LIM , US challenge..and a bunch of stuff...

Less is More: Header Inspiration

Today is the last day of the month  Stampotique will be sponsoring the Less is More challenge and they have challenged us to use their header as inspiration.  Make sure you check out their blog for guidelines to the Less is More challenge. Stampotique is  giving away at $30 gift certificate for Stamps ! This will also go for the "anything goes challenge blog" = polka dots, birthday.  Here is my take on the LIM blog header as inspiration:

So, yea...pretty easy and love it!  I used this gorgeous butterfly (large butterfly 3047) and stamped it once in crushed curry (SU) and once in black. The dots are a stencil same ink with a sponge.   Then I used Wish (word 3048 ) both by Jo Capper-Sandon , on the left bottom.  These are a few images that I use ALOT .  Next is my creation for the Unscripted Sketches' challenge this week.  I used "thinking of you" .  
I colored with copics and did a little sewing and layering.  The words are from a TH sticker sheet . I would also like to enter this into the challenge at : "daring card makers " challenge blog= Patterned paper mania! Use SIX different pattern papers on your card!  lol  LOVE IT!  Count em up baby!  Dont forget to count the little itty bitty tag to the top of the image ....he he he!

Last I am popping in my pages below for "art journal everyday"., and "just journal linky party"..went with an Independence day thought...did I mention  I L O V E  to art journal??.. :)

Using some Julie Balzer stencils with sprays , gesso and acrylics...magazine scraps..."sun design" and "daisy daisy" stamps from Stampotique.  I doodled the leaves and the white circles done with my fav white signo uniball pen.  Hope you all have a great 4th to celebrate..I hope it cools off here just a little.  TFL

Have you heard? DT call :)

Stampotique Design Team Call!

Stampotique has not had a design team all in awhile, and we know a lot of you have been asking-so here is your opportunity! We are looking for creative, inspiring, and friendly stampers to help promote Stampotique rubber stamps.

Our call is open to everyone and Stampotique stamps are not required to be used in your submission, but of course we would LOVE to see your use of our stamps.

This call will only be opened for 2 weeks from Saturday, June 23 and closing on Saturday, July 7th. The design term will be August 2012-December 2012.

If you are interested, please read all the information below on what Stampotique is looking for in a designer.

What we are looking for in our Designers:
Love of Stampotique rubber stamps
Ability to work with different challenges
Creative ability to think outside of the box 
Willingness to share your creations on your blog and public galleries

Design Team Requirements:
Commitment to design for 4 months (August 2012 - December 2012)
4 projects per month to be posted on your personal blog and public galleries 
(2 projects are challenges & 2 are anything you wish to create)
Participate in blog hops and sponsored promotions as needed
Post to Stampotique Designers Blog at least once a month (blogger format)
Ability to take good, quality photos of your creations
Must have an active personal blog and be able to promote Stampotique whenever possible
Commenting on challenge participants for our bi-monthly challenges 

Benefits of the Design Team Members:
Stampotique stamps to create with (you will get to choose which ones you would like to work with)
Name and a Link to your blog will be displayed on our blogs
Display the Stampotique Design Team badge on your blog
An opportunity to work with unique and fun stamps
A fun, friendly and diverse design team
Discount of 25% to anything on the Stampotique website

If being a part of this amazing design team interests you, please submit the following information to khowardga@gmail.com by July 7th, 2012 at 11:59 p.m. EST with Stampotique DT Call as the subject line:

1. Name, Address & Phone Number
2. Brief bio including link to your blog and any galleries you regularly post to and any current design team commitments. (Please remember we are looking for ACTIVE bloggers)
3. Why would you like to be part of the Stampotique Design Team?
4. Attach 3 projects that show your creative style. (please keep each under 100K)
5. Your top 3 favorite artists (not design team members) at Stampotiqu

A "screaming bunny" for the US challenge and LIM

"Stress is when you wake up screaming and realize you havent been to sleep yet.." LOL  Great quote??  Check out the new sketch challenge over at the US blog.  I did a little painting, inking and stamping with "screaming bunny" (Roc Nicholas-Stampotique), "further round the edge" vine  (Dyan Reavley), and "sun design" (Stampotique).  After I inked and painted thru a new Julie Balzer stencil, I stamped the leaves and painted them with dylusions ink from the craft mat. Screaming bunny was colored with copics and cut out.  Sentiment is computer generated. 

Next up is yet another Less Is More challenge - Paper piecing....and dont forget Stampotique is sponsoring this whole month so you could win a $30.00 gift card to the store. :) Check the LIM blog for details AND check out what the rest of the  Stampotique dt did here! 

This is "under the parapluie" and the whole gang was just stamped on white cs and paper pieced scraps of dp.  The rain is Bgooo and Bgo2 copics.  Easy peasy!
LASTLY...Ah-hemmmm....another journal page for the" art journal every day post! "

 Recipe in short order:  Dylusions sprays, acrylics, gesso, white paint, JBalzer stencil, other stencils, Recollections calligraphy pen, white uniball pen and magazine flowers.  Thanks for looking at THREEEEEE pics from me!  Hope you have a sunny weekend! :)

Sunday postcard art and the LIM challenge

Over at Sunday postcard art the challenge is "Shakespeare"..a pic or a quote..any medium is welcome as long as it is 6x4.  I used some paints, distress inks and copics on "queen of hearts" #9231 from Stampotique and "squiggle arms" # 2404.  The quote is Shakespeare.

Stampotique is also sponsoring the Less is More challenge throughout the month of June and the challenge this Sat is to use something shiny on your card.  Again, its funny cuz this Less is More is REALLY a challenge for me lol.. but fun :)

 I used "catepillar" 9234 by artist Janet Klein  and just stamped him on white cs then colored with copics.  I then stamped sun design #2095 after inking up with two pads and put a gem in the middle for my "shiny" piece. ( happy happy #9007) tfl!

SDC56 Use the same stamp twice

This week our hostess is Willy at the Stampotique Designer challenge blog and she would like to see how creative you can be using the same stamp twice on your project!  Here is my card using the image "wow" #2088 stamped across a piece of inked up cs that I had used to wipe off ink from a stencil in  my art journal.

 Great idea and it gives you so many fun papers to work with later.  I also just did some random sewing across the top and bottom of the panel. 

Hope you will join us this week for your chance to win a $30 gift certificate to Stampotique for stamps.  Please remember that in order to qualify you must use your Stampotique stamps and only one entry per person.  Ofcourse BELOW  I have to pop in a little more of my art journaling pages.  I am overboard with  art journaling and picking up books left and right!

Here I used some spray inks, Julie Balzer stencils, acrylics and some magazine quotes.  The tree was just randomly cut from a book page and inked up.  I wrote with a caligraphy pen and white uniball.  The stamped art "tools"  are from Stampotique= tools  #6145.  TFL

The world awaits a "pretty party dress"

I recently had a request from a wonderful friend to make a grad card for a young girl.  It seems she is very smart=  graduating with a degrees in finance and science.  She is also a very accomplished swimmer.  I pulled out one of my very favorite Stampotique stamps: "pretty party dress #9216".  I paper pieced this dress again (love doing that on this image) with print on thin dp.  The print I just custom made on word .  I punched out heart shaped balloons and a cloud with congrats printed on it.  Dp backing is MME: tickled pink.  Hope she likes it since I always consider it to be a real challenge when someone asks me to make something special .  :) TFL

Sketch journaling and LIM sponsored by Stampotique

Stampotique is sponsoring the Less Is More challenges this month and some of the DT is joining in the challenges.  This week they are asking us to make a one layer card with a flourish.  I REALLY had a hard time with this (obviously! lol) BUT...in the end I love my card. :)

  I just used painters tape and made a square , then I sprayed with some distress ink and dried .  I stamped peacock #2065 over it.  Then I used the very tip (end) of a very old stencil and dropped some distress ink from my mat over it for the fleurish.  I punched a star and inked the edges in black and added the gem.  Easy as can be!
Below is ONE of my art journal pages using the new sketch challenge over at the Unscripted Sketches challenge blog.  :)

Oh yeah....lol! I had alot of fun with this!  I was thinking of my kids and how they are all grown now...
I did this starting a little like Dyan Reavly style by spraying water and Dylusions ink.  Same with the tags.  I used "Jo's flower cube" and stamped some flowers in black . Then " scalloped lace border stamp "(Roc Nicholas) on the bottom and some dp scraps that I sewed on. I copied and cut out the pic to fit on the line of dp.  The hearts on the tag were just cut out from some textured paper and sewn on.  I am also adding this to the list of journal pages over at "art journal everyday".  I also would like to enter this in the new challenge over at the C4C blog to use "circles" on your creation.  On the top right corner I had painted circles in acrylic and lined around them in black pit pen.  TFL!

Ah Summer! Tee's tag swap and some inky goods

Hi there!  Over at Tee's tag swap for June the theme is Summer.  This is the tag I made for my partner : Oliva.  I loved this image so much from my previous US post so I decided to use it again.  I grabbed a kraft/tag, some ribbons  and I printed out this quote I found somewhere (?)  "ah Summer..what power you have to make us suffer and like it.."  love that!   I sewed the ribbons any which way on the tag and the image on top.  I also  cut out the BUTTERFLY (C4C 139 challenge blog= add some butterflies to your creation)  from a scrap dp along with some inky scraps and pieces of a flower .



In keeping with "using some scraps"...I made a couple quick small cards to keep in my stash for when I need one.
Since I have been painting alot I have quite a bit of inky goodness hangin out here.  :)
Below I used some spray inks and dyes, a sun stencil (white paint) and "row faces" #6020 from Stampotique..along with "wee owl" #3041 who is cut out and popped up on the tag.   I just doodled the frame line around the tag.This fits the "Fab n Funky " challenge to "go green"= I used scraps of leftover journal papers, sequin waste to ink thru and  painted green.

Below again I sponged paint thru another Julie Balzer stencil and some sequin waste, sewed the border and put another tag on top.  I used "row faces", "Wish"#3048, "happy happy"#9007, and "good things good thoughts" #9012 all from Stampotique.

Love stamping on Kraft and saving scraps!  TFL!  

Unscripted sketch 161 and Art journal everyday!

It's Saturday! I used some BoBunny country garden dp along with an image from Cora over at her Clearly Vintage blog. for this weeks' sketch at Unscripted Sketches blog.   I just found her blog and she has some great vintage images for FREE ..check it out :)

I was thinking summer so this would fit for the "Raise the Bar" challenge: Hello Summer! ....  Yellow always says Summer to me....I got these gorgeous vintagy flowers on a reduced table and L O V E them.....sewed them all on a kraft tag. 

NOW...bear with me....I am CRAZY about Julie Fei Fan Balzer...so...I am FINALLY getting brave enough to post some of my art journaling.  This will be my first post to her Art journal everyday list.  This art journaling is just about the funnest thing I have ever been doing! :)
I found my Strathmore mixed media journal can take alot of paints and ink- its' great.  This was done using some Adirondaks spray inks, Dylusions and cheap acrylics.  Also some great stencils (Julie Balzer- the Crafters workshop)....

 Thanks to Julie I am finding some GREAT therapy lol! ................below was again spray inks, various stencils, stamps, magazine words and an image from Stampotique called "oh boys!" . 

Thanks for looking...I am ADDICTED now!  :)