It’s Monday… Again

Happy Groundhog’s Day y’all. Again. Not to mention it is Monday. Again. Also it happens to be day 4697 of Hibernation 2026. LOL Seriously between the ice storm last weekend, the snow storm yesterday and all the single digit temperatures in between, spring will be a welcomed sight! Oh Carolina weather! Who knows, next week we might be back in the 60s.

The last few weeks have been a little disappointing in the craft world. Mostly people follow crafters on social media/Youtube to learn, to gain inspiration, and share their creativeness as well. It is the followers that make these people famous as well as brings them revenue. What I am saying is if it weren’t for the followers these people wouldn’t have a “platform”, let alone income. The more you watch the videos the more money they make, the more patterns you buy the more money they make. It is a wonderful system, if you stay true to your craft and loyal to your followers. What I have noticed especially the past week, designers have gotten off subject. Lets just be honest, if I like your patterns, the way you explain things in your tutorials, then I will follow up to see what is coming next. I don’t care about your social or political views, because that is not why I am here watching you. I am here for my creativity to be sparked by your creativity. It feels like each and every day the attack on creativity is getting stronger. If it is not AI then it is creators getting off subject. You probably are saying Jama, aren’t you off subject? Well yes and no. I have VERY STRONG personal thoughts, opinions, beliefs and convictions, however if you are reading this you’re more than likely are here to find out more about yarn crafting. You can bank on this- I am here solely to help inspire your crafting journey. No matter the number of people this page reaches, it is not my job to push ideologies through my postings, even masked in the disguise of helping by way of patterns to bring “social justice”. As a long time , loyal supporter of some of the best designers in this business it has made me sad to unfollow so many accounts because they let it get hijacked away from the real reason people were drawn to, the love of yarn! Anyway. Now that I have seen my hook has a shadow, let me go and find some yarn to play with. Until next time Don’t worry, be crafty! ~Jama

Learning to build a business in an world of which AI is trying to take over

It is a slow process learning how to produce instructional videos. Over the past several weeks I have been trying to figure out how to use programs to make quality videos. I’m not overly tech savvy, my talents lie elsewhere. I am determined though, to the best of my ability , not to use any kind of AI assistance to build my brand. So in the midst of learning the programs, the operating system we were using was overtaken by AI, which opens all your private files up to being sent back to the operating system company for review. Needless to say we made a decision to make a full switch to another operating system. I hate to keep belaboring the subject, but I can’t apologize for wanting to keep fake away from creativity. I just want to thank you for your support for this small business as we learn to navigate our expansion. Now back to studying on video programs and practicing editing videos. Stay creative, continue to learn and grow that is how we win at life!

PS I am not a coffee drinker, but I will not turn down a good cup of hot chocolate! I love Garfield and Mondays aren’t so bad…

Don’t worry, Be crafty! ~ Jama

Goodbye 2025

The holiday season is hectic around here, but we just wanted to take a moment to say thank you for all the support. We want to express how grateful for all the customers and opportunities 2025 brought to Fruitful Concepts Studio. We are looking forward to the new chapter 2026 brings.

Don’t worry, be crafty! ~Jama

Creativity over convenience

The last post I left you with the words ” It is my hope that we never trade creativity for convenience.” It is a firm belief here at Fruitful Concepts that we were created by The Creator to be creative. It’s in our name, Fruitful Concepts. Down to the very core of this business is the concept that with divine inspiration come an abundance of more creativity. I believe it was Maya Angleou who is credited for saying ” You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” It has been my experience that this statement is very true. It certainly is nothing AI can fake! As a fiber artist, as a human being, I HATE AI. Simply look at the name — Artificial Intelligence. Nothing, and I mean nothing, can replace God-given intelligence or creativity. Sure you could use AI to write patterns, make photos, and write your blog for you, but it can only go so far. Why? Because it has doesn’t possess the one thing needed to be successful…. talent. Talent comes from the soul. We all know that artificial intelligence has no soul. It is mechanics, it can only regurgitate facts that are put in by a human. What it can not do is replace imagination, emotion, inflection, motivation, or connection. Only humans can do that. Creativity and talent comes from a spark within the mind of a creator. It is my upmost hope that as a society, we never let the convenience of data plugged into a computer replace the mind and conscience of creativity! Just know that every thing I write, post, all the pictures and videos are truly me and how I communicate. In all honesty I have used photo editors and filters a few times, but somehow that even that seems too fake for me for constant use. Whatever your talents or creative outlet is, go practice it with all your heart because the world needs it!

Don’t be worry, Be crafty! ~Jama

Times they are a changin’

2025 has been an interesting year for makers. Whether you crochet, knit, or sew the landscape for craft supplies have changed drastically this year. If you are looking locally for craft supplies like yarn and fabric, you may have noticed the availability has gone from okay to barely there over the past few months. Joann’s closed. You would think that with the last major craft store to focus on yarn and fabric closing that other stores would EXPAND their inventory. Instead when you walk down the aisles of these big box stores, there is so much less then even before. I don’t think the marketing teams understand the impact if they increased these items to be readily available. What are are the options? Online stores like Hershners, Mary Maxim, Premier Yarns, and Yarnspirations. The biggest hang up with online shopping is not knowing what you are getting before you purchase. Most crafters, including myself, want to see the colors, feel the textures and make sure the quality of the product is what we are looking for. Let’s face it, we have all at some point bought something online and were disappointed when we got it because it didn’t look like it did on a screen. Don’t get me wrong I love the feeling when you get those packages delivered to you. It’s like Christmas. However I think in our day in age, where technology is taking over, we lose a lot of inspiration by not having the ability to go and walk around in a store to chose our supplies like we once did. It is my hope that we never trade creativity for convenience. Dont’t worry, be crafty! ~ Jama

It is “Deck the Halls” day

Good morning all my crafty people! Today is the day. It’s “Deck the Halls” event here in the beautiful Piedmont of North Carolina. If you are local please come join us at Wake Prep Academy in Wake Forest NC from 10-4. We look forward to seeing all of your bright and smiling faces as you come and shop local for the holidays. Thank you for supporting small businesses! As alway.

Don’t worry, be crafty! ~Jama

Branching Out

It is a pleasure to announce that Fruitful Concepts Studio is branching out.  With our new Etsy shop we will  provide quality hand made crochet items, as well as vinyl decal products. Unfortunately at this time we are not accepting custom orders  due to the time consuming process of setting up the shop. We appreciate your  understanding and look forward to helping with all your future purchases.  Until next time, Don’t worry be crafty! ~ Jama

Let’s talk yarn sales

Y’all can we take a minute to talk about the best yarn sale that is happening (every other week so far) ?? When I first started making things I bought solely one brand of acrylic because of the vast color choices and the affordability. I still use this brand often and built my collection with it. Then I one day I tried this other brand that was readily available in my Walmart with its colors and softness has helped me win awards. Then one day about 9 years ago I went into my first Hobby Lobby….. it was heaven for a crafter like me. I purchased some yarn. I truly fell in love with the   texture of their I Love This Yarn. Unfortunately the closest store was 1000 miles from where I lived. Fast forward several years and I now live with in a 50 mile radius of 3!! As much as I wanted to have the bulk of my yarn to be ILTY, it was a bit out of budget. It was $4 a skein and what I had been using was about depending on time of the year was any where from $2.50- 3. I had never seen Hobby Lobby put any of the yarn on sale, that is until about a month ago. I saw a post in a Facebook crochet group that this first time sale was happening on ALL the yarn was 30% off….. WOW! It made each skein $2.79, cheaper than the other 2 brands even when they are on sale. I went on that first week, as I was making my purchase I asked the cashier and she said how much yarn that they had sold that week. It must have been a success because this week is now the 3rd sale. I hope they continue with this great rotation sale! If you haven’t tried I Love This Yarn, I highly urge you to get some and try it out, and if at all possible buy at least  a skein every time there is a sale and let’s let Hobby Lobby know just how much we do appreciate their products. Until we talk again, Don’t worry be crafty! ~Jama

Hi and welcome back to Fruitful Concept Studios!! Can you believe that we are halfway through the 2nd month of 2018? Sorry for the absence, I got discouraged that I was talking to myself. However about 2 weeks ago my husband said “Maybe you should start blogging again, I have had 2 people ask about why you haven’t updated your website.” So here we go, even if I am talking to myself. LOL I have so many projects on my to-do list, and keep adding more daily. At the present I have 5 projects going. If you were to check my Ravelry it would show that I have 36 items in my cart. And that is mainly because I have not had time to get around to them yet. As my yarn, pattern (and everything in between) collection grows so does my desire for learning new techniques. The more I know, the more I want to know. Isn’t that the way it should be, always wanting to grow and learn as much as you can? Leave me a comment and let me know what you want to learn more of! Until next time, don’t worry be crafty! 

Recharge

Sometimes with all of life’s up and and downs you just need to recharge. I know it has been quite a while since my late update. The past few months have been a roller-coaster with an unexpected death in the family, vacation, holiday celebrations, sickness, visits with out of town relatives, and the list could go on. Somewhere along the way I lost my motivation for crocheting. Don’t get me wrong, there has been plenty of crafting the past few months, but the burning desire to turn out project after project just was not there. Surely I am not the only one that gets that way, if we are honest it can be about anything in life. So I took time to recharge, not stressing over making or not making anything. That is until this week. As I have said many times, my notebooks are like treasure boxes. At the start of every new year, I start a new one with to-do lists, goals, patterns, etc. I start with a blank page and begin to fill it with crafting dreams and concepts, that most of the time no one else gets to see. This year, that is going to change.  I plan on making 2017 the best yet not only for me personally, but for Fruitful Concepts Studio as well. Thanks for sticking with me while I recharged!!  Until we talk again, Don’t worry be crafty! ~Jama    dscf6777