FaveCrafts

1000s of free craft projects, home decor ideas and DIY tips

FaveCrafts News: Our Brand New Crafting Studio

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hcnk5yRvrqk

It seems like just yesterday that we launched FaveCrafts.com here at Prime Publishing LLC. In 2009, our company launched our first website and expanded a year later in 2010 to include even more sites you love – AllFreeCrochet.com, AllFreeSewing.com, AllFreeKnitting.com, and more. After those first few years, we expanded to 38 fully functional sites. Now, we’re expanding even more!

Several years ago, we built our very own crafting studio and test kitchen in-house to begin creating our very own content right here at home. We’ve since hired a stellar video production team and have created nearly 500 videos since then with guest bloggers, our 3 in-house chefs, and our editorial team taking the stage! If you haven’t checked out the FaveCrafts.com Youtube channel or the videos on our site, we recommend you do so ASAP.

After years of growth, we’re still growing! With so much more exciting crafting video content on our calendar, we need more space. That is why Prime Publishing LLC (the FaveCrafts team) is expanding our Northbook, IL offices to include a brand new crafting studio, another test kitchen, more storage space for all those important supplies, and even some extra room for our editors. Check out the video below to learn more and keep checking back for more progress!

Be Sure to Check Out:


We’re going to need plenty of video ideas! What kind of crafting videos would you love to see?

Featured Craft Videos

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We’ve been featuring more videos in our newsletters the past few weeks! We’ve also been showcasing a YouTube Video of the Week on Facebook, tweeting about a new video each week, and filling up our Pinterest video board with these hand-selected videos tutorials!

We love video tutorials at FaveCrafts because sometimes you just need a visual aid to go with your written instructions. It’s much more beneficial to see a skilled crafter demonstrate a new crafting technique before you try it out!

Here are the featured videos from the past few weeks, and don’t forget to subscribe to the FaveCraftsVideo YouTube Channel to get hundreds more!

How to Crochet a Button: In this crochet video for beginners you’ll see how simple it is to crochet a button cover. If you’ve got a lot of mismatched buttons or you just like the look of a crochet embellished button, you’ll love this technique! Bring new lift to your clothes and bags with this crochet button pattern

You can see the whole project here: Lacy Crochet Button

How to Make an Easter Pyramid Bag: Make your own treat bags for Easter using this video tutorial. You can turn scrapbook paper into a cute Easter pyramid bag to hold candy and other goodies with these Easter craft ideas.

You can see the whole project here: Easter Pyramid Candy Bag

How to Crochet Easter Eggs: Use these beginner crochet patterns this Easter to make crochet Easter eggs! These make great centerpieces and Easter basket fillers.

You can see part 2 here: How to Crochet Easter Eggs: Part 2

How to Make a Windsock: Learn how to make a windsock in a few easy steps. If you’re looking for summer fun crafts for kids to enjoy with you, consider making a colorful windsock with them! This project is a great introduction to sewing as well.

You can see a similar project here: Blowin’ in the Wind Windsock

How to Make Wedding Feather Fascinators: Creating fascinators for your wedding is simple! Wear a bridal flower and feather fascinator in your hair for your special day with this thrifty and simple tutorial.

You can see this and more wedding crafts here: 3 Tips for Hosting a Wedding on a Budget

Are you a FaveCraftsVideo subscriber? What are your favorite types of craft videos? What kinds of crafts need videos accompanying them?

14 Paper Craft Techniques: Handmade Cards

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As you may have noticed, this week’s theme for our National Craft Month celebration was paper crafts. We brought you some cute card making and scrapbooking craft ideas already, but I thought it would be nice to show you some cardmaking technique tutorials too. These are great for beginner cardmakers, but I bet there are a few techniques out there that even advanced card-making mavens haven’t learned yet. That’s where our YouTube channel comes in! All of the following video tutorials are from our Paper Craft playlist on YouTube, so make sure you check those out next!

First up, we have some tutorials for advanced card makers or crafters who would like to challenge themselves with a new skill. It may only take a sense of creativity to make homemade cards, but these techniques require skills, know-how, and specific tools to accomplish.

Masking 101

How to Emboss on Vellum

The Embossed Resist Technique

Stitching on Paper

Next up are some videos that teach you how to work with certain media or tools. How many times have you seen products for sale at the craft store and not known what they were for? They may look like mysterious gadgets or tubes of strange liquidy substances, but these paper craft supplies actually have very specific uses that produce amazing results when used correctly.

How to Work With Distress Inks

How to Use Alcohol Inks: Puddle Background

Perfect Pearls: Stamp Lift

How to Use Microbeads

Stenciling with Modeling Cream

And finally, we have some great video tutorials on card project ideas. These might be a better place for beginners to start, or at least to get inspiration before you enter the wonderful world of card making!

How to Create a Card Set

Quick Birthday Cards

How to Make Card Blanks

4 Handmade Card Ideas

6 Handmade Cards with Paint Chips

For more great craft videos, don’t miss our FaveCrafts YouTube Channel. It is chock full of free tutorials for every kind of craft!

Do you make cards? What type of card making technique have you always wanted to learn?

GIVEAWAY

We are giving away a prize a day every day here on our FaveCrafts blog for National Craft Month. It is so easy to enter. Just go to our Project of the Day post and comment to enter! You have 31 chances to win and a new special prize each day. Tune in every day to see if you are the winner!

Featured Craft Videos on our YouTube Channel

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Certain crafts just need an accompanying video, don’t you think? Especially things like crochet stitches, knitting stitches, and sewing techniques–it’s so much easier to crochet a sweater pattern when you’ve got videos teaching you how to do each stitch. I’m a very visual learner, as I suspect many crafters are, which is why we have an entire YouTube channel dedicated to craft video tutorials. Our channel is full of technique videos, such as How to Crochet the Crocodile Stitch and How to Stencil with Modeling Cream, and we also have some fun craft projects to follow from start to finish, like this video on How to Make a Ribbon Wreath.

We feature a new video every week in our newsletter, and I’ve been posting a featured video every week on our Facebook wall too. Want to see the most recent videos we’ve featured?

How to Make a Ribbon and Pearl Necklace: Combine ribbon with pearls for an inexpensive, trendy DIY necklace that works equally well for an evening out and at the office. This ribbon necklace DIY is simple enough for a beginner jewelry crafter.

You can see the whole project here: Ladylike Ribbon and Pearl Necklace

 

How to Make Embroidery Hoop Bulletin Boards: Embroidery hoop crafts are all the rage right now. You can turn them into so many things, including this DIY bulletin board. Hang important pieces of paper or cute odds and ends on your walls in your craft room with this easy DIY cork board.

You can see the whole project here: Embroidery Hoop Bulletin Board

 

How to Make a Beaded Angel: Craft with your kids and make a pretty beaded angel! This angel craft for kids is simple and customizable. It’ll be easy enough for the kids but fun enough for you!

You can see the whole project here: Kids’ Beaded Angel

How to Crochet a Shamrock: Want to make a shamrock? Crochet one for St. Patrick’s Day with this crochet stitch video. All you need is some green scrap yarn.

You can see a similar written pattern here: Easy Crochet Shamrock

We also featured some fun Valentine’s Day craft videos. Keep these in mind for next year:

Are you a visual learner too? What kinds of craft videos do you want to see more of?

Meet and Make: Carlene Eshelman

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This week’s featured Meet and Make designer is Carlene Eshelman. Carlene has been crafting for over 17 years.  She’s dabbled in just about every craft, from beading to paper crafting. She especially loves altering old items and turning them back into treasures. She is a self-taught artist who loves teaching and inspiring people.

 

Carlene is a producer for the AllFreeHolidayCrafts YouTube channel.  She also writes a personal crafting blog and runs an online craft store.

Want to know more?  Keep reading!

10 Fun Facts About Carlene:

  1. I was an all-star softball player in Hawaii.
  2. I have a Business degree.
  3. I love cats.
  4. I have one granddaughter.
  5. I don’t like cooking.
  6. I love office supplies.
  7. I was born and raised in Hawaii.
  8. My favorite color is pink.
  9. I love to laugh.
  10. I love sleeping in late.


Here’s Carlene’s Featured Project:

Mini Lace Christmas Trees

Materials:

  • Black cardstock
  • 6” plate for template
  • Glue gun
  • Lace less than 1” wide
  • Embellishment for tree top
  • Embellishment for tree (pearls, miniature tree lights, etc.)
  • Pencil
  • Scissors
  • Tape or stapler


Instructions:

1. Trace 6” plate onto black cardstock.

2. Cut out with scissors.

3. Cut a line from outside circle to middle of circle.

4. Fold corners of circle into each other to form a cone. Keep twisting until you get the shape of tree you like.

5. Tape or staple loose edge of cone.

6. Put a dab of hot glue onto tree at bottom, and place lace onto glue.

7. Wind lace up the cone, dabbing glue where needed.

8. Cut lace when you reach the top of the cone. Glue loose end of lace down at top.

9. Glue tree topper embellishment to top of tree.

10. Embellish tree as desired.

 

 

The Secret to Easy Holiday Crafting: Watch and Learn!

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For me, crafting is sort of like shopping.  The idea of going to the mall and taking my clothes on and off and trying to figure out what looks good and what doesn’t is just so… exhausting.  But I also love clothes and want to keep my closet stocked with cute shirts and nice jeans.  So shopping is something that I look forward to and dread at the same time.  That’s why I always go shopping with a friend.  Not only is it great to have company and someone to commiserate with when pair after pair of jeans just won’t fit, it’s also a great motivation to actually GO shopping.  My friend Alyssa calls me and says “we’re going shopping” and, as much as I don’t want to, I go.  And guess what?  I end up having a good time.

I’m the same way with crafting.  It’s something I want to do and I always love the finished product, but the actual process, especially the whole “getting started” thing is a little bit intimidating for me.  I never quite know if I have the right materials, if I’m doing the steps right, if my project is looking how it’s supposed to at each stage of the process and a whole host of other concerns.

That’s why it was such a huge moment for me when I first discovered craft tutorials on YouTube.  I guess I had never thought about it before, but once I found one, I was hooked.  Click after click after click, I just kept finding more awesome videos that actually SHOWED you how to make things.  And the people giving the instructions were so nice and friendly.  It was sort of like I had a whole new bunch of crafting buddies, except I had never met any of them before!  Since I live by myself and usually am a solitary crafter, it was really nice to have some company while I made my projects!

With the holidays just around the corner, you’re probably planning a bunch of DIY projects.  If you’re like me and would rather follow along with someone as they make something instead of just reading a list of steps, you’ll appreciate the collection of videos on the AllFreeHolidayCrafts YouTube channel.  There are tons of great ideas for the upcoming holiday season, including a Christmas Card Gift Set and instructions to make Easy Poinsettia Flowers to decorate for Christmas.  There are also some fun seasonal projects on the channel.  My favorites are the Fall Blocks Tutorial and the Winter Wreath Tutorial.

Check out a couple of the videos below and then be sure to subscribe to the channel (it’s the little yellow “Subscribe” button on the left of the screen).  That way you’ll know whenever a new craft video is posted!

Happy Crafting!

Tell us:  What kinds of videos would you like to see on the AllFreeHolidayCrafts YouTube channel?  We’re taking suggestions!

Latrice Visits the FaveCrafts Office!

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One of our talented video makers on the FaveCrafts YouTube channel is Latrice Murphy. You may have seen her great video tutorials on scrapbooking and card-making techniques, such as this one on Paper Piecing, or How to Make Paper Flowers. I even blogged about her Masking video a while ago.

Here's me with Latrice and Editorial Director Linda.

Just a few weeks ago, we decided to meet up with Latrice, show her around the office, and pick her brain about all things crafty! Latrice is an endless source of information when it comes to paper crafts. She’s a whiz at card making, she scrapbooks everything, and from what I can tell, her craft room must be amazing.

Make sure to check out her blog, Any Occasion, to see all of her beautiful designs. Thanks for stopping by, Latrice!

National Craft Month: Featured Video from AllFreeSewing

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As experts and enthusiasts of all things crafty, FaveCrafts decided to host a special National Craft Month blog series for all of our lovely readers. Check back for a new blog post every day featuring our favorite projects, new craft videos, how-to’s from the FaveCrafts editors, and a GIGANTIC, ENORMOUS, AMAZING craft giveaway at the end of the month. That’s right–we’re giving away the biggest prize ever, a gift basket chock full of crafting goodies from our craft closet. There’s something for everyone in this gift basket.

Leave a comment below, and on any blog post labeled “National Craft Month” in the headline, and your comment will count as an entry into the giveaway. You are free to comment as often as once per blog post (for a total of 31 chances to win!). At the end of the month, we’ll pool all of the comments together and pick one lucky winner.

Today, I’m featuring a special sewing  video that will teach you how to make a Tippy Sippy Leash. Once you make this useful sewn project, you’ll never have to pick up another sippy cup, bottle or toy off the floor. Attach this simple leash to your child’s high chair and they won’t be able to throw their belongings on the ground. Cool huh?

What’s the most useful sewing project you’ve ever made?

Crochet

Jewelry

Knitting

Paper

Sewing

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