Brain Soup

Okay, this is not a recipe. It's about all the ideas that float around in that soupy brain of mine!

When I see an interesting item ... for instance a wool felt bird in a craft book ... I don't want to make THAT bird. The idea immediately starts twisting around in my brain. Maybe instead of sewing the bird, it should be felted as one solid piece. Maybe instead of those colors, I should make it a cardinal with a topknot. Maybe it should be a teensy bird on a whimsical birdhouse. The final product of my imagination rarely resembles the inspiration. It's still a bird, but it's MY bird. Know what I mean?

For instance, I saw someone selling tissue cozies, but they're all done with designer fabric. I'm selling tissue cozies on ebay & etsy made of non-designer fabrics, but personalized with an embroidered phrase or name or design. It's still a cozy, but it's MY cozy.

And sometimes my ideas are born out of necessity, like the boot buddy. It was Christmas and the budget was tight. DH had been stuffing his boots with newspapers to keep them from flopping over and damaging the leather. So the first boot buddy was born. It was just a denim tube filled with cedar shavings gathered at the top and the bottom. I painted a Texas star with his name on the front. I made a bunch of them that first year and he loved them -- but he's so sweet, he would love anything I had made with my own hands! When I decided to sell them commercially, I went back to the brain soup to create a sleeker, fancier design with embroidered emblem on the front. I have yet to see if the current design is attractive enough. If it's not, I'll just go back to the brain soup, stir it up and see what comes out!

Okay, all this talk about soup is making me hungry. I'd better have breakfast!

Have a fabulous Thursday! Only one more day to go till the weekend. WOOHOO!