What color is that?

I spend a lot of time organizing.  It is my way of coping.  Having said that, you would think that my house would be neat and tidy all the time but it's not.  That's because when I organize, I pretty much haul everything out and start over.  I have all my craft stuff pretty much sorted by color, the trouble is that I have trouble with colours.  Officially, I am not color blind but I spend an inordinate amount of time examining an item and thinking "Is that blue, or purple?"  The colors I have trouble with are teal, aqua, turquoise - what are those colors anyway?  Are they all the same?  I also have trouble distinguishing purple and pink.  Sometimes I'll put a thing in the pink pile and I think "No, that's purple"  so I move it into the purple bin and think "Nope."  Where does peach fit in exactly?  Is it pink or orange? Then I get stuck and spend too much time pondering the conundrum.  Sometimes I even ask John, who is officially colorblind "What color is this?"
Also, just how many bins should I have?  Obviously some colors have to be combined, but which ones?  Right now I have Blue, Purple, Pink, Green, White and Silver, Black and Gold, Yellow and Off-white, Red, Orange, Brown, Gray and Burgandy.  I'm thinking Black, Gray and Silver could go together.  Then Yellow and Gold, or maybe Brown and Gold.   Maybe I should put red and burgandy together.  But what about that ribbon that is gold and white? - You see my problem.
Finally, what about sub-bins inside the bins.  With blue you have baby blue, navy blue, blue green (or is that green-blue), royal blue...
My guess is that your thinking that it's not that big a deal.  My husband agrees.  He thinks as long as it looks nice together, it doesn't matter what you call it.  True, BUT if I'm doing something that is pink, blue and green  how do I know if I've crossed the line from pink to purple and mess up the whole color scheme?  I haven't tried this yet but what if I do something in monochrome, I could totally mess it up by using burgandy when it should be all reds or does burgandy count as red?

In case you're wondering, I write this only partially with tongue in cheek.  It does bother me a lot when I'm sorting or choosing colors for my project but I don't loose any sleep over it.  Just saying.

Why I love crazy quilting.

Being creative is difficult for me because I like to have things. I have collected all sorts of craft supplies over the years. I have tried many different crafts and have bought supplies for each. Unfortunately, I have not always stuck with the craft which makes all those purchases a waste of money. I have a load of beads, but never made much jewelry, fabric, but I quit sewing a long time ago, silk flowers but only made a few wreaths, watercolors but only did a couple of paintings... You get the idea. I was always cautious about using the stuff because I was afraid of wasting it if I made a mistake or whatever I made didn't turn out perfectly, particularly since I got depressed. (I do have the perfectionism disease) I came to the conclusion that I like having things more than I like using them. I figure that as long as I have a whole bunch of raw materials, the possibilities are endless. There is potential in our spare room (Kids T.V. and my supplies) for all kinds of masterpieces. The problem is I find it hard to work up the courage to start something.
Since I discovered Crazy Quilting, quite by accident when I stumbled on Pam Kellogg's blog and her lovely Shop that problem seems to have left me. I still over organize, re-organize and then organize again but I am actually using the fabric, ribbon, buttons, beads, sequins, all the things that I have collected. And as a bonus, I like the results. One of the things I like is that there is no perfection required. If I make a "mistake" I just change the plan. I'm sure I won't win any awards for color coordination or composition but my stuff is still pretty nice. (I think) I haven't been cured of buying stuff, I discovered a great store called Evening Star Designs that sells everything you need. I have purchased a few of their surprise packages and they're a real treat. I also re-discovered the Sally Ann. I like to buy stuff and take it apart (then organize the pieces). The difference this time is that I'm actually using the stuff. I'm also using the materials to make embellishments, ribbon flowers, tatted flowers, tatted edging for seams. My only sticking point is embroidery, I can't get my stitches even but I know that will come with practice. In any case I'm enjoying crafting for the first time in a long time. Thanks Pam!
I'm hoping this new attitude will seep into drawing and painting.

I just have to add that my husband, John, has always encouraged me to use the stuff and if I make a mess - So what, we'll get more. As with all of his wisdom though, I have a hard time taking it all the way in even though I know he's right.