Motivation by Swap

I started swapping again via the web site http://www.swap-bot.com/. I've done this mainly to force myself to do things I like to do and then share them with others. Mostly, I've been swapping supplies like fabric. It is helping me to rediscover fabrics I have forgotten I had. It used to be a regular thing where I would open up my containers of fabric and organize them or pull them out to do little projects but I just got busy and stopped doing it so much.

Now though, I try to find little tidbits that I don't mind sharing or maybe I just don't love so much anymore. I love putting together fabrics and seeing what someone else thinks. I'm just starting to do swaps where I actually have to make something. I did one the other day and was so excited that I finished it that I forgot to take a picture of it.

The latest one I sent out was to commemorate the 100,000th swap on the site. I decided to take the little pictures Swap-bot provides to use as profile pictures and put them together like a little collage and make a coaster or mug-rug. I lined them all up on my computer and then printed them on fabric. I decided that wasn't enough to give so I made two matching postcards. Here they are so what do you think?

Just Crazy

Thinking about just changing the name of my blog to Just Crazy as I start getting back into crafting more and hoping to actually get some holiday gifts done this year. However, I still want to keep taking classes and learn more computer stuff. I already have several Microsoft Office Certificates and the elusive Comptia Network+ certification.

I recently changed jobs (still same place - different department) and I'm working evening hours. I was hoping to squeeze more time out of the day since I have mornings to myself but I find I want to stay at home more than I ever have. Darn those benefits like health insurance and money to buy my supplies.

Men Who Quilt

Today I stumbled upon a blog written by a male quilter. The fact that he quilts and is male is really not that shocking or anything. I have known a few men who quilt or do some sort of fiber art but it was his profile picture that stood out. At the time of this reading he is wearing a really nice suit and tie in his picture and reminded me more of a business-CEO-type-of-guy. I used to work for a company that was all about making people more creative but the suits up stairs had no idea what (or why we loved to do it) the things we did. They only cared about $$$.

So, I was like "Really?" and I browsed through Ryan Walsh: I'm Just a Guy Who Quilts blog. And you know what, he is awesome! I'm love with his tutorial {Pillow Talk} A Tutorial Part I and Part II which involves altering circles to complete a very interesting layout and design.

So I got to thinking about other guy quilters I know, and they vary in personalities just as much as women quilters I know but I just don't know as many of them. I decided to do searches on those I know about and to see if I could find more. Here are some of the ones I found (in no particular order):

• Kaffe Fassett
• John Flynn
• Dan Olfe
• Mark Lipinski
• Kevin Kosbab aka Feed Dog
• Michael James
• Phil Beaver
• Ricky Tims
• Charlie Scott aka Qubee

They are all amazing and inspiring to me. They are doing what they love. Keep it up guys!

Be Proud to be DIY

As many of you probably do, I subscribe to a number of blogs and they span a great deal of different interests but many times they do relate to each other even if it is not about crafting. That happened today with Get Rich Slowly, a personal finance blog that I read from time to time. The article today is Made by Hand: In Praise of Amateurs. It is a personal tribute not only to handmade, DIY and being self-sustainable but to the author's dad who did many projects and inventions over the years before his rather young passing. It is amazing how much he did in his short lifetime.

J.D. Roth, the author, also gives us a sneak peak at the upcoming book Made by Hand by Mark Fraunfelder the editor of Make magazine. Evidently it is not a do-it-yourself instruction book but a look at someone who loves to do what DIYers love to do. I came from a family of DIY types. We always had a huge garden, we canned and froze all kinds of produce, my mom taught me to sew and crochet, my brother was a wood carver and cabinet maker but not professionally and we never ate out which at the time I thought was tragic.

I really liked this article because it brought back my own memories but also the change I've felt in the last few years about being able to be more self-sustainable. I'm even taking a computer course so I can do my own maintenance and it has inspired me to one day to try to build my own computer. I recently learned how to knit and have had great praise for the scarves I've given away.

Do you do crafts as part of being able to DIY? Do you find yourself wanting to DIY other areas like constructing your own lamp or building a patio?

I'm in the Top 25 at Craft Critique

My wire-edge ribbon article I wrote for Craft Critique is one of their 25 most read articles. I'm so excited. You can read it too; click here. It contains a tutorial on making a ribbon rose. Or, you can go to Craft Critique to see it and all the top 25 in this special article.

A Place to Shop

One of my favorite online stores that I sometimes find myself at late at night is Erica's Craft & Sewing Center. They have just about anything: fabric, books, yarn, thread, machines, magazines (even the Australian ones), and more. You should really explore the site yourself.

If you live or plan on visiting near South Bend, Indiana you can visit the actual store. I have still yet to go even though I've driven by South Bend several times to visit relatives but never during a time when they're open.

Recycle Crafting and Green Crafting

I'm a little behind on my crafty links for each day of the month, National Craft Month. It was a very busy weekend with spending the whole day Saturday at Crop for a Cause. I didn't get much done but I did have a lot of fun with my friends and I did win one silent auction of some kids scrapbooking supplies for my daughter.

While trying to think of what I wanted to share with you next I came across an article about taking used items and making them into unique art items to sell. They called it Junk Style Art. Recently I have been collecting old sweaters (mostly wool ones to felt) and any unique pieces of clothing to create something new. I have done some re-fashion before and wrote about one of the items in this article: How to Re-fashion a Kid's Sweatshirt. I started researching sites to give me some ideas and found the ones below.

Try these sites for finding ideas on recycle crafting or being a green crafter:

• Wardrobe Re-Fashion - You can pledge to re-fashion used clothing instead of buying new but it's a great source of inspiration.
• Crafting a Green World - Eco-friendly craft projects.
• Dollar Store Crafts - Emphasis is using supplies from a dollar store or dollar section of a store but you can find recycled ideas like this Recycled Plastic Bottle Chandelier.
• Recycled Crafts at Craft Gossip.com - Very cute stuff!

Have fun exploring and getting inspiration.