Simple Joy Sunday on Monday

Yesterday, I was just plain dead tired.  I was lucky that I got Day 5 of 30 Days of Creativity done, although barely.  It's a day late, but here are my simple joys from last week...

Spent a fun Memorial Day with Scott going to see Thor and eating at a Mongolian barbecue.  Thor wound up being a really fun movie despite mixed reviews from the critics.  Can't wait for Captain America, Harry Potter, and Green Lantern this summer.  It's going to be a decent summer for movies.

I went swimming in the pool a couple times this week!  Last summer, when I was training for the 3 Day, I didn't use our pool at all.  After spending the morning outside walking for miles in the sun & heat, all I wanted to do was get out of the sun, into air conditioning, and showered.  I've always loved the water, so I really missed it!

I discovered the yummimess of Greek yogurt this week.  I love how tangy it is!  Plus, it's so good for you; better than the traditionally sweet yogurt, actually.  Yum, yum, yum.

It's been a while since I was exercising regularly & that needs to change.  I'm not happy with how I look and feel, so I need to do something about it.  I started with Pilates and Yoga this week and felt amazing afterward.  The other thing I need to do: stop snacking on sugary and fatty treats so much.  Seriously, it's gotten a little out of control recently.  I'm making a commitment to my health; not to mention that whole swimming thing, so it will help with the bathing suit wearing.

30 Days of Creativity started this week & I'm loving it!!  The first project that I did (the sugar scrub) was inspired by a friend and it was so much fun to do (both making the project and blogging about it).  The homemade dishwasher detergent project was born out of necessity but I actually find researching how to do things like that a lot of fun.  The next couple of days, I worked on some projects for the shop.  Playing with the stamping seals was definitely a learning experience.  Working on my labels was also very much a learning experience, extremely frustrating at times, fun to learn how to make a transparent background in Gimp, and satisfying at the end when I finally had a finished product.  I was really thrilled with the amount of traffic that my blog got on that first day of the challenge and then really bummed when it didn't keep up.  Thing is, that's not the point.  It would be awesome if this project brings more traffic here, but the point is making being creative every single day a priority.  And that's happening.  And I love it.

My horoscope this month includes a quote that I love:

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." -Carl Sandburg

This is not the first time that I've heard this quote and know that hearing it again is no coincidence.  My dreams used to be very clear cut, but I've been in a transition for the past few months.  I think it's time to get focused and start living my dreams.  

What were some of your simple joys this week?  Share below or write your own blog post (we can exchange links!).  I'd love to hear!

Goals: I've Gotta Get Out of Here!

I've been thinking a lot about my goals (ie: resolutions) from last year and have been procrastinating blogging about it because it hasn't really been clear to me what my goals for this year should be. I'm going to take it step by step and see if we can't get this figured out.

Starting with 2009's review.
On the personal side, I vowed to take better care of myself and, for the most part, I did. I stopped the trips to vendo-land (I have no idea where that horrible habit came from!) but never did start taking yoga classes. I was on a roll working out probably until mid-summer when I hit a plateau. I didn't develop a sitting meditation practice, but did manage to find moments of Zen.

I did work on purging things that I don't need and getting my work room more organized. The purging is an ongoing process and that's fine. My work room is still not what I want it to be, but there was an improvement made when I invested in shelving for the closet. Sadly, I still haven't figured out the sewing machine I got off of freecycle.

I worked very hard at overcoming the huge problem I have with worrying about things that I have no control over. I'm an expert at being prepared for miscellaneous circumstances (due to my background as a stage manager), but the problem comes when I drive myself crazy with worry. This is something that I have to stay conscious of and will continue to be an ongoing process. It's getting better, though.

So far as Athena's Armoury goes... Well, I must admit that I horribly neglected the Armoury quite a bit this past year. After I finished a major project, I decided to give my badly injured wrist a break. Well, that self imposed break ended around the time things were getting really bad at work and my nerves took precedence over anything else. Needless to say, nearly all of my goals for the Armoury fell by the wayside.

This past summer was pretty brutal with work drama (much is still lingering), but I did manage to bounce back a bit. I don't think the situation will be much improved until there are drastic changes made here (doubtful) or I leave. I'm scared as Hell to think of leaving the only career I ever knew, but if I dread it day after day is it justifiable to stay in a career I love for a job I hate?

And that brings us to 2010!
I don't know how this wasn't dreadfully obvious to me before! The one goal, and it's a big one, that I know I have to work on is getting out of my current work situation. I really think that anything else that I may want to work on would figure itself out if I were happy. Let's face it, I haven't been happy since I started this job four years ago. I made an announcement in September that I thought I figured out what I wanted to do: pursue herbalism and eventually open up a tea and herb shop. I've been doing my usual silliness of getting completely overwhelmed with the enormity of it. I need to get back on track and come up with a plan to create small, easily achievable goals each step of the way. I read the book Craft Inc. and it has a lot of helpful advice. I had a coupon, so I picked up the Craft Inc. Business Planner as a tool to help me get started.

And it begins...

Accountability

Back in January, I shared with you some of my goals for the coming year. Now, that we're 1/3 of the way into the year, I thought I'd do a brief review of my progress. I'm hoping that accountability will help keep me on track!

* Take better care of myself:
-snack less at work (I eat when I'm bored)
Well, I'm definitely snacking less at work; still bored, but snacking less.
-work out regularly (am totally loving my Wii Fit) = more energy, feel better, look better, strength!
I played with my Wii Fit for about a month before life got in the way and it fell by the wayside for couple/few weeks. Then I bought My Fitness Trainer for the Wii... It gives a much better and more varied workout than the Fit. It is totally kicking my ass and I'm loving it. I feel stronger, have more energy, have lost 5 lbs already in the month I've been using it, and am also already noticing changes in my body.
-meditate = calm & focus
I've meditated a few times post work out, but really need to dedicate myself more to it.
-go to yoga classes = healthier me + meet new people
I still haven't done this. I really need to get on it. I know I would love it, I just need to get there.

* Clean & organize my workroom - I love that I have a whole room of my own, but have never really been thrilled with the layout. I need to play with that and create a more inviting & inspiring space. And I MUST hang the ACEO's, prints, and artwork I've been collecting!!
I spent a good amount of time cleaning out and reorganizing my work room. It's not finished, but already in so much better shape. I've gotten shelving for my closet which makes much better use of the space in there. I've thrown away old bills, bank statements, and miscellaneous other crap that was just taking up space in my life. I haven't reorganized the layout, which I'm still contemplating; and I still haven't hung my art.

* Get the sewing machine I received from a very generous Freecycler serviced and learn how to use it.
Haven't tackled this yet. I'm really excited about all of the stuff I can be making with the sewing machine, but just haven't gotten myself to sit down and play with it yet.

* Feel less guilty/bad about situations that I have no control over. Worry less. Stop over analyzing. Be more spontaneous.
I think this is going to be a work in progress. I am certainly much more aware of these situations and how I handle them now, though.

* Find a way to use the tremendous amount of down time at work to my advantage for Athena's Armoury.
I really haven't figured this out yet. At this point, I can work on pieces behind my closed office door on occasion, blog, and twitter. Much more than that. . . I'm not sure what else I can do.

* Production line pieces for days that I'm feeling less than creatively inspired.
* PLAY! Create new designs and don't worry about following rules.
I'm combining these two for now. In the beginning of the year, I spent a good amount of time working on a custom order. In the time after that, however, I took a self-imposed mailling break to try and rest my wrist for a while. I've come to the end of that time now and I'm going to pick up my pliers again as soon as I have a spare moment. I have to take it slow and get my strength back in that wrist, but I can't wait to work on these two! I've had so many ideas and am really looking forward to creating them.

* Purge. Get rid of stuff that I don't need or want. Clutter is disrupting the flow of life!
I think this has pretty much been accomplished in my workroom, I just have to investigate the rest of the house and see what can be done. Unfortunately, a good deal of the clutter is Scott's and until he builds his shelves in his office I'm probably just going to have to deal.

* List and blog about at least one new item per week. Continue to renew daily.
Renewing daily pretty much hasn't been a problem, but blogging and listing new items had been put on hold with the mailling break.

* Get going on creating that website.
I really need to do this and really want to do this, I just really don't know where to begin. Which host is the best? How much bandwidth and storage do I really need? Do I use the host's program to design it or buy a program to use? Designing it is also a little intimidating.

* Dedicate a couple days per month to picture taking. I thought that having my light box set up all the time would be a good idea because as soon as I'm done with a piece and still really excited about it, I could shoot it. Yeah, I wound up moving onto another piece and the light box just took up space until I decided to use it. Time to try something else.
Again, this has been put on hold with the mailling break, but I foresee it being a challenge for me. Photographing my work has never been one of my favorite things to do.

* Track sales/expenses better. A necessary evil in being a one person operation is having to do the tasks you'd rather delegate.
I guess this would be something I can start doing in my downtime at work. . .

* Work on better branding for my biz.
I have a few ideas that I need to research.

Overall, I think I've had a good start to the year. I'm pleased with the progress I've made so far: especially with working out and getting my workroom more organized. I do need to figure out how to get more hours into my day, though! I've found that by the time I get home from work, work out, get dinner ready, cleanup, make food to bring to work the next day, clean the litter box, and maybe do a load of laundry, I have just a short amount of time to unwind before I need to pass out and set my alarm to do it all over again. Where does the time come from to do anything else, including taking care of my business??

Jumping on the Bandwagon

I've never been one for resolutions, but the start of the year does feel like an opportunity to start fresh, with a clean slate. It is, after all, a new beginning. I've been doing a lot of thinking lately of things that I wasn't necessarily happy with last year and improvements that can be made. I'm not thinking of them as resolutions. More like goals.

In no particular order, I'm working on some personal and business goals:

* Take better care of myself:
-snack less at work (I eat when I'm bored)
-work out regularly (am totally loving my Wii Fit) = more energy, feel better, look better, strength!
-meditate = calm & focus
-go to yoga classes = healthier me + meet new people

* Clean & organize my workroom - I love that I have a whole room of my own, but have never really been thrilled with the layout. I need to play with that and create a more inviting & inspiring space. And I MUST hang the ACEO's, prints, and artwork I've been collecting!!

* Get the sewing machine I received from a very generous Freecycler serviced and learn how to use it.

* Feel less guilty/bad about situations that I have no control over. Worry less. Stop over analyzing. Be more spontaneous.

* Find a way to use the tremendous amount of down time at work to my advantage for Athena's Armoury.

* Production line pieces for days that I'm feeling less than creatively inspired.

* PLAY! Create new designs and don't worry about following rules.

* Purge. Get rid of stuff that I don't need or want. Clutter is disrupting the flow of life!

* List and blog about at least one new item per week. Continue to renew daily.

* Get going on creating that website.

* Dedicate a couple days per month to picture taking. I thought that having my light box set up all the time would be a good idea because as soon as I'm done with a piece and still really excited about it, I could shoot it. Yeah, I wound up moving onto another piece and the light box just took up space until I decided to use it. Time to try something else.

* Track sales/expenses better. A necessary evil in being a one person operation is having to do the tasks you'd rather delegate.

* Work on better branding for my biz.

Well, some of these are goals, some just seems like a to-do list. I also realize that I need to get a bit more specific and figure out how I'm going to accomplish some of this. But, hey, it's a start.

Now that you have a clean slate with the beginning of a new year, what will you be working on?

"Real Life" is Bull: A Rant

This post is a part of the Etsy Bloggers Street Team Blog Carnival.

The theme is…BULL! Anything to do with bull: the animal bull, bullfights, just shooting the bull, the zodiac sign Taurus, something with the characteristics of a bull (stubbornness, strong will, strength) anything you think is bull, a bull market, the word bull and words that begin with bull as in bullies, bullseye, etc.

On Sunday night, I was bemoaning having to go into work the next morning and Scott said something to the effect of "welcome to real life" or something like that. Anyway, that got me to thinking. . . Why is it that "real life" consists of people having to go to a job they hate because they have to make a living? Yes, I realize that people need money to survive and that we haven't reached a utopia where we can barter and trade for what we need. However, does that mean that people have to waste away at a soulless job to justify their existence? I mean, think about it:

40 hours a week sitting behind a desk being bored to tears (my current predicament)
56 hours = 8 hours of sleep, 7 days a week
5 hours = 1 hour to get ready to go to said soulless job when it's only on 5 out of 7 days per week (sometimes it's more)
10 hours = 1 hour commute there and another back home
111 hours total. 111 HOURS out of a 168 hour week.

There are 168 hours in a week minus the 111 hours of "real life" bull leaves a total of 57 hours to do other non-bull stuff. When I'm lucky enough to have a full 48 hours off in a row, that leaves a total of 9 hours total for the other five days: approximately 1.8 hours each night. God forbid there are appointments, grocery shopping, cleaning, or other 'home business' that needs to be tended to.

I was lucky enough to have a job I loved for a full decade straight out of college. I was a stage manager for Broadway national tours, theatre in NY, regional theatre, a production manager at one of the busiest road houses in the country, and even did some business and industrial theatre. I always knew I was lucky to have a job that I loved and actually felt sorry for those that didn't. I couldn't fathom what it would be like to slave away at a job that I didn't love. Unfortunately, times have changed.

This is why I got so upset when Scott said "welcome to the real world" or whatever. Why does it have to be like this? I may sound naive saying this, but it is very upsetting to me.

This only makes me want even more to commit to my plan to start making chain maille for a living. I'm having problems figuring out how to do it with what little time I have left after the "real life" bull, though.

How do you do it? How are you reaching your dreams and living in the "real world" at the same time? How do you stay sane in a world where you might have to get by doing something that is not your passion?

Happy New Year! Huzzah!

*This entry is for the Etsy Bloggers Street Team weekly Carnival. This week it's hosted by AliciaMae.*

I hope everyone had a safe, happy, and healthy holiday season.

Mine was relatively quiet. Things at work have been a bit busy, so when Scott and I were both home at the same time for Christmas Day, we totally just vegged out. It was nice.

What's in Store for Athena's Armoury in '08? And what was with the "huzzah" in the title of this entry?

I feel the winds of change stirring in my life. In a good way. I have been a successful theatre professional my whole life, however in recent years I've been feeling like I'm in a rut. I could not for the life of me figure out something else that I would rather be doing with my life. Scott kept saying to me, you should think about doing Ren Faires. And I kept thinking no, I could never do that. Until recently, it dawned on me: "Why the hell not?" It will allow me to continue to be involved in an extremely theatrical environment, I would be able to work for myself, making something I love, and (hopefully) have fun doing it. I've started researching how to get started and all that it involves so that I can start making some concrete plans. In general, I plan to start bulking up my inventory big time, so hopefully that means continuing to list regularly at Etsy. Now, I have to learn to speak with an accent and learn the Elizabethan language. . . and get a costume! Look out geekdom, here comes Athena's Armoury!

New Pic's & Relisting

In an effort to reach the goals that I set out for myself recently, I just relisted a pair of earrings that had a somewhat shoddy picture in the listing. Plus, I strangely only had one picture! Here's the before shot:

This is back when I only had one Etsy shop (Beach Bum Creations) and was using a lot of shells in my photos. Unfortunately, this sea urchin really didn't display these earrings very well at all. As a matter of a fact, many people told me that they clicked on the imagine just to see if there was anything there and even then they couldn't see very well.

Okay, I got the hint. Find a better way of displaying these earrings. Hopefully, these shots will help display these sweet, dainty earrings a little better.

They are made using rose gold wire. Rose gold is a combination of yellow gold and copper -- I just love the warm hue. There are purple amethyst seed beads on one of the rings and the ear wires are 14k gold filled wire. They are available for sale in Athena's Armoury.

The Coif is Complete

In attempting to actually accomplish the goals I set out for myself, I'm finally giving an update on my coif (which I just listed at Etsy, by the way). I first started working on this coif way back in May and blogged about it here in the beginning of June when I had only the beanie portion of it done.

After the beanie was complete, the neck covering of the hood was added to make it into a standard coif (head and neck protection). Unfortunately, it had to be put on the back burner while I waited to receive more rings. I decided not to coil and cut my own rings for this project because I knew there would be so many and I had much rather spend my time actually weaving this time. I actually love the look of the standard coif: it reminds me of the kind of bob-like haircut you may see fashioned on Cleopatra. I plan on getting some enameled or anodized rings in maybe magenta to make it into a wig style for club wear. =)


Last, I added the mantle which adds protection for the throat and upper chest. The mantle, like the beanie portion is more expanding rows of Euro 4-1. It was so much fun to do this project. I loved making fabric out of metal, it felt so cool in my hands. It's also such an amazing dichotomy for metal to feel so fluid.


Historical methods of weaving were used in the creation of this coif, including expanding Euro 4-1. This piece represents countless hours of work with approximately 6000 bright aluminum rings all hand woven by me with seamless closures. Because it was made using bright aluminum (which is 1/3 the weight of steel), it weighs just shy of 2 lbs. Bright aluminum rings, 16 gauge, 1/4" ID: These rings are a good strength for use in combat grade armour and will work for SCA armour. Maille will protect against an edge of a weapon, however padding should be worn underneath for additional protection and a helmet is also commonly worn.

Goals

Shaggy Loops Earrings - listed today at Athena's Armoury

Once upon a time I actually worked for a home party company. I was working a full time job that I was unable to get overtime at with really screwy hours. Needless to say, I needed to make some extra cash, but I also needed to be able to make my own hours. It wound up not being for me, but one of the things I learned in that experience is that setting goals really does help you achieve said goals. =) I've admittedly been slacking a lot lately so far as my Etsy businesses go (both Athena's Armoury as well as Beach Bum Creations). Well, not necessarily slacking because the summer was insane with buying a house, packing, moving, repairing, unpacking. Hell, we're still unpacking, repairing, etc., but I've been starting to feel like I have a little bit less pressure and can devote some more time to Etsy.

My goals are simple to start. As organized a person as I am, taking time to take pictures, editing them, and listing items has not been one of my favorite things to do. If I have the time, I'd rather be playing with pliers and creating something. I think that's the case with most people who create. My goal is to take the time to take pictures and hopefully get better at it, so that there will be less time spent editing. With less editing time, I can then create listings while I'm sitting at my desk and bored at work. This will then free up my evenings/weekends to play with pliers. Hopefully, by writing these goals down and posting them here for all to view, I will follow through with them! Wish me luck!

Earth Tone Earrings - listed at Beach Bum Creations