CHA Recap - Day 4 - Recycled Magazines become Paper Beads

The last day of the show always has a really different feel to the rest of the show. Today, as the show winds down, the buzz and excitement which marks the first few days of the show has been replaced by the quieter chatter of retailers placing orders with sales reps. This is the business end of the show and the make and takes have been scaled back and the exhibitors are preparing to tear down their booths. I found it to be a really good opportunity to spend a little time with some of the friends I've made at previous shows because things are a little less hectic. There's a certain sadness as you say goodbye to each other and yet, everyone is keen to get home to their families. But as well as saying my goodbyes, I also spent some time in the new exhibitors hall and had a chance to play with a new product from Japan, DéCollage. I can't tell you too much about it because all their literature is in Japanese and I was doing the make and take through a Japanese interpreter,......

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CHA - Day 3

Today started off with a make and take at the Ten Seconds Studio booth. Working with metal is always really cool especially when you're working with great materials. We embossed an ATC sized piece of metal shim in Poison Ivy . Isn't that a great name?! We had several moulds to choose from but I chose the daisy mould because I thought it suited the colour of the metal. This is one of their new releases. After embossing the image with a paper stub, we sanded away the surface colour revealing the silver metal beneath. Look at the detail the metal picked up. You could go to town adding colour and embellishing it with quotes and other objects or found elements but this is where we stopped. They were kind enough to let me snap a couple of photos of their booth where they had dozens of exquisite samples but as I don't have enough room to share them all with you, here's a couple which took my eye. Once again, I apologise for the quality of the images. My next sto......

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CHA - Day 2

This morning started bright and early with a 7.00am class. Yes, you read that right, 7.00am! In this class I learned some basics about wool felting. I've wanted to learn how to felt for a long time so I was excited that CHA had scheduled a workshop. In this class, I learned that felting is not a quick process and that you need to have patience, persistence and hot soapy water to make a good felt. This was not as easy I thought it would be and I have a new found respect for anyone who has mastered the process of felting. My very simple heart shaped design has become a little misshapen during the process but overall, it's not too bad for a first effort. I didn't complete the needle felted scrolls I was working on but I found this part of the process much easier and more enjoyable. After the workshop, it was time to set up my Designer Showcase and then I was on the go for the rest of the day meeting with people and I only had time to do one make and take for the aftern......

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