Not crafty, like a fox or otherwise

The web bulletin board awash with recipes, crafts, sayings, and parenting tips appealed to my inner do-it-yourself. I found websites to visit I would have otherwise never seen, made recipes that fit with our no allergen, but kid friendly and health conscious needs, nodded along with parenting advice and chuckled over memes.

I braided my daughter's hair in elaborate braids I found directions for on the site when she'd let me, I found articles that interested me, dreamed of elaborately decorated mudrooms, and learned some tips on cleaning with vinegar and baking soda.

But the crafts. They taunt me.

Not crafty by nature, but able to imagine myself as a crafty person, I have attempted many Pinterest favorites. They have turned out much as you might expect them to. Instructions typically assume a knowledge I don't have, or omit what may be obvious details to the person doing it, but leave the would-be crafter stumped.

I suggest these bloggers take a technical writing class to come to terms with the fact that every step is actually important when creating instructions. You just can end something with, "and then finish it up!"

The worst trouble I had was with the rock door mat. Rocks don't hold up to being stepped on when they are simply hot-glued to a shelf liner. Especially in the cold weather. I wanted this project to work out so bad I tore it apart and redid it with different adhesives five times. I want to scream when I see friends repin this, "It is a trap!! It doesn't work!!"

The paper flower wreath amazingly did turn out, but only after I took the bull by the horns and figured out what the instructions don't say, which is that it is critical to have the proper weight paper. Just take my word for it. Those details are important to keeping sanity.

The rag rug on the hula hoop frame worked okay, but didn't lay flat, and ruined the hula-hoop. Also, you need more t-shirts than children can wear out in a year. And my kids have a lot of t-shirts. So I mean that. It takes a lot of t-shirts. You might was well buy one for the amount of cotton you will cut up.

Actually, I saw another pin of this project using old bed sheets, and I am thinking about trying that, since it makes sense, and the pictures are pretty cute.

Have you had success complete projects gleaned from Pinterest?