Taking time for creativity

How is it that part of my reason for becoming a teacher is because I like to be creative, yet much of the reason I am not taking time to be creative is because I am so worn out because I AM a teacher?

Needless to say, the past four days were a much needed break from the school schedule and allowed extra time at home. We had nothing beyond attending lots of church services and celebrating child #3's birthday on the agenda. I also knew I needed to slow down and rest. What I didn't realize was how much joy I would find in just taking time to create.

First on the creative list was New England Clam Chowder. The recipe is one my mother got from a friend of hers that grew up in New England. It is pretty basic - just onion, celery, carrots and potatoes cooked in clam juice, along with the canned clams then added to a roux made with half & half. It was the beginning of the week-end of comfort food.

Next on the creative list was coloring eggs for Easter. My daughter and her boyfriend were up to the task while hubby and child #3 were otherwise occupied. We started by finally making the
Martha Stewart Egg Drying Rack. Then it was on to coloring eggs.

We used McCormick food coloring in hot water with white vinegar as directed. We tried some with rubber bands tied around it. Some we used q-tips and painted and others we put stickers on before dying.

We had a few we tried coloring by putting a few eggs in a strainer, splashed them with vinegar and then drops of food coloring. What fun! These were the fastest and easiest.

These two were my favorite. I used some tiny adhesive letters from my paper crafts collection and then just let my egg rest in a cup of egg dye for a long time. I waited until the eggs were quite dry before peeling the letters off. I used it as my Facebook greeting for Easter Sunday.

Now to finally post this after having it in my draft box far too long!
lm

Creativity, a book and a wreath

Taking time to be creative has been my downfall for the past several years. I get a lot of great ideas, sometimes even buy or collect the materials, but less and less often were those projects becoming a reality. Guess what? That, my friends, is a recipe for sadness and a blah, rather ho-hum attitude about life. In the past few months I have found inspiration by attending the Unglued Craft Fest and attending a Women Inspiring Women afternoon. I am renewed and determined to both FIND time and MAKE time to be creative!

Since last November when I hosted Book Group, I have thought I should make a wreath with book pages. I had a styrofoam form and, well, I have a surplus of old books I have collected. As I was finally putting away Valentine's decor last week-end, I realized i didn't have any type of spring wreath for the front door. I remembered my earlier idea and decided, then and there, to stop and make that book wreath.

Here is what I used:

Styrofoam wreath form - 16" size
Here's a link to JoAnn's where I bought my form.

An old book. I liked the size of the pages. I tried a few of my old books by tearing out a page and folding it into a cone. This one is 5 3/4" wide by 8 1/2" long. Isn't the book jacket cute? I found myself wanting to stop and read the story as I was tearing it out. I refrained and focused on my project. :)

My trusty hot glue gun with it's thrift store plate to rest on. (Yes, that is years worth of hot glue remnants on the plate. I think it helps people know I really do use it!)

 And a roll of 5 1/2" wide burlap

The first task, after tearing out book pages, was to roll the paper into cones and staple the ends. I ended up using about 60 pages. I experimented to see how I liked the roll - tight and skinny, print which direction, torn edge out or in, and then proceeded to make lots of paper cones.

 Realizing that the green foam would show under the cones inspired me to simply wrap the foam frame with the burlap and attach with straight pins. Easy! I also tied a strip of burlap to the form to use as a hanger for the wreath BEFORE I glued on the cones.

Then came the fun of hot glueing all the cones in place. I found it worked well to have the pointy end into the center just to where I stapled and then I folded it and glued it down in the middle and on the main form. I glued one row in place and then another layer on top of those on the seam formed by every two cones together. After glueing all the cones in place, I took another strip of burlap and covered those pointed ends of the cone in the center of the wreath.

You can see that I had to cut slits in the burlap to ease it around the inner circle. I thought about cutting the width of the burlap down, but worry about majoring fraying and excess strings stopped me. Plus, it would have taken longer. I was ready for simple and quick.

I made three paper flowers I had planned to attach to the lower right inside edge of the wreath.

However, when the wreath was finished, it looked a lot like a sunflower and I decided (with advice from my dear sister-in-law) to try it without first. The family and I love it as is, so these pretty little flowers are ready for the next project.

Here is the finished wreath on my red front door.

What do you think? I think it looks fresh and welcoming. Perhaps a bit more fall, than spring, but it is better than the heart wreath left from Valentine's Day!

Here's to completing ideas and re-using books.
lm