Friday 27 July 2018

Take It Make It Challenge: July Winners!

Hello everyone!
We are thrilled to announce the winners of our July challenge!

As you all know, we have two winners to annouce today, so without further ado let me introduce you to our Design Winner:



We loved the wonderful bright and vibrant flower, with such a perfect stencilled background! Gorgeous! Nicole will win a Guest Designer slot here on the blog, her very own Winner's Profile, and of course her amazing art will be featured in a two page spread in Craft Stamper magazine! Congratulations Nicole!

We also have the remaining top slots to announce!
The rest of the top four (we had a tie!)  Design Winners are:


Congratulations, it was such a hard choice this month!

We now need to share the random winner of our challenge. This winner will receive the amazing prize on offer....

The inspirational 'Faith Journaling' book by Stephanie Ackerman, along with 2 sheets of stickers!

Congratulations to....







I'm sure you've love the prize Sharon :)


Winners, you need to need to get in touch with me in order to claim your prize!  Please email me at: editor.cs@mytimemedia.com , and put TIMI Winner in the subject line, then I'll be sure to spot it! 
Top Four Design Winners, also please contact me if you wish to receive a button to display on your blog.

Our August challenge will be launched next Friday, August 3rd.
We can't wait to see all the wonderful art you will all be sharing!



Friday 20 July 2018

Take It Make It Challenge: Winners Profile

Hello!
Welcome to our Winners Profile, showcasing the Design Winner of last month's Take It Make It challenge!
The very talented winner of the June 2018 challenge is:

Ksenija Rizova


Ksenija won the challenge with this amazing card. We loved the wonderfully coloured flower, pefectly complimenting the glittered die cut word. Gorgeous!




We asked Ksenija a few questions about stamping (well, we are Craft Stamper after all!)

Q: How long have you been a stamper, and how did you get started? 
A: I think it all started in 2010. I have been surfing Internet in search of a cooking recipe and came across some 
hand made cards. I got curious, because I have never heard about such a hobby before. I tried to make my 
own cards, googled for tutorials and searched other card makers’ blogs. My very first cards have never been 
straight, and I was replying that these were hand made. I know now that even hand made cards can have a 
very polished look.

Card making started as a hobby to channel my creativity, but today it means much more to me. I am active on 
different social networks, e.g. Instagram and Facebook, where I am a.k.a. @sweetkobylkin, and co-operated 
with many international challenge blogs and brands. Over the years I have met many talented designers from 
all over the world, some of the ladies I have met in person travelling and made friends with. I am happy that 
years ago I have discovered card making and found a passionate, sharing and supporting community of people.




Q: What are your favourite kind of stamps, and do you have a favourite stamp company?
A: I prefer floral outline stamps, because I enjoy colouring with different media – watercolours, 
alcohol markers and coloured pencils. One of my favourite techniques is die cutting on the 
edge, that is why I am always interested in new stamps with matching steel dies. I never miss
new releases by Simon says Stamp, Altenew, Hero Arts and Avery Elle. Frankly, the list of my
favourite stamp companies is much longer!
I am also keen on cards with cute critters and images. In July I joined two new Design Teams
: Pink And Main, USA manufacturer, and Create A Smile, the German company. Both 
companies produce high quality stamps with very original design.

Q: Describe your style, are you a 'messy' kind of stamper or do you have more of a clean and simple style?
A: Clean and Simple is my main style, for sure. My cards may seem very simple by design, 
but every card starts with a few sketches and careful positioning of all elements. I often use 
the Golden Section rule while making my cards and taking pictures of them. Although I enjoy 
Clean and Simple style cards, I do not like 'empty' cards. In my blog I give tips and hints on 
working with different layouts and techniques to avoid this 'emptiness impression' and still 
keep a card CAS.

Q: What kind of projects do you like creating the most?
A: Most of my cards are one layer or almost one layer projects. Lately I have enjoyed making 
cards with die cutting on the edge or off the edge. Masking is also one of my favourite 
techniques, helping to add depth to a card without adding multiple layers of paper.

Q: Apart from stamps, what is the one product you wouldn't be without when you craft?
A: There are several tools that are always on my crafting table – MISTI Precision Stamping 
Tool, a heat gun, embossing ink and a very fine white embossing powder for heat embossing 
sentiments. But my best discovery this year are Faber-Castell Polychromos coloured pencils.
This is my favourite colouring medium currently. These pencils blend easily, and 
cover the paper surface perfectly. I really enjoy using coloured pencils on non-white card 
stock and have blogged about cards made with black, pink, green and kraft card stock. It is 
amazing how bright a stamped impression looks coloured with pencils.

We also asked Ksenija to share some of her favourite stamped creations with us, and tell us why she likes them so much. Here is what she has chosen:



3 ways to colour using watercolours



On the edge die cutting.



Raised Die Cuts



Using masking in a frame.



Gull Gang card.



Using pencils on coloured card.



Congraulations on being our June Design Winner Ksenija, it was lovely to learn a little more about you!

Do YOU fancy having a winners profile all about you on the CS blog? 

The profile is part of the prize package for each Design Winner of our challenges. All you need to do is enter a creation into the challenge, then if you are voted Design Winner everyone will be reading all about you before you know it!

Wednesday 18 July 2018

Art Call: Ready Set Stamp

Ready Set Stamp: Reader Submissions Wanted!

THANK YOU so much for all the fabulous cards submitted for our last art call, it was so hard to choose just a few to publish! We can now announce the next theme.....
We are looking for submissions for our Ready, Set, Stamp feature on the following theme for our November 2018 issue of Craft Stamper. If you've always wanted to see YOUR card in print, now is your chance!




Colours: Rich Soil, Leaf Green, Radish Pink, Carrot Orange

Deadline for submission: 14th August 2018


· Please email your submissions to: editor.cs@mytimemedia.com
· 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, your submission has not been successful. Please try again with a different card!


Guidelines:

  •  Please make cards only for this gallery.
  • Please follow both the theme AND the colour scheme when creating your cards!
  • NEW work only please, we do not accept cards that have been published elsewhere (including online) before submission.  
  •  Stamps used MUST be available to buy currently, either from a UK stockist or a stockist with an international shipping policy that ships to the UK.
  • We do not accept cards ONLY created with digital imagery for this feature. Digital imagery is welcome, but  MUST be used in conjunction with rubber/polymer stamping to qualify.
  •  Cards which are selected need to be posted to the Craft Stamper offices in the UK. The cards will be returned, along with a complimentary issue of the magazine.
  • 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.
  •  Black, white and metallics can be added to any of the schemes. The ideas given are simply that, ideas, and do not have to be followed to the letter!
  • 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.
  •  
We can't wait to see your fabulous creations!  

Friday 13 July 2018

Take It Make It July Challenge: Inspiration

Hello!
Our June challenge is well under way, we love all the entries we've seen so far, and can't wait to see more!
As it's the second Friday of the month, we're back with some more amazing eye candy from our DT, hopefully something will inspire you to enter the challenge!

So... just a little reminder before we show you the projects!

 ALL of our challenges this year are 'Anything Goes' stamping challenges!
So....Show us how unique you can be, create anything your imagination cares to dream up! Share your cards, journal pages, layouts, 3D assemblage or whatever else takes your fancy. As long as you have stamped somewhere on your project, then you're good to go!

We have two prizes on offer, as always. The first is the Sponsor Prize, and the winner of this will be randomly chosen from all the eligible entries of the challenge. To make sure your project is eligible to win, make sure you have followed our challenge guidelines. These can be found on our sidebar over here ---------->

and also in a tab under the banner at the top.


PLEASE REMEMBER: We only want to see ONE project in each individual blog post entry!


A set counts as more than one :)

The amazing prize on offer this month for the randomly chosen winner is Faith Journaling: For the Inspired Artist by Stephanie Ackerman, along with 2 sheets of Documented Faith stickers! The book is an amazing resource for all things journaling, with tips and hints on doodling and drawing, and a multitude of inspirational words to use in your work. 
Plenty to inspire every journaler, not just those with an interest in Faith Journaling!


Our Design team have created some more stunning stamped art for you to look at, we hope it inspires you to enter the challenge!

Guest Designer, Winner of the May challenge:
Jenny Martin




Cheremane Smith

















 





  










 





 




Wow!
Amazing inspiration from the DT!
The link up tool to enter the challenge can be found on last Fridays post HERE!

Monday 9 July 2018

Blog Exclusive: Helen Chilton

Hello!
The Masterclass feature in the August issue of Craft Stamper magazine was created by the amazing Helen Chilton. Helen showed us 5 wonderful techniques, all featuring game pieces! All kinds of dominoes, triominoes, and the suchlike can be decorated to form stunning miniature pieces of art :)
Helen created so many wonderful items we couldn't fit them all into the magazine!

We're sharing an extra three projects here today.

Domino ATC 

  • Layer up patterned papers onto a black card ATC. 
  • Add tiny text coloured with Paint Over pen. 
  • Add mini domino.







Domino Bag Charm (on left)
  • Paint, stamp and highlight a plastic domino as for Technique 1 (please refer to Craft Stamper magazine, August issue for the specific techniques!).
  • Stick the jewellery bails to the back with Superglue and add beads/ribbon.

Triangular Domino Pendant  
  • Colour, stamp and varnish a triangular domino (a Triomino) as for Technique 5. 
  • Add bails to back and then add chain and beads.



 We love these projects, just so pretty! Thanks so much Helen!
Don't forget , we have a huge bag of game pieces of all kinds to give away to one lucky reader as part of our masterclass feature (as seen below)
Simply log on to www.craftstamper.com and click the Win! tab.

 

Have a wonderful week everyone!

Saturday 7 July 2018

Blog Exclusive: Debbie von Grabler-Crozier

Hello!
The super talented Debbie von Grabler-Crozier shared a wonderful sewing tutorial in the August issue of Craft Stamper magazine:



This super versatile pouch can be used for all manner of things, and the insructions are really easy to follow!
Debbie stamped her fabric before sewing the pouch together, and we thought we would share some more stamping ideas with you today.

Two Shell Variation
Additional materials...
Sweet Dixie stamp set: Sea Creatures
Ranger Archival ink: Coffee
INSTRUCTIONS: This one is the same fabric as I used in the original design, but this time I 
used a couple of stamps and two inks. I have used the Potting Soil ink for the larger shell and
the Coffee ink for the smaller one.
Stamp the larger shells first, leaving room in between for the smaller ones. This linen is 
marvellous for this technique because it has a little colour variation but is actually quite 
smooth. Do pay attention to this when you choose your fabric and also the stamp – the more 
shallow detail the stamp has, the more problematic the impression might be. Test first!



Explore Other Backgrounds

Additional materials...
Art Gallery Fabrics Nature Elements: Natural fabric
INSTRUCTIONS: Sometimes it is nice to use a subtly coloured fabric, like this Natural from 
the Nature Elements collection. Again, it is a nice smooth cotton and the shells printed over 
the top of it in Potting Soil have great detail. Go for a background in the same colour family 
as your ink for a subtle look.



Layered Designs

Additional materials…
Ranger Archival Ink: coffee
Art Gallery Fabrics Pure Elements: White linen
INSTRUCTIONS: Don’t forget plain fabric! This is a solid by Art Gallery Fabrics and I started 
with a row of the fishing nets in Coffee ink. Ink after each impression when working on fabric 
because the fabric will suck the ink right up.




Come back with another coordinating stamp and go right over the top (this time seaweed and 
Potting Soil ink).




Thanks so much Debbie! To find the full sewing instructions, you'll need to get hold of a copy of the August issue of Craft Stamper :) Details of where to buy can be found on the sidebar to the right.

As we mentioned in the magazine, we are also sharing the template for the pouch here today. Simply click the picture, it will open as a PDF document that can then be downloaded for you to use!