Annie Lang's Blog!

  It's 2023 and Annie has just added 10 brand new greeting cards to make you smile!  Vibrantly colored art and characters with personality make these cards come alive and stand out with their cheery smiles and happy messages. If you'd like to see how the new card characters were created, drop by Annie's YouTube Channel and you'll find many of them included on the Draw Silly Characters playlist.   You can also change the inside card verse to add your own personalized message and spend less than cards you'll find in the store aisles.  Order and send your cards from the comfort of your own home or have them mailed direct to your recipient by Greeting Card Universe .  To get more information and see all cards and available options before you order, visit Annie Lang's Card Shop today! 

  Drawing it silly never been more fun!  You'll find 44 delightful character line art pattern pages that can be used to follow along with Annie's Draw It Silly YouTube Channel videos.  You can easily import the art to your image editor and color the designs digitally OR simply use the patterns to trace, transfer and create traditionally as you would with any other line art pattern.  Each character page has line art and color sample guide if needed.  This " Draw It Silly " publication is only available in printable .pdf format which you can order and immediately download through Annie Things Possible.  Make sure you check out all the book character " Draw It Silly " video series posted on Annie's YouTube Channel.  You'll see how each and every image created by Annie Lang has been digitally hand rendered and then colored.  The characters have been used for storybook illustrations, fabric prints, clipart collections, line art books, manufactured goods,

Whether it's a holiday celebration or just a quiet night at home entertaining a few friends, you can serve your guests in style by making your own wooden charcuterie tray.  After pricing numerous trays both in stores and online, I decided to make my own food safe tray and it was surprising easy to do and the cost was less than a trip to McDonalds!  I was tempted to paint a design on the tray, but I fought the urge and made this a simple serving tray to use for any occasion.   I bought all my supplies at our local home improvement store.  It took about 4 hours to complete from start to finish and much of that time was spent sanding.  Since this was a new wood board, I applied 3 coats of wax following the manufacturer's directions.  There are numerous finishing products available to make your serving tray both waterproof and 100% food safe.  Many products need to cure before use which is why I chose to go with the Walrus Oil Wood Wax .   It's easy to use and I can apply it t

It's a gloomy day.  It's too cold for outdoor activities.  You're bored and restless. You head to your craft supply shelves.  You discover a stash of scrap fabrics.  You also notice that wire frame you picked up from the Dollar Store.  You grab a pair of scissors and head for the table with your coffee and supplies and turn on your favorite music playlist.  Before you know it, you have made a whimsical wreath.  Hope you'll try out this traditional craft and experience the joy of creating a handmade treasure! 

It was certainly a most bewitching and inspiring show this year at the Calhoun County Fairgrounds in Marshall, MI.  Though I'm not a big fan of Halloween, I am totally captivated by the imaginative artistry, creativity and quality craftmanship of the arts.  From one of a kind doll making, meticulously sculptured creations, whimsical fiber arts and ceramics to beautifully rendered mystical artworks, curious candles, glass and jewelry, the Bewitching Peddlers of Halloween show had it all.  I was simply awe-inspired with each booth I visited.  I had previously attended the Ghoultide Gathering show ( see photo at the bottom of this post ) and many of the artists I discovered there were also vendors at this show.  With 40 artists represented, this well attended show was quite busy and many of the treasures were sold out within hours of opening.  Here's just a few of the magical creations that most captured my imagination and I hope you'll visit their online galleries. Enjoy!    

  One of my favorite Autumn themes are harvest time Scarecrows and gatherings from the pumpkin patch.  Not only do scarecrows stand guard over our gardens, but they do a marvelous job of displaying a wide array of colorfully repurposed clothing!  Best of all, the theme carries through from the first days of autumn until the Thanksgiving harvest celebration concludes.   I decorate my home and outdoor living spaces with all the incredible colors and textures of the season, from leaves, acorns, woodsy animals, happy scarecrows, leaf wrapped lanterns, apples and pumpkins galore and bows of calico and plaids.  So fire up your imagination, gather up the harvest and let's simply Fall into Autumn smiles!   Need some fabrics for seasonal inspiration?  You'll find my fabric, wallpapers, home decor items and more in my Spoonflower Shop!  The above image features  Starecrows Scarecrows print, Brush Stroked in Ivory print,  Pumpkin Patch Scarecrows print, Naturally Brown Burlap print, 

Now that the days are growing shorter and the nights have turned cool, it's the perfect time of year to venture out to enjoy the summer flowers and sunshine before they fade away.  Applewood Estate was the ideal destination to casually enjoy the spectacular gardens and beautiful estate vistas this historic site offers to the public for free.   Applewood is a hidden gem located in the cultural district of Flint, Michigan and has been meticulously preserved and maintained by the Ruth Mott Foundation as a tribute to the legacy of Charles Stewart Mott and his many contributions to the Flint Community.  Applewood is the historic home of C.S. Mott and his family.  It is not a grandiose mansion, but rather a warm and welcoming country estate home with sprawling gardens, a greenhouse and interesting historic architectural features. Though it only takes a few hours to tour the gardens, it's time well spent as you leisurely tour the apple orchard, numerous flowering gardens, visitor'

Annie Lang now offers downloadable printable paper sets so you'll never run out of decorative pattern prints for all your creative papercrafting projects.  Each themed publication has 12 delightful full size color mix and match pages that you can print and use for your handcrafted adventures.  They are .pdf formatted and you can print as many as you'd like which makes them ideal for groups, classrooms, craft party gatherings and more.  Can be used to create scrapping page backgrounds, papercrafts, wrappers, cardmaking, frames, Mod Podge projects, notebook dividers, office accessories accents or anything else you can think of.  Royalty Free Usage allows unlimited printing usage for personal projects and handcrafted items you can resell.  However, the data files cannot be resold/shared or used for commercially printed merchandise retail products. Download your paper collections from the Activity Crafts page at Annie Things Possible right now and you can start your creative proje

Bright and cheery Bookworms make reading a little more fun for the kids!  Just print out this colorful reading list and let them see how many books they can add to it.  It's always nice to add a little reward, too so why not use some bookworm character cutouts as small incentives?  Simply print and cut out the motifs to create stickers, magnets and fun craftables to inspire them to progress through their book titles.  Mount them on stars or heart shapes cut from color cardstock and write a positive message on the back.  Hang the shapes from color ribbon to create danglers and watch your bookworms be amazed as they hang each one as a reminder that Bookworms really DO know stuff ! CLICK HERE to download Annie Lang's FREE full color, ready to print set because Annie Things Possible!

What's under YOUR jar bonnet?  Just fill a canning jar with anything at all, dress up your homemade delights with a colorful paper bonnet lid designed by Annie Lang and you've got the perfect homestyle gift for any occasion!  Whether it's canned goods, bath salts, homemade jelly, hot cocoa mix, coffee beans, candy treats or dried flowers, herbs, dried mixes or whatever, you can make it even more special in just minutes with a homestyle paper bonnet you've crafted by hand.  Annie's 53 page Paper Jar Bonnet Lids publication includes templates for both regular size and wide mouth size canning jars, templates to make perfect size round metal lid stickers and folded hang tags that you can attach to your filled canning jars.  This papercraft activity book also includes step by step instructions along with 48 vividly colored full size patterned printable papers that have been custom designed by Annie Lang to create your jar bonnets. You can print as few or as many papers

Here's a fun decorative project you can paint up on a rainy day and use it as an accent piece on a shelf, bookcase cubby or even outdoors in the garden.  If using outdoors, be sure to give it a good coat of clear sealer finish once the project is completed to protect it from the elements.  This house can also be modified to create a cute gingerbread house, mock birdhouse, fairy garden house or anything else your imagination can come up with!  Here's how I painted the pictured sample but you can use any color, painting technique or brushes you desire. I hope you'll give it a try because anything IS possible when you're on a creative adventure!   NOTE:  Here's the online links to my wood suppliers... Stand Alone House Shape:    https://www.craftdealz.com/deal/stand-alone-house-shape 5" Garden Gate Ornament:    https://www.cdwood.com/collections/garden-gate/products/5-garden-gate-ornament

I must confess that I have a rocky relationship when it comes to my sewing machine!  Though I've owned one all of my adult life, I've mostly put it to use for hemming curtains, altering and repairing my clothing and for crafting small project.  I am however, a passionate fabriholic and my heart skips a beat any time I walk through the fabric aisles, captivated by the colors, textures and irresistible urge to buy something!  As a textile designer, I find great joy in creating repeat patterns, experimenting with color combinations and the simple challenge of creating something fun that can be used for future projects keeps me creatively motivated.  While recently organizing my craft shelves, I decided it was time to pull my scraps out of the bins and put them to everyday use.  Since a making a quilt is well beyond my skill level, I did an internet search to see what more talented experts were doing.  Here are a few of the projects I came up with that I wanted to share with my fel

Here's a fun and easy way to brighten up both your world and your day with painted wooden Flower Swags!  You don't need to be a decorative painter to make these fun little flowers in only a few hours or less.  All you need are some craft paints, brushes and glue and then use the finished painted items to decorate and embellish all kinds of items for your home or friends.  Enjoy this step by step tutorial along with a few ideas to get you inspired.  Happy Crafting!

Whether it's pirate treasures, house cats, Halloween fun, bright and cheery summer prints or light and airy flutterings for your creative projects, you'll find 20 delightfully new fabric inspirations by Annie Lang now available!  Visit Annie's home website fabric page , select a swatch and see all available designer products at Spoonflower !    Need Free Sewing Patterns and Ideas?  Check out the Spoonflower BLOG page right here! 

Watermelon is a favorite any time of year and these new watermelon themed designs by Annie Lang are fresh from the drawing board for everyone to enjoy.  Whether it's fabric for new placemats, napkins, potholders or kitchen aprons to spruce up the kitchen, fun wearables and home dec ready made items or sweet clipart and printed papers for your DIY projects... you'll find them all here.  So go ahead and shop to your heart's content because Annie Things Possible when you have whimsical watermelons for creative inspiration! 

  It's that time of year when bugs and happy little critters come out to play!  Annie Lang's playful bugs, whimsical bees, sweet ladybugs and other fun characters have been around for years and still remain as popular as they were when first released as line art patterns, fabric designs and digital clipart collections.  Here's where you'll still find them on newly released products and merchandise so you can make your own world of happy little bugs because Annie Things Possible with a little imagination!

  The 2021 Greeting Card Universe Founders' Choice Awards have just been announced and I was absolutely thrilled to have one of my whimsical cards chosen as a winner!  I first joined the Greeting Card Universe community in 2015 and it's truly been a joy creating and sharing professional greetings for all the treasured milestones, seasonal events and everyday sentiments for shoppers and card recipients of all ages.  This is the 3rd GCU award I have been honored to receive over these past several years and I am truly grateful to all of those remarkable people who have encouraged and supported my work.  If you have never visited my online card shop, you are cordially invited to drop by and browse all available designs posted at Annie Things Possible .  Here's a quick and fun little video I put together back in 2015 that provides details on how to personalize and order customized designs from Greeting Card Universe...enjoy!  

You don't have to be an avid gardener to grow your own smiles!  Just grab a few craft supplies and let your imagination take over.  If you love papercrafts as much as I do, you'll truly enjoy working with my newly released  Seed Pack Envelopes Activity Crafts downloadable .pdf publication. If you'd rather create with resizable clipart images, Annie Lang's Garden Seed Pack Clipart has everything you need to get started.  This collection from Creative Market comes with a license option available to suit your personal or commercial needs so you can use them for yourself, for your online retail business or simply create something amazing for your print on demand merchandise stores. You don't have to wait until the danger of frost has passed to get those creative smiles growing today.  Happy Gardening!