For those of you who are regulars around here, you might have wondered why I’ve been a little quiet in recent years.
I have been making appliqués in various forms since 2011, but a few years ago, I knew it was time for a change. The problem was, I couldn’t find the right path. I changed my mind so many times about which direction to go in and what to make next, constantly searching for a solution that never seemed to come.
Then, at the end of 2022, everything changed. The creative block hit.
Have you ever had creative block?
I don’t remember the exact moment mine set in; I just woke up one day and realised it was there. I had completely lost interest in the things I would normally create, and I didn’t have any interest in starting any new projects. I tried everything to shake it off, but the passion was gone. I had no idea when, or if, it would ever come back.
I generally get a lot of my ideas over Christmas, during that lovely little bit of space between Christmas and New Year; the one that not many people like but I love. Once the rush is over and there’s enough leftovers for a few days so I don’t have to cook, I can rest, watch Christmas movies and with my notebook at the ready I’m good to go.
But that year, the Christmas break didn’t work. I was exhausted, burnt out, and every last ounce of my creativity had disappeared.
I took a 6 month break from everything related to craisymissdaisy and spent my time doing anything else but crafting; it was horrible. When I finally forced myself to pick up my tools again, it was a painfully slow process. I was just going through the motions, the passion was still missing, and there was no end to the block in sight.
Before & After
The last thing I made before the block hit was the wedding invitations and stationery for my best friend. I loved putting it all together and seeing it come to life, it was a beautiful day.
Funnily enough, the first thing that got me back to crafting was two memory books for the happy couple; one with the story of how they met and leading up to the wedding and the second with the wedding and evening reception. I’d put it off for a while and it took me about 3 months to complete but it really was a labour of love and it finally gave me back my creativity.
All in all, my creative block lasted about three years. I think that’s possibly the longest block I’ve ever had. I still don’t entirely know why it happened, but I am starting to see it as a season I had to go through. I needed it in order to grow, to come back fresh, and to step forward with new ideas, ready to take on the world.
I live a lot of my life through music, and as Mick Jagger and Keith Richards so perfectly put it: “You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you’ll find you get what you need.”
I needed the rest. But now, I’m back.
