Los Angeles Chicks, Crafty Blogger Links, and a contest to win free books and a bobbin winder from Wrights

Dixie isn't the only place there are chicks, Los Angeles has a few. Aren't these guys great? I love the black one in the front giving me that sideways look.

The Impatient Crafter
Make a super cute pair of flip flops with your kid or teen for your end of summer vacation! Madge shares the 411 in this post for I Love to Create

The Crochet Dude
Drew is giving away all his latest designs that are included in his new line of patterns that just launched nationwide! To enter you just leave a comment on his blog!

The Artful Crafter
Eileen blogs about learning photography - one frame at a time.

Craftside-A behind-the-scenes peek at a crafty world
Craftside has a how-to on making a Traveling Mail Art Kit from the soon to be released book-Good Mail Day, a tutorial on how to line a flap and step by step directions to make a painted fusible web postcard. Be sure to answer the week's questions to be entered to win free books while your getting your fill of crafty goodness.

Naughty Secretary Club
Jen dishes up a recipe for making a pin cushion out of vintage tin.

Mixed Media Artist
Cyndi has an imaginary friend named Jim...from 100 years ago!

Cross Stitch at About.com
Help Connie decide a caption for her free Bat Cross Stitch pattern.

CraftyPod
SisterDiane interviews a top Etsy seller who decided to downsize her business.

Crafty Princess Diaries
Tammy has a bag full of fun crafting ideas for the crafter with a birthday.

Cathie Filian
Join Cathie Filian on HSN August 17th where she will be showcasing the new formulas of Mod Podge, Chalkboard Paint and Texture Paint.

Alexa Westerfield a.k.a. Swelldesigner
Alexa shares 3 great photography tips for taking better photos of your crafts. You don't even have to have an expensive camera!

Aileen's Musings
Aileen is offering a book giveaway! See how many ways you can get your name entered in her drawing to win a Ties That Bind Collaboration of Love book...

About Family Crafts
Hurry on over and submit your photos and ideas! Sherri is now accepting Halloween submissions. Share your costumes, haunted house ideas, more and browse through the photos everyone else has submitted.

And in another bit of Crafty News:

Over at Craftside if you leave a question there, anything you want craft or otherwise....

you will be entered to win one of these free books:

AND

3 lucky winners will also win a Wrights SideWinder

Quickly and easily fill bobbins without having to re-thread your machine
Uses two AA batteries (not included)
Accommodates most standard bobbins

This is such a cool little tool!

And want to increase your odds of winning and know of a great recycled craft project, blog, Etsy Designer or Website? It can be your own or someone else's. Pop on over to Recycled Crafts at CraftGossip.com and click on "Suggest a Link" (specify "Recycled Crafts" ) and you will be entered to win a free book and Bobbin Winder there too!

Oh and spread the word!

Twitter, Facebook, and it sounds funny to say, email (oh so old fashion now) about it!

Earrings made with something old, something new and a how-to from the new book- Simply Gemstones by Nancy Alden

So ya wanna make some pretty jewelry with gems, here is the book for you:

Simply Gemstones: Designs for Creating Beaded Gemstone Jewelry
by
Nancy Alden

Celebrities and fashion runways are glittering with gemstones more than ever these days, and chances are that if you’re a lover of jewelry and accessories you’ve lusted after a gem at some point in your life — be it turquoise, emerald, ruby, sapphire, tourmaline, or, of course, a diamond.

Now Nancy Alden returns with her popular Beadworks series, this time introducing readers to what can seem like a daunting project, creating jewelry from gemstones. But in her typical fashion, she takes the anxiety out of the process, showing anyone how to create stunning gemstone earrings, necklaces, and bracelets.

Today, precious and semi-precious stones are available in many bead stores and online at a range of price points, making what had once been exclusive, expensive projects completely doable. You’ll also be introduced to stones such as the Peruvian Opal, Pink Sapphire, Rutilated Quartz and Peridot, among a slew of others that you may not be immediately familiar with, but with which it's easy to fall in love.

From humble hematite chips to sparkling sapphires and uncut diamonds, in Simply Gemstones there’s a gem and a corresponding project that is sure to complement your look or make a special gift.

NANCY ALDEN is the author of Simply Pearls, Simply Silver, Simply Gold, and A Touch of Glass. She is a jewelry designer and the cofounder of the Beadworks Group. Visit them online at www.beadworks.com.

I have a small stash of gemstones that I have been collecting over the years and I really like to incorporate them in my jewelry making. I primarily work with recycled elements when I am designing for myself and this book inspired me to put the two together!
The supplies I gathered up:

-An old broken bracelet that had heart shaped links with little rhinestones in each link,
-Some center drilled drops (I tend to like these better than sideways drilled but can be a bit harder to find)
-Oval and round links
-Basic earring parts

This is the design from Simply Gemstones that was my inspiration:

I loved the idea of using the drops (lower right) upside down which I thought would coordinate with the recycled heart shape link from the bracelet. That's one of the really nice parts of this book is the little pretty twists that are used to make the designs.
Pretty Blingy, hu?

One last really cool thing about this book (as if all the pretty designs weren't enough) there is a really cool chart I had never seen before listing the "Hardness" of some of the most common gemstones used in jewelry making. Very interesting!

Strange things you see at car shows and Crafty Blogger Links

This is a plastic rodent smoking a cigarette chained to a cool old car. I would have to say it was the strangest thing I saw at the Glendale Car Show. Just makes you go hmmmmm?

Blisstree Arts
Cyndi has a copy of Susan Wasinger's new book "Fabricate" to give away. Learn how to make fabric the star of your projects!

Cathie Filian
Channel your inner diva as you create a dollar store altered tiara!

Crafty Princess Diaries
Tammy finally got a copy of the book Doublestitch. Is this too over the top for the more mature crochet crowd?

Cross Stitch at About.com
What are your favorite shows and movies to "watch" when you are stitching? Connie lists hers - read other stitchers selections in the comments and add your own.

Craftside-A behind-the-scenes peek at a crafty world
At Craftside there are some insights from Marc English from the book Good Design, designing with one word from The Crafter's Devotional and a snarky sign tutorial for good die cut letter placement, how to draw fabric characteristics, how to sew a puffy sleeve and a 10-minute tip on using crayons to fix a scratch in wood.

The Artful Crafter
Don't toss useful items just because they don't match. Look at what Eileen did with some freebie ceramic canisters and an old wooden cheese tray.

The Crochet Dude
Drew announces the winner of his Simplicity Rotary Cutting Machine giveaway and shares some cool vacation photos from New Mexico & Colorado!

Vickie Howell-Craft.Rock.Love
See pics and get the scoop on the Summer Crafts & Hobbies show, live from Orlando!

About Family Crafts
If you are trying to find a unique gift to make and give, why not check out my free printable calendar pages? You can choose from a variety of styles for not only the current year, but also 2010, 2011, and 2012. There is so much you can do with these free calendar pages. Here are just a few ideas to get you thinking creatively...

Aileen's Musings
Aileen has some new art posted for your view pleasure, along with some freebie silhouettes for you to download and use in your art!

Locked & Loaded Jacket Patches made with The Cricut and the Blackletter font

Is it strange I am making a jacket when it's over 100 degrees out?

This is my first fabric project I made with my Cricut. I am soooooo hooked!

Here is how I did it:

First I ironed Heat and Bond onto the back of a 12 x 12 piece of black cotton fabric (with tiny white dots just to be a bit cute)
Then I die cut the words Locked & Loaded using my Cricut die cutting machine using the Blackletter font.
Then I repeated the process with a piece of white cotton to get the shadow effect for the ampersand (the "and" symbol).

Then I simply photographed a pair of scissors, uploaded it into my computer and printed it out to get my scissor image. I glued it right side down to the back side of the black fabric to cut it out.

Then to make the top and bottom rocker template off to Illustrator. (feel free to download the pattern)
I then glued the rocker patches onto the back of the white fabric and cut them out. Note: The scissors are there only to make sure there was enough space for them.

Then I pealed off the paper backing of the black scissors and ironed it onto the front of the white fabric. Then cut it out of the white fabric with about an eighth inch border.
I then pressed the letters onto the rocker sections and then aligned everything onto the back of my jacket and pressed it all down.

All that was left to do was some raw topstitching around the scissors and some clean stitching with black thread around the rocker patches about an eighth inch in from the outer edge.

Finally I added a stud to the center of the scissors at the hing point.

I think this is going to be like cross stitching is for me (my house is starting to look like a sign shop because I keep cross stitching all sorts of words and sayings) all my cloths are going to have something to say!

And speaking of signs, here is another one I made, snarky eh? Get it? If you want to see how I made this one (including a great way to align and space the letters super easy) pop on over to Craftside.

A Floral-tasticly good project from the new book- Kanzashi in Bloom

I love making flowers to decorate things and I am always on the lookout for a new way and here one is:
Kanzashi in Bloom: 20 Simple Fold-and-Sew Projects to Wear and Give
By
Diane Gilleland

Kanzashi tsumami is the Japanese art of folding delicate squares of silk into three-dimensional flower petals. In the United States, the online craft culture has sprouted a renewed interest in making Kanzashi with American crafters devising simplified ways to create these gorgeous fabric flowers and incorporating more user-friendly materials like cotton and synthetic fabrics along with the traditional silks.

Kanzashi in Bloom takes the American interpretation of Kanzashi a step further, presenting modern, more easily executed flower designs as elements in a variety of fun, fashionable, hip craft projects. Kanzashi in Bloom offers advice on materials, three petal-folding styles, and techniques for assembling a Kanzashi flower. You’ll also find instructions for 20 projects to wear and give as gifts, including:

• Tiny blossom earrings
• Flowers-in-your-hair clips
• The happiest belt buckle ever
• Elegant floral gift topper

Well since I have to test-drive every craft technique I can possible get my hands on and this one is no exception. I followed the impeccable directions and let's just say I tend to have to try a couple of times when I am doing origami, such is not the case here, first shot out I got it! The photos matched the words and explained everything so clearly.

As you can see in the first photo with the book cover I made a pink gingham flower using two of the folding techniques, the pointed and the round. I think my choice was a bit floppy but I am still tickled with the result. I glued it onto a hair clip and I am wearing it while I type!

So if you are like me and like, flowers, origami, fabric, and making cute little things to embellish and decorate just about anything I bet you will like this book too!

Thanks fellow Church of Crafter for writing such a good book.