Award

I just got nominated for a blog award by Sailor and Lula designs!! Isn't that the nicest!!

CHA Summer 2008

I'm back from the show and it was a great time. I spent the whole show viewing beautiful artwork, discovering new craft mediums, and doing free craft projects. It was a blast!!

For those who have never been to CHA, at many of the vendor's booths they are demoing their products. You get to try out their newest products on a small craft project and then you get to take it home. They call them make and takes.

Here are a whole bunch of make and takes that I took home with me.

CHA Show Summer

I'm off AGAIN! This time to the CHA show in Chicago. This is my second visit to a CHA show. Last time I spent the entire show in meetings. But this show I'm going to have time to take in the art and do some make and takes!! What fun! If you will be at the CHA and would like to meet up, email me!!

New Up With Paper Cards

These brand new cards, illustrated and engineered by me, debuted at the New York Stationery Show! My favorite is the Meow Bakery. Which one is your favorite?

Pop-Up Kite Flying Card Download

©Mary Beth Cryan 2008

My first downloadable Pop-Up card is now available at Daisie Company. This card is unique and versatile. With little cutting and gluing, you can make a beautiful and impressive pop-up card. The kit includes easy to follow instructions, 1 card body front & back, 1 pop-up rainbow, 1 monkey, and 7 quote bubble variations (Happy Birthday, Have a beautiful day, Thinking of you, Get well soon, Thank you, You'll be high flying again soon, and blank).

You can download this card by visiting Daisie Company.

Back to New York City

It's back to New York City for this artist! It's time for the National Stationery Show and the Surtex show. The shows are great fun because I get to say hello to all my current clients and meet some of my clients in person for the first time. I also get to see my friends from when I used to work in the city and my brother who lives there.

This year I will be paying very close attention to the Surtex show because I'm considering getting a booth next year.

If you have a pop-up or illustration project you would like to discuss in person and will be in New York City May 18th through the 22nd please email me to set up an appointment!

The glue review

I've decided to reveal one of my trade secrets to everyone. I get a lot of emails from teachers and students asking what kind of paper I use. Paper, paper, paper is always the question. The interesting thing is no one ever asks about the glue.

The truth is the paper doesn't matter. You can use any old paper. I prefer regular old cheap card stock from staples. You can use anything from manila folders to old cereal boxes. But the glue is crucial!

The absolute best glue for paper engineering is jade 711. It's a cousin of Elmers glue. It looks very similar but this stuff is absolutely fantastic! It dries in seconds and it holds forever, unlike Elmers which has an annoyingly long drying time. I find that glue sticks never dry completely and therefore don't have the strength to hold up. Same with spray glues and double sided tapes. All those other glues and adhesives have their time and place but for paper engineering I recommend getting yourself a bottle of Jade 711.

Oh, one more tip. Jade 711 will get moldy over time so you should buy enough for a year, not a lifetime.

You can buy it here Talas.