Hi, my name is Karen and I have immersed myself in crafts since I was an infant. I treasured the breakfast cereal boxes, they worked great as a canvass and I would happily entertain myself in my own little world for hours by drawing and colouring in, I even figured out how to preserve these glorious works of art by covering them with strips of sellotape!
For me, crafting is something I have to do and I thrill at the chance to show techniques to fellow crafters. Its a delight to see the joy on peoples faces when they create their own treasure. It is a truly wonderful thing to witness those who are new to crafting when they create their own unique piece to be proud of (especially when they thought they would not be able to) and it’s so rewarding to hear the words “I cannot beleive I have made that” from someone who only hours earlier said they could not even draw a straight line.
My thirst for knowledge has taken me all over the country to learn new techniques such as torch fired enamelling, silver and metal craft, polymer clay techniques and more. I have had the privilege to be taught by some incredible people. For lots of other skills I have read, “googled” read more and “googled” even more until the skill I needed was up to the level for my design.
I find creating something (anything) brings me such a sense of fulfilment and I love to spend time applying the “what if” and “if I just….” and I must admit that I am most happiest when I have a blow torch or hammer in my hand and getting copper to form to some lovely organic shapes!
There is something extraordinary about “pottering” with crafts, the material selection, choosing the colour scheme and then there is the ultra absorbing process of of figuring out the little niggles along the way.
Let your own crafting be an expression of you and let it take you via your own time machine into a journey of mindless bliss.