Martha's So-Called Life

watercolor madness

For some reason I have suddenly had the urge to paint with watercolors. I'm not sure what sparked that but I'm having fun playing with my paints.

I am not aiming to create anything specific, just playing..although there was a video I came across with watercolor galaxies that totally inspired me...and also gave me the idea for the paint splatters.

Yes, I should be doing school work, but this is a great mental health break from staring at the computer screen and trying to learn things! 

My problem with creating stuff is that I get hung up on making my things look like the things that other people do that I like so much. Then I get frustrated when I can't get it right. I think watercolors are a good way for me to practice getting out of that cycle because it's pretty easy to create pretty things. I've also found that if I walk away from something that I don't like, by the time I come back I sometimes kind of like it. Or at least like a part of it!

What do you do for a mental health break? 

knitting instead of learning

Lately I have been on a knitting kick. Probably because I am nearing the end of the semester and have lost all my willpower to make myself do school related things. The struggle is real. 

This weekend I started a cardigan. I've been thinking about knitting this forever, but just didn't want to take on a big project since I haven't finished the other sweater that I'm working on (I have one sleeve left to knit and am worried I won't have enough yarn). I'm really good at starting projects and not so good at finishing them. Apparently that's a family trait. 

Since I powered through some serious school work on Saturday morning, I rewarded myself with a trip to the yarn store. Armed with a gift certificate, I picked out some yarn for this sweater and got to work!

It's slow going because I am also watching TV while knitting. Please, don't ask me what I'm watching because I'm kind of ashamed about it...but it's that time in the semester where I require mindless projects, books, and TV shows to recharge my brain!

In three weeks I should be done with everything except one test and I can be free until the end of August!! 

 

same yarn, new project

A few weeks ago I posted about some things I was knitting.  One of them included a purple baby sweater.  Well, that project got scrapped when the pattern because undecipherable.  I decided to move on to something I knew would be cute, easy to knit, and had an easy to read pattern.  I made one of these tops a few years ago for a friend's baby and knew it would be perfect for this yarn.

I'm not saying who it's for because I don't want to completely ruin the surprise. 

I like this pattern because it's sleeveless and loose so it will fit a kiddo for longer.  I'm also making the 1 year size, so it will be a little big initially, but I think that it should fit for at least a few few months.  

This is also the perfect knitting project for study breaks.  It's a 12 (?) row repeat so it's easy to sit down for 20 minutes and knit a repeat and then put it down and get back to studying.  Lately it's been my evening, just before bed, zone out in front of the TV zone out time.  Perfect.

Speaking of study breaks, I'm working on a series of posts, that talks about how I'm managing to go to school (essentially full-time) while working (also full-time).  I'm not sure if I'm going to post all the content here or in my newsletter, but either way I do it there will be extra goodies that go out with the newsletter when that series gets posted.  

Which means...you should sign up for my newsletter so you don't miss out! Click the link or enter your email in the box in the sidebar ("Get updates by email").  I promise I won't spam and will only email once a week at the most and then only if I have something worthwhile to say!

changing the rules of 3 x 5 x 365

Two words: grad school

I started a new semester on Monday and it has been nothing but working, running, and school work all week.

On top of working 40 hours and running 12 miles, I have watched 7 hours of lectures and read 20 textbook chapters this week. 

I've decided that I need to have a little more flexibility in this endeavour (as evidenced by the fact that I went a whole week without doing a single card).  I'm not ready to call it quits completely, I just need to cut myself some slack. I think I'll try until I have 365.  That might take me two years...but I'll do my best!

#makearteveryday

on my needles

I (always) have several knitting projects going at one time.  There's usually a portable one (socks!), something challenging and fun, and something more mindless but still fun.  

Right now I'm working on a pair of socks with a fun lace pattern (Ginkgo Sock Pattern free here).  

A baby sweater (Clemmie's Sweater pattern free here).

I have a sweater for myself that I started late last winter that is just about 3/4 of the way done.  I just haven't picked it up in awhile, and that often makes going back to it harder because I can't just pick it up and knit, I have to figure out where I was when I stopped first.  

I have tons of other projects that I want to do...but am quickly running out of time before school starts again!

3 x 5 x 365 // week 1

I'm done with the first week of my index card art challenge!  So far so good.  

I'm not going to nitpick any of these because that is not the point.  There's a lot of collage and doodling going on in these, which is neither good nor bad.  Just an observation.  

Some days its very hard to come up with something and it usually results in me cutting apart a page from a magazine and putting in back together in collage format...or in the case of #5, a Christmas card.  

geometric LOVE print

Last weekend I busted out the colored pencils and started coloring.  And then I had the crazy idea to paint on top of the colored pencils...and I love how it turned out.

I added a wee bit of metallic silver paint to the black so there's a tiny bit of shimmer to it.  I am loving the processes of making art...and trying to do as much of it as I can before the new semester of school starts at the beginning of January!  

If you are interested, the original and prints are for sale here.  

original art // let love in

Before I went on all of my vacations, I got super excited about painting words on paper with brushes.  I haven't had a chance to paint any more, but I have had a chance to decide that this is one of my favorites.  

If you are interested in purchasing the original ($50) or prints ($15-$25), you can do so here. 

I'm still trying to decide what I want to do about my shop, hence the reason the link for this art takes you to a page I created solely for the purpose of selling this piece.  Some people redecorate their houses, I redecorate my online space.  I still have some things listed on Etsy, but I'm tired of paying them for a very minimal amount of exposure.  Don't get me wrong, Etsy is a great online marketplace and it works really well for some people.  I would just rather keep the money I am giving them and do something else with it.  

more paint + words

I'm in love.  With words...and paint...on paper.  

Who knew that painting words could be so much fun. Big words, small words, whole sentences.  I love just the black and white, but it's been fun to add color too.  I got some different paint and have had much better luck getting things to look the way I want.  

The good news is, I will never run out of words.  I might run out of paint and paper...but there will always be words.  

There's something much better about writing words with a paint brush.

Now go make something...

paint + words

Playing with words and paint...

I'm going to end up with a house full of pages of words.  The problem with having no official art education (other than what I got in elementary school) is that most everything starts with experimentation.  I know that's a lot of what art is, but I have no knowledge about how certain mediums and materials behave, so I just have to dive right in and try what I think will work!  It's both frustrating and exciting.