Addicted to DIY

I sometimes think back to a small reproduction of a vintage style desk I had on top of my dresser and it reminds me of a monthly subscription I had in the sixth grade. I received one kit a month which included all the materials I needed to build/create that month’s item. I hated finishing them because I would not get the next one for a month.

I recall going everywhere with crayons and a coloring book. As I grew up, it turned into a sketchbook and pencils. I was never alone or bored.

Seldom do I buy decorations for my home when I go shopping. I see things and my mind immediately goes to, I can make this or I can do this. Then, my next stop is either Michaels or Joanns; many times, The Home Depot.

I cannot see myself paying someone to paint a room when I can do it myself! This one is changing because age is catching up to me.

I guess I should have known this all along.

So, yes, I am addicted to DIY! I suffer from obsessive-crafting disorder. I cannot buy anything that I feel I can make. And, believe me when I say, I would be saving much more if I purchased the item or paid for the work. If you are like me, you know what I mean.

Tools= Lotsa’ Money

Wanting to make everything yourself is great. At least I think so. But, with this comes emptying your bank account. For instance, when I decided that I really preferred to paint my own walls, not only did I need paint, I needed all the other essentials: brushes, covers, containers,,,. I couldn’t stop there. I purchased an electric spray gun. I know now, several years later, that I didn’t need it.

I do this with all my DIY projects and hobbies. One reason why I am not amazing at any one particular thing is that I love to make things, period. I like to try new things. I get bored quite easily and need to constantly try the latest thing to keep myself interested. Many times, I start a hobby from scratch. This requires that I purchase not only the materials for the activity, but the tools needed.

I love leather. I own many, many handbags and most of them are leather. Years ago, I taught myself how to make handbags and made a few out of fabric. Yet, I felt like I had not really delved into purse making because I had not used leather.

A few months ago, a friend gave me several pieces of leather and I was absolutely thrilled. I promised to make her a bracelet in return for her gift. I went through the selection and found one piece from which I so desperately wanted to make a purse.

Free leather!!! No tools!!! 

I purchased every tool invented for leather-crafting!!!!

Have I made the purse? No.

Have I made the bracelet? Ughmmm, no.

Jewelry Making

Making jewelry started with a container an Art teacher gave me in 1992. Wow! I knew nothing about making jewelry, but that had never stopped me before. I grabbed some wire my ex husband had and set out to make a necklace. Looking back I see how far I’ve come. It was horribly stiff and all the beads were focal beads, no spacers, no tiny beads… Yet, I wore it with pride.

My interests in this hobby have expanded and gotten better. They would be even better if I focused on one thing and one thing only. But, I can’t. I’ve added wrapping, ring making, manipulating silver, copper, aluminum, and bronze, working with resin… I guess in this case it is part of the progression. Yet, I can’t help but feel that I am not focused.

PMC

Clay was just a natural addition; a component that I had to incorporate into my jewelry hobby. And, like every other hobby, costly. In this case the tools weren’t the only expensive piece, so was the clay itself.

When PMC (precious metal clay) made its debut, it did so with fine silver. This is .999 silver as opposed to sterling silver which is .925. It is not as strong as sterling although now there is PMC Pro which is .900 making it stronger than even sterling.

Why am I telling you this? You guessed it. The price of the clay is high. It goes by the daily market value of precious metals. If that goes up, so does the clay. One simple mistake and you waste plenty of good metal, plenty of good money.

There is the expense of buying a kiln. I did not invest in one and purchased a Beehive kiln instead. I have been lucky that silver fires at low temperatures so the Beehive works just fine.

I have made some really cool pieces, but most have been deemed by me as unwearable. I still play with it but not as much as I did when I first discovered it. It makes me very sad when the piece doesn’t turn out after all the work that goes into it.

Base Metal Clays

The light at the end of the PMC tunnel came when I discovered copper, bronze, and other base metal clays!!! I love working with copper so this was a no brainer for me. And, best of all, the price doesn’t break the bank! Bonus, I already had the tools necessary! That’s a lot of exclamation points in a paragraph!!!

I tried it over the summer and fell in love! I haven’t got the handle on it like I did with fine silver. I’m still working on the temperature settings and when to torch fire or use the kiln. I had read that it should be torch fired; then read it could be kiln fired… It’s still very new so things change everyday and not everyone agrees. It’s trial and error.

I actually melted several pieces, including a fine silver piece while I was experimenting and I cried for days…. Others were so brittle that when I cleaned them they broke in several pieces.

I have found my new DIY obsession!

SO, WHAT DO YOU THINK?

Tell me about your obsession!

Leave me a comment, or post your Artful Gems’ piece and review it!