We have a tendency to give credit to the grand. You don’t often get praise for something really small. But there is something to be said for the smaller things in life.
I catch myself aspiring to be one of those people who seems to have their world in perfect order. I can remember starting things and not finishing them for one reason or another. In the past I would dream up a project or an idea and dive head first in to it, only to find myself tired when it didn’t pan out the way I wanted it to. I have seen this in multiple areas of my life on occasion. For a while I developed the habit of starting projects that were very rarely finished. My “go big or go home” crafting attitude was often thwarted by boredom that would set in after the project became to extensive to keep me interested. See below for an example.
Big thumbs down for this guy. The black bookshelf was a lofty dream. I spent hours stripping paint from this sucker and sanding it down with every intention of turning it into something beautiful. HOURS. Where is it now? I couldn’t tell you. I tore it to pieces and left it on the side of the road when I moved from this house where the picture was taken. It was too much. It wasn’t the first large project I tried. I have been successful with others and there will be more.
But there is something to be said for starting something small that is attainable. Just like when you finish a BIG project, you are rewarded at the end of the smaller project and reminded that you are capable of the bigger things.
BEFORE.
After.
There were several fun colors under the odd lime green color it used to be. It made for some fun surprises during the distressing process.
White over lime green. Distressed. Finished.
This foot stool used to sit in the hall bathroom of my Memaw’s house. One of my favorite things about bath time at Memaw’s house was playing with the really pretty decorations in her bathroom. She would sit on this stool while rinsing my hair. It’s one of few a sweet memories that are held by items that I have found while going through her things in our basement.
It looks really cute in these pictures. In all actuality I’m using it to climb into my ridiculously high bed that I have to jump in to otherwise. A step up makes it easier. 🙂
I learned a while back that there is a huge amount of satisfaction found when you can see something through, even when it’s really small.
This applies to pretty much EVERYTHING. DIY projects, photography, sewing projects, journaling, blogging, LIFE. In years past I learned this lesson in my writing. If you start a small journal, you are more likely to finish it. If you are frustrated because you aren’t finishing something that you really want to do, back up a little, give it a rest, pick it back up exactly where you left off and do something small with it. Set smaller goals that you can accomplish. You’ll be really surprised what you are capable of when you chip away at something instead of stopping out of frustration when you feel its to big.
Start small. 🙂
One Wild Hair 