Getting Crafty

Welcome to 2008! I’d like you wish you good health and success in all your endeavours this year, creative and otherwise.

You may make resolutions in your daily life, or set goals that you don’t dare call resolutions (for fear of jinxing them!). Have you ever considered setting goals or making resolutions for your crafting life? If you have never thought of doing that, you’re not alone. However, you might be surprised at how much more manageable the list of crafting you have to complete by the various due dates in your calendar seems after breaking things down to their smallest bits (or a more manageable chunk).

Ready to give it a try? Let’s go!

The first thing you need to do is decide what crafts you MUST (really want) to make this year. Every craft you write down needs a due date, and that should generally be the very last date by which the project must be completed, preferably without requiring you to pull any all nighters. Once you’ve set it up, it’s time to put it on your calendar—your crafting calendar!

If you already have a few calendars to juggle, the thought of adding another causes more anxiety than it’s worth, you may want to incorporate your crafting calendar in with one of your other calendars. This is sometimes a good idea because when you want to set aside a block of time to work on a craft, you’ll know what other obligations you have to keep in mind. If having another calendar to consult does not add stress to your life, get a calendar that you can keep in the same place (craft room/corner/nook) and consult regularly. A calendar that allows you to view several months at a time, or better yet, the entire year is ideal. Make sure any important times that will impact your ability to craft are crossed off.

Once you’ve filled in all the due dates, it’s time to work backwards. Write down the due dates for the individual stages of each project, so you can keep on track and meet your mini deadlines along the way. It gives you a sense of accomplishment and hopefully keeps you going.

The final and important step of course is stick to the plan! Having something that is organized in a way that won’t stress you out and takes into account your other obligations is the way to make sure that meeting your crafty New Year’s resolutions is a piece of cake.

This week, I’ll share some of my crafting resolutions, and hope you will do the same.