Slowly Emerging

I haven't forsaken my blog. Though it may have appeared that way. I think I may have mentioned in an earlier post that I was taking a break over the summer. I wanted to play creatively and make mistakes away from public scrutiny. I still do.

I've been creating pages in an art journal for the weeks I've been absent and when I hit a brick wall, I die cut some tags out of card I had lying around and used them instead. Pages in a book still manage to hold me back. Tags I have found, being loose, are easier mentally to add paints, inks and ideas to.

I think pages in a book stay there forever to be judged. I'm not keen on ripping them out if they turn out awful. And that stops me from trying something new, from stretching out of my comfort zone. From having ideas and trying them out.

Tags, for the moment, offer more freedom. If it turns out crap, it can go straight in the bin. Or a drawer. I can look at it, note what I think didn't go as planned and try again. I can enjoy the process. I have a very critical inner voice. It doesn't seem to be any kinder as I age. I accept it's there and work around it. Tags, for now, keep it quiet.

As for my blog, I'm going to slowly emerge. Share and show some of the stuff I make, as and when. I may even do another 30 day project. I enjoy the discipline and process of a daily blog.

 Ahhh, stretch & yawn. I hear blank tags calling to me. Time to grab some pens and ink and see what happens.

It's Time to Lipsynch....For....Your..............LIFE!

I am, of course, quoting the Queen of the Glamazons, Ru Paul for the title of this post. As I intimated in my last, I have been watching and obsessing with the fabulous Drag Race over which she presides.

As you may have noted, there has been an absence of crafting going on around here. I've been drawing and doing small household projects but I've largely left my craft room untouched. There is a reason and it's something I've talked about on here before. The ebb and flow around creativity. And I've been in the Ebb mode recently. I'm okay about that. There comes a point when it's good for me to take a break and go look for inspiration instead. And strangely enough, this time around, I've found it in Ru Paul.

But before I go on, here's a teaser...

Now when I find a source I love, I really go full out and dig deep into it. I've been reading Ru's books, including his autobiography. I've been listening to his fortnightly podcasts, "What's The Tee". I've been watching his shows. And I've been learning a heck of a lot about creativity, authenticity and determination.

The TV show is a competition starting with 14 drag queens who are whittled down episode by episode until three remain. There is a grande finale show and from the top three, a winner is crowned Drag Superstar.

Now bear with me, there's a reason I'm going into this. You see, to the mainstream, this is what drag looks like...

Roxxy Andrews from Season 5.

These are the Pageant Queens.

But in Season 4, right from start, I was bewitched by Sharon Needles (Geddit?), whose look was more like this...

And she was forever having to defend her unique aesthetic. Then, in Season 5, I routed for Jinkx Monsoon....

She was another who had an original look, creating characters of a vintage era and was given a difficult time because of her oeuvre.

SPOILER ALERT: Guess what....

They both won in their respective seasons.

The outsider, in a community of outsiders, walked away with the title and crown. They stayed true to themselves against some harsh bullying from the Pageant queens. They had their own style and authenticity and kept at it when the competing queens were constantly putting them down.

Are you beginning to see why I instantly loved them both and cried buckets when the underdog won? Add to that, the story of Ru Paul's life and all the other queens, winners or not and I've been swept away in the tide of resilience, irreverence and creativity.

Now everyone has their own different preferred places to go seek some inspiration. The courage and convictions of drag superstars has been mine this summer.

Okay you've got this far...shall I post a card to show that the ebb is giving way to flow?

Okay...

It's my cliched homage to the world of drag

Now with that out of my system, it's time to grab my supplies and start crafting again