It’s that time of year again… It is April Stash Bust Season!!

Join the second annual April Stash Bust Swap! This stash busting swap is extremely easy and such a great way to reduce the amount of lovely, but neglected craft items hanging around our craft rooms. Why not give your unused supplies a new shot at life by sending them to your swap partner? And, in return you will receive an envelope full of inspiring and new-to-you supplies from your partner — It’s win-win! Reduce your stash and freshen up your stash all in one fun swap!

The April Stash Bust Swap is international and open to new and experienced members alike. Sign up closes on Earth Day, April 22nd. Each participant will then send a 6 x 9 inch, or larger, envelope full of craft supplies – like pretty paper scraps, fabric, yarn, ribbon, stickers, felt, embellishments, etc – to their one swap partner by the end of the month. Easy peasy! Sign up now!

As part of the April Stash Bust festivities, Dollar Store Crafts is hosting a stashbusting challenge! Apply to be an official stashbuster on the Dollar Store Crafts blog TODAY (before April 7th) for your chance to receive one of ten, free stash packages. The ten recipients will then make one craft with their new supplies and share it on the Dollar Store Crafts blog.

Even if you don’t win one of the official stashbusting packages, everyone can participate in the April Stash Bust. Let’s all share and use our leftover craft supplies. Share pictures of your creations in the April Stash Bust Flickr group. And grab a little badge for your website to show that you are participating.

How are you busting your stash this month?

I wish I had a fun April Fools’ Day joke for you today, but I am not very good at those. I am so gullible that I always fall for pranks and jokes on the first day of April… so, please be kind!

Even though it is tricky day, I still wanted to share some seriously cool links. Have fun!

• I think that Fabric Stitchy Bookmark seen above is so cute (it’s the little deer fabric that does it). Get the How To on Craft Leftovers.
• We all love the postal mail, but what about faux snail mail? I just discovered this site, Paperless Post. It basically allows you to create and send really beautiful virtual letters (complete with virtual envelopes) via the internet. The catch is that it isn’t free… hmmm… Would you pay to send online mail?
• JamieToohey is a new user of Swap-bot and she recently posted on her blog, Crafty is Awesome, about Swap-bot. Love it!
• Oh, man. Yum! Bacon Cinnamon Rolls!
• And another recipe: Make your own sprinkles.
• I love this: The Colour Clock. It is a design lover’s screensaver.
• Two cute Easter/spring projects: Design*Sponge pin and bead basket and an upcycled basket on Michele Made Me.

And a few April Fools links:

• The hottest new crafting material is dryer lint?
• Martha Stewart’s funny and harmless April Fools’ Day pranks.
• How-to make a fake glass of spilled milk on Dollar Store Crafts.
• Ok, this one isn’t an April Fools’ joke, but it is definitely odd: Man Makes Beautiful Quilt of Women’s Panties.

So, have you encountered any good pranks today?

This week’s featured swap is the Earth Day Art on an Envie Swap hosted by greenraisin.

From the swap description:

_April 22 is Earth Day! So let’s help celebrate this day by sharing Earth Day mail art with our fellow swap-botters.</p>

Swap Requirements:

1. Decorate an envelope with an Earth Day theme and create a coordinating card to go with it for your partner.
2. Inside the card include at least one idea on how you like to help preserve and protect our mother Earth.

Your Earth Day mail art may be done in any medium and style preferred by you.</i>

The swap is international and you only have one partner. Sign up before April 13th!

What is inspiring you this week? This collection of links are the things that really caught my eye and inspired me to be creative this week… Enjoy!

• Isn’t the scene above cool? Those are 99 yarn-bombed trees in Austin, Texas. The trees were covered in knitted yarn tree cozies made by Magda Sayeg, also known as KnittaPlease, and 170 volunteers. The installation is called “Knitted Wonderland.” (See also: Yarn bombed pot holes in Paris.)
• Every Saturday is “Swap-bot Saturday” over on the blog, Prompt Me to Greatness. Last Saturday, the author shared an awesome Doctor Who matchbox shrine that she made for a swap. Very cool.
• These Easter eggs are mind-boggling: actual cross-stitching on eggs!
• I know there are some Hello Kitty fans out there… you’ll love this extravagant Hello Kitty-themed birthday party on the French and English blog, Prunille fait son show. And for slightly different tastes, check out this Beatles-themed party on Hostess with the Mostess and this Astronaut party on Life Frosting.
• Mini cupcake toppers for cupcakes?! Will this cause a rift in the space-time continuum?
• Learn how to print your own fabric on PoppyTalk.
• And, learn how to make a funky bead and wire necklace on lightbluegrey.
• With my renewed interest in quilting, I really want to attend Monday’s Mini Quilt Craft Night at Etsy. Will you be there?
• If you like online shopping, or just browsing pretty things, check out A Very Fine Thing. The site showcases a few lovely, hand-picked items each day.

Add more links in the comments! Your friends will appreciate it!

It is grey and cloudy in my world today. (And sadly, there is no chance of meatballs for dinner. boo.) So, I thought I should just embrace it find some pretty, but rainy and cloudy Etsy picks, like the beautiful watercolor painting by lauraprill seen above.

What’s the weather like in your neighborhood today?

This week’s featured swap is the Your Memoir in Six Words Postcard Swap hosted by AlyssD. I love the idea behind this swap: Write the story of your life in only six words.

For inspiration and examples, watch the short video above. It is the promo piece for the book, Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure, a collection of these short and poignant memoirs.

The postcard swap is international and open for sign up through March 30th. For the swap, you will write your memoir in only six words on the back of three postcards (of your choosing) and send one (naked, i.e. not in an envelope) to each of your three partners. Everyone, including new users is welcome in this swap.

Swap-bot’s Memoir: Sent item, got one back. Sweet.

Thank you all for your amazing comments on the National Quilt Museum blog post. I loved hearing about all of your quilting adventures and memories.

I used Random.org to randomly select the lucky winner. And the winner is….. Glimmerllama!!

She will receive a mini quilt kit from the National Quilt Museum (which includes the pattern, fabric, backing, and binding needed to make a 16 x 16 inch quilt), a souvenir National Quilt Museum pin, plus some Swap-bot goodies. Congrats!

Watch for more giveaways soon!

The weather is beautiful in my neck of the woods today — spring is on its way and that puts everyone in a good mood! I found a bunch of fun links this week, but feel free to add more in the comments…

• Today, many people in the blogosphere are participating in For Japan With Love, a fundraiser for disaster relief in Japan. And, Craftzine.com has a bunch of craft-related Japan relief links, too.
• Spring craft: Turn pom poms, twigs and a few craft supplies into an adorable Pom Pom tree with this tutorial from Dollar Store Crafts.
• Another Spring Craft: no-sew fabric and wire flower tutorial from Between the Lines.
• For matchbox lovers, these Instant Comfort Pocket Boxes by Kim Welling will inspire you.
• Wow!! I love this Moroccan-style painted wallpaper tutorial on Jones Design Company. So classy!
• These printable paper cameras from the Mel Stringer Etsy shop are so aborable!
• Having a party anytime soon? These confetti popper invitations from Oh Happy Day would surely be a hit.
  • This is actually from the holiday season, but I love these beautiful gift wrapping ideas from Grey likes Weddings. Sequins trim as ribbon – genius!
  • Babble.com recently announced their picks for the Top 50 Mom Craft Blogs – Did your favorite make the list?</ul> Have a great weekend!

I have some GREEN Etsy picks for you today, because you know, it is St Patrick’s Day!! Isn’t that handspun yarn by MagnoliaHandspun seen above gorgeous?!

What other green things are you crushing on?

I love this swap idea!! I just joined the Instant Postcard Swap hosted by OverMoon. Instant postcards are a new concept for me, but basically they are Polaroids (or other instant film photographs) sent “naked” (without an envelope) as a postcard. You put the stamp directly on the photo and write your recipient’s address on the white potion of the photo. (The address info has been removed from the two instant postcards seen above.) Very cool! If you own an instant camera (and film), sign up for Instant Postcard Swap by March 21st. Then, simply take your photo and send it to your one international partner by March 25th.

For more instant postcard inspiration, check out the Polaroid Postcard Flickr Group.