Craftside

Holiday Banner made from a font from Indie Fonts 2

Indie Fonts 2
A Compendium of Digital Type from Independent Foundries
P22
New in paperback, with CD-ROM!

If your hunger for new fonts is insatiable, then Indie Fonts 2 is the book for you. It is the second installment in Rockport’s Indie Fonts series and brings you even more fonts to choose from. Don’t settle for ordinary fonts when you can capture your reader’s attention with an original font that hasn’t been become overused and boring.

Indie Fonts 2 includes more than 1600 diverse fonts from 19 of today’s hottest digital type foundries and features the best work of these designers. This comprehensive collection helps designers do their jobs even better by providing some of the highest quality fonts available today.

The type styles range from the best of Matthew Carter’s classic designs to the latest irreverence of ingoFonts. Designers searching for unique typefaces will find what they are looking for, whether historical revivals or futuristic techno faces.

On the included CD, you'll also get a collection of 38 fonts.

Richard Deglar, James Grieshaber and Tamye Riggs from P22 type foundry create computer typefaces inspired by art, history, and science. P22 is renowned for its work with museums and foundations to ensure the development of accurate historical typefaces that are fully relevant for today’s computer user. In addition to its in-house font design, P22 now licenses several new type designs from around the world. And, of course, no type foundry is complete without its own record label.

So my friend's birthday is Sunday and we are having another craft/birthday party. The theme is disco glitter. I went to the disc of free fonts in Indie Fonts 2 and I thought Annabelle Matinee NF would be fabulous.

To make an easy banner simply type one letter on the page.

I happen to work in Illustrator. I also wanted the ability to fill in the space of the letter with all sorts of stuff (check back for our craftiness) so I selected the letter and then the outline box, gave it a fill of black and increased the outline width to 4 points. I then selected the fill box and selected "none"
This gave me the outline of the letter. I then printed each letter out individually.

(click on image to enlarge)

This works great for any banner you might need to make!

And on the subject of parties, as always there is food.

And on the subject of food, pop on over to this article at the New York Times about the The 11 Best Foods You Aren’t Eating with our very own Author of 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth and The Most Effective Natural Cures on Earth among others, Dr. Jonny Bowden. The list will surprise you!

Making Designer Jewelry With Hardware, Gems, and Beads Contest Extended

Making Designer Jewelry from Hardware, Beads, and Gems

Nicole Noelle Sherman

25 gorgeous how-to projects!

Interest in beading and jewelry-making continues to grow. Making Designer Jewelry from Hardware, Beads, and Gems offers DIY crafters and jewelry-makers a fun, funky approach to jewelry constructed from not only glass beads, pearls, and semi-precious gemstones, but shows how to incorporate simple stainless steel, aluminum, copper, brass and tin hardware, such as nuts, bolts, washers, and tubing, into stunning, innovative, and modern jewelry pieces.

Using hardware in jewelry has become popular, and features an aesthetic twist that mixes "high" and "low"--inexpensive and common metal hardware with favorite bead-store jewels.

Nicole Noelle Sherman designs and creates jewelry in her studio in Free Union, Virginia. Her work grows out of a family tradition of art and architecture; her aesthetic exhibits complex patterns on a geometric structure with careful attention to detail. Nicole is also the author of Making Designer Freshwater Pearl Jewelry.

You know what they say, "A girl can never have too much jewelry" well, this girl certainly can't especially since I can't stop making jewelry. And being the lover of hardware that I am, I can't stop flipping though my copy of Making Designer Jewelry from Hardware, Beads, and Gems and making jewelry inspired by the kick a** pieces in it.

Today's inspiration came from this pair of washer earrings:

(Click on image to enlarge)

And it just so happens that while cleaning out my new Airstream I scored a bunch of washers. What kismet!

I scrubbed up the washers and poked through the stash for some chain and a focal bead. As it happens I found this chunky square pink stone bead. Hmmmmm again with the square peg in the round hole...when I have a theme, I stick to it.

This necklace is so fun because it can be worn so many ways. I love the adjustable!

All you need is:

56 inches of chain

1 washer

1 large focal bead

1 head pin

Thread the chain through the washer.

Then thread the two ends of the chain through the hole of the washer.

Thread the head pin through the bead and form a loop.

Link the two ends of the chain into the loop on the focal bead.

Adjust to any length you like to go with your outfit!

Jewelry is not the only thing I make. When you have as many bits and pieces as I do, it is nesseccesary to come up with clever ways to sort and organize them. I of course, try to do this by recycling things I already have.

I happen to have a stash of film canisters. And I have been saving bottle caps originally to mosaic with (look for that project soon).

So I combined the film canister with the bottle caps and voila! Instant compartmentalized tray to keep all my small bits of chain from getting tangled. I even go so far as to put gold tone chain on one side and silver on the other.

Try this with different size bottle caps and any low flat container for what ever you need to organize.

Scrapbookers wouldn't this make a great organizer for brads, grommets and other little bits?

Don't forget to leave a comment on:

Whoo-hoo Wing Nuts-NEW!- Making Designer Jewelry with Hardware, Gems, and Beads

Post from July 12th

We are extending the contest to win a free copy of Making Designer Jewelry from Hardware, Beads, and Gems until July  9th! I know you all are full of ideas, share, share!!!

Voyageur Press Sale! 15% off through July 8th!

                                                 

Enjoy 15% off your entire order this week at VoyageurPress.com  Just enter promo code July4Sale on the shopping cart page           and then click the 'apply code' button to see your savings.               Mix and match books from the featured titles shown below           or browse your favorite VoyageurPress.com                 Order today and save!      This sale runs through July 8th.

These are just a few of the titles available.
Pop on over to Voyager Press to see all of them! Happy 4th of July Shopping (It is the All American pastime after all!)

New from CPi-Small Loom & Freeform Weaving

I love a book that teaches you how to make projects and teaches skills but this one also teaches you how to make the tools to create the materials that you then make the projects with!

And the projects in this book are diverse, classic and extreme! Something truly for everyone.

Small Loom and Freeform Weaving
Five Ways to Weave
By
Barbara Matthiessen

30 projects for home décor and fashion accents.

Yarn arts and felting are two of today’s most popular crafts, and popularity for weaving, a natural extension of those crafts, is growing. Small hand-held looms and tabletop looms are now available at yarn shops and hobby/craft stores, and readers of Small Loom and Freeform Weaving can even construct looms themselves using common household materials. Most looms can be constructed in a couple minutes and can be reused numerous times.

This book also shows readers how to use their looms to make 30 projects, some of which can easily be completed in an evening or weekend. Readers will enjoy step-by-step, diagrammed instructions for personal items, such as iPod and cell phone holders, scarves, purses, and jewelry, and home décor projects, such as pillows, table runners, wall hangings, and book covers.

Just to give you a little taste of the fabulousness that's inside Small Loom and Freeform Weaving
Five Ways to Weave I picked this lamp, yes a lamp!

(Click on image to enlarge)

And the even bestest part about this lamp, other than it's woven of course, is that the frame is a floral easel! I think that is so innovative.

Barbara Matthiessen had a specialized degree from an interior design school and experience working for a design firm before she entered the industry as a full-time freelance designer. She has written 43 booklets and 3 books, contributed to 22 multi-artist books, and has done countless designs for magazines. While continuing to design for publication, she also works for manufacturers, developing kits, projects sheets, and sales models.

And as promised-The Crafty Blogger Links!

About Family Crafts
Browse through photos of home-made greeting cards and submit your own.

About.com Cross Stitch
Stitchers - Start Your Stockings! It is never to early to start on holiday projects, but don't wait too late.

Aileen's Musings
This week Aileen offers 2 fun tutorials: Phenomenal Paper Flowers & Wee Flower Fairies. Both are sure to inspire you and make you smile!

Crafty Princess Diaries
Get a free metal clay project over at the BeadStyle blog. This downloadable project shows how to make some super easy metal clay beads!

Layers Upon Layers
Have you ever wanted to try creating an abstract work but found it too intimidating? Come and try it anyway!

Polymer Clay @ Craft Gossip
Learn the anatomy of a polymer clay bead this week.

The Impatient Blogger
Madge reviews a fabulous new metal clay book by jewelry making expert Tammy Powley. If you've ever been metal clay curious, this is the book for you!

Decisions, decisions! Why not try a little of everything!

Post Game Bliss from the Swap-0-rama rama

So in last Monday's Post with the Recycled Denim Bird Pillow Project I posted about the Swap-o-rama rama. Well here are a bunch of pictures and projects from the glorious day of clothing upcycling!

Here we are, the morning "sorters" with our illustrious leader and organizer of the day-Lori Petitti.

(Wanna see how I made the dress I am wearing out of an old mechanic's shirt, click here)

Here is Maria Del Pinto poking through the "pants" Table. Big shout out to Maria for the pictures!!

And here are The L.A. Craft Mafia girls silk screening their logo on anything you want!

As directed I ironed my shirts when I got home to set the ink.

This shirt was printed over another logo-cool effect eh?

They also had pre-screened logos on patches.

Since I pretty much spent my whole time there working sorting cloths, I didn't get to craft there. I did snag a shirt that I will restyle and stitch this patch onto. Check back for my new look!

Here is a wild lace up design brought to you by www.redrawnarts.com.

And KB VanHorn of www.kokoleo.com (you remember her from the Glitter Rally with her cute baby was there appliqueing away!

Monster Madness was busy making creatures from T-shirts.

Crafting with clothing is not only for adults. Kids got in on the action too with workshops.

And if that wasn't enough pop on over to Maria's Flickr to see the full sets from the day!

If I have wet your whistle with the need to grab your scissors and ink and make some new duds from your old cloths but still need a bit of direction, poke around this here blog under sewing, upcyling, and recycle buttons on the right or grab yourself some of our wonderful titles like:

Jean Therapy:
Denim Deconstruction for the Conscientious Crafter

By

Scatha G. Allison with Marla Stefanelli, Foreword by Wendy Tremayne

Sweater Surgery:
How to Make New Things from Old Sweaters

By

Stefanie Girard

Fashion T-Shirts:
Easy-Sew Projects for Fun Fashion
By
Lorine Mason

Altered Clothing:
Hip Fixes and Transformations with a Needle and Thread

By
Kathleen Maggio

A treasure for sewers, crafters, and creative fashionistas.

All of these books are packed full of great ideas, patterns and inspiration.

Look for the Crafty Blogger links tomorrow. They are gooooood!