The Magic Bean

Freebie Friday - Free New Year's Tutorials

Here are some great tutorials and ideas to make the most of your New Year. 

If you are new to the Magic Bean, every Friday I do a round-up of free craft tutorials on a certain theme. So stop by every Friday for your weekly dose of free crafts. Or browse old posts for your New Year by combing through the "Free Craft Tutorials & Patterns" category (just click the link) or use the Google Search function on the top left of my blog to search for something specific.

The Fiskars site featured these simple but oh so effective New Year's Eve decorations, designed by Lisa Storm.

Throw a really personal New Year's party by tossing photo confetti when the clock strikes 12 with a how-to from Martha Stewart.

The Elinee design team shared a free printable Retro New Year's party set that includes a banner,  dessert flags, cupcake wrappers, wine glass tags and more. (Found via www.oneprettything.com)

Also from the creative folks at the Elinee design team, here are some free printable New Year's hats in two styles.   (Again, thanks to www.oneprettything.com for finding these).

Great for kids or for a party favour, make a Lucky Penny coin-headed paper doll with a tutorial from Disney Family Fun.

Download a free printable New Year's paper doll designed by Tricia Rennea as featured on Tip Junkie.

Tip Junkie also did a great round-up of New Year's Eve food, decorating and party game ideas.  Get these great New Year's tips by clicking the link.

A great project for New Year's Eve or even New Year's Day, is this 2012 Monthly Journal, complete with a tutorial created by Desiree from The 36th Avenue as featured on Tatertots and Jello.  Desiree suggests this as a journal for a kid, but I can see doing this journal for an adult to keep track of goals and dreams.

Desiree put the 2012 journal into a complete New Year's Eve kit.  She shares how to assemble and decorate your own New Year's kits on her blog The 36th Avenue.  Click the link to check it out.

Desiree at The 36th Avenue then shared how to add some party favours to your New Year's Eve kit with part 2 of her New Year's Eve kit tutorial.

A lot of these tutorials and printables are fairly easy and will definitely set your New Year's Eve celebrations apart. 

Wishing you a very Happy New Year! 

Two New E-Patterns Available: The Green Man and Dive Into a Book

If you have been patiently waiting for me to release my designs for my cloth doll fairy bookmark, Dive Into a Book...

and the male pin doll, the Green Man as e-patterns...

Then you needn't wait any longer.  You can now buy these e-patterns from a few of your favourite suppliers of instant download e-patterns. 

These two new patterns as well as my complete line of patterns are available at Doll Street and FabricAddicitons.com.  The great thing about these sites is that you can shop for patterns and online classes from other designers at the same time.

And the best news? Both designs are an extremely affordable $6.00 US!

I'm also selling both Dive Into a Book and the Green Man in my Etsy shop.  But that's not all, to say thank you to my blog readers and to celebrate the release of these two new e-patterns, I am giving you a 10% discount on any pattern in my Etsy shop.  Just enter the coupon code:  THANKYOUENDOF11 to receive your discount.

Go on, dip your toes into some creativity before we close the book on 2011.

Wordless Wednesday - Old Man Time

Freebie Friday - Last Minute Christmas Ideas for Wrapping and Setting the Table

Set the scene for Christmas with some of these gorgeous ideas and tutorials for everything from wrapping to setting the Christmas table.

If you are new to the Magic Bean, every Friday I do a round-up of free craft tutorials on a certain theme. So stop by every Friday for your weekly dose of free crafts. Or browse posts of Christmas past by combing through the "Free Craft Tutorials & Patterns" category (just click the link) or use the Google Search function on the top left of my blog to search for something specific.

Wrapping

Alisa Burke shares an idea to use decorated paper bags as Christmas wrapping paper complete with stunning rosettes and bows.

While browsing on One Pretty Thing I spotted this chandelier stenciled gift bag tutorial offered on the Plaid website.

Amy at Positively Splendid made some very beautiful printed twill ribbon to wrap gifts.  She provides the free printable text and a tutorial so you can make your own ribbon.

For many years I've been wrapping my gifts with Kraft Paper so I loved this round up of ideas on Emmaline Bride for making Kraft paper look spectacular under your tree.

Cards and Tags

Kirsty Neale has a selection of free Christmas card templates that you can download from the Papercraft Inspirations website, including this sweet angel.

The Three Sweet Peas has a great set of stunning holiday gift tags that you can print off for free.

Digi Art Cafe has some very cute primitive looking gift tags that are free to print out.

Don't forget my very own free printable typography Christmas gift tags. Click the link to get the free download.

For more free printable gift tags and wrapping ideas, revisit this post from last year where I rounded up some of my favourite free printables and categorised them by style from elegant to funny.

Table Settings

Print off a free Holly Leaf template to use as a place marker at the table, courtesy of Martha Stewart.

Martha Stewart shares a free downloadable template and instructions to make angel place markers from paper plates.

Martha comes through again with a free downloadable template to make a paper tree place marker.

Amy at Positively Splendid used a pine cone and a hammered tin can to create absolutely stunning place card ornaments.  You have to see them to believe it, so click the link.

I Gotta Create shared a tutorial to show you how to transform simple raffia and cardboard into beautiful napkin rings that would be gorgeous gracing any holiday table.

Kiki from Kiki Creates guest blogged at Craft Snob and shared a tutorial to make Christmas treat buckets that would make great party favours, particularly for kids.

Kristen Duke Photography shared some free printable Christmas jokes for you to use at your Christmas meal (or to perhaps include in a Christmas cracker, if you make your own?).

I hope this Freebie Friday helps your last minute Christmas preparations.  Merry Christmas everyone!

Free Printable The Heart of Giving Thank You Cards

When I was a little girl, my mum drilled into me the need to say thank you.  She said to greet every gift with enthusiasm, even if it was completely wrong.  She said to find at least one nice thing to say about it (that you mean) and then to say thank you.  And mean it.

This lesson was put to the test one Christmas when I was about 6 (My mum has since corrected me on this point in the comments, apparently I was 4).  I desperately wanted a walking doll for Christmas - you know, those large dolls that are meant to be only slightly shorter than the child who grabs onto their shoulders and makes them walk.  My grandmother had bought me one as a gift, but it came without a box, so my mum and dad offered up a box.  Said box had packaged the wood axe that my father had received for his last birthday.  The doll was duly inserted into the box and wrapped. 

When my six year old self unwrapped the package on Christmas morning, I took one look at the box and thought "Grandma's giving me axe?  That can't be safe.  And I don't think I can lift that."  But that was all internal dialogue.  Because I had been so drilled to be thankful, I immediately enthused, "Oh Grandma, an axe just like Daddy's.  Thank you so much!"  My grandmother laughed and laughed and told me to open the box.  When I pulled out the walking doll, I said "Oh phew, it's a walking doll."

I was very thankful for my Grandmother's gift and I think she was thankful for the laugh. 

If you want to pass on your thanks this Christmas - for axes or dolls or even new Christmas socks, download a free printable Thank You Card:

Download The Heart of Giving Thank You Cards

Print on card stock and cut out, then, fold down the centre.  The card will fit into an A6 size envelope (which is 4" x 6" for the North Americans).  If you buy yourself some stamps, you'll be all set to get thankful this holiday.

Have I said thank you for reading my blog yet this year?  Thank you.  From the bottom of my heart.

Wordless Wednesday - Keep Your Eyes Above

Freebie Friday - Crafting Christmas Tree Tutorials

O Christmas Tree, oh Christmas Tree, there are so many variations.  In this week's round up of free Christmas crafts, I hunt up the very best craft tutorials that deck the halls in a oh so stylish way.

If you are new to the Magic Bean, every Friday I do a round-up of free craft tutorials on a certain theme. So stop by every Friday for your weekly dose of free crafts. Or browse posts of Christmas past by combing through the "Free Craft Tutorials & Patterns" category (just click the link) or use the Google Search function on the top left of my blog to search for something specific.

Martha Stewart will get this Christmas party started with her how-to instructions to make these striking magazine Christmas trees out of re-purposed magazines.  That my friends is eco-festive!

In another dazzling display or crafty re-usage, Martha Stewart has a tutorial to make shimmering stacked Christmas trees out of newspapers.

Martha made a snow white feather tree and tells you how you can make one yourself, complete with video, just click the link to get the instructions.

Desiree of the blog The 36th Avenue guest blogged at Tatertots and Jello where she shared how to make a Christmas tree out of cup cake liners. 

Amy at Positively Splendid used red paper streamers to create an elegant rolled rosette Christmas tree complete with tutorial.

Amy of the aforementioned Positively Splendid also has a tutorial to make dyed corn husk Christmas trees, complete with a guide to dying your own corn husks.

Jen of the blog Sunny Vanilla, shared a tutorial at Tatertots and Jello to make not one, but an entire garland of upcycled sweater Christmas trees.

Lucy from the blog Craftberry Bush continued on the reduce, reuse, recycle theme with a tutorial to make cardboard Christmas trees. 

Chris of the blog Curbly shared a tutorial to make modern perforated Christmas trees from papier mache craft cones.  And these little babies even light up. 

Renate of dreamhomedecorating.com shared a tutorial over at UCreate to make a Wire Christmas Tree.

Virgina of the blog Gingercake shared a tutorial to make Trimmed Fabric Christmas trees while guest blogging at Prudent Baby.

Barb at Joggles has a tutorial for making simple Christmas trees from wool felt.  Barb had so much fun making those trees that she created a video to make even more varieties of these cute trees:

 

Click the following link to revisit a post from Christmas past for more Christmas tree crafts.  This post is vintage 2010 - it was a good year.  But I think this one might be even better.  Happy Holidays!

Drum Roll Please...All My Paper Patterns Are Now Available as E-Patterns

I have just finished something that has been on my to-do list for ages - converting my first three paper patterns into e-patterns.

You can now get the Gather Ye Rosebuds pattern in PDF format.

Treasures of the Deep in PDF format,

And Give Us a Kiss in PDF format.

My other two pattern designs, Fathoms: A Deep Sea Mermaid

And the two-in-one pattern Snowflake Sprite and Spider Sprite are also available as PDF e-patterns.

The patterns are not only available at my Etsy shop, but they can also be purchased from Doll Street's pattern shop. 

Why buy e-patterns?

Save Money- You save $2 (USD) when you buy my e-patterns.  Because I don't have to have the pattern printed, photos printed, and then assemble the whole lot in a plastic bag, I can offer an e-pattern for less and I pass the savings onto you.  Think of it this way - there's more money for fabric.

Save Even More Money on Postage - When you buy an e-pattern, the pattern is sent directly to you via e-mail, so you don't have to pay money for postage.  Depending on where you live, that could save you considerable cash.

Instant Gratification - Doll Street offers patterns on instant download.  If you order an e-pattern at my Etsy shop, I send you the pattern as soon as I receive confirmed payment.  No waiting for the post to arrive.  No waiting for the pattern to cross an ocean or a border.  Just pure unadulterated doll making straight to your inbox.

Once the pattern arrives, you can print the pattern, so if you want a paper copy you can have one.  Or you can save a tree and work from a digital copy, which also helps declutter your home or studio at the same time and the feeling of smugness you get from that is just a bonus.

If you really don't like digital or don't have a printer, you can still order my printed paper patterns from my fabulous stockists. 

In the USA:

Doll Makers Journey

Joggles

Cloth Doll Patterns

Designer Doll Patterns

In the UK:

Jan Horrox

Cassie Rafferty

If you want to go old school and stick to the paper patterns, go for it. 

If you want to save money and have your doll pattern instantly, then you can have that too.  From Etsy or Doll Street. 

Whatever floats your boat.

Oh and another thing.... After a brief time of not being able to get clock parts for my Gather Ye Rosebuds kit, I now have a kit back in stock.

The new clock hands are slightly more fancy than the older version, but I think they look great.  Sadly, no one has found a way to beam a kit of felt and clock hands directly to your home, so you do still need to order this the old fashioned way. 

 
Please be aware that the kit DOES NOT CONTAIN THE PATTERN.  You will still need to buy the pattern separately.  I offer the kit without the pattern for those super-keen folks who want to make multiple dolls and therefore need multiple kits, but only one pattern. 

Now if only someone would invent a teleportation device....  

Wordless Wednesday - Fountains Abbey

If Drawing Faces Scares You Then Face Up to It

"I can't make dolls because I can't draw faces."

I hear people say that all the time and it makes me sad.  Because the thing is that drawing is a learned skill and not a talent.  I truly believe that.  And my belief is reinforced each time I teach a class and see people who don't consider themselves to be artists draw a wonderful face.

And of course, practising drawing faces also helps.  The more faces you draw the better you get at it.

To help beginners tackle faces in a less intimidating way (that is, without having to make the whole doll) and to help doll artists practice drawing faces - that's the reason I created the About Face Pin Doll online class that I am offering now through the 2011 holiday season on Doll Street.

So whether you want to take your first try at making dolls or you want to practice, practice, practice, you can find out more information on this pin doll online class by clicking the link.

Gifts for Everyone

These dolls can be turned into brooches, fridge magnets or ornaments.  Can you see them done up in Christmas fabrics and colours?

The finished doll brooches or ornaments also make great stocking stuffers, Secret Santa presents, or even gift toppers.

Gifts for Doll Makers

And if you haven't had time to buy, wrap and post a gift to someone who loves to make dolls, buying them an online class is a great last minute gift. 

Don't you just love the look on someone's face when they open a gift they love?  Me too.  And then I immediately want to draw it.

Find out more information or sign up for the About Face online class with Colleen Babcock