Made Sewing Studio at 8408 Greenwood Ave. N. is one of the many places hosting a worldwide “Craftsy” party on Thursday night. Craftsy is on online crafting community which hosts classes and neighborhood gatherings in hundreds of cities.

Made Sewing Studio Owner Carisa Brunner says she’s expecting more than 40 people at her shop from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Thursday. Everyone is encouraged to bring along their current projects, along with samples or pictures of recently completed projects. Any kind of crafting, from sewing to knitting or jewelry making, is welcome. Feel free to bring a snack or beverage to share with the group.

People have packed the Phinney Neighborhood Association’s Winter Festival & Crafts Fair, according to coordinator Lisa Crabtree.

She said today that the festival has been a great success, with big crowds, especially on Saturday. Vendors, too, are pleased with the turnout and their sales, she said.

The festival goes until 5 p.m. today and also features entertainment on two stages, including the Hukunani Dancers:

The final acts take the stage at 3:30 p.m. You’ll have your choice of the Ballard Sedentary Sousa Band, or Shahrazad, a belly dance group.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has delayed implementation of a law that could have forced some local crafters of kid stuff to implement costly lead testing or be considered illegal. There’s more in the P-I. One person quoted in the article said the law hurt many of the people who are trying to make kid-safe products.

“The irony is that many people who make handmade items do it specifically because they know those will be safe,” said Adam Brown, a spokesman for Etsy, a popular Web site offering handmade goods by 200,000 sellers.

The CPSC has granted a one year delay on testing and certification for crafters and childrens’ garment makers.

A couple months back, Wendy Powell at Childish Things raised alarm about the law, saying it could put consignment stores out of business as well. The CPSC later offered clarification on that point, saying consignment stores didn’t have to test their inventory, but that they should not sell items that were above the legal limit. But researching whether every used item is legal or not could pose its own challenges, one would think.

Thanks, Travis, for flagging the story for us.