Lei with Aloha Event at HouseMart BFC Hilo

Join us at our Hilo store on Saturday, May 31st from 10am to 2pm for lei making make ‘n takes! 

Create a lei for graduation or your next event!

Lei Making Make 'n Takes (Fees vary by project):
10-11am – Candy Lei (Fee $2)
11am-12pm – 3-straw lei (Fee $10)
12-1pm – Ribbon Lei (Fee $5)
1-2pm – Memory Wire Bracelet (Fee $3). 

See store for more details.

Get Ready for Graduation at Ben Franklin Crafts / Crankin' Out Crafts Graduation Musical

Graduation season has officially arrived and we're gearing up to help you celebrate! Check out our special Crankin' Out Crafts Graduation Musical, made especially for the the season.

A special presentation by Crankin' Out Crafts!

Watch our Graduation Musical on our YouTube Channel, starring our Crankin' Out Crafts crew here!

We have lots of fun and creative ideas to prepare you for Graduation day and the party afterwards, from lei making, signs, favors, centerpieces and more. Don't forget, we also have graduation posters, banners, and fans available to order that can be customized with your graduate's name, photo, school, and school colors.

Visit any of our Hawaii store locations for more Ideas and Inspiration! Congratulations 2013 graduates!

We Pinned It AND Made It!

Thank you to everyone who joined us for some Pinterest crafting fun this past Saturday at our Enchanted Lake store. Here are some candid shots from our party and a quick look back at some of the fun.

Lisa and a few of our customers making a favor at Joy's favor station

We were even lucky enough to have a few crafting celebrities show up for our event. Joy from the Joy of crafting was there and so were our favorite set of Sizzix reps, Cheryl and Cherie.

Cheryl and Cherie making Sizzix favors

Jelly Jar Cupcake makers

 I also have to mention that we had two pairs of incredibly cute crafters too...

The straw Lei-Ds

Crazy crafters at the Faux Sea Glass and Cupcake table

Not to mention the faux sea glass creaters and fimo flower formers.

Luana's lovely flower makers

Grand Prize winner Benita!

And last but not least, our grand prize winner, Benita from right here in Kailua. It just looks like I'm talking on the phone here, by the way. I'm actually announcing her big win to the entire store. Benita won an awesome stash including some stamps, stickers, and a $75 gift card for HouseMart Ben Franklin Crafts to use on her next Pinterest inspired project.

I hope you all got some inspiration from the projects and the posts for our Pinterest party. Don't forget to stop by the store to see more samples from our wonderful event.

Thanks for dropping in!

Puna @ Enchanted Lake

Ready to Pinterest Party?

So I'm really, really excited about our upcoming Pinspiration Pinterest Party happening this Saturday, April 27th from 10am-2pm! We're going to have so many great make 'n takes and demos going on, prize giveaways, and fun, fun, fun! We really hope that you'll be able to take a break from your hectic schedule and join us for Pinterest crafting fun.

Anyway, here are three more projects that we'll be featuring that day.

 

This awesomely shiny cake stand was made by melting pony beads in a cake pan until they fuse into this wonderfully colorful plastic disc. We'll have a FREE demonstration from 1-1:30pm showing how to make mini discs like this for cupcake holders and sun-catchers.

Want to learn how to make a beautiful lei in 30 minutes or less? Join us from 11-1pm on Saturday to make your own lei for just a $1 with a purchase of yarn. Your lei is guaranteed to turn out amazing.

What can't we washi? We're making a simple and speedy washi pencil set on April 27th from 1:30-2pm. A $2 fee includes the pencils, washi tape, and smiles while making this cute favor or teacher gift.

Here's the complete party schedule if you want all the details.

 See you there!

Puna @ Enchanted Lake

Trees & Blossoms!

Beautiful Trees of Life were created on Thursday's Crafting with Gloria! One crafter created a Sakura tree with pink beads and another crafter made smaller ones to be turned into earrings! If you missed this workshop, there's another one scheduled for Saturday, September 22 or come in to see the demonstration on Tuesday, September 18th. The trees are fairly easy to make and no tree is exactly the same so they are personalized and would be great Christmas gifts!

Tomorrow, join me for our Saturday Adventures in Crafting! We will be creating Paper Blossoms using special paper punches to create pretty flowers. These can be used as embellishments for cards, scrapbook pages or even to wear as a pin or in the hair!
Also, on Saturday, there will be a demonstration on straw leis using our specialty yarns. Create your holiday leis or get ready for graduation (it's never to early)! Another demonstration will feature the Sizzix dies using the Big Shot!
There's always something going on at Pearl City's Ben Franklin!
gloria @ Pearl City

We Cranked Out a Party

 

The entrance to our store and Brandon helping a few of our customers with their glass tile projects.

Boy did we ever crank out a fun party! On behalf of everyone here at Enchanted Lake, I would like to thank all of our wonderful customers who came and played around with us this past Saturday.

That's me and "Auntie Purple" crankin' out a fun favor.

Just in case you hadn't already heard, the party was to celebrate our You Tube video blog called Crankin' Out Crafts. It consisted of a bunch of quick and easy crafts that we've featured on the show. 

Of course JFlo showed up to show off her watercolor techniques.


We offered tips and tricks on Wild Block centerpieces, glittering, and even how to use a heat gun to melt crayons and make bright, beautiful, drippy art. Then we did some lei, favor, wreath, and jewelry making.

Dolly helped with lei making while Jenny attracted a little crowd.

And, to top it all off, we gave away some great prizes so a few of our customers walked away with a bunch of scrapbooking supplies like paper, stanps, and stickers.


Yep, that's me again doing a butterfly or dragonfly candy favor.



In fact, we had so much fun that we're already planning our next party. You have to keep checking in with us, though, because I'll put the details out in a later blog entry.

See you soon!

Puna @ Enchanted Lake

Crankin' Out Crafts Party!

Here are two more projects that will be featured this Saturday, April 28th, at our Crankin' Out Crafts Party.

First, a punch card showcasing the awesome Martha Stewart all over the the page punches. These cards are so fast and simple, but they look so elegant that people will think they took a lot of effort.



Next is the One Straw Lei. This is such a fun and quick lei that we're sure you'll pick it up really fast and want to make a ton of them!

So, don't forget, the party starts at 10am and runs til 2pm at our Enchanted Lake store. We'll have 4 tables of fun make n' takes and demonstrations and even some fantastic prize giveaways.

Can't wait to get crankin' with you!

Puna @ Enchanted Lake

Check out the newest member of our crankin' team, J-Me, in today's previous post.

Crankin' Out Crafts Episode 84 - Straw Lei with Kukui Nuts

Watch as JFlo creates a great looking lei from our Vol. IX Lei book, that takes a few supplies and a few easy steps.

Make this variation of the straw lei by adding kukui nuts & Cowry shells.

View the episode on YouTube: Crankin' Out Crafts: Episode 84 - Straw Lei with Kukui Nuts

Supplies:

2 yds. 3/8” Grosgrain ribbon

Eyelash yarn(ex. Nani, Pua, Hoku, Nohea)

Ka Lina yarn

Cowry shell rings

Kukui nuts

Bubble Straw

EZ Beader (Beading Tool)

Scissors

Masking tape

*Step-by-step photos and instructions can be found in our Handcrafted Lei & Flowers Book 9, Pg. 21-22. All supplies available at our Hawaii BFC stores. You may also purchase supplies online on www.craftingisfun.com.

LEI THE GRADUATE!

DELUXE BRAIDED RIBBON LEIS

Graduation is fast approaching and we're all getting ready to LEI THE GRADUATE ! We have a special guest joining us this season to demonstrate Deluxe Braided Ribbon Leis! Kalo creates beautiful leis with 4, 6, 8 and more ribbons! Keep it simple or change them into Money Leis! Join Kalo for a demonstration or for a small fee, sit & make one with her! Did you purchase our newest Lei Book, Volume IX? Check the Pearl City store calendar & join a class to create one of the beautiful leis....you may even be able to get your book autographed by one of the lei creators! We have classes and demonstrations scheduled for Straw Leis, Crochet Leis, Ribbon Leis and other Leis featured in our newest Lei Book!

Gloria