Jen_W

The rectangle wire comes flat and I've found it in two different widths but there may be more options.

Thanks, guys! You can still find me at jenniferworick.blogspot.com or thingsiwanttopunchintheface.blogspot.com!

Beautifully put, my friend.

I love that extraordinary people with amazing back stories are all around us...if we only look and engage them in conversation. I think it's tremendous that he finds such inspiration in what some might find a mundane day job.

Turtlelove: Hambly can be found at http://www.hamblyscreenprints.com/. I adore their designs.

MegiFod: You could definitely try to put Mod Podge or a sealant over the transfers on most surfaces and I've seen fabric Mod Podge or a fabric sealant put over a transfer on fabric. Experiment with them. I sort of like the look of a transfer as it sort of wears off fabric. Def don't use them on something you need to wash a lot. Tins or vases or candle votive holders are great choices.

Love this! Relaxed but cool, just like you and Pete. Are you newly engaged? If so, congratulations!

Jeff, I love your genius. The grosgrain is perfectly over the top.

I love this so, so much for its simplicity and genius. Yay!

This is absolutely fantastic!

I love this. You really made spinning yarn seem doable and I love how you merged our button theme with the crafting green theme.

Oh. My. God. You are killing me. I can't believe you found so many applications for a videotape. I love the twist on raffia flowers. So stinking cute!

Ah, the tact issue. I feel your pain, dgoddess.

These are so sweet. You have me pulling out all of my boxes of shoes to see what I can spruce up and give new life.

I can't wait to hear and read more. This was such an amazing story to begin with and I was completely transported by your storytelling.

I love the idea but I absolutely adore how you chose to use the buttons, letting the fabric lead your design. Each piece is so distinctive.

So gorgeous! Thanks for the tutorial.

This is splendid and so original! I love Chuck Close too, and this is such a great twist.

You can actually get the shrinky dinks frosted ruff n ready stuff at Michaels or you can look online at the shrinky dinks site. Good luck!

Thanks Jeffrey. I feel like you are like Dr. Seuss's Lorax and instead of speaking for the trees, you're speaking for the crafters. I am always telling my friends to value their work and take into account their time and their imagination and talent but I often have a hard time asking for what I'm worth when the time comes. This is a terrific article, because it's so frank about the entire process.

Yay! So glad you found this helpful. The real trick is maintaining the order as life gets in the way.

I'm a bit obsessed with this, I have to admit.

I got it at Ace Hardware so I'd just try any hardware store. Just make sure the metal is attracted to the magnets. I had the packet of magnets with me so I could try them out. Good luck!

Love this. I have a couple of trays that could definitely use a decoupage makeover.

IlaPan: I am SO, so sorry to hear about your dog. It's awful when it catches you unawares but I suppose it's not any easier when the pet slowly suffers. Good luck and I'll keep you in my thoughts.

I really need to make me a felted fella and put him in my relationships corner. Meanwhile, I really want to plan a trip to Cali to hang out with Erika and her dog.

Thanks for the info, Tina!

Oh the theme song. I need to figure out how to add a sound chip to the cards! Ma Mac Daddy, scadda wadda doodle a dee yeah!

Gorg. Thanks for posting this. I've been too lazy to experiment with the bag o' goodies from the Japanese vendor.

Yay, you beat me to the punch. I heart all of their designs and they are such nice women.

Phew, I'm tired thinking about all the work you all put into it, as well as exhilarated by the creativity that you brought to a simple material. Well done, all of you, and thanks especially to Jessica, who I can second was a life-saver throughout the show.

I totally missed the Kaleidoscope Kreator. It's so incredible. Thanks for posting.

Ditto on everything Erika said. And I'm so glad she got some beauty shots of the amazing wall. It totes blew my mind.

I love this so much and after meeting you, I love you too.

I think you could do with for about $15, depending on if you have any brushes, sandpaper, or spray varnish already around the house. It was suprisingly cheap. I bought most everything at my local Ace Hardware.

I can't tell you how much I love, love, love these.

This is incredible. I have a craft crush on your brain! And I love your choice of magazine for your waste basket.

Yay! I've taught a few friends to knit but it never seems to catch fire after the first scarf.

It was between 250 and 300 and using an 18-stitch repeat. It might have been 288 plus the 6 garter stitches on each side, for a total of 300 stitches. I'm not quite sure. Knitters will have to figure it out, based on the weight of their yarn and how long their want their shawl to be.

What a dream! I need to set up a similar retreat. Every time I go away for a girls' weekend, I'm the only chick knitting. A lot of my friends are not crafty in that way.

This is seriously cool.

Thanks for all of the well-wishes, ladies. Linda, I am busy knitting the first of what will be many more mindless hat projects. I was so happy to get that going. The Tudors Season 2 is helping as well.

This is so beautifully thought out and beautifully written. It provides me with new inspiration when I'm feeling, frankly, a bit burnt out as a writer and crafter. It makes me think back to my very handy parents and grandparents, who just looked around and made do. I'm going to adopt your resolutions as best I can and build on them if possible. Thanks!

Gorgeous job!

Yay! So glad y'all are having fun with this!

Michaela, I'm glad to know another wackadoo crafter, although my craft lie is a bit more of the garden variety: I let all my non-crafty friends think I'm a white witch, miracle worker, or some other magical creature who can actually create a RIBBED HAT or BEADED EARRINGS. Seriously. Apparently, I surround myself with craft-challenged loved ones!

You are one of a kind, in the best of ways.

Thanks dude, esp. for the brainstorming!

Avery makes all sorts of white and clear labels. I basically whipped up my label with some fonts in MS Word and printed it out on the sheet of labels. You could also buy tags and get creative with some rubber stamps or colored pens. Good luck and have fun with it.

Mine were all collected by my mom and friend in the woods of Michigan. You might try looking online. Sorry I can't be of more help!

Jeffrey! This is the most incredible thing. I just kept muttering "Omigod, omigod, omigod" as I looked at this post and saw all the photos of what meticulous talent went into producing such a work of art. You elevate crafting and this site into the heavens.

Yum, fleece sounds divine. I guess I'd only be concerned that the waistband could get bulky but otherwise, go for it! And let me know how they work out.

Hurray for Cowboy Cookies! I bet my grandma got the recipe off a bag of chocolate chips. :)

soggs74: I can certainly try. Send me your e-mail and I'll try to send an attachment with a PDF file. jen@jenniferworick.com

Love this! And I even have a foam wreath lurking somewhere around here.

This is such a refreshing and candid interview. I heart them even more.

Cutest. Thing. Ever.

Totally gorgeous. I definitely want to try this sometime.

We bought all of our Christmas gifts--including these ski masks--instead of making a single one. We're not fit to show our faces.

You really do need to put this photo on your Christmas card.

I almost want to kill you. That is such a good story that I want to weep that I didn't go to Maker Faire. What was Bill doing there? So Lost in Translation.

I love Office Max ALMOST as much as I love the drugstore. I can spend hours in there.

Jeff, you are scary. Scary-good, that is.

Thanks for the clever idea!

This is beyond cute. Thanks Diane, for such a clear and inspiring tutorial.

They sell rectangle wire in the store of Fusion Beads in Seattle. I don't think they sell it online. However, I do think they have it at Jewelry Resource & Supply: http://www.jewelryresourcesupply.com/

Thanks for the ideas. I love seeing your examples. The dog card is super-cute!

Okay, I'm drooling with anticipation over Diane's yo-yo bag!

Supercute and whimsical.

Thanks for the preview, Alex. It's always nice to get inspiration from cutting-edge fashion and then figure out how I can translate it into my own crafts.

This is so the Afterschool Special that I would have liked to have seen. My God, it's so tragic and sad but I hope it's somehow funny in hindsight. I love that you wanted to be such a dramatic character as the phantom. You are now the dramatic character. You don't need a costume!

Michaela, your post made tears well up. I get so mushy over crafting and friends. Asia_Tatiana, I think a craft swap would be the perfect event for Halloween itself, as I don't usually dress up and the idea of donning librarian glasses, putting my hair up in a bun with bangs, and carrying around a bloody stuffed wolf as Sarah Palin just depresses me. Better to swap that fabric my mom sent me for someone else's evil eye beads! Great idea. Check out my post on how to host a craft swap here: http://www.craftstylish.com/item/2810/how-to-host-a-fun-and-fancy-craft-swap. And for tips on recycling that unfortunate store-bought sweater, see Lee Meredith's post: http://www.craftstylish.com/item/9839/how-to-recycle-yarn-from-a-thrift-store-sweater.

We CraftStylish folks could tell those economists a thing or two (we could at least teach them how to knit, which is what I did for two days straight after 9/11).

These are all truly inspiring!

That was a fun night! It was such a treat to see the dress up close and personal.

This is so cute! I'm totally going to make one. And your nails look fab, by the way!

I really cannot stand how cute this is. Oh my goodness.

Oh my, can I relate! I think some people on flights think I am indulging in performance art and wanting to start a dialogue about knitting or what I'm doing. Leave me be. The last flight I was on with a screaming baby had massive delays. The pilot came on and said, "We want to get to the gate just as much as you." I said really loudly, "I really don't think that's true." I refrained from punctuating my remarks with my knitting needle.

You're on!

Great post, Wendy! I've been curious about how to make my own stamps! If only I could draw...

Thanks for all of your comments! I'll keep trying to bring on the tutorials, bring on da funk.

This completely blew my mind and it was just what I needed, as I'm in the homestretch of writing a book on outdoor crafts. Maybe I can finish the pesky manuscript today!

I feel that this article is destined to become a classic. I can totally relate. I've made things for people to show off my skills without really thinking about them and their tastes. Now I do a lot of reconnaissance to determine if the recipient is going to "GET" the import of the hand-made gift. No more making socks for people who look at you and say one of two things:

"You gave me SOCKS?"

OR

"You KNITTED me SOCKS?"

Yeah, you ingrate. I sure did.

Michaela, I'm just glad you didn't get a photo of me chowing down on the garlic fries and my giant brat. It was not a pretty picture.

I wish this sounded familiar. I always dip my toe into new crafts rather than reaching for the moon. You are my hero.

Great ideas, Daphne! I actually just scored two baggies full of crochet needles and rug hooks and spools of thread at Value Village last month. Each bag was a $1.95 and chock-full of tools. Now I just need to learn to crochet and hook a rug. But if you have the materials, it will come, right?

And notice how the PJs artfully cover up my belly, full of a fish burrito from Taco del Mar? I meant to do that.

Gosh that was fun but I'm now back in the first circle of hell, writing a book about crafts without time to make anything really for fun. I guess at least I'm still crafting but when a book is due in two weeks and you have 20 projects still to do, the fun sort of scurries out the window. Hence, I think a regular Michaela fix is on order. Have you seen those pillows? They are totes gorg. My PJs are a bit wonky but hey, they're PJs, right?

Michaela, that is one sexy photo. If you had some from snacklets Dixie's BBQ somewhere in the photo too, I think I might marry you!

What a fun day that must have been! The pendant looks great!

I just hit that and picked up some books from Amy Butler and Jenny Hart. Thanks Susan!

I drink. Just kidding. I just wrote about craft burnout on my blog yesterday (jenniferworick.blogspot.com) as I'm churning out projects for an 8/15 book deadline. And because they are for the book, I can't even crow about how brilliant everything is. Again, just kidding. I think I clean and do some productive procrastination when I need to clear my head. I don't know how many times I've reorganized my sweater shelf in the past few years but it's a tried-and-true lifesaver. Sadly, since I photographed all of my shoes and then printed out, laminated, and stuck the photos onto the various plastic shoe boxes, I can't do much more reorganization on that front...

You are killing me with the Michigan pendant, lady! I could stop putting my hand up and pointing to where I'm from. The pendant could serve the same purpose. Must...back...away...from...etsy...purchase. I dropped about $70 on craftpudding stamps the other night because of the CS post that make me aware of how flippin' cute they are.

What a super and clear tutorial. I think the embroidery hoop is calling...

You are my hero, lady.

Thanks for this! I'm just getting into shrink plastic and I remembered reading this a month ago and just dug it up to see what you recommended for it.

Check out my friend Evelyn Taylor's Shrinky Dink creations at her etsy store: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=76461

Thanks for all the feedback. I'm glad you're finding this article helpful. It's so hard to find alternative venues but it's fun brainstorming...

You are such a rock star with the tutorials. I can't wait to try this out.

While I love this, it's hard to see the book itself removed. Maybe the pages could be bound up and sold along with the handbag. How else would someone know that the paintings with the scarlet slippers are hiding smuggled jewels? Maybe I'm too picky, but I am still obsessed with Nancy, as evidenced by my book, "Nancy Drew's Guide to Life."

Love the retro design!

Cutest. Thing. Ever.

I edited Liz's Silver Wire Fusing and it is a wonderful introduction to fusing fine silver with a torch. Playing with fire is so much fun! Liz includes a wide variety of jewelry projects to suit any taste and once you fuse your first hoop, you'll be off and running. I'm wearing the wormhole earrings right now!

Geez, Michaela, way to get me started on another craft obsession. I could look all day at the full-skirted 50s patterns. Very Nancy Drew! But those tiny waists! Oy. They weren't eating a second slice of pie, that's for sure. And that's just so sad (I say as I rub my belly).

I bought Lotta's book two weeks ago and can't wait to get started printing and stamping everything I own. I also recommend her Simple Sewing book. It's great for beginning seamstresses.

I love this crazy Amy Butler apron.

These are too cool for school. I love me some yeti.

That day was an absolute dream. Thank you, Michaela. Thank you, Portland!

I wish I could have stayed longer with all the cool kids.

I can't decide whether I'm more excited about Crafty Wonderland or the roadtrip with Michaela!

I craft a LOT in front of the TV. I have my American Idol cabled hat, my Project Runway crystal ring, my Pride & Prejudice heirloom necklace, my drunken What Not to Wear scarf that I absolutely do wear, you get the idea. I also find that my grandmother's tiny pair of stork-shaped sewing scissors come in handy with most of my handicrafts.