Craftitude: a mini biography from glue to duct tape

My name is Mary and I am a random crafter/gifter (All together now: "Hi Mary!")

Maybe it's a pathetic need for approval. I like to think it's because I'm generous, and even when I don't have a lot of fundage, I sometimes have cute ideas and time on my hands. And sometimes hormonal insomnia.

As a kid, I didn't do a whole lot of crafting that I can remember. One horrible memory involves a gift-wrap covered shoe box that I thought the recipient could use to store treasures inside. She looked at it and said, "A BOX??? You're giving me a box?" I didn't craft for awhile after that.

I danced ballet and tap and jazz starting at age nine, when my family moved from Missouri to Maryland. I performed with my class, my sisters, and a close girlfriend in recitals and plays and school dance productions. At age 16, I stopped when my family moved from Maryland to Oregon. I think dance was my craft during that time.

The big craft projects of my teenage years involved pictures of rock stars collaged onto things - I remember a lampshade. Also a small barrel onto which I glued a collage of photos of The Rolling Stones, and in which I stored rolled-up or tall and slender things - posters, gift wrap, umbrellas, canes. And my teenage bedroom was itself a constantly morphing giant collage of posters and memorabilia.

My late teens and twenties were craft-free. I was too busy partying. But I did put together some killer outfits, and was living on my own for the first time, so I got to decorate. Maybe I was crafting an image. I also worked in retail, so I got my crafty rocks off creating displays.

From my late twenties to mid-thirties, not only did I get to craft a wedding, but also a succession of nicer homes with my husband. 

In my later thirties, when I wanted a baby and couldn't have one, I channeled my frustration into decorating light switch plates. I worked full-time and also volunteered, but my then-husband worked long hours. I thought it would be fun to sell the switchplates in the boutiques frequented by tourists in our little Colorado mountain town. I made labels with light bulbs on them that said "Me and My Bright Ideas." I got a booth at a craft fair and sold maybe five. No stores wanted them. My friends and family were the lucky recipients of my crafts that year. I still sometimes see them in the homes of sentimental people who love me and apparently don't care much about decorating.

I divorced, remarried, and finally had that baby. And couldn't sleep. Since it was Halloween time and I had tons of baby food jars. I filled cleaned baby food jars with candy corn, put skeleton fabric on the lids, and mailed them to my family in Oregon. Jars. I mailed jars.

Later that season, I graduated to plum butter. I didn't mail those, but I did give them as gifts to local friends. And sold a ton at the craft fair.

Encouraged, I went on a beeswax bender. I made rolled beeswax candles and poured beeswax ornaments. They smelled yummy and were well-received, and had the bonus feature of being mailable. I sold those at the craft fair too, and a local gift shop even carried and sold a lot of them.

I also painted little plaques, but I am not a good painter, and it required too much patience.

After that, I apparently slept for awhile. Or was too busy with other things. Or the baby became more interesting or needy. She is a damn interesting kid.

Also, I was a children's librarian, and got to do tons of crafty things with the kids. And brought the baby to work at the library with me. It was the favorite time of my life (so far). But because of my husband's work, we moved to another little mountain town, this time in Oregon.

Quite suddenly I became a single mom, so I was occupied with redefining my life and making a new home just for the two of us. I also realized that I was just the single mom of one now, instead of two - the other being my former spouse, but that's a different, slightly cattier story.

I worked for a time as a school secretary, and then I found a job with a mentoring program. One of the things I got to do was come up with activities for the mentors and mentees to do. The mentor pairs made duct tape wallets. Pouches, really, more of a clutch. I discovered that I really loved duct tape. All the colors and patterns. The clutches were unique and useful - and easy to make. Probably everyone I knew at the time got one from me as a gift.

In 2006, I moved back to the Portland area to be closer to my family, and to give my daughter better educational and cultural opportunities. Also, for the ocean. If Colorado had my family and the ocean, I would still live there. Well, and if I hadn't been ripped away from my life there from a husband who moved us to Oregon and then left us. Sorry - tangent. It still chaps my hide a little.

In November of 2010, my car died. I had a decent job, but I was working paycheck to paycheck. As a stereotypical struggling single mom, I was screwed. I didn't want to ask my parents for help. I ask them for help enough (but I always pay them back).

This was before crowdfunding. I posted a note on Facebook, and emailed all of my friends and family who weren't on Facebook, boldly suggesting that if everyone I knew mailed me $20, I would have enough for a down payment for a new car. As a thank-you gift, I would make each donor a duct tape clutch. I called this personal fundraiser "A New Car in our Clutches." I raised $1100, and found a great car that came with great monthly payments until I was able to pay it off.

Since then, there have been a couple of times when I wanted to raise some extra cash and have sold them to friends again. At one point, I made 30 duct tape clutches - one for each of the training facilitators whom I supported at the educational nonprofit where I now worked. All of my daughter's teachers have gotten them. It's kind of become my "thing".

A couple of times I have volunteered with groups of families of kids with cancer, showing them how to make the clutches. Just to give them something distracting and fun and creative to do. Several friends have asked me (and paid me!) to craft duct tape wallets with their kids and their kids' friends for birthday parties.

I love what the duct tape clutches represent to me. Color and fun and utility and community. Generosity and uniqueness. Right now, I am preparing to make five of them for a friend and her family. I am waiting to find out what their favorite colors are.

Just this morning, I woke up with the brilliant idea that I want to make salt and sugar scrubs in pretty jars for people I love. What is it with me and jars?

Creating and giving make me happy.