Last night, my husband and I got caught up on Making It.  In case you haven’t followed it, it’s a crafting competition hosted by Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman.  I’ve loved every episode and am sad that Season 1 is already completed!

Source:  Nothing But Geek

If you haven’t watched the finale yet, then don’t read this post, because I’ll be talking about the show and the winner.  SPOILER ALERT.

Each week, makers were given two challenges.  One was a “faster craft,” where they had to complete a smaller project in a shorter amount of time.  The other was a “Master Craft,” where they had to design a collection based on that week’s theme.  The themes for each week included holidays, the outdoors, family heirlooms, and children’s toys.  The finale closed with designing a cake topper for the faster craft, and a wedding arch for the master craft.  AND IT WAS FOR A REAL WEDDING.

I will say before watching the show, I told my friends that I wish I had known about the casting call, so I could have submitted an application.  HAHAHAHA.  No.  These makers are so beyond the next level.  I really want to post photos, but am also terrified of some kind of copyright infringement, so just head over to the show’s photo gallery if you want to see some incredible work.

What I really enjoyed about the show is it avoided all the terrible cliches of reality television.  Not once did we see the contestants arguing or being catty.  Instead, they helped each other out and were supportive of each other.  You can tell the hosts genuinely cared about each of the contestants and what they were making, and dreaded sending a contestant home.  The judges, Dayna Isom Johnson and Simon Doonan, also offered helpful critiques to the contestants (I have to admit I quickly tired of hearing, “I SEE THIS EVERYWHERE ON ETSY” from Johnson, who is a trend expert for the site).

Though I feel some contestants were sent home prematurely, the final three – Amber, Khiem, and Jo – were genuinely the most talented of the contestants.  Ultimately, Khiem was awarded the Master Crafter patch and winner of the competition.  And he’s an Austinite!  Way to represent, Khiem!

Since I tend to be a crafter who stays inside the lines, the show has really inspired me to broaden my scope and play around with different tools and techniques.  I can’t wait to watch Season 2!

A Brief Tangent about ME

I have to say how much I love Amy Poehler.  I loved her work on SNL,  Parks and Rec is one of my favorite shows (Leslie Knope is GOALS), and I am a big fan of her Smart Girls initiative.  If I were a maker on this show, I would be incredibly star-struck.

I’ve actually been fortunate enough to meet Nick Offerman, since he did a signing at BookPeople several years ago.  I was SO AWKWARD and I cringe just thinking about it.  I’m sure he meets hundreds of people a week, and has already forgotten how I APOLOGIZED to him for purchasing two of his books and having him sign both of them. WOW.  He said something very kind and Ron Swanson-like that I don’t recall now.

Me being too awkward to function. Also, WHAT is going on with my hair?