Constantly Stamping

2012 Artisan Finalists Blog Hop - Day 2

Welcome to day two of our Artisan Finalists Blog Hop. I feel so honored and blessed to be sharing my projects with you over the next several day. Thank you so much for your wonderful, positive comments. I'm sure you will agree that there are some really talented Stampin' Up! demonstrators, but these gals are over-the-top creative. You may have just traveled here from the blog of Mindy Bingamon. Isn't her blog fabulous? I love her fresh, youthful style.

I enjoy keeping up on the trends in the stamping industry, but sometimes it just doesn't make a lot of sense to go off on a huge tangent. What am I talking about? Well, I am referring to washi tape. Washi tape is very popular in the paper crafting community right now, but currently SU doesn't carry any. That is just fine with me because I found a way to create faux washi tape that didn't cost me a single penny to make...and it gives me the opportunity to customize it for my personal style, which is even better.

So I guess I should stop teasing you and tell you a little bit more about this card. I discovered (completely by accident) that the tissue sheets between the SU transparency sheets are fabulous for stamping. It is a little more sturdy that typical tissue paper and it accepts stamped images like a dream. I cut strips to various widths and lenghts and stamped a variety of designs. Then I just used a glue stick to adhere the strips to the front of the Crumb Cake card base. Of course, you do need to handle with care because it is still tissue paper and will tear easily. I am sure you can tell that I sponged the edges of the card with ink as well.

There are a few more things I would like to point out that are a little unusual about this card. First of all, the sentiment isn't from a stamp set, but it comes from a jumbo stamp wheel. Unfortunately, that wheel is retired now, but it has some amazing sentiments. I peeled the rubber away from the wheel, added some foam adhesive, and turned it into a clear-mount stamp. Then I cut the sentiments apart and made my own little stamp set. There is some waste, but I think it is totally worth the sacrifice. Another little detail is the yellow flower button. The front of the button is frosted and I didn't think it had enough intensity, so I flipped it over so the yellow would match the intensity of the other buttons...it's all in the details!

Well, that is all for today. I will have a list of all the ingredients for this card at the bottom of this post. Be sure to head on over to visit the amazing Holly VanDyne. This blog hop will take you in a complete circle, but if you happen to lose your way, here is a list you can refer to. Be sure to check back every day this week for more great stamping and paper crafting ideas!

1. Connie Collins (you are here!)
2. Holly VanDyne
3. Melissa Stout
4. Amy O'Neill
5. Sandie Conner
6. Amy Rogers
7. Mercedes Weber
8. Tara (Murphy) Bourgoin
9. Mindy Bingamon

INGREDIENTS: Card Stock:Crumb Cake; Stamp Sets: Friendship Jumbo Wheel, Fresh Vintage, Borderlines, Small Dots, House & Home; Classic Ink Pads: Basic Black, Pacific Point, Daffodil Delight, Old Olive, Real Red, Pumpkin Pie, Chocolate Chip; Tea Stain Ink from Distressing Essentials; Other:Stazon Jet Black Ink, Designer Buttons-Brights, Tissue from Clear Transparency Sheets, Linen Thread, Glue Stick, Mini Glue Dots 3/4" Circle Punch, Stampin’ Sponge.

 

 

2012 Artisan Finalists Blog Hop - Day 1

So what exactly is the Artisan Finalists Blog Hop you ask? Each year for the past several years Stampin' Up! has held a competition for demonstrators based on creativity and workmanship. This year they selected twenty finalists from those entries. From those twenty, ten were selected to be part of the new Artisan Design Team. While we are not the ones who were selected for the design team, we still thought it would be fun to give you a closer look at our projects. I have personally seen all of the entries on display, and I can tell you that they are amazing.

Each day for the next ten days, we will post pictures of our projects along with a more details on how they were created. Each participant created five cards, three scrapbook pages, and two 3-dimensional items, so no matter what your interests are, there should be something for everyone.

HERE IS MY FIRST PROJECT:

 
I will be the first to admit that it is a little out of my norm, but I wanted to demonstrate that I was capable of several styles. This card incorporates watercoloring with reinker and distressing. I stamped directly onto the background DSP and then traced around the leaves so they would come closer to matching the intensity of the bold, colorful blooms. The flowers are stamped on watercolor paper, colored with an Aquapainter and cut out.

I also finished the inside of the card match. I almost like the inside as much as I do the outside. I am including a list of ingredients at the bottom of each post, so if you have any questions, be sure read all the way to the end.

Here's how the Blog Hop works. Our blog hop makes an endless loop, so matter where you begin, you should find yourself back where you started. If you lose your way then you can refer to the list below. If there are ten of us, then why only nine names? Unfortunately Mary Haugen was not able to join us due to technical difficulities.

You may have just visited the super fun and talented Mindy Bingamon...isn't she awesome? Thanks for visiting and now it is time to head on over and check out the incredible projects of Holly VanDyne.

1. Connie Collins (you are here!)
2. Holly VanDyne
3. Melissa Stout
4. Amy O'Neill
5. Sandie Conner
6. Amy Rogers
7. Mercedes Weber
8. Tara (Murphy) Bourgoin
9. Mindy Bingamon

Card Stock/DSP: Basic Black, Very Vanilla, Watercolor Paper, First Edition Speciality; Stamp Sets: Fabulous Florets, Blessings From Heaven, Herb Expressions; Ink Pads: Stazon Jet Black, Always Artichoke Classic, Basic Black Classic; Ink Refill: Poppy Parade; Other: Daffodil Delight & More Mustard Stampin’ Write Markers, Aqua Painter, Stampin’ Write Journaler Basic Black, Linen Thread, Designer Buttons-Regal, Tea Stain Pad from Distressing Essentials Kit, Very Vanilla Seam Binding Ribbon, Tombow Multipurpose Adhesive, Mini Glue Dots, Big Shot Machine, Framelits Labels Collection Dies.