Blog | Page 258 | n*Studio

Brain vs. Kool Aid or …New Art Journal Page

4 days…no post…what??? I tell you…I am so sorry….but I am over my head in work…and hey…an upcoming housewarming party and hosting Thanksgiving this year is not helping either ;) I am working on several things at the same time…frantically and I know that some things might be totally up your alley and you will love love love them…so…BEAR with me! (Did you notice..I got it…I no longer write “bare” with me….I was so embarrassed when I learned what this means when I write it wrong- LOL). I had time for a quick art journal page – the foundation of it was made in my Class at the Ink Pad demoing.

It is always great to have some backgrounds ready to go in your art journal- so if you need a quick artfix that only takes a couple minutes- you are ready to go …

Here I also used another background page that I did and cut it up in circles which I used on the art journal page – I love it. It is one of the rare occasions where I actually have a lighter background and darker spots on top – usually I do darker backgrounds and lighten everything up with the embellishing features.

I used the Circuit Stencil I designed for StencilGirl Product and using a Versamark Pen I traced the pattern and then heat embossed with Stampendous Aged Enamel Powder.

and Mr Brain …with the dirty face (note to self: clean your fingers in between before you are fiddling in someones face!)…with a nice blue shirt to contrast the orange background ….fun

Nat

Comments (7)

Jackie

November 22, 2013 at 9:12 am | #

Hi Nat,
First off- don’t take on too much! If you stress yourself out over the holidays you won’t have FUN1 And we need more fun! heehee
Secondly, I’m in agreement with Jeanne, I kinda like the “dirty” look- mmm sexy! Gobble Gobble! xo

Reply
Jeanne Kelly

November 21, 2013 at 9:26 pm | #

I don’t know…..the dirty face makes him look a bit more mysteriously sexy…Mmmmmm!

Don’t worry about your English…sadly there are plenty of Americans that don’t know the difference between “bear” and “bare” !

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Nurse Ratchet

November 21, 2013 at 7:56 pm | #

Tis the season to be busy!! Be nice to yourself!!<3

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Jean A Marmo

November 21, 2013 at 3:29 pm | #

This is fun! Good look with your upcoming events!

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Micki

November 21, 2013 at 9:43 am | #

Nat, I love your page and actually love the “dirty face”, because I do that all the time. Don’t feel bad about not posting every day, you have a life and having just moved…… I think you are entitled :-). (Of course I’m saying that because then I won’t feel so guilty about my lack of posting, wink!)

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wilma Voermans

November 21, 2013 at 9:35 am | #

I really like this page. For me it is a working man , dirty and all who takes a thirsty break.

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scrapinsue

November 21, 2013 at 6:54 am | #

It is a busy time of year, no worries about posting Nat.
I am hosting Thanksgiving for the first time ever…busy as well.
How did you do the man on this page? Photo, drawing, pic from magazine? He’s very handsome;-)

Reply

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Sketch Show

Only one sketch this month…I seriously have creative withdrawals because most of the time right now I sit at the computer to prepare some ….things ;)

So….here you go -what represents Jersey City to me…Statue of Liberty and Iron Cast Railings

What represents your home city/town/village for you?

Wishing you an amazing day!!!

huge hugs

Nat

Comments (17)

Amante del Papel

November 19, 2013 at 12:59 pm | #

Is an amazing Sketch!!! In my country (México) “El angel de la independencia” (The independence angel) is the most representative!

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scrapinsue

November 19, 2013 at 12:25 pm | #

My town is trees and trees and wild turkeys in the road.
Dogs walking their humans around the circle and children playing.
It’s nice and I’m still getting used to the quiet after 9 years (after living in a noisy city (Lawrence, MA) for 15 years.

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Debby

November 18, 2013 at 8:32 am | #

Great artistic view of NJ and what it means to you. My hometown is in the deep south so I love the old homes in the downtown ares as well as other historic place with a definite vintage look.

Reply
- nathalie-kalbach
  
  November 18, 2013 at 9:09 am | #
  
  Debby- I have a picture in my mind :) I have been to the south a a long time ago and I loved the architecture !
  
  Reply
grandscraperona

November 18, 2013 at 7:23 am | #

Love your sketch!…and colors! Thinking of trying to start sketching again as i did many years ago. Thanks for all the beautiful things you show to all, Nat. Now my answer to your quest:

Oh, my Puerto Rico, so small (35 m x 100 m) in special Caimito rural zone where i have been living for more than 40 years! So many shades of green, with the red-ora tones of the flamboyants, trinitarias in lilac, pink, red… the flowered roble tree with its lavender color in full, you name it… the smell of the Hilan-Hilan tree, and after 6 pm, the cigarra’s orchestra, and the sweet coquí- coqui, this is what i am in love with…Dont see me living in other place, with a different weather…

Reply
- nathalie-kalbach
  
  November 18, 2013 at 9:11 am | #
  
  You make me wanna go – you wrote it in such wonderful poetic words…it sounds like a wonderful entry to a fiction story! I wanna read more :) One day I will go to Puerto Rico :)
  
  Reply
Madeline Rains

November 17, 2013 at 10:15 pm | #

What represents my little town in rural Georgia? Dogwoods and Azaleas in bloom, the smell of burning leaves and barbecue and the tiny post office.

Reply
- nathalie-kalbach
  
  November 18, 2013 at 9:09 am | #
  
  Ahhh – that sounds cute with the flowers and the tiny post office.
  
  Reply
Jean A Marmo

November 17, 2013 at 7:52 pm | #

The center of our town has a dam with a river flowlingover it. there are walks and a gazebo – just so pretty!

Reply
- nathalie-kalbach
  
  November 18, 2013 at 9:08 am | #
  
  That sounds beautiful!
  
  Reply
Pam in New Jersey

November 17, 2013 at 6:54 pm | #

Nat, Love the colors in your sketch. My town in South Jersey is only one mile long by one mile wide. We have one traffic light. Not too much traffic like Jersey City has but not as easy to visit New York City. Take care.

Reply
- nathalie-kalbach
  
  November 18, 2013 at 9:08 am | #
  
  How fun- only one traffic light! Less traffic is good – it is crazy here! :)
  
  Reply
angel_painter

November 17, 2013 at 10:11 am | #

You sound so homesick! Yikes!

My city in NC is special because of the people.

Reply
- nathalie-kalbach
  
  November 18, 2013 at 9:07 am | #
  
  I am not sure where you get this from in this post? Not at all so far…maybe when the holiday season comes.
  
  Reply
Jenny Palmer

November 17, 2013 at 5:57 am | #

Hi Nat
Love your sketch.
What represents my town for me is I have Tasmania’s biggest waterfall and the rainforest and mountains with snow even at this time of year
it is almost summer here in Australia
the wallabies and possums, echidnas wombat and Tassie devils and the snakes in fact all of the the wildlife and cradle mountain world heritage area

Reply
- nathalie-kalbach
  
  November 18, 2013 at 9:06 am | #
  
  this sounds sooo beautiful- one day I will come :)
  
  Reply
  - Jenny Palmer
    
    November 19, 2013 at 11:48 pm | #
    
    My Dear Nat
    You would always be welcome
    
    Reply

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Whatevers Round 2 #5 or Good Advice

Art Journal Stencil Whatevers

Are you ready for the 5th photo of the Second Round of Whatevers? If you missed what the Whatevers is all about or want to see all the past photos and takes…check it out here.

Click here to see what Cat, Vicki, Martha and Cuchy made out of the photo and which story they tell.

Here is my take:

Journaling: Mother told them to be proud of their legacy! Being born into a circus family was special and most of the time people would be very interested in them and their life. But sometimes they were treated like outcasts. Mother said: “Chin up, straight look, shoulders up and onward…Leave them behind.” It was good advice!

Loved using Liquitex Heavy Paints and Spray Paints as well as my Elephant March Stencil for StencilGirl Products.

And here is the photo of this month’s Whatever for you:

Here is how it works

Vicki, Cat, Cuchy (Carmen), Martha and I and I have made a one-year commitment to each other and picked twelve photos with Whatevers whom we will give a story.
Every month – if possible always on the 15th – each of us will do a post with an individual story that goes along for us with the same photo.
If you want you can play along and we will have the photo for you to download and show us your version of The Whatevers. The photo will be posted at the end of our blogposts- not on Facebook!
There is no rules to the story itself- it can be funny, sad, uplifting, breathtaking- WHATEVER
There is no rules on the length or the form of the story– it can be a short sentence, an essay, a poem or a soap opera – WHATEVER
There is no rules on the artform you choose – it can be a scrapbook layout, an altered art project, an artjournal page – WHATEVER
Here is a rule though: if you take the photo you have to link back to us and show us your story.
These pictures are from our personal stash and are for personal use for you only! If you want to use them for a publication whether a book or magazine in print or digital form please ask for permission!
If you want to participate we’ll have a linky list for each Whatever Post.
You can also join our The Whatevers -Facebook Page

thank you :)

Nat

Comments (7)

cuchy

November 15, 2013 at 1:03 pm | #

the stencil, the perfect fit.
A good advice indeed. Clever, mother Esmeralda LOL

Reply
Gerd Andersson

November 15, 2013 at 12:12 pm | #

Your art journal is so beautiful and both the Elephant and the Arabesque stencils are so suitable for your story!

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Laura

November 15, 2013 at 9:53 am | #

Love this as a journaling piece.
Having spent a bit of time with a traveling show, I can relate.

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Catherine

November 15, 2013 at 9:00 am | #

Love the bright colors and how you incorporated the stencil into the story — super cool!

Reply
Martha Richardson

November 15, 2013 at 8:02 am | #

Perfect stencil for a great story & life lesson!

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Jean A Marmo

November 15, 2013 at 7:53 am | #

I just love your story! And that stencil is perfect!

Reply
scrapinsue

November 15, 2013 at 7:07 am | #

Perfect story for using your elephant stencil Nat.

Reply

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Do More of What Makes You Happy or….The InkPad Workshop

Art Journal New York City Stencil Workshops

I taught a class called Über*Media Backgrounds at The Ink Pad in New York City. It was a bit different in format as I did this class in two parts- the first part was at the end of October and the second yesterday.

The first part was dedicated to creating with all kinds of background techniques and making your own paper for an later art journal. It was loads of fun.

We used lot’s of different media

and played a lot with my StencilGirl Product stencils

the second part was about layering and taking the backgrounds even further and of course finally using them – in this case for an art journal

I had a blast and loved the colorful creations of the girls. I also like the concept of an ongoing class – it gives you so many possibilities and is a great way for everyone to deepen the learned stuff and then take it further. And on top- I met “my girls” again . This might be something I will be doing again ;) – who knows ;)

What kind of classes do you prefer: One time and in person, on-going and in-person, online and just a short block or an ongoing online class?

Have a gorgeous day

Nat

Comments (11)

Jackie

November 18, 2013 at 7:27 pm | #

WOW! What fun Nat! It would be So Cool to be able to create with you- therefore I’d like an ongoing face to face! When can we schedule it for?!! LOL Wish we had somewhere around us that you could come teach at- no privately owned stamp/scrapbook stores within 75 miles from me :(
Seriously, I would prefer face to face with instructor, on-going for sure or ongoing online. Thanks for sharing with us! hugs xo

Reply
Sue turchick

November 17, 2013 at 9:40 am | #

Definitely in person! Love connecting with everyone elses’s energy and creativity. Nice meeting you, Nathalie!

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Madeline Rains

November 15, 2013 at 10:10 pm | #

I like both online and in person. I’ve only had in person once! It was a few weeks ago in Charlotte when Julie taught there. I loved doing it live with the teacher’s inspiration right there. But there is something to be said for taking your time in your own studio, pausing when you need to and rewatching when necessary. I’d love an ongoing class.

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petyvic

November 14, 2013 at 8:33 pm | #

I prefer online classes as i can enter the classroom whenever i want to check and/or refresh forgotten details. There are so many techs, that is impossible to remember all!…Thanks for your time, Nat!

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Jean A Marmo

November 14, 2013 at 7:34 am | #

How fun!

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Sue Clarke

November 14, 2013 at 7:33 am | #

I really like in person and have never had ongoing but might like it.
That being said, online means that I can go back and look over tuts again.

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Ursula

November 14, 2013 at 7:05 am | #

Beim schmaddern bist du in deinem Element *lol* Aber die Ergbnisse gefallen selbst clean&simple Anhängern wie mir ;)) Und die Adresse von diesem “vielversprechenden” Laden ist natürlich schon gespeichert – ich muss zu ggbner Zeit ja auch irgendwo shoppen gehen ;)
LG Ursula

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Denise spillane

November 14, 2013 at 4:22 am | #

Looks like fun

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Amante del Papel

November 13, 2013 at 8:53 pm | #

awesome!!!

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Rob

November 13, 2013 at 3:59 pm | #

The classes sound great Nat. Love the concept of ongoing classes. It gives people the chance to explore what they do in the first class before moving on to the next step. I’d love to have that stamp shop near me, LOVE all of those wood mounted stamps in the background.

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Seth

November 13, 2013 at 1:23 pm | #

Looks like it was a ton of fun Nat!

Reply

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On the PATH…or NYC visits

New York City Photos

DISCLAIMER: This Blog Post contains two picture that use words that are curse words , if you have a problem with this, you might be better off looking at something else . Don’t email me to complain, don’t visit my blog anymore because I might post things like this again and for sure do not let your kids look at this !

One of the things that I really love about living in Jersey City, is that it takes me about 15-20 minutes to go to New York. I am faster in Manhattan than many people that live in NYC ;) I call Jersey City actually lovingly “Manhattan for Beginners” – I can sleep here without my heart rate going up with all the lights and noise but I am also feeling like close enough to THE city ;) Strolling through NYC is fun as you can spy so many fun people, signs, graffitis and paste ups here and there

I loved this on the pavement

and this one made me laugh a lot (because everyone including me runs around with the right arm holding the cell phone and looking at it constantly)

And they do love to tell you no-nonsense of what you get if you park at the wrong spot

or what you can find in a store

And seriously…where do you find an old lady with an old lady puppet feeding a squirrel? Edited: I received a comment by Ricky Syers: “Thank you for posting the pic of Doris Diether feeding the squirrel! Im Ricky Syers the creator of these marionettes and the original marionette squirrel feeder!!” Please check out his website

I can also now see my sweet friend Julie more often(I am so happy about being closer to her…don’t tell her ;) )…she might come soon to NJ too…she is still preparing and getting her shots and a passport …New Yorkers seem to have a hard time to leave the city, even if the drive is just 15 mins ;)

I guess I should have called this post a Stroll through the neighbor neighbor hood ;) Anyway- I hope this made you smile a bit – have a gorgeous day !

Huge hugs

Nat

Comments (14)

RicKy Syers

May 14, 2014 at 10:42 pm | #

Thank you for posting the pic of Doris Diether feeding the squirrel! Im Ricky Syers the creator of these marionettes and the original marionette squirrel feeder!!

Reply
Pearl Maple

November 12, 2013 at 1:34 pm | #

Have fun with all your new adventures and exploring NYC. LoL on finding treasures like the sweet lady with her puppet feeding a squirrel! how cute are they !

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julie

November 12, 2013 at 12:41 pm | #

Love it all Nat – thanks for posting!

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Amante del Papel

November 11, 2013 at 6:32 pm | #

fabulous post! thanks Nat for showing your new city!

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Denise Spillane

November 11, 2013 at 6:20 pm | #

Oh boy, you always make me laugh but today brought tears too. I miss NY and NJ where I grew up and family still resides. I get homesick this time of year. Keep up these wonder posts.

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Denise Spillane

November 11, 2013 at 6:20 pm | #

Oh boy, you always make me laugh but today brought tears too. I miss NY and NJ where I grew up and family still resides. I get homesick this time of year. Keep up these wonder posts.

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Nurse Ratchet

November 11, 2013 at 12:08 pm | #

Fab post Nat….I love NYC!! I may have an idea what to do when I retire,now that I have seen the marionette toting, squirrel feeding gal…….

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Deleted User

November 11, 2013 at 9:26 am | #

:-)

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Sue Clarke

November 11, 2013 at 8:53 am | #

Of course this post make me smile Nat!
The pic of the old lady with the old lady puppet feeding the squirrel is a riot. So you really are close to NYC and Julie. Sweet. You two will be/are a good support to each other personally and as artists (making it in this big world). Love the signs. I need one of the phone signs to hang out of my car window. So many people talking and not driving safely around here.

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Laura Strack

November 11, 2013 at 8:06 am | #

Good thing about living in New York, besides your Bestie living there, too, you will never run out of things to write about and the there is always a great pic, just around the corner :)

Reply
Peggy Beige Spaulding

November 11, 2013 at 6:29 am | #

I like seeing your postings about strolling NJ & NY. your Pics are great Being an artist and living in the rural country “MOO MOO” I do not have access to having a Big City but I do have the beauty of the country side.
Have a Happy Day! Peggy

Reply
wilma Voermans

November 11, 2013 at 6:28 am | #

Great pictures, my dream is to visit New York one time! This way I can enjoy it already a little. And curse words here , I coudn’t find bad stuff. You should hear me when I am angry at the boys :)

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Jean A Marmo

November 11, 2013 at 6:26 am | #

Looks like a wonderful trip to the city!

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Nolene

November 11, 2013 at 4:38 am | #

Oh my goodness! How cute is the old lady photo! I adore it! Please may I use it? I’ll keep your signature in the bottom.

Reply

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Gesso Stamping Technique

Art Journal art journal techniques Stamps

Those of you who were part of the Creative JumpStart 2013 saw the videos that me and my artist friends posted on my website throughout January. The videos are not available here anymore, since I have to make room for new fun things to come ..still thinking …but I thought it would be nice to repost my 10 technique videos over the next couple weeks- so that you have access to them whenever you want.

And now let’s jump to the fourth video in my Über*Media Creative JumpStart 2013 Workshop which was a Gesso Stamping Technique – which I love a lot

If you have no external speakers on your pc – turn up the volume a lot (the audio is very low in this video)

This and the other techniques are part of some of my Über*Media Online Classes. They are there to free your creativity with techniques and how-to’s that go beyond one certain project. I want you to learn something new that you can adapt to your own style and can use for many projects to come.

Über*Media classes are dedicated to different kinds of media that cross a variety of materials.

I do have several Über*Media Workshops available right now for example Über*Media -PanPastel, -Acrylic Paint, -Gesso, -Acrylic Ink and -FoamStamplifier.

For my Creative JumpStart Über*Media Workshop I showed some of my favorite Über*Media Techniques that can be used in your Mixed Media, Scrapbooking, Altered Art and/or ArtJournal Projects.

And here are the supplies I used in the video:

Gesso White/Clear/Black	Liquitex Basic White Gesso	Darkroom Door Mesh Background	Darkroom Door Scratches Stamp	Tim Holtz Scissors	Transparency for Printers
Foam Brushes

InLinkz.com

I hope you enjoyed this little technique.

Have an amazing day!

nat

Nat

Comments (4)

Gerd Andersson

November 9, 2013 at 6:53 pm | #

Thank you Nat, for reminding me of this technique! I really hope for a new CJS 2014!

Reply
Jean A Marmo

November 9, 2013 at 10:46 am | #

Forgot about this!

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Laura Strack

November 9, 2013 at 10:20 am | #

Thank you for a blast from the past! Love Creative Jumpstart 2013!

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selena

November 9, 2013 at 10:01 am | #

merci pour cette bonne idée!

Reply

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Wars on Canvas…or new Art Journal Page

Art Journal Liquitex Professional Paint Markers Liquitex Professional Spray Paints Stencils

“I’d rather fight my inner wars on canvas” by Nathalie Kalbach…because argggh ;) This inner fight was fought on paper in my art journal…apparently ;) And it helped …Good !

Here are the supplies used:

Crackle Stencil L169	Liquitex Acrylic Paint Marker	Liquitex Professional Spray Paint	Liquitex Basics Acrylic Paints
Liquitex Basic White Gesso	Liquitex Ultra Matte Gel Medium	Dylusions Creative Journal/Art Journal

InLinkz.com

Hope you have a wonderful day without inner fights today :)
hugs
Nat

Nat

Comments (2)

Amante del Papel

November 7, 2013 at 4:21 pm | #

Well, you have been fantastic. I love the colors and especially the signficado, it’s awesome!

Reply
Sue Clarke

November 7, 2013 at 6:58 am | #

It’s interesting for me to see your shift from paper to paint.
It inspires me to play more with paint and ink. I’ve yet to “let go” and really just have my emotions guide me with paint. You’ve done a nice job here of painting your emotions Nat.

Reply

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Unleash Your Creativity or…Why I have been biting off my tongue

CHA Mixed Media Stampendous Stamps workshop

It has been an insane year already with the move overseas and if you are waiting for an email…bear with me – I am drowning in emails, setting up a cozy home, workshops and … I have been biting off my tongue for many months now because…I have also been working on a huge secret project..which is tied up with something else…and here it is …Can you spy the bigger news that are included in this already (big for me) announcement?

I am so thrilled and it was hard to not tell anyone…but the biting is not over ;) I so cannot wait to show you the designs when it comes closer to CHA. They are so me and I am very excited about them. Thank YOU my readers for your encouragements over the last years and support – without you, this would have never happened. I have been dreaming of this FOREVER and as some of you know I have been VERY close once to this a couple years ago but alas…it wasn’t supposed to be. But this time…it is – I am holding my babies in my hand already :) If you are a retailer and interested in taking my class sponsored by Stampendous and Liquitex at CHA – you can sign up starting ~~today~~ November 12th (the CHA website crashed when the registration opened this morning- so they have to fix this)! All others…don’t be sad, there will be lot’s of fun coming up the next months :)

Sending a super big hug with a huge almost-around-the- face-if-not-there-were-ears-smile on my face to you

Nat

Comments (24)

Anna-Karin

November 10, 2013 at 3:03 pm | #

Wow, I am so happy for you!! I can’t wait to see your stamps, I know they will be wonderful. It must have been so hard to keep quiet about!! Big Congrats!!

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susan salyer

November 6, 2013 at 5:10 pm | #

congrats to you well earned I know . have fun and enjoy your special time!
hugs
susan s

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MichaelaBM

November 6, 2013 at 10:30 am | #

Gratulation!

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Deleted User

November 6, 2013 at 9:57 am | #

Congrats, Nat…you have stepped with the right foot in US!…hope the best with all those conquers!….sorry i am not retailer…nice day!

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Dara Lynn

November 6, 2013 at 9:05 am | #

Congratulations Nathalie!! Cannot wait to see the full reveal!

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Denise Spillane

November 6, 2013 at 8:13 am | #

Congrats, this is great news.you will love CHA

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Sara Naumann

November 6, 2013 at 7:30 am | #

Congrats, Nat! That’s terrific news! See you at CHA!

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Jean A Marmo

November 6, 2013 at 7:11 am | #

So exciting! Congrats!

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Sue Clarke

November 6, 2013 at 6:46 am | #

How nice to see you moving along in the mixed media art work and getting exactly what you deserve Nat! Hugs to you and a jump for joy too.

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Laura Strack

November 6, 2013 at 1:23 am | #

Congrats, Girl! How awesome, your own stamps! I really love the quality of Stampendous Stamps and I look forward to playing with yours.

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Gela

November 5, 2013 at 10:39 pm | #

Wow! Congrats!

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Carmen Lucero

November 5, 2013 at 6:24 pm | #

So happy for you, Nat!! I look forward to seeing your new stamp line!

Carmen L

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Nurse Ratchet

November 5, 2013 at 5:41 pm | #

Looking forward to February!!! LGL stamps…cannot wait for the sneak peek!! Soooo happy for you!

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chrisd

November 5, 2013 at 4:39 pm | #

What wonderful news!

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Jennifer Palmer

November 5, 2013 at 4:36 pm | #

3 cheers for Nat Hooray Hooray Hooray

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Rob

November 5, 2013 at 4:33 pm | #

Congratulations Nat, it sounds wonderful. Lucky retailers. Like the previous commenter, I’m looking forward to Jumpstart again if you are able to do it.

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Cindy

November 5, 2013 at 4:17 pm | #

Congrats Nat! I am sure your students will love your style as much as we do! Just a minor pout that I am not a retailer therefore not able to take the class! I am crossing my fingers there will be a Jumpstart in 2014!

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Liz

November 5, 2013 at 3:27 pm | #

Many Congratulations! Can’ t wait to see yor stamp designs. Well done.

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Riikka

November 5, 2013 at 3:22 pm | #

Congratulations!

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Amante del Papel

November 5, 2013 at 1:34 pm | #

Congratulations Nath!

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Janj

November 5, 2013 at 12:10 pm | #

Congratulations! Show us your Happy Dance!

OH what fun this will be for you and the students! Do we get any sneak peaks at the stamps??

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Janine

November 5, 2013 at 12:03 pm | #

Congrats Natalie! So well deserved!

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muriel

November 5, 2013 at 11:55 am | #

Oh, that’s super great! I’m so pleased for you who give so much to others through your art.

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Kathy P

November 5, 2013 at 11:51 am | #

Congrats, Nat! I am so excited for you—–you are going to rock this event!!!

Reply

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Grungy Advents Calendar or …Welcome to the Handmade Holidays Blog Hop

Advents Calender christmas

Welcome to the Third Annual Handmade Holidays blog hop!! I was invited to join some wonderful crafters, designers, and makers to come together to create and share a series of thoughtful, handmade gifts for the holidays during this 3 day blog hop. Our goal is to inspire you to create something from the heart this holiday season as well as share how to use products in fun, innovative ways. We intend this hop to serve as a resource to you for this holiday season and for years to come.

Hop along to each blog in the list. Each day, from November 1 through November 3, 2013, we’ll be posting a brand new list of blogs to hop to. Comment on each blog, share your favorite posts over social media, and then use the Rafflecopter widget at the bottom of each post to enter to win the Grand Prize, a gift basket filled with crafty swag from the companies on the hop! We’re ready to inspire, share, and create – are you ready to hop?

Here is my Project:

Advent Calendars are an old German tradition and they are used to count down the days till Christmas. In Germany we have a huge variety of Advents Calendars filled with Chocolate treats or little gifts and sometimes also just pictures. It is a a big token of Love when you give someone an Advents Calendar and I have always loved creating my own with little tiny gifts and give it to a dear friend or my hubs. This year I created one for a special friend…and since the task of collecting 25 little gifts is already a bit time consuming – I kept the creating of the Advents Calendar easy, fast and fun . Let’s go :)

Besides the Supplies listed below I also gathered some old book paper – or music sheet paper. I started off with spraying Liquitex Parchment Spray Paint through my StandUp Bass Stencils I designed for StencilGirl Products onto 25 Kraft Lunch Bags. I also flipped the Stencil once in while to rub off the excess paint and receive a negative stencil print. ATTENTION: Either wear a mask when spraying with Liquitex Spray Paint or do this outside!

I love using these Spray Paints as you can work so quick and there is not much bleeding on the kraft paper since it is Acrylic Paint.

Then I used some Cardboard Stencil Numbers to spray the days from 1-25 on the book paper – I used black here.

This is probably the most time consuming part of creating the Advents Calendar but I love the stenciled look.

Next I spray painted the Prima Leaves a bit so that they would fit the calendar

Then I filled the lunch bags with my gifts, attached the numbers with a stapler and added some lace to the bag. I folded the opening of the bag to the back and then used a Japanese Screw Punch to make a hole through the flap. I love the Japanese Screw Punch – a very sharp tool (use a craft mat!) which makes no noise -perfect when you share your place with other people :)

Then I started attaching the bags on a string to the clothes hanger. The good thing about a clothes hanger is, that it can be hung anywhere – on a closet, on a nail, on a shelf edge – the possibilities are endless for the person who receives this calendar and then …after Christmas…they have another hanger… ;)

Try to add the bags picking up different days – I had sorted them in groups of five and then picked from each group one bag to make sure to mix it up nicely. Also make sure you keep the balance on the hanger – you get the picture ;)

At the end I just added the Wooden Disks which I had drilled wholes into and the sprayed leaves as a little grungy decoration and voila- done :) Of course you can alter this fitting your taste- so if you do not like the grungy look you are very welcome to use for example red & white baker’s twine and add nice red cardboard numbers onto doilies instead of the book paper- and there it is- same concept – different look :) Make someone happy this holiday season with an Advents Calendar – I promise you it is well worth it when you see how much the person loves it !

Here are the supplies and tools I used:

StandUp Bass Stencil	Prima Wooden Disks	Prima Leaves	Kraft Paper Lunch Bags	Cardboard Stencils	Liquitex Professional Spray Paint
Prima Marketing Lace	Twine	Tiny Attacher – Stapler	White Wood Hanger	Japanese Screw Punch	Spray Paint Mask

InLinkz.com

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Now hop on over to the next person on the list:

Jen Goode http://www.100directions.com/

Here is the complete blog hop list for today

Clearsnap http://blog.clearsnap.com

Craft Attitude http://www.jonathanfongstyle.com/blog/

Smoothfoam http://www.smoothfoam.com/blog/

Donna Salazar Designs http://donnasalazardesigns.blogspot.com/

Walnut Hollow http://walnuthollowcrafts.wordpress.com/

100 Proof Press http://www.100proofpress.com/_blog/Blog

Graphic45 http://g45papers.typepad.com/

ICE Resin http://iceresin.com/icequeen/

Stampendous http://stampendousblog.wordpress.com/

Sizzix – Eileen Hull Designs http://eileenhull.blogspot.com/

Jamie Dougherty http://jamiedoughertydesigns.blogspot.com

Nathalie Kalbach www.nathaliesstudio.com (you are here :) )

Jen Goode http://www.100directions.com/

Kathy Cano-Murillo http://www.craftychica.com/site/

Tanner Bell http://www.craftteen.com

Jennifer Priest http://hydrangeahippo.com

Jen Cushman http://jencushman.wordpress.com/

Adrienne Ford http://bry-and-i.blogspot.com/

Joanne Fink http://www.zenspirations.com/home/

Vicki O’Dell http://vickiodell.com/

Liz Hicks http://blogerisms.blogspot.com/

Denise Hahn http://inmyblueroom.blogspot.com/

Courtney Chambers http://www.alittlecraftinyourday.com

Tami Mayberry http://tamimayberry.blogspot.com/

Norma Rapko http://normarapko.blogspot.com/

Cheryl Waters http://blog.artsyfindings.com/

Have a wonderful creative day and huge hugs

Nat

Comments (36)

ceciscrap

December 17, 2013 at 8:30 pm | #

It´s amazing!! Here is mine.
http://ceciscrap.blogspot.com.es/2013/12/calendario-de-adviento.html

Reply
Susan Wilder

November 5, 2013 at 12:19 am | #

Really awesome looking! Thank you!

Reply
Ursula

November 4, 2013 at 1:00 pm | #

Auch eine schöne Idee, den Adventskalender an einem Kleiderbügel aufzuhängen. Bei mir gibt es dieses Jahr wieder einen ATC- Kalender, den ich in meinem Stammforum organisiert habe… Und für Junior brauche ich noch eine Idee, aber is ja noch ein “bischen” hin ;))
LG Ulla

Reply
Laura

November 4, 2013 at 8:51 am | #

This is fab Nat :)

Reply
Janis in ID

November 4, 2013 at 4:16 am | #

Really different and very cool idea!!
<3 J

jwoolbright at gmail dot com

Reply
Amante del Papel

November 4, 2013 at 4:07 am | #

Fantastic calendar!!!

Reply
Laura Strack

November 4, 2013 at 3:33 am | #

Hi Nat! Very cool advent calender! Love that chalkboard paint!! TFS!

Reply
Janine

November 4, 2013 at 3:13 am | #

I gotta start working on my advent calendars as well!

Reply
Kimberly

November 4, 2013 at 12:06 am | #

What a great idea for an advent calendar!!

Reply
Lynn Hardy

November 3, 2013 at 11:43 pm | #

This is really unusual and a great way to be able to give slightly larger advent gifts! Thanks for the ideas!

Reply
Viki B

November 3, 2013 at 11:25 pm | #

Such a unique idea for an advent calendar!

Reply

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