{Spotlight Project} Deepti Creates a Winter Scene with the Joyful Set

Hello, friends! Deepti here and welcome to my fifth spotlight post. Today, I'm sharing a card where I have created a fun winter scene. I have used the October stamp club set, Joyful. The stamps in the set are perfect for creating fun Christmas scenes on the cards.

So, here's a look into the finished project. Here I have used some die cuts along with the sleigh as the focus of the card... Also, I experimented by using a patterned paper for the sky. It gives a fun, cool look :)

{Spotlight Project} Shery Creates a One Layer Mixed Media Christmas Tag

I thought I'd take a break from making Christmas cards and create a few Christmas tags that I can use for gift giving. In today's project, I'm sharing one of those tags and some photos of the steps I took to create it. I used my favorite holiday stamp, the Christmas flower stamp, plus words from the Joyful and Christmas Candles sets.

{Spotlight Project} Nonni Has Fun with the Sleigh Stamp

Hi, guys! It's Nonni here creating with the Joyful set! I had a blast making this easy to mail one layer - and it's fast to make too! Let's have a look at the supplies you need to recreate this look:

{Spotlight Project} Vicki Does Highlighting With Ink!

I came across a fun technique in blogland and I thought I would share it on today's spotlight project. It's called highlighting resist.

{News!} November Stamps Pre-Release Sale + Winner of the Stamp Preview Random Draw

Hello, fellow stampers! November is only a few more sleeps away, which means new stamps are soon hitting the STAMPlorations shop! Two weeks ago, we posted a preview of the upcoming stamps here and here.

The official release is November 17 (we have a stamp release blog hop planned for that so keep your eyes peeled), but as we've done in the past, we're doing a pre-release bundle sale for those who want to score a great deal.

Between today and November 11 (or until our current inventory runs out), all 5 stamp sets are just $42 (30% off their combined regular price of $60) with free shipping anywhere in the US and Canada (shipping to other countries is a flat $8). And if you are subscribed to our Bi-Monthly Stamp Club, you can take an additional 15% off this bundle with your personal code!

This bundle includes one (1) 3" by 5" set, three (3) 4" by 6" sets, and one (1) 5" by 7" set.

Click on the graphic below to head to the shop to check out the details on this super-stamping deal (click on the graphic). These stamps are ready to ship!

One more thing before I end this post. Who did Mr. Random.org pick as winner of one inspirational quote stamp in the Typografia line for leaving a comment in this post?

Congratulations, Louise! Please claim your prize within 3 days by sending an email to sheryruss@gmail.com. Put "November Stamps Preview Draw Winner" in the subject line and include your name and complete mailing address.

That's it for this update. Hope you all have a great weekend!

{Spotlight Project} Monika Combines Kiss Stamping and Gelli Plate Printing to Play with the Joyful Stamps

Hi, everyone. It's Monika back again with another spotlight project for you. Today I'm giving the Joyful set the Gelli Plate treatment combined with a spot of Kiss Stamping.

{Spotlight Project} Shirley Uses Joyful Word Stamps for Holiday Card Backgrounds!

I love the grungy text stamps in the Joyful set and wanted to make a background with them. I had already diecut an oval from a piece of card, with the intention of using it for sketch #22, but I ended up making a different card, so it was waiting to be used on something else.

{Let's Celebrate!} Happy birthday, Debra!

Today is STAMPlorations girl Debra's birthday and we just can't not celebrate this happy day!

Debra, we hope you have a wonderful time celebrating your birthday with your loved ones! We wanted to celebrate your birthday here on the blog, starting off with this yummy cupcake (we know you love cupcakes...) followed by a parade of birthday cards we made especially for you. 

You're one incredibly talented and creative girl and we love that you're part of our team! :o)

Photo source

{Spotlight Project} Cornelia Creates A Quick One Layer Christmas Card

Hi! It's Cornelia and I'm playing with stamps in the Joyful set in this spotlight post. I made this simple and quick one layer card that would be easy to mass-produce. It's great if you have a lot of Christmas cards to make. And you know Christmas is not too far off. Let's get started!

Bi-Weekly Sketch Challenge #22

Welcome to our 22nd bi-weekly sketch challenge! Here’s the sketch for the next couple of weeks. It’s open to interpretation. Feel free to change the orientation of the sketch, use different shapes, add other elements to suit the type of paper craft you’re making, and so on — just make sure the sketch is recognizable in your submission(s).

Bi-Weekly Sketch Challenge #21 Winner and Top Picks

Hello, everyone! Things are running a bit late in the Russ household as I juggle work and school, all the while trying to get some much-needed sleep...hence the delay in announcing the last challenge's winner and top picks over the weekend. But better late than never, as they say! Many, many thanks to the fabulous crafters who played along in our last sketch! Maria picked the winner and top picks this time around.

{Spotlight Project} Deepti Goes Vintage with the Joyful Stamp Set!

Hello, friends! Welcome to my fourth spotlight feature. Today, I am sharing the process of making a card that's totally different to my style. But I believe we should try everything and not stick to one style. For one, we learn, and two, it is fun! I have used the October stamp club set, Joyful.

So, here's a look into the finished project. Here I have tried to give a vintage look to my card and also incorporated the chalkboard technique :)

October Challenge Reminder + Inspiration Projects

We're halfway through the October Challenge! This month, we're looking for projects that feature STAMPS & EMBOSSING.

Put your own spin on this month's theme -- as long as you use stamps in your projects (as opposed to projects without stamping whatsoever) and you have some kind of embossing (dry embossing, wet embossing, embossing paste, emboss resist, or any other embossing technique), we'd love to see them! You can link your project here or click on the graphic below.

We've got inspiration projects below too. Check them out!

VIRGINIA LU

Guest designer

CORNELIA

VICKI

We look forward to seeing your beautiful creations!

{Spotlight Project} Shery Creates A One Layer Card Using 5 Techniques

Hello! I've got a one layer card featuring the Joyful set to share in this post. To create this card, I used 5 techniques: build-a-scene, masking, stenciling (I actually used the stencil in two different ways), coloring with alcohol markers, and watercoloring. Here's my card:

{Spotlight Project} Nonni Makes Cards with the Christmas Stocking Stamp

Hi all friends of STAMPlorations! It's Nonni here playing with a Christmas stocking stamp from October stamp club set, Joyful! In my other card, I've also included a sentiment from the Holiday Sketches: Christmas Flower set.

Shall we take a closer look at the cards?

{Spotlight Project} Vicki Makes a Card Using the Triple Brayering Technique

Today I am showing a fun way to brayer. Here is the finished card:

{News!} November Stamps Preview

Hey there, STAMPlorations friends! Are you ready for a preview of more stamps? You've seen the JOYFUL set, our stamp club set for October, and last Friday, you saw the two fab stamp sets under The Bee's Knees line. Now I'd like to share the rest of the stamps coming out in November.

First up is VIGNETTE: Eat Drink Be Merry, a fun graphic set with 12 stamps. This set is perfect for creating one layer and CAS cards. Take it up a notch and create your own backgrounds with the words and icons.

Next is VIGNETTE: Trendy Leaves. This was actually the hubby's idea. A couple of months ago, when I was brainstorming for stamps to design, he said that since Trendy Feathers is one of our most popular sets (we keep selling out of this set!), we ought to create a Trendy line. And so we came up with a list of Trendy [insert word here]...and it's quite a list! Trendy Leaves is one of many that will be coming out in the next 6 release months. In the last couple of weeks, I've taken this set out for a spin (here, here, and here). I had a fun time designing this set and it's my favorite set to date. Expect to see Trendy Leaves 2 soon ;o)

And we're introducing a new line called Typografia. As a designer, I just love typography. And this new line features my love of combining fonts and we've got 7 super inspirational quotes to kick things off.

These stamps will be officially released on November 17. And yup, we'll have a stamp release blog hop to celebrate. In a couple of weeks or so, these stamps will be available at a special pre-release bundle price so keep your eyes peeled if you want to snag these babies at a great price :o)

What do you think of our upcoming stamps? Which one's your favorite? Leave a comment by October 23 and one lucky commenter will win one of the stamps in the Typografia line. We'll announce the winner on October 24.

See you tomorrow for a brand new Spotlight Project from Vicki!

{News!} The Bee's Knees Stamps Now Available to Pre-Order

Happy Friday, STAMPlorations friends! Got any crafting plans this weekend? I do! After an incredibly intense and stressful week, I intend to spend at least 5 hours at my craft table. The other hours...well, I plan on catching up on sleep ;o)

But before I switch to weekend mode, I wanted to let ya'll know that CityGirl and Rosebuds, the two stamp sets in The Bee's Knees line by our very own Shirley, are available to pre-order on the shop.

ORDER THESE FAB STAMPS HERE

 

{Spotlight Project} Faux Chalk Effect Colouring with Monika

Hi, everyone. It's Monika back again with a couple of projects for you. My first project spotlights a set called Rosebuds and is designed by our own Shirley, The Bee's Knees ... Yay! It's due for release very soon.

Initially I wanted to try and recreate Shirley's sloshing by blending some inks. Well, what can I say, it didn't quite work, I'd better stick with what I do best LOL! Anyway this little experiment lead me to create the following card:

{Spotlight Project} Shirley Goes Dashing Through the Snow!

Hi, peeps! I'm here with two masked cards for you, heavy on photos, light on words. Version two is first, for reasons that will become clear.

I've used the new Joyful set, which has four images and loads of grungy words to make up your own sentiments.

{Spotlight Project} Cornelia Plays with a Couple of Oldies but Goodies Stamp Sets

Hi, everyone. Cornelia is back playing with some of the older STAMPlorations sets today! I used one of my favorite techniques, sponging, and one of my favorite gadgets to make those cards, the Stamp-a-majig.

Bi-Weekly Sketch Challenge #21

Welcome to our 21st bi-weekly sketch challenge! Here’s the sketch for the next couple of weeks. It’s open to interpretation. Feel free to change the orientation of the sketch, use different shapes, add other elements to suit the type of paper craft you’re making, and so on — just make sure the sketch is recognizable in your submission(s). You can use stamps by other companies to create projects that you enter to our challenges, although if you have STAMPlorations stamps in your stash, we'd be tickled if you use them!

September Challenge Designer's Choice, Winner, and Top Picks + Frequent Players Spotlight and Random Prize Drawing Winner

Thanks so much to everyone who shared their beautiful projects in our Stamps & Markers challenge last month! We received 108 awesome entries! The design team voted for our favorites, and we've got a winner, 5 top picks, and a designer's choice (an entry that used STAMPlorations stamps and is chosen by Shery). Here they are!

October Challenge: Stamps & Embossing

Welcome to the October challenge! We’d love it if you’ll join us for the entire month! Each month we have a theme, and for October, our theme is STAMPS & EMBOSSING. You can use stamps by other companies to create projects that you enter to our challenges but please do not use our challenges for the sole purpose of promoting another stamp company. If you have our stamps in your stash, we'd be tickled if you use them -- and we've tweaked the prize a bit to encourage you to use our stamps if you have them!

Put your own spin on this month's theme -- as long as you use stamps in your projects (as opposed to projects without stamping whatsoever) and you have some kind of embossing (dry embossing, wet embossing, embossing paste, emboss resist, or any other embossing technique), we'd love to see them!

{New Stamp Line!} Introducing The Bee's Knees

Hello again, stamping friends! I've got super exciting news to share. I'm so proud to introduce The Bee's Knees, a new stamp line under STAMPlorations that features designs by Shirley Bampton! Shirley is our first stamp designer recruit and I'm so chuffed! It's wonderful to have another artist creating fun stamps for our little stamp company.