I have been anxiously awaiting today…the day in which I could post some of my Christmas gift projects.  I have had so much fun creating and preparing these gifts. 

Mom's Gift 

Mom has always loved a particular verse from a hymn by Ana Leticia Waring—“Content to fill a space, if Thou be glorified.”  Yet somehow this year, this stanza has seemed to bring increasing blessing and encouragement.  I wanted to bring this quote to her in a new way; a way that would continue to bless her. For the last two years I had also wanted to make a wooden sign similar to one I saw on a blog once upon a time.  So the time seemed right to marry these two ideas into a Christmas gift.  I really didn’t know what I was doing but I picked up some scrap wood and stain.  I played with different fonts on the computer, printed them out and was crazy enough to make my own stencils (I had never stenciled before and yes, now I know I was a little crazy to do make my own on my first try.  But looking at the result, I think it was completely worth it!).  After hours of cutting stencils, staining, formatting, painting, sealing and screwing, THIS was born (click to enlarge collage)…..

I must say I LOVE how this piece turned out!  I can’t stop looking at the glowing warmth of the wood and the brightness and comfort of the words.  Mom hung it in the guest room and it adds even greater comfort to the room that already inspires a creative and calm.

This quote-sign gift is what ultimately inspired my woodworking endeavors that I have previously posted about.  Through the sign project I realized that I didn’t even know how to drill a pilot hole or screw in a screw!  That’s when I decided to educate myself a little bit on wood and power tools.  After the picture ledge projects these two sleeve boards for my sisters. (Below). 

The Sister's Gift 

 Whenever I tell people that I made sleeve boards for my sisters they ask “sleeve WHAT?”   I guess people either go wrinkly sleeves or don’t feel the need to iron them.  I copied the sleeve board that my dad made from my mom years ago, expect I thought I would add some personalized flare by painting each of them a unique and playful  color.   I love these too! 

Did anyone else make some of their Christmas gifts?  Please share!

Woodworking Projects #1

As mentioned in this post, I have taken up a little bit of woodworking.  It was instigated almost randomly by my free-time and fueled by Ana White, blogger and  author of a book called The Handbuilt Home.   For Newbies like me who are starting out with no real skills, or ladies possessing some skill but who are desirous of easy-to-understand plans ,this book is a great investment.  I would also recommend Ana's website/blog which contains many of the same plans that are in her book (for free!) in addition to videos and lots of other neat stuff.  One of my favorite features of her blog is that you can search her free plans by skill level or design (cottage vs modern etc).  Very handy!  This book, along with some much appreciated assistance from Dad, has given me the boost I need to create....

...Picture ledges

It was amazingly fun to learn how to cut with a table saw, use the hand sander, drill pilot holes, punch nails beneath the surface of the wood and finalize it all as I swiped my angled paint brush across the wood's buttery surface.  I am now in the process of making yet another shelf that is longer and has a decorative front edge.  I don't need a shelf...I just want to work with wood!  I have two other projects up my sleeves... the fun has just begun!

I also made a fun little sign for my bedroom using "my word" of the year...satisfied.  I absolutely LOVE the look of stained wood!  Using a font in Word that I liked, a green 99 cent folder from Staples, and an exact-o knife, I created my own stencil (as seen in picture).   

Too Industrious to be Bored

As some of you know, I have been “taking September off” from the job search.  Such a move might cause some to wonder, “now what could you be doing with all that free time?  Don’t you get tired of it?”  All this free time  off has indeed prompted me to think about busyness, boredom and industry. 

Granted, I have had moments in which I wondered what I should do but I am blessed to say that I never been “bored.”  Much of this has to do with the rich childhood my parents gave me.  They always thought it was important to cultivate more than mere academics in their kids.  My mom used to say that “bored people are boring people.”  I think there is truth to that.  I think bored people are boring because they are unaware (or worse, apathetic towards) the myriad of interesting and useful pursuits….reading, hiking, sewing, woodworking, bug collecting, gardening, visiting shut-ins, target-practice, photography, pets…the list can be quite endless. 

It seems to me that in many ways boredom is just culturally accepted apathy.  A wonder-less existence.  A world in which a mind is not curious about the unknown nor adventurous enough to dip their toes into it.  I am certain the causes of such ignorance and/or indifference are multi-faceted, with many hypothesis purposed regarding them and about which numerous books have been written.   All of this however, goes beyond the scope of this little blog post.   

I am thankful that my parents encouraged each of us kids to pursue interesting and new industries (aka hobbies).  They didn’t do it to keep us “out of the way.”  On the contrary, some of our hobbyist pursuits may have meant that we were more messy and in the way than had we languished away quietly in boredom.   My parents also did not encourage industry as a way to just keep us “busy.”  In my mind there is a difference between busyness and industriousness (notice how carefully I picked out the title of this blog post… I could have said “too busy to be bored” but I intentionally didn’t).  Busyness to me, implies some degree of fluster; an exertion that may include but perhaps more often does not include purpose, value or edification to anyone. Industriousness on the other hand, signifies activity with purpose, value and edification. 

Fewer things are sadder to me than a “bored” adult.   Because of the heritage of industry planted in me as a child, I am happy to say that as an adult I have reaped some of the delightful harvest of finding many things interesting.  While I may be an “educated” collage graduate in my twenties with extra time on my hands, I am never bored.  On the contrary, my time off has invigorated and enlivened my interests so that I am trying things I never really considered before…like woodworking for example.  (Stay tuned for future posts about these endeavors). 

 Hobbies and industry….

…are a diminishing practice

…cause people to think critically

…may be messy

…take time

…are enriching

…transforms you from the Sad Soul with whom a person can only talk to for a 1 minute at a party into the Flourishing Soul with whom people can willingly talk to for 30 minutes or more- because you interesting

…are moments never wasted!

 What are your thoughts about boredom and hobbies? What do YOU do to be industrious?!

Wednesday Writing Bits: Woodworking

The following was actually part of a letter I wrote to a friend of mine.  We were discussing the natural disasters events that occur in our lives on a daily basis.  I would like to think that the following sort of story is normal for everyone.  I am sure things like this happen to you too...right?

I have been spending some of my extra “unemployed” hours on learning some woodworking skills (a task that is very foreign to me…which is why I thought I would give it a try).  Today my very proud Self drilled pilot holes successful only to go too far with the countersink bit jabbing a horrendous hole into my wood. Phooey.   Good thing it was on the backside of my project and hip hip hooray for wood-putty (never used it but I know it’s out there).  I applied the wood glue and began screwing in the screws…twist…twist...creak….the boards began to lift apart! Well, silly me didn’t know until later that such a thing was not an emergency and is really quite normal and only requires me to (practically) prostrate myself on the two boards while I screw them together to prevent them from separating.  Smile.  Later (of course after such exertion I had to take a break), I attempted to glue and nail another little board to the front of the project. Well the glue, glued fine but after driving one of the finishing nails into the wood (and after consulting Dad) I realized I should have driven pilot holes in for the nails to make them easier to drive in and prevent splitting. No problem.  Somehow even my pilot hole practice-run  in a piece of scrap board didn’t prevent me from encountering difficultly while working ON my project.  The difficultly was none other than getting the drill bit stuck in the wood.  Smile.  With some intervention from Dad we got it out and I learned that in the future I need to really crank down on the drill chuck in order to ensure a tight union betwixt drill and bit. 

Fortunately nothing else eventful occurred during the project…unless you call bending three nails in the process of punching the finishing nails below the surface of the wood an event.  I certainly wouldn’t count that, would you?  

 

Super Links

It almost pains me to have my first post after a 3 month hiatus be a simple blog link, but this link is just too fascinating not to share as soon as I found it! The blog is called Tip Junkie. Ultimately this blog is a go-to resource for all things homey and creative! In many ways it is a compilation of many people’s ideas. Some are links to other people's blog post while others are items that readers submit. This site contains everything from recipes to organizational methods to decorations and crafts.


Some of you Christmas Crafties might want to know about it in time to print some super cute and simple labels out for your packages. To find such items I suggest you utilize the search box by typing in "free pintables" and "gift tags" or “labels” Check it out... there is something for everyone!