Martha Stewart's Encyclopedia of Crafts Review and Giveaway

A few weeks ago, 415 pages full of projects, inspiration, resources, and templates showed up at my home. It would not be an exaggeration to say that I have looked at it at least once a day.

Martha Stewart's Encyclopedia of Crafts is available for purchase now.

The book is divided into subjects with several projects in each. You'll find beading, decoupage, soap making, matting and framing, and even a whole section on glittering. The projects are for all skill levels and interests.

The last 50 pages or so are dedicated to tools, basic techniques, a source and buyer's guide, and templates. They offer the templates online at MarthaStewart.com for quick printing as well. I'm most excited to use the templates to try my hand at dot-painting on china.

If you are lucky enough to live in the NYC area, Martha will be at the Michael's in Westbury, Long Island on Friday, April 3rd at 12pm. She will be there to sign copies of the book and Hannah Milman, one of her crafts editorial directors, will be demonstrating some of the projects.

How would you like to win a copy of the book for yourself? Martha Stewart Crafts has been gracious to offer FIVE copies of the book to be given away to christynelson.net readers. Entering is easy:

1. Comment on this post. Share your own personal "good thing" if you feel inclined. It isn't mandatory. Just make sure you leave an email address, twitter id, or some other way for me to contact you.

2. Tell a friend about the giveaway. You can do this via your blog, twitter, kirtsy, stumble upon, telephone, walking next door, etc... Leave another comment telling me you did that.

You have until 10pm (Central time) Friday, April 3rd to enter. Winners will be posted on Saturday.

Make. Spring Chicks Free Crochet Pattern

Quick. Cute. Crochet. These little Spring Chicks have me in the mood for playing in the park and enjoying Spring. 

This is a free pattern found at Roman Sock.  I know I have the perfect yarns in my stash for this fun project.

Anyone care to crochet along with me?

Learn. How to Decoupage a Magnet Board

This tutorial was made possible by Craft Sassy. I had a chance to try out Crafty Sassy for myself and make my own darn scrapbook paper. I thought I was going to be all fancy and take my own high resolution pictures but I was too lazy and found some online here. I used two different images and made two 12 X 12 single-sided pages and two 6 X 6 single-sided pages.

The process was easy and while a little spendy compared to your typical scrapbook paper, I can see how this service could really appeal to those with those extra special projects. You can use your kid's artwork, family pictures, or design your own scrapbook page layout and have it professionally printed by Craft Sassy. Have you ever thought of designing your own line of scrapbook paper? They have information for wholesale opportunities as well.

The most difficult part of the whole process was deciding on my images. Once I did, I knew exactly what I was going to make with them. My sister-in-law sent me a magnet board earlier this month. Her sister, of mythreelittleladies, made it using a 12 X 12 piece of tin covered with scrapbook paper. I loved it and thought it would be the perfect way to showcase this special scrapbook paper.

The most difficult part of this project for me was to find the metal. I bought a 12 X 18 sheet of plated steel from a home improvement store. I brought it home to my handy husband to cut with his tin snips. He also broke out some tool to buff the edges. This is all optional, of course. I'm sure the home improvement store would help with the cutting if you ask the right person. My husband also drilled the holes in the metal. They are about 3/4" from the top and 1 1/4" from each side.

The only other things you'll need for this project are: Mod Podge, a paintbrush, scrapbook paper to fit your cut metal, and matching ribbon.

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1. Apply a layer of Mod Podge glue to one side of the metal. Don't be afraid to let your kids help you with this. At this point, it is really hard to mess this up.

2. Lay down your scrapbook paper. Use a bone folder to get out any creases or bubbles.

3. Use something to poke out the holes to match the ones on the metal. I just used the back of my paint brush.

4. Go get a drink of water or check your email. Give it a chance to dry a bit.

5. Apply a layer of Mod Podge to the top of the scrapbook paper. If you've never decoupaged before, that's really all there is to it.

6. Wait for it to dry. Maybe you can pick out your ribbon while you wait. Or, eat some chips and salsa. Your choice.

7. Cut two identical lengths of ribbon. Length will vary depending on how you want to hang your magnet board. Just make sure to leave plenty at the ends to tie. You can always cut it shorter but it is impossible to cut it longer.

8. Tie a knot. Trim the edges of the ribbon.

9. Enjoy.

I'll be posting a few of these in my etsy shop if anyone is interested.

March Craft Challenge Winner

Diane of dkdesigns is the winner of our March Craft Challenge As you can probably tell, she is a lampwork artist. I'm always in awe when I think that people take rods of glass and make these beautiful things out of them. As the winner of this month's challenge, Diane receives a bundle of patterns from YouCanMakeThis.Com. I hope you will all take the time to go and visit this month's sponsor. They offer quality patterns for instant download and their blog is full of great craft information. Diane will also receive next month's craft challenge packet for FREE!

The winner of the blog portion of the contest was Kelly of refibered. I did another random draw from the participants that blogged about their projects. As the winner, Kelly also receives next month's craft challenge packet for FREE!

Next month will be our biggest ever with 40 participants. Because the challenge is growing so much, there will be a slight change in the voting process. It will be explained in the packet so make sure you read the instructions carefully!

Congrats to the winners and I'm looking forward to next month! Packets will be mailed on April 1st.

If you would like to be a part of the craft challenge as a prize or supply sponsor, please read the FAQ page. The next available prize sponsor spot is July and I have supply sponsor spots available starting in May.

Paper Punch Storage Idea

I used to store all of my paper punches on a shelf. This quickly invited all the little hands in my house to play with them. They are sturdy enough that I was never worried that they would break, it was just a pain to try and find them again somewhere on my floor. I wanted to mount them somehow on the wall.

A few months ago we remodeled our bathroom and we had a leftover towel bar. We decided to install the towel bar in my craft room because it is the perfect thing to hold my Stampin' UP paper punches.

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Reminder: Today is the last day to buy your April craft challenge packet! Today is also the last day to vote for the winner of March's craft challenge. I will close the poll before I go to bed tonight.

Meet Marcie McGoldrick from Martha Stewart Living

Photo of Marcie McGoldrick by Ditte Isager

I had the opportunity this past week to do an interview via email with Marcie McGoldrick. She is the Editorial Director for Holiday and Crafts at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. Long title, dream job.

Just last month, they launched a new blog at MarthaStewart.com called The Crafts Dept. Through that blog we are able to see some of the behind the scenes happenings and even see what some of the employees like to work on in their spare time. One of my favorite posts was done by the TV staff. They did a post about the inspiration behind some of the crafts. This blog is a daily read for me and I'm sure that all of you will love it, too! Tell them Christy Nelson sent you!

Have you ever wondered how they choose products to feature in their magazines, books, and television spots? Marcie explained that each of them are inspired by different things like color, texture, etc... but what it ultimately comes down to are three things. They need to be useful, well made, and beautiful.

When I asked Marcie about the economy and what she thinks about the near future of arts and crafts, she remains optimistic. I wholeheartedly agree with her there. Marcie wrote, "There is so much value in learning a new craft. There is the activity itself, the learning that takes place and the physical reward of the final outcome."

Marcie is an accomplished artist in her own right. On doing my research for this interview, I happened upon her new etsy shop. Her craft of choice is ceramics and it looks like her work is rubbing off on her own shop. The items stocked there are useful, well made, and beautiful.


A new book, Martha Stewart's Encyclopedia of Crafts, is coming out on March 31st. I'll have more information about the book and review of it next Tuesday. Oh, and did I mention that I'll be giving away FIVE copies of the book to some lucky readers? When I asked Marcie about one of her greatest accomplishments, she mentioned being a part of The Crafts Dept. and this book. I imagine this was quite a task to gather all of the great information included in this resource book.

Before I finished with my questions, I had to ask Marcie what she might include if she were in charge of filling up the Christy's Craft Challenge packets. Her picks include some of her favorite tools.

1. Cutting mat--once you have one you can't craft without it.

2. Bone folder--essential for any paper crafter.

3. Screw punch-- it is a really versatile tool- you can use it like a regular hole punch (in 3 sizes) and it can also punch holes anywhere on a piece of paper.

4. Brown craft paper

5. Wax twine in a bright color


I hope you will all take the time to go and check out what's new at The Crafts Dept. and you can even follow them on twitter.

Vote for Your Favorite March Craft Challenge Entry

You have until March 27th to vote for your favorite! As usual, we'll have a few late stragglers and I'll get those pictures up as soon as I get them. If you'd like to participate in next month's challenge, you can read more about it at the FAQ page and sign up at my Etsy shop.

The winner of this poll will win a bundle of patterns from YouCanMakeThis.com. The winner will also receive a month of the craft challenge for free! I'll choose a second winner from any participants that blogged about their experience. That winner will receive a free craft challenge packet, as well.

Get voting!

Meet Our Sponsor Schlosser Designs

Today is the last day for any March participants to turn in their photos to me, or upload them to our flickr group. If you have yet to sign up for April's craft challenge, the deadline is quickly approaching. You have until March 27th. You won't want to miss out because our sponsor is Schlosser Designs.

I met Erin, the owner of Schlosser Designs, at the Mom 2.0 Summit. She is an interior designer by day and supercrafter and designer by night. On her blog you can find free downloads and great projects to try. Among other things, she designs clear stamp sets. Currently there are 4 stamp sets in her line but that is about to double in the next couple of weeks. They are so brand new that I can't even sneak an image for you. Let me just tell you that you will all be among the first to see them once they are unveiled.


Her stamp sets are so affordable. For $12.50 you get so many versatile images! I am truly impressed. I'm even more impressed that she is giving April's craft challenge winner a set of FOUR clear stamp sets PLUS the blocks you need to get started. This is over a $60 value. Did I mention that you can also choose from the brand new stamp sets that have yet to be revealed to the public?

I hope you'll take the time to go and look at what Schlosser Designs has to offer.

Make. Brenda's Baby Cakes Quilt.

This quilt is from the Baby Cakes pattern found in the book Strip Happy - Quilting on a Roll #5306. I was just thinking that it is the very first quilt I've made from start to finish but I forgot about a wall hanging quilt that I made for my mom (BY HAND...what was I thinking?) for her birthday a few years back.

The inspiration from this quilt came from a shirt. My friend, Brenda, sent me a box of yarn and other various craft supplies several months ago. Included in that package was one of her husband's old shirts. She told me that she loved that shirt and thought I might want to make it into a dress for my daughter like the ones I blogged about at crafty conservative. A few weeks later, Brenda's husband was killed in a car accident. I couldn't bring myself to making a dress out of that shirt so I made a quilt instead.

All of the light colored fabric is from the shirt. It had this great pleating detail all along the front of the shirt and I knew I wanted to showcase that. This pattern really was a perfect fit for what I wanted to do. It uses jelly roll size strips (2 1/2" X 42"). These are fairly easy to cut yourself or some quilting shops sell jelly roll packs of matching fabric already cut to that size. My local quilt shop, after hearing the background story of the quilt, used their in-house machine to cut the fabric for me. It was so quick and much appreciated. Thanks, The Quilted Kitty.

This quilt came together rather quickly and was virtually painless. I say virtually, because I had some minor mishaps with the binding. It was my first time to do it and I totally messed it up (a couple of times). One good thing that come out of that was I now have a walking foot for my machine. That was a lifesaver!

Despite my binding difficulties, I was smart enough to get it professionally quilted and I think it turned out really beautiful. The scallop edge around the quilt was what I added on the binding. I was careful to photograph the best part. There are some truly wonky scallops around it. I just told myself that this way, she'll always remember it was handmade by me!

To help me practice quilting, I've decided to join M and M Studio's quilting bee. I believe there are still a few slots open if you are interested in joining me. You can contact Maranda via email (click on her profile for the address) to sign up.

Purses By Ashley

Just over a month ago, I sent out a general message to my local etsy group to see if anyone was interested in making me a custom laptop bag. I wanted something big enough for my laptop, camera, and all my other purse items. I also wanted to have that pleated pocket on the front.

Ashley, from Purses by Ashley, was up for the challenge. I am already a fan of her work. I featured her Lynley bag on my Wishpot and love her style.

I picked out the fabric and she worked on the design. It was ready in just a few short weeks! I can't even begin to tell you how pleased I am about this bag. It fits everything I need and is very comfortable to carry.

There are pockets for my phone, Tide to Go pen (a must-have for any mom or busty gal, in my opinion!), Flip camera, and whatever else I can think of. There are three sections. The middle section is padded for my laptop. She included a wristlet, too! That was so convenient to have at the Mom 2.0 Summit when I didn't need my laptop but wanted to carry around some cash and business cards. You can be sure I'll be carrying this bag around at BlogHer, too!

If you are in the market for a laptop bag (or any bag, for that matter), please consider Ashley. I couldn't be happier and she is taking custom orders now!

Stuff I Like: Oak Boutique

Oak Boutique is a great place to find unique handmade gifts and clothing. They have an actual storefront in Boston, but for those of us that live in other parts of the world, we have the opportunity to shop their store online.

Matina Baby Booties

Keara is the owner and she is just 21 years old. I had a chance to interview her via email and I'd love to share with you more about her and some of the items available in her shop.Nesting Doll Coin Purse

Over 300 different artists have their items available at any given time. Because of that, you can be sure to find an excellent selection of handmade items to fit your unique style or a one of a kind gift.

Pink Cupcake Scarf

Keara has entrepreneurship running in her blood. Her mom owns a childrens clothing store and this kind of boutique seemed like a natural progression and fit for Keara. Oak will be celebrating their one year anniversary on April 2nd. Be sure to check it out!

Make. Princess Crown for Christy's Craft Challenge

Today I thought I'd share what I made for this month's craft challenge. If you signed up for the challenge this month, you have a little less than a week (Mar 24th) to get your pictures to me. Let this serve as a warning! If you're finished...send me your pictures already!

The five supplies from this month are: easter eggs, curling ribbon, fabric, buttons, and pearls. My daughter's birthday was last weekend and she wanted a princess crown. I figured that if I was going to make her one, I might as well use my craft challenge supplies!

I folded the fabric in half and cut out the basic design you see. I just free-handed it. After that, I used some embroidery floss to sew all my little goodies onto one of the layers. I cut the easter egg into bits and punched a hole in the middle (thank you Crop-a-dile). I cut a few pieces of curling ribbon and pulled them through the fabric with a needle. The buttons and pearls were sewn on. There was no rhyme or reason to the layout or placement. In fact, I just reached into the bag and attached whatever I pulled out.

I then took both layers to the sewing machine and sewed around the edges. I thought having raw edges would look good with this project so I didn't even bother doing it inside out. I left a small hole in the bottom for some stuffing. I added the poly-fill and then seamed up the bottom. I used a glue gun to attach it to a fabric covered hairband. She absolutely loves her princess crown!

Want to participate in next month's challenge? You can enter to win a 3 month subscription by commenting on this post. Or you can buy your own at my shop. You have until March 27th to purchase a packet for April. The prize sponsor for next month is Schlosser Designs. Don't miss out!

Submitted to Lazy Organizer's Talk About Tuesday

Win a 3 Month Subscription to Christy's Craft Challenge

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED! CONGRATS TO GINNY!

Today is the start of our week-long giveaway celebration for the Lincoln Handmade Etsy Team. We are close to 40 members strong here in our small community and a handful of us are participating in this event.

I'm kicking things off with the first giveaway of the week...a 3 month subscription to Christy's Craft Challenge. If you are new to the site and haven't heard about my craft challenge, I have a frequently asked question page that explains the details.

I started selling on etsy a few years ago in another shop but once I started my craft challenge, I realized that I didn't have enough hours in the day to dedicate myself to both. Combining crafting with competition was a no brainer for me--as I love them both!

Please take a moment to check out my new offerings at my etsy shop. I now have 3 month, 6 month, and year long subscriptions to the challenges available. Purchasing them in advance allows me to offer a bit of a discount.

All you have to do to enter this giveaway is leave a comment with your email or other contact information (twitter id is fine). I will draw a winner on March 18th. Good luck!

Lincoln Handmade Etsy Team Promotional Giveaways

Starting on Monday, the Lincoln Handmade Etsy Team will be hosting a week of giveaways. As a founding member of the team, I'm so pleased to be taking part! Make sure to take a look at the shops of those that are participating and follow us around during the week to win some great handmade items. I'm going to be giving away a 3 month subscription to Christy's Craft Challenge starting on Monday.

Make. Pi Appliqued T-Shirt

My daughter's birthday is Pi Day (3.14). Since both of her parents are certifiable geeks, I had to make her a Pi shirt.

I did a tutorial on fabric applique letters earlier this year but I've got a few more pictures this time so I thought I'd go over it again.

Supplies:

Heat n' Bond
Fabric cut to 6" X 6"
Iron
Scissors
T-shirt
Pi Pattern

The pi symbol I used was printed out at 75%. It prints out to roughly 5" X 5". Cut it out to make your template.

I made several appliques so I have a long strip of fabric. Add the heat n' bond to your fabric. Once it is cool, peel away the paper.

I just pinned my paper template directly onto the fabric. If you prefer to trace, place the template upside-down on the wrong side of the fabric.

Cut out your shape.

All that's left is to iron it on!

I made a few extra appliques to put in my etsy shop. It is just the iron-on symbol (not the t-shirt) and it is ready for you to put on anything you'd like! You can have a pi tote bag or make a cute onesie for your favorite math wiz's kid.

Stuff I Like: Pink Ghost

Pinkghost is an online designer toy store that is filled with some really clever and unique toys, clothing, accessories, and gadgets.

I had a chance to ask the owner some questions about her shop and I'd love to share part of that interview here.

Q: What criteria do you have when looking for new products to carry in your shop?

A: Pinkghost is really a collection of things my sister and I have fallen in love with. We do look to carry handmade items that have some special quality about them. They have to be innovative and have clean execution. We are drawn to products that are artistic and have a modern design. Handmade products that have great design and are functional get extra points. We are always looking for new artists and products to carry.



This is one of my personal favorites from their site. A Dunny is a small vinyl doll that is created to be customized and collected. There are so many different styles and some of them have become very rare.


Q: What is your best selling item?

A: Our best handmade selling item is the PinkyPunk. They are designed by South Florida artist Pachy Sarmiento. Each one is hand made and interactive. Whether you can zip their mouths closed and put their tongue away or a plush lollipop that sticks to their tongue. She also has more intricate ones where they have magnets at the end of their hands so two of them can hold hands and a heart you can pull out and stick back in. They are amazing works of art and they are also pretty big. The medium PinkyPunks have a body length of 2 feet but including their arms they can be upto 4 feet.

Pinkghost is offering a discount to my readers of 10% off any order! Go and take a look at their eclectic selection of toys and see if there are a few things you can't live without! Enter the code CRAFTY at checkout.

What is your favorite item from Pinkghost?

Virtual Stamp Workshop Yummy Treat Box

Here is the second of the projects for Raesha's Virtual Stamp Workshop. This treat box is so quick and easy!

Supplies:
Yummy Stamp Set (one of the sets you can get for FREE with any $50 order)
Big Shot Die Cut Machine
Box #2 Bigz XL Die
one piece of Bashful Blue cardstock cut to 6" X 11"
scrap of Whisper White cardstock
Classic stamp pad in Riding Hood Red
Scissors
1/4" white grosgrain ribbon (20 inches)
adhesive

You'll notice from yesterday's post that most of these supplies are the same! With just a core set of tools and papers, you can make a wide range of projects.

1. Place bashful blue cardstock over the box #2 die and run through the Big Shot machine.
2. Score at marked score lines (shown above).
3. Stamp "Yummy" sentiment using Riding Hood Red ink onto white paper.
4. Cut out design with scissors.
5. Use adhesive to attach sides of box. This is a great die cut because you only have to tape in two small areas.

6. Apply tape to one end of the grosgrain ribbon. Place it on the back of the box. Wrap the ribbon around, overlap the ends, trim, and adhere using more tape. See above for an example of this.
7. Adhere stamped cut-out to the front of the box.
8. Using the remaining ribbon, tie a small piece around the ribbon going around the box using a square knot.
9. Fill the box with yummy treats!
10. Give it away!

Remember, all orders placed at my Stampin' UP website until Thursday will count towards Raesha's virtual workshop. All orders will be sent directly to you. Take advantage of Sale-a-bration and get extra product for free with every $50 purchase. It's my favorite time of the Stampin' UP year!

Virtual Stamp Workshop Tart & Tangy Treat Pouch

Over the next few days I'll be helping Raesha, at My Love, host a virtual stamp workshop. She does the hosting...I do the workshop. Over the next two days, I'm going to show you how to make these two cute items. The one on the left is a box and the one on the right is a pouch to hold a baggie of goodies. I wanted to show something that was quick and easy to make that would most likely use most of the same supplies you already have.

Today I'll show you how I made the pouch on the right. Come back tomorrow for the box of yummy treats.

Supplies:

Tart & Tangy Stamp Set
one piece of Bashful Blue cardstock cut to 4" X 11"
Washington Apple Designer Series Paper cut to 4" X 4"
scrap of Whisper White cardstock
scrap of Riding Hood Red cardstock
Classic stamp pad in Riding Hood Red
Scallop punch
1 3/8" circle punch
1/4" white grosgrain ribbon (6 inches)
Crop-a-dile (or other hole punch)
adhesive

1. Lay Bashful Blue cardstock out lengthwise and score at 4", 5", and 9".
2. Adhere Washington Apple DSP to the 4 X 4 section of your pouch.
3. Stamp apple using Riding Hood Red ink pad on your white paper. Punch out using 1 3/8" circle punch.
4. Punch a scallop circle out of Riding Hood Red paper.
5. Use adhesive to attach white circle to scallop circle.
6. Fold over your pouch. Be careful to only apply adhesive to the top half of your stamped scallop. Attach to the flap of the pouch.
7. Use Crop-a-dile to punch a hole in the side through front two layers of paper only.
8. Tie with ribbon.
9. Wrap this around a little baggie of goodies.
10. Give it away!

Make. Needle Felting Projects

After my video tutorial on needle felting, I thought I would share some pictures of a few of my other needle felting projects. I made these when I was first learning. It shows a few other ways to incorporate needle felting into your craft arsenal.

The sheep is a wall hanging. I used long locks of wool for the body and lightly felted that area. It is done on one 11 X 14 piece of wool felt.

The turtle is a 3-D project made by starting with felting a ball of roving. You basically poke it until it becomes stiff and you can shape into your desired shape. I added colored roving on top to mimic the shell. It is a fun, small project.

Share your own needle felting projects at the christynelson.net flickr group.

March Craft Challenge Supplies

The March Craft Challenge packets were mailed earlier this week and should be making their way into the hands of the participants. If you haven't received yours yet, here is a preview of its contents.

Let's blame the Nebraska winter for the explosion of pastels. I so desperately want Spring to get here that I thought I could at least craft with it! The final pictures are due to me by March 24th. I'm taking sign-ups for April now as well. You can purchase a packet at my etsy shop.

The prize for this month is sponsored by You Can Make This and is a bundle of patterns worth over $25.

There is also a huge contest going on this month at Crafty Nation. The information on how to participate is at this Craft Off post. You might keep this in mind as you're making your craft challenge item. You can enter it in that contest as well!

I'm anxious to see what everyone creates! Be sure to check out the flickr group as well to meet some of the challenge participants and see pictures of finished projects.

Learn. How to Needle Felt

I've got a video tutorial ready to go for you to learn how to needle felt. It is a quick and easy technique that adds a lot to a finished project.

The needle felting kit I use in the video is available from Thompson's Corner in Iowa. LouAnne can be reached via email or phone and the kits are only $8! emma@netins.net (712) 825-3042

Stuff I Like: Reware Vintage

In honor of National Craft Month, I've got some great stuff to share with my readers. This first one comes from a great boutique website called Reware Vintage. The owner, Bethany Nixon, started the site in 2005 and shortly thereafter, got involved in the handmade scene and helped form Handmade Detroit.

The website features a variety of vintage items including clothes, housewares, and accessories. I even found a sheet that I used to have on my bed when I was little. The great thing about a site like this is they have new items all of the time so you can go check it out a few times a week and find "new" items.

What really hooked me were their record notebooks. The notebooks are made from vintage records and their cases. So crafty!

The notebooks are also refillable so even after you fill one up, you can just add more paper and keep writing! If you follow my personal blog, you probably know I'm a sucker for Neil. These notebooks measure 9" X 6" so they are just the right size to carry around as a journal or inspiration notebook.


You can never go wrong with Dolly, either. Not a fan of Neil or Dolly? There are so many to choose from including the Beatles, Bruce Springsteen, Grease, Johnny Cash, The Partridge Family, and Billy Joel. This is one of those items that is a really thoughtful gift for any music lover in your life (or favorite craft blogger).

Do you have some LPs hanging around your house that you'd like made into a notebook? Reware Vintage is happy to oblige. Small print: It should be noted that these cannot be guaranteed as some albums are fragile and crack under pressure.

In honor of National Craft Month, Reware Vintage is offering my readers a special discount. Use the coupon code "CRAFTY" when you checkout and you will receive 15% off your total purchase. Have fun shopping and if you purchase something, I'd love to see what you got! Leave a comment or share a picture with us at the christynelson.net flickr group.

all photos courtesy of Reware Vintage

National Craft Month

March is National Craft Month! I've blogged about it already over at Type-A-Mom and at Crafty Nation so I won't rehash it all here. I just want to say I'm super excited about it.

I'm kicking it up a notch around here and in addition to providing my usual tutorials, projects, and craft challenge, I'm going to be writing about some of my favorite books, tools, and products. I've also got some inspiring crafters to introduce to you.

Here's a poll to help me know what you are most looking forward to this month.