Craft Test Dummies

I read an article today in our local paper called “Medical ID Bracelets Become Stylish” and had a head-slapping-I-wish-I-thought-of-that moment.  Of course! Who wouldn’t want a cuter, more stylish medical ID bracelet?

After working in the medical field for many years, I know firsthand how important and potentially life-saving these ID bracelets and tags are. If you or someone you know needs a medical ID tag, here are some resources for jazzin’ those babies up!

• www.LaurensHope.com   This site offers a wide variety of styles, from child-centered to elegant swarovski crystal, to leather and rubber tubes for the guys. It also features “awareness” bracelets (like for cancer), and straight-up mothers day bracelets.
• www.Beadin-Beagle.com  Their tag-line is “Made by a patient for a patient.” (That’s where I snagged the image from, too.) They also sell a variety of styles, as well as medical ID cell phone charms, belt-loop/clip-on IDs, and other jewelry items.
• LifeTag by Susan Einsen is another resource if you are crafty and want to make your own. A fine jeweler with Type I diabetes, she is passionate about making your Medical ID look like good jewelry. She can customize your tag in precious metals or by adding gemstones.  She also offers an adhesive version to stick on to watch straps, for instance.  For you craftistas who want to make your own bracelet or necklace, and then add a high-quality medical ID tag, this is the place for you. Oh, and she donates a dollar from each sale to Diabetes research, too. She even sells a d0-it-yourself-kit for $18.00, which includes the clasp, cord, and tag. You get to pick your own beads to really customize your bracelet.  How cool is that?

I love it when crafting becomes functional and stylish!

Since last week was so hectic with the Sewing Expo, I didn’t get to share some of my birthday goodies.  One of my favorites was from my dear friend Jenna, who for 11 years was my co-worker and cohort in creative arts therapies escapades!

She is the art therapist who loves music and plays guitar; I was the music therapist who made art and loved making musical instruments. We were yin and yang, and people have asked it we were sisters on more than one occasion.

So Jenna came by with her dear daughter for a playdate, and brought me birthday goodness. This year, she made me a mini book called “The Nine Muses of Jenny.” (Yeah, it’s confusing; she’s a Jennifer and I’m a Jenny.) Anyway, in this faboo handmade book, she recounts each muse by name, and then describes how that muse applies to me.  Or IS me.

I can’t tell you how thoughtful, poingnant,  and sometimes funny - this book is! For example:

Urania, muse of Science - She is  the explorer of frontiers, unknown territories, uncharted questions, and mysteries. She endeavors fearlessly to uncover, discover, and recover what is lost, forgotton or unimagined! She is a seeker. She tests out multitudes of new products and techniques, and her dining room table is under there somewhere!

Oh, how true!

She also acknowledged the loss of both of my grandmothers in one year, along with giving up my job to be a stay-at-home mom. Yes, it was my choice, but still I mourned that loss of identity and contact with my patients. I loved being a music therapist and sharing musical experiences.  It was Jen who saw those losses and gave honor to them.

So from the bottom of my heart, thank you Jennifer, for sharing, support, and being my soul sista!

I was doing my regular surfing, and ran across this GORGEOUS paper bead necklace from Mazel Tov Jewelry. Really transcends paper beads into high art. Tell me it’s not fabulous and I’ll call you a liar!

Just in case you missed Ricky Tims on CBS Sunday Morning, I’m hosting the clip here. His quilt designs are really phenomenal… which is impressive because he didn’t start quilting until he was 35! And he’s a musician.

Sorry about the commercial- it’s part of the video. Enjoy the eye-candy!

I’m home with baby girl today, making green applesauce and hoping that the parade is going to be televised.  I do have some crafty goodness to share, though.

I received two St. Patrick’s Day cards this season. One was from Katherine on my CPS group. She send out this lovely card that has an Irish Blessing inside.  (PS: that link has multiple Irish blessings, if you ever need one!)

The other is from my dear Mom, who found great uses for her heart punches and paper crimper. I think she also used some Pearl-Ex to highlight the texture. Go, Mom!

I, however, am totally lame. I was so busy sewing blogging that I totally forgot to make St. Patrick’s Day cards. I guess that means I’m on the hook for some totally awesome Easter greetings. Better get crackin’!

One last vintage image to leave you in a cheery mood!

Oh, my mailman has been busy! Among the many goodies that came yesterday was a package from CPS swap hostess Rachel, containing tie bag purses from Diane and Cindy. Whoo-hoo!

I really love how everyone put their own spin on them. Diane constructed hers using the long skinny end on the back as a pen holder, and included a little composition notebook.

Cindy used the middle section of the tie as a handle, and beaded it up with these cute pressed-glass flower beads. How fun!

To see my tiebags for the swap, click here.

To see the post with the original instructions from Sulky, click here.

And for another site of great inspiration, check out the Artful Ties blog. She has some great links there, too, and eye-candy. FUN!

Val at Val’s Altered Heart Journey has come up with the coolest idea - she uses caulk to create texture in her artwork. She has a full step-by-step tutorial on her blog, so I won’t repeat it here. But I love the texture and flexibility she gets from a non-art medium! Great thinking outside of the box, Val!

The picture I’ve selected to highlight her technique is one of 3 “inchies”- if your a new to them, they are 1 inch by 1 inch pieces of mini art. Yup. ONE INCH ONLY. Why only 1 inch? Well, usually they are made in stages, and the first part is rather serendipitous: you create a large background texture, usually with some layers, and then you chop it up into the squares. You’re never sure just what you’re gonna get. Then, you take each one individually and add extra adornment, paints, embellishments, what-have-you, and make it a little mini work of art.

What do you do with them? Another good question. Make them into mosaics, attach them to altered quilts, books, collage art. Put a hole in them and make them charms or jewelry. Really, they are just small components for other larger pieces of artwork. I keep a few on a small ball chain attached to my quilting tools…that way when I go to a workshop, everyone knows they’re mine.

Here are a couple of pics of other artist’s inchies, fabric and fiber:

And when you make them 2 inches by 1 inch, they are called “twinchies.” How clever is that! Wendy made some great ones, and she even sent me one!

Anyhoo, they’re fun and rather addictive. Get thee to Home Depot and get caulkin’!

(Or sewing, or gluing, whatever!)

I had a little 1 on 1 swap with a few of my CPS sisters. Being a musician, I have lots and lots and lots of sheet music and music books I’ve collected. And, quite frankly, some if it is useless except as an art medium. I put the call out that I’ve got sheet music and books available to trade for little hand-made goods, and Ginny Ballou took me up on the offer. She sent a plethora of goodies- some handmade, some collage materials. So many goodies!

So I’ll put it out there, again, too: if you’d like some sheet music for crafts, I’ll send you a stack or a book for free- I’ll even pay for postage! Just send me back an ATC, postcard, or some other handmade goodie.

I’m all for recycling, and I’d rather give it away than throw it out. Leave me a comment and I’ll e-mail you back.

I love my birthday. No, not because I haven’t hit forty yet, but because it brings mail. REAL mail, ya know? Like cards and goodies, not like flyers and credit card applications.  Anyhoo, got some goodies this week, and I thought I’d share them:

These are two fabric postcards I got on the same day. The heart one is from my guild, North Coast Needlers. The pretty green one is from my artsy-craftsy pal Terri. How did she know I love St. Patrick’s Day so much?

The cute little froggy is a fabric ATC from Diane on my CPS Yahoo Group. She’s a great moderator and a great wit. She has a blog, too, called Sooner or Later, and if you have chance you should check it out.

Thanks so much, ladies, for getting my birthday month started in such a lovely way!

Today is primary day in Ohio, and I’ve already gone and done my civic duty.  While I was surfing around the other day, I ran across something that caught my attention: Crafters for Obama. Really.

A crafty blogger named Rachel is trying for some grass-roots fundraising via crafting. (For more info on her, visit AverageJaneCrafter.)  I was a little surprised at this… although I remember that long ago, women would voice their political opinions via their craft all the time… remember temperance quilts???

I’ve also noticed quite an upsurge in recycled crafts, green crafting, and the like. I suppose that’s political, too, in a non-partisan way.

Lastly, I’ll leave you with Jessica Vitkus, who has coined the terms “Democrafts” and “Republicrafts”… she’s made some craft projects that help her vent her frustrations with the pols. (And yes, that IS a gun cozy!)

Hmmmm…. what’s your statement?