As I sat in bed this morning drinking my coffee and trying to get through a huge pile of magazines, I found myself glancing to my bedroom dresser where I can see three small unpainted wooden birdhouses I bought at Michaels more than five months ago (a dollar each, how could I resist!) My intentions for the birdhouses was to paint them, perhaps transfer some cool images on to them and just genuinely make them some funky pieces of crafty art – but there they still sit, untouched, probably with a layer of dust over them. Looking under my desk I could see the bead loom I bought last year because I had some fantastic ideas to make these intriguing beaded cuffs. I did take the loom out of its box and even practiced on beading with it until I got a line hopelessly tanged so I cut the whole thing up and put the loom back in the box. I still plan on using it one of these days.
In a pile next to my bed is a notebook cover I made. I designed the look of it, printed it on canvas cloth and then put it in the closet where it sat, no joke, for about five years. Three months ago, I took it out, managed to attach an inside cover, fold paper for the pages and even buttonhole stitch all around the cover but then I put it down when I found binding it turned out to be a little bit more tricky than I thought it would. I also cross stitch and have approximately 7 WIPS (works in progress) and about 17 fully “kitted up” other stitching endeavors (meaning I bought the linen and the threads and have the chart so I can start it at any moment), so you would think with all this work lying in front of me I might have decided to say no to Queenstown Samplers’ Elizabeth J. Mears 1833. But no, I bought the chart, then I found a great deal on the linen and since I had a credit waiting for me at Hand-dyed Fibers (silk threads – delicious…!) I bought all the floss. I plan on starting this on January 1, 2011 (it’s a tradition amongst stitchers to start a new project on the first of the year).
If I’m not starting a project, I’m buying supplies to start another. What often happens is I gather together all but one of the items needed to make the project. Unable to locate that one missing item anywhere, I put the supplies somewhere “safe” only to find them two years later and wonder why the heck I bought Sculpey Polymer Clay.
And it’s not just craft projects that I can’t contain. I write and have files and files of ideas, a lot of them fairly fleshed out, some even with pages and pages written but not enough actually completed.
Before you think I’m completely and utterly hopeless I want you to know I do manage to finish some projects. I have completed a novel and several screenplays. If you go on my Webshots site you can even see some of my completed stitching and collages. You might also notice that though I have technically completed a few pieces, I never took the next step and got them framed or finished (like making it into a pillow or a Christmas ornament). I also wrote a complete YA (Young Adult) rough draft novel but have yet to revise it – I guess I have a little problem with follow through…or finishing…or…
I have realized I have a problem. An illness even. I refuse to be too hard on myself because at least I have hobbies and interests and don’t waste my time sitting around and watching TV all night (though one reason I took up stitching is because I felt guilty for sitting around and watching TV all night). But I do make excuses for myself which isn’t good. My favorite excuse is that I live in a New York City apartment so I don’t have a tremendous amount of space. I can’t leave art supplies lying around or my sewing machine out. If I lived in a house with a dedicated art/craft/sewing room I would be so much more accomplished…more likely I’d just have even more projects. The lack of space doesn’t really work for my writing problem, though I like to tell myself that if I had more space I could finish all my craft projects in a shorter amount of time thus freeing up more time to write. I’m very good with excuses.
Is there a cure for this disease? See, I’m not writing this column because I have found the answer. I have no clue how to fix myself. No clue! I’m writing this with the hope that perhaps one person out there shares this problem. I cannot be the only member of Projects Galore Anonymous can I? And perhaps someone out there who was once like me reformed themselves and would like to share the 12 steps they used. I need support!
Without any foreseeable help all I can do is what I do every year: resolve to finish all unfinished projects. This year unlike all those years in the past I’m going to add to my resolution by saying I will not buy any new supplies until I use the supplies I already have and I will also add that I will not start any new venture until all started projects have been completed – well, at least no new ventures until after I start Elizabeth J. Mears 1833 on January 1. Oh my, this isn’t going to work is it?!
