30 Find What Makes You Happy | Handmade Skills, Community & Trying New Things Without Fear

What happens when you stop worrying and start pursuing the things that genuinely make you happy?

In this episode of Handmade Happiness, Jessica and Thomas share a relaxed and encouraging conversation about handmade skills, hobbies, creativity, community, and why it’s worth trying new things, even when they feel intimidating or unconventional. From quilting and sourdough to fountain pens, woodworking, pottery, gardening, and sewing, this episode is all about embracing the things that bring joy and learning as you go. 

They also share stories from recent farmers markets and the Baker Creek spring planting festival, conversations with local makers and artisans, and the importance of finding people who share your passions and are willing to teach and encourage others. 

In this episode, we talk about:

• Why handmade skills and hobbies matter
 • Finding joy in simple everyday things
 • Building community through shared interests
 • Learning new skills without fear of failure
 • Sourdough, quilting, woodworking, pottery, gardening, and creative hobbies
 • Encouraging kids to explore their interests and passions
 • Why people often avoid trying things they’d actually love
 • Creating a life filled with meaningful work and creativity
 • New quilting and sewing classes from The Lark Life

Whether you’re interested in homesteading, sewing, cooking from scratch, gardening, or simply building a more intentional life, this conversation is a reminder to pursue the things that make you come alive.

Find courses, resources, and more at The Lark Life.

Find more information about the Foundations in Quilting Homeschool Course and use promo code LAUNCH20 for 20% off  https://thelarklife.com/foundations-in-quilting

If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe for more conversations about handmade skills, slow living, homesteading, creativity, and raising capable kids.

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 #SlowLiving
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 #IntentionalLiving

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Until next time, may you find joy in the simple things and beauty in the work of your hands.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Welcome to Handmade Happiness, a podcast about simple living, handmade skills, and building a life rooted in what matters most. We talk about everything from homesteading and cooking from scratch to quilting, gardening, and raising capable kids. This is a place to slow down, learn new skills, and be reminded that a meaningful life is often built in the small everyday moments. If you enjoy today's conversation, you can follow or subscribe to the podcast wherever you're listening. That way, new episodes will just be there when you're ready for them. Now for today's episode. Hi there and welcome to the Handmade Happiness Podcast. I'm Jessica.

SPEAKER_02 0:37

I'm Thomas.

SPEAKER_01 0:38

And welcome into our living room for today's conversation. It's good to be sitting here to have a conversation with you.

SPEAKER_02 0:46

You had a full weekend.

SPEAKER_01 0:48

It's been busy. So we had our first farmer's market Thursday.

SPEAKER_02 0:52

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_01 0:53

And then wrapping prepping and restocking Friday because we had another market on Saturday, and Baker Creek had a festival this weekend. Two days. We were there Sunday and Monday.

SPEAKER_02 1:06

It's a good weekend.

SPEAKER_01 1:06

Um yeah, lots of great stuff, but it's good to be sitting here to have a conversation. So we I so enjoyed, like it was a crazy busy week, but I loved it because I got to meet so many really amazing people who are doing a ton of amazing things, and just people's willingness to have conversations and share the things that they're doing and share what they're learning, and me having an opportunity to share kind of what we're doing and what we've learned. It's it was it was lots of fun.

SPEAKER_02 1:39

I think we touched on that was it last episode or a couple of episodes about like the importance of community.

SPEAKER_01 1:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:46

And we're gonna talk a little bit more about that tonight, about kind of in depth about what that looks like.

SPEAKER_01 1:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:52

Um, especially with regards to gardening and farming and all things creative and all the things, yeah. Finding your space. Um, I noticed you're I've got my new key mug tonight.

SPEAKER_01 2:01

Yeah, so if you're watching this on YouTube versus just listening to it, you can see my cute little handmade mug that I got from a local potter at a local studio that was set up at the festival this weekend.

SPEAKER_02 2:14

And um I like that it's fairly substantial. I picked it up the other day and it's weightier than you would think it would be. Yeah, it has a good foot on it, right? To make it and maybe it's just me, but I feel like that's a uh if you drink coffee or tea, like you appreciate a good mug.

SPEAKER_01 2:29

Right. Right, and that's for me, it does matter what it's it wasn't the most decorative mug that they had, but the handle.

SPEAKER_02 2:35

Yeah, it feels right. It felt like it just feels right to you.

SPEAKER_01 2:38

So this is the one, and I'm excited to be drinking some nice hot tea in my nice new mug sitting next to you. Have a few years. You got some chai in there? Is that what I should be drinking?

SPEAKER_02 2:47

Some chai tea. You're a big chai latte fan, right?

SPEAKER_01 2:50

I'm doing some chai tonight, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 2:51

I'm drinking some vanilla chamomile. Uh a little bit of Usa, a little bit of just a little mild sweetness. I try to stay away from the coffee this late in the evening. We're filming this or recording this uh late in the evening, and so try not to be drinking coffee, you know, an hour or two before bedtime. Yeah, yeah. It's not a good, not a good thing for me. So um, but the chamomile is working, it's kind of mild and yeah, it's good stuff.

SPEAKER_01 3:16

It's good. So you and I kind of had a conversation about what we might want to talk about this week, and so you started mentioning just you know, finding those things that work for you that you love, like with us and our our tea, like your mug, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 3:31

Yeah, I have a couple of coffee mugs that are my favorites. One is just a plain brown one from your favorite coffee mass chain, uh, but it's got a really it's got a rubber bottom on it, and it's like a just solid mug. It's my go-to. And then I have a couple that are sentimental for me that people bought for me that you know are like my one that I'm drinking from now that says, sorry, I was on mute, because if you're a gamer, you get it, right? So um, and we talked about just like things that mean something to you and that are your little happy moments and your finding your happy, I hate to say finding your happy place, right? But finding those things that matter to you in your life, and it doesn't have to matter to anybody else. This makes me happy. That's why I use it, right? That's why I do this thing.

SPEAKER_01 4:19

So for my Aunt Paula, it just makes me think about her. Oh, yeah. It's all the plants, all the flowers and the trees, right? If there's a if there's a bare spot, she's gonna find a way to put a plant there because that just brings her so much joy to to be able to look out and walk out in the yard and see all of these beautiful things growing.

SPEAKER_02 4:38

Yeah, and for you, it's finding a couple hundred square feet more garden space to occupy.

SPEAKER_01 4:47

For me, it's lots of things. No, it's not really there's lots of things. And most people, like you walk in and they're doing like they've got one thing that they're doing.

SPEAKER_02 5:00

Sure. Like the cookie guy selling cookies.

SPEAKER_01 5:03

People walk into my space and they're like, oh my gosh, you've got a lot of things. Tell tell me about what you do. What and I and I you're into a lot of stuff. The way I describe it to them, I'm like, you are literally walking into all of my passions right here. Like all of the handmade skincare and all of the quilting things, and the fresh milled flour and the loose leaf tea. Like, I was like, You're you're just in the middle of all of my favorite things when you walk into the city.

SPEAKER_02 5:29

Yeah, none of none of the things that you're selling in your booth are things you don't care about.

SPEAKER_01 5:33

Right, right.

SPEAKER_02 5:34

Those are all things that matter to you. You have a favorite one, you have a favorite technique or whatever it is, right? Like it's it's intentional.

SPEAKER_01 5:43

So it's fun to be able to have a place to kind of let all of those favorite things out for everybody to see.

unknown 5:51

Sure.

SPEAKER_02 5:52

Well, and sometimes I think people avoid doing things like that because well, let's be honest, it's because of social media, right? They think I think a lot of times people are involved in things or not involved in things because it's perceived as being cool or being hip, or vice versa. Right. And so a lot of times people don't get into like maybe having a handmade mug and drinking loose leaf tea because that's like a nerd thing, right? Or like they kind of like to read books, but they've never really jumped off into just really getting into reading because again, that's not cool, right? And I think that's such a shame because uh I was reading yesterday and the the guy's point was basically like you get one crack at this. Yeah, you're not gonna get to go back and do it over later and be like, ah, I'll read books next time. There is not a next time, right? And and I think that's so important when you find things that make you happy, knock it out.

SPEAKER_01 6:56

Yeah, right?

SPEAKER_02 6:56

We uh even this this evening we were talking about tea, and you were going through the teas, and she was out of her favorite tea. And so she found a an acceptable, you know, a chai tea latte always works on a pinch, right? But we were talking about how it's like, hey, if that's the tea you like, let's buy a five-pound bale of it and you can just use it forever, right? Because you know, like I'm not gonna find a tea, a mint tea, better than the one I drink. I like it, it makes me happy. And if if you drink a cup of it every night and that's your thing, okay, great. Reminds me of your grandfather and and his ice cream. Oh, yeah, every night one scoop of ice cream made him happy. He did it every night. Okay. Yeah. That makes you happy. Yeah. And I think there's a lot of value in that. Just finding those little moments where sometimes we get super busy and we get caught up in just running, and it's like, you know what? I'm gonna go make myself a cuppa.

SPEAKER_01 7:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 7:53

Or I'm gonna go listen to the you know, Stravinsky or whatever it is that go on a walk.

SPEAKER_01 8:01

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:02

Whatever it is. I'm gonna go dig my fingers into the dirt for five minutes.

SPEAKER_00 8:05

Yeah, because it makes me happy. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:07

And and so I think that's there's it's super important for us to find those things that make us happy, the little things, right? Everybody likes to go to Disney World. Everybody likes to, you know, get a bonus check, right? But finding those just everyday moments that are unique to you, right? So if it makes you happy to sit on the couch and pet your cat, great. That doesn't make me happy, it makes me sneeze, right? But right, but again, if that's your thing, like have a cat, have two cats. And you know, and because again, we get one shot. Yeah, we get one go-around. So find the things that make you happy.

SPEAKER_01 8:48

And that way you get to the end and you don't have any regrets about, oh, I shoulda, I could have. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 8:56

So another thing that I hear a lot doing the markets, people will come in and they'll see some of the things that we've got going on. So they'll they'll see the sourdough starter and they're like, oh, I've always wanted to do that, but it looks so hard or it's so complicated. Because again, they're seeing these Instagram reels and these videos of people that have way overcomplicated it. Oh, yeah. And so I always go back to like, this is not a complicated thing. No, it's super complicated. This is like people have been baking bread this way forever and ever and ever. Yeah, there are people who make it super complicated, but you don't have to do it that way. It can super easily fit into your life. And let me tell you how to do that so that you can go for it, you can try it. And I think a lot of times people shy away from stuff. Anything new is uncomfortable, right? Like you change it. You might be excited about the idea of it, but then actually taking those first steps to jump off into the thing can be a little intimidating. And so some people never take those first steps off into it because it's scary, or they're not sure it's gonna work, or they're maybe they're a pessimist and they're just certain it's gonna absolutely fail, and so they're not even gonna try because why try? It's not gonna work.

SPEAKER_02 10:12

Um well, and that's like what I was saying earlier. I think sometimes people don't do things because they're afraid of being judged for them. Right? Oh, but my friends are gonna think I'm weird, or you know, oh, but that's not nobody who does that, right? Well, you do that, right? If it makes you happy, then you do that. I'm into pens and notepads. And I honestly I don't write that often. And it's been a while since I sat down and wrote, but but like when I sit down to write something, I love my fountain pens. I have two or three nice fountain pens, and I I have fountain pens on my Amazon wishlist that are $175, and people are like, $175 for a pen. But when you use a nice pen like that, there's something about it, and you're like, okay, I like I get it, right? Because I tried it. I just bought a cheap fountain pen, it was like a disposable one, I think. And I tried, and I was like, okay, like I I think I like this, I like the feel of the drag of it on the paper. And um, so I you know, I uh we've talked about this before that I started working on my handwriting, which was atrocious because I was one of the first kids to grow up in the typing era, right? Yeah, and so I intentionally like got a fountain pen, got a nice book.

SPEAKER_01 11:27

But having a nice pen kind of gave you the motivation to oh yeah, for sure.

SPEAKER_02 11:31

And now I'm kind of a pen nerd. Like I see pens, I'm like, oh man, look at that pen.

SPEAKER_01 11:34

Not not just a pen nerd, you're like you're an ink nerd too. You spend hours scrolling looking at different inks.

SPEAKER_02 11:41

More than one type of ink, more than one color of ink. I do metallic ones. They make all these ones that like change colors and have glitter, not glitter, that's really underselling it. It's like liquid metal, right? But um, so again, pretty nerdy, right? But but it makes me happy. And so it's like, why not have three different, four different inks and a bunch of different fountain pens? Um find your thing that intrigues you and and pursue it.

SPEAKER_01 12:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 12:06

And that kind of ties in what we talked about with the kids that with the homeschooling thing last week. Is do your kids find stuff like that? Like, nurture that.

SPEAKER_00 12:15

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 12:16

If it's not harmful to them, then let them run with it, let them experiment. If your kid likes collecting antique pocket knives or I don't know, bowling balls or whatever, you know, like let them run with it, let them explore it. If they get tired of it, okay, sell it all on eBay.

SPEAKER_01 12:30

Like, yeah, well, and so that leads us to the next point of our conversation tonight. So, talking about the kids and their interests and things, um they all have their different things, and recently Ruben has mentioned a couple of things. So, one of the things he's excited about trying is he came to us really excited wanting to make uh cutting board, which is phenomenal. Yeah, so he wants to kind of experiment with some woodworking stuff, and he's specifically he wants to make the one that's like different strips of wood and press together maybe. So he's been watching all kinds of videos comparing what you know this person says against what that person says, and you know, he came back, oh like I'm gonna make this kind, and everybody uses this kind of glue, and everybody says that you should use these kind of woods, and so he he's doing all of that. Well, as we're at Baker Creek's festival this weekend, um, one of the vendors in the booth right across from me was a woodworker, and he had all of these cutting boards that he had made, uh, some of them in similar styles to what Ruben has been talking about. And so during a slow moment, I was like, I'm gonna walk over and just see like if he has anything that can help us. Because like one of my first things when Ruben came to me, I was like, this is so exciting, this is great. Um, but where do I find this wood? Like, I don't even know where to do it. Where do I source nice? Because I can't just go down to the local home improvement store and treated two by fours and slap them together, yeah. So I walked across and I just explained to him, like, hey, you know, I've got a 10-year-old son, he's interested in trying this out and trying to make something, and so like where I please help me, his mom, be able to help him do this thing. Where can I find him some pieces of wood to use and where you know what what share any information you have that might be able to help us? And so he was so generous. He took talked to me for a long time, gave me the name of a couple of places where we could source some materials for him, um, confirmed some of the things that like he told me about the glue in the woods, and I was like, when I shared it with Ruben, he was like, Yeah, that's the same thing, that's what everybody's saying. So I was like, okay. Um, so it was really nice to be able to connect with somebody that's doing that thing that Ruben is so excited about because I don't know how to make a cutting board, I don't know where to source the wood, I don't know what glue you're supposed to use. Like, I don't I don't know any of those things. Um, and so to be able to talk to somebody who's been doing that and is very skilled in the world. He's making money at it, is making money at it, and who is so willing to just share all of his tips and tricks and secrets so that we could pass that along to to our son to learn how to do that. It was yeah, pretty amazing.

SPEAKER_02 15:33

Well, and I I would work, right? I've done quite a few projects, but uh to be honest, I've not ever done a cutting board like he's talking about making. I know in my head, I know the steps, right? I know how it's done, but I've never made one for myself, and so um we'll kind of walk through that project together. I already know we're gonna have to buy him some clamps and things. And again, that's the kind of thing that not everybody's into. That's not gonna get him any cool points at youth group, right? Per se. It might, it might with the adults more, but but he cares about it. Oh, yeah, and he's passionate about it, and he's like you said, he's been watching YouTube videos and searching up where can I get the wood and where can I get the glue, and and so again, it's like that that's a passion of his that makes him happy. Like, we're gonna pursue that. And we'll probably make a crappy one first, and or you know, a mediocre one, and then we'll talk about how we can improve it, and then we'll make another one, and it'll probably come out pretty good, and he'll be really proud of both of them.

SPEAKER_01 16:33

And and before long, he'll be finding all kinds of unique designs and coming up with his own patterns for stuff, and he'll make one that's better than what I would have made because he's done it more than I have.

SPEAKER_02 16:45

But again, that's that's the point, right? Like, we want our kids to be better than we are, and it's not even just that, I mean, just even our ourselves, the things that you're into. Ten years ago, you weren't into 90% of the things that you're I mean, you were like dabbling in gardening, I think, right? But other than that, you weren't doing anything that we're doing now, including the quilting. And here we are.

SPEAKER_01 17:11

Here we are, right?

SPEAKER_02 17:12

And we have a podcast, right? Like that's crazy. But again, it's not things that we did because other people were doing them or because it was cool, or a lot of it, we didn't even get into it because it was lucrative, we got into it because we liked it.

SPEAKER_00 17:29

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 17:30

We liked eating fresh bread and not even eating, baking bread, the process, the process, right? And um I, you know, we talked I enjoy a good cigar, it's an acquired taste. I'm not advocating tobacco use, I'm just saying on a quiet night when it's cool outside and the deer are out in the meadow and whatever, I'll sit on the back porch and have a good cigar. If I find somebody who shares that interest, I'll recommend my favorite cigars to them, right? It doesn't make me any money. It doesn't, you know, I mean it's yeah, it's a niche thing. A lot of people don't like cigars. She doesn't like how they smell. Okay, she doesn't have to smoke them, right? But but it makes me happy. And in moderation, it's a really nice addition to my life. And I've had to smoke more cigars eventually, right? So um, again, find the things that that make you happy, and then going back to the community, I think one of the things that we're excited about is being able to take the things that we're doing and share them with other people. I think that's an indicator too of like what somebody's motivation is, like you said, at the at the the markets. So you can tell when somebody's just there trying to make a buck and when they're there because they really care about what they're doing.

SPEAKER_01 18:48

Right. And so, like several of the people that I found people that were doing some things that we were interested in. So the vendor right beside me, they um sell worm castings for people's gardens because it's phenomenal. So he has this whole worm farm and he's selling these worm castings, and later in the year, as they build up their worm populations, they end up selling worms because his whole thing is like, yes, I can make it, but he wants he thinks everybody should have worms making their own. I'll make it easy for you the first time, and then you do it yourself.

SPEAKER_02 19:20

So you can be better, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 19:22

Making the product, hoping that people will fall in love with the product so much that they make it for themselves, right? Um, and so I had mentioned to him, Ruben has several times now mentioned, you know, we should have a worm farm for all of our garden stuff. And so I mentioned that to him, and he was like, Oh yeah, well, I I have these videos and tell him this, and uh, they're gonna be at the Ozark Homestead Expo that we're gonna be at in the fall. And so he was like, Yeah, just send them over to my booth and I'll tell him, you know, anything he can ask me whatever questions he has, and um, the potters that I talked to where the where I bought my mug. Well, they're only 20 minutes from us. They have a studio, they do classes. I was telling you, Oh, yeah, they're close, right? We had uh a wheel and a kiln in the garage that's needing to be set up once we get the right electrical plug. But the kids are just like anxiously waiting for you to install that so that they can so that they can get to work out there and and play it, play in the clay. Um, but they were also super helpful, had lots of information, and will be a good resource for us as we get stuff going just to answer the kids' questions and and help them do things. So it's nice to find people that are so generous and willing to share that information. And then it's also fun for us when we go to the markets that we have the opportunity to share. People will come in the booth and ask all kinds of questions and just being able to share the things that we know. Like we're not experts in a lot of things, but the things that we have learned doing these things, yeah. Um, it's nice to be able to share that stuff with with other people.

SPEAKER_02 21:00

And some so many times I I think what we see is that when somebody's passionate about something, generally they don't gatekeep the information.

SPEAKER_01 21:10

Right, right.

SPEAKER_02 21:11

Um, I think of like the Darties, right? You had questions about a cow, they've forgotten more about cows than we'll probably ever know.

SPEAKER_01 21:19

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 21:20

They are so excited to tell you, like, yeah, let me tell you about a cow, and here's why you need a cow, and yeah, here's the kind of cow you should get. And they'll ask all these questions because they want to make sure they recommend the right cow for you and like you should look for this cow, but don't get it over here, get it over here because over there they're you know, and on and on and on and on and on, because they're not trying to sell you anything, they just want to make sure that you get the best cow experience that you can have because they believe that that changes people's lives.

SPEAKER_01 21:48

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 21:49

And I think that's really what it comes down to, like we said in the beginning. Find those things that make you happy, find those things that improve your life, even if they're weird or niche or Or odd, off the wall, hard to find, all those things. And do them because they make you happy, because they improve your life. And we talked about that many times. We don't make fresh bread because we're concerned about what's in it when we buy it from the store. We make fresh bread because it tastes better. Because we like eating fresh homemade bread. And if somebody wants to buy some bread from us, great, right? We don't raise chickens so we can sell eggs. Do we sell eggs? Yeah, of course. Because we have too many. Yeah. Because otherwise we'll throw them at each other. But but we have chickens because we like eating the eggs that they make, not because it makes us money.

SPEAKER_01 22:40

When I've started taking the grains and the fresh milk flour to the markets with me, um, not because I'm trying to sell a bunch of grains and flowers, but because that has been one of the best changes we've made in our and having it there and giving people an opportunity to have a small amount that they can try for themselves so they can see what I'm talking about for themselves.

SPEAKER_02 23:00

Yeah, because you're really not even selling, it's like I don't want to sell you, I don't want to be your flower dealer.

SPEAKER_01 23:04

No.

SPEAKER_02 23:05

Here's a sample.

SPEAKER_01 23:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 23:06

Yeah, you can pay me for it, but here's a sample, and then go get yourself a mill and change your own life.

SPEAKER_01 23:11

Yeah. Right? Like because it's so good and it's so much better.

SPEAKER_02 23:15

It's so much better.

SPEAKER_01 23:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 23:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 23:17

So really, really fun and exciting to be able to learn from each other and and share the things that we're learning. And again, finding those things that um make make us happy and make and give us those again, watching the kids learn these different skills and just running with them and being so proud and so excited of the things that they're doing and getting so much joy in doing those things with their own hands. It's it's really fun to see.

SPEAKER_02 23:53

And then building that community, meeting like-minded people who can share. Sometimes it's not even that they have anything to offer you, sometimes it's just they share your enthusiasm.

SPEAKER_00 24:04

Yeah. Right?

SPEAKER_02 24:05

Like sometimes it's just because, like, hey, you know what? Let's go both try that thing we've never done together.

SPEAKER_00 24:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 24:10

That's that's half the fun of it. Yeah. Sometimes it's not about what you can learn or what even what you can teach. It's just about having somebody who is nerdy like you. They share your passion.

SPEAKER_01 24:22

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 24:23

It's important.

SPEAKER_01 24:24

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 24:24

Hopefully you hopefully you marry somebody who shares a lot of your passions for those things. I think that's been important for us, is that I mean, I don't quilt and you don't smoke cigars, but we both get it. Right? And we can be sympathetic to each other's nerdiness. I don't know what I'm trying to say here, but the point is like we both get it. Yeah. And you don't pick on me and I don't pick on you. We don't think like, oh, there they go, doing that stupid thing that they like to do. Because I hear people say that, like, oh, you know, he's off doing his Warhammer or whatever that is, you know, and it's like they're just thinking that's the most ridiculous thing in the world. Yeah. And it's like, that's important to that person.

SPEAKER_00 25:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 25:08

Right. And you're poo-pooing it like it's childish or like it's useless. I don't, you know.

SPEAKER_01 25:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 25:14

It makes them happy. So encourage it. Tell them go play Warhammer.

SPEAKER_01 25:17

Like, you should be happy because they're happy.

SPEAKER_02 25:19

Yeah, exactly. Be happy because they're happy.

SPEAKER_01 25:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 25:22

Exactly.

SPEAKER_01 25:23

So, anyways, any other thoughts on that?

SPEAKER_02 25:27

No, go do something nerdy and enjoy it.

SPEAKER_01 25:29

Before we kind of wrap it up, yeah. So, um, another thing, I so I just finished recording some content for sewing machine basics, like the sewing 101 class.

SPEAKER_02 25:46

Um I have this machine, I think it's a sewing machine.

SPEAKER_01 25:49

I hear over and over again, and people that are coming to my classes more and more, they are interested in learning how to sew, they're interested in learning how to quilt, um, but they have never used a sewing machine. They have a sewing machine that was given to them or that they purchased for themselves in hopes that, like, oh, I want to try this. Um, but then they don't even know where to begin. And it seems a little bit intimidating. And it, if you have never used one, um it can seem to be a good thing. It's like a barrier to entry, right? I mean it's kind of a put together this class. I'm working on getting it edited. Hopefully, by the time this podcast is airing, it will be out there on the website for people to be able to find. So I'll make sure I put a link in the description for that. Um, to really help people, again, if you want to do it, it'll give them that extra little help that they need to take that first step and jump off into it. Because the ladies that are coming to my class that have literally never made a stitch in their life, that have never used this machine, it's just been there collecting dust. They come and they end up having so much fun. Um, not only are they making something, they're sharing great conversation around the table with each other, and um they come back again and again, and then they bring in, oh, look what I've been working on this at home. And now it like starts this domino effect of the things that they're doing. Yeah. Because they want to share their joy, yes, yeah, and their friends are like, wait, you did what? I've always wanted to do that. And how did you do that? Was it hard? Yeah, so that's gonna be up, and then um by the time this episode airs, uh, my quilting episode on the Art of Home podcast will be live. That goes live Wednesday, May 6th. So you can go over to the Art of Home podcast and check out that quilting episode. We get into a big, deep, long conversation about all things quilting, which I can talk about forever and ever. So that was lots of fun, and that's gonna lead into the homeschool conference that we're going to. Um May 14th, 15th, and 16th. We are launching our homeschool course. Uh, it will start in August, the very first week of August. But we're going ahead and getting it launched, getting people signed up. When people sign up, they're gonna get instant access to the new sewing machine basics 101 so that they can sure so they're already ready. Kind of be learning some of those. They're gonna get instant access to um some of the beginner quilt lab content that already exists so they can see the supplies that are recommended, what they need, kind of right. Um, so quarter inch. They'll get access to some of those things now so they can kind of be looking at that and working through that in the summer. And August 1st, we'll start with those 16 weeks of quilting lessons that we'll be doing. We're gonna have this whole community around it so that people can ask questions, share feedback. One of the things in class that's so fun, people will have you know a pile of fabrics and they're like, oh, which one do you think I should use for this part and what should be this part? And what and sometimes it's just nice to be able to have somebody to bounce ideas off of it. Somebody to go, you wouldn't use that one, use that one. Yeah, use this one, or like maybe did you think about trying this way? And so that's a lot of that that we get in those in-person classes, is what I'm working so hard to build into this online quilting course so that wherever people are, uh, if you don't have anyone close to you that shares those same interests and passions that can bounce ideas off uh each other, we're gonna create that in in the course.

SPEAKER_02 29:48

So well, and that that's some of that's built in too. I mean, right at at um there is a uh a tier that includes some some one-on-one and some some personal conversations that if you really are struggling with a concept or something that she can uh coach you through that live so that you can it's like being in being in sewing class and being in quilting class and yeah, um do some live calls and have a group chat going so that people can bounce things off of each other and show and tell.

SPEAKER_01 30:21

Everybody likes to show off what they're working on and get to see what everybody else is doing too. Because a lot of times that'll spark ideas for you. You'll see something somebody else has done, and you're like, oh like I want to do that, but I'm gonna do it this way and you know, make it your own. So anyway, so lots of good stuff happening. Um find something you love to do, find something that uh gets your blood pumping and that makes you excited to be alive.

SPEAKER_02 30:49

Yeah, don't don't be I think just like don't be ashamed of being excited about something that is not mainstream.

SPEAKER_01 30:59

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 30:59

Right? I mean, whatever it is, if if you really are into the nuances of of metallurgy, like great, we need that, right?

SPEAKER_01 31:10

Or if you're into pocket knives or or woodworking or just because nobody that you know in your immediate circle is into that thing, there's like a whole people out there that's doing that thing that loves it even more than you.

SPEAKER_02 31:24

Making paper.

SPEAKER_01 31:25

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 31:26

You want to make paper, you think that's cool? Guess what? I promise you, there is a Reddit forum out there full of people who make paper and who can give you tips. Again, the most niche things. If it excites you, if it interests you, get into it and you'll find community. You'll find somebody out there. That's one of the really good things about the World Wide Web is yeah, you're gonna meet somebody who doesn't.

SPEAKER_01 31:45

I'm gonna nice with people who who are doing that thing and who are passionate about that thing that you are. So I'm excited.

SPEAKER_02 31:51

It's gonna be a good summer.

SPEAKER_01 31:54

Yes, it's gonna be so great. So find something you love, give it a try, don't be scared to try it out.

SPEAKER_02 32:01

Jump in and then sign up for quilting class.

SPEAKER_01 32:04

Yeah. Share what you love with other people around you and um pass it on. Pass it on, yeah. So thanks for joining us for this week's episode.

SPEAKER_02 32:14

And we'll see you next time.

SPEAKER_01 32:16

If you're wanting to go a little deeper and actually learn some of these skills step by step, I do have courses and workshops available at thelarklife.com. They're designed to be simple, practical, and approachable, especially if you're just getting started. You can also join our email list where we share guides, printables, and updates on what we're working on here. It's a quieter space and one of our favorite ways to stay connected with you. I'll put a link to both in the show notes. Thank you for choosing to spend some of your time with us. If you've been enjoying the podcast, one of the simplest ways to support us is by telling a friend and leaving a review wherever you're listening. It helps more people find these conversations and it truly means a lot for us to hear how our stories are impacting you. You can also go to thelarklife.com slash podcast. There you'll find an option to give a small one time or ongoing gift, and it helps support the time, tools, and energy that go into creating these episodes. Until next time,