a report from the mountains

With just a few days to go until Solstice (when we exchange our gifts) and then Christmas right behind (when there will be lots of gathering and hosting with family), I'm well past the point of having enough time to clean up between projects. I just keep on rolling right into the next, adding the fabric to the pile, and the pattern pieces to the growing fire hazard (folding that paper is 90% of the reason I usually don't use patterns. So lazy am I.). And the floor? Oh gosh. The floor is so bad that I have to wear shoes to prevent any workplace injury. Please tell me I'm not the only one whose been hit by the messy wrath of the holiday beast?

The mountains of mess aren't limited to my studio. The kitchen? It's an ice skating rink with the now-permanent layer of flour from our daily cookie baking. Sometimes, the sifting around here gets a little out of control. Ahem.

While I may be walking around with my clipboard (with my excel spreadsheet of lists. I'm not kidding, and stop laughing!) and weaving my way through the chaos, there's mountains of joy in this kind of busyness,too. Out of these piles, and stacks and messes are the handmade gifts that we're so excited to give (and receive). And yummy treats that we're devouring and ready to share with friends. And a home that feels cozy, and ready for hosting and nestling for that long winter's nap (c'mon, snow!). It certainly is a fun kind of mess. But man, as soon as the peace of January comes, I'm just itching to fold that fabric. Well, you know what I mean.

Comments

[karin]

I just commented on your flickr photo. I too have mess. and I too love this 'having to stay indoors' to potter and plan and make and bake. allthough no where near your output, it makes me feel warm and at home and peace.
have a great holiday!

[mav]

wow!!

[Kate]

Yeah, my sewing room is approaching critical mass. It looks like a tornado hit.

[molly]

you are definitely not alone. But there's something about a mess from gift-giving...I was swimming in mess yesterday afternoon and for once, it just felt good and cosy and warm--instead of overwhelming!

[erin]

messes everywhere here! i am liking it for the moment, too.

[Suzanne]

I hate to admit it but I am glad someone else is going through the messies:-) But the result of it is great, isn't it. Happy Solstice and Merry Christmastide!

[Jenn Moore]

Phew. You are human. Just Kidding. I can see that you live a very balanced creative fuflilling life. Sometimes, however, I think to myself -- How does this woman do it? I'm glad to see you have everyday human problems. You are kind of like a blog celebrity. Enjoy all your holidays. Greeting from Kittery, Maine.

[kirsten]

ha! so relate to the piles in the sewing room - and the patterns. it wouldn't be so bad if the sewing room wasn't in my bedroom - i'm driving my husband crazy!
happy crafting!

[Alicia A.]

I'm glad we're not the only ones!

[Katharine]

Thanks for reminding us we're not alone.

[Anna]

Thank you for showing your piles, it has a relaxing effect on me although I already told myself that it just has to be messy at the moment and that I will clear it up just in time for christmas :)

[Deborah]

It looks like one of the gingerbread men is doing sit-ups. He's already working off those holiday pounds! (I've got piles too!)

[colleen]

i have sunk so low as to buy packaged sugar cookie mix. so low. i bought them at work (williams/sonoma) and was commiserating with another perfection freak about sinking so low and the store manager -- at an age where she is well over it -- couldn't believe the language we were using: sunk so low!

on a happier note, please tell calvin i so love his wintry wonderland that for the next few days different views of it will be on our family computer desktop. today is the one with the smiling snowman. beautiful village!

[Nelly]

I had that messy house all day, today, because I was sewing a snowflake costume for my daughers kindergarden fest. Althought I can't stand messy places, I forgot all about it when she put the costume on. I was such a proud mom. Merry Christmas from rainy Greece.

[Amanda]

Okay this makes me feel SOOO much better! :)

[Beth]

I'm right along there with ya...I had to get some crafting done yesterday and I opted to put the baby in the jumper instead of the floor since I didn't know what could surface!!

Have a wonderful Solstice! Can't wait to see all those handmade goodies with their excited recipients.

Beth

[Penny in VT]

Mess? I don't see any mess? I just see joy all around...:)

Happy Solstice Amanda - Penny

[mountains of mess across town]

Come-hither, messy wrath of the holiday beast! The holiday beast is *very* comfortable at our house too. We've taken to calling our home The Pit. A crafty pit but a pit nonetheless. Who has time for sorting piles when there is sewing, crafting, baking, and wrapping to be done? There'll be a big sort-out when all the crafting is done, and then another in early January. But for now? We're embracing the holiday chaos and reveling in the creativity. Happy Solstice, Family Soule! xoxo

[Sarah]

Hell no, your not the only one with piles. I have piles everywhere and unfortunately I think I'm less happy about them than you seem to be. I could use an attitude adjustment but it's hard to do that when I'm running so fast. I'm looking forward to crashing on xmas day but it won't last long as we have to board a plane the very next morning to go visit family. Oy.

[Melissa]

My workroom looks worse than yours, trust me, there is no longer a path to the sewing machine you have to walk on top of things.

[Tasha-Rose]

yep. That is about the same state as my craft room....but it has over flowed to the dining room table. Come January!!

[blair]

this is such a good post for me to read this morning. Now that our power has been restored, I have sewing of monumental proportions to do between now and Christmas. After reading this I feel very motivated to just get in here and get it done. January will be clean up time.

[Alisa]

I'm right there with you. I have two laundry baskets full of fabric that is ready to fold. And I've got printed lists too! This is the first year that my husband hasn't mentioned a thing about having to push the mess down to the other end of the table to eat breakfast in the morning. He said to me the other day that he finally gets it--that he fun of Christmas for me is not getting presents, it's making them. He hit the nail on the head.

[AmyDe]

Oh my gosh! You make me feel so normal! I've been sewing and knitting, and crafting (haven't started baking, but it's on the schedule for Friday) and I'm leaving disaster in my wake. I'm only cleaning the public areas for now and that's making me a little crazy, but I'm almost done so...

Thanks!

[earthchick]

Oh, I'm totally with you. And the sad thing is that my office/craft room has to be totally cleaned by tomorrow, b/c it is where my MIL is going to sleep while she's here. Oof.

I love December, but I'm with you on looking forward to the calm and clean-up of January.

[hannah]

fire hazard, i love it. i have flour all over my floor too, but should i admit that it is just me doing the baking? uh...

[nicole]

I really appréciate other peoples's mess makes me feel good looking at mine!

[joleen]

lol i guess there is hope in my mess. ;)

[woolfairy]

Mine looked like that yesterday, but my DH (not dear) stated quite clearly that I was falling down on the job and I needed to stop making presents and other work that needs to be done by FRIDAY! and clear off his entertainment center because he was tired of looking at the clutter. Made a Flylads hotspots dig.

[Grace]

ha ha ... my house is like that ALL YEAR ROUND.

[Tambra]

I'm so glad to see that you are human! I have always loved the behind the scene shows! I'm glad to see that your craft room is a working room! I don't like clean crafters or bakers. I don't trust them! Can I show your pictures to my husband to prove to him that it is suppose to look that way during the process of making masterpieces?

[africankelli]

It is so fun to be out of character and messy when in such a creative state. Those cookies look yummy!

[Melissa]

Well, it appears our houses have a similar look going on :) I'm hosting a Christmas party Saturday so sooooon I'm going to get to cleaning. Thanks for sharing your piles of fun. Happy Almost Solstice

[lisa s]

you are definitely not alone.... and i have a clipboard too - but you one up me w/ the excel sheets... mine are all hand written :)
xo

[ilse]

ha ha ha ha ha , no I'm not laughing at you ,I'm just smiling because I recognize all of that. I can show you the same pictures of our house.

Happy(almost) Solstice !!

[amisha]

oh, i love the baking and crafting mess... when you are just in the zone and everything is out and you are surrounded by good creativity! my baking day is friday and i can't wait to have a kitchen like that :)

[Di]

I keep trying to ensure that my sewing doesn't spill out into the other rooms of the house - so that at least I can shut the door and pretend my house is neat and organized. But the room is getting so messy that I don't want to work in there! Glad to see there are others who have this issue at this time of the year!

[SoulCradler]

Hurrah! Another list person :-)
Don't worry, I am not laughing at you, simply nodding my head in solemn understanding.

[Kajsa]

I'm trying so hard to put my crfating on hold, because I really want to tidy the house before Christmas to get that wonderul festive feeling. If I buy some new boxes to sort and store my projects I can still touch all those fabrics waiting to be cut... January, yes!!

[meg]

*ahem* My baby crawled through the stack of discarded fabric in order to sit on the chair, the excel spreadsheet (oh yes! you are in good company) is currently acting as a drink coaster, and I can barely walk through the workroom. That's unfortunate since it's on clear display for anyone passing from the lvg rm to the kitchen. But Merry Christmas, I say! That's all stuff to handle next year (and I can't wait)!!

[Liz]

Just out of curiousity, why do you exchange on the Solstice?

[Mae]

Making memories is what you are doing. No one will remember about the floor or the pile or the unwashed dishes or whatever. They'll remember all the good stuff. But you already know that. Enjoy! (PS I think some of your gingerbread men are working on their abs there ...)

[Monica]

I stumbled across your blog and I love it. You inspire me. And yes this time of year cookies and crafts and tons of other stuff is all around.But its all good stuff. Reading your post has made me feel so much better about it. So we should just all relax and enjoy the moment. Thanks for having a great blog about your family and home life. Hopefully one day mine can be as great as yours:) Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

[Sarah]

Here, it's just me, and my baking mess rivals yours (suddenly it's time to make those cookie-in-a-jars for the thirty assorted clinic employees)! It's not a mess to me (yours included)- it's dynamic, living, evidence of love abounding. Prayers for joy for all of us at the solstice and in the new year!

[anna]

Ahhh, I love this kind of joyful mess! I am so heartened, not only by your post, but by all the assertions from commenters that there is so much creative mess going on in crafty houses everywhere right now!!
Bring it on, wheeee!

[Tamara]

Lovely happy mess! Happy solstice!

[mary]

Happy solstice and hooray for big creative messes. I imagine the mess got much bigger after dressing all those ginger people.

[tonya]

you're definitely not the only one living with the mess. if i don't have a mess in my workspace then i haven't been doing anything. i only clean up once in a while and never just after finishing a project. when i finish a project i turn out the light right after and head back upstairs. somehow i have never figured the clean up in as part of the process.

[VaxGirl]

I thought for a second I was looking at a picture of my own dining room! Except that I apparently have "lost" my good rotary cutter under the rubble and have been making do with a horrible cheap one. And my workspace is my dining room, the first room you enter in the house. So one comes right into the mess!

[Penny Sanford Fikes]

Remember, "Clutter is a sign of a creative mind"! I so enjoy your blog! Thank you for the time you invest in sharing with all of us. You are part of my inspiration to recently begin a little blog from life here on the farm in Mississippi. Today I briefly talked about the strange family tradition of being the first to say "Christmas Gif'" to each other.

http://pennysanford.typepad.com/penny_sanford_porcelains_/

Keep up the good work.........and "CHRISTMAS GIFT"!

Fondly,
Penny