Creative Times January February 2007

From The Editors...
Happy New Year!
May you all be blessed, prosperous and creative in 2007!
Starting a new year is like
writing a new chapter in the
book of your life. Where will
2007 take you? What creative
journeys will you embark on?
A new year means new
beginnings, new ideas and new things to try. So this
year, don't hold back. Remember those projects you've
been wanting to try? Go for it!! There's no time like
now to give those a whirl.
I am very excited about 2007. The new year represents to me new endeavors, new ideas and ofcourse
new exciting challenges. Which I'm so greatful for. It
also represents new issues of Creative Times in which
we will continue to bring you the best inspiration with
each one. Here is to a grand year for you all!
- Kelle Arvay
Company Info:
Creative Times™ is a Subsidiary of Pattern Mart,
LLC. in partnership with
www.EweNmePrintables.com
Distribution:
Creative Times™ is printed bi-monthly and will be
available for FREE download at
www.PatternMart.com
Editors:
Kelle Arvay, Deena Davis
Cover Photo:
© Kelle Arvay, www.PatternMart.com
Free Pattern Contributors:
Key To My Heart
© Kelle Arvay,
www.DirtyCrowInn.com
Raggedy Hearts Bowl Fillers
© Trish Wilson
www.sewpractical.com
Another New Year!
Wow! Another new year! They just keep slipping by,
don’t they? What is your resolution for the new year...
weight loss, spending more time with family, getting
organized, perhaps?
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*Handmade collars, toys, pet related gifts!*
Whatever your plans I wish
you well. I always have good
intentions, but they soon fade,
so this year opting NOT to
make any resolutions.
This issue is all about the new
year. Kelle has some great Trend Forecasts for 2007. I
have some tips on getting organized.
So kick back for a while and take a break while your
read the pages of Creative Times. Hopefully you’ll get
inspired by some of the content and it’ll help your new
year and new plans get off the ground.
Dept of Agriculture Licensed
WHAT BETTER WAY TO TREAT YOUR PET
Happy 2007!
- Deena Davis
page 2
In This Issue...
Letters From the Editors . page 2
In This Issue ................. page 3
Featured Designer ........... page 4
Let’s Get Creative .......... page 5
Serious Business ........... page 6
Getting Organized ........... page 7
Crafter’ s Q & A ............ page 8
Trend Forecast .............. page 9
Free Patterns .................. page 10
To purchase instant download products from advertisers in this issue, simply click the
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Printables Patterns
with a
Vintage Flair
Check Out Our
New Patterns For
Valentine’s Day!
LOOK for my NEW
Patterns and
Felting Kits.
www.PrintAndSew.com
Primitive Handmade and
Needful things.
E-patterns and Supplies
Lowell
Country Designs
www.ThePrimitivePear.com
www.LowellCountryGifts.com
www.LowellCountryDesigns.com
page 3
Featured Designer...
Meet Gloria Lowell of
Lowell Country Designs
CT: What or who inspires you?
Gloria: Warren Kimble and Netty Lacroix. I took
Carving classes from Harley Refsal. He is a famous
Scandinavian Flat Plane carver who has
written several books on carving. Doll
maker Gail Wilson. These are all artists
that I have met personally.
Written by Deena Davis © 2006 All Rights Reserved
www.EweNmePrintables.com
Editor’s Note: We will feature a different designer in
each issue of Creative Times. If you wish to be considered as a featured designer please contact Deena Davis [email protected]
We’d like you all to take a few minutes to
meet Gloria Lowell of
www.LowellCountryDesigns.com. Creative
Times asked Gloria a few questions, here’s
what she had to say:
CT: What mediums do you design with and which
are your favorites?
Gloria: I have worked in all mediums at one time or
another but fabric,acrylic paint and clay are my
favorite.
CT: Do you have a work room/studio?
Gloria: I have several.
CT: Where do you sell your designs?
Gloria: My shop,www.PatternMart.com,
Ebay and my web site,
www.LowellCountryDesigns.com
Gloria Lowell
CT: Do you participate in any shows or
special events?
Gloria: I did special Christmas shows for 10 yrs. but
the last 2 yrs. declined from doing them. I miss them
and may do several this year if time allows.
www.LowellCountryDesigns.com
CT: Describe your business and website.
Gloria: I own and operate a Vt. made gift shop. It is
a specialty shop with mostly Vt. products along with
the folk art and bags I create. It is housed in a 100
year old restored barn. I have been creating Primitive
Folk Art and doing shows for 10 years prior to my
shop. Santas have always been my specialty item.
These days I am designing Folk Art patterns for others to enjoy. Along with selling an occasional original piece on Ebay.
CT: Thanks for your time Gloria, we know our readers will be pleased to meet you. •
CT:Tell us about your family.
Gloria: My husbands name is Pete and we have married 34 years. I have 3 wonderful children,9 grandchildren, including two sets of twins and 1 step
grandchild.
CT: Where were you born & raised?
Gloria: I was born in Middlebury,Vt. and brought up
in Burlington,Ct.
CT: How did you get started with your business?
Gloria: I have working at this business for 13+ years
but it has only been 8 months that I decided to turn
my designs into patterns.
CT: How did you decide on your business name?
Gloria: My last name is Lowell. And I own and operate a Country Gift shop and I’m a designer so it just
seemed to fit.
CT: Do you have future plans for your business?
Gloria: I really enjoy designing patterns so I plan on
designing many patterns.
Country and primitive style printing
needs for crafters and shops.
• business cards • hang tags • labels
• gift certificates • postcards
• discount cards • prim tags
• kraft cardstock
• scratch off cards • and much more!
No minimum quantity required!
www.JustCountryDesigns.com
page 4
Let’s Get Creative...
Giving Your Dolls Characture
Article by Kelle Arvay, © 2006 All Rights Reserved
www.PatternMart.com
In this months column I want to talk with you
about doll making, in peticular, the importance of
giving your dolls their own unique identity. The
essense of accomplishing this is to give them facial
characture.
When you look at a doll, most of the time the first
place your drawn to is the face. Giving your dolls
face a unique look is what will make her stand out
in the crowd. The face is the one feature that can be
created in many different ways, unlike the torso,
arms or legs. Sure you can change the look of the
hands and feet, but not as much as the facial features. What people will remember most and recognize your dolls by is the dolls face.
shading can give the doll an identity all her own.
I've put together a Mini Course called "Round Doll
Heads & 3-D Facial Features". With this 'study at
your leisure' mini course you will learn to create
round doll heads, 3-D facial features and tips on
shading. I've included step by step photos and
instructions. To sign up for the course visit
http://www.patternmart.com/classes.php
You'll receive a link/password to the class within
24 hours of purchase. 100% of the proceeds will go
to a wonderful organization called
www.TeenChallenge.com•
One technique I use on fabric dolls to achieve characture is to give them 3-dimensional facial features.
This in combination with creating depth through
ives
Lazy Day Creatio
Up North Primit
n
Cindy's Homespu
ns
spun
Cindy's Home
AGOC
Other Sores Incl
ude:
Country Counts
Cody Road Creatio
The Primitive Pearns
Candles by Kat
Okie Dokie Primithy
iv
Nutmeg Primitiveses
Old Crow Primitiv
es
Visit www.aGatheringofCrows.com
for a unique blend of primitive handmade wares
page 5
Serious Business...
Marketing Is A Must
Article by Kelle Arvay © 2006 All Rights Reserved
www.PatternMart.com
If you have a craft business, then marketing is a
absolute must. Marketing your products is as important as the products themselves. Whether you sell your
products online, in a shop or at craft shows, marketing
is one of the most important aspect of your business.
One that you need to incorporate in a ongoing manner.
It's how you let potential customers know you exist.
Anytime you see advertisements in print, on a TV
commercial, through a press release or online, these
are all types of marketing. Granted the larger companies have the financial means to market their products
in big ways. But this doesn't mean that just because
your company isn't large that it gives you a free pass
to not get involved in some type of marketing for your
business. It just may mean you need to find lower
costing and creative ways to conduct a marketing
campaign.
For example, perhaps you sell your crafts by participating in several craft shows each year. Think of creative ways you can get the word out about your products and let others know about the shows you do. It's
important to build up a customer base even when
doing craft shows. One way to do this is to offer a
small free "gift" of sorts for those that sign up for your
mailing list. Set out a signature book in a visible spot
in your booth with a sign that says they can receive a
free gift for joining your mailing list. Visitors to your
booth can sign a book with their name, address, phone
number and e-mail to receive notices of future shows
you'll be participating in. This is also great if you do
home shows in addition to craft shows. Another way is
to market in other ways like utilizing bulletin boards
in libraries, church, school, local small town newspapers, coffee shops, grocery store bulletin boards, laundry mats, place flyers in trick-or-treater bags, etc.
If you sell your products online, there are a large variety of ways you can market your business. Some free
and low cost ways are link exchange with other craft
type businesses, submitting articles to Article
Directories, purchasing banner advertising, doing coop advertising in major craft publications and of
course advertising here in Creative Times magazine.
The important thing to remember is that marketing
any type of business, whether it's offline, online or
both is that marketing needs to be a ongoing effort.
Set aside 30 minutes a day in the beginning if you can
and do things to market your business. The rewards
may not be seen right away but you will see them as
your marketing campaign continues. Just be consistent
and creative. •
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page 6
Getting Organized...
Decluttering...
Article by Deena Davis, © 2006 All Rights Reserved
www.EweNmePrintables.com
Whew! Those stressful holidays are now over, and
you can breathe a sigh of relief. Not everyone feels
that way, I’m sure, but a lot of us do.
With all the busy-ness of the holidays other things get
neglected, such as keeping things decluttered.
I’ve heard and read many tips on decluttering, but
things still manage to pile up on me. The one thing I
try to do is stay on top of it. If you put it off it’s still
going to be there later and probably even more of it.
It only takes a few minutes a day to keep things
organized. But you need to do it daily in order for it
to work.
One thing that’s easy to do is when the mail comes in,
don’t just toss it on the table and say “I’ll do it later”.
Do it now. Sort thru it quickly, toss the junk, file the
rest. If you keep all your bills in the same place, it’ll
make it easier to pay them when the time comes.
Another thing you can do is grab an empty Wal-Mart
bag and set your kitchen timer for 5 minutes. Now,
quickly run thru your house and grab up all the stuff
that’s lying around and can be tossed. If you do this
everyday you’ll soon notice a difference.
What? You don’t have time to re-organize the kitchen
cabinets? Do you have 15-20 minutes to do just one
cabinet, shelf or drawer? If you do one of those a day
or even one a week, your cabinets will soon be in tiptop shape.
Are your kids toys out of control now that Christmas
is over? Now is a good time to go thru them and
donate what they don’t use or play with. The same
goes for their clothes that don’t fit. If their rooms
have less items, it’s easier for them to keep things
picked up.
Do you have too many craft supplies? If you sort thru
them, you can always list the extra things you don’t
need on ebay and make a few dollars in the process.
I think I need to take my own advice and go find
some junk to toss right now. :-) Here’s to a happy and
less cluttered life in 2007.•
page 7
Crafter’ s Q & A
Printing on Fabric
Send your questions to: [email protected] , Include
your first name and website URL. If published, we'll place a
link to your website.
QUESTION:
How do you print something on fabric?
I have been seeing more and more folks place these
amazing primitive fabric banners on their creations
and I'd LOVE to know how to make them myself!
Cedara - www.thrutheatticdoor.com
ANSWER: Great question! I think you'll be
pleased to know this is actually quite easy to
accomplish. The most common and least involved
way is to use your inkjet printer. To do this you'll
need:
* Temporary Spray Adhesive
* 8.5 x 11 Sheet of Card Stock
* 8.5 x 11 Piece of Fabric
* Scissors
* Inkjet Printer
* Blow Dryer or Matte Sealer (optional)
Build your own
website quickly,
easily and affordably
with our
DIY Website Builder!
Use your card stock sheet as a template to trace and
cut out a 8.5 x 11 piece of fabric. Trim any fraying
on the edges so they don't get caught in your printer. Next lightly spray the card stock using the temporary spray adhesive. Center your fabric onto the
card stock and firmly smooth it so it's secure. Pay
close attention to the corners and edges. With your
fabric now attached to the card stock, lay it in your
printer feed face down (depending on printer),
choose a image you wish to transfer from your
computer files or lay an image in your scanner tray
to scan it. Print or scan the image onto the fabric,
let it dry for several minutes and then peel off the
card stock. You can also wait until it's completely
dry and spay a light coat of matte sealer over it if
you like, but I have found this is really not necessary and prefer to heat set it by holding a blow
dryer over it for a few moments. This is great for
pillows, dolls, printing fabric signature tags, and
other non-washable items.
If you want your printed fabric to be washable you
can pretreat it first with a product called Bubble Jet
Set, which can be found here: http://www.bubblejetset.com/ . Have fun printing on fabric! •
Get Your Business
Noticed...
Place an ad in the
next issue of
No Setup Fees!
No Programming Needed!
Built-In Shopping Cart!
www.DIYeStores.com
www.CTmagazine.net
page 8
Trend Forecast...
Top Trend Forecast
For
2007
Article by Kelle Arvay, © 2006 All Rights Reserved
4. Hand Painted Clothing and Accessories for adults and
children.
5. Punch Needle, such as framed, On wearables, On
items such as handbags and lids of decorative boxes.
6. Fabric Pincushions.
www.PatternMart.com
After searching through various crafting sources, I have
compiled for you the top crafting trends predicted for
2007. These are listed in no peticular order. It will be
interesting to see which of these trends hold true as very
popular in 2007.
7. Cottage Chic Decor.
8. Scrapbook Journals.
9. Fabric Lampshade covers made with printed or heat
resistant painted designs.
1. Altered Art in the form of Altered Books, Decoupage
Furniture and Decor Items, Framed Pieces and Tags.
10. Outdoor handmade weather resistant decorations.
2. Recycled Crafts, such as Old Jean Purses, Ice Cream
Carton Purses, Bottle Art, Architechtural Pieces.
As you look at this list, keep in mind that in some cases
instead of following a trend, it can be even better to use
your imagination and create your own!
3. Fabric Animals.
The Marketplace...
page 9
Free Patterns...
Key To My Heart
design by
Kelle Arvay
CLICK
HERE TO
DOWNLOAD
www.DirtyCrowInn.com
Raggedy Hearts Bowl Fillers
design by
Trish Wilson
CLICK
HERE TO
DOWNLOAD
www.SewPractical.com
The Marketplace...
page 10