Five of the largest size holds all my fabric in a compact and portable setup.

I find this method much better than the boxes I used previously- you can easily see your fabrics, instead of digging around and unfolding them all.

The boxes have these handles, so they’re really easy to grab.  

What are some of your favorite craft organization/storage techniques?

Haven’t seen the story yet?

Here are a couple of my favorite projects from our December issue.

I want to make the marbleized paper, but I can’t find alum or methyl cellulose-any suggestions?  Will liquid starch work as well?  We are working our way through the Craft Encyclopedia!

Wow, Angie, and you’re already at M for marbleizing!?  Marbleizing is fun and easy, but it really does require the right materials.  There is a technique involving starch, but it also requires oil paint and turpentine.  The marbleizing method we recommend is non toxic and consistently produces stunning results.

If you can’t find alum or methyl cellulose in your neighborhood, order it online at Talasonline.com.

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I went to the rehearsal of the segments in the morning before the show. I was “purse paparazzi” that A.M.—focusing in on the minute details of the handbags on our set. Tomas talked about the intrecciato style of weaving, a technique the Bottega artisans study for three years before they become official Bottega craftsmen. Two intrecciato weaving techniques were shown. Tomas showed how two full pieces of leather, in the shape of the final bag, are machine cut with a pattern of tiny slits. Through the slits, thin strips of leather are hand woven. The technique is used to make the Veneta style handbag.

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1 the Lilac Veneta.

2 the Lilac Veneta on the set

3 process pieces of the Veneta

4 close up of the weave for the Veneta style bag

5 a selection of clutches. all woven in different materials. Check out the tray's edge– it's woven too!

The artisans demonstrated the double sided leather weaving technique on bag forms in 3 stages. It was apparent that these women were experts . This technique truly needs training! The unreal Ebano Cabat bag is made with this technique. A wearable piece of art…

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I learned that trying to recreate one of these bags would be an almost impossible endeavor, but having always been enthralled with this brand, my fingers were itching to attempt intrecciato. My results weren’t perfect and on top of weaving leather for the first time, I had to also teach myself how to install my first zipper. I am very excited though, to now have my very own handmade Bottega Veneta (pronounced BO-teg-a VEN-eta) inspired coin purse!

handmade luxury now homemade!

This is a corn wreath I made for A Texas Thanksgiving. The secret to it’s construction is gluing wire into the base of the corn, it makes it easy to secure to the form and arrange once you are done. It takes some time to prep the corn but it is constructed very simply. Smaller corn about 4 to 8 inches works well on a 18 inch wreath form. Another tip is using the smaller ears toward the center to fill the inner curve neatly.

I love the monochromatic corn, it would be fun to make one in yellow, white, or blue? Here is the how-to:

Texas wreath

The amount of corn required depends on the size of the wreath; we used 140 ears on an 18-inch wreath form.

Tools and Materials

Rotary tool with standard bit

Dried pink miniature corn (available at farmers’ markets)

Craft glue

9-inch piece of 18-gauge stem wire for each ear of corn

32-gauge floral wire wound on a paddle

Wreath form

Wire cutters

1 Drill a 2-inch-deep hole in the base of each ear of corn. Squeeze a dab of glue into each hole, and insert 1 stem wire per ear. Let dry overnight.

2 Anchor floral wire to wreath form. Attach an ear of corn by wrapping floral wire around corn stem wire. Without cutting the floral wire, add corn an ear at a time across the wreath form’s width until you have 4 or 5 ears in a row. Overlap rows until you come full circle. Cut floral wire, and secure end to the wreath form.

I loved the glitter cards and photo art in the November issue of Martha’s magazine.  I really want to try making a card, but I don’t want to send my friends a mess of glitter for Christmas.  How do I keep the glitter from falling off the card?  Is there a special technique or glue that I would need to use to keep the glitter from making a big mess?

Just one of the many glittered clip art projects featured

Canned air, usually used to dust keyboards and electronics, is a great method for blasting away those loose bits of glitter.  To even further secure your work, brush on a glossy craft sealant such as Mod Podge over the glittered areas.  If you really want to eliminate any chance of stray sparkles, try mixing the glitter with a bit of craft sealant and brushing it on your card or project.  The glitter won’t be as dense, but it may be a nice technique for subtle glitter accents.  

In a related question, Debbie asks:

I made salt dough ornaments, using mini cookie cutters and Martha Stewart Glitter.  I just love how they turned out.  But I’d like to know how to make them permanent.  I glued the ornaments onto napkin rings and will make approximately 40 for our family gathering at Thanksgiving and Christmas.  Before I finish them I thought I should ask!

You can use the same method suggested for these glittered bells featured on one of THREE (!) covers you will find on your December issue of Living.  They call for polyurethane spray if displayed outside.  Even sealed, they should be kept in a covered area, as glitter would not fare well in a rain or snowstorm.  The polyurethane spray will help protect against the elements, but will also seal the glitter coating on projects and reduce shedding.  And in your case Debbie, the sealant should also protect your beautiful napkin rings from moisture damage.    

And don’t forget to enter the giveaway for our 24 piece glitter set!

All I needed was to pull out a can of silver spray, gather the mini pumpkins left over from  Halloween, and grab a twig and a few leaves, which we have plenty of in the yard.

A few sprays, a few minutes to dry ….

finished !

I already had the big pumpkin, added a prototype of the sewn pumpkins in the story (which by the way take no more than 30 minutes to make ! ), the decoration is done. And the greatest thing is, that this will last until it’s time to decorate for Christmas … at which point I’ll loose the pumpkins, but the leaves and branches will most likely make it into the next decoration. Stay tuned !

If you’d like more inspiration for Fall and Thanksgiving decorations, take a look here.

We’re perpetually working with (and covered in) glitter, so we thought it was time to share some with you!  Whether you use it to glitter paint, decorate, or entertain, our glitter 24 pack will definitely keep you busy.  It’s available at Michaels, or win one here.  Leave a comment describing how you’ll use your new glitter in 50 words or less, along with a valid e-mail address by 6 PM Sunday. We’ll choose one commenter at random to win this Essential 24-piece glitter set.

We’ll choose one commenter at random to win this dazzling pack of glitter. See official rules here. Please be aware, comments may take time to show up on our site.

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1 The outside of the studio with a view of the Chelsea area of Manhattan

2 Being entertained in the audience waiting area

3 The audience store with exclusive TV merch!

4 Being seated in the studio

5 Kate and Bianca take a self-portrait with their audience pumpkin

6 View of the potting shed from audience

7 Major zoom-in on potting shed detail

8 View of prep and main kitchen areas

9 Lots of lights up there!

10 This is me, carrying the gilded nut wreath to the craft table

11 The craft table with the nut wreath set up

12 Chip and I talk about how long the ribbon should be on the un-gilded nut wreath

13 Martha answers questions after the show

The show featured here taped Friday the 6^th and aired yesterday (Monday the 9^th). All the information on segments from the show can be found here.

I was a bit intimidated to work on the craft segment Friday afternoon – I had never gilded anything with mica powder before. Hosanna assured me that it was easy, and when I tried it and realized how INCREDIBLY easy it was, I got a little hooked and I’m finding it hard not to gild everything in my house a la Donald Trump. Below is a tiny demonstration in photo-form of gilding one of the nuts for the wreath – try it!

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1 Begin by painting on the "size" (fancy name for gilding adhesive), much like you would glittering glue. Place it on a cooling (drying) rack and walk away for a few minutes.

2 The size will turn clear when it's tacky and ready for mica powder. Depending on the humidity in the air, this can take between 5 and 25 minutes. The best part: it STAYS tacky like this for over 24 hours!

3 Dip a really soft brush in mica powder and lightly dust the surface you want to gild. For this project, I did a really fine dusting so you could see some of the nut's natural color, but you can go crazy and make the whole thing solid gold.

4 A group of walnuts which have been sized and dusted with Sunset Gold, Majestic Gold, and Sparkle Gold mica powders.

5 Really fabulous photo taken of all the gilded nuts, ready for their place on the wreath!

For the full project, and how to turn your gorgeous gilded nuts into a wreath, click here. We got all our mica powder and gilding supplies from Sepp Leaf Products, which is a fabulous source – you can either buy 100-gram jars of powder in a few colors (which will probably last you a lifetime, depending on how gild-y you are) or get a full kit with the size included and a sample of every color powder they offer. Fun!