Yesterday I was over at my mother-in-laws felting a ton of wool (tutorial on that soon) and she gave me the “Where Women Create” magazine featuring Amy Butler, Nancy Soriano, and Jo Packham (just to name a few).
I am so inspired by this magazine – reading all of these incredible stories of creative women entrepreneurs and the spaces where they turn their dreams into reality. I’ve read many issues of this magazine before, but for some reason this issue, in particular, spoke to me. There were several quotes that I just cannot seem to get out of my head, so here I am blogging about it because I have to get these thoughts out in writing and maybe some of you all can relate.
So I’ll start with sharing my favorite quote from the issue and it comes from “Little Women” via the artist Debbie Dusenberry……
“You have so many extraordinary gifts; how can you expect to lead an ordinary life?”
I struggle daily with whether or not I should be doing what I’m doing in regards to my children’s clothing business, blogging, creating, ect. I really do. I think it’s what they call “mother’s guilt”. At this point, my life does not fit the same mold of most other mothers. I struggle with what I feel my life should be verse what I want it to be. I see a lot of other mother’s around me completely devoted to their children, really taking no time out for themselves and their passions in life because it’s what they are supposed to do. And I respect that, really I do. But I want more from life for myself and my family.
I’ve always wanted to be a stay-at-home Mom (honestly, I have) and I am lucky to have the opportunity to do so. And I love everything that has to do with the domestic life, but even in the early months staying home with my daughter, Savannah Rose, there was something burning inside of me…..a creativity that just needed to be released. And thus, I created the blog “The Cottage Home” and the children’s clothing business “The Cottage Mama”. Do I need to work? No. Do I want to work on “The Cottage Mama”? Absolutely! It is my passion.
Which leads me into another quote……….that comes from Julia Cameron via the artist Amy Barickman……..
“Creativity is an act of faith and we must be faithful to that faith, willing to share it to help others, and to be helped in return.”
I never thought of creativity from this perspective, but it truly is a gift from God. And for those of us that cannot control our need for creativity, we must follow in the faith. That is why I love writing this blog, I love helping others learn and awaken their creative spirit and I love learning from all of you as well. Why should we suppress a truly amazing gift from above just to fit the mold of an ordinary life? We should feel lucky and blessed to have had that gift bestowed on us.
And finally a quote from Rober Schuller via Nancy Soriano………
“What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail?”
How many times have you thought about doing something, but then never acted on it because you just knew it would never happen? We all act on our fears and insecurities and it is what inhibits us from following our dreams in this world. So I ask you to take a minute and think about the quote above, what would you do? I know what I would do. Push all your worries and fears aside and speak to your inner voice. I cannot even imagine what our world would be like if we could all just push fear aside and go for it!
In closing, these are my final feelings………
I want my girls to be proud of their mother and know that what I do for myself, I also do for them. I want them to know that I did not conform to the majority and took a different path. I want to not feel guilty about embracing the gift of creativity. I want my girls to take the gifts God has bestowed upon them and actually do something with them, not suppress them to conform to the molds of what women and mother’s should be in our society. I want them to take on their dreams and goals head on without the idea of failure. I want them to listen to their creative spirits. I want them to walk to the beat of their own drummer. I want them to be happy.
Thank you for reading.
Lindsay Wilkes is the owner and designer behind The Cottage Mama. She creates timeless, vintage inspired sewing patterns for children’s clothes. She is also a fabric designer for Riley Black Designers / Penny Rose Fabrics, author of the book ‘Sew Classic Clothes for Girls’ and can be seen teaching nationwide and online in her video series ‘Lessons with Lindsay’ sponsored by Baby Lock Sewing and Embroidery machines.
Wow I NEED that magazine! Thank you! I always feel guilty for not being the perfect June Cleaver but I also feel so blessed to be able to work at home on a business I’m passionate about.
One day you’re going to look back and ask yourself where did the time with your children go. They are only small for a certain number of years. Once they are in school, they are in school forever! You don’t realize how little time you have with your children. And when you work away the days, you’re missing out on so much. You have a lifetime to work and be passionate about something. You only have THIS TIME to be with your children. Go get them Cottage Mama, but realize that the timer is on. Don’t burn yourself out before the kids get into school. Just a message from someone who has lived through it!
Such an inspiring magazine – it led me to reinvent my craft room over the summer and really helped me focus on my passion for creating. Think I’ll have to go get the latest copy – great stuff!
Just sharing some thoughts from a stay at home mom with grown children. My children grew up with my working from home..it started with setting up an office in my home and working for an Environmental Inspection company…my kids loved having me around and when school started they loved being able to come home and I was there..maybe not 100% because I was working but “there”…after a few years I decided to change to doing my craft, which at the time was decorative painting..they loved it..they were proud and would tell their friends all about what I did. While their friends parents worked outside the home and the kids either had a sitter or family member to watch them..which is great also…don’t get me wrong..anyway..to make a long story shorter my kids both grew up in creativity, I switched to quilting and sewing… my son now is a wonderful photographer and my daughter and I went into business together..and have been since she was 13 and got into jewelry design..we have now been in business for…20 years…and she is now a SAHM and expecting her second child..I love my gifted life and wouldn’t change a thing..my wish and prayer is that your daughter’s will also join you in creating and you’ll share the same thing that my daughter and I do.
I think you have touched a nerve for me. The first quote is something my mom has been saying to me all my life. Any time my “creativity,” got in my way she would share that with me.
I am loaded with Mother’s Guilt. I slack on house hold duties, because I do not like doing EVERYTHING involved in being a stay at home Mom. I love the Mom part, I just hate the cleaning lady, and cook part. It is like 50% of the job.
Since starting my newest creative process it has become a problem for my family. My husband did not come from a creative kind of family and he just does not understand the “creative,” side of me.
Also, I have got to do more cleaning. He is trying to understand. I am trying to do more cleaning, and hold myself to a higher standard of cleanliness.
He too is a creative person and has the same creative needs, but he is a computer programmer. He just sees his creative programing time as his reward for working all day on someone elses code.
Creativity is an act of faith. In more selfish terms, this means an artist needs to have faith in themselves, and there ideas in order to have any kind of result. You wouldn’t start sewing a dress with out an idea you had faith in.
I loved this post. Very inspiring to think about what it is I go around doing day to day.
It is nice to know you are dealing with some internal struggle as well. You are not alone.
Lindsay,
This was such a timely post for me. I’m sick in bed for day #2 and I have been reading wonderful blogs. After spending much of yesterday reading and resting, I visited Etsy. I have enjoyed that site for a long time. I have often thought I should be there.
I come from some very creative people. I was an art major at one point, and furthered a different kind of creativity when I became a chef. Still, the art side of me is always like a small, stifled voice trying to call to be noticed. I had been a very active artist and crafter ten years ago. I did a craft show(many juried) every weekend in fall and winter for a few years. I then got a job with a paycheck.
Like you, hubby didn’t come from a creative side. I see he has promise there with woodworking, but he is swamped with day to day. Anything rates higher than housework for me. I hate it. I want it clean, but don’t want to do it. It’s a struggle.
I so admire you for your lovely children’s clothing business. Every once in a while I let myself create something and it feels SO good. I must find a way to bring this part of me back into day to day, but it’s hard to know how to do that without taking away from something else. Balance. The keyword is balance.
Good to know I’m not alone. I love the quotes, especially the one from Little Women. My teenage daughter
recognized the quote and where it was from right away. My kids humble me!
WOW! You took my feelings and words and expressed them to a T on your blog!! I don’t think a day goes by where I don’t feel this way!!!
I started out in Interior Design, went to school and got my degree. Worked at a large furniture store for nine years doing floor displays. Worked to the top and along the way added 2 kids to my family.
I wanted nothing more than to be home with my 3 babies (11, 4 and 1) but i have this ever lasting burning desire to CREATE!! I believe God blessed me with a gift, as small as it may be, and I treasure it dearly! I want to use it to it’s full potential and to His glory! 🙂 I feel blessed on a DAILY basis that I am able to work from home and still be here with my kids. I don’t have to get up at 5:45 every morning fighting the everyday grind of life and spend my entire paycheck on childcare!!! I refuse to pay someone to raise the gifts that GOD blessed ME to raise and nurture! I understand that there are 1,000’s of women who have no other choice:( But it may be that’s what they want from life.
I also don’t fit the normal stay-at-home-mom mold. I have to pass on almost every outing so that I don’t fall behind on orders, laundry, cleaning, cooking, dishes, ect.! But I do get such joy doing what I do!!:)
Blessings! Prencie
Awwww, you totally read my mind my dear. I think it’s a constant battle for all of us involved in this wonderful community. We are all creative, busy, talented women but we are all also wonderful mothers. We all feel guilt for time we take to create our passions, but in the long run I try to remind myself our girls will see that their mom make her dreams come true and be true to herself. We always tell our kids they can do and be anything, but what better way to really show them than by doing it ourselves? they will respect us as women later and hopefully honor the craft themselves when they are older.
I can’t imagine not creating. If I didn’t it would not be a good place in my home…haha. it’s like they say “a happy wife means a happy life”. So true.
Luv ya hun, and you are a FANTASTIC mother 🙂
Amazing post! You have no idea how often those same thoughts circle through my head. Infact, I’ve cried quite a few tears about the whole “mommy guilt” before. I completely relate in every way. Thank you for all you have shared. It really solidified in my heart, that I am on the right, I am blessed, and I can indulge in my creating and be a wonderful mother at the same time. I’ve so thoroughly enjoyed reading your blog the past several months. I’m so happy to have found you!
Lovely post! This spoke to me, too! 😉
Children learn by example and it sounds like you are providing a great example for them!