The Changing Seasons – March 2020

It’s time again for the wonderful challenge The Changing Seasons hosted by my dear friend Su from Zimmerbitch!

 

I think you’ll all agree that March 2020 will be a memorable one for all of us.

The ongoing worldwide Corona/Covid-19 crisis has had an enormous and unprecedented impact on all our lives, and I’m not just talking the lack of toilet paper here but what the virus and the situation is doing with us on a mental as well as on a physical level.

Self-isolation and social distancing are the things that people will probably struggle more with than they were aware of at the beginning of the crisis.

Humans are sociable beings, and not just because living in a community has obvious benefits in terms of survival, but because we do not cope well with being alone and lonely for too long a time, at least most of us don’t.

And yet, it has become mandatory that we do exactly that – no one knows for how long but we all hope that it will be over rather sooner than later.

 

In the meantime it seems important to me that we keep ourselves as occupied as possible, and I don’t mean watching TV non-stop. 😉

Even though I do have my dark moments as well, I know how to keep busy, especially creative wise. This does not only help pass the time, but also improves your mood enormously.

So I’ve come up with two simple projects to stay creative and busy in the last weeks, both of which I’m going to share with you here. (All materials should be available online if you don’t happen to have them lying around in your home.)

Project One

The first one is pretty easy, and also a lot of fun: all you need is colored paper, washi tape, a pair of scissors and a pen to craft your own Easter or Spring greeting cards for friends and family.

 

Handmade Easter or Spring greeting cards (March 2020)

 

Project Two

The second one is a little bit more time-consuming (which shouldn’t be much of a  problem at the moment 😉 ).

For this project all I needed were: plain t-shirts, textile colour, paper, transparent/cling foil, a carpet knife and a brush.

 

I chose a silhouette of Mary Poppins 

You can either print out a design of your choice or simply draw it (silhouettes work best).

You then have to melt the foil to the back of your paper using an iron (google diy transfer paper if you’re unsure about this step).

Cut-out Mary Poppins

Next you cut out your design, and then apply the transfer paper on your shirt using the iron again. This will prevent your design from accidentally slipping when you apply the colour.

Applying textile color on a t-shirt

Apply the colour with a brush and let dry for at least 6 hours (use a cardboard or newspaper underneath so the paint doesn’t stain the back of your shirt).

Another design I chose shows a stag and a squirrel, even better to make out in the next photo!

Iron your shirt inside out, this will fix the colour, making it washable at 40°.

Stag and squirrel on a t-shirt

 

Mary Poppins on a t-shirt

 

Final step: wear your upcycled t-shirt with pride and a smile on your face! 😊

 

Me wearing my handmade Mary Poppins t-shirt (March 2020)

 

Me wearing my handmade stag and squirrel t-shirt (March 2020)

 

 

Hope these gave you some ideas on how to spend your time at home, and/or at least made you smile!

Take care and stay safe!

 

 

If you would like to join in, here are the challenge guidelines:

The Changing Seasons Version One (photographic):

• Each month, post 5-20 photos in a gallery that you feel represent your month
• Don’t use photos from your archive. Only new shots.
• Tag your posts with #MonthlyPhotoChallenge and #TheChangingSeasons so that others can find them

The Changing Seasons Version Two (you choose the format):

• Each month, post a photo, recipe, painting, drawing, video, whatever that you feel says something about your month
• Don’t use archive stuff. Only new material!
• Tag your posts with #MonthlyPhotoChallenge and #TheChangingSeasons so others can find them.

If you do a ping-back to Su’s original post, she can update hers with links to all of yours.