Thankful day #2

Today I'm thankful for the "Crafting Explosion", it's a statement I read in an old issue of Country Living magazine.
Back in 2004- 2005, I was working at JoAnn's, surrounded by fabric, crafts, jewelry, art supplies, well, you all know JoAnns.
Around this time my hubby and I took a church course called Potters Wheel. I don't remember everything but I remember talking about being in a church surround by all these crafty women and how I wanted to be like them. Looking back it was almost heart wrenching how much I wanted to pursue and learn the crafty world. I was asked by the facilitator, a wonderful women, what was I so afraid of and it literally burst out that I was afraid of my passion. We all have seen that stereotype of the starving artist, the recluse artist, the emotionally traumatized artist, or the women who bankrupts her family for her crafting addiction. The last part actually did happen to one lady in the scrapbooking world.
Anywhooo...
After the class Rob and I talked about scrapbooking and what I was looking to learn. He was somewhat supportive but didn't want me to go overboard, ha ha. On my breaks at work I would grab magazines and thumb through them. One of the first ones that I grabbed was Creating Keepsakes Magazine it was there October issue and it was everything in 10's. This was really the start of the scrapbooking boom, but that's besides the point. I thumbed through that issue and was inspired and we all know how much I like to be inspired, lol. I found easy to do projects, and blogs of the interesting women who created these cool crafts. I found online communities like Two Peas and Cricut. I started collecting a roster of blogs like they were magazine subscriptions. I spent hours pouring over galleries, reading about techniques and where to buy products. For a few years it was an addiction. As I learned, I purchased new tools and supplies. At one point while I worked for Joann's, I was the scrapbooking teacher and then when the Cricut machine came out I had to learn how to use and demonstrate that.
Oh, the cricut machine, she has taken me far and opened up a whole new world. A couple of years ago I was fortunate enough to be a part of the Cricut Army and go to Michael's and Joann's demonstrating the Cricut, Gypsy and the Cricut cake machine, miss doing that.
It was some time in 2010 (holy cow, I went back and checked and it was Sep.2008!) that I began my journey with the The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron. It was so eye opening and I know that I have blogged about it a few times so I won't continue to rehash. I will say if you think your not a creative person, you are wrong. We are all creative people.
So I could really go on when it comes to my creative journey and I know there are way more points to cover. But truly I have found a freedom in the beauty of things that are created by my own hands. I can still be my worst critic, I can make plenty of mistakes, but it really is OK. I was looking back on my blog and saw some of the things that I have made over the years and I'm proud. I've grown and will continue to grow in the diverse world of arts and crafts. I'm thankful that I took steps and continue to take steps to being crafty and creative.
One last point of being crafty. In this day and age there are groups of people who say, I'm not gonna buy that, I'm gonna make it". We have this urge to make, build, design, in all of us. Some shut it down but others run with it. I'm am or I'm becoming one of those people. You need a blanket, you make one, birthday party decor, you can make that too. The imagination is boundless but sadly our time isn't and that's the biggest threat to being creative.
I would have taken a picture of my scrap room but it is in a state of clean up and reorganizing. At least that's what I tell myself, it actually looks like a bomb went off.
*Carrie*