When you are in your creative mood, do you listen to music, watch tv or do you prefer a quiet spot? If it is music, what types do you listen to? If watching tv, what kinds of shows?

I always have TV on in the background..the usuals are HGTV and the cooking channel. I judge the people remodeling and wonder what I would do in their shoes and when listening to the cooking shows I wonder what it would be like to actually cook!!

Lush Summer

Spotlight: Lucy Levenson, Folk Art Designer

Her brave use of color when combining fabric, stitch and paint sets Lucy Levenson apart from the crowd. With intricate details, her fanciful work invites an up close and personal…
Fairy Tale cross stitch by Lizzy Dabczynski-Bean

Spotlight: Lizzy Dabczynski-Bean, Stitcher

This is not your grandmother's cross stitch. Lizzy Dabczynski-Bean began with admiring the work of her grandmother and great-grandmother. Lizzy gives it all a new twist with contemporary patterns depicting…
Mariana Murabito weavings

Spotlight: Mariana Murabito, Textile Artist

In her journey from web and graphic design to weaving, Mariana Murabito discovered the joy of creating images by hand with warp and weft on the island of Mallorca. She…
Night Garden

Spotlight: Amanda Murphy, Quilt Designer

Try to keep up! Amanda Murphy designs fabric for Benartex, creates quilt patterns, writes books on quilting, creates her own line of quilting rulers and teaches workshops at BERNINA dealerships.…
Laura Lee Ullrich Turquoise Necklace

Spotlight: Laura Lee Ullrich, Bead Artist

Who knew that a self-taught bead artist could create such intricate work? With no beading classes nearby, Laura Lee Ullrich picked a project she loved from a magazine and has…
Finished bookmarks

Quick Beaded Gifts

If you have beads and some basic tools, you can be ready with a unique and personal beaded gifts in minutes. I made all of these projects with beginner-level beading…
Chardel's Dad

Dad’s Heart, My Art

We often relegate dads to the back seat when we talk about our early creative influences. “Mom taught me to ______ (insert sew, knit, cook, etc. here).” And she did,…
Samples of 3 tubular herringbone ropes

How to Make Tubular Herringbone Beaded Jewelry

Tubular Herringbone (sometimes called Ndebele) stitch creates sinuous beaded ropes that await your creativity to design bracelets, necklaces and more. It can be a fussy stitch to get started, but…
Herb Hand at Cairo Airport

Thanks, Dad

So many creatives refer to how their mother influenced their creative journey, but few refer to their Dads. And, yes, my mother was always making something - sewing clothes for…
Spring Trio

Spotlight: Jane Sassaman, Quilt Artist

Jane Sassaman has a distinctive artistic voice that speaks clearly in her art quilts, the fabric she designs and her workshops. Her whimsical, graphic and colorful designs require a vivid…
Gemstone Embellished Right Angle Weave Bracelets

Embellished Right Angle Weave Jewelry

Starting with two size 11 seed beads per side, it’s easy to stitch a base of right angle weave in comfortable proportions for Gemstone Embellished Right Angle Weave Jewelry.
Larry Calkins School

Spotlight: Larry Calkins, Mixed Media Artist

Finding inspiration in the world around him, Larry Calkins creates art that provokes laughter and emotion. In his hand-built studio/home, and sometimes outside it, he works with paint, fiber, metal,…
Painted Hills art quilt completed!

Design Challenge Art Quilts

For a number of years, I have had the privilege of gathering with a talented group of fiber artists that studied with Lorraine Torrence. The "Off Grain Stitchers" continue to…
Cellini Spiral Detail

Peyote Stitch Cellini Spiral Basics

Peyote-Stitched Cellini Spiral looks really complicated, but it’s just a glorified peyote rope. The stitch is even count tubular peyote with a step up. It’s the change in bead sizes…