Sorry About Sporadic Posting

by CZeitler

I’m sorry I have not posted in a while. I have been trying to get some things related to my business accomplished, however, I have also recognized where all of my emotional and physical energy has been going.

To begin with, I am the type of person that if I surround myself (on purpose or accident) with negativity it completely drains me of energy, increases my anxiety, depresses me, and causes my IBS to get out of control. I recognize this about myself. According to my therapist I also have a hard time letting people in and when I do then I do whatever I can for them. Recently I have realized that someone that is undergoing their own mental health problems has been utilizing my compassion and friendship as a dumping ground for their negativity. At one point I had asserted that I could not take a ton of negative energy that day, their response was if I cannot talk about anything negative then I have nothing to talk about. Subconsciously, this triggered me to realize that if I want them to feel free to talk to me at all I HAD to absorb their negativity. This means that anytime that person asks me, “Are you okay to hear about this?” I felt that I had to respond yes, I was okay or they would shut down. Again, my attachment causes me to be blind toward these things until I am run down and messing my health up.

I had come to this realization before my trip. I was dreading the trip, my therapist did say that I could only provide the framework for a good experience and everything else is up to the guest. I am sorry about the car ride, they say that they forgave me, but they are also being very passive-aggressive.

If you come away from spending time with someone drained, and you dread seeing someone, then they are not the right person for you to be spending time with.

My energy for the next three months is going to be focused elsewhere. This is the last of my focused attention that person gets.

In terms of the crafts I have been working on:

One of my Aunts asked me to do some embroidering (on my embroidery machine) for her. This caused me to look at other websites that have embroidery files available, and it is amazing some of the artwork out there! There is some chatter about restrictions being placed on patterns, what I have seen is most of the retailers are trying to restrict large businesses from taking their artwork and doing major production with it. I’m not going to do that, though I do question whether they are able to restrict access that way. I’m not planning on doing any major production, however I am hoping to create some book covers for notebooks having to do with Pride right now. After that is done, and I have sent my Aunt all of the pieces she requested (and more of course), I am going to play a lot more with my Embroidery Machine and some of the amazing patterns available out there.

My garden is coming along pretty well, though I did thoroughly drown my carrots. I am going to take some time this week, since I took time off of work for another friends wedding that is not happening now (long story not mine to tell but the couple is still happily together), to work on my garden and figure out how I can mow around all of my planters. I might also just work on making paths/planting into the ground, so that I don’t have any grass growing in my front yard. I already put down landscaping fabric so that a lot of the grass is killed in the medium between the sidewalk and the road. After the grass dies down I plan on planting tons of bulbs to create beauty.

Okay, I have to get back to my full-time job now. Remember that no one is worth your health and happiness, Live Life A Little More Abstract!

All Work and No Play

by CZeitler

I’ll be the first to admit, I have been having a hard time drawing a line between time to work and time to play. Even during my time to play, I discovered I like playing alone. There is a Mine that has Quartz about 5 hours from my home. I decided to take a day trip there with a friend. I wish I could say it was a great time, unfortunately, I did not have a lot of fun. I spent more time worrying about whether my friend was having fun, and trying to entertain them, than I did enjoying myself. The whole trip got cut short due to grit in an eye then we took a detour to go shopping for something they wanted, and then they don’t like my driving (I drive defensively and had to stop short a few times). This proved to me, if I want to take a trip I’m just going on my own or with family that I know enjoy this type of adventure (or at least are willing to fake it for my sake).

In that vein I took a trip out to a local lake and enjoyed myself immensely. Dangling my feet in the water, having a personal picnic, taking time to watch how the refraction of light on the water made the stones look like they were rippling instead of the water, as well as getting some stitching done. I had so much fun, that I decided to make a promise to myself this summer. I am going to take the time to work on myself. No guilds, as little time with negative people as possible, visiting with friends and family, as well as enjoying my vacations.

I hope that you remember to have fun, and don’t let work/negative people consume you. Live Life A Little More Abstract!

Sometimes the Answer is No

by CZeitler

I know that it has been a month since I last posted. This past month has been a period of time where I end up having problems with library patrons, apparently some kind of rodent decided to chew a wire in my car, and the bannister leading upstairs decided to shear off at the metal. However, I still managed to go to Herkimer NY to check out the Herkimer ‘Diamond’ Mine with a friend of mine.

I have still tried to be productive, I did have a single person come to my fiber prep class. They were signed up for my spinning class, however, they got the flu and had to back out. I have several batts ready to be spun for sale, as well as some yarn I spun. There is always something to do. I’m trying to sew up some microwavable potato sacks. There is no one signed up for my Saturday Class, I’m looking at that as a way for me to take my time and relax for a day.

I did find out that hexagons are not working very well as an easy English Paper Piecing bowl, so I am going to have to try Pentagons next. I’ll use the hexagons to make some awesome pincushions instead.

I hope that the next week or so find you having an amazing time, and remembering that there is no happiness without some sorrow. Remember to Live Life a Little More Abstract!

The Universe Can Respond

by CZeitler

It has been two weeks since I have last posted, but things have been moving forward. I received one of my tax returns so I was able to put more toward my debt as well as putting some toward my business. I ordered some PLA filament to 3-d print Turkish spindles not only for my job, but some extras for me to sell and use during my classes in my friend’s store.

I have potatoes in pots as well as strawberries in their bed. I looked it up and it seems that these two types of plants will not try to sprout until the time is right so putting them in the ground now should have no negative effects. I also planted up some seedlings in my home so I can give them a head start, I lovely combination of food and flowers to delight all aspects of my life (the flowers are also dye-plants, I have to tie crafting into everything).

Among all of that I am trying to figure out a fun project that I believe will be a big hit among the local sewing community!

Sorry for the quick post, I hope that you remember to Live Life A Little More Abstract!

Putting Objectives to the Universe While Taking Steps Yourself

by CZeitler

I keep forgetting that not everything is up to me, there is a universe out there ready to give me a hand while I help myself. Part of this is coming out because I’m listening to The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron and she is very much into the idea of a higher power, though she does admit that this can be any higher power you choose to worship, that is ready to help us out. A portion of this does come through, getting my downspout repaired and having more opportunities open up to me. I was wrestling with a ladder I borrowed from a friend trying to figure out how I was going to position the ladder between my porch and the Natural Gas meter that was placed right under my downspout when my neighbor came out to offer a hand. I accepted gratefully, he looked at the ladder and admitted that neither of us should get up on that ladder, so he mentioned that he had a friend that could fix the downspout. Yay! Of course it cost about half as much as a new ladder would have and I provided all of the supplies, so I was a bit put out because of that, but my downspout is fixed. I was able to get a gift card for some of the supplies from a survey site I participate in, so part of the supplies were free.

Soon after that I found out that someone that belongs to a guild I used to attend, right now I’m taking a hiatus until I get my credit card debt resolved, was opening up a new fiber arts store and they were looking for a teacher. Of course I volunteered, so I now have three classes and 8 ‘hang out’ sessions scheduled for her shop in May. This will be a great opportunity to promote her supplies, my skills, and library programming that we have to offer.

I have been steadily paying toward my debt, making other sacrifices to get this debt paid off. I sold a loom that I was not using to move forward to that goal. I recently heard from my accountant, yes I pay someone to do my taxes, and while I did not earn enough in my business in 2023 to make the paperwork worth it, I have returns from state and federal. If I throw one of that toward my debt I should be able to get my final credit card resolved. That will still leave me some leeway to take some trips that I feel I really need to take. Visiting friends and family that I have long neglected as well as taking a few small day trips to allow myself the chance to enjoy life rather than just exist.

By keeping these goals in mind I will be able to make progress toward larger goals. Getting my spending under control, making progress toward learning new crafts/arts, having fun, getting my house clean, make deeper connections to my friends and family.

Life is meant to be lived, I need to figure out what that means to me. In the meantime, remember to Live Life A Little More Abstract!

Word Switch = Mind Shift

by CZeitler

As I wrote in my last post, I’ve been hustling to make earrings, necklaces, and other items, to stock up my Etsy shop, thinking of ways to improve my jewelry game to generate more (any) sales, etc. Then as I was looking at what tools I need to start getting serious about jewelry, soldering, etc., and pushing off whittling again, I came to a realization. In my mind I had switched around a few words of what I had created my etsy store for. I was working toward: “Crafting to sell”. My Original intention was: “Selling my Crafts”. I know, some of you are looking at that like, what’s the difference? The difference is intention.

For the first, “Crafting to sell”, changed the motivation of my work. I was not focusing on creating what I wanted or learning new skills to be able to teach my patrons at work, I was thinking about: “Will this appeal, does this go with the brand I am trying to build up, how can I market this?.”

For my original intention: “Selling my Crafts”, I was using up materials I already owned, learning new skills without worrying about putting something new out each day, and having the crafts I lovingly created going to new homes instead of just sitting around my house or being given as gifts to friends and family that didn’t really want them. I think that it is time for me to get back to my original intention, and allow the universe to generate sales from my lovingly crafted goods.

That is not to say that I am not going to post updates and new items onto my Etsy store. As one maker said, “Don’t wait until your crafts are perfect, put them out there and see if they appeal, then work on getting better.”

I have some loom beaded pieces that I am going to learn how to back, some cabochons that I am going to learn how to create beaded bezels around, and a secret project that I am working on perfecting before I, potentially, launch a kickstarter. Along with all of that I am trying to learn how to cut a straight line on my wood, or plane down to a straight line, without a power saw (Since I don’t own one). This is with the intention of making my own jewelry display, and possibly some of the projects I’ve seen on YouTube. There is one more thing, the next time I have some extra funds, I’m buying the whittling kit.

Remember to slow down, make sure you are working toward your actual goal, and Live Life A Little More Abstract!

Back to Etsy for Now

by CZeitler

Okay, so I did make one direct sale on Facebook and it really did come in handy since I am also trying to start building my own displays for the jewelry I am making. Right now I have re-opened my etsy store with plenty of earrings and some necklaces. ALittleMoreAbstract.etsy.com

Below are a small selection of the earrings I have been making, they are all on sale right now in my etsy shop with free shipping.

I’ve also made a couple of necklaces, and I will be putting some Embroidered Pendants on sale later this week, likely Tuesday morning.

As you can tell I have been very busy crafting. I also have been destashing all of my ‘good yarn’ to afford a ladder to repair my downspout. This just became a bit more urgent since I found out that the water is seeping into my foundation. If you are interested in bargain priced yarn then you can check out my destash link here: https://www.ravelry.com/people/czeitler/stash/trade/

As you can see I have been trying to ‘hustle’ a bit to get some more income. I’ve also found some Skillshare workshops that have been helping me to price my works in a reasonable way. So that has been my last couple of weeks, hustling to create, trying to build up my website, and working on getting rid of a few items that I no longer use. I hope that your week goes well and you remember to Live Life a Little More Abstract!

Not What I Hoped For

by CZeitler

So, I took my rocks out of the tumbler after the final polish. I was excited but let them dry for 3 days before looking at them…and I was so disappointed. I think I know what I did wrong, so I will be taking all of my stones back to the second step and letting it run for a week to see if that will get the scrapes out of these rocks.

I believe that the problem is that I included the small/tiny rocks into the tumbling batch. I think that the tiny rocks banged up and scratched on the rocks that were ready to be polished. At least I hope so.

I plan on taking the rest of the rocks out of the second tumbler on Saturday morning to see if any of them are ready to go onto the second step, and then put those that are not ready back into the tumbler for the first step.

Thanks for reading my update, I’m still working hard on making jewelry and trying to sell on Facebook and Instagram under A Little More Abstract. I hope to have another post on Sunday, but if not then I will see you next week (hopefully with some pretty stones to show off).

Remember to Live Life a Little More Abstract!

A Totally Different Direction

by CZeitler

So, I have not made any progress on my banner or learning how to create bobbin lace. In the other hand I have been trying to figure out a good platform for selling my handmade crafts as well as creating stock.
I am hoping to participate in two craft shows this fall, however, they require a picture of your booth setup during the application. This means that I need to have significant inventory to display in the booth. Also, as it happens many selling website platforms cost on a monthly basis. In order to afford the platform as well as create more inventory, I have been attempting to direct sale my jewelry offerings on Instagram and Facebook. I’ll post my creations at the end of this post, however this has left little time for anything else except working on getting my yard ready for urban homesteading this spring and summer. That is a post for another day however. I am also planning on taking out my first batch of polished rocks this week so I hope to put up a brief update then.

Bobbin Lace and Banners

by CZeitler

I am never satisfied with ‘good enough’ and I have decided to take on some new learning projects as well as a new big project. I’m going to start with learning, those are wire wrapping (which I mentioned in my last post) as well as Bobbin Lace. I have some already polished stones that I have purchased over the last few years, a few are shapes, and copper wire is relatively inexpensive. These factors combined with the desire to not mess up expensive Silver Wire, has me trying to wrap some smaller stones. This is proving to be a little more difficult than I anticipated, but I expected that since I’ve tried a little playing with wire in the past. Currently superglue is keeping the wire on this cabochon so I’m not really happy with myself, however it is a learning curve.

Bobbin lace is proving to be a lot of fun, I’m not sure it is going to be something that I can teach my library patrons but perhaps. 

I was looking at buying a banner for my craft booth, and for a 2’x4′ it looks like about $40-$60 is what that would cost. Perhaps if I want it very simple I could get away with $35…but why not make my own banner? Admittedly, it is not going to be waterproof since it is going to be a Machine Embroidered Quilt…but on the other hand, it’s going to be an embroidered quilt banner…I’m so happy about this idea!

Okay, so this was a short update, but I hope you found it as inspirational as I did! Live Life a Little More Abstract!