I originally wrote this post before my impromptu sabbatical, and the title was less on-the-nose at the time. But, what the hell, let’s go with it! There have been lots of beginnings this year. The biggest news — on the creative front, especially — has been the fact that I wrote a book. Well, to be precise, I wrote something I hoped, one day, might become a book that other people might read. It was an incredibly consuming but also fulfilling project … until I ran into a full-on crisis of faith, not just over the quality and merit of my writing, but of my ideas. I want to be clear here: I think I’m pretty smart, and I think my ideas are pretty good. But not every good idea is so unique or so interesting or so valuable that it NEEDS to be part of a public discourse. Having to make a decision about what to do with my writing — pursue the book path, or keep it personal — forced me to confront the question: what do I bring to the public discourse, and does it need to be there? And, honestly? I don’t know.

I wasn’t going to start writing the blog again until I had the answer sorted out in my own mind, because what’s the point of doing something in blog-form if it’s not worth doing in book-form. I haven’t got the answer yet, but here I am. I just missed writing … which means, I guess, that as much as I’ve always felt that writing (unlike my other creative outlets) needs an audience, it’s something I also do for myself. I’m figuring out what that means when it comes to this blog, but in the meantime, I’m back. More or less.

But, for now, let’s talk about other creative business.

At the beginning of the year, writing took up most of my free time, so I did little embroidery for a few months; more recently, my pace has picked up again. Later this month, I will even be doing a small art market! It will be a nice little diversion, although my focus lately isn’t really on selling, but rather making pieces that feel joyous to work on. Lots of colour, of course. Lots of flowers. A little bit of whimsy.

Here is what I have been working on in 2024:

I did a bird of paradise hoop a couple of years ago, and wanted to revisit the theme as part of a current floral still-life series I’m developing. I love how this one turned out!

Speaking of that series, here is another one featuring one of my favourite flowers to embroider — pansies. A friend ended up getting this hoop, and I rather miss it, so I may do a different version soon for myself. Honestly, I could embroider pansies all the time — they are so colourful and fun.

This hoop was inspired by a quilt I thrifted a while back. Hollyhocks remind me so much of my childhood, it was lovely to bring this design to life. I usually work with a broader colour palette, so this was an exercise in restraint for me.

My best friend has been asking me for a black cat hoop for YEARS, and I finally made it! I actually had the design ready for more than a year, but somehow it never felt like the right time to embroider it … until now. It’s inspired by a Klimt painting, of course.

This is another design I’d drawn a while back and decided it was time to bring it to life, as I wanted something small and (relatively) quick to complete in between marathon writing sessions back in February. I enjoy this more realistic take on a pansy as much as the fun, pop-art-y ones. It does take a lot more time, though, haha!

You knew it was only a matter of time before I went back to another favourite flower for my still life series. Yes, irises inspired by Van Gogh. I took a risk with the dark background, but I think that paid off once I added the white outlining. This hoop was a keeper for my personal collection (for the time being anyway).

My daughter is obsessed with frogs at the moment, and I rather enjoyed making a frog prince last year, so I went back to the drawing board and drew up a queen. As always with these mixed media “portraits”, the clothing and embellishments took the longest to make — having no sewing skills to begin with, making these 2D outfits is a real challenge for me. But I love how it turned out … and so did my daughter. And I love that for us 🙂

3 Comments on I Make Things: New Year, New Beginnings

  1. I for one have missed your writing during your sabbatical, to the point that I was beginning to have some concern over what might have happened. I’m glad you are okay!

    As to whether something “needs” to be part of the public discourse, all I can say is that it is not a limited space. It may seem crowded, but it is infinite and one person’s thoughts do not crowd out another’s. You can decide if effort put in = number of people who read it and care…that is a purely personal equation. Some might be happy if one person is touched by their thoughts, and some might think it’s not worth the trouble unless 10,000 are. Either way, there is room in the public discourse for everyone and I’m glad to see you again.

  2. I love reading your writing and blog!

    Beautiful embroidery; having two black cats, I’m partial to that one.