Hannah Montana

Hey all you Hannah Montana fans,
We have the very hard to come by Hannah Montana fabric! Come in and get fleece for a blanket and while you're at it buy some flannel and cotton Hannah fabrics to make yourself and your friends a pair of Pajama pants and a pillowcase.

Come Celebrate With Us!

March is National Craft Month and to celebrate we are having a make-n-take this weekend in the Paper Crafts Department. This cute 4x6 mini album featuring We R Memory Keepers Product is so adorable and easy to make. When using the Zutter Bind-it-All machine making mini albums is a cinch. So stop by March 1st or March 2nd any time from 1pm to 3pm to make your own mini album.

We will continue to celebrate by offering more make-n-takes through out the month of March, and will keep you posted as to what they will be. We hope to see you this weekend!

Why buy a Cricut?

I came across this video while I was doing some research for a report I am doing to present to other retailers. He makes a valid point as to why to buy the Cricut and he shows you how to dispose of your other scrapbooking tools. Enjoy!

Coffee Cup Trays

My inspiration for this project came from fabric. I thought what better way to dress up my kitchen and still have something that is functional. Click here for the project sheet.

Unity Stamps Coming Soon!

Unity Stamp Co., a new company based right near us in Spicer, MN. We discovered this company at CHA. We loved their products and ordered them up. The way they have designed their stamps is very unique. We can't wait until we receive their stamps. Check out the You Tube video below to see how they work.

Legend of the Leprechauns

This St. Patrick's Day, let your child in on a well-guarded secret and start a new family tradition in the process. The fun begins with the legend of the leprechauns and leads to a treasure box filled with goodies and gifts. Here's what to do. On the day before the holiday, read aloud the following tale:

Legend of the Leprechauns

Full of magic and trickery, the leprechauns remain in their hidden world until the night before St. Patrick's Day. On that one night of the year they appear throughout the world to dance and sing and frolic. Disguising themselves as leaves and grass, and sounding like the wind and the crickets, they come and go unnoticed. However, it is said that if a decorated treasure box is left empty under the moon, the leprechauns must fill the box with gold or jewels or gifts. But then they will hide the filled box in the most unlikely of places. If the box is found on St. Patrick's Day, the treasure remains in our world. If not, the leprechauns may retrieve what is rightfully theirs. And though the leprechauns are very clever, it is not impossible to find the treasure because, unknowingly, leprechauns often leave a trail of greenery behind them.

Making the Treasure Box
Now, have your child decorate a wooden box with paints, glitter glue or stickers. If she or he tries to bargain for a bigger box, explain that leprechauns are tiny and if they can't reach the top of the box, it will remain empty. Just before bed, she/he should place the finished box on a windowsill where the moon will shine on it.

Once she's/he's sound asleep, the resident leprechauns can fill the box with small treasures, such as foil-covered chocolate coins, costume jewelry or a bag of marbles, and then hide it in a special place. All that's left to do is lay a trail of green leaves or paper shamrocks from the windowsill to the box. An older child may even enjoy the challenge of several trails to follow, some with dead ends (you know, trickery of the leprechauns!).

Kudos to Vanessa in designing our treasure box! --Submitted by Brenda

CHA was Exciting!

Before you start reading this post you may want to grab yourself something to drink and a snack. You may be reading a while, because I have so much to share about CHA.

We saw so much fun new stuff. It was hard to decide what to order. I love going to shows, because I get to see all the new products and I come back feeling inspired. So some products to look for in the next few months would be the new Cosmo Cricket (http://cosmocricket.com/) . I ordered all four new lines, because it was to tough to decide between the four of them. I also order their blackboard. For you quilters Cosmo's Jitterbug patterns are being released this spring in fabric, which I am excited for.

Making Memories had the cutiest baby line for scrapbooking. It seemed like everyone came out with baby and since I am expecting I think I went a little over board. They also came out with the Slice a die cutting machine that is very user friendly. The Slice will not be shipping until July.

We have a lot of Hannah Montana and High School Musical items coming. From stickers, to iron-ons, to craft kits. I think they will all be a big hit. We also have all the New Cricut Cartridges on order. Can you say clear stamps? So many companies are coming out with clear stamps that are so stinkin' cute that I found it hard to resist. For you Disney lovers there will be some new Disney products coming to the store to freshen that section up.

We will be getting in the Pebbles Inc. Share & Tell line. This was one of Scott's favorites. I really like how basic it is but can be more advanced if you desire.

Amate jewelry products were another one of Scott's favorites and mine too. They are blank jewelry pieces used to create your own pendants, rings, and bracelets. The pictures shown are using some stamping products such as UTEE (ultra thick embossing powder), paper, and Glossy Accents. I just love how unique each piece looks.

I saw some awesome quilts that were embellished with some Petaloo felt petals. They looked amazing with the dimension of the petals. I hope to get in these patterns for the quilts.

Radiant Rain is a product put out by the makers of Twinkling H2O's. It will be on our shelf within the next month. It is a product that's simply easy to use. The finished product looks so beautiful. The one of the pictures below are ceramic beads coverd with Radiant Rain, they are on wooden sticks to dry. The picture of the trivet was one of my favorite samples.

My Mind's Eye has always been one of my favorite companies. It may have something to do with the men that work in the booth. They are always energetic, nice and good looking helps too. They came out with these three lines that we will be picking up. The Wild Asparagus line is the 4th in its series. This time it has a shimmer or a pearlized look to it. It is just beautiful. The 29th Street Market is a good one too, but my favorite is the Just Dreamy line.

Moxxie is another scrapbooking company that we picked up. Here is a peek at some of their lines. Easter Doodle should be here in time for you to scrapbook your 2008 Easter memories.

All that is left to say is Tim Holtz and Grungeboard. He was so inspiring and made crafting with grungeboard look so easy. He has come out with more grungeboard that we ordered up along with some exsiting Ranger products. The eye popping color swatch samples of the crackle paints was enough to inspire me and made me think outside of the box.

This post was a little longer than I thought it would be, but I had more to share than I had realized. There was more that I saw at the show but these are the ones that stuck out or that I can remember of the top of my head. We will keep you posted when we receive these new products and others. Thanks for sticking it through to the end, It was worth it, wasn't it?

Card Chaos

There is still room in the 2nd class of Card Chaos. Take a look & see if you would like to join the fun on Tuesday, Feb. 26th @ 6pm. We would love to see you there!!

CHA!!

The group is back from CHA with a lot of energy & excitement over all the new products they checked out!! I personally can't wait to go through the catalogs & start ordering! If there is anything that you have seen & would like us to check out let us know.. We love to hear what everyone is excited about! Thanks

It's all about the heart!!

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!! I hope everyone is having a great day. I just wanted to share some care for your heart. "Go Red For Women celebrates the energy, passion and power we have as women to band together to wipe out heart disease and stroke." The American Heart Association has a great web site http://www.goredforwomen.org/
"Go Red For Women is a movement passionately dedicated to helping women fight back against heart disease, the No. 1 killer of women in America. By putting our passion together with positive action, we can continue to educate other women about their risks and help them find their own personal path to better health for life."

Last Minute Details

I really like to add special touches to my gifts to make it more personal. Since Valentine's Day is tomorrow, I thought I would share this quick gift idea. Personalize a Paint Can with your special Valentine's picture and add Clear Overlays by Hambly over the top. It makes such a cute container!!

Rock on!

A friend forwarded me this project, and I have to share it with you. It's this great project sheet on how to make your own Guitar-Shaped Bag! Now if I only had a sewing machine I would make one right now. Click here to see the instructions.


Not that into guitars...there's also a picture of a Piano Bag. (doesn't look like they have the instructions for that one yet.)

Read more >> Options >>

Knit-Out

The Mall of American is holding a convention for the Craft Yarn Council of American on Saturday, February 16 - Sunday, February 17. The list of activities can be found at
http://www.mallofamerica.com/about_moa_event_detail_objectname_knit_out_08.aspx

Check it out. The activities look like they would be a lot of fun. They have something for everyone!!

Spring Potpourri

Are you wanting to bring some spring smells into your home?? Come check out our Ocean
Blue, Sea Breeze, Tropical Sunset, Island Mango, Linen, Purple Tornado, Gardenia, and Secret Garden Potpourri. We have glass and everyday containers to display it in.

Beaded Curtains Are Back...

We now have 11 new styles of beaded curtains! We have pink, green, blue, silver, and many more to choose from. They can be found in the girls' room in the home decor area.

Valentine Creation Ideas

Are the kids at your feet asking "What can I make for my friends at school for Valentine's Day?" After having my own kids asking me this question, I thought that if I needed the help, so could all you mothers (and fathers!) out there. Check out the bulletin board on your way out of the store and see all the creative ways to say "You're a scoop above the rest!" -- using a plastic shovel and a small bag of candy, or "To a POP-POP-POP ular Teacher!" -- template of a box of popcorn and attaching a bag of microwavable popcorn. Better yet, you don't have to remember how to make them, as there are instructions included by each and every idea. All project materials can be found here at Crafts Direct, so stop on in and get the creative juices flowing!

Kona Cottons

Kona Cotton Lovers,

We have expanded our grouping of the Kona Cottons. We Have a " Beautiful Rainbow" to brighten up the dull grey of the weather and it's only $5.49 per yard.

February Stamp of the Month!

I can finally say that we have the stamp of the month (for February) on time. That is very exciting. They have used some Bo Bunny papers for this month in the blue tones and I really like them. The stamps are cute and very springy which is a nice feeling, since, it has been so cold out. Everything is out on the floor so stop buy and pick yours up today.