We will have to rewind first, back in 2017, I barely left my home without having someone with me, I have severe anxiety and things had got so bad I needed help to leave my home. I was appointed a Community Navigator whose role was to get me back into the community, I saw my role as avoiding getting out into the community! She found a local charity CLP (Community Learning Partnership) that provides groups and classes for local people with an emphasis on well-being, they had craft classes on offer and I do like to craft. Despite it being perfect I was still determined not to go because it involved going outside and meeting new people, the group uses a local church not 5 minutes from my doorstep and I knew St Martin’s church well!
A plan was hatched…
The church has steps and I have wheels, so I agreed to go, and the subject of CLP need never be mentioned ever again. So off we went to CLP we arrived, we saw the steps! “oh dear” I said triumphantly “well we tried let’s go home” and I started to turn my chair to go home.
Unfortunately, I didn’t know the building as well as I thought I did, and my future boss Eliz appeared at a side entrance and called out “come around this way we can get you in here” my plan had failed.
But now I’m so glad it did because CLP isn’t just a place to go, it’s a place to belong, it’s just one huge great big family, full of fun lovely people who welcome you in warts and all, you walk/wheel through the door and want to announce “I’m home”.
If it wasn’t for CLP I wouldn’t be here blogging about how my world has changed, I would be at home under a Duvet hiding from the world – also you wouldn’t be reading this because CLP taught me how to blog and it makes me giggle to think that the blogging course was just before Lockdown and I refused record myself talking about myself and a Fox named Oakley, no matter how much they tried I was not going to do it! But now two years later I have a YouTube channel and talk about creating a mess with paint. The Fox you will read more about below Furloghed himself the first day of Lockdown and has been loafing around ever since!
New beginnings
CLP enrolled me onto ‘Building Better Opportunities’ which was a scheme run at CLP that aims to get people back into employment, and before long I was working as a volunteer Teaching Assistant to the crochet tutor, and my skills as a left-handed ‘hooker’ came in handy.
Somehow during this time I also ended up Knitting a Fox, named Oakley and he was no ordinary Fox he’s a mischievous little fellow who got up to all sorts of antics in the guise of ‘helping’.
I personally don’t think making a Fake ID to order drinks in a local pub was helping anyone but that was his excuse and he was sticking to it.
Although his epic SOS (save our Shelfie) mission to rescue a crochet sheep from Eliz’s office was very brave of him, even if he did need backup from the Woolly team at CLP but Shelfie the sheep was very grateful to be free. People were sponsoring him and following his story of mischief and mayhem and asking what will he do next?
In March 2020 my whole world was about to change and it had absolutely nothing to do with the virus. I was asked by Eliz to consider training to be a tutor and teach for CLP, and somehow with the whole world upside in lockdown, people losing jobs, and being Furloughed I embarked on my first steps into Employment and lockdown worked in my favor as I didn’t have to go to college and push my anxiety to its limits, it came to me via teams, and before I knew it I was a qualified tutor and no longer ticking the unemployed box on forms. I started teaching last November, I was often called CLPs eco-warrior so it was only fitting that my first class is encouraging learners to recycle through the making of a Junk Journal.
Just in case all of that wasn’t crazy enough my boss Eliz had nominated me for an award, it was the Step to Skills (Funding provider for all the amazing courses CLP run) celebration evening and I had come joint runner up as most inspirational learner, I remember the gentleman introducing me coming over to me to introduce himself and asking if I had a speech prepared, I can’t remember my reply but think it was something about he was lucky I was going to brave the stage, no way was I going to say anything and could I just go hide under a table instead?.
But my moment arrived I got onto the stage and despite being petrified at some point, the microphone was offered and I reached out and took it, and made a speech I think it was “Thank you to CLP” and my exit off the stage was quicker than my entrance – as its a ramp and I could get some speed up going downhill.
I arrived back at the table to Eliz pulling a face at me, I asked what the matter was her response “you could have made it long enough for me to get the camera out” – honestly there’s no pleasing some people, she wanted me to make a speech I said 4 words so that was a speech!
The world of self-employment
On the first Saturday in November 2021, I stepped into CLP as a Mixed Media Tutor. I think I was more nervous than I was back in 2017. I kept thinking are they crazy? they were letting me teach their learners ME! the anxious mess, teaching a class of adults how to make a Junk Journal? I thought that I could never teach anyone anything but it’s all falling into place and I love every second of it.
Where did Mouse Makes Art spring from?
I had been thinking for a while what if I started selling my craft? Working as a tutor has given me the confidence to think I might just be able to do this, get back into employment and away from the world of disability benefits, and being judged by those who feel they have a right to judge me. I will just be me again, even if ‘me’ comes with wheels, a zimmer frame, a tendency to drop stuff, and fall over but I can ignore all of that because the best part of being ‘me’ again is I’m a Mixed Media Artist, tutor and the owner of Mouse Makes Art.
(Head Mouse Strawberry at Mouse HQ)
I’ve always enjoyed making little animals (mainly Mice) and sending them as gifts to people, one of the Mice even made it all the way to Australia.
My original idea was to knit and sell my Mice, they always have a name and a story about who they are. I already knew people love a woolly critter with a good yarn to tell (sorry I just couldn’t help myself) because of Oakley Fox, so having written a Mouse pattern of my own I set to work armed with 5 Double pointed tiny needles and some yarn. But before long more and more ideas were added to the plan including slashed fabric journal covers, miniature crafts in necklaces so you need never leave home without your hobby of choice, a recycled section, and more to follow. If all goes to plan in August I will be hitting the Launch site button and I can’t wait!
Over the next few weeks, I will share more about Mouse Makes Art so stay tuned. Head to my Linktree to follow me on all social Media https://linktr.ee/mousemakesart
Love the blog x
Really love the blog and website Yvonne. You’ve achieved so much already. Can’t wait to see more critters and their stories. X
Thank you x
You are an inspiration. I love your mice .
Thank you, have you found Pip yet?
Yvone, I just loved reading about your journey, especially being a left hand hooker😝! Your junk journals look amazing, perhaps a class? I look forward to finding the mouse😩.
Hi Glad you liked it. I am looking at running online classes, I have run an in person Junk Journal course for CLP in the past and I could do similar online.