Why crafting communities suck.

Let's be frank.

I love BurdaStyle. I think that the support and resources it gives is awesome. I love the praise it gives, to be honest; I just love compliments.

But I have found other crafting sites that are far less constructive and have gotten to the point of being downright mean and awful. Totally not the point of a "community," right? Par example, I would never mention any names, but to be introduced to Burda I had to find a site that starts with a T and ends in headbanger.com. For a while, all was swell. The video hosts were creative and thrift, the home decor projects seemed doable for the crafty among us, I even was featured on a weekly video with my famed plaid coat.

Apparently, people didn't understand the fact that I had personality OR that I was wearing shorts, and many proceeded to post nasty comments about my "obvious" drug use and that I was, in fact, bottomless.

Who does that?! I've always been a fan of keeping negative stuff to myself, but that really cut to the core. I was so proud of that coat and people who I'd never even met before made me feel terrible about myself. Besides, if they knew me they'd realize that drug addicts do not have such an extended vocabulary. So I stopped using that site. A community ain't sposed to be a place for criticism of people you don't know, especially a crafting community where there's a lot of black sheep trying to find a place to fit in. I suppose since Burda is sewing exclusive, I feel in better company, but I tell you: don't subject your passion to such criticism! Find a place--make a place where you belong.

Now that crafting site is kinda waning in interest--and I laugh at its demise! (How terrible of me to say...no offense to the creators or employees of said site, it's the community I'm laughing at.) Who'd of thought I could get nasty? But they deserve it.

Make a change, my friends!
Wow, did that feel good.