What is Metawork?????

Here we are just 18 days into the new year.  It has already been chock full of activities, some that spilled over from the old year and some that really were part of this brand new one. Did you plan out your new year? Well I discovered a new word in this new year, metawork. I really hadn't thought about the meaning of the word althought I certainly had heard it used in various technical conversation snippets here and there.  I discovered it is something most of us do and mostly what I discovered is that it is the part of getting going that can keep us immobile because in doing it we sometimes think we've done what our goal was. Confused? Ok I'll break it down because it can be really important to know and understand the difference. First let me state a camparison....Real work versus Metawork...Oh, hmmmm whaat? Perhaps it would make sense if we compare it to other meta words. Metadata – data about data. Metajoke – a joke about jokes. Metameeting? A meeting about whether or not you need to plan additional meetings. So-ooooo now is it more clear?

Of course, to some degree metawork is necessary – if you don’t take some steps to plan our how you will achieve your goals, you won’t know when you’ve accomplished them. And....left without direction we tend to wander aimlessly.

Compared to metawork, real work is just plain old fashioned work that has a direct impact on progress towards completing our tasks and goals.

Thinking in terms of a concrete example might help here – consider someone who wants to improve their health by lifting weights. Planning your workout schedule, thinking about how many repetitions to do, the cadence at which you want to lift the weights, which exercises to do all on which days – these are all decisions that i would classify as metawork. It’s important to consider them and have a plan of attack, but at some point you’ve got to actually to go the gym if you want any results...Which brings me to why I am ruminating over the word metawork.

In this New Year we tend to all create resolutions, make plans, etc. I want to make a positive difference this year in my life and the lives of those around me. Its been said that Vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action can change the world. -Joel A. Barker

Can metawork help us to get to the dream? I believe it can but I also believe it can be the very thing that can keep us immobile and ineffective in life.

Can I raise a toast to this New Year, a challenge if you will?
"May we all move past the metawork in our lives and accomplish the real things that make a difference to us." Cheers!

Play Date at Stampin MDs House

We had Stamp Class at the Stampin MDs house today! It was a true play date with crafts, bubbles and snacks too. We even had a few tears as we shared our boo-boos. Oh and did I mention this play date was our monthly Stampin Up! Stamp Class??

So-oooo......Heres what we learned today....several new techniques :)
  • Bubble Paper
  • Polished Stone
  • Working with Letterpress folders 
We made some fantastic projects, here is my favorite!

When you open this darling mini Envy there is a mini mirror inside!
The bubble paper was so-ooo much fun to create, a definate do again!

 Who could resist this beautiful snowflake card. I could think of many ways to use this design.The quote"You're one in a million" would be ever so cute with it :)
The polished stone technique is so versatile. I love the whimsey of this lovely valentine.
The hearts and o shapes background paper on the valentine is actually a printed Letterpress plate!

My 2011 Crafting Resolutions

My 2011 Crafting Resolutions…



Creativity and crafting have always been a key part of my life. Even when my children were small I stayed up into the wee hours to sneak in a few hours of creative time. One pet peeve is that I have many ideas and unfinished projects so I’ve decided to create 2011 crafting resolutions.


Here are my crafting resolutions for the New Year month by month (including UFO finishing). The biggest one is not to let this year go by without learning how to use my embroidery machine.


  1. Finish creating a catalog of all of my Stampin Up Stamps , finish cataloging my unmounted stamps in word box 1, create my Artxchange submission. Send out handmade birthday cards for the month.
  2. Finish cataloging my unmounted stamps in word box 2, Use at least 2 items from my clip it up collection. Cut out one dress for Little Dresses for Africa. Send out handmade birthday cards for the month. Plan a scrapping day with Kathi and finish designing pages to mount photos.
  3. Decide on a theme for then plan decorations and develop prototype for an upcoming Adventure tea party. Use embroidery machine to embroider each grandchild’s name on an item for them a (simple item like a washcloth). Create my Artxchange submission. Send out handmade birthday cards for the month.
  4. Start Christmas presents for my grandchildren, Paint or collage the box for Megan and Fiona. Paint Luke’s puzzle stool. Work on a set of new Christmas card designs. Send out handmade birthday cards for the month. Plan a scrapping day with Kathi and finish designing pages to mount photos.
  5. Sew a dress to donate to Little Dresses for Africa, sew one for Fiona. Have a Stamping & Scrapping overnighter at my house. Send out handmade birthday cards for the month.Plan a scrapping day with Kathi and finish designing pages to mount photos.
  6. Finish the Rake Knitting hat for Tyler in blue and grey (Cowboys colors). Start on a hat for Luke Evan and Megan. Send out handmade birthday cards for the month.Plan a scrapping day with Kathi and finish designing pages to mount photos.
  7. Have a day scheduled for artistic development. Pull out my watercolors and work on a 12x 16 or larger or bigger item. Stamp an anything but cards project using scrap papers.Send out handmade birthday cards for the month. Plan a scrapping day with Kathi and finish designing pages to mount photos.
  8. Use up more items in my card starts drawer. Work on Christmas presents. Create my Artxchange submission. Send out handmade birthday cards for the month. Plan a scrapping day with Kathi and finish designing pages to mount photos.
  9. Finish details on any Christmas presents. Get handmade Christmas cards addressed. Send out handmade birthday cards for the month. Plan a scrapping day with Kathi and finish designing pages to mount photos.
  10. Work on last minute Christmas gifts (there are never enough) create my Artxchange submission. Send out handmade birthday cards for the month. Plan a scrapping day with Kathi and finish designing pages to mount photos.
  11. Use embroidery machine to embroider a simple border design on a tea towel for Thanksgiving. Create my Artxchange submission. Send out handmade birthday cards for the month.
  12. Work on Christmas presents. Send out handmade presents.Create my Artxchange submission. Send out handmade birthday cards for the month. Plan a scrapping day with Kathi to finish the Photo book we've been working on all year.