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The middle is messy. At least for me. The middle is when I detach. I’m better after. Looking back and drawing perspective is my comfort zone. I’m taking notes on how to thrive in the middleness. I know, it’s not even a word, but today it is. Being mindful in the middle is something I long to do better because life, it seems, is mostly made up of the middle. I used to believe that being a believer was more like a healing crystal, that Jesus would ward off the hard and the turmoil. I’ve spent the better part of my 30’s relearning my belief system, understanding what I misunderstood and acknowledging that easy was never the promise, or the point. The older I get, the more questions I seem to have. Why is that? See, another question. A wise friend recently encouraged, “It’s okay, normal even, to have doubts. Just make sure you are doubting your doubts as much as you are trusting your truths.” It hit me right in the gut. Because the middleness I’m in has me spending too much time trusting my doubts and doubting my truths. I read about those who go through hell and back while thriving in the middle. Perhaps the difference for them is that they don’t see life the same. It isn’t a “middle”, it isn’t a phase, a season…they are steadfast no matter what their circumstance. And when I peel back the layers that are keeping me comfortable, I’m afraid. Not too many years ago, I did the middle as well as I knew how and darn it, I had no reason not to trust and believe. I clung to hope. And when the story didn’t turn out like I imagined it would, everything I thought I knew looked different. It forced me to ask hard questions and understand more clearly. Now, any sort of middle season, no matter what the circumstance, feels uncomfortable. Going all in sounds easy and feels everything but. Yet, I’m thinking steadfastness is actually the cure to middleness. Spending more time embracing what is true and good, that is the cream that rises to the top. When I do make it through the middle, I always look back to see the Lord was right there in the middle, but I was too focused on the mess to notice His presence. Here’s to thriving in the middle this week.✨
The creative team over at @letterfolk has done it again, and again and again. I continue to be inspired by Joanna + Johnny’s ability to innovate with simplicity. The brand new Tile Mat is no different. For those of us who love a personal touch to the world around us, this is like a revolving door of creative personality. I love how Letterfolk’s products involve the user. Whether it is the Letterboard, a journal, or this mat, engagement is the entire point and that is something special. It allows us to change, update, rearrange, and go back again. For me, practice makes good, never perfect. When my new mat arrived I felt a tad overwhelmed by the vast emptiness and the array of options. I didn’t know where to start. The graphic artist that I am couldn’t help but take it to the computer (swipe to the end). I decided to create an actual, true-to-size template to keep the guesswork at a minimum. I even had a pair tiny hands helping me (briefly 🤪). A couple of insider tips: Place your tiles and complete your design PRIOR to pushing them all the way into the mat. Also, be patient, the more tiles you use, the longer it will take. Get creative!
Oh my goodness! The cat is out of the bag, y’all! It’s no secret that working with @kickoffcouture on typography over the years has sparked joy in numerous ways. But this takes the cake, and you know I love all the cake. My personal affection for denim, @okstate and style that tells a story all come together here. My role was small, just a gal with denim on the brain and the tools to create clean typography that will last. Shea and her team at Kickoff Couture have vision and make game days even more festive! If all the sidebars I have would go like this, I might become a professional collaborator. For now, head’s up OSU + OU fans, the Legacy Denim Collection by Kickoff Couture launches this Friday, November 8 over at @kickoffcouture. You guessed it, quantities are limited, pieces are unique and they are the new staple you never saw coming! Way to go, KC team! This wins! #gamedaystyle
Last week, I was given the gift of feedback. A person expressed their feelings of frustration with the Polka Square business model. Having no success purchasing jewelry has led to their feeling of stress which is why they chose to end communication with Polka Square. In another month or a different season, that experience might have caused me to swell with disappointment and negativity. Instead, I felt lighter. I respect this person for being honest. The point of this space is far more than pretty things, and I accept that isn’t all that interesting to very many people. It reminded me of a time I was a few chapters into a new, wildly popular book. The book was full of mantras and empowerment that I personally found unsettling. I chose not to finish it, to set it down and walk away. There are other books that fit me, just like there are other businesses this person who left the Polka Square community last week can support instead. Is there something or someone you need to unsubscribe from? I read this book, What Alice Forgot, cover-to-cover in a matter of hours and realized how much I could stand to ‘unsubscribe’ from. Reading it was perhaps the most timely activity I could have done in this season of life. We all need a pre-reader in our lives. You know, that friend who is like the travel agent of the book world? My gal pal may have changed my life with this one.✨
As if joy erupted from the earth itself, they playfully contrast with the muted tones of the Nevada horizon. An installation that was intended to last two years, has been extended to five. What exactly is it that draws the people in? Is it the color? Is it the calm outside the chaos of the city? Is it the palpable sense of balance? Probably a version of all of those and more for each person. And as we walked away, the stacked wonders in the distance and the cracked ground beneath our feet, I paused. I wanted to feel the balance in my own two hands. Just for a second at least. Then it happened. The thing I hope I never forget...the stones I carefully held with intentional equilibrium tumbled down. You know what I did next? The thing we all have...a choice. I stacked them right back up. I live much of my life avoiding the crash, the tumble. I take few risks hoping to bypass the hurt. People, that’s no way to live. Some of the best of this life is made in the moments when we stack it back. THAT is when we learn, grow and reflect. Have you hung out with those Seven Magic Mountains? Put it on your list. #sevenmagicmountains
Hat tricks + touchdowns. #halloween2019
Shop Update // Like each of you, I am a person who wears many hats. Yes, yes – my literal hat game is strong, but I’m talking roles here. Balancing the hat tower requires taking careful steps, slow and mindful moves. There are some hats we never remove, others are on a more seasonal rotation. The more hats, the taller the tower, the greater the risk they all might come crashing down. Are you tracking with me? One of my favorite hats is the Collection one. It has style, creativity, emotion and even community (it’s definitely a wide-brim to fit all that in). Wearing that hat requires time, focus and patience to uphold commitments. Right now, another hat is more important. It is a hat that I never take off and one that needs a bit more from me than usual. I am a mother first, not only because I must be, because I choose to be. The beauty of taking off a hat is what? I can put it back on. Do you remember that word I shared with you at the beginning of this year? Unfinished. I never would have imagined how many ways it would apply to my life, and here we are, almost November, and it is still showing up. I have so much left. More I want to create. Designs I need to pour out. And…I believe I will. To give my focus exactly where I need to for the next couple of months, the considerate thing to do is be clear with you, the ones who have been here since the beginning. There are no scheduled Collection releases (Wearable/Home) through the remainder of 2019. The remaining pieces of the Fall Edit Collection are still available on the shop site. This space has always been and will continue to be an outlet. I cannot turn off creativity. Writing is how I breathe. Community gives it a voice. In the past two days, I hand-delivered Home Collections pieces and connected with mothers who I believe I was meant to meet at this very moment in time. I’m still here. #dothepolka
Available in the Shop || “In Between” || We’ve all been there at one point or another. The pause. The moment. But what is it called? When one season ends and another begins. The pass of the baton, whether welcomed or not. At times, the in-between passes without notice. Have you ever felt, however, that the in-between was a season in and of itself? That is the journey of this piece. It acknowledges the bridge of a story that connects two points. We cannot always see it until we have made it through, to what is next. Here’s to the inevitable in-between. Show up and dig in. || 16”x20” Canvas || Shop now at wear.polkasquaredesign.com #dothepolka
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Happy Birthday, Shel! // Free Printable

Polka Square September 25, 2016 0 Comments

Click link below to download a free 8″x 10″ Printable PDF!

givingtreeprintable_polkasquare (PDF)

Tag @polkasquaredesign in your Instagram posts.

The Giving Tree was written and illustrated by Shel Silverstein and published by Harper & Row in 1964. 

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CategoriesUncategorized
Previous
Shop Love | No. 5
October 14, 2015
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Branching Out
September 29, 2016

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