Fabulous Publishing Folklore Crafts Series Launch, Blog Tour and a GIVEAWAY

I am so excited and I just can't hide it!

Who loves gnomes?!  I DO!  I DO!

Who loves matryoshkas?!  I DO!  I DO!

DO YOU?!  Of course you do!

How would you like to learn how to craft a plethora of pleasing kitschtacular, craftarrific projects in the first two titles in Fabulous Publishing's Folklore Crafts Series?  Better yet, how would you like a chance to win FREE COPIES of both e-books?

Just leave a comment here telling me why you love Gnomes and Matroshkas with your email contact in the comment and let me know who you are on Facebook.  BUT WAIT...there's more.  Then go to the FabPub Facebook page and LIKE it!  Then come on back to this little bloggy this Friday and I'll announce one LUCKY winner!  Yes, you have to do stuff to get stuff, but what fun, eh?

And speaking of fun, have I mentioned how fantastically fun these books are?  They're just chock full of folksy inspiration for your crafting entertainment and edification.  And what I love, is that Shayne Roux of NoveltyKitten and Redd Hynes of Geekopolis, the crafty gals behind Fab Pub are making books you just can't find anywhere else.  The kind of books we've all been waiting for!  You are going to L O V E these e-books!  Check out some images of projects from the books below!

So look, you can wait to see if you win, or you can head on over to FabPub.com and buy the books!  They're available as e-books or print on demand for those of us who still yearn for the feeling of the printed page between our fingers.  Heck just mosey on over and see what Shayne and Redd are throwing down, cuz yer gonna dig it!

And guess what?  This is the first stop on a month long EPIC blog tour! How awesome is that?!  Oodles more crafty fun to be had in the weeks ahead!  Indeedy do!  Here are the blogs that will be on the tour starting tomorrow:

May 28 Margot Potter of The Impatient Crafter
May 29 Joanna Montrichard of That Thing I Made
May 30 Vikram Goyal of CraftGossip
May 31 Kathleen Dames of Kathleen Dames
June 1 Samantha Townsend of Geeky Sweetheart
June 2 Redd Hynes of Damenamedredd
June 3 Renee Lavinsky of My Ugly Kitty
June 4 Val Hebert of Val's Art Studio
June 5 Jessica Blaszczak of Ballston Arts Craftsmarket
June 6 Shayne Roux of Transcraftinental
June 7 Jean Yates of Snap Out of it Jean, There's Beading to be Done
June 8 Leesandra Diaz of Sweet Spot Cards
June 9 Jo Stafferton of Feeling Stitchy
June 10 Lori Anderson of Pretty Things
June 11 Paul Hynes of G33kopolis
June 12 Alexis Lebrow-Wolf of What the Craft
June 13 Anna Gailey of Weekly Enthusiast
June 14 Chrissy Leiberan-Titus of Muse of the Morning
June 15 Susan Beal of West Coast Crafty
June 16 Tonya Simmons of The Trouble with Crafting
June 17 Sherezada  Windham-Kent of Hand Eye Mind Mouth
June 18 Shayne Roux of Geek Crafts

PHEW!   Now THAT's a Blog Tour!

How much do I love the projects below?!  SO MUCH!  YAY!

Images COPYRIGHT Fabulous Publishing ALL RIGHTS RESERVED!

iLoveToCreate Teen Crafts: Rage Comics Inspired Father's Day Card

iLoveToCreate Teen Crafts
Rage Comics Inspired Father's Day Card
Avalon Potter

Avalon has become obsessed with Rage Comics memebase.  We have to literally peel her phone out of her hands to get her to focus on something else.  She drew this AWESOME Rage Comics inspired whale recently and we knew it would be perfect for a Father's Day Card.  This is the 'Sudden Clarity Whale'.  You can have your teen draw their own version and scan, size, print and use on a one of a kind greeting card to make Dad feel super special on his super special day.

Aleene's Dry Adhesives make it super easy to make great cards in a flash!

Materials
Blue cardstock
White printer paper
Patterned coordinating paper
Whale image printed to fit front of card
Words: Dude! and I'm literally a Happy Father's Day card!  printed and sized to fit card
Aleene's Tacky Tape Runner

Tools
Small scissors
Paper trimmer
Fiskars Shape Cutter template word bubble and brackets

Print your whale image to fit card.

Cut out printed whale. 

Cut frame, word bubble and waves using shape templates and cutting tool. 

Use Aleene's tape runner to assemble front of card. 

Use tape runner to assemble card interior. 

Book Review and Giveaway: Mod Podge Rocks!

THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED. 

PRIZE PACKAGE ONE

PRIZE PACKAGE TWO 

Mod Podge Rocks by Amy Anderson
Lark Crafts
June 2012

Are you ready to get your Podge on? Well, have I got a book for you! The designing diva behind the absurdly popular Mod Podge Rocks blog, Ms. Amy Anderson, has gathered some of her craftiest friends together to share a plethora of pleasing podgeable projects that are to die for fabulous! Craft industry luminaries Heather Mann of Dollar Store Crafts fame, Cathie Filian of HGTV's Creative Juice, Jewelry Designer and Author Candie Cooper and a litany of other talented ladies have created simply stunning, easy to recreate projects to endlessly inspire your creativity. Decoupage never really goes out of style, but it's back with a vengeance and you'll get all sorts of tips and tricks for success from true experts.

The book is bright and whimsical. The projects are festive and fun. There is everything from furniture to jewelry to holiday decor jam packed on every page between the retrofabulous cover. Whether you've never dipped your toes into the decoupage pool or you dove right in ages ago, there is something for everyone here. A feast for the eyes and the imagination, Mod Podge Rocks is a must have for any craftinista.

I give it the Madge Crafty Seal of Approval! Huzzah!

HOW WOULD YOU like to win one of two free copies along with the fabulous prize packages above?! The fine folks from PLAID have provided an array of Mod Podge products for your perusal! Leave a comment here telling me why you can't live another day without this book and the awesome swag and I'll announce the winners here next Tuesday! DON'T FORGET to include your EMAIL so I can contact you if you win!

 Love Madge

iLoveToCreate Retrofabulous Crafts: Cheers Cocktail Coasters

iLoveToCreate Retrofabulous Crafts: Cheers! Cork Coasters

Margot Potter

“These are your grandmother’s crafts.  Ya gotta problem with that?”

Nothing says retro like cocktail parties, a delightful custom that is rapidly disappearing.  What could be more festive than a few friends, some fondue, hors d’oevres and a litany of libations?  What indeed.  Whatever your poison, be it leaded or ‘un’, these perky little coasters will turn any occasion from drab to fab in seconds flat!  Cheers!

Materials

Aleene’s Spray Acrylic Sealer-matte

Scribbles brush-on fabric paints black and white

Conversation bubble stencil (I used a Shape Template from Fiskars)

Fine tipped black marker
Tulip sponge pouncer

Small flat paintbrush

Small tipped paintbrush

Trace conversation bubble on front of coasters using a fine tipped black marker.

Carefully paint black edges around bubble.  A flat brush is the best choice for this task.'
 

Paint the inside of the bubble white, use flat brush for larger sections and small brush to get into smaller spots.  Allow paint to dry.

Use a foam pouncer to apply a small amount of paint to letter stamp, be careful not to get paint on stamp edge.  Stamp words on each coaster, these can be a little wonky as this is a cocktail accessory!  After drying, spray with two coats of sealer.

Cheers, clink, sip and savor...the four components of a successful toast!

iLoveToCreate Teen Crafts:Funky Flower Tank Top

iLoveToCreate Teen Crafts

Funky Flower Tank Top

Margot Potter for Avalon Potter

“Mom crafted, teen approved.”

Av is in her final week of school and just got home from a trip to Washington, D.C.  So I stepped in to make this funky tank top.  This was my second painted shirt attempt from yesterday; the first one was so horrid it ended up becoming the paint rag.  By the end of the day, I was starting to think this was heading for the ‘craft fail’ bin too, but now I’m kinda liking it and Av really liked it.  Craftastrophe or crafty triumph...sometimes it’s a fine line, people.  If you really get into a pickle, you can always cut the fabric up and use it for another project or, as I did with shirt number one, turn it into a colorful rag! I used the Paint Canon paints to do a Jackson Pollack influenced splatter background and then the flower stamp added a little touch of girly whimsy.  Still...it needed something...so out came the dimensional paint and some faux gemstones.  What was cool was the fabric was so wet, the dimensional paint sort of faded into it in spots.  The key here is to really get it layered without letting it get muddy and to keep dabbing as you work.  Ideally you’d dry between layers, but I was in a crunch for time, so layers just kept going on and the shirt kept getting wetter.  A lot of my best ideas come from taking being willing to make glorious messes and ultimately, there are no craft fails, except for the failure to craft. 

Materials

Ribbed tank top in grey

Tulip Fashion Graffiti cannon fabric paints in black, pink and white

Tulip Soft Fabric paint in hot pink

Tulip Slick 3-D fashion paint in white

Aleene’s Fabric Fusion glue

Faux gemstones

Foam flower stamp

Tools

T-shirt or sponge to blot and soak up paint as you work

Tulip sponge pouncer to apply paint to stamp

Tulip fashion form

1.  Wash your shirt first.  Slide the form inside of your shirt.  Use the paint canon paints to drizzle and drip layers of paint straight from the bottles.  As you work, dab excess and keep layering and dabbing until you are happy with the results.  Allow to dry or leave wet while moving to next step for a more faded look.

2.  Apply pink paint to stamp with foam applicator.  Stamp flowers randomly on front of shirt.  Use a pouncer to add pink paint on spaces between flowers for another layer of color. Allow to dry or leave flowers wet for more faded dots.

3.  Use dimensional paints to add dots around flower petals.  This is not meant to be perfectly perfect, vary spacing and placement.  Add a white ring to center dot on each flower.  Carefully glue faux stones to center of each flower using Fabric Fusion.  Allow to dry before wearing. 

iLoveToCreate Retrofabulous Crafts: One 'Cool' Mom Mother's Day Card

iLoveToCreate Retrofabulous Crafts

One ‘Cool’ Mom Mother’s Day Card

Margot Potter

“These are your grandmother’s crafts...

...ya gotta problem with that?”

It's almost here...are you ready?  This Sunday is Mother's Day, my fine friends.  No one works harder than mom and no one deserves a day off more than she does.  Take it from this hard workin' mama, we really, really, really appreciate the love.  What better way to show mom how much you love her than with this wickedly funny retrofabulous card you can make yourself using Aleene's FABULOUS dry adhesives?  Take her somewhere special and let her kick her feet up and relax, she's earned it.  Believe me.  

Materials

Dove gray and soft pink cardstock

Damask scrapbook paper

One flat back large faux gem

Vintage images (digital downloads here)

Print out vintage typewriter text  18pt.: “Happy Mother’s Day, to one ‘cool’ Mom.”

Aleene’s Tacky Tape Runner

Aleene’s Tacky Dot Roll 3/16”

Aleene’s Tacky Sticker Sheets

Tools

Fiskars Shape Templates (Stars and Banners)

Fiskars Shape Template Mat and Cutting Tool

Fiskars Paper Trimmer

Fiskars Scissors

Bone folder

FREE Digital Downloads FOR PERSONAL USE ONLY-NOT FOR RESALE

1.  Print out digital downloads and text.  Use paper trimmer to cut. 

2.  Cut graduated layers of pink and damask paper for backgrounds using paper trimmer, see images for reference.

3.  Use bone folder to crease center of gray cardstock.

4.  Attach paper layers using Aleene’s Tacky tape runner on edges.  Make sure you center each layer as you stack.  No Sweat on front, Relax on inside cover.

5.  Cut out shapes.  Three stars starting with the smallest in grey and graduating in the next two sizes in pink and damask.  Cut thin banner shape in damask. 

6.  Use sticker sheets to layer stars on lower left hand corner of front of card.

7.  Use Aleene’s Tacky Dot to adhere faux gemstone.

8.  Attach damask banner to center of inside of card using Tacky Sticker Sheet, add text with background using glue runner.

Inspiration Video Sequel!

Hello Love Muffins!

Oh...my...GOD...puppies are exhausting.

I had totally forgotten.  This probably wouldn't be so exhausting if I wasn't also working around our two existing dogs who are still sussing things out.  They're not so sure they like this new thing.  Charlie, our male dog, has been walking around making whining noises for two days.  Cricket, our female, has been much better than I'd thought she'd be.  For now it's a matter of keeping everyone separated.  We're constructing a play area so that I can stop spending hours on the porch watching the puppy play.  Not that there isn't a certain amount of Zen in that, unminding, being present.  It's just that I'm not very Zen and it's allergy season in the Smokies.  I had the same problem with my daughter when she was a baby.  It was really hard sometimes to stay focused on being present for hours on end.  True mom confession time.

Still puppies are entertaining and this one is especially cute.  And my daughter was the cutest baby, ever.  I'm not kidding, people stopped us on the street to tell us that.  She's a pretty darn cute teenager too. 

Alas teenagedom has presented new challenges in being patient and present.

ERGH.

Above is my video blog sequel to last week's post on Seeking Inspiration.

Enjoy!

xoxo
Madge