Craft Gossip

Craft Gossip

Tutorial: Mix-n-match heart napkin rings for Valentine’s Day

Posted: 20 Jan 2010 07:05 AM PST

napkinring10Make a special Valentine’s dinner even more special with these heart-themed napkin rings.  They’re easy to make and because all the pieces button together, you can mix and match to get the look you want.  Stamp a fun message on the twill tape, or stamp someone’s name to make custom napkin ring placecards.

 

Here’s what you need to make a set…

Design Team Call : Bombshell Stamps

Posted: 20 Jan 2010 06:03 AM PST

image by Bombshell

image by Bombshell

Bombshell stamps is looking for stamp artists to join their design team, if you love the look of vintage tattoos and pinups you might be a perfect fit for them. Click here for all the DT details.

-Heather

Scrapbook Page Design: The Rule of Odds

Posted: 20 Jan 2010 06:00 AM PST

Read this article on the Scrapbooks and Cards Today blog about one of the most important design rules,  The Rule of Odds, and how it applies to scrapbooking and paper crafts. Click here to go to article.

BELTS ARE BACK!

Posted: 20 Jan 2010 03:47 AM PST

Belts are back!  Have you seen the latest fashions?  Many are belted or have belts added to a layered look as an accessory.  They must be fashionable because my daughter has finally asked for something crocheted – a belt!  This took me online to browse through fashion shots and free pattern sites to see what’s out there.

My daughter is petite…

CHA Sneak Peeks – Feel Like You’re Really There

Posted: 20 Jan 2010 01:43 AM PST

img_winterheaderIf you’re like me, you’re dreaming of flying off to sunny Anaheim to take part in the 2010 Winter CHA Show, the trade show for all things crafty. This is where all the craft companies announce their new lines for the year, and retailers place orders for the things you’ll see on the shelves the next six months. But, if…

Lilith’s Apothecary Winter Sale

Posted: 20 Jan 2010 01:00 AM PST

Want to learn about a great winter sale? Head over to Lilith’s Apothecary blog to learn all about it.

Dinosaur Fossil Cookies

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 04:08 PM PST

dinocookiesI love simple, clever and fantastic ideas that make you wonder “why didn’t I think of that?” Like these easy, “fossil” cookies made from simply imprinting plastic dinosaurs in cookie dough. Find the recipe and How-tos HERE at Homemade Mamas.

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Quick, Easy Chocolate Mints

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 02:07 PM PST

chocolate-drizzled-altoidsTurn mints into chocolatey gifts quickly with these how-tos from Gimme Some Oven. I had to include this picture below, too, of the process, because the image is just so fabulous. Pure abstract art.

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New Release and Project: Papertrey Ink

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 01:17 PM PST

image by Nicole Heady
image by Nicole Heady

Papertrey Ink has just released 8 wonderful new stamp sets with themes like baby button, trees, backgrounds, loads of sentiments and my favorite set, Top Ten, click here to see the new clear stamp sets. And then visit Nicole Heady’s blog for instructions to make this a fun and funky project with an empty spool and some paper for a cool…

Recycling little snips of magazines as leaves in wall art

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 11:18 AM PST

IMG_8301 Over at the blog Simply Modern Mom there is a wonderful room makeover. Included in it are these two pieces of art where the petals of the leaves are cut from magazines! Wow is all I have to say, so understated and as the blog states…modern.

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New charts from Needleprint: Bridegrooms’ Hearts

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 09:11 AM PST

groomNeedleprint is making available a book of patterns for bridegrooms’ hearts. The blog says,

These hearts were often stitched by the bride-to-be, sometimes in the summer in the pastures, and long before she knew to whom she would be married. Mothers of the bride-to-be have also been known to stitch the shirts on behalf of daughters yet-to-be-born…His shirt with all the hours…

Tutorial: Textile Ancestor’s Pot

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 08:53 AM PST

beateThis fabulous textile art by Beate Knappe is an Ancestor’s Pot. She says,

Such an Ancestors's pot usually is made of ceramics and has a lid. I am a textile artist. For that reason my ancestors' pot will not be made of ceramics but from textile materials. Fabric as a symbol for woven things of time is really matching the theme perfectly.

Beate…

Free tat patterns: Stacked flower pins

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 08:42 AM PST

tatbitTeri Dusenbury (TATBit Tats) created this gorgeous brooch by stacking tatted motifs. Patterns for this and another lovely design are available from her blog. She warns that they were created long ago and need to be retested. Why not test the patterns for her! See Teri’s post.

There’s still time to enter the Winter Wonderland exhibition

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 08:29 AM PST

wwRemember, the submission deadline for the Hand Embroidery Network’s Winter Wonderland online exhibition is January 29 and 30. You still have time to participate! Get the details from the HEN site.

Ecru felt + neon threads = cheery winter wreath

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 08:22 AM PST

wreathPage’s Felt Flower Winter Wreath is sure to brighten any gray day this season. She says,

I had a great time creating abstract felt versions of some of my favorite flowers and then embellishing them with the neon threads.  I used a few easy cutting techniques to create the dimensional felt centers as well as a few simple embroidery techniques to create…

50 pillowcases needed by the end of February!

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 08:13 AM PST

pillowDebra Montgomery of Debra’s Design Studio is organizing another instalment of Operation Pillowcase. She’s trying to put together enough handmade pillowcases for a unit of 50 U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan. She says,

From my experience on the first Operation Pillowcase on the about.com site back in the day, the soldiers love the handmade pillowcases.  The initial purpose of sending the cases was to…

Creepy Valentine fun

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 08:04 AM PST

eyeheartsIt’s no secret that I love Cotton Monster’s adorable creepy creations. And her Valentine’s Day offerings are no exception. These little heart softies feed my paranoia while tickling my funny bone. See more (including links to her Etsy shop) on her blog.

Great idea: Upcycled pincushion

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 07:54 AM PST

shoeBetty Miller of Altered Expressions blog upcycled used baby shoes into adorable pincushions. She says they make “a lovely gift for a sewing friend.” Cute! See more on her blog post.

Enter AAQ’s “New from Old” contest

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 07:43 AM PST

1-5-5-63-NFO-logoThe Alliance for American Quilts announces its New from Old quilt contest for 2010. The news release says,

Quiltmakers are encouraged to think broadly and creatively about this opportunity to celebrate the past in the frame of the present. They might seek inspiration and/or content from antique quilt blocks, fabrics, trims, color palettes or stitches, then use the tools and materials of contemporary…

Tutorial: Punching, Misting and Layering

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 07:00 AM PST

butterflies 3

Susan Weinroth of the Studio Calico Design team, shows you how to use your punches and mists to create layered elements. Click here to go to tutorial

Tutorial: Use old undershirts to make an easy waistband

Posted: 19 Jan 2010 06:59 AM PST

undershirtwaistbandDestri from The Mother Huddle shares her secret for easy elastic waistbands for little girls’ skirts.  Instead of fussing with elastic and casings or zig zags, she repurposes the stretchy knit from her old undershirts.  The result is a quick, easy, and comfortable waistband.  Brilliant!  Go to the tutorial. 

[photo from The Mother Huddle]

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