Make It Monday - Standing Spinner card

I've always loved making spinner cards, there's just something fun and magical when they spin! Before it was cumbersome to make the cut-out windows either by hand or you were limited to positioning if you used a punch. Well, thank goodness for dies! Now, placement is not a problem and there are shapes galore! We have a project sheet to make this card, but here are some of my additional tips.

 

Cut four pieces of cardstock; in this case we used a standard card size of 4 1/4" x 5 1/2". If you are using a printed cardstock, pay attention to the direction of the printed design, you want to make sure that the cardstock pieces are in the 5 1/2" tall and  4 1/4" wide format. Score each piece vertically down the middle at 2 1/8".

It's easier to use a nested set of dies so that you can use two sizes of the die and know that the window cut-out and the spinner will match. I used the two on the bottom from the set.

To make sure that all of the windows will be in the same place, make a mark 1" down from the top at the middle. I folded the cardstock at the scored line and used the score board to measure.

Place the top of the larger die at that mark and center the die over the scored middle line and cut out. Repeat with the other three pieces.

 

Take the same die shape and go one size smaller. Die cut two for the spinner.

Take one piece and lay a length of beading thread down the middle, leaving tails hanging out from the top and the bottom. Tape down securely. For this, I use the shiny cello Scotch tape because it has a stronger hold, not the "magic" one that is meant to be easily removed.

Double stick tape the two spinner pieces together. You can decorate the spinner now or later.

Now, place the spinner inside one of the window cut-outs. Center and tape the beading thread down along the center scored line; keeping the thread taut. I like to turn the thread tails at an angle and then tape again to make it even more secure.

 

 

Take another of the window cutouts and add double stick tape all around one half on the wrong side. Align the window and edges with the first piece and just tape down that one half. Repeat with the other two pieces until you have taped all four pieces together and have formed a "+" with the spinner hanging in the middle of the windows.

 

Before putting the card inside of the envelope, it is fun to wind up the spinner first. When the card is pulled out, the spinner will spin and there will be the added element of surprise!

Have fun making these for all kinds of occasions, especially for co-workers so they can prop them up on their desks for everyone to enjoy! Thanks for stopping by for this week's Make It Monday and Happy Crafting!

Make It Monday - Bunny Fans!

Easter is just around the bend and sadly, the weather report says it's might be kind of muggy. So, what to do?!



 

Make some bunny fans to keep you cool during those egg hunts!

 

They are fast and easy to make, here's a project sheet for both the bunny face and bunny butt!

 

Even Trini of Living808 had fun making one, here's a video.

 

So, whether you're a FAN of bunnies, or not, you'll want to make some of these for a

Cool Easter!

 

Thanks for stopping by today and wishing you a Fun, Safe and Happy Spring!

 

Celebrating our 300th Show!

Mahalo to all of you who have supported the Joy of Crafting Show and HouseMart Ben Franklin Crafts all these years! We truly appreciate each and every one of you! And we wouldn't have been able to hit this milestone without you, WOW! 300 shows! As in show #299, we are giving away some Mahalo prizes throughout the month, so don't forget to enter to win! So, who's on the show?

 

Of course, our favorite paper crafter, Cheryl Miyashiro stopped by to celebrate with us. She made a cute gift card holder using dandelion designs rubberstamps. I just love Jean's characters, especially her pandas!

Guess what?! To celebrate, we'll be giving away a panda set and a elephant set, autographed by Jean herself! Thanks, Jean and Cheryl!

And as always, we love having new guests on the show. So, meet Kaniala Kaleo, a talented young artist. Kaniala shares with us his sketching style  often called fan art. He'll be at the upcoming Kawaii Kon next month.

And, to share in the fun, we'll be giving away a piece of art done by Kaniala  using spray paint. And some gift cards so you can try your hand at making some art!

Our last guest has the perfect projects  for Spring! Erika Pascual from our Pearl City Ben Franklin Crafts, shows us how to tie some simple knots into a hanging planter! Want to try and make one yourself? Enter to win some gift cards so you can pick up the supplies!

Thanks You for stopping by today and I hope you get a chance to watch the show and again, don't forget to enter to win some of our big 300th episode prizes! Happy Crafting!

Make It Monday! - Bunny Planner Clips

For this week's Make It Monday project, I was inspired by Easter. Well, more specifically, Easter Candy! And what do you see everywhere? Peeps! Those bunny shaped ones have taken the lead as the most popular shape. And all those colors! And now, I even see different flavors, too!

Well, for these little bunnies, you won't have to worry about adding any calories. They are simply made from felt. And you can switch the paperclip for a pin back or magnet if you so desire. So, here's how to make it into a planner clip:

Trace and cut out the pattern , which you can find on the project sheet. . Cut two bunnies from the felt.Take one felt bunny and use the end of a thin paintbrush and make dip dot eyes and nose with dark brown paint. 

Take the other bunny and make a small horizontal slit in the body for the paperclip. Now, there are two ways to finish the bunny. You can glue them together or you can try your hand at stitching them together. If you are just going to glue them together, then slip the paperclip top into the slit.

Add a little glue to hold in place. Put the two bunnies together and glue. Gluing is faster and you'll be able to multiply those bunnies in no time!

If you are going to stitch them together, take both bunnies and place them together. Use a matching color of embroidery floss (two strands) and blanket stitch around. I am using a contrast floss color so you can see the stitching better. First, thread your needle, knot one end and come up from behind the top layer bunny, the knot will be hidden between the two layers.

Now, put the needle through both thicknesses and come up from the bottom and go through the same hole, coming out on top.

Slip the needle through the loop around the edge.

Poke the needle through both thicknesses, from the bottom up about 1/8" away from the first hole. Pull floss.

Continue stitching all around the bunny. Knot securely and cut off the excess floss.

Then, add a little glue to the top of the paper clip and slip inside the slit on the bunny in the back. Stitching takes a little longer but adds a nice finish.

Hope you have fun making these bunnies! Happy Easter, Happy Crafting!

Make It Monday!

We have something new happening on Mondays starting today, the first Monday of National Craft Month! How appropriate, right?! Each Monday, I'll have a new project for you, totally random, sometimes super simple, sometimes more intense. You'll just have to check it out and see!

I decided we needed something magical to start it off, so why not a Spring Flower Fairy? So, here we go!

Start by matching up the size of your flower with a plain wood bead or ball. For my fairy, I'm using those beautiful but inexpensive rose bushes in the stores and I found the 1" wood ball with the hole on the bottom would work.

Pull off a flower head and the leaves from the stem.

 

Pull off the stem and small calyx from the leaves.

 

Cut apart the leaves so that you have just two separate leaves. Place the rose head so that the calyx is at the top.Glue the two leaves onto the calyx for the fairy's wings.

 

Next, you will add the wood ball to the top of the calyx for the head. TIP: When looking at the wood ball, do not use the side of the ball with the circular wood grain for the face. If you do, when you add the eyes, it could end up looking like a little "piggy" face, the circles creating a snout.

 

Instead, use the side of the ball that has the wood grain lines going vertically up and down. It makes for a more pleasant face.

 

 

Glue the wood ball on top of the rose. If you are using a wood ball that doesn't have a hole at the bottom, trim the stem of the rose as close as possible and glue the ball right on top of the calyx.

 

For the hair, wrap jute twine around a 3" wide scrap of paper about sixteen times. Bundle and tie together in the middle with another short piece of twine.

 

 

 Cut the loops apart. Make a shorter bundle of about 8 loops for the bangs, cut the loops apart, too.

 Glue the longer hair bundle at the top of the head. Glue the bangs bundle right next to it, in front above the face. Trim the twine to make the hair neater and glue down to the head as needed to keep the hair in place. NOTE: You can also use yarn or even Spanish Moss for the hair.
 

Use the end of a thin paintbrush to make dip dot eyes on the face. First, make black dots and let dry. Then, make smaller white dots on top for highlights and let dry. Use a red/pink colored pencil to lightly draw in cheeks or you can use real makeup blush. Tie a small bow with sheer ribbon and glue to the neck.

Add a pin back to wear your Flower Fairy or glue on a magnet. Place her in a fairy garden setting or a terrarium. You can also use her as a topper for a party favor. There's many ways you can use your Flower fairy to brighten someone's day!

Hope you have fun making your own Flower Fairies and if you need, we have a project sheet available, too, right here.

Thanks for joining us today and stop by next week for another Make It Monday!

 

March's first Joy of Crafting Show!

There's so much to celebrate in March! First of all, it's National Craft Month! And we have a lot of things going on for that! But, it's also the Joy of Crafting's 299th and 300th shows this month!
So, we have a bunch of Mahalo Gifts to win as a Thank You for supporting the show and HouseMart Ben Franklin Crafts all these years!

 But first, on with the show! Our first guest, Erika from Pearl City BFC shares with us the crafty fun projects for this year's Spring Break Keiki Craft Program!

Erika even shows us how to make one of the projects! The Kaleidoscope Square is just one of ten projects Keiki can make when they sign up for the program running Mon., March 21 through Fri., March 25. You also have the option to just sign up for individual days; there's two projects per day. See the sample display at the stores!

Our next guest,  Fernando Pacheco of OC16's Almost Local TV show,  had me on his show a couple of months ago and now he returns the favor and comes to craft with us! He shares his tips and techniques for making artistic collages!

Our last guest is so crazy talented! Lianne Hirano aka dacraftylilninja makes such intricate clay pieces, it's mind blowing!

She'll show us how she uses Scupley Souffle clay to make a Tako holding a takoyaki. Yes, she is very witty, too!

But, I've saved the  best part for last, details on the Mahalo Gifts! You have multiple ways to enter to win a bunch of prizes like a $20 credit to send your keiki to our Spring Break program, a $20 gift card to get supplies to make your own collage or an awesome piece of clay jewelry handcrafted by Lianne! Beginning Monday, March 7, check the store for entry blanks or enter online at www.benfranklinhawaii.com. And watch the show and learn of one other way to enter!

Thanks again for supporting us all these years and hope you have an awesome week! Happy Crafting!

FlashBackFriday - Were you there?

Flashback to January 2010, we did a "live" taping of the Joy of Crafting show inside the Mapunapuna Ben Franklin Crafts store. It was so much FUN!

We invited about 40 Craft Club members to watch us tape two shows. And we did it "Oprah" style! Everyone in the audience received a goodie bag of snacks to munch on and there were gifts from each segment plus extra prize drawings! We even had a "virtual" viewer who won prizes, too!

Well, this month, The Joy of Crafting Show will be celebrating National Craft Month and also our 299th and 300th shows! We will have chances for you to win different prizes throughout the month, so tune in on Sunday to learn more, OC16 on Oceanic's channel 12 at 6:30 pm!

Thank You All for supporting both the Joy of Crafting show and our HouseMart Ben Franklin Crafts store all these years! Have a great weekend and Happy Crafting!