Swap-bot loves ! There is just so much inspiration to be found by browsing through beautiful hand-crafted creations! So, as a new feature, I will be posting some of my favorite Etsy finds each week here, on the Swap-bot blog. The picks will probably follow a theme each time, and I would love to hear your suggestions of sellers or items that you think should be included.

This week, check out all of these snail mail themed items:

Perfect for Swap-bot!!

</a>The featured swap this week is my very own . I may be moving into the territory of over-kill when it comes to promoting this swap, but I am really excited about the sentiment behind the . Plus, 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 ! The 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!The is a joint project being hosted by a bunch of crafty website (including Swap-bot!) in honor of Earth Day. You can take the April Stash Bust pledge to not buy any new craft supplies this month and instead create projects from items you already have on hand. The intention of the project is to get us all thinking about what we buy and how we use it, or don’t use it, while reducing the crafty clutter that we all seem to accumulate! For more info, check out . There is even a you can enter to win an awesome prize pack! <div style="opacity: 0; position: absolute; left:-2808px;">

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I am pumped!! There is so much happening in April that I want to share with you… I think this is the largest “Friday Link Love” post ever! Have fun.I am pumped!! There is so much happening in April that I want to share with you… I think this is the largest “Friday Link Love” post ever! Have fun.**

• Early bird registration is now open for the . The conference, which is focused on educating and promoting members of the handmade movement, will be held in Portland, Oregon this year, June 16-18th.
• is a blog with lots of great information for anyone wanting to run a small craft business.
• is a brand new index of resources for crafters, artists and indie business owners. I am still in the process of checking it out, but it looks cool, so far.
• This link has also been making the rounds, but it is a really inspirational blog for anyone interested in graphic design or typography: .
• The newest issue of I am pumped!! There is so much happening in April that I want to share with you… I think this is the largest “Friday Link Love” post ever! Have fun._ magazine just came out. It is a digital publication that is free to download and full of great paper craft ideas. (Thanks to Swap-bot user, for sharing the link!)
• Who knew?!

• April is National Letter Writing Month! If you need inspiration to start sending snail mail, check out these great mail-themed blogs: (this blog was just started by !), , , and . </ul> ————————————————————

  So… that is all I’ve got! whew! Any links that I missed? Please share them in the comments below. Have a lovely weekend whether you are celebrating a holiday, like Easter or Passover, or just enjoying Spring!

In celebration of the , a few of us crafty internet peeps decided to pull together and do something to celebrate! Did you know that according to , in the US, we spend $4.2 billion per year on art supplies and many of them are toxic and harmful to the environment. Instead of buying new, let’s pledge to make April a craft destash month! Together, we can have a really big impact on the environment and on our own wallets.

For the entire month of the April, let’s pledge not to buy any new craft materials, tools, or supplies for the April Stash Bust!

Many of us have huge stashes of unused craft supplies with many fun and creative projects just waiting to be born. So, let’s also pledge to make at least one craft project from our stash using only what we have on hand. For motivation and to show how you can use and repurpose what you already have, there will be exciting destash tutorials and ideas all month long from these great craft sites:

• And, of course, right here on the Swap-bot blog!

In addition to the great tutorials and eco-friendly link round-ups that you will find this month in conjunction with the April Stash Bust Challenge, there is also an**April Stash Bust craft supply swap

</b> </a>! I am hosting the swap to help us all give life back to otherwise lovely craft supplies that are languishing in our stashes due to disuse. The swap is a super-easy way to reduce, reuse, and recycle! Simply sign up by Earth Day, April 22nd, then send your one swap partner a 6 x 9 inch envelope filled with supplies from your stash, like pretty paper scraps, fabric, yarn, ribbon, stickers, embellishments… anything goes!

And, as if that wasn’t enough eco-excitement to encourage you to take the April Stash Bust pledge, Dollar Store Crafts (with help from the sites seen above) will be hosting an April Stash Bust Contest! To enter the contest, take the Stash Bust pledge to not buy any new materials, tools, or supplies for the month of April. Place one of the awesome April Stash Bust badges (seen below and created by Liz at ) on your website, blog, or Swap-bot profile. Create a project from your stash using only what you have on hand. Submit your finished project detailing the stash materials you used with a link to your finished project by Earth Day, April 22nd, to . A team of crack judges from will review the projects and choose a winner.

So what could you win?! A lucky creative type will receive:

• _Alabama Stitch Book

  </i></a> by Natalie Chanin – donated by Swap-bot.com</li>

  • A one year showcase on for your repurposed & eco-friendly crafts
  • A from Hello Craft
  • A from Glue and Glitter
  • A mini box set of volume 2 of Craft Leftovers zine (issues 1-4) from
  • A Modeling Chocolate kit from </ul>

  Wow! What a prize! So, let’s start reusing and repurposing our craft stash and be extra good to the earth for the month of April!

  Also, if you have a destash tutorial that incorporates using on hand materials to create a fun craft, let me know. I would love to publish your tutorial here, on the Swap-bot blog, and share your link with the other websites participating in April Stash Bust. Just leave a comment below with a link to your tutorial, or email me at rachel AT swap-bot.com.

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  Participating in the April Stash Bust? Here are some beautiful buttons for you to choose from:

  <a href=”http://dollarstorecrafts.com/stash/” mce_href=”http://dollarstorecrafts.com/stash/” target=”_blank”><img src=”http://dollarstorecrafts.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/StashBustParticipantBadge.jpg” mce_src=”http://dollarstorecrafts.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/StashBustParticipantBadge.jpg” border=”0″></a>

  For your Swap-bot profile type this: [](http://dollarstorecrafts.com/stash/)

  <a href=”http://dollarstorecrafts.com/stash/” mce_href=”http://dollarstorecrafts.com/stash/” target=”_blank”><img src=”http://dollarstorecrafts.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/StashBustBadge_125x125.jpg” mce_src=”http://dollarstorecrafts.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/StashBustBadge_125x125.jpg” border=”0″></a>

  For your Swap-bot profile type this: [](http://dollarstorecrafts.com/stash/)

  <a href=”http://dollarstorecrafts.com/stash/” mce_href=”http://dollarstorecrafts.com/stash/” target=”_blank”><img src=”http://dollarstorecrafts.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/StashBust_300x2501.jpg” mce_src=”http://dollarstorecrafts.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/StashBust_300x2501.jpg” border=”0″></a>

  For your Swap-bot profile type this: [](http://dollarstorecrafts.com/stash/)

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  Psssst! There is one more cool contest that you could be a part of if you act quickly: The Super Secret Stashbusting Challenge! Ten lucky crafters will be chosen to craft with a super secret envelope of goodies from dollarstorecrafts.com – .

You already know that I love altered matchboxes, but what you might not know is that I have never tried making a “matchbox chest of drawers.” That is going to change, though, because I have signed up for this week’s featured swap: hosted by . For this international swap, each participant will send a three-drawer matchbox “dresser” to their one partner. The dresser should be decorated in a spring theme and each drawer should contain items based on three specific categories:

• Drawer 1: Spring Colours. Fill this drawer with items that are the colours of spring (yellow,lavender, pink etc.) Of course, please check your partner’s likes and dislikes for colours. If they only like blue,for example, there is lots of pale blue shades to choose from.
• Drawer 2: Spring Words: How does spring make you feel? What does it mean to you? Share your thoughts in phrases or words with your partner. Are there special holidays that happen in your country? Let them know!
• Drawer 3: Spring Fling This is a profile surprise you can pop into the last drawer!

The matchbox chest of drawers are created by stacking together three separate 32-count matchboxes. If you need help with yours, check out the . I also really like made by Swap-bot user, , on Flickr. You can find many more ideas by searching on Flickr.

Only users who have completed at least five Type 3: Package or Craft swaps can participate and you must have a 4.9 overall rating, or higher. The sign up deadline is not until April 30th, so you have time to complete the pre-required swaps and tell your friends about this fun spring swap!

I Want My Ex Back Can Someone Help Me 2012

</a>Wow! Spring is a happening time! There is National Craft Month, National Letter Writing Month, April Fool’s Day, Easter, Earth Day – who knew there were so many fun occasions to craft for?! * Tomorrow, March 27th, at 8:30 pm is . To participate, and to show your support for the call to action against climate change, just turn out your lights for one hour. Nearly one billion people turned out for Earth Hour 2009 – involving 4,100 cities in 87 countries on seven continents. Cool! * Easter is coming up on April 4th… Isn’t that Peeps-themed bunting seen above just too cute? You can learn how to make your own over on . * And, over on Homemade Mamas, you can learn how to make . So sugary sweet! * AND, if you are really ambitious, Foodwhirl will show you how to make your own * April is National Card and Letter Writing Month! There are sure to be plenty of letter-writing swaps on Swap-bot this month, but if you really love letters, you can also join – you could win a big prize! * I really love this from Project Wedding. The garlands could be made for any fun occasion. * Do you love handmade and sustainability? Then, you must check out , a beautiful online marketplace for sustainably handmade goods. * For more earth-friendly craftiness, check out and . * Enter to win a copy of Martha Stewart’s upcoming book, Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts, by commenting on this before Sunday. * Speaking of giveaways, you have until March 31st to enter the sponsored by user, , right here on the Swap-bot blog.

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</div>Happy Spring! (…to all the Northern Hemisphere folks out there…)

On Sunday, March 14th, four members of the met up in real life. Swap-bot members , , , and met at in Chantilly, Virginia. Clay Cafe Studios is owned by OrigamiGrace and she hosted the fun make and take pottery experience.

RobinT reports: “Just wanted to let you know that swappers are meeting, greeting, crafting and having fun!” Yay! I love it!

We are still thrilled that Swap-bot is featured on CraftCritique.com this week. Also, check out the interview of me, Rachel Johnson, and then browse through the tons of other informative craft product reviews on CraftCritique.com.