Handmade Sampler Giveaway - Handmade Purse DONE

Welcome to our first giveaway of the new year.    Today's giveaway is a handmade purse from Bette of Handmade By Bette.    

Rules for entering:

Earn one entry for each one of these things to do.

1. Become a follower of this blog.   If you are already a follower,  let us know.

2.Visit http://www.handmadebybette.etsy.com and come back here and post a comment with your favorite item in the shop. 

3. Post this giveaway on your blog along with a link to this blog. Be sure and let us know you have done this.
Be sure and leave your email address so we can contact you if you win.

(USA and Canada entries only, please)

The giveaway will start today, Sunday,  January 2, 2011, and the winner will be announced on Friday, January 21, 2011 . We will announce it here and contact you by the email address you have left. Final day to enter is Thursday, January 20, 2011.

Happy New Year Wish

My Happy New Year wish for you Is for your best year yet,
A year where life is peaceful,
And what you want, you get.

A year in which you cherish
The past year’s memories,
And live your life each new day,
Full of bright expectancies.

I wish for you a holiday
With happiness galore;
And when it’s done, I wish you
Happy New Year, and many more.

By Joanna Fuchs

We Have A Winner For The Snowman Painting

Congratulations to Judy from Indiana  on winning the Snowman Painting from Barb of Barb's Heartstrokes.
Meet Judy on her blog,  http://prim2pink.blogspot.com/

The winner was picked using the true random number generator on Random.org. We want to thank ALL of you who took the time to enter and for all the wonderful comments.

Be sure and come back again on Sunday for our first giveaway in the new year.

Would you like to be a sponsor for one of the giveaways on our blog? It is a great way to get your craft business noticed. For information email us at byyourhandsblog@gmail.com

Today's Featured Business ---- Online Business Junction

Today's featured business owner is Tina  from Online Business Junction. 

What inspired you to go into this business?
 
I have several online businesses and blogs. Online Business Junction is my business resource site, which I created in order to help other online business owners.
It's full of lots of helpful tips, resources, and information on running  an online business.

I also have two country primitive marketplaces, Crows Creek Crossing and Primitive Square, which are advertising venues for country primitive business owners. 

I have an art blog, Art Chick Studio, which is where I post all of my art and craft creations; I also have a personal blog, Tinalicious, which is where I indulge my love of writing. And I just started another blog, Tattered Sisters Primitives, where I am sharing my love of all things country and prim.

When did you start your business?
 
I began in business online back in 2006. All of my online ventures have begun since that time.

Do you have plans for growth?
 
My plans for growth essentially revolve around continuing to do the things that make me happy and that I have a passion for...whether it's creating art in various forms (painting, photography, graphic design, stained glass, altered art, etc), crafting country primitive goodies, writing, or adding to my business resource site in hopes of continuing to help others reach their goals for business success online.
I find that as long as I focus on the things that make me happy, those things flourish and grow as I'd like for them to.

Do you have set hours that you work since you are a WAHM business owner?
 
I don't really work set hours, per se. I actually take care of my baby granddaughter 4 days per week, 9 hours per day. So on those days, my work  can only be done after she's gone home and after I've taken care of dinner for the Hubs and myself. Much of my work ends up being done in the evening and on weekends. I squeeze in what I can, whenever I can.

What do you like most about your work?

No matter what online business I'm working on at a given time, what I like  most is the ability to be creative in everything that I do, and to help others whenever I can. Those are the things that feed my soul, inspire me, and motivate me to keep going.

What would you like everyone to know about your business?
 
For anyone wanting lots of good information about running an online business, I hope they know that I have tons of great resources and information on my business site.
If they want to advertise a country or prim business, hopefully they'll look into my marketplaces.
And if they're interested in checking out my art, writing, or country and primitive crafts, I hope they'll check out any of my blogs. My business site, art blog, writing blog, and country and prim blog are all on Facebook so they can be followed that way. 
They can also follow using Google Friend Connect, or they can subscribe to any of my blogs via RSS feeds or via email--so there are lots of ways to get the information I share.

You can find Tina online,  here:

OnlineBusinessJunction.com
ArtChickStudio.com
Tinalicious.com
TatteredSisters.com
CrowsCreekCrossing.com
PrimitiveSquareMarketplace.com

Tuesday Tutorial ---- Notebook Cover

Today's tutorial is for a composition notebook cover.

Supplies Needed:


Three co-ordinating fabrics
 Warm N' Natural batting
Notebook
27 inches of 1/2" wide lace
27 inches of 1/4 inch wide ribbon
3 - 4" circles of fabric
1 inch circle of felt
2 buttons
matching thread

Directions:



My notebook is 9 3/4 inches x 7 1/2 inches and the fabric is cut to fit this size.   If your notebook is a different size you will have to make adjustments when cutting out your fabric.

Cut the main fabric, lining fabric, pocket fabric and batting 27 inches wide by 11 inches tall.

Fold the pocket fabric in half lengthwise and press.   Stitch your lace to the folded  top edge of the pressed edge.

Lay the pocket fabric on top of the main fabric lining it up with the bottom edge.

Stitch the pocket to the sides and bottom of the main fabric and stitch the pocket seams from left to right at theses intervals,  5 1/2 in, 8 in., 8 in. 2 in. and 3 1/2 in. 
Black lines on the pictures indicate sewing lines.

Sew the front, lining and batting together.   Lay the batting down first.   With right side up,  lay the lining on top of the batting and with right side down,  lay the front on top of the lining.     Sew all around the edges in a 1/4 inch seam,  leaving open 3 inches at the middle of the bottom edge for turning.   Black lines indicate where to leave open.

Trim excess batting away from the seam line.

Turn cover right side out.    Pin the opening closed.   Fold the right and left sides over 5 inches on the left and 4 1/2 inches on the right.    Pin.    Stitch across the top and bottom edges.   The opening will be sewn closed as you sew across the cover and the notebook holder sleeves are sewn at the same time.

Black lines on the pictures indicate sewing lines.

The cover is now finished.
To make the flower decoration,   cut the 3 - 4 inch circles in half.   Fold the half circles in half and stitch across the open edge in a 1/4 inch seam.  Repeat for all six petals.
Black line on the pictures indicate sewing lines.

Turn the petals right side out and gather across the open edge.

Gather the edge tightly and tie a knot.   Without cutting the thread,  continue to gather the petals and tie a knot until you have all six petals strung together.

Stitch the last petal to the first one to create a circle of petals.

Sew the flower to a one inch circle of felt.

On the front of the flower,  sew a button on.    Sew or glue the flower to the top of the cover.

Handstitch the ribbon along the edge of the front,  just above the pocket,  with 6 inches of the ribbon to the left and the rest of the ribbon to the right.    Make sure you stitch only through the front of the cover.

Sew a button to the left of the ribbon.

Now insert your notebook into the sleeves of the cover.    Pull the long ribbon around the back to the front and wind it around the button to hold the notebook closed.

I hope you enjoyed today's tutorial.
 Bette