Monday, Monday...(sing along with me!)

If you read my last post, you will know I had a pretty rough weekend where my Fibro is concerned. But, that didn't stop me from spending a few hours at one of my favorite antique malls, Southport Antique Mall.  I swear, I could have spent the night in that place.  I went for a purpose, and lost it about a third of the way through.  I went looking for a First Communion gift for my daughter Iris for the next day. (I know, Mother of the year right here, waiting till the last possible moment.) I ended up leaving with that gift, plus some vintage baseball and basketball cards for my husband (big kid at heart) and a bunch of wishes for a wad of cash to burn.

Since I don't like to give just the typical cliche kinds of gifts on special occasions, I ended up buying my daughter an antique rosary, that is supposedly from the Civil War Era. (making it roughly 150-160 years old!) It really is a pretty piece and she likes it because she knows how much I appreciate old things, and I don't buy them for people who aren't special to me. :)  Tell me what you think about the piece pictured below, is it as old as claimed to be? Either way, she loves it and I do too. The best part, and most important part when dealing with questionable antiques, is that I didn't pay a lot of money for it.

The mass for my daughter's First Communion was really nice. And although I am not a practicing Catholic anymore (12 years in Catholic school was enough for me.), I am happy that she has found something to believe in.  Mass was over an hour and a half long! Luckily the Priest is a funny old guy who cracks jokes and doesn't "preach" too much.  Afterwards we went over to the little parish center for a party and pictures. My daughter Zoe told her sister "You look like you just got married Sissy!". It is true, the whole white long dress and veil really does look wedding-ish. 

Now, mind you, Zoe had a make-up T-ball game (Go White Sox!), and she showed up to the party in her uniform. I don't normally dress her this way, although, she might prefer it. :) 

*As a side note, according to Zoe her team won (they don't keep score) and she hit a home run (impossible). My husband, who coaches the team, did say that Zoe was one of the only players that actually went for the ball when it was hit by the other team! That would explain the grass stains all over her pants I suppose...

Anyway, after a long day of church, party, T-ball and shopping, the girls and I decided to play "Beauty Shop".  I had recently purchased a set of hot rollers (I'm old school) and a curling iron with the hopes that my hair was long enough to curl into soft waves. Sadly, I was wrong. I ended up looking like Shirley Temple.  On a little girl, cute. On a thirty-blah blah blah year old woman, horrifying.  The girls results were so much better than mine, that I had to take a few pictures. Ok, so a few might be a fib...more like fifteen or twenty would be about right. I can't help it though, it's the photographer in me. 

You see what I mean about the Shirley Temple look? On Zoe it's adorable! I love it and so did she. Too bad her hair is so fine still that the curls fell out about an hour later!

Iris' hair is so thick I am jealous. Except for when it comes to brushing it. OUCH.  But it is so beautiful.  Her curls stayed in a bit longer and now I am being told that we should do it every morning before school...yeah, sure. :) 

So far so good for this lovely Monday.  It's getting ready to storm pretty good here so I need to get my jammies on and get a good book started...it's gonna be that kind of evening and I can't wait. 

Fibro Friday (3 days late)

Ok, ok, so I know I am two days late with this, but my post actually has to do with the reason for my delay. It's so hard to put into words the kind of pain I experience everyday, and the whole journey I have made to get to this point but I will try.

I was diagnosed with "Fibromyalgia" about a year ago.  Like I said in my welcome post, I am still on the fence about the whole diagnosis. I KNOW I have pain 24/7, I know it can be really hard to manage at times and I know that it will probably never go away.  I have had so many CT scans, MRI's, X-rays and blood work that I don't know if there isn't a part of my body that hasn't been invaded in some way. The scale tipping moment that told me this isn't just about getting older, was about two years ago when I had a migraine so severe that I ended up in the ER.  While there, I received a "migraine cocktail" that contained three different drugs to kick the migraines behind. And it did, but it left me with numbness and then a fiery pain so severe,  in my hip/buttock area, that I couldn't even walk. At the time the doctor thought I had some nerve damage from the shot, ergo the first in a series of scans. Nothing turned up. Nothing at all. And so began the long and tedious journey of trying to figure out what exactly was causing my pain.

The pain has never gone away and it progressed so much that I had trouble getting out of bed most mornings. Eventually the pain spread to my upper back. I literally woke up one morning and couldn't turn my head. That pain too never went away.  My trapezoid and rhomboid muscles are so tense all the time that I have lost all curvature in my neck, a condition called Cervical Kyphosis.

I usually sleep with heat patches on my shoulder and hip and it takes me about an hour in the morning to fully wake and be able to do the simplest of tasks. 

I finally started seeing a Pain Management Specialist.  He is WONDERFUL.  I finally feel like I am going to make some progress and I don't feel like he is just brushing me off. I spent two hours talking with him during my initial appointment and he never once hurried me along (not that I felt like anyway!).  He immediately scheduled some tests and procedures and prescribed some medication without making me feel like a drug addict.  

As of today, I have had 3 injections in my back. One in the Piriformis muscle, one in the Sacroiliac joint and one in the Rhomboid Trigger Point. So far so good as far as the Piriformis and Sacroiliac shots are concerned. Not so much with the Rhomboid Trigger Point injection. And that, my friends, stinks. The Rhomboid issue causes my arm and hand to ache and go numb, causes terrible headaches and jaw pain and generally just hurts like Hades.

Soooooo, my delay in getting my first Fibro post done was due to a really bad week-end and weekend. (Does that make sense?) I was so mad at myself for not having the energy to type this, but, I have learned through all of this, to give myself a break every once in awhile.  Anyone here with Fibro will understand what I mean.  

Here is to a better week ahead to me, and a wonderful week to you!

The First Tutorial! - Washi Tape

Hope everyone is having a wonderful week so far, thank goodness it's almost over! Then comes a weekend full of tee-ball (Zoe) and Soccer (Iris) games!  

Today I decided to try out my tutorial skills. Bear with me here while I get my feet wet.  I've visited a lot of blogs that have tutorials on them and they can vary from completely vague to overly detailed...I would like to be somewhere in between.  I mean, I don't want to make you think I think you are an idiot now do I? NO!  But, at the same time, I also don't want to leave you in the dark and wonder "How did she get to that point?".  I also didn't want to start off with some crazy hard project. Mainly because my kids are insane and I don't have the time! :)  So, I figure Washi Tape is a good starting point. It's so easy to make and so versatile, I just wish I would have found out earlier!!

So....here we go! I'm going to show you how I am using my homemade Washi Tape to embellish my blog's "calling card".

Step one is to find a good double sided tape. I found that Scotch 3m Scrapbooking Tape is a really good one.

After you have found a good, strong tape, the next step is the best step! Finding the paper or fabric you want to apply. 

 

With so many patterns out there, the possibilities are endless.  I chose a piece of polka dotted tissue paper. I really like the tissue because it is lightweight, and still appears somewhat transparent once applied to the tape. But, for added texture, fabric or even scrapbooking paper would work well too.

Once you have completed the daunting task of choosing the pattern you want, (Oh the injustice of so many pretty choices, right?) and cutting it to size, you carefully apply the tape sticky side down (duh!).  Make sure you get a good hold on the paper, and that there are no air bubbles or buckling.  You can either do this with your fingertip, or use a brayer if you have one. 

Once you have the tape secured to the paper, simply trim around it with scissors.  Depending on the width of the tape you use, you could even use specialty scissors to create a patterned edge for an extra flair! (I love it when a good idea comes to me spontaneously. Note to self: Invest in pretty scissors!!)

Now, you have your very own, homemade Washi Tape! Like I said earlier I am using mine to embellish my cards.  Since I already had them printed, I just needed to peel and stick and voila! 

 A much prettier and much more unique calling card! Just make sure when peeling the paper off of the other side of the tape, you don't accidentally "kink" it. I did this and although I was able to "un-kink" it, I found it left a little crease. This was probably because I used a thin tissue. 

The possibilities are, literally, endless. Embellish a candle holder, envelopes, stationary, picture frames...I could go on and on and on and....well, you get the idea. Endless. Possibilities. Period.

I hope this little beginning tutorial was helpful and inspiring. Ive seen Washi Tape on Etsy and other craft sites and the prices are crazy! I think I paid $5.00 for the roll of tape, and the tissue was from a box of old scraps I bought at the Goodwill Outlet last year. Way more cost effective, and I can say that I made it. 

I would love to see what you have come up with, or other ways of making Washi Tape. Post a comment, or shoot me an email with your own ideas! Let's get creative! 

Meet The Fam...

As I said in my intro, my girls are my entire world. However, I failed to mention that I also have a dog (my third daughter) and three, yes three cats. I must be crazy right? Right. My husband is pretty awesome too. He is the male version of myself...for the most part.  That is actually a scary thought...hmmm...At any rate, these people are my world. They inspire me everyday to be a better mom, wife, pet owner and person in general. Introducing the people in my life that make life worth living.

This is my beautiful daughter Iris. She is eight going on eighteen. She is my little "fashionista"...I envision her designing her own clothing line one day and I will be front row at her very first runway show! She is so smart and so funny, but man can this girl have a total "diva" attitude!!

This is my funny girl Zoe. She will be five next month! I can't believe my baby will be in Kindergarten!  This little girl is the funniest kid I have ever known in my life.  If I am having a bad day, this one right here is an instant pick me up. She is also my little artist in training. She loves to create and draw. 

And of course, I must introduce my animal babies! What kind of mother would I be if I didn't???

Greta Bear

Kitty Girl

Smokey Boy

Tucker Man

My husband is such a hard guy to get a really good picture of.  He is either making a really weird face, or he avoids the camera all together. Bah! But, I did find my most favorite picture of all. The day our daughter Zoe was born. The look on his face is one of pure happiness and wonderment. I love it.  He is such a good father and he is such a wonderful husband. I am so lucky to have found him (and actually been able to snag him!).  

So, that is my family. I love, love, love them. And I'm pretty sure they love me too. ;) They better, or they can do their own laundry!

A Peek Into The Past

So, since my first post was an introduction about me and I mentioned that I was an artist, I figured I better make good on that claim! I took art all through high school, so I spent most of those four years doing art projects that I really wasn't interested in.  Figure drawing, pottery and such just are not my thing. I don't like being told what direction I have to go in either! So, as an adult, I have played with many different styles and forms and found that mixed media is a favorite of mine.  I also like to make jewelry and other accessories. I get a lot of my materials from the oddest places. "Found Objects" you might say.  I love, love, love The Goodwill Outlet. If you don't have one in your area, start a protest! It has to be the greatest store ever. You basically rummage through massive bins of the "unwanted" donations that the stores don't take. Boy, they have no idea what they are missing out on!!! I have found some great vintage papers, fabrics, books, etc...and pay next to nothing for it because you pay for it by the pound! Anyway, enough of a plug for the Goodwill... :) I also acquired a lot of objects for my art from various family members, friends and so on.  Here is just a small sampling (i.e. I cant seem to locate all of my pictures, grrrrrrr), of some of the pieces I have worked on. As I, ehem..., locate more pictures of my work I will be sure to share. And please, if you see something you like and want to try it out for yourself but don't know where to begin, let me know! I am always glad to pass on any "industry secrets". But truthfully, I work by trial and error, and more error, and more error....and, well you get the picture. Art is always a work in progress!!

 

This piece was actually one of my famous "Trial and Error" projects, I liked the way it turned out so much, i ditched all the others and framed this one...NOT what the intended finished project was supposed to be though.

A broken and mismatched earring turned awesome (and heavy) ring

I actually made this for my daughter whose name is Iris. I printed an image of an Iris onto an old dictionary (it was in bad shape anyway, and then I hand colored. 

Mixed Media piece made with a vintage photograph, vintage buttons, vintage newspaper and then hand cut bits for the wings, legs and body...added a bit of sparkle with some glitter and aged the paper with ink.

So, as you can see, I am a jack of all trades and a master of absolutely NONE. But, I am good with that. Its fun to create and see what you can come up with. Sometimes I surprise myself even! Again, if you ever see anything you like that I post, please let me know and I can always post a tutorial! Hope everyone has a great week...until tomorrow...

Here We Go!!

Welcome, welcome, welcome! So, this is my first official blog entry. I am so excited to be finally posting this!

Now, I did a lot of research to make sure I got this thing running in the best possible manner. I poured over countless other blogs and websites. My biggest hang up was “How do I possibly introduce myself to the whole entire world??”. After a ton of stressing and procrastinating, I finally just decided to just wing it. So, without further ado, I'd like to introduce...ME!

My name is Sascha, pronounced SASH-UH. Believe me, that's the easiest way to explain it. Born and raised in the Midwest, I am lucky to have a good appreciation for both the big city and the country alike. I am Thirty-blah blah blah years old (Not giving away just everything!) and I am married with two little girls (divas), Iris and Zoe. I have been married now (2^nd time around, ack) for almost five years. I am a stay at home/ work at home mom and I wouldn’t have that any other way. I have worked in Real Estate for about 13 years now, in some form or fashion. And while I really love it, I am soooooo tired of working for “The Man”. My passions in life are my family, arts and crafts, photography and reading my beloved books. I am a total bookworm that only just blossomed in my adulthood. Before age twenty-five, you couldn’t get me to touch a book let alone read one! I love my crazy life, even if there aren’t enough hours in the day to get it all done. I absolutely detest laundry and I would swear that dust bunnies across the globe have come together (in my house) just to irritate me. I love to tell stories, I am all hands, crazy facial expressions and really bad voice impressions. My mom always tells me I should have been a stand up comedian, but somehow I just don’t think anyone else would appreciate my animated story telling like they do. 

Now, what exactly do I plan on doing with this blog? Well, my intentions are to share, inspire and relate to others. I have a mind full of projects (along with a studio of half-finished ones) that I would love to share with others! I plan on posting tutorials, along with pictures, of current and past projects I have done. I find so much inspiration from other peoples work, and now I want to pay that forward and be the inspiration for others.

As I said earlier, I’m a mother to two little girls. They are my entire world. I would not be who I am now without them. They drive me absolutely insane, but I love them to absolute pieces. Having said that, sometimes they completely hinder my much needed arts and crafts time! I usually find myself creating at the most odd times of the day.  I get sooooooo frustrated when I have this “brilliant” idea in my head and have to end up waiting til 3am, when insomnia takes over, to actually do something! So, my second intention is to show others that it IS manageable. You can be a great mom and a great artist all at once. You just have to be...creative. :)

Something I didn’t mention in my initial intro, that I plan on blogging about, is my “Fibromyalgia”. I put that in quotations for the simple fact that the issue of whether Fibro is a “real” condition seems to be a hot topic, and unfortunately it feels like there is a stigma attached to the diagnosis. And let me tell you , that sucks. I hurt ALL THE TIME. I have had every possible test run to rule out nerve issues, bone fractures, Thyroid issues...you name it, I've done it. I am a close personal friend of all x-ray, CT and MRI machines within a 20 mile radius...trust me. I will go into the specifics in a later post because I have officially, as of just this moment, made Fridays here “Fibro Fridays”! In all sincerity though, it is an issue that is near and dear to me because it has changed my life in so many ways it's crazy. Along with being a mother and an artist, I am also able to be a chronic pain sufferer and an artist...again it just takes some creativity.

So, that is me...for now...I am really excited to begin this journey and I truly hope you will join me! Its sure to be a lot of fun and hopefully even more helpful to others that might find themselves experiencing some of the same “life's little quirks" like myself. Please feel free to leave me comments or send me an email to feisty.blatherings@gmail.com. It can be something good or constructively critical, I appreciate a bit of everything. And be sure to check back often as I am determined to make this the one blog you will be sure to come back to!

Enjoy!