Month: August 2026

Recharge Weekend

by CZeitler

I hate the weekends where I have plans yet all I wind up doing is catching up on my sleep and recharging my social batteries. I acknowledge that they are essential, and I feel better on Monday, but they always feel sort of like a failing on my part. I did a few things this weekend, I went to the weaver’s guild meeting which was fun, crocheted a trio of freehand lace pieces which I blocked this morning, and generally rested.

For me, that and sleep were what I needed to accomplish. Do I wish I had done more? Of course. Will everything I need to do get completed? Also yes. By giving myself the grace to completely rest this past weekend I have recharged myself for the upcoming month. This morning I was able to work more on my attempt at a bog jacket, I am all the way to the split for my head, and feed myself a decent breakfast. Due to a strange schedule this week I will have tomorrow off to make progress on the bog jacket, I am still deciding if I want to keep a ‘head hole’ or maintain the split for the entire front of the jacket.

I am deliberately increasing the draw in so that the neck portion is a bit more reinforced at the selvedges. It has occurred to me that the draw in after washing might be more extreme than I was planning on, good thing I overbought yarn for this project!

Until next time remember to Live Life a Little More Abstract!

Project Finish & Falling Shelves

by CZeitler

While sorting through bags of random beads I separated out the black, and similar to black, tube beads to fill in the raven image I painted late last year. I love how it turned out, however it took me several months to decide how I wanted to frame/mount this piece. I decided on purchasing a miniature flat canvas from dollar tree and gluing the excess fabric semi-taught around the back of the canvas. This allows the piece to be secured to the canvas, yet it can easily be removed if I decide to use another method in the future. I will be low-key on the lookout for a frame that I may be able to use in the future to place this behind glass. I cannot express how happy I am with how this has turned out!

On a completely different note, one morning I was allowing myself a bit of a lie in when I heard a loud noise from upstairs. I was concerned that my new-ish roof had collapsed, a critter got into the house, or something equally as horrific…not quite. The plastic shelves I had ordered about 3 years ago from amazon had decided that they no longer wanted to stand. Of course this was the one room I considered ‘finished’ and had not planned to make major changes to. I laughed to myself and decided that I would deal with that once I had completed my projects on the first floor. It has been almost a week and I still have not started to assess the damage. I did make significant progress on the projects I have on the main floor, and hope to get to the second floor in the next couple of weeks.

Until next time, live life A Little More Abstract!

Pattern Testing

by CZeitler

I had the privilege of pattern testing the Quiltlets Quilted Bracelet Cuff, whose pattern you can purchase here: https://authorkathrynmykel.com/store/quiltlets-quilted-bracelet-printed-pattern/

I am not an affiliate and do not make any money from this, though the kit was sent to me for free. This is a fun, scrappy, pattern that would be a great use for your scraps and as gifts for friends. I only did two of the simpler patterns available, and they both turned out amazing! I was using the Benartex fabric that was included in the test kit and the fabric is fabulous to work with. I did the flip and stitch method with the Foundation Paper Piecing, other than that I followed the lovely directions included.

Organization Idea

by CZeitler

I follow a wide variety of makers of all sorts. Artists, textile artists, fiber artists, crafters, quilters, sewists, historical recreationists, and so many more. They all bring something different to my creative adventures, color theory, design inspirations, organization inspiration, or just a new way of thinking of the world and materials found within.

At present the artist that is inspiring me most is Sue Spargo. She has a lovely online shop, creates amazing quilts using wool fabric and raw edge applique, along with embroidery and so much more. In one of her promotional emails she showed how some of the supplies she uses are organized, in a binder. Not just any binder, but a binder with card sleeves and plastic bags that fit in those sleeves containing supplies. *Mind Blown*!

I have been using Photo Boxes, found at Michaels (never pay more than $15 for them), to organize many of my smaller supplies and I love how they work. However I do stack them, and I find that having to dig around, even with a sheet detailing what is in each, tends to take some of the spontaneity and creative impulse out of the crafting. I decided to take Sue Spargo’s idea a half step further and purchase a 3 ring binder that has a zipper (essentially a trapper keeper).

I spent much of yesterday deciding what is going in there and getting things organized. I still plan on sewing up some 3 ring binder pouches to add slightly bigger items or embroidery projects on the go. This is just another step on my way to crafting organization! I love drawing inspiration from all of the sources available to me, if you get a chance check out Sue Spargo, her kits and supplies are amazing!

Until next time remember to Live Life a Little More Abstract!

Summer Opportunities

by CZeitler

Summer tends to lend itself to a wide variety of opportunities. To spend time outside, gardening, visiting the beach, and so much more. There are also a wide variety of learning opportunities available, some of which are free online. I am not affiliated with, nor do I endorse any of these courses. There are opportunities to ‘upgrade’ these courses for a fee, which I am not affiliated with, nor do I endorse.

From August 10th to the 18th there will be a Craft Discovery Summit, https://masteryroute.com/crafts/

September 21st-28th will be a Quilter’s Paradise Summit that you can register to be notified about: https://masteryroute.com/quilters-paradise-waitlist/

November 9-16 there will be a Needlework Paradise Summit that you can register to be notified about: https://masteryroute.com/needlework-waitlist/

HobbyScool also has a lineup of seminars and retreats, all digital, that you can find here: https://www.hobbyscool.com/

The upcoming classes are:

August 18-20 Back to Creativity Summit

September 15-17 Art of Handmade

October 15-17 Festive Fall Workshop Series

November 10-12 Elves’ Workshop Summit

December 15-17 Create and Reflect Retreat

Get Organized HQ does also tend to have a free fall event that I have found worth attending in the past.

If you are looking to ‘up’ your skills with paid courses there are too many for me to mention in this blog post. I will attempt to add some into future posts.

Learning opportunities can take many different forms, borrowing a book from your local library or guild, finding free online courses or youtube videos, attending a retreat or major conference, or taking time to talk with friends that share your passion. Not all learning has to be expensive if you are open to it! That being said, do not take those with experience for granted either. Attending a conference with world renowned artists is well worth the $3-5,000 it costs for room, board, other opportunities, and the chance to learn in person from an expert teacher is an opportunity not to be missed. In addition if you have the option to learn from an individual instructor then they should be compensated fairly. No matter your level, skill, and financial means you should be able to find learning opportunities for you!

Remember to Live Life a Little More Abstract!

Mid Summer Catch Up

by CZeitler

Life has been really busy this summer, I am always surprised by how much time and attention Summer Reading Takes! It is amazing to see all of the excited people of all ages reading and getting their prizes, admiring their progress, and helping people have fun at the library. I adore my job.

All of this business at work, as well as a few fun projects with my Weaving Guild, has meant that I really have not had much time to myself. I will also confess that there was some background stress over dental work, the cost of dentistry even though I have a full-time job and insurance, catching up on bills because of the dentistry…needing some work to pass my car inspection….all of this has managed to suck up my physical and creative energy. I had yesterday off and I decided that a trip to the beach was in order, it is only about an hour away, however, this is only going to be my second trip in 2026. I arrived around 6 am, this is the full moon as the sun is beginning to rise. The colors are not great, however, the effect is still breathtaking.

The waves were quite strong and I had so much fun looking for pretty rocks, finding beach glass, and just enjoying the weather and water. On the way home I was being very careful about my driving, since I did not pass NYS inspection, and got pulled over for something I thought was resolved. Lol.

Despite this I have been making progress on a wide variety of projects over the past week. I gave up on ‘saving’ my entire warp for the ‘Bog Jacket’ project I am attempting. This allowed me to cut off the rest, section by section, straighten them out as best I could, and then chain them to be used later. I do not know the precise yardage on my loom at this time so I am not certain if I can completely weave the jacket out of this piece and then the sleeves out of another. Right now I plan on the split starting about 36″ into the weaving to create the back of the jacket, and letting the split continue for the rest of the weaving. I can then use some kind of fastener to keep the jacket shut or use it as an open jacket. I did adjust how I started the weaving, instead of doing 3 picks and then creating a hem stitch, I decided to use twining at the bottom of the weaving to separate the threads, I feel that this eliminated the need to use waste yarn at the beginning of the warp to preserve those few inches.

I have a couple of other projects I am working on, however, I have reached the end of today’s post. I will try to get on a better schedule of posting shortly. Until then, remember to live life A Little More Abstract.