Happy Halloween!

It's Halloween, so you know that means costume time! This year our office has some really creative ideas...can you guess what everyone is?

 

 

 

For me, I was an old fashioned lunch wagon.

Yes, I had some food, too! Here's my Mini Cheeseburgers and Fries.

 

Fish and Chips.

The Cory Special, which has Bacon, Scrambled Eggs and Toast.

We also had a pumpkin decorating contest by departments. It was a lottery to see which pumpkin we all got.

But look what they did! Here's HR.

Accounting. They had the two small pumpkins.

 

IT

 

and Advertising.

 

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you all have a Fun & Safe Halloween!

September's second Joy of Crafting Show

We're on a roll with more fun crafts in our second Joy of Crafting show for September!

Catherine is back with another project using The Crafter's Workshop stencils! This time she's making cards! Wouldn't that be cool to make a T-shirt and then wrap it up and attach a matching card?!

Our next guest represents an idea I've had for some time. I know a lot of crafters are so talented they should start a business, so from time to time we'll have guests on to share some tips on how to turn your hobby into a business. For our first Crafting Business tips segment, we have Trini Abaya-Wright from Central Pacific Bank. She shares some basic but important things you should know when you're first starting your venture.

Lastly, I'll help you get ready for the Holidays with a simple favor box you can make to use for Bosses' Day, Halloween, Christmas, basically any occasion!

Thanks for stopping by today and Happy Crafting!

September's first Joy of Crafting Show

Our current Joy of Crafting show has some fun projects to give you ideas for the Holidays!

Our first guest is our friend Catherine Thoele. She is my go-to person whenever I have questions about artist products. This time Catherine has a wearable art project to share!

 

She shows us how to create a cool t-shirt design using The Crafter's Workshop stencils and artist grade acrylic paints with fabric medium. With these simple products, the possibilities are endless!

Next, Jenny shows us how easy it is to use our new UV Crystal resin. With the the UV lamp, it makes project making super quick!

Got yarn? Most of us have some leftovers from graduation lei making, so I'll show you how to make some cute Halloween critters! It's so easy, even the kids can make their own and you can use them to decorate your house or office.

Thanks for stopping by today and hope you're having fun with your current craft projects!

Celebrations New Location Grand Opening!

Join us at Celebrations this Saturday, 8/31 for their New Location Grand Opening! They moved two doors down the hall. Now, they are right next to Ben Franklin Crafts Mapunapuna!

I'll be there from 10 am - 12 noon to help you make your own origami card case! We'll be using one of Celebrations' specialty wrapping papers to make this easy and useful little card case. I like to use these when I don't want to carry a bag, like at carnivals and concerts.

It has four pockets, two on the inside to hold your ID, credit cards and cash! And, two more pockets on the outside that can hold club cards, stamps cards and business cards.

They'll be lots of fun going on with in-store specials and prize giveaways, too. Plus, my make and take is FREE! So, I hope to see you there!

August's Second Joy of Crafting Show

Summer is ending soon, but the fun crafting continues! On this episode, we introduce a new friend and some favorite friends return with great craft ideas!

First, we welcome to the show, Alyson "Ally" Turner from Mapunapuna Ben Franklin Crafts and she has a really fun and clever project! Making bracelets from jumbo craft sticks! Ally shows us this wonderful technique! You can use a lot of different things to decorate the unfinished bracelet, too!

Then, Jenny Floro shows us how to create the popular ombre look with our new Vintage glitter line!

Savannah from Celebrations is back with another great wrapping idea. This time she uses Flower Wrapper to create a cool juice can gift!

Lastly, I sneak in with a quick (don't blink!) burlap flower idea!

Hope you get a chance to see the show! Happy Crafting and enjoy the rest of your Summer!

New Joy of Crafting Show for August!

Hope everyone is enjoying the last days of Summer! Tonight, we have a new show for August and it's full of fun ideas!

I start off the show with one of my favorite new paints! Deco Art's Multi Surface paints are the perfect paint for a variety of projects. You can use the same paint on metal, glass, wood...as the name says, Multi surfaces! Plus, the colors are just fabulous!

Then, we have Savannah from Celebrations back to share some great ideas for pillow box decorating!

I couldn't wait for this next segment to air because it's all about Project Life! Not sure what PL is all about? Don't worry, I'll give you a quick overview and share one of my favorite weeks so far!

Lastly, we have a segment we taped earlier but didn't have enough time to air. Shane Hershey from EK Success shows us how to use the Circle Scissors Pro, a really easy to use circle cutter, as he makes paper fortune cookies.

Have you been watching the show lately? Noticed anything different at the end? Leave a comment if you do and let me know what you think, yah or nay. I'll reward one random commentor with a Ben Franklin Crafts Gift card for the help!

Hope you get a chance to see this show! Thanks for stopping by today and have a great week!

July's second Joy of Crafting Show

Tonight, the second Joy of Crafting show for July debuts and we have some new crafts and a new crafter!

First, we welcome Savannah from the Celebrations store next to Ben Franklin Crafts in Mapunapuna. She shows us how to use clear crystal pack bags to create a fun palm tree favor.
(BTW, Celebrations will be moving a few doors down the hall, closer to Ben Franklin Crafts this week. They will be closed during this move from Monday, July 22 to Thursday, July 25)

Next, we have Kimberly from Hero Arts back to share another project using the cool new "Stamp Your Story" line.This time, she makes some tags that can be assembled into a little mini book.

Then, our Sizzix girls are back, Cheri and Cheryl. They use a new Scoreboard die to make a very pretty free-standing window box. I love this die, I think I want to make a Halloween window with it, complete with cobwebs and spiders!

Thank you for stopping by the blog today and I hope you get a chance to catch the show! Hope you watch until the very end, there's a new feature we've added! Happy Crafting!

July's Joy of Crafting Show

For July, we have some favorite guests returning to the show with new craft ideas! Come and check it out!

Our first guest is Kimberly McCausland from Hero Arts rubber stamps. Actually, Kimberly has been on the show before when she worked with Stampendous rubber stamps. We're so Happy to have her back on the show!

 

Kimberly introduces Hero Arts'  new line called "Stamp Your Story" (I love this collection!) The designs are so on trend right now and they're great for Project Life! She also uses another hot trend, Neon inks! The colors are just so perfect for Summer projects.

Next, we have Dean Anthony Ramos, who always amazes me with his crafting ideas. This time, he is playing with Perler Beads, remember those? Well, it's making a comeback and is another hot trend with these updated fun designs!

Last, but not least, are our Sizzix girls, Cheryl and Cheri! I just love this project they are sharing, it's another cool pop-up card!

I can just see using this chair design for so many occasions! And I just love the embossing folder that goes with it, so cute!

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you can find the time to watch the show and get some crafty ideas! Hope you're having a FUN Summer!

May's Second Joy of Crafting Show

On this second show for May, we are continuing our lei making and more!

 Our first lei is the Blooming Pikake from our latest Handcrafted Lei and Flowers book. Colleen from our Mapunapuna store shows us how to make this beautiful lei.

Then,  we have Dean Anthony, our Relay for Life Captain. Dean  makes a personalized luminaria and tells us how you can get involved in Relay for Life. Our Oahu stores will also have luminaria making workshops in June, see the stores for details.

Lastly, Gloria from Pearl City shows us how to make the Dragon Lei from our latest lei book. It's a great lei for all kinds of occasions.

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you've enjoyed your weekend!

Tim Holtz Burlap Panels

In January, I was really lucky to get to take Tim Holtz' class at CHA. It's always fun to see what he comes up with!

In the class, he introduced his new burlap covered panels. The cool thing about his panels is that underneath, they are solid wood. Which means you can screw things into it and attach stuff without the panel getting all floppy on you. These panels are now in our stores.

Here's the project we made. We used the pair of two smaller panels and covered them with LOTS of his embellishments and new Sizzix dies. As you can see, we did screw things in and let them dangle, like the key and metal tag.

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you all have a great weekend!

Keep on truckin' with Art!

One of the 10 finalists' Truck Designs by Kristie Kam, winner of the Live Facebook Voting.

Ben Franklin Crafts co-sponsored Diamond Bakery's Truck Design Contest and the winner will be announced at a reception this Saturday at Mark's Garage.

I will be there as part of the judging panel. Ten finalists have been chosen and the talented winner will receive $2000 cash for their design. But the best part is that their design will be on Diamond Bakery's brand new truck, for everyone to see as it drives around the island making deliveries. I think that is so Cool!

If I was the winner, I would start an Instagram account and have people send me pics whenever they spot it.

You can view all of the ten finalists' designs here and you are also welcome to join us at the reception honoring these creative individuals. The event is from 4:30 - 5:30 pm at Mark's garage in downtown Honolulu.

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope to see you on Saturday!

Put a leash on it!

So, our company has a pedometer step challenge going on between the stores and offices. Together, we hope to walk enough steps to total walking to the moon and back, promoting healthy living. All employees received a pedometer to track their steps.

In our Honolulu office, we have a monthly challenge going on between the upstairs and downstairs groups. Everyone is trying hard to do their part. The problem is, sometimes the pedometers unclip and fall off. If you lose your pedometer, there's a huge step penalty deducted from your total. I've had a few scares, thinking I lost my pedometer, only to find it on my car seat or somewhere else. Afterall,  I don't want to let my team down!

So, I made a leash for my pedometer. I used a swivel badge clip, some inexpensive chain, split rings and a cute beaded charm gift.

I cut the chain to about 8" long. Attached one end to the badge clip with a split ring. I thought using a split ring would be more secure than using a jump ring.

I used another split ring to attach the other end of the chain to this cute beaded charm I received from @handmadecute (you really need to check out her blog!)

Slipped the charm holder around the pedometer clip.

Done! Now, I have extra security so I won't lose my pedometer. Before cell phones, I remember I had something similar for my pager.

BTW, our downstairs team won the first month's challenge by over 300,000 steps! So, today, my teammates and I will enjoy lunch served by the upstairs office. Whoo Hoo!

Thanks for stopping by today and I hope you're having a great week, too! Keep on Crafting, Keep on Stepping!

Mom's Day Card

My Mom likes simple things, so this is the card I made for her for Mother's Day. Layout is inspiration from @joscie.

Floral paper is from Echo Park's Sweet Girl line. Flowers and leaves were made with a Sizzix Thinlit die.

I couldn't find my stash of bling, so I used the Amercian Crafts Glitter tape that I used on the card to punch out centers with my 1/4" hole punch. It worked,they matched! Sweet and Simple!

Thanks for stoping by today and I hope you have a great week!

May's First Joy of Crafting Show

May is a month to celebrate! On this first show for May, we help you get ready with some lei making and a great Mother's day idea!

 First, we have Gloria A.from our Pearl City store show us how to make one of the beautiful ribbon lei from our newest Handcrafted Lei and Flowers Book, volume 11!

Gloria shows us how to make the Himawari Musume Lei.

 

 Next, we have a really special guest for Mother's day. We have Esme Infante-Nii from Moms in Hawaii. While Esme explains what her group does to support and empower Moms, she also puts together a simple and cute flower pot photo holder. (Dads, I know you watch the show! This would easy for you and the kids to make for Mom!)

 

Then, we cap off the show with more lei making! Cheri Ann L. from Market City Ben Franklin Crafts shows us how to make the 3-straw and 4-straw round leis. Great for those upcoming graduations!

 

Thank You for stopping by, I know it's been awhile so I thank you for your patience and support! Have a great weekend and Happy Mother's Day to all of the Moms and Moms-at Heart!

 

***See my earlier post of why I've been MIA