Friday 15 June 2018

"Burning Out Doing Way Too Much"

... But Having Nothing To Show For It.


I planned so many things for the blog this year, but abandoning it for 6 months was never meant to be one of them. I love making felt, but sometimes having to take into consideration whether what you make will sell or not and whether or not making it might be a 'waste of time' that could have been spent more 'productively' takes a lot of the fun out of it. And adds a ridiculous amount of anxiety. Which is really pointless considering very little of what I actually do make to sell ever gets sold.
Which then makes me think I should be spending more time doing things which are a bit more succesful in selling, like tutorials and e-books, but every time I start, I soon get overwhelmed by how massively I've underestimated the work involved. Which sucks the life out of me and any bit of enjoyment I was having :(

And often the pressure of having to produce something to blog about and then finding the time and energy to do it, can feel like a huge task, and never knowing if anyone's even ever going to read it or if I did it all for the benefit of that bot or the spammer who earns thousands of pounds working from home, can often make it feel like a pointless as well as huge task.

I'm sure I'm not the only person who's ever felt like this, and I won't be the last! And sometimes when I least expect it, I'll do something which reminds me why and how much I love making felt. Like a couple of weeks ago, making notes for nuno samples of different thicknesses and asking myself questions for things to look out for, like shrinkage  comparisons, and being pleased with myself for accurately predicting outcomes. Or like this week, making a piece of felt just for fun to give to a friend, and really enjoying the whole process.

So, if anyone does still read this blog, apologies for being slack. And if you have any advice, or your own tales of getting bogged down by obligations spoling the fun, feel free to share and have a moan! And, so this isn't just a boring wall of text, here's a few photos of the piece I made this week :)


 Merino, with mostly dyed Nylon fibre, silk throwster's waste and various cellulose fibres.


Felted:


 My favourite part:


Thanks for reading :)

10 comments:

  1. OOh such a beautiful piece of bright felt! I love seeing your fab vibrant pictures and reading about your makes...hope you can keep finding the magical moments in your creativity.....whether you document them or not! Thinking of you
    Ali x

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  2. Iwona Charleson18 June 2018 at 10:27

    Well I've come across your blog from time to time and really enjoyed it. Your hearfelt message resonated with me as I to am a crafter. I live in Shetland and keep a flock of shetland sheep and over the years I've dyed, spun, felted and knitted items to sell at local shops and craft fairs. A lot of it goes unsold which breaks my heart as I put a massive amount of time and effort into every item. I'm not very good at marketing online and I don't 'network' so I really understand you. But I don't have much advice except to say everyone has troughs and peaks and I guess we just have to ride them out. Iwona :))

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    1. Thanks a lot, Iwona :) I know what you mean about fibre too, that's another difficult area, putting time and effort into something, but not being able to sell because it is undervalued. Sorry you have similar problems. Thanks for reading and taking the time to comment

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  3. Your posts are never boring, always inspiring and educational as well. It can be such a task keeping up with a blog and wondering if anyone is reading it…..not to mentioned creating art with fiber and realizing how so often shoppers/collectors by pass us and head for the framed paintings/photography etc. But….working with fiber is in our blood…..so we just keep moving forward….and you always have eye-candy for us to see!

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    1. Aaw, thanks so much :) I suppose it's a bit like radio presenters, you just have to imagine youre talking to one particular person, and if there's more, it's a bonus :)

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  4. I have about stopped making things "to sell". I try to make things that I want to make and if they sell, well that's good. But if they don't, that's OK too. Except for those ridiculous cat toys that still sell like hotcakes that I hate making. :)

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    1. Thanks, Ruth :) I was thinking about your cat toys when I saw waffle balls in Aldi, then I thought 'Oh god, they'll be worse than soap'! :)

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  5. The bottom line is that there is never enough hours in the day for creative folk! Both Annie and I understand (first hand) what your blog post is about!

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