You Know You Are A Crafter When...

You know you are a crafter when it looks like an arts and craft store has exploded in your house. Everywhere you turn you see craft supplies and your family is wondering what has happened to you. I know what has happened to you, because it has happened to me... we are obsessed! Most of the time we can't even find a place to sit at the dining room table because we have two, three, four, or more, projects spread out. We have on-going projects in the dining room, living room, bedroom, and even in our car. We don't want to be somewhere and not be able to get our hands one of our current projects.

Yard sales become a way of life. We have the whole family up at 6:00 am every Saturday driving around town, looking for the items that scream at us to revive them. We drive around to the different thrift stores in town, three or four times a week, just to see what "new" things have come in. We see that old chair that most people think should have been thrown away, but not us. We see it stripped, stained, reupholstered and in all it's glory. We find vintage sheets with holes or stains, but to us they become tote bags, pillow cases, quilts or curtains. Everything we look at comes to life and has a new sense of purpose. There is nothing that cannot be revived from it's current state. We cannot go anywhere without thinking about crafting. Crafting proves the statement "One man's trash is another man's treasure". Being a crafter isn't really a hobby, it's your life. You become consumed. You try to stay focused on the project at hand, but it is too hard. You start on something and your mind begins to spin and you start making mental notes about your next five projects. You will always have something to do, but it is not a chore. We are grateful for the opportunity to give fabric, furniture and clothes new life.

You also know you are a crafter when you walk into your child's bedroom, knowing it's been too quiet and he/she is probably up to something, only to find them making a quilt out of scraps of paper and clear tape. They have watched you sit at your sewing machine for hours on end piecing together fabric and they want to be a part of it. So, they make a quilt the best way they know how. The best thing we can do in these moments is to fan the flame of creativity in our children.

All of you crafters out there, let your creativity and your individuality shine. Everyone has a different style, and that is what makes the world go around.