Blog feature: Make My Day Creative

For the last couple of weeks in my ‘featuring’ series I’ve been featuring Etsy shops, but I’m also featuring blogs too! Today’s featured blog is by a good friend and fellow ex-engineer, Esther. Esther’s blog Make My Day Creative features a range of crafty tutorials and inspiration from the wonderful things that Esther makes. But I’ll let her tell you all about it herself :)

Describe your blog in one or two sentences.

Make My Day Creative is about inspiring people to try something new creatively, and to not be afraid to have a go.

What made you decide to start a blog?

I started the blog after giving up my full time job due to stress.  For a long time I hadn’t had the time or capacity to do anything creative, and felt like I didn’t have any outlet for my creative side.  The blog was a way of motivating myself to get going again and to acknowledge the things I was doing.  Now I just love doing it and getting comments and tips from my readers and other bloggers!

Where do you get your inspiration?

Usually, each thing I make is inspired by the person I am making it for, something I have that I want to use up or up-cycle, or by something I have seen that inspired me, usually from Pinterest or another blog.  For example, the Scottie Dog garland I recently made was a pattern for dogs I spotted on Ravelry and thought of my friend who has a cute Westie (not dissimilar to a Scottie!).  When I last saw her she was saying she wanted to add more girly touches to her little girl’s room, which had gender neutral décor.  So I made the dogs into a garland and added pink bows and flowers for a gift.

What has been the highlight of working on your blog so far?

The fact that people read it!  Also, the encouragement I have received from comments and seeing my posts on sites like pinterest.

What do you like to do when not working on your blog?

Not everything I make ends up on my blog, but most does and this takes quite a bit of time!  I also love to read, spend time with friends and family, and play games (I have got into arguments with other competitive friends about who is the most competitive…).

What is coming up in future posts?

I wish I was one of those bloggers who plan out their posts in advance!  I usually only have one post ahead of the last one, and by that I mean the project is done but the post still actually needs writing!  Having said that, you can expect to see more crochet on my site in the future because I have gotten really hooked (sorry) and it is my most popular subject area.

What are your top three favourite blogs?

This is a hard one!  I like Renegade Seamstress, because she is very creative and fixes stuff without using patterns, so you feel you can do it too.  I also love my sister in law’s site Helen Chandler because she has a way of making everyday life hilarious.  Stitchedupmama is good for thinking outside the box, and her style is quite different to mine which is great for inspiration.

Thanks Esther! I really would recommend checking out her blog for some great craft projects. I have my eye on that basket tutorial… one day when I learn to crochet maybe…

Thanks for reading!

Rachel