Craftside

21 Christmas Craft projects to create a festive holiday season

Over at the new Craftside blog there is a great list of 21 Christmas Craft projects collected from the past years.

How to Create a Lightweight, Move-able Design Wall and a How to Make 100 Ribbon Embellishments book giveaway

If you are a fabric artist or quilter and are in need of a lightweight move-able design board, Elaine Schmidt, author of the new book How to Make 100 Ribbon Embellishments: Trims, rosettes, sculptures, and baubles for fashion, decor, and crafts, shared her tutorial on how she made a design wall with 1 1/2 inch thick insulation and a flannel sheet.

Pop on over to Goodreads to get yourself in the running for a copy of her soon-to-be-released book!

How to Make 100 Ribbon Embellishments: Trims, rosettes, sculptures, and baubles for fashion, decor, and crafts.

Goodreads Book Giveaway

How to Make 100 Ribbon Embellishments

by Elaine Schmidt

Giveaway ends April 28, 2014.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

 

Enter to win

 More about the new CPi ribbon crafting book:

 

How to Make 100 Ribbon Embellishments: Trims, rosettes, sculptures, and baubles for fashion, decor, and crafts

by Elaine Schmidt

Classic and contemporary crafters unite! Create amazing trims, butterflies, flowers and more with How to Make 100 Ribbon Embellishments. With clever techniques and a huge selection of ribbon styles to choose from, the timeless art of making ribbon embellishments is better than ever. Let author Elaine Schmidt take you through 100 ribbon designs, offering helpful hints and tips to help you make beautiful accessories to place anywhere.

Inexpensive, and with so many patterns and colors, ribbon is the perfect medium to create adornments that will make any gift, card, or decoration unique and special. Enjoy beautiful photos and simple step-by-step instructions that allow you to create amazing ribbon crafts with ease.

So grab some ribbon and get crafting!

 

Elaine Schmidt is a designer, consultant, educator, and spokesperson in the sewing, quilting, and craft industries. She works with leading creative industry manufacturers to develop new products, inspire their consumers, and promote innovative uses for their products. She is the former design director for a national chain of ribbon boutiques. Elaine authored The Complete Photo Guide to Ribbon Crafts and Precut Patchwork Party for Creative Publishing. As the owner of Elaine Schmidt Designs, she has developed award-winning products for many manufacturers; and books, magazines, websites, project sheets, and TV segments as well as national trade and consumer sewing, quilting and craft shows feature her original designs.

How to make a fabric circle centerpiece inspired by the book How to Make 100 Paper Flowers

Today, I have a fun and soooooo easy crafty decoration to share with you, inspired by a tutorial from the book How to Make 100 Paper Flowers: Ideas and Instruction for Folding, Cutting, and Simple Sculptures. These cute little circle flowers were originally created with paper, but I thought I'd try making them with scraps of fabric.

Fabric worked great.

I simply cut out 3 circles of fabric and layered them together. I cut about a 3-inch piece of wire and folded it in half. I thread a button onto the wire and then through the fabric. I twisted the wire around a skewer to secure.

So if you like making flowers, whether they be in paper or other materials this book is a great resource!

More about the new CPi book:

How to Make 100 Paper Flowers: Ideas and Instruction for Folding, Cutting, and Simple Sculptures

by Maria Noble

Learn how to make 100 beautiful flowers, from lifelike to fanciful, with How to Make 100 Paper Flowers! These creations are perfect for weddings and other celebrations, and this comprehensive guide brings you a wide variety of techniques and styles. Step-by-step instructions are accompanied by color photos and diagrams; techniques include general crafting (cut, shape, and glue), origami, and quilling. All patterns are included! Color your world and satisfy your craft cravings with delightful, handmade, paper flowers.

For Maria Noble, making flowers is a lifelong passion that began as a child watching her mother and aunt run a floral business. Using innovative methods, they made beautiful flowers from fabric, paper, and other materials for weddings and other special events. Maria started her own business ten years ago, incorporating her inherited skills and exploring ideas of her own to create new, distinctive flowers. The business has flourished, and now her exquisite flowers are sought out by consumers and businesses nationwide, including leading event planners in New York and Los Angeles. Her flowers have been featured in various magazines and on popular websites.

Maria lives in Avon, Connecticut with her husband and two children. Find her online atwww.stjudescreations.com

  
    

 

How to make a scrap-fabric wreath video with Amy Morinaka author of Zakka Handmades

Today, I have a special treat for you. I had the pleasure of shooting a little how-to video with Amy Morinaka author of Zakka Handmades: 24 Projects Sewn from Natural Fabrics to Help Organize, Adorn, and Simplify Your Life. She shows us how to make a scrap-fabric-covered STYROFOAM™ wreath. It is a great way to feature little Zakka projects, such as the ones from her book like little baby booties, Matryoshka doll key cozies, rattles and hair bows.

I am so going to make one of these little scrap-fabric wreaths with all my scraps!

More about the CPi book

 Zakka Handmades: 24 Projects Sewn from Natural Fabrics to Help Organize, Adorn, and Simplify Your Life

by

Amy Morinaka

Learn how to sew simple, clever things that organize your home and help with daily tasks with  Zakka Handmades! These incredibly useful projects include pouches and bags, small toys and baby items, and handy kitchen accessories. Some of the author’s sewn items also incorporate simple crochet. In Japanese, zakka means “household goods,” referring to items for domestic use—tableware, kitchenware, containers of various kinds, even simple clothing. What all the items have in common is a simple, fresh, handmade aesthetic; a subtle, clever wit; and absolute usefulness and practicality.

Originally from Japan, Amy Morinaka is currently living in sunny Torrance, CA, with her husband and two girls. She is an accountant, a green-tea drinker, and a chocoholic who just loves to sew, patchwork, embroider, crochet, and more! Visit her blog at http://chickchicksewing.blogspot.com and browse her handmade goods on Etsy at http://www.etsy.com/shop/chickchickhandmade.

   

Six prompts for painting from the book Brave Intuitive Painting by Flora S. Bowley

Are you a fan of the "prompt" to spark your creativity? Try these 6 prompts from Flora S. Bowley's book
Brave Intuitive Painting-Let Go, Be Bold, Unfold! Techniques for Uncovering Your Own Unique Painting Style. I bet I can guarantee you will be happy with what you create. At the very least, you'll have some fun and enjoy the time you spent being creative. I believe that that is just as important as the end result!

Click on this page from Brave Intuitive Painting-Let Go, Be Bold, Unfold! Techniques for Uncovering Your Own Unique Painting Style to enlarge and read the 6 prompts Flora calls The Be Brave Challenge: Variation-The Spice of Life

More about the Quarry book:

Brave Intuitive Painting-Let Go, Be Bold, Unfold!
Techniques for Uncovering Your Own Unique Painting Style

by

Flora S. Bowley

Adopt a spontaneous, bold, and fearless approach to painting as a process of discovery—one that results in lush and colorful finished works that will beg to be displayed. This inspiring and encouraging book for both novice and experienced painters shows how to create colorful, exciting, and expressive paintings through a variety of techniques, combining basic, practical painting principles with innovative personal self-expression.

Flora S. Bowley takes a fun and forgiving approach to painting, based on the notion that “You don't begin with a preconceived painting in mind; you allow the painting to unfold.” Illustrating how to work in layers, Flora gives you the freedom to cover up, re-start, wipe away, and change courses many times along the way. Unexpected and unique compositions, color combinations, and subject matter appear as you allow your paintings to emerge in an organic, unplanned way while working from a place of curiosity and letting go of fear. She lives and works full-time as a painter in Portland, Oregon, where she is inspired by magical forests, abundant gardens and a vibrant community of fellow artists. Visit her online at www.florasbowley.com.