Lately I’ve been really focused on creating calm in my life; whether that is staying in the moment, concentrating on my breathing, saying mantras and meditating.  When all that fails – I sew.  Suffice to say, I’ve made a lot of new things over the past few weeks.

I’m not sure what it is about sewing other than it takes me away to another world, a vortex of passive quiescence, providing a protected distance from reality. A nirvana, where the real world disappears and I am emancipated from anxiety and any attachment to what happening.  My mind goes somewhere else.

It goes to Fabricland.

Yes it is a store but it is so much more. It is a LAND ~ an artistic, cathartic escape, filled with possibilities, potential, and solutions all in one’s power, at every bolt.  If I ever feel stuck, uninspired, unmotivated or life simply isn’t cooperating and chaos ensues – Fabricland is my shelter of calm.

I mindfully, meander aisles reminiscent of jungles filled with exotic colours, textures and patterns. Forging through dense forests of lush mossy wools, burgundy velvets and earthy tweeds.  I enter haphazardly into a circus of chance – a kaleidoscopic palette, mixing, matching and merging the most preposterous combinations, polka dots, argyle and stripes, heliotropic fusion with a scheming spectrum of sanguine, fuchsine and magenta. I am breaking the rules. I am running with scissors. I am released. Free…leaving chaos and confinement behind.

My imagination goes wild. My thoughts turn to collars and cuffs, buttons and trim. My fantasy fueled with plackets, pockets and pleats. My senses ignited, experiencing the sensuality of rich tartans, dreamy flannelettes and decadent fun fur.  At times I am overwhelmed. It’s good to feel alive.  I dance in a fabric frenzy, piling up a bounty of bolts, yards and yards of possibility to be new again.

At home I clear space and place every piece of treasured textile out while I concoct one-of-a-kind concept ensembles: Cowgirl Chic, Boho Nerd, Clan of the Cave Bear Circus, Schoolgirl Punk and Bay City Roller 2.0…to name just a few. I lay out patterns, I pin, I cut. I am.

Hours literally pass without thought, hunger, thirst or care. I am blissfully lost in the hum of the machine, the repetitive needle going up and down; up and down. The zeal from zig zagging, the healing of hand hemming, the realization, and culmination of creation.

Now sewing is my thang.  But the general idea here is to find something that connects with your mind and let it take you away from what’s stressing you out or bringing you down.  It could be exercise, cooking, macramé, axe throwing or reading – a good book like “How to Live Like a Chipmunk and Other Tips on Living an Awesome Sauce Life”, which also happens to have a chapter on How to Create Calm….one stitch…two stitch, repeat.