She's crafty. Or not.

I admire people with skills like crafting, photography, knitting, decoupage, baking, writing or whatever. If you can make something and make it awesome, you are totally cool in my book.

I've tried numerous things in the 30 years I've been chilling on this planet to prove I have some talent at something. Anything. I'm still searching for the one thing I can make with my own hands that I can show off and be proud off.


My intentions are always there and I get really excited to make something with my own hands. I buy books and materials and research and ask questions. Ultimately I never quite succeed in making anything worth keeping.

I participated in a garage sale at a friend's house a few weekends ago and sold all the things I had ever tried to make. I was almost embarrassed at the things I had tried and not completed. First there were all those acrylic paints. I had no particular purpose for them although I did use them. I tried my version of painting on a canvas. It was totally not painting either. It was me spending an hour painting a large canvas in one solid color. I doubt that someone will show up at Antiques Roadshow in 100 years and be told that my 'art' is priceless. I did paint a few terracotta pots but they turned out horrible. An ex boyfriend did a better job at painting them then I did.

Then I focused my attention on jewelry making. I'm a BIG BIG jewelry fan. I've been an avid collector for around 10 years and you'd be amazed at what I have. It would only be natural to make something myself, right? I bought books and jewelery wire and pretty stones and clasps and bead organizers and a billion other things. I made a few necklaces and a pair of earrings and deemed them too 'kindergarten craft project' to ever wear them. I sold the entire collection of jewelry making stuff for $8. That little girl got a bargain.

Funny t-shirt making was a fleeting hobby. A friend of mine made me the funniest shirt with her own two hands. She bought a store made shirt and gussied it up with fabric and fancy glue and letters. She made me two different ones. Two "inside joke"shirts that I still have in my closet. I thought it would be hilarious to make shirts for friends as jokes. Included in that arsenal were t-shirts in various colors, assorted fabrics in different patterns, iron on letters glue on sequins and a plethora of other items to make a t-shirt more than just plain. I made one shirt, deemed it stupid looking and sold the whole lot at the garage sale for a few bucks. Another bargain.

Then, THEN! I bought a bunch of string and was going to make this really cool wall art project I saw on HGTV. I coordinated all the string colors, painted all the nail heads that I would need for the project, measured the string, picked a spot on the wall and then proceeded to put everything in the guest bedroom closet. I donated it all last week.

Let's talk scrap booking. Hasn't almost every woman under the age of 100 at least attempted this? A finished scrapbook is a great way to display cherished photos. I actually did finish quite a few pages and then gave up. It takes a lot of time and scrap booking is not cheap. I sold hundreds of sheets of paper, sheet after sheet of stickers and transfer on letters. Embellishments and cut outs and scissors and punches and tape and OMG, it's almost to hard to even say what I sold it for. $10. I want to cry. I only hope that the lady who bought that stuff knows what a deal she got. She better be making scrapbook pages AS I TYPE THIS.

I can't forget my attempt at crocheting. This is actually something I've been trying to do for many years. My Grandma B taught me to crochet and I actually enjoy doing it. But I can't make a square to save my life. I made a blanket once that's this odd shape and entirely too small for the normal human being. After Jackson was born I decided he needed a pair of mommy made crochet pants for winter. I picked out some nice warm, pretty wool. Got a new set of crochet hooks in different sizes and downloaded instructions online. I spent hours and hours remaking just the leg of the pants. When I got to the crotch area I gave up. Who knew crotches were not easy to make. I sold all the crochet stuff, too. Probably for a song.

A few years ago I even registered to be in a ceramics class in college to get my elective out of the way. I pictured the teacher praising me and my artist hands. My skill with ceramics would rival those of the masters. Ok, I didn't really expect that much praise. But I was hoping maybe THIS would finally be THE thing I've been looking for. Meh, not so much. I had fun in the class and made a few pieces that I'm quite proud of, but it's nothing to write home about. I attempted to sell a vase I had made at that garage sale. A man picked it up and showed it to his wife and asked if she wanted it. She crinkled up her nose and shook her head no. Now Goodwill has it on some shelf probably marked for a buck ninety nine. With a half price sticker on it.

Probably the one thing I keep trying over and over again is cooking. I can follow a recipe like everyone else. What I'd love to do is make my own recipes that are worthy of sharing with humans and not just my dog. I tried again last night. Derick liked what I made, but I didn't. And I'll be honest, my almost 13-year-old doesn't have the most refined palet.

Someday I'll find that one thing I'm good at creating. I figure that day I stop trying to find it, that's when I've given up on life. Until then, I keep an empty set of drawers to hold materials and tools for my next project.


Tell me, what are you good at making or creating? And how did you discover your talent?