[For Beginners] "I Messed Up Again!... But That Failure Saved Me"

In handmade crafts, 'failure' teaches you more than success.

Creating works is also a time spent facing many 'things that don't go well'.
I have failed many times so far, and each time I've felt a little down, laughed, or sometimes discovered a small trick.
Today, I would like to share one such 'handmade failure story' with you.
──It might just provide a hint for you, the reader.

Please listen to my failure.

It happened the other day when I was printing work materials on my home printer.
"Hmm? Isn't the color a bit off...?" I noticed.
When I looked into it, it seemed that among the three-color integrated ink cartridges,only the yellow had run out.
The pink and blue were still full of life... why yellow, and why now!?
Of all things, the material I wanted to print that day was yellow.

I had no choice but to click and buy compatible color ink on Amazon (thank goodness for Prime next-day delivery).

What on earth is this!? A big panic over ink replacement

When I opened the ink that arrived the next day──
Huh? The shape of the cartridge is different from the usual one...
And the usage is complicated...
Open the cartridge, take out the sponge inside, insert a new cartridge inside... what is this mysterious task!
"No way, I didn't sign up for this~" I thought to myself while trying my best to proceed with the replacement.
But.
The result was a failure.
No matter how many times I reset it or followed the instructions, the printer kept showing an error.
On top of that, because I touched the ink-soaked sponge with my bare hands,
my fingertips ended up super colorful with red and blue... (I should have worn gloves)

In the end, I had to say goodbye to the newly bought cartridge.

But, what that failure taught me

In the midst of that, I suddenly thought.
"Hmm? Instead of the cartridge, couldn't I just add ink to the sponge already inside?" I remembered that I often refilled ink when my stamp faded at work.

When I searched on Amazon immediately...
It exists!
Refill color ink!And it's
about 1,500 yen cheaper than replacing the whole cartridge!What~~!? I was a bit shocked at how much I had been wasting on cartridge costs until now, but if it weren't for this failure, I don't think I would have ever noticed the option of refill ink.

Failure is definitely not a waste

While scrubbing my colorful hands with soap, I felt it deeply.
**"So this is what it means to learn from failure."**
There are truly many times in handmade crafts when things don't go as planned.
But I realized once again that that is exactly why seeds of unexpected discoveries and ingenuity lie dormant.
There must surely be failures that bring such 'realizations' to you as well.
It's okay. Even if things don't go well, that is 'experience' you can use next time.

Summary

• Failure = not a waste

• Even if it seems like a detour, you might encounter new options

• Learning in handmade crafts is found precisely within troubles

Through this failure, I realized once again the importance of learning from mistakes. You all might also stumble or fail on your handmade journey. But that is never something to be ashamed of. Rather, that experience is an important step that helps you grow.

So please, don't fear failure, and keep enjoying it as you continue.
We all get better little by little while repeating our failures!