Alien Freaks aka Cute Li'l Guys(all following) about 4" in diameter, felt, thread, rice.
designed by Gabriel, Ivy and me, sewed by me.
Here's a thought: Do we value the special unique qualities that make us who we are?
Or do we think those little quirks about us make us somehow wrong? Somehow not good enough? Freakish? Flawed? Ugly?
I made these beanbags, by hand, for Gabriel's 6th birthday party. The plan was to use them in a beanbag toss game and then let the kids take them home for a goody treat.
I made these beanbags, by hand, for Gabriel's 6th birthday party. The plan was to use them in a beanbag toss game and then let the kids take them home for a goody treat.I had to squelch down my worries that they wouldn't want a dorky handmade goody treat. Or that my flubs in stitching would make these rejects. Or that no mom would want a kid to bring home a thing stuffed with rice. Or that the designs would not be cute enough.
But guess what? Every kid, from 4 to 11 snatched one of these little babies up. They picked the ones they liked best and those were owned.
Even the first attempts, the wonky little guys with wonky little eyes and wonky little tentacles.
And you want to know what? Even the one that was left over... I took it. Mine, I said, defending it greedily from six year old paws. Mine. I pinned it up over my desk. They didn't understand the delicate curlycues and the subtle color scheme, but that one was mine. The kids liked the wonky ones better. Go figure.
I'm even going to have to make replicas of some of the ones that went away for little girls who want friends for theirs.
What is this all about?
But guess what? Every kid, from 4 to 11 snatched one of these little babies up. They picked the ones they liked best and those were owned.
Even the first attempts, the wonky little guys with wonky little eyes and wonky little tentacles.
And you want to know what? Even the one that was left over... I took it. Mine, I said, defending it greedily from six year old paws. Mine. I pinned it up over my desk. They didn't understand the delicate curlycues and the subtle color scheme, but that one was mine. The kids liked the wonky ones better. Go figure.
I'm even going to have to make replicas of some of the ones that went away for little girls who want friends for theirs.
What is this all about? This is about trusting your own uniqueness, your own alien beingness, your own wonkiness. Someone out there will love you the way you are. Someone will love what you create with your own two wonky hands. And even if they don't, what you do is just the path towards you learning who you are, what you love, and how to make it.
Trust. Keep trying. Look with unbiased eyes at what you do. Look for the loveliness, not the flaw. Imagine your work was created by someone else and see it for what it is, without your own feelings of unworthiness and not-good-enough-ness getting in the way.
Loving yourself, is the key. Believing in yourself. Trusting in your vision and your process.
Saying yes to who you are and what you do.
Thank you for this. What an awesome post- It gave me a happy feeling in my belly and I am so loving the bean bag fellows. Nothing sounds better right now than sitting around for a day and sewing up some weird little funny things.
ReplyDeletei love your aliens--they make me smile. i found you haphazardly through pinterest...and now look forward to keep watching. wahoo!
ReplyDeleteThis is my first visit to your blog and I love your little aliens and I very much appreciate your words. I am constantly blocking my own creativity by being overyly critical and thinking that what I make is no good - too stiff, old-fashioned, boring, uninspired - you name it I think it. So thank you for your words, they remind me that I am on a journey.
ReplyDeleteHave fun with your aliens!!
They are awesome!!
ReplyDeleteHow true. I tend to get too judgemental about myself very often. Treading an untoward path is something i need to learn. Thanks for the post ... and btw the wonky characters are lovely indeed!
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