why I am not allowed to use power tools

I'm guessing your gut reaction to that is: well, who is forbidding this fine lady from using power tools / it really can’t be that bad 😁.

I get why you would think that. That would be my feeling as well if I didn’t know me better. However, the truth is that I am clumsy beyond measure.

My clumsiness has made me into a verb in my family. As in, ‘you did a Lottie’ meaning ‘you did something that in all truth could not have gone wrong but you somehow were able to harm yourself in the process’.

And before you try to downplay that and imagine it's really not too bad (thank you if that was your first thought), let me illustrate. I once accidentally closed the car door on my own hand. I was holding the top of the car door with my left hand and used my right hand to close it—right onto my own fingers.

Twice.

On separate occasions.

So now we’ve got that fact squared away, let’s look at the plus side of things.

I married a professional carpenter and woodworker (just one guy with two skills, in case you were wondering). He is NOT clumsy and IS, in fact, fully qualified to use power tools.

Being banned from using power tools hasn’t stopped me from wanting custom furniture to upholster with my fabrics.

When I have an idea in my head for something I want for the house—like the ottoman I upholstered in my Walled Garden pattern—I need only suggest that I’ll be attempting to use a power tool. And just like Christmas morning, shortly after, an ottoman will appear with custom-turned legs, perfectly oiled to highlight the grain and ready for me to upholster.

Which is likely why I have such a low idea-to-ER ratio.

Wild Thicket fabric by Lottie Aldarwish in the Walled Garden collection

I like to be practical and share some action points with you, so here are my key tips for you from this backstory:

• If you find yourself jealously watching videos of talented women on Instagram building their own built-in wardrobes but realise you’re on the clumsy side of life, simply encourage your husband, boyfriend, or best friend to learn how to make it for you. After all, this will be more efficient for them as they probably don’t want to spend the whole day in ER with you.

• Even if you’re clumsy, there’s hope for your creativity. You can, like me, focus more on painting, where the worst you can do is poke yourself in the eye with a paintbrush.