The Crafty Princess Diaries

Tammy Powley’s Crafty Weblog

July 5, 2015
by Tammy
0 comments

Some Crafting Web Links

Happy 4th Wreath: Stars & Stripes 4Ever

Make a star spangled Happy 4th wreath from paper. 3D stars in red, white & blue make this 4th of July wreath lightweight and easy to assemble with glue.

Connie Gee’s Designs

Connie’s added a new design to her Etsy shop called Peaceful Abundance and it is suitable for stitching on any cross-stitch fabric with any floss. There are also links to her free pattern pages in this post, so check those out too.

Art Bead Scene

Check out all the beautiful, gorgeous, inspiring, wonderful entries to our challenge this month!l

BIG Book News!

The Crafty Princess has some major news. She spills the beans in her latest crafting podcast.

Beading Arts

What could be more fun for summer than sporting a cute little Shamballa-style bracelet? Cyndi shows you how to make one in this tutorial.

July 1, 2015
by Tammy
2 Comments

Video: BIG News! Craft Novel Published – Podcast No. 23

This 23rd episode of the Crafty Princess Diaries Podcast is a little different than usual. In the first eight or so minutes, I cover administrative stuff like the July FOs giveaway and show off recent finished objects and works in progress, and then at about 8 minutes into the podcast (for those what to know the BIG news NOW and skip ahead), I reveal some big news about my newest publication. Squee!



July 1, 2015
by Tammy
0 comments

Book Review: 60 Quick Baby Knits

60 Quick Baby Knits: Blankets, Booties, Sweaters & More in Cascade 220™ Superwash (60 Quick Knits Collection) is published by Sixth and Spring books and retails for $17.95 in the US and $21.95 in Canada. All of the projects are knit using Cascade’s 220 Superwash yarn, and the 60 projects were designed by a variety of professional knitters/designers. A few names that may look familiar include Jeannie Chi, Lee Grant, Tanis Gray, and Veronica Manno.

Of course, with 60 patterns that means you get a really big selection, and I have to admit a fondness for making baby items. They are smaller so usually quicker than adult patterns. Now as far as being really “quick” as the title suggestions, I think that may be kind of subjective depending on your skill level. All of the pattern are designated beginner, easy, intermediate, or experienced. The majority of projects are categorized as intermediate, so if you are a beginner knitter, that means these may not be that quick for you.

So for intermediate to experienced level knitters, these would probably be pretty fast to make. The photographs are also a good point of this book. There are lots of them, which means you can get a good visual idea of what the finished item will look like. For me, that’s a big plus.

If you have the skill level needed and want a good selection of patterns to pick from for your baby knits, then definitely consider taking a look at 60 Quick Baby Knits. For those with less experience, one nice point of this book is that you can have projects that will expand your skill level but are not a huge commitment since they are so small.

June 28, 2015
by Tammy
0 comments

Some Free Crafting Tutorials

Art Bead Scene

Meet the Art Bead Artists who have responded to our monthly challenge!

Mixed Media Canvas: A Flower Blooms

Eileen took a class taught by artist Stephenie Hamen and had a lot of messy fun!

DIY Lanyard Ideas

Have you thought about making your own lanyard for work or trips? Here are some ideas, including a lanyard that can be worn as a bracelet or a long or short necklace.

WIP Update and Free Pattern

Connie’s posted an update on her latest WIP (work in progress) and she’s also posted a new free pattern for you to stitch and enjoy.

Beading Arts

Cyndi shares a tutorial for some quick and easy little earrings!

June 21, 2015
by Tammy
0 comments

Crafting Links to Share

It’s the weekend, which means some crafting links to share from around the Web.

Yummy Silk Blend Yarn

The Crafty Princess reviews Cascade Heritage Silk Paint yarn in this short video.

Crepe Paper Magnolias

Welcome summer with a bouquet of hand made crepe paper magnolias.

Art Bead Scene

Read all about Erin’s experiences learning with the masters at Bead and Button!

Welcome Sampler Cross Stitch Pattern

Connie’s added a new free pattern that is easy to adapt to your own personal taste. It would make a great gift when framed or finished as a flat-fold.

Beading Arts

Cyndi shares some simple tips for stitching up a Cellini spiral tube…it’s really easy!

June 15, 2015
by Tammy
0 comments

Book Review: The Funeral Dress


The Funeral Dress: A Novel is written by Susan Gregg Gilmore and published by Random House. (You can read an excerpt of it on the publisher’s site here.) It is about 350 or so pages and runs $16.00 in the US and $18.00 in Canada for the paperback version.

This book somehow became my summer 2015 “read,” and I’m not exactly sure how that happened. I think I started reading it even last summer, and since then, it has been one of those books that I pick up and put down. I get hooked for a little while but not enough for me to just finish it already. It has been hard to determine why this is the case because the story is actually pretty good, and the historical connection to a clothing factory in 1970 Tennessee is a solid and interesting setting.

So why did it take me so long to finish this book? I have been wondering about this, and other than the fact that I am a very slow reader and really struggle with just reading for pleasure (probably due to so many years having to read and synthesis what I’ve read for a grade and/or for a research paper), the biggest hurdle for me on this book was the switching of point of view. This is a trend I’ve seen gain popularity over the years, and sometimes it works, but sometimes it doesn’t, at least for me. I want the story to move forward, and when I’m forced to move back and forth and hop from one character’s mind to another’s, I get impatient after awhile.

I found that once I sat down and relaxed into the joy of just reading for no other purpose than falling into another world for a few hours, I finally got through the book and enjoyed it. However, I can’t help wonder if we were in just one person’s head (for example, Emmalee’s who I think is the protagonist) would I have finished this much sooner. It is a good story. I just felt like it moved slower than necessary.

(A review copy was provided by the publisher.)

June 15, 2015
by Tammy
0 comments

Book Review: Knitting Beaded Purses


Knitting Beaded Purses: A Complete Guide to Creating Your Own (Schiffer Books) is written by Nancy Seven VanDerPuy and retails for $16.95 in the US. It is a 64 page paperback with color photographs showing “how-to” elements as well as colored graphs for the patterns used to make seven beaded purses.

The beginning of the book includes some brief history about beaded knit purses and basically what it requires. This includes a discussion of materials, and this moves into a fairly good size techniques section. In the techniques chapter of the book, basic knitting stitches as well as casting on and off are covered, and this is where the full-color photographs are included. This is followed by more discussion of how to actually include the beads with the stitches and how to assemble the knitted purse once its parts are constructed.

The projects section starts with a basic explanation of how a beaded purse is made, and then each pattern that follows is really the same as far as how to make all the sections and put them together with the difference being the pattern such as a rose, beach scene, or graphic design. So once you get the concept of the basic bag, you then need to follow the graph pattern to form the different types of purse patterns. Sprinkled throughout color photographs of similar purses already finished.

The last part of the book show how to finish the bags. This includes lining if you want to do that, and then there is a gallery section showing of more beautiful knitted beaded purses.

The projects are obviously beautiful but also not for the immediate gratification type of crafter. While the instructors are thorough and there are plenty of illustrations to help guide you through the projects, just be prepared that each of the projects is fairly involved. While there are basics about knitting included, I would be surprised if a total beginner could take on any of these. However, for more experienced knitters who love the look of these cute purses, this looks like a good go-to book to get started.

To get a chance to win a copy of this book, head over to my Ravelry discussion group, and look for the June FOs thread.
(A review copy was furnished by the publisher.)