Wish You Were Here calls out great places all over the world and Handmade Galleries LA recently made the cut!

“You’ll find goods from over 100 artisans, crafters, candy-makers, and people with a sharper sense of humor than you might expect from an L.A.-based shop. Pick up a pack of How About a Nice Big Pack of Shut the Hell Up gum. Or…”

Read the rest of this tremendous review here.

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Good food, great art, an ill-fated evening, crafting, and friendship abound in Kathy Cano-Murillo’s new novel Waking Up in the Land of Glitter.

With glue guns, glitter, twigs, or yarn, the ordinary can become extraordinary… especially at La Pachanga. Owned by Estrella “Star” Esteban’s family, the restaurant has a rep for two things: good food and great art. La Pachanga brings people together-even when it looks like they couldn’t be further apart.

“Every word in this hilarious, fun read sparkles. Kathy Cano-Murillo is certainly an author to watch. I woke up in the land of happy reading!”, Debbie Macomber, #1 New York Times bestselling author.

Order the book HERE or join her at one of her upcoming book signings:

• Tuesday, March 2nd : Good Morning Arizona, 9:15 a.m.
• Tuesday, March 2nd: Changing Hands Bookstore, 7 p.m. 6428 S McClintock Dr, Tempe, AZ 85283
• Wednesday, March 3rd: Borders Books and Music, 7 p.m. 2402 E. Camelback Road, Phoenix, AZ 85016
• Friday, March 5th: ALAC Arts Center, 147 E. Adams, Phoenix, 7 p.m.
• Saturday, March 6th: M7 Street Fair, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. 7th Avenue between Indian School and Campbell, Phoenix, http://m7streetfair.wordpress.com/
• March 13 & 14: Tucson Book Festival, Nuestras Raices Tent:
  - Saturday, March 13, 2010,Performance Stage 11:30AM-12:30PM reading from GLITTER and a short Q&A.  Craft Area 12:30-1:30 or 2PM Crafty Chica Workshop
  - Sunday, March 14, 2010, Craft Area 11-1:30PM workshop (different from workshop given on Saturday)
• Saturday, March 20: Barnes and Noble, 2 p.m. 21001 N. Tatum Blvd, Phoenix, AZ (Desert Ridge Marketplace)

Materials required: eight or so catalogs, tacky glue, super glue, clear packing tape, scissors, polyurethane lacquer finish.

First, begin by tearing out the pages of your catalogs and then folding each torn page, long ways, by creasing the paper approximately ¼” from the edge and then folding it over. Continue by making another crease ¼” from the new edge and then folding it over. Proceed until you have folded your paper over enough times so that it measures ¼” in width. Its length, however, should still be the height of the original catalog.
	Once you have a number of folded strips, you can begin to create the base for your tray. To start, take one folded strip and start to roll it as you would tape measure. Once it is completed rolled into a circle (see photo), use a piece of tape to secure it into place.
I used clear packing tape (I just cut small strips ¼” in size before I started this part of the craft). To follow, take another folded strip and tape it to your rolled circle, then coil it completely around the circle and secure it into place with another piece of tape. Continue until you are happy with the size of your base of your tray. My tray base measures just under 14” in diameter (see photo).
To follow, you will want to brush a coat of tacky glue across the top and bottom of the base. This will ensure that the base remains intact. Let the base dry for at least twelve hours before adding the lip.
While the base dries, you can begin making the lip of your tray. With your remaining folded catalog pages, you will use the same technique you used to create your base to create the lip. The only difference is that you will create several small circles with your folded catalog pages rather than one large one. I used three pages for each of my circles, of which I made 27 in all.
After all your circles are completed, you will then want to brush them each with tacky glue and allow them to dry as you did the base.
	Once all your circles are dry, you can then begin to glue them to the rim of your base to form a lip. To start, coat the bottom third of one side of each circle so to adhere each circle to the rim of the base.
You will also want to place a dab of glue to the edges of each circle so that they will stick to each other and remain in alignment. In addition to using tacky glue, you will want to go over your finished project with super glue to ensure its overall durability.
After you have glued all your circles completely around the base’s rim and finished up with super glue, let your project dry overnight and then coat it with polyurethane, as many times as desired, depending on the level of shine you desire. Let dry and enjoy!

For more information about Anise Stevens and her work, please visit http://www.anisemouette.com.