This year, during the gifting season of Hannukah and Christmas, I wanted to give all, or mostly all, handmade items. I was largely able to meet my goal; the gifts were definitely a reflection of the creative journey I took in 2019, focusing on re-purposing and re-using found items, particularly paper. I’ve already talked about re-using the paper backing of sanitary pads for my cranes. Oddly enough, cranes only played a minor role in my gift giving though. I spent a lot of time playing with old books — folding pages of books found at thrift stores and tearing apart a give away old dictionary. The piece that took the longest is pictured above — a piece of abstract artwork a gave to my son. The four books are folded in a very simple geometric pattern. In the center is a bouquet of origami butterflies. Hidden in the pages of the books are some vintage pressed butterflies that I found for $2 at a consignment store. Fortunately, my son loved his artwork.

My sister, who celebrates Christmas, received this tree made of paper roses from the old dictionary I found at work. I originally was going to make a set of three trees of different sizes. But the roses took way longer to make then I realized ’cause I had to let the glue dry overnight. And they were glued twice. So, she got one tree . . . Sorry, Jen!

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Several gifts were traveled-inspired, as I spent so much time on the road this year. The watercolor looking picture is actually a photograph I took from Signal Hill, hiking around St John’s (Newfoundland) one evening after work. I used the Waterlogue app on my phone to convert the photo to the image above. I liked it so much that I then used Snapfish to print a copy on canvas for my husband and additional copies printed on foam core for my Dad and my daughter.

The gift pictured on the right is another quirky re-use of ‘found’ materials. I take the ‘do not disturb signs’ from every hotel room I stay in. I guess that qualifies as ‘found,’ doesn’t it? The new, different ones get hung on a frame outside my bedroom door in a not so subtle attempt to discourage the kids from coming in (no, it doesn’t work — my stepdaughter didn’t realize they were ‘do not disturb’ signs for a year). Anyway, with lots of duplicates and extras, I created this collage for my older daughter . . . She’s a grad student with a wicked dry sense of humor and I thought she might hang it outside her office.

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I did revert to some of my old favorite crafts. The crocheted blanket was a gift for my 4 year old grandson. Once upon a time (before he was born), I had started another afghan for him — the small blue squares — but that one never got finished. I had chunky yarn left over from an afghan I made for Andrew’s Mom and from an afghan I made for my youngest daughter. So I used the leftover yarn and the leftover squares to create something new and soft and snuggly. All while tutoring my oldest son in Algebra. This afghan represents Thomas’ final exam. By the way, he got a C in the class, which was, in my opinion, a triumph!

The gift, pictured on the right above, required me to learn how to use my new sewing machine — definitely slowed me down. I lost three sewing machines in Hurricane Harvey. My children gifted me with a new one for my birthday this past year. With all the traveling, I hadn’t had time to open it up. But Thomas, bless his heart, had bought a boy’s size small Dungeons and Dragons themed tshirt as a momento when his favorite card shop went out of business. Thomas is 6′ 7″ and weighs closer to 300 lbs than 200 lbs. He was not to going to wear this t-shirt. He entrusted me with his shirt and it needed to be turned into a throw pillow for his bed. So, I learned how to use the sewing machine. It was so liberating to be able to sew again!

Cranes did figure in my gift-giving in one small way. I decided that one evening, for Hannukah, everyone would get a gift of homemade peanut butter fudge (Thanks to Leslie @my100yearoldhome for the recipe). I packaged a few pieces for each person in a chinese-style take out box and glued a small sliver crane on each one. It’s the closest I come to a ‘Martha Stewart’ moment . . . unfortunately, the little boxes aren’t all that photogenic. When I posted this photo on Instagram, someone thought they were bugs. Which, when I look at it, I totally get. They do look like bugs.

I folded the last of my 1000 cranes yesterday. We had talked about making a celebration out of the last fold. But finishing in the middle of studying for the algebra final with my son was also ok. A bit anticlimactic. Being in the middle of the flow of life was appropriate. The journey of folding cranes has ended up being a journey of mindfulness in the middle of the everyday.

I’ve folded most of the cranes while we were studying algebra this year. Or during very long and not very interesting business meetings a long way from home. The act of folding was like doodling on paper or fiddling with worry beads. Keeping my hands busy kept me awake and focused and contributing. It helped me endure a lot of moments that together might have been unendurable. That was the superficial benefit of the journey.

There was the subtle joke that very few people understood – the pink paper that looked so oriental and delicate and that I was so openly working with (and occasionally sharing) was sourced from sanitary pads. So there was a strong element of rebellion, putting the private in public without anyone around me knowing.

The journey freed me as well – to be creative and recognize and embrace how vital that drive to create is to my own sense of well being. I created more this year, beyond just the cranes, than I have in many years. I taught myself new skills, explored new avenues. Gained my first 1000 followers on Instagram. Started this blog.

The year has been every bit as difficult as I expected it to be on New Years Day. The financial burden of other people’s needs has been heavy. And several of the dreams that I tried to hold on to at the beginning of the year are well and truly gone. Early retirement and a house on the beach.

But, I turned my stepdaughter’s vacated bedroom into a retreat for myself. And I found a way to sustain myself. So that simple desire to have something of my own to show for the year has turned into much more. I want to keep going. The completion of 1000 cranes seems to have become more of a milestone than a destination. I need to glue the last 100 cranes onto my canvas to complete my art work. I’m not sure what I’ll do next. But I do have a vintage dictionary I’ve been cutting up. Maybe, once the mother’s prayers are complete, words will start to take flight.

Though I started this blog on a philosophical note, describing the significance of folding one thousand cranes, this space is about creativity and about craft and about decor. And while there are thousands of video’s and photo instructions on the internet about how to fold an origami crane, you’re here now, with me. And if you’ve read the first blog, your next question is probably, “well how do I fold a crane?” So rather than making you search the internet for instructions, here is how I fold a crane, starting with the liner paper of a sanitary napkin, cut into 2 inch squares.

Gently grasp the wings in step 22 and pull them apart to open up the body of the crane. Then repeat 999 times.