I'm Not The Only One Playing In The Studio...

I love spending time in my studio - especially when I'm making surprises for my friends! The ATC Swap is giving me a wonderful reason to be there as I plan and create a new and different theme for each of my swap partners.

I've changed the deadline to sign up for the swap to July 1st, so if you've been thinking about joining in the fun, you still can. Here's the link to the original post, listing the guidelines and criteria to participate.

In case you're still not sure what an artist trading card is - or need more ideas - here is a link to explain Artist Trading Cards more fully. Really, the only limitation is your imagination!

Now, let me tell you about my friend, Krisann Bush...
Not only is she a talented fiber artist, but she sure knows how to make me laugh. I enjoy the time we spend together, and envy her level of concentration. Every time I see her, she's engrossed in a new project. Really!

I met Krisann when she decided to join our local Project Linus group. I haven't kept track, but I'll bet she's crocheted more than a dozen blankets for some very lucky youngsters since she first took up her hook for the cause (which wasn't that long ago!). She only started crocheting when she joined us at Linus, having spent more time knitting prior to that. Now, she's a regular crocheting machine, and she's fast, too!

In addition to her work with Project Linus, she also sponsors a sister-in-law who is a missionary to Ghana. Each year, Krisann creates at least four hundred (that's right 400!) crocheted bracelets, little caps, headbands and other little trinkets for the children who her relative visits on her mission. These are all beautiful pieces and the feedback she has received from her project is that the kids love her gifts. As though that's not enough, she's also a wife, and an involved mother to her sixteen (and a half!) year old son, Nathan.

I wanted to show you her latest creation...a beautiful little crocheted hemp basket I was lucky enough to snap up. She's opening her own Etsy store to sell her creations. Her store is called "awholenotherthing" - because Mrs. Tiggywinkles was taken! I hope you mosey over there to check out her creations. She's just getting started, so be sure to go over there from time to time to see her newest listings. I'm excited for her and know you'll love her offerings.

And before I go for today - I've added a new feature to my blog! Now you can Google key words to find related posts - but only in my blog. So, if you want to read all about The Great Hog Invasion, just type in "hog" and all the posts about this little chapter of our lives will all show up at the top of my page. You can then click on each post to read through the whole thing. When you're finished, there's an "x" in the upper right hand corner of the search results that you can click on to close the search window. Be sure to try it just for fun. Cool, isn't it?