… Marsha

Personal Mission: Make it; make it fun; make it better; make it meaningful

You will probably understand when I say I don’t really like to talk about myself. But I have to suck it up, put on my big-girl panties (growing bigger and bigger by the daily donut), and get my story out there so you will at least get to know a little about the person who’s yakking at you about sewing, crafts, cats and anything else that pops into her mind.

I’ve procrastinated, oh yes I have! And if I hadn’t gone and committed to an interview with Lulu & Celeste, I’d still be perfecting my procrastination techniques on this task. Bu-u-u-ut, although it took me 3 months to answer the interview questions, I finally beat my modesty to a pulp and I talked about (gulp!) me!

A few (ie. many) people have called me a space cadet. I start projects and get bored quickly. The starting is the exciting part. Finishing would be satisfying if I ever got there, or so I’m told. But then again, life (mine anyway) is not about the destination; it’s about the journey. Speaking of journeys, I love to fly. I hate airports but I love flying. It’s a miracle I haven’t gone skydiving yet. Or maybe it’s not so surprising since skydiving is about falling, not flying. One of the highlights of my life was going up with an acrobat pilot. He did some stunts with me and I’ve never felt so free, ever. Working on a sailboat never did it for me. (Did you know I can’t swim?) Road trips come close, but not quite the same as soaring high in a 2-seater with the joystick between my knees.

Sometimes, I wish with all my heart that I could follow rules and directions, and be normal — whatever that is. But I don’t, and it makes for a very interesting life of adventures and cock-ups. It also means that sewing patterns and cooking recipes are not safe with me. I will hack them, whether I want to or not. So, call me a hack; I can live with that. In fact, I welcome it.

Other bits of trivia:

• I love the feel of fabric, so I will do laundry and iron unnecessarily. (There’s no explaining why I would rather run about without clothes like a toddler, though.)
• The smell and feel of book pages make me giddy. I’ve been known to read the dictionary for fun so I can sniff the paper. (I may need additional counselling for this.)
• Did I mention I went sailing for 2 months and white water kayaking for a week, but I can’t swim?
• I’ve always wanted to start a kitty ranch and rescue all the little furballs who have no home.
• Fibromyalgia and CFS have slowed me down a lot in the past couple of years.
• I want a tattoo but I still can’t make up my mind where to put it, because you know, halfway through the inking I’ll suddenly want to put it somewhere else. Noncommittal, I am.
• The outfit I’m wearing in my profile picture is made of crab shells, candy wrappers, and (not shown) flattened beer and cola cans.

Just to wrap things up, because by now you must be sick of reading about Marsha-Marsha-Marsha (don’t!), I’ll tell you why I’m flying by the seam of my pants…

Definition: Seat of my pants (http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/139400.html)

“Decide a course of action as you go along, using your own initiative and perceptions rather than a pre-determined plan or mechanical aids.”

Definition: fly by the seat of one’s pants [verb phrase] (http://dictionary.reference.com/)

1      To pilot an airplane by feel and instinct rather than by instruments : The old-time barnstormers had to fly by the seat of their pants (1930s+ Aviators)

2      To proceed or work by instinct and improvisation, without formal guides or instructive experience : The teachers are not trained to recognize it. They’re flying by the seat of their pants/ Every case is different, and every investigator ends up flying by the seat of his (or her) pants (1970s+)

… This Blog

I spent years in immersion therapy (AKA BA degree in Human Relations and Psychology), just so I can understand what’s important to me, what motivates me and what I do for approval from others. I use a different set of core principles and values to guide me in different areas of my life. This blog is one of those areas, and the three main values behind it are Creativity, Learning, and Community.

Creativity and learning might be two separate concepts but, for me, they go hand in hand. In sharing my creative journey(s) with you, I’m hoping to spark or fuel your creativity as well. In turn, your journey (and your comments) will keep my flame alive. I also hope this blog will be a place where you learn something new all the time — even if it’s a new word.

But my words aren’t enough to sustain a widespread movement into seeing our everyday world differently or making something that has meaning to us, or even zoning out into our zen space. For help with that, I turn to others (community) and I provide some of my favourite resources for online classes where you can pick up new skills, try something different or just play. But with the knowledge, information and inspiration, we most likely need some tools to help us with our creation. So I also try to share links to my favourite places that sell or trade sewing, art, crafts and play supplies.

And that brings me to Community again. This wonderful thing called the Internet — love it and hate it at the same time. It makes it so easy to connect with people from around the world who share our interests. We can find our tribe anywhere now, and we don’t have to rely on what’s available locally. Therein lies the rub. We’re so connected with our global village that we forget to support those who are right next door to us in our small town, or even on the other side of our country.

I’m deliberately searching out and promoting Canadian businesses that provide high-quality goods and services that are in line with these three guiding values. This is not meant to exclude our wonderful international friends; I’m all for spreading the love. I just want to make sure my Canadian beavers get some of it too. In fact, you’re all welcome into our igloos anytime. But take your shoes off first!

So, this blog has three main purposes: Ignite creativity; Encourage learning; and Support Canadian-made — Creativity, Learning and Community

Join our Facebook Community: Running with Scissors

… My Other Opera Magna

Writing, crafting and taking class after class are not the only things that take up time in my days and space in my three brains (left brain, right brain and scatterbrain). I have an obsession with animals, especially cats. I want to rescue and cuddle them all. And I also have an over abundance of idea for things to try, which I tend to do with much zeal and zest.

The websites listed below are in a sad state of incompleteness. I finally had to concede that I can only develop one website at a time. I was so very muddled at one point that I put bits and pieces of text and graphics on all the wrong sites, and I draggled (yes, it’s a word!) my graphic designer with me. (You know how red, blue and yellow pigments look amazing by themselves and you can mix them to make other fabulous colours, but if you throw them all together at once, you get mud? Yeah…)

Zod Complex

This venture is named after one of my little furbabies, Zod. He’s tiny, mischievous, loving, hilarious, outgoing and in general unforgettable. Zod Complex is still in it’s infancy so I can’t share too many details about it, not because I’m secretive, but because most of it is still in my head. The idea behind it is to provide a home for unwanted pets. It’s not a rescue, it’s not a shelter. It’s a home where stray, elderly, disabled and abandoned animals can come in out of the cold and live a full pampered life — no cages, no frostbite.

You can follow the growth and cheer us on as my furbabies, my friends and I work to bring this dream into reality. We’ll also take whatever help and support you want to give.

• Website: Zodcomplex.com
• Facebook: Zod Complex Last Resort & Spa
• Instagram: @OhMyZod

Furbaby Fashions

Because I love to sew and because I love pets. Just because I love. This project is all about making. I make bowties and other non-essential accessories for those of us who like to dress up our little furry kids. It’s not everybody’s bag, but I’m not trying to please everybody. Also for the humans who love their pets like kids and are ok to proclaim it loud and proud, I make cat and dog themed bags and other wearable art. (I may or may not have done some chicken-themed pieces on the sly.)

I’m really not into doing anything repetitively, so most of the pieces are one-of-a-kind. Plus at least 30% of the sale price of these items go straight to the pet store to buy food for stray cats. That amount will eventually go directly to build and maintain Zod Complex.

• Website: Furbabyfashions.ca (Canadian, eh!)
• Facebook: Furbaby Fashions

Serial Hobbyist Exchange

The result of trying so many arts and crafts, and having the equipment and supplies taking up space after I’ve moved on. But I can’t take credit for this idea. It was my nutty muse and BFF who came up with it. This is her baby and I’m just a surrogate for the time being.

We expect this will get bigger and we’ll implement some more of the ideas we’ve had but for now, we have a Facebook group for people in the Montreal area. The idea is to buy/sell/swap your used equipment so you can free up space to bring in the next hobby. I encourage people to start their own local Serial Hobbyist Exchange and link up with ours. It’s economical, it’s environmentally friendly, it encourages more creativity and learning, and it builds community.

Can we please stop talking about me now??

PS. I hate posing for photos even more than talking about myself so don’t expect to see too many selfies on this blog.

PPS. You can totally friend me on Facebook. Just make sure I can see that you are into sewing or crafting or furbabies. Otherwise, I’ll think you’re a spammer and that won’t do.