In The Spotlight!
At Create Whimsy, we share the stories of makers. Learn about their creative journeys, inspirations and more! Browse all of our Spotlight Stories.
Spotlight: Annabel Wrigley, Textile Artist, Designer and Author
Joyful, playful color is a common thread in textile artist, designer and author Annabel Wrigley's quilt designs. This busy mom designs quilts, writes books, publishes patterns, designs fabric and teaches…
Spotlight: David Hastings, Multidisciplinary Designer and Art Director
With a drive to create, Multidisciplinary Designer and Art Director David Hastings found encouragement from a young age to pursue art and design. Depending on the project, he may sharpen…
Spotlight: Karoline Dahrling Hughes, Sustainable Sewist and Crafter
Rules? What rules? For sustainable sewist and crafter Karoline Dahrling Hughes, the joy is in the making. Creating is above all a happy pursuit filled with embraceable imperfections that we…
Spotlight: Claire Passmore, Textile Artist
Taking the art quilt to new dimensions - 3 dimensions, textile artist Claire Passmore pushes herself to explore experimental materials and processes to achieve her vision. Claire works spontaneously, but…
Spotlight: Tighe Flanagan, Quilter and Designer
Life takes interesting turns, and a stint teaching in Jordan for the Peace Corps ignited a passion for the geometric grids and patterns of Islamic art, transforming Tighe Flanagan from…
Spotlight: Michelle Staub, Pet Embroidery Artist
Pet embroidery artist Michelle Staub starts with photos of much-loved pets and creates realistic embroidered portraits with needle and thread. With her attention to detail and and an eye for…
Spotlight: Mel Beach, Quilt Artist, Teacher and Lecturer
Mel Beach's next quilt could emerge from a simple roll of the dice. But not just any dice. The quilt artist, teacher and lecturer applies creative instructions to the sides…
Spotlight: Jo Avery, Fiber Artist
Fiber artist Jo Avery began creating with needle and thread as a child when she sewed alongside her big sister. That lit the spark for Jo, and she takes a…
Spotlight: Lindsay Swearingen, Embroidery Artist and Designer
Describing her work as whimsical dark humor, embroidery artist and designer Lindsay Swearingen takes cross stitch to a level beyond traditional schoolchild samplers. Designed and stitched with as much precision…
Spotlight: Ellen Rubin, Knitter and Creative Director
Knitting isn’t just fun, it develops neural pathways that lead to physical and mental benefits. That’s what knitter and immunologist Ellen B. Rubin, Luv2Knit & More shop creative director, intuited.…Trending Now
Handmade Gift Ideas for Babies and Children
Handmade gifts for children and babies recognize each little person's personality, so we gathered some ideas for creative giving. Browse through some of our favorite things that we think the…
Handmade Gift Guide
Handmade gifts - and gifts for hand makers - come from the heart. It's lovely to think about the recipient when putting our own hands to work on a unique…
Quilt Gift Guide
We've rounded up some of our favorite quilt gift ideas -- whether you quilt the projects to give as gifts, or give a little joy to the favorite quilters in…
Embroidery Gift Guide
Stitchers love to stitch, and they love to receive handmade gifts. We have put together an embroidery gift guide with projects, tools and supplies that are good for the embroiderers…
Best Pattern for Making a Baby Bandana Bib
Bandana bibs for babies are popular, and some fit better than others. I took two favorites to design this baby bandana bib pattern, that combines the popular bandana style with…
The Art of Mending: Boro Stitching and Visible Mending
There is a resurgence in popularity in the art of mending. Before the age of disposable fashion, our grandmother's bought good clothes and mended them.
Step-by-Step Guide to Sashiko Stitching
Sometimes I want to get a project done really fast, but lately I have picked up a hand stitching project when I want to unwind. The slow, meditative process of…
6 Ways to Transfer your Embroidery Design to Fabric
There are a variety of techniques to transfer an embroidery or needlepoint design to fabric. Select the one that will work the best for the complexity of your design and…
How to Make a Jelly Roll Rug
I had seen and admired the beautiful and colorful pictures and wanted to try to make a jelly roll rug for myself! I picked a bright jelly roll of Jen…
What Is Kumihimo?
Kumihimo is a popular craft for jewelry makers and fiber artists. The ancient braid is easy to learn with modern tools that make the projects very portable.Latest Stories on Create Whimsy
Spotlight: Jen Hewett, Print Maker, Surface Designer and Textile Artist
Jen Hewett is a successful print maker, surface designer and textile artist. She is also an advocate for women of color who enjoy expressing themselves with craft. Knowing that there…
How to Make the Ribbon Star Quilt Block
The Ribbon Star Quilt Block is a quick and easy quilt block using half square triangles and squares. It is generally made with three fabrics, two for the ribbons and…
How to Make the Variable Star Quilt Block
The Variable Star Quilt Block is a variation of the Ohio Star quilt block, using four (4) fabrics instead of just two (2) fabrics. It is a nine-patch layout quilt…
How to Make a Quarter Square Triangle Quilt Block
Quarter square triangles are a basic block you can use alone or combine with other blocks to form more intricate quilt designs. When using only two fabrics, the quilt block…
How to Make the Ohio Star Quilt Block
The Ohio Star Quilt Block is a basic nine patch quilt block made from quarter square triangles and squares. This quilt block is popular in both traditional and modern quilts.…Handmade Gift Ideas for Babies and Children
Handmade gifts for children and babies recognize each little person's personality, so we gathered some ideas for creative giving. Browse through some of our favorite things that we think the…Spotlight: Annabel Wrigley, Textile Artist, Designer and Author
Joyful, playful color is a common thread in textile artist, designer and author Annabel Wrigley's quilt designs. This busy mom designs quilts, writes books, publishes patterns, designs fabric and teaches…Handmade Gift Guide
Handmade gifts - and gifts for hand makers - come from the heart. It's lovely to think about the recipient when putting our own hands to work on a unique…Quilt Gift Guide
We've rounded up some of our favorite quilt gift ideas -- whether you quilt the projects to give as gifts, or give a little joy to the favorite quilters in…Spotlight: David Hastings, Multidisciplinary Designer and Art Director
With a drive to create, Multidisciplinary Designer and Art Director David Hastings found encouragement from a young age to pursue art and design. Depending on the project, he may sharpen…
Spotlight: Kate McCully, Amigurumi Pattern Designer
From sock monsters to crocheted dolls, Amigurumi Pattern Designer Kate McCully's imagination has always been filled with creative ideas that she then simply had to make with her own hands.…
Spotlight Yvonne Fuchs, Modern Quilter and Designer
Most people fear rejection. Instead, Modern Quilter and Designer Yvonne Fuchs actively pursues it, pushing her skills to discover her strengths and the processes that best express her vision. The…Spotlight: Karoline Dahrling Hughes, Sustainable Sewist and Crafter
Rules? What rules? For sustainable sewist and crafter Karoline Dahrling Hughes, the joy is in the making. Creating is above all a happy pursuit filled with embraceable imperfections that we…Spotlight: Claire Passmore, Textile Artist
Taking the art quilt to new dimensions - 3 dimensions, textile artist Claire Passmore pushes herself to explore experimental materials and processes to achieve her vision. Claire works spontaneously, but…Spotlight: Tighe Flanagan, Quilter and Designer
Life takes interesting turns, and a stint teaching in Jordan for the Peace Corps ignited a passion for the geometric grids and patterns of Islamic art, transforming Tighe Flanagan from…
Kumihimo Supplies for Beginners
Kumihimo, an old Japanese braiding technique, looks complicated, but the process is really very easy to learn. Newbies to the craft will have greater success with the right kumihimo supplies…Embroidery Gift Guide
Stitchers love to stitch, and they love to receive handmade gifts. We have put together an embroidery gift guide with projects, tools and supplies that are good for the embroiderers…Spotlight: Michelle Staub, Pet Embroidery Artist
Pet embroidery artist Michelle Staub starts with photos of much-loved pets and creates realistic embroidered portraits with needle and thread. With her attention to detail and and an eye for…Spotlight: Mel Beach, Quilt Artist, Teacher and Lecturer
Mel Beach's next quilt could emerge from a simple roll of the dice. But not just any dice. The quilt artist, teacher and lecturer applies creative instructions to the sides…