When a talented designer such as Illinois based Shelley Nybakke of SturdyGirlDesigns has more than 100 lovely beading tutorials, I knew I couldn't just featured her once.   My last feature focused on her amazing "Until I Can Breathe Again" peyote necklace shown again below.  She explained : This design got me through a rough patch in my life and now I just chuckle to myself cause I'm breathing just fine. "A man who makes you cry just isn't worth your tears." Read more         Share Your Comment! Share Your Comment! Related Posts Pretty ..read more

  One reader asked if I could feature some more crafty tutorials. I am not surprised as many of you are good at a number of crafts, not just jewelry making. So your wish is my command! Getting hot where you are?  There is nothing better than wearing lightweight cotton. Shown here are some excellent sewing patterns featuring muslin, a plain weave cotton. You can make these for yourself or for someone else like a little baby or toddler as shown in the adorable sun hat pattern above. The German designer is Anja of Kid5patternShop. Read more         ..read more

My first thought when I saw this easy 3D flower resin trinket bowl tutorial was to assume the designer used large pressed flowers!  Not at all.  Nadia on the Summer Girl Designs Youtube Channel, shows how to make these entirely from clear and colored resin.  She offers a couple of tips on how to mold the shapes.  You can do it when the resin has cured for about 6 -8 hours - long enough not to leave fingerprints but still pliable. You can still bend fully cured resin by gently heating it.  Read more         Share Your Comment! Share ..read more

Ravit Stoltz, the Illinois based designer of Ravit would never have discovered her love for beadwork until someone showed her the craft. She then went down the rabbit hole to a world of beads and has never looked back since. No one is more amazed than herself when she discovered she had the talent and ability to work with her hands! She has an eclectic approach to beadwork jewelry design as her style can range from lacy to structured and geometric. It's clear Ravit gravitates to the styles and designs she most likes. Read more         Share Your Comment! S ..read more

I prefer to print my own labels. That way I can customize labels for my small business as well as the home. The print runs can be small so I do not have to commit to large batches from print companies. It's so wasteful when I change my mind about the design or the need. So I was pleased to try out the Munbyn Real Writer 401 AirPrint when the manufacturer reached out to me. This thermal printer is inkless which is saves on paying for expensive inkjet cartridges. As you can see from my latest video tutorial, it prints labels very quickly. The thermal head turns images and text black.  Rea ..read more

Who knew cereal boxes could be recycled into awesome science and nature inspired earrings?  The awesome designs shown here are by Mary and Kevin Abbott of JabeboStudio. They are meant to spark curiosity and appreciation of nature.  Their custom made earring backs (see last image below) give their design a signature look! The cereal box front and backs are laminated together. Their design images are then fixed to the front and then laser cut into earrings.  The cereal boxes are sourced from their local community in Pennsylvania - people even drop off the boxes at their st ..read more

Working with wire allows you to capture small gemstones or crystals even if you cannot make metal bezels.  Check out these relatively easy tutorials.  I say "relatively easy" because it is easy for the designers who have been handling wire a lot!  So it will take time to get those loop style prongs tiny and close enough! First up is the excellent Vietnamese instructor Lan Anh Handmade - her tutorial is for rings. It's important make the bottom of the ring band really smooth because its where she connects the wire ends. Read more         Share ..read more

I first discovered Malaysian metalsmith, Eugene Tan's work on yhtanaff when I found and featured his amazing customizable city skyline with an airplane bracelet design. He has many unique sterling silver and gold plated sterling silver jewelry designs to suit all kinds of tastes.  I had so much fun ogling his store listings. Shown here are some of my favorites. They range from unique ring holder necklaces to graduation gifts like the stethoscope and heartbeat one above which will be perfect ones for new nurses and doctors! Read more         Shar ..read more

I've always loved jewelry designs which are botanically inspired (see links below). This time around, I want to showcase some quick leaf design tutorials or patterns which won't take a month of Sundays to complete. Some of us just want our jewelry sooner rather than later. Shown above is the lovely fern leaf earrings design by Vitalija of VitalijaVelyviene. I have featured this fantastic designer before. She also created this beaded oak leaf and acorns design below which can be used as a pendant or a brooch : Read more         Share Your Comment! Share You ..read more

Remember that decoupage jewelry video tutorial I shared some time ago? It was the manual method of making cute earrings using origami paper, Mod Podge and a very sharp craft knife. That was the prelude to today's tutorial where I will show you the tips and tricks to making decoupage jewelry very fast decoupage jewelry with a laser cutter. Now that is a precision cutter for sure! I used my xTOOLM1 hybrid cutter - you can read my full review about it and on why I think it is a great model for the home crafter and some professionals.  Read more         Sh ..read more