I don’t know about you, but I have tried a lot of crafts of the years. From sewing to decoupage, knitting to crocheting, scrapbooking to friendship bracelets, I have invested a lot of time and money into crafts that just did not sustain my interest. I shudder at the thought of how much I have spent on craft supplies I had such good intentions of using before my patience ran out.
As the amount of stuff in my craft supply storage containers started to pile up I decided to put most of that on hold, and my visits to A.C. Moore started to peter out. Then I discovered Etsy, and for some reason the lure of pearls pulled me in. I thought, “This is it! I love the looks of pearls, I will make jewelry out of pearls!” Needless to say, I went a bit overboard in buying pearls before I realized, like most of the other crafts I had dabbled in, I just couldn’t get into it.
I really wanted to make it work, especially as I would stare at the big collection of pearls I had amassed. But every time I would sit down to make something with them, I just wasn’t inspired.
I continued to peruse through Etsy, and one day I came across some chainmaille jewelry. I wish I could say how I found it or which shop first caught my attention, but I saw it and was drawn to it.
However, knowing my penchant for wasting money on unused craft supplies, I decided to buy a small pack of jump rings and found a YouTube video on how to make the Byzantine weave.
And before long, I was hooked! I started to buy more chainmaille supplies, started experimenting with different sizes and styles, and decided to open my own Etsy shop with modern and elegant chainmaille jewelry.
I recently met up with someone I met through an Etsy101 class. We were talking about our respective crafts–she makes these beautiful totes and clutches–and she was saying she knew she loved sewing because if she messed up the stitches it really didn’t bother her to take them out and redo them.
I thought about it and my interest in chainmaille, and it is so true! I’ve had times where I thought I was going one way with a design and realized I was not satisfied with how it was looking and would undo what I had started. Or I had put aside a chain I had made only to take it apart because I needed the jumprings for another project.
I realized that this doesn’t bother me, because for me the act of making a chainmaille weave is so satisfying I don’t mind doing it all over again.
How did you know that you found the perfect craft for you?
I have yet to find a craft that is perfect for me, that I can sell. I tried for years with sewing, but it became very apparent that it was not the perfect craft for me. I do enjoy it, and I still do it, but not as “work” anymore. I think knitting is the perfect handcraft for me. I can do it for hours, I can read about it when my hands hurt too much to pick up the needles again, and I can window shop for it endlessly. I’m starting to think photography is my other perfect craft – I’m in love with the entire process!
Visiting from Sharefest. I don’t craft, though like you have spent money on things I don’t keep up with. I even took a knitting class hoping I would love it. Turns out my real love is writing which is why I blog. And because it relaxes me, encourages me, and makes me whole, I keep doing it. Beautiful necklaces. Thank you for the thoughtful post.
Thanks for visiting, Laura, and your kind words. I would consider writing a type of craft, and something that not everyone enjoys. It’s great that you were able to find something that elicits such great feelings! Hope you have a wonderful weekend.
Love your words and creations! I can totally identify with having ideas, getting started, buying too much stuff, and then not feeling excited about the craft anymore. Congratulations on finding something you really enjoy and don’t mind messing up! I can’t wait to go see more of your things! (Stopping by from SITS)
Thanks so much, Melissa!
Oh my goodness, I am with you on the massive amounts of money spent on all kinds of crafts… that I never do and am terrible at. Probably the dumbest expense was buying all of the supplies to make my own cloth diapers. Yep. They are still in the drawer… I did also spend a bunch of money on jewelry making. have no idea what to do with that either… but I’m determined to figure it out!