Hot Mess (Noun):
When one's thoughts or appearance are in a state of dissaray but they maintain an undeniable attractiveness or beauty.
www.urbandictionary.com
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Welcome!
This website and blog is dedicated to anyone who once saw something in a shop, catalogue, magazine or on TV and thought: "I could make that!"
.....and what happened next was a swift and irrevocable descent into crafting addiction, ultimtely ending up with a your 'stash', your treasure trove, your craft box, or corner, or room, or shed; packed to the gills with....well...stuff. Lovely, lovely stuff. Stuff you needed. Stuff you had to have. Stuff you just couldn't live without.
Right?
OK, I'm going to make a confession. About my stash. My craft room. My precious. But I have to say it ~quietly~. Because I've never admitted it before. To anyone. And if the monster in my brain hears, she won't like it.
Here goes....I'll whisper.....
~ I probably don't need all of this stuff ~
There. I said it. It's out there. Now we can just sweep that tiny, insignificant truth under the carpet and get on with our lives.
As I write this in March 2013, this website and blog is still in its infancy. Forgive the shoddy photography and hammy writing: I'm hoping this will grow and improve with time. I'm hoping to put together a website to share photos of things made, things aspired to be made, skills learned and shared, and good suppliers recommended.
But first: take a look at my mess....
.....and what happened next was a swift and irrevocable descent into crafting addiction, ultimtely ending up with a your 'stash', your treasure trove, your craft box, or corner, or room, or shed; packed to the gills with....well...stuff. Lovely, lovely stuff. Stuff you needed. Stuff you had to have. Stuff you just couldn't live without.
Right?
OK, I'm going to make a confession. About my stash. My craft room. My precious. But I have to say it ~quietly~. Because I've never admitted it before. To anyone. And if the monster in my brain hears, she won't like it.
Here goes....I'll whisper.....
~ I probably don't need all of this stuff ~
There. I said it. It's out there. Now we can just sweep that tiny, insignificant truth under the carpet and get on with our lives.
As I write this in March 2013, this website and blog is still in its infancy. Forgive the shoddy photography and hammy writing: I'm hoping this will grow and improve with time. I'm hoping to put together a website to share photos of things made, things aspired to be made, skills learned and shared, and good suppliers recommended.
But first: take a look at my mess....
the craft room: an anatomy of mess
the stash
Beads. Findings. Yarn. Paper. Thread. Fabric. Glitter. Glue. Wire. Ribbon. Clay. The possibilities are endless.....
I ought to say: first and foremost, I am a beader. I love beads. LOVE them. Frankly, I have more beads than I know what to do with.
Whatever your first crafting love is, the question always remains: how to organise your goodies? By colour? By size? By material?
Generally, I settle for colour: it's usually the first thing I consider when I'm designing a piece. But there are other ways. A fact which lends itself to endless hours of re-(dis)organising. And how does my ever-so-slightly fragile mind cope with the enigma of enigmas in a colour-coded storage system: a multicoloured bead?!
Seriously. I actually lose sleep over this stuff.
Moving on....
I ought to say: first and foremost, I am a beader. I love beads. LOVE them. Frankly, I have more beads than I know what to do with.
Whatever your first crafting love is, the question always remains: how to organise your goodies? By colour? By size? By material?
Generally, I settle for colour: it's usually the first thing I consider when I'm designing a piece. But there are other ways. A fact which lends itself to endless hours of re-(dis)organising. And how does my ever-so-slightly fragile mind cope with the enigma of enigmas in a colour-coded storage system: a multicoloured bead?!
Seriously. I actually lose sleep over this stuff.
Moving on....
The magazines
Every crafter knows: there are an endless variety of magazines out there, for every craft imaginable. I currently subscribe to three: two for beading and one for knitting. There's nothing quite as exciting as when drops through the letterbox, making that satisfyingly heavy, 'slappy' noise as it hits the floor.
Yes, crafting magazines are addictive, as my over-worked, tired craft room bookshelf can attest. I've even been lucky enough to have my designs published in a few. But the problem with these is, just like everything else in my craft room...I just can't bring mself to throw them away!
Pretty soon, I'm going to need a new bookshelf....
Yes, crafting magazines are addictive, as my over-worked, tired craft room bookshelf can attest. I've even been lucky enough to have my designs published in a few. But the problem with these is, just like everything else in my craft room...I just can't bring mself to throw them away!
Pretty soon, I'm going to need a new bookshelf....
unfinished business
What do you call yours? WIPs? UFOs?
(That's 'works in progress' and 'unfinished objects' to those who dont speak craftroomese).
Regardless of the semantics, most of the craft rooms I've visited have been littered with these. Mine is. You know that feeling...you started a project. It seemed really exciting at the time. Innovative and new. Then it just sort of...well...ran out of steam. You lost enthusiasm. Or, if you're anything like me (and I suspect you are; just a little), you got distracted. By something else. Something newer. Shiner. Excitinger.
Am I right?
One day....one day, I will gather up all of these lost, folorn projects, and I will, I WILL finish them!
Promise.
(That's 'works in progress' and 'unfinished objects' to those who dont speak craftroomese).
Regardless of the semantics, most of the craft rooms I've visited have been littered with these. Mine is. You know that feeling...you started a project. It seemed really exciting at the time. Innovative and new. Then it just sort of...well...ran out of steam. You lost enthusiasm. Or, if you're anything like me (and I suspect you are; just a little), you got distracted. By something else. Something newer. Shiner. Excitinger.
Am I right?
One day....one day, I will gather up all of these lost, folorn projects, and I will, I WILL finish them!
Promise.
the stuff you've made and now you have no idea what to do with
The problem with being a wonderfully creative, productive person is that you end up with loads of wonderfully creative, interesting stuff.
Then you have to do something with it.
You give some as gifts (only the bits that pass muster, the bits that even your own over-critical eye, the over-critical eye that knows where every single mistake and blemish is, can pass as acceptable). You keep some for yourself. If you're lucky, you sell some online, or at craft shows, or to friends.
But there's always the bits that are left, even after all of that. The stuff that didn't sell, or that doesn't pass the self-critic test when it comes to gift-giving.
I've lost count of the amount of times I've seen a project in a book or magazine and thought "Wow! That'll be a challenge! I'd love to make that!" So, I make it. And it's challenging and satisfying in all the right ways. Until it's finished, and I have this item I'm really proud of. But it's not really...me. And then a question occurs to me; a question I hadn't thought of all the while I was planning and buying materials and beavering away:
NOW WHAT?!
Then you have to do something with it.
You give some as gifts (only the bits that pass muster, the bits that even your own over-critical eye, the over-critical eye that knows where every single mistake and blemish is, can pass as acceptable). You keep some for yourself. If you're lucky, you sell some online, or at craft shows, or to friends.
But there's always the bits that are left, even after all of that. The stuff that didn't sell, or that doesn't pass the self-critic test when it comes to gift-giving.
I've lost count of the amount of times I've seen a project in a book or magazine and thought "Wow! That'll be a challenge! I'd love to make that!" So, I make it. And it's challenging and satisfying in all the right ways. Until it's finished, and I have this item I'm really proud of. But it's not really...me. And then a question occurs to me; a question I hadn't thought of all the while I was planning and buying materials and beavering away:
NOW WHAT?!
the tools
Scissors. Pliers. Needles. Hooks. Hammers. Anvils. Brushes. Stamps. Rollers. Wire jigs. Even squeaky pasta machines (anyone who has ever worked with polymer clay will know what I'm talking about)!
Let's face it: we lust after beads. We covet yarn, paper and wire. We swoon over the prettiest embellishments.
But it's our faithful tools that are the real treasures. Where would we be without them? How would we create? It has to be said: my ever-increasing collection of tools is the most precious element in my craft room. My beautiful mess.
With these things....I can do anything!
Except tidy up.
Let's face it: we lust after beads. We covet yarn, paper and wire. We swoon over the prettiest embellishments.
But it's our faithful tools that are the real treasures. Where would we be without them? How would we create? It has to be said: my ever-increasing collection of tools is the most precious element in my craft room. My beautiful mess.
With these things....I can do anything!
Except tidy up.
the to-do lists
Every crafter makes them. And re-makes them. And again.
What is it about the humble to-do list that makes us feel so grounded? So organised? So purposeful?
How many of these have you ever gotten to the bottom of, having completed all of the items? Every item made? Every bead, tool and scrap of paper or fabric tidied away neatly, ready for the next project to begin?
Don't worry: you're not alone.
I love my to-do lists; I'd be lost without them. But I'd be a liar if I said I'd ever actually done everything I'd planned to.
Never mind. I'll just make another list...
What is it about the humble to-do list that makes us feel so grounded? So organised? So purposeful?
How many of these have you ever gotten to the bottom of, having completed all of the items? Every item made? Every bead, tool and scrap of paper or fabric tidied away neatly, ready for the next project to begin?
Don't worry: you're not alone.
I love my to-do lists; I'd be lost without them. But I'd be a liar if I said I'd ever actually done everything I'd planned to.
Never mind. I'll just make another list...
the display stuff
Every crafter with experience of exhibiting at craft shows or selling online will know that your display and packaging materials are essential.
Busts, earring carousels, tablecloths, blocks, business cards, gift bags, bubblewrap....you gotta have it all!
Is it wrong that I'm seriously considering decopatching my busts??
Busts, earring carousels, tablecloths, blocks, business cards, gift bags, bubblewrap....you gotta have it all!
Is it wrong that I'm seriously considering decopatching my busts??
So...there you have have it. A (not so) succinct introduction to the marvellous, organic thing that is my mess. My Aladdin's cave of addiction and obsession.
What's yours like?
Take a look at my other pages, and the It's My Mess! Blog for more sharing of information, suppliers, techniques and general crafting chatter. A Facebook Page is under construction, as well as a Folksy store where you can buy my makes and hopefully some tutorials.
Feedback is welcome. Happy crafting! :)
What's yours like?
Take a look at my other pages, and the It's My Mess! Blog for more sharing of information, suppliers, techniques and general crafting chatter. A Facebook Page is under construction, as well as a Folksy store where you can buy my makes and hopefully some tutorials.
Feedback is welcome. Happy crafting! :)