Show Notes
Hello! I am so glad to have you in the craft room with me today! Today, I thought we'd talk about card making, specifically … what exactly do you NEED to start. Firstly, let's consider a card you might buy at the newsagent, or even at the dollar store. Essentially, you have a folded piece of heavy weight cardstock, with an image, and usually a sentiment, on the front … a matching envelope, and possibly a sentiment or longer verse inside. It might be funny, pretty, whimsical, macho, minimalist, arty … there really is something for all ages, occasions and tastes in all sorts of colours, themes and sizes. If you're considering taking up card making as a hobby, you may be wondering what you really need. If you're already a card maker, you've probably seen this asked in card making groups on Facebook A LOT. Here are my top 6 must haves for card making. CARDSTOCK TRIMMER BONE FOLDER PATTERN PAPER SENTIMENT ADHESIVE When it comes to the must-haves … that's it! Of course, there are other fun things you can use to make your cards beautiful, but I always say this … a simple card made well, beats a complicated card made badly. In other words … good workmanship is the most important thing in your toolbox. The most simple card, like I talked about today, can look amazing when you take the time to do great workmanship. Now, if you're just dipping your toe into card making, and are unsure if you're going to be into it, there are a few ways you can do so without breaking the budget or investing in a lot of expensive tools. Kits
Pre-cut card base & envelope packs . Ask a card making friend
Party Plan Can card making take over your life and your house? Absolutely! There are so many awesome tools and pretty papers, and gorgeous embellishments … it's really easy to go nuts in the early days and just buy everything! But if you start by buying small amounts, and making sure you use them, you won't find yourself a year down the track realising that you bought a bunch of useless stuff that doesn't work, you don't really like, and that doesn't do what you thought it would. I've been making cards for over 25 years, and in the beginning I made do. When I picked up Scrapbooking about 17 years ago, I accumulated a lot of stuff that is still sitting unused in boxes … so I know what I'm talking about here! LOL But then I got smart, and I added to my tool box in stages, as I could afford things, and after doing my research. I think we can go into that in another episode though, because there's been lots of information here already today, and I don't want to overwhelm those who are just starting out. Don't forget to check the blog post for photos, a transcript, and links to a whole lot of things I mentioned today. Remember … people will tell you that you need a whoooooooole lot of things, but one persons need is another person's budget-buster or want-list item … so ease in at first, and if you get hooked, then you can start investing in the new toys.
More from The Craft Room Podcast
Hello and welcome to The Craft Room Podcast. I'm so glad you're joining me today, as we are talking about forgotten gems. If you've been crafting for a long time, like me, then you likely have a LOT of amazing products and resources. Back in episode 40 I talked about The Craft Stash, and this is kind of an extension of that episode. Usually when people talk about forgotten gems, they're referring to old movies or television shows, paintings or travel destinations. But this is a craft podcast, so, of course, we are going to be talking about them in the context of crafting. In thinking about this for a few weeks, I've found that forgotten crafty gems tend to fall into one of three categories … 1. Physical (which falls into 3 sub-categories - Consumables, Tools, References/Resources) 2. Virtual/digital 3. Techniques/knowledge So … what can we do to uncover our forgotten crafting gems. Well, before we talk about that, I would like to remind you of one important thing. If you were out in Lightning Ridge mining for opals, not everything you dig up is going to be a beautiful gem. There's going to be a whole lot of rubble, and, let's be honest … there's going to be some dirt. The same applies when searching for forgotten crafting gems, in your stash, on the internet, on your computer, your phone or in your memory. Be prepared to find a few things that you look at and wonder 'Why did I keep this?', and I suspect there will be some dust, and potentially a dead bug in there somewhere. The easiest way to find anything is to look for it, and I'll walk you through from low effort / low time options, then we'll level up. 1. Look 2. Closer Look 3. Sort 4. Organise If there's anything I hope you take away from this episode, I hope it is this … * It's worth pressing pause on bringing new things into your home so you can take some time to look at what you have, decide what you love and curate a craft stash that is a true treasure chest. * Keep track of your virtual and digital gems so you can enjoy them before they disappear. Block out some time to watch that video, look at old bookmarked pages, work your way through that online course or print those checklists and templates and use them. * Sometimes we need to clear the rubble and the dirt (and the dead fly) so our gems can truly shine. One crafters rubble is another crafters treasure. Mostly I hope that you find great joy in your craft stash, and if you find a truly amazing treasure, please feel free to share it, maybe in the Craft with Dawn Lewis Facebook group (link in show notes and on the blog). Enjoy the gem hunt, and happy crafting!
Today on The Craft Room Podcast, let's talk about something that most crafters will probably consider at some point in their lives … a no spend year. Sometimes it's a month, a quarter, six months … but most commonly I see people setting this goal for a whole year. It might sound drastic, even unthinkable to some, but in this economy, especially with the rising prices of craft supplies, there are plenty of people doing a no-spend year. I'm not trying to talk anyone into such a dramatic situation, and, of course, there are some alternatives, so let's talk about the difference between a no spend, low spend and mindful spend year, the reasons you might consider them, and how you can succeed at such a challenge.
Hello and welcome to The Craft Room Podcast. I'm so glad you're joining me today, as we are talking about the benefits of swatching. Yes, I am on a swatching kick right now and it all started thanks to my friend Sally. I went to visit her last month and she showed me her beautifully organised craft supplies, but more importantly she showed me her ink pad swatches. I knew the second I saw it that this was the solution I had been looking for for years. It's not like I've never swatched before. My Copic markers are swatched out on a hex chart, I've swatched some pencils and a watercolour palette. But I didn't have what I have always wanted … a swatch folder with all the colours in one place. Until I saw Sally's I didn't know why I was baulking at it, and the reality is … I wanted more swatches to a page. It's not like a plastic sleeve with pockets is a revolutionary product, but I'd never seen coin collecting sleeves used for swatching before. I will link to the ones I used below.
Today on The Craft Room Podcast, let's talk about my Big Announcement and Product Longevity.