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Last week's jump-start inspiration project: Wood block houses from Things With Wings. Hmmm… where to start, where to start? When I last updated this blog I was reevaluating my creative business. I finished my taxes and recognized that this crafting business – primarily textile based – is more of a hobby than a business for me. That led me down a path of contemplation about what I was doing and why. I asked myself some basic questions about my initial goal (make something, anything, that a non-friend/family member would buy - check).
The follow-up question to that is “did you enjoy it?” Answer: yes and no. I love making things. I love that people (total strangers, even!) wanted to purchase my creations. But I was disappointed in the amount of money I made in relation to the amount of time I spent. That’s the honest truth. Also, I felt a little stuck in the scarf making biz, and wanted to move on from those.
Deeper questions follow:
What do you want the business to look like? Do you want to eventually pay the mortgage with this business? The answer to that seems to be a big NO. There are many reasons why. The most fundamental is that I don’t want to loose the joy of creating things and I definitely don’t want to turn away from my passion because it became a grind.
Don’t get me wrong, There are people out there who are making a go of it with their creative businesses. I loved making things and each sale is a thrill and I will continue to offer my creations in my Etsy shop, but I’m still figuring out what that looks like. My Etsy shop is now reopened with scarves and zippered pouches and ornaments – just in time for the holiday season. Of course I will update when new projects are available there.
I’m grateful that I have time to contemplate such questions and answers. I’m grateful that I have the freedom to change direction if I want.
So skip over Easter, end-of-school, 4th of July and a pretty major house remodel, and fast forward to present day (Happy Thanksgiving) I find myself in need of a new goal. (You know I’m a big fan of the goal setting.) I need of some focus, so I don’t look back at the end of the school year and ask “what did I do this year?”
This summer we remodeled the kitchen/living room and I enjoyed the creative decisions that came with that. It was very inspiring to work with a professional designer. Shout out to Jennifer Runkle at Runkle Design. Now I have the opportunity to put my creative stamp on the remodel through numerous projects. That list looks like this:
I love Pinterest. There are so many great ideas that inspire me. In an effort to jump-start my creativity and give myself another goal, I will choose one project per week (am I too ambitious? we shall see) from my Pinterest boards as inspiration. I’ll post those recreations here as well as on my Pinterest board titled “From Pinterest – I actually tried.” There are sure to be some successes and some failures (which could be hilarious.)
Last week, I found these wood block houses via Pinterest. They came from a great website called Things with Wings. I'm just beginning to explore this website, but I love their style. So I made my own version. I got to use the Modge Podge I so love, as well as cool papers and collage techniques I’ve picked up along the way. They add a little personal whimsy to my shelves, and more importantly, they make me smile. -Mary
The follow-up question to that is “did you enjoy it?” Answer: yes and no. I love making things. I love that people (total strangers, even!) wanted to purchase my creations. But I was disappointed in the amount of money I made in relation to the amount of time I spent. That’s the honest truth. Also, I felt a little stuck in the scarf making biz, and wanted to move on from those.
Deeper questions follow:
What do you want the business to look like? Do you want to eventually pay the mortgage with this business? The answer to that seems to be a big NO. There are many reasons why. The most fundamental is that I don’t want to loose the joy of creating things and I definitely don’t want to turn away from my passion because it became a grind.
Don’t get me wrong, There are people out there who are making a go of it with their creative businesses. I loved making things and each sale is a thrill and I will continue to offer my creations in my Etsy shop, but I’m still figuring out what that looks like. My Etsy shop is now reopened with scarves and zippered pouches and ornaments – just in time for the holiday season. Of course I will update when new projects are available there.
I’m grateful that I have time to contemplate such questions and answers. I’m grateful that I have the freedom to change direction if I want.
So skip over Easter, end-of-school, 4th of July and a pretty major house remodel, and fast forward to present day (Happy Thanksgiving) I find myself in need of a new goal. (You know I’m a big fan of the goal setting.) I need of some focus, so I don’t look back at the end of the school year and ask “what did I do this year?”
This summer we remodeled the kitchen/living room and I enjoyed the creative decisions that came with that. It was very inspiring to work with a professional designer. Shout out to Jennifer Runkle at Runkle Design. Now I have the opportunity to put my creative stamp on the remodel through numerous projects. That list looks like this:
- Recover Pillows (I have a ton of fabric!)
- Recover an Ikea chair
- Recover dining chairs
- Continue to scout thrift stores a chair (or 2) to replace the one that not a single person ever wants to sit in. (sounds like I’m going to learn upholstery!)
- Create artwork for the empty tv wall – painting? multi media collage? reclaimed wood?
- Frame some long-lost art found behind old furniture
I love Pinterest. There are so many great ideas that inspire me. In an effort to jump-start my creativity and give myself another goal, I will choose one project per week (am I too ambitious? we shall see) from my Pinterest boards as inspiration. I’ll post those recreations here as well as on my Pinterest board titled “From Pinterest – I actually tried.” There are sure to be some successes and some failures (which could be hilarious.)
Last week, I found these wood block houses via Pinterest. They came from a great website called Things with Wings. I'm just beginning to explore this website, but I love their style. So I made my own version. I got to use the Modge Podge I so love, as well as cool papers and collage techniques I’ve picked up along the way. They add a little personal whimsy to my shelves, and more importantly, they make me smile. -Mary
My attempt to recreate the wood block houses. Fun stuff.
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