I can make that!

Do you suffer from Icanmakethatitis (aka No-need-to-buy-cos-I-can-make-it-myself disorder)? This disorder is fairly common amongst arty-crafty types and also among DIY enthusiasts. It can creep up on you without warning. Just small signs at first ("I will have a go at making a bracelet") then moving on to full blown symptoms: "Why buy a fitted kitchen when I could make the whole thing myself from scratch?!"

I admit, I have Icanmakethatitis. I blame my Dad. I caught it from him. When I was little we would wander around the shops or craft fairs on the weekend and I would say, "Daddy, can I have one of those puppets/doll's houses/games/scooters?" and his reply would be "No, dear. I can make you that!". However, he vary rarely did. It's not that he couldn't, he's very talented and has made lots of things around the home from metal and glass coffee tables, to whole sheds from scratch and he always did all the DIY. He also worked 12 hours a day and half days on Saturdays, so no wonder he didn't really have time to make a lot of these things for me.

I mentioned to my Dad in passing last year, not expecting him to get round to it, that I would like a darning mushroom. I was therefore extremely excited when he sent me this lovely creation in the post. Sometimes knowing someone with Icanmakethatitis is not such a bad thing!

Turned yew wood darning mushroom

Since I got into crafting on a more regular basis and especially since I decided to make all my Christmas presents, the Icanmakethatitis has worsened. I find myself thinking and saying "I can make that!" when wandering around shops and looking online A LOT. But, is that really such a good thing?

When you see an item that you like, you are not just paying for the materials, you are paying for the time it took that person to make it and also the original idea that they had. However, isn't it tempting when you see something to start planning how you would go about recreating it for yourself? Thoughts such as "I would save money if I made it myself. I could personalise it. I could learn a new skill!", all flit through your mind. But how many of us have the time and inclination to make these things?

Here is a case in point. About 3 years ago I saw this amazing lamp on sale in London. It has an amazing price tag too, unfortunately.

Via: Meme en Autriche

Essentially, it is copper wire with those small birds you can get from craft and floristry suppliers sitting on wire rods inside. I really wanted it, but couldn't afford it, so my first thought was, yes, you guessed it, "I can make that!". I set about collecting as many colourful birdies as I could and even started looking at old lamps that I could reappropriate. However, I didn't get any further with my project and those dear little oiseaux are sitting forlornly in my craft room.

"We had big dreams once. Now we just sit in a jam jar gazing out at the world"

You would have thought I'd learnt from that failed lamp attempt, but, no! My boyfriend and I have always liked this rather groovy Campari bottle lamp, which can sometimes be found hanging in trendy bars and restaurants:

Photo by Vineyard Adventures

Goodness knows how I would manage to make this light shade, but here are my little empty Campari Soda bottles waiting on the window ledge for a day that will probably never come:

Five Campari bottles, sitting on a wall...

I'm not sure I will ever be cured of Icanmakethatitis, but I will try and be more realistic and accept that I don't have the time (even if I think I have the wherewithal) to make all these things. If I really want something, then I should give credit where it's due to the person who made it by buying the one they made.

I think the key is to stick to making things that you are not able to buy: something personalised or unique that will have special meaning for you or the person you are making it for. It's much nicer to have something that you know nobody else will have, because you came up with the idea and made just the one :)

Christmas crafting bonanza

As some of you will know, this year I decided to do an entirely handmade selection of Christmas gifts for friends and family. This was partly because I haven't been working for a while and wanted to cut down on spending, but also because I wanted an excuse to try out lots of new crafts! I didn't blog about them at the time of making as I didn't want to spoil it for the recipients, but now that Christmas is over I thought I would show you some of my makes. I'm annoyed that I didn't get round to photographing all of them or getting pictures of them all wrapped up as I put a lot of effort in to the gift wrapping this year with handmade tags, paper and trimmings, but I was in the middle of an international move, so I think I can forgive myself :)

Let the Christmas present showcase commence!

Fabric covered notebook for my niece.

Fimo covered festive spoon and charms.

A joint effort with my boyf: pear vodka and winter spice liqueur for all the men folk.

Cross stitched card for my parents.

Decorated jar of handmade mincemeat for my French friend.

Handmade bracelet with charms for boyf's sister-in-law

Handmade earrings from recycled beads for boyf's sister.

Ribbon hairband for my niece.

Sewing case for my friend.

I really enjoyed doing all the hand sewing. This Russian doll kit was inspired
by  Flossie Teacakes needlecase tutorial.

Personalised cross stitch space invaders purse for another niece. Made from all recycled materials.

My friend Rob pointed me in the direction of this great idea for keeping track of what's in your freezer, which I made for my Mum. I used pictures of food cut out of French and German supermarket special offer brochures, then laminated them and added a self-adhesive magnet to the back. It was a fairly quick and easy make which I would recommend.

There are so many great tutorials and inspiring posts on the internet. Often my own ideas pop into my head, but it's always nice to know there is a range of practical help and projects that you can refer to or adapt whenever you want.

I really enjoyed making all my presents this year and will definitely do it again if I have the time.

Lovely arts and crafts stuff

I absolutely love making things, but this week I was thinking how much I love the stuff I make my stuff out of! I didn't realise just how many bits and bobs I had squirrelled away. I try not to let it take over the living room, as my boyf does get a bit annoyed with all the mess on the dining table. Here are a few snaps of my crafting supplies, which I think look just as appealing as what I will make out of them :)

A trug full of goodies

A jar full of birds

My faithful Huskystar and my favourite mug

How to avoid craft blogging turning into blog crafting?

I started this blog last month as I felt that sharing the odd photo on Facebook with friends wasn't really the best way to talk about and display my crafted items. I wanted to share the things I make with the crafting community and also meet like-minded people online, pick up some tips and find inspiration for new projects.

So far, I feel I am getting all of those things, but I feel like the blogging is starting to interfere with the crafting. I feel like making something, but then realise I need to take photos if I want to do a tutorial or have some sort of story (it seems a bit dull just to post a picture of a finished item and say "ta-dah!"). My camera is not very good and the lighting in my apartment is terrible (especially with it getting dark so early now), so it takes forever to set the shot up and get it to look good. Once evening sets in, I don't feel like being creative and I also think that the photos would turn out really badly, so I end up putting my making off.

I didn't realise how much time blogging would take up. It's not just the blogging and photos either, its all the tweeting to try and generate interest (after all, what's the point of spending time blogging about all my lovely makes if nobody ever reads it?). I also want to make new contacts, so I spend time reading and commenting on other people's blogs. Nice as it is, all of this takes time away from the crafting.

I started another blog over 18 months ago when we moved from London to Strasbourg and was going to update everyone on our new life here in France and put up trials and tribulations with wondrous photos, but after just a few weeks I found I was too busy living it to blog about it. The travel blog now sits forlornly with only the start of a story and I can't pick the thread up again now, as too much time has gone by and way too many things have happened.

So how to strike a happy balance? How do I stay focused on the crafting and enjoy the sharing without the latter taking over? Answers on a postcard, please :)

Vintage clipart from the fabulous http://graphicsfairy.blogspot.com