and a deeper connection to my fabrics and my projects.
In the last few days I have been thinking so much about why I sew, and what I want next after I finish the Studio Tour. Yesterday I felt like I wanted to disconnect from social media and go under for a little while, maybe under my piles of fabrics and then resurface with an answer to all those questions. I know I don’t want to step away from sewing but I definitely need to find a more focused path.
I have finished making the totes and finished making 2 kisslock bags. Today I would like to make one bag design that I have been wanting to do for a long time. It is a design that is not my creation, but I finally made a pattern for it. The original bag is from Vietnam. I remember buying that bag because the design of it intrigued me so much! Now that I know how to make it I just need to pick fabrics and that is stopping me because I am not sure what to pick! Why do I complicate things?? I could just pick any fabrics..!
The day has just started, I have no plans today so let’s see how much I can sew!
An exhibition of all the artist’s work is on display at a local library near my town. Yesterday I went there to help set it up. Every time I see the other artists I feel more part of the group and I like that very much but at the same time when I see my work next to the others I can't help but have feelings of doubt about my work. Is that what is called impostor syndrome? Perhaps it is a feeling that I have so much room to grow and I should not be so harsh on myself…after all I am just starting in this journey as an artist. I have been a maker for a long time but calling myself an artist is still a bit of a struggle. But I will not get into this too much or this blog will never end!
October 21st. I have been sewing a lot and not writing much. My days fly by and I am usually tired at the end of the day. I am not only sewing and working towards the Studio Tour. I also take care of my home, kids, my family and that is a full time job already!
But since I last wrote I have made more things, some of them new projects and ideas. Like the Dahlia project, a small wall hanging done with raw edge applique for the petals of the flower. I also jumped into a project that I had in mind for the longest time, making a copy of a pretty bag I bought in Vietnam while we lived there. Working to figure out the pattern was really fun. I like that part of design, how things are made and trying to solve it like a puzzle. I solved it and I now know how to make that bag. Finally I decided on fabrics and I made two bags, one that is very structured with squared off bottoms and the other one has a more slouchy look and I tend to like that look more!
I have made peter pan collars, I am right now doing hand stitching in one of them…some projects are not being totally completed. I am jumping from one project to others..it sounds like it is not a good plan but I feel like I am in control…
Getting ready for the Studio tour has been quite an experience. I like the fact that I am bringing to life ideas that I had wanted to make for a long time. I am exploring, playing, experimenting and I like that. But at the same time it is hard to find a middle point between creativity and the business part. I can be all day in my sewing room creating something that I find fascinating to work on but when I think about the business part of that project then it is not a good one. It is also difficult to make things not knowing exactly what is that would sell best or what is that people would like best. I have so much to learn from this experience and I am anxious to see how it all comes together when people come into the house and the Studio Tour is happening!
Would people show up? I asked to another artist that has been in the tour for a while. Oh yes, she said, they will come!!
Until next time. Thanks for reading!
October 23rd. Yesterday and today I have been making fabric bowls, art bowls. I made two. One of them took me a long time because I pieced it all, having an idea in my head of fall leaves, the idea came together finally after many hours of playing around with fabrics and having lots of fun. It was a great way to put together a design but I am not sure I could replicate it, but I did journal the process for future makes. These art bowls are not my own idea, I took a class with my Art Quilt teacher, she showed us how to make them and now I think it is great to be able to put my own twist to each of the bowls I am making. I thought I will only make two but my husband saw them and suggested I should make a Christmas theme one… and my fingers are itching to try that idea!
Today I also counted how many pieces I have made so far for the Studio Tour. One of my sons asked me tonight if I have a hundred pieces made, I said no way! Well…I have 97! I was surprised! But that is counting coin purses I had made before. But it is not counting lots of lavender sachets I made last month. So actually I have over 97 pieces! And I just thought that I forgot to count the 3 peter pan collars I made, so definitely more than a 100 pieces made so far!
After counting all of that I feel a bit more relaxed but at the same time I still feel like I have lots to do.
It was nice to start counting the pieces, pulling them out from a basket where I have been adding day by day all my makes.. I still remember the day I placed the first piece inside and told myself: here I go!
This weekend I think I will be concentrating on making Christmas cards!
October 24. I thought I would start working early on Christmas cards but my husband and I went to do early voting, which was really nice to do. Then one of my kids was feeling sick so he stayed home and I was caring for him for a little while. He is doing much better now.
It was almost noon when I finally stepped in my sewing room and with the idea of making a smaller art bowl with ginkgo leaves! I was pretty inspired by the leaves of our ginkgo tree. I picked a few and then picked fabrics in similar colors to match the leaves. I worked for a few hours and the bowl was made…happy with it, my boys really liked it and one of my sons suggested I should make more with fruit themes on it…a nice idea! But for another time.. I am done making fabric bowls for now.
At night after dinner I was feeling low in batteries and my other son was in my sewing room and I told him: I am so tired and feel so lazy to clean my sewing room but I have to do it! He put on music for me, Maroon 5 (Sugar) and I started dancing! Exactly what I needed to relax and get in the mood for cleaning my room. I have been cleaning my room every time I switch projects and that has been very helpful to contain the “happy mess”
My day ended with a clean room and me starting to work on my christmas cards! I am sure I will be working on this project for the whole weekend!
October 27. It was so nice to take a break sitting under the sun on my porch eating a bowl of fruit. This weekend was a busy one, tired one. I made a lot of Christmas cards and I am not done yet. I decided to make two styles of cards, a faster and cheaper version and a more involved and more expensive one so I can see what sells most and is liked most. The cards that require more work take me around 45 minutes to one hour to make (each) and the ones with less work take around 15 minutes.
It is interesting to think about the time, how long things take to make. I use my watch on my phone to track my time. That is when I completely disconnect from the phone or any distraction. This weekend was a good one to do that because most of the time I was alone.
I finally sat to work in an album with lots of pictures of my work, my biography, introduction and a little about our moves around the world. I wanted to do this to be able to connect with the visitors, let them know more about my creative journey through the years. I feel happy to have set time aside to do this and get it done.
October 28. Just ordered my album and I am still up after midnight. The next weeks will be very busy for me. Some days I feel like I have all the time in the world and others I feel like I am just running out of time.
October 29, 11 am. I finished all the Xmas cards! They are now in a vintage box that I bought at a yard sale. Each card is unique on its own way. It was a happy project to work on. Last night I looked at the box and wonder if I would sell them, and thought: could that box possibly be my flight ticket to Quilt Con next year?? It is not just about making money for me being part of the Studio Tour, but the feeling of paying for something with my own effort and work is really special and means a lot to me.
And today is making journal covers! I hope I can make at least a couple. My sewing batteries are running low… and my sewing machine has been a workhorse!! We both will need a good spa treatment after this sewing marathon is over.
November 2nd. Tired, very tired. But getting closer to be finished. I have been sewing a lot these past days. Journal covers, done. I left to the end to work on coin purses and I have made 32 in the last 3 days…a lot! I have in total 54 coin purses. Today I also added snaps to the wallets I made last month. Looking at them again I really liked them and that made me feel happy and less tired!
I have put so much effort in every piece, lots of thought behind each design, it is as if each piece has its own story. I feel tired but I feel happy to see everything I have made. “One woman sewing machine” my good friend told me the other day and it is true! That is me, my sewing machine and me, just us!
Someone dear to me once told me: you will never make money sitting behind a sewing machine…those words pop back in my head often and bother me…a lot…
but I am going to stop here. So much I could say about those words but I won’t for now I have to believe in my work and believe I can do this.
November 8. It is early in the morning. My sewing room has a beautiful light at this time, the sunshine seeping through the windows making it all look so bright and inviting to sew! But I am not sewing today anymore, today is a big day. I have to organize all the items I have made to display them hopefully nicely downstairs in my living room. I will open my home this weekend for visitors to come tour my place of work, only that I will not be bringing people up to my sewing room but I will bring some of my sewing room to my living room. I am very excited about connecting with people and talking about sewing and creativity.
My sewing room has been a busy place these past months, so much has been done here, so much energy put within these walls, and now seeing it quiet and still brings back all the memories made here of a busy me working around here like a busy bee around a flower!
This past week was full of to do lists, most are done. Mainly I had to do pictures of my items to use them in my Etsy shop, journaling, social media, etc. I finished last sewing projects, some hand stitching for the Peter Pan collars.
There is so much involved working towards the Studio Tour. Today is a very busy day and somehow I feel like I am not sure where to even start!
I should start by stopping here and take Rosie, our dog, for a walk. Those walks have been my way to relax, to enjoy the beautiful colors of Fall around, and just me with a thousand thoughts! Walks and chocolate have kept me going! And of course my family that has been so supportive in this process. My husband and my twins have helped me a lot. My sons are my tech support! Every message from friends have also been so wonderful!
November 19. 10 days after the Studio Tour ended and just now coming back to keep journaling. After the tour ended I confessed I was so tired and also so relieved as if all the sudden I felt I had all the time in the world and that felt so good.
So where do I start… maybe I will start on today. Today is Tuesday, it is night time and when I look around my sewing room I see so much that has to be done. Yes, my sewing room is so messy and I am dreading to start cleaning it but I have to or I can’t continue with my next projects.
November 8th was hectic, up and down bringing things down, moving things in my living room. My neighbor and good friend came to help me set up everything. She brought furniture for displaying items, she was amazing and I am so grateful for all her help. That day Denisse ,the other artist that was going to be at my home, she came and set up in the dining room all of her pretty work, scarves, shawls, all weaved by her!
At night I was still busy and pretty much told my family they were on their own for dinner! Something very special happened that evening. In the middle of all the busy work I got a delivery, it was a beautiful bouquet of flowers! It was one of the most amazing surprises I have ever received and the most thoughtful gift. It was a gift from a very special friend to me. The flowers arrived at a perfect time, they felt like a hug and they made me smile so much. Such a beautiful gift. Besides it looked so pretty at home during the tour. So grateful for it and my friend.
That night I went to bed very late. I was writing little signs, adding tags, adding prices, making lists, so much to do. But all was ready for the next day.
Saturday November 9. I woke up early and felt pretty tense, nervous and excited. So many feelings at the same time… the day was beautiful, sunny but a bit chilly. I was cutting flowers from my garden, preparing a table with cookies and drinks for visitors. Trying to figure out what to wear…I had wanted to make something to wear….but that was being very optimistic and not realistic at all! And my hair…. let’s say it was a “happy mess”
Denisse came in and at 10 am doors were open. I forgot to mention that the day before my boys and my husband put all the signs around the neighborhood. Such a huge help too.
Then at 10 we waited… and people started to show up! And more came, and more came….it was incredible. My first sale was one tulip…and after that many more sales came! Now thinking back I am still smiling from those two days, I can still feel the great energy that flowed through my body and my soul.
People were coming and asking questions, wanting to know about how things were made, how long I have been sewing, where I am from, asking about our house. My neighbors also came, it was great to see familiar faces and see the support from my friends. My neighbors bought the ginkgo bowl and they suggested that I should keep it so people could keep seeing it during the tour and that was perfect. That little bowl was the star of the weekend, it brought up so much conversation about how it was made, about sewing, about ginkgo trees, people touched it, held it, some people wanted to buy it again but it had the sold sign…it was incredible.
I was on my feet pretty much all day and hardly had time to rest or eat! It seemed like it was a continue flow of people coming in.
My boys kept coming around, looking at me with inquiring eyes, and asking me, mom how are you doing? It was so sweet to see them concerned and cheering for me! A few days previous to the tour, one of my sons asked me: mom if people do not come would you be sad? I said, yes of course. And he said: mom everything is going to be great!
After 5pm on Saturday I could not believe how fast the day went and how many people came and that I sold many of my pieces. I was a very tired but happy girl. And very hungry…
Sunday November 10. I remember waking up feeling so much more relaxed and much lighter and happy of a new day to welcome new people at my home. I jumped out of bed and got ready! I even had time to sew! I laugh when I think about it. I sewed one of my peter pan collars to a sweater top. Another thing I thought that morning when waking up was: everything is already ready downstairs! Ah so wonderful!!
I was not running so much like the day before and by 10 am we opened doors again. Denisse the other artist told me that usually Sundays are much slower than Saturdays. And the day was overcast with a rainy forecast. So we waited for people to show up and they did again! Not as much as the day before but I actually made more sales on Sunday than on Saturday. People were buying more pieces.
In the morning before people came in, I also moved things around in my space. Changing how things were displayed to see if things that did not get viewed so much the day before maybe could get more views that day. Again, so much still to learn! And some pieces did get more views after being moved.
On Sunday I talked to a lot of people, some interested in sewing because they also sewed or because someone in their family sewed. Some asked about my travels around the world and why we travel so much. Some people said they look forward to see me in the tour next year and see what I will make. An older couple came in and the guy said he wanted to put a down payment in one of my wall hanging pieces that is not finished yet, when I heard that it made me so happy.
Another person asked if the prices for my Christmas cards was for a box of cards to which I sadly had to say, no I am sorry it is for just one card and explained that they take a lot of time to make. Another person came and bought two Christmas cards and complimented in all the handwork they had and said that she was going to frame the cards! Out of 22 cards I made I sold 7.
So many little stories from those two days. Listening to people shopping, buying for family members, choosing carefully what they wanted to buy and for whom. Some shopping for themselves like the lady that bought one of my journals so she could journal her hikes for 2025. It was so special to hear all those comments. Christmas cards to be sent overseas… tulips for moms, tulips to be put on an office desk.. people finding just the perfect size bag, the bag with all the pockets they needed or a bag that was soft yet sturdy. People liking the designs of the wallets. And you would think that for me it was mainly about selling but it was not all just about that. Everything about the tour was great!
To be continued…