A Touch of Whimsy

I suppose I'm an adult. My boyfriend definitely is, being twenty-six and an editor at a well-regarded medical publication. However, despite the fact the label of "adult" generally means certain childish things no longer send you into fits of laughter, there is a word that still sends my boyfriend into a state of uncontrollable giggles.

That word is "poops."

And since said boyfriend is a fairly practical person when it comes to gifts (I made him pajamas for his last birthday), and he jokingly mentioned wanting a decorative pillow for his couch I decided to take up the challenge of making him a classy pillow that quite simply stated the word "poops" on one side.

Now, I have never embroidered before much less inflicted myself to the tricky world of freehand embroidery, but I figured it would be worth a try to craft a pillow that would leave the lad in stitches.

It wasn't fun.

But, for the sake of comedy, I did it. The process itself was fairly simple: I sketched out the word in a nice cursive font, and cut it out. Then I (literally) chalked it up on the fabric and cut that out, followed by precariously using a satin stitch along the edges to get it on the pillow-front, and while that was a headache and a half, I got it done.

And let me say that every agonizing moment of carefully tracing along the letters was worth it when I proudly presented the gift to my boyfriend, who could not stop laughing upon seeing it, proclaiming that it was the best anniversary gift anyone has ever given.

Which, I suppose, comes down to one thing I always want to remember:

Sometimes the best thing you can do is be silly.

While writing, working, sewing, and otherwise it can be so easy to get caught up in being the best, or producing serious, high-quality work, but sometimes the most rewarding work can be the stupid thing you put your heart into. So maybe I'm not making money off classy neck pillows that proclaim gross words, but  the process was definitely a learning experience, and the outcome was definitely worth the work!

And while people are often quick to judge adults who find certain immature things amusing, it's far more fun to laugh than disapprove.

So here's to taking the time to sit back, be creative, and amusing the crap out of yourself (and sometimes the others around you)!