Craft For Health

Crafting Her Way Out of Grief by Jessica

 

There is such a healing power with crafting.  When my grandmother passed away, I picked up a cross stitch needle for the first time and stitched my way out of grief.  I felt connected with her somehow, by doing something she loved.  Then sharing those pieces with my newborn niece and nephew really continued the circle for me.

Now that I have kids of my own, I plan to pass this tradition on to them.  Crafting teaches us appreciation for creating something with our hands.  In our instant-gratification society, I want my kids to learn patience and that good things take time and effort.  That’s what my grandmother taught me in everything she said and did.

Jessica works for OttLite Lighting and lives in Tampa with her husband and two little kids.  Watch her now!

Unconditional Love Gave Me Artisit Confidence by Linda O'Neill

 

I have always had a very strong love for dogs...but never did I realize how much until my husband and I adopted a beautiful Retriever Mix about 10 years ago. Her name was Abby and she inspired me to start painting dogs.

I didn't have a lot of confidence in my art until then. I had worked for LucasFilm in the San Francisco Bay Area as a Digital Painter before moving to Colorado in 1998. When we got here, I started pursuing my Fine Art career again but felt as if I didn't have a real direction. We didn't have any friends here yet and so I felt a little isolated and unsure of my talent. I was definitely lacking confidence and was feeling pretty depressed.

When Abby came into our lives, things changed. She was a silly, funny, smart girl who looked up at me one day with those big brown eyes and I decided I just had to paint her. I think she sent me doggie brainwaves or something! Anyway, my first painting of her was pretty raw and unpolished...but there was something there that was special and worth pursuing. I kept at it and soon, with a new sense of self, my business was born. Abby had given me real gifts with her companionship...of love and confidence.

So now you know why my business is named, Abby Creek Studios. I just finished a new website (http://www.AbbyCreekStudios.com) so please come for a visit and take a look at my recent dog paintings

(http://www.abbycreekstudios.com/dog-portraits/) and other work. I have a blog (http://AbbyCreek-Art.blogspot.com) as well where you can read about the latest goings on as well as the antics of my new dog, Maisie.  She keeps the legacy going...and makes me laugh every day!

 My name is Linda O'Neill and I'm the Artist behind Abby Creek Studios (http://www.AbbyCreekStudios.com). I work in three styles of Art; Dog Portraits, Abstracts (http://abbycreekstudios.com/abstracts/) and Still Life (http://www.abbycreekstudios.com/still-life/)...but what touches my heart the most is painting dogs.

Jewerly Making Helps Me Escape from Depression and Diabetes by Fatmeh

My story started 26 years ago when God sent me a beautiful gift --a son I named Chafic.  He was diagnosed with very rare health condition called "Lipodistrophy syndrom". After 2 years God sent me another gift I named Nadia a sweet smart girl now she's 24 years old and we just found out she also has a very rare blood disease called Porphyria.   I have 2 very special kids.

I worry about them all the time to point I start taking pills for depression. And also from too much stress I became diabetic.  I prayed to God everyday to give me the health and strength to stay beside my kids helping them and supporting them and enjoy every moment with them.  God heard me and by chance I found out I have the gift in designing and making necklaces. When I crafted necklaces I felt so happy--- a feeling I never felt before. I got hooked and I start making more and more necklaces.

Then it started to be an expensive hobby and end up with a lot of necklaces. That was when I decided to find a way to sell my necklaces so I can buy more beads to make more necklaces. I  start getting involved in many arts and crafts show  and I met a lot of nice people.  My customers appreciated my works and they  asked me to build a website so they could check my latest designs so I did.

Getting involved in shows made my life easier helping to shift my mind from worrying about my kids health all the time. I thank God everyday for this talent he gave me.

My name is Fatmeh Itani and I live in Jacksonville, Florida and you can see my work at www.Fatmehjewelry.com   

Crafting is the Answer For All My Life Challenges by Barbara Matthiessen

 

I always tell people I am one of the luckiest people alive having been blessed with a wonderful family, friends and being able to do what I love.  However, there have been some rough times too with loss of loved ones, illness and financial setbacks.  Crafting has helped see me through all of these.

After losing my grandmother, dad and dog I went into a very deep depression.  Sure I went through all the motions, took care of business and acted as though things were OK but they weren’t.  Each of us must handle loss of loved ones in their own way and time but I found myself sinking deeper, I quit making things, hid out, and basically climbed into a shell of sorrow.  I knew I had to do something, something new, something to get my mind into another place.  Since I had been painting and working with fabric for years I sought something totally different, something I had to really focus on.  I found cold metal forging.

 

Cold metal forging is basically using a hammer and anvil to beat metal into submission.  Maybe it was the physical energy release or the fact that I had to focus on the work to keep from injuring myself but I found myself feeling better and enthused to try more and more metal working techniques.  I became wrapped up in the process and then started adding in some of my “old” mediums like fabrics and fibers. I felt better, started sleeping and eating better which gave me the strength to do more and a far better mental attitude.

Life can be a rollercoaster ride, things are bright then slide down again which is what happened to me.  Depression wasn’t the thing this time as much as stress and anxiety.  My husband had a couple of very serious health issues including open heart surgery we also lost about 70% of our income over the next couple years.  Trying to care for him and pay the bills was taking its toll.  Again, I let my time, my creative time for me go.  Not a good idea!  Here again I was not sleeping, was not eating well, and allowed circular thoughts and worries consume me.  I gained 40 plus pounds blew out one knee and most days felt rotten and miserable, really cranky. 

During this time period of my husband’s delicate health, a loved one also got lymphoma. I devoted myself to health issues, what to do to help both of them.  I did loads of research on the causes of cancer and heart disease.  I became versed on everything from nutrition, metal attitude to environmental causes.  What I found shocked me to the core.  Many of the products deemed safe and non-toxic, including many of my art supplies, were potential contributors to disease!  So now I am in a real pickle knowing I need to get back to crafting for my own mental and physical health but concerned over the products I use.  This is when I found Earth Safe Finishes, the only no VOC and truly non-toxic paint and finish products made in the USA.  I fell back in love with painting. 

I am normally a private person and am surprised I opened up this much here. (I even cried in the shower when my husband was ill so he would not know how I felt.) It is important to me to let others know that they are not alone and that there is an answer; love and crafting!

My name is Barbara  Matthiessen and you can view my artwork at:  

www.earthsafefinishes.com

http://artofgreenrecycling.blogspot.com/

http://totally-creative.com/

http://craftgate.com/blog/BarbaraMatthiessen

 

 

Unconditional Love Gave Me Confidence in My Art by Linda

 

My name is Linda O'Neill and I'm the Artist behind Abby Creek Studios.  I work in three styles of Art: Dog Portraits, Abstracts  and Still Life what touches my heart the most is painting dogs.

I have always had a very strong love for dogs...but never did I realize how much until my husband and I adopted a beautiful Retriever Mix about 10 years ago. Her name was Abby and she inspired me to start painting dogs.

I didn't have a lot of confidence in my art until then. I had worked for LucasFilm in the San Francisco Bay Area as a Digital Painter before moving to Colorado in 1998. When we got here, I started pursuing my Fine Art career again but felt as if I didn't have a real direction. We didn't have any friends here yet and so I felt a little isolated and unsure of my talent. I was definitely lacking confidence and was feeling pretty depressed.

When Abby came into our lives, things changed. She was a silly, funny, smart girl who looked up at me one day with those big brown eyes and I decided I just had to paint her. I think she sent me doggie brainwaves or something! Anyway, my first painting of her was pretty raw and unpolished...but there was something there that was special and worth pursuing. I kept at it and soon, with a new sense of self, my business was born. Abby had given me real gifts with her companionship...of love and confidence.

 

So now you know why my business is named, Abby Creek Studios. I just finished a new website, AbbeyCreekStudios.com, so please come for a visit and take a look at my recent dog paintings

I have a blog as well, where you can read about the latest goings on as well as the antics of my new dog, Maisie.

She keeps the legacy going...and makes me laugh every day!

The Big Black Balloon of Depression by Violette Clark

I suffer from depression from time to time. One of the things that has saved me is art - time and time again. Recently in a telephone coaching session my coach asked me some questions about how I felt after getting certain things done. I pretty much dismissed what I had done feeling like it was not enough. Very casually I mentioned "the void" and then she was off and running with it. I noticed I was quite annoyed because I did not want to talk about the void at all - I wanted to talk about my business, accomplishing more, being more organized etc. But she kept at it asking me what colour it was, what shape it was and where I was in relation to it. I had to muster all of my energy just so i didn't scream "I DON'T FREAKING WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE VOID OKAY????!!!"

What emerged was the big black balloon. It was interesting to me that I was on top of the balloon and not inside it. As we were talking I was mindlessly doodling - what emerged was a tiny person ontop of a large black balloon. My coach and I established a few things about the balloon story and I pretty much decided that it would become a little comic strip. That was my homework.

So yesterday I was in a very dark place - it was pouring down rain, the sky was dark, all of my lovely flowers were being mushed and the magic garden did not look so magic anymore. I decided that I  needed to either:

1. Go back to bed and pull the covers over my head or

2. Make the black balloon comic strip.

Thankfully number  2 won out.

What can you do when..... 
you are visited by the big black balloon or the dark dog or whatever name seems to suit your dark moods and feelings? Why not remove all distractions such as the radio, TV, text messaging, internet surfing, phone calls and sit still. Listen to yourself. You have an inner knowing that will tell you what to do next. Create a piece of art around the guidance that you are given. When you are stumped simply ask "What's next?" If you listen closely you will find the answers.

My name is Violette Clark and I'm am an artist passionate about creating art journals.

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

Beading and Needlework Amidst Many Moments of Sadness

Mom had reached the stage of dying where she couldn't really converse anymore, her speech was difficult to understand, she was bed bound and she hadn't had anything to eat or drink for about two weeks except water. We knew we were getting close to the end.

So, this day, it was a shock when Mom was adamant about wanting to sit up in the recliner -- we hadn't done that in weeks either. So we moved her to the chair and she was trying to say something and I was struggling to understand. "Water?" She shook her head no. "Pillow?" No. And then, I couldn't believe what I thought she had said...

"I'm sorry Mom, I'm trying to understand. I think you just said that you wanted a cup of tea?"  And she nodded yes.

It was an awakening of sorts. Imagine having had a couple of weeks of minimal communication from Mom and all of the sudden...this! She wanted a cup of tea! It was a moment of joy amidst many moments of sadness.

Well, she couldn't manage sipping from the cup very well. She sputtered and coughed as some of the liquid went into her lungs and the tea dribbled down her chin. But she smiled. She smiled and croaked out, clear as day, "It's good..." which made us all smile together.

Her shoulders relaxed a little more and we sat there for quite a while helping her to hold her cup and to take little sips of her final cup of tea. She died about another week or so after that and never requested another thing.

And on the morning that she died, after we had made the important phone calls and we had that intermittent silence, waiting for the world to show up...realizing that we were in transition to another ritual that would carry us through our grief, waiting for it to start. Because we, the care team, had nothing left to do. She was gone. This woman whom we had loved and cared for to the best of our ability no longer needed us.

The silence was tangible; it felt threatening. Every sound, every tick of the clock was amplified and deafening.

Tea is powerful. It's an Elixir of Life. It is the cheapest therapy I know and it is a universal language of love.

And so, when I have reached the end of my journey, and I can no longer express it for myself --

I hope someone will remember how I like my tea.

My name is Susan Elliot and I used a needle and beads to help me heal through my grief and loss of my mother.  I  hope someone else will think to make their own art, their own design from their heart...it really does help a great deal.

My Heavy Heart from Job loss and Crocheting

 

This story is from Em who used crocheting to cope with her job loss.

  

Dec 9 of each year is a day of celebration for my family; it’s my twin brothers’ birthday.  On that same day in 2008 I was laid off from work.  While the company was experiencing some difficulties we had been assured by management that all was well and that the company would whether the storm and come through it better for it.  At 5 PM that day I got a phone call telling me that my position had been eliminated and that my services were no longer needed.  I was devastated.  I had worked there for 5 years and had been a loyal employee.  I went to my family’s dinner celebration with a heavy heart and didn’t say anything for fear of ruining everyone’s evening. 

The next day I informed them of my situation and just cried.  I didn’t understand why I had been so carelessly cast aside.  For the last 6 months I’ve looked for work and I have yet to find anything, and finances have been difficult.  The stress at times has been unbelievable.  The one thing that keeps me going though is my crocheting and tapestry beading.  

When I crochet or bead I find a solace that brings peace to my soul and allows me to relax.  I get lost counting the stitches or beads and all the days troubles just fall off my shoulders for at least a short period of time. 

 

Crocheting also brings back memories of my Italian grandmother.  She taught me how to crochet when I was 7 years old, and I always get a warm feeling when I pick up a crochet hook.  I can feel her love wash over me as if she were sitting right beside me.  It’s at those times that I know that she’s watching over me and that everything will be alright. 

In the mean time I continue to crochet and bead, and create what I love best.  You can find some of my creations at www.nothingbutstring.etsy.com  and as the name of my Etsy shop implies, it’s the thread of life that holds us all together.  

Let’s turn the chaos into harmony.

Heartfelt Creativity Healed Me Through Joblessness and Infertility by Fiona

I have been creative from a very early age, growing up with a Grandfather and Uncle who were painters, and a very artistic Mum. I started sewing at Primary School, making my first needle case when I was about 6 years old!

  

Lately as well, my creating has been an even bigger help to my sanity. We found out recently that we are unable to have children, something which is devastating to us. But again, losing myself in my work has been hugely beneficial in helping me to come to terms with the pain this has caused. They say that time is a great healer, but for me, creativity too is an even greater one.

 

Last year I was made redundant due to the current economic situation so I decided to turn my creating into a full time occupation. Working in my studio, radio on, creating my pretty things has been a huge help in combating the stress of being jobless and hopefully in time.

 

My name is Fiona and I live in Oxfordshire, Uk with my Husband. I'm a blogger and  trained as an Interior Designer but I'm now working as a designer/maker of individual accessories and gifts for the home. I am inspired by vintage textiles and create my items using a mixture of machine and hand sewing as well as embroidery.