So the other day a fellow crafty bloggy friend announced that she was on a new social media channel, Periscope. I immediately cringed inside…because, REALLY? I already juggle Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, and am trying to get in the habit of Vine. But I took a peek at this app for your iPhone/iPad or Android device…and in minutes I was downloaded, signed up, and hooked. Here’s a blurb from the website: Just over a year ago, we became fascinated by […]
Guide to Metallic Pens and Glitter Pens from JetPens.com
I was clicking through the internet neighborhood the other day looking for some glitter pens…and quite by accident stumbled upon this post- “Guide to Metallic & Glitter Ink Pens and Markers” on JetPens.com. OH MY SPARKLY STARS- so much good information! In this comprehensive post, they cover what is the difference between metallic and glitter inks, writing samples of a slew of different pens on white and black papers, and even color charts for the different brands. If you have […]
Chip-It Color Matching Tool from Sherwin Williams
Recently I’ve come across some cool things on Pinterest, in which someone shares a photo and pulls out the colors from it- either for inspiration, or to paint their room, or what ever. It usually looks like this: But I had no idea how to do this myself! Enter in Chip-It from Sherwin Williams. It’s a online service (free) that enables you to upload a photo or paste in a URL and get color-matched chip ON THE SPOT! POOF- any photo […]
Brother Scan-N-Cut Canvas Software Overview
One of the biggest draws of the Brother Scan N Cut is that you can scan in an image and then cut it out directly, no software or computer required. But what happens when you need to edit or create an image? Well, Brother has a FREE software program online (no download, but you DO need internet access to use it) called Canvas. Today I’m going to share a video I made so that you can see some of it’s […]
Five YouTube Channels Crafters Will Love: Part One, Scrappers and Stampers
Happy Halloween, folks! Today is a SUPER busy day- I host a dinner gathering and then trick-or-treating launches from my house. But I wanted to share a few YouTube channels that I really love for their paper-crafting goodness. (I’m making my list for knitters, foodies, etc, too.) But here are some great ones that I find myself watching & I thought you’d like them too. In no particular order: OWHtv: Yup, it’s from Sandy Allnock from Operation Write Home. I […]
Craft App Review: Rhonna Designs by Rhonna Farrer
When Rhonna Farrer debuted her app in the Apple app store, it quickly shot to the top of the Most Popular list and I was not surprised! For those of you that aren’t familiar with Rhonna she has been an amazing artist on the digital scene since she won Creating Keepsakes Hall of Fame scrapbooking contest in 2004. She was also lead digital designer for Two Peas in A Bucket as well as one of their Garden Girl’s and is […]
Craft App Review: A Beautiful Mess by Red Velvet Art
I’m going to briefly transport y’all back in time… A time when I first returned to scrapbooking after a baby-making hiatus. I will never forget opening up the pages of Creating Keepsakes and being hit in the face with S.T.Y.L.E. Fun, quirky, bright, doodled and like nothing else I had ever seen. That style and breath of fresh air was brought to me by the fabulous Elsie Larson (previously Elsie Flannigan). Elsie’s style quickly took off in the industry and […]
MarkerPal App by Guest Star Christine Urias of Scraptime
Today I am showing you the MarkerPal App! This app is designed to keep track of your Copic Marker Collection. It is compatible with your iPhone and iPod Touch. When you open the app you will see the screen below. It lists all the marker families. When you choose a Colour Family to go into, you will see a colour swatch and the name of the colour. You click the colour and the menu will drop down: Have Marker, Want […]
A Guide To Online Fabric Resources
Today’s guest is Carla Macklin, co-owner and designer of Clever Charlotte, a company that designs and sells clothing patterns for “modern children.” She’s immensely talented and is the most talented sewist I’ve ever met. Oh, and she’s my cousin-in-law, too- which meas that when we have family get-togethers, Carla and I compare notes on blogging and the the craft industry. The last time we talked, I mentioned that I was clueless about online fabric resources, so she graciously agreed to […]
Holiday Photo Cards by Minted.com
Every year our holiday cards change. Some years I make them all by hand, some years we sadly wait until the last minute and order quick photo cards at the last minute. This year we had some professional photos taken in Mexico, and I just KNEW that they would make fabulous holiday photo cards- and when Minted.com offered me a promo code to try their holiday card printing service, I was eager to try it out. Since I’d never used […]
Craft App Review- eScrap App by DCWV
The last few times we were at CHA and I stopped by the dazzling booths of DCWV, (Die Cuts with A View), I noticed that they were advertising a new digital scrapbooking app. I hadn’t tried any yet so I decided to give this a go for on-the-go scrapbooking- the eScrap app! Here is how the app is described in the app store: “eScrap™ App allows you to scrapbook on-the-go with your iPhone®! Liven up your photos with backgrounds, pre-designed […]
Totally Green Crafts & The Totally Green Contest
So y’all know I am WAAAAAY into recycle crafting. In fact, if you take a look at my projects, over half of them are upcycled or recycled. So when my “internets friend” Johnnie Lanier reached out and let me know that she was partnering with Suzy Myers to create Totally Green crafts, I was all in. Here’s a bit about their cool new site: Totally Green Crafts is a place to find ideas and inspiration for crafts & DIY projects […]
Craft App Review: Tim Holtz App
When I first saw Jenny at CHA in Chicago and we sat down to chat about what’s new and popular she asked me, “So how long did it take you to download the new Tim Holtz app?” I said, “Minutes!” And it’s true! I went back and looked through my twitter feed and it took me four minutes to download the app from the time Tim announced it. So yes, to say I was excited for this app is an understatement. […]
Craft App Review: Paper by 53
While sitting at the Innovations presentation at CHA, I whipped out my iPad to take notes when a few people instantly asked around me, “What app is that?” “This?” I say, “This is Paper. I use this more than any other app.” And it’s true. Paper by 53 is a streamlined drawing and sketch app. In it’s own words, “Paper is where ideas begin. It’s the easiest and most beautiful way to create on iPad. Capture your ideas as sketches, […]
TV and Online Show “Noodle and Doodle” For Kids Features Crafts, Recipes
I was up earlier than usual this Sunday AM and found a fun show for pre-kinders and early elementary grades while flipping around. It’s called Noodle and Doodle and airs on Sprout, or on NBC Kids in the early AM. I looked it up online, and here how it’s described on the Sprout website: Craft, eat, and ride on your favorite bus with Noodle and Doodle. Have fun learning to cook new and exciting things every weekend as Noodle and […]
Website Review: UPrinting.com
I’ve notice that there is a trend for turning your photos into canvas prints lately- but I’ve always wondered if they work. I was approached by UPrinting.com to give it a go….for free…. so how could I turn that down? I’m always a skeptic, and I like to really see for myself if A) the ordering process is relatively pain-free and B) if the finished product holds up. So since I was specifically evalutating the custom canvas printing feature, I […]
The Perils Of Pinterest
Earlier this year I wrote an article called “ Pinterest and Why Crafters Love It!” Since then, Pinterests’ shiny image has gotten a little tarnished. Unclear and contradictory Terms of Service, the hijacking of affiliate marketing links, and the fear of intellectual property infringement are now causing artists and crafters to delete their pinboards and install the “No Pin” meta tag. But should YOU? Here to explain is guest-author Juliann Krute. First, a bit about Juliann herself: Juliann Krute is […]
Review of Online Craft Classes: 30 Days in Your Journal by Julie Fei-Fan Balzer
I’m a work at home mom with a spouse who travels- so as much as I’d love to take craft classes, often it just doesn’t fit into my calendar or lifestyle. I’ve seen a bunch of new online classes pop up, but I was wary. Truth be told, I signed up for an online class last year from a well-known blogger, but I’d stopped after the second class. The “set-up” videos that explained the art task for the week went […]
Crafty Website Review: Pinterest (& Why Crafters Love It!)
What is PINTEREST? When my hubby (who works in marketing and social media) asked me that, did a double-take. We crafters and craft bloggers have been hooked on Pinterest for a year or so, and I created my account and put the button on my blog over 6 months ago. So I realized that maybe I should give you all a formal introduction to a site I use and love, and why you might like to get an invite, too. […]
Sunday Spotlight: MyCutSearch.com (formerly CricutSearch.com)
A while ago I was sent an email invitation by the folks at CricutSearch.com to check out their site. It’s a handy-dandy site to search for images and fonts on Cricut cartridges- so if you’re looking for something specific, it can help you locate the cart that you need. Editor’s note: since this article was written, there has been a name change (presumably due to trademark infringement. The side is now called MyCutSearch.com. Here’s what they say on the site: […]