The Dottie Angel Challenge – 365 days of handmade or used items
Author: duhbe // Category: My Creative Path, ThoughtsI have written, and re-written this post several times. I want to tell you what I’m up to, but without boring you to death. So I finally decided to write this post from my heart. You are welcome to follow along or just skip it over if you like. I won’t mind.
It started with the Dottie Angel challenge which I have decided to take on for myself. Her challenge is to buy handmade or used items for oneself or one’s home for a full year. I will be adding her logo to my sidebar to show I’ve taken her challenge.
But that wasn’t the hard part. Explaining why I took the challenge is more personal, and has made me look deeper into myself to uncover my motivations and beliefs. It starts out simple enough – hubby and I couldn’t even figure out how to spend gift cards at a retail stores because there’s just not anything we NEED. And if we don’t need it – we try not to buy it. Then I realized I have started to reject the American dream of money and prestige and the collection of status symbols. And then it gets more personal for me.
You see, in 2002 I bought myself a new car. Not just any car, but an expensive Acura with horsepower and power everything and just about every option they could give me. That car was my gift to myself for having a successful career while also being a single mother. I paid for that car. Just me, and nobody else. It was a sign of my financial freedom several years after a divorce. It was a luxurious status symbol that even the gear heads were jealous of. It was my own personal measure of success.
Where is she going with this? (Sometimes I wonder myself) This week I sold that car. I didn’t trade it in for a new car, it wasn’t broken down, it was still a beautiful car to drive. I was finally ready to let go of all those things the car stood for – those things I used to hold dear and now I could care less about.
It was such a big deal 8 years ago, but now it’s just a hunk of metal, an image, and money down the drain. The job with the big paycheck is gone. The expensive townhouse has been replaced with a much more humble abode. There is a wonderful new husband now, and a studio where I get to create and play all I want. It seems that when the money moved out, the happiness finally had room to move in.
And the challenge?
I am thumbing my nose at retail therapy. I don’t even know the Jones’, so why do I care about keeping up with them? (I hear they don’t even have good taste anyway)
I am saying “poo” on malls and chain stores and things we don’t really need but we buy them because they are so pretty. Meanwhile, the earth gets more depleted and the landfills grow.
There will be times I falter, and there will be times I overcome temptation. I’ll keep you posted on how it goes. Maybe I’ll have some funny stories to tell. In the meantime, check out the challenge for yourself and see if this might interest you as well.
By the way, I hear Carmax has this awesome Acura for sale, in case anybody who took the challenge needs a second hand status symbol 
January 27th, 2010 at 1:32 pm
That’s an awesome idea. Keep us updated!
January 27th, 2010 at 1:51 pm
As a Jones, I never understood the keeping up thing since we were a middle class family.
If I won the lottery tomorrow I’d buy a house (not a mansion) with a monster studio and keep my 2002 flexfuel pickup.
I have also gotten to the point where nothing in the mall interests me. My thrills come from finding a linen skirt (to pick apart) at the thrift store or a bag of yarn for 3 bucks.
You were hesitant to call yourself an artist but moving past corporate mentality is part of developing the artist’s eye.
January 27th, 2010 at 3:43 pm
Hi Luci – Thank you for the thoughtful and honest post. It is amazing how much value we give to certain physical possessions. They come to symbolize much more than they actually are sometimes.
As a person of faith, I feel challenged to believe that my value comes not from what I own or what I do, but that my value is inherent. I am loved.
The decision to sell your car strikes me as spiritually significant – well done you for making a courageous move.
January 27th, 2010 at 5:13 pm
I come from the perspective that this is a good idea is to be more local. I don’t think china needs to be sending any more plastic parts to the united states.
During christmas when I do most of my shopping I try buying everything on Etsy/Artfire/other handmade.
January 30th, 2010 at 3:35 pm
True and honest thoughts straight from the heart. I too don,t get all these shops filled with so many unnecessary things. It’s so easy to get swept along with what we are told we need, giving us stress and no time for peace. Keeping life simple takes all the rush away. Take care and best wishes. and your blogs are never boring!
February 1st, 2010 at 11:31 am
Sounds like you’ve found the keys to the blissfilled life. Have a great day!
February 6th, 2010 at 6:24 pm
Ooh – I don’t know if this is still within the scope of your challenge, but I just hosted a clothes swap party and it was so fun!
Each woman brought a minimum of two items of clothing to trade (though most everyone brought much more). We organized the clothes into piles and let everyone rummage through!
It was a great way to get some ‘new’ clothes, and a fun bonding experience overall. Just thought I would plant the seed in case you get the itch to shop in the next 365 days…
February 8th, 2010 at 12:43 pm
Thank you for the feedback on this. I will probably have regular blog posts on my progress until this becomes 2nd nature, or until I give up on it. So far I’m determined to stick with it and it has been easy.
Charissa – love the clothes swap idea on so many levels. Thanks for mentioning it!