Bead Soup Challenge

Lori sent a sweet reminder to all Bead Soup participants, asking those of us who haven't blogged and posted photos of our beautiful bead soup to please do the right thing...she said that doing so makes our partner feel loved and appreciated, and also invites other jewelry peeps to see what's going on in our particular corner of the world.

Here's the thing: my partner, Janeen, sent me a fabulous selection of beads, including a hand-made pinky-gold metal flower focal, and a beautiful enameled clasp.  Janeen couldn't have done better by me.  Look:

See what I mean?  Gorgeous.  Vintage lucite, pearls, dyed gemstones; super sweet and generous, that's my partner Janeen.

If only I could fix myself... but I seem to have lost my enthusiasm and "crafting mojo" for lack of a better phrase.  It's not just making jewelry that's gone by the wayside, oh no.  It's everything that I once found exciting, stimulating, and fun to do.  I have been making ATCs (artist trading cards) for almost two years now, and routinely swap with people all over the world.  It's so much fun to be given a theme, and to sit down with various papers, charms, vintage ephemera, paints, and rubber stamps, and to create something evocative of that theme.  It's one of my biggest sources of enjoyment, right up there with beading and bending wire. 

I took a six-week hiatus from everything (except the ever-frustrating granny squares), knowing that I needed to pack my belongings into moving boxes and to move into a sweet new home just a few miles away.  I had no idea what that six weeks would do to my spirit.  And now that I'm technically unpacked, and have a great craft room setup, I'm struggling in ways I never imagined.  I can't find what I need, when I need it.  My embossing folders are...where?  My wire snips...why aren't they with all the other "jewel tools"?  That six-week "break" has turned into a solid two months.

Can't find the special cat comb (essential for my long-haired babes); can't find the tube of prescription feline eye ointment; can't find so many of my basic cleaning supplies.  Yet I swear that every box is unpacked.  And frankly, although it seems that I have much more in the way of available work surface in the craft room, everything is stacked and piled around me in a chaotic mess.  What's going on? 

I even joined a group of blogging beaders who are struggling with these issues, and bought a great book on regaining our creative spirits...but I haven't contributed to the group in any way, and haven't even cracked open the book. 

Previewing this post makes me sad...I sound like a wimpy whiner!  Maybe I just need to step back from the situation and figure out a way to organize this room that will make it more workable for me.  That's the task I'm setting for myself for this afternoon, and hopefully my next post will be full of joy.  I really want that to be the case.