March is National Craft Month, and all this year we will be celebrating with a series of fun blogbosts, exciting news, and of course the GIVEAWAYS!  We all like a little free stuff right? How about 5 weeks of giveaways?! WOOHOO!!

Lets start off this month with a bang!  We're going to give one of you lucky readers an enrollment to Jason's brand new class on how to take FAB photos of your handmade items using your smartphone or tablet.

This Nation Craft Month Week #1 prize is provided by our friends at F&W Media in association with their Craft Online University.  This class officially goes live March 15, and one of you lucky folks gets to take this course free! 

​I’m so excited, I just can’t hide it, I’m about to lose control… forgive that Pointer Sister’s moment.

This class will teach you how to create photography tools out of common objects to use in conjunction with your smartphone or tablet to produce images to help you sell or exhibit your work. 

If you want to take better photos of your handmade items, and have a mobile device you owe it to yourself to enter this contest for a chance to win this course free.

Enter through the Rafflecopter widget below starting at 12:00am PT on February 28, 2016. The winner will be randomly chosen at 12:00am PT on March 6, 2016. Some of the entry points can be earned daily so take advantage of that and be sure to come back every week to see what FAB National Craft Month fun we have in store for you!
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Thank you to everyone who entered this week's contest.  The winner of the Week 1 Giveaway is....
Drum roll please... Linda K.

I've sent an email off to Lynda with information on how to register for Jason's class.

Be sure to check back often this month and register for our other weekly giveaways as well as our Grand Prize.  Directions for entering the grand prize are in all subsequent weekly giveaway posts all month.

Good Luck and Stitch On!

Inspiration… weeks of work… elbow grease… the occasional tear… They’ve all gone into making perfect handmade item. It’s finished! Time to show it off on social media or sell it online; but alas, photography is not a skill you’ve honed. Now what? 

It’s time to pull out your phone… Your smartphone camera is the ideal tool for taking that perfect shot of your handiwork; compact, powerful, and almost always found in your front pocket. It’s capable of capturing any special moment. You only need to learn to harness its full potential. 

In my course you will learn the basics of how Smartphone cameras work, find the right light for photographing any handmade project, create a professional environment for taking your photos, explore a few downloadable apps to assist you in your quest for the perfect photo, and I’ll give you one sure-fire tip that is certain to take your photos from drab to FAB.

I’ve spent the past 10 years learning how to take breathtaking photographs of handmade items on any camera. Come and learn the simple techniques you can use to get professional quality photos of your handmade projects with your Smartphone.
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The class runs from March 15th – May 9th 2016, and covers topics such as: 

• Intro to Smartphone Use 
• Get to Know Your Smartphone Camera
• How to Manage Light & Other Useful Tools
• Composition, Creativity, & Personal Style
  
• Lightboxes, Swoops, & Backgrounds
• Editing Your Photos
• File Types, Sizing, Compression, & Storage
  
• Final Thoughts from a Professional Photographer
  

To make learning simple and because we know you're going to want to practice each technique before going on to the next, only one segment will be released weekly.  You'll never feel pressured to sit down and try to absorb everything one evening. You can register anytime during these weeks but I recommend you register now to take full advantage of the time available to re-watch previous lessons. Here's an added bonus... I'll be monitoring the forum/gallery, answering your questions and giving feedback to all your posted projects.

There's still time to get in on the action but don't wait too long… register for classes today!

We're going to be sharing the skillz with you folks in Pittsburgh and we are very excited about our line up of classes. We're covering everything from specialty crochet stitches like crochet cables to design classes for crochet and knit garments. And Jason is going to be teaching his best selling class on photographing your handmade projects. If you sell your products online, submit your handmade items for juried festivals or competitions, or if you are a maker who just wants to show your handiwork in a better light, you won't want this opportunity to work one-on-one with Jason (assisted by Shannon).

Head on over to our post by clicking the link below to find out more info about our classes and how to register today!

We are SO proud to announce that Shannon's NEW Craftsy crochet class is LIVE!

Crochet Toolkit - Designer Tips & Tricks is Shannon's third Craftsy crochet class and we can't wait for you all to dig into this material. These are the skills and techniques we use in the Shibaguyz Designz studio every day to create our FAB garments, accessories, and home decor. From how to read crochet charts, to some of our easy math tricks for making sure patterns fit, to making FAB crochet fabrics; you'll get a designer's insight on how to take your crochet skills from good to GREAT!
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So don't wait! Click on our special link below to get $10 off the price of enrollment and get started on your new crochet skills today!
(There's also a pretty cool introduction video… so be sure to check that out!)
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