Sometimes, you just have to know when to throw in the towel.
Oh, it was fun in the beginning. Exciting even. But it was never easy. Things just never fell into place, and that gets very old very fast.
No new pool bag for me.
I still stand by the idea as being good in theory. I would gladly cheer on someone else willing to take on the challenge. Hey, I'd even go so far as to sell them the handmade Plibbon to do it! But, alas, I have had my fill and decided to move on.
It is just so very fussy to work with. That in and of itself wouldn't be so bad if I absolutely loved the end result. But I don't. It's just okay. Looked much better in my mind, and I just can't make it do what I want it to do.
What I really needed was some combination of the techniques. I needed the ease of the standard plarn (cutting the bags into strips and chaining them together) with the tightness and strength of a plastic cord and the cool melted colors of fusing. If anyone has any ideas of how to make that happen (ideas that I have not already attempted), then I may be willing to try again.
As it stands, however, I'm done. I finished the bottom of the bag, picked up stitches and worked about an inch and a half up the sides.
Now I look at it sitting there and I sigh. That's four weeks worth of work right there, that is. If we stuck it out, where would we be in another four weeks? Would we have made enough progress? Would I be happy? Is this relationship really worth the time and effort?
I gotta say no. You just never know until you try, though, right? And I did. I tried. For that, I am proud.
There are so many other projects out there, just waiting for me to take them on. Heck, I can think of at least four or five that are ready to go right now! There are socks, coffee cup cozies, a sweater, a gift...not to mention a new craft-along for June!
But I'm not ready to talk about those just yet. It's just too soon. I need time.
Maybe tomorrow.
