Prim Talk Journal

Prim Talk Radio has been converted to an online journal/magazine. I am sure all of you are wondering why. I have had no luck in getting any help in doing the radio show. So I decided to change the website.

Some of the features for this journal will be primitive crafter interviews, monthly contests, articles of interest to primitive crafters, such as tips, tricks, etc., and much more.
Come by and check us out you never know what you will find or learn.

Interview with Fred From The Birdhouse Barn

I was thrilled to have a chance to interview Fred From the Birdhouse Barn.
All of his Lighted Country Houses and Primitive Saltbox Houses are handmade
from quality materials. They are painted with a variety of primitive colors
and then distressed to give them a rustic look. Each house has doors and
windows cut out and the windows feature rustic wire in the openings. They
are stained in the inside and most of them are adorned with a primitive
rusty star. Light cords and bulbs are included with each house. Please check
his web site out at http://www.thebirdhousebarn.com, he has many offerings,
and he also offers wholesale pricing. Thanks goes out to Fred for allowing
me to interview him.

1. Where were you born and raised? I was born in the wild and wonderful
state of West Virginia. I have lived here all my life and really enjoy it.

2. Tell us a little about you and your family. Growing up I was surrounded
by woodworkers. My father and brothers were all carpenters and they would
always come home with scrap wood that wasn't needed. I starting turning the
old wood into beautiful craft items. My mother enjoyed crafting and always
gave me good advice on the items I was making. I have 2 brothers,a sister
and a dog named Sam.

3. Tell us about your business' and websites. We are a new online business
that has been on the internet since October 2008. We have had a huge success
with our website and business since then. We originally only sold birdhouses
but we have added many new items which include benches,shelves,cupboards and
more. Our most popular items are our Lighted Saltbox Houses. We are very
proud to say that we designed our website ourselves!

4. How did you get started? Like many crafters I began my making items for
friends and family. I seen how much they enjoyed them and realized people
would be willing to buy them. So we decided to put our crafts online.

5. Where did your business name come from?Our original birdhouses were made
from barnwood so after many hours of deciding on a name we finally chose The
Birdhouse Barn.

6. Do you have any future plans for your business? We plan on attending more
craft shows in the future and also advertising in Country Sampler.

7. Do you design in other craft venues? No.

8. What or who inspires you? For our saltbox houses and birdhouses I often
get inspired by old buildings in and around West Virginia.


9. Do you sell your work or designs anywhere other than your websites? Most
of our sales are online but we also attend several big craft shows around
our area. I have also cosidered consignment shops for the future.

10. For all of the crafters and designers out there wanting to start a
crafting business or website, what advice can you give them?
This is a very important question to me. When I first starting thinking of
selling my products online I looked all over and asked a lot of crafters
advice on what I could expect. I found and learned alot of useful
information....If you have a good product that you like chances are good
someone else will enjoy it too. It is one of the most rewarding and
affordable ways of getting your products noticed. I started my
website/business for under $100 and I have made well over that in profit.
The most important thing that I can say to someone would be to offer some
type of wholesale. Over 75% of my customers purchase products at a wholesale
price for resale. Make sure you have your meta tags and keywords figured
out.Search engine ranking will greatly effect how many sales you have.
DO NOT give up to soon!I almost deleted my website after nearly 2 months and
no sales. Then out of the blue someone placed an order for $300! It can take
a little while until you get consistant sales. Banner and link exchanges are
a great way to get people to visit your site but one of the most effective
ways is to simply let people know. Tell everyone! Email businesses and let
them know about your products. I think anyone who is thinking about should
definetally go for it.

Thanks,

Fred - The Birdhouse Barn
http://www.thebirdhousebarn.com

Prim Talk Radio

For now Prim Talk Radio is on hiatus. I am truly sorry for not having any shows lately. I have been very busy with other things and I have not had the time to do a show. I also have no staff members to help me out. Until all of the primitive crafters decide they would like to help me I cannot come up with lots of tips and tricks. I have ran out of ideas.

From time to time I will be posting interviews with different primitive crafters on this blog. Please check in and see who I have interviewed.
Your Primitive Friend
Sherol

Been Out of Town on a Family Emergency

Hello to Everyone,

It has been a rough two weeks. We had to make a family emergency visit to California. It was a very busy time. But we got through it and our brother-in-law is doing much better. We drove all the way there and back. The driving was rough trying to get so many miles in a day completed. We drove about 6 to 700 miles a day across Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana to our home in Ohio. You have never seen two people so happy to get home. I kissed my front door before I even walked in the door.
I am taking this week off and will try to have a show for you next week. I will be posting some pictures from our trip. I hope everyone enjoys them. Please feel free to email if you have any questions or concerns. I always love to hear from our listeners.
Sherol

Prim Talk Radio #38 May 1, 2009

Good morning Prim Talk Listeners. I am your host Sherol Jones. Today is Friday May
1st.

On today’s show I will finish up the series on rug hooking for the beginner by telling you how to finish your rug hooking projects. I am going to share with you a brief history of the Mason Jars.
I wanted to apologize for not having any shows in the last three weeks. We had family come in for a visit and I did not have the time to deal with the show. But we are back and looking forward to continuing on giving you the same shows you are use to with much more new things to come.
We would like to thank one of our sponsor’s Tori from stencilmein.com where you can find a large selection of unique stencils from simpler times gone by. From vast selections of colonial and vintage stencils. Stencil me in is dedicated to providing a wide selection of unique and original designs that are simply filled with old world charm. Check out Tori’s site at www.stencilmein.com

Prim Talk Radio is hiring for a co-host and staff members who would like to share any primitive patterns, tips, tricks or anything else you think you can offer to our show. If you become a staff member you will receive a 125 x 125 banner on our front page plus you will get exposure for your website. If you are interested in becoming a staff member please email me and I will give you all the requirements.


Series on Rug Hooking

The whipping process for rug hooking.
The Term whipping means to wrap cording or the folded edge of the rug’s backing with wool yarn using the whipstitch. Make sure you use a sturdy wool yarn. You can get it in many colors and make sure you use a 3-ply wool needlepoint yarn. Also you will need a tapestry needle with a large eye.

To estimate yardage needed for whipping your rug, remember that foot of yarn will cover about 1”, and 1 yard covers 3”. As an example, if your rug measures 24” x 36” and has a perimeter of 120” you will need 120 feet or 40 yards of yarn to whip the edges.

Before you begin make sure you cut off the excess backing just outside of the sty stitching line. Place cording on the top side of the rug next to the last row of hooking. Folding backing over the cording to the back of the rug and pin it in place. Thread the tapestry needle with a piece of yarn about 36” long and whipstitch from top to bottom and right to left, working from the top side of the rug. Keep the whipping snug but not too tight. You do not need to knot the ends of the yarn. Bury the ends in the whipping yarn as you go.

When whipping without cording, fold the backing over twice toward the top of the rug. Whip over this folded edge with yarn. Again, keep the whipping snug but not too tight.

Final steps

Make sure you steam press your rug again. It is also a good time to sew a label on your rug.

If you have missed the whole series of Rug Hooking you can find the series on our blog.





I have had the chance to work with a wonderful lady by the name of Sharon who owns Wahm Design Services.
She offers the most affordable design solutions for the work-at-home mom.
With over 10 years experience they can give you a design to be proud of! Check out her site at www.wahmdesignservices.com

Another sponsor I would like to mention is:

Marcella and Maggie's Primitive Attic where they sell old fashioned teddy bears, sock monkeys, raggedy and folk art dolls, stitcheries, hand-tied quilts, scent fixins and many other primitive offerings. http://www.marcellaandmaggiesprimitiveattic.com/

Multistate Events

Cruise for bargains at these multi state events.

100 mile garage sale
May 1-3 Thousands of home owners participate in this 14 town extravaganza on the banks of the Mississippi River in Wisconsin and Minnesota. You can find more info at www. Mississippi-river.org

May 14-17 U.S. 11 Antique Alley where you can explore 502 miles of flea markets and tag sales from Meridian, Mississippi, to Bristol, Virginia. More info at us11antiquealley.com

May 15-17
Great U.S. 50-yard sale
Communities along this 3,073-mile stretch from Ocean City, Maryland, to Sacramento, California-will hold concurrent sales more info at route50.com/yardsale.html
May 27-31
Historic National Road Yard-Sale Days
Antique shops and individuals sell collectibles from Baltimore to St. Louis on U.S. 40. More info at oldstorefrontantiques.com





I am a new staff member for a new online crafters magazine called www.craftersinthenews.com . There are new articles and interviews every month. This month I got the chance to interview Ellen from Marcella and Maggie’s Primitive attic. So go on over to
www.craftersinthenews.com and check out this new online magazine.

Make sure you stop by our website and sign up for our newsletter. You could be the winner of one free month advertising spot on our home page.


History of the Mason Jars

Most of us know that mason jars are used for canning or sipping your favorite drink. But primitive crafters use them for other decorating ideas in their homes.
Mason Jars are wide mouth jars and have been a kitchen mainstay ever since the Ball Corporation began producing them in 1884. Even now the company continues to make 585,000 mason jars each day.

1858
John Mason invents the first canning jar with a screw top: his patent expired in 1879, opening the market to competition.
1884
Brothers Frank, Edmund, George, Lucius, and William form Ball Brothers Glass Manufacturing in New York State and start making mason jars. Three years later the company moves to Indiana.
1909
The first Ball blue book, a primer on home canning is published.
1918
The Ball brothers bequeath a small college in Muncie to the state of Indiana; the school is later renamed Ball State University.
1933
The Ball Company does not lay off a single employee during the Great Depression.
1972
After 88 years as a family owned business, Ball goes public.
2009
The Ball Mason Jar celebrates its 125th anniversary. An exhibit, Can It! 125 years of the Ball Jar, can be viewed through august 23 at the Minnetrista Cultural Center in Muncie Indiana. If you are interested you can find out more at www. minnetrista.net for more details.



Here at Prim Talk Radio we have lowered our front page advertising. For a limited time you can get your 125x125 banner placed on our front page for only $2.00 a month. Hurry and get your spot today. Remember advertising is a good way to promote your web site.

You can find all these tips tricks, crafts and recipes on our website at www.primtalkradio.com

Feel free to email us with any questions, or suggestions that you feel would help us improve our show. We welcome all our listeners input.

What has been Happening at Prim Talk Radio

Hello Everyone.

I wanted to let every one know the reason why there has been no shows lately. Well let me tell you that we have had family here for a visit. They have come from New York, Indiana, and Michigan. It has been so crazy around our home that I had no time to do a show. But hopefully all is calm for now and I will be able to get back on track. I miss doing the show and I am happy to be back.
Sherol

Prim Talk Radio Show April 3, 2009

Good morning Prim Talk Listeners. I am your host Sherol Jones. Today is Friday April
3rd.

On today’s show I will continue the series on rug hooking for the beginner by telling you how to finish your rug hooking projects. Dianne Theroux is back with a segment on how to decoupage a lampshade.
We would like to thank one of our sponsor’s Tori from stencilmein.com where you can find a large selection of unique stencils from simpler times gone by. From vast selections of colonial and vintage stencils. Stencil me in is dedicated to providing a wide selection of unique and original designs that are simply filled with old world charm. Check out Tori’s site at www.stencilmein.com


Prim Talk Radio is hiring for a co-host and staff members who would like to share any primitive patterns, tips, tricks or anything else you think you can offer to our show. If you become a staff member you will receive a 125 x 125 banner on our front page plus you will get exposure for your website. If you are interested in becoming a staff member please email me and I will give you all the requirements.


Series on Rug Hooking
Finishing your Rugs

Once you have completed your rug, you need to steam it and finish the edges. Two of the most popular ways of finishing the edges are with binding tape or by whipping the edges with wool yarn,

Steaming
Steam your rug prior to finishing the edges and again after you have completed the rug. Steaming makes your rugs lie flat and also gives it the finished look. If you are using monk’s cloth it tends to curl, so steaming will allow you rug to lie perfectly flat. Steaming also helps hide any imperfections in your rug hooking style.

You will need an ironing board, an iron, and a terry cloth towel. Do not use a steam iron; use a dry iron with a damp terry cloth towel. Lay your iron on top of the damp terry cloth towel waiting for the steam to rise.

Binding Tape

Binding tape is 1 ¼” wide, made with 100% cotton and comes in many different colors. To determine the amount of binding tape you will need, measure the outside perimeter of your rug and add 12 “ for shrinkage allowance. Make sure you wash your binding tape before you apply it to your rug, some of the colors can bleed.

Binding tape can be sewn on before you start hooking or after you have made considerable
progress. Just make sure you sew it on before you get to close to the outside edge.
Place the tape on the top side of your backing so that the outer edge of the tape is aligned with the outer edge of the drawn pattern. Sew by hand or machine, stitching as close to the edge as possible. Ease your tape around the corner so that you will be able to turn the back of the rug and miter the corner when the hooking is complete. If you don’t want to miter the corners, you can sew a separate strip of binding tape to each side of the rug. Make sure you leave at least 1” extra at the ends of each strip for finishing.
Hook your outside row as close as possible to the binding tape. When hooking is complete, cut away the backing just beyond the stay stitching. Fold the binding back, miter corners, and sew the binding tape to the back of the rug with heavy duty thread.

Next week I will go into the whipping process for rug hooking.
.

I have had the chance to work with a wonderful lady by the name of Sharon who owns Wahm Design Services.
She offers the most affordable design solutions for the work-at-home mom.
With over 10 years experience they can give you a design to be proud of! Check out her site at www.wahmdesignservices.com


Now here is Dianne Theroux from primdecortips.com with this week’s segment.
Thank You Dianne. She has such wonderful ideas. If you like to decorate in prim décor style stop by her website at www.primdecortips.com and check out all her décor ideas.


I am a new staff member for a new online crafters magazine called www.craftersinthenews.com . There are new articles and interviews every month. This month I got the chance to interview Susan from Rabbit Hollow Prims. So go on over to
www.craftersinthenews.com and check out this new online magazine.

Make sure you stop by our website and sign up for our newsletter. You could be the winner of one free month advertising spot on our home page.



Here at Prim Talk Radio we have lowered our front page advertising. For a limited time you can get your 125x125 banner placed on our front page for only $2.00 a month. Hurry and get your spot today. Remember advertising is a good way to promote your web site.

You can find all these tips tricks, crafts and recipes on our website at www.primtalkradio.com

Feel free to email us with any questions, or suggestions that you feel would help us improve our show. We welcome all our listeners input.

Until next week
Blessings to everyone

Prim Talk Radio Show March 20, 2009

On today’s show I will continue the series on rug hooking for the beginner. I have some great spring gardening tips for you.

I have a few things I would like to share with everyone. First off I am a new staff member for a new online magazine. This magazine is called Crafters in The News. The Grand Opening was this last weekend. You can find great articles, tutorials, and interviews with crafters in the news. Stop in and check the new magazine out at www.craftersinthenews.com
Also guess who is back. Jules from Little House Mercantile. She will be revamping her website. It is an honored to be accepted as one of the creative team members. She has a lot of new changes and ideas for LHM. Check out her site often for the new updates she will be making.
We would like to thank one of our sponsor’s Tori from stencilmein.com where you can find a large selection of unique stencils from simpler times gone by. From vast selections of colonial and vintage stencils. Stencil me in is dedicated to providing a wide selection of unique and original designs that are simply filled with old world charm. Check out Tori’s site at www.stencilmein.com


Prim Talk Radio is hiring for a co-host and staff members who would like to share any primitive patterns, tips, tricks or anything else you think you can offer to our show. If you become a staff member you will receive a 125 x 125 banner on our front page plus you will get exposure for your website. If you are interested in becoming a staff member please email me and I will give you all the requirements.


Series on Rug Hooking

Today I want to tell you how to hook.
Place the backing on your frame or in your hoop; make sure it is taut but not skintight.
The general rule is to start hooking from the center of your rug and move toward the border. Hook just inside the black lines of your pattern.
Pick up your first strip with you left hand. Hold the strip between your thumb and forefinger; place your left hand underneath the backing.

With your hook in your right hand, push the end of the hook through an opening on the top of the backing. Place the wool strip in the curve of the hook and pull the end up through the hole so that about ½” shows on top of the backing. Rug Hookers call this the tail.

Place the hook into the next hole and pull up the first hoop. Use the hand underneath the backing to help guide the strip onto the hook so that it’s not twisted, and pull the loop through the hole. Loops should be as high as the strip is wide. For instance if yoru using #8 strips, they’re ¼” wide, so your loops should be ¼” high. When the loop I the right height, gently slide the hook out of the loop,

Continue pulling up loops in this same manner, inserting the hook into every second of third whole. This will vary depending on the thickness of your wool. You want the loops to touch each other but not be crammed together.

Continue pulling up loops until you are near the end of the wool strip. When you come to the end of the strip, just pull the end up through the hole. All strips begin and end on the topside. There should be no tails sticking out on the back.

To start a new strip, insert the hook into the hole where previous strip ended. Pull up the next strip into that hole. There are now two tails in that hole. Pull up the next loop and continue. Stagger the starting and ending points from row to row. The tail ends will be less noticeable if they aren’t all aligned.

Occasionally, grasp the tails and clips them off to the height of the loops surrounding them.

Some of the potential challenges can be shapes or portions of the rug can be trickier to hook than others.

Here are some pointers

Hooking circles is fun and easy, but sometimes they tend to form little mounds. You can avoid this by starting from the outside of the circle and work toward the center. Do not cram your loops and when you end in the center, a single tail will occupy a hole.

For corners try not to start or stop hooking in a corner; a full loop at a corner is stronger
and looks neater than two tails. To avoid tails at the corner, start an end a strip a few loops before the corner. Hook toward yourself along the edge. When you come to the corner, turn your frame so that you continue to hook toward yourself. Use your frame or hoop to make this task easy, and hooking corner shouldn’t present problems.

Hooking motifs is a two step process; outline and fill. How you choose to hook a motif is entirely up to you. There are no rules, so make it the way you see it.

Hooking backgrounds can be boring. The way to avoid this is to not leave it all until the end. After each motif is hooked surround it with at least one row of background wool.
This will give you and idea of how the background will look and get you started on all that space that makes up the background.
Next week I will tell you how to finish your rug.





Make sure you stop by our website and sign up for our newsletter. You could be the winner of one free month advertising spot on our home page.



Here at Prim Talk Radio we have lowered our front page advertising. For a limited time you can get your 125x125 banner placed on our front page for only $2.00 a month. Hurry and get your spot today. Remember advertising is a good way to promote your web site.

Spring gardening Tips
Get a calendar with a large format just for gardening notes. You can use it to set your gardening goals, projects or timely reminders.

Make sure you know when the last frost of the season is. This helps you decide how early to start your seeds indoors.
Start seeds for some of your favorite veggies and annuals indoors several weeks in advance.
If you are not sure when it is okay to plant, check your soil. Scoop up a handful and squeeze it. If it is still wet and soggy wait awhile longer. If it
crumbles in your hands then it is time to plant.
Always plant blooms in threes. This gives the plants an opportunity to make an impression and it looks more natural.
Make your own compost. It is easy and free. Most successful piles of compost are in a sunny spot. Keep your compost piles lightly damp and stir it
up often.
Use dormant oil for your deciduous trees and shrubs. The oil eliminates insect eggs and larvae.
When choosing flowering perennials for your garden, pay attention to the bloom times. Stagger plants with different show times together so you’ll
have colorful displays all season long.
Weed as soon as they appear. Do not leave the weeds in your garden because they can re root themselves.
Spring may be a good time to prune the trees and shrubs, but you might want to hold off to spring flowering trees so you can enjoy more blooms. Trees such as birches, elms, beeches and maple tend to bleed sap heavily in the spring which attracts pests.
Happy Spring Gardening

Crafters In The News

Congratulations to the Grand Opening of "Crafters In The News" online magazine. Being a staff member is a great honor. Keri has done a wonderful job on the website graphics.
There are many great interviews and articles for all to read. Check the site out here.
http://www.craftersinthenews.com/


Good Luck

Sherol

Prim Talk Radio Show March 13, 2009

On today’s show Dianne Theroux is back to tell you how to make curtains. And I will continue the series on rug hooking for the beginner. This month Barbie turns 50 so I thought I would share some Barbie trivia with you.
Barbara Millicent Roberts hit the scene in March 1959 in the pre-dawn of the feminist movement, her lifestyle choices rivaled only by those of her wardrobe. Today we welcome Mattel’s ultimate “it” girl.
1959: Barbie debut as a teenage model, work she continues today through her Barbie Top Model Line.
1961: Ken Carson meets Barbie in a tv commercial set; the two begin dating.
1965: Astronaut Barbie debuts a year after NASA scuttles training for women.
1973: Nurse Barbie goes to medical school, graduates as Surgeon Barbie.
1975: Gold Medal Barbie sweeps the Olympic Games skating, skiing and gymnastics.
1980: Barbie goes multiracial with the debut of Black Barbie, Hispanic Barbie and the international collection
1989: Barbie joins the army. By 1992 she serves in four military branches, sporting pentagon approved uniforms.
1992: Teen Talk Barbie whines “Math class is tough” prompting an apology from Mattel.
1992: Barbie first runs for president.
1997: Barbie discovers that Share-a-smile Becky’s got pink wheelchair doesn’t fit in the Dream House elevator.
2004: Barbie and Ken break up after 43 years together, then reunite in 2006.
2009: At 50 Barbie is the world’s highest earning doll, with 1.2 billion in annual revenues.
We would like to thank one of our sponsor’s Tori from stencilmein.com where you can find a large selection of unique stencils from simpler times gone by. From vast selections of colonial and vintage stencils. Stencil me in is dedicated to providing a wide selection of unique and original designs that are simply filled with old world charm. Check out Tori’s site at www.stencilmein.com
Here is Dianne’s first segment. She will be telling you how to make curtains.
Thank You Dianne Check out Dianne’s website is www.primdecortips.com She has a lot of prim décor tips.

Prim Talk Radio is hiring for a co-host and staff members who would like to share any primitive patterns, tips, tricks or anything else you think you can offer to our show. If you become a staff member you will receive a 125 x 125 banner on our front page plus you will get exposure for your website. If you are interested in becoming a staff member please email me and I will give you all the requirements. I also wanted to mention that when a search is done on prim talk radio through google or yahoo our web site is the first search that comes up. That is because we have been around for several years and have many followers. Not to mention we receive new friends all the time who listen to our show. Stop by check us out and send us an email just to say hi.


Series on Rug Hooking
Preparing your backing
For a better hooking experience, prepare your backing or foundation. This will help in drawing a straight pattern.
Cut a piece of backing fabric a minimum of 4” wider on each side than the pattern. So say your project is 20”x 30” then you will need a piece of backing fabric at least 28” x 38”. This helps to make your pattern fit easily onto your frame or hoop.

Serge all outer edges to prevent fraying. To save time you can use masking tape to cover the edges also.

Drawing the Pattern
Most patterns will need to be enlarged. You can take them to a facility that will enlarge them the required percentage you need. You can also draw them yourself on large graph paper. Following the enlargement ration such as 1 square = ½” printed on the pattern.
Make sure the outer edge of your pattern is aligned with the straight of the grain of the backing you use. An easy way to get those lines straight is to use a wide-point pencil and drag it through the openings using firm pressure on the pencil.
Measure 4” from the outer edge of your backing piece. Place the pencil in one of the holes with your right hand and pull the backing away from you with your left hand. The pencil should stay in the grove and you should have an outside border line that is on the straight of the grain.

Continue this until all four outside border lines are drawn on the straight of the grain. When you have your outside border lines established, you will need to sew a couple of stay-stitching rows approximately ¾” and 1” outside of the border line.
A simple way to transfer the pattern onto your squared-up backing is to use Red Dot tracer. Red Dot is a lightweight non woven fabric similar to interfacing and it has red dots spaced 1” apart in a grid.
Place a piece of red dot over the pattern you have enlarged. Make sure it lines up squarely on the pattern and trace the pattern onto the red dot.
Place the red dot on top of your backing piece, making sure it is straight. Draw on your tracing lines with a heavy duty permanent black marker. This method will produce a light tracing of the pattern onto your backing. If it is too light retrace to make the line bolder.
Next week I will tell you how to hook and some of the potential challenges that may arise.


Make sure you stop by our website and sign up for our newsletter. You could be the winner of one free month advertising spot on our home page.



Here at Prim Talk Radio we have lowered our front page advertising. For $3.00 a month you can get your 125x125 banner placed on our front page. Remember advertising is a good way to promote your web site.


.

You can find all these tips tricks, crafts and recipes on our website at www.primtalkradio.com

Feel free to email us with any questions, or suggestions that you feel would help us improve our show. We welcome all our listeners input.