Craft Gossip

Meet your editors

jCraftGossip relies on its bunch of dedicated editors to bring you the latest in craft gossip. Each sub-blog has its own editor so that you know that you are getting the best information possible. This page tells you a little about each editor so that you can know the faces behind the gossip!

Craft Shows, Events and Fairs: Mandy Sybrowsky

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As a young child, Mandy played with watercolors, pastels, and oil paints along side her father, and discovered the utter joy of creating something that did not exist before. In the years since she has dabbled in almost every other brand of crafting, including scrapbooking, paper crafting, stamping, quilting, sewing, crocheting, jewelry making, bath and body crafts, kids crafts, and baking. She has learned that she is happiest when in the process of creating something.

Graduating with a degree in English Literature/Creative Writing opened doors to positions such as a corporate manager at Stampin’ Up!, and editor of a small home design magazine. Since moving with her family to the Seattle, WA area, she has focused her efforts on supporting her busy husband and chasing her two crazy sons, all while sharing crafting ideas and tutorials through her blog littlebirdiesecrets.com, a joint effort with two of her close friends. Mandy also enjoys the excitement of associating with other creative people. Whether attending a craft show, teaching a crafting class, or casually crafting with friends, she finds the collaboration of creative minds extremely inspiring.

Like a hand-written letter in the age of e-mail and text messaging, Mandy believes craft shows and events are vital to the growth and sustainability of our arts and crafts today. Being able to touch and feel new products or learn techniques hands-on from an expert gives us something a picture on a computer screen cannot. The Craft Shows blog will bring you news and reviews of craft events all over the world so you can step away from your computer and get inspired.

Quilting Editor: Scarlett Burroughs

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I’ve dabbled in many a hobby over the years, but one has remained freakishly
consistent – quilting. I was drawn to it by the usual things, there’s a
beauty and comfort you can touch. When my sister was a child, she used to
love resting under one of our grandmother’s scrap quilts. She would pass the
time admiring each patch when she didn’t feel well enough for any other
activity.

But there is more to it. Creating quilts provides me an artistic outlet like
no other. The process and end result are equally rewarding. I’m so crazy
about it, I teach it to anyone who wants to learn. I especially enjoy
collaborative projects that evolve as participants contribute. It
demonstrates a situation where differences are valued and ways are found to
unify the parts as a better whole.

Tuesday is quilt night at my house. I live in the American Southeast which
is known for it’s stormy weather. One Tuesday evening alarms started going
off meaning a tornado was on the ground. We all gathered in my tiny kitchen
to wait it out. We had been there for only a few minutes when one of the
women said, “I’ll be right back”. We asked, “Where are you going?” She said,
“I’m going to get my quilt.” “I’ve put too much time in it for it to blow
away in this storm.” If you understand her sentiment you belong in my club.
If not, you will if you hang out with me long enough. Do join me in
exploring the many faces of quilting.

Lesson Plans Editor: Bethany Vermillion


In her former life, Beth was a 6th grade teacher and reading specialist. Two years ago, she traded in her teacher glare for a diaper bag. Now a mother of a rambunctious toddler and an infant, she still loves to search online for lessons and craft ideas that are unique and fun. Her favorite part? Sharing those findings with others!!
Beth also keeps up two personal blogs (http://vermillionrules.blogspot.com, http://etsyfix.blogspot.com) and runs an Etsy shop (http://loveseptember.etsy.com) from home during nap time.

Edible Crafts Editor: Meaghan Mountford

For ten years, Meaghan served as head decorator for a custom-cookie store outside of Washington, DC. Before starting this “temporary” job that became not so temporary, she had never picked up a bag of frosting. Fast forward to today, and there are few objects she hasn’t put on a cookie: washers, dryers, kayaks, popcorn, guitars, every animal from alligators to zebras, T-bone steaks, mac n’ cheese, space aliens, human organs, martinis, beer, yo-yos and yoga poses…just a miniscule sampling. Her store was featured on NBC’s Today Show and Discovery Channel’s Home Matters. Meaghan’s cookies have appeared in The Washington Post, Modern Bride, The New York Times, Washingtonian Magazine and Chocolatier Magazine.
Her book on the art of cookie decorating, Cookie Sensations: Creative Designs for Every Occasion, published by Rutledge Hill in 2007 fuses this passion for edible art with her love of writing. Inspired by the joy of crafting her book (and motivated by her daughter, who keeps her home), Meaghan designed a series of themed cookie decorating kits available at her online store, Chic Cookies, at www.chiccookiekits.com.

Meaghan also has a Masters in Liberal Arts from the University of Pennsylvania and an MFA in Literature/Creative Writing from American University in Washington DC. She lives in Washington DC with her husband, her baby girl, and their three cats.

Glass Art Editor: Cathi Milligan

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One of Cathi super powers is her ability to create tasty treats out of glass and fire. With over 15 years of experience, she forms hot glass into little cupcakes and pie slices, sweet little fruits as well as other types of glass beads. In addition to these talents she designs jewelry, fuses glass and has recently finished a how-to book on the craft of macramé.

Besides Cathi’s new book, Mod Knots, she has written for Craft magazine and her work has been seen in In Style magazine, Glass, Bead & Button as well as some Japanese fashion magazines. She has also appeared on the DIY Network’s shows, DIY Jewelry Making and Craft Lab. She has also been seen on TLC and Lifetime demonstrating her crafting abilities.

Cathi is a lifelong resident of Los Angeles, CA. and teaches a number of classes in bead making, metal clay, macramé and other jewelry making techniques through out the Southern California area. Cathi also has a background in graphic arts, which manages to spill over into all aspects of her life. She sells her beads and jewelry on line, which can be seen on her website www.beadbrains.com or go directly to www.beadbrains.etsy.com. She also blogs at www.pixieindustries.blogspot.com with information on her upcoming classes and other interesting events.

Bath and Body Editor: Jessica Doughtery

jessicadoughtery Jessica Dougherty began blogging in 2006 when she launched Funky Finds
(http://funkyfinds.us), a site dedicated to promoting independent
artists, crafters and designers. She enjoys discovering new products
that are unique and hand-crafted, as well as sharing those items with
others. Jessica moved from Texas, where she was born & raised, to
Pennsylvania in July 2009 where she resides with her husband, Joseph,
and their two dogs, Abigail Raine & Beau Bradley. When she isn’t
blogging or surfing the internet, Jessica enjoys scrapbooking, cross
stitching and playing Skip-Bo.

Scrapbooking Editor: Francine Clouden

Francine hails from the tiny Caribbean island of Grenada and has been making cards since 2001 and scrapbooking since 2002. Scrapbooking and other paper crafts are her creative outlet. Never considered good at art as a child, she is happy to finally find a medium to express her artistic side. She loves yummy patterned papers, buttons, chipboard, stamps and anything textural. She doesn’t mind getting her fingers covered in ink and paint, and will try just about any technique once! Her pages reflect her daily life, travel, thoughts and dreams and random moments. She is also an avid amateur photographer, and you will rarely find her without her trusted Canon 350D. Her work has been published in major magazines such as Creating Keepsakes, Simple Scrapbooks, Scrapbook Trends, Cards and Memory Makers. She blogs almost daily at Callaloo Soup and bi-monthly at Tuesday To-Do.

Francine currently lives in France with her husband Lucas and their cats Mozaique and Naâla. They are currently expecting Babe #1. Truly an island girl, she spends the winter months holed up at her desk, scrapping her heart out.

Knitting News: Terrye Kinch

pic1 I live in a little log cabin in the woods in Northern Michigan with my other half, any or all of our 5 kids(and this changes regularly) and a plethora (technical term) of my cattle, horses, chickens, turkeys and a pig or three. My hobbies are knitting, riding my bike and my horses, skiing and snowshoeing, and my farm.

In my daytime life I design and maintain websites, the main one being for Quilting Goddess, Kaye Wood. In my nighttime life I’m a farmer, homesteader, biker chick, Red Wings Fanatic, and of course knitter. Weekends frequently finds me under the water with 90 lbs of air tanks strapped to my back, or in a neighboring town victimizing the local yarn shops.

Recently I’ve started to dabble with spinning, and if you want the lowdown on how to create really cool, slubby, thick and thin yarn, just let me know! When I figure out how to create that on a regular basis, my life will be complete!

Sewing: Anne E. Weaver

Anne is a sewing maven and internet addict.  She frequently sends emails to her friends with the heading, “Hey, check this out!” and includes a link to some project or sewing approach that really blows her mind that day.  She loves it when she sees a new twist on an old idea, or when an unusual material is put to more traditional use.  She gets thoroughly giddy when she sees an otherwise complicated technique simplified so that it’s within the creative reach of mere mortals like herself.  The only problem is, there are far too many sewing projects that fall into these categories, and too little space in her friends’ in-boxes.  When the sewing editor position at Craft Gossip came open, she jumped at the opportunity to expand her sphere of influence.

Anne hoards fabric as if it were Belgian chocolate.  At least once a day she opens her fabric closet and gazes upon the veritable candy store right there in her own house.  Sometimes, if a piece of fabric has been very good that day, she’ll take it out and sew it into something really pretty.

Needlework: Denise Felton
denisefelton.jpg Denise is always happiest with a needle between her fingers. Her personal specialties are hand embroidery on paper and bead embroidery; but she has meddled with everything from candlewicking to bargello, and she’s always looking for new needle-media experiments. She compulsively cruises craft sites and blogs, hunting for bargains, tips, and new twists. She is relieved to have a spot at Craft Gossip that justifies her addiction and makes it appear to be normal behavior. Denise is based in Maumelle, Arkansas, USA. She would love to have your input about all things needlework related.

Polymer Clay: Julie Leir-VanSickle

What started as a summer fling has turned into a lifelong love affair…

Julie Leir-VanSickle picked up her first block of polymer clay one summer in 1995, and has been working with this versatile material ever since.  This grew into DancinJules Creations, selling polymer clay beads, art, and accessories at area craft shows as well as on the Internet.  She creates fun, colorful, and unique pieces, and enjoys searching out new craft materials to combine with the clay.  Although polymer clay is her “main squeeze,” she also enjoys carving stamps, paper crafts, doodling, face painting, and loom knitting.  As a homeschooling Mama, she is often thinking of ways that creativity, learning, and polymer clay can all intersect.

Her other passions include dance, theatre, and spending time with her family.  You can find out more about her, and see her work at : http://www.DancinJules.com

Stamping: Heather Holbrook

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Heather Holbrook has a real passion for paper. She’s always been crafty but her love of stamping and paper arts began in 1996 when she went along with her mother and some friends to her first stamping class and she has been hooked ever since.

She owned Stamps Galore, a rubber stamp store in Lexington KY for three years and has taught stamping, scrapbooking and altered arts classes for the past 10 years. Her work has been published in several magazines including Somerset Studio, Altered Arts and Vamp Stamp News.

When she doesn’t have scissors in her hands or ink on her fingers she enjoys reading, web surfing, watching movies and spending time with her husband, their cat and three dogs.

You can see Heather’s collage art and soldered jewelry at: www.PisforPaper.com and at her shop on Etsy: www.PisforPaper.etsy.com

Indie Crafts: Laura Henry

Laura Henry Minnie is an artist, crafter and web developer based in Oakland, CA. She specializes in sewing and watercolor painting and will try any craft once (or twice!). Minnie has a BFA in computer animation and worked in the tech industry for 10 years before taking some time off to stay home with her son.

Minnie now spends her time sewing spats and is learning garment construction so that she can eventually make frothy gorgeous lingerie.

You can check out Minnie’s craft blog at Thank You For Not Being Perky, follow her on Twitter, or check out her crafty photostream on Flickr and, of course, you can see all the lovely spats Minnie has for sale at her Etsy Shop.

Minnie also Interviews indie crafters on the SF Bazaar Bizarre blog.

Jewelry Making: Katrina Morris

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Kate currently lives in Silicon Valley where she enjoys the sunshine and the company of her husband, and baby boy and is awaiting the arrival of a baby girl.

Kate fell in love with jewelry as a little girl, trying on her mom’s  jewelry whenever she got the chance, but got started with beading when a family friend let her rummage through oodles of beads and make  necklaces to her hearts content.  She went on to study prehistoric body adornment at NYU before transferring to UMass Dartmouth to get a  BFA in Jewelry/Metals.  Her thesis project was a series of tiaras  based on the intended wearer’s personality.  While studying she also  produced a line of silver geometric jewelry which was sold at  galleries in Massachusetts and New Jersey. She then went on to study  Art History in London at the Sotheby’s Institute of Art and wrote her  Masters thesis on the jewelry collection of a very eccentric British  collector.  After graduating from the Masters program Kate went on to  work at the Sotheby’s Jewelry Department in London working on the  sales of Fine and Antique Jewelry and then later on London Rocks a  contemporary jewelry exhibition.

Kate is also a keen crafter, when time allows, and enjoys weaving,  attempting to sew, drawing, painting and DIY.  She also writes a blog  on contemporary jewelry design which you can find here:   onjewels.typepad.com.

Felting: Linda Lanese

Linda Lanese

I am from the Midwest and I am a freelance graphic designer and I work for companies and individuals designing their logos, banners, flash and web designs. I have been a long time member with Art on The Net where I have my art gallery. The following is my web site: www.studiolou.com .

I adore most arts and crafts and have tried my hand at most of them to see what appeals to me. When I discovered felting I found a new world of creative crafting, that in my opinion is just being tapped. New books arrive on the market each month and I have purchased my share of these wonderful volumes and was overwhelmed by what you can do with felting.

The felting I am reviewing has nothing to do with knitting, as it is an art unto itself. I hope to offer you the newest in felting ideas and the latest tools for this craft. Hearing from you with ideas, questions or your projects will be a real pleasure for me and everyone else on the site. If you know of a neat link or project please let me know. I hope this felting area opens up a new world of crafting for many people. Here is a site that shows some of the items I have felted.

www.studiolulu.com-a.googlepages.com/felting

I am thrilled to be one of your felting editors.

Candle Making: Coming soon

Crochet Editor: JD Wolfe

JD Wolfe

I’m a Midwesterner who has crocheted for 8 years. When I first learned to crochet, I knew no other crocheters, so I started the St. Louis Crochet Club which still prospers. Since then, several other crochet groups have popped up in the St. Louis area and I’m in touch with many crocheters locally. I love all sorts of crafts, including beading, quilting, sewing, and papercrafts. I have a huge stash of crochet books and patterns that I have acquired during the past 8 years. Fortunately, my husband is very indulgent and my children are tolerant of the stacks of magazines, stray skeins of yarn, and repeated reminders to not step on my work as it lingers on the floor of the family room! I MUST work on more than one project at a time so I can take a break from a project to regain my enthusiasm. Crochet has pretty much taken over my craft life, leaving little time for my other crafts.

I am in LOVE with freeform and have a strong bent toward reusing, recycling and repurposing materials for craft. I call this Re-Crafting. I own my own business, a learning center for teens in substance abuse recovery, work in my husband’s office, and referee at home with my three kids and their many friends who seem to enjoy hanging out at our home. I have taught several of my students to crochet as I find crochet to be both creative and spiritual. There is nothing else quite like the feeling one gets upon completion of a difficult project! I use patterns mostly as suggestions of how to make things, so I often become involved in a lot of frogging and reworking. It’s a learning process that seems endlessly intriguing to me.

In past lives, I have been a highschool English teacher, Assistant Director of a Hospital Medical Records Department, homeschooling mom, homeschooling mentor, and spent seven years writing and editing reports of litigation and publication for a firm of forensic engineers involved in accident reconstruction and causation, including testifying in court on many cases. I look forward to retiring sometime in the next 10 years so I can devote more time to crochet and pattern design.

Recycled Crafts Editor: Stefanie Girard

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Stefanie Girard has been “cutting up” and re-purposing stuff since she learned to use scissors. She has a degree in Industrial Design from Pratt Institute. She has authored 4 jewelry making book/kits for Walter Foster Publishing in addition to her latest book; Sweater Surgery: How to Make New Things With Old Sweaters for Quarry Books. Originally from Connecticut she move to California and worked in the entertainment industry first as a set decorator and prop master specializing in kid’s TV and then moved into producing How-to TV shows including Knitty Gritty, DIY Jewelry Making, Simply Quilts, Sew Much More and Embellish This! for HGTV and The DIY Networks. Along the way she designed hundreds of craft projects for industry clients including The Walt Disney Company, Wrights, Westrim Crafts, Blue Moon Beads, Plaid Enterprises and the JoAnn and Michaels craft stores. Currently she is Craft Marketing Specialist for the Quayside Publishing Group and writes their blog-http://craftside.typepad.com/ and her own http://sweatersurgery.blogspot.com/

CraftGossip Editor: Shellie Wilson

Shellie Goyal

Shellie Wilson is the founder of Craftbits.com and CraftGossip.com.

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