May Mews and Zen: Cat Lady Style

Meow for May!  Here in the Midwest, this is basically the very beginning of spring, which means there's only like a 15% chance of snowstorms over the next few months.

So with the true onset of warm weather, I've been inspired by floral prints far more than usual...which is kind of saying a lot.  Give me any and everything floral, the gaudier and more colorful, the better!  Luckily, my summer issue of Midwest Living arrived a couple weeks ago, just in time to start pulling swatches for Hunt and Gather pieces...and for once, I decided to not be a giant Pig Pen...  

I cut, labeled, and organized all my swatches into teeny envelopes. This way, they're ready to go when my next batch of ring charms (close to 100 more pieces!  Holy carpal tunnel, Batman!) gets back from its bisque firing.  Let me just add, too....sooooooooooo many pretty floral prints in Midwest Living this summer!  I could eat the whole magazine, it's so good.

As for the aforementioned carpal tunnel, hand-sculpting is like, so zen, man, even if it does cause cramps...I love it so much that I will try to take breaks when my hands start to cramp, and all the sudden realize mere minutes later that I've started sculpting again without even thinking about it.  It's like the clay just appears in my hand.  Zen, man.

Really, though.  This is why Lady and the Cat/creating in general keeps me from going nuts.  Making things from scratch, and now doing it in large quantities, is such a challenge and at the same time, so natural...it's relaxing, yet such a perfect exercise in focus.  Hand-sculpting in particular is so cool because that tiny bit of difference in each charm makes the finished pieces that much more like real cats--no two are the same.  I've gone back and forth eight million times about creating some sort of template for my jewelry, but I simply can't bring myself to do it.  Anyways. Zen Movement 2015: Cat Lady Style is a thing, and it happens every time I get on a roll making ceramic jewelry.

But can zen sculpting include simultaneous Buffy the Vampire Slayer marathons on Netflix?  Because I've been considering throwing that into the mix also.  Just sayin'.

Until next time, love and kitty kisses.

Xo*

Jess