Just Be Yourself

Bloggers Challenge #71 - Halloween

This week's Bloggers Challenge was Halloween...not too difficult...but I also participated in an ATC swap, so I created two projects...

  

Stuff:  Stamps:  Vintage Halloween (Artistic Outpost); Paper:  Yoyo Yellow, Basic Black (Stampin' Up!), patterned Halloween (Daisy D's);  Ink:  Palette Black Noir;  Other Stuff:  black organdy ribbon, Prima Collage flower, rhinestone brad, Ranger Stickles, white gel pen

    

It's been forever since I've made an ATC (artist trading card), but it was fun...This was pretty easy...

Stuff:  clip art (printed on my computer and printer); Paper:  Only Orange (SU!), black (Core'dintions); Ink:  Palette Black Noir; Other Stuff:  Rectangle Scallop Nesties, sandpaper, Ranger Stickles, Spica Glitter pens, rhinestones, spider web satin ribbon

Thanks for looking, and be sure to check out the other Bloggers' Challenges by clicking on the badge in the sidebar!

Have a safe, happy, fun Halloween!

Creative Workshops - "Home for the Holidays"

 

Isn't she cute?! Not only is she cute, everytime I look at this picture those cookies make me hungry!

This is one of the images from the Home for the Holidays workshop over at Creative Workshops that started Monday October 27. Already the participants are having fun and are excited about their project as we create a personal keepsake memory book for the holidays, with mixed media artist Sherry Smyth as their guide and teacher. Sherry, who a lot of you know through the wonderful artist interviews on Mind Wide Open, is over there, already evoking a mood of the senses, and getting people in the mood for the upcoming holidays. And she is going to do this 3 times a week for the next 4 weeks!

There is still room left in the workshop and still some of the great kits left. You don't even have to worry about missing anything if you come to the "party" a tad late, or even very late. The way the workshops are set up, all the information is available for saving to your computer and will continue to be available for a period of time even after the workshop is officially finished. Once you join the workshop you can begin to save all the information, while part of the kit is shipped to you and part is digitally emailed to you. So time is not an issue as far as when you begin the workshop. Everything has been set up so that it is convenient for you and your schedule!

So come on over! Get inspired and get a taste of the holidays to come before they actually get here, and the crazy whirlwind begins!  The kit is just just plain fun, and the digital papers, etc., are gorgeous!  Please join me-this workshop is just delicious!

Artistic Outpost Guest Designer Team Call!

Artistic Outpost is looking for Guest Designers for our upcoming releases.   We are looking for people who love our images and want to inspire our customers.

 

 

 
You must be able to:

• Take good clear digital photos or scans of your finished projects
• You must be able to meet deadlines, enjoy challenges and work well with others
• You must be willing to promote via the Internet (forums/online galleries/and your blog) by posting samples made with Artistic Outpost images, or posting company specials when applicable while you are a Guest Designer

If being a Guest Designer for Artistic Outpost is something you'd like to do, send an email to Somerville4@aol.com AND info@artisticoutpost.com. Please put Artistic Outpost Design Team Application in the subject line and include:

• Name, Email address, Home address
• A brief paragraph on why you would like to be Guest Designer for Artistic Outpost
• A link to your blog (if you have one) or any online galleries that you display your work
• Current or past design team positions, and publication information - if any
• Send photos or scans of 3 projects – if you have Artistic Outpost images, we encourage you to use them (each image should be no larger than 80kb)

Applications due by November 5th, 2008 - those accepted will be notified by November 7th, 2008

The fine print:

• Your Guest Design position with Artistic Outpost will be for one release - month will be assigned to you after confirmation of position.
• For each plate you receive as a Guest Designer, you are required to make at least four projects, sometimes on a tight deadline, and provide high quality scans or photographs for use in the Artistic Outpost Gallery. In addition you should be sharing your artwork via your blog/online groups or galleries
• You may be required to send your projects in for use on our display boards to be used at stamp shows

There is no monetary payment for work, only the free Artistic Outpost stamp sheets you receive during your month as a Guest Designer

Bloggers Challenge #69 - Color Challenge (Old Olive, Really Rust, Riding Hood Red)

This week's Bloggers Challenge was a color challenge using Old Olive, Really Rust, and Riding Hood Red.

I always have a lot of fun doing the color challenges...and decided to use one of my favorite Artistic Outpost stamp sets...

Stuff: 

Stamps:  Serenity (Artistic Outpost)

Paper:  Old Olive, Really Rust, and Riding Hood Red (Stampin' Up!), Phoebe (Basic Grey)

Ink:  Palette Black Noir, Old Straw (Distress Ink), and Classic Really Rust (SU!), Encore Copper

Other "Stuff":  Grungeboard, sponge for antiquing card stock, Poppy self-adhesive rhinestones (Me and My Big Ideas), square and long rectangle Nestibilities

I used Really Rust ink to color the Grungeboard swirls, and then used a little Encore Copper ink on top of that.  I used SU! glue stick to adhere them to the card front. 

Today is the last day for Artistic Outpost's anniversary sale...be sure to visit their blog and leave a comment for the blog candy!

Click on the Bloggers Challenge badge on the sidebar to check out the other challengers' designs!

Thanks for looking...and have a wonderful weekend.  We'll be traveling to the other side of the state to spend the weekend with family...this is our yearly "Van Hal" get-together...we used to get together this weekend every year to celebrate my now deceased mother-in-law's birthday, and now we just make it a special day for all the siblings, nieces, nephews, and grandchildren to visit and share memories...it should be a lot of fun.

   

Artistic Outpost - The Anniversary Celebration Continues with MORE Blog Candy!

Great news!  Artistic Outpost's anniversary sale has been extended and includes the very cool Vintage Halloween plate:

Stuff:  Stamps:  Vintage Halloween (AO); Paper:  Basic Black, Purely Pumpkin, Whisper White (Stampin' Up!); Ink: Palette Black Noir, Vintage Photo and Concord Grape (Ranger); Other Stuff:  White gel pen, Eclipse masking tape, organdy ribbon, tag die (Nestibilities), sponge

I stamped and masked the girl, then stamped the fence, and using a sponge and Distress inks I colored the background with Vintage Photo and Concord Grape Distress inks.  the pumpkins were stamped on Purely Pumpkin card stock, and the eyes colored in with a white gel pen.  They were cut out and mounted on the card front.  The sentiment was stamped with Black Noir, and that tag was mounted on another Nestibilities tag made with a scrap of Daisy D's Halloween paper.  The ribbon was melted with my heat gun... 

This news just in from Artistic Outpost's blog:

Let the celebration continue!

Our Anniversary sale has been extended through October 17th!

You will find our original "8" collections are all on sale for $9.99. They include: Thai Buddha, Chinese Proverbs, Singing Cowboy, Distant Generations, Polaroid Cutie, Hair is Important, Christmas Stories, and Ave Maria.

We also have bundled together our last release Vintage Halloween and Route 66, for a limited time, you can get both plates together for $19.99.

New Release Specials: We are also pleased to introduce two new stamp collections: Snowy Woods & BlueBird.

Snowy Woods is a larger collection of unmounted stamps measuring 8.5" x 11". This plate is full of vintage images of Santa and peaceful winter scenes. For a limited time, this plate is on sale for $19.99.

BlueBird is designed to reflect both winter and spring. We hope that it provides creative inspiration for you throughout the winter months. For a limited time, the Bluebird plate is on sale for $9.99.

As an added bonus, you can purchase both new plates for $28 in our Bundled Special. That's a $36retail value!!!

This weeks Blog Candy!
This week one lucky winner will receive both the Vintage Halloween and Route 66 plates! Already have them? No problem, we'll swap them out for two half sheets of your choice!

How do you enter to win?
Simply leave a comment on Artistic Outpost's blog here telling us what you'd like to see offered as a future plate by Artistic Outpost by 11:59 CST on October 18th. When you leave your comment, be sure to put your NAME in the comment -- if you enter your comment as "Anonymous", we cannot give you the prize as Blogger does not record your email address for us. You'll need to check back to find out if you have won. We will have the random number generator pick one number from the comments to select the winner and post the winner on October 19th. Please remember only 1 entry per person. Good Luck!

Thanks for looking, and be sure to leave a comment on AO's blog!

Creative Souls

"Stories in Hand" - FREE Class by Jessica Sprague

I just have to share the great news!  Jessica Sprague is offering a FREE class to anyone who wants to participate!  I've taken a couple of Jessica's classes on Photoshop, and believe me, she is a thorough and thoroughly engaging teacher!

You do not have to be a scrapbooker, just someone who wants to capture stories that are important to you-not necessarily the "big" events either...rather those things you just don't want to forget!

On her blog, Jessica writes:

"We all have stories like that. Everyone. And I’m here to tell you that what you have to say matters, whether it makes it onto a scrapbook page or not. Whether you took a picture of it or not.

So I began devising a system. For capturing the stuff that lives in between the Big Events that we tend to scrap more often. For recording the little things that make life rich and fulfilling and unique. I am really excited about it. I hope that this new system will give me a lot of freedom to spend time on the projects I want to spend time on, without stressing that stories are going untold otherwise. AND, most importantly, that it will gives me Stories in Hand when I am ready to pick a new project to work on.

So are you ready to gather some stories, so you can have them in hand?

In class, we will learn:

• Techniques for capturing memories from our own lives and from others
• Dozens of prompts for stories you might have forgotten
• A cool system for capturing the stories happening in your life right now, AND for listing the stories you have yet to tell
• Printable goodies that will make your “capture” system work, AND keep it cute! (you know we gotta keep it cute - there’s nothing in life that’s not better with a great design)
• “Next steps” video tutorials for turning your stories into pages
• Technologies you can use to help you gather your stories together with photos, video, your blog, or any other media you have that gives a peek into your life

And we will make a REALLY CUTE project! (You’ll find out the supply list when you register). You are not required to have Photoshop to complete the project.

Oh yeah, by the way, this class is COMPLETELY FREE."

For more information on how to register, check out Jessica's blog, The Sprague Lab, here:  http://spraguelab.squarespace.com/

Thanks for stopping by!

Road Trip

It's the weekend, and who couldn't use a little road trip?

Stuff:

Stamp:  Route 66 (Artistic Outpost)

Paper:  Whisper White (SU!), Core'dinations (red and brown textured), Travel (DCWV)

Ink:  Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, Real Red, Glorious Green, Vintage Photo Distress ink 

More "Stuff":  Hodgepodge Hardware, Glossy Accents, Vintage Brads, Distressing tool, sponge for antiquing

Thanks for looking!

 

Bloggers Challenge #68 - Inspiration Challenge

This week's challenge was an inspiration challenge...I was very excited to do this one since inspiration challenges are my favorite...Lisa Somerville (our Bloggers' Challenge mommy) picked this one as our inspiration...

This is my interpretation...

Of course I wanted to imitate the colors, but I also wanted to echo certain themes within the quilt; the geometric design in particular.  The patterned paper I chose was from Cosmo Cricket (a cross stitch pattern).  I also repeated the geometric them with the corner punch.

Stuff:

Stamp:  Inque Boutique

Paper:  Whisper White and Basic Black (SU!), pink and red textured paper (Core'dinations), patterned paper (Cosmo Cricket)

Ink:  Palette Black Noir, Ruby Red (SU!)

Other "Stuff":  corner punch, black and white swiss dot organdy ribbon and black brads (Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts), polka dot flower (Prima)

Be sure to click on the Bloggers Challenge badge in the sidebar to check out the other "players'" creations!   And thank you so much for looking!

Have a great weekend!

   

Vintage Halloween Revisited - Artistic Outpost

This is another Halloween card I made with Artistic Outpost's Vintage Halloween set...

Stuff:

Stamp:  Vintage Halloween (AO)

Paper:  Perfect Plum and Only Orange (SU!), patterned paper by Daisy D's, watercolor paper

Ink:  Palette Black Noir, Vintage Photo Distress (Ranger)

Other "Stuff":  Wrought Iron corner punch (retired SU!), Prismacolor pencils, Gamsol, blending stump, organdy ribbon (Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts), rick rack blade and Paper Trimming Buddy 

This was colored with Prismacolor pencils and Gamsol...the "curly ribbon" was created by heating organdy ribbon with my heat gun...if you try this, do NOT hold the ribbon with your fingers...it gets hot...always use a tweezers.

And, speaking of Pink Hedgehog Paper Crafts, Heidi has the most amazing collection of ribbon at fantastic prices available as sets or bulk...she has been adding lots of new product this year in addition to custom brads and eyelets in our favorite 48+ colors...and now she is offering pre-orders on Copic markers, both sets and individually...at prices too low to advertise...so, if you're interested, please email her at  info@pinkhedgehogpapercrafts.com for the price lists, and tell her Anita sent you!

Thank you so much for looking!

Vintage Halloween

I just love the new "Vintage Halloween" stamp set from Artistic Outpost!  The images was stamped on More Mustard card stock with Palette Black Noir ink and the edges were distressed with a distressing tool.  The girl was stamped fist, then masked, and the background stamps used last.

See that down-turned corner?  Not double-sided card stock...I simply attached a scrap of patterned paper on the backside...folded the corner to the front, and attached layered buttons with a large glue dot.

The card stock and patterned paper were "antiqued" with Pumpkin Pie Classic ink, Old Paper (Distress) and a sponge.  The greeting was stamped with Versamark ink and heat embossed with gold embossing powder.

Stuff:

Stamps:  Vintage Halloween (Artistic Outpost)

Paper:  More Mustard and Perfect Plum (Stampin' Up!), Daisy D's

Ink:  Palette Black Noir, Pumpkin Pie (SU!), Versamark

More "Stuff":  tool kit (SU!), sponge, buttons, fiber, large glue dot, Eclipse masking tape, gold EP (SU!)

Thanks for looking!

CPS #85 - Sponsored by Artistic Outpost!

This week Artistic Outpost is the sponsor of Card Positioning Systems' sketch!  How cool is that!  I dug out my Thai Buddha stamp set, which is one of the featured specials from AO for their first anniversary celebration...and my new pad of Eva Basic Grey paper. 

Stuff:

Stamp: Thai Buddha (Artistic Outpost)

Paper:  Eva (Basic Grey)

Ink:  Honeydew (Encore), Shabby Shutters (Tim Holtz Distress)

Other Stuff: Cutting Buddy Paper Trimmer (Rhythm blade), beads (Michael's)

All the paper/card stock is from the 6 x 6" Eva pad by Basic Grey - I think this is the first time I've used card stock from just one source...I used Shabby Shutters ink to ink the edges of the stamped image and the piece behind it.

Be sure to check out the other Artistic Outpost's designers' creations by following the links here. 

Bloggers Challenge 67 - Love/Anniversary - "Falling for You"

This week's Bloggers Challenge was to make a fall-themed "Love/Anniversary" card.

Supplies: 

Stamps:  Autumn Fest (Stampin' Up! - retired), greeting (Stampin' Up! - unknown but retired)

Paper:  Chocolate Chip, Bravo Burgundy, More Mustard, vellum card stock (all SU!)

Ink:  Bravo Burgundy, More Mustard, Always Artichoke, Chocolate Chip, Elegant Eggplant

Accessories:  toolkit (punch tool and template for punching holes); gold brads; gold cord; More Mustard, Always Artichoke, and Bravo Burgundy grosgrain ribbon, adhesive, long rectangle plain and scalloped Nesties, gold Atyou Spica pen

I used two retired sets to complete this card; the leaves were stamped in bold autumn colors, and layered with vellum...I cut the vellum smaller than the stamped image layer so a bit of the "real" colors would be visible.

The ribbons and gold cord were wrapped around the stamped image and vellum.  The More Mustard sentiment was stamped with Always Artichoke Classic ink and colored with the gold Atyou Spica pen, edged with Gold Encore ink and mounted on the Bravo Burgundy tag.  I love the Spica pens (made by Copic)!  They add just a hint of color and sparkle, and there is virtually no drying time since they're alcohol-based.

Be sure to check out the other Bloggers challenges by clicking on the badge in the left sidebar.

Thanks for looking, and have a marvelous weekend!!!

Toodles,

Anita 

It's Stampin' Up!'s 20th Birthday!

October officially kicks off our 20^th Anniversary and we're ready to celebrate!

It's Stampin' Up!'s 20th birthday, and to celebrate, they're offering a wonderful selection of birthday stamps for 20% off with a $20 purchase!  Birthday cards are one of the most popular reasons for sending a card; everyone needs a birthday set (or two!) to be ready for the occasion.  I find that my birthday stamps are some of my most regularly used sets. Even if you already own a birthday set or two, we've got a number of brand new birthday sets that you're just going to fall in love with!

Birthday Promotion

Dates: October 1-31, 2008

Promotion Details:

Spend $20 in regular catalog merchandise and qualify to purchase any preselected birthday/celebration stamp sets at 20 perent off.

Item #	Page #	Description	Retail Price	20% Off Price
109439	62	Big Bold Birthday	$27.95	$22.36
112895	62	Cumpleaños genial y divertido (Spanish Big Bold Birthday)*	$27.95	$22.36
111532	63	Party Hearty*	$26.95	$21.56
110994	64	Bitty Birthday	$12.95	$10.36
111618	64	Crazy for Cupcakes*	$23.95	$19.16
111546	65	Simple Birthday Thanks*	$17.95	$14.36
111702	65	Time to Party*	$16.95	$13.56
108559	68	Crab & Company	$27.95	$22.36

Download 20thBirthday_US_1008.pdf

FAQs

Q: Is there a purchase requirement to participate in this promotion?
A: Yes. Customers must spend $20 in regular catalog merchandise to qualify for the 20 percent off select birthday stamps.

Q: Is there a limit to the number of discounted stamp sets a customer may purchase?
A: There is no limit once the $20 purchase requirement has been met.

Q: Are the promotional stamp sets die cut?
A: New stamp sets in the Fall-Winter catalog are die cut. Carry-over stamps will not be die cut for this promotion. For details on which sets are die cut, check out the flyer or the table above.

Q: Is this offer available to customers purchasing online?
A: Yes! Customers must first spend $20 and then they may enter the discounted stamps of their choice.

To place your order online any time it is convenient for you, 24/7, visit my SU! demo web site here, and click on "Shop Now" in the upper right-hand corner of the screen.

Thanks for stopping by!

Anita

Artistic Outpost Birthday Specials and Blog Candy!

from Artistic Outpost:

It's OUR Birthday and YOU get the presents!

We are so excited to be celebrating our ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY!

It's truly overwhelming to think how fast this year has gone. Twelve months ago, we only had eight stamp collections and a big dream. Today, we have over 20 collections and we have made friends with so many wonderful people just like you who enjoy creating with our images. THANK YOU for a great first year!

To celebrate we have many Anniversary Specials in our store, and also some Blog Candy to giveaway!

Our Anniversary Specials:

• You will find our original "8" collections are all on sale for a limited time for $9.99. They include: Thai Buddha, Chinese Proverbs, Singing Cowboy, Distant Generations, Polaroid Cutie, Hair is Important, Christmas Stories, and Ave Maria.
• We also have bundled together our last release Vintage Halloween and Route 66 for a limited time, you can get both plates together for $19.99.

New Release Specials:

We are also pleased to introduce two new stamp collections: Snowy Woods & BlueBird.

Snowy Woods is a larger collection of unmounted stamps measuring 8.5" x 11". This plate is full of vintage images of Santa and peaceful winter scenes. For a limited time, this plate is on sale for $19.99.

Click here to see wonderful artwork using Snowy Woods images.

BlueBird is designed to reflect both winter and spring. We hope that it provides creative inspiration for you throughout the winter months. For a limited time, the Bluebird plate is on sale for $9.99.

Click here to see wonderful artwork using BlueBird images.

As an added bonus, you can purchase both new plates for $28 in our Bundled Special. That's a $36 retail value!!!

Anniversary Blog Candy!!!!

Artistic Outpost is giving away one Vintage Halloween plate & a TJ CD (Technique Junkie) to ONE lucky winner! (Already own Vintage Halloween - we'll let you select any plate of the same value in it's place.)

How do you enter to win?
Simply leave a comment on the Artistic Outpost blog (NOT HERE) post telling us your favorite Artistic Outpost Plate by 11:59 CST on October 4th. When you leave your comment, be sure to put your NAME in the comment -- if you enter your comment as "Anonymous", we cannot give you the prize as Blogger does not record your email address for us. You'll need to check back to find out if you have won. We will have the random number generator pick one number from the comments to select the winner of the Vintage Halloween Plate and TJNL CD, and post the winner on October 5th. Please remember only 1 entry per person. Good Luck!