Pink of Perfection

Cat Morley is a one woman crafty movement. Her kick ass site, Cut Out + Keep, is a community of doers, eager to share their how-to projects for making everything from clothes to cocktails.

Tell us about Cut Out + Keep. How did you get the idea, how long have you been doing it? Does it pay the bills or is it a labor of love?

Cut Out + Keep started as my crafty blog in 2003. I’d post how-to’s of all the things I made. I added hundreds of how-to’s and then one day I thought, wouldn’t it be neat if everyone could add projects to it and then it would be this amazing resource for learning how to make things. At the start of 2008, Tom (my boyfriend) and I relaunched the site and now we have over 6000 projects posted by over 13, 000 members. It’s growing fast and I can’t wait to see what everyone’s going to post next.

As for the money side of things, if I still lived in Scotland, it would pay all the bills and then some, but we’ve moved down to London, which is a much more expensive city. Hopefully it will start to pay all the bills again soon. I don’t mind though, because it’s a dream job and I see it as (hopefully) an investment for the future.

How did you first get into making, crafting and cooking? Any particularly memorable flops or successes?

I was always crafty as a kid, I loved being creative and making my own jewelry, comic books and toys. I use to pretend that I was presenting my own cooking shows when I was in the kitchen and cook up meals for all of my family. I seem to remember that the food was pretty tasty, considering my age, that or everyone was too polite to say.

One of the most memorable thing was at Halloween, when my mum would take me to the fabric store and ask me what Disney princess I wanted to be that year. She’d whip me up an identical outfit to the movie in no time and I was always so amazed. I guess when I grew up and became too old for my mum to be making me princess outfits anymore, I started learning how to do it myself.

I’ve had some major flops with candle making and one time, without thinking, I managed to melt some plastic molds in an oven - which was terrible! My successes have been learning how to put fillings in chocolates, the many wonderful things that are possible with shrink plastic and figuring out how to make bath bombs stick together. According to Cut Out + Keep, my best project is a plushie of a fish that turns in to sushi and back again (9 versions and 441 favorites!).

Any projects you’re working on now you want to tell us about?

I’ve been sewing a coat for the past few months now, I have no idea why it’s taking so long considering it’s freezing outside and that should motivate me. I met a drunk Irish guy last month who taught me how to cross stitch and I’ve been hooked since. I’ve also been busy crafting up stuff for our new house, which is a mews with loads of space.

What do you think the significance of the handmade movement is? Of women,
particularly young women, who are interested in crafting and cooking?

It’s great to see people finding out that they’re able to do things which seem pretty complex, but broken down into simple steps. Having the internet available to share knowledge and tips makes craft much more accessible. The community on Cut Out + Keep has grown around many young women who are connecting with like-minded people. I’m not a fan of the ‘Buy Handmade’ movement — I’d much rather see people doing it for themselves, getting creative and sharing what they’ve learned.

What’s some of the best advice you’ve ever gotten?

Write everything down — all your to-do’s, all your appointments, every idea…everything! Keep a never ending to-do list, full of absolutely everything you have to do, because when it’s out of your mind, you can think so much clearer. That’s something I’ve learned from the book Getting Things Done and it has saved me so much time and thought.

What are some things on your life list (things you want to do before you
die, or as I like to think of it, to feel like your living a great life)?

Oh, I love keeping lists like this. I want to travel lots and visit New York, become a roller girl and kick ass at roller derby, write a book, learn how to roll sushi like an expert, start a band, learn how to mix records, learn shorthand, join a pole dancing exercise class, learn Russian, figure out how to crochet and win a Blue Peter badge.

This year I’ve been trying to say yes to more things (after reading the book Yes Man by Danny Wallace), think positively and be more proactive.

What’s your ideal day look like?

I’d wake up nice and early, before my alarm clock had rung and have a delicious breakfast in bed. The postman would knock on my door and delivery 5 massive boxes of books and craft supplies. I’d head to my computer and there would be thousands of projects to publish and hundreds of exciting emails to read. With a click of my fingers, all my mail would be answered and all of my work finished, and then I’d head out to one of my favorite lunch spots, where I’d meet someone interesting with lots of stories who wanted to buy me lunch. In the afternoon I’d head out for a fun day in London, buy some comics, find lots of cheap Vivienne Westwood clothes in a charity shop and be invited to a cupcake tasting party. In the evening, I’d go to the pub with friends, have cocktails and head to an awesome gig. I’d then fall in to bed happy, with all of my work complete and all of my to-do’s ticked off for the week. The house was also be magically tidy throughout.

When I first read this out to Tom, he said “that’s just like your normal day… but on steroids”.

If you could invite anyone to a dinner party, living or dead, who would come?

I’d have to invite Richey Edwards (the missing Manic Street Preachers) as I have a lot of questions for him. Adam & Joe (two British comedians) who would provide the giggles. Kate Moss to sit quietly and look pretty. Derren Brown to perform party tricks. Nigella Lawson to do all of the cooking (meat-free, of course!). Bright Eyes, PJ Harvey, Martha Wainwright and the other Manic Street Preachers to provide the music. And everyone from Cut Out + Keep, so that we could meet in person and craft after dinner.

You just won $100 on a scratch-off. How do you spend the money?

Let’s see, that would give me about £50 to spend here, so I’d try and make it stretch as far as possible and have a really fun day out in London.

I’d go to a zoo, eat sushi, buy some beads, have a cocktail, get a cheesy souvenir portrait drawn as a memento and gamble any remaining pennies on the Penny-pusher machines!

Your favorite thing you own (either for sentimental reasons, or because it’s beautiful, or because you can’t live without it)?

I’m going to list a couple of things here. First, my iPhone because it’s the most amazing gadget I’ve ever owned - it keeps me really organized and connected all of the time. The second, my Vivienne Westwood ring, which Tom bought for me when we came to London - it’s not quite an engagement ring but a “putting in a reservation” ring.

What’s in your fridge right now?

There’s a bit of salmon, some veggies and lots of veggie bacon and sausages. Turning vegetarian (although I still eat fish) was my New Year’s resolution for 2008 and one I managed to stick to. I also have a bottle of this awesome sauce, called Reggae Reggae Sauce - it has a song that was released on iTunes and everything, and some tonic water for making my favorite new drinks, gin & tonics. Other than that, it’s pretty empty, so I need to order some more food.