craft-swap, here i come!

so, i just signed up for my first craft-swap here.
once you sign up, begin posting. you have to be a member for one month and have posted at least 15 times. from my understanding, it can be any kind of post, including replies to other posts. my screenname is christie.mcnabb if you sign up and want to be craft friends. :)

i am slightly nervous, because there is a deadline and a date you have to mail items by, but i'm also super-excited because it's a frugal-living swap, where you create your items from what you already have, based on the interests of your swapping partner. it will be a challenge for sure!

my roommate and i are tossing around the idea of planting a large (LARGE!) garden at her grandma's farm in Ohio, then traveling there every other weekend to work with her. the garden would provide enough to feed us, as well as enough to can for the winter. plus, it would mean some serious farm time this spring/summer/fall. that would be beautiful.

i am working on some projects i'll provide pics of soon.

happy Christmas eve!

i'm feeling slightly overwhelmed at the moment, given the amount of people who've just left our space and the fact that Christmas is upon us. the Holidays, as I was discussing with a friend, are different, not just because I am an "adult" (i use that term loosely), but also because my parents are divorced and there are now stepfamilies involved. being single adds to the disconnected feeling i have.

i've been reading through the Gospels, along with the Psalms during this season, and it's been a good reminder of the goodness of God in His gift to us, as well as the very present-ness of Him. "Emmanuel" has become a truth I cling to when the days around me seem the darkest.

i am grateful to have some time off, but my body and my mind are all crying for rest, especially rest in the Lord, which seems so abstract sometimes, but usually looks like me retreating into silent spaces and allowing my battle-weary mind to rest. perhaps i should do that now.....

New beginnings

I created this blog to document and track some new habits I'm hoping to establish in the New Year. The first and foremost being my goal to not spend any money on new clothing.

I've been convicted lately about our current clothing industry's dependence on sweatshops, which has broken my heart. I read recently that we should not support anything that is oppressive to others, and immediately I thought about the very shirt on my body. It will be a rough transition, but I hope to eventually make my own clothing! :)

The two main ways to accomplish this goal:
1. Make my own clothes! This will be hard, especially as I struggle to find fair-trade fabrics (most fabrics in fabric stores also made in sweatshops). Simple shirts and skirts may be my staple for awhile!
2. Buy used/accept hand-me-downs! I figure I can use this for the harder-to-make items: jeans, shoes, etc.

I will be sharing websites, pictures, etc. along my journey.

This blog will also contain, well, pretty much whatever I want! :) I will be operating my salad table again starting in the early spring and hope to maybe have a compost starting at my mom's house.

I look forward to 2010 being a year of simplicity, transitioning away from the extreme dependence on artificially produced things in my life and moving toward a more homespun, handmade existence. Thank you for joining me on the journey!