You are Created to Create

For the past several months, I spent most of my time crafting because this sparks joy and that is also one of the reasons why I added “Craft Your Stress Away” on my social media and design space profile. Indeed crafting became a stress reliever for me so I really had no idea that it would bring me stress before the year ended. Yes, something happened to me in the crafting community 25 hours before the year 2024. 

One hour before December 31, I couldn’t sleep so I decided to browse my Facebook news feed and I was surprised when I saw a screenshot photo of my Cricut Design Space Profile with the caption “Hi, I just wanted to let you know I’ve reported this on design space, probably nothing will get done but wanted to at least try. ” in one of the groups that I joined. 

I was so shocked because I didn’t know what was wrong with my Profile and why does she need to report it. Seriously? I just changed my Cricut Design Space Profile from private to public, three months ago and this happened. I started reading comments and at that time, I was so sad and hurt because there were so many false accusations. Some people already jumped to conclusions and the post blew up. 

The said post was already deleted so I can’t give you the exact words but these hurtful words were stuck in my head. 

1. That is weird, I am not Mithcraftaholic, I thought Cricut is very strict in policing designs… 

2. That is not our (insert designer’s name), I will check on that 

3. I can’t find the profile, how can I report it. 

4. That is not her design, why she is adding a watermark. 

5. She is taking advantage of the designer’s generosity, these are all free designs 

6. She is pimping this design with a screenshot of my Facebook post 

7. This guy is taking someone else photos 

8. I will research more about this and see where she is selling them.

9. She's stealing designs and claiming them as her own.

The list can go on and I never felt so humiliated in my life. Some people started checking my social media accounts. Also, because of those comments, I was wondering if I really committed a mistake and if there is a fine print that I forgot to read. There were so many questions and thoughts running into my head. 

Am I not allowed to share or post my finished craft projects? 

Am I not allowed to post my own pictures with my watermark even though I paid for that design? 

Am I not allowed to share photos of her designs outside her group? 

I thought designers would be happy if they saw that crafters were using their designs. 

I am not claiming I am the designer, it is in my description that I am trying different designs on Cricut Design Space.

I am not earning from those projects. Designers earn if someone will recreate the projects that I shared.

Hmm, if ever I plan to sell my craft projects, I can still do that because of the commercial license.

I thought Cricut is promoting the “sharing of community projects”. 

Should I change my profile from public to private? 

Is this how I am going to end my year 2023 and start my year 2024. 

I just want to craft. 

Should I stop crafting?

"People are so quick to judge and make decisions for themselves about situations they know absolutely nothing about" LeAnn Rimes

Of course, I commented on that post and shared my side of the story. I also messaged the admin/designer of that group. But it was a holiday so I already expected that it won’t be resolved sooner. After several hours of waiting, the admin/designer deleted that post and I received an apology. “She clearly stated that I am just sharing my projects which are all available in Cricut Design Space (if you paid for a subscription) and I’m not selling them.” The person who posted my profile was also brave enough to apologize. They finally realized that I am innocent and I am not doing anything wrong. I am just sharing my craft projects on my Cricut Design Space Profile. 

I already received their apology and my name was cleared so I thought I could easily move on but I was wrong. After the holiday, I was supposed to share my finished craft projects but because of what happened, I have hesitation. I can’t help but ask myself if “I will continue sharing or not?” because I don't want to experience this again. For the past several days, I have been trying to overcome my fear of posting or sharing my craft projects. 

So I made this “Created to Create Layered Craft” to persuade me to go back to crafting. Indeed, we are all created to create. One heartache isn’t a sign that I should stop from what I love to do. I need to remind myself that there are some things that I have no control over but I can control my reaction to that situation. And consider this event as a learning experience. 

I don’t consider myself an expert when it comes to crafting but it doesn’t mean that I cannot be creative. I just want to share what I know, what I made, and what I experienced. I don’t know everything but I am always willing to learn. 

We are all dealing with our own stuff and I am not posting this to get sympathy because I know this too shall pass. But despite what happened, I am still thankful because… 

I was awake when this happened. 

I was a silent member of that group so I was able to see the post. 

It was a private group, the downside is there are 28k+ members in that group around the world. 

I was able to defend myself. 

The post got deleted and I proved my innocence. 

And lastly, I discovered that there are still kind people. I am thankful to those fellow crafters who did not jump to conclusions, who did not judge me, and who defended me too. May God bless their hearts.

“ Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters,” Colossians 3:23