My friend Deb asks me every year for donations of my artwork for the Boys & Girls Club holiday auction. She called me this morning to double check - was I still willing to make a quilt and paint a child's rocking chair for the auction? I said yes. OMG, it's due in a month! There's nothing like a deadline to reinforce the need to schedule studio time. I had the chance to say no, but I just couldn't. Frankly, there's a part of me that loves the fact that someone other than my husband will buy my work this year. Ha. Now all I have to do is find someone to stand behind me with an air horn every time I appear distracted, blogging or flipping through a magazine instead of working.
I joke about having an "out," but the commitment really is not a bad thing. These are the two projects I can pull off without stress. Sewing and painting furniture are so relaxing for me, so my only pressure is having an actual deadline. We talked about the design of the rocking chair and whether she should list it as for a boy or a girl. I told her that unless I painted dump trucks or footballs on it, it's perceived as being for a girl. When my son was an infant and toddler, I struggled with finding clothes and decor for his room that didn't have sports junk on it. Golf clubs for a six-month-old? Really? What a pain in the neck. Since a few of the board members have new baby girls in the family, that made it easy - it'll be a rocking chair for a little girl ;-) I start working on everything on Saturday.
Apropos of nothing, I broke the rules last weekend and took just one photo at the Laguna Arts Festival. I regret that I can't provide the identity and proper credit for the artist (I ran away after the camera clicked!), but I can report that this is the product of a school-aged artist. There is always a section with art created by students in kindergarten through grade 12. This piece was in the area exhibiting older students' work. This dragon is made of plastic utensils and was amazing! To the artist, I'm really sorry but I just had to share. You rock.
