#CAMPAIGNFORWOOL AT HOLT RENFREW TORONTO
My first entrepreneurial venture was in the yarn trade. I imported alpaca yarns from Peru. I still love textiles made from natural fibres and I think it’s important for consumers to understand its true beauty. Line Knitwear and Holt Renfrew in Toronto teamed up to spread the awareness with its #CampaignForWool event where models demonstrated the fibre arts. A model was spinning magenta pink roving into yarn, while another was knitting while lounging on a giant knit chair. Wool fibres are warner than synthetics because they insulate heat while, as well as being breathable. They wash well and last a long time, making it worthwhile investment pieces.
By the way, I still sell my collection of luxury knitting yarns, Fable Handknit. Check them out here.
#HoltRenfrew #Line_TheLabel #WoolMark #WoolWeek #CampaignForWool
TO BECOME MORE CREATIVE, GO WITH THE FLOW
The key to unlocking creativity and intuition is trust.
If you unlock your intuition, you will unlock endless creativity. What it takes to do that is trust, trust in the process and trust in yourself.
This is like the story of Peter Pan teaching the children to fly. He told them that they just needed to believe and that they could fly just like him. To believe in anything requires trust. Trust in your own judgement about yourself and others. When you start trusting, magical things start to happen.
Trust in one’s self is probably one of the biggest life lessons, possibly even larger than self-acceptance. It’s not easy to trust yourself because we live in a society that values logical information more than intuitive. Instead of looking within for answers, we look for external validation, confirmation from physical or scientific evidence that proves something to be true.
The process of learning and practicing Numerology really taught me to trust in the process and to not judge the information. One thing that gets in the way of intuition is not trusting it because we judge it. Releasing judgement frees up your energy to simply go with the flow.
I would do readings for complete strangers and start to notice the kind of information that would come up in a reading. No two readings I do are ever the same, even if they are the same numbers. I would unconsciously emphasize certain messages to individuals, not really knowing why. But it would always turn out to be the message that they most needed to hear at the time . I would also use particular phrases or words that are not part of my regular vocabulary and it would hit home with the person I was reading,
Numerology is a gateway for intuitive information to come through because it has a structure that you can trust in and allow for other unforeseen elements to play out.
When I was younger, I would be attached to the results of my creations, trying to control everything. Becoming upset if things didn’t go my way. It caused a lot of frustration within me and discouraged me from pursuing creative interests.
There was some time when I worked as a freelance designer creating design pro types. When I started I felt confident and creative, but as I worked harder to create, the harder it became until,I had to give up because I felt stuck.
I found that after developing my Numerology practice, I was becoming not only more intuitive, but creative.
I had always been interested in creating video, but I found the pursuit to be intimidating. I was very self-conscious about how I might appear and sound like on camera. I started taking steps towards video, doing voice-over narration so that I wouldn’t have to appear on camera. Eventually I started appearing on camera. Practicing and getting familiar with the process.
I would start making all kinds of videos and noticed that something magical unfolded. I would start filming things that I simply felt drawn to. Not having a reason to film it other than I felt drawn to it. I would film all this footage, not knowing what I might do with it.
Days later I would be thinking about what I might do with it. What kind of story I could tell with it. Then it would hit me like a lightning strike. The concept would come to me, I’d get on the computer and start editing. The words to narrate would start coming out unscripted. But it would all make sense and the footage would start to fall into place, even the shots that I thought would be useless would have it’s place.
Working from a place of intuition takes trust in your own abilities and to trust in the process. There is a sense of detachment where you are not afraid of its results. You have to put away your fears and the ego that might discourage you. You simply embrace the moment, going with what comes to yo, capturing it in whatever medium you work in. Whether it is writing down the words that come to you, or recording a melody that is playing in your head. You simply must catch it when it arrives and not worry what will become of it.
Doing this will lead you to unlock your limitless potential. To feel freedom and a sense of endless possibility. You do not need to practice on the technical aspect of your skill, but to practice the discipline that it requires to listen to your inner voice, to not place judgement and to follow your curiosities, trusting in what presents itself to you.
REVIEW OF CANON EOS M3
I recently bought a new camera and it has opened up some new creative avenues. I was mainly buying this camera to upgrade my video quality. But because of the photography capacities, I am hooked on taking photos!
The EOS M3 is a mirrorless camera. I had considered buying a DSLR such as the mini Canon 100D, but there are several features about this camera that really stood out to me. First, the EOS M3 has a 24 mp sensor, compared to its previous versions that were 18 mp. This means I am getting image quality that is comparable to a DSLR. I also like the tilting screen that can be flipped up fully for easy selfie photos.
The other obvious feature that appealed to me is the weight of the camera. The camera body is lightweight compared to a DSLR, and I wanted something that would be travel-friendly and something that I could just carry in my purse. The camera comes with a zoom lens that is 18-50 mm. I have also ordered the 22mm pancake lens, which will make this camera even more lightweight.
This camera has a port for an external microphone, which gives you more options if you are planning to use this camera for video making. I found that with an adapter, the Rode SmartLav mic can b used with this camera. I think this is a great option because this mic was originally designed for using with a smartphone, so this gives me even more options to work with in terms of mic use.
The only thing about this camera is that it’s not available in North America. I bought this camera from an Ebay seller from Taiwan. A bit of a hassle to source a seller, but I feel that it was worth it because I really enjoy using this camera, and that means I will actually get a lot of use out of it.
LEARNING TO MAKE THINGS WORK INSTEAD OF STARTING OVER
If you are feeling bored or frustrated by your design, it’s very easy to say that you just want to scrap the whole concept and start from scratch. It’s like taking a wrecking ball to your work and starting from the ground up. It’s easy to start something new, it’s a challenge to make something new again. The most elevated designers are masters of this, especially those in the fashion industry. They work season to season, where they must create a new concept, but they must stay within the parameters of their design vision or signature style.
Part of developing your own signature style is committing to your ideas and being confident to stand by them and working to evolve them. It; is about a creative evolution, not a revolution.
By ditching your original concept, you might be cutting yourself short. You already invested time and energy in your idea, and you decide to dump it because you feel frustrated and can’t see it working.
Here’s the thing about starting over. If you start something new as a result of frustration, there is a likelihood that you will scrap this one as well and start again. and again. Until it becomes a vicious cycle of starting something and throwing it out.
Imagine the frustrated writer who types away on his typewriter, only to pull out the page and scrunch it into a ball, then tossing it out. Eventually a pile of paper snowballs around the trash can, because every time he made a mistake, he scraps it. As a result, nothing gets written.
Part of becoming a master of your craft is to not be afraid of your mistakes, to take them on as challenges and working with them anyways. A master can turn a blunder into a masterpiece.
To become a developed creative, commit to your vision by refining your work, rather than starting over. Its a greater challenge to work with what you have. It will make you a better, more versatile designer if you do this. You will also be more daring and confident in your work.
I know this to be true because I have done it many times. Started knitting projects and unravelled it. Started blogs and tore them down. started sewing projects and never saw them through because I made a mistake. While there are some situations where it makes sense to start again, I advise that you don’t make a habit of it.
For instance, I like to hand dye pieces of silk fabric in an array of colours for my designs. However, as one with any kind of dyeing experience might expect, it doesn’t always come out perfectly. The dye job looks even when its wet, but after the fabric dries, blotches of dye color might appear unexpectedly. Silk is not a cheap medium to work with. To simply scrap it is wasteful and disrespectful to the material. I have always come up with creative solutions for laying out the pattern pieces so that the discoloration would be cut away, or not appear visible on the final garment. It takes time and patience to pull this off. It may even require altering my original plans for the piece. But in the end, it all works out and I am happy with the results.
This practice has trained me to consider different problem solving strategies. Whenever I cut a garment, I always consider options that will result in the least amount of waste, and scraps are used for other projects where appropriate.
Starting over and over again is likely to lead into a vicious cycle of failed attempts and lack of commitment to doing something with determination. Knowing that you can always just start again will hold you back from committing to your performance. Instead, put in your full effort and find a away to make it work every time no matter what happens. You will be a better creative for it!
10 YEARS IN THE MAKING
I started blogging about ten years ago when blogging was a relatively new medium. I started out on Blogger with a blog called Making Things. It was a blog geared towards DIY crafts with a particular focus on knitting. Somewhere along the way, I lost interest in the blog for various reasons. Part of the reason was because of its specialized interest that felt too limiting and there were other subject areas I wanted to write about. So finally, I am creating this blog to bridge all the creative gaps I have in my repertoire. I will be showcasing different aspects of my creative lifestyle. Stay tuned for more…
