On finding your inner Olympian

My daughter drew this portrait of my son.  Nothing to do with sewing, but her creativity inspires me.

Loving every minute of the Olympics so far, and feeling so inspired...

What can be taught about work ethic, perseverence, failure and success by watching all of these competitors?  For me, it lets me know that everyone, including the second AS WELL as the  very last person to finish in ANY event had to show up for someone else to win. To make that win count.  We all wanna win, but, win or lose, we all NEED to participate.  Of course the winner had to do the work to make that win possible, but the competition requires so much more effort than that person's individual effort.

Where is my olympian? She's feeling a little dumpy in her clothes right now.  Summer heat, sloppy t-shirts and shorts...

I've been doing a lot with rectangles lately.  Very simple shapes in fabrics that make a statement. (Above: Teal knit from Kashi, and "rippled craziness" (my term) from Fabrics Garden.)  This below- calf length dress is basically huge rectangle with a long panel suspended from the next, and a firm, elasticized belt.

My body wants to move.  When I wear something that restricts my movement or comfort, I may change my plans.  "Can we go home?" can be inspired by feeling hot and sticky, squeezed, exposed... My recent weight gain, while slight, I must confess, must be attached to the many decisions I am making every day.  This requires me to think about it a bit. What did I choose not to do because my pants were too tight, where did I choose not to sit because of the style of that skirt?


Where have I not  gone because I wasn't happy with my appearance recently?

Hmmmm. Now, I know I can make things that last a long time.  I know how to build a body of work, build a look, make a style statement...

And that's exactly what I should do. I'm inspired.