Free shipping for customers in the US ends TODAY, December 14th at 11:59pm EST: If your cart totals more than $25 of physical products in my online shop HERE, you can get free shipping in the US.
Just enter the coupon code FREE25SHIP when you are checking out and all those goodies will get shipped to you for free!
It’s a great time to buy Foam Stamps, Stencils, Rubber Stamps, and even Artwork. Enjoy!!!
Free shipping for customers in the US: If your cart totals more than $25 of physical products now through Monday (December 14th, 2020) in my online shop HERE, you can get free shipping in the US. Just enter the coupon code FREE25SHIP when you are checking out and all those goodies will get shipped to you for free! Who doesn’t like a little free this time of year?
It’s a great time to buy foam stamps like my Mini Fan Set or Mini Hex Set:
Or how about a few of those rubber stamp sets:
And of course all those stencils are part of the deal too. Like my Star Struck or my Art Deco Fairview stencils:
Enjoy all these and lots more. Take a look here and get those last minute gifts taken care of :)
I’m happy to announce this nice new set of Artfoamies that I designed: Mini Motifs Foam Stamp Set. It is now available HERE in my shop.
Each of the 4 Mini Motifs stamps in the set is inspired by some of the designs on an old fireplace in my home. I love the idea of drawing inspiration from this bit of history and thinking about the craftsman who carved the designs so long ago.
The triangle shaped ones are fantastic for layering up. I also discovered that they work great with the Mini Motifs Rubber Stamp Set!
You can find my new Mini Motifs Foam Stamp Set HERE in my shop. Enjoy!!!
Are you looking for an online community to be a part of? In my recent survey, many of you said YES so I decided to put together a little FB group called Nat’s Creative Hood. Join our community and discover a friendly and engaging place to call home :)
What’s going on in Nat’s Creative Hood? This group, moderated by me, is all about community, connection, inspiration, and creativity. First and foremost it is a place where you can post and share YOUR work using my products, inspired by my artwork, or produced in my workshops. It is a spot where you can ask questions and chime in to good conversation relating to Nathalie’s Studio related work, techniques, and discussion.
On occasion I will post tips and tricks, fun art related stuff to get you laughing and thinking, and every Friday you’ll find a Fill-In-Friday post where you can fill in the blanks with your own words, ideas, and experiences.
Join Nat’s Creative Hood and enjoy an engaging place where you can share your artistic joy with a whole bunch of interesting and creative new friends!
It’s time for a Seasonal Spectacular Sale to get things started for the holidays! My BIGGEST sale of the year begins today and you can save 25% off all physical products in my online shop now through Cyber Monday, November 30th.
Rubber stamps, stencils, foam stamps, original paintings, mugs, giclee prints, original prints, and much more are all 25% off – just use the coupon code SEASONAL25 when you check out.
Even my newest items are eligible so yes those #KeepYouPosted rubber stamp sets are in it while supplies last!
This is a great time to save big on some of my favorite rubber stamp sets like Fan-tastic Large and Circle Jumble Large:
Also it is the time to pick up a set of foam stamps for some bold block printing on paper, fabric and beyond like my Midtown Set or my Mini Tile Set:
My stencils come in so many patterns and styles…
Or my Artwork that makes a super special gift for another or yourself :)
There are lots of items to choose from, so I hope you visit the online shop HERE and take a look around. The sale ends November 30th and is valid while supplies last. We’ve restocked a ton of favorites so we hope you enjoy!
Hi friends! I need your help:
I love sharing what inspires me to paint with you guys and showing you the techniques I use to express my creativity, but I really want to hear from you – what would you like to see from n*Studio?
If you have some time to spare (and want to talk about yourself for a little bit ), I’d love to get to know you better and learn exactly what you need from me to help you feel inspired and get in-tune with your creativity. Head here to share your thoughts. P.S. I’m giving one lucky thought-sharer a $25 gift card to treat themselves to something special in my online store!
Happy to share this new set with you today as it was pretty important for me to design this one. I call it #KeepYouPosted and I think you can get the gist about it.
It includes 8 different cling rubber stamps, a mixture of text and graphic ones and some that are really appropriate right now…. but if you think about it, these messages are totally timeless. Check it out HERE. It might also get you into the big Mail Art craze that is going on right now because these guys are perfect for cards and envelopes!
Here is the set:
I made some small tags so you can see how they look and also how some of them work together:
The Blank Postage Stamp design can accommodate some of the other designs inside to make a faux postage stamp design. It’s also fun to put your own thing in that frame. And the Ballot Box is just such an important reminder now.
I love the USPS trucks here – such a unique vehicle – I had to capture that. And #savetheusps, well you know ;)
Sent with Love is such a classic. And I send out a LOT of Priority boxes so I thought a play off that would also be nice. Why not send a special note to your No. 1 Priority?
My LOVE stamp looks good on its own or in the frame.
Here is the whole bunch – tons of fun to mix these up. Anybody else want to spend the whole day making cards???
If you are a newsletter subscriber of mine, you know that I start my monthly newsletters with some thoughts. Thoughts on creativity, making art, and being an artist – along with some other info about what is going on around here. Last month I shared the following. I hope you enjoy and you can sign up for my newsletter HERE for more of these :)
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Have you ever looked at some of your photos – maybe from a trip to a foreign place – and wondered who the other, random people in that photo might be? The people who passed by, maybe photobombed your image, walked behind your subject?
In October 2013, right after I moved from Germany to the US, I took the Path to NYC and strolled around Washington Square Park and took this photo:
It was just the most charming scene: an elderly woman, with a puppet that looked just like her, feeding a squirrel.
I remember the woman on the left taking the photos and how we both were just so delighted in this moment. I posted the photo on my blog and the photo went viral. I cannot tell you how many times I have seen the photo on the internet in the 7 years that have passed. Then a year later I received a message from Ricky Syers. He is the maker of the marionette and he told me about Doris Diether, the woman he based it off who is seen in the photo holding it. Doris, he told me, is a community activist in the city and the longest serving community board member in Manhattan, with over 50 years of service. He asked me if it would be ok if he used the photo on his website. I took a lot of pleasure in knowing who the puppet maker and the elderly lady in the photo were and I loved following Ricky and seeing his renown grow.
In and of itself this is a wonderful story to consider when you see this photo (which is still floating around the internet) but… don’t you wonder by now if there is another story? Yes, there is.
A couple of weeks ago I received an email from a woman saying she happened to come across this photo online and it took her breath away: she recognized the woman on the left in the picture taking a photo. We had a very lovely email exchange and it turned out that this was her mother-in-law Hilla Becher – the well-known photographer from Germany who passed away in 2015. Hearing the name, I realized I knew the photos of Hilla Becher – her water tower series especially came to mind.
I shared the story of Doris and Ricky with her family. I told her how delighted Hilla was taking the photos that day. The daughter-in-law told me, “Sometimes people confuse the seriousness of her subject with her personally. In life she was incredibly curious and joyful. … [I] had to smile when we saw your photo because it was so like her to go in like that.”
I love thinking that Hilla and I crossed paths and that we not only shared the enchantment in this scene but also a love for industrial buildings. Maybe her work has influenced my love for those scenes too, since I grew up in an area with many of those structures in and around the city of Düsseldorf.
And that is how the stories of all the people in this photo came full circle. I cannot describe the joy this photo brings me – not only remembering a wonderful day exploring my new surroundings, stumbling upon this bewitching scene, but also how this tiny moment in time – this time capsule – created over the years has brought so much delight to all the people involved. It has been remarkable to have it all come together. I suppose the only way this could become even more full circle would be if the photo Hilla Becher had taken in that very same moment would surface :)
What an amazing story. Such a delight to read this and share the experience vicariously with you. Thank you so much for sharing a story of joy and connections in these currently distressing times.
Remarkable story! A modern day true fairy tale. It filled me with joy to see the pictures and hear about the amazing connections! I would love to see Hilla Becher’s photo too. You or part of you, ie your feet, may even be in her picture. Thanks so much for sharing all this!
I do remember when you first posted this photo and how cute it was. Now to hear more to the story it is even more special. I just love the way that people’s lives connect!
Wow ! What a wonderful story ! I remember when you first posted this picture and found it so delightful ! Hope you and your dear ones are in good health. We all keep hoping for better times for all. Take care
Wow, Nat! This story was so incredibly charming! What a blending of time/space/opportunity for all of you. I loved the video of Doris and Ricky, and the one about Hilla was also fantastic. What a great story and a memory for you to treasure and share! Thanks for sharing it again with us!
Thank you Nat, for posting this really lovely story. It put a lump in my throat and made me misty eyed thinking about the whole of the story and the people touched by it. With all of the turmoil, pandemic, uncertainty, and here in CA fires all around, this story touched my heart and hit home the importance of people and connection and savoring the little moments we share with each other. So again, thank you!
Be well!
If you are a newsletter subscriber of mine, you know that I start my monthly newsletters with some thoughts. Thoughts on creativity, making art, and being an artist – along with some other info about what is going on around here. Last month I shared the following. I hope you enjoy and you can sign up for my newsletter HERE for more of these :)
At the beginning of the year I chose the word “Vision” as my word to strive for in 2020. I chose the word because I was feeling a lack of vision for my work as an artist. For a long time my vision was “quit your job and become a full time artist”, then it was “make being a full time artist work”, “license designs”, and “write a book”… until I was just doing my work day in and out without a big vision.
The problem with that is: if you have no vision you cannot grow. So for the first 3 months of this year I tried searching really deep, writing each morning on where I saw myself going. While that was a good exercise in counting my blessings and getting ready for the day, it did not provide me with a clearer direction. Then the pandemic hit and everything that I felt about the future and the uncertainties of my art business was magnified. I thought, who needs a bigger vision – just be glad you have some work and shut up! And I just kept on going.
At the same time, as you may know, I joined a Roundtable with writers, actors and artists. We still meet once a week on zoom, talk about projects during this pandemic and hold each other accountable for the goals we set. We continue to share our work and give feedback and have recently decided to “perform” our arts to our family and friends via zoom, discussing the work with the audience afterwards. We also started collaborating: I sent some of my urban paintings to a writer in our group and he was inspired to write a monologue, which was then performed by one of the actors. We showed my paintings afterwards and talked about our collaboration with the audience.
I cannot even put into words how uplifting and amazing this collaborative work feels. Spending time with these storytellers has fed into my love for storytelling. I have always loved learning the stories behind the buildings in my paintings – especially since I am exploring the topic of gentrification. How deep could I go? I started to reach out to others and I connected with a city historian who was nice enough to let me come to his office (twice so far) – masked up and socially distanced – and let me go through his extensive archive. He showed me piles and piles of letters, photos, and scrapbooks dealing with the buildings, businesses and most importantly the people of this neighborhood. 
I am totally enthralled with this research right now. I want to reach out to the elderly members of this community and ask them about their life and the stories of the neighborhood. What was it like to live here as a child or young adult? How did it look? How did they experience the Urban Uprise of 1964? How do they feel about the changes in this city? I want to tell the story of the buildings not only from my standpoint, but also I want to connect them with the stories of the actual people that lived in or around the buildings.
How am I going to do that? I don*t know yet… I am still in my student modus – listening, researching, collecting and connecting the dots. But I feel I am one step closer to a new purpose and a new goal and a new vision for my business. And that my dear friends makes me so excited, I wanted to share it with you! I will keep you posted… but maybe you have an idea? I would love to hear :)
Nathalie, this sounds so cool!!! I’m excited for you and the path your vision seems to be taking you. I would like to introduce you to another artist in New Jersey. Her work is amazing. She is a dual citizen of the US and France and does quite a few collaborations. She did a project of portraits and interviewed each person before she painted them. I think she might give you some insights that could help you. Let me know if you would like me to make an introduction and I could check with her first.
Oh, I am so excited for you…you could write a book (again)!
It could have pics of the buildings, pics of your art work of the buildings, some of the history of the neighborhood and stories from the elderly and others!!!
I love it already. The way you always talked about your Aunt on layouts and journal pages makes me think that you can do a fabulous job with this project! Keep us posted Nat.
What an enchanting story. You had me from the beginning. It’s just Kizmit!
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