I’m Not Buying It!
I’m writing this post so that I will feel accountable for my next sentence. I am NOT going to BUY any new craft supplies in 2017 unless they fit the two specific criteria I have laid out here. First, I am ALLOWED to buy the NECESSITIES if I run out. By necessities, I mean things like paint, glue, artist pens and pencils, gesso, etc… Second, I CAN BUY art supplies if I find them ridiculously CHEAP at thrift shops, yard sales or flea markets. That’s it! I am not going to go to Tuesday Morning, Hobby Lobby, Michael’s or any other store just to browse and see what they have. Browsing usually ends up costing me a lot of money!
So why am I making this bold statement? When I was crafting for Christmas, I found I had so many Christmas items in my stash that I didn’t need to go out any buy anything. I made lots of December Dailies, cards, tags and embellishments without purchasing a thing. The amazing thing is, I still don’t need to buy anything for next year either. I have so many supplies I’m drowning in them. Ditto for Valentine’s Day, Easter, Summer, Fall and you get the idea.
Now here’s where it hurts. I’m going to expose my shame and show you all the stuff I have to craft and make mixed media with. Ready?
Shelf full of card stock, stencils, journals, and books and files of ephemera.
Storage cubby filled with everything imaginable under the sun!
Rolling cart filled with punches, oil pastels and TWO drawers of stickers.
The surface of my desk. There is so much stuff on it I only have about two square feet to work on!
Under my desk are paper collections, paper pads and suitcases full of embellishments.
A Raskog cart from Ikea filled with paints, markers and more embellishments.
A metal shelf from Ikea filled with stamps, scrap paper, beads, lace and other “stuff”.
A vintage cabinet stuffed to the gills with items for making Junk Journals and Christmas projects.
More books for ephemera.
Another Raskog cart filled with Junk Journal fodder and a plastic drawer unit filled with jewelry making supplies.
Sadly, this is not all. There are some drawers in my studio and other places all over the house that have craft supplies in them. Now you can see why I don’t need to go shopping anytime soon. Everything I have I liked enough to purchase or save, so now it’s time to use it all up. I’m excited about the thought of actually having room to breathe in my studio.
Okay, so it’s confession time. I already did buy something this year. This is what I bought.
Two old reference books.
My justification is that they were cheap (only $1.00 each) and….
They are filled with pages and pages of these beautiful nature graphics! I can use these for so many projects.
So there you have it. I feel better after this photographic confession and goal for 2017. Hopefully you will be seeing a lot of posts showing the stuff I have been making.
If you feel like you’re suffocating in your supplies, or you want to save some money, craft from your stash and have fun with the supplies you already have on hand. Good Luck!
glitteronmyface 
Helen…..loved this post! I am trying to use what I have too. Seems I am overloaded with fabric right now. Did a fun project today. I had 5 stray wooden clothespins, so I made 5 butterflies out of a rag quilt using the clothespin as the center. Cold weather is great for crafting…and baking. Stay warm. Becky
Thank you Becky! I hope you had a great Christmas and Happy New Year. I would love to see a picture of your rag butterflies. If you made them, I know they are super cute!
On Sun, Jan 8, 2017 at 6:37 PM, glitteronmyface wrote:
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Me too!!! I set myself a challenge for the year, to work in just one color each month. I’ve built an online program around it. But the big part to me is: USE ALL THE STUFF!! As soon as I decided to do this I felt a big wave of relief. Like all this treasure I’ve collected and salvaged for art can finally come to life instead of waiting for inspiration to magic it into being.
Good luck, and have fun with all this gorgeous stuff!! X
Thank you ephemeral gecko. I too felt a big wave of relief when I decided this. I love how you worded that. It’s like I don’t have to play “keep up” anymore. Besides, I love the stuff I have, so now I get to use it. Have fun with your colorful months, that sounds like fun!