photo by David M. Russell/Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia

I had such a fun time on television demonstrating our new Martha Stewart Crafts Paint line with Martha. We made these beautiful crackled boxes—perfect for gifts and jewelry.

Beth writes: "Have you tried the crackle effect on the papier-mâché boxes or the jewelry cardboard boxes?"

The answer is yes, Beth. The boxes we used were a combination of real wooden boxes and the thicker sturdier papier-mâché boxes. The crackle effects will work on these surfaces, but be sure not to oversaturate your boxes so the paper does not warp as you work with it.

Weather crackled boxes

These boxes were created using one of our eight specialty effects. To create them, first paint the box with a base coat of a color of your choice. Then apply a layer of Weather Crackle Effect. Let dry completely, and brush one final coat of a contrasting paint color and watch the magic happen!

Weather crackle closeup

I especially love using the Fine Crackle Effect to create an old china and porcelain look.

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1 I especially love using the Fine Crackle Effect to create an old china and porcelain look.

2 Close-up of the Fine Crackle Effect.

3 A favorite trick of mine is to use our patterning tape to create a plaid. After the painting the box with our pearlized paint Eclipse, tape straight lines across the box. Paint between the the tape with our pearlized mother-of-pearl paint.

4 Remove the tape, and repeat the steps, now taping vertically. Peel the tape away to reveal the beautiful results.

5 I surprised Martha at the end of the show with a strand of 70 white pearls I had been collecting for over a year for her birthday. I hand-drilled each pearl and strung them on a leather cord.

6 A special shout out to Hosanna Houser and Barbara Fight for helping produce this segment; they love crafts!

7 Thanks to Martha and the crew for a fun day!

Don't forget to check out the instructions for this project as well as all the projects from our Craft Studio at Beaches.

You may not know this but I have a collection of blown out eggs, big and small, white and brown, cracked and whole, dyed and not dyed, and all of them can be used to make beautiful spring decorations.  A lot of my eggs actually come from Martha's farm, which she generously brings into the office every week.  I always try to get the Aracanda chicken ones, which range in color from blue to green to pink.

Using just a few materials I made these  little flower arrangement eggs.  I used dyed eggs from my collection and some of the natural eggs from Martha's farm, but you can easily blow out your own eggs and dye them for this project.

Right now in the Martha Stewart Crafts line we have huge assortment of spring-themed self-adhesive stickers.  I simply embellished my eggs using a few of the floral sticker sheets.  Here I used a broken egg (save the broken eggs from making breakfast and you can dye those also) as a vase for a little floral arrangement using the Lily of the Valley sticker, which is one of my favorites because it reminds me of my mother's perfume.

For the next ones I used the Dogwood branches and Daisy stickers.

Here I used the Fern stickers to decorate an Aracanda chicken egg and added a ladybug as a finishing touch.

Besides flowers there are also some 3 deminsional glittered bird stickers.

I used egg cups to display my eggs but wouldn't it be great to fill an egg carton with your creations to give as a gift?  This is a fun and easy project the whole family can enjoy.  Check out our April issue of Martha Stewart Living Magazine for other great Easter eggs decorating ideas.

All of these stickers and more are available at the Martha Stewart Shop, Michaels, and other fine craft stores.

Have fun crafting!

After taking a 45 minute ferry ride, hiking hours through the trails of the Acadia National Park, and arriving at the base of the Black Dinah mountain, imagine coming upon a  wooden sign painted with the words “Black Dinah Chocolatiers-the cafe" which leads you to a trail, then to a home, and finally to some of the most incredible chocolate and coffee in the world.

The Black Dinah Chocolatiers, Steve and Kate, create beautiful chocolates completely by hand. The local ingredients, produced by friends and neighbors, both inspire and flavor their creations.

Farmers Collection featuring local ingredients traded at the Stonington farmers market

Check out some behind the scenes pictures I took during my visit.  Also be sure to pick up the February issue of Martha Stewart Living to read more about the Black Dinah Chocolatiers.

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1 Stonington's harbor

2 Map of Isle au Haut and Stonington

3 Kate and photographer Jason talk while Steve sets up for the Stonington Farmer's market in Maine

4 Jason and Kate

5 Setting up farm stand

6 Stonington farmer's market, Fridays 12-3

7 Black Dinah Chocolatiers farm stand.

8 Hackmatack Farm sign from late August

9 Hackmatack Farm stand

10 Sweet Peas

11 Sweet Peas

12 Onions

13 Wild blueberries-everything goes so fast

14 Sunset Acres Farm and Dairy stand

15 Fresh cheeses

16 It's best to arrive early, because merchandise sells out quickly.

Hi Everyone,

A few weeks ago I received a beautiful birthday card from the crafts department and wanted to share it with all of you. Many of you know my love for everything sea related so it is no surprise I would love this card. The card was made using just a few tools and some of my favorite Martha Stewart punches from Michaels (the crab, anchor and coral). To create an under water feel apply a thin layer of glue all over paper then cover with Martha Stewart crystal fine glitter. I love this technique and I think it makes the card so adorable.

The circle cutter was used to cut out the life preserver...

...other tools used to make the card.

Craft on!

Hannah Milman

I am so excited about the launch of the new Martha Stewart's Encyclopedia of Crafts book and I wanted to share some photos with you from a book signing I attended with Martha.

On Friday April 3rd I traveled with Martha to Michaels in Westbury NY where she signed copies of her new book, Martha Stewart's Encyclopedia of Crafts. While Martha was busy signing copies I was demonstrating some projects from a few different chapters of the book (G for glitter and P for punch). I brought the polka dotted glittered eggs I made with Martha on her show last week and demonstrated a few techniques.

I wanted to give a shout out to everyone that came despite the rain. As you can see from the pictures we all had a great time sharing our glittering techniques and punching paper.

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Craft on!

Hannah

This being my first blog post here on the crafts department blog I wanted to share with you one of my greatest loves...SHELLS. Shells are such a great material to craft with and anyone who knows me knows how much I love them. My office is full of shells and sea glass that I have found scouring the beaches of Maine and Florida. One of the best places to go shelling is Sanibel Island in Florida. Sanibel is great because the island is actually made of shells. There are such an amazing variety of shells to be found there that Sanibel has become known for its magnificent works of shell art. In order to showcase the amazing shell art, the Sanibel Community Association and Sanibel-Captiva Shell Club host an annual shell fair and show. The show takes place the first Thursday in March every year.

I try to make it there every year to meet up with old friends and make tons of new ones. Last year I even volunteered as an artistic judge for the show.

I really enjoy seeing what people are doing with shells and getting inspiration for some of my own projects. This year I brought Sandy (my adorable Havanese pup) along with me and as you can see in some of my pictures I think she made a good impression. Take a look at my photo gallery to see some of the amazing artwork that was created. Also check out the Sanibel Shell Fair story from Living back in February 2001.

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Thanks for reading,

Hannah Milman

SVP Exec Editorial Director Holiday and Crafts