Primitive Times Magazine: How-To's

Showing posts with label How-To's. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 02, 2008

January Edition of Primitive Times Magazine

Click here to download the latest issue

Tuesday, November 06, 2007

Mary Jo’s Segment on our Prim Family

Hello Prim Talk Radio Listeners, this is Mary Jo with
FineCountryLivingPrimitives.com. I’m sorry I missed last week’s show. My husband
and I are opening our own brick and mortar store here on our property and we are
doing all the work ourselves to save on start up costs. What we are paying for
is our lack of extra time, and last week the days just got away from me!

I’m glad to be back this week, but I’m here with a bit of sad news. A few
months ago, Angie had a wonderful segment on joining eBay groups and networking.
I’ve been a member of a wonderful eBay group for well over a year now called
APCG A Primitive Country Gathering. Many of our contributors here and on
Primitive Times Magazine are also members, and it is a wonderful gathering of
primitive sisters and we share the love of crafting, art, and sisterhood.

Our wonderful leader since the beginning is Kassy. Kassy passed away just
this week after an illness, and it is devastating news for all of us in our very
close-knit group. She was a wonderful person, and touched each and every person
she ever met with her unending kindness, support and love.

We will miss Kassy greatly, and I want this segment to be in honor of her and
what she has taught me. This segment is going to be about our primitive
community.

Until I entered into this community of primitive lovers and crafters, I never
knew that it existed. It’s not a community located in one place, it consists of
many locations throughout our country and even our world, but brought together
with everyone’s love for primitives and things that remind us of the simpler
times.

This community ranges from the online magazines and craft malls, through to
chat rooms, eBay groups and WAHM forums where people gather to meet and chat
about our work. What ends up happening is you see one person in one forum, then
maybe when you read a great online article or hear a segment on a pod cast such
as Prim Talk Radio, you realize that it’s that person you’ve been chatting with
online for a few months. Many forums do exchanges where you are partnered up
with another member and you exchange something handmade and it’s amazing how
much you get to know a person just from that little gesture!

When I speak of our prim community with what I call “outsiders” such as my
family and my local friends and neighbors, people look at me as if I’m a bit
crazy! I will be laughing and tell them of a story I heard from one of my
friends, and they will say something like “Who?” I then usually reply, “Oh, my
online friend Michele, or Renae”, and they just don’t understand that you really
create a bond with these people.

We all share a common thread with our love of primitives, and many of us are
WAHM’s that are always there for each other when times get crazy or tough. Many
times we bounce new ideas off of each other or ask one another for opinions on
store names, or new doll ideas, because only one of us prim lovers can truly
understand what the other is saying or even thinking.

I guess that what I’m trying to say is that it is a large community online
for us crafters and prim lovers, but it is also so small when we all get to know
each other, support each other, and lend a helping hand when needed.

I encourage all of you to get involved with this little community if you have
not already. And if you have, next time you are online, say thank you to your
friends who always seem to be there when you need them most, those who truly
understand how hard it is to work from home and take care of the kids, cook
dinner and do the chores all at once. Take the time to tell those sisters in
your community that they mean the world to you, because someday, they just may
not be there to hear it.

I truly didn’t want this to be a sad segment, and I’m sorry if it sounded
like it was. I want this segment to be a reminder of how special so many of you
are and to continue to enjoy each other’s company. I know that myself, and many
of us, will miss our dear sister Kassy, but I also know that this community
meant so much to her, and if she could, she would encourage all of us to share
our passions with others as she shared hers with so many of us.

May we all continue our sisterhood in her honor and thank you all for being a
part of this special community!

Fine
Country Living Primitives

http://finecountrylivingprimitives.com/store/Default.asp

Saturday, July 14, 2007

Prim Talk Radio Show #65 Friday July 13th

Today’s Show:

* Angie host of Heartland Graphics will be sharing a segment on how to sell on Ebay for the Holiday Season this is Part 1
* Michelle Lammers from Scrappin with Army Wife talks getting crafts ready for the Holiday Season
* Mary Jo Elliott our newest staff member from Fine Country Living Primitives talks to you about Auctions and Estate Sales
* Aurelia Williams our Personal Development Coach discusses put more balance in your life
* Renae from Prim Clipper is on vacation!
* Vicky will be talking about how to make Tie Dye Crafts with your kids
* Feathured Crafter Interview this week is with Michele from Holly Tree Primitives
* Grab our Advertising Special 6 months of Front Page advertising plus mention on every show for 50% off normal prices the total is only $50 for six months! Click here to order!
* Our Top 5 Partner Program-Get your site listed for FREE
* Aurelia’s Podcast-“Parenting My Teen”
* Jessica Archer-Song “At Last”
* Tim Armstrong Band=Song “Listen to your Heart”
Click here to visit our site
Click here to download our show

Thursday, May 31, 2007

New Crafting Forum - New Graphics Forum

I must be a real sucker for trying out new things, *lol* like I don't have enough to keep me busy. I recently opened a new crafting forum/community called

The Crafter's Lounge

Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

Only today, I created a *new & improved*

Unique Boutique Graphics Community

I have a MSN group also called Unique Boutique that I've had for several years now. There have been a lot of 'technical' problems the last 6 months or so that just don't seem to be getting any better so I thought it was time to move the group to a new hosting site.

I chose Proboards.com

1. they are free

2. I know how to navigate these boards

3. I have more control over boards, moderators

4. love the PM and Email options

5. love that you can customize the forum skins/colors anytime you wish

6. you can create categories, subcategories, boards, subboards, modify, reorder, move, and delete

7. avatars - you can use the ones provided, or you can delete those and make and upload your own ( which I have done in the craft forum so far ) or you can customize your own and link to it from a photo hosting site if you don't want to use the community's.

8. you can lock boards, have polls, designate who can post, reply, appoint moderators to help keep an eye on the boards

If you are looking for another craft forum ( there are lots of them out there now ) or would like to join up with a graphics forum - hope you'll stop by to see me! Tell 'em Neenee sent ya.

Posted by: Neenee
KKL Primitives

The Crafter's Lounge online crafter's community/forum
The Krazy Kraft Lady Blog
KKL Graphics Blog
KKL Kreations Blog
Menopausal Monster Blog

Unique Boutique Graphics Community

contributing editor for:
Primitive Times Magazine a free downloadable magazine for crafters
Primitive Times Magazine Blog

Friday, May 11, 2007

WHAT'S NEW On Our Editors Pages

Our editors are always adding NEW content to their pages of our Primitive Times Magazine website. Since we wouldn't want you to miss anything NEW we decided that we'd tell you about the NEW content that is added to our editors pages each month on our Primitive Times Magazine Blog. That way you'll always know what's NEW.

This month we have quite a few NEW articles on the editors pages of our Primitive Times Magazine website that we thought you might like to know about.

Here's what's new:

Neenee's Nook
Basically, Neenee's whole page is brand new and she has already added 2 great crafting articles that prim lovers are sure to enjoy. Plus, Neenee is a terrific graphics artist and she has added some of her wonderful FREE graphics including dolls, bears, fairies, mammies, sheep, angels and more.

Free Stick Horse Pattern by Neenee
Handmade Potpourri
FREE Graphics From Neenee
Boiling Ham and Cabbage Recipe
FREE Doll, Bear, & Fairy Graphics From Neenee - NEW
Making a Candle Jar - NEW

From The Crow's Nest by Debbie

Debbie has two great articles for prim crafters.

Tea Staining Fabric NEW
Rusting Items NEW

Dear Linda
If you like learning the history of certain items be sure to checkout Linda's latest article on the history of faceless dolls. If you like dolls and history you'll love reading this article and the other articles on Linda's "Dear Linda" page.

The History of Faceless Dolls-NEW

Prim Business Articles by Angie

Angie added another great business article on website how-to's.

Website How-To's - NEW

There's a ton of information on all our editors pages. We have everything from Free Graphics, Free Patterns, Recipes, Craft Projects, Business Tips, Craft Tips, Historical Articles, Advice for WAHM's, How-To's, Prim Crafting Tips, and so much more.

We hope you get a chance to stop by our Primitive Times Magazine website and read the latest from our editor's pages.

Copyright © 2007 - All Rights Reserved - Written Linda Walsh of Linda Walsh Originals, Linda Walsh Originals E-Patterns,Linda Walsh Originals DOLLS NEW Handmade Dolls & Crafts Website, Linda Walsh Originals Dolls and Linda's Blog. Linda is a doll maker and doll pattern designer. http://lindawalshoriginals.com

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Congratulations on your new store, now where are the sales? by Angie Wenke

Congratulations on your new store, now where are the sales? by Angie Wenke

So you just spent a fortune opening your website and designing it, then countless hours adding your products and tweaking the site to make sure it is user friendly. Now the big question where are the sales? How many times have I been asked this question over the years?

This when I have to lay the unfortunate reality check on them. A good online business with a reputable reputation may take 2-5 years to develop a good customer base. This may be harsh reality for a lot of people, but it is better to be upfront and honest and realize even though your website may be awesome, and you may offer wonderful unique products. In a sea of Primitive and Country Craft websites yours may just be flopping out there hidden amongst them until your site is recognized.

Designing your website, picking out your domain name and adding your products are simply the beginning. You will need to look at your online business as a baby. A baby yes you heard me correctly. Over the next few months you will need to nurture and care for your website in order to see it grow. Meaning lots of hard work and advertising to obtain a good customer base. Let’s take the reality in that with a lot of love, hard work and determination your business will be huge success, just don’t expect it to take off overnight or you business will surely fail.

Let’s start with the basics to help you advertise your site effectively without breaking your start up budget.

1. Submitting your site to Search Engines:

Nothing is more important than having your site indexed by Search Engines. If you site is not properly indexed you will be lost out in cyberspace and no one will be able to find you.

Most people are familiar with search engines and use them on a daily basis. Search engines like Yahoo, Google, MSN and AOL are your target search engines to reach as these will bring you the most customers on the long run.

If you cannot afford to hire someone to do this for you you can find many FREE search engine submission sites out there. The key is to have your keywords set and ready and your Meta tags and then submit your site often to the major search engines. A site I recommend for FREE search engine submission is http://www.submitexpress.com and http://www.addpro.com.

2. Finding your Keywords:

Keywords are simply in basic terms any and all words that describe your business and products you are offering. The best advice I can give you is sit down and take a notebook and paper and write down all the words that describe your products and business, and then organize them by what is important on your site. Make your keywords a true reflection of your site. For example if you are selling candles some of your keywords may be:

Grubby, votives, candles, candle supplies, candle making, candle care tips, jar candles, bakery candles and so on and so forth. Don’t forget when making your list of keywords that you put the city and state you are located in as keywords, and the name of your site. A great site to help you with your keywords is Goggle’s Ad Words tool at https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal

3. Fine tuning your site for search engines:

Once you have done everything above there are few more tips to help boost or optimize your site. When adding the title of your site in your HTML coding also add a few keywords. For example: Title of my faux shop is “Angie’s Prim Candles” so my title of my site would be “Angie’s Prim Candles-Best Primitive Handmade Candles around” this just highlighted three major keywords to my site, Primitive, Handmade and Candles. You can adjust this saying to pertain to each page of your site.

For example on your jar candles page maybe put “Angie’s Prim Candles-Handmade Jar Candles” Also I cannot stress enough to make sure you have your keywords added to each and every page of your site, just because one of your page is just a contact you page does not mean it doesn’t need keywords added.

4. Forums and Directories:

These are a wonderful avenue for your advertising, visit forums that interest you like a Work at Home Mom’s forum or a Country craft forum and meet other people and advertise your site in each message by adding your site’s URL to your profile page. So every time you make posts you are leaving your URL also. Now I must stress that your post are important too! No one likes someone who only goes into a forum to advertise and then leaves; add content to each forum or directory so customers can get to know you.

5. Link Exchanges:

Google is one of the Major search engines around and how their system works is comparing your site to other sites and basing where to rank you by how many sites link to your site. Therefore exchanging links with other customers is both beneficial for parties exchanging and now a days crucial to getting your site seen. With that being said, it is also crucial you are exchanging links with reputable sites that are similar to yours. Meaning you will not want to exchange links with an auto parts store if you are selling candles, but rather another country or primitive site.

The bottom line is with a lot of work your business will be a huge success, just put in lots of love and hard work and watch your baby grow. And when things get discouraging just remember tomorrow is a new day and things can only get better.

Author:

Angie Wenke is the owner-designer of Heartland Graphics and Heartland Marketplace.

"I started in the craft community by offering crafts of my own I started selling gift baskets and some handmade unique crafts of my own. That is how I met such wonderful crafters, then I started my first site Heartland Marketplace which has been a huge success! Then I started created graphics which has been my true passion and I started Heartland Graphics!"

http://www.heartlandgraphics.org

To find more great articles like these please visit
Primitive World Magazine

Monday, February 05, 2007

What's In Our February 2007 Issue? Lots and Lots of Goodies!

The February 2007 FREE Primitive Times Magazine E-Issue was just released and you might be wondering what's inside. Well, there's a TON of GOODIES inside!

The FREE February 2007 issue of Primitive Times Magazine (i.e. e-zine) is "Hot Off The Presses!" and ready for for you to download and you're going to love it.

It's jam packed with 29 pages of terrific information for crafters, small business, and website owners.

Just look at what's included:

FREE Patterns

FREE Valentine Hugs E-Doodle from Heartland Graphics

FREE Kindred Spirits E-Doodle from Olde-Time-Stitchin

FREE Fluffy Tail Bunny Pattern from Cats In The Barn

FREE Valentine Crow Poke Pattern by Debbie

FREE Flower Vase E-Doodle from Olde-Time-Stitchin

FREE Spring Thyme E-Doodle from Niki Jackson

FREE Sweetheart Pillow by Paula

FREE Ewe Are Special E-Doodle by Heartland Graphics

FREE Crafting Ideas

Make Your Own Mouse Pads by Wanda

Valentines Day Gift Certificates Printable

Valentine's Day Edible Bouquet

Rocks for Your Valentine by Dianne

Smelly Jellies

FREE Articles

When One Door Closes Part 2 by Missy Sue

Winter Tyme Blues By Brenda

Have You Upgraded to IE7 and Wishing You Hadn't by Nancie

How To Design an E-Pattern and a Print Pattern Part 1 by Linda

Happy Valentine's Day From Linda

Cupid By Dianne

Getting Creative With Advertising by Lisa

Reflecting With Nancie

Goal Setting for 2007 by Angie

FREE Graphics and Printables

FREE Valentine's Day Gift Certificates Printable

8 FREE Graphics by Heartland Graphics

FREE Recipes

Valentine Hearts Cookies

Kids-adillas

BLT-quesadilla

Renae's Cherry Chocolate Dump Cake

Aunt Margaret's Sugar Cookies With Paula

Hearthside Coffee

Edible Valentine's Grahams

Love Portion

Heart Shaped Cookies by Brenda

Product Review

Seneca Pond Lamp Reviewed by Brenda

Featured Crafter

Carrie from Prim Market

Front Page Picture Donor

Debbie's Valentine Crow Poke Pattern from Two Old Crows

It's filled to the brim with wonderful how-to's, ideas and articles. You definitely don't want to miss ALL THE GOODIES!

And, you can DOWNLOAD IT RIGHT HERE!

Copyright © 2007 - All Rights Reserved - Written By Linda Walsh of Linda Walsh Originals, Linda Walsh Originals E-Patterns, and Linda's Blog. Linda is a doll maker and doll pattern designer. http://lindawalshoriginals.com

Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Linda's NEW "Linda How-Do-I-Series?"

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

What The....Are Plugboards?

It seems like everyone in the online crafting crafting community is getting a plugboard for their website or blog.

A what?

A Plugboard!

What's that?

Well, basically they are FREE remotely hosted boards that you can create using customized HTML code that allow users to add their advertising banner themselves onto the plugboard on your website or blog. Their banners remain on your plugboard until they are bumped off, in which case, they can return and plug their banner again. This creates traffic for your website as the users keep coming back to your website to see if their banner is still there.

Using plugboards is very, very easy. Users just need to enter two pieces of information into the two clickable boxes on the bottom of your plugboard. They enter their button or banner URL and website or blog URL and then click "PLUG". Their banner is then added to your plugboard.

Where can you get a plugboard? At Plug-Board.com

They are easy to use and can host 4 different size banners: 88x31, 88x15, 50x50, and 468x60. Most plugboards house 88x31 size banners. Each plugboard can hold 60 buttons. However, this can be adjusted so your plugboard can hold more or less buttons. You can change the "Buttons per row" and/or "Number of rows" of buttons in your settings. 10 buttons are archived at any point in time so if you need to delete a button then you won't have a blank hole in your plugboard.

Each plugboard can be easily customized and controlled through a simple easy to use control panel that you can access on the plugboard website. You can edit and control who uses your plugboard by deleting buttons you don't want, ban users IP's you don't like, and ban domains. There is also a "Flood control" feature that holds the specified seconds between plugging times to help prevent spammers. You can also set you account up so that you are email notified when someone plugs on your board. You can even decide what background color you'd like to use for your plugboard or make it transparent.

After you establish an account and sign-in you will be brought to your "Posts" page where you will see all the banners on your plugboard. If this is a brand new plugboard they will all be blue in color with the text "Plug Your Site Here." You will also notice that there is a horizontal menu just above plug administration at the top of the page. The menu has the following options: Posts, Settings, Restrictions, HTML Code, Account, and Logout.

Each of these pages allows you to do different things to control your plugboard, which are as follows:

Posts - Here you can delete a banner, ban an IP address, ban a domain, and edit the IP of the button. The latter is useful if someone accidentally enters a URL or a website or banner with a typo and would like you to correct it.

Settings - On this page you can change your plugboards settings. You can change the background colour, disable posting, enter the number of seconds you want for flood control to prevent spammers, change the button size, change the number of buttons per row, change the number of rows, and edit your email notify.

Say for example you want to change your plugboard which uses 88x31 size banners from having 60 buttons set-up as 10 buttons per row and 6 rows to fit the sidebar of your blog. You would change the number of buttons per row to 2 and the number of rows to 30. If you want a really large plugboard on your website you might change the number of buttons per row to 8 and the number of rows to, say, 15 so your plugboard now holds 120 banners.

If you want to change the background field then just type the hex code without the # into the box or leave it blank for transparent.

If you don't want other people to post on your plugboard then click in the disable posting box and it will add a check mark there which will prevent users from posting their banner to your plugboard.

Flood control helps with spammers and contains the number of seconds you want to allow between plugs. Leave the flood control field blank to disable it.

If you want to be notified when someone adds their banner to your plugboard then check the E-mail box.

If you change anything in your settings then you need to click "Update" so your settings are changed.

Restrictions - On this page you are able to remove the ban on multiple IPs or URLs that you may have previously banned. Each row shows either an IP being blocked or a URL being blocked. To add an IP, enter the IP under "IP" and click Update. You do not have to enter a URL to ban an IP or vice versa.

HTML Code - This page contains the customized HTML or Alternate Javascript code you need to add to your website or blog based upon the settings you chose. All you need to do is to copy and paste the HTML code from the first box to wherever you would like your plugboard to be displayed. If you know HTML you can edit the code on your website. For example, the default for the plugboards is "center" alignment. You might want to change the code so the alignment is "left" or right" to better suit your website or blog.

I have found that the HTML code is the best code to use for most websites and blogs. There is an Alternative Javascript code in the second box. I have used this as well. However, I have found that when there is a problem with the plug-board.com website that the Javascript code tends to freeze the plugboard and not allow the rest of a blog to be displayed. If there is a problem on the Plug-board.com website the HTML code will leave the plugboard blank or show an error message.

Account - This page has your plugboard account information on it and it can be edited. Leave the password field blank if you do not want to change it.

Logout - For signing off your plugboard account.

You might be wondering if there are any rules for plugging. Who may or may not plug on your plugboards is entirely up to you. You determine the criteria for plugging and then remove those plugs that don't meet your criteria. Just make sure that your rules are clearly posted near your plugboard. For example, your rules might be as follows:

RULES: Please feel free to plug your website or blog if you are in craft related industry. We are a family-friendly website. Any non family-friendly plugs will be removed. Please only plug once and then wait for your banner to be removed before plugging again. Enjoy the plug.

Plugboards are a lot of fun and I should know. I have 8 of them. So, come on! Start plugging!!!!! You don't want to miss out on all the fun - do you!

Copyright © 2007 - All Rights Reserved - Written By Linda Walsh of Linda Walsh Originals, Linda Walsh Originals E-Patterns, and Linda's Blog. Linda is a doll maker and doll pattern designer. http://lindawalshoriginals.com

Wednesday, December 27, 2006

Scherenschnitte Shelf Edging by Debbie

Scherencshnitte is scissor cutting and was brought to America during the 17th century by Germans who immigrated to Pennsylvania. It is a way of creating intricate paper designs that were originally used for embellishing birth and marriage certificates, valentines and house blessings. The directions here are for what is called poor man's lace because it is made out of newspaper but makes a delightful shelf border.

Materials:
Newspaper
Pencil
Ruler
Scissors
Scallop craft scissors or pinking shears
Cardboard
Paper clips
Tracing paper
Hole punch
Paper towel
Iron

A variety of folk images can be used for the design……houses, trees, hearts, diamond shapes, snowmen ….the variety is as endless as your imagination. You will need to draw the half pattern design( this just means draw a heart and cut it down the middle) on to a piece of cardboard and cut it out

Now measure the shelf you wish to lines depth and width add 3 1/2 inches to the depth measurement. Mark this measurements using your pencil and ruler on the classified pages of a newspaper. Keep the columns vertical this will make it so the scalloped edge border of your lining will be on the white margin of the newspaper. Now test your shape or shapes for fit making sure the paper lies flat on the shelf and the paper edge hangs freely over the edge. Trim as necessary.

Work along the area designated for the overhang. Use the bottom edge of the column as the baseline to keep your design going straight. For each pattern fold the newspaper once along the margin between the columns or along the middle of the column depending on where you want the design to be. Make a crease about 5 inches deep. Place the pattern on the folk and paper clip to secure. Cut along the pattern. For each quarter pattern work only one piece of paper at a time. Fold the paper in half vertically the same as for the half patterns, and then fold the paper again horizontally centering the folk in the overhang area. Position the designs on the newspaper matching the folk. Trace and cut out. Use the hole punch for small circular cutouts. Space the designs 1 or 2 inches apart. Remember this is only newspaper so if you make a mistake its no big deal!

Layer two or more of the cut-paper shelf edging together and cut the scallop edge with craft scalloping scissor or pinking shears.

To get rid of the creases made by folding the newspaper, iron it with an dry iron set on hot setting. Place a paper towel over the newspaper and press the creases for a few seconds.

Remember if you make a mistake this is only newspaper and no great loss but it makes a charming border for an old primitive cabinet or shelf. Other papers such as brown kraft paper, butcher paper and gift wrap can also be used. The motif can be changed with the seasons or to match any décor of a room, the uses are endless.

Debbie owns "Two Old Crows" (www.2oldcrows.com)
and an eBay store "Two-Old-Crows"\
(http://stores.ebay.com/Two-Old-Crows)
where she sells her hand painted folk art and
other handcrafted items she makes along with
antiques,
primitives and vintage collectibles

For more great articles please visit our Primitive Times Magazine it is a FREE Downloadable Magazine

Saturday, December 23, 2006

THE ANNUAL "MAKING OF THE ORNAMENTS

I don't know how it is at your house, but around here, on the day after Thanksgiving, the mom's go shopping, and the little ones decend upon Meme's house to make their yearly "surprises" for mom and dad, and help Meme design some great Christmas ornaments.

Since we have baked our ornaments the weekend before, they are all dry and ready to go. Early in the morning they get out my button box, beads, glitter, paint, sealer, glue, and rolls of ribbons and holiday picks. They drag out 5 large plastic storage bins full of Christmas craft supplies. They're treasure chests for the grandkids, and they spend the first hour going through everything, thinking up ideas, trading great finds with each other, and setting up their work space where no one can see what they are doing. The "priceless masterpieces" are about to be started! We decided to share our favorite ornie receipes, and give you some hints on how to make the "GREATEST" ornies ever!

Click here to read more

Gardening in the Winter by Debbie

Most of us live in places that we are not allowed to garden outside during the winter months, what better way to still enjoy gardening and bringing some life to your home during the winter than to container garden in windows. Houseplants can be a wonderful addition to any décor and give us that lift our spirits need from having some living thing around us, they are much less trouble and easier to take care of than a pet. Here are a few suggestions I have found helpful in raising healthy houseplants.

Click here to read more

Making Snowballs... by Paula

I know that there are bunches of patterns being sold for these. But I thought I'd share my way of making them....these are so fun and really easy. Great for throwing in old trenchers after Christmas when you've taken down the decorations and it's still to early for your Spring goodies.

Snowball how-to
Materials:

12-gauge wire; wire cutters; plastic foam balls in assorted sizes; needle-nose pliers; plaster mix; old spoon; pearlescent white spray paint; white glitter.

Click here to read more

Tips and Tricks for Great Stitchings by Niki

I just love to stitch! I’ve been stitching since I was 10 years old when my Grandma B. showed me how.

First off, I always tea stain or coffee stain my fabric. I like the look of a stitching on stained fabric, rather than plain white. Most times I use muslin.

I always back my muslin with batting. I prefer Hobbs, as the Warm N Natural sometimes ‘beards’ and if you are using black thread you can see it come through to the front. I have used Warm N Natural too, though.

Click here to read the rest of the article

Saturday, November 18, 2006

Baby Food Jar Centerpiece

Materials You will need:

15 baby food jars, cleaned, with lids

White glue
Christmas ribbon and decoration (optional)
Small Christmas lights
Hammer
Large pliers
Tin foil, cardboard backing, gold/silver paint (optional)
1. The first part of this project - gluing the jars together to form the tree shape - took the longest. (I opted to use white glue instead of hot glue or just "rubber-banding" them together.) I allowed each row to dry before adding the next row, laying 5 jars down on their sides and bracing them together with blocks of wood on each end. When the glue was dry, I added the next row of 4 jars, then the next row of 3 and so on.

2. Using the hammer and screwdriver, pound a hole in the center of each lid. (I used a block of wood, placed the screwdriver in the center, and gave it a good whack, then wiggled the screwdriver back and forth to enlarge the hole.) Protect your fingers and the lights from sharp edges by wrapping the hole with tin foil or electrical tape. I used tin foil and left large pieces hanging out into the center of the lid, because I liked the shiny effect.

3. Insert lights through the lids and screw the lids onto the jars.

4. Decorate with ribbon and Christmas doodads as you like. My Christmas colors this year will be burgundy, gold and white, so I used burgundy ribbon and bows, and some gold decorations.

5. If your centerpiece will sit against a wall, that's all you need to do. However, I want to place my centerpiece in the window sill, and the back will be visible. So, I cut out a piece of cardboard to match the size of my jar-tree and painted it metallic gold. I attached the cardboard using a piece of ribbon, tying a bow at the back. If I get really ambitious, I may make another one of these and stand them back to back in the middle of the table!

Apple Wreath

Miniature Apple Wreath

Whether you choose miniature apples like ours or full-size replicas, this wreath will look great for weeks. Door Decoration

Celebrate the arrival of apple season with this beautiful wreath constructed with look-alikes. All you need is a flat twig wreath, artificial apples, greenery, berries, and a hot-glue gun.

First, glue small sprigs of greenery around the edges of the wreath, following the shape of the wreath. We used dried asparagus fern for our lush base.

Next, use hot glue to attach the bottom of the first apple to the top center of the heart shape. Leaving the stem pointing out creates a focal point. Then, glue the sides of the rest of the apples to the wreath, following the shape of the heart.

Courtesy of Better Home and Gardens

Tuesday, November 07, 2006

A LESSON IN APPLIQUE By Niki from Niki's Sew Country

Traditional quilting we see all around us (stars, 9 patch, etc) is made by using pieced blocks, with rotary cutters and sewing machine, i.e. piecing blocks with smaller pieces by hand. We’ve all seen the cute little shapes and figures added to quilts. These are appliquéd to quilts. This is my favorite part of quilting. The possibilities are endless. You can add a name to a quilt. Maybe a saying. Something special you want to tell the person you’re giving the quilt to.
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Pumpkin Centerpiece by Renae

Don't throw those pumpkins out just yet!! I know if you're like my family, we love to roast the pumpkin seeds after cleaning out the pumpkin, but it doesn't stop there. I cut away as much of the pumpkin as I can and cook it down and use it in my handmade soaps or whatever else I feel like cooking up at the time. What a beautiful centerpiece this will make for your festive table.
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Sweet Potato Garland From Debbie

weet potato garland is a wonderful accent to primitive or country decor. Stringed sweet potato garland is perfect for hanging on a primitive tree or as garland on a fire place or doorway. I don’t suggest putting it outside unless you don’t mind the varmit and birds eating it.
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Thursday, September 28, 2006

Doll Purfume recipe-From Wandas Country Farmhouse

Wandas Country Farmhouse has a new article on Primitive Times Magazine titles "Doll Perfume Recipe" here is a small sample

Doll Purfume recipe

I use my doll perfume recipe on all my dolls, and I thought I would like to share with other crafters, it's fun and very easy..

RECIPE FOR DOLL PERFUME

I use this on all my dolls, they smell sooo good!

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