Laura Griffin Designs

While at CHA this year, my sister-in-law and I fell in love with Christy Tomlinson’s new “She Art” line with Pink Paislee. Christy demo’d her amazing canvas-making skills one afternoon, and we sat enthralled. She’s a terrific teacher and the new line she developed makes creating mixed media canvases far less intimidating. I really love the vivid colors in all her papers as well.

We placed an order for the whole line and will be re-selling soon. After procrastinating for the last month, I finally got around to making my first canvas tonight… and how fun it was! This girl is on a 6″ x 12″ canvas, and the words say “She decided to leap.”

Since my “word of the year” is Brave, I thought this phrase was fitting. I see many more of these canvases in my near future!

Supplies: Christy Tomlinson She Art line for Pink Paislee (papers, rub-ons, stencil, embellishments), acrylic paint, Mod Podge, punchinella, Light Modeling Paste, Pilot black gel pen, Faber Castell India Ink brush pens, Crafter’s workshop stencils, Dylusions stencil.

Want to learn how to create two completely different looks with the same stamped image? On Apr 21st, I’ll be teaching a Copic club class on how to do exactly that. We’ll create a faux watercolor rose and a bold one embellishing a card and pillowbox set.

Both will be accented fabulously with Spica pens for added shimmer. Here’s a closeup…

Call Googly Eyes & Craft Supplies to reserve your spot!

Have you ever tried mixing Copics with fabric? The results can be amazing!

I’ve been playing around this week with designs for February’s Copic club project, and came up with the above custom key fobs. They make great gifts and will ensure you never lose your keys again! I was pleasantly surprised at how well Copics work on white fabric and had fun experimenting with different stamping inks for the background. Interested in making your own? I’ll be teaching a class on Feb 18th in the DFW area and sharing all the tips and tricks I’ve learned. Call the Googly store here and reserve your spot!

P.S. No sewing experience is required. (I can handle that part for ya.) See you soon!

I picked up a fun book called “Lunch Bags” recently that contains 25 patterns to help you dress up your lunch in style.

Most of the patterns are for sewing, but I couldn’t resist testing out the retro crocheted apple cozy pattern by Shannon Fowler-Wardrep.

I love all things vintage (doesn’t this look so 70s?), and since I’m an apple fan… I like that the cozy will help keep those beauties from getting bumped and bruised in my work bag.

My crochet skills are rudimentary… but I found the pattern fairly forgiving along the way (just don’t look too closely at my stitches!) It’s easy enough for a beginner to complete in one evening.

I used 100% cotton yarn in Hot Green and Natural (Sugar ‘n Cream), but I think the pattern would look great with a number of different color combinations.

…and ready to go.

Interested in making one for yourself? Click below to take a peek inside the book.

A couple of soft and cuddly cashmere dogs have made their way into my home. They like to play outside…

I can’t get enough of these luxe dog toys. They are easy to sew up in an afternoon and make the perfect baby gift for a close friend or relative. All you need to get started is a thrifted cashmere sweater from your local Goodwill store, a few fabric scraps, and some wool or bamboo felt.

I can’t put into words just how super-soft they are. As an added bonus – they’re green for the environment too! Want to make your own? Check out Betz White’s Sewing Green book below for the pattern and directions.

Happy sewing,