Crafting My Way Back To Life

I have missed blogging so much over the past few weeks – believe me, it was completely unintentional to disappear on you for so long.   To begin with I was posting a lot less as I was focusing on moving forward with my ideas and plans.  And then life took a sudden turn and, while not unexpected, it still threw me completely.  Since then I have not felt ready to post (I am still not ready to share all the details with you but the big event was Chris and I breaking up) as I have been struggling just to manage getting through each day.

A fairy door I made for a swap

And then, a couple of days ago, I started to feel more like my old self again.  I spent some time doing some crafts for swaps on swap-bot and remembered just how much I love to create.  They were completely different from anything I’ve ever done before (and included making mail art which I am now in love with) which has made me want to explore my creativity once again.  

Cupcake mail art - front

Cupcake mail art - back

Since then I’ve started reading crafting blogs once again to inspire myself.  I feel ready for a whole new level of creativity now.  Before, I tended to stick to what I knew, I followed step-by-step instructions and I played it safe.  But now I want to explore my creativity, try new things and work on creating my own ideas.  In some areas I am still following step-by-step as I navigate my way through new terrains such as using my sewing machine, just to get myself started with the basics before trying my own thing.

The no-sew doll I made for a swap (tutorial here)

It feels as though I am quite literally crafting my way back to life, as opposed to the existing I have been doing.  The next thing I want to try is altered/decorated matchboxes (if you would like to join me I’ve created a beginner’s swap) as the pictures I have seen of them look truly amazing.

An Unexpected Love

 

When I was at school I hated sewing machines.  It seemed to me that they broke every time I tried to use one and so I figured that they all had it in for me.  It got so bad that after a year or two, I started hand stitching everything we had to make for Textiles class which involved a lot more work and me stitching for hours at home to finish in time.

So when I started seriously considering getting a sewing machine I was a little thrown.  Hadn’t I sworn never to use one of those horrendous machines again?  Hadn’t I vowed that there was nothing I wanted so badly that I couldn’t hand sew it?  And yet, towards the end of last year I found myself not only wanting one, but looking them up and trying to work out how I could obtain one.  When my parents offered to get me one for my birthday I only hesitated a little before saying yes.

It is not quite my birthday yet but as my parents were visiting this week, they brought it along with them and now I have my very own sewing machine sitting at the dining table (I’m working on making the space to put it on my desk).  I have to admit that I am still a little intimidated by it but when my mum showed me how to use it, the stitches came out so straight and perfect that I couldn’t not fall in love with it.  I can’t wait to find an easy project to get me started as I figured I should probably start out small – I don’t want to trip myself up trying to run before I can walk (aka create clothes before I know how to simply stitch).

Are there any items that you thought you’d never ever want under any circumstances and yet find yourself loving now?

Challenging My Perceptions Of Myself

I believe in constantly learning new things and discovering new ways in which to see the world.  However, recently I’ve started challenging my perceptions of the world in a completely different way.  Instead of looking outward to see differently, I’ve found that I am looking inward.

Let’s start at the beginning.  I am a writer.  I have always known that I was a writer and that is where my talent lies.  I’ve never questioned this, just followed along.  I have accepted myself as a creative through my writing.  I am also a crafter.  But I see myself more as an amateur creative – I make cards and cross-stitch.  Until recently I’ve only really stuck to the basics and haven’t really seen them (especially the cross-stitch) as part of my creativity.

And then I decided I wanted to start a creative business revolving around writing (because that’s what I’m good at) and cross-stitch (because I have fell so far in love with it that I want to do it all the time).  For this to work I’ve had to radically change my self-imposed view of myself.  I am having to design my own charts, which inevitably means that I am putting pencil to paper and drawing ideas.

When I realised that that was what I would have to do I became terrified.  I can’t draw.  I’m the person that doodles stars and hearts because that’s all I can make come out right.  And now I had to trust that I could not only come up with ideas (something I’ve always struggled with), but that I would be able to get them down on paper.

Earlier this week I had a massive break through.  You may remember that I managed to do alittle designing despite being very ill, I didn’t admit that I was terrified of looking back to see how much editing they would need.  Of course they did need a little tweaking, but overall, I was proud of my work.  And on Saturday I outdid myself in drawing the perfect cupcake (quite a task when you’re as much of a perfectionist as me).  I have now accepted myself as an artist.  I may never sell my artwork in its original form (I am currently drawing to transpose my designs into cross-stitch charts) but I have come to terms with the fact that I don’t suck nearly as much as I thought.

Is there anything, like drawing, that you tell yourself you could never do, let alone be good at?  Why not challenge your perceptions of yourself and see what happens (you may well suck, but perhaps with a bit of practice you will find that you can do it) and share your experiences either in the comments here or on your own blog (and like here so we can read it).

Handmade Envelopes

So yesterday I started making some envelopes.  I honestly don't know why I hadn't thought of it before, as I absolutely love sending letters and this is like the simplest paper craft ever.  All you will need is some pretty paper (I used some from a scrapbook stack that I've had laying around for a long time), some glue and double-sided sticky tape.  Okay, actually I didn't use glue as I couldn't find it in amongst the boxes so you can leave that one out if you don't have it (though I would definitely recommend it).

First, I cut out a template.  There are plenty of free ones online, I won't point you in the direction of the one I used as it was actually badly sized meaning that the front and back weren't the same size (I improvised on that bit) or you could probably create one using word or publisher or something (don't ask me, I'm rubbish when it comes to something other than writing or googling!)

Once you've got the template, use it to create your envelopes.  I literally just drew around it and then cut them out.  Make sure you fold in all the right places - it's pretty self-explanatry.

Glue (or sticky-tape) the inside folds, then match it up with what will become the back of the evelope.  This stage is the trickiest which is why I would advise using glue as you will then have a few seconds to readjust if you get it wrong.

Then put a line of double-sided sticky tape across the flap.  Don't pull off the top protective layer until your letter is inside.  And ta-da - envelopes:

As you can see, some of my envelopes are a little dark and I was worried that the addresses wouldn't be easily seen.  So on a couple of them I placed a little address box.  I found these cute 'hello!' ones here.

Hope you enjoyed this quick and easy craft.  Let me know if you try it and feel free to link to any pictures of your creations.  You could always add some patterned paper to the insides to make them extra special or simply draw your own.