Cool Craft News

This portrait of Tina Fey and Alec Baldwin, made entirely of Nerds candy, was commissioned by an enterprising fan of artist Andrew Salomone.

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Liz Lemon Nerds Portrait

Jewelry artist and author Sherri Haab does it again with her revised and expanded edition of The Art of Metal Clay that also comes with an instructional DVD. This edition expands upon her 2004 bestseller with up to date info on new bronze and copper clays, information on firing with stones, new techniques on etching metal clay, and more. The book is perfect for a beginner as Haab goes over all the metal clay materials and techniques in the beginning of the book and her step-by-step instructions come with lots of close-up photos. You feel like you are working on the project with her! Learn how to make your own earrings, bracelets, necklaces, charms, broaches, buttons and more with this fantastic book.

Book Giveaway Time!
Three lucky CRAFT readers will win a copy of The Art of Metal Clay. Just tell us why you would like this book in the comments. All comments will be closed by 5pm PST on Wednesday, September 1, 2010. The lucky winners will be chosen randomly and announced later on the site. Good luck!

This giveaway is now closed.

I need this beautiful hanging benche in my yard very, very badly. Sweet Paul made it and posted up simple directions for making your own. [via Apartment Therapy]

Fresh from Japan, this charming hand-knit, officially licensed Super Mario sweater comes in grey and blue at the handsome price of $435. Great incentive to DIY! [via Buzzfeed]

I am totally swooning over this amazing felt container from A Ervilha Cor de Rosa (a great Portuguese craft blog if you don't know it already). I love the sturdy felt paired with the frilly edging, the rounded shape with the zipper in the middle, the unexpected matching of brown and gray and red ... everything about it, really! What a fun little container for carrying projects around in or storing some of your less-lovely-to-look-at craft materials. (Fingers crossed Rosa puts some in her shop!)

Sean Ragan just put up a tutorial for this simple analog tamper-detecting switch for guarding his garden over on Make: Projects:

This clever mechanical switch remains open so long as it is balanced in an upright position. But disturb it in any way, and the ball falls against the bars of the cage and closes the circuit. Use it to control an alarm to protect your valuables, or to trigger a camera to photograph wildlife.

This awesome Star Wars cross-stitch baby blanket and pillow were created by Flickr user, Kiddy Amunda, as gifts for a friend's baby. What a cool heirloom for this family! Kiddy Amunda is also the genius behind the amazing Logan's Run cross-stitch pillow we featured back in July.

I'm swooning over these embroidered Lego minifigure plans from Cross-Stitch Ninja on Flickr.

I found some plans for a lego minifig while image searching for something, and who could resist stitching that? Imagine all the layers of geekiness in such an embroidery!

I'm imagining them, and I'm loving them.

Related:
Home is Where the Lego Is Cross-Stitch

I love sewing, especially bags and the new book, Bags in Bloom by Susan Cariello takes it one crafty step further by adding floral embroidery to the mix. Learn how to create twenty unique floral bags showcased in sections organized by the four seasons. To start, the book begins with the Stitch Gallery, teaching you all the basic embroidery techniques. You'll also learn how to assemble the bags based on their size and style (i.e. bag with base and top pleats). All the pattern templates for the bags are in the back of the book. One of my favorites is a Summer Les Roses tote with soft pale pink organza ribbon roses that reminds me of a crafty day in Paris. As the seasons move to colder weather the fabric and colors get darker and richer. I love the Winter Garden tote featuring wool yarn embroidery on thick black wool fabric. Dreamy! Cariello also sparkles up the embroidery by bringing in beads, buttons, and sequins to bags (as seen on the cover bag above). For sewers, this is a great book to show you how to incorporate embroidery into your craft. For embroidery lovers, it's a great way to show off your love of needlework with a bag you can make yourself!

Book Giveaway Time!
Three lucky CRAFT readers will win a copy of Bags in Bloom. Just tell us why you would like this book in the comments. All comments will be closed by Noon PST on Monday, August 30, 2010. The lucky winners will be chosen randomly and announced later on the site. Good luck!