A couple of recent posts have gotten me thinking about work and play. One was Elizabeth’s post on why she decided not to pursue an Etsy store for her sewing. The other was Myrna’s post on starting her new jewelry business.
At the moment, I work as a scientist, and sew and paint in my spare time. I don’t think I am more or less passionate about any of these activities, but I treat them very differently, because one is a job and the others are hobbies.
At work, I am extremely product-oriented. I approach science as a business, where the end product is a paper and the most valuable resource is time. Like Myrna, I work backwards from the product to figure out my schedule. If I want to publish a paper in two years, what kinds of experiments can I realistically get done in that time? How many recordings will I need to do to answer this particular question? What equipment will I need and how long will it take to get that up and running? Like an artist, I don’t know exactly what the end product will look like. Also like an artist I need to leave room for learning and play. But my play is very focussed: I will budget a week to goof around and try out new stimuli. Or maybe a month to develop and test a new system of delivering odors. And I recognize that— as much as I pour myself into work— the paper at the end doesn’t belong only to me. What I choose to work on is a negotiation between what the field is interested in, what the lab works on, what’s fundable, and my own interests. Every science project is in some sense a collaboration: between student and advisor, between authors and reviewers. I often tell students that data doesn’t become science until other people know about it and understand it. Science is a social endeavour. And that’s a good thing.
In my hobbies, in contrast, I can be as selfish as I want to be. I make things because I want to. Because they strike me as beautiful. Because I want to learn something. It’s pleasing and gratifying when people like what I’ve made but that’s not what motivates me. I am the only judge I care about, and if that means making three muslins none of which become garments, or spending an evening staring at a half-done painting before finally putting it away for several months, or abandoning a medium I’ve become good at because it’s no longer exciting to me, so be it. It’s my time and I can spend it how I want.
For a long while I thought about trying to make art into a career. I did some some illustration work which was very enjoyable: I got to treat art as a collaboration for a change and to try to come up with visual solutions that fit both my clients’ wishes and my own sense of design. But in the end I decided that that wasn’t for me. I didn’t want to spend my free time promoting my art. I didn’t want to tailor my paintings to fit the market. I didn’t want to turn art into a form of production, rather than a form of discovery. So while I still do an art show each year and I love it when one my paintings finds a good home, I don’t treat art as a business. And that works for me. (At least for now.)
I also learned that selfish time is important. It is my prozac, my exercise. It is what allows me to be the kind of wife and mother and scientist I want to be. I thought maybe that would end when Joey was born. Every so often I tell myself it’s time to “get serious” and start devoting every spare minute to reading the science literature or working on analysis. But I don’t think that’s going to happen. I need to be selfish at times so I can be generous the rest of the day. Blessedly, I have a husband who understood this before I did.
At the same time, becoming a professional scientist also made me a better artist. It taught me how to plan a project that might take years to complete. It taught me how to break ambitious goals into manageable pieces. It taught me how to give and receive criticism with grace. It taught me that I can teach myself any skill and gave me the patience to let those skills mature. It let me know just how long it takes to actually get anything done.
So I feel happy (and lucky!) to be able to both work and play. For me it seems to work best if these are separate activities. But I know that for other people they are the same thing. May everyone find the balance that works for them in the new year!
Elizabeth | 04-Jan-12 at 1:42 pm | Permalink
I loved reading Myrna’s post too! Great minds…
It’s great to hear about the synchronicities and connections between all of your interests. Or how one influences another.
I agree too, that balance is the key and the magic word. Thanks for another great post.
Faye Lewis | 04-Jan-12 at 9:25 pm | Permalink
RE: the vogue wrap dress – I did not make a muslin of this dress because I had made it several years ago for my Mother (although I didn’t make a muslin that time either). I am a muslin person though, and for knit garments I usually find some hideous fabric from Walmart or elsewhere to make knit muslins from. I use it even if is not similar to the fashion fabric I am planning on using just to get a feel of how the pattern will make up.
Back to the vogue wrap dress: I tried the dress on when I made it for my Mom and the bodice was a too large. I have since learned that I need to go with size 16 in the neck, shoulder and upper chest area area of dresses, blouses and tops and then grade up to maybe size 18 from underarm down.
Removing excess sleeve ease has become standard for me whether I’m using a knit or a woven. Removing the ease helps me sew sleeves in without puckering.
I added 1 1/2″ to the bodice (I wanted to add 2″ but chickened out) now I wish I had added the extra 1/2″. I think that I’m long waisted, but actually I probably have an average length waist. I added 2″ to another vogue pattern last year and the bodice turned out to be too long with that alteration. Adding the 1 1/2″ was just a guestiment.
I stabalized the shoulder area, but not the waist. The pattern instructions did not call for it, and I really did not think about doing it.
I removed 1 1/2″ of fullness from the bottom of the back skirt and the front skirt. There are 2 back skirt pieces and 2 front skirt pieces so the total fullness removed was 6 inches (I think my math is correct).
Fabric used: a poly jersey knit. I am pretty sure that your sweater knit would be way to heavy for this pattern. There is a lot of circumference in the of the skirt hem, and IMO it would stretch the dress out of shape. I used a cotton knit when I made my Mom’s dress (not knowing any better) and it was way too heavy. Even though the skirt was not cut on the bias, I allowed the dress to hang for a day before I hemmed.
I do plan on making another wrap dress from Simplicity 7705 just to see the difference in the two patterns.
Sorry so wordy – hope I answered all the questions you asked – if not please let me know.
SewingElle | 05-Jan-12 at 4:16 am | Permalink
Great post. I’m a scientist too, although a different field to you (I’m a wine and food chemist).
You’ve expressed beautifully how I feel about research science as a career and sewing/creating as the relief valve to keep a balanced family life and work
Elizabeth | 05-Jan-12 at 7:35 am | Permalink
I want to be a wine and food chemist!!! What a fun science field.
Myrna | 05-Jan-12 at 7:37 am | Permalink
Great post. Self care is such an important lesson – learning that we can be a better wife/mother/woman by taking some time for ourselves instead of work and others and others and work. We matter and what we enjoy matters and by gathering energy through what we enjoy, we have more for others. YES YES
Glad you enjoyed the post. Heading into this, a huge red flag for me is that I’ve been in art as a business before and it sucked the joy right out of it when the X, Y, and Z factors didn’t work out. This time, I’m approaching it differently because the bottom line intent is to earn income.
If I’m not earning income – the point of a business – then there are many other things I can do for free and fun with my time. The bead breakdown was an eye opener. The woman I studied with has hundreds of those little beads for sale at $4 for 50 and she’s basically doing it for free… while watching TV… in the evenings. That’s not my idea of business plus, this time around, dividing work and play is really critical.
Because of all those limitations, it could be this doesn’t work out. Good and enough. Time will tell.
Kyle | 22-Jan-12 at 8:07 pm | Permalink
I agree with you, I enjoy keeping my creative things separate from my workie things. My workie things enable me to pay for my creative things. It works out well.
Anyway, I enjoy all these thoughtful posts you have written!