Hochanda

If you caught our debut show on Hochanda , we thought you may like some ideas of what designs can be made from the packs we featured.  Amongst the goodies available are three leather bundles, noodle bead packs including CZ rondels and a fabulous hematine bead 10 strand pack. We have designed this classic leather necklace using a combination of items from this show and we want to share the design with you. It’s perfect for that day-into-evening look.       1  Firstly take one of the 1 metre lengths of leather and fold in half.         2  Then attach a crimp and ring to each end of the leather. Crimp it in the middle with pliers to hold it securely in place.     3      Take a headpin and snip off the head with snips/flush cutters to create a piece of wire. Use the wrapped loop technique* to turn a loop in one end of the wire, before completing the wrapped loop, atta...

Back in May we gave you a sneak peek to an exciting new supplier that will be joining us, so before their first shows we thought we'd get together with the very talented Tracey Evans, the Powertex Guest so you can all get to know her just a little bit better!  Introduce yourself. I’m Tracey Evans. I’m a wife, mother, arts and crafts enthusiast, and Creative Director of Powertex UK. Tell us how you got into Powertex, was it something that you had always wanted to do? Arts and crafts have been a passion of mine for a long time. I love to create and experiment with a variety of methods and mediums…but when I discovered Powertex, everything else got left on the shelf. I couldn’t believe that this amazing product wasn’t more widely available. After that, events just seemed to unfold and before I knew it my husband Garry and I were journeying to Belgium to pitch our business proposal to the owner of Powertex International! When you are not creating, what else d...

Add more creativity to your life with sewing and embroidery! Whether you're a sewer, or interested in exploring embroidery, the Husqvarna DESIGNER JADE 35 machine enables you to express your creativity, simply and easily! If you're thinking about buying the machine, or have already purchased one, watch the videos below for more information about the machine's capabilities. We absolutely love it!  You can see the machine in action live on Hochanda too! Simply tune in to Debbie Shore's 'Embroidery with Husqvarna', on Monday 30th May at 10am, 1pm and 5pm. If you can't wait until then you can purchase this wonderful machine from the Hochanda website .  We've also found a great series from Husqvarna over on YouTube ; "Do you need to brush up on your basic machine embroidery knowledge? Then follow along with our Machine Embroidery for beginners video series, which will cover all the info you need to get started." Catch the series righ...

Katie Skilton gives us a sneak peak at what's to come with her next show on Hochanda with Sizzix! Hi there … I am here on the Hochanda blog today sharing a little sneak peak of what is to come on my next Sizzix shows which you can see on Tuesday 24th May. This is a really exciting launch as not only are the products brand new but they are something a little bit different!  I would like to introduce to you the latest Bigz dies from Tim Holtz … The village houses. These are super cute and really addictive!  Each building has it’s own features and you can get add on dies that will allow you to add the most amazing detail to these buildings.  You will notice the pictures I am sharing today are quite plain because i don’t want to give too much away! For those of you who love your inks, paints and mixed media these are going to be amazing to take those techniques and make them 3D. There are a variety of different roof tops, bui...

Melissa of Simply Vintage Designs is back with the perfect step-by-step to create a vintage china cake stand with one of her craft kits, which can be bought from the Hochanda website here ! Try it out and let us know how you get on! Pack Includes: - Cake Stand Handle - Washers - Standard Drill Bit Equipment Needed: - Electric Hand Drill - Small Jug of Water - Masking, Washi or Sticky tape - Ruler or Tape Measure - Pencil - Old Tea Towel or Cloth Step 1: Choose some beautiful plates from which to create your cake stand. Make sure they are clean and without hairline cracks or chips. Add a small strip of tape to the top and bottom of each plate, approximately in the centre.  On the plate’s top side, measure the precise centre by taking a ruler and placing it across the plate’s diameter and making a small dot with a pencil onto the masking tape.  Step 2: Have a small vessel of water close by, a protective surface to w...

Introduce yourself! Hello, my name is Bee Morrison.   I am a self employed artist, designer and art tutor living and working in Eccles, Manchester. Tell us how you got into the art industry, was it something that you had always wanted to do? Since leaving school, I had drifted into office work but I yearned to go to art school.   Then I saw someone on the television being accepted for art school and I knew that I had a lot more to offer.   So I immediately applied for Bolton foundation course and have never looked back. Four years later I had completed the design course with an honours degree in Art and Design. When you are not painting, what else do you like doing for fun? I love listening to classical music and gardening.   If I had not gone into art I would have been a gardener. What was your “first” when I grow up I want to be….? From the age of 8 I wanted to be a fabric designer and this stayed with me for a very long time.   ...