Clearing out my Qi

"In the midst of winter, I found there was within me, an invincible summer." (Albert Camus) I love zinnias. They represent the vibrancy of summer. I have a zinnia poster that I bought and had framed 33 years ago. It has sadly faded. I decided to recolor it with paints and markers, and after years of putting it off, finally got 'er done. Here is the finish:

Here is a before, with just the leaves greened up:

Much brighter. My studio looks much more cheerful, full of joy. The latest trend is decluttering your home and work space, sparked by Marie Kondo and her Konmari method. It is supposed to create joy as well as space. I scoffed and ignored the idea for a while, because, really? Is it possible to declutter a sewing studio? Every time I come in this space a bomb goes off and stuff flies. I have worked to keep it somewhat tidy but it has been a losing proposition. I read a couple of encouraging blog posts and decided to give it a try. Who doesn't want a nice, joyful, spacious sewing room? First I put away the knick knacks, the thimble collection, wiped the shelves and got a few big baskets to hold stuff. I have been going through my bins of fabric, sorted by colors, and if it doesn't give me joy, into the thrift store bag it goes. I have already tossed half a dozen arm loads of stuff.

Notice anything in the basket? I am not going to try to explain the whole concept, or give pointers on how to find your joy. I can, however, state that I feel much better, and so does Rootin' Tootin'. I am working on a top secret project. One part of it is invisible machine applique with monofilament thread. The fabrics, glorious Kaffe Fassett prints, are being fused to the background. The whole idea is to make a wonderful yet affordable piece of art. I can attest to the speedy delivery this approach has, and the results are very satisfying. Here is a little teaser of the results:

I think it is a success. Have you tried any new techniques that gave you joy?