New Generation CraZy TACKz

CraZy TACKz, a Tack with a Hook!

We help you "hook it up"!

You all have probably seen the original CraZy TACKz with the clear stopper that I have been posting in various projects on the blog.  These are really fun to work with and there are many ways you can jazz them up, but we have some coming soon that are already lookin' snazzy!  The original TACKz come in a catchy orange package.  The new TACKz are also packaged in bright, cool colors that are very fun to look at and even more fun to decorate with!  Here is a look at some of the new packaging.....then I will tell you about the new shapes.

The black blister pack will contain round designer colors of black, red and white.  The blue pack will contain stars.....traditional red, white and blue!

The violet package will have green, pink and violet shapes. The cool pink blister pack will contain red, pink and white hearts! The close-up packages shown are just sample packs and aren't entirely accurate.  You can get a good idea of what they will look like when we receive the actual product.

I can't wait to start designing with these.  Of course they are ready to use on the wall or wherever, just like they are!  And, they will be ready to order soon! Wouldn't these be a pretty package to add to a house warming basket or something like that?  They are not only useful, they are pretty to look at!

I think this duo looks perfect for Fall.  Makes me think of decorating for Halloween.

Here the CraZy TACKz are holding some die-cuts on the wall and the garland is hanging from the CraZy TACKz hook.

Here is a wall collage of decorations, hooked up with CraZy TACKz!

Are you in the mood for October yet?

I will be bringing you some new designs in the near future.  CraZy TACKz are still brand new and they are not in all the stores yet.  You can order some packages on the original site www.crazytackz.com at the retail price for a limited time!  Take a look at our inventor Gordie Murphy's Bio while you are there. This all got started when he made the following wish:  "I wish this tack had a hook!"  No one had invented it yet.  Can you believe it?

Check out some past posts if you are looking for some crafting ideas.  There are lots of ideas posted on past blogs.....right here on this site.  I will be bringing some new projects soon!

Happy Crafting!

Marilyn

Design Consultant

for CraZy TACKz

www.marilyngossett.com

www.crazytackz.com

marilyn@crazytackz.com

CraZy for Christmas!

Countdown to Christmas!

CraZy TACKz Advent Calendar

I know.....it isn't even Fall yet, and here we are looking at Christmas!  Well, we in the craft industry know that we need to stay ahead of the game and work months out to prepare for upcoming holidays, publications and the such!  In the last Blog, I shared some shots from the CraZy TACKz commercials that are being worked on.  Christmas was one of the featured Holidays and of course the CraZy TACKz Kid had to make an appearance and help with the decorations.

This is a screen shot, taken after the "CraZy TACKz kid" helped to

"Hook Up" the decorations with CraZy TACKz.  A little inside secret....the commercials were being shot in Austin, Texas....in August, during the longest heatwave on record!  You would think the Christmas decorations would be difficult to come by this time of year.  Hobby Lobby to the rescue!  They had Christmas decorations galore and we were able to get the mantle decorated for Christmas in August!

Here is a close-up of the Countdown to Christmas Calendar.  There is a decorated CraZy TACKz holding a special treasure of chocolate for each day of the month.  After all of the chocolate treasures are removed, the calendar can be packed away and used again every year.  For this project I used my die-cut machine for each cut-out.  I also purchased a 12" square wooden frame that I painted Black.  This particular frame had a 12" square space for an insert.  I placed 1/4" foam and a 12" square of foamcore board behind the decorated memory paper to absorb the TACKz.  This project probably took the better part of a day to complete all of the steps.  An alternative to cutting 25 two inch die-cut shapes would be to purchase some decorative die-cuts or stickers that are the right size and use those.  I love my die-cut machine and had fun picking out the shapes I wanted to use.  After the shapes were cut, I used a lap tray and glued the pieces together while watching a favorite TV program.  I enjoy being able to accomplish something at the same time I am relaxing and watching "the tube". (Do televisions even have a "tube" in them anymore?)  Food for thought.  Here is another close-up.

And...one more.....

I decorated the CraZy TACKz with glitter, and I told about how to do that in yesterday's Blog.  I also like to paint the CraZy TACKz...as I will show in the following picture.

See the little ladybugs?  Aren't they fun?  This design is a little more

fitting to this time of year!  Things are still growing and the leaves are still on the trees.  In fact, it is going to be about 100 degrees here today and it is almost the middle of September!  I bet our kids are sweating it out at school wearing all of their new Fall finery.  It isn't supposed to be this warm after school starts! 

So, I hope you are having a great month wherever you live, and, of course let's not forget our heroes of 9/11.  I cannot think of that day without feeling a huge surge of emotion for our fallen heroes, their families and our great Country!  God Bless America, and all of us!

HAPPY CRAFTING,

Marilyn

Design Consultant

for CraZy TACKz

www.marilyngossett.com

marilyn@crazytackz.com

www.crazytackz.com

New generation of CraZy TACKz...coming soon!

CraZy TACKz Kid to the Rescue!

Need some organizing ideas for different rooms in the house?  For most kids, the little odds and ends of jewelry, bracelets, belts, glasses, etc. tend to get strewn around or put in tangled piles or worse yet...fall behind the furniture.

We have a CraZy TACKz solution...well, actually more than one, but we are going to show you one more fun craft project today that can help get these doo-dads organized.

This is a 12 x 12" square of (soft) wood that I found at my Craft Warehouse store.  It can also be found at Ben Franklin's Craft Stores.  The idea was, that once you push the tackz into the board, they will not be coming out.  Unlike the bulletin board designs, the tackz here will not be moved around.

First, the board was given a base coat of paint.  I chose a Lavender Americana paint by DecoArt.  I will share my method of getting the "peace sign" on the plaque.  All of the circular components are just that!  Circles of cardstock memory papers, layered to achieve the effect you see.  The strips of paper were cut and fitted to the top circle to make the peace sign.  I used my paper cutter and cut 1" strips.  Once all of the glue dried, I added some shading by "floating" a darker shade of orange around the inside edges of the peace sign and the lavender to the lighter paper as shown.  This can also be achieved with chalk instead of paint.  I then applied a coat of Decoupage medium to the entire piece and let it dry completely.

Now for the really fun part!  I purchased a package of dimensional stickers and used these to decorate my plaque.  I punched a 1/16" hole in the middle of each sticker that I chose, then carefully pushed it into the plaque with the CraZy TACKz.  Using a thumb on each side of the tackz stopper helps to push it in evenly. 

Do you wonder how the TACKz got the glitter?  I will tell you about decorating your CraZy TACKz at the end of today's Blog.  Next, I want to show you a screen shot from the commercial that was recently shot for CraZy TACKz featuring the CraZy TACKz Kid.  She shows up when there is a problem and offers the solution of CraZy TACKz!

 Does this look like the typical dresser top of an average kid?  Well, here is CraZy TACKz to the rescue!

Ta-dah!  "CraZy TACKz" and the "CraZy TACKz Kid" have saved the day!

CraZy TACKz!  a Tack with a Hook!  We help you "Hook it up!"

I will be bringing you some more screen shots in the near future.  This being a brand new product, there is a lot of motion in place to get it introduced.  Next, I will tell you about how much I LOVE decorating CraZy TACKz and with supervision, this is a fun project for older kids.  Number #1...I start with a 1" thick circle of Styrofoam brand foam.  This is important because you will need to have the foam to stick the CraZy TACKz in when you are done painting or decorating it.  I love the sound and feel of pushing the Tackz into the foam, but I am weird....so what can I say....?

Next, I carefully open the package and push all of my TACKz into the foam.

You will need some Dimensional Medium and there are several brands out there to choose from.  Dimensional Magic is one brand made by Plaid, there is Glossy accents by Ranger, and I am certain one or two other makers.  (Ask for some help at the store if you need it...)  For the glitter, I shop in the Rubber Stamping section of the store because I prefer the very "fine" glitters.

When you are ready to apply glitter to your TACKz, you will need a couple of paper plates, (not foam because the glitter will stick to it).  Pick up a TACKz by the hook, evenly apply dimensional medium to the clear stopper.

Sprinkle the glitter over the TACKz, shake a little and place into the foam to dry.  If doing multiple colors, work with one color at a time so you don't mix up your glitters.  You can use these glittered CraZy TACKz by themselves, or with a cute sticker or die-cut.  I have lots of examples in past Blogs and will be showing new examples in Blogs to come!  Stay tuned.

Again, if you need any more instruction than what I have given here, please send me an e-mail.  I will be happy to help answer any questions and want you to be successful with creating your project!

HAPPY CRAFTING,

Marilyn

Design Consultant

for CraZy TACKz

www.marilyngossett.com

marilyn@crazytackz.com

www.crazytackz.com

New Generation CraZy TACKz coming soon!

Commercials in the works for CraZy TACKz

Whew!  The last week has been a whirlwind on my very handy Die-cut machine!  We are working on all the seasons for some commercials for CraZy TACKz and had to come up with some designs reflecting each season!  Not all are readily available at our local party stores this time of year.  Because I believe that CraZy TACKz and Crafting go hand-in-hand, I am going to feature some of the garlands and vignettes that we created to set the stage!  The first pictures are the vignette of snowmen and snowflakes for our Christmas Holiday theme.  Look how cool this tackz works to hang everything up! We can hang multiple items on this one tack with a hook if we want to.  The next photos are the completed vignette.  If you look closely, you will see a black cat in the mirror.  Bad luck just doesn't go with Christmas...so we will just appreciate him for the naughty cat he is...climbing on the kitchen nook table!  His name is "Terror".  I am sure you have heard about self-fulfilling prophecies?  Case in point with this kitty.

This picture is just to show placement.  It does not have all of the mechanics of the design "hidden" as they would be for the actual holiday.  I added some ribbon and 1" silver and pearl Christmas balls to the garland to finish it (after the photo was taken). For the actual holiday, I would add some greenery or other pretties to give it a proper finish!

Here is another close-up of the die-cut decorations.  CraZy TACKz are the way to go when hanging up all of your holiday decorations.  Our commercials will reflect this when the CraZy TACKz Kid makes an appearance and saves the day!  Stay tuned for more!

Halloween! This Holiday is right around the corner.  Did you know that this is 2nd only to Christmas in Retail?  As you can see, CTZ to the rescue again!

 Valentine's Day is a ways away..but we are filming it now.  See the hooks coming out of the hearts?  You can hang your balloons and streamers from those hooks.  Forget about tape, staples and plain old tacks.  This tack with a hook is the quick and handy fix.

Next up.....Happy Birthday!

We are hanging balloons and ribbons from the hooks here too!

Last up is the 4th of July.  We can celebrate our freedom everyday in this great country we live in.  God Bless America!  Every day is a blessing.

The American flag will hang above the garland...and balloons will be hung from the hooks.  Stay tuned for more.  This is just one element of the CraZy TACKz commercial.  These die-cut decorations are on there way to Austin, Texas today.  They will be used in seasonal commercials and I will let you in on the finished product as soon as we get it all done!  Fun stuff!

If you have any questions about the tools I used to create these designs, I would be glad to share information to help you have success with your own projects.  Just send me an e-mail at marilyn@crazytackz.com

Until next time,

Happy Crafting!

Marilyn

Creative Consultant

for CraZy Tackz

www.marilyngossett.com

www.crazytackz.com