Passing Fad or Education Investment

Being a homeschool mom, I have an insatiable curiosity and thirst for learning. The scarf pictured here is the result of my latest research and hands-on training. For Mother's Day, my DH treated me to a day at the Shepherds Harvest Festival in the Twin Cities area. I took a primitive rug hooking class and a rigid heddle loom weaving class. The scarf I managed to finish the same day. The rug hooking project took several weeks. I still have some finishing work to go on rug hooking project, which will be a small, heart-shaped pillow for my bed. Pictures will be coming soon.

Being somewhat eclectic in my tastes has gotten me into some messes, though, both literally and figuratively. Fortunately, I know enough people like me to know that I am not unique in that I have a large closet full of UFO's - those notorious unfinished objects. As well as a large collection of tools and supplies for numerous different types of crafts. Every new fad comes along and I feverishly collect the newest and the best gadgets and materials, then the inspiration fades or a new passion begins and the stuff gets tossed into a new storage bin and gets added to my collection. For a long time, guilt plagued me. How could I waste all that money and time on something that didn't "stick".

Now that I'm older, though, I believe that nothing is wasted. The knowledge is still in my head and it comes popping out at the most convenient times. While reading to my kids about Laura Ingalls Wilder, they'll ask what a nine-patch block is, I can tell them. What's more, I can pull a book off the shelf and show them, or, better yet, get fabric, scissors, needles and thread out and have them make a nine-patch block. When Almanzo's mother is working on the loom, I can show them how a loom works and they can actually weave cloth themselves. Embroidery, tatting, needlepoint, knitting, crochet, beading, soapmaking, candlemaking, braiding, macrame, weaving, primitive rug hooking . . . all historical crafts, all new again at some point, all part of an endless circle of creativity that get discovered and rediscovered and passed on to our children.

Somehow, those dusty boxes of craft supplies seem much more important and less guilt provoking if seen as an investment in my kids' education than just a passing craft fad. How cool is that!