Weeks ago I wrote an article about the Watercolour marker technique and later, another one about the Capsule craft collection. Being a crafter, literally buried under piles of craft materials, I decided to change my entire work attitude.
First, I realized that it is not necessary for craft materials to be expensive to be good to work with. The great thing is that you can take something cheap and still create wonderful things. Discovering the Watercolour marker technique, I was actually working with my 6-years old niece’s markers. My sister and I bought them from a “One Dollar Shop”. Without any thought about the quality. We just needed something bright and colourful to write with at that moment…
And – WOW! – such a discovery!
Price doesn’t matter
Very often the price is not important. This is the case with the price of craft materials and sometimes it’s like this with the prices of cosmetics too. You pay for the brand’s name, not for the ingredients. Of course, this is not the rule for all the craft materials. There are great brands selling paints with amazing quality, proven threw centuries, and with a big price tag too. But very often in the craft world you are paying a lot of money only because something is modern at this moment.
Do you really need to spend this money? I prefer to save for good quality paper craft instruments, than to buy expensive decorated craft papers. Maybe it sounds a little bit naughty, but we really can make our own designer papers. Or just buy printable ones online. There are great paper designers in places like Etsy and I am happy to use their products too. First, these people are really good, and they create not only beautiful drawings, but also a wonderful mood. Second, downloading saves me from having elements that I don’t need for the exact project I’m working on. Paper packs are stored in my computer and I can print only the elements I really need at the moment.
But I digressed a little…
So, let’s go back to saving and having fun at the same time.
Instruments matter
On the other hand, buying good quality instruments is very important. As I said before 3 different instruments can make at least 6 different paper materials. Sometimes 9, sometimes a countless number. And the quality here is important. I will give you an example. Sometimes I am buying my paper stamps from a Chinese online shop. And the quality is great. Really great. But my last purchase was a real disappointment. I was waiting for months to receive the little package and in the end the quality was awful. The stamped images were just ugly spots. So, in this case, I paid for my decision to save money.
Having fun matters a lot
Experimenting with one piece of paper and many instruments and techniques is great. You are having fun. But also, with every new trial you are improving your craft skills. This is what happened when I took a simple paper canvas and tried to draw a flower bouquet.
I used a photo taken by a friend in her home in Greece. She is always sharing pictures with a great summer feeling and wonderful colours. And because she had a Birthday a week ago, I decided to use her photo to create a present.
Life is also less dangerous with the proper tools
To create my friend’s present, I used only my watercolour markers, white canvas and water filled brush. The water filled brush is another great instrument. You can even use it on a plane, to create fun for your kids during a flight. Actually, the watercolour maker technique is great for the plane. Your child can make drawings with water based markers (they are easier to clean) and after that use the water filled brush. It is very much mess proof and I love it!
For me it is great, because I am not putting my brush in my coffee cup, instead of my water jar anymore. And not trying to drink from the water jar instead of my coffee mug!
See, with the proper tools and instruments life is less dangerous.
Something more
Being a crafter, I have experienced some very difficult times of craft supply shopping and collecting addiction. First my atelier and, after that, my work space at home became indescribably cluttered. My atelier was an example of how big your mania can grow. Actually, I started a small shop with a separate work space and storage area. Everything was nicely organized and beautifully displayed. But day after day, week after week, I was collecting more and more “materials” until they had invaded all the shop space. Boxes with stuff and bags with fabrics were fighting for my client’s attention together with the items for sale. And, of course, I started making less and less money… You can check out how I won my battles with my addictions and saved my life, my marriage and my business.
I am wishing you a great craft time filled with a lot of inspiration! ♥
When saving meets fun, what a great idea, I love it!
Thank you very much Ann! ♥ It is true, it is real fun 🙂