Feeling Overwhelmed

Google's definition of overwhelm: verb

past tense: overwhelmed; past participle: overwhelmed

1. 1.

   bury or drown beneath a huge mass.

I found this photo in multitudinous places all over the Internet. Try as I might I could not find a source to credit it to. As I read on one of those places, trying to locate the source was in itself a little overwhelming.

Yes, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed. I think I have put too much pressure on myself, which is not unusual for me to do. I'm also a little disorganized right now. A photo of my studio would be just downright embarrassing.

I have lots of ideas spinning around in my head. Sometimes grasping just one seems, well, overwhelming - kind of like pulling one thing out of a tornado. Overwhelming to say the least.

When I was studying nutrition a couple of years ago I took a stress management as one of my elective courses. One thing we were taught is that, contrary to popular belief, multi-tasking is stress inducing and can lead to a feeling of being overwhelmed. I a good article on Psych Central that had some useful words of wisdom.

So my question for you today is: How do you overcome feeling overwhelmed, whether in beading, jewelry making, art, or just day-to-day existence? Remember, inquiring minds want to know.

Sweet Bird Earrings Copyright 2011 Theresa Buchle

Oh Happy Day

This is my happy face self-portrait. No, I am not an artist but I like to play. Why I am I this happy? Read to the end of the blog (no, don't skip or scan, read the blog).

I have two new blog links to share with you. First is the lovely Lisa Peters. I've got four items from Lisa, which will all be put to good use in the following months. Second is the marvelous MaryLou Holvenstot. And I would not know of either of these two ladies without my cyber friend Carol Dean Sharpe. I got to meet Lisa in person at Bead & Button, but missed MaryLou -- our paths just never crossed. As for Carol Dean, we're working on a face to face. These are three very talented ladies and I'm very glad to have made their acquaintance, even if it is only virtual. Have you hugged a cyber friend today?

I still have earrings screaming to be made but I also need to do MASSIVE house cleaning! It's really too bad I can't do both.

Your mission for the day: Check out the web site and blog links I've provided for you. There are some giveaways, some art news, some great tutorials and lots of inspiration. Take a few minutes and surf.

I now have pants that can be removed without use of button/zipper. And Clara will be coming soon to take new pictures. Okay, enough personal stuff.

Much To Do

This will be a very short post. I've got a started list of things to get done before Juls and Cat get here tomorrow. I'll probably add to it before the day is done. I was very, very busy yesterday. There will be lots of surprises next week, and I will be busy typing my fingers to the bone. Then I need to get busy beading my fingers to the bone. So today, I leave you with this quote: "Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep." Scott Adams

Arrivederci, i miei amici belli!

At A Loss For Words

Hmmmm, what to type. I have no idea today. I have no beady insights, no words of wisdom, no creative suggestions. Hmmm. It's Friday, it's sunny here, and I'm going to try to finish up some things today. This weekend I'll update the web site and work on the Etsy shop. They are in such bad shape right now that I'm not even putting up a direct link. That's about all that is going on in my life. I feel like I'm letting you down today, so I'll leave you with one beady picture and a profound artsy quote: "Art is the only way to run away without leaving home." Twyla Tharp

The Fan Club Blues

Let's reminisce. First, I'm going to pretend that we are all the same age, which means you remember how your mother cried when President Kennedy was shot, you had a shoop-shoop hula hoop, you watched men walk on the moon and you know the words to all the songs the Monkees sang. Oh, and you remember when David Cassidy was . . . , well *sigh*, you know.

And if you remember that, you remember the teen fan mags. And how you could send your dues in to the fan club of your choice. And you could write fan letters. Did you ever write a letter to your secret crush? You don't have to answer that. It's the next part that is important.

Did the object of your adoration write back? The good manners that our mothers taught us back then dictated some sort of reply. Emily Post said so.

And I hear you asking, "T! Why on earth are you writing about the '60s? Did you get lost in a time warp?? Are you having Partridge Family bus flashbacks?" Nope, nope, nope. Look back up there at the part that is important.

Several months ago I sent an email to a fellow beadwork artist. I told her how I have admired her work for several years. I also told her that she was a big inspiration to me when I decided to apply to art shows. And I told her that it was her work that made me realize that I can be well paid for the pieces that I create. I also asked her a few questions about her experiences with art shows. I figured that since she is 1,000 miles away she wouldn't feel threatened by any sort of competition, even if she considered me in her league of talent. Do you know she never replied?? This is a professional, who has been published in Beadwork Magazine, who wins awards at art shows, has pieces in museums and galleries, yet she did not have the good grace to send back a reply. How rude! Even if the reply was "go blow it out your ass" there should have been something, right? Don't get me wrong, I didn't expect her to spill all her secrets, but the questions I asked were not along the lines of "I'm thinking of doing this, too. Can you tell me how to get started?" (and those of you who know me well, also know how much I detest that line of questioning). I had already gotten started, I had already had several large sales. I just asked a couple of questions along the lines of categorization of the art form. Again, how rude of her not to answer!

So, I promise, if you ask me questions like that, I will respond, even if it is to tell you to go blow it out your ass. However (BIG HOWEVER), if you come to me and ask "I've been thinking of doing the same thing. Can you tell me how to get started?", I will hunt you down like the mangy cur that you are. I will spill and mix all your beads, I will tangle your beading thread, and I will bend all of your beading needles. And then I will make a bonfire of all your beading magazines and books. Are we clear? Good. Have a nice day.

Marveling at the Marvelous

We are marvelous.

I am acquainted with quite a few bead artists. These are people who make art beads -- lampwork, polymer, PMC, etc. I marvel at their ability to take a rod, glob, slab, whatever, and turn it into a work of art that I can hold in my hand and then set to music with my tiny beads. If not for them, a lot of my artistic pieces just would not be. I know that they all have a box of not-so-perfect pieces. I know that they sweat, literally and figuratively, trying to create their visions. I marvel that these artists can work wonderfully well under pressure. They can, at the last minute, churn out a table full of marvelous things. I cannot do any of this, but it is marvelous.

It takes me days to chart a graph for a patterned piece, weeks if I work from a picture. There is a lot of tweaking, a lot of refining, and then if I'm really smart, there is a test strip to make sure the colors work. This is not marvelous, this is time consuming. But for the customer who purchased the pattern, the beaded piece which is the end result can be marvelous.

For the art pieces that don't follow a pattern graph, there is still a lot of angst involved. Again, there is a test strip. Then there is the ripping something apart three or four times before it becomes what I have envisioned. Sometimes a mound of thread or bent wire or culled beads is the only testament to days of blood, sweat and tears. But in the end, when it's placed in the display case at the show, and someone walks by and simply says "marvelous", I marvel that they are talking about a little piece of me.

For kits, there is the sending off of a bag of beads and scant instructions to an angel who takes my vision and stitches life into it. Weeks of work and rework go into these. This is not marvelous, this is exhausting. But for the stitcher who must have that special kit, the end result can be marvelous.

Perhaps the most marvelous thing of all is the look on someones face when they find that perfect art bead, or that perfect pattern, or that perfect kit, or that perfect piece of jewelry. And better still, they marvel that we, humble bead makers and beaders, are able to create marvelous works of art from a bit of nothing.

We are marvelous!

Day By Day . . . .

I woke up early today. Then I did some research. I wanted to find out why artists blog. Oddly enough, I didn't find much in the way of viable information. I did read an excerpt from We've Got Blog, which is a compilation of different articles discussing the phenomenon known as blogging. I found this gem thanks to Pam . I go to her a lot for advice because she doesn't pull any punches. She puts it out there, and if you like, good. And if you don't like it, good. But she does open my eyes to a lot of things. She sent me to several psychological and psychiatric studies on blogging and society. Dry, but interesting reading.

Today I was trying to find out why artists blog. Maybe I'm just trying to justify doing so myself. One sentence from the book excerpt did ring home: if you're not having a good time, why bother? That one I will take to heart. I did find some advice on why to blog as an artist (notice that this does not address why artists blog). Artists should blog to display their art, to discuss their process and to make announcements. Hmm, kind of sounds like me, me, ME. That doesn't sound like a good time for you or me. But I do like the idea that it gives someone an idea of who I am, what I do, and maybe why I do it. Of course, it might do the same for me! Is that existential?

When I first started discussing blogging with Pam, she mentioned the commitment involved in blogging. If you are going to blog, it needs to be regular and it needs to be fairly often, or you lose your audience, who quite honestly, are potential customers. Am I right? Don't you just hate checking Jane Doe's blog, only to find that she hasn't posted anything for two months? Or how about no postings in over a YEAR? Not even a little web site update!! Now, before you get all hot and bothered, relax. I'm not talking about you, I'm not talking about Pam (she's a busy, busy woman!), I'm not talking about anyone anybody knows. Just obscure little sites here and there that started out with potential only to drift away and die of neglect.

I've always had difficulty with self-promotion. I was brought up to believe that it was conceited and self-serving, something a nice, well-bred southern lady would not do. So it's very difficult for me to fill the blog with pics of my work, links of what I'm doing, where I'll be, etc. I will give it go, though. In that vein . . .

As a good artist who blogs, on my honor, I will try to blog something every day, to have fun blogging, to discuss things other than me, myself and I, and entertain you once in a while.



Oh yeah, I'm teaching Thursday. This is a zinnia, which is going to the Austin Chapter of the Embroiders' Guild of America. How's that for a shameless plug of me??