Three Places to Save on Craft Supplies

Okay, test time!  What! Did I say "test"?  Yes I did.  It's a multiple choice test.  Are you ready?

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Here's the question.

Why do you craft?

(Did I just hear you breathe a sigh of relief?)

A.  I craft because it's fun

B.  I craft to save money

C.  I craft so I can make the perfect one of a kind gift/item

D.  All of the above

Well, I don't know about you but my answer is a big "D", all of the above!  I'd like to share 3 places I've found to purchase craft supplies at a discount.  Here they are!

Blue Mining Deals showcases a different craft supply each day at significant savings.  It is not like a craft store where you can shop for different supplies.  There is just the daily deal so you have to act fast.  Register your e-mail so you are one of the first to learn of the day's deal.

Pick Your Plum, like Blue Mining Deals showcases a different item each day at significant savings.  Pick Your Plum runs their specials for a limited amount of time for a limited number of items so you have to act fast.  You also should register your e-mail so you can be one of the first to learn of the current deal.

Hobby Lobby has a 40% off any item coupon each week.  You can find it online by clicking on "see today's in-store ad".  This coupon is good both in stores and online and that's not all!  You can print off a coupon and use a different one each day....yes use 6 coupons each week (stores are closed on Sunday).  This coupon is also available each week!  

I hope these links help you craft in style on a shoestring budget!  

4 You

Creative Exchange - My Gifts to Emily

Michaela of Covered in Mod Podge is hosting a Creative Exchange:  an adult pen pal/gift exchange event.  I was partnered up with Emily of Insanity Rules:  a very busy blogger with 3 young boys ages  7, 6 and 20 months! She loves photography and scrapbooking. She is also partial to gray.  So here's what I gave Emily.

I first found some cotton chenille in a dark charcoal gray.  Then, I knit her this star shaped washcloth (since she's the star of her home!)

With three small boys and being the only female in her house, I figured she would appreciate some pampering.  So along with her hand knit goodie, I included a bar of Burt's Bees soap and some yummy Bath and Body Works hand lotion.

Okay, I have now pampered her so it was time to address her crafting love:  scrap booking.  She is into digital scrap booking but I thought Emily would enjoy some "old fashioned" paper, stickers, markers, and stamps.

Emily, I hope you enjoyed your package in the mail. I had a great time putting it together and had a ball getting to meet/know you and your blog  Insanity Rules.

4 You

Come Celebrate with Me! (Includes a Hobby Lobby Giveaway!)

As you all know, I have a super soft spot for pacakges in the mail!  Well, I also have a soft spot for helping others celebrate birthdays (along with holidays and other fun times!)  Jill of Two Yellow Birds Decor is celebrating turning 1 and I'm over there celebrating with her!

Come check out one of my favorite birthday memories along with a chance to win a $15 gift card to Hobby Lobby.  Jill's blog is fun so take a look around while you are there.  Here are a few of the projects you will find while visiting.

Canvas I Love You Board

  DIY Cupcake Stand

Spice Planters

Happy Birthday, Jill!

4 You

One Lovely Blog Award

I just opened my e-mail and found that Marsha of The Better Baker (she's a good cook but a better baker) has given be the One Lovely Blog Award.

Before I continue with this award, I'd like to take a moment to introduce you to Marsha's wonderful blog if you haven't visited her before.  First off, she has a page with links to her column in the Leader Enterprise (the paper of Montpelier, OH!)  She even has a cookbook.   Marsha also hosts a link party every Friday, Weekend Potluck so go link up your favorite recipes or see what others are cooking.  Okay, now back to the award.  

Rules of the Award:
1. Display the blog award.
2. Create a link to the site that nominated you.
3. Write 7 random facts about yourself.
4. Display the links of the blogs you love and pass on the award

Okay, 1 and 2 are completed so onto 3:  7 random facts about myself.

1. I am the youngest of 3.  My sister is the oldest and attended OSU (Ohio State) then comes my brother who attended IU (Indiana University) and then 7 years later I came along and I attended OSU, like my sister.
2. It's summer olympics time and I remember LOVING to watch the olympics when I was a kid.  Regarding summer olympics, I used to LOVE watching gymnastics and swimming.  I remember my one friend's older sister had a poster of Mark Spitz in his speedo "sporting" all his medals on her wall and I also remember Olga Korbut's amazing flexibility on the balance beam!
3. My first celebrity crush was Donny Osmond....he was sssssoooo cute!
4. So often, I join a volunteer organization to just help to find myself having volunteered to lead something...I need someone to save me from myself!
5. Not only am I the third child in my family, my husband is the third child in his and the two of us have 3 children.....we must have a thing for the number 3!
6. I was born in Iowa but grew up in Kentucky.  In fact, my parents still live in the house I grew up in (KY).
7. You will find me taking my knitting everywhere I go.  It makes waits at the doctor's office go much more quickly.  One of my favorite take a long projects are socks!

Okay, now onto number 4: blogs I love.  This is so hard because I LOVE all the blogs I follow.  So we go.

3 of the blogs I first began to follow:

Kim of Too Much Time On My Hands

Rachael of Lovely Crafty Home

Lindsay of Artsy Fartsy Mama

3 of my favorite blogs for cooking inspiration:

Kristin of Grateful Belly

Anita of Aunt Nubby's Kitchen

Deana of Country Mama Cooks

3 of my favorite crafting blogs:

Adrianne of Happy Hour Projects

Amy of One Artsy Mama

Mel of The Crafty Scientist

3 of my favorite fun/inspirational blogs:

Jen of Four Marrs One Venus

Jill of I Know the Plans I Have for You

Jutta of Creative Chaos

3 of my new blogging friends:

Emily of Insanity Rules

Cathy of Just Wanna Craft

Debbie of On the Refrigerator Door

3 of my most supportive blogging friends:

Danni of Silo Hill Farm

Kari of Newlyweds on a Budget

Anne of Domesblissity

All of the blogs I follow are wonderful and inspire me each day.  It's always so hard to choose just a few to honor!  

Thanks again, Marsha, you made my day!

4 You

I've Got Mail!

Remember how much I LOVE getting surprises in the mail?  Well, I'm super pumped! I just got another goodie in the mail. When I participated in June Package Pals (hosted by CRAFT) I received an email from Michaela of Covered in Mod Podge inviting me to participate in   "Creative Exhange".  Well, I do love giving gifts and get so excited when a package arrives in the mail so I just couldn't resist.

My Creative Exchange partner is Emily Humphries of Insanity Rules.  She is crazy busy with three young boys. Let me tell you, Emily is one talented lady.  Anyway,  here's what arrived!

The anticipation is killing me.......I am like a little kid at Christmas!

Look what's inside!

OMG isn't this card amazing?  This is so my life.  Emily, it's beautiful!!

And look at these beautiful napkins that she stamped.  Emily has such a great eye for color and beauty!  There were two in the package.  I think these would actually make wonderful window treatments in my bathroom redo.....BEAUTIFUL!

I hope Emily likes the present I put in the mail to her!  I had hoped to mail it a couple of days ago but life got in the way.

THANK YOU, Emily for making my day!  Also, check out her blog, Insanity Rules.  I think you'll enjoy it!

4 You

Introducing, Knitty!

Knitting is definitely one of my favorite crafts.  There are not a lot of tools required and it's so portable.  My kids roll their eyes 'cause I often take my knitting with me to band concerts, football games, and other such gatherings.  I even took some knitting to the movies but I didn't have much luck.

We all know about Pinterest but have you heard about Knitty?  It's a free online knitting magazine full of patterns, book reviews and  more.

Each issue has new patterns.  The current issue contains this sock pattern is called Longitudinal.  Aren't they cool? 

You can also search past issues of Knitty to find "older" patterns like this cute skirt pattern

or this fun fishy hat

This cute cropped cardigan

These fetching fingerless gloves

or this fun sock monkey hat.

So you can see that the patterns featured in Knitty are pretty hip and fun. But you'll find more than just patterns in each issue.

Every issue has a review section called Cool Stuff.  Aren't these kitty snips fun?

They have a mall where you can purchase goodies from their sponsor as well as Knitty.

Knitty has a link on ways you can get into Knitty (advertise, write for, design for or have a product reviewed by them).  The chart below (for design submissions) is something you will find in this link

Issue	Theme	Submission Deadline	Issue live
Winter 2012	Cold-weather garments + accessories, quick last-minute gift knits	Sept 1, 2012	Dec 2012
Spring+Summer 2013	Warm-to-hot-weather garments + accessories	Jan 2, 2013	Mar 2013
First Fall + Holiday Headstart 2013	Transitional cool-weather layers + things to knit early for holiday gifting...no mohair or angora!	Apr 2, 2013	June 2013
Deep Fall 2013	Super-cozy cool-weather garments + accessories	June 1, 2013	Sept 2013

The fetching fingerless gloves are calling to to me and my needles.  Why don't you stop by and see what inspires you!

4 You

Doggie Ice Cream

Do you hear music?  It sounds like a carnival.  It's very faint but it's getting louder.  Could it be?  Maybe?  Yes! It's the ice cream man!

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When I was a kid, I used to get so excited when the ice cream man would drive his truck down our street.  All the kids would flock over to him to purchase a push up, eskimo bar, drumstick or another frosty treat.  I also have fond summer memories of making ice cream in an old fashioned hand crank machine.  Ice cream and summer go hand in hand.

You know who else loves ice cream?  Curtis, our dog.  Whenever we have ice cream he wants some too.  So, a challenge is born.  How to make a frosty treat for him.  Here's what I came up with and he LOVES it!

Doggie Ice Cream

Ingredients:

1/4 cup natural peanut butter

8 oz plain greek yogurt

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 styrofoam egg carton

Directions:

Place peanut butter, yogurt, and vanilla in a food processor and blend until smooth.

Spoon mixture into your egg carton.  Close up and freeze.   

Easy peasy!  Just pop out one of these frozen goodies when your furry friend wants/deserves a frozen treat.  If your dog is like Curtis, he will LOVE this!

4 You

Kids DIY Website

Although my kids are getting older, I still remember some of the great kid crafts that they did.  The one that blew me away was done by my daughter at Girl Scout Day Camp when she was about 10.  She came home and announced she had made a website.  

What did she say?  

A website....at camp?

What?  


How? 


 Huh?   


Oh, it's a play on words.  


She made a place for spiders to spin their webs....get it?   


A website?  


I hear you groaning but also laughing.

It's a very easy project that you can do with any age of kids.  There are very few items needed and it's pretty quick.

First, gather 5 paint stir sticks per website.

Lay 4 so that they make a square and the 5th one will be what will stick into the ground.  Glue them in place.  I used a glue gun but you could also use elmer's glue all.

Once your sticks are glued into place (and dried if using elmer's glue) take some hemp and "lash" the sticks together.  

Now it's time to personalize.  Have the kids come up with a great website address.  It could be something like:  www.gocharlette.com, www.catchflies.com, www.yummo.com, or whatever the kids choose.  You can use either a paint pen or sharpie marker to write your URL.

Now kids can decorate their website however they choose.  This was with sharpie markers.  They could also use paint and fingerprint butterflies.  Let them go crazy.

Now, set your website out in your garden.  I wonder how long it will take a spider to spin his web?

4 You

Duck, Duck, Duck, Duct Tape!!

Isn't it great how duct tape is the staple of all "diy fix it tool kits" and now it's also a staple in the crafter's kit?  Who would have ever though that you could make so many cool things with duct tape? Unlike a lot of other crafting projects, you usually just need some tape and scissors...simple!  Look at some of the cool tutorials I found (via Pinterest, of course!)

A great duct tape purse from All Things Thrifty

Duct tape roses

Duct tape rug

Duct tape wallets from Crafty Nest

Duct tape hammock from Insructables

Duct Tape Drum from Journey into Unschooling

Duct tape flower

Girly duct tape wallet from Instructables

Duct Tape Purse Updo from Henry Happened

Duct tape lanyard from Crafty Soccermom

Okay, which project will do try first?  It's so hard to choose.  I'll probably make either a wallet or bag or roses......ooooohhhh I just can't decide!

4 You

Noro Bonbori Scarf

I just love Noro yarns.  The colors are gorgeous and I really love the long color changes.  I usually like to knit Noro yarn projects where the colors are showcased in big blocks.   However when I was knitting up the scarf for my Christmas in July exchange, I found the Bonbori had so many textures going on that trying to incorporate pattern stitches (like seed stitch, cables, or drop stitches) didn't showcase the yarn. In fact, it seemed that the yarn and the pattern stitches were actually fighting with one another.  What to do?  Turn the scarf on the side.

Noro Bonbori Scarf

Materials

2 skeins of Noro Bonbori (Iro would also work)

32" or longer US 13 circular needle

Finished Size

4.5" x 48"

Gauge

Does not matter

Directions

Cast on 140 stitches (I used the long tail cast-on)

Knit every row until your scarf is 4.5 inches wide

Loosly cast off

Block your scarf.

Cut 12" pieces of yarn for fringe and attach.

Note:

When knitting a scarf, you want to increase your needle size 1-2 sizes.  This will allow your scarf to drape nicely.

4 You

Daelia's Biscuits for Cheese Winner!

Are you Ready?

Drum Roll, please

Adrianne Surian, come on down!

You are the winner of a sampler pack of

Daelia's Biscuits for Cheese!

I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

4 You

Christmas in July - A great gift exchange!

Adrianne of Happy Hour Projects is hosting a huge Christmas in July event.  It started out with bloggers signing up to be "Christmas Gift Exchange Buddies" and it now has a huge giveaway along with some great projects/tutorials to motivate us all.  Check it out!

Anyway, I decided to participate in gift exchange and Adrianne matched me up with Debbie of On the Refrigerator Door.  Debbie is great!  She's an architect whose favorite color is purple and loves how the color green compliments purple.  Debbie also loves scarves.  Well, that's all I needed to know! It was time to get out the knitting needles!  Here's what I sent her!

I ran across some Noro yarn called Bonbori  It had greens and purples in it along with a thick/thin neon yarn spun throughout.  It just called to me for this project.  I picked up two skeins for her scarf.  After I knitted the scarf, I decided to add some Christmas goodies from Bath and Body Works:  soap and candle.

I packed up the goodies, added a Christmas Card and the label from the yarn (so Debbie could see the care instructions) and put it in the mail last Friday.  I love giving gifts!

Well, when I went out to get my mail yesterday, there was a package!  I was so pumped.  It really is like Christmas!  When I removed the wrapping it was a Fiber One box (yummy treats but not nearly as yummy as what was acutally inside the package)!

Debbie put so much thought into this.  I don't know if you can see the awesome magnets she made but there are 3.

1. One has my blog button on it!
2. One has poinsettias along with my anniversary date (I was married on Dec 29)
3. One has knitting needles and yarn.

Debbie definitely made sure this gift fit....She's awesome!  Thanks Debbie for the goodies and thanks to Adrianne for coordinating this!

4 You

Update:  You can find directions for this scarf here.