Hi there. I have just been reading Barbara Grays Blog. It made me laugh – especially the the photo of the Lady Knitting!! Anyway, she mentioned about me sending in videos for my shows on HOCHANDA TV tomorrow 27the March 20 – on at 8am and 12pm shows. So I reckon it must be OK for me to talk about it too.

Well for years and years while I was dreaming of being that “Vlogger” that I keep going on about, I was teaching myself in the background how to upload videos onto You Tube – that was a feat in itself back in the day I can tell you. It wasn’t as easy as it is now!

But I was also teaching myself how to edit videos. I am now trying to pass this knowledge onto Leonie, we had a chat about it when I last saw her. I showed her a few things, because she said she was a bit stuck. I realised in that time of showing her just 2 or 3 things that she can do on edit, that it had taken me years to discover for myself. Seriously, sometimes you should just watch a HOW TO VIDEO! No actually, it wasn’t as easy then as it is now. Or maybe I just know what to look for now when I want to do a particular edit?

I love to learn new things and I love to find them out for myself. But a good video explaining the ins and outs too wouldn’t be passed up, you still have to work it out in the end! If someone is willing to share their knowledge then that is a good thing isn’t it and if they want to try to teach me how to edit videos then I may as well watch. It still took me years to learn? I was teaching myself how to edit videos and upload them to my Chanel because I wanted to share my knowledge of craft, this was before I was on the Clarity DT or any DT Actually. It was actually before I knew any of this existed!! You know, shopping TV etc.

Well all that hard work has paid off. I had been chatting about You Tube videos to Barbara anyway, so when I was asked to make some for HOCHANDA on Tuesday for Friday’s shows, Was it only Tuesday? I jumped at the chance. Now I am one of these people who have dreams, who believes in pushing myself to see how far I can get off my own merits. But meeting Barbara and becoming part of the Claritystamp Family still always surprises me. See I used to dream my dreams and think that I could do things and that was as far as it got. But with Barbara she says, Oh can you do that, go on then”. Then I am like, OMG she believes me!!!! Oh no now I have to do it. I don’t think I have met anyone like Barbara before, someone who puts so much trust into my own imagination and thoughts and ideas. Its scary sometimes to be taken serious like that. But I also really appreciate it and I appreciate Barbara. Its not just me she does it with, she really does make peoples dreams and ideas come to life. I could name a few people who would be nodding their heads now if they were reading this.

So, when Paul said, OK the trip to the Studio is off, can you make some Videos and send them to us and they might be shown on HOCHANDA during my show I jumped at the chance. Easy, I will have them over to you I very soon, she says! But, when you are the designer, the floor manager, the camera man/woman and the editor its quite a long process!!! I finally got the last one to Paul on Thursday tea time????

So my approach is, make the videos the best that you can. So I made the first two. Thought about sending them as they were thinking HOCHANDA would be able to change them around a bit. But thought in the end maybe I should send them edited. Thank goodness I did! So I sent two, then I sent another. THEN I watched HOCHANDA. They were playing videos that people had sent in from the various companies. Then it hits me – OMG my videos might ACTUALLY be shown on HOCHANDA tomorrow!!!! See its that people taking me serious thing again, it scares me! Paul said they MIGHT show them and I clung to that word, so no pressure?

So, I had one more video to make, oh the pressure knowing it might ACTUALLY get shown! So it obviously ends up being the LONGEST video I made and the MOST DIFFICULT to edit. When you don’t stop talking all the way through a video it is hard to chop bits out!! So I think all of them overrun the 10 minute guideline. But I have done my best and it is what it is. You know what, in the end while filming my last one, I thought well, I am inviting people into my craft room so if I do happen to have the camera overlapping my craft mat so that you can see all the mess to the left, or if I do lean forward on the odd bit showing parts I might not want to, or if people concentrate on the fact my arm rests in my black ink pad at one point and the desk and my arm slowly get blacker and blacker, thats OK because your are in MY Craft Room!

So wish me luck. I hope at least one of them gets shown. But if not, it won’t be wasted I can post it on my You Tube or Claritystamp can use them.

So I hope you watch my show and maybe you will get a glimpse of me and my nicely moisturised hands!!! Paul said I wasn’t allowed to put my heavily made up mug in the picture. I told him I had just been trying out my new makeup so that was lucky, but it was a bit of a caked on look. Oh no he said we don’t need your Mug in there, sorry.

So its getting late and I need to be up to be present in front of the TV while my show is on, it would be rude not to be wouldn’t it?

Thank you for joining me. Take care of yourselves and others!!!!

Sam Crowe xx