Take It Make It Challenge 7 : The Winner!

Hello everyone!

Thank you so much to all those who played along with our seventh challenge - Repeat Stamping. We were absolutely delighted that so many of you played along with this one, considering what a short time you had!

The DT were blown away by the standard of the entries, but there can only be one winner! That honour goes to.........

Entry number 7 : Lindsey

Congratulations Lindsey!
I have to say, this was a very popular winner, nearly every single member of the CS DT voted for it!

That colourful star is simply gorgeous!

The winning entry will be published in Craft Stamper Magazine (I hope you kept it somewhere safe Lindsey!), and the winner will also receive these two fabulous stamps from Visible Image:

As well as our worthy winner, we also have the remaining two spots in our Top Three to reveal! In no particular order, they are..... drum roll......

Entry Number 11: Petra
Entry Number 32: PiHi

Congratulations ladies!

If the Winner could Email me (just click the 'posted by' name at the bottom of the post), then I can pass on all the details about the prize, publication and of course the Guest DT slot! Top Three, please Email me for your winners buttons to display on your blogs!  For anyone else who would like to, please feel free to grab the button below....

A huge THANK YOU to all those of you that took part in our repeat stamping challenge!

Don't forget, we are now going monthly! The first Friday of every month will see the start of the next challenge.... so check back on the 7th of March to see which technique we would like you to have a go at!

***STOP PRESS!***
pssst.... a little birdie told me that Katy will be announcing the new Take It, Make It DT members here on Monday........can't wait!!!

Trish xxxxx

Cards wanted for Ready, Set, Stamp!

We are looking for submissions for our Ready, Set, Stamp feature on the following themes for forthcoming issues of Craft Stamper. If you've always wanted to see YOUR card in print, now is your chance!!!

AUGUST 2014 ISSUE

Words, Words, Words: Let your greeting or sentiment take centre stage on these general cards.

Colours = Mustard, Royal Blue, Turquoise

Deadline for submissions = 1st April 2014

SEPTEMBER 2014 ISSUE

Ladies’ Night: Cards featuring stamps of ladies/women.

Colours = Rose Pink, Soft Pink and Mauve

Deadline = 1st April 2014

• Please email your submissions to cs@traplet.com
• We are looking for new and unpublished work ONLY please
• Please put 'Ready Set Stamp' followed by the theme in the subject line
• Please note that due to the number of submissions it's not possible to contact every entrant individually - if you have not heard from us within one week of the closing date please try again next time

Guidelines:

• Please make cards only for this gallery
• Cards which are selected need to be posted to the Craft Stamper offices in the UK
• This call IS open internationally
• Note that we do choose artwork as it arrives, so please don't wait until the last minute to submit if your cards are ready
• Cards will be returned at our expense, along with a complimentary copy of the magazine in which your card features. Note this can take approx. three month
• All cards should be suitable for an intermediate crafter to complete in around 20 minutes including drying time. Please keep your cards simple and remember that you may be a quicker than average worker
• Please follow both the theme AND the colour scheme when creating your cards. The colour scheme is a guide only – you don’t have to be exact but try to be as close as possible. You can use the colours in any proportions to suit your design as long as all three are used. You can add black, white and metallics to any of the schemes
• Text for this article is required (don't worry - it is short!) and should be entered into the document provided – this will be sent to you if you are selected

GOOD LUCK!

Meet the team - R Maria Sabina!

Hello and welcome to a brand new series on the blog - it's Joanne here, guest posting for this monthly feature where we'll be introducing members of the Design Team.

Most of the designers whose work you see in the magazine are freelancers who are kept in order by the lovely folk at Craft Stamper HQ! Having lots of people on the team helps to make sure there's a broad range of projects and styles to suit a variety of stampers.

Our first designer is R Maria Sabina - known to many online as Lollyrot - whose style combines lots of detail with a dash of whimsy and great use of colour. I'll let her introduce herself and a few of her favourite projects...

I'm R.Maria Sabina,a young designer and crafter from Romania. I joined the Craft Stamper family in 2013 and I'm really enjoying it!

My stamping story began in 2009 when I bought my very first craft tools from Spain,  and slowly discovered the creative community on-line,  on Youtube. 

In Romania we don’t really have crafty/ scrapbooking shops and this is really difficult when you need quick crafty supplies. Working as a baby sitter in Spain I had the opportunity to buy my very first basic tools:  paper trimmer, crafty scissors and cardstock.


Favourite project #1: This creation is really important to me because the little rabbit is actually from my very first rubber stamp collection, manufactured by Stampotique.

{this project is blogged here}

Q: Do you have a signature style or favoutie technique?
A: I love colouring stamped images, but sometimes I wish I would just go for bold stamping for a sweet and romantic look. However colouring stamped images remains my signature.

I’ve tried copics, promarkers and colouring pencils. I must say Inktense pencils are my favourite! You can blend and work with them much better and the result is always beautiful. To get the best results, you must find the right colouring media and paper. You must practise, practise and again practise to get the best colouring. 

Favourite project #2: I love mystical stories and the Victorian Era. It's such a beautiful inspiration to create interesting creations with a secret message.

 {this project is blogged here}

Q: Where do you look for inspiration before you start on a project? 

A: My little brain is pretty busy with so many different ideas. I find inspiration in so many things you would never think of. Mostly when I start a creation, I always think of the message I want to express and that comes from my state of mind at the time.  

As a designer, I think it’s very important to create something and inspire others. It’s not enough to buy supplies and just put them together. You must come up with something unique because the crafty community is like a new TERRA and we all want to be different and inspire others. Find your own style!

Favourite project #3: I'm not a Valentine's day fan but every time I work with these birds I just feel really happy, and remember that we all have a soul-mate in this beautiful world.

{this project is blogged here}

I would like to create things as my full time job and I’m working on it. But I need baby steps to work on my dream. My dream is not just to stay in my crafty corner and post creations on my personal blog. I want to have my own studio where I can create beautiful things and later on, workshops where I can do and share more ideas. Sometimes you need courage to fight for your dreams. And I can only get that courage from the people who really admire and respect my work. So here is my advice. If you have a passion, fight for it and prove to everyone that you can do it and you can live a happy and respectful life.  Don’t be afraid if you live in a small town, like me. If you have a story and talent, you can build your own happy land.

Big thanks to Lollyrot for sharing her projects and stamping story with us in this first DT spotlight - I hope you've enjoyed finding out a little more from one of the faces behind the scenes! If you'd like to see more of Lollyrot's lovely work, you'll find her blog {here}.

Insider Secrets: Stampbord

Design Team member Helen Chilton reviews her favourite stamping product and tells us why she still loves Stampbord! Read on to get the inside scoop...

Now I know Stampbord has been around for quite a while, but I still love using it. I remember the excitement it caused when it first appeared on the craft market – as before it had been aimed at the fine art market and sold in larger pieces.

For me one of the best things about Stampbord is the way you can add highlights to your work just by scratching into the fine white clay covering. On other surfaces, the only way to add highlights is by using a white pen or paint, masking fluid or bleach, yet with Stampbord you can etch in minute details, varying the lines with the different scraper tools specifically designed for the purpose.

It stamps beautifully because the surface is so smooth and you can colour it with whatever you like. Alcohol inks give a really vibrant effect but you can just as easily use dye inks, paint, coloured pencils and more.

I love creating tiny works of art using collage stamps - ink up the stamp with a permanent inkpad and press the Stampbord down onto the part of the image you want. Instant art without the fuss of masking! Then you can just etch away to your heart's content: link pieces together, make bag charms, key rings, jewellery, whatever takes your fancy.

Here I've made a little piece of wall art using Crafty Individual stamps and alcohol inks. I find Crafty Individual stamps particularly good for Stampbord as their collage images tend to be very detailed, a good size and beautifully drawn. There are lots of different elements within this one image: background, text, pattern, lace, focal point etc.

I've used three colours of Ranger Alcohol Ink - Sunshine Yellow, Watermelon and Raspberry. Drop some yellow in the middle then some red and pink around the edges and let the inks run together. If it's too dark, add a couple of drops of blending solution to the mix or dab up some of the ink with an old baby wipe.

Let it dry completely before stamping the Spring Bird collage CI-357. I have found that the easiest way to choose the part of the stamp you want is to cut an aperture in a piece of paper the size of your Stampbord tile and use this window to place over parts of the image. Remember, if you're going to add eyelets for hanging, you don't want them going right through the middle of your focal point, so leave enough space at the top.

When the image is dry, you can then start etching. If you want to you can add a different colour back into the etched areas - I've added yellow into the flower centres. Then spend a happy hour choosing embellishments to complement your art work.

Stampbord is manufactured by Ampersand Art www.ampersandart.com

To see more of Helen’s work visit helenchilton.blogspot.co.uk

Take It, Make It Challenge 7!

Hello everyone!

It was great to see all your entries for our ombré challenge, we can't wait to see what you all come up with for this one!

What Can You Win?

 

For this challenge,we have two fabulous stamps from Visible Image

PLUS:The Design Team will have a look at all your gorgeous work, and choose their Top Three..... and the overall Winner will get published in Craft Stamper magazine! Yep, the winning entry will appear in the UK's number one stamping magazine!

AND: We have decided to add another little incentive into the pot! Our winner will be the featured Guest Designer for the midway reminder post for the next challenge!
So, to recap....Two stamps, publication AND a Guest DT spot? Sounds good to me!

Now for the Challenge details!
We want to see how you lovely lot tackle a technique showcased in Craft Stamper magazine.

Lydia Brooke Evans has a beautiful card project in the March issue, using a great stamping technique we can all have a go at, stamping in repeat patterns with a small stamp!
So, we would love to see your creations using The Repeat Stamping Technique.....your project can be anything at all, card, layout, 3D item etc, any theme or colour, AS LONG AS YOU HAVE USED THE REPEAT STAMPING WITH A SMALL STAMP TECHNIQUE ON THERE SOMEWHERE! 

To give you a little inspiration, some of the Craft Stamper Design Team have come up with some rather fabulous projects to share... (if you click on the artists name, it will take you to their blogs, where there may well be loads more pics of these gorgeous creations!)

ANNEKE DE CLERCK

CAROL FOX

  CHRIS DARK 

CHRISSIE STOKES

                                                                   CLAUDIA NEUBACHER
                                                          

                                                              GEORGINA FORD

                                                                  
                                                                 HELS SHERIDAN

                                                                     JAINE DRAKE 

 JOANNE ALLISON

LYDIA BROOKE EVANS

   Have we inspired you to have a play and enter? Yay!!!

All you need to do now is have a read through the boring (but essential!) rules and guidelines, then upload your entry using the Linky tool at the end of the post! Can't wait to see what you create!

And now..... an announcement!
From March, we will be taking this challenge monthly! That's right, the first Friday in every month will see the start of a new Take it, Make It Challenge, so make sure you make a note in your diary!
With the brand new monthly challenges starting in March, challenge seven will be a *lot* shorter than normal! So don't delay, get creating with those small stamps and make some repeating patterns!

Do you love our challenges as much as we do? Feel free to grab the button and display it with pride!

Guidelines for Craft Stamper Take It, Make It Challenge

• Entry dates: Friday February 14th 2014 -  midnight Wednesday February 26th 2014
• Winner to be announced in a blog post here: 9am Friday February 28th 2014
• All entries must feature the repeated stamping with a small stamp technique. No digi stamps please, unless combined with actual stamping.
• The winning entry MUST be posted to the magazine for photography before it can be published. Please keep hold of your entry, we cannot publish in the magazine images sent via computer.
• Entry is via the linking tool at the end of the post. We are very sorry that we can't accept email entries to this challenge. Please provide deep links to your actual project post, not just a link to your blog (to do this, click on the title of the relevant blog entry and copy/paste the URL in the relevant box when uploading your entry). When judging many entries, the DT do not have time to go searching your entire blog for the project we want to see!
• No backlinking.
• New work only please, not work previously published anywhere else.
• Entry is welcome from anywhere in the world.
• Multiple entry is fine, as long as each piece is original and fulfills all the entry requirements.
• Entries can be combined with other blog challenges, as long as a link back to the Craft Stamper challenge is included in your blog post.
• The March 2014 challenge will be announced here on Friday March 7th 2014, at 9am.

PLEASE consider turning off word verification on your blog. It is very difficult for the DT to comment on as many blogs as we would like to when word verification slows us down!

Competition rules: Competitions/giveaways are open to all (including overseas readers) except employees of Traplet Publications Ltd and their families; regular contributors to any of Traplet Publications’ magazines; employees of our printers; or anyone connected with the prizes offered. By entering the competition you accept that your project may be printed in the magazine. All entries must be received by midnight on the specified closing date. There are no cash alternatives and prizes are non-transferable. We reserve the right to use the winners’ name/work in any Traplet-produced literature including, but not exclusive to, our website and marketing materials. Judges decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.
******UPDATE- 25/02/14 WE ARE AWARE PLAYERS ARE HAVING TROUBLE LINKING UP, THE DT WILL VISIT ANY LINK LEFT IN A COMMENT! LINKS ALREADY POSTED ARE WORKING, DESPITE THE LACK OF THUMBNAIL! ********

Take It, Make It Challenge Six: The Winner!

Hello everyone!

Thank you so much to all those who played along with our sixth challenge - Ombré. We were absolutely delighted that so many of you played along with this one!

The DT were blown away by the standard of the entries, but there can only be one winner! That honour goes to.........

Entry number 21: Lynn

 Congratulations Lynn!

We loved the beautiful blues with that amazing pop of pink!

The winning entry will be published in Craft Stamper Magazine (I hope you kept it somewhere safe Lynn!), and the winner will also receive these two fabulous DVDs by Kate Crane:

As well as our worthy winner, we also have the remaining two spots in our Top Three to reveal! In no particular order, they are..... drum roll......

Entry number 26: Shirley
Entry number 31: Jennifer

Congratulations ladies!

If the Winner could Email me (just click the 'posted by' name at the bottom of the post), then I can pass on all the details about the prize, publication and of course the Guest DT slot! Top Three, please Email me for your winners buttons to display on your blogs!  For anyone else who would like to, please feel free to grab the button below....

A huge THANK YOU to all those of you that took part in our ombré challenge, and we can't wait to see what you come up with for our next one. You don't have to wait long for that either, check back here on FRIDAY this week for the big reveal!

Trish xxxxx

Taking It A Little Further With Lydia

I'm so excited to share with you today that I now have a regular slot here on the Craft Stamper Magazine blog- starting today I will be posting on every first Thursday of the month sharing with you further ideas I have on the article I have in that months magazine issue. 

In the February issue I shared with you a technique for adding dimension and shine to balloons. Using the same method as seen in the magazine I created the balloons for this card......

I thought it would be fun to add another stamp set into the mix, so as well as the Mama Elephant 'Up & Away' set that was featured in the article I have used Wplus9 'Heartfelt Holidays'. I love mixing and matching sets as you can create new and exciting looks that give your stamp sets a fresher look.

If you have created something that was inspired by my article I would totally love to see it... so if you would like to leave a link to your project in the comments section (or even over on my blog) I'll pop on over and take a look.

Hugs, Lydia xxx

WANTED! Take It, Make It Challenge Design Team!

We are looking to recruit a dedicated design team for our Take It, Make It Challenge, which will soon be going monthly!!!

You need to be able to:

-Commit to making a STAMPED piece of artwork to a specified theme each month (for six months initially);
-Be able to take a good photo of your work for inclusion on the blog (this doesn't have to be pro standard but it does need to be clear, in crisp focus, and reasonably well lit);
-Subscribe to or be able to purchase Craft Stamper so you can see the project upon which the theme is based;
-Have a reasonably active blog;
-Be prepared to promote your challenge artwork on your own blog, on Facebook and other outlets with which you have involvement;
-Be able to turn your artwork around promptly with relatively short notice (a couple of weeks).

You get to have your art featured on our blog alongside the regular CS DT and we will link your artwork back to your personal blog. We will also include your blog details on our sidebar.

If you want to be part of the Craft Stamper family then please send THREE examples of your best stamped work to cs@traplet.com by the end of February! Good luck!

Katy and Trish x

New issue out this Friday!

Don't miss the March issue of Craft Stamper, on sale this Friday, 7th Feb 2014!

The March issue is out this week and is packed with loads of fun and inspirational projects! Our cover girl is Anna-Karin Evaldsson and our free deer stamp is designed by Emily Hilton.

• Check out our NEW monthly art journaling feature
• 'Stamp' with embossing folders
• Create gorgeous glitter backgrounds with Heat N Bond
• Get on trend with a gorgeous chalkboard look
• Carve your very own bespoke stamps
• Make lush marbled effects with Distress Paints
• Fashion an angel from a teaspoon!