A very happy New Year, 2014 to you all!! I thought I would start out my new year with a blog hop that I happened to stumble upon in one of my Fiber Groups on Facebook. This blog hop, Grow Your Blog, is hosted by Vicki of 2 Bags Full and is intended to help connect bloggers from all walks of life all over the world. What a great idea! So without further ado, let’s begin, shall we?
My name is Heather, and I am the writer, creator and editor-in-chief for The Crafthopper. I started this blog to share my adventures through the amazing world of art and handcrafts, with a special interest and focus on the ancient crafts of jewelry making and fiber arts. I am lucky that I share a passion for the arts with my children who are very content sitting by my side lost in their own creative journey as I test a new pattern, wire wrap a new stone, or spin a new yarn. With this blog, I am able to fulfill another passion of mine: writing. Writing has long been a way for me to express myself without interruption and a form of therapy for me, a safe place to share emotions, failures, triumphs. An outlet for the words that build up in my head and get lost along their way to my mouth. That said, I don’t share much in ways of private, personal life on this particular blog now, given that I have very limited time on any given day in which to do all the things I love. This blog allows me to write AND share my crafting fun and experiments.
Currently, I live out in the boonies of central Texas with my husband, our four children, two cats, two dogs, and a slew of fiber animals-llamas, sheep and angora goats, as well as a lovely flock of egg-providing hens and their roo. Three years ago, I quit my high stress job as a labor and delivery RN to stay home with our then three children. My husband, known as The Muscle, is a Renaissance man who usually surprises most people he meets: a tattooed, bearded, kilt-wearing metalhead computer geek who enjoys spending time in his homemade blacksmith shop, or shearing sheep, planting a garden, learning to knit, petting a spoiled llapaca (technically a huarizo, as they are referred to in South America-the offspring of cross breeding a llama and an alpaca), I could go on and on about the unexpected habits of my Other Half! Together, we get up to all sorts of shinanigans-I create jewelry, he builds a half horse power buffer so I can polish it quickly and almost effortlessly; I find a tool I need-he goes out in his woodworking area and produces it. We make a great team! The kids are just as “bad” as we are-the older two have interests spanning both my and The Muscle’s interests and then some, but even better, because to everything they do, they bring the freshness and resourcefulness found only in children that one tends to find slipping from them as logic roots in the brain and whimsy becomes more forgotten and less trusted…
Please take a gander all over my blog. You can find my contact info link at the top of every page, as well as a few other links that share a little more about who I am, what I do, why I do it. My hope for this blog hop is to not only gain new readers, but together with new readers, share in the incredibly positive energy that our shared love for All Things Crafting generates. Together, we can lift each other up and make our world a better place. And that much prettier.
Thank you, thank you Vicki, for the effort and energy you put into creating this blog hop. What a wonderful gift to share with your fellow artists and handcrafters! I look forward to seeing everyone’s blogs. =^..^=
Please Click Here to see Vicki’s own post, and the Entire List Of Nearly 600 Participants!
Hi Heather, What an interesting blog you have. I’m visiting from GYB and will be following you via bloglovin so that I can read more.
Love and best
RedSetter
Craft blog http://gonebeading.blogspot.co.uk/
Cat blog http://pepsimaxaddict.blogspot.co.uk/
Reviewing being a newbie blogger I missed some minor details like making comments… But Vicki’s Grow Your Blog Party entries are 600 bloggers. My reading was a little tasking. I wanted to read and get to know the girls so I did read everyone’s bio 24 hours left to go now I just review at much as I can. If you like come visit My site http://overboardcreations.blogspot.com/and contact info is http://ovr_brd@yahoo.com I believe inspiration comes from all facets of life even knowing the great people out there with wisdom and knowledge the do’s and don’ts and even the wonders of life from a personal point of view. I liked you following you on goggle connect and Bloglovin you. hope to see you in the cyber neighborhood I am new to blogging so I don’t have a lot posted because I got side tract with GYB party. Kind of felt it was important to have some one read my silly chatter. I can’t remember a time I didn’t dabble in something creative. I tried a little of everything. But, my new love these days is Card making I just love it.
Late comer from GYB Love your enthusiasm!
Hi and thank you for stopping by! I too am sloooooowly making my way through the list 🙂
Hello , my name is Dawn your my one stop on the blog party, Hope that I soon will be friends with all of you cyber neighbors. I just say that 600 plus bloggers that sign up to the Party and I am only up to 238 whew a lot of good read and great giveaways Can’t wait to see more of your great projects in the making. My site overboardcreations.blogspot.com and contact info is ovr_brd@yahoo.com
Hi Dawn and welcome! I too am slowly making my way to all the blogs-what a huge turnout, eh? I will certainly be checking out your blog!
I love the ice dyeing post. My mom, daughter & I need to try that!
Thanks for sharing your blog. I’m slowly working through the list. Mine is about embroidery. Best of luck!
aprilsongstress
Welcome and thank you! I strongly recommend it, it’s a lot of fun. I am also very slowly making my way down the list. I love embroidery! I haven’t done much in recent years. I look forward to reading your blog. Have a great weekend!
Hi, nice to meet you! It certainly seems like you have a very creative household!
Hi, so nice to meet you and your family. I also make jewellery. It is my way to retreat from the world. Happy hopping!
Cool blog, looking forward to following you and seeing what else you post, I’m a jewelry maker too. If you get a chance to pop over I’d appreciate a visit to my blog as well. Regards, Tammie Everly/TTE Designs.com
Hey Heather, I love the name and the spirit of your blog. Looks like you have been busy with fun baby projects and wow you hand dye your own wool! It has been lovely meeting you.
Hugs
Caroline
Thank you, Caroline! Yes, dyeing wool (and recently, fabrics!!) has been something I’ve gotten into recently. I have always loved the personal touch of creating my own colorways, and it’s something I can do in short bursts while baby is content. As he gets older and stays content for longer periods, I will be able to do much more! Thank you for visiting!
Love reading your blog and hope you will post more often. Looks like you have so much to talk about. Visiting from GYB and am a new follower.
Thank you, Carol! I definitely plan to blog much more often, especially as baby gets older and allows me 🙂
I am really glad to hear you enjoyed reading! Thank you.
I love the idea of GYB, I shall have a look around yours 🙂
Hi and thank you for visiting! Yes, I think GYB is a great idea. How fun to network with so many crafty people!
Hi, Heather! I’m here via the Grow Your Blog Party but I’m already a follower. I can say “we’ve met before” as I was the lucky winner to your All-A-Dangle Necklace – it’s gorgeous, by the way I hope someday I’ll be able to work with wire as you do because lately I’ve been focusing on beadweaving. I’m following you on Bloglovin – that’s what I use for reading blogs. All the best, Ana
Hi Ana and welcome to my blog! Yes, I remember! thank you for following!
Hi Heather, I’m glad the GYB has allowed me to “re-discover” your blog (I was here for Bead Hoarders last July). I love reading about both fibre and jewelry, really all craft, so I’ve added you to my Bloglovin. Loved reading about your Renaissance gang 🙂
Welcome back, Monique! How small the world is, right? Thank you for adding me to your list!
Hi! I found you from the GYB hop. We live out in the boonies (of SC) too. I was just telling my husband last week that I would love to try spinning someday. It seems like magic. Anyway, I have enjoyed seeing some of your projects.
I highly encourage trying it out, Mary Ann! It is mesmerizing, almost (if not definitely!) a form of meditation. Very relaxing. Thank you so much for stopping by!
I too have four children, but only one is content to sit for any length of time! I look forward to learning more about you!
Thank you for visiting! I’m lucky that they will sit for awhile. Hopefully the baby will be just as content. Right now, he’s a snuggler and I’m ok with that! It won’t be long before he’s ready to hop off my lap and run. I look forward to reading your blog!
Hi Heather,
I’m visiting from the Grow Your Blog party. It is so nice to meet you. It sounds like you have quite a few furry friends in Texas 🙂 I plan to look around a bit more and then be on my way to visit the others. I do hope you will stop by for a visit and enter my giveaway. Have a wonderful weekend! Hugs – Donna
Thank you for stopping by! I will visit you as well. Happy hopping!
Hi , Stopping by from Grow your Blog, lovely to meet you:) Vicky
Thank you for stopping by, Vicky!
Hi, Heather – visiting from Vicki’s Grow Your Blog Party this morning – I’m one of her reader/helpers. Glad you were at the top of my list – I would have been here eventually, but it got me here that much quicker this morning. You and I seem to have quite a bit in common – you had me at jewelry and fiber arts, up top! Sounds like you and The Muscle make quite a team (another commonality – I have a daughter that is a tattoo artist). Have looked around here a bit, and will certainly be back for more…in the meantime, Happy Blog Jumping, and have a great weekend – Tanya
Thank you so much, Tanya! How fun that we have much in common. I look forward to reading your blog!