My annual accountability post

 

I don't make resolutions.  People who do usually abandon them by the end of January.  However, I create an annual accountability post which is mostly for me, but for which you may also see how well I did.  Therefore, it's time to see how well I did in 2022, and how well I think I might do in the coming year.

Let's begin with my word for 2022 which was Engage.

  I'm actually not sure how well I engaged with my readers, my art, and the various challenges I entered.  

  My word for 2023 is Plan.  

noun

1. An orderly or step-by-step conception or proposal for accomplishing an objective.
2. A proposed or intended course of action.
3. A systematic arrangement of elements or important parts; a configuration or outline.
4. A drawing or diagram made to scale showing the structure or arrangement of something.
5. In perspective rendering, one of several imaginary planes perpendicular to the line of vision between the viewer and the object being depicted.
6. A program or policy stipulating a service or benefit.

intransitive verb

1. To formulate a scheme or program for the accomplishment, enactment, or attainment of.
2. To have as a specific aim or purpose; intend.
3. To draw or make a graphic representation of.

 I believe all of these definitions apply.

  As for accountability, let's see my accountability intentions I made on January 3, 2022 and how well I did.

1. Continue to make art that I hope some will find meaningful and show the process along the way.
Old habits die hard, so this one I tried to adhere to, but sometimes I made art late at night and the craft room was so dark, it was hard to take process shots.  Whenever I could, I showed the process.  Whether I showed the step-out photos or not, I always explained how I created each page, tag, or object.

2. Create at least one tutorial each month.
These seem to be popular, so I've continued my monthly tutorials on the second Thursday of each month, although I've missed a couple of months in 2022, primarily because I didn't have the materials I need for the tutorial I wanted to create.  During April, I created several tutorials because I was working with materials I don't normally use. 

3.  Interview one artist over the course of the year. 
I interviewed one person and got a commitment from another.

 

4. Continue to dye fabric in my own different and unique way
This was another no-brainer.  I love dyeing fabric and I'm always on the lookout for new ways to dye fabric using nontraditional eco-friendly dyes.  Some of you saw how different mordants and additives changed the look of cabbage water when I dyed various fabrics, mostly cotton muslin.  You also saw how old grape juice doesn't give you lavender, but brown instead.  You also saw how coffee can change the look and feel of paper, so it should do the same with fabric.

5. Sort, sort, sort.  
It's an ongoing process, but I have two craft areas to keep clean, one of which is my main floor craft area, and one my basement studio.  You can't imagine the number of bags of trash and recyclables I got rid of in my basement studio that weren't good enough to donate due to water damage in 2022.  All that basement space provided me with a way to actually spread out.  

 

6. Create four abstracts. 
This was one I struggled with again in 2022.  My abstracts aren't as good as some I've seen on the internet, but I made four I can loosely call abstracts.  And I actually LIKE them!  Discovering collage fodder helped. 

 

7. Redo my gardens.   
I still need to finish my front flower bed.  In 2022, I moved a few rocks (three) and the drainage downspout that originally emptied into the fish pond I got rid of two years ago.  This freed up the front garden area.  

I also removed a dead bush, then moved my old metal wheelbarrow that had rusted through in several places to that spot.  I purchased four bags of potting soil and six perennials I hope will return this spring.  I actually like the new look and it's easier to get in and out of cars in the driveway when you don't have to fight that old bush.

   That is exactly what I plan to do again this year.  I hope to hold myself accountable to these same seven goals I set in January, 2022.  These are NOT meant to be thought of as stressful, and they are certainly not resolutions.  As I mentioned before, resolutions are soon broken about the third week in January.   I know some people like to roll with the flow, but I am a very organized person and I need certain guides in my life to keep me on track.  This blog is my day job, even though it is non-paying.

1. Continue to make art that I hope some will find meaningful and show the process along the way.
I don't think I'll have any trouble living up to this one.

2. Create at least one tutorial each month.
I will continue to TRY TO create a new tutorial each month on the second week of the month, although it is getting harder and harder to come up with new ideas given my limited tools, supplies, and products.  I plan to explore more ways to play with Lutrador, but that is not a product every person has, or even has access to.  Any and all suggestions will be greatly appreciated for tutorials you would like to see.

 

3.  Interview one artist over the course of the year.
I already have one artist who has agreed to allow me to interview her.

 

4. Continue to dye fabric in my own different and unique way
I keep watching for different ideas on ways to rust, but there are only so many ways you can rust fabric.  I have created a lot of resist dyed fabrics.  But I must learn different ways to use products I have on hand or ones that are easily available to me in order to come up with new ways to dye fabric.  I suspect you'll see more over-dyeing this year.  I have several pieces I want to dye a second time, since they didn't turn out as well as they initially could have.  I also plan to work with tulle and do more eco-dyeing, something others seem to have better luck with than I.  I plan to dye using avocados, too.  Suggestions are always welcome in this area, because I don't plan on going shopping any time soon. 

 

5. Sort, sort, sort.  
This year I'll be redoing a couple of my shelves in the basement.  I plan to give a few things away I will never use, but keep my "go to" items.  I'll also be sorting my rubber (and clear) stamps looking for a face I can't seem to find in my main floor craft room. 

6. Create four abstracts. 
I realize my abstracts aren't always pure abstracts, but I plan to work on a couple in my basement studio as winter sets in hard.  I'm also visiting more artists who create true abstracts.  I think I have a new perspective on them, especially after discovering collage fodder.  I hope to have more than four this year.

 

7. Redo my front and back gardens. 
I need to spend more quality time in my flower bed this year.  I intend to bring in more perennials in the front garden.  I may add two additional Rose of Sharon bushes to hide the ugly fence my neighbor installed.  

 

When I got rid of my bamboo in the back yard, it gave me a totally clean slate.  This will be the third spring in which the tarps have covered the area where the bamboo had been in the back yard.  I don't plan to remove the tarps until I am absolutely certain the bamboo has been completely snuffed out, or the high quality tarps are no longer functional.

 

Of course, you'll have to wait till January, 2024 to see how well I did in 2023.

 

Thanks for stopping by and seeing how well, or not so well I did in 2022.  Personally, I was quite pleased with the progress I made.  Any and all suggestions for new tutorials and fabric dyeing will be greatly appreciated, too.  And remember, please.  These are not stress inducing, they are NOT resolutions, but, because I like to be organized, these are important prompts to keep me on track.