Bit late to the party, aren’t I? I meant to update this blog a lot earlier, but life got in the way, as it often does. Still, never mind, I’m back now, with a nice, sleek new blog design to celebrate 2011!

I’m very proud of all I achieved in craft-land last year – with one exception, I gave every single person I knew who had a birthday a handmade gift! The exception was my father, for no good reason, really – he’s very hard to buy for, let alone craft for, and in the end I chose a gift for him that, while not handmade, I knew he’d love.

I tried my hand at quite a few different crafts – crochet, knitting, cross-stitch, papercraft and sewing made the list, and I learned a lot from my accomplishments (and my mistakes!). I accumulated far too much yarn and fabric (oops!) and added an impossible number of projects to my to-do list (some of which have spilled over into this year…oops again!).

Now, what would a new year be without some resolutions? Chances are I won’t stick to any of them, but hey, a girl’s got to try, right? I hereby resolve to:

• Update this blog regularly. I fall into the trap of not posting unless I have a project to display, but after a year of avidly reading many fabulous craft blogs, I’ve realised there’s so much more I can blog about!
• Not overload myself with projects. I’m a generous soul, and I tend to promise to make things for people without considering the time I have available to me. This is perhaps my biggest failing as a crafter; it makes me look unreliable when I can’t produce crafted items on time, and inept when they aren’t done to perfection because I rushed.
• Sort out my epic yarn and fabric stashes and organise my sewing area. I’d post photos of its current state, but it’s far too embarrassing.
• Reuse and recycle as many resources as I can. I have so many ideas for re-purposing clothes and shoes and have seen so many inspiring tutorials online, and I can’t wait to start making myself a whole new wardrobe for a fraction of the cost of buying new things!

Phew! I think that’s enough for now, don’t you? There are big things in store for me this year, including a much-saved-for two month holiday to Japan (only two and a bit months until we’re heading to the land of the rising sun, with all its adorable charm and breathtaking scenery), and an overseas move! Yes, that’s right, unless something goes horribly wrong, my husband and I will be leaving Australia for sunny California, where we’ll live for two years. It’s both exciting and terrifying, but one thing’s for sure – they have a hell of a lot more craft stores over there than they do here! 😛