I was sad to see one of my favorite podcasters update her projects with a final word of thanks. I know her through her husband and I’ve enjoyed getting to know her through her broadcasts, even though I don’t knit myself, I was never diagnosed with ADHD (though I’m way too mercurial even for a Gemini), and my balcony will never get enough sunlight for green things to grow. Her humor always tickled me, and she spoke so carefully that I imagine she could make a career of podcasting if it struck her to do so.

Listening to the two-minute missive, I was reminded of my own podcast, which has been growing cobwebs since the last episode I did back in May. I was going for a weekly broadcast and while there’s no shortage of themed things for that show, there are so many other things I want to do too, and I don’t have the privacy and quiet that I require to pump out an episode on such a short timescale. I’ve been waiting for my muse to nudge me that way again, and instead she’s been dragging me everywhere else. I do think about it often and I’m always finding still more content that I mean to share with my listeners, but sitting down to compile it all is slow in coming. I definitely want to keep it going. But I suppose it won’t until I make the silly thing, eh.

I decided to spend the evening looking for other crafting audio and video podcasts, and while I listened to a few about sewing, I thought about doing one myself. I’m always doing creative things when not at the computer, I am never very idle. I think I’d go for a video format, though most of my other podcasting work has been with audio–I purchased a cheap HD Flip earlier this year and am happy to find a use for it. I’m going to need a tripod before too long.

But what would the theme be? I keep asking myself, having different thoughts and scenarios to play with in my head. “The Sewing Newb”? “Blog and Stuff”? I’d already decided I’d have a lackadaisical schedule for it, updating it haphazardly rather than consecutive weeks in episodic fashion. I like to keep things informal, and as much fun as an episode is to look forward to, that’s a bit too structured and predictable for me. In the D&D personality quiz vernacular, I’d come up with chaotic much more than lawful.

There are distinctly specific crafts that I do and don’t want to do. Sewing is a definite “do”. My list of “don’ts” include needlepoint, crochet, and knitting. Though, I might like to learn how to make simple slippers, perhaps, something useful and utilitarian. A blanket? Yeah, there are some possibilities there, but I do have at least a minimum of experience with handsewing, and I do not (yet) with knitting and the like. Whatever. There’s the rest of my life to learn to do stuff if the impetus comes. Scrapbooking is an “oh HELL no”, because I just don’t see much interesting about a book of photos and flat keepsakes that have other extraneous clutter glued to the pages. It’s cute and all, but I fail to see the function of it.

There’s a phrase I came across a couple of weeks ago that I keep turning over and over in my head fondly: heirloom technology. I daydream of building a sewing machine (or apparatus that has the same functionality) that is as low-tech and simple as possible, that preferably runs on human- rather than electric power, that can perhaps be manufactured on a grander scale than can be achieved in my apartment living room. You see, I love the idea of the handheld sewing machine, and the portable sewing machine, but not only are these two items cheap, they’re made of cheap materials, not made for heavy use, and break way too easily. There is no machine out there that is compact or relatively low-tech, that does not have bad reviews. I don’t care how much such an item costs, but I would very much like having the peace of mind that it’s not going to be broken after two hours of use. I have two mental images regarding all of this, I suppose, owning or making an old-fashioned machine that has a large metal pedal you rock with your foot to run; and I would like to own or make a compact machine that does stuff and does it well.

The construction of the modern day sewing machine, aside from electronics, is very confusing. Why is there only knobs and dials to differenciate between styles and sizes of stitchings? You need to examine (and understand, something I have the dumb about) the little pictures on the sticker on the side of the machine to figure out how to set it to do what you want.

The whole thing has me running to hand-stitching, which I do quite well, but my hands won’t always have the functionality that they do now. I have very poor finger and wrist strength, and I’m already feeling the faintest twinges of arthritis when the weather changes dramatically. And theoretically, if you know what you’re doing, the machine is quicker. I only succeed in jamming up the thing.

Anyway, I have crafting (and daydreams) on the brain.

Probably related:

• January 11, 2012 -- Links, Gigs, and Biz!
• October 10, 2011 -- No, I don’t want to be a Naughty ______. :P
• September 22, 2011 -- Sewing Notions