JoshPrime Makes Stuff

Hey reader! There are many projects I feel empowered to just try whenever I get inspired to try them. I decided to learn how to make puppets and a few YouTube videos later I was sewing my first one. There are a few things that I find a little more intimidating, for whatever reason. One of the biggest is electrical. I have been electrocuted on two different occasions and it is not an experience I would like to repeat. I have a healthy aversion to doing that myself. You are probably asking: "How did you get electrocuted twice!?" That is actually two kind of long stories. When I used to work at a big box store that will remain nameless, we would occasionally find opened merchandise on the store floor. People would crack it open to see what was inside. Sometimes they would decide they didn't want it after seeing the inside. The worse people were the ones who opened it and decided they wanted to buy it - and then grabbed a sealed one. What kind of monster does something li...

Hey Reader, I thought this day would never come. It is the day when I can call this particular project finished. I will not have to smooth another wall for quite some time. This past weekend was the final paint job for downstairs. pictured: subtle ripples I have learned so much with this project. There are four main takeaways to look at. Lesson one: stick to something until you get it right and don't give up! That seems like a ridiculous platitude - cuz it is. Here is the thing though, it is a platitude for a reason. There were periods where literally everything I owned was covered in an inch of white dust. There were nights where I screamed at the walls because there were subtle ripples that I could only see from certain angles and at certain times of day. I was committed to making it work! Sure, I didn't really have much of a choice once I had done a room or two. I wasn't going to have mismatched wall smoothness throughout my house. That would be sillier than sa...

Hey reader, I have been nearing the end of wall work, right around the time I started playing two brand new video games - Mario Maker and Yoshi's Crafted World. Getting two fantastic new games right at the end of a long project that I have grown really tired of might not have been the greatest idea, since my progress is slowing so I can hunt down red coins and make new levels in Mario Maker. Yoshi's Crafted World is definitely an amazing game. The Yoshi games have become much less about traditional platforming, like Mario, and more about exploration and finding things. It has a totally different focus that lends itself well to experimental aesthetics, like Kirby's Epic yarn or Yoshi's Wooly World before it. I find myself looking at the background and the art decoration more than paying attention to my character. It is a good thing Yoshi doesn't have lives. This is a long winded way of saying, this week my project is Yoshi and crafting! Quite the journey. I...

Hey reader! I took a trip on my lunch break a week ago and found Diamond Art on sale at Michael's. Everyone loves a good sale, and I have wanted to try a new Diamond Art. You might recall that the last diamond art was beginner level. This one is considered advanced. Here is the thing: all that has changed is the size. I am not sure that is more challenging, just more time consuming. I don't know what I expected. I can't even really make a joke of how I would have made this project more challenging. Actually, I can. Have you heard of Holey Moley? It is a miniature golf competition show that added obstacle courses to up the difficulty and the viewership. Think Wipeout with more golf. Fortunately, I wasn't expected to run through any windmills while I completed this project. I guess windmills wouldn't make sense on a crafting related obstacle course show. I guess I would be more likely to be forced to navigate through giant foam scissors or jump through a big pai...

Hey there Reader, I don't have much to say this week, as its been hectic moving into the summer and making headway on the downstairs. It has been a year since I have really felt like I could call myself a true "maker." Sure I have done a lot of house stuff, I have made some soaps and bath bombs, but not having my dedicated craft space has made it tough to try newer and more complex projects. I don't know if you have ever had this experience where you can't do stuff you like doing. The irony that I can't make things because I have too much to make is not lost on me. I have big plans and lots of things I want to be doing, but with the wall work taking up all of my time, it seems silly to start a new project. Especially because any time working on that project is time I could instead be using to finish up walls. Weirdly, I feel guilty if I work on something else besides the walls. I love Pinterest. It is a great website that my mom actually owns stock in no...