A Crafty Spring Cleanout

Here in the crafty blogaverse (a very happy place to be by the way) I have seen everything from huge dedicated craft rooms - to closet craft rooms - to a simple armoire containing someone's entire craft universe. I have to say, craft armoires are really cute too because you can close the doors on the whole mess!

FIVE REASONS TO SPRING CLEAN YOUR CRAFT CORNER OF THE WORLD
Where's my Mod Podge? Oh no, all my tags disappeared! When did my stack of felt become a cat bed? I laid my earring hooks right there - where did they go! (these are actual quotes)

This is what we call Craft Cluttermania. Things can easily hide in a cluttered crafty space! Glue sticks love to roll behind stamping pads, and favorite markers can just disappear into thin air.

A spring cleanout/reorganization is a great time to freshen up your craft space and know where everything is. Cleaning and organizing your crafty space weekly or monthly is an even better idea, and here's why:
1. Crafty spaces are by nature, messy spaces! We can't help it. One project is all it takes to make a huge mess and create the dreaded Craft Cluttermania. Organizing keeps your creative area ready to work, open and inviting.
2. A good cleanout can save you some craft bucks. It helps you inventory your craft supplies - so you're not duplicating your purchases and ending up with five bottles of Mod Podge. And, you're identifying what you do need so you can watch for it to go on sale.

3. A cleanout helps you identify the things you use the most, the least, and not at all! Hmm...maybe it's time to sell what you never use to earn some crafty spending money on what you use all the time.
4. Being an organized crafter helps you make the most of your actual crafting time because you're more steamlined and not spending an hour looking for your glue gun!
5. A crafty cleanout can inspire you to create! The next time you are stuck for ideas, just start cleaning out and organizing - as you're going through your supplies, stacking your pretty papers, sorting your new embroidery flosses, the ideas start flowing again and you're back on your creative cloud nine.

Sew...how does all this crafty cleanout stuff get started? Just spell the word S-P-R-I-N-G.

S - Sort! It all begins with your craft inventory. Put like items together and you will start to notice the storage solutions you might need.
Pare down - As much as possible, get rid of what you don't use at all. You're not running a craft storage warehouse. You need the space for the things you use and enjoy the most.

My upcycled art journal

Recycle, reuse and upcycle! As you are cleaning out and paring down, notice items that instead of throwing away, might actually be upcycled. One time I came across some ancient nasty green file dividers with ugly black metal tabs. I ended up cutting and painting them to make an art journal and lots of art tags. 
Invent new storage - whether it's some cool plastic baskets you found at the dollar store, or those pretty boxes at Michaels that go on sale all the time, or the unusual things. For example, when my husband bought a nice tool bag at the hardware store that was marked way down from twenty dollars to four, I bought one for my craft storage! I use a hanging jewelry organizer on the wall for my small tags and craft punches. 

Last weekend Paper Studio items were 50% off at Hobby Lobby, and I found an organizer meant for embellishments. It is full of zippered pockets with five pages of various size pockets that open out. I am using it for a variety of craft supplies, especially ones I might take on the go. But I can keep the whole thing handy, and it's easy to see what I have. Now I wish I would have bought two!

Notice Stuff - It's like Christmas when you find things you forgot you had or thought you lost! Now that you've found it, put it with like items, or put it in some kind of organizer to keep it very visible. This is important for me with special needles - I use embroidery needles, a needle for sewing my knitting, and smaller needles - but I need to find them all!

Get it all put away and get on with your creativity. Don't get too caught up in your organizing or it will become piddling, and your energy will be used up and you won't make anything! This has definitely happened to me.


See? You can get really creative with this organizing stuff. You don't have to have a craft library with everything on a perfect shelf. Use a variety of containers. Use labels if you need to. And most importantly, get in there and use your supplies, and create! Oh, and do remember to be thankful for these craft supplies - we live in a rich era of amazing craft supplies available to us that didn't exist ten years ago! When you value what you have and value your time and energy, you will make the most of it and be happy!

Eat, Write, Dream, Stitch, Organize

Good Witch Bubble Wands

When I think of being a little girl, carefree in the warm summer sun, blowing bubbles and laughing - it makes me happy. There's no reason not to keep doing that, right? 

Bubbles also make me think of Glinda the Good Witch--she always arrived in a bubble! Ever since I can remember, the Wizard of Oz would come on TV once a year, and it was a big big deal! We got to eat on the TV trays in the living room, and I would perform the whole movie for everyone after it was over--well, my seven-year-old version anyway. Of course, now we can go to Oz whenever we like! I need to plan a special evening with the family to do that!

So as I'm making dozens of bubble wand necklaces from wire and beads in my stash to sell at craft fairs, I'm going to call them Glinda's Magic Bubble Wands...or something fun like that!

Eat, Write, Dream, Stitch, Bead Something

You and Me Cards

I love the idea of making a pot-o-tea and stitching away the afternoon with my bestie Helen. Especially since she moved away and I miss her so! She's making me a pink sock monkey (now that's a best friend). She's a music teacher, an amazing wife and mother, and back in the day we were show divas! Well, I guess we still are--we'd do a show together in a hot minute. Hopefully, after working on my blog, I've managed to get this card posted and in the mail to her (along with a little gift)!

I love "You and Me" cards and I must make more! This one has not only cardstock, vintage sheet music, an embossed tea pot, sewn buttons and ribbon - but also some machine stitching. So fun to make.

Eat, Write, Dream, Stitch for Your Friend

I Made a Pin Board!

So I had an old poster-board size frame and decided to try this quick and easy craft. I needed a pin board! I want something to display some of my craft ideas - but also use to display earrings and other handmade items for sale at craft fairs.

Isn't it cute? All I needed was a piece of foam core board - which I had one stashed...modpodge and my scraps. I modpodged scrapbook papers, an old vintage pattern cover and actual pattern pieces, clothes tags and other purchased-item tags (I hoard merchandise tags by the way--no one in my house throws their tags away, especially if they are cute!) and I think there's a show ticket in there and a cute business card, plus some diecut fabric hearts that were lying around.

Now I can keep going on my earring production -- knowing I have a cute way to display!

Tags cut out of scrapbook papers to package my handmade earrings!

Eat, Write, Dream, Stitch, Bead

Craft Show Diva ♥

I never imagined that I would get to be in a live studio audience for the taping of a craft show! So when that opportunity arose, I couldn't miss it. A talented DIY/Crafter right here in the Ozarks has started a new craft show called FYI Guy. You can visit his website at FYIGuy.com. It is updated often.

It was so fun to see Jeremy's amazing set, all decorated with his crafty creations! They pulled together a small live studio audience, and a few lucky people actually got to go on the set and do a craft with Jeremy! I didn't get to do that (I think I was a little intimidated)--but maybe I will another time.  I have to say the ladies from the audience were not all crafters, and Jeremy turned them into crafters right before our eyes! Jeremy is very frugal with his crafting, but his ideas are so creative. Being in the audience was really fun, but it was also a long afternoon. Being the audience was its own job! We had brought seat cushions to be a little more comfortable, and they taped three shows. But we got a lot of breaks, and they gave us snacks, and everyone was having a blast. Jeremy is so witty and great on camera, and I think we laughed all afternoon. I can't wait to see more of Jeremy's craft shows, live and in person! What a treat.

Darling daughter and I posing in front of Jeremy's flip-flop wreath!

Eat, Write, Dream, Stitch, Craft

My First Crafty Book - McCall's Giant Golden Make-It Book

 When I was around age six or seven in the late 1960's, I loved coloring, gluing, writing stories, and even had a little grey metal sewing machine with a foot pedal and everything. We made doll clothes. So one day, when I was little, I found this big book in my mother's room, and immediately took possession of it--McCall's Make-It Book, published in 1952. I carried this thing everywhere!

Now when I look at it, I can even tell which pages I used the most! I felt like the happy kiddos on the cover--just makin' a table full of craftiness! My worktable looks like that today--only more fun.

Thought I would share some of the precious pages on the inside, because this book covers every kind of craft and even included knitting, crochet, cross-stitch, and weaving!

But first, it taught you how to upcycle. Way to go green 1952!

Then you got your crafty list. I remember gathering some of these things!

Who needs to garden when you can make paper flowers all day! Now I have one of those cool flower weaving things.

I think the sewing cards were my fave. My mother helped punch the holes for me. I probably drove her crazy!

I'm wondering if this where I learned how to sew! Who doesn't like simple sewing.

It's funny how I've pretty much been a cross-stitch-aholic for 25 years...but I do not remember the cross-stitch pages in this book. They are very pristine looking, so obviously I didn't go to this chapter. And I probably didn't have access to aida cloth!

I learned crochet when I was young. But now every time I crochet it ends up in a circle. However, I have not given up! Crochet makes the prettiest trim on things. (I do think the little girl here with the blonde braids is quite proud of herself.)

I did learn how to knit though, at some point. I still have my pink metal knitting needles from when I was ten.

Now I even know how to use double-pointed needles! I should do a dance.

And I know for a fact I took over several empty oatmeal containers from our kitchen to make into all kinds of things. So glad I found my first crafty book again.

Eat, Write, Dream, Stitch, Be Young Again

A little visit to the Craft In America Exhibition

Seeing this amazing piece at the Craft In America exhibition today, made my day. The incredible design of masks--reflected on the table--is sandblasted into the blown glass. I was in awe. Apparently this is a series on PBS, in several installments, so I definitely plan to see the whole thing. The other ultra-amazing item in the exhibit was the Conold Bench, pictured below.

There were more than 50 works of art, and with my love of sewing and mixed-media fabric, I searched for something in this genre. That's when I found the under-the-sea mixed media fabric quilt, and I was happy. It is filled with gorgeous fabric, beads, buttons, sequins, you name it--of course the photo doesn't do it justice. I just had the urge to go home and start stitching something! Then I saw a series of works crafted by Native Americans--stunning items which included these beaded high-heeled hightops. It was a great day! After all of this crafty eye candy filled with beads and sequins, I know what my next new project will be. Exhibits like this truly feed you with the inspiration you need. 

In the meantime, here is one of my original cross-stitch designs I have finished. I created it right on the Aida canvas, so now I need to actually chart it. It's called, The Back Porch.

Eat, write, dream, stitch and stay inspired!

Dishcloths in a Day

Sugar 'n Cream makes me want to dream. That is, sugar and cream cotton yarns. I love that stuff for knitting scarves, hats, stuffed animals, and of course, dishcloths. You can often find it on sale for $1 a skein--so there's no problem in knitting it for something you're going to use to clean dishes and wipe surfaces. (I think the brand name is Lily Original Sugar 'n Cream) Making my own knitted dishcloths is just one of those little things that makes me happy, and the all-cotton yarns are perfect for them. So yesterday, inbetween repotting plants and doing some cleaning, I knitted 3 little dishcloths. I have made different sizes, but the little square dishcloths seem to be my favorite size. I don't really want them any wider. I cast on about 20 to 25 stitches, knit 2 or 3 rows and then stockinette, and then when it looks about right, I knit a few rows before casting off. When I have little bits of skeins of different colors left, I knit them all together into a crazy dishcloth! The color tends to fade over time and use...so eventually they end up cleaning cars and things outside. When you need more, you can just make some tea, sit down, relax and knit a few. 

Just remember to use more of a cotton yarn and save your fancy yarns for something special.

Stitch happy!