Where did it all start?

So where did all this crafting stuff start?

 Nature vs Nuture?

Well I have always loved making things, crafting and playing with pieces of ribbon and material. As a child I used to dress up my friends and as my Dad says crafting and messing around with various hobbies is a family trait.

Granddad is a big fan of hobbies and of hoarding. He has actually transported several pieces of wood through one house move to another for the last twenty years. He thinks there will be a use for them one day and if he throws them away then he will obviously need them straight away. He makes Faberge style eggs cutting out designs into them and placing models inside. He also makes and sends his own birthday and Christmas cards and since he keeps every design he has every made he has enough to keep him going for a few years!

Grandma is also a crafting genius, making all my costumes as a child for dance shows and performances. My favourite beyond a doubt has to be the can can dress she made, complete with frilly knickers and garter belt. Although these ballet nets were very successfully reused for a Disney night out at university!

Dad is also a great fan of things to keep his hands busy. He makes and paints Warhammer models guess it's each to his own!

My love of crafting really started in a focused way with booking a beginners jewellery making session. Sarah at Purple Pepper     (https://www.facebook.com/Jewellery.PurplePepper?ref=ts&fref=ts/) sorted us ladies out and I can thoroughly recommend her for anyone starting out with jewellery in the Leamington Spa or Coventry area. She was so calm and positive the whole evening and helped us produce a necklace, bracelet and earring set each. Definately worth the money!

Look at the concentration here ladies...

 

And the happy smiling faces after!

I had thought that the costs of all the beads, pilers and wires would be too much for me to be able to afford to make any more jewellery at home. However I found a really good kit online which was aimed at people just like me! Lots of cheap beads in various sizes, pilers and tweezers, a bead board and mat to keep everything contained and excellent value! So that was it, my weekends and evenings became full of jewellery making and soon more crafts too.

 What do I make? Or attempt to make atleast...

I make what I like, things that I find online or in stores that I feel would benefit from a homemade touch. Homemade is the word here, I am not pretending to be a wizz witha sewing machine or in any way a professional crafter. I try my best and make the best version of something that I can. In some cases that is a fairly decent job in others it is the worst thing I have ever seen in my life....(see any post about my possessed sewing machine).

I have found that in the last few years there are many many more people around my age getting back into traditional crafts such as crochet, knitting and sewing. I'm not sure if that is because of the ridiculous cost of living or the increase in home deocoration programmes on the tv, but as a generation we seem to be obsessed with making do and mending...not a bad thing in any economic climate!

 Happy Crafting!
L x