Craft For Health

Creativity to the Obesity Rescue! by Joan Fee

 

 

I was an overweight kid and it hurt!  The whole not being picked for a team, the coming in last in races, having my mom buy me maternity clothes when I was in elementary school, the negative looks and comments from others ripped my little heart out.  

 I carry those hurtful instances around in my daily baggage. But, this baggage has become the catalyst for a whole new direction in my life.  It has led me to becoming involved fighting the childhood obesity epidemic so children will not have to hear the taunts, not have diabetes, not have heart disease.

My journey reminds me that it's not just a personal struggle, it’s a VERY scary thought to see the path that our World is on.  I took my baggage, teamed it with my love of crafting and came up with creative projects to get kids to exercise, eat healthy and unplug without them knowing it.  

   

  

The amazing process is blossoming right before my eyes with my heavy involvement with the Center for Obesity Prevention and Education at a local university.  I'm also finishing an e-book Make Healthy Fun! that has 120+ exciting projects from recipes for a fun healthy edible monster to unusual gardens that kids can create no matter where they live and also to making projects to get kids moving and exercising – all without them knowing it!  

Even more

This has spread into workshops and videos helping families to incorporate healthy living into their lives through fun hands-on projects.  

 

When I look back on my childhood adversity, I now smile when I think how that baggage has changed my life and has rescued me!

  

 

 Join in the fun of getting healthy with creativity at www.MakeHealthyFun.com and  at the Make Healthy Fun Blog.  

The e-book featuring 120+ projects is available at this link. 

 http://stores.lulu.com/store.php?fStoreID=2188713

Join the hands-on fun at the Make Healthy Fun! Workshop at the CHA Craft SuperShow in Anaheim, January 23^rd!!! Register at www.CraftSuperShow.com  and sign-up for workshop #W0803 

 

I Don't Have Time to Be Sick--I Have Crafts to Make! by Sharyn Sowell

 

“I don’t have TIME to be sick!” was my reaction when I woke up with a scratchy throat.

  

 

And then it dawned on me. I am badly infected with Hurry Sickness.  It’s not a diagnosis your doctor will ever make, but it’s an affliction nonetheless.  And I know a great remedy for it, short term anyway.

  

 

A rainy afternoon crafting with your favorite girlfriends. It’s what I call “recess for grown-ups” and it works wonders.

  

 

I called up a few friends and invited them for a few joyful hours of play in my studio. Because I was working on a new book on crafting, I invited them to try out some of the projects. Because they know my studio is full of paper and glitter, antique type and vintage lace, papier mache supplies and soldering irons they all jumped at the chance.

  

 

We made a terrific mess and ate too much chocolate, we laughed until the tears ran down our faces. When they left I realized I hadn’t worried about a deadline or glanced at my watch all afternoon. My neck wasn’t tight and my teeth weren’t clenched.

 

We can’t erase stress from our lives or throw out the crammed calendar, but we can build in spaces of time to snip some paper or solder a necklace. Time for creative play. Recess!

  

 

My book is out now and the calendar is too crammed. I think it’s time for another stress breaking afternoon. Time for recess again!

 

My name is Sharyn Sowell and you can find more of my artwork at www.SharynSowell.com

 

GIVEAWAY:  Sharyn has graciously offered to giveaway one of her books.  TO ENTER simply post your comment on her entry and we'll pull the winner out of a hat!  Good Luck!  This offer ends on November 19, 2009

Crafting My Way Through Grief, Confusion and Exhaustion by Alice Braga

 

When I became a full-time mother almost seven years ago, my days as a free-spirited musician (with a day job supporting her art) came to a halt. When my daughter was diagnosed with a chronic illness two years later, what was left of my identity as a singer-songwriter was all but buried beneath grief, confusion and exhaustion.

 Once in a while I ventured into the recording studio and also started a home-based coaching business, but the economic downturn of 2008, not to mention a highly competitive hunt for a good kindergarten, put an end to that.

 

During some of the roughest patches, the only thing that cut through a fog of fear and inertia was color. The rich palette of my daughter’s oil pastels. The vibrant images in Anthropologie and Sundance catalogs. The vivid pinks, reds, and yellows of roses in my courtyard and outside markets on Broadway.

Between my husband’s photo trade magazines, the plethora of catalogs I receive almost daily, and my daughter’s art (she provided the heart in the pink hope collage) I’ve become a collaging fiend, filling journals and three-ring binders with playful and wise phrases and poems juxtaposed with gorgeous scenery, jewelry, horses, whatever catches my fancy. I try not to analyze why I’m drawn to a picture or theme, but I do notice clues to my heart’s yearnings.

 For a while, England kept showing up in my collages, and within a few months, my husband was called to London on business for a week, and my daughter and I were able to join him. I can’t say for sure whether my collages manifested an international trip for three, but I can say the images opened my mind to the idea of crossing the Atlantic with a child on a very strict diet. No small feat!

 

 At a friend’s suggestion, I began blogging earlier this year, and I found myself illustrating my mini-essays and musings with collages and snapshots. After 14 years of delegating photography to my husband, I am having a ball reporting on the beauty and whimsy of New York (and my imagination) in both still photos and video. No longer holding on so tightly to my identity as a writer, I’m excited about visual storytelling and what else it will reveal to me. And more importantly, I am at peace with the choices I’ve made to help my daughter thrive.

 

Links:

http://www.AliceBraga.com

http://www.YouTube.com/RabbitHoleReport (“A Barrage of Collage” gives you a peek inside one of my collage binders, including one of the British collages)

http://www.cdbaby.com/Artist/AliceMarie

http://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/alice-marie/id4067062

I Found Myself in Arts and Crafts by Reija Eng

I was recently talking to some old friends that I hadn't met since me and my family moved from Sweden to UK nearly two years ago. During this time I have carried our now 13-month-old twins full-term, given birth to them via a painful cesarean section, looked after our eldest four-year-old daughter alongside two babies and tried to keep everyone happy while never getting a whole night's sleep. In addition, I have been bound to my neighbourhood surroundings; I don't drive and I wouldn't fit in to the bus with the twin buggy and buggy board - a combination that people, more or less accurately, refer to as a minivan.
 
I was telling my friends how hard life was in the grey suburbs of London with endless rows of shabby houses and only a few trees, and how difficult it has been for us to adjust, being used to the lush green nature and fresh air of Sweden. In this moment one of my friends commented, with some amusement in his voice, that at least I had my scrapbooking.

 
Yes, at least I have my scrapbooking! My days are filled with routines involving my children and their wellbeing. It's a five to nine job without any major breaks. I take huge pride in what I do for my children, but without realising it I have slowly given up my social life and my freedom. There really isn't much one can do after the kids have gone to sleep, and although my husband contributes a lot to childcare and housework, I'm always too tired in the evenings. All this has led me to question who I am. Am I just a mother, an all-in-one diaper changing-washing-cooking-soothing-smoothing-mother-machine, alone in a foreign country? Or am I still me and if so, who exactly am I?

 
Everybody with children knows that part of being a parent is giving up on your own time and making way for a new identity. It's about thinking what's best for the children and doing your utmost for their growth and happiness in life. All parents know that in this lifechanging process it's easy to forget about yourself, but I think it's extremely important to find a balance between being a parent and being you, and giving yourself time without children.
 
In the midst of all these domestic demands, I can honestly say that scrapbooking has saved my life. It might sound strange but when I finally get some time for myself, after being up and running for 15 hours, being by myself and being creative means everything to me. Scrapbooking is my therapy. I love the evenings when I get to sit by myself and indulge in the pretty materials. It's a creative process, a complete opposite to my daily routines. It's my way of developing my identity and holding on to it. Going back to the moments captured on the photos helps me reflect on life and decide what memories I want to preserve for the future. To create something with photos of me and my family also makes me realise how great life is, despite the sleepless nights and the heavy workload. Ultimately, scrapbooking has made me realise that yes, I am a mum of three but I'm still me and a huge part of me is to use my hands creatively. I found myself in arts and crafts and being creative and expressing myself has helped me in finding my identity. And in the end, exploring and developing my identity has made me both happier and healthier. 
 
If you are interested in scrapbooking, have any questions or want to see what else I've made, you are more than welcome to visit my blog: http://reijapysslar.blogspot.com/

 

Crafting Life into Something to Cherish - by Cherish Flieder

I love working with my hands whether it is pouring a candle, sculpting a figure, designing blooms in a garden, cutting paper collages for a card, or painting a children’s book illustration. For me, crafting is my way of escaping from our fast paced, digital world, to relax and to make something new. The creative process can be as energizing as it can be demanding, but I think it is a great way to reset your mind and see things in a different light. There is such a wonderful world out there to engage when you are not tied down to your computer! The process of crafting allows that exploratory adventure while looking for new possibilities.

My Story

While I was growing up, my parents adopted 2 babies in addition to us 4 biological kids. Their big hearts led them to also take care of about 7 more special needs foster children for several years at a time. These precious children suffered from all types of medical challenges including autism, cardiac and pulmonary conditions, cerebral palsy, fetal alcohol syndrome, and a liver transplant. Since I was the eldest, I took on a lot of responsibility to help out. From a young age creating art and crafting was my way to share creativity as well as express my individuality within our large fun-loving family. 

I loved being a big sister to so many unique siblings and fondly remember spending time teaching my little sisters and brothers how to use their hands to make things. All forms of crafting were a joyful part of my childhood passed on to me from my great-grandmother, grandmother and mother. I even had a little store out of my bedroom called "Bluebird’s Hideout" where I sold for a penny or two my prized creations to supportive family members. I was a creative entrepreneur even back then!

Today, I am a classically trained illustrator and designer, but I am always looking outside of the box to find something that is unique, fun and meets a need. As I was developing my most recent style, I made a conscious decision to incorporate hand crafting into my art to embrace the texture and colors of the mixed materials. Currently, I create my illustrations with watercolor and with hand embroidered accents. I call this style or technique "Something To Cherish".

 I am capable of making many of these my images 100% digitally. However, it is important to the quality of the work and for my health, to implement the maximum amount of hand crafting possible. I am far too aware of health risks and how working at a computer for extended periods could cause irreparable damage to my back, wrists and eyes. I designed this style of art purposefully to get me away from the computer to use my hands and eyes in a different way.

Now, that I have my own art and design studio, Cherished Solutions LLC , crafting is a great stress relief for me. Crafting allows me to do something on my own which is very therapeutic and centering. It also helps me feel emotionally connected with and honor the memory of my great-grandmother and grandmother who were avid crafters in their day. 

I often use crafting to decompress during a break in a stressful day or to unwind at night. The skills I have developed by crafting over the years have given me the ability to create almost anything visually that I can imagine for myself, my family, my friends and my clients. I am hoping that continuing to celebrate crafting in my business and art will bring joy and health into my life and the lives of others.

Cherish Flieder  is a visionary artist that works with publishers, manufacturers and other niche businesses, assisting them to achieve their goals by creating designs and illustrations in sight of thoughtful marketing objectives. Projects often include the creation and production of conceptual and cohesive licensing collections, product development, books (especially children’s books), packaging, and other marketing materials.

Boy's Craft Too--Giancarlo's Jewelry

This is the bracelet that my 13 year old son made in his jewelry class.  It's a beautiful hammered and twisted steel bracelet that I wear all the time.  I especially love the way the clasp is integrated into the design.  

I think he signed up for the class because a friend told him that it was a great way to meet girls, and in any case he was only one of 2 boys in the class, so in that regard, he considered it a big positive. What surprised him, was how much he loved the class.  After this project they moved to bead work, and I don't mean stringing beads, but blowing their own glass beads.  I'll post those photos next week.

I was a little surprised that a teenager, who likes to skateboard and plays his fair share of video games would be so interested in a crafting class.  But, he not only liked the class, he signed up for the next level. Every day he came home with another wonderful treasure that he created, which made him feel so good.  It was the same in wood shop last year, the sense of accomplishment that these middle school kids get is priceless.  His wood shop teacher said that these types of classes help kids with eye hand coordination, with problem solving skills and learning how objects are made.  

When I think about it, it was only about 75-100 years ago in our history that most people made most of the objects that they used every day, they didn't buy them ready made.  People made their own clothes, blankets, window coverings, tables, chairs, and yes, even jewelry.  

Middle school kids, and especially boys need lots of creative outlets and opportunities to build, design and create.  They thrive on the sense of accomplishment and learn so much from the process.  I highly recommend jewelry or any other of the craft offerings as electives.  Creating something with your hands just feels good.

One Smile Says it All! Kids Really Do Enjoy Crafting by Debra Quartermain

Crafting or being creative I believe is as necessary to a healthy whole life as breathing. It nurtures mind, body and soul, brings a sense of well being, satisfaction and of course is lots of fun! When my daughter was in elementary school art programs were dropped and the art room in her school sat vacant most of the time. I approached the principal about starting a weekly Craft Club for the older children giving them opportunity to explore a variety of materials and techniques. I would fund the program and provide everything for the kids if I could use the art room.  It was a go! The kids had such a great time and loved trying out materials they had never used before. My older daughter came by, sometimes with a friend to help out. For the end of the year we would do a sewing project, a teddy with diploma to celebrate their “graduating” elementary school. They would arrive excitedly ready to create. Some of the bears went home with pirate patches, glue sticks turned into swords, tattoos and flowers in their ears. Just as unique as each child the bears all had their own distinctive personality.  The first year was a big success! It taught me as well about remembering to play just for the sake of playing, I learned as much from the kids as they did from me.

A couple of my favourite moments happened in the second year. The former grade four kids were now the grade fives and now the Craft Club was theirs! Many of them told me how excited they were to take part in the club. The day we were to sew the bears one little boy came in with a manly swagger saying he didn’t know how to sew and was proud of it. By the end of the club time he walked out with the same proud swagger with his bear saying he was going home to show his whole family how to sew.  Another little boy whispered in my ear when he arrived that he was so excited about making the bear that he wasn’t able to sleep the night before. His smile says it all!

Creating the Craft Club was one of the most worthwhile things I have ever done. The faces of the kids, their excited chatter when they arrived and their wide smiles as they left proudly carrying the results of their creative fun was so special! While they crafted they would share stories, talk of their families, pets, and relax into the friendly warm atmosphere of the room. One group wrote stories of their bear’s adventures along with pictures to give to me at the end of the year.

I continue my creative journey as a Creative Eternal Optimist! “Inspiring the JOY of Creativity---1 Stitch, Stick or Sparkle any Time!” Thank you Kathy and Barb for the opportunity to share my story and for celebrating “Crafting for Health.” Debra Quartermain, CEO!  www.debraquartermain.com

Crafting For the Mental Health of Others by Tara Reed

Rubber stamps have been a staple in my life for years.  In school, I always beamed with pride when I would see the smiley face stamp on my papers or the "Great Job!" star.  I loved pressing the rubber into different colored inks and putting them on paper, with no particular rhyme or reason, just to do it. The process was like magic.

Then I got older and the way I looked at and used stamps changed.  Instead of joy with no plan, my stamps became decorative elements on scrapbook pages or hand made cards.  I can't begin to tell you how many holiday, birthday or everyday cards have gone from blank to beautiful, thanks to rubber stamps and stamp pads.

 

More years ticked by and I started designing for a living.  How fun to have my own art on rubber stamps!  This makes the process of stamping, shading, coloring, sending and gift giving that much more fun. (Although I must admit that the time I have to actually USE the stamps has gone down now that I am designing them.)

 

Having designed dozens of stamps for Janlynn / Stamps Happen, I am starting to have the joy of seeing what others are doing with my designs.  And thanks to the internet and blogs, it is easier than ever.

 

I recently found a blog post by Mary B. Giemza who used one of my stamps to help keep a smile on the face of her friend whose husband is deployed in the military.  Not only is she crafting for her own health but for the mental health of others -- now this I like!  What better way to show support and concern than with a hand stamped card.  And I believe it did just that since there is a comment on her post that says:  "You should see me smiling right now girlfriend!! I LOVE this!!!!"  (I assume that is from the recipient of the sentiment.) CLICK HERE to see her full post.

 

Times change and things evolve, but my love of rubber and ink lives on.  When things get a little crazy or I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed, there is nothing like going back to the simple act of pressing a stamp on the ink pad, then on paper, and creating that one-of-a-kind end result!  

 

May good health and the stamps be with you! 

– Tara Reed

www.TaraReedDesigns.com

________

Links:  

 http://mycardz.wordpress.com/2009/06/03/a-chick-rules-this-roost/

 

http://www.janlynn.com/category_results.cfm?Category=20&Desc=Memory_and_Stamps

Crafting a Better World: Connecting Through Crochet by Melissa Langer

 

The art of crochet has been an excellent way for me to connect not only to myself, but to the world around me in ways that I never thought possible.

In 1990, I had just graduated from the university of Michigan and began my adult life away from the enriching life of a student which I had always known. Entering the work force was exciting and challenging, but I felt the need to learn something new that I could continually expand and enjoy.

Being someone who has always loved crafts, I was drawn to a colorful crochet kit in a catalog that provided everything I needed to make a beautiful granny square afghan.  The colors and textures of the yarn along with the fascination of turning a single string into a woven fabric with a hook soon turned into a passion.

I always feel happy when I am crocheting, and I quickly realized that it was a wonderful way not only to help me process things in my own life, but to have a  piece of art when I was done to share with someone else. The rise of the internet and Yahoo Groups was a perfect way to meet new friends and trade squares with people all across the country.  From that positive experience, I decided to reach out and share my crochet with less fortunate children all over the world.  Through some research, I found two incredible charities, The Mother Bear Project and Knit-A-Square.

 

They both work tirelessly to collect and gift knitted or crocheted teddy bears and squares to children to keep them warm and comforted in what can sometimes be a harsh world. It is an uplifting feeling to create something for someone I do not know, but who I can visualize enjoying something I made with love.

Each package I send, I wish it a safe journey and give it to the post person with a big smile.  Imagine my joy and excitement when I recently received photographs from both charities showing me the teddy bears and squares in their new homes!

 

What a wonderful reminder that even the smallest things we do can make a difference in the lives of others.

My name is Melissa Langer.  I am an artist whose passion is to create happiness through my art for people to deeply connect to and enjoy.  Please share in on the fun by seeing what my pug, Emmitt, and I are doing daily on my blog, Life is Art...Art is Life.

Back 2 School & Crafting

Recently, Kathy & I were in Orlando, Florida participating in a Back 2 School / Back 2 Health event that drew over 3,500 families.  There are many events like this going on around the country, as organizers find ways to help parents prepare for the new school year. With the economy in the slumps, and rising unemployment, many parents aren't able to afford the school supplies that their children need.

The kids could also get their school physicals and any vaccinations that they needed. The kids weren't exactly thrilled about the vaccinations, but it was one more thing parents could do to protect their little ones. 

The Craft Practitioners were there too in our white lab coats, and quite a few people came in to our room where we were building our Craft Wall of Health to ask if we were also doing vaccinations?  

Thankfully, for me, those days of giving children vaccinations are over.  I get to craft with them now.  Yea!

At this event, each child was given a brand new backpack filled with school supplies and something else that was sure to brighten up their day:  Stickers! Every kid loves a new backpack for school and they love Stickers! These stickers were donated by the wonderful folks at FibreCraft.

FibreCraft is committed to creativity, crafting and to Kids, they are also big donors to Kids In Need.

As the Craft Practitioners, our message to parents is simple, Working on a Craft Project, shoulder to shoulder with your kids is a great way to stay connected. 

Happy Crafting