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Thursday, September 16, 2010

My Creative Space



If the previous post is any indication, I've developed a major sweet-tooth lately.  I like to think of pumpkin cake topped with sour cream or lemon curd (eaten straight off the finger, naturally) as "energy dense."  And energy is something I'm craving at the moment, seeing as I've recently gone off coffee.  Anyone who knows me well knows that I have an ongoing (and probably very boring) love/hate relationship with my morning/late morning/afternoon cup.  I'm still breastfeeding, so I've gone the distance to figure out just how much is ok (3 cups give or take -- only 1% of the caffeine gets into breastmilk) and I pretty much max it out daily.  I love the lift, the taste, and the ritual; I hate the crash and the irritability.

I always have an underlying uneasiness that this last remaining vice really is just that -- a vice.  I hate being dependent and I always feel better and as though I'm nurturing myself more when I take a break.  I knew the time had come when I wondered to myself (truly) whether the coffee companies were conspiring against me and secretly decaffeinating my coffee in an effort to make me drink more.  Then, I happened to read this post from Small Notebook on Sunday night and it tipped the scales.  So from Monday on, I've been coffee-free.  Meh.  But it's getting better. 

Anyway, I've been struggling to stay up past 8:30 much less get out to the studio for late evenings of work this week.  Fortunately, I've been blessed with some well-timed naps and have been able to sort out a few new design ideas during the days....


From above: "Leaves of Grass" organic baby blanket, "8 Blue Robins" organic baby blanket, "Birds on Wire" organic sleep gown, and again, "Leaves of Grass."  Most are available in my shop.

Check out many more creatives and their spaces here on Kootoyoo.  Always a pleasure.

12 comments:

Maxabella said...

Your work this week looks really stunning. The "grass" motif is really graphic and fresh and I love the little onesies. I'm a sucker for anything with a birdie!!

It's hard to give up a vice. Sometimes I rebel because it all seems so darn sanctimonious giving up caffeine!! But I managed to tip mine with the help of substituting green tea. It worked for me.

Now I can concentrate exclusively on my sweet-tooth vice!! x

Seedling said...

Ah yes! I'm really just substituting one vice for another, aren't I? Ah well...to be honest, I would be really happy to trade coffee in for green tea -- it has all those wonderful antioxidants! Perhaps that will be my goal -- to be a serene, mildly caffeinated green tea drinker, and sometimes pumpkin cake eater. xx

Tam - UniqueBoutique said...

wow love the new work Jen x

Knicky Knacks said...

Wow, your designs are absolutely beautiful. I'm absolutely hearing you on the caffeine front - I gave it up for 6 years and last year, got back on it. I absolutely love it and thank goodness, limit myself to one a day but if I don't have that one, I'm ferral!

angelina said...

your shop is fantastic. perhaps one day we could do a trade! xo

spectacularfairywren said...

i am loving the term 'energy dense'... Have also been curding, but tend to use a spoon straight from the jar in the fridge...

Saw the 'grass' under your blogheader and thought how PERFECT is that. Thanks for sharing!

Seedling said...

Thanks so much for your feedback everyone! Caffeine-withdrawal aside, it's been a really good week. Things are humming along...

Angelina, yes! I'm always up for a good trade. Let's keep in touch.

xx

Maura said...

These are lovely! I especially like the bird on wire piece. You're really getting the knack of your printing style! I've been battling with the caffeine and sugar addictions as well, completely sympathize. I try to stick with chai and green tea, somehow feel a little better about that than coffee.

Keep up the good work!
Maura

Brighton Breezy Sarah said...

I gave up caffeine for about 3 years, but fell off the coffee wagon about a year ago - have to admit I don't notice any difference, but then I've got a pretty weird metabolism!

Your fabrics are absolutely beautiful and I love what you do with colour and image.

Keep up the (decaffeinated) work - it obviously suits you!

Seedling said...

Maura, thank you. To be honest, it's been so much fun working on the prints and getting the new designs together. Suddenly, everything is inspiration and every surface is potentially printable!

Brighton, my husband's the same: he can go on or off coffee arbitrarily or drink an espresso right before bed! That's certainly not me though. I'm already noticing that my energy levels are much more steady and that it's easier to stay hydrated. I think I'll stick with this for a while and see what the longer term benefits are. Wish me luck!

えみこ said...

The new designs are so lovely! I especially love the any bird theme ones.

Good luck with the caffeine free life! I LOVE coffee and cannot go without now. I was off coffee while pregnant and breast feeding just because I was too lazy to figure out how much of caffeine would affect the baby.

Would like to hear how that goes for you :)

Seedling said...

Hey Emiko! Yes, I was off coffee during pregnancy (mostly because I erred on the overly-cautious side - apparently a little is ok then too.) And then I stayed coffee-free for a few months. I'm convinced that Portland did me in! The coffee there is just so good, it's impossible to resist. One cup becomes two, two becomes three -- you know how it goes. Fortunately, I've never noticed a difference in Aya's sleep whether off coffee or on, so that's a relief.

Anyway, I think anything in moderation is fine, but it's good for me to have a break. Mostly, I find that my energy levels are actually *better* when I'm not a regular coffee drinker. Hopefully I'll just be able to keep it as a sometimes treat from here on out....

xx