Congratulations to the following women whose names were randomly drawn for the end-of-the-summer shopping spree! We will be in contact with you shortly!

$99 Value – “The Plan” – Room Redesign from Opal Never Shouts
Michelle W.
Partial Email: Michelledw@….

$50 Gift Certificate to The Ribbon Retreat + Fabric!
Jocelyn R.
Partial Email: jocetwi….

$75 Gift Certificate to The Vintage Pearl
Mela K.
Partial Email: melaka….

$50 Gift Certificate to YouCanMakeThis.com
Line D.
Partial Email: linedupu….

$50 Gift Certificate to SWAKembroidery.com
Dawn L.
Partial Email: dawn.ludw….

Again, congratulations! Keep checking the blog…we’ll be putting up a “sneak peak” pic of our first episode very soon! And an amazing “first official giveaway” is just around the corner!

Are you ready? Thanks to our most wonderful summer blog sponsors, there are 5 fabulous gifts to give to our viewers. It’s open to a world-wide audience and all you have to do is leave a comment!

You don’t have long, and we want to hear from YOU! Tell us something you did this summer, maybe a current project you’re working on, or maybe what you are looking forward to learning in the new season. You name it…we want to hear! Good luck!

According to these gals, they “live, eat, breath design all day, every day. We are design geeks through and through!”

And we love that about them.

In fact, would you like a sneak-peek at how things are coming along? Check out this video as we share some of the fun projects we’ve been working on!

One of the first projects we worked on was taking some of our old bookcases and a coffee table and making them new again! Refinishing items you already have on hand or that can be picked up at your second-hand store or a garage sale become very cost-effective and FUN projects to work on! (And very rewarding as well!) Here are a few pics from our afternoon!

Has the thought crossed your mind on how they got their name? Why doesn’t Opal Shout? Find out how these clever 2 came up with their company name and more frequently asked questions about what they do! You’ll find those answers and more HERE!

Jen and Jana have taken interior decorating to a whole new level as they have brought their services world-wide, through the internet! Having an interior decorator for my own home as always been something I would have enjoyed, but never could afford.  If you feel like you’re in that same category, you need to be sure to check out the 3 different packages of services they offer. You might just surprise yourself with what you’ll find out!

AND…. another perk of heading over to www.OpalNeverShouts.com is that when you sign up for their FREE newsletter, you’ll receive a thank you download of 3 FRESH COLOR PALETTES AND 3 WALL GALLERY TEMPLATES! The newsletter sign up is right at the very top of their homepage. I’ve downloaded mine and have been able to use those templates already! (I’ve always hated hanging pictures on the wall and now they’ve taken the guess-work out of it for me!)

Their blog is FILLED with great ideas and design tips. You can even write in with questions and they’ll help answer! Plus, every Wednesday they have some wonderful give-aways! Be sure to check them out and let them know that the twins sent ya!

And finally, just a few more pics to share for today…

  
And we even have a “children’s corner!” (It was PRIORITY UNO for us.)

In the new season, expect that we’ll be sharing all the ”how-tos” on refinishing furniture, sewing over-sized bean bag chairs, wool felting, pillows, wall decor, jewelry making, pin cushions, embroidery, re-purposing, mixed media projects, paper crafting, handbags, holiday gifts, and so MUCH MORE! September 13, here we come!        

Ribbon.

Ric Rac. (The jumbo is our favorite!)

Fabric.

Ribbon and ric rac and fabric…oh MY! (Need we say more?)

And so we’re thrilled to share with you today a place where you can find all of these things and SO MUCH MORE! The Ribbon Retreat + Fabric is a fabulous one-stop shop. As  the name “retreat” might refer to, this is a place you’ll definitely want to escape to!

We have known these gals for a number of years now and are so happy to see their company growing and expanding. They literally have hundreds and hundreds of ribbons and accessories to choose from, and what a wonderful bonus it was when FABRIC was added to the mix!

Below is a list of just some of the many designer fabrics to choose from!

One of our favorite things on the site is finding their collections of ribbons that they put together to take a lot of the guess-work out of selecting the right colors. They’ve done a lot of that work for you! For example, take a look at their new additions of collegiate ribbon! (Collegiate ribbon mixes can be found HERE!) Isn’t this fun? All of the ribbon is officially licensed and would make the perfect ribbons for any sports fan project! Be sure to check it out and see if your favorite team is there!

Do you love to create with ribbons for enjoyment? Do you love to make items to sell?

Then you’re in luck. The Ribbon Retreat + Fabric has a wide variety of everything you’ll need for the presentation of your bows! From all of the hardware needed to the packaging, they’ve got you covered.

Fabulous, right?

And even better, sign up for their newsletter and become a Facebook fan so that you
are always “in-the-know” on all of their spectacular specials and savings!

We want to thank The Ribbon Retreat + Fabric for being one of our sponsors this summer and hope you will take a look at all they have to offer!

Stunning. Charming. Memorable. Personal.

These are just  a few words that come to our mind when we think of The Vintage Pearl. The name itself is exquisite.

Personalized jewelry now is even more beautiful than ever. Each  piece is so delicately crafted- simple, yet each one making a bold statement. The solo pearl on most items becomes a real signature of excellence and quality from The Vintage Pearl.

In fact, just recently while attending the CHA show in Chicago, we met someone who was wearing the most endearing necklace with her son’s name on it. Immediately, we knew it must have been from The Vintage Pearl, as we noticed the attractive pearl along side it. When asked, we found out that indeed it was. She gleamed when asked about the necklace.

Erin and her team will customize anything you’d like on their attractive selection of accessories. Recently I had a bracelet made for myself. Of all things, I wanted one of my “mom-isms” engraved on the bracelet. Beautifully packaged 2 weeks later, I happily opened the box to find my bracelet with these words engraved, “When you know…do.” This phrase may not mean much to someone else, but in our family, it means many things on many different levels. It is a wonderful reminder to me of those things I cherish in my life and for the dreams I can continue to reach for.

And did you know that The Vintage Pearl does not exclude the men in our lives? There really are some masculine and yes, gorgeous, items for them as well! Here’s a look at just one of the items:

We want to thank The Vintage Pearl for being one of our sponsors this summer and hope you will take a look at all they have to offer. You surely won’t be disappointed.

And one of our most favorite people in the industry is Margie Romney-Aslett of The Girls’ Paperie. So creative, clever, artistic, and down-right funny, too.

We just love everything she and her amazing design team do. Check out these 2 short videos to see her newest line just in time for Halloween…”Toil and Trouble” as well as some of her more recent ones on the market. PLUS…it’s now on video that Margie WILL BE JOINING us at theDIYdish.com for an upcoming episode! And we couldn’t be more thrilled!

And another amazing designer, Teresa Collins, will also be joining us as a guest! (Can we just tell you how excited we are for our new season to begin?) Her Photocentric’s Stampmaker was runner-up for the Innovations Award at CHA!

We also met with another fabulous company, Zutter Innovative Products. They’re the makers of the popular Bind-It-All, Distrezz-It-All, and the Zutter Cutter. Here’s a short video of Kris having fun with the Bind-it-All device that actually goes through chipboard AND clipboard very easily. It is a great tool!

Here’s a photo of Barb from the 3M and the Scotch Brand Company  showing Kim some of their latest new products. They have some really helpful items, including a sticky-back paper that is PERFECT for the Cricut Expression and more! We call it BRILLIANT! They’re a name that has been around for years and their high-quality line of products makes it no wonder why they are such a trusted name in business.

Unbelievably put-together booths were all around. It was so fun to see the style of so many different companies. Here are a few pictures of one of our favorite booths- Doodlebug Design. Their color choices were so vibrant and happy! It really made you just want to pull up a barstool and enjoy a fun and relaxing visit.

“Make and Take” projects were everywhere to be seen. What a great way to showcase how things work! (And we got to come home with a bunch of souvenirs for the kids without having to step foot into a city store! OK, we admit…we STILL stepped foot into the city!) Here is one of the Cricut Cake displays…

Meeting Suede from Project Runway was a cool experience. Such a nice guy and so very talented. He used the eCraft Central machine to make these fashions! It’s a great die-cut system to use when you want to cut longer-length projects as especially is shown off on the leaf-trellised dress pictured below.

And finally, what is a trip to Chicago without being able to see a few of the sights around downtown? We had never been there before, so there were 3 must-have experiences we needed to have before leaving, and it was even more fun to do so with good friends we’ve met through the crafting world.

1. Chicago Pizza

2. Chicago Dog

3. And a Chicago Skyscraper Like No Other!

And thank you to our wonderful friends, Erin of Schlosser Designs, Christy of ChristyNelson.net, and Kelly of Refibered for letting us tag along on a hot summer afternoon in Chicago. We had a blast!

We hope you enjoyed this recap of our visit to the Craft and Hobby Association Summer Tradeshow. We came away with a lot of excitement and renewed enthusiasm for all things in the craft world!