To Answer Your Question… Part 2!

It was so much fun last week to answer some of the questions I received from you. This week I’ll dive into the “deeper” questions. They are so thoughtful and I appreciate that you asked!

My Inspirations and my Helpers!

Ellen, Hayley, Lily, Eden

1. How does your faith inspire your creative process? Or, how does your creative process inspire your faith?

I started this business by making placemat purses (i.e. purses from placemats!)

Answer: Great questions! For those of you who don’t know me personally, I love Jesus! And I seek to live out the two greatest commandments: 1. Love God and 2. Love your neighbor as yourself. I also believe in world views, i.e. each of us brings to life presuppositions about this world, humankind, how we should live, and what happens when we die. Because of these presuppositions (or world views) there is no dichotomy between what we believe and how those beliefs inform our decisions. For example, I am a “sewist” (a relatively new term, presumably more attractive than the double-meaninged “sewer.”) I could certainly be a sewist and have a different world view than the one I hold. But because I approach life with the presuppositions that God created humankind in His image, I view the creative process as joining with God in creation. Creativity is a gift, given to humans, with the expectation that we will then use our creativity to reflect the goodness of God. Now, that’s likely not an obvious message when you look at a wallet that I made. You don’t look at it and say, “Wow, I see the goodness of God in that wallet!” But I do! I look at what I make and I see the reflection of the Master Creator. And I am awed that He would deign to gift me a tiny spark of that creative power. I also look at vintage textiles and hand-pieced quilt squares from 75 years ago and marvel at the creativity of the people who made them. I think about the joy our souls find in color, pattern, texture. I think about how art is used to express emotions that we sometimes can’t find words to speak. How does my creative process inspire my faith? My soul finds solace when I sew. I am at my most content when I am creating. It’s a privilege for me to be able to sew and I feel alive when I do. If I have had a hectic, busy day I long to get into my studio and make something! Oh that we would all find that “thing” that restores our souls! I’m so thankful to God that He has led me to this path. The business side can be a chore—but the creative side is life-giving!

I used to make fancy hairbands and appliquéd onesies. Here’s my niece modeling both!

2. How do my kids fit into my work?

I loved making these singed fabric flower hair clips! They were from fabric samples and the colors were just delectable!

Answer: Funny, but this was asked by one of my kids! Ha! So now I need to try to figure out what she was trying to get at… I’ll start by the most obvious—the name of my business! Naptime Inspirations began when the youngest of my 4 daughters still napped. I used those precious moments to sew and craft. The kids have grown along with my business. When I began, they were 9, 9, 4, and 1. Now they are 20, 20, 15, and 12! When I started, I made a lot of hair clips and embellished headbands. I made little girl purses and the prints I used were much more juvenile. I also used to make little girl skirts and pillowcase dresses. My, how things have evolved! As my girls have aged, I have valued their input into what’s popular. Their biggest contribution now is with web design, social media marketing, and photography. One daughter was instrumental in helping to me to get my website up and running. Another is great at tweaking my web design (how does she know how to do that??). They all navigate Instagram better than I do! And one has a knack for photography and promised me a photo shoot over her semester break. I’m so thankful that all of them, and my husband, are absolutely supportive and encouraging to me in this endeavor. I love them!!

Little Girl Purse—I still have a few of these in stock if you need any! They were fun to pair the fabrics.

I hope you find these glimpses into the mind of Naptime Inspirations to be encouraging. I’d love to know all of my customers just as well, so don’t hesitate to tell me about yourselves!