Sunday Stitches

My stitches for this week are also my words, or intention, for this year.

I've been under a lot of stress this past year, between having to put my sister in a nursing home to worrying about the election, with a few other concerns thrown in. I also put myself under a lot of pressure, needlessly, by being a perfectionist with my artwork - not that it's perfect by any means!

So, I've decided to lighten up in many areas of my life and work. Here are some of them:

Attitude -  I tend to be pretty serious a lot of the time. I want to add more  humor, music and lightness to my everyday life.

Artwork - I want to try some new things, like collage, art dolls and another series of narrative portraits. I’ve decided not to show my work for a while, so that I can be free to experiment without the pressure of preparing for shows.

Decluttering - I want more space, less stuff. Clean space is a good thing!

De-stashing - I have collected an amazing amount of art and craft supplies, plus fabric, in the last 30 years. I’ve already begun to give away some of the excess, but have a long way to go. I have a nice studio which is currently more of a storage room and I’d like to make it an appealing and bright place to work in.

Eating Habits - I want to lighten up my eating and my weight. I have already cut out sugar and am researching some good eating plans. And I need to exercise and move more

Centering - I need to quiet my mind, concentrate on the moment, use the computer less, and meditate as I used to in the past. 

So there you have it - my personal "lighten up" project for 2017. I have already begun, which is good since we are already more than halfway through January! Can you believe it?

• Thanks for "listening" to my goals.
• As my daughter's 4th grade teacher used to say,
• "Inch by inch, life's a cinch.
• Yard by yard, life is hard."

Here's to taking things an inch at a time!!