Getting it done...

Some projects, I just think, why didn't I do this earlier?  This one took me an hour tops and that's while helping 2 little kids paint.

That is also what I call Bang for Your Buck.  $2 + 1 hour = 8 homemade cards.  This may inspire me to complete the rest of these packets. 

Projects finished: 8
Projects given away: 2+
Weeks: about 11

More Knitting & Using the "Good Stuff"

If I really want to move things along with getting rid of craft supplies by doing crafts - knitting will probably be a majority of the crafts.  Those balls of yarn take up quite a bit of space and when knitted or crocheted, usually turn into something that doesn't quite take up as much space as the original balls do.   So, here it is.....A mobius twist scarf, using Lion Brand Landscapes yarn.

 Nice.  Not as pretty as the picture on the pattern page but it will do.  And this was another one of those - why did I buy this yarn?

I have an account on Ravelry - a great knitting community, but it is also a great reality check.  The pattern pictures for knitting projects are so coiffed, they look perfect, the model looks great, maybe they're pinned in the back to make them drape the best way, like on other modeling-clothing shots.  But Ravelry is the great balancer - it really helps me figure out if that picture on the front of the pattern is real - will it really look like that when I'm done?  People can post pictures of what the items look like on them - no special lighting, no special hair or make-up, just real every-size people wearing wonderful items they made themselves.  There gave been quite a few patterns that I have not done because the reality pictures are not as flattering on anyone as the pattern pictures.

I'm also realizing that most knitting patterns that I like, really do look better in the more expensive yarns.  Hmmmm.... isn't that usually true in life?  It's better to buy the more expensive quality items, than a huge quantity of sub-mediocre items. 

Have you ever been to yard sales at homes where the person has passed away?  If they were a knitter or crocheter, it's always the cheap yarns that are piled high for sale.  If people are smart, they have used the "good stuff" - the merino and alpaca wools, the silks, the baby cashmere.  Really, when I wear items, the "good stuff" is what I would prefer to wear, so why don't I knit with it? 

My pile of yarn is mostly sub-mediocre yarns.  I'm afraid to use the "good stuff".  What if I mess them up?  Well, I'm making the resolution today that I'd rather make a few wonderful items with good feeling yarn than a whole bunch of stuff with cheap yarn.  And at the end of the year, if I really am going to give away the yarn that isn't used, wouldn't I rather be not using and giving away the everyday yarns, instead of the small amount of  "good stuff" I have?

 (Except for washclothes, where cheap cotton seems to do the trick.)

Projects finished:  7
Projects given away: 2+
Weeks: about 11

Expert vs. Jack of All Trades

I am obviously, a jack of all trades but would like to become an expert at something.  And I'm still trying to figure out what that is.  I'm hoping this year will help me figure it out...
I can cross sewing off the list - definitely am not a fan of that and crocheting bead ropes. 
What do you think?  Is it better to be a little good at everything or be awesome at just one thing.  From a clutter standpoint, it definitely helps to just be good at one thing.

It always impresses me when people seem to just know what they want to do for life.  I have a cousin who has known since since she was in high school that she wanted to be a pharmacist.  She got her 4 year degree in pharmacy (this was a few years ago), worked for awhile, went back and got her PharmD and now teaches pharmacy at a graduate level (I guess, that's the only level now.)  But she always knew what she wanted.  That helped her narrow her choices of schools down.  Plus, because she is so focused on pharmacy, she is very knowledgeable about the subject and has published articles on pharmacy.

I, on the other hand, had a difficult time narrowing down colleges.  I wanted to be a biochemistry major, at first.  And then, a biology major, then maybe pre-med, but wasn't really sure I wanted to put in the hours to be a doctor, which is kind of a joke because after getting a 4 year degree in bioloogy, I went back and spent 2 years more getting a degree in nursing and then, another 2 years getting a masters in nursing (do the math - its the same number of years as med school).  And still wonder if its the best fit for me.

That's kind of how I am with crafts.  I really started with crosstitch and embroidery kits.  I see beautiful embroidery items on Etsy and think about how much skill those people acquired.  But instead of continuing with crosstitch and embroidery, I decided to try my hand at knitting, and a little sewing, some quilling, card making, then jewelry making, then crochet.  Really, why don't I just find the true passion of one craft (maybe 2) and leave the rest to the experts.  I feel like I need to be the go-to person of how to do a craft.  Isn't that kind of how hoarding starts?  I'll keep this just-in-case.....  I'll learn this craft just-in-case.....    It's why I still have a sewing maching, even though I don't really like to sew. 

In this search of simplifying, I'd like to be the expert on something.  I read a book once, the Outliers, about how it takes 10,000 hours to really become the expert in something.  In that case, I better get moving.

The Knitted Blanket

It takes quite awhile to knit a blanket.  This one - well, I've had the yarn for a few years.  I bought the pattern back when Lion Brand used to sell their patterns - now I believe all their patterns are free, even this one.  I think I started last fall.  I thought this may be a *quick* way to pare down some of the yarn (quick is kind of a joke).  It uses 24 balls of yarn - 135 yards each and the colors are gorgeous!  (That is 3240 yards of yarn to knit and crochet.  Yikes!)   Panel by panel it got completed. 

Here's one completed panel, folded up, and a pile of yarn taking up precious space on our foosball table.  I kind of feel like my Mom.  We had a ping pong table in our basement for as long as I can remember.  And when we were kids, it was used.  My brother and I would try to hit ping pong balls at each other as hard as we can, hoping to smack our opponent.  But, as we grew older and used it less frequently and especially, after we left, well, the ping pong table disappeared - under piles of stuff.  My husband often joked to my Mom that he had always wanted to play a game of ping pong but was unable to - and this went on  - for at least 10 years.  She finally cleaned it up and it was pretty clean the last time we went home.  Once a surface gets something on it, it just seems like a slippery soap before the entire surface is covered!!

Well, our foosball table is a better sight right now.  And all those skeins of yarn turned into this beauty.  So excuse the lack of blog entries lately but this craft was certainly worth it.  Warm, fuzzy and so colorful.  I love it. 

 And the kiddos like to cuddle up with it in front of the tv... or just lay on it.

Projects finished:  6
Projects given away: 2+
Weeks:  about 9

I think I have some catching up to do :)

Just stop!

It may seem like I am not working as diligently on getting the crafts done or on posting them.  That is definitely not so... I've been working daily on finishing a knitted blanket.  Anyone who has knitted a blanket before (bedspread size) knows it takes quite a while and I'm even using fairly large needles!  It should be done within the next week. 

In the meantime, I decided to take an interlude and do something that was a bit quicker, just to keep the momentum going.  

My mom told me this story about when she was younger and into doing crosstitch kits.  She said she had an Amish looking crosstitch kit - you know the country looking types that were popular in 1980s decor, except she had bought it a few years earlier before she started making it.  When she finally got the time to make it, she said she was sitting in the living room with my dad, probably both watching tv, but she was also working on the crosstitch kit.  And she wasn't very motivated and finally said to my dad something like "I'm not sure I still like this crosstitch kit", to which he replied, "Then, why are you still doing it?  Just stop."   And that was a revelation, so to speak, that she didn't always have to finish what she started, that it was simply okay to give up, to quit and no crafting police were going to come out of the wordwork and tell her she must finish it. 

Well, I think I needed someone to tell me that on this latest craft.   I say this over and over, but the packaging looked so beautiful.  The very small directions must imply that this is a super-easy craft and any dummy could do it.  I've should've known when I started.  First, number 653 of why you do a craft when you initially buy it - the floral tape in the package didn't stick anymore.  So I searched and found the floral tape that I had bought for one or reason or another 10 years ago and still had - unopened - and found that one no longer stuck either, so I opened another one of the flower craft kits ( I have 4 of them) and grabbed floral tape out of another one - which kind of sticks. 

But I'm just not into this craft and easy directions or not, some of the flowers just aren't turning out the way I expected.  Seriously, this flower looks pathetic.

 Some flowers were easier.  The accordian style flowers - well, I made them when I was a little kid.  And I think I need a pretty background like the one on the package, instead of the miscellaneous piles of newspaper, homework and backpack!

This one took quite a while to get it just so.  And it still doesn't look quite like the picture on the front of the package.  (I hear someone saying "Just stop!  Don't feel guilty about a failed attempt - just stop!")

The verdict?  I'll probably leave it out for a week or two and then throw it away, but I would have been better off buying fresh flowers or some nice fake flowers that they sell at all the craft stores.  This craft is not for me.  I have a second of this exact same craft (really, see the previous post) and the 2nd will be given away.  I have no desire to do it again. 

 

Projects Completed:  5

Projects Given Away:  2+

Ode to Martha Stewart

Oh, Martha Stewart...
You make crafting look so fun, so easy, so doable
Your pictures are stunning
No glue smudges on your papercrafts
No strings showing in your jewelry
No stray lines on your drawings
No stickers off kilter.
Only perfection.
Your photography skills (or your company's photo skills) are marvelous.
They make me want to buy more!

Okay, not really an Ode - let me break out my oboe and try an ode.  Ha!

Martha Stewart crafts - they are packaged so beautifully.  I always think mine will look the same.  The kids crafts pictures look awesome on the packaging too.  But in real life - that doesn't always happen.

(Yikes!  I can't believe I still have this many!)

 

So, this is part of my hoarding crafting problem.  A few years ago, when stores like Michaels first started selling Martha Stewart packaged crafts, I fell in love.  But I didn't fall in love with the price and apparently, not a lot of other people did either, because a few months after they were out in the first string stores, I was browsing a Big Lots ad and found a lot of the Martha Stewart craft kits on sale for $2!!!!!!  I flipped out!  I was ecstatic!!!  And, although I only had a baby (maybe a toddler - don't exactly remember when it occurred - but I do remember my oldest child being an only child at the time and sitting in the Big Lots cart while I did my shopping), I had all of these dreams of doing the kid's crafts with my daughter and future kids when they got a little older.  I dreamed of playdates they would have where I would whip out these awesome crafts and be the cool Mom for providing such a fun thing to do! 
I was so excited I bought a huge amount of the kits - like at least 40 - probably more.  Yeah, that's at least $80 on these kits.  In fact, I remember going to Big Lots twice because I didn't think I bought enough the first time. 

Well, the kits to make cards have turned out to be awesome.  And I've already done 5 of the kits.  They were meant for adults (I think, anyhow - I had fun working with them!) and clearly very easy and useful.  I like cards, so they were right up my alley.   And these are the remaining...

On the other hand, Martha Stewart still can't overcome some of the problems with some of the other craft kits.
There were felt flowers for hair kits.  Apparently, my daughter was supposed to grow multiple heads so she can wear all of these.  I bought one of each kind Martha Stewart sold.  The two kits that I've made are a little tricky and the glue in them just doesn't hold them together.  She can't actually wear them in her hair, because nothing keeps the flowers stuck to the clips.  And the buttons (the centerpiece of the flowers don't stick to the felt either).  So why am I keeping these?

Balloon animals.  I actually gave away kits of these after trying them, because they are impossible to work with.  The stickers stick well, but the balloon doesn't stay in place and it just becomes a big hassle.

There were poof ball animals - already gave away these because I've learned - nothing sticks to those stupid poof balls.  (Maybe I should have saved them and sold them on ebay - they are going for $9.99 today- even the one with the obvious crossed out Big Lots price tag.  That's where the pictures are from).

There were pipe cleaner animals - not too bad to make but they easily get bent out of shape and I seriously have a ton of pipe cleaners - why did I need to buy a kit with them?  And you can bet I bought all 3 types.

There are refrigerator picture frames - not too bad to make, but since then, I've kept on finding little poof balls (they are my nemesis) on the floor in the kitchen, because, again, they don't stick to damn near anything with any type of glue! 

There were puppets - ok, these are awesome but how many does one need of each kind?  Everything sticks pretty well.  And the bags are thicker, so they've been beat up a little bit and still stay nice. 

And these are the remaining.  I keep thinking I am going to make these, but haven't figured out when.  So this year, we will be flooded with flowers - paper flowers that is.  I am working on the pastel ones now.  And just realized I have 2 of the pastel flower kits. 

These alone have caused a majority of my crafty hoarding and to top it off, two years ago, there were some Martha Stewart stitchery kits on clearance at Michaels.  Aren't they so pretty in the packaging?  See what I mean?  This year, I will find out the results of how these hold up. 

Before Pinterest....

Before pinterest started, I would keep a big accordian file for my project ideas.   I spent a lot of time cutting out ideas or printing them up, collecting them, organizing them, looking through them every so often to see if something catches my fancy (rarely does that happen).  Everything from magazine tearouts, to those free store idea pamphlets, to print-ups from the internet.  I kept everything I thought would be inspiration for the future.  Well, I hadn't looked at it for quite awhile and decided to go through it - man, oh, man.  Why?   I think about all the paper and ink I wasted... (and time!)
These were some of the categories in my inspiration folder:  Collecting, Holiday, Crosstitch, Sewing, Kid's Crafts, Birthday Party Ideas, Wreaths and it goes on......  14 categories. 

I've been able to get rid of many of the "ideas" pretty easily.  There were print-ups for ABC 'flashcards' for my kids - which would be nice, except I haven't used them for the first 2 kids, so why would I use it for the next (plus, I already have some ABC flashcards). 
And all of the sewing patterns - when I've already decided that I will not be a sewer. 
And others, I ponder and think about doing the craft. 

I've stated before that I like to read the Minimalist Mom.  She has a great post about pinterest and uses a quote:  comparison is the thief of joy.

Ain't that the truth?
I have pages of Valentine ideas, yet, I prefer to go to a big box store the day after Valentine's and buy the kid's Valentines at clearance prices for the next year.  I am just as good as a mom for handing out pre-packaged valentine's as the mom who makes them all by hand. 
I think it needs to go.... all of it. 
To allow freedom to do things, instead of just reading about more ideas.

And this led me to my Family Fun magazines from my 2012 subscription. I've saved them all.
Luckily, this coincided with my daughter needing some magazines for a Girl Scout project to make a collage. I gave up 2 of them yesterday and since then, I started thinking. Really, why do I need all these others? Most of the ideas are on their website and I'd probably look online for kid's ideas anyhow. So, out with the Family Fun magazines...

  
 I feel like my mother! I keep teasing her because she used to keep all of her Better Homes & Garden magazines from years past and has only recently been going through them all and getting rid of them. (She was reading magazines from the '80s and '90s in 2010!) I know she enjoys doing that but I vowed that's not for me.  It feels like a chore, going through old magazinges - and who needs to look at outdated magazines from years ago when there are plenty to look at from today?

And when there's more to do today!

It is very freeing to get rid of excessive inspiration, almost as freeing as getting rid of stuff.