The first rule of a new hobby: only buy what you need.
I have never been able to follow this idea, and--being the kind of person who collects hobbies routinely-- over the years I can only guess at how many hundreds or maybe even thousands of dollars I’ve thrown out as I over purchased and then lost interest in what I did with my free time. (Bead jewelry and specialty pets, I’m looking at you.)
However, with effort to restrain my impulse buying, I have decreased this tendency, though not eliminated it completely.
Right now I am starting to get into the Terrain Crafting hobby as an extension of my interest in roleplaying games and miniatures painting. What caught my eye is the amazingly fantastic settings and table dressings that some very creative and talented people are posting pictures and videos of.
I’ve set my current crafting budget between $75-$100 and I’m shopping around for very basic supplies, no expensive equipment just yet. Get the glues, the clay, the general tools and see what small projects I can throw together based on that. Let’s put this to the test though, what will the first project be and what is the cost for each step?
Picking something that seemed pretty basic, the “How to Build a Farmhouse” by Black Magic Craft on Youtube, is where we will start.
Heads up, I have yet to complete this project; I got a few steps in and realized that it’s a bit over my head, but for a first attempt at piecing anything together whatsoever, I’m going to document my results.
Tools:
$6 Glue Gun (from Michaels Arts & Crafts)
$3 Glue Sticks (from Michaels Arts & Crafts)
$22 Revell Standard Knife Set (Amazon)
$20 9Sea Cutting Mat (Amazon, you can find a cheaper version, this was included in a kit and I’m not entirely thrilled with it’s size)
$2 Black Craft Foam (Dollar General, very happy with this foam, will stock up more on it)
Obviously you can tell that I’m already pushing the bounds of what the original budget would be; most of this stuff I got to use for other things, the cutting mat and hobby knife set was for miniatures, but I wanted to include the cost because it can be deceiving if people think just jumping into things is cheap when you don’t already have a built up tool set.
The results left much to be desired and pictures are included for all of you out there who see final projects and don’t get to see enough failed results to get an idea of what coming at things from a very amature perspective. I don’t even know what I’m going to do with this thing, maybe just throw it away… It was a messy, weird, inexpertly cobbled together experience. But it was a blast, all the same.
What I walked away with was the knowledge that, even if I can’t replicate the quality that I’ve seen online, I will have a lot of fun making a mess and giving it a try. Stay tuned for more experiments and crafts to come!
