Nicky

I’ve been fascinated by hobby electronics for years, especially sewable components. I’ve dabbled a little, bought a spool of conductive thread years back and embroidered a simple circuit.

I’m once again motivated to learn, and oh my God has the technology come a long way! There are now different types and weights of conductive thread, super cheap microcontrollers specifically designed to be sewn and worn, and tons of sensors, lights, GPS modules, etc. made for crafters.

Although I have some grand plans, my ideas far outstrip my skill set. So I’m starting fairly simple. I want to do something more complex than just lighting up LEDs on embroidery. I found these amazing LilyPad parts on Sparkfun and just started playing with them yesterday.

The little battery holders have built in switches, which means you save several steps in the sewing process. They hold a coin cell battery, so they’re best for very low power projects, perfect for light up embroidery. And the adorable TinyTwinkle is a pre-programmed microcontroller that makes lights twinkle.

I’m still terrible at writing code, so getting a microcontroller I can use right out of the box is amazing.

It does make the circuit a little more complicated. It’s no longer just a battery, some thread, and an LED. But that makes it the perfect next step, right?

Word of advice? Make sure you have working batteries before you make yourself crazy wondering why things aren’t working.

This was just a test, and I have an idea for an actual project using the Tiny Twinkle. I’ll be cutting it loose and starting on that hopefully today.

If you’ve ever considered adding lights or other effects to your projects, now is the time. The parts are cheap, and there is a ton of support online.

In the meantime, I’ll be tranfering these parts to an actual embroidery piece.

I finally broke down a little this weekend.

It turns out, three jobs (down from four last month), was just too much for me. I’m a bartender/server, I had a home based wash and fold laundry business, and I also help with social media at the aerial studio I take classes at and perform with.

It was non-stop. My apartment has been lost to me under a pile of strangers’ dirty clothes, lint, and various laundry detergents. I spend several nights a week serving beer. While I’m there I plan out Instagram posts for aerial classes and performances. Then I go to bed late trying to finish getting a stain out of a toddler t-shirt.

And I knew it was coming. I’ve been saying for a few weeks I wouldn’t be able to keep this pace up. But instead of acting on it, I kept going, convinced at some point I’d slow down.

But I didn’t. I crashed and burned a little instead. The lovely man I’m seeing came over and talked me down as I cried. I considered becoming a housewife. I, not for the first or last time, considered getting an RV and just running away from civilization.

And then I breathed for a couple of days, and decided to take my life back. The whole reason I work multiple jobs is because I want the freedom to walk away from a situation that isn’t working. I want that freedom. But I overdid it, and instead of freedom, I’d boxed myself into a corner. I couldn’t hang out with friends, or see my family. I started ordering food instead of cooking just because I was tired. I was falling asleep on my couch with the lights and tv on instead of in my comfy bed.

So I put in my notice to the laundry company. And I’m considering cutting back at the bar.

And I’m restarting this blog. But this time, as the dreaded “lifestyle blog”. Because when I started it the first time I also got caught up in the rules of niching down, sell-sell-sell, hyper focused world that personal sites had become.

And really, I want a place where I can share the little things that make me feel like I’m taking part in my own life, instead of just running. Makeup, knitting, sewing, cooking, my dog Lucy, whatever. I don’t entirely know what this will look like just yet. But it feels like it could go back to being a fun adventure rather than another rigid place to focus on money over joy.

Nicky

Nicky

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