Fall Gingham Set in Plastic Canvas

 Hi everyone,

I'm ready for fall.  The weather has cooled and it might rain next week!  That will be very welcome here in dry California.

Here's a set that has just come out on the Herrschners website.  It's perfect to decorate your home for fall.

 Happy (almost) fall!

Unboxing new craft goodies

Hi crafty friends,

This Designer Crafts Connection blog hop we are sharing our favorite products, techniques and crafts.  Which one to choose?  I love so many crafty things.

I just got a new box of craft goodies from Plaid as a result of a fortuitous meeting in their booth at AFCI in January (Thank you, Julie and Shauna!).  So, I thought I'd show you their quite generous shipment.

Wow, right!  Plaid has been generous to designers ever since I've been in the industry - and they continue to be.  New brushes, several different brands of paint and plenty of Mod Podge!

But, the item that I was most excited about was a product from their Bucilla line.  I love yarn and thread, fiber and fabric.  It's where I started crafting - stamped embroidery, sewing and needlepoint.  Now, I can add weaving to the mix with the Weaving Loom.

I have strung the loom with the warp threads (vertical threads) with some Hemptique twine.  Then I took a length of yarn and started weaving.  I found a lot of blue shades in my stash.  I started with a yarn that has a lot of tails to give it some texture.  I did have to go back and pull the tails to the front.

I continued with a few different kinds of yarn ends - sari yarn, t-shirt yarn and novelty yarn.  Then, I finished it with some rya knots on the bottom.  I tied all the warp threads on the bottom and the top, and then overcast the top edge.

I decided to add a hanging bar.  I used a piece of grapevine for a rustic look.

I really enjoyed this project and learned so much (like leave more length to tie off the warp threads!).  I can't wait to try another weaving with different stitches besides the plain weave and some thick bulky yarns or strips of fabric.  And, there must be a way to add beads!  The only problem I had was reading the instructions - the print and the background were too close in color to be easily read.  And, although I used the wooden needle in the set to weave, I used a tapestry needle to weave in the ends because it was smaller and easier to use for that.

I found a nice weaving site to help a beginner like me:  The Weaving Loom  She has a lot of good tips.

Ready to see more fun projects?  See the Designer Crafts Connection blog.  We've got lots of ideas!

Post Creativation

Hi everyone!

Thanks for stopping by my little corner of the internet.

January has been very busy since I got back from Creativation.  I prepare tax forms for our family business plus I had three projects to finish by the end of January.  So, there will be more jewelry and plastic canvas kits coming in the future!

I didn't take many photos at Creativation.  Sometime it's just a blue and I forget.  I am too busy ooh-ing and ah-ing and talking and touching!  I took a few, but I'll point you to a couple of my friends who took a lot more.

Here are mine.  Even though I don't scrapbook or make many cards, I just love the paper from Graphic 45.  Here are a couple from their booth - Farmhouse and Ocean Blue.

Graphic 45

Graphic 45

Here's a few from Plaid.  If you are into cosplay, they have paints for you to transform the foam you use to construct these costumes.

I thought this display at the Plaid booth was cool, especially the barnacles made from egg cartons over on the left.  Clever!

And, this showcases their Mod Podge Ultra.  This display is right up my alley with the driftwood and other pieces hanging in the old window and old bottles crusted in sand

Here Lorrie and Sue helped me take a selfie at the StyleTech booth.

I spent a few hours in the Hemptique booth creating a tassel with some of their hemp fabric, rope and twine.  Great materials with which to work!  You'll see more of this in my designs!

I also took a couple of classes - one in needle felting from Clover and one creating a sculptured journal with Quick Cure Clay with Jamie Dougherty.  Both were great classes and amazing techniques, which I hope to incorporate somewhere down the line.

Here's the journal:

It was an amazing trip this year.  I got to see family, had two fantastic roommates, hung out with designers from all over the world and saw some exciting new products.

But, this is just a tidbit.  For lots of photos from the show floor, see Julie McGuffee's blog, Life in the Craft Lane.  For another view on trends, see Cindy DeRosier's site.

Enjoy!

Mod Podge Ultra Blog Hop

Hi Crafty Friends!

Today I'm participating in a blog hop with Designer Craft Connection and we are featuring projects using Mod Podge Ultra.  Those on this blog hop were given samples of a new Mod Podge formulation that comes in a spray bottle.

I decided to use it to make fabric beads and create a necklace with the beads.  Here's the fabric I used.  It's a roll of coordinated fabric designed for quilting.

 These are my materials:  a strip of fabric, a bamboo skewer and the Mod Podge Ultra.  I covered my work surface with some waxed paper.  Before spraying, shake the Mod Podge Ultra.

 After spraying the fabric, I rolled up the bead around the skewer.

Then, I sprayed the bead again and wiped up the overspray with the bead so it was thoroughly coated.  I slid it off the skewer and set it aside to dry.  Just like a paint brush, Mod Podge Ultra Spray tops need to be cleaned after every use.  If they aren't, they will clog and become unusable.

Here are some of the beads that I created:

Rolled Fabric Beads

As I said, these are just a few of the beads I created.  I liked the way the process and the Mod Podge Ultra worked so much, I just kept on rolling!

I created more beads from old jeans.  I rolled them in the same way as before, then held them down with toothpicks to dry.  The heavier denim takes longer to dry.  I let mine dry overnight.

Then, I created a statement necklace with the long fabric beads and some shorter denim beads.

Fabric Bead Necklace

I used more upcycled denim to create the leaf beads on the end and the toggle for the clasp.  In the center, I wrapped a cloth strip around a long denim bead.

Fun to make and fun to wear!  And, so easy with Mod Podge Ultra!

Starting on March 23rd, head to the Designer Crafts Connection for the rest of the fabulous designs using Mod Podge Ultra.