What was I thinking?

I was in JoAnn's buying a piece of fabric for a project I had planned , when I got sidetracked and fell dangerously in love, with this:

I mean, how could I help myself?!?  I was smitten with the saturated colors; there was vivid red, bold orange, rich turquoise, brilliant yellow, deep blue, and vibrant green.  Oh, and some lovely violet, too.  All reason went out the window when I saw this stuff.  I've been sewing most of my life, but I absolutely DESPISE sewing on either stretchy or slippery shiny fabric. And this stuff is of the ridiculously slippery and shiny variety.  I took it to the cutting counter thinking "maybe I'll make a summer dress" totally forgetting my distaste for working with this type of fabric, and also not thinking about my casual summer lifestyle.  I'm usually in shirts and t-shirts in the summer; and I don't even own (or desire) the proper shoes for a shiny dress, so why would I make one?

When I got the gorgeous fabric home, I decided to be more practical and make a summery bathrobe, kind of shaped like a boxer's robe.  Easy construction.  I took an old summer robe, traced the simple shapes to make a pattern, cut my fabric, and started to sew.  And then I remembered why I don't usually buy this stuff.  Slipping and sliding, it was a nightmare to sew, even for an easy construction, and my simple one-afternoon project became a major enterprise.  Then, I discovered this:

Can you see it? A pull in the fabric. They are everywhere.  Simply pinning a seam causes pulls like this.  And a cat who likes to keep me company when I sew did not help the situation either.  "Good thing it's just a bathrobe" I thought.  And if you make a sewing mistake on this fabric?  It is next to impossible to take out a seam without damaging the fabric.  So every time something didn't go as planned, my solution was to cut it off. Hemming the sleeves was a disaster.  The hems twisted and looked so awful that I cut them off; I actually cut them off THREE times, leaving the sleeves too short and still unhemmed, and in the end I made a fake cuff out of a piece of blue fabric I had intended to use for a different project. And I found a piece of red to use to make a tie belt, since I hadn't bought enough of the patterned fabric for the belt.  I also used the red for some invisible on-seam pockets. (Gotta have pockets!).  I think the red belt makes it look like gift-wrapping.  I do not like it, and may still come up with some other belt.

I finally finished it today, working on it for so long that I never did anything else I had planned this afternoon.  And my realization is this: the final product is not worth the amount of time spent sewing. The fabric frays terribly, and I don't think will hold up well at all for many wearings. I expect it will quickly tear around the belt loops and the pockets.  And it is so slippery, it won't easily stay in place when worn anyhow.  I picture myself on Project Runway, with the judges mocking my sloppy construction, and Tim Gunn telling me it's time to go clean up my workspace because Heidi says I am OUT.  My love affair with the fabric is over.  

Another project

I'm sure we've all been asked to do little artsy things for other staff members, or for organizations, who don't necessarily understand that 1) these projects take TIME, and 2) that sometimes they are WAY out of our area of expertise, out of our comfort zone.

I can't tell you how many times I've been asked to use calligraphy to write people's names on certificates (and I've already told you that calligraphy is definitely NOT a lefty art form), when the requester probably has a WAY better handwriting than me. I've been asked to make thank you cards, posters, signs, door displays, play props, and much more. Some of these things I did using students to help, and many were quicker and easier to do myself. Many concert props were requested only a day or two before the concert, but luckily, the concert and play props are usually fun things to create.

I'm sure you've all had similar experiences. I once had a child bring me a note from home, from her agoraphobic mom (that means she NEVER leaves the house), asking me to make Halloween decorations for her home!  That's where I drew the line.  I mean, I hadn't even decorated my OWN house; why would I do hers?  And why didn't her wonderfully artistic children do it with her?  And there's been other times I've said no -

There were a few of favorites over the years, some that unfortunately I didn't photograph.  In particular, there was an enormous papier-mâché roasted turkey for a skit at a holiday concert, and some huge 'stained glass windows' (painted on 6' tall cardboard panels), which were tongue-in-cheek images for the 12 days of Christmas which was being sung at a middle school concert. Kids helped plan the concepts, and I drew them all and did all the black outlines, and students painted them. Some examples: '4 Calling Birds' had some birds with their 'hair' in rollers at the beauty parlor while they gossiped on the phone; '3 French Hens' were wearing berets and visiting the Eiffel Tower,and so on. We finished them just in time for the concert and I swear they were put where nobody could see them. After many late afternoons spent outlining, and the weeks of these things taking up my whole art room, and the mountains of art room paint I had used, you can bet I was livid. So the day after the concert, I wanted to photograph them and make sure they were tucked away to use again, and I was informed they had been discarded! It still, years later, makes me angry to think about it!

For my teacher's union, I designed a logo (at the top of this post) for printed t-shirts, mugs, and letterhead, and subsequently adapted it for embroidered polo shirts and tote bags (below), and am proud to see that these are both still very much in use.

 

Recently my Temple asked me to do a pen & ink drawing of our building (below), to be printed on cards (thank you, sympathy, etc). I said yes and quietly freaked out. Drawing buildings to represent their architecture correctly is NOT my thing, and neither is working in fine black and white line, unless I am doodling. So I don't think this drawing is too successful, but they seem to love it, and so I'm proud of that. I sat outside at my picnic table to work on it (from photos I had taken) and decided I would not leave until it was done.  I admit that I don't attend services regularly, and I'm not a wealthy donor, but I very much appreciate my little Temple family and when I am asked to do these things (remember those 2 trophies I made for Latke Fest?), I feel like it's my way of contributing.

Do you get asked to do these kinds of things, particularly from other teachers?  What do you do/say?  Do you find yourself, like I did many times, in your classroom, working on their projects, well after they had gone home for the day, when you had not completed your grading, or hanging a display, or prepping the next day's materials?  Calling home to say "I'll be late" because you were making pilgrim hats for the first grade boys?  Or making a sign for the School/Community Garden?  (I actually liked that project - it was large, and I illuminated the lettering with vines.)  My replacement is the type of gal who has trouble saying no to these kinds of requests, so I imagine it has made her first year teaching art pretty busy! Or maybe, like me, you secretly love doing these projects, and happily put aside your own work because making the crazy sign or prop is so much more fun than getting those grades done!!