Sponsor Highlight + Giveaway :: Craft Buds!

I'm so excited to introduce you to today two great crafty ladies, Mary and Lindsay, of Craft Buds!



Tell us about yourselves!

Hello FW&MP readers, it’s great to meet all of you! I’m Mary and I’m a stay at home mom to an amazing little boy and wife to a great husband. Besides blogging I do freelance graphic design work and I enjoy sewing, crafting, gardening, and baking.

And I'm Lindsay, a friend of Mary's in the real world and blogland! My husband and I will celebrate our 5-year anniversary this year, and we are still trying to figure out where to go on vacation. Any suggestions? I love to travel, sew, and meet new people.


Tell us about your blog, Craft Buds! How did it start?

Mary: We were both running separate blog sites and started talking about the possibilities of a combined site. We had both been posting sewing/crafting tutorials so we decided to combine those with interviews, business tips, featured bloggers, giveaways, a master giveaway list, linky parties and more! Craft Buds was launched in March of this year. We chose the name because we hope to help people grow their blogs and online businesses as they find inspiration and information at our site. “Buds” also fits since it’s a collaboration between friends. Lindsay is a professional editor and I’m a professional graphic designer so combine that with our blogging, crafting and sewing hobbies and we make a great team.

What are some of your favorite projects and recipes from your blog?

Mary: One of my favorite projects is the numbered bean bags. They’re great for kids to play with and they’re educational too. I also like the tote bag tutorial because I use this bag all the time. Lindsay’s Twitter for Crafters article is another favorite because it taught me a lot I didn’t know about Twitter!



Lindsay: And my favorite tutorial is Mary's hooded sweatshirt to cowl neck tutorial. It's so clever! I also loved what fabric designer Jennifer Paganelli had to share with our readers about starting a handmade business. And Mary's Bunny No-Bakes are adorably appetizing.



Where do you see your blog going in the future?

Mary: Eventually we’d like to sell e-books and patterns while continuing to offer tutorials, free patterns, business tips and all the other regular Craft Buds features.

Lindsay: Also, we just really want to be a resource for people with creative dreams, who just need that extra push to get going. I love the connectivity between creative bloggers, and the ability to help each other out.


If you could have one famous blogger follow your blog, who would it be? (I know mine would be Pioneer Woman!)

Mary: That’s a tough one! MADE by Dana is one of my favorites for crafting/sewing. The Sweet Adventures of SugarBelle is a favorite for baking with her incredible cookie creations.

Lindsay: I'd be pretty pleased if Martha Stewart was a Craft Bud. :)

Did somebody say, Giveaway?!

Craft Buds is happy to give away one $20 gift certificate to Fabric.com (selling general crafts supplies, too!) to one lucky FW&MP reader. The giveaway is open worldwide (international shipping available from Fabric.com).

To enter:

{you must be a FW&MP follower}

Check out the tutorials at Craft Buds and leave a comment here with your favorite!

For extra entries:

2. Follow the Craft Buds blog via Google Friend Connect, RSS or e-mail subscription.
3. Like Craft Buds on Facebook
4. Tweet, blog, or share about this giveaway on Facebook (include link -- one entry for each)

Feel free to copy the below tweet:

Did you check out the great giveaway running from @foodwinemodpodg and @CraftBuds?? Winner gets a fabric.com gift card! http://bit.ly/mD30Oe

This giveaway closes at midnight (cst) on Thursday, May 12.

Thanks Mary and Lindsay, you rock!