I know it’s been a while, and you may already be thinking “Dawn, you are feeling ok? Why are we talking about new years resolutions? It’s the end of May! What is going on?”. Well, I was thinking a little bit about new years resolutions, and realised that mine was to put out a new podcast episode every month of 2022, and here we are at the end of May, and this is my first one. But here’s the thing about new years resolutions … the 1st of January is not the only day of the year you can start them. This train of thought had me trying to figure out why I haven’t done it, and maybe how I could have set myself up to succeed with this goal.
So today we are talking about new years crafting resolutions. We’ve all made resolutions, and usually we make the same ones every year, but I’m talking about those crafting ones. What I’ve discovered during my contemplation about how I got five months into the year before starting my own new year goal, is that we really do need to take steps to set ourselves up to succeed at this awesome goal we’re setting for ourselves. It doesn’t matter what craft you’re doing, whether the project is big or small, there are things we can do to make sure we get it done, and get it done the way we want. The three main things that we can concentrate on are planning, preparation and budgeting. When I was listening to the Organize 365 podcast a few years ago, Lisa Woodruff spoke of a study that showed that for every minute you spend in planning, you can save 3 minutes in execution. I haven’t read that study, but I 100% believe this to be true. Any time I sit down to spontaneously start a new project, I inevitably waste a huge amount of time retrieving the things I need from all corners of the house. If I had just spent 5 minutes planning, I could save myself 15 minutes getting up and down from my seat, searching for the things I need, thereby getting to the fun stuff as faster. If a planning session gives me more time for crafting, I’m here for that (though truth be told, I thoroughly enjoy the planning part of any project … it makes my brain happy).
Taking notes, maybe doing a little math … planning is that stage where you decide what the project’s is, how big it’s going to be, what materials you’re going to use, which pattern to choose, or if you’re creating your own pattern, giving it some thought and sketching things out, etc. The planning is the phase where we start to pull everything together and figure out what we need for the project. Preparation is a little bit more hands on. It may be doing some more calculations, shopping for supplies (and we know that’s the fun part), cutting things to size, pre-washing fabrics, choosing colours, that kind of thing. Preparation is more doing than thinking. And when I say budgeting, of course our minds initially go to money, and that is important. In the planning phase you can incorporate some budgeting so you can figure out if this project is going to fit within your current financial circumstances. So budgeting for money is a really good idea, and it’s especially a great idea right at the beginning because you don’t want to get half way through a project and realise this is going to cost way more than you can afford, and then deal with the guilt of putting a project on hold or letting someone down. But there are some other things we need to budget.
Especially when we say new years resolution, it’s usually kind of a big project, so it’s a really good idea to budget your time. As much as we ask ourselves “Where’s the money going to come from for this project?” we also need to considerwhere the time is going to come from for this project. If you are retired, if you have kids at school which leads to loads of time on your hands, this is a no-brainer. You’ve got it, and you know where your time is going to come from. But if you’re in a phase of life where the demands on your time are really high, leaving you quite time poor, then you have to ask yourself “I have this thing I would like to make / do / achieve, but where am I going to find the time to do that?”. For me, that is the question I had to ask myself. I hadn’t considered when I made this goal at the beginning of the year, where I was going to find the time to record all these podcast episodes. It’s not as simple, for me, as just sitting down and talking (although anyone who knows me well, knows that I can certainly do that), because I have a tendency to waffle. When I present a podcast episode to you, I prefer to be concise which means making a draft recording, transcribing it, tweaking that into a script, then re-recording the episode. It can take 2-3 days, and I hadn’t factored that time in during a phase of my life where I’m quite time poor. Thankfully I found a great podcasting life hack that works for me, and I now draft and refine podcast episodes while I’m walking laps in the local heated pool twice a week. So when you consider budgeting your time, decide if you are going to sacrifice time spent on one thing so that you can spend that time achieving your crafting goal.
Another thing you may need to budget is space in your home. Sometimes these big projects need a lot of space, and it depends how long you’re going to need to work on it. For example, if your goal is to finish that cute cross-stitch kit that you bought at Supernova last year from Fangirl Stitches (OK, that’s one of my goals), then that’s not going to take up a lot of space. The pattern, hoop with fabric, threads, scissors and tapestry needle fit neatly into a zipper pouch, which sits on a grab-and-go shelf so I can take it with me when I know I’ll be sitting around waiting somewhere for a long time, or to work on in front of the television at night. But if you are making something really big, then you’ll need to figure out where you’re going to find that space in your home. Does it need to stay set up all the time until it’s finished? Is it one of those things you can quickly set up then pack away when you’re done working on it? You don’t need to think about it too long, but giving it a little thought can save you some stress later on.
The last thing you may need to budget is your energy. Not everybody will need to do this, but if you are a spoonie then you know what I mean. Chronic illness, chronic pain, disability, fatigue, PTSD, illness, injury, or just existing as someone who is overstretched and just tired all the time can be exhausting. If that’s you, then you may need to budget your energy. If you’re struggling with your mental health, and the project is demanding, you may need to budget your emotional energy.
Regardless of whether you’re budgeting your money, time, space or energy, knowing how you function, your optimal times of day and being kind to yourself throughout the process can be incredibly helpful. Personally, I would love to be neat and tidy, with a place for everything, and everything in its place, and frankly, I think my husband would love that even more than me. But I know myself pretty well, and my work space is always a mess. Everything is out, because out of sight is truly out of mind for me. If I pack a project away, then I forget it exists. Knowing this about myself, and more importantly, accepting this about myself, has made a big difference in how I approach a project. I no longer put pressure on myself to pack up in the middle of a project, because if I see it, I’ll work on it. I also know that really big projects are best done when I have large amounts of time to work uninterrupted. Honestly, this is a major reason that I still haven’t finished that darn Mario quilt. I packed it away when I got home from that quilting retreat in 2019, and haven’t touched it since. Knowing yourself helps you to set realistic goals and expectations as you budget your money, time, space and energy.
To give you a practical application of planning, preparation and budgeting, I’m going to use my next big project as an example. For that quilting retreat I was 100% convinced that I was going to finish the Mario quilt (and had I not made a critical error on the first day, it would be done) so I took a backup project. My reasoning was that if I finished my project half way through the weekend, we weren’t near any shops, and I would waste precious sewing time. So I planned and prep’d my backup project … The Minecraft Quilt. You may think that I’ve had enough of pixel quilts, but that’s just not true. I really love making them. So let me walk you (as briefly as I possibly can) through my planning, budgeting and preparation of this backup project.
The Minecraft Quilt
Planning
Find the pattern online (link below).
Decide what size my quilt will be.
How many blocks do I need for my quilt size?
Which blocks am I going to use?
Print patterns for the blocks I’m going to use.
Will it be single or double sided?
What size will the blocks be?
What size will each finished square be?
Add ½” seam allowance to the square size.
Will it be sashed?
Am I going to do quilt-as-you-go, quilt it myself or send it to my long arm quilter?
How many squares of each colour do I need for each block?
How many squares of each colour do I need for the whole quilt?
What type of fabric will I use?
How many squares can I get across the width of the fabric?
Therefore, how much of each colour do I need to buy?
How much fabric do I need for the sashing?
How much fabric do I need for the binding?
What will I do for backing? How much fabric do I need?
How much wadding will I need?
Am I going to sew all those squares together or use the interfacing technique?
If using interfacing, how big do my interfacing backings need to be? How many can I get across the width of the interfacing? What does it cost?
Will I use pre-printed grid interfacing, draw a grid on every piece with a sharpie, or create a cardboard template that I draw up once to place below plain interfacing?
Budget
Now that I know how much fabric I need, how much will that cost?
Can I shop my own stash to bring down cost?
Consult my long arm quilter about a price for quilting, and get an expiry date on that quote.
Can I make changes to make it more affordable.
Preparation
Buy the fabric.
Pre-wash & iron (if you’re into that … I’m not).
Cut all squares.
Bag squares in zip-lock bags and code each one.
Cut up the interfacing.
Cut binding, join pieces and store on a card or sashing bobbin.
This is all of the things I would do before I start … before I sew a single stitch, and I do this because once I have a window where I know I can start sewing that project, I know I won’t be distracted. All the calculations, shopping and preparation have been done. I’m not going to run out of squares, and I won’t run out of fabric and find myself unable to match colours, which will give me a beautifully cohesive look to my finished quilt. It might sound like a LOT of work, but in reality, I did all of the planning and budgeting in about an hour one evening, I bought the fabric the next day, and while I’m yet to do the cutting, and I know from experience that it will probably take me the best part of a day to get it done.
Obviously, your crafting project is probably going to be very different to mine. I have noticed, though, when it comes to making new years resolutions of the crafting variety, they tend to fall into a few different categories. Let’s go through them, looking at some fun project examples, and talk about some ways we can plan and prepare, setting ourselves up for a successful outcome.
The Daily Do
This is one of those projects where you plan to do this craft 365 days of the year (unless it’s a leap year, then you’re doing 366). A popular one is Project 365, which started as a prompt for photographers, and became a popular Scrapbooking trend when Becky Higgins brought out her first Project Life 365 kit in 2008. In 2010 the Project Life brand was born, and it grew in popularity, recently expanding into digital and app form. I loved the concept, though at the time I had transitioned from traditional paper to digital scrapbooking. At first I thought this would be a good way to use up some of my scrapbooking supplies, as well as documenting what life was like for our family on a day to day basis. I also thought it might motivate us to go do some interesting things if I was documenting them, which we did. However, in the planning process I looked at prices, and realised that the page protectors alone were out of my budget, let alone all the gorgeous cards. Had I started this project with no planning or budgeting, I would quickly have had to abandon it, as it just wasn’t compatible with my craft budget at that time, so I weighed my options. I could just not do it, attempt it on 12×12 pages (and I knew I was done with paper scrapbooking, so that was out), or attempt a digital version of my own making. I opted for digital creation turned into a physical album. I spent that delicious week between Christmas and new year (you know … when you stay in the nice cool air-conditioning, have no idea what day it is, and have Christmas leftovers for days) planning and preparing my files for my first Project 365 album. I designed the layout, made a template, chose a digital scrapbooking kit, filled a 12×12 album with extra page protectors and set up 365 files that were ready to go. This process took me about 2 days, and by doing so much of the prep in advance, all that was left for me to succeed was to turn on the computer, drop in a photo, type some text, flatten the file and save for printing. If I’d had to create every entry from scratch each day, it would never have been done, and I would not have been able to create 3 full albums + a half year. All that was left to do was to periodically take the photos in that folder down to Domayne to have the photos printed, then move them into a file called ‘Already printed’ to prevent double ups. I stuck to budget by utilising the coupons for 2 free 6×8 prints each time I visited (I would prep them to 6×8 in Photoshop before adding to the thumb drive), pick them up next day (because that was cheaper than same day printing) … and I watched for times when they had photo prints on special. When I picked up my prints I could trim them down to size and add to the album at my leisure. If you are thinking that this sounds like a fun project that you’d like to attempt, but maybe aren’t sure where to start with the digital thing or you don’t have Photoshop, then I would encourage you to check out my Creative Fabrica Fans group. Members have access to digital craft tutorials, and the next tutorial will include templates and instructions for Project 365 to fit a 12×12 album. At $5 per month, you have access to the full catalogue of exclusive tutorials you won’t find anywhere else. I will link to the membership in show notes and over on the blog.
You may have spotted earlier that I said I did this project successfully for three and a half years, but be wondering how a half year is successful completion of a project. On that fourth year, it got to mid-June, and I was just done. I let one day slip, then a week, and then it was July, then August, and I agonised over whether I should try to go back and fill in the missing months, even though I knew in my heart I was over it, and I never would finish that 4th year. I had achieved everything I wanted to, and was really proud of myself for finishing so many complete albums. I didn’t abandon scrapbooking altogether, I just didn’t want to do it every day, so I transitioned to creating a 8×8 photo book for each year (which I loved because they were quick, inexpensive and they take up very little space on my bookshelf!). The hardest part was figuring out what to do with the 6 months worth of already printed photos. I’m going to tell you something that took me years to figure out … it’s ok to abandon a project, and I am 100% at peace with that decision.
Of course, a photo album isn’t the only kind of daily project you can do. Another fun option I’ve been seeing a lot over the last few years is a celsius blanket or scarf. I even saw someone on TikTok doing a Celcius cross-stitch in a hoop, which is a much smaller project, and it looked amazing. The point of a celsius blanket is to knit or crochet a row each day in a yarn colour that corresponds to the temperature for that day. Once again, to succeed at this, some planning and preparation will help a lot. What temperature will you record? Where will you get that information? Get a rough idea of the highest and lowest temperatures you may need to record, and figure out if you’ll have a different colour for every number, or for brackets (like every 5 degrees). How big will your blanket be? How much yarn will you need? How many colours will you need? Make your key, and perhaps consider creating a patch for the blanket with an explanation of the project and which temperatures each colour represents.
I also know someone who makes a card every day! I don’t know if she actually makes one every day, or if she makes a batch in one sitting and just posts a photo every day, but either way … it’s impressive. She is never in want of a birthday or thank you card, and her work is adorable.
When you choose a daily project, it’s a good idea to have a notebook, just in case you can’t get to the project some days. You can record the memories, the temperature, etc, and then catch up when you have time. It doesn’t have to be a fancy planner or a special themed book, and let’s be real … we all have a spare notebook (or 5 or 10) at home, so let’s put one to work helping us create something beautiful. For example, when I was doing the Project 365 digital album, I wound up in hospital with pneumonia for 4 days. Obviously I couldn’t work on it in hospital, or take photos for those days, so I had my husband bring me a notebook and pen, and I just jotted some things down, and had him tell me what was happening at home. I filled in the photos with a pic of an ambulance one day, our local hospital for another, a stock photo of medical stuff, and a photo of the book my mother brought me to read while I was in hospital. Sometimes life will throw you a curveball, and if you have a plan in place to deal with that, it doesn’t have to derail your project. Regardless of your project, if you’re doing a daily craft, spend a little time making it as easy as possible for you to do that project daily.
The PHD
PHD stands for Projects Half Done, also known as UFOs … UnFinished Objects. I’ll take a wild guess and say the odds are pretty high that you have at least one project that’s not quite finished. Maybe your goal this year is to finish those projects that have been niggling at the back of your mind, so you can check them off and make some space for something exciting and new. A great thing to do here is to pull those projects out (maybe not all at once, depending on how many you have), and make some time to take a look at what you have and do an assessment of each one. Do you have everything you need to complete the project? Is this still a viable project? One year my project was to do all the mending in my mending pile, but it turned out I’d procrastinated on it for so long that both kids had grown out of those clothes, so I bagged them and donated them. Doing that assessment first means that you’re going to find the projects you want to finish, and weed out the projects that you no longer care about, or that are no longer relevant. Just like with my Project 365 in year four, maybe you’re just done with that project, which could be for a variety of reasons. There are places where you can donate those unwanted PHDs, and I donated several when I had a professional organiser come in a few years ago. She took all of my unwanted craft supplies to Achieve, including a cross stitch that I knew I would never complete. I had been working on it during an incredibly stressful time in my life, as it kept my hands busy and helped the days move by quickly, but any time I tried to complete it, it brought back a flood of memories, and I simply couldn’t bear to make another stitch. I didn’t know I was allowed to let it go, and when I did, it was such a relief. So, just in case you’re hanging onto a craft project or supplies that no longer serve you or interest you, one that brings painful memories or bores you to tears … you have my permission to let it go. I bagged up that cross-stitch with the pattern, and sent away, and the relief was instant. Maybe someone finished it, or pulled out all of the threads to use the perfectly good fabric, I will never know, but it was the right thing for me to do, and I hope it brings someone else the joy it could not bring me.
I’m going to repeat that, just in case you can’t believe I said it … you are 100% allowed to abandon an unfinished project. There is no law that says you must finish every craft project you start. Of course, there are a few exceptions to that rule. If you are being paid to do a project, or if you’re contracted in some way, you do need to finish it. When I consulted for Brandcorp, one of my jobs was creating worked models for cross-stitch kits. I was the person who figured out how much thread needed to be used, and I picked up any errors in the patterns. Some of those projects were really fun, and some them were incredibly boring or not to my personal taste … but I was contracted to do them, so that was one circumstance where I couldn’t just walk away from a project. It’s the same thing if you’re on a design team. Just get it done quickly so you can move to the next project. But if you are the only person this project impacts, then you are the only person who can decide whether you are going to complete it or not.
When you have done your assessment, and decided which projects you would like to work on, it can be helpful to do a little preparation work. For example, if it’s a quilt, make sure you have the fabric, pattern, and everything you need all together … maybe bag it or pop it in a tub. You will likely have an idea of how long it’s going to take (and don’t lie to yourself here … be realistic), so make a note of the project and how long you think you’ll need to work on it, and pin or tape that to the outside of the bag or tub. That way, when you have some time to work on a project over a weekend, or when you take vacation time, you can pull out one that will fit with the time you have available.
The Stash Buster
I’m a big fan of the stash-buster. I’ve had this goal personally for many years. The stash buster is when you look at all the really cool supplies that you have in your crafting cabinet, room, cupboard or box … and you think to yourself “Wow, that is a lot of stuff I have here”. The stash buster usually comes about when we realise how much we have accumulated in the way of craft supplies, and it’s probably time to use the cool things we already have. Sometimes the stash buster becomes a bit of necessity. Maybe you are thinking about downsizing, and you know your craft supplies are going to be included in that downsize. If you don’t want to destash and sell things off, then make plans to use what you have. Maybe you’re just running out of space, or you’re low on funds. Whatever your reason, the Stash Buster is a brilliant idea, I fully endorse it and highly recommend it. A few years back this was a goal I set for myself, particularly in my papercrafting, using only leftovers from previous projects before I cut into any new sheets of cardstock or paper. I started with a small pile of leftovers that was on my desk, and after a year, I still wasn’t done (clearly I wasn’t spending enough time making cards). Last year I pulled 5 sheets of plain cardstock from a pad of warm tone card, one of each colour, and I have made literally dozens of cards using just those 5 sheets of letter sized cardstock for die-cutting and background strips.
Look, I’m Gen X, I have a sizeable craft stash, and probably more than the average crafter, as I work in the craft industry. There’s a reason that I believe in using those gorgeous craft supplies, and that is because I have had the experience of sorting out someone else’s craft stash after they passed away. We crafted together a lot, and her husband asked me if I would sort out her stash. It was heartbreaking all over again to find pieces that I remember buying on a shopping trip together, talking about the scrapbooking layouts she was planning on using those supplies for … and she never got to use them. Instead I packed them up, and sold them so her husband would have some extra funds, and to free up space in his home. It was rough. Remember how Toy Story taught us that toys are supposed to be played with? Well, this experience really drove it home for me that craft supplies are also meant to be played with. I know there’s a meme doing the rounds right now that says ‘I firmly believe that buying craft supplies and using craft supplies are two different hobbies’, and I know that to an extent that has become true for some people. But I implore you to use those very awesome craft supplies in your stash, because I know you have great taste, and you’re going to have a great time using them. I used to save certain scrapbooking papers, because I just didn’t want to part with them, and then I had an epiphany … if I used them in my scrapbooking albums, then I could keep the albums, and therefore keep the paper. I don’t know why it took so long for me to figure that out and I’m embarrassed to say that how many years it was. Needless to say … I’m glad I figured it out, and I hope it helps someone else. It may come as no surprise that the stash buster often goes hand in hand with the next category …
The No Spend
The No Spend is sometimes born from financial necessity, and other times it’s just a personal challenge. I’ve seen people have a no-spend month, and others have a no-spend year. Essentially, the goal is zero dollars spent on craft stuff. There are a few items that I would say you should be allowed to purchase during a no spend period, and those would be consumables. Things like adhesive, sewing thread, replacement sewing machine needles … things that you actually need so you can use what’s in your craft stash. Broken crochet hook? Yes … because you can’t use up the yarn unless you have the hook, right? Exceptions to the rule will usually revolve around items you need over items you want. However, we all know that sometimes a little retail therapy can be good for us, so when someone asks what you want for your birthday or for Christmas, give them a link to your favourite craft store and tell them you want a gift voucher! Birthday money and gift vouchers aren’t technically spending money out of your budget … they are a gift, and therefore you can use them for those ‘Want’ items. If stamping, card making and colouring are your cup of tea, you know I have gift vouchers, right? I’ll link to them in the show notes and over on the blog. Whether you are on a no spend because money is tight, someone has lost their job, there are unexpected expenses, or you’re saving for something special, if you have a stash, get in there, and get creative.
The New Craft on the Block
This is where you decide that this year I want to learn a new skill, a new technique, or maybe a whole new craft. I’ve always wanted to have a go at needle felting, but just haven’t done it yet (because goodness knows that I have a large enough stash already without diving into another craft!). For example, card making … maybe you’re new to the craft, picking it back up after a long hiatus or just bored with using the same old techniques over and over, and you want to learn some new skills. If that’s the case, I would recommend pretty much choosing any Jennifer McGuire video on YouTube and giving that a go. Maybe you want to learn how to use Copic markers, and I can help you with that via my Copic subscription box.
Maybe this is the year you are going to watch a LOT of how-to videos on YouTube, perhaps you’ll attend a class or two, do a course to learn how to make bespoke leather shoes or custom jewelry or resin pouring. Maybe you want to learn stain glass windows, carpentry, or pottery … or maybe just master a cable knit design. Sometimes it’s really fun to learn a new craft.
The Challenge
There are all sorts of different challenges that we can participate in. Some are designed for artists, like MerMay (where you create mermaid themed projects every day during the month of May), or Inktober (sure it was designed for artists, but card makers can get inky too!). Perhaps you want to take part in some blog challenges. Lawn Fawn and Kindred Stamps have some great blog challenges each month, as do many other craft companies and design tems (and sometimes there are prizes, which is a great bonus).
Perhaps you want to set your own personal challenge, like working on a cross-stitch every single day until it’s done. Maybe a CAL which stands for Craft ALong or Crochet ALong. I took part in my first Crochet Along last year, and absolutely loved it. A part of the pattern was released each week, and while I fell behind and didn’t finish with everyone else, I did get that gorgeous blanket finished, and gifted it to my Mum for Christmas. Helen Shrimpton has a bunch of CAL patterns, which are free, and there are usually YouTube videos that you can work along to (which is my preferred method of working on her amazing creations). I’m on my third CAL, and I not only learned loads of new crochet stitches, but I used up some of my stash (fine, I used it as an excuse to buy a little more yarn, but it was for a specific project rather than just aimless stash adding).
Some sort of challenge may be just what you need to spice up your crafting this year.
The Mega Project
This is one of those really big projects that’s going to take you the whole year. It often has a Christmas gift deadline vibe, but it could also be making things for a gorgeous wedding, a special ‘big 0’ birthday party, or maybe it’s just a big project you’ve always wanted to do. Maybe it’s making over your entire house, dragging it kicking and screaming into the 21st century as you update curtains, quilt covers, create a mural, or perhaps turn your hand to some carpentry or DIY renovations. Whatever your big project is, planning, budgeting and preparation will surely help, making sure you know what you’re doing, have what you need, and can get it all the way done instead of abandoning it half way through. Maybe you’ve decided to make a quilt for all the grandkids for Christmas … do your planning. How many kids? What size quilts? What will it cost? All of those questions I ran through for the Minecraft quilt earlier will help you plan those projects out. It might also be helpful to get a big year calendar to put on a wall or door, because I can tell you from experience that as you mark off those days with a big red cross, you stay mindful of how much time until your deadline, which can really help you get your project done on time.
Whichever type of new years crafting resolution you make for yourself, there are a few other things to keep in mind. We need to remember that life can throw us some pretty serious curveballs … I think 2020 showed that in quite spectacular fashion … so it’s good to have a plan B, and be flexible where possible. Maybe you could set up a craft planner (we talked about that in episode 20, I’ll link to that), so maybe you can jot things down if you’re thrown one of those curveballs. It might be Covid, it might just be a demand on your time that you weren’t expecting. It’s ok to extend your deadline, especially if you’re the one setting that deadline.
I would also like to remind you that it’s ok to quit a project before it is complete.
I also think that it’s nice to have a goal, or at least an idea of what you want to get out of doing this project. It might be simple enjoyment, meditation or relaxation, or maybe you’re making gifts, or maybe you want to upskill to start a business or move into the professional arena or become a designer. There’s no rule that you have to have a goal, because craft is often it’s own reward, right?
Think about the advantages to completing the task, and on the flip side, consider what will happen if you don’t finish this project, make this thing, complete this task. Is anything bad going to happen if you don’t hit that self imposed deadline? If not, then be kind and gentle with yourself.
Lastly, I would say this. It can be helpful to think about Who – What – When – Where – How – Why.
Who is overseeing this goal? Who is doing this with you? (having an accountability buddy for a firm deadline can be a great idea). Who are you doing this for?
What are you going to do? That’s the exciting part, right?! What are you going to make? Are you going to finish something, or start something new? What are you going to do?
When are you going to fit this into your schedule? Is this something you can pick up and put down randomly, or do you need a dedicated amount of time to work on it. Maybe look into a craft retreat, or have your own craft retreat. I have some PHD’s here that I’d really like to finish so I can mentally check them off, and I plan on going away for a few days to a nice beach front house with my Mum and taking them with me. I figure, if it’s the only thing I have to do, I’ll get it done, with the bonus of spending quality time with my Mum.
Where are you going to put it? Where are you going to put it while you’re working on it? Where are you going to put it when it’s finished? Where are you going to sit while you’re doing this? In a beautiful sun-lit room, a quiet spare bedroom? Do you have a comfortable place to work?
How are you going to do this? Make a plan. Have an idea of what’s going to happen. I am a planning person (perhaps you picked up on that), but if you’re a fly by the seat of your pants kind of person who loves to wing it, and that works for you, then don’t let me stop you doing you. Which techniques are you going to do? Are you going to try something new? Or pull out some old favourites? And how are you going to present this as a gift to the recipient?
Why are you doing this? I mean … we all know that craft rocks. It’s great for our mental health, dexterity, and keeps our minds working. It makes people happy? But why are you doing this project? Is it to challenge yourself? To pass some time? To be noticed by a brand you love? To create a gift for someone made with love.
Considering the answers to some of these questions can help guide us, keep us on track, or remind us that it doesn’t matter if it’s 1st January or the end of May … it’s always a great idea to craft.
So, I’m curious to know … did you set a new years crafting resolution? If so, have you stuck to it? Finished it? Did you fall off the wagon? It’s not too late to get back on, but do you even want to? I would love to know what some of your favourite new years crafting resolutions have been. Leave a comment to tell me all about your favourite craft project that you did one year. I’m so happy to be back in front of the microphone again, and I have more episodes planned for 2022, so I will see you next time.
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