“Be Kind even on your bad days”
Such a great quote to live by. I had fun mixing my Floral Stamp Sets up with my Circle Jumbles and layering them in different ways on top of each other.
Stars and Flowers ..cannot go wrong, right ? LOL
This is the final batch (for now lol – it’s still too much fun dreaming up patterns for me to maybe stop) of Nat’s April Patterns with my new RubberMoon Stamp Designs . Here is a summary video of Patterns 29-30 – I hope you enjoy :)
Nat's April Patterns from Nathalie Kalbach on Vimeo.
Here are the patterns I made in the video:
Here are the stamps I used to make these patterns:
Hello from my Creative Squad! Today we have a post from Judi Kauffman. You can learn more about Judi from our Nice to Meet You blog post featuring her creative story and artwork. This time Judi is sharing some funky notebooks with us that use my Mid Century Squared ArtFoamie and discarded sheet music. She was inspired by this month’s theme: Feel the Rhythm – We’re thinking about patterns this month and using stamps to create a rhythm of marks. Show us your sense of rhythm!
Aretha Franklin Meets Mid-Century Squared
I have close to zero musical abilities. My singing voice can clear the room and my dancing isn’t exactly top notch, so when we were given Feel the Rhythm as this month’s theme I panicked and went into denial. Rhythm? Not so much.
Then two friends sent me some damaged sheet music – it seemed like a reasonable starting point. And I went to see Amazing Grace, the documentary about Aretha Franklin! I was so moved by her voice and way it mixed with the choir behind her and the congregation in front of her – a visual feast as well as magic to hear – and I knew just what I would do for my project:
Instead of lining up the stamp and going for a precise regular repeat pattern, my first impulse, I channeled my inner Aretha (helped along by a couple of CDs and a handful of M&Ms) and was off and running. I stamped, smudged and smeared onto the sheet music, did a bit of heat embossing with clear powder, dancing around the studio between colors and humming to the beat. I cut and tore and combined the pieces, layering onto chipboard. A quick visit to the coil binding punch, a bit of embellishment for the holiday keeper, and my notebooks were done!
Your turn:
1. Using 3 or more inks, including black, stamp Mid-Century Squared repeatedly on sheet music or pages from a damaged book. Optional: Align the design horizontally for most of the stamping, combine with vertical alignment down the sides. Smudge
2. If heat embossing is desired, use pigment inks and clear embossing powder to add shine and texture.
3. Cut covers for journals and notebooks from chipboard. Glue cut and torn stamped papers to the covers; trim at the edges as needed. Smudge on more inks to enhance the collage.
4. Use a coil binding punch or other binding system to complete the projects.
Thank you Judi! I love all the variation in the rhythm of the patterns! Want to give Judi’s project a try? You can find my Foam Stamps in my Online Shop. Here are some of the supplies that Judi used:
Feel inspired? Working on something yourself that you’d like to share? I love to see how you interpret our monthly themes. Email me how you used my stencils and stamps with the theme and email me an image – I would love to share your projects in my next “n*Spiration From Around the Globe“.
My wonderful friend Tina Walker is at it again – she invited several people to join her Stencilfied Prompts. The prompts are music related and each week she is posting a song. You can be inspired by the lyrics, the video, the album cover or anything related and the only restriction is that you have to use StencilGirl Product Stencils. Here is my take on Prompt 16
This week’s prompt was I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For by U2. I’m a fan of U2 and this is one of my favorite songs by them so no problem finding inspiration here :)
I sketched a figure using a Fude pen and some caran d’ache museum aquarelle pencils – literally watercolors in pencil form and so fun and vibrant.
I used my Lily Wallpaper stencil with spray paint and then also added my FAN-tastic Large and FAN-tastic Small stamps in yellow ink.
I like the push and pull of the background through my coffee drinking gal. Imagine she’s deep in thought, wondering if she will find what she’s looking for :)
Here are the supplies I used:
When I started playing with my new RubberMoon Stamp Designs I couldn’t stop making samples and patterns- so I decided to record a short inspirational pattern video each day and post them on Instagram. Here is a summary video of Patterns 26-28 – I hope you enjoy :)
Nat's April Patterns from Nathalie Kalbach on Vimeo.
Here are the patterns I made in the video:
Here are the stamps I used for these patterns:
It’s time for a special edition of Currently Digging – with my Creative Squad! Once in a while I like to share with you some nifty finds – like an Artist whose work caught my eye…, some Inspiration that got my creative juices flowing, and Tools & Techniques I am currently digging. Today I asked Kim Bricker, the Coordinator of my Creative Squad what SHE is Currently Digging :) Hope you enjoy this.
Noriko Saito – I’ve been digging this artist for about a year now after seeing her work at an art fair. Her etchings just make me happy – the quirky animals, the bold pops of color, the variety of lines. It feels fun and childlike in a really authentic way.
Springtime in the Garden – I live in an apartment so my garden is a plot in the local community garden. I’ve had it for over 10 years now and although it is very tiny, it becomes a big part of my life every Spring. The miracle of seeds sprouting and turning into big bushy plants never gets old.
The Gym! – OK now that you’ve stopped rolling your eyes, hear me out: I recently started going to the gym again with Nat and I really haven’t felt this positive and energetic in a loooong time. It has helped me relax at the end of the day, sleep better, and actually focus when I need to be productive. I’m beginning to think what they say about exercise might be true: It’s good for you. And not just the obvious body part, but mentally and even creatively it can be a pretty great tool.
Thank you Kim! Stay tuned for the next Currently Digging Creative Squad edition for more from our other members :)
I am so happy it is finally April – I love seeing every day the changes in the park, the trees and also …nothing better than a month of no heating and no A/C -bliss! Strolls through my hood get me out of my studio, they help me unstuck and often I get inspired by what I see and to get new ideas to create something. It is part of my philosophy about Artful Adventures in Mixed Media – which is the subject of my book. Here are some photos that I gathered in the last couple weeks.
Just soaking in the first sun beams through a tree that starts to bloom- AHHHH
Every time I pick up our CSA eggs I come across this awesome old street sign – I love it.
Excited like a little kid seeing the first flower in our garden at the house- woot woot!!!
Speaking of the house- here is a photo of our masterbedroom where we have taken down the chimney breast. Love the texture …on a photo – in real life this is pretty dusty-disgusting-workintensive. Hopefully the permits for our main reno are coming through soon so we can start and then hopefully can move in as planned later this summer.
We kept some of the good looking bricks and the hearth of the fireplace. The initial fireplace was relocated into my studio as we wanted to keep the beautiful mantle. We probably will use the hearth for a shelf – it is so called blue stone.
Here is the summer cover of the former bedroom – now my “fake” fireplace in my studio. I love it. I painted the hole behind it black and I am now scraping off old paint flecks from the fireplace. Thanks whoever didn’t cover up the fireplace when painting back in the days…sigh
Now that the weather is getting better we are also bicycling around more in Jersey City. This old gothic-revival church is actually an Historic Landmark – unfortunately it is falling apart and warning signs on the door even tell firefighters to abandon. So sad.
On the right another house also falling apart and boarded up. It is really mind blowing that this city so close to New York City- I mean I am faster in Manhattan than most people in Brooklyn or other parts of NYC – has these two sides.
I always wanted to take a picture of this mural – there – finally made it ;)
This one is also pretty cool! Now that is a big guard dog ;)
I love this sign – the shape, the patina, the fonts. My friend Cheiron told me she remembers eating this brand of ice cream and now I want some :) On that note- what is your favorite Ice cream?
Awe thank you so much! I haven’t seen Blue Bunny yet- but I will keep my eye out :)
Here is the next batch of pattern making fun with my new RubberMoon Stamp Sets . This is a summary for Days 22-25
Nat's April Patterns from Nathalie Kalbach on Vimeo.
Here are the patterns from this video:
Here are the stamps I used for these patterns:
I remember Sealtest Ice Cream and those signs. I’ve lived in Arizona for the last 30 years, and my favorite brand of ice cream is Blue Bunny. I don’t know if you have that in NJ. . .
I always love strolling through the ‘hood with you. You take wonderful street photos.
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