How Jocelyn Got Her Groove Back

Her crafting groove, that is.

And maybe I got it back.  I feel like I may have, anyway.

To tell the story, I have to take you back 20 + years and show you a picture of a younger me.  You ready??

Not sure which one is me?  That's fair, since you've only seen one picture.  Here I am:

This was a long time ago.  Long, long long.  I was so young.  So, so young.  My two friends (who will remain anonymous so I don't get beat up) and I used to do the craft fair that was held in the middle school of our school district.  We made things like clothespin angels, cross stitch pictures, and painted ornaments.  Apparently we also made t-shirts to go with our table, but my memory's crap, so I only know that from looking at the picture.  I do remember it was a lot of red and green, and there was a heinous overuse of those ribbon roses from the craft store, but that's about all I can tell you.  However, funny enough, I still have things left over from those craft fairs.  Things that didn't sell, or that I liked so much I hid.  Every year they go on the tree and every year I think, I was so young.  So, so young.

Anywho, that's not the point.  Back in those days, I loved to craft.  I did anything and everything--those corn husk dolls that were made out of that horrid untwistable twisted paper, stenciling pretty much anything that didn't move, cross stitch on Aida cloth, clothespin stuff, painted wood, things with pine cones and pompoms, and one year I painted an entire plaster village for my mom for Christmas.  That was fun, and I can still remember sitting at the table in the kitchen, just painting away. 

But as I got older, I didn't do that anymore.  There were other things to do.  I turned from crafting to decorating my room, then later, decorating my house.  And there was lots of renovation.  I still cross stitch (on linen--the Aida has gone the way of the dodo), and crochet and embroider and stuff, but sitting down to make things really didn't happen.

So when I decided to do this craft fair on Saturday, I made soap and baskets and other nice things.  But then I went to Michael's for something and got inspired.  So I crafted again.  Along with the soaps and baskets and lovely things at this fair this year, there will also be:

 

Ornaments

 Crocheted snowmen

 



It's like a little snowman mugshot, isn't it?

"We didn't do it, we have an alibi!"

"We want our lawyer"

 

Felt trees that are jingle bells:

Salt shakers that are snow globe ornaments:

Another mug shot picture.  Ok, which one of you is the pepper?

 

"Not me, I swear!"

I thought those were pretty clever, I have to admit. 

 

And then, because I got on this snow globe kick, I had an "inspiration burp", and made a larger version:

 

 

Some traditional,

 

 

 

And some not so traditional.

Ooooh! Terrible picture!  Yeay!

 

 

I love the front detail on this one

So along with the soaps, I have some crafts that I think are really lovely.  What will anyone else think?  I guess I'll find out on Saturday. 

So did I get my crafting groove back?  Maybe.  You tell me, but it was very therapeutic.  I didn't enjoy the HUGE mess on my table for days and days, but I did enjoy creating again.  It was a nice break.

Sometimes it's nice to go back to our "roots", isn't it?  It was good to go back and find something I thought I'd lost.

And I didn't use a single ribbon rose. 

Yeehaw.