Sunday, August 19, 2007

Sewing project and thoughts at the beach

After spending the past 6 weekends at the renaissance faire (Great Lakes Medieval Faire, if you were curious!), my gypsy spirit has gotten restless again. I'm sure it doesn't help that I met a man there, either. He works for my friend's garb business, and he's....well.......interesting. He's a little crazy, and his life has certainly not been lived "within the lines," so to speak. He was a runaway and a homeless street kid for over a decade, and carries a lot of baggage as a result of that. But he speaks to that little bit of my soul that wants to run, be carefree, innocent and irresponsible and silly. Fitting back into my "real" life has really not been fun. I'm full of unanswerable questions, and DH can't help. For my married readers -- what do you do when you look at your husband, your life, and think, "how did I get HERE?" *sigh*

Friday night I went to the beach with my camera and my journal, hoping to think and write for a bit. It helped some.....and then I put my camera on an empty lifeguard chair, set the auto-timer, and just walked away. This was the result.

(There is a bigger version in my Flickr gallery.) For some reason, just looking at this shot makes me feel better, somehow. Although there is still a bit of me that wants to run...to be at the wheel of the Black Pearl, growling, "bring me that horizon..."

Anyway.

So, back to the stitching. Last night I got inspired to finish my Vermillion freebie into a faire bag. This one, purchased last year, was my inspiration:

And here's what I created:
My outer pocket came out a bit smaller than I would have liked...but all in all, not too bad! The green is a corduroy I had in my stash, and the brocade is scraps from the "Dress That Wasn't" for the renaissance wedding. Oh, and while I was merrily sewing along, with all that brocade and the heavy-duty needle on my machine...I managed to sew through my fingertip!! Ow!!! (Now all my sewing friends tell me I've been "initiated," though. hehehe) It really didn't hurt TOO much, thanks to years of testing my blood sugar, but now it is hard to stitch with the big gash in my fingertip. LOL

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Erin, I feel like that a lot. I understand how you feel. E-mail me @ tajinaz36@yahoo.com and I can share more with you if you like.

Kendra said...

Sorry I don't have any words of wisdom for your dilemma...

But I wanted to tell you that is an awesome picture of you on the beach. It looks like it could easily be a professional photo.

Michelle-ozark crafter said...

Well, yep if you have sewn your finger you are official for sure! As for me and my hubby, we have been together just over 27 years. i can not imagine life without him as he is my soul mate and the light of my life!

Aussie Stitcher said...

Your photo is lovely, take care of yourself.

Joanne

Kathy A. said...

What a beautiful photo! I can understand how it makes you feel better. Getting over these hurdles is the difference between a long marriage and a divorce. You will get through it! Your bag is lovely. Nice finish

Singular Stitches said...

Your finish is lovely!

Yes, I can relate to the 'How did I get here???' Life is a series of decisions, and you wonder about what things would be like if you made different decisions. Of course, making different decisions doesn't always mean things will be better, just maybe different... :o)

Casa Pearl said...

Lovely bag finish and I really like the photo. Good luck with finding your way - we all have those times in our lives and think the grass is always greener.... sometimes it is but sometimes we're better of on our side of the fence.

Cathy said...

I often feel like I could keep driving out of town until I run out of gas. But I have responsibilities (2 kids and a dad) so I turn into work and start another day. Sometimes it seems like others have a better life. But everyone has problems, no one has a perfect happy life. So I know what my problems are and how to deal with them. I would hate to start over and try and figure out how to deal with different problems. Keep stitching.

Sharon said...

Your bag is lovely. Congrats on the finish.

Dani - tkdchick said...

Erin, what a fantastic picture of you. I think it must really reflect your mood at the moment.

I think we all go through times when we question our lives and our journies to date.

Lovely sewing job!

Karen said...

Hi Erin, your stitching looks great, and I love the picture of you at the beach. I replied to your post on The Wagon, so I won't repeat myself here. Just know you're certainly not alone in your feelings. I think its perfectly natural. Most of the time, it doesn't mean anything. It's just a passing phase.

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