The Craft Room Podcast

Hello ... and welcome ... I am so excited that you’re joining me today for this very first podcast episode. I’m going to try to keep this intro episode short and sweet, so we can get to the good stuff, but I thought I’d introduce myself and give you an idea of what this podcast is all about.

You may have guessed by the title, each week we will be in the craft room ... talking all things craft. You may also have guessed that I really love craft ... and this is true. I love it so much that I created a career around it, and I can talk about it all day long. Since lots of my crafty friends live far away, and my cat doesn’t seem interested in discussing Mama Elephant’s new release, or the fun crochet pattern I just discovered ... a podcast seemed like a good idea. I’m super excited to have someone to talk to about all sorts of crafts, and I would love to know what crafts you’re into. You can let me know by leaving a comment on the blog post ... HERE.

Fair warning, I will likely talk about stamping, cardmaking, colouring and papercraft quite a bit, as that’s the main focus of my business. However, I have a couple of quilting projects on the go, I just bought a new crochet pattern to try, and I usually have a couple of embroidery or cross stitch projects underway at any given time. I do enjoy painting, although I don’t get to paint as often as I’d like. I teach classes locally ... embroidery, dollmaking, crochet and painting on fabric ... and it’s so fun to connect with other craft-loving ladies in person ... definitely one of my favourite things!

At this point you may be wondering ... “Who is this Dawn Lewis, and what does she even know about craft?” ... a fair question indeed. Well ... while I wouldn’t call myself a specialist expert in any one craft, I do have experience with a LOT of different types of crafts, techniques and products, and I’ve worked professionally in the Australian craft industry for over a decade. Being a professional crafter is incredibly cool, and I’ve been able to say yes to some incredible opportunities ... designing for some amazing brands including Semco, Francheville, Milford Threads, DMC and Australian Girl dolls. I’ve been on some cool design teams, like KennyK Stamps, Little Miss Muffett, Tiddly Inks and Kindred Stamps. I’ve had original projects published in Australian craft magazines including Handmade, APQ, Patchwork & Stitching, Australian Stamping Cardmaking & Papercraft. Definitely the coolest job I’ve ever had has been hosting and present on Scrap It TV, from seasons 3 through 7. That was such a fun gig! I’ve had businesses selling handmade things, from ceramics to folk art, dolls to bags, and right now I have an online store specialising in stamping. I’m a qualified Copic instructor and authorised Copic stockist. So ... yeah ... when I said I loved craft, I really, really meant it. Craft isn’t just craft ... it’s so much more, for so many people. For some people, it’s their happy place, for others it’s a way to exercise their creativity. Getting lost in your favourite craft allows you to take time out from the craziness of life and do something that makes us truly happy. Craft can help us express ourselves, meditate, earn a little extra cash, meet new people and so much more.

When it comes to this podcast, I have so many ideas, but what I’m most interested is helping people craft within their budget, and get more bang for your buck from the craft supplies you choose. And while I will probably talk a lot about papercraft, I’m excited to mix it up, because so many ideas translate across many different craft mediums. I have some fun guests to interview, and other times it’ll just be you and me, and I hope you’ll join me each week. Episodes will be positive, upbeat and encouraging, with practical tips and ideas ... and they’ll likely be longer than this one. I tried to keep this intro episode short-ish, so you can move on to episodes 2 and 3, in case you’re a fan of binding new podcasts (which is something I love to do!).

So rather than continuing to waffle on, I’ll sign off so we can get to the good stuff, and I’m sure we’ll get to know each other better as the podcast goes on.

Thanks so much for joining me in the craft room today. If you enjoyed this episode and want to know more, check out the show notes, or the blog post at dawnlewis.com.au/podcast__. Maybe tell a friend or leave a review on itunes or stitcher ... I’d really appreciate it. I do hope you have a very crafty day, and I will see you next time. Bye for now.

Hello! I am so glad to have you in the craft room with me today! Today, I thought we’d talk about card making, specifically ... what exactly do you NEED to start.

Firstly, let’s consider a card you might buy at the newsagent, or even at the dollar store. Essentially, you have a folded piece of heavy weight cardstock, with an image, and usually a sentiment, on the front ... a matching envelope, and possibly a sentiment or longer verse inside. It might be funny, pretty, whimsical, macho, minimalist, arty ... there really is something for all ages, occasions and tastes in all sorts of colours, themes and sizes.

If you’re considering taking up card making as a hobby, you may be wondering what you really need. If you’re already a card maker, you’ve probably seen this asked in card making groups on Facebook A LOT. Here are my top 6 must haves for card making.

1. CARDSTOCK
2. TRIMMER
3. BONE FOLDER
4. PATTERN PAPER
5. SENTIMENT
6. ADHESIVE

When it comes to the must-haves ... that’s it! Of course, there are other fun things you can use to make your cards beautiful, but I always say this ... a simple card made well, beats a complicated card made badly. In other words ... good workmanship is the most important thing in your toolbox. The most simple card, like I talked about today, can look amazing when you take the time to do great workmanship.

Now, if you’re just dipping your toe into card making, and are unsure if you’re going to be into it, there are a few ways you can do so without breaking the budget or investing in a lot of expensive tools.

1. Kits
2. Pre-cut card base & envelope packs

.

1. Ask a card making friend
2. Party Plan

Can card making take over your life and your house? Absolutely! There are so many awesome tools and pretty papers, and gorgeous embellishments ... it’s really easy to go nuts in the early days and just buy everything! But if you start by buying small amounts, and making sure you use them, you won’t find yourself a year down the track realising that you bought a bunch of useless stuff that doesn’t work, you don’t really like, and that doesn’t do what you thought it would. I’ve been making cards for over 25 years, and in the beginning I made do. When I picked up Scrapbooking about 17 years ago, I accumulated a lot of stuff that is still sitting unused in boxes ... so I know what I’m talking about here! LOL But then I got smart, and I added to my tool box in stages, as I could afford things, and after doing my research. I think we can go into that in another episode though, because there’s been lots of information here already today, and I don’t want to overwhelm those who are just starting out.

Don’t forget to check the blog post for photos, a transcript, and links to a whole lot of things I mentioned today. Remember ... people will tell you that you need a whoooooooole lot of things, but one persons need is another person’s budget-buster or want-list item ... so ease in at first, and if you get hooked, then you can start investing in the new toys.

Hello ... welcome to The Craft Room Podcast. I’m so glad you’re joining me today, because we are talking today about the upcoming Card Maker Success Summit.

I’ve been attending these summits for the past few years, and even though I’ve been making cards for over 30 years, I still come away from the event having learned something new, and loaded up with inspiration. So imagine my excitement when an invitation to speaker this year landed in my inbox! At the time I was putting finishing touches on the All Occasions box, so when I saw the theme for this summit ... Card Maker Success ... saying yes was an easy decision. The theme completely aligned with what I was already working on. Now, after months of secret-keeping ... I can finally talk about it!

So today we’re going to cover a few things you might find helpful to know about this summit, including ... What even is a card making summit? What does it cost? Who is the summit for? When is it happening? How to get the most out of the Summit experience? What is an All Access Pass?

And most importantly, what’s in it for you. I’ll try to be concise, because it’s open for sign-ups now, and there are some important things to share before you go grab your ticket.

The Card Maker Success Summit - get your free ticket here

Stamp Me Some Love live YouTube videos

World Time Buddy (time converter)

Today we’re talking about an important crafting topic ... cost vs value.

This is something I mention a lot on the podcast, but have never talked specifically about, so we’re going to talk about it today. In a nutshell, the cost of something is the price you pay for it. The value is what the product is worth to you.

Todays episode is sponsored by Altenew. If you’re unfamiliar with them, Altenew have been around since 2014 and are renowned for their layering stamps, dies & stencils, detailed embossing folders, coordinating ranges and innovative tools. I am an Altenew stockist here in Australia, but I know that people are listening in all over the world, so the lovely folks at Altenew and I have put our heads together to come up with a special offer from each of us for podcast listeners. When you shop with either myself at www.dawnlewis.com.au or Altenew at www.altenew.com, you can use the code ALTDAWN10%OFF to receive a 10% discount on Altenew products. The code is valid up to 9th August 2023, and as a bonus for my Australian customers, I will extend that code to any Altenew pre-orders that are received and paid in full from today up until that date when you leave it in the comments section of your pre-order form (and if you already have an Altenew order in with me, if you send an email or DM mentioning the code, I will apply it to your existing pre-order). Those who have been shopping with me for a long time will know that this is the first time I’ve had a discount code like this, so if you’ve had some Altenew on your wish list, now is the time to add to cart or use the pre-order form. Huge thanks to Altenew for being part of the podcast today!

LINKS

Altenew category in my shop (for Australian shoppers)

Altenew (for International shoppers)

Pre-order form

Blog post for Episode 35 (with photos, links and full transcript)

Episode 28 - Stencils

Episode 27 - Digital Craft Resources

Creative Fabrica (affiliate link)

My YouTube channel, digital tutorials

The Big Birthday Box

Amazon, What to Write Inside Birthday Cards book

Amazon, Birthday Card Address Book

So glad to have you in The Craft Room with me today. All through March we’re talking about getting started, and since we’re on a roll with paper crafting, there are two tools that we need to talk about. They often frustrate and freak out their new owners, so I thought we could chat about those today, so you’re aware and prepared!

Both tools are popular and can be expensive, and like most people, I learned these quirky issues the hard way. We’re talking about trimmers and die cutting machines. Let’s start with trimmers, as they’re a real staple in a papercrafters tool box.

Trimmers come in 3 different types

Guillotine

Rotary blade

Sliding blade, either in a track or on a wire

GUILLOTINE

Use the finger guard or the cardstock will move. Can’t cut out a middle section – strips only. Pro – blade is self sharpening, no replacement blades needed for a very very long time. ROTARY

Can’t cut out a middle section. Really large and heavy. Solid, but not portable or suitable for very small desks. Pro – blade is self sharpening, no replacement blades needed for a very very long time. BLADE IN TRACK

Blade has wiggle room in the track which can lead to crooked cutting lines. If you press the blade to one side of the track as a guide for straight lines, you can gradually trim away the track edge, leading to curved cutting lines. Constant blade replacement. Check you can get replacement blades It will cut out middle sections. You can use the track to do scoring

All trimmers have their quirks. Look for the following ...

When you place cardstock on the bumper / ledge, do you get a proper right angle, or is it off a little bit? Correction may be needed, or if extreme, return it or contact the manufacturer.

Check they have cm and inches.

Blades may dull quickly = fuzzy edges

All blades are sharp, and trimmers should be kept safely locked away or out of reach of children.

Read reviews.

If you have a problem contact the manufacturer by phone, email or live chat via their website.

What can you do?

Make adjustments and make do until it’s time for an upgrade.

DIE CUTTING MACHINES

We’re talking about the type of die-cutting machine that has cutting plates, whether it’s operated by turning a manual crank, or pressing a button for an automatic feed.

CRACKING

MARKING THE CUTTING PLATE

How it works:

Rollers compress the plates together, the pressure forces the cutting edge of the die through the cardstock.

PRO TIP

Get more life from your cutting plates, and save money in the process.

Use the bottom plate for cutting only.

Rotate / flip the bottom cutting plate to prevent warping.

Add a shim when the bottom cutting plate is starting to thin out.

Eventually the bottom cutting plate with crack, warp or just be too damaged to continue using. Switch the top cutting plate to become the bottom cutting plate, take one new plate out of your replacement pack, and it becomes the top cutting plate.

If you are looking for dies in Australia, I invite you to check out my website at www.dawnlewis.com.au . I have a fairly extensive range, including some very cool interactive dies.