Summer Sewing

Okay, let's get this out quick. This is not a comprehensive list (because I usually forget to take pictures of my projects while I'm working on them) but you guys, I sewed a lot this summer.

Here we go.

1. I sewed this doll for Riley. She is just starting to show interest in it. Not featured is her matching skirt (which is somewhere in the depths of her toy drawer...)

2. I made Riley's blessing dress! More like the #blessings dress (I apologize to those I have already shared this joke with. Hah, I think I am sooo funny). Seriously though. I thought about what I wanted, created my own pattern, and put it all together. I was so grateful that it fit the day of and that Riley didn't scream the whole time she wore it, haha. This was my inspiration:

And this was my finished product:

Those jewels were a pain to sew on...

And there she is in it. 

I just love her face and feet in this picture.

And if you didn't see this before:

Gets me every time.

3. I made a SWIMSUIT! For a baby.

This is Karisa: best friend/recipient/shockingly gorgeous baby mama.

4. Headbands. So many headbands. These ones are my favorites for now.

I also made three blankets and haven't taken pictures of them at all. However, I did take a video of Riley while she was playing on one of them, so...

There you go!

Have a good one.

Life Lately + Four-Step Burp Cloths Video

Hi guys,

Well, here I am on the couch. I feel guilty for not being super productive at present, but do you know what? I learned to sew and made a video and edited my HTML so that my blog videos are bigger. So, I am going to show you instead of do my dishes. That is just where we are today, haha.

Anyway, I made these really cute, really soft flannel and minky burp cloths! They were suuuuper easy and I cranked out four in no time and for very little money. I used this tutorial and just tweaked it slightly. Watch my video to see how I made these and then subscribe and do other YouTube things. :)

You know, I do this because I really love making pretty videos. I have really started to love sewing as well. I thought it would never really work out for me, but guess what, I have made leggings, a baby skirt, a Moby wrap, a tutu, baby bows, and an apron since January. I think I am about where I should be. 

Yay!

Well, how about an update on life? Jeff is very busy with medical school. He told me just last night that the material they covered in three weeks during last block they now cover in two. Not to mention the fact that he is not particularly loving microbiology. I guess that doesn't make all heads pop off their pillows in the morning. 

I am doing well! 

I love third trimester. I love it so much more than first trimester and even second trimester. I really love not being nauseous. I love having a giant baby bump. I love watching and feeling my baby move. I love people volunteering to do things for me, like carry a gallon of milk, haha. I mean, really. It's the coolest.

Also, we have found a place to live! We are moving into a place that is just an elevator ride away from our apartment. It is almost 300 square feet bigger and we can move in right before Spring Break. Perfect.

So, that's about it. :) I love Texas. I love America. I love You. 

Goodnight.

No Shame in Hobby Work

Here's a thought that's been on my mind lately; there's no shame in hobby work. Claire, what do you mean by that? I mean that it's okay to leave hobbies as something you enjoy while making little to no money off of them. Seriously! I guess this is a big deal for me because I am easily caught up and my little entrepreneurial spirit sings out, "There's money to be made doing this!"

Let me demonstrate; I have a photography website. I have a forsaken Etsy shop selling para cord bracelets. I've dressed up as princesses (and High School Musical characters) at birthday parties. I even sold "Mardi Gras" beads at a Harvest Moon Festival as an 11-year-old...I made five bucks a pop off of those bad boys. All my interests seem to turn into fiscal opportunities.

This inherently is a pretty good thing. If I'm buying items for a craft, I tend to think "if I buy in bulk, keep one, and sell nine, then this craft will pay for itself." Unfortunately, I easily go overboard and never follow through. For example, I recently flipped this desk:

I loved how I spent $20 and got the desk of my dreams (after a couple coats of paint)! In fact, I loved it so much that I decided I would make this my new job: flipping furniture. I immediately starting searching for high-quality items with good lines and a better price tag. In the end (like three hours later), I jumped ship and forgot the whole idea because that's a lot of work and I had a real job and just generally, who was I kidding?

So why write a blog post about leaving hobbies as hobbies if I apparently have a hard time doing so? Because I finally left a hobby as a hobby! Admittedly! Like, I legitimately tell people "I'm a hobby photographer." 

Allow me to share my pathway to this zen way of life:

I got a camera in December 2013: a Nikon D3200. I had two lenses and I thrifted a sweet little 50 mm 1.8. My original goal in buying a camera was to become a decent-enough photographer that I could take my own baby pictures and anything else I desired. To accomplish this, and evade studying for finals, I spent hours each night (like, until 3 AM) reading blogs, pinning pins, and googling every little photography thing I could get my pointer finger on. I learned a lot very quickly. I actually surprised myself by how much I had learned in a month. I felt so adept.

Once I had my camera in manual and ditched the kit lens, I started shooting everyday. Within two months I was asked to do my first engagement session. I was upfront about my experience, but it rolled rather nicely into lots of other paid opportunities. In the months to follow, I had a nice little cliental composed mostly of performers and one-year-olds. I was out taking pictures most weekends and I loved it. I tried for a while to treat the whole thing as a hobby, but the fact was people were asking me for my rates, portfolio, business card, etc. "Sure," I thought, "If it seems worth it to other people, I'll be a photographer."

All along it felt wrong. I couldn't ignore the feeling that photography was distracting me from more important things in my life (hah, like school). I felt like I was cut out to do other things and that Heavenly Father wasn't interested in me becoming a "real" photographer.

So I gave it up. 

No, not photography. I gave up the business. I gave up advertising myself as a professional photographer. I stopped posting on my photography blog and Facebook page. I stopped portraying myself that way. Now I tell people that photography is just a hobby. 

I accomplished my original goal. I've taken my family pictures, my siblings missionary shots, computer screen savers, whatever interests me. I can go my merry way with a small taste of what it could have been like to be a real-deal photographer.

I feel great. There is no shame in hobby work. Do you know what, I like it more now, too. I don't feel a need to pump tons of resources into my craft anymore. If I wanted to get a new lens or backdrop or something, I know a thing or two, but it's nowhere as important to me as it use to be. 

Hobby implies no client-vendor relationship. It implies no customer guidelines. A hobby to me means I do what I want when I want. Take a picture of a flower? Go ahead! Paint a picture of a butterfly? Make it happen. Bake a quiche? If I'm feeling crazy!

Have you ever had a similar experience? What are your hobbies? Let me know in the comments! Like what you read? Subscribe or follow me on Bloglovin if you never want to miss a post!