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CHA- Crafts: Gelatin Designs

By on August 5, 2010 in Uncategorized

One of the most unique crafts I saw at CHA last week was from Gelatin Designs. I was walking around the show looking for a particular booth number when I stumbled upon what I thought was glass art and was intrigued.  Then I found out it was made with just gelatin from the store and I was amazed!

There was a lovely young girl, daughter of the owner, manning the booth while her mother was on break and she explained how this craft had been around for a long time, but that her mother had developed these molds to make the process simpler.

The process seemed simple enough, make gelatin liquid using your microwave, pour in molds and let dry. Then remove from the molds and trim the gelatin to the exact shape.  Paint or decorate with a variety of media.

 She had a variety of molds with a variety of textures, not just flowers.

The results were amazing; I held some pieces and played with them to see if they were resilient and they were.  The nice young girl told me that the only thing you can’t do it get them wet.

Have you heard of or seen this craft before?  Is this something you would try?

Click on the link at the top of the page to visit Craft Critique for comments, giveaways and more!

Tuesdays with Toolulu: Crafty Business Goal Setting

By on March 9, 2010 in Uncategorized

We’re all crafters here, right? We know the difference between a glue gun and a glue dot. We know that it is Mod Podge, not modge podge. We can make things out of paper bags and pop tabs. But do we know how to run a business? So many of us start out innocently enough. Our friends and family want to buy things we’ve made. A few orders start trickling in. The extra money is alluring. Online marketplaces like Etsy make it even easier to get our products out there to the masses with little investment. Things start to get a little complicated when tax id numbers, budgets, fees, trademark, copyright, etc…become more of a part of your day than scissors, glue, and ribbon. Let us help. We’ll have a series of articles here over the next couple of months dedicated to these topics provided by Toolulu. Leave a comment or shoot us an email if you have a specific question or topic you’d like to see covered.

Today’s topic is goal setting. It’s pretty general but by having clear goals in mind, you’ll be able to make better plans for your business in the future. You’ll want to remember two things when setting goals.
1. Make them specific.
2. Make them attainable.
Set Specific Goals

Vague: Be on TV.
Specific: Share sewing tips as a contributor on a morning TV show.
Vague: Sell my stuff in stores.
Specific: Sell my hand-spun and hand-dyed yarn in the two local yarn shops and on Etsy.
Set Attainable Goals
You definitely want to reach for the stars here, but let’s face it. Not everyone is going to be the next Martha Stewart. Make your goals ambitious and as you begin to attain those goals, maybe then you’ll be ready to set the “take over the craft world” goal.
Homework
Set an ambitious goal. Set several initial goals to help you reach your ambitious goal. Make a timeline to reach those goals. Write them down! Here’s an example for you:
Ambitious goal: Publish an ebook of sewing patterns. (6 months)
Initial goal 1: Research bookstores and ebooks to see what is already available. (week 1)
Initial goal 2: Brainstorm for book ideas. (week 2)
Initial goal 3: Compile 10-12 of my patterns for possible inclusion. (4-6 weeks)
Initial goal 4: Test patterns. (month 2)
and so on…
Take a moment to set some goals for yourself or your business. You don’t have to be just starting out for this to work for you. Once you have a timeline and a destination (your ambitious goal), you can start working toward making all your crafty dreams come true. That is what it’s all about, after all.
Toolulu.com is a social media marketing company whose tagline is “We Know Our Craft”. The women behind Toolulu are Christy Nelson and Deb Averett–avid crafters and designers who also happen to know a thing or two about business. They will be providing a series of articles for Craft Critique over the next several months focusing on building a craft business with a focus on social media.
Click on the link at the top of the page to visit Craft Critique for comments, giveaways and more!

Scor -Tape by Scor-Pal

By on October 20, 2009 in Uncategorized

Reported by Katie Renz

Today, I’m reviewing a double-sided adhesive that you will definitely want to add to your sticky arsenal. No bones about it, this tape is a must have in my opinion. Once I found Scor-Tape I was in double-sided adhesive heaven. There is only one thing that could possibly make this better and I’ll share that at the end.

If you aren’t familiar with Scor-tape, you might be familiar with an item and company called Scor-Pal. Diana Crick is the designer and founder of this company that produces a 12″x 12″ scoring pad and tool, as well as other products, one of which is the above mentioned Scor-Tape. This is really a perfect marriage, because the Scor-Pal was created to help you create wonderful 3-D products using professional looking scored creases, and the Scor-Tape will help you keep your projects together and secure.

The score-tape comes in a variety of widths:

  • 1/8″ is 27 yards for $3.70
  • 1/4″ is 27 yards for $4.80
  • 1/2″ is 27 yards for $7.00
  • 1 1/2″ and 2 1/2″ * NOTE* Scor-pal is out of these 2 widths at the moment, but are expecting a shipment within the next couple of weeks.
  • 6″x 6″ sheets in a package of 5 for $4.80

Let me tell you why I love my Scor-Tape. I’m going to bullet them because the reasons are quite cut and dried:

  • It works. This adhesive keeps projects together
  • It tears. Imagine not needing your scissors to cut the tape.
  • The liner comes off and is static free
  • It’s affordable.
  • It comes in multiple sizes… the 6″x 6″ sheet is awesome!

One of the neatest items is the 6″x 6″ double-sided adhesive sheets. These are great for punching items and then applying glitter, embossing powders, beads, and even fun flock. Take a look at the couple of examples I’ve laid out to show you the result. I used a Martha Stewart heart punch and a Fiskars Apron Lace border to punch my items.

I peeled off the back side (the brown layer in the picture) and then stuck them down to some cardstock.


I applied glitter, fun flock, and embossing powder:


Here are some close-ups. I love the super clean look you get using the double sided sheets. And they punch beautifully.

Pictured below is of the pink fun flock. Just pour and rub it in with your finger.

Green embossing powder. I love the leathery look I got. Now, I can’t guarantee what the embossing will look like, and it could/might/probably be dependent on whatever brand you are using.

And finally, Martha Stewart Glitter on both the heart and the border punch.



And finally, here is a card that I made using a punch as well as the 1/8″ Scor-Tape. In this case, I took pieces that were slightly longer than the width of my card, laid it down and then snipped the edges. Just add glitter, rub with finger, and you’re set.

Recipe: TaDa Creative Studios designer paper, thickers, Martha Stewart heart punch, border punch, and glitter, scor-Tape.

Here’s a close up of the glitter strips.


I do not use Scor-Tape for my cards or scrapbooking, although if you wanted to you certainly could. I just don’t find it cost efficient due to the amount of cards I make, but I do use Scor-Tape for any 3-D project that I make, or any time I can’t use a tape runner. I also use Scor-Tape to attach bows or really anything that I need a small piece of strong tape. I really already listed my pros above, but I’ll put down my 3 biggest below.

Pros:

  • Strong Adhesive power
  • Love the non-static removal of the liner (sometimes it’s the little things that make the biggest difference)
  • Really love the fact that it tears

Cons:

  • I would love to see a super clear/transparent double sided tape
  • and maybe some more widths? (a stretch)

The tape is extraordinarily easy to use and the value is exceptional. I have three words to share with you: I love it! I would rate this a 10 out of 10.

So, have you been looking for the perfect tape, or is this stuff already in your personal arsenal? Do you have any suggestions for other ways to use it? Share with us… we want to know!

Click on the link at the top of the page to visit Craft Critique for comments, giveaways and more!
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