Lark Crafts

We are thrilled with the publication of our new book Paper Blooms. As you may have seen in our recent Inside Peek post, it is overflowing with creative and beautiful ideas for transforming paper into gorgeous floral designs. I recently had the opportunity to interview author, Jeffery Rudell, about his experiences on the book.

Q: When did you start working with paper, and paper flowers in particular? What attracted you to the craft?

A: I have been working with paper since 1970 when, as a second grader, I made myself a typewriter (I’d asked Santa for a real typewriter but he decided winter boots were a more suitable gift). The thing was made from an egg carton, a paper towel tube, some cardboard and a manilla file folder. I’ve been hooked ever since. Professionally, I’ve been designing paper props and window displays for the past fourteen years. Paper flowers grew out of a project I did with Tiffany & Company back in 2004. Flowers come in an inexhaustible range of shapes and colors so I never run out of things to make. Best of all, making them is fun and sharing them with others never fails to bring a smile to the face of whomever receives them.

Q: How did you go about designing the flowers in Paper Blooms?

A: I designed these flowers much the same way as I design most of my work, I sat down with a stack of paper, a pair of scissors, and a glue gun, and I started experimenting with different ways I could achieve the shapes and textures I needed in order to capture the look and feel of real-world flowers. With a book of this sort, the designs needed to not only look like actual flowers but they also had to be easy to make. It was a process of trial and error…and I made a lot of errors. A few times I went so far as to take actual flowers — Daffodils are one example — and take them apart, petal by petal, leaf by leaf, using an X-acto knife and studied the way they were made.

Q: How difficult are the flowers in Paper Blooms to make?

A: My editor and I worked hard to make sure that all of the flowers were quite easy to make. The book begins with some very beautiful flowers that are super simple to make. The second section of the book takes advantage of simple circle and star-shaped paper punches that are readily available at craft stores. The final section of the book builds on the skills covered earlier in the book and while these projects can be a little more time-consuming, they still are not difficult to make. If a person can use a scissors, a craft knife, and a hot glue gun, they have all the necessary skills to make every one of the projects. As with most crafts, readers really need only two things: a little patience and a willingness to make a mistake or two along the way.

Q: Do you have any tips for beginners who have never made paper flowers before?

A: When it comes to most craft projects I find that beginners often worry about doing things “the right way.” However, when it comes to flowers, the key ingredient for making your flowers look real is to avoid perfection. Real flowers are crooked; their leaves are often bent in odd places; their petals are sometimes droopy. I always encourage beginners to celebrate any imperfections they happen to create since these will ultimately make their flowers look more like the real thing. Oh, and remember, flower stems are rarely perfectly straight; a curved or arching stem is the fastest way to add life to a paper flower.

Q: I know it’s hard to pick among so many beautiful options, but are there any flowers in Paper Blooms that stand out as personal favorites? Why?

A: Picking a favorite is nearly impossible since I’m in love with them all. However, I remember when we were making the book, I was working with a photographer who was taking a picture of a bouquet of carnations I’d made. He was arranging them in front of the camera and as he was doing so he bent down to inhale their scent. Everyone in the room just stopped what they were doing and looked at him for a moment. When he realized what he’d done he let out a laugh, a little embarrassed I think, and said, “They look so real I forgot that they were paper.” I will always treasure that moment.

Q: Where would you like to take your paper art and career now that your book has been published?

A: While I was writing Paper Blooms I had to set aside a long list of other projects and ideas. Now that the book has been published, I’ve gone back to my sketchbooks and begun working on some of those ideas that I’ve had on hold. I’m very excited by what I’m doing but I’ll have to wait and see where this work takes me. Maybe there will be another craft book in my future but for now, I’m just enjoying the process of taking a sheet of paper and seeing what I can turn it into.

Author photo credit: Virginia Sherwood

We are so excited about the publication of our new book Mod Podge Rocks! Want to know more about the book? Check out our previous post highlighting some of the many rave reviews it’s been receiving from the blogosphere.

One of the elements that people love so much about the book is the author, popular blogger and craft personality Amy Anderson. I took some time recently to ask Amy some questions about her experience with Mod Podge, blogging, and authoring the book. You can read her responses below. Be sure to check back here for more great Mod Podge Rocks! posts–including free projects and a huge giveaway–in coming weeks.

Q: How long have you been crafting with Mod Podge?

A: “About five years now. I got the crash course by my friends in the PLAID design studio, and I’ve been hooked ever since. My first project was a disaster, but that didn’t stop me. I was determined to master the glue that everyone seemed to love so much. Now that I’m addicted, I totally know why they do!”

Q: Out of all the Mod Podge products do you have a favorite? What is your favorite from the new line of products launched this month?

A: “I love the Hard Coat formula the best, because I love using Mod Podge on furniture. It’s so satisfying to re-do a large item and make it look new again. Wait a second – it’s a tie between that and Dimensional Magic. My favorite from the new line of products is the Glitter Dimensional Magic. I’m so excited to make awesome jewelry. I will pimp out the glitter Dimensional Magic, especially during holiday time!”

Q: What is your favorite project in the book?

A: “That is tough, but I really love the children’s artwork bracelet by Candie Cooper. Children’s artwork is so special and that bracelet is such a great gift.”

Q: Do you have any advice for other bloggers out there considering taking the blog to book leap?

A: “Be ready to work hard! Doing a book is time consuming AND creatively consuming. But the end is well worth it. You just have to anticipate that you will be putting everything you have into the book for awhile, but there will be a huge reward at the end!”

Q: It’s clear from the initial coverage of the book that you are very well connected and beloved in the blogging community. What can you say about the influence on blogging in your own life?

A: “My life has completely changed because of blogging, both personally and professionally. Some of my best friends are bloggers, and we met online. I’m also working as a blogger and freelance writer full time now. I NEVER thought this would be my life. After I got my MBA, I expected to be working at a desk for the rest of my life. I know that I am meant to be doing this, and I am happy. It’s a great feeling.”

Keep up with Amy Anderson and her passion for all things Mod Podge on her blog Mod Podge Rocks!

I recently had the opportunity to ask Jodi Rhoden, author of our new book Cake Ladies, a few questions I’ve been wanting to ask since working with her on the project. Her charming and informative answers follow. Want to know more about the book? Just click here to read my earlier post.

Q: When did you really first think there was a book in documenting the cake lady tradition?

A: Well, when you own a food business, everybody always asks you when you are going to put out a cookbook. So that got the idea in my mind, years ago, of doing a book. But I knew that my interest in writing, and people, was too
strong to do a book solely of my own recipes. I would want to share the whole culture of being a cake lady. My mother would tell me stories about the cake lady in her hometown, and other cake ladies she had known, and I really identified with that. So it was really a few years into having my cake business, when people began to think of me as a cake lady, that the idea for the book took shape.

Q: How long have you been interested in Southern food culture, and why?

It’s just what I’ve known. I grew up in the suburbs of Atlanta, but my grandparents were farmers, and their communities (in Monroe, GA, and Tallahassee, FL) were very traditional southern towns. I learned to cook Southern food from my mother as a part of my life- helping her make dinner every night and bake for celebrations. I could make a killer chicken fried steak with gravy from the time I was 10. Sunday dinners in Monroe were from the food my grandfather grew: lima beans and sweet potatoes and fresh tomatoes and onions. And in Tallahassee, it was very obvious that food was the currency of love: when someone wanted to appreciate you, they would bake you a cake, usually a pound cake. But it wasn’t until I was in college, and had become involved in the community gardening movement, that I began to make the connections between the food I had grown up eating and cooking, and the food that I was growing in my own backyard, and the stories that go along with them. It was the first time that I came to see Southern food as Southern food and not just “food.”   

Q: Can you pinpoint a couple of the most valuable lessons you have learned in the process of meeting the women featured in the book?

A: I really keep coming back to this experience of MEANING, that food has a symbolic value beyond sustenance. I saw that for many of the women, baking cakes held the meaning of expressing love, but for many of them also, and no less importantly, it was a means of economic self-sufficiency and empowerment. That was so inspiring to me. And I learned that everybody has a remarkable story to tell, if only we will listen.

Q: How would you encourage people reading this to get engaged in their own cake lady culture?

A: That’s a wonderful question. Because I do think that many people are searching for meaning beyond “store-bought” culture, and store-bought food. I think it’s really important to remember that we each have a history, and everybody comes from somewhere. So I would really encourage folks to talk to their elders. It doesn’t matter if your grandmother doesn’t bake, or only uses box mixes. Or if you aren’t in touch with your own elders, talk to a neighbor. Talk to her, and find out what food has meaning to her, and start there. Perhaps you will learn about some great, crafty trick to
making a meal or making a cake.  Or perhaps you will learn something about HER childhood, her history, and the food she remembers. I think the important thing is that something doesn’t have to be far away and exotic to be interesting. You can start right where you are, with what you have on hand, that’s the true meaning of cooking from scratch.

Q: I know it’s nearly impossible to choose, but do you have a favorite cake recipe in the book, and why?

A: I think my favorite has to be the 10 layer chocolate cake, for a few reasons: for one, it’s so simple, but so elaborate. The recipe is simple, but you make all these layers just, really, for dramatic effect. And also I love that it’s baked all over the South, and everybody has a different name for it. Folks in New Orleans swear by their Douberge cake, but if you are in Virginia, it has a different name (Smith Island Cake), and if you are down east Carolina, it has another name (10 layer Chocolate Cake). And I love Miss Pearl. But I love all the cake ladies, and all their cakes, I’m so appreciative of their love and care.

Jodi Rhoden is a mother, writer, baker, and community food activist. She is the owner of Short Street Cakes, a popular bakery specializing in natural, scratch-made, traditional Southern cakes and cupcakes. Jodi serves as a member of the Southern Foodways Alliance and is a board member of the Bountiful Cities Project, a grassroots urban agriculture organization. She lives in Asheville, North Carolina, with her family, and she chronicles her life as a baker, mom, and foodie at her blog.

Just browse the offerings in your favorite clothing catalog or trendy boutique, and you’ll see that embellished t-shirts are all the rage. But they sure can be  expensive, right? Well, why not embellish your own when an ordinary t-shirt and supplies can cost as little as a few bucks? 101 Tees is a fun, idea-packed book, authored by crafting dynamo Cathie Filian, that offers up clever ways to easily and inexpensively transformed the common tee into stylish apparel.

With 10 different technique-themed chapters, each with approximately 10 projects and their own mini basics section, there’s truly something for everyone. Experiment with creative cutting and stitching, embroidery, painting, dyeing, image transfer, and adding rhinestones, ribbons, and trim. The projects include a variety of t-shirt style bases, from the ordinary crew neck to long-sleeved, cap-sleeved, and sleeveless versions. And, yes, there’s even a full chapter of offerings for guys!

Such a great crafting resource for yourself or a crafty fashionista friend.

In the interest of giving you all a little behind-the-scenes details on the book, I asked Cathie a few questions about her experience working on the project. Be sure to come back here later in the month, as we’ll be hosting a truly fabulous 101 Tees giveaway in a couple weeks.

Q: Why do you think the common t-shirt serves as such a great creative canvas?

A: The material! Cotton….you can dye it, stretch it, paint it, heat it, pierce it, tear it, stitch it and you don’t have to hem it, if you don’t want to. I also love the form a tee takes on the body. The shoulders, hemlines, sleeves, yokes and centers are just begging to be embellished.

KEEP READING FOR MORE Q&A!

Haven’t you heard? Just look at the flood of media coverage, and you’ll soon discover that chickens are making themselves at home in neighborhoods all across the country, embraced and lauded as good pets and a source for sustainable, nutritious food.

Our very own book Keeping Chickens, part of the Homemade Living series, offers up helpful guidance to those new to the backyard chicken experience. Packed with must-know details, inspiring photos, and even some delicious egg-centric recipes, it’s fast becoming one of the hottest go-to guides on the topic. In light of our bird-themed blogiversary, I thought it would be fun to check in with author, Ashley English, with some questions about her own flock and her experiences with the chickens book.

Q: How many chickens do you own now, and do you have plans to get more?

A: At present, I own 4 hens. I’m actively in the process of acquiring more. We’d like our flock to ultimately be at around 10-12 chickens. That way, we’re less likely to run out of eggs, which often happens now.

Q: I know it’s hard to choose, but what’s your favorite way to use your chickens’ eggs?

A: Oh, wow. It really is hard to choose! If forced to select a favorite, though, I’d probably have to say just simple scrambled eggs are my favorite way of using my flock’s eggs. We cook them “low and slow,” meaning that we whisk them together and then cook them slowly over low heat, while continuously stirring. This method makes the most delicious scrambled eggs: soft, pillowy and full of flavor.

Q: What do you most often hear from readers of your book, Keeping Chickens?

A: Folks often write asking how they can acquire chickens in their area. For such questions, I encourage people to seek out local backyard chicken-keeping clubs, scour the classifieds (both print and online; Craigslist is a great resource), and ask purveyors of locally sold fresh eggs if they have birds for sale or perhaps know someone who might.

Q: In hindsight is there anything you would do differently now that you’re a more experienced chicken momma?

A: I’d have fortified my coop against predators even further. My situation is somewhat unique, living back in a dense, undeveloped forest as I do. I thought I’d predator-proofed it adequately, but some very clever raccoons (or, a raccoon), discovered means of accessing the coop (via scaling the fencing). We’ve since turned it into “Chicken Fort Knox,” with barbed wire and a serious of coops within the coop. If I’d known at the onset just how wiley (and smart!) these raccoons could be, I’d have begun with a coop as well fortified as it currently is.

Q: Several years into owning chickens and a year and a half after the publication of your book, have there been any stand-out surprises for you in chicken ownership?

A: Nothing really stands out, aside from just how easy it is. After your coop is secure, it’s really just a matter of providing food and water, and staying on top of regular coop maintenance. The reward is a happy, clucking flock and fresh, nutritious, scrumptious eggs. It’s a win-win scenario for all parties!

For more wisdom from Ashley, check out these great blog posts she’s written on the topic of backyard chickens:

Design Sponge: Keeping Chickens

Small Measures: Chickening Out / Keeping Chickens Preview

Small Measure: An Ounce of Prevention / Winter Chicken Care

Small Measure: Stating the Obvious / Knowing Where Your Eggs Come From

Elsebeth Gynther (left) and Christine Clemmensen (right), friends and co-authors of Scraps

Sure, publishing is indeed a business, ripe with deals and lots of nitty-gritty deadlines. But it also feels a whole lot like a a family after a while. And if you’ve been in this profession long enough, you end up establishing a rich collection of cultivated relationships and friendships over the years. Elsebeth Gynther has been one of those publishing professionals that has been part of the Lark story for a long time. We published her sewing book Easy Style decades ago and recently published her beautiful homage to collage, Scraps. For over two decades, Elsebeth served as a talented author, Editor, and eventually Editorial Director for Danish publisher Borgen. About seven years ago, she discovered with great delight a love for collage, a feeling which she compared to “coming home.” Early in 2009, Elsebeth took a courageous and spirited step (one that many people fantasize about) and left her office job to concentrate solely on personal creative endeavors. As she once wrote to me, “Creativity has been a lifeline.” Indeed, indeed.

It was therefore a great sense of loss to me and the extended Lark family when I recently learned that the lovely Elsebeth had passed away. Scraps co-author Christine Clemmensen was kind and generous enough to offer up some of her own reflections on Elsebeth that she has graciously allowed me to share here with all of you.

Q: How did you start working creatively with Elsebeth?

A: “Elsebeth and I met when she hired me to be the graphic designer for the book club she was editor in chief of. We hadn’t had many conversations before we both realized we shared a deep connection in the way creativity lay as base underneath our ways of living and thinking. Specifically, our collage work started when a colleague of ours came back from a trip to the United States with a couple of books on altered books. We met at Elsebeth’s house and painted and glued and altered for a whole day. After that, we couldn’t stop collaging, and about a year later, Scraps was a reality. During this time, our friendship grew very tight.“

Q: What accomplishments do you think Elsebeth would have wanted to have been remember for?

A: “I think Elsebeth was a very humble person. She had no desire to be emphasized or draw attention to herself. She always had the project she was involved in as her primary focus. She will be remembered as a wonderful friend, an inspiring colleague, for her many books and for her great work as an editor of spiritual books. I know she took great pleasure and pride in bringing books on body-mind-and-spirit to the Danish market. It made her happy to know she helped help people through these books.“

Q: What will you remember most about Elsebeth’s spirit?

A: “I shall carry Elsebeth with me always. Her limitless generousity, her curiousness, her love ,and her fabulous sense of humour. Her warmth, her wisdom and her insight. I laughed so much with Elsebeth. I learned from her, and I grew, both creatively and spiritually. I am so sad she is not in the world with us anymore and at the same time, endlessly thankful I had her in mine.”

I recently sat down with Ashley English, author of the popular Homemade Living series, to ask for her reflections on the series since the first two books, Keeping Chickens and Canning & Preserving, came out last Spring and the new books, Keeping Bees and Home Dairy, were released this month.

What are you most excited about now that there are four books available in the series?

I love that it really feels like a set of indispensable tools for getting started with small-scale homesteading. I’m hoping folks will be inspired to use all of the books in the series, as I strove for a tone that makes these topics seem imminently “doable.”

Has your vision of what homemade living is and can be changed since the first books in the series were published?

Yes, a bit. If anything, after having written these four books and witnessed them in their final, printed incarnations, I’ve come to see just how easy it can all be done. It’s nowhere near as daunting as I think some folks think they might be, and the books’ approach to the topics is responsible for engendering that idea.

What is the most frequently asked question you receive regarding your books and/or your blog?

I get asked what the next book in the series will be probably more than any other question! People have responded really well to the series and are anxious to see what else is in the works.

What  other big projects do you have planned for the Spring (or year)?

I’m working on a book right now, although it’s not part of the Homemade Living series. It’s food-related, though, which is my big love! Aside from that, I’ve got bee hives to attend to, a garden to get going, and a four-month-old who keeps me on my toes at all times!

To find out more about Ashley, visit her Small Measure blog, her regular column at Design*Sponge, and follow her on Twitter. And if you haven’t already, you should still have time to enter our big giveaway for one autographed set of all four Homemade Living books.

Around here we just can’t say enough good things about our Homemade Living series. We launched earlier this year with Canning & Preserving and Keeping Chickens. Brimming with useful information, gorgeous photos, and the I’m-right-there-with-you voice of author Ashley English, the series celebrates the sustainable food movement in a beautiful, useful way. Okay, as the Editor on the series I admit that I might be particularly smitten with the books because of my own involvement in their development. But I assure that you, too, will fall under the Homemade Living spell.

Learn a lot more more about the series, including detailed summaries and a couple lovely sample spreads from the first two books in this earlier blog post.

We’ve got quite the giveaway for you this week: autographed copies of each of the two Homemade Living books, Canning & Preserving and Keeping Chickens, as well as a perfectly swoon-worthy handcrafted jar of Cardamom Apple Butter made and canned by Ashley herself.

So, how do you enter for a chance to win this great bundle of goodies? Leave a comment on this post by 9 p.m. EST on Monday, October 11. Any comment is fine, but you’re welcome to leave a comment letting us know which of these books you’re most excited to own — and why. One winner will be selected at random and notified on Thursday, October 14. Click here for the official rules. And good luck! Congratulations to Sasha Addams on winning the giveaway! Keep coming back to the blog for more great giveaways and content.

I recently sat down with Ashley and asked her a few questions about her approach to living and encouraging a handmade life. The answers are both enlightening and inspiring.