Creative Squad

Foam Stamplifier Challenge with the Creative Squad – Josefine Fouarge

  

This month my Creative Squad is playing along with my new Foam Stamplifier Challenge: All month long you can follow my daily prompts on Instagram and on the blog to amplify your foam stamps!!! Today Josefine Fouarge is following the prompt Pigment Ink. She’s using my Maze Hex, Space Oddity, and Weave foam stamps to create some gorgeous cards. And this will be Josefine’s last post with the Creative Squad so we would like to say a HUGE thank you to her for her awesome projects and wish her the best on all her future ventures :)

I love foam stamps which is why Nat’s challenge is so much fun. I hope that you’re getting a lot of inspiration from all the posts and enjoy playing along.

Tuesday is Creative Squad day and of course, we are playing along. Today’s prompt is Pigment Ink and I picked my favorite – Distress Oxide (technically, it’s a hybrid between Pigment and Dye Ink, but sometimes you have to be a rebel ;) ).

To add a third favorite, I chose the hexagon designs and the Weave design from Nat and I decided to create a set of notecards. I ran out again, so I needed a few quick and easy ones. I prepared a few card bases and decided to stamp directly onto them.

I went with two colors per stamp design and applied the first one directly onto the Maze Hex foam stamp.

Then I added the second color. I don’t worry about which color to use first since I always go back with the first color and blend both together.

Because Oxide’s are water reactive, I added water directly on top of the ArtFoamie. You can stamp without adding moisture. I did it, because I really like the effect.

I varied the way of the ombre effect. For some I went from left to right and for the Space Oddity foam stamp from the middle to the outside.

Once I was done with the backgrounds, I started decorating the cards. That can be as simple as adding an outline with a black fineliner…

…or some dots and lines using an acrylic marker.

You can also use die-cuts or magazine cut outs to decorate the cards. For this one, I used a picture from a magazine ad and adhered it with gel medium. Usually, I would add the gel medium to the background, the back of the picture and all over the card to seal it. Since I used Distress Oxides, I just added it to the back of the picture. Otherwise the ink would have moved.

Then I decorated the picture with dots and lines.

It always surprises me how you can create great looking cards with just a bit of stamping and adding dots. They all look different but started out in very similar ways.

Foam stamps are so versatile and work for every style – from clean and simple to super grungy and are great for cards, art journal pages and so many other mixed media techniques.

Don’t forget to join the Foam Stamplifier Challenge over on Instagram and share your own projects using foam stamps.

Thank you Josefine – I love how the foam stamps work with ink!  You can find my Foam Stamps in my Online Shop. Here are some of the supplies that Josefine used:



Feel inspired? I hope you join us for the Foam Stamplifier Challenge this month. As you play along, don’t forget to tag me when you share your creations – I would love to share your projects in my next  “n*Spiration From Around the Globe“.

Nat

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Foam Stamplifier Challenge with the Creative Squad – Tania Ahmed

  

This month my Creative Squad is playing along with my new Foam Stamplifier Challenge: All month long you can follow my daily prompts on Instagram and on the blog to amplify your foam stamps!!! Today Tania Ahmed is following the prompt Print! She’s using my new Foam Stamps along with her gelli plate for monoprinting and then she shows a great next step for that monoprint :)

This month the Creative Squad was asked to play along with Nat’s Foam Stamplifier Challenge and my prompt was Print!

I love printmaking and I love Art Foamies stamps, so it was almost as if this prompt was made with me in mind, haha!

I made a video to show how I put together a little mini album made using 12×12 cardstock that stamped on using Nat’s newest Art Foamies release and a 5×7 Gelli Arts® plate.

 

Here’s how I put the mini album together:

1 Apply a thin layer of acrylic paint to Gelli Arts® plate.

2 Use the Gelli Plate to ink the Art Foamies and then stamp on to cardstock and repeat until the paint just begins to dry on the plate.

3 Pull a print with the remainder of the paint that is left on the plate.

4 You can use this clean off paper for collages.

5 Apply more paint to plate and repeat steps until you are happy with your print.

6 Score your cardstock at 3”, 6” and 9”.

7 Rotate paper 90 degrees and score again at 3”, 6” and 9”.

8 Cut up to the score lines as shown above.

9 Accordion fold the paper which will form a little 3” x 3” journal/album.

10 Tape or glue the backs of the pages together to make it a little more sturdy. You get leave some sides free to use as pockets.

11 To finish off the book spine, add washi tape for decoration!

Thank you Tania! What an cool little book and a great way to use a monoprint! You can find my Foam Stamps in my Online Shop. Here are some of the supplies that Tania used:


Feel inspired? I hope you join us for the Foam Stamplifier Challenge this month. As you play along, don’t forget to tag me when you share your creations – I would love to share your projects in my next  “n*Spiration From Around the Globe“.

Nat

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Today We Smile – Maura Hibbitts

  

Hello from my Creative Squad! Today we have some cute little notebooks from Maura Hibbitts that will definitely inspire you! Maura is using my Marks stamp set, along with my Street Sign, Snail Mail, Numerals, and my Windows and Door stamp set and this month’s theme: Today We Smile – They say smiling can lift our mood and maybe improve our overall health. Let’s try it! Think about what makes you smile and share it with all of us. After all, smiles are also known to be contagious :)

I’ve been inspired by all the wonderfully creative projects on Creative Jumpstart 2019, and I think that is why I’ve tucked in some home elements on my little notebooks. I immediately thought of working with bright yellow when I saw this month’s theme, perhaps due to our dark winter this year. I chose purple as my complementary color (the color opposite on the color wheel). Somehow, along the way, the cards I was going to make, morphed into these little notebooks.

I pulled out my small gelli plate (6×6) and added Dioxazine Purple, then used the brayer to get a thin layer of paint. I randomly pressed one sheet of paper onto the plate to create a dark purple background. On my other watercolor sheet, I stamped X’s from Nat’s Marks stamp set with the dark purple. I went back in on my dark background with Translucent White and the X marks, and also layered in a bit of Lavender.

To create my yellow background, I mixed Neon and Light Yellow on the gel plate. Then, I stamped the hexagon gel plate into this and transferred it repeatedly onto my X paper. I also used the circle mark stamp from the Marks stamp set on the hexagon and stamped this on my paper. I stamped yellow circles onto my dark purple paper also.

I decided to add a bit more purple to my Yellow paper, but wanted it lighter, so I mixed Translucent White with Purple Rain. Once again, the gel plate works as a great paint surface to stamp into, and I used the circle marks again. I then decided to add a bit more dark purple with the tread like mark and stamped in a random fashion.

Now that my papers are made, I cut out four pieces 4 !/2 x 6” and rounded the corners of the bottom with a 1/2” corner rounder. I also used a tab punch to punch several tabs.

Time for the Rollabind machine.  Can you believe, I almost got rid of this? I hadn’t used it in forever, and then I started to notice a lot of planners that use this system. Now, I am really glad I still have it! I used 4×6 index cards and A2 envelopes. Trim off the envelope flap before using the Rollabind in order to make this into a pocket. I adhered tabs to my pockets.

I stamped the Door and Window onto my purple notebook, but it really didn’t show up well. Then I decided to stamp again on the yellow, and hand cut a wonky little house. I didn’t sketch, I just went in with the scissors. I added some detail with black and white pens, and decided the roof needed more detail. I masked off the chimney, and stamped with the V marks and black ink. Then I adhered this to the front  of the notebook, along with a tab. I also stamped images on my yellow notebook and added in some white details. Then, thinking of our Smile theme, I wrote in Spring and Summer on the road signs, because that would make me smile!

Here are some of the details of the covers. I thought it was pretty serendipitous to find the purple disks to use, as I had no idea what I had.

I enjoyed layering with stamps on this project. Stamping in different directions adds another element of fun. I’m smiling because I have two cute little notebooks I’ve made for gifts, and I think they will smile when they receive them. It’s a smiling kind of day! Maura

Thank you Maura! I love that charming little house :) You can find my Rubber Stamps in my Online Shop . In addition to a tab punch and rollabind system and disks, here are some of the other supplies that Maura 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“.

Nat

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Currently Digging – Creative Squad Edition with Maura Hibbitts

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 who’s work caught my eye…, some Inspiration that got my creative juices flowing, and Tools & Techniques I am currently digging. Today we asked Maura Hibbitts from my Creative Squad what SHE is Currently Digging :) Hope you enjoy this.

Sveta Dorosheva – I’ve been fascinated with Sveta’s illustrations since receiving her book “The Land of Stone Flowers” for Christmas. I love her imaginative approach to art and storytelling, and the wonderfully intricate designs she creates. I am drawn back to the images repeatedly and each time I discover something new, which fires my imagination.

Natural Patterns and Colors – I am always looking at the world around me for inspiration, and lately I’ve been drawn to patterns in nature. Frost and ice designs, shadows on the snow, clouds passing overhead have their own intricate designs to share. Recently though, I headed to sunny Florida, and started observing patterns in sand, rocks and shells on the beach (and in shops). I am amazed at the beautiful patterns created by nature.

Gel Plate – I find myself frequently reaching for the gel plate when I am working on projects. Not only do I like to use it to create my own prints and papers, but it also makes a great surface to stamp into as well as pick up paint on a stamp. Nathalie’s Art Foamies work really well with this technique.

Thank you Maura! I hope you all enjoyed hearing a bit more about what inspires Maura as an artist. Stay tuned for the next Currently Digging Creative Squad edition for more from our other members :)

Nat

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Today We Smile – Tania Ahmed

  

Hello again from the Creative Squad! Today we have a video from Tania Ahmed who is rocking some distress inks and embossing with my Maiko and Running rubber stamps. The theme this month is: Today We Smile – They say smiling can lift our mood and maybe improve our overall health. Let’s try it! Think about what makes you smile and share it with all of us. After all, smiles are also known to be contagious :)

This month’s theme for the Creative Squad was Today we Smile and boy oh boy did I smile while making this card using the Maiko stamp set :)

I have made a video on how I made the card using lots of techniques with Distress Oxides, embossing powder and colour pencils.

I used a lot of things that make me really happy: stamping, heat embossing, ink blending, gold, and watercolouring! I hope you enjoy the video and please do let me know if you have any questions about any of the techniques or products used.

Step1: Stamp with Running Stamp and Heat Emboss cardstock panel with Gold Embossing Powder using an embossing ink pad.

Step2: Apply Distress Oxide to heat embossed background with blending brush.

Step 3: Stamp and colour in Maiko stamp using Distress Oxides as watercolours. Add details and shading with colour pencils.

Step4: Cut out Maiko image.

Step5: Assemble all elements together and add to top folding card base using foam tape.

Step6: Add sentiment sticker to finish.

Thank you so much for watching and taking a peek here on Nat’s Blog. Take care and see you all next month :)

Thank you Tania! What a gorgeous card!!! You can find my Rubber Stamps in my Online Shop and here are some of the other supplies that Tania 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“.

Nat

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Today We Smile – Josefine Fouarge

  

Hello from my Creative Squad and a mixed media piece by Josefine Fouarge! Josefine is using my Art Deco house, Art Tag, Chain Link, and Cross Circle rubber stamps and this month’s theme: Today We Smile – They say smiling can lift our mood and maybe improve our overall health. Let’s try it! Think about what makes you smile and share it with all of us. After all, smiles are also known to be contagious :)

Yes, let’s all smile. I smile when I can create, so surprise – I’m creating something ;) And I hope it will inspire you to create and maybe even smile yourself.

I enjoy creating the most when I can turn off my head while putting something onto paper (or in this case onto a board). Not thinking about what happens, just letting my inner joy guide me. This is what happens when I do exactly that:

Here you can see how everything came together. Just imagine my smile on my face while I was smooshing around with paint, ink and stamps.

Can you see all the texture in the background? I really enjoy how the white house contrasts with the colorful and textured background. It’s a totally different look.

Thanks so much for stopping by. Don’t forget to take a look at all the other inspiration on Nat’s blog.

Thank you Josefine – I just love the colors in that background!!! In addition to my Rubber Stamps from my Online Shop , here are some of the supplies that Josefine 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“.

Nat

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Today We Smile – Jennifer Gallagher

  

Hello from the Creative Squad and a post from Jennifer Gallagher to kick off February for us. Jennifer is using some of my Large Circle Jumble, Stroll Around the Block and My Home is My Castle rubber stamps for her charming piece on canvas. She was inspired by our theme this month: Today We Smile – They say smiling can lift our mood and maybe improve our overall health. Let’s try it! Think about what makes you smile and share it with all of us. After all, smiles are also known to be contagious :)

This month the Creative Squad is looking at what makes each of us smile. We are pondering what makes us truly happy and reflecting that feeling into our projects. Well, for me, the answer will always be my family. Nothing makes me happier than being at home with them. We love to cook together, play board games, and watch movies. With that in mind, I’ve put together an adorable little project that reflects my love of home.

I started by stamping Nat’s Circle Drive (positive) stamp onto a sheet of newsprint in vivid chartreuse archival ink. Next, I ripped the sheet of newsprint into strips and glued them onto my canvas pad to represent grass.

Then, I sprayed my canvas with dylusions periwinkle blue ink spray to represent sky. You can adjust the depth of color by adding more spray or dabbing with a wet paper towel.  Allow the ink spray to thoroughly dry. To add additional interest, I sprayed the Circle Drive stamp with a mist of water and pressed it into the blue ink spray in several spots and then dabbed the water up with a paper towel. It left behind the stamped design.

To add stars in the sky, I stamped Nat’s Star Tag stamp with buttercup archival ink and pressed it around the canvas.

For interest around the grass, I rubbed a brown ink pad on the edge of the canvas pad.

Next, I stamped Nat’s Cape Cod stamp along with the Street Sign, Snail Mail mailbox and the My Home is My Castle sentiment stamps onto scrap watercolor paper with black archival ink. Then, I colored them in with a wet paint brush and scribble sticks.

I cut each of the stamped images out and then mounted them onto the canvas pad with mounting tape.

I hope this project has inspired you to break out your favorite n*Studio stamps and make something today that puts a smile on your face. Be sure to share your creations with Nat and the creative squad!

Thank you Jennifer for sharing with us what makes you smile and for showing us this gorgeous project. You can find my Rubber Stamps in my Online Shop and here are some of the other supplies that Jennifer 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“.

Nat

Comments (2)

  • Nancy A Olsen

    |

    I love this project ! The background really inspires me to work in my art journal ! Thank you for the inspiration !

    Reply

  • Sue Clarke

    |

    I just love how you made the “grass” Jennifer!

    Reply

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Let’s Jump with the Creative Squad – Judi Kauffman

We’re Jumping with the Creative Squad today with 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. Judi is transforming some home decor items for us today and wow what a miraculous transformation indeed :) She is using my Downtown and Crackle stencils and this month’s theme: Let’s Jump! – The Creative Squad is joining the fun of Creative JumpStart 2019 this month. They’re creating objects for the home, inspired by the CJS19 theme My Home is My Castle.

I loved the shape, so I bought a rather garish paper-covered trash can with teddy bears all over it. I tucked it under my sewing machine where it has served me well.

There it sat in all its pink and orange glory until this week, when it was time to start on my Home Décor project for Nathalie’s Creative Squad January Challenge. Bye bye, bears! Hello, Downtown and Crackle stencils!

I gave myself a challenge within a challenge – to incorporate hearts, a shape usually thought of for Valentines and weddings, to create an offbeat, upscale, graphic design. Using a deep, rich, unexpected palette and stencils that helped take things to a new level made it easy to accomplish.

The hearts aren’t immediately obvious, the overall effect pleases my eye. I’m almost sorry that the trash can is going right back under the sewing machine. Maybe I should use it for a big bouquet of dried flowers instead!

While I was at it, I wiped my brushes onto pieces of cardstock and stenciled on top of the brush marks. That gave me a second project – a mosaic style tray, an extra bonus.

Instructions for Trash Can:

To customize the project, pick a color palette that suits your décor. Alternatively, duplicate the project as shown by using the paints and Shimmer Sheetz that I chose. Either way: You will need two stencils (a graphic pattern plus a crackle pattern), metallic acrylic paint in two colors, black or white gesso, and Shimmer Sheetz that coordinates with the paints and gesso.

Choose a trash can with smooth sides. Base coat with black gesso. Randomly brush with copper metallic acrylic paint, leaving much of the black visible. Randomly stencil with Crackle pattern in teal metallic acrylic paint. Allow to dry. (Choose paints appropriate for the trash can – mine is paper-covered, but yours may be metal.) *Wipe brushes onto quarter sheets of cardstock before washing them. (8.5” x 11” cut into four pieces.)

Freehand or die-cut hearts from Amethyst Gemstone Shimmer Sheetz in assorted sizes. Back the Shimmer Sheetz with double-sided adhesive sheet prior to cutting. Size of hearts is determined by the size and shape of the trash can. Keep the scraps for other projects. Note: I used the AccuCut GrandeMARK machine with standard cutting dies. If you use a Big Shot or other personal-size machine with thin dies, a metal adaptor plate is required– follow Els van de Burgt’s YouTube tutorial for this technique. *While you’re at it, stencil onto the cardstock that was wiped with paint in Step 1. Set aside stenciled cardstock to use for Tray.

Stencil the hearts with various sections of the Downtown Stencil using copper metallic acrylic paint. Randomly stencil with Crackle pattern in teal metallic acrylic paint. Allow to dry.

Arrange and adhere the hearts as shown or as you prefer. Note that many of the hearts have been cut where they move from one side of the trash can to the adjacent side, and some are cropped so they appear to extend at the top and bottom edges. This will not be necessary if using a round or oval trash can.

  

  

Instructions for Tray:

Find a tray with a glass insert or make one with a frame, handles, glass and sturdy backing. (Shown: Tea Tray from Sudberry House). Cut a background for the tray from metallic finish cardstock, carefully piecing together strips if the tray is larger than a single piece of cardstock.

Cut each piece of stenciled cardstock into four 1” x 4.25” strips and one 1.5” x 4.25” piece. Using the project photo below as a reference, piece together and adhere the 1.5” strips at the right and left sides of the tray, close to the handles. (This hides the seam where I joined bands of background cardstock.) Angle and trim the 1” strips to cover the remainder of the tray, leaving space between the strips for a mosaic effect.

Assemble the tray.

Options:

*Instead of simple strips, cut the cardstock into square mosaic ‘tiles’ or randomly cut mosaic pieces.

*Instead of backing the pieces with glue, adhere them to cardstock that has exposed double-sided adhesive sheet on top. Leave very little space between the pieces; use embossing powder and a heat tool to create the effect of textured grout! (This is time-consuming, but fun.)

Thanks Judi! You really turned that teddy bear trash can into something great to look at! Feel inspired to try dressing up your own home decor items? You can find all my Stencils in my Online Shop. Here are some of the other supplies that Judi used:


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“.

Nat

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Let’s Jump with the Creative Squad – Maura Hibbitts

  

Today we have Maura Hibbitts with us sharing a project that is sure to brighten up any home – a lovely little Kokopelli figure! Maura is using my Downtown, Mesa Verde, Toledo, and Crackle stencils and this month’s theme: Let’s Jump! – The Creative Squad is joining the fun of Creative JumpStart 2019 this month. They’re creating objects for the home, inspired by the CJS19 theme My Home is My Castle.

We are focusing on home decor this month to brighten our personal “castles”. My husband drew a Kokopelli design years ago, following one of our epic summer camping trips to the Southwest, and then cut a number of them out of wood. I decided to use one of these figures and alter it with paint and stencils. I chose Kokopelli for a couple of reasons – one, he carried his “home” on his back as he traveled between pueblos, and two, we grow a number of cacti and succulents that have to come inside our home each winter, and they remind me of Kokopelli.

I started my project by painting the wood with gesso, and once that dried, painting him turquoise, a color I associate with the southwest. (I love the turquoise jewelry from this region.)

I laid the Crackle stencil onto the figure and using a cosmetic sponge, lightly dabbed Ultramarine Blue all over the front and back and edges. The edges were tricky to do, I had to wrap the stencil along the edge, hold it with one hand and dab the paint. It might have been easier to tape it on, now that I think about it.

I wanted to use stencils with designs that remind me of the southwest, and Nathalie has several. I chose to use the Toledo stencil next, and mixed Titanium White and Cerulean Blue, then dabbed that on with the sponge.

Now that I have all of my blue layers on, it’s time to add the gold. I used the Mesa Verde stencil with Pale Gold.

Kokopelli needs a bit of contrast, and I chose to add copper and gold to his hair, flute and loincloth. I started by rubbing on the Copper Metallic paste with my finger, and then rubbed on some Quinacridone Gold to bring out the color, and decided to add a bit to the base too.

I went back in to add more design on the loincloth area with the pale gold and the Downtown stencil.

I decided to add a bit more contrast, and went back in with some embossing powder on the flute, hair and back area. When I did my final look at my project, I still felt like it needed a bit more definition, so took a small brush and edged the figure with Payne’s Grey.

Kokopelli is playing to the sun among the cacti in our front window. Listen for the song of his flute! – Maura

Thank you Maura! Loved hearing your personal connection to this little guy and seeing him transform into something with a lot of positive energy for the home :) You can find all my Stencils in my Online Shop. In addition to her wooden figure here are some of the supplies that Maura 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“.

Nat

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