creative crafting spring 2014, issue 27

8/12/2019 Creative Crafting Spring 2014, Issue 27

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By Crafters, for Crafters

RE TIVE rftingIssue27, SPRING 2014


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http://www.craftfest-events.com/


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www.creative-crafting.com 3

CREATIVE

CREATIVE

EDITORIALEditor - Anna-Marie Miles

Technical Editor - Avril White

CONTRIBUTORSTina

Tracey - WowThankYouTina - Shinyies

Joy - Beaded BazaarHollye - I love Markets

Leanna - Small Surprises BoutiqueKate - KatewritesandmakesSharon - The Old Button

Ioan

INTERVIEWS withJan Knibbs

Diana Coe - Beadwork & CoeNikki - The Crafty Kitten

ADVERTISINGAnna-Marie Miles

[email protected]

Tel: 07763 566636

ARTICLE SUBMISSIONTo: [email protected]

PURCHASE IN PRINTwww.creative-crafting.com/buy_your-copy.html

www.creative-crafting.com

Creative Crafting publishes articles, features andprojects provided to us by crafters and suppliers.By submitting articles to be published the authorgrants Creative Crafting copyright of each piece.

AvAnna

Publications

Anna

CreativeCraftingMagazine

CreativeCraftin

Welcome to our Spring 2014 Issue!Regular readers will think that this one is a month late but it isnt. This is because from 2014 we areswitching to publishing our issues quarterly. This will enable us to move fully with the seasons and givesyou (our writers) more time to send us your fabulous articles. So what are you waiting for email usnow to be included in our Summer Issue out in June ([email protected])

This issue we cover various spring related themes and you will find regulars plus some new writers. Wehave three wonderful interviews, the odd project or two. A few informative pieces and lots and lots ofproduct features. We even have some reviews for you.

So put your feet up and if you have grabbed our digital version scroll away. Those with luscious printedcopies (arent they just fabulous!) get ready to turn those lovely thick pages.

We look forward to working with you on our June 1stIssue so get in touch soon.
http://www.creative-crafting.com/buy_your-copy.htmlhttp://www.facebook.com/CreativeCraftingMagazinehttps://twitter.com/CreativeCraftinhttps://twitter.com/CreativeCraftinhttp://www.facebook.com/CreativeCraftingMagazinehttp://www.creative-crafting.com/buy_your-copy.html


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4 www.creative-crafting.com

Issue 27

6 A beginners guide to crafting for Charity

Useful information from KateTeasdale.

8 spring is in the air!

We take a wander through theonline marketplaces and find someSpring themed items.

10 shall we see!

We review a new craft book.

11 an interview with

Award winning fashion and textiledesigner Jan Knibbs.

14 Tina(not) in the garden

Tina is out of the country again andtakes us on a cruise!

22 the christmas market at the o2

A review of this event by stallholderTina from Shinyies

24 a chip off the old blog

Joy is back with another crafty blogreview crme de la craft

25 an interview with

Beadwork artist Diana fromBeadwork & Coe.

28 spring wedding

We wander off to the marketplacesagain, this time looking for SpringWeddings.

CREATIVE


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30 as seen by creative craftingA review of Heartfelt Occasions.

31 south africacelebration

patchwork quiltSharon from The Old Button quiltsfor charity.

34 An interview with

Fabulous polymer clay artist Nikkifrom The Crafty Kitten.

38 millie-mae, toby, cousin emilija and mummy make

Fizzy bath bombs.

41 crafting on a budget

Leanne is back with the nextinstalment of this popular series.

46 a salt dough project

Meet 13 year old Ioan who has afabulous dough project for us.

43 weve been on an easter hunt!

Yes, we have been searching outhandmade products again!

48 the craft box

This issue Tina from Shinyies

shows us how to make a featurewall.


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Purple Day for Epilepsy Awareness on March 26this a huge internationalfundraising and awareness event which will see many people turning theircrafting skills to fundraising. Crafting for charity is on the up with theonline craft selling becoming more and more popular. Getting startedhowever can be tricky and there's many things to weigh up beforestarting. Here are our top tips for crafting for good:

1. Do Your Research

When starting out it is best to do research. Check out your chosencharity very carefully as many have different and specific rules forfundraising. Some charities also would prefer the charity name notbe used, for example stating you are raising money for an Epilepsycharity, or a children's charity rather than naming the charity itself.

Lee-Anne Mann who raises money for Epilepsy charity ESUK alongsideother crafters understands the importance of research. She said: "Iresearched a lot first. This is something anyone needs to do for it to workproperly. Chat with the charity directly, they may be able to give some adviceand support too.

For more information on fundraising for Epilepsy visit: www.epilepsy.org.uk/involved/fundraise

2. Be Aware of CopyrightWhen raising money from a organisation it is important to make sure you don't breakany copyright laws. Avoid making anything with the charities logo or that is too similarto a logo. Although you will be donating to the charity you may still get in trouble forcopyright infringement on anything that is a registered trademark.

Check out this website for full details on crafting and copyright:www.craftsandcopyrights.com/faq.html

3. Make Sure Your Items are Seen

Amanda Owen, a crafter who in the past has knitted dog coats, blankets, made jewellery and cross stitch pictures toauction for dog charities gives this advice: "Make sure the items can be seen by lots of people. Sometimes my itemswent for less than expected." In order to get sales, or to get the most money possible if auctioning items, it is

important that your items can be seen by as many people as you can. Utilise social media such as Facebook, Twitterand Pinterest as well as selling on crafting sites such as Etsy and Folksy.

"I would also do auctions on a dog rescue forum," said Amanda. Using forums and websites of the charity yousupport or similar forums is another good way to get seen by people who share the same interests and support thesame causes

4. Consider Other Fundraising Opportunities

Before starting out it is worth thinking realistically about much money you will be able to raise. Look at how muchyou would like to raise and how many items it would take to get there. Depending on your craft it may not alwaysbe possible to give the time or money to raise a significant amount of money. In this case it is a good idea to sellcraft items along with other fundraising. Carol Duncan who is selling Valentines Hearts for local charity Shropshire

A Beginners Guide

to

Crafting for Charity
http://www.epilepsy.org.uk/involved/fundraisehttp://www.craftsandcopyrights.com/faq.htmlhttp://www.craftsandcopyrights.com/faq.htmlhttp://www.epilepsy.org.uk/involved/fundraise


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Air Ambulance, is fundraising with her family. She said: "My dad was airliftedin 1982 following a brain haemorrhage and wouldn't be here without them.We have supported them since then. My daughter has raised nearly 200by collecting clothes to take to the weigh in and by persuading her dad todo a sponsored 10k run just before Christmas. We have decided to sell thehearts as an on going way of raising funds.

For more information on the Shropshire Air Ambulance and to see Carol's

Valentine's Hearts check out the Midlands Air Ambulance Charity Facebookpage: www.facebook.com/MidlandsAirAmbulance

To donate please see: www.justgiving.com/Lucy-Duncan3

5. Vary Your Items

If the goal is to raise as much money as possible for your chosen charitythen a greater variety of items is a necessity. Lee-Anne Mann echoes this,she said: "try to find out what people like and are interested in - the more variety thebetter." Being aware of what people like and what is selling well is a good indicator of what you should make inthe future. The more variety you have the more people it will appeal to and the more potential for sales.

To see the full range of items on sale to raise money for ESUK visit Lee-Anne's Facebook page:www.facebook.com/craftmagicforesuk

6. Be Clear on What You Want to Achieve

Set yourself clear targets to work to - this will make it easier to plan what you need to do. Decide on a figure youhope to raise or how many items you are going to sell. This makes sure the contribution you make is worthwhilebut also ensures that you don't commit too much time that you can't realistically spare.

Claire Staffordshire from Buttons For Rescue give this advice: "Stay true to your cause and do not lose sight ofwhat you want to achieve."

Buttons For Rescue hand make 30 items per month which are auction for animal rescues and sanctuaries. Followtheir project at: www.facebook.com/ButtonsForRescues

Written by Kate Teasdale

www.facebook.com/katewritesandmakes
http://www.facebook.com/MidlandsAirAmbulancehttp://www.justgiving.com/Lucy-Duncan3http://www.facebook.com/craftmagicforesukhttp://www.facebook.com/ButtonsForRescueshttp://www.facebook.com/katewritesandmakeshttp://www.facebook.com/katewritesandmakeshttp://www.facebook.com/ButtonsForRescueshttp://www.facebook.com/craftmagicforesukhttp://www.justgiving.com/Lucy-Duncan3http://www.facebook.com/MidlandsAirAmbulance


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Spring Flowers with Easel

This is an original encaustic art (wax) painting, supplied withminiature easel for display. This would make an ideal Mother's Daygift or present for someone who loves flowers.

Dandelions Miniature Gallery

www.folksy.com/shops/DandelionsMiniatureGallery

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Spring landscape cuff

A hand illustrated aluminium cuff with design of daisies on a

background of fields and a blue sky.

Claire Gent

www.folksy.com/shops/clairegentdesign

29.95

Spring is in the air!Weve been spotting some lovely Spring finds in the online marketplaces

Spring Garden Silk Ribbon kit

A simple kit designed for those who wish to try their hand at silk ribbonembroidery for the first time.

Lorna Bateman

www.folksy.com/shops/Lornabatemanembroidery

20.95
http://www.folksy.com/shops/DandelionsMiniatureGalleryhttp://www.folksy.com/shops/clairegentdesignhttp://folksy.com/shops/Lornabatemanembroideryhttp://folksy.com/shops/Lornabatemanembroideryhttp://www.folksy.com/shops/clairegentdesignhttp://www.folksy.com/shops/DandelionsMiniatureGalleryhttp://folksy.com/items/2827094-Spring-Garden-Silk-Ribbon-kithttp://folksy.com/items/4161922-Spring-landscape-cuffhttp://folksy.com/items/5468091-ACEO-Spring-Flowers-with-Easel


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Nature Inspired Spring Pendant

Made with silver plated wire and painted with colours of yellow,green and purple which are poured into resin. The oval isattached to a silver tone chain. A fresh spring design!

The Purple Balloon

www.etsy.com/uk/shop/ThePurpleBalloon

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Spring Wild Flower Boxwood Wreath

Perfect for spring, summer or fall!

This lush greenery wreath is made up of multi-toned greenleaf boxwood, petite coral wild flowers, on a grapevinestructure, and hung by a natural colour burlap bow with blackdetailing. All greenery is secured to wreath structure withwire.

PaintedPetalShoppe

www.etsy.com/uk/shop/PaintedPetalShoppe

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Wash Day Mug

This mug features a quirky hand painted design inspired bythose days when everything gets cleaned and aired, even thedog has ended up drying on the line! Meanwhile, the catcontentedly washes its face sitting on a comfy pile of washing

and the birds enjoy a splash in the birdbath as the washingblows in the wind.

Free Spirit Designs

www.wowthankyou.co.uk/free-spirit-designs

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http://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/ThePurpleBalloonhttp://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/PaintedPetalShoppehttp://www.wowthankyou.co.uk/free-spirit-designshttp://www.wowthankyou.co.uk/free-spirit-designshttp://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/PaintedPetalShoppehttp://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/ThePurpleBalloonhttp://www.wowthankyou.co.uk/free-spirit-designs/products/wash-day-mug-large/https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/158453611/spring-wild-flower-boxwood-wreath-summer?ref=shop_home_active_3https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/101688298/spring-pendant-purple-butterfly-pendan


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SIMPLE ELEGANCEBy Katy Handley

The Big Little Homemade Gift Bible

This delightful book spans a very wide selection of things ranging from variouscraft projects, cooking and recipes (right down to stocks and preserves), petdelights and gift hampers.

In the introduction of the book we meet Katy herself and learn about her family and her reasons for writing it. Acouple of lines immediately struck a cord with me:

Now we launch ourselves straight into the book after a brief explanation from Katy about all of the projects andrecipes being simple to do and not complicated. And shes spot on! Most, if not all of the creations in the bookcould be easily done with your children and dont seem scary at all!

There is also quite a vast selection so there should be no trouble finding something to suit your mood or budget.I will certainly be trying some of these myself with my own children. Here is a quick taster from the contents:

:Dried Fruit CharmsFelt Stitched HeartsBeaded Key HolderHomemade Gift Book

Summer Sweet Bag

:Chicken Pie with a secretSavoury MuffinsPeppermint DropletsBiscotti

Super charged Spiced Raisins

The Birthday Emergency HamperThe Get Well Soon TreatsThe Never Too Old HamperChilds Birthday Hamper

Dinner Party Kit

So my verdict on this book?

I really like it. One of the best bits for me is that at the end of every item whether it is a craft project or a recipethere are ideas for how to turn it into a gift. If I had to find one thing to complain about it would be the fact thatthere are no images in this book! As many of the pages have blank spots on them after the text I do feel a bit letdown by this but Im still very pleased to have it in my collection.

Reviewed by Anna (Editor of Creative Crafting)


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Have you always been interested in crafts/how did you start

Yes, I've always been interested in being creative, especially working with fabric. Iremember making a fabric collage for one of my Brownie badges and my Nantaught me how to knit and crochet. My Mum had a knitting machine and had donesome embroidery when she was younger but mostly I taught myself as I wentalong when I wanted to make specific things such as a calico smock like the one

worn by Jenny Agutter in Black Beauty. I was always designing clothes and lovedthe cut-out dolls from Bunty magazine too!

I saw from your website that you've had quite a bit of formal training, didthat influence the way you create now, or did it give you the means to fulfilyour own dream?

Yes, I've been very fortunate that I've been able to follow my dream and receiveformal training. I had two years at my local Art College, one on a Foundationcourse where I tried many different media and the other on a Weave course onceI decided I belonged in the Textiles department. I then went on to do my degreeat Loughborough College of Art which gave me a good grounding in all the


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different embroidery techniques bothhand and machine but steered me awayfrom fashion and more into doing largescale wallhangings worked mostly on themachine which I called "Poembroidery"as each one was inspired by poetry. Morerecently, I did an MA at Bath SpaUniversity where I discovered the Handand Lock Prize for Embroidery which

helped re-awaken my passion for handembroidery. I've now entered it 6 timeswinning the Swarovski Prize once andcoming 2nd twice which I'm thrilled withbut would still love to achieve the elusive1st place!

Tell us a bit about the process of getting from the design you have in your head to the finished article.

When I start working on a new project or idea, my head is just swimming with ideas day and night, especially whenit's for the competition as they give such challenging briefs (this year I chose to combine Marie Antoinette withBarbarella!). I do loads of research from books and the internet and gather all my ideas together which I call theincubation stage. Then gradually they seem to come together and one creation starts to emerge in my head and Istart working on samples and sketches. I'm always nervous of starting the actual piece as I want it to be perfect butonce I get going it all flows and the work develops very organically often changing as it goes along which keeps thewhole process fresh.

Who would you say has been your inspiration?

My major inspiration has always been the amazing world of nature and the changing seasons but I'm constantlyinspired by everything around me from beautiful interiors to films and theatre ( I was also a Wardrobe Mistress for awhile) and all the amazing images that are now at our fingertips via technology. Like many other designers, I amcompletely hooked on Pinterest and find it such a convenient way to store ideas for future inspiration.


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Nisa Kiley from Fabrics of Nature would like to know, what isyour favourite technique?

It's difficult to choose just one technique as what I really love todo is combine many different techniques in one piece but atpresent I suppose my two favourites are ribbon embroidery andbeadwork. I also love learning new techniques. For my lastcompetition entry I taught myself Shisha mirror work and I'mhoping to do an intensive 3 week couture embroidery course at

Hand and Lock in January.

Do you enjoy the teaching aspect of your work, and arethere any benefits?

I do enjoy teaching when everyone is enthusiastic about learningfrom you but I'm very bad at organising classes. I'm hoping tostart a weekly group in the near future if there is enough interest locally. I love the atmosphere of everyone workingtogether, chatting and bouncing ideas off each other which I miss when working on my own. Being a designer andworking from home can be a very solitary experience, especially when you live in a rural environment.

My work can be seen on my website www.janknibbs.com and at present is available at Creativations in Chelsea. I'mhoping to start an Etsy shop very soon but I find the whole marketing aspect a real challenge!
http://www.janknibbs.com/http://www.janknibbs.com/http://www.janknibbs.com/


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Hi! I'm Tina,

Well here we are the first of the new seasonal magazines.Valentines day is almost here as I am writing this in the first week ofFebruary, and Easter is yet to come.I am sorry that you all could not visit me in The Garden, but as you seeI am not there. I am making my usual winter visit to Florida.

As I have mentioned before I love flying (I dont really), but I love tovisit here. So this year we came by sea and it was a great trip. It tooktwo weeks! It was hard, no cooking, no cleaning, no washing, I don'tknow how I survived. I enjoyed it so much it was a holiday in itself.

We left from Copenhagen in Denmark, a really beautiful city, sailed intothe Baltic Sea, then the North Sea and into the Atlantic Ocean. The firstand only stop was made in the Azores (a group of small islands in theAtlantic), they are Portuguese.

We docked in Ponta Delgada on the Island of San Miguel.It was a damp and misty Sunday morning and we thought we shouldtake an excursion to see the island.Our first stop was in the town of Ribeira Grande, it had some quaintPortuguese buildings and the river ran though the town.

Ponta Delgada

Ribeira Grande


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Then through some lovely gardens and out into theAtlantic Ocean. Most shops were closed but that didnot worry me, I was quite happy in the gardens withmy camera.

We then got back on the bus as we were going up into the mountains to see the lake which looked a beautiful blueon the photos shown to us when we booked the excursion.On the way up we stopped at some hot springs, it was quite a walk but well worth it.

Gardens


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The Colours in the rocks were amazing, and just lookat this forest of tree ferns.

There was a swimming pool (we did not try it as we had further togo), but it looked very tempting.Remember the bind weed I was fighting all summer in The Garden,well they had it too, but a lot more colourful. If mine was thispretty I would leave it alone.It does however seem to have my other problem the snails andslugs. Or maybe something more exotic but just as greedy judgingby the holes.

Hot Springs


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Then back on the bus and on to the Lake. We keptclimbing on the narrow road with a steep drop on eitherside. The mist got thicker, by now it was fog we couldnot see a thing. We were all a little worried, except thedriver who luckily seemed unconcerned, this made us allfeel a lot better.

We stopped as we had arrived at the lake, but could notsee a thing through the window, just the thick fog.Then our guide asked if we would like to get out.Someone asked is the view any better outside and wewere told no. As it was wet and thick fog we alldeclined. So back we went all the way down themountain. I have to say it was not the most rewardingvisit.

Next we arrived at the pineapple farm which was very interesting, a small familybusiness. They grew the pineapples from small cuttings in a series of greenhouses. Icould not resist taking a photo of this statue and the beautiful bougainvillea which greweverywhere.

The weather wasbeautifully warm andhumid, but still grey. Ilove the warm humidweather, my better halfjust hates it, he is happyat 60 or 70 degrees. Itwould not do for us all tobe the same would it.

Well back on the ship bound for Florida, for somesunshine and to meet up with all of our good friends. I

am sure that they do get some sunshine in the Azoresbut unfortunately we missed it. Maybe next time.

Here in Florida there are some beautifully kept gardens some of theplants are similar to at home, but others are totally different.

Here is the dahlia which we all know and love, but this other beauty is adesert rose. I would love some of those in The Garden, but they wouldnot care for our weather I am afraid.

Pineapple Farm

Back in Florida


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I am having a great time here but am looking forward togetting back to The Garden.

With our new four seasons magazine of course I will begiving you three months of what has happened in TheGarden in one article, I will never manage to get it all inwill I.

I will let you all get on now as I am sure you are allbusy with work and family.

Maybe you relaxed a little on your trip across theAtlantic Ocean with me I do hope so, and I look forwardto our next meeting when I will be back at home in TheGarden.

See you then,Your green fingered friend

Tina FUN F CTSThe ineapple

Fierce on the outside,sweet on the inside.

Given its English name because of itsresemblance to a pine cone.


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Here at I Love MarketsHQ, we still cant quite believe its 2014. Theres always a pressure in the first few months ofthe year to clear everything out and get new stuff, but as we always enjoy challenging the norm were inclined tooppose this ideal. There is just too much good in old things, a notion that, thankfully, the crafting world has latchedon to. In this modern age of landfill problems and dodgy economy, the art of upcyclingcould sort out a lot ofissues and the results are pretty nice aesthetically, too.The trend for upcycling seemed to surge a couple of years ago and the ILM team have personally not looked back.The idea of giving life to a forgotten, pre-loved or pre-hated item is one that is very special indeed, and provides anact for all kinds of creatives, as well as assisting to swerve the environmental issues we are all facing today. TheWorld of Marketsis a great place to find an upcycled gem and we got talking to two very different serial upcyclists to

unearth some of the values and practices behind this wonderful craft.

Queenie and Ted own a charming boutiqueon the bustling Columbia Road, home to thefamous flower market. The levels of bothintricacy and love that goes into their stunningpieces are exceptionally obvious as you walkinto or even past their shop.

What is it you love about upcycling?Its the idea of making no-longer-lovedgarments loved again, and finding them a newhome. We often find ourselves tellingcustomers that a garment has been waitingfor them, as they are just such a perfectmatch.

How did you get into it?After both having backgrounds in Fine Art and then teaching, we found ourselves at a point in life where we wanted

to use our creative skills to earn our livings. We have a passion for clothes, although not high fashion: its more aboutupcycling, rummaging through our grandmas airing cupboards (or anyone elses grandmas for that matter), andcreating - so we combined all these elements and Queenie and Ted were born.

What kind of process do you follow for the creation of each piece?It varies. Sometimes we have an immediate reaction to a garment and can instantly visualise a design on it, othertimes we are inspired by a particular piece of fabric. Of course, when working on a commission, the client will lead

Why is upcycling better than brand new?Because there are already far too many things in the world and all they need is a little bit of sparkle to make thembeautiful again.
http://bit.ly/1hiZDIOhttp://bit.ly/1cB4NOihttp://bit.ly/vivalavintagehttp://bit.ly/NewMarketPagehttp://bit.ly/Kfj7BXhttp://bit.ly/1ayhbiFhttp://bit.ly/1ayhbiFhttp://bit.ly/Kfj7BXhttp://bit.ly/NewMarketPagehttp://bit.ly/vivalavintagehttp://bit.ly/1cB4NOihttp://bit.ly/1hiZDIOhttp://www.ilovemarkets.co.uk/london


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On a very different end of the upcycling scale, we reminded ourselves that it is not just clothing that can be subjectto the magic of the craft. We wondered what answers these questions would evoke in someone who dealt with acompletely different product type, and so spoke also to Wendy Boorer of Clocky Wocky, who has sold her fabulousclocks at many I Love Markets pop-up events, such as Portobello Rocks.

What is it you love about upcycling?I like the idea of taking something no longer used and turning it intosomething functional! I love the idea of giving it a new purpose, and also

keeping it from a landfill.

How did you get into it?I can get bored very easily and am always looking for new inspiration - I thinkthats the reason my work tends to become so eclectic. Then I reached acertain age and became obsessed with time! So I made a clock out of anunwanted vinyl record and Clocky Wocky was born.

What kind of process do you follow for the creation of each piece?I tend to find an idea will suddenly come to me while I am doing somethingmundane, such as washing up. A reflection or colour may spark an idea.Recently, I was washing out a coffee jar for the recycling bin and had beenmulling around in my head for something I could do with it - I throw far too

many away. I thought about a lamp, but the artist in me wanted somethingmore, so I started to use porcelain paints on it. Held against the light theresults are really interesting. Ive tested the lamp with many types of bulbs,and Im happy with the result now although I still need to experiment in thisarea! I intend to try different forms of lighting to run alongside my clocks.

Why is upcycling better than brand new?We live in a world of mass production and we throw far too many things away - and so easily. I walk the streets andsee furniture and clothing just dumped there. Theres too much waste! I read an article about the blight of the carrierbag and found it so shocking, that I have been working on ways to recycle them. I have managed to achieve someinteresting effects and am now trying to decide the best way to use them
http://bit.ly/16HkrCUhttp://bit.ly/1jRMcSbhttp://bit.ly/1jRMcSbhttp://bit.ly/16HkrCU


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Upcycling has a plethora of assets to it, whether you want to rescue an aging item, challenge your creative mind in anew way or contribute to saving the planet. Why should the discoveries of a lifetime have to last just one of thoselifetimes? Hit the marketsto find out why the upcyclist is truly an extraordinary artist, and uncover a .

Pieces from both Clocky Wocky and Queenie and Ted are available to buy from the I Love Marketsonline shop.

Written by Hollye MurphyPhotos by Hollye Murphy, Queenie and Ted and Clocky Wocky.
http://bit.ly/ilm-shophttp://bit.ly/ilm-shopmailto:mailto:[email protected]://www.ilovemarkets.co.uk/london/productshttps://www.ilovemarkets.co.uk/london/marketmembershiphttps://www.ilovemarkets.co.uk/london/directoryhttps://www.ilovemarkets.co.uk/londonhttp://bit.ly/ilm-shophttp://bit.ly/ilm-shop


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It was summer 2013 and I was wiling away some time in twitterland. I chanced upon atweet from I Love Markets (ILM) that mentioned the Handmade Market at the O2 inDecember and invited crafters to register their interest in a stall.

So I did!

I followed the instructions and sent an email stating what Idid and that I was interested. I received a reply via emailrequesting my website address and was very pleased whenI received a further email offering me a place.

At first I found communication with ILM to be slow and afew times I had to send the same email twice before a

received a reply. This was frustrating, but then, the person Iwas dealing with at I Love Markets changed and I met thelovely Hollye, and communication was suddenly quicker.

There was a lot of work to be done, designing my displayand creating my collection.

The event at the O2 was being run by Peninsula Exhibitionswith I Love Markets working with them, having a number ofstalls with which to fill. The event itself was over 3 days,Friday 13th, Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th December. ILMhad to balance stall holders who wanted to have a stall foreither, 1, 2 or all 3 days. Not an easy task, whilst working

with Peninsula Exhibitions.

During the months leading up to the event a lot ofinformation was sent out to the stall holders, some fromPeninsula Exhibitions, including an exhibitors manual andsome from I Love Markets.

Hollye from ILM kept us as informed as possible, stallnumbers, a layout of the stalls so we knew where we wereand even photographs of the stalls as they were beingconstructed. Invaluable information and allowing us tomake adjustments to our display before the day.

My experience as an exhibitor at the O2 was not aparticularly pleasant one, however, before I proceed toexplain why, I would like to let you know that the issuesfaced were in no way the fault of Hollye or ILM, the blamelies with Peninsula Exhibitions.

Walking into the entrance of the O2, myself and a friend who had volunteered to help me, beganlooking around for signposts or directions to guide us to where we needed to go.There were none.However, luckily, security guards were present and they provided the required directions. It was quite a long walk

I had a stall at the 2013

Handmade ChristmasMarket at the O2!


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and we were worried that perhaps we hadn't fullyunderstood the directions given. Then, thankfully wespotted a sign, though a rather discreet one.

There was much still being done and metal fenceswere ringed around the stalls giving no obvious waythrough. Again we had to ask.Then we had to ask where our stall was.

The stall layouts and locations we had originallybeen given had been changed. Instead of the ILMstall holders being given a nice location, we wereplaced at the back. In fact my particular stall wasfacing the back wall and the row was inset so thatapproaching from the entrance you were unawarethat those stalls even existed.

For a Christmas market, set indoors there was nomusic, no atmosphere and promises had not been

kept regarding an appearance from Father Christmasand activities for children. The estimated footfall of 20K peoplecompared to actual footfall fell so short of estimations to be acomplete joke and a charge of 8 entry put off many potentialcustomers wishing to browse.

The highlights of the event were meeting Hollye from ILM whochatted with all the stall holders booked through I Love Marketsand photographs were taken and placed on facebook. Then ofcourse there was the opportunity to walk around the stalls,meeting the very talented crafters, enjoying the great mix ofproducts and styles.

In summary, would I book an event through I Love Markets again? Answer- yes! But I would not make a booking if

Peninsula Exhibitions had any involvement.

Written by Tina Cook from Shinyies

www.shinyies.co.uk
http://www.shinyies.co.uk/http://www.shinyies.co.uk/


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Best Bits By Bloggers

Written by Joy from www.beadedbazaar.weebly.com

For this issues blog review Id like to introduce you to a crafty blog I found when searching for a tutorial onpersonalised gift wrap on the run up to Christmas - Creme De La Craft.

Natalie Pirveysian runs Creme De La Craft, as well as teaching craft for over tenyears and running craft parties in and around Los Angeles. Through her blog andwork, many of her projects have been featured in publications including Glamourand Good Housekeeping.

The blog has regular posts with roughly one a week, with each post covering adifferent project from fashion to home and gifts, as well as plenty in between. Theposts are very well written, clear and concise. Each project creates somethingunique, unusual and personal to you. The tutorials within the posts have lots ofphotographs to guide you through, as well as simple, easy to follow instructions.

The DIY posts generally include items that can be found in the home, or purchasedvery reasonably. This makes it easy to give a tutorial a try, even if youve nevertried to craft something before. Perhaps trying a simple paper craft by creating thecereal box notebooks, or working with textiles for the no sew scarf.

There are several posts for re-purposing items from around the home, liketransforming Christmas baubles or nail polish pots into vases. Other DIY projectscan give your items a new lease of life, for example the simple idea of painting yournecklaces or changing other necklaces into headbands. I think this is a great idea,not only as it encourages recycling and reusing, but gives you the opportunity to try somethingnew for free (or almost free).The site is very easy to navigate, with tabs at the top of the page for DIY projects, Craft events

and press and sponsor links. There are also lots of links at the end of the blog posts toencourage you to view other tutorials. If you prefer a live action project, there is a link on thesite to video tutorials from Natalie too.

Id highly recommend Creme De La Craft to everyone. The projects are simple to follow andachieve brilliant results. They are well laid out, and there is also the option for video tutorials ifyou prefer. You also dont have to be the most skilled crafter to attempt the projects, so itwould be ideal for those looking to try something different or who dont normally craft. Alsousing items from around the home is a very cheap and handy way to create something personaland perhaps take some of the projects further, completely making them your own.

www.cremedelacraft.com
http://beadedbazaar.weebly.com/http://www.cremedelacraft.com/http://www.cremedelacraft.com/http://beadedbazaar.weebly.com/


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Well, I am in my mid thirties *cough* and a stay at home mum of two - my sonis 6 and my daughter is 4.

I was born and grew up in Germany with a little sister that is 14 years youngerthan me. All women in my family are very crafty and love DIY. My grandmotherknitted, crocheted, painted and wallpapered amongst other things and mymother's ambition was to become a mechanic. She didn't make it as it was justnot the thing to do for a young woman in that time, but times change and Iactually trained as a Vehicle Electrician. After completing my apprenticeship I wentto university for a degree as Technical Author and worked for Volkswagen andBosch.Still in Germany I met my husband who served there with the army and as we movedaround from posting to posting our little family grew. After my son wasborn I was a bit lost at what to do with the time I had at hand andwent into a craft shop, hoping to find something interesting to do.They had seed beads and some free instructions to make a beadwovennecklace. People that know me can confirm that I usually jump right inwith both feet and my way of thinking is "How hard can it be?", so Itook the instruction leaflet and bought the needed beads ...

In 2011 my husbands time in Germany ended and we relocated to theMidlands where he is originally from. To give the children and usenough time to settle in I decided to stay at home and because mybeading skills had developed quite nicely I got registered as selfemployed and opened my Etsy shop www.BeadworkAndCoe.etsy.com

So here I am now.

The time varies a lot really. Of course it depends on the size of the piece and the detail, but especially the uniquedesigns can be very time consuming.When I start I have a picture in my head of how I want it to look finished and then it usually develops a life of it'sown. Sometimes a new piece is nearly finished and I decide That other bead colour would have been much betterthere!. At that point I'll take it all apart again.It's a luxury I take for myself to not care too much about the making time and if I consider it necessary to get amore satisfying result I will start over again.
http://www.beadworkandcoe.etsy.com/http://www.beadworkandcoe.etsy.com/


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I find it very relaxing, almost meditative and I forget everythingaround me. Sometimes my husband will touch my shoulder afterthe fifth attempt to talk to me and I jump.Also I am absolutely hooked on the endless possibilities ofbeads. With the same beads and the same thread I can eithermake a really romantic design with lots of flowers and fringe orthey can become a minimalistic geometric shape which isdefinitely more my style. The choice in colours of beads availableis another thing that keeps amazing me. Just a change ofcolours can make such a difference to the overall feel of a piece.You see, there are so many reasons to love and enjoy what Ido ...

I don't think I have a specific achievement. In general it makes me feel reallygood when I try something new and after a lot of effort and work it turns outwell.I made this dinosaur costume for my son a few years back. To see his face

when he went into school with it and the pride in his voice when he said hismum made it was just THE BEST.Or my first venture into sugar craft because he had to have a Nemo cake forhis birthday and I thought How hard can it be? It wasn't quite what heexpected in the end, but he loved it anyway. I learned that spendingthe money to buy a cake is probably the much easier option, butthe experience still was priceless :)

I do enjoy a good book, the thicker thebetter. That does not mean I don't read

thin books, I just really enjoy theelaborate descriptions and details whichyou usually just get in the thick books.At the moment I am working my way

through the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon again or another oneworth reading is the Avalon series by Marion ZimmerMy husband is a Scout leader and a keen hiker and geocacher, so we dospend a good amount of time outdoors, either hiking or now that thekids are a bit older on the bikes.

Ohhh, I hate this question. It is like asking which one of my children I love the most impossible to answer. If youinsist though, I think the one I am working on is kind of my favourite at the time, because until it is finished everypiece is so full of possibilities and it is almost a shame to do the last stitch. Then it has the final form and is done with closure is not always a good thing.

Think it through thoroughly, what you want to sell, where you want to sell, how much competition there is, what youcan charge, what you need to charge and of course all the legal stuff. Then decide whether you want to do it as ahobby to just cover cost or as a business to make a profit. Both is perfectly fine, but stick to your plan. Stepping upand turning that hobby-business into a professional business can be tricky and a lot of work without return can be


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I wish my hands could bead faster lolSo many beads and so many ideas, but so little time.

ven though I still find it difficult, networking is key. May it be in the Etsy-

teams, following others on facebook etc. or reading good business tips onblogs. I intentionally don't mention any names (I'm aware that most peoplehope to discover the holy grail in posts like this), because I believe youhave to find the ones that suit you yourself. I have followed and unfollowedmany pages/people/blogs since I started and some of them are quitepopular amongst other crafters. First, my time is too valuable to spend itreading every rubbish people write and sometimes even a good tip orapproach that works for someone else might just not be how I want tohandle my business. So I only have a few that I connect with and reallyenjoy that makes the networking much easier too :)

Everywhere! My husband took our old computer apart before scrapping itand it had some really interesting parts. I didn't know what to do withthem straight away, but as I liked them somehow they went in my box withodd bits and bobs. That box is usually my place of inspiration and I dugthose pieces out again when I started experimenting with bead-embroidery. So I put them on centre stage and then let the creative juicesflow to find an appropriate setting.

www.BeadworkAndCoe.etsy.comwww.facebook.com/BeadworkAndCoe
http://www.beadworkandcoe.etsy.com/http://www.facebook.com/BeadworkAndCoehttp://www.facebook.com/BeadworkAndCoehttp://www.beadworkandcoe.etsy.com/


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Wedding comb with pearl and diamantedecorations.

Katyjane Crafts

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16

Luxury cubic zirconia earrings.

Tre Perle

www.etsy.com/uk/shop/2010louisek7

27.72

Handmade bridal tiaramade with SwarovskiCrystals for extrasparkle!

Aura - HandmadeJewellery

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/aura-handmade-jewellery

50

'Titania' is a realfairytale bridal gown. Ithas a boned lacebodice with an off theshoulder frill trim. Thesoft organza skirt iswrapped with anoverlay of tulle andtrimmed with a floralcorsage. (Which isdetachable)

LaCosturera

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450

Sexy and sophisticated deep blue shiny satinhand painted shoes

Norakaren

www.etsy.com/uk/shop/norakaren

95.50

Personalised StampedGlass Cufflinks

78 Happiness Place

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15
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AS SEEN BYCREATIVECrafting

Followers of our Facebook page and Twitter Account may have seen that we nowoffer product reviews. This can either be your creations, your service or your

course/workshop etc.If you would like us to conduct a review for you further information can be found onour website. www.creative-crafting.com/product_reviews.htmlDepending on how many products we get submitted we may offer single or multiplereviews per issue.

Our next review is of:

HEARTFELT OCCASIONSHeartfelt Occasions offer a bespoke stationery service for cards, invitations etc. The service we arereviewing is their invitation design and creation service.

Claire is a very friendly and helpful lady who we found very competent and easy to work with. On beingprovided with a fairly vague brief the samples sent were outstanding! The quality of Claires work isextremely high and would certainly discourage us from approaching a mainstream print house for anyfuture requirements in this area. The attention to detail that Claire shows is wonderful and you areprovided with a beautiful item which is then duplicated to large numbers in super quick time and in ahighly professional manner. Two completely different samples were offered and a third variant wasdecided upon by the client we were helping to fill their needs. If you are looking for wedding invitationsor any other kind here at Creative Crafting we highly recommend Claire and Heartfelt Occasions as yourevent will be safe in her hands.

www.facebook.com/HeartfeltOccasions www.heartfeltoccasions.co.uk
http://creative-crafting.com/product_reviews.htmlhttp://www.facebook.com/HeartfeltOccasionshttp://www.heartfeltoccasions.co.uk/http://www.heartfeltoccasions.co.uk/http://www.facebook.com/HeartfeltOccasionshttp://creative-crafting.com/product_reviews.html


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I

love quilting and patchwork and when I was asked to help out with some fundraising, I jumped at the chance tomake a charity quilt.

The choir is being raffled to raise money for Only Kids Aloud a childrens choir that has been invited to Cape Townin April to help South Africa celebrate the 20th anniversary of democracy and the end of apartheid.

South Africa

CelebrationCharity PatchworkQuilt

I just love designing things, and the opportunity to create a unique quilt that brings together Wales and South Africawas just impossible to resist.

My patchwork quilts are based on my own layout ideas but I love including traditional pieced blocks that have evolvedin Britain and America. I have a couple of fabulous reference books that have hundreds of images and diagrams ofpatchwork blocks that have such lovely names that just make you want to try them out. Some of the contenders for aplace in this quilt include Peace and Plenty, Friendship, Zig Zag and Sunbeam just perfect for a quilt about SouthAfrica.

I dont have a particular approach to designing a quilt. Sometimes Ill just grab some fabric from my stash and startcutting out and piecing together a block I fancy from the books. Once Ive made a few, Ill lay them on the floor tosee how best to place them, and then sew more blocks, sashing pieces or borders to fit as I go along. So the quiltevolves as I make it.

Other times, Ill spend hours on the computer working out a good layout for my chosen blocks and borders andmaking sure I get the sizes right before I start. It doesnt always work though even with a design in front of me Ioften drift into making it up as I go along.


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Although most of my quilting to date has been inspired by American quilts, Ive always loved traditional Welshversions. Most people associate Welsh quilting with whole-cloth but there are also pieced quilts too. You can findstrippy quilts where four or five wide pieces of fabric are sewn together in vertical stripes. And there are also quiltsmade from fabrics cut into big bold geometric pieces diamonds, squares and stars. But they all have one thing incommon they are closely quilted in traditional welsh quilting motifs using tiny little stitches.

If youd like to know more about antique Welsh quilts, I recommend the Welsh Quilt Centre inLampeter check out their amazing website if you cant visit in person.

I decided my quilt would have a typical welsh quilt central panel a strong bold geometricdesign based on a star that Im going to closely hand quilt gulp! but I wanted to blend oldand new, as well as Wales and South Africa, so Im surrounding this centre with borders andpieced patchwork blocks that are inspired by Nelson Mandela and his fight for equality.

Early Welsh quilts are made from flannel and wool but later quilts used cotton for the quilt top

and back. Ive always admired Kaffe Fasset fabrics but havent used them in a quilt yet, so Ithought this would be a good opportunity, especially when I came across plain shot cottons intypical welsh red and green shades, which teamed perfectly with amazing stripes in colours thatjust sang Africa to me including red, gold, green, tan, and ochre.

I used the shot cottons for the central panel and as it was critical to get the sizes of the largepieces right, I designed the layout on a spreadsheet on my computer. I also used a cheatsmethod for sewing and cutting the triangles that make up the star and have written a minitutorial about this on my blog its such a clever technique. I just love the finished central panel the star points are perfectly placed and Im really looking forward to quilting it.

Fine example of antique Welsh wholecloth quilts


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.but first I need to finish the rest of the quilt top. The first border is asimple mitred sash in one of the lovely striped fabrics. I say simple intheory it was, but I did have to fiddle around getting the stripes to matchup it took quite a lot longer than I expected but well worth the effort.

Im currently working on a gorgeous Zig Zag border panel inspired bymountains and valleys something both Wales and South Africa have in

abundance.

And for the rest of the quilt, Im letting it evolve just like a good quiltshould seeing how each of the different striped fabrics work with thequilt blocks Im itching to try. Then Ill just add them to the centralpanel, using plain spacer blocks or borders to show them off to theirbest.

You can follow the quilts progress on The Old Button blog - http://theoldbutton.blogspot.co.uk/. As well as lettingyou know how Im getting on, Ill be adding more mini tutorials for some of the quilt blocks Im using.

About the charityOnly Kids Aloud is a fantastic development opportunity through the Wales Millennium Centre charity. The choir bringstogether children from across Wales broadening their horizons through performing as well as encouraging youngpeople to continue the great choral tradition of Wales. The choir is reformed every couple of years - the first groupsang in Russia and took part in the opening ceremonies for the London Olympic Games - and it would be fantastic ifthe programme continues in future years so that more young people can have similar experiences.

The finished quilt is being raffled at the end of April 2014 for the Wales Millennium Centre charity (Charity

Registration No. 1060458). If you would like to take part you can find out how to enter on my Just Giving page.http://www.justgiving.com/Sharon-Lloyd4

About me. Im Sharon, also known as The Old Button. I live in South Wales with my husband, two teenage childrenthat love performing and a couple of pesky cats. I work part time as in the NHS, and have a second "job" as Mum'staxi, but my "me" time is reading, sewing and designing - I make stage costumes as well as gifts for children and thehome - and I love writing blogs.

Written by Sharon from The Old Button http://theoldbutton.blogspot.co.uk
http://theoldbutton.blogspot.co.uk/http://www.justgiving.com/Sharon-Lloyd4http://theoldbutton.blogspot.co.uk/http://theoldbutton.blogspot.co.uk/http://theoldbutton.blogspot.co.uk/http://www.justgiving.com/Sharon-Lloyd4http://theoldbutton.blogspot.co.uk/


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I am a thirty something woman who is living the dream in rural North Wales in the foothills of the majestic SnowdoniaMountain range. I have had a love of arts and crafts for as long as I can remember and polymer clay since I wasbought a pack by my Grandmother for Christmas when I was 7 years old. My family has always been very keen tosupport my creative streak, for which I am eternally grateful.

I have dabbled with the polymer clay on and off ever since, it is a wonderful medium to work with, but I only reallystarted using it again regularly approximately four years ago when I was diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndromeand was forced to make changes to my lifestyle.

I was in Peterborough at the time, and my partner and I decided to moveaway from the rat-race a little and settled on North Wales after a wonderfulholiday there. I had felt so much better whilst we were there, with its slower,friendlier way of life, out of the hustle of a big city so we started makingplans to move.

I found it to be very therapeutic to be working with the polymer clay again,and with everything falling into place for our move to Wales, one of the pieces

I created was a little cartoon style Welsh Dragon, one of my friends who sawthe early models I had been making, loved them and as she was also movingto North Wales just before us, asked if I could make her five like my littleWelsh Dragon for her two children to give to their teachers before they moved,and so I took my first commission.

My confidence in my abilities was (and to a certain degree still is) fairly low, Iwas happy enough making them for friends and family, but didn't think theywould appeal to the wider public it took awhile for friends, family, and myextremely supportive partner John to persuade me that they would, and set upmy facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/TheCraftyKitten) things reallytook off from there.

At first sales were fairly slow, and still mainly to friends, but soon, as these

things have a habit of doing, word spread. By now, John had also convincedme to start doing local craft fairs as well, which was hard for me because I amnaturally a reasonably shy person.

It soon got to the point (although I still have trouble believing it) that I couldno longer deny that my work seemed to have a wider appeal, and oneafternoon John persuaded me to talk to a local letting agent about a vacantshop I had been joking about in our nearby town of Llanrwst, within 6 monthsI had opened my shop The Crafty Kitten and although it hasn't always beeneasy its been nearly three years now and thanks to my loyal customers bothlocally and all around the world (thanks to my online presence) I am still hereand going from strength to strength.

Adorable dragons, fairies, mermaids and so muchmore! Meet Nikki from The Crafty Kitten.
https://www.facebook.com/TheCraftyKittenhttps://www.facebook.com/TheCraftyKitten


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Thank you I have always loved the mythical creatures, not just dragons and fairies, but all mythical animals, andalthough my dragons and fairies are the ones that are currently popular with my customers, I am working on othercreatures at the moment to expand the line I am looking at launching a new line called The Kitten's Whiskers laterthis year, which will be my larger, higher detailed works which will include all manner of mythical beings likemermaids, unicorns, pegesi, centaurs and many more. So as they say watch this space on my website

www.the-crafty-kitten.co.uk

I love the surprise of it, I know that sounds crazy, after all it is me making theitems, but it is true - the polymer clay has a mind of its own, and I am never quitesure how the end piece will turn out, I had a commission for a wolfess, and shegave me real difficulty until I changed her position, she didn't want to be layingdown like her mate she wanted to be sat up, washing her paw... as soon as Idecided to switch her position, she was more than happy to let me create her.But I also love the other surprise, of never quite knowing what I will be asked tocreate next and over the years there have been some odd requests, from a pen-guin in a boat, an Ostrich, and a Skunk right through to various vehicles including

pimped Vauxhall Nova's, and formula one cars.

This is a tough one, my biggest crafting achievement... Probablyone of my pet portraits Angel - she was actually the first dog petportrait I made, it was done for someone I met via Facebookgame who became a good friend to both John and I. He contact-ed me and asked if he sent me pictures of his dog that he nolonger had, would I be able to make her for him I said I wouldtry.He sent over the pictures of this beautiful Staffie type dog, mainlywhite and I started to get nervous, how could I do this and doher justice, especially when it was so personal... However I ig-

nored the butterflies in my stomach, and started work, postingWork in Progress pictures to my Facebook along theway to ensure I was going the direction he wanted meto.Angel took me about a week to complete, I had evengot some chain and jump rings of the right proportionto do her chain collar. I sent him the picture (whichnever really does justice to the finished model) and heloved it, and quickly sent payment.I packed her up carefully, and sent her on her way toThe Netherlands where my friend lived and started thenervous wait to hear she had arrived. It felt likeforever, but was only about a fortnight before I got a

message from him saying he couldn't thank meenough, it was like his girl had come home finallyand that he had actually shed a tear when he openedthe package as she was more perfect then he couldhave ever hoped...

That was definitely one of my biggest senses ofachievement, as I really didn't think I was going to beable to do it.
http://www.the-crafty-kitten.co.uk/http://www.the-crafty-kitten.co.uk/


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Along side my craft I also create and maintain websitesfor small to medium size businesses, specialising inwebsites for crafters as I understand first hand howimportant it is for them to have a good online presence ifthey want to sell, especially if they have their sights seton an international market.With my Nikki Edwards : Website Design & SEOConsultancy (www.nikki-edwards.co.uk) I strive to offerbespoke, personal service at a price that anyone canafford, but without skimping on the quality of the site.This side of my business has actually been running forlonger then the craft side of things, and I have over 7years experience in this field.Other then helping out other small businesses with their

online presence, I am a huge animal lover, and also enjoy walking inthe beautiful countryside that surrounds me.

Oh my, now this is a tough one! I have made so many things, it ishard to chose just one I guess it would have to be Merlin - Hewas a new design of dragon for me, and the first with a wire arma-ture so he could stand on his own two feet... I wanted to makesomething a bit complex, something that when times got tough and Ihad a case of the I can't do this I could look at and tell myself yesyou can look!

He took me several weeks to do as I did him in between otherprojects, but I was really pleased with how he turned out I origi-nally was going to give him a cape as well as his hat and staff but

when I put it on him, it didn't look right with his wings, and hid muchof the fantastic colour from the mica powders I used on his hide, so Idecided against it.

Enjoy yourself, have faith, but keep realistic. Starting acraft up as a businesses isn't an easy thing to do,because 9 times out of 10 if you have come up with anidea, then someone else has had the same idea too. Butso long as you enjoy what you do, and keep working atit, gradually you will get there but keep realistic too,you aren't going to launch and sell hundreds of youritems for lots of money right away, these things taketime to establish themselves but so long as you arehaving fun who cares. If it comes to the point you nolonger enjoy what you are doing, stop there is nothingworse then crafted items that are done without passion,it is easy to see when the heart has gone out ofsomething.
http://www.nikki-edwards.co.uk/http://www.nikki-edwards.co.uk/


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I would love to be able to craft full time, but sadly with theoverheads of a bricks and mortar shop to support, this simply isn'tpossible at the moment, hence I have to rely on other areas of myexpertise as well.

Definitely the support of family and friends, all the books andwebsites in the world can't replace that without my family, myclose friends and those of my extended friend network on aFacebook group I was introduced to The Secret Society of CrazyCrafters which is a private group that you need to be invited tojoin, then I wouldn't still be here to do this interview with you Iwould have thrown the towel in long ago, if I have ever found thecourage to start my business in the first place.

I have always had a very vivid imagination, which is good for thiskind of work, but I rely heavily on myths and legends. In the earlydays, I wouldn't have even known where to start on creatingdragons or figures out of polymer clay without people like BirdyHaywood, Bonnie McGough, Christi Friesen, Donna Kato andPatricia Rose (to name but a few) guiding me, and even now, Ifind myself going back to these people (many of whom I am nowprivileged to call friends thanks to Facebook) if I find myselfagainst a wall with something I am trying to create and they arealways more then ready to give their support, advice andfeedback.

I am animal mad I am a complete sucker for a fuzzy little face inneed, and frequently rescue animals that for one reason oranother are deemed un-homable from blind hamsters, tohamsters that have survived strokes, to rats that have no use oftheir back limbs any longer, or even just that they have gotten thereputation of being biters - If I have the space for them, I willnever turn my back on an animal in need.

www.the-crafty-kitten.co.uk

www.TheCraftyKittenWales.etsy.com
https://www.facebook.com/bonnie.mcgough.1?hc_location=timelinehttps://www.facebook.com/bonnie.mcgough.1?hc_location=timelinehttps://www.facebook.com/christi.friesen.5http://www.the-crafty-kitten.co.uk/https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/TheCraftyKittenWaleshttps://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/TheCraftyKittenWaleshttp://www.the-crafty-kitten.co.uk/https://www.facebook.com/christi.friesen.5https://www.facebook.com/bonnie.mcgough.1?hc_location=timelinehttps://www.facebook.com/bonnie.mcgough.1?hc_location=timeline


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Millie-Mae Toby Mummy Makes Cousin Emilija


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You will need:

Bicarbonate of sodaCitric acidLiquid colourEssential oilsWater in a spray bottleGlitter, seeds or petalsMould, cuttersMixing bowlSpoonCellophaneRibbon

Directions (to make 2 egg-sized bath bombs)

It is fair to say we cheated withthis and bought a kit with

everything included!

But the ingredients are easilyobtained.

Step 1.Weigh out 100 grams of bicarbonate of soda and add to a mixing bowl.Step 2. Weight out 50 grams of citric acid and add to a mixing bowl. Stir until all the lumps have beenremoved (sieving is quicker).Step 3.Add a few drops of colour.Step 4. Add a few drops of essential oil. Mix constantly, you must not stop.

Step 5. Spray water a little at a time into themixture. Keep mixing until the mixture holdstogether when you squeeze it between yourfingers.Step 6. Take your mould we used an eggshaped one. Sprinkle a small amount ofdecoration petals, seeds or glitter into themould.Step 7. You then need to over-fill the shape with


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Step 7. You then need to over-fill the shape with the mixture, pushing it down with a spoon. Fill the other half of themould too and then pinch together.Count slowly to 30.

Step 8.Carefully, pull one half of the mould off. Place on a clean, dry surface, and remove the other half of themould.Leave to set for at least 2 hours.

With any remaining mixture, form into a ball and flatten out and then use cutters to make some star shapes etc.Again, set aside to dry/harden for at least 2 hours.

Wrap in cellophane, tie with a ribbon and give to friends as a present!

Although we were pleased with the results, it was much more difficult than we expected. Getting the mixturewetness perfect is key to getting a bath bomb that keeps its shape once out of the mould. Silicon moulds wouldhave been better too. We made enough in total for six egg-shaped bombs but we ended up with just two and lotsof practice ones (that flopped into pancake shapes once out of the mould!) For the younger children, using thecutters was much more successful. It was fun though and all the mixture that was too dry to form bath bombs hasgone into a jar and will be scooped out at bath times!

Millie-Mae and Toby are the children of Tracey Kifford, who runs the online marketplace www.WowThankYou.co.uk
http://www.wowthankyou.co.uk/http://www.wowthankyou.co.uk/


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First of all a very Happy New Year to you all, hope youhad a lovely Christmas and New Year. It seems like adistant memory now, but here we are full speed aheadtowards Spring. I don't know what the weather has beenlike where you live, but it has been rather dismal justlately here in Yorkshire; and what better way to brightena rainy day then dig out some pretty accessories to makesomething for Spring!

This time I have chosen to demonstrate one of my handdecorated candle votives. It is very easy to make anddoesn't take long at all (the longest task is waiting for theglue to dry). All you will need is a glass tumbler (anyshape or size), tissue paper, some ribbon, PVA glue andglue spreader, and some small artificial flowers.

Firstly, I will talk you through the cost of the piece, afterall this is and you need to be sureyour purse strings aren't being stretched too far. In termsof what to use as your candle votive, before you dash toyour nearest home ware store why not have a rummagearound in your cupboards for a glass tumbler you don't

use anymore. Any shape is acceptable, personally I founda regular cylinder shaped tumbler to work very nicely, butsomething with a differing shape, such as a brandy styleglass, adds a little something extra to your design;experiment and see what you find.

For many of us crafters ribbon is something we keep in stock, so that again keeps our costs down, but for thosewithout ribbon, your local market or haberdashery store is the best place to start. With regards small artificialflowers, these can easily be purchased from the local market, craft shop, garden centre or even somewhere likeWilkinson's, for instance, and for a very reasonable price too. You can buy packs of tissue paper in multi packs,giving you a rainbow of colours, again for a very minor expense. Luckily, as this is a small item you won't need too

much of anything.


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So, let's get started. First of all you need to measure how much tissuepaper you will need to cover your glass. This will of course depend on thesize and shape of your glass. In order to do this, select a large cut off oftissue paper in your selected colour and after laying your glass on its side,roll it sideways wrapping your tissue paper around it, ensuring there is abit of overlap. Once you have ensured you have enough paper, line theinside of the tissue paper with PVA glue and carefully wrap it tightlyaround your glass, don't worry too much about excess paper at the top

and bottom of your glass as we will come to this next.

This may take some time to dry, but once it is dry you will be able to determineif you require another layer of tissue paper. I wrapped two layers around myglass to strengthen the tone of the colour, but it is entirely up to you. Whenyou return to your glass, you will see the tissue and glue together have createda wonderful effect around the glass.

Once dry, the next step is to scrunch and fold the tissue at the bottom of yourglass, again as tightly as you can, making sure to glue each section as youscrunch and fold. As soon as the bottom is dry it is time to turn your attentions

to the top of the glass. Depending on how much overlap of tissue you have,you may need to trim around the top of the glass, ensuring you have no morethan 1cm left, as we are now going to overlap the tissue paper over the top ofthe glass, gluing it to the inside. It can be fiddly, but I found that lightly coatingthe top of this section with PVA glue gives you a nice strong bond to thesurface of the glass.

Again after leaving your glass to dry once more it is time for the penultimate step. With your ribbon in hand, wrap itaround the centre of your glass, making sure to twist it at the back. As you return to the front tie a simple knot inyour ribbon, to ensure it sits securely. Once your ribbon is in place, tie a bow for a nice finish.

Finally, it is time to add your small artificial flowers. You may need to snip the stem to shorten it, but once it is readyjust simply slot it in behind the bow you have tied; for extra security you could place a blob of extra strong glue onthe back of the flower to firmly attach it to the ribbon. I have also added a button onto the front of the bow, butagain this is personal choice. Should you wish to add a little something extra, why not try gluing beads all the wayaround the ribbon, onto the button or even around the top of the glass?

And there you have it. A simple, cost effective yet tasteful decoration to add a touch of colour to any room. Thesesmall decorated votives also make great table decorations. Why not try a sunny yellow version, to bring a touch ofSpring time into your home.

I hope you find this project enjoyable. I look forward to experimenting with more low cost ideas in the next issuewhere I'll be adding a summery touch to get you in the mood for those lovely sunny days.

Written by Leanne fromwww.facebook.com/SmallSuprisesBoutique
http://www.facebook.com/SmallSuprisesBoutiquehttp://www.facebook.com/SmallSuprisesBoutique


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Image shown: Rachel and her Easter treats. 15. Tracys Handmade Makes. www.wowthankyou.co.uk/tracys-handmade-makes
http://www.wowthankyou.co.uk/tracys-handmade-makeshttp://www.wowthankyou.co.uk/tracys-handmade-makeshttp://www.wowthankyou.co.uk/tracys-handmade-makeshttp://www.wowthankyou.co.uk/tracys-handmade-makes


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Handmade Easter bunny baby bootiesThese super cute handmade bunny baby bootiesare made using bright pink fabric and a lighter

pink inside with a soft white felt, handembroidered bunny face with pink Liberty print

Eloise ears.

JennyWrenCraft

www.etsy.com/uk/shop/JennyWrenCraft

6.50

Custom Easter bunny baskets withmonogramming in pink and brown.

These Easter baskets would be perfect for your littleone's to collect all of those candy filled eggs this

Easter.

MonogramEnvyBoutique

www.etsy.com/uk/shop/MonogramEnvyBoutique

13.83

Sunshine ChickThis gorgeous little chick is so adorable

everyone falls in love with her. She is very softand cuddly with a really appealing face.

JOLLYSAM

www.wowthankyou.co.uk/jollysam

8

Personalised Egg cup and Plate SetBeautifully hand-painted and personalised ,theselovely egg cup sets make a special personalised

gift for all ages.

Purple Glaze Pottery

www.wowthankyou.co.uk/purple-glaze-pottery

30
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Easter DecorationA lovely hanging decoration created in

felt.

JoannaFeltCraft

www.folksy.com/shops/JoannaFeltCraft

6.00

kakabaka peeking bunny t shirtThis black short sleeve t shirt is appliqued with

an original kakabaka design -- a peekingbunny, top stitched with the kakabaka

signature white stitch.

Kakabaka

www.etsy.com/uk/shop/kakabaka

11.07

2 x 40g Personalised Chocolate BarsEach bar can be personalised with the

name of your choice and comes with eithera blue or pink background.

Daffodil Days Ltd

www.wowthankyou.co.uk/daffodil-days-ltd

1.99

Cotton RabbitA beautiful first toy for a baby or a gift for a dear

friend.

Gabrielle Justine

www.folksy.com/shops/GabrielleJustinne

16
https://beta.folksy.com/shops/JoannaFeltCrafthttps://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/95584303/bunny-rabbit-t-shirt-for-boy-boy-easter?ref=shop_home_active_2https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/95584303/bunny-rabbit-t-shirt-for-boy-boy-easter?ref=shop_home_active_2https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/95584303/bunny-rabbit-t-shirt-for-boy-boy-easter?ref=shop_home_active_2https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/95584303/bunny-rabbit-t-shirt-for-boy-boy-easter?ref=shop_home_active_2http://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/kakabakahttp://www.wowthankyou.co.uk/daffodil-days-ltdhttp://folksy.com/items/4220966-Stuffed-bunny-cute-bunny-Easter-Bunnies-Easter-Rabbitshttp://folksy.com/shops/GabrielleJustinnehttp://folksy.com/shops/GabrielleJustinnehttp://www.wowthankyou.co.uk/daffodil-days-ltdhttp://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/kakabakahttps://beta.folksy.com/shops/JoannaFeltCrafthttp://folksy.com/items/4220966-Stuffed-bunny-cute-bunny-Easter-Bunnies-Easter-Rabbitshttp://www.wowthankyou.co.uk/daffodil-days-ltd/products/easter---2-x-40g-personalised-chocolate-bars-easter-bunny/https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/95584303/bunny-rabbit-t-shirt-for-boy-boy-easter?ref=shop_home_active_2http://folksy.com/items/5602431-Easter-bunny-rabbit-carrot


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Salt Dough


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My name is Ioan which is Welsh for John and pronounced at bit like Johan. Im 13 years old and love drawing,painting and making things and Id like to share with you what I made for my school arts project on my favouritefood.

Our arts teacher asked us to draw our favourite foods in ways that could be turned into models. Well, like mostteenagers, I love junk food and sweets, so it wasnt hard thinking of things to include.

My ideas for models included a Doughnut with a pizza quadrant and stuffed with jelly beans, and a Sailboat madefrom a hot dog, liquorice and a slice of cake. But my favourite was the Burger and pancake towers withcandyfloss.

We were told to make one of our drawings into amodel over the Christmas holidays and I chose theburger towers. I drew it again with more detail andadded lots of notes explaining the colour, shape ortexture and what materials I would use.

As I go to a welsh school, my notes are in welsh

Hoff Syniad Tyrau Bwydydd means FavouriteThings Food Towers.

We could use anything we liked to make ourmodels but my teacher had suggested salt doughwould be good for mine.

Id never used salt dough before so I looked it uphow to make it on the Internet. It looked quiteeasy. I love science and was interested to find out

that salt in the dough keeps the flour and watermixture from going off - but it has to be dried reallywell before painting.

Ingredients:1 cup of salt

2 cups of plain flour cup of water

Instructions:Mix salt and flour in a large bowlGradually stir in water, mixing wellWhen doughy, kneed hard to a smooth consistencyMake modelsLeave to air dry or bake in very low oven for a very long timePaint or varnish


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I got mum to help with the gluing together I didntfancy super-glued fingers! We used a gel superglueit wasnt runny and stuck the bits together reallyfirmly even the round ice-cream balls.

I didnt know how to do the chocolate topping on theice-cream I had thought Id be able to paint thembut I wouldnt get the dripping bits right. Mygranddad suggested cutting rolled out plasticine (kidsmodel clay) into the right shape and shaping it roundthe finished ice-cream and pancake stack it wasfiddly but it worked with a bit of help from Mum. Ihad white and I found I could make a chocolatebrown colour by blending red, yellow and bluetogether. It did look a bit dull but I made it shiny bypouring runny glue over it which also glued on thesugar sprinkles made from snips of colouredplasticine.

I had tried to make the candyfloss from salt dough using crumpled up aluminium foil as a core with a shapedsalt dough layer on top I found this idea on the internet too. It worked ok and didnt crack but I didnt think itlooked real enough.

Luckily I found a great photo online ofcandyfloss made by spray painted quiltwadding.

Mum explained I needed the cheaper polyesterwadding that can be pulled apart - not theexpensive cotton or bamboo stuff she uses inher quilts.

It was raining so I spray painted the wadding inthe shed (I only got a little bit on Dads bike)and when it was dry I pulled it apart to make itthinner and wrapped it round the salt doughand foil model. It didnt need gluing as it sort ofsticks to itself.

Mum glued everything to a wooden platter andmy model was finished. Hooray. It was reallybig and quite heavy, so she gave me a lift toschool with it rather than risk carrying it on the

bus!

Im really pleased with my finished model. I hadto complete a review explaining what I learntand what I could do differently. I had tried veryhard to stick to the scale of my drawing, but thepancake stack turned out shorter than theburger tower and candyfloss!

Never mind it still looks brilliant.


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There's a large chimney breast in my living room,wallpapered in cream. During the Christmas periodI turned it into a feature wall, but for the rest of

the year it's just a plain cream wall.

TheCraftBox

Feature Wall


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It seemed a shame not to do something with it, so I thought I would use my craft supplies and create a feature wallthat I could change with the seasons.

I gathered tissue paper, pencil, scissors, colouredpaper, flower stickers and sellotape.

For my Spring/Easter themeI started with 3 sheets oftissue paper, green, lightblue and dark blue.

With blue tack I put thesheets up on the wall,overlapping.

With the background done I then drew grass ontosheets of green paper and cut them out. With bluetack they were attached to the bottom of the tissuepaper.

With papers in yellow andorange I cut out and created3D daffodils. I cut out stemsand leaves from green paperand using some colouredpatternedpaper I cut egg-shapes torepresent Easter. With bluetack, everything was attachedto the tissue paper backgroundwith more blue tack.

Flower stickers and transfer were added amongst the grass and Easter eggs. Abutterfly, cut from patterned paper was created and branches of a tree werecreated from natural papers.

Armed with stickers, I added butterflies around the flowers and using goldflower stickers I added blossom to the branches. With pink sequin flowersand blue tack I added more blossom to the branches.

You can also add other item's to your feature wall, postcards, things youfind on your walks, cut out photographs of your children/grandchildren.

This is a really fun, never ending project that can be enjoyed by the wholefamily.

Written By Tina Cook http://www.shinyies.co.uk
http://www.shinyies.co.uk/http://www.shinyies.co.uk/


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More projects, more interviews, more craftingpossibilities

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Publishing since 2009

creative crafting spring 2014, issue 27

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