Since the break-up I have been spending a lot of time alone. Thinking. Muddling through not just the break-up, but my life. This led me to start thinking about craft (no big surprise).

I have started to think about ‘craft’ in broader terms than just the making of objects with your hands. I have started to think about the way we craft our lives. Some people say, “Oh I am not a creative person”. I beg to differ. We are creative. We are all crafty. We are, each of us, taking our life each day and crafting it in certain ways to make it our own.

This thought, along with my continual overdosing on self-help books, has made me think about the life I have crafted for myself and the way that it has differed from the life I wish to craft for myself and my daughter.

I remember being eighteen, living in Boston, going to Park Street Church. One morning I listened to Danny Harrell preach a sermon I have not forgotten. He said that looking back on his youth, his only regret is the caution he had. He said something like he wishes there had been more parties, more skipping lectures at college, more being silly.

Now looking back, my regret is similar. Maybe it was a very religious upbringing or always being worried about doing well. Maybe it was telling myself that if I just worked harder than everyone else, I would do better than them. Well, I got better grades than a lot of them. But I worked harder. I played less. I didn’t let my hair down a lot.

Now, there are plenty of paths for me to take. There are Masters degrees to do, job ladders to climb, money to be made, successful blogs to run, fitness goals to attain. But the thing which I most want is to craft a life filled with more fun and frivolity. I want to craft a life with more cozy time with friends, more chocolate cakes, more time spent playing hide and seek with my little girl. I want to craft a life where time with people I love is more important than just getting things done. And I want to craft beautiful things with my hands that make me happy and make those around me happy too.

What sort of life are you crafting for yourself? Does it differ from the life you would like to craft?

Mia

PS I warned you it was deep.

(Milly’s apron made by Sonia Pereira)

A big warm thank you to everyone who was involved with our apron swap. From all accounts, everyone is stoked by the presents they are receiving.

Firstly, a very big thank you and and kisses to Sonia Pereira, my swap partner. She sent me the most amazing package of things. There was a gorgeous bluey-green apron for me. She also sent a matching apron based on a traditional Portugese style for my little girl. We now match in the kitchen where we cook together most nights.

The aprons we received are machine embroidered with little pink love hearts and our initials on them. The package also contained some cute cupcake mixture with a card that brought tears to my eyes, and a vintage cookbook. This package in the mail made my day!

Check out One Hour Craft Flickr Group for more stunning aprons like these…

Hope everyone enjoyed themselves.  Are you up for another challenge?  Join our first Craft-Off!

Have a great day!

Mia

xxx

This week I am loving….

• Furoshiki Bag Tutorial at Swiss Miss via Not Martha
  
• Printable Fabric Name Labels Tutorial via Craft
• Little Houses at Bella Dia
• Fouth of July Bikini Tutorial at AzCentral
• Felt Flower Magnet Tutorial at How About Orange
• Gorgeous Spotty Bag at Yukimoo with a tutorial link to Craftster.
• Tie Top Tank Tutorial at Belle Epoque

Mia