Home

I’m a big fan of upcycling, recycling, make do and mend. I have always been a bit reluctant to throw things away but since I became a craftaholic I am positively evangelic about it.

I grew up in the throwaway eighties, where wild consumerism ruled and we were all wanting the newest and best. The nineties was an era of throwaway fashion and tech changed so fast it was out of date in months. In the new millennium, we wanted bigger, better, smarter, faster. But we soon came to realise that our throw away culture was ruining the planet just as readily as our carbon emissions.

I had an epiphany when Sky started their Ocean Rescue campaign. Suddenly, I was painfully aware of how much plastic we were using and knew I wanted to do something about it. I emptied bathroom and kitchen cupboards, and decided what I didn’t need and what I could replace with a non-plastic version. Old towels were cut up and used as cleaning cloths, same with t-shirts past their best. I bought non-plastic brushes and paper bags for storing food, single use plastic was used only when their was no alternative.

I started to mend clothing, cover small stains with embroidery, remake long trousers into shorts. I started to realise that there was a vast store of readily available craft materials when I worked in a charity shop. So much fabric in clothing people were giving away. Lovely buttons on garments, beads and gems in old costume jewellery, it was like a treasure trove. Now, I try to include at least 50% recycled material in everything I make. Yarn is the only thing that there isnt a readily available supply of second hand but you cant have everything.

So, my mission is to encourage everyone to make one small change in their habits, because every little bit helps.

We are all ore aware of making our lives cleaner and greener. But just how much difference can each of us make. Are we fighting a rising tide or can a little mean a lot, make a difference.it can be defeating to think you cant

Not that I don’t believe its not important but I don’t believe that we can’t make a difference. As we all recycle and don’t use plastic bags, the noises coming from environmentalists can make you throw up your hands and say why do I bother? Well, you bother because its important!

What make industry change its ways? Public opinion, that’s what. After Hugh and Anita’s war on plastic, the consumer put pressure on companies by just saying no to fruit in plastic bags and picking the loose veg and taking their own bags. We stopped using millions of single use bags because it became economically unviable. Want people to recycle a plastic bottle? Give them a refund, even just a few pence. I’m of a generation that remembers returning pop bottles for a penny, Just!

Sometimes doing the right thing isn’t feasible if you have a busy life, a family to feed, clothe and house and not very much income, so make it worth our while. Give us grants for solar and wind power, to insulate our homes, to change our gas boiler. Encourage us to do it by highlighting the money we’d save. Even the climate sceptics wouldn’t mind a few bob in their pockets. Make public transport more frequent and cheaper, especially in rural areas. Where I live there is an infrequent bus service so I have to drive. Electric Car? I cant afford one and there arent many charging points. Improve that and hell yea ill get an electric car.

So all you people out there, both politicians and activists, if you want people to change , then don’t make false promises or glue yourselves to roads, make it easy for us to help the planet and do the right thing. Help people help themselves. Every little bit helps…little things mean a lot. (lol)

Why a blog?

I love sharing. My family would say I over share. My son says “If it isn’t on mum’s Facebook, it hasn’t happened”. So, why a blog? Well, because I’m clogging up my social media with my random thoughts instead of business posts.

Im one of those people who can talk to anybody – in bus queues, at the supermarket – and im interested in people and what we have in common. Im also someone who has had problems with mood and stress in the past and I find that getting the thoughts out of my head really helps me cope.

My blog is called What Kate Made today and this is a true reflection of my life. Hardly a day goes by without me working of one crafty project or another. I find I get twitchy when I dont. As well as providing mewith endless pleasure, crafting is really good for your mental health, concentrating on being in the moment and the intense pleasure you get from saying ‘ I made that’ our soothing from your soul.

The tag line to my blog says ‘confession of a crafty butterfly’ and this is so me. I love to be creative and I love trying new crafts. Some take and some don’t, Ive been a crocheter for over 40 years and this is my baseline craft, the one I always go back to.

The most recent thing I’ve tried is polymer clay modelling. Well, not so much models as buttons and beads, two more of my passions. Ive done some ceramic work and was given a microwave kiln for Christmas. With guidance from a good friend Ive used the kiln to make buttons using Raku firing. I want to make my own buttons for various textile project and maybe even to sell.

So that is why im blogging, to get all those random thought out of my head, to share my passions with the world and , of course, to saoe you what Kate made today.

Happy Reading!