Welcome to the 2021 Maker Stash-Down! I’m aiming to cut my maker stash in half as it has grown to ginormous proportions. The best way to do this is by making, making, making! How have I missed posting for the past 3 months?!? I seriously thought I had missed one or two months, but nooooo! Anyway, lets jump back on the crafty wagon and see what’s been going on from February thru April.
I did a Maker Finish-Along in 2019 with monthly challenges and for the Maker Stash-Down last year I shared monthly goals & what I did. Well, kinda monthly goals because things really fell off about September. Ahem.
This year I’m going to sorta, kinda combine those two things. I’m going to do a monthly post with goals for the month and what I actually achieved the month before. Plus I want to throw out some challenges in the Facebook group each month. Here’s a little bullet point list for what’s gonna happen {hopefully!}:
- Monthly blog posts with my goals & makes – Last Friday of the month {that means 2 blog posts for January}
- 2 to 3 challenges in the Facebook group each month – These will be simple and fun and hopefully help you keep your maker mojo going! {This has yet to happen!}
- Monthly live in the Facebook group – I plan on doing this on the last Friday as well at about 7 p.m. EST. Just want to hang out with my maker friends! {This has yet to happen!}
So, that’s basically what’s happening each month. What do y’all need to do to participate? Just share your goals and makes each month in the Facebook group – it’s really that simple! Share with the group and let us all see how you’re stashing down this year. Then you’ll be put in the drawing for a $20 Amazon gift card each month. Pretty awesome, right? : D
I’m also going to do a monthly podcast on my YouTube channel that goes along with the Stash Down. It will be linked at the bottom of this post!
3 Months of Things
Most of what I’ve worked on the past three months had to do with my Etsy shop. There were a few other things thrown in there, which you’ll see below, but school has kept me super busy this semester. Between that and the shop and regular daily stuff, my making has slacked off. I will be off for the next 3 weeks before summer semester starts, so I plan on making ’til my fingers fall off! : D
I got a new planner, which started in April, lol! It’s plant themed and I got some crafty/gardening stickers to go along with it. My plan is to fill this out this month so I can hopefully stay on track!
I’ve finally gotten back to gardening! There are new houseplants as well as plants outside. I’ll be starting my monthly gardening posts back up this month. You can check out previous ones here to see what it will be like.
Some of my finishes for last month are the two crocheted plant cozies in the pic above and the big one for the plant below. There are blog posts for the chicken cup planter, tiered tray, and the doily tins in the pic above, so check them out if you’re looking for fun ways to upcycle stuff!
I think the plant above was too close to an air vent and that’s why the leaves have dark ends. I moved it now and it seems to like it’s new home much better!
My scrap shelf got a resorting this past week. Now I need to use them up because they are out of control!
There’s a little photo bomber at the bottom!
May Goals
I had a list when I started this and I have a bit of a backlog to get through, but I think I can get caught up while I’m off!
- Complete a garment each month – I want to move towards a more handmade wardrobe this year. There may be more than one garment on my list for the month, but as long as I finish one I’ll be happy!
- Complete blocks for QALs each month – I have two new ones I want to stay on top of, plus I’d like to finish up one from the past each month.
- 3 crocheted/knit hats per month – One for Hat not Hate, one for the Phoebe Cancer Center, and one for other donations.
- One pair of socks each month – This can be crocheted or knit
- One dishcloth/washcloth each week – these will keep me up on my Christmas gifts and lighten my cotton yarn stash
- One to two blocks for Warm Up America each month – This helps me use stash and learn new stitches.
These are goals for smaller things, then I’ll pull some other things as I finish to work on each month. Here’s what I’ve pulled to work on this month…
Fabric Obsessed
I’m a little obsessed with the Blanc Tee pattern from Blank Slate! It’s only 2 pieces and I think there’s a hack pack for a long sleeve version and tank. These three will be for work/dressy occasions and I just need to do all the hems.
I’ll be cutting out 3 more for workout type shirts soon. Plus I want to try one with a woven fabric on the front and knit on the back. More lounge wear cause who doesn’t need more of that? The top and pants are from Style Arc and I did make the pattern from the last post I did. Just forgot to take a pic!
The pattern for the Grecian Goddess Sundress is from Tanit-Isis Sews and it’s a free pattern. I still need to get caught up on my Cotton Cuts Puzzle Mystery Quilt {left} as I’ve received the last clue and have only sewn the first one! On the right are patchwork blocks I started from mini charm squares back in 2018. I’ll be adding the sashing to finally have the flimsy top done!
The two boxes above are from the Fat Quarter shop last year. I want to get the mini quilts made this month. Below are a few random items on my sewing rack I’d like to clear up this month.
That floral top is the Brooklyn Knit Top from Style Arc I was talking about before! I need to take it in because it’s WAY too big!
Yarny Goodness
The Mini Mini Maker Club this year has a mini skein of yarn from Southern Skeins. Each month the fiber/weight will be different and there is a crochet pattern included for the individual skeins {bottom right}. I’ll be working on a crocheted shawl pattern this month that uses all the skeins from the year in one pattern.
One the bottom left is a box of things that need the ends woven in. Mostly hats, cowls, & dish cloths, but I have a whole trash bag full of more things that have the tails waving still! Also in the box, the advent calendar from Southern Skeins last year. The minis are already crocheted into granny squares & a pattern for a granny square shawl is brewing!
More WIPS that have been lingering too long:
- Circular cowl from Jimmy Beans crochet club circa 2018 {top left}
- Freeform knitted scarf using Mandala Ombre {top right}
- Amigurumi bird that needs a beak and feet, part of a kit that came with a magazine {bottom left}
- Amigurumi caterpillar, pattern from Crafty Intentions, yarn from Show Reel Studios {no longer open}
- Shawl pattern from a Crochet! magazine {need to find it for date!}, using It’s a Wrap in Action & Amazing Lace {NLA}
- Freeform large infinity scarf using Soft Spoken
- C2C afghan using various Homespun skeins – light blue is scrap and has no label, beach umbrella, nursery, and new skeins are go team
I’ll be pulling from the shelf below for new project this month. These are all hand dyed yarns that are already wound up. The bag has “yarn tastings” of new yarn from Berroco that I need to do a video for.
I plan on doing a knit/crochet sample with each and maybe sewing them together for a bag.
DIY & Thrify Fun
My DIY section has been empty for awhile and I plan to remedy that this month! First on the list is to finish one of my {many} paint by numbers in my stash. This is a boho cow and I have all the #1 spots done so far.
When I finish it, I’ll be putting it in one of the thrifted frames I have in my stash, so keep your eyes out for a blog post! Coming up on my YouTube channel:
- Paint pouring using Arteza set
- Fabric paint marker comparison between Tulip & Arteza
- Using watercolor pencils & roller ball pens for sketching
- Quilling set review
In my last post, I shared a video of candle making. I want to finish the ones with the yogurt jars and make some out of the neat little espresso set I have below. I got the essential oils set to use with candle making as well as other household uses.
These two journals are reserved for art/junk journaling. I’d like to get at least one started this month.
A while back, I was signed up for the Geeky Stitching Co {top left} and I have yet to make any of the kits. I hope to get one done this month! I want to test out and do a video review for this circular tunisan hook set I got. Probably belongs in yarny goodness, but it got stuck in this pic for some reason!
This month I’ll be finally getting to work on this Falling Leaves kit I got from Leasure Arts. It will happen! : D I’d also like to make some progress on all these Annie’s Club kits I have!
Wrapping Up
Boy! These things are always so much longer than I expect! I want to try to add things as I go along this month, then maybe it won’t take so long to get through. It does give me a great perspective on what I’m actually doing and how much of a stash I have! Here’s the monthly podcast if you want to take a peak. Happy making y’all!
