(Be prepared to be flooded with images)
I woke up to a normal day in March, like anyone else. A day that I had prepared the day before in my calendar, knowing exactly what I had planned and when I was going to do it, something most of us can relate to. Until later in the day, I found out everything was about to change.
I couldn’t take it seriously for a moment, I just assumed it wasn’t real. A lockdown?? I’ve never heard of a lockdown before, I almost googled it just to be sure. Did I ever expect to live this during my lifetime? Never.
The day we began confining in our homes, I mentally prepared myself. I thought, if I was going to survive this ordeal, I needed a strategy that would see me through this painful period.
Some of you probably feel comfortable staying at home, it could be a normal routine and one you most likely enjoy. But I love socialising and going places to accomplish my goals. There awaited a challenge for me…
At first, you’re lost, routine is out of place and you’re confused about what to do next. Your household is acting out, making it even more difficult than it already is and you’re struggling to move forward, in establishing a normal routine.
Work. I realised I still had to work, I had to continue producing content. Then I realised, wait, this was a perfect time to do just that! You had all the free time in the world, nobody expected anything from you apart from staying at home. I lay open my notebook and immediately scribbled ideas, sketches and annotations of my covid-19 work week, which eventually turned into months.
“If life gives you lemons, make lemonade”. I’m not sure who quoted this, but I love it. It was a best friend back in high school that referenced this under her yearbook photo. This has become my ultimate motto ever since…
So if life (Allah) did give me and you Covid-19, what would we make out of it?
(For those who were tempted to say covid-ade, you’re not alone)
I decided to turn a bad period into a productive one. It sounds as if I’m making it easy aren’t I? Well it certainly wasn’t. I also spent time my initial moments wasting time because I wasn’t ready. Until an epiphany kicked in, do I want to waste this blessed time at home? God gave us this opportunity of free-time to do something we couldn’t have done prior, moaning about not having enough time or being too busy. Well, you certainly aren’t as busy now! (Maybe not for some people of course).
Whether it’s spiritually connecting with our Lord again, or increasing in family time, you know what is meant for you.
I took the liberty of restructuring my schedule and squeezing the life out of every available time I had (which was plenty).
And then what happened next was a series of my 5 months in photos during the Covid-19.
I sat there thinking my audience doesn’t know how I achieve my work, or how it really looks like in life. People tend to get frightened when they see the end result and automatically shut down and tell themselves they’d never be able to do it. Children are most definitely no exception! Kids’ need all the visuals they can get. Children need a motivational boost using relatable resources, such as images and
videos that they can envisage themselves doing.
Take a look at this photo, it’s not too difficult is it. Look how this simple drawing aids you in your design work, giving you the gentle nudge in the right direction. Preparation is key here. If children prepare their design work, they’ll feel more confident in producing it.
I sat down and recorded how I followed this design into final completion.
Now does the final produce scare you a little less? It doesn’t as much does it? It shows how achievable it is for anyone, and I really am stressing anyone.
It’s about cutting in into small, digestible chunks. Just the way I like to teach children.
The conclusion I came to is that the process of design needs to be shown in bite-sizes for people, certainly children, so that they're able to comprehend and connect with it. By simply showing you the end result, hasn’t it frightened some of you? Doesn’t it give an unrealistic depiction of what can be achieved?
Here are some more examples:
Materials - the “lemon”
Sketching - the “recipe”
Making process - the “following the recipe”
Final product - the “lemonade”
I realised the quote my friend introduced to me to had more depth than I originally thought.
Here’s full rein of my photos during Covid-19 below
Enjoy...
...Wait, before you look, I had another thought. What if you saw this as a new experience for your child? What if you also wanted your children to experience a new craft skill? Craft skills are an amazing extra curricular activity for your children, especially during the Covid-19. Children have been reported to endlessly waste their valuable time in front of a computer consoles, playing games for hours on end.
How do I know? I have a case study not too far from home. After I introduced him to hand embellishment last week, he took it upon himself to learn how to hand embellish using my online classes. I decided, as a treat when he comes over, we’d go into further depth of hand sewing so he can gain extra confidence.
He told me he would take breaks in between his computer games (sigh) and would begin sewing as a past time. I had a thought bubble with deep happiness, “I feel like my work here is done”, possibly shedding a tear if I wasn’t too busy trying to pack his equipment for him.
He left mine with incredibly excitement, joy and optimism for his plans for the future. You should have seen his little face, carrying his equipment out the door. It felt like his treasure chest rather than a box full of beads and scrap fabric.
I am certain this would spark excitement in your children, possibly a cure for the “gadget-obsession-syndrome”.
I look forward to updating you with his projects too.
Do you want your children to “follow the recipe?” too? Find out more about our 1-1 face-to-face classes in London and pre-recorded online classes in hand embellishment.
5 Months in Photos During the Covid-19
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