SDC 279 Animals Only!

So, I am always haunting the clearance aisle, as a thrifty crafter, and this last week I found this amazing Heidi Swapp Instalove photo holder and it was so cheap that I just had to have it. I knew it was destined for Stampotique. My thought behind it was that it could be used to hold ATCs and display them.

So, on to the challenge at hand. Use ANIMALS. Well.....I feel like unicorns are for sure animals.

Yes, ...my geek is showing. Ask me if I care....10 points if you can name this book. (yes, movie too)

ANYhow. So I colored up our adorable unicorn with copic markers. I must get back into the habit of using copic markers. It is so fun to color and watch an image come to life.  I also used one of our new hashtag sentiments. I stamped #artwork onto a gesso treated veneer. Some fun papers,  washi tape and, of course, BLING...

I even had some amazing GOLD glitter flaked paper that was perfect for the edging. My Tombow adhesive is amazing for stuff like this! Take note! It...is....AWESOME! Oh, and a sweet paper flower.

See how perfect this is for holding ATCs?? It would be a great project for those of you that love ATC swapping as much as I do! Someday I will post a video if my amazing year of swapping!

Alright! I hope this inspires you to get creating with all of your amazing animal stamps and papers and things! Be sure to check out what the rest of the design team has created and be sure to link up when you get your projects done!

INGREDIENTS:

Unicorn: Stampotique
#artwork: Stampotique
Heidi Swapp Instalove Tall Photo Display
Some Odd Girl Designer Paper
Heidi Swapp Washi Tape
Glitter Paper
Copic Markers
Tombow Glue
Color Box Black Ink
Various Bling

Fantastic Fabric ATCs

This month for the ATC swap over at Stampotique we tried to come up with something a little bit different. So, I asked my husband to give me ideas. He said, "What about fabric?" Still high off my banner for the blog hop I said, "Yes! That is perfect!" So back to my scrap fabric stash I went.

I recently ordered a few new stamps from Stampotique and this puppy was needing to be on this ATC....and...given his position....I thought the, "pull my finger" stamp was just about perfect.

The only paper used on this ATC was for the back (stampted ATC back) and the dog and sentiment. The rest is fabric, interfacing, thread and twine. Oh, and a bit of acrylic paint and watercolor. I really hope that my partners enjoy these.

Additionally, it is Word Up Weekend once again over at Stampotique so..."Pull My Finger"....::snicker:: These ATCs were a blast to make so maybe in the future I will create more. Fabric is just as fun as paper, and we ALL know how I feel about paper!

Happy weekend, happy sentiments and...you know...if you gotta....pull my finger!

INGREDIENTS:
Floating Dog: Stampotique
"Pull My Finger": Stampotique
Various Joann Fabric Fabrics
Tim Holtz Twine
Color Box Ink
Faber Castell Gelatos

Stampotique Blog Hop

Stampotique Design Team Announcement and Blog Hop

Hello and welcome back to the blog. We are so excited because today we are announcing our new design team and we will be having a Blog Hop

We would first like to extend a fond farewell to some of our current team. We are blessed here at Stampotique to have so many wonderful and talented ladies on our team and we are always heartbroken when we have to say goodbye.

Saying goodbye for now but maybe not forever to:

Samantha Read

Kathi Rerek

Gay Peplow

Gloria Steiger

Tera Calihan

Julie Steed

Corrie Herriman

We are so happy to have had these ladies on our team, thank you all so much for lending us your talents. We hope you have wonderful success in whatever adventure are to come.

Now onto our new team and Blog Hop……. Our new team will be showing off Stampotique’s new stamps for July and will be showcasing their talents. Make sure to leave a comment on each blog. We will be doing a random drawing for:

1.     A Stampotique Grab Bag

2.     A 30.00 Gift Certificate to the online Stampotique Store

You will not know which blog we are drawing from so leave a comment on each one. Come back here on Friday July 8^th to see if you won!!

 The Blog Hop line-up and new teammies are:

Arwen McCullen

Karen Hayselden

Nellie Van Leeuwen

Cassandra Sloan

Sternenglanz

Jo Capper-Sandon

Michele Kosciolek

Cornelia Wenokor

Jools Robertson

Milo Lilja

Gemma Maggs

Valerie Wilson

Yvonne Baas

Cheetarah Cheda

Elena Martynova

We are thrilled and SO excited about this new team. Some ladies have re-joined us from our previous team and some are new to us.

Please bid a warm welcome to them! I think you will enjoy all their different esthetics and the many ways they show off the Stampotique’s line of stamps.

Again – be sure to hop to each blog and leave a comment then come back here and let us know what you thought.

Have fun!!!

Omgosh, so July is huge for Stampotique so I wanted to make something a bit more special for our big month. Not only are we having a massive release, we have new DT members! It is So huge! Guys, I am so sad to see some of my team mates go, but thankful to get to stick around and excited to get to design with new talent. <3

For my project, I chose to use one of our new images with a few of our older images. When I saw "Floating", I knew he had to be partnered with "Smile". Like brothers. SO sweet!! I also decided to try something I have never done before and make a mixed media banner with fabric scraps and paper. Oh, and a stick from my yard and some scrap lace.

This was SO fun to make and I really cannot wait to create another! It was so easy and so fun and kind of....I dunno, its just neat. I am thinking this may hang on our door for Valentine's Day next year! I think the sentiment goes well too and it is good for any time. I used my zig zag stitch to attach it to the banner. 

 And srsly, look at these lil guys!!! How sweet are they together! It was like they were meant to be! And the wings on the heart is kind of awesome, if I do say so myself! I colored the images lightly with Copics, but just enough to make them come to life. I didn't want to over-do it.

So, onto the next person, Sternenglanz I hope you have a blast with this blog hop!! Happy hopping!

June Release and Word Up Weekend

I am back and it is not only Word Up Weekend but we just had another wonderful release at Stampotique! Loads of new, fabulous stamps to be had, but 2 of my favorites are these two feathers.

I also used an older sentiment for my words this weekend. They belong with these feathers, wouldn't you say? I used ink sprays and gelatos for the background here and used gelatos to make the feathers and words pop a bit with just a sprinkling of bling. This card is all wrapped up in whimsy.

Be sure to pop over to the Stampotique website and check out all of our latest images! Happy weekend!

Ingredients:

Color Her Soul: Stampotique
Kassa's Feathers: Stampotique
Tattered Angels Ink Sprays
Faber Castell Gelatol
Color Box Black Ink
Bristol Smooth Paper
Various Sequins and Bling

Word Up Weeked

So, here I am again, time for Word Up Weekend and I find myself using an oldie but a goodie, once again. I really love this sentiment.

This week I decided to create and art journal style page. This week my son was so enamored with outdoor things that I was inspired to create a whimsical page for him and no sentiment but this one would do.

 I created baby wipe flowers and made a huge mess with the multi media and it was a blast!

I really tried to capture the essence of my boy blowing his dandelion puff but my printer wasn't having it so I used a marker to kind of draw your attention to what is going on in the photo. See the word "wish"? It was created using the background alpha stamp that came out this month. I stamped it out and cut out the letters from card-stock to create my own word. LOVE multi-use stamps!

I plan to find a frame and hang this one. (Maybe after getting the photo printed somewhere else...) I love how it all came together! Have a wonderful weekend and be sure to check out our facebook page for more fun word up weekend projects!

Ingredients Used:

Enjoy Today, Stampotique
Alpha Background, Stampotique
Dina Wakely Acrylic Paint
Lindy's Stamp Gang Ink Spray
Lindy's Stamp Gang Magical Shaker
Tim Holtz Rays Stencil
Dina Wakely Bird Stencil
Diane Revealy Large Triangle Stencil
Flow Magazine Paper
Ranger Texture Paste
Paper Studio Gesso
Tim Holtz Twine
Sequins
Baby Wipe Flowers
Veneers
Corrugated Cardboard

Lindy's Color Challenge For April

Good morning, all! I am so excited to finally get to share this secret! Stampotiqu and Lindy's Stamp Gang have collaborated to bring you something extra special this month! The Stampotique ladies were sent some of the most amazing mixed media products that I have gotten to play with in a very long time!!  Will you just look at this deliciousness??

Of course, the color palate we were sent was perfect for the April color challenge that Lindy's has running. I love this color combination. I would never have thought to put that green in there. Perfection!

For my project I really wanted to showcase the versatility of not just Stampotique stamps, but the versatility of Lindy's products. I started with a blank chipboard frame slathered with acrylic gesso. (when in doubt, gesso!!!) I used my Flat Fabio Raspberry Lemonade. Such a gorgeous pink! Yumm-O!! I then watered it down and let it run all over, using the heat gun to move the color around. I created about 3 layers this way. 

So, my favorite product that I have tried from Lindy's has to be the magic shakers. LOOK at how many colors are magically in the Black Forest Magic Shaker, guys!!! 

 Seriously, will you just LOOK at this MAGIC up in here?? My mind almost literally exploded when I tried the Magic Shaker the first time. I already have 2 more picked out to buy you guys. Seriously...

In the end, this was my base for my frame. I love how reactive the sprays are. Just a bit of water changes everything!! SO much fun!!

Now, for the details. We were sent a little jar of Magical in Sidewalk Chalk and admittedly, at first I was unsure why we would need white....MAN was I narrow-minded. After thinking on it I experimented. A bit of Starburst Spray in Hawaiian Blue with a pinch of Magical and poof, a goreous pastel blue that I could mix into my Ranger texture paste. It....was....gorgeous!!! I used my Dina Wakely arrow stencil and that blue really popped off of the frame.

Next I decided to use the Embossing Powder we were sent (Dandelion Yellow Green).  I grabbed one of our latest release stamps from Stampotique, a scrawling script background stamp and together these are really beautiful. The only trouble is, the subtle color doesn't pick up on photo the way it does in real life so, you will just have to trust me when I tell you how beautiful it is. Subtle is good.Not to mention, I have used quite a few embossing powders in my day but this one, because of  how fine it is, has the best coverage before and after heating that I have ever used.

I used all 3 sprays, the Flat Fabio, and both Starburst sprays to water color these sweet flowers from Stampotique. I have been wanting to use this stamp for what feels like forever and this project was just the right thing. I ended up coloring 2 of them and really like how easily these sprays worked as watercolors. Additionally, I used some extra Hawaiian Blue texture paste on this vintage key. Gave it a more shabby look instead of a vintage look. The small flower here was created using a white paper flower and spraying it thoroughly with Starburst Spray in Rusty Lantern Lime. It is hard to tell, but that flower is so shimmery in the light!!

While researching Lindy's Stamp Gang I came across this really wonderful video showing how to create flowers from used baby wipes (used as in....painted and splattered, not used by babies). I knew I had to create a couple of these for this project. Using the sprays, of course. I used Rusty Lantern Lime and the Black Forest Magic Shaker on the paper frame.  

The end result is so wonderful! I will have to either gift this frame (this will be almost impossible) or, I will have to find the most wonderful photo. This frame is a statement piece all of it's own. It is difficult to see but the embossed script is on both top and bottom of the frame.

I really hope this inspires you to get messy and create something beautiful. Until this project I had no idea just how versatile all of the sprays and products really could be and I challenged myself to ONLY use the Lindy's products provided and was not at all disappointed. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised. So, thank you Lindy's Stamp Gang for teaming up with Stampotique. I see a new obsession in my future!

Ingredients:

Kassa's Blossom: Stampotique
Script Background: Stampotique
Flat Fabio Raspberry Lemonade: Lindy's Stamp Gang
Stardust Spray Hawaiian Blue: Lindy's Stamp Gang
Stardust Spray Rusty Lantern Lime: Lindy's Stamp Gang
Magical Sidewalk Chalk Lindy's Stamp Gang
Magical Shaker Black Forest Black Lindy's Stamp Gang
Embossing Powder: Dandelion Yellow Green: Lindy's Stamp Gang
Jolee's Boutique/EK Success White Paper Flowers
Arrows Stencil: Dina Wakely
White Paper Frame: Jilli Bean Soup
Bakers Twine: Tim Holtz
Adhesive Pearls
Adhesive Gems
Star Sequins
Texture Paste: Ranger

Word Up Weekend, "La De Frickin Dah!"

I am pretty sure that you know how much I love snarky sentiments by now. This post will be no exception. I recently ordered some more stamps from Stampotique and just HAD to create a card using some of my new images.

Over at the Stampotique Facebook page we are working on Word Up Weekends, which, essentially means that since we LOVE our sentiments we are sharing project with you that use just that! Sometimes its hard to come up with sentiments for a project. That is why we took the hard work out of it for you!

I have been drooling over Rudy the seahorse for quite some time and finally had to buy him. I had a watercolor paper already made that just seemed perfect for him. And, of course, a snarky sentiment, also from Stampotique.

I really love the contrast of the brights with the black. makes everything just pop right off the page! You should head over to Stampotique and see how many other wonderfully silly sentiments they have! Seriously! Additionally, you should check out our Facebook page for more inspiration!

Ingredients:

Rudy (Stampotique)
Well, La De Frickin' Dah! (Stampotique)
American Crafts Paper (Target Dollar Spot)
Dylusions Ink Sprays
Ranger Archival Black Ink
Twine
Adhesive Sequins
3L Adhesives/Home and Hobby (foam dots and permanent runner)

SDC #258 Favorite Quote

When I was younger, I had a Tigger (yes, tigger) notebook that I used to write down every inspirational quote that meant something to me. I must still have it somewhere. Anyway, I kind of wish I still knew where it was. This week we are continuing our theme at Stampotique, which is, "favorite quote". Luckily, Stampotique has a lot of fun and inspirational quote stamps.

This one, "Color Her Soul" really spoke to me. It needed to be a wall hanging. It is a larger stamp so that worked out well. Moth Fab seemed like the perfect girl to be paired with this sentiment. 

And, of course, Moth Fab got the watercolor pencil treatment as well as a white paint pen to make her pop. Love using mixed colors on her. 

Its no secret that I have really gotten into mixed media over the last couple of years, and this is no exception. For this wall hanging I used Dina Wakely heavy bodied acrylic paint as well as some other acrylic paint. For the texture on the background I used Diane Revealy's "large triangle" stencil and Ranger texture paste. 

Loved how all of these elements came together to tell a story and back up the sentiment. Went a little heavy on the accessories, but I think they work. Even stiffened some bakers twine to create a fun detail behind the flowers.

Be sure to check out all of the other beautiful projects (see the DT on the left bar of this page) and then enter our challenge!!! 

Ingredients:

Stamp: Color Her Soul

Stamp: Moth Fab

Dina Wakely Heavy Bodied Acrylic Paint

Prima Handmade Flowers

Ranger Texture Paste

Ranger Archival Ink

Watercolor Pencils

Bakers Twine

Sequins

Adhesive Pearls, Paper Studio

Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist, Chalkboard

Various Washi Tape

ATC DIY Stamping!

Do you ever look at your mixed media projects and wish you had a different way to add pattern or texture? Or, are you on a budget like I am and don't want to spend money on a fancy background stamp? Yeah. Been there.

So....this is what I do....I create something using whatever I have lying around.

For this I used jute twine and bubble wrap. Both subtle, but exactly what I needed to create a fun pattern for my ATCs. I used Americana acrylic paint in lieu of ink.

The houses are Stampotique, of course, and this time I broke out my Copic markers as well as my Prima markers. They blend well together, which is awesome! I love the whimsy of these houses and had a lot of fun imagining a color scheme for them. 

I added some doodled boarders and a couple of cute sentiment stickers to round off the whimsy. I am excited to swap these, but kind of sad to see them go as well. It is always hard to swap away something you like, but if you like it, then you know your partner will appreciate it as well. 

Did you know Stampotique also carries an ATC stamp for the back of all of your ATCs and it is delightful with its webs and skull spiders. Be sure to check it out! 

Ingredients:

Stitched Houses

Bubble Wrap

Jute Twine

Americana Acrylic Paint

Teresa Collins Sticker Sentiment

Copic Markers

Mail, Mail, Here Is The Mail

Congratulations! If you have ever watched Blue's Clues you now have an obnoxious preschool song stuck in your head....

ANNNND now you have a Jefferey Dallas song stuck in your head. Muahahaha. Did I mention I am kind of manic lately? Yeah. Lots of stuff going on, so now I am being dorky. Hope that's okay.

So, recently I reconnected with a dear friend of mine and, like myself, she loves to color and with the new "fad" that has finally caught up to the both of us I wanted to print some free coloring pages and send them to her.

Years ago now, probably at least 5 years? She sent me this amazing box with glitter, paint and washi tape ALL over it. I swear this is STILL glitter in my dining room from that box. I wanted to create something just as special for her that she could keep or hang (or toss, whatever) but make it also be meaningful and make her smile.

I started with a manila envelope (size, 10 x 13...YIKES) and laid down a generous layer of Gesso. I didn't want the colors to mute or get muddy. I also didn't want the watercolors seeping through the paper and creating a ripped up mess either. 

Once that dried, I used my favorite technique of watering down my Dylusions spray inks and creating a beautiful piece of art. I just love this technique and was SO happy with the outcome this time!! I used some stencils and paint to add some more pattern/interest and, of course, used my faber castell black pen and my posca pen (white) to doodle like mad. 

I tried something different too. I decided to stamp these girls on label paper, like, what you would get at staples? Colored them with colored pencil and cut them out with my fussy scissors. It was perfect! No way these gals are coming off in the mail! No worry about how to affix them or masking them off. It worked so well! 

I really can't wait to take this to the post office tomorrow and send it on its way. REALLY can't wait for the recipient to get it though! I hope she loves it! 

Ingredients:

Stampotique Stamps:

Marsha

Sargent

Hanging Hearts

Just Keep On 

Stencil Girl Circles 

Dylusions Circle Stencil

Dylusions Ink Sprays

Ranger Gesso

Posca White Pen

Faber Castell Black Pen

Ranger Archival Black Ink

Folk Art Acrylic Paints

Americana Acrylic Paints

Label Paper

Colored Pencils

Its ATC Time Again!

This month over at Stampotique our ATC swap theme is Stamped Background. The idea is to stamp a background and hi-light that stamp or another in the foreground. Of course I had to use my cute little monsters. Plushy and the Goat Monster. I went a little bit more simple in an effort to have the stamped background and monsters pop. I love how they turned out.

This first one is on a background that I created for my video on watercolor backgrounds.  It was exactly what I needed for this goat monster and his silly plushies.

 This card I used an extra panel I had from the party banner  that was created awhile back for my first DT slot. I cut it down to the appropriate size and stamped Plusy all over the back. I used watercolor pencils for Goat Monster and then used the "caution" part of the Approach With Caution stamp. I love how the expression on Goat Monster's face almost seems like he is in a daze, or in the twilight zone with Plushy behind him.

 I flipped the colors for the second card, using the blues and greens on the back with the warmer yellows and oranges for the goat. Finished up both cards with a gel pen to create a funky boarder.

Pretty much love the way these guys turned out. I am really enjoying learning to use different color schemes and not just my go-to colors.

So, be sure to hop over and join our ATC swap! There are so many amazing artist waiting to swap with you!

Ingredients:

Goat Monster (Stampotique)
Plushy (Stampotique)
Approach With Caution (Stampotique)
Ken Oliver Color Liquid Metals
Dylusions Sprays
Watercolor Pencils
Black Archival Ranger Ink

SDC #254

Hello, again! It is me!! Back with another super fun challenge for Stampotique! This time around the challenge is, "Text Background". This one really was a cinch for me. I LOVE using text pretty much ALL of the time on my mixed media projects. I didn't want to just make a card, so I asked my son to choose some monsters and poof....a door hanger. Is that what these are called? I don't even know.

So, for the text, before I even had a picture in my head, I knew I wanted to use the "Approach With Caution" stamp for my background. Only using 1 text wasn't enough though. I used a sheet from an old dictionary and covered the hanger (from hence forth they shall be door hangers, whether this is correct or not). A smattering of gessso over it, but not enough to cover all of the words.

Next, of COURSE the Dylusions sprays came out to play. I am for serious. I friggen love the things. It came out way better than the picture in my head. Once it was all dry, I stamped the mess out of the background. Texture is another fave, so Dylusions large triangle stencil and Ranger texture paste were in order. A bit of Faber Castell gelattos and it was ready.

HOW FLIPPING FUN IS THIS?!?! Excuse the all caps, but I was pretty pleased with the outcome. Not very often that the picture in your head comes out on paper as well as you had hoped. Check out how you can see some of the dictionary words along with the stamped words. Also, side detail, the little ink dots that stayed and didn't run are SO NEAT!(sorry, caps again)

Last but of COURSE, not least, these little monsters. Noah chose Feathery Monster, and Unicorn's Cousin for his hanger, and coloring these was so fun! Watercolor pencils and water brushes. I just kept layering and drying and layering until the desired effect was reached. Both of these little monsters fit my son's personality so well. I can almost see his laughing face in them. 

I hope my little project has inspired you to go forth and create something fun with these stamps for your home. If you do, don't forget to hop on over and post your entry on our link up!!  Also, be sure to check out my team mates (posted on the left bar). They have much more eye candy to eat up! Happy creating!

Ingredients:

Stamp: Feathery Monster
Stamp: Unicorn's Cousin
Stamp: Approach With Caution
Ranger Dylusions Spray
Faber Castell Gelato
Spellbinders Circle Dies
Spellbinders Scallop Dies

Time For Another Stampotique ATC swap!

Its that time again! New month, new ATC swap for Stampotique! Lets get this party started! Hop on over to our event here if you are interested!

This month the theme of the swap is, "Sentimental". Choose a sentiment, be it sarcastic, sweet, kind...it doesn't matter. I think we all know what kind of sentiments I prefer....Which is one of the many reasons I love being on this design team!

The stamped sentiment I used is from Stampotique. It is called, "Sarcasm". Told you I loved this company. I think I shall put this on my next job resume. It might win points...you know, for honesty! The background was stamped using the "Circles Cube". It was stamped using glacier white pigment ink from ranger, and then I used Zing embossing powder to make it pop and give it the texture you all know I love. A bit of washi and some bling...all on a background created using Dylusions sprays (I might need to just get a job at Ranger since I use their stuff ALL of the TIME....) The sentiment was colored using Faber Castell Gelatos and a watercolor brush pen. 

I sure hope the recipient of this card enjoys it and gets  a smile from it. Be sure to head over and join us in our ATC swap on FB. All you have to do is make sure you use one of Stampotique's fantastic stamps for your card. Hope to see you there!

Ingredients:

Stamp: Circle Cube

Stamp: Sarcastic

Ranger Pigment Ink, Glacier White

Ranger Archival Black Ink

Dylusions Sprays

Faber Castell Gelatos

Zing Embossing Powder, White

Sequins

Adhesive Pearls