Sketches of a Life: creative ideas

A Letter to Mr George R.R. Martin

8:00 pm
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It's been a while since my last post, I know. Sorry about that, it seems time is never on my side. I’ve been so busy lately that I am badly wishing I could turn my phone off at least for a day. But since that is not happening, I guess I’ll just have to continue racing the clock for a little while.

Anyway, if you’ve read my last post, “Something Old, Something New”, you’ll remember how I dismantled several old pieces of jewellery and turned them into a nice little statement necklace. Last week, I had a similar idea, but this time it evolved around an old handbag. When I put my hands on it, the clutch was broken, and I initially only had in mind replacing it. But as I tend to push things to the limits, I eventually ended up giving it a small “makeover”.

Long story short, I decided to “add some details” to break the plainness of the handbag and to make up for its lack of personality (cause I actually really like it: it has six or seven compartments, so I can easily organize all the unnecessary things I carry around). Once again, I used the materials from the jewellery I had dismantled last month, and added only a few new ones. These were all found on eBay, meaning that I’ve only spent a few Euros (and little time) on turning this old piece into practically a new one.

If you like my work and are interested in trying something similar on your own, you’ll need: a victim bag, studs (here), chains (here), jump rings (here), ruler, some thread, needle, scissors, and a pair of pliers (or tweezers). I’m not going to instruct you on how to stud, because it’s the next easiest thing to giving up. The important thing is, however, to cut the handbag cover open on the side (through the stitch), so you can thrust the stud prongs into it without breaking through to the inside. I used the studs to hold the jump rings, and then simply attached different sized chains to these and arranged them in a spider web-like design. In my case, arranging the studs was based on pure guessing, but I would definitely advise using a ruler to make your design look less messy! I also made sure the chains were intertwined in a way that would prevent them from falling behind when I open the handbag. When I was done with this, I simply sewed up the cut side so there were no traces left of anything being altered on the purse.

In conclusion, I really enjoyed this little project. For me, DIY projects are a great distraction and relaxation from everyday obligations. I have millions of ideas, and I wish I had more time to devote to them, and maybe even call them a hobby one of these days. Cause there's nothing like breathing new life into worn-out objects in your closet, right?

Thanks for reading,have a nice day!

10:33 pm
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Something Old, Something New

creative ideas

I have weird daily routines, to say the least. Sometimes I literary work 24/7, forget to eat or sleep, and can't even remember which day it is. Other times, I have so much free time that I often decide to stay in bed and spend the day in front of my laptop. The trouble is, no matter how bored or exhausted I might be, I can't seem to fall asleep at night easily. Night is when my mind starts racing frantically, and I get ideas. Zillions of ideas. Of course, in the morning I completely forget about most of them, or deem them unrealizable, but every now and then something comes to my mind worth tackling with.

Recently my mother made me come by and take away all the belongings I had left in my old bedroom when I moved out. This included everything from my old drawings, primary and high school diaries (reading these was just hilarious!), letters (yes, the actual, hand-written letters!), to a pile of old jewellery. Going through all these made me think about how creative I used to be before; as I child, I was great in painting, clothes making, and in other areas that required some creativity. And I couldn’t remember when or how exactly I had discarded, disregarded, or lost it.

Anyway, looking at the jewellery pile, obviously unfashionable these days, made me believe that I might do something with it to make it stylish, instead of just throwing it away. Long story short, it was 2 a.m. when I started dismantling the old pieces, separating beads and pendants from chains, using tweezers as my main tool, as it was impossible to find anything such as pliers at the time. I would hardly recommend this to anyone, unless you are a self-destructive masochist craving to lose your mind. If so, knock yourself out!

After a number of finger cuts, broken nails, and some blood, I ended up with what I think is a lovely statement necklace. Maybe it's nothing special, but I am proud of the way it turned out, particularly because it was my first attempt at doing anything as such. And I am surely going to wear the hell out of it. Moreover, in the heat of the moment (a.k.a. the 5 a.m. madness) I even bought some DIY jewellery supplies online, determined to pursue my latest passion. But I tend to act hastily like that when I get excited about something, so I can’t promise I will still be interested in making jewellery after the supplies will have arrived. I guess it depends on whether you’ll like my pilot project! :)

To wrap everything up: my point is that we should start looking at our old jewellery and clothing in a new light, and always take into account recycling before throwing things away. Easy on our budget and environment, redoing old jewellery is a great way to reduce, reuse, and recycle old bits and turn them into beautiful DIY pieces. All you need is some will, skill, and time. Maybe you’ll even discover a hidden talent, who knows?

Also, I would like to express my newly discovered appreciation for all the women selling hand-made jewellery. I know now this is a hard work that calls for loads of talent, dedication, time, and love. My respect for all of you out there!

I am so impatient to hear your thoughts! What do you think of my "firstborn"? :)