Craftside

Happy New Year's Eve Crafty Links

I wanted to share with you something incredibly cute on this last day of 2012, because who can't use a dose of cute? This needle felted snow bunny comes from the very talented hands of Laurie Sharp, author of Felted Feathered Friends: Techniques and Projects for Needle-felted Birds.

I also want to congratulate our winners of the "e" book giveaway with Quarry SPOON!

Here at Craftside:

Grand winner of all five books - Hueisei

Brandy M.-Print & Stamp Lab 

Mento- 1,000 Clever Sewing Shortcuts and Tips  

Candace H. - 1000 Ideas for Creative Reuse

 Denise R. - Intertwined

Norma K. B. -The Crafter's Devotional 

And the Quarry SPOON winners:

Shari wins all five books!

Lisa - The Spaghetti Sauce Gourmet

Becky - The Gourmet's Guide to Cooking with Beer

Jennifer - Making Artisan Chocolates

Aaron - The Art and Craft of Coffee

 And speaking of winning you can get yourself in the running for a copy of:

 

Bead Bugs:

Cute, Creepy, and Quirky Projects to Make with Beads, Wire, and Fun Found Objects

over at the blog

Make Something 365

and read a cool interview with the author Amy Kopperude!

And in more crafty links:

2000 Dollar Wedding

Some sage advice about dealing with family.

Quarry SPOON

Maki Sushi recipe

ACreativeDream
Beer and pretzels... and caramel, oh my!

Teddy Bear 1.0
The Crafty Princess reviews one of Craftsy.com's amigurumi classes and shows off her first teddy bear attempt from the class.

Old Book Crafts
If you've got some old books, maps or antique paper around, you can make some pretty cool upcycled book projects. Check out the round-up of upcycled book projects at CraftFoxes.

New Paintings: Hey You
Cherie shares paintings and poetry.

L Thykeson's Uniques
Santa came early, and some arty eye candy for you to look at

How to Create a New Year Photo Calendar
A photo calendar lets you keep memories close all year long. Here's how to design and bind one yourself.

Rock Paper Ink

Red Wing Shoes: Design firm Capsule (USA)

    

Recipe for a Full Regalia from the book World's Best Cocktails

If you will be raising your glass this New Year's Eve and looking to start the new year off with a cocktail, why not try this recipe for a Full Regalia? This timeless cocktail includes Chivas Regal Whisky along with the classic New Year's Eve champagne. This recipe is featured in the book World's Best Cocktails: 500 Signature Drinks from the World's Best Bars and Bartenders.

More about the Fair Winds Press recipe book:

World's Best Cocktails:

500 Signature Drinks from the World's Best Bars and Bartenders

by

Tom Sandham

World's Best Cocktails is an exciting global journey, providing the secrets to successful cocktail making, their history and provenance, and where to seek out the world’s best bars and bartenders, from London to Long Island and beyond. Cocktail and liquor connoisseur Tom Sandham provides a comprehensive appraisal of global cocktail culture, highlighting the trends and techniques that make the finest drinks popular in their native climes and across the world. Cocktail lovers will appreciate personal tips from key bartenders such as Jim Meehan and Dale de Groff in New York and Tony Conigliaro and Salvatore Calabrese in London, while cutting-edge recent award winners point to the future with their new daring flavor combinations. At last, discerning drinkers can learn more about what to drink and where, then bring back their coolest cocktail experiences to enjoy at home.

Tom Sandham is a highly-respected drinks writer in London who is at the forefront of cocktail culture. He writes a cocktail column for The Times online and is former editor of CLASS, the number one magazine in the world of cocktails. He has judged at the most prestigious cocktail competitions all over the world, landing in countries as diverse and distant as Lapland or Cuba on a weekly basis. As a judge, he has achieved a bond with the world’s most innovative and experienced bartenders and has his finger on the pulse of the significant trends in the creative drinks industry. Tom has been writing about all things drink for a number of years. As well as contributing to the leading industry titles, he is also the co-author of the Good Beer Guide West Coast USA and has written for several newspapers and magazines including The Times, Decanter and Esquire. He is co-creator of the discerning drinks website http://www.dwink.com and currently edits the in-house magazine for the Soho House group that has exclusive members-only clubs in London, New York, Los Angeles, Miami and Berlin and is amongst the elite 99 people who can claim fingerprint recognition at the hidden 99 bar in Manchester.

    

Make a recycled box dollhouse with some inspiration from the book Mixed-Media Dollhouses

So, I imagine this holidays season you got some gifts that came in a box...why not get your craft on and make a mixed-media assemblage, inspired by this bit of eye-candy featured in the book Mixed-Media Dollhouses: Techniques and Ideas for Doll-size Assemblages.

Click on this page from Mixed-Media Dollhouses: Techniques and Ideas for Doll-size Assemblages to enlarge to see all the cool details of this mixed-media dollhouse by Theresa Martin

Mant more inspiration and tutorials? Check out the Quarry book:

 

Mixed-Media Dollhouses: Techniques and Ideas for Doll-size Assemblages

By

Tally Oliveau and Julie Molina

This book takes the artistic approach of assemblage and collage, and combines it with the long-loved tradition of making doll houses--but these doll houses are anything but traditional! Begun as an artistic challenge between a group of talented friends, these mixed-media doll houses include beautiful castles, undersea fantasy-lands, gothic attics, inspiring tree houses and much more. Authors Tally Oliveau and Julie Molina share a host of interesting alteration techniques while showing readers how to construct beautiful, fantasy doll houses. Readers learn to how to construct or repurpose found boxes into rooms and houses, how to decorate interior surfaces, how to build miniature furnishings, how to make their own paper dolls, and how to embellish their houses using a variety of imaginative materials.

Tally Oliveau is a collage and mixed media artist and has been widely published in Somerset Studio, Belle Amoire, Somerset Memories, and Somerset Home. Tally is the president of Papier Studio, a greeting card company. Her artistic cards are sold in stores all over the country. She lives and teaches in Los Angeles, CA.

Julie Molina is a collage and mixed media artist. She has been published in several of Stampington's publications including Somerset Studios Magazine and her work is included in 1000 Artist Journal Pages by Dawn DeVries Sokol. Julie lives in Los Angeles, CA.

 

How to make a recycled paper picture from the book Art Lab For Kids

I thought I'd share this tutorial on how to make a recycled paper portrait from the book Art Lab for Kids: 52 Creative Adventures in Drawing, Painting, Printmaking, Paper, and Mixed Media-For Budding Artists of All Ages. I bet there just might be a plethora of Christmas wrapping paper lurking about the house and you just might be looking for something to create. The tutorial uses text paper, but maybe use your Christmas cards in the project?

Click on these pages from Art Lab for Kids: 52 Creative Adventures in Drawing, Painting, Printmaking, Paper, and Mixed Media-For Budding Artists of All Ages to enlarge and read how to make text page portrait collages.

More about the fun filled Quarry Lab book:

Art Lab for Kids:

52 Creative Adventures in Drawing, Painting, Printmaking, Paper, and Mixed Media-For Budding Artists of All Ages

by

Susan Schwake

Photographer:

Rainer Schwake

A refreshing source of ideas for creating fine art with children, Art Lab for Kids encourages the artist’s own voice, marks, and style. This fun and creative book features 52 fine art projects set into weekly lessons, beginning with drawing, moving through painting and printmaking, and then building to paper collage and mixed media. Each lesson features and relates to the work and style of a contemporary artist. Lisa Congdon, Megan Bogonovich, and Amy Rice are just a few of the artists included. It's the perfect book for creative families, friends, and community groups and works as lesson plans for both experienced and new art teachers. Children of all ages and experience levels can be guided by adults and will enjoy these engaging exercises.

Susan Schwake is an art instructor in her own art school, where she has created her own curriculum and offers workshops and retreats most every day of the year with her adjunct teaching staff of three. Her vision to teach and share art on her own terms has grown into artstream studios, which includes a contemporary gallery, and a full media design firm. Susan has curated over 70 shows in her gallery and 50 shows of children's work in her local area. She lives in Rochester, NH. Visit her online at www.susanschwake.com and www.artstreamstudios.com.

Rainer Schwake is a versatile and talented media designer holding a masters degree in graphic design. His photography has been used in hundreds of business- and arts-related design works for print and websites. He is co-owner of artstream studios and lives with his wife, Susan, in Rochester, NH.

   

Merry Christmas to one and all!

I hope the day brings you what you want! My wish is that I have brought you a spark of creativity, a bit of inspiration, and a new technique or two that has made each of your days special.

Thank you all for stopping by Craftside in your busy day! If you don't celebrate today in a traditional way, I hope you make time to create a little something that makes you smile.

I do have to tell you I have stack of new books that I can't wait to share with you! Yeah, that's me teasing you ever so slightly, but like Santa I promise to deliver!

 

This packaging with Santa on it is featured in the Rockport book:

1,000 Bags, Tags, and Labels:
Distinctive Design for Every Industry

by

Kiki Eldridge

Bags, tags, and labels are critical in the world of design and when you are seeking inspiration on the fly, you don’t want to be reading through pages of dense text for ideas.  Now you don’t have to. From bubble bath to gourmet food shops and from clothing stores to vodka, this book is a collection of 1,000 designs. Many countries are represented throughout.  Additionally, the book is arranged by job type—bags, tags, and labels to make a quick search even easier. Few other books offer such a wide range of easily accessible visuals on the subject.

Kiki Eldridge is a freelance writer and graphic designer living in Salem, MA.