Crafting with Bailey

I am a big fan of making crafts and of Indy Car racing, so I make a lot of crafts for the Indy Car drivers. Some of my favorite crafts to make are:

1. Key Chains: I put the racer’s name and two colored beads.
2. Picture Frames: I decorate picture frames with foam letters, spelling out the name of the driver and telling them that they rock!
3. Guitars: These are really easy. All you need is cardboard cutout in the shape of a guitar to decorate, which you can find at Hobby Lobby or any other craft store.
4. Foam Fingers: These are also simple to make. You just buy the foam finger at a craft store, and then put the racer’s name on it, along with whatever else you like. I add hearts and their car numbers.
5. Visors: I just add the name of their team to these!
6. Door Hangers: I start with the racer’s name, and, to finish them up, add some pretty hearts and write “You Rock!”
7. Bracelets: On these, I put the racer’s name and other beads- that match the colors of their car, of course!
8. Necklaces: Made just like bracelets, just with more beads.

I like to make crafts for the Indy Car drivers because I feel like they deserve something special for always being great to all the fans. If they have a bad race weekend, they can go get that craft that I made for them, and that will cheer them up. It’s even better when I give one of my crafts to them on a day when they didn’t do well in the qualifying or practices races. When I make these crafts, I don’t want anything in return. I just love making the crafts for the Indy Car drivers because it makes me feel good inside and makes me happy to see them smile when I give the crafts to them.

I am always excited to see a driver I have made crafts for before! One driver, Josef Newgarden, who races for Team Sarah Heartland Racing, said he has all the crafts that I have made for him in his locker. That made me very happy. Anders Krohn, another racer, is always wearing the bracelet I made for him whenever I am around at the racetracks. Some of the drivers, like my dear friend Martin Plowman, put their car keys on the key chains I have made for them.  One of my very best friends, the late Dan Wheldon, always put his key chains from me on his scooters at the racetracks and always wore the bracelet that I made him- he never wanted to take it off! Sebastian Saaverda keeps my crafts with him on the road as his good luck charms, and Chandler Horton, a very dear friend of mine, has his crafts from me proudly displayed in his home.

              

Bailey with (left to right) the late racer Dan Wheldon, racer Josef Newgarden (and the guitar she made for him), and racer Sebastian Saaverda

I have been making these crafts for as long as I can remember, and I always enjoy making them, almost as much as the drivers enjoy receiving them! I never like to leave anyone out, so I even make crafts for the new drivers. Every one of those drivers has a Bailey craft! They always look forward to the month of May, when I give them out. Crafts make me feel happy. Making them is almost like my second job! I love to make crafts for these special Indy Car drivers, and I am always excited to give them away!

What are your favorite kinds of crafts to make?