ARTS & CRAFTS

Not just hooking-and-looping anymore, Velcro® brand now makes adhesive for plastics. Our each is a 1-oz tube for porous and non-porous materials, including PVC, plastics, rubber and leather. Permanent and fast-drying, they say.

This buckish knife from Alpha Outpost is a heavy-duty—and weighty—single-blade pocket knife. Hang it at your side, but you might want to use the built-in belt clip so it doesn’t drag down your jeans. This is a solid piece, understand? Measure 8” long open, 4-3/4” closed with a 3-3/4” locking blade that’s 1” across at its widest. Handle is a wood-and-metal combination, and it’s got a hole to hang keys from.

From BIC®, the Intensity Coloring Pack includes (50) markers and pencils: (6) metallic markers, (12) fine point markers, (12) ultra-fine point markers and (20) coloring pencils. Color choices move across the spectrum and add a bunch of pastels for floral and unicorn fantasies. In a re-closeable plastic storage container.

Teensy tiny brushes for cleaning teensy tiny tubes, airbrushes, spray guns, tattoo equipment, nozzles, etc. Think miniature bottle brushes. You get a set of (5) brushes: 1/32", 1/16", 3/32", 1/8" and 3/16" dia. All have nylon bristles, are 4" long, and are on a slip ring so you won't lose them.

This excellent 4-piece set of double-ended picks is made of nylon so you won't damage your electronics or electrocute yourself. They have hex-shaped shafts for a good grip, and assorted pick, probe, hook and scraper ends. Equally good for auto detailing or any place where you want to avoid scratching.

Prick tiny bits of gunk from nasty places with these U.S. made hardened stainless steel dental tools. But please don't use them for dental work. They are slight seconds, and some may have been re-worked which only matters to teeth. Trim excess glue from models, place a barrel on the deck of the ship-in-a-bottle, clean a rasp. If you need the strength and durability in a tiny pick, you need these tools. We have an assortment of the sort you've seen laid out on your dentist's tray. We'll pick (3) different ones for you.

About 30-40 highly polished stones, all shiny, translucent, or brightly colored, ranging from 3/4" long to 1/8" long. Great for mosaics, jewelry, or aquariums.

And we did it ourselves with this self-healing cutting mat. It's hard rubber and no, we don't know how it heals itself, but it does. Measures 11-3/4" x 8-3/4" x 1/8" thick., it's marked in 1/8" and 5mm increments and 1/2" squares, with lines for 45° and 60° cuts.

Pop one of these roughly 1-1/4" dia stones into the toe of a sock, smash it with a hammer, and be the first person ever to see your real-as-Nature-makes-it geode!! Ninety percent of them have the familiar beautiful white crystals inside. Formed by volcanic action, they are found all over the world, but ours are from Mexico. There is no way to tell from the outside if they have crystal centers, but we will send you two just to raise your odds, and we haven't had a dud yet in our stores!! Much much more fun and satisfaction than buying one already cracked.

Whatever you call them they are super handy. Used for suturing, these are carbon-steel straight-locking needle holders, 5” long with narrow serrated 7/16” tips. And yes, you’re permitted to use them for other stuff if you’re not a surgeon. (Or even if you are a surgeon, actually.)

This all-purpose scissors is the favorite of everyone at A.S.&S.: Pat uses his to cut and strip wire. C.J. uses his to slit the tape on packages. Mary Ann uses hers to open bags of pretzels. It's 6-1/4" long overall, with a very sharp 2" stainless steel blade and large, comfortable handles. It would sell for $9.95 retail if it was new, but it was used for one day to cut cloth in the assembly plant of a major car company, then discarded. Quality control is a wonderful thing.

This set of (6) tweezers is as useful as it looks daunting. The (6) stainless steel tweezers vary in size from 4-1/2" up to 7". Two of the tweezers have serrated tips one is inverse, one has a slide latch and the others are straight flat tip. The set comes in a clear front plastic carrying case. Good for model cars, planes or hard to reach splinters.

You get (3) of these stainless steel surgical scissors, which have a shorter working length (with the hinge closer to the jaws) than regular snippers, but you still shouldn't try to remove your own appendix. Measure 4-3/8" long and are quite sharp.

Maybe a little eclectic for an artist with a single style, but perfect for one who's still searching for himself. Or for any hobbyist. There are no (2) brushes exactly alike in this set of (15). They all have natural bristles, color-coded wooden handles and metal ferrules, but they range from fairly fine to 1/2" wide, and 7" to 10" long. There are at least (3) different kinds of bristles, and they are round, blunt and pointed. A nice variety, and a very nice quality for this price.

Any way you want it. This cast aluminum wire jig for jewelry-making measures 4-3/8" x 1" x 5/8" with (4) 1” x 1/4” steel pegs, semi-circular and triangular bending points, slots at 3/32",1/8" and 3/16" wide, plus one with a small divot to one side. Includes mounting screws so you can stick it to your workbench. Not into jewelry? Bend your own fishing hooks, S-hooks and soft metal strips.  

Jewelers have the best looking tools. This ultra-slim knife is 4-1/2" long OA, with a flat metal handle that comes in assorted colors (our choice). The short, broad blade is honed to fit into the slit in a watch case and pop the back off easily. It doesn't fold into itself, but does come in a protective vinyl sleeve for storage. Very sharp.

These pretty, and pretty small, polished semiprecious stones include sodalite, tiger eye, quartz crystal, aventurine, amethyst, red jasper, fluorite, and rose quartz, plus a bonus assortment. You’ll get approx 1/2 oz of each in small corked bottles, 7/8” dia x 1-1/2” tall. The semiprecious pebbles are roughly 1/8” to 3/8” long.

These rolls of light blue, pink and yellow masking tape (and maybe even more colors) would be right at home at an Easter egg hunt or a preppy-themed party. Or for any taping situations where you don’t want to use the same old beige stuff. Bring some happy color into your life! These rolls are 1" wide and 10 yards long, and our each is (3) rolls of different colors.