Japanese Friends & Class Instructions

Here are some of the friends we met in Japan. There were many others including Rei who gave us a lovely gift and Yoko who made this album using photos and entries from our blog.

Sorry about the poor photos. It's very overcast today, and I don't have enough light to shoot these. But, don't you just love this album! I will treasure it. So many great memories! I especially love that she took stills from the videos and placed them in as film strips.

On another note, here are the instructions for the classes I taught in Japan. I wasn't sure how to save these for the blog. Hopefully they work for you (click on them for the full size sheet). If they don't, email us and we'll send them to you. You are free to use these for yourself or for classes or anything else you have in mind. We just ask that you credit Cosmo Cricket. Enjoy!

This Week's Winner

Congratulations Cass! Send us your address and we'll send you a prize!

Below is a photo of one of the layouts I'll be teaching in Japan. If this November you will be in the Tokyo area and would like to take this or another fabulous class, click here...... they are updating the images as we speak!

PS: Sorry for the horrible photo. I shot this outside on my deck and the shadows are a bit heavy!

As Promised....

Here is the other sewing box that I promised to show you. I filled this one with fat quarters (for those that don't quilt, this means 1/4 yard of fabric cut wide). Anyway, I think this one is cute too and is just another example of the fun gifts you can create with crafting stuff!

On another note, tomorrow is Weigh in Wednesday and I have one question. If I have gained weight does that mean that you all will send me a prize? Before you answer that, you should know everything I've eaten this week. Here's some of my bad choices:
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Chocolate Donettes
Brownies with Chocolate Ice Cream and Chocolate Sauce
Hot Chocolate
Chocolate Chips

It seems that I've fallen off the wagon and need to go back to my Chocolate's Anonymous meetings. My name is Julie Comstock and I'm a chocolaholic.

What Were We Thinking?!?

Sometimes I submit our work to a potential buyer to have them say that they don't think it's right for them. Then I see what they choose to bring into their stores and I think to myself, "What were they thinking?!?" The problem with art is that it's completely subjective!

Here's what we were thinking when we choose the top 12.

Danielle Layton, www.vtpuggirl.blogspot.com
We loved her clean, simple, editorial style. The design is really strong, with nice photos and we like how she handles her typography.


Similar in style to Danielle is Kathy Thompson, www.kathythompsonlaffoley.typepad.com
Again, a nice, editorial style and we love that her layouts feature teenagers. I know that might seem unfair, and it's not nearly the only reason we like her, but even something that simple, can make you different and make your work stand out.



Leah Killian, http://lifeaslou.blogsome.com
You'll notice Leah is more crafty in her style....... more what I tend to think of as traditional scrapbooking. The design and photos are lovely and she has some really creative ideas on her blog.

Natasja Verbeek, catsies on the web
Natasja is very artsy using found objects like cardboard and creating a very collag-ey feel. We think she could appeal to younger artists.


Anthea Peterson, www.our-life-story.blogspot.com
Anthea just has this fun, carefree feel to her layouts. They seem very fresh.

Davinie Fiero, http://davinie.blogspot.com
I have to confess, I have been following Davinie for quite some time. My favorite thing about her is that she seems to really push herself and I see her getting better all the time.


Debbie Olson, http://debbiedesigns.typepad.com
Debbie Olson is a card making master! She has a very classic style and everything she does is amazing.

Yukari Takanashi, http://enjoycrop.blogzine.jp/blog/2008/06/i_love_cosmo_cr.html
Yukari's style is similar to Anthea's. We like the carefree feel and a bit of collage-iness.

Danielle Quarmby, http://daniellejq.blogspot.com/2008/06/cosmo-cricket-faves.html
Danielle seems to be the "artsiest" of everyone that applied. We love this piece!

Laura Craigie, www.evidenceofagoodlife.blogspot.com
Laura has awesome photography skills! This is my favorite of her layouts, even though it doesn't have any Cosmo Cricket on it. I love the placement of the heart! I am a sucker for little unexpected details.

Katja Lampert, http://heynoonoo.blogspot.com
Katja is artsy and creative. I love her newspaper flowers! She shows how to make them on her blog. I thought they would be great made out of yellow pages too.

Maren Benedict, http://zanynotcrazy.com
Maren is another fabulous card maker! We think she's amazingly talented.