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A Craft for Me
Dec. 30th, 2007 10:53 amI'm back from Rochester, having been whisked away by beloved ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
beowabbit for a fun journey home that included a stop at the mecca that is Wegman's flagship store, and an impromptu dinner visit with some old friends of mine in Southampton, MA. It was a delightful way to spend my birthday. beowabbit gives a more detailed account of our fun on the road in his LJ. All in all, the week spent in Rochester was more positive than negative, and I came away with a bit of fresh inspiration.
If you've been reading me for a while, you've likely seen me complain along the "everybody has a craft but me" lines. My friends knit, crochet, sculpt, make glass art, make web art, make jewelry, and all manner of things lovely and creative. I was always the one looking on, being impressed and a bit envious. I've long wanted a craft to feel passionate about, but I'm not much of a craft-for-therapy kind of person -- it had to be something I can actually use and share, perhaps someday sell (or just give away), but definitely something with a clear and practical function.
This year I became completely smitten with reusable fabric gift bags. I've long been a fan of reusable paper gift bags as a greener alternative to throw-away wrapping paper. The bags make the rounds of friends and get used over and over until they wear out. This Christmas season marked my first discovery of fabric gift bags, which take greener gift wrap to the next level. I bought several, and enjoyed using them as gift wrapping as well as studying their patterns. Lots of crafters are making them -- just look on Google. I think it's a splendid way to avoid years worth of garbage bags stuffed with once-used-and-discarded wrapping paper.
Some wonderful friends, as led by my darlingbeowabbit, have joined together to buy me a new refurb sewing machine for my birthday (my current machine is a piece of crap from Craigslist that barely works). I may have it as soon as tomorrow. I've missed sewing, and though I'm not skilled enough for complex clothing design, I've always liked making hats, catnip toys, clothing from patterns, and other small projects. Fabric gift bags are something I can use and share. Choosing fabric that can be washed and ironed would allow people to re-gift them over and over, hopefully eliminating a great deal of paper wrap waste. Choosing recycled or other environmentally gentle fabric would make them just plain awesome. (weegoddess, did I not I say you are an inspiration? :-))
So, that's a thing I plan to do with my new sewing machine. Finally I can has craft!
beowabbit for a fun journey home that included a stop at the mecca that is Wegman's flagship store, and an impromptu dinner visit with some old friends of mine in Southampton, MA. It was a delightful way to spend my birthday. beowabbit gives a more detailed account of our fun on the road in his LJ. All in all, the week spent in Rochester was more positive than negative, and I came away with a bit of fresh inspiration. If you've been reading me for a while, you've likely seen me complain along the "everybody has a craft but me" lines. My friends knit, crochet, sculpt, make glass art, make web art, make jewelry, and all manner of things lovely and creative. I was always the one looking on, being impressed and a bit envious. I've long wanted a craft to feel passionate about, but I'm not much of a craft-for-therapy kind of person -- it had to be something I can actually use and share, perhaps someday sell (or just give away), but definitely something with a clear and practical function.
This year I became completely smitten with reusable fabric gift bags. I've long been a fan of reusable paper gift bags as a greener alternative to throw-away wrapping paper. The bags make the rounds of friends and get used over and over until they wear out. This Christmas season marked my first discovery of fabric gift bags, which take greener gift wrap to the next level. I bought several, and enjoyed using them as gift wrapping as well as studying their patterns. Lots of crafters are making them -- just look on Google. I think it's a splendid way to avoid years worth of garbage bags stuffed with once-used-and-discarded wrapping paper.
Some wonderful friends, as led by my darling
beowabbit, have joined together to buy me a new refurb sewing machine for my birthday (my current machine is a piece of crap from Craigslist that barely works). I may have it as soon as tomorrow. I've missed sewing, and though I'm not skilled enough for complex clothing design, I've always liked making hats, catnip toys, clothing from patterns, and other small projects. Fabric gift bags are something I can use and share. Choosing fabric that can be washed and ironed would allow people to re-gift them over and over, hopefully eliminating a great deal of paper wrap waste. Choosing recycled or other environmentally gentle fabric would make them just plain awesome. (weegoddess, did I not I say you are an inspiration? :-))So, that's a thing I plan to do with my new sewing machine. Finally I can has craft!