Here’s a recap of the goals I set/things I want to get out of this free inquiry project and an update about how they’re going:

(1) I want something to do with my hands while I watch bad TV. This is not a joke, and (7) I find tasks that involve a lot of repetition and fine motor skills to be extremely relaxing and restorative. I need this. There’s a reason I watch bad TV.

I certainly have something to do with my hands while I watch bad TV. Because I am entirely new at embroidering (and sewing in general…), this has actually reversed this thing-to-do. I still have to pay attention to every stitch I make, so rather than stitching becoming something I do while I watch bad TV, bad TV has become background noise while I stitch. I am in no way upset about this — I do not need to be paying attention to the bad TV I watch. It’s been nice to have something to actually pay attention to rather than simply zoning out. Zoning in rather than zoning out has proven to be a more effective relaxation technique for me. Normally I would do that zoning in process by baking, but that is generally a larger time commitment. I like that I can pick up the hoop whenever I feel like it and dedicate as little or as much time as I want.

(2) I want to learn how to make something pretty that doesn’t get consumed. Cakes are great, but my photography skills are lacking so the evidence and best showcase of my creativity and hard work disappears pretty quickly.

The prettiness of my products is somewhat in question. Well, they’re pretty, they’re just not quite as pretty as they will be with more practice. They’re certainly prettier than I was expecting for the beginning, so that’s a win.

(3) I want to learn a new skill.

I am certainly learning a new skill, one that I think can be applied as this creative, relaxing hobby but also one that I can easily imagine practical applications for once I become more proficient, such as fixing and embellishing clothing.

(4) I want to improve my dexterity, hand-eye coordination, and patience.

I can definitely tell that my dexterity and coordination, at least with this specific activity, has improved already even with the small amount of practice I’ve done. My lines have already been improving as I learn from ugly mistakes.

(5) I want to be able to make cute, lightweight, portable things that I can cheaply mail to my friends back in Toronto. I don’t know when I’ll see them again and feeding them baked goods was a big part of how I demonstrated my affection for my people — I want to be able to create something that can provide that same sort of demonstration from afar.

This was kind of the big one for me. I miss my friends and my partner, and I am excited to make them personalized things. I have completed one piece already for my partner.

It was from a pattern/kit that I bought, but I applied the simple skills I have picked up so far to personalize the pattern a little bit more:

 

 

 

The design was initially just red and black, but I had threads left over from the first kit I bought, so I used the white and browns from that to add some colouring to the wolf so it would look like my Siberian husky, Gretchen.

See, it’s us!

 

(6) I want to reassert my ability to do something I set my mind to, and (8) I want to practice learning things independently again — for myself, and so I am better able to help guide students throughout their own self-teaching in the future.

I have a difficult time getting started on things, often out of a fear of failure or the idea that I don’t have time, etc. Embroidery is a pretty low-stakes activity and something for which or out of which I do not have to produce anything specific. Beyond that, I set myself this list of goals that has nothing to do with learning particular stitches, doing complicated designs, etc. I set reasonable, ongoing goals that I can continually stick to and keep accomplishing. I think carrying forward with such a low-stakes project will help me, hopefully, get over some of my starting anxiety.

Things I have been able to accomplish that I had not thought about:

Supporting local businesses — I have not ordered a single thing off of the online shopping conglomerate that shall not be named for my embroidery projects, and I’m pretty sure I can make it so I’ll never have to. My initial Etsy order was from a Vancouver-based small business and my subsequent purchases have been from a cute little sewing shop in Victoria called the Makehouse. I am particularly happy that I found a brick and mortar shop — talking to staff and being able to handle products makes it so much easier to decide what I need.

Giving myself a guilt-free, offline break — I spend, out of necessity, too much time on the computer, and I do not like that. Everything for school must be done online — except for this free inquiry project (this documentation excluded). If I am feeling stressed or avoiding schoolwork due to anxiety, I can stitch. Usually when I’m in school, I constantly feel guilty unless I’m doing work. With embroidery, though, it is technically for school, so I can take a nice little technology break while not having to feel this sense of guilt.