Wednesday, February 6, 2019

IWSG: How Does Your Creativity Flow?


The Insecure Writer’s Support Group is a website media business with affiliates to enhance our service to visitors. We are a home for writers in all stages; from unpublished to bestsellers. Our goal is to offer assistance and guidance. We want to help writers overcome their insecurities, and by offering encouragement we are creating a community of support. Visit IWSG to learn more about this great writing community!  


IWSG posts the first Wednesday of every month. It's a great writer's resource that I'm sure you'll find well worth your time. Be sure to stop by and visit with other IWSG Members.  

Join me in thanking this month's awesome co-hosts:  Raimey Gallant,  Natalie Aguirre,  CV Grehan, and Michelle Wallace!

IWSG Question:  Besides writing, what other creative outlets do you have?

Ooohhh I do love this question!  I have several "hobbies" through which my creativity flows.  I'm passionate about gardening (yes, both my thumbs are green!) and creating floral showcases in/on my yard, porch, and deck by blending plants of different colors and shapes.  The birds and butterflies greatly appreciate my work!  And I knew I was doing something right when the mailman asked me who "did my landscaping"!  The answer is ME!  lol  Love experimenting with and growing different vegetables and herbs and using those to get creative when baking & cooking.  I'm a big fan of handcrafts, especially some of the old soon-to-be lost arts and find it peaceful yet stimulating to get creative and experiment with color & patterns & textures while hand-quilting and embroidering.  I enjoy exploring a world of colors, materials, yarns, and threads while crocheting or sewing pillows & spreads & curtains or whatever.  I also dabble in pottery and clay and paint!  lol 

They say a picture is worth a thousand words so I'll share a few with you.  Bear with me - manipulating pictures on this site is NOT one of my strong points!
Both the butterflies & I love my flowers!

Greenbean's reaching for the sky!
Preserving the harvest!
Strawberry Preserves just begging for hot buttered biscuits!
Really proud of my Moon & Stars watermelons this past summer!
I babied, cajoled, watered, and protected them from all would be thieves
until we could harvest & enjoy them.
Reese's Pieces CheeseCake - Hubby's favorite
I truly enjoy baking and love creating new recipes or
playing with old ones!
Anyone hungry?

My most recent crocheted afghan. My son claimed it! I love
the creativity of combining yarn & colors to create new patterns.
Designing & sewing pillow covers - again, my son claimed them!
Are you sensing a pattern here?! lol


A Sampler king size quilt I recently finished hand-quilting.
And yes, you guessed it...it's proudly displayed at my son's house!
 My current work-in-progress is a king size quilt called Grandma's Garden.  Each of the little pieces are hand-sown together, and I've now started the long process of hand-quilting it.


I recently returned to painting - a past love.  My son cut some decorations and ask me to paint them.  I'm working my way back into my artwork.  These are just whimsical fun!  BTW - The old Home Comfort wood cookstove you see the elves posing on was used in my great-grandmother's and then grandmother's house.  It now resides in the kitchen of my log home - and yes, it's hooked up & I do use it on cold winter days.  I'm a huge fan of anything old, historic, or antique.  Maybe because that also describes me!

So - now you've got the picture of some of the directions in which my creativity flows! (even if not displayed perfectly!) haha  Now tell me - How does your creativity flow?

8 comments:

Nancy Gideon said...

Look at all those projects (jaw dropping!). I wish I had hours in the day, as I used to enjoy all of them (arthritic hands did away with the crafty stuff). I love growing things but have contained the joy to patio containers. A passion I discovered last summer was herb gardening. Nothing like the fresh stuff! Thanks for sharing, Sandra!

Natalie Aguirre said...

Wow! You are so talented. Can I come over and enjoy your garden and have a piece of that delicious-looking pie?

Diane T. Wickles said...

Wow, those quilts look so beautiful! I love gardening also besides my hobbies of jigsaw puzzles, miniature dollhouses and coloring books.

Sandra Hoover said...

Happy to share, Nancy - Nothing in the store comes close to fresh, especially in herbs! Patio containers are a great way to grow your own in a small amount of space. Enjoy!

Thanks, Natalie! I'd love to share a slice of pie with you! lol

Thank you, Diane! My aunt was a master quilter who several shows. I had the honor of learning to hand-quilt from her. I'm also a huge fan of jigsaw puzzles & coloring books. Nothing like a new box of Crayola's! haha

Adrienne Reiter said...

Now that's a quilt. Impressive. Happy IWSG Day!

Sandra Hoover said...

Thanks, Andrienne! It's a labor of love! Happy IWSG Day to you too!

Ronel Janse van Vuuren said...

Love the photos of your garden! Everything in mine has to work twice as hard to grow -- I don't have green thumbs and sometimes things die when I just look at them... The compost heap thrives under my care ;-)

Ronel visiting for Feb's IWSG Day Being an Insecure Writer -- And Happy About It

Sandra Hoover said...

Thanks, Ronel! I think I inherited my mother's green thumbs! lol She could grow anything out of nothing. At least you're keeping your compost pile fed! haha Have a great week!