The start of a New Year always seems like a good time to reflect in the year just past and set some goals for the year ahead. The art / crafting area of your life is no different; it is needed to balance your lift and needs as much attention as your health, job/career and family.

Over the next few weeks we will look at  a few tips to review last year and get ready for the creative year ahead!

Which Craft?

Before we begin the decluttering, we need to spend a little more time reflecting on the last 12 months. We have reviewed how our projects, techniques and materials have developed over the year. And we have thought about the time we spent, or intended to spend and didn’t quite get there!

Today we want to take a step further back and REALLY as ourselves which crafts have served us well with the projects we have completed. Which crafts are still fun and you look forward to? These are the crafts, along with their materials and techniques that we want to embrace and continue to develop.

Many crafters seem to turn their hands to an assortment of crafts over the years. I know I have at least one started (but no where near finished) cross stitch. I may have even thought about sewing or started trying to learn to knit. Not only do these projects take up space in your crafting area, they also take up mental space. Whenever we come across an unfinished project whose prospects of ever being finished are pretty slim, we start to beat ourselves up about it; “I should get that finished”, “Mum was so pleased when I asked her to help get started with knitting; she’ll be disappointed if I don’t finish it”.

Now is the time to decide whether it is worth what little time you have worrying about these projects. My guess is that it isn’t. So let’s make the decision RIGHT NOW that we will never finish that cross stitch or what ever project it is. (I did start this over 10 years ago, before my first son was born, with a slim hope that if  have a girl the purple fairy would look lovely in her room). And will my mother be disappointed that I won’t get that knitted quilt finished; maybe but I’m sure she would much prefer me to be happy with what I am doing than abusing the wool and needles any longer (and it looks like I’ve lost a needle, anyway!)

Let’s focus on what we DO love to do. For me it’s painting and collage and stamping and using all sorts of embellishments and techniques and materials to do that. It may be on canvas or in an altered book or an art journal. It may be to make greeting cards or artist trading cards (ATCs) or book pages for a collaborative project. That is what excites me! I can feel my brain thinking about new projects already!

So, what excites you?

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