Stamp of Excellence, Inc. Imagination Destination through Creation

Alcohol ink blast!

Judi Lynn of SOX — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 19:24:48 -0600

Wednesday's Alcohol Ink class was truly a Blast! There is so much to show you so I'll start off with photos.

Adirondack Alcohol Inks, from Ranger, are solvent inks which dry quickly on non-porous surfaces such as plastic, glass, metals, acetate, gloss paper, (not photo paper through), shrink plastic, velum and more. So, right away you can see that these 48 translucent inks are special! In addition there are four shades of mixatives, gold, silver, copper and pearl. Just one drop of the mixatives goes a long way to adding metallic highlights to your art projects.

There are a few companion products to work with the inks. There is a wooden ink applicator which you apply rectangles of felt to. Because the felt is easy to replace you do not need 48 handles, just extra felts which are available. Another essential product is Alcohol Blending Solution which will do three things; blend, lighten and erase. The Blending Solution is very important in Alcohol Ink art!

Below you can see TommaLou applying Alcohol Ink to glossy card stock as Janice is about to ink her felt. To safely ink always place the tip of the bottle directly onto your felt before squeezing for a count of 1,2. You can ink right away, or add Blending Solution to your inked felt before you apply it to your art surface.

In this next photo Becky has almost completed inking her dry embossed card front. The speckled tags to the left of Becky's hand where created by adding several spots of ink to a clean felt and tapping randomly on glossy card stock using NO Blending Solution.

This grouping below is some of the colorful tags and a clock embossed card which was inked Wednesday. To achieve the bright, bleeding effect on the center tags Blending Solution was added to the inked felt before applying it to card stock. Plus, one or two drops of Blending Solution was also dripped onto the already inked tags and allowed to bleed out. Amazing look don't you think?

The two dry embossed tags were punched out of aluminum soda cans. Because they are slick and non-porous the inks blend perfectly on them. Don't you just love the bright shades?! There are endless possibilities for color combinations!

We used another fun tool, the Alcohol Ink Fillable Pen to color in our stamped images on our flower tag. It was prepared by die cutting the large scallop tag out of acetate and sage card stock. On the back of the acetate tag, with Jet Black StazOn® SZ31JBLK solvent ink, we stamped both the Kindergarten Daisy 7058G and small Beauty Fly 4064B. Gave the ink a few minutes to dry then turn tag over and stamped Marvelous Nature 3353E on the front. All stamp images may be found on our web site, stampofexcellence.com. If you look back at the first picture you will see some prepared Fillable Pens some with colored rings, some white. You can actually pull the brush tip out of the pen and add 3 to 5 seconds worth of ink or Blending Solution to the pen. Let rest flat a moment and add more ink. Fill several times then replace nib and lay flat for 5 minutes to allow the ink to wick into both ends. The colored pens can be inked on the white band to reflect the ink inside. These pens are ready to use like any other markers but they are more fun because they have both a brush tip and fine point ~ two pens in one!

You May also note the paint pallet trays in the first photograph. These were created by placing several drips on Alcohol Ink into the cups and allowing them to dry. Now you can use your Fillable Pen with the Blending Solution inside to pick up the dried ink from the pallet and color as before. It truly is fun and there are so many blendings of color that you can create! The reason we stamped the items to be colored in on the back is because the Alcohol Ink and Blending Solution would erase the StazOn® if we applied it directly to the ink. The quote was stamped on the front so it would read correctly.

I know once you give these pens a try you will be delighted with the results as all of us were using them for the first time!

This next part of the class was more fun then there are words to express. On a glossy surface, (we used gloss card stock and a 4 inch tile), drop 1 to 2 drops of a bright Alcohol Ink and immediately give it a blast from the straw of canned air, (like you use to clean keyboards). The ink shoots out in these wild and crazy spiky directions! Just keep adding drops and blast until you are thrilled with your results. You can see from Becky's photo you might want to stand to do this art. The trick is to blast the ink right away before it can start to dry!

Here is a finished tile. Once dry, only a few moments, you can add a top coat of Royal Coat Dimensional Magic™ RCDM2051 to give a crystal clear hard finish.

Janice was very patient in her spraying efforts. While the rest of us were happily blasting away she was ever so carefully blowing her ink in exact directions to control the end results. I had no idea she was such an artist before the class. Way to go Janice!

We all loved this master piece. Because of all the forest fires in ours and surrounding states we called this work of art "Fire Mountain". Pretty cool hua?!!

One last photo to show some of our favorite Alcohol Ink supplies and finished art works. Once again we used Jet Black StazOn® SZ31JBLK ink to image our Royal Monarch 4050J, Soar 3322B and Follow Bliss S230C. StazOn® gives such a solid image and is exactly the ink you want on glossy card stock.

Now that you have seen just some of the creative directions you can go with Alcohol Ink and it's support supplies, I am sure you will want to give it a try for yourself. The fun thing about this style art is that no two pieces will ever be the same. This is truly art that becomes what it wants to be.

Thanks for checking out our class. Hope you enjoyed it!

To add color to your life I hope you drip some Alcohol Inks and give them a blissful blast for yourself!

Judi

Class Schedules and Descriptions

Judi Lynn of SOX — Sun, 19 Jun 2011 15:34:05 -0600

2011 Class Schedule, Spring, Summer, Fall

After 20 years of business and teaching with Stamp of Excellence, Inc., I am excited to bring you our long awaited 2011 schedule. Each of these classes will meet you at your own skill level and help you expand your understanding of the stamping/scrapping world of art and supplies.

Class Sizes are limited to a max of eight students and I reserve the right to cancel or reschedule a class if at least 3 people are not pre-registered 3 days prior. Tuition includes cost of class instruction and all supplies needed to complete the project(s), plus 10% off all purchases the day of class. Classes run 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours depending on the degree of techniques or embellishments required.

To see a list of classes and descriptions please click the link below, or the link in the side bar.

CLASS SCHEDULE

we look forward to seeing you in class.

I will be more than happy to add additional dates or create special schedules for your group of four to eight friends as needed.

There is limited space for each class, so please reserve your spot early! Can't wait to play! Judi

Dynamic dominos!

Judi Lynn of SOX — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 11:58:33 -0600

We had such a grand time exploring the possibilities of domino art here at the Stamp House last Wednesday. If you have never tried stamping on dominos, the plastic kind, you have no idea how much fun these tiny canvases can be!

Before I tell you how, let me show you what I'm talking about.
The Feather Fairy 1046D, Parisienne Script 3203P, Post Lines 8183B, Paris Cancellation 3208B, Bib Institute 3209B and Please Write 376C, to create this tag and domino are all stamps from our collection at stampofexcellence.com..

If you would like to learn first hand how we turn glossy small dominos into such mini works of art, this is how we do it at Stamp of Excellence, Inc. You may work on any size domino that fits your art needs. They come in all sizes and shapes. Pick your dominos and lay them about one to two inches apart on a card board box or lid. Very importantly, take them OUTSIDE to spray them with Krylon® Gesso Spray. (We do not offer Gesso Spray on our web for it may not be shipped through USPS because it, like all spray paints, is flammable.) You should be able to find Gesso through most art or craft stores. Gesso is what you prepare a canvas with before applying oil paints. What it does for the domino's is to cover the glossy plastic surface and leaves the domino with a mat finish that pencils and chalks can adhere to. Also importantly, you need to truly shake this can of paint for a full two minutes before use, and continue to shake between sprays. To make sure I have them completely covered with Gesso I spray each of the sides, going down each row, then spraying the next side etc. until all four sides are coated. By this time enough spray has landed to completely cover the tops. Now the most important thing with Gesso is when you are finished spraying ALWAYS turn your can upside down and spray until clear!! I don't do this with other Krylon® cans, but this stuff will freeze up the sprayer and you will loose the remainder of the Gesso if you don't clear it at the end! Can you tell I have lost expensive cans of Gesso this way?!

Now these little guys are perfect for art to happen to them!

After the Gesso has dried, and it needs to dry naturally not rushed with a heat tool, select an image to stamp. I have created an invaluable Terrific Treasured Tile Templet TTTT1001 to help you size your art to fit each domino. Just hold the templet over each image and you can see how it will fit on the size domino you choose.

You can see how you can size Miriam 1058E with the templet and see how she will best fit on the larger domino. The next step is imaging your domino tile. The ink of choice is StazOn® Jet Black SZ31BLK. You can use any color you like, but we like StazOn® because it is a solvent ink that will dry on non-porous surfaces. To insure the ink is dry and will not bleed we recommend using a heat tool to set the ink before adding additional products for coloring. Because the domino is a plastic tile be sure to never hold the heat tool over it for more than about 5 to 8 seconds at a time. Let the domino cool about the same 5 to 8 seconds then give it a second blast of heat for security.

It's now time for color magic to happen! We use EK success Memory Pencils in Primary EKSMP12PR, Pastel EKSMP12PA and Earth EKSMP12EA shades, all available in Supplies from stampofexcellence.com. You can also use dry chalks and Sharpie® markers to color your images. I recommend heat setting each time you add a new color product and also once more at the end just to be safe. (FYI, red and sometimes orange shades may bleed just a touch. You never know when it will happen?!) To finish off the coloring step you can use a cotton ball to pick up chalk which you can add background shading with quickly. For bright colors don't over rub. Or for soft shades, rub away some of the depth of color. If the background chalks blend a bit over your main art it is all good ~ you'll see when you give it a try. You may also stamp the sides, chalk the sides, add foil tape, (like you use in stain glass window art), or finish the sides with Sharpies® or an oil pen. What ever best suites your art piece.

Now that all your art and coloring are completed, heat set a few times more to prepare to seal your finished master piece. There are two great ways to finish and protect your new art. You can either cover the entire domino with clear pigment ink and apply clear or Psychedelic Embossing Powder PHYEPD, which you will heat set until melted. Or, you may top coat the domino with our favorite, Royal Coat Dimensional Magic™RCDM2051. Royal Coat goes on milky, for it is a glue type product, but dries crystal clear and glass hard. To use it we first outline the top edge of the domino with a small bead of product. It will not run over the sides if you don't use too much. Next go clear across the top spreading and adding only as much "magic" as needed to create a thin top coat. Once covered get eye level with your domino and make sure there are no bubbles or low spots. If you find a bubble, you need a needle to drag it off the edge as they will not pop. Allow it to rest flat and dry several hours or overnight. You are sure to be amazed at how clear and hard the completed surface is once dry!

A pin back for jewelry may be added once dry, or a magnet for displaying on a metal surface. You may also attach them with tacky tape to a card or tag. We have lots of finished "show and tell" for you to see from our most creative artist last week.

Bobbie featured two of our stunning women, Camille 1113E on the side, and Misty 1096E on the tag. Our Sunshine 3243D quote from Helen Keller balanced Bobbie's tag to perfection! You can see from these two art pieces how the cotton ball full of chalk blends easily to fill any white void area on your domino.

I know Kim isn't showing much of the domino art, but I felt everyone should see the joy that discovering new and and fun art can bring to one's heart and face! I love this picture of Kim! She is so open and great to play with!!

I wanted you to see Miriam 1058E on both the domino and a stamped project so you can picture how to use both the full image and the portion which fits your tile. This effect also works well if you color both pieces the same and place one over the other.

This is my dear friend Pat, whom I was lucky enough to have work with me a while back. Talk about an amazingly talented woman! I am sure I learned much more from Pat than I was ever able to teach her in our time together! It is wonderful to have her back in the Stamp House where she is so loved and appreciated!

One more, just because they are so fun!

If you look at how large the watch images are in the stamp Time after Time 8301N you will truly see how cool it is to take a small portion of an image and almost magnify it to become something else on a small plastic tile. The tiny watch face was placed into the Royal Coat once it had a few minutes to set. Now it is in there to stay! Look for the Key 8196C on our web site next week under Time Pieces and Keys.

I hope this picture/text blog has brought to life how much we look forward to and enjoy playing with domino art here at Stamp of Excellence. There is just SO much you can do with these little jewels! I have lots of customers who use these as wedding favors making hundreds at a time! Another friend has found a mini birth certificate and creates a new look for each new arrival in her life. When you decide to join us for this art, please don't limit yourself on how far a 1 by 2 inch piece of art can go! And, please let me know how your dominos turn out!

Find the key to your blissful heart and make time to play this weekend~

Judi

Creative Minds Upcycle

Judi Lynn of SOX — Fri, 27 May 2011 10:02:01 -0600

One of the very first quote stamps I created for Stamp of Excellence, Inc. 20 years ago was "Creative minds are seldom tidy" 304A.

You can find this on our web at stampofexcellence.com.
These words are never more true than when we have a table top destroying class like yesterdays! For me, some of the most fun classes for everyone to play with is when we pull out stacks of old magazines and search for the perfect pictures, words and graphics to collage our art project. Our Go Green Tag class was an experiment in Upcycling. What is upcycling you ask? Upcycling is taking an existing item, like our magazine pages, and turning it, or them, into something better. Take a look and see what some crazy fun ladies idea on upcycling looks like.

The first project followed closely to my blog spot from April 6, 2011, Flowers for a Special Day 3025G. If you go back and look it up you can get the "How 'to's" and create just like all of us yesterday. I have several pictures to let you see what these amazing women came up with.

This pooch on his back cracks me up! And I loved the gold/yellow rose paper Bobbie found for her tag and Tim Holtz® butterfly.

Sabrina's lavender tag and ribbon was over the top in color, and her bright yellow/orange poster fit her personality perfectly! But, what do you think of the pup Carol found to go with her word Seriously?

Our second project was open to whatever each of the ladies wanted to collage; a card, tag or poster. It is so much fun to see what everyone comes up with in a class like this. One of the best parts of collage art from magazines is that there is so little expense to create these upcycled works of art! The main supplies you need, except lots of magazines, is adhesives, glue or tape, and a base card stock, bag or book for applying all the treasures you find.

This poster Pat layered looks so much like our Autumn in the Rocky Mountains here in Southern Colorado. Her colors where wonderful and warm plus the card stock she found to frame this beauty was perfect!

One last look into our expressive upcycling. These are Jackie's two projects. Even though the "S" on Special Day didn't emboss perfectly, not enough heat time, we were able to go back with a pigment ink pen and redraw and emboss it to all most good as new perfection. We say in stamping, "all mistakes are happy mistakes" because this is how we learn new tricks and ideas. Jackie didn't know about an embossing pen before yesterday and now everyone does!

Thanks for taking a peek into our creative mess yesterday. I hope it will inspire your own "upcycling" adventures. You have nothing to loose, and I'm guessing you will get as hooked as we are on reinventing new and better from old and about to be thrown away!

Look inside yourself for your own creative bliss ~ I promise you'll have fun!

Judi

A Little Encouragement

Judi Lynn of SOX — Sat, 21 May 2011 13:59:53 -0600

Some days we all just need a little encouragement ~ am I right? That is what my Large Caterpillar/Butterfly 3215F quote is all about, helping someone see past today into a better tomorrow.

I have to tell you, I personally use this quote with these two lovely butterflies, Royal Monarch 4050J, and Side Monarch 4051G all the time! When my beautiful niece Melissa and Travis got married years ago my sister Jacksie and I made several hundred of these gift tags above. The good news, when you are doing a project this large, you figure it out quickly and it starts going very fast.

Let me tell you how we created all those tags. We first sponged purple and lavender ink directly onto a size 8 shipping tag blending and mixing the shades as we inked. We set them aside as we worked and I'm here to tell you after a few hundred inkings you know the first tags are dry! Next, we imaged the butterflies and quote with black ink. Moving on, with all the layers of ink dry, we used a VersaMark clear pigment ink directly from the pad to cover the entire front of the imaged tag. VersaMark was coated completely with my favorite ever, Psychedelic Embossing Powder PSYEPD. Shook off the excess and heated until melted. What is so awesome about Psychedelic Embossing Powder is that the darker the card stock, or ink color you melt it onto the more the iridescent shimmer becomes. This awesome powder is available from stampofexcellence.com, but there will be no picture of it available until the start of next week as my son Beefy has our camera this weekend for his best friends, Danny and Christy's wedding this afternoon. (That is another blog I promise to bring you next week ~~ can't wait!!!)

Add some luscious matching fibers and your "support a friend" tag is ready for a warm personal note on the back. Helping some one else through a rough patch quite often helps us personally as much as our buddy in need. Give it a try. Making art is guaranteed to brighten everyones day!

Have a great weekend! I'm off to see one of my favorite kids marry his best girl! How special is that?!!!

Be blissfully happy for any other choice is just not as good!

Judi

Tattered Florals

Judi Lynn of SOX — Mon, 16 May 2011 16:08:09 -0600

Even though I have created, built and run a successful rubber art stamp store, Stamp of Excellence, Inc. for 20 amazing years, sometimes perfect art just doesn't need a stamped image. Can't believe I just typed that for the entire world to read! But, the proof is in the pictures.

Take a look.

There is just no need for words on the outside of this bright greeting. Now, on the inside, that is another matter all together! This beauty screams for a bright pink sentiment stamped inside.

This Sizzix Tattered Florals THS656640 by Tim Holtz®, is one of my favorites to use in card making, tags art and books. What I love about Tim's die cut is that the petals are just like God grows them, uneven and well, tattered. Because it is a steel rule die cut it will not only cut paper but is also great on heaver products like the rubbery white shelf liner I used for the largest base flower.

One of my "good idea" tricks on this type card is; decide where your ribbon will rest, at that spot, make a slit the width of the ribbon on the fold line at the top of your card. Now, just thread your ribbon through your slit and tie a perfect knot in the center of the card. This way you don't need any glue or tape to hold your beautiful ribbon in place ~ there is no way it can fall off! I love this trick. Another suggestion is when die cutting flourishes, leaves, words, etc., use a card stock with a subtle pattern. It softens the look. For this Vine with Leaves die cut from Sizzix I used mistletoe card stock. Who knows, maybe this card comes with a kiss or two as well.

Here is a second take on the same Floral die cut. Looks like a completely different flower doesn't it? Did I mention that I love this die cut? It is so extremely versatile. To get the look above I cut each flowers from both the dotted card stock as well as some off white tissue. Smudged the edges a bit with black ink and carried off the color pattern with the glossy black brad to hold it all together. When it was time to teach this class I didn't have enough of the off white tissue, so, I die cut an old dress pattern that I picked up at a second hand store. Almost the same exact color. And, it only cost 29¢ for enough tissue to make hundreds of flowers!

Hope you got some blooming ideas from these pictures. But, I don't want to mislead you about stamping. There is plenty of room inside the card to stamp any number of greetings which you can find on our web site, stampofexcellence.com, under the product heading, Quotes.

Kathy I hope you, and everyone, will try some of these patterns and get back to me with your results. No two blooms look the same when you switch up the materials to create these lovelies. Be sure to try all textures of fabrics and card stock mixed. I know you will come to love Tim's florals as much as I have!

Always follow your heart to creative bliss,

Judi

3-D Blooming Beauties

Judi Lynn of SOX — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 15:30:54 -0600

After 26 years of stamping and card making, this over the top 3-D explosion of geraniums, remains my mother's favorite greeting I have ever created especially for her.

You see, my mom has been taking her geraniums in each Autumn, and replanting them every Spring for 45 years. For years she has been telling me this is the last year she will do it, but, we all know better!

Because Mom loves this card and Kathy sent me a note from my web site, stampofexcellence.com, asking me to share some flowers made from punches and die cuts, I will share the how to's of this beauty in as short a tutorial as possible.

To add depth of color to your petals you need to pick at least two shades of card stock. For the full textured leaves I chose a sage green card stock, and an earthy brown for the clay pot. First you need to punch dozens of flowers from both colors using either a pink Flower Clever Lever Mega Craft Punch® by Marvy®, or the Flower EK Success Paper Shaper Medium Paper Punch. Take all petals and get them very wet. Before they can dry, using your first three fingers on both hands, start folding into the center of the flower. Scrunch the petals up and pinch them to stay in place. Set aside to dry. You don't want the petals to all look alike so don't worry too much about your technique. Look around God's petals don't all look the same either.

The leaves are very random and fun to create. Tear, don't cut, a rough circle about the size of a quarter. Once you have a bunch torn, wet these as well. Using the same technique as before, pinch one edge together and set aside to dry. This photo shows where the flower pieces start and how they should look once you have re-created them into geranium parts. Pretty cool hua?

Next for the clay pot. Make a pattern the size you want your clay pot to be. Using two different Cuttlebug™ embossing folders, dry emboss two pieces of your brown card stock.

For the base of the pot I embossed with the larger squares of the Tiny Mosaic folder, then sponged a bit of brown ink over the pattern. For the lip of my pot I used the Mesh embossing folder. Placed my pattern on the embossed paper, cut and glued the brown pot together.

Prepare an off white note card by using a large corner rounder on the two outside corners, top and bottom. This will soften the look of your finished greeting. Using a sponge, add a bit of brown ink to all the front edges of your card to help fill the void area.

Now, to build this 3-D master piece. Place a few sticky foam dots under the center of the pot, then add a line of thin double stick tape to the sides and bottom of the pot. Adhere in place, off centered to the left, on the front of your prepared note card. Place an additional two sticky foam dots about one to two inches above the pot to be the center point of your blossoms. These foam dots are to add depth to both the pot and flowers.

On your craft sheet or scrap paper, squeeze out about a quarter size amount of The Ultimate! Crafter's Pick™ Glue ULT118. We love this adhesive for it holds wonderfully and dries clear! Dip the back crimped side of a leaf into the glue and secure just over the lip of the pot. Four or five should be enough to get started. Mixing up the colors, repeat the gluing with flower buds creating a shape that appeals to you. You can add extra leave as desired. You may need to squeeze the flowers in tightly, possibly using tweezers to push them in securely. Once you have the perfect bouquet glued in place, set it aside to dry.

For today's card I have imaged Mother's Day 3069E onto a cream colored card stock tag. I distressed the tags edges then sponged soft red and brown ink lightly over the entire tag. Knotted a few strands of matching fibers to the tag for added texture. Place sticky foam dots on the back of the tag and position just under a leaf or two and press into place.

To accent the card punch two layers of any butterfly or dragon fly punch and glue the first one down and allow the second to stand out with the help of a sticky dot. To give the card it's final sparkle, I misted the entire piece with several layers of Whipped Honey Butter Bliss Mist Radiant Shimmer BLM153, my personal creation from Stamp of Excellence, Inc. I love how it adds that rich something extra to your art!

Now, the finished art work; It take a little time to punch, wet, pinch, dry and glue in place all the flower parts that become this stunning card. But everyone that takes this class at the Stamp House believes it is well worth the time, art and play involved!

All Mom's are important, as I said on my web site, "Where would we be without them?". Being a Mom myself I would have to say it is the most challenging, creative and rewarding aspect of my life, and I've run an art store for 20 years!

I hope you have enjoyed this special how to blog today and will give it a try because it works so well for just about any occasion. Besides, playing in a glob of glue is so back to grade school fun! Who wouldn't want to do that?

Praying that you will be safe and blissfully happy this weekend. I challenge you to be creative in any area of your life this week. Let me know what you come up with.

Judi

Work/Family, the best of both

Judi Lynn of SOX — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 08:41:58 -0600

What I know for sure about bloging and the internet is, are you ready for this? . . . You need to have internet access to get your work moving!!!

My Mom is doing well now, but over a week ago she ending up in the hospital for several days. At age 85 I wanted to be with her for a time when she returned home. Mom still has a 24 inch TV, VHS, and big surprise, NO internet hook up. This can stop production on not only blog sites, but web site building as well. As I said, Mom is back, good as new, thank you God!!! And I am also back home trying to catch up.

That said, in the fun spirit of this Easter weekend I have pulled out a unique piece of art I created years ago when my 21 year old Beefy was just a little guy. Hope you like it!

This has been hanging above my doorway at the Stamp House for a while. We like it because it is colorful and bright. And, the vintage buttons happen to be all the rage right now, so all the better. The truth is, I may be crafty and artistic, but I can't sew two stitches the same size to save my life. So, when a dear friend, who supported me 20 years ago when I started Stamp of Excellence, Inc., told me I needed to teach a stamping/quilting class at her quilt guild, this simple country looking art is what I came up with.

Once you select your stamp image from stampofexcellenc.com, you will need playful fabric and muslin, lots of buttons, cotton batting, a rainbow assortment of threads, two tassels, pigment ink and clear embossing powder. The good news about this project is other than the seasonal fabric these are probably all basic supplies that most of us have on hand at all times.

To get started I inked Jumbo Eggbert 227K with a pastel rainbow pigment ink, imaged it onto a piece of muslin, (if you will not be laundering your finished piece your don't even need to pre-wash the muslin), then set the ink with clear embossing powder and a heat tool. Next I used my pinking shears to cut around Eggbert as well as my purple shape, my egg background and the cotton batting. To get this county look, you want the batting to stand out around your cotton fabrics at fun angles. Pick several shades of thread to sew the piece together leaving about a 1/4 of an inch of thread to fray on the top side of your mini quilt. Now the fun part! Out of an assortment of buttons, pick just the perfect ones, (this to me is almost like an Easter egg hunt to find the exact right buttons!), and secure them to your quilt. Attach two tassels at the top and you have a delightful hanging piece of art that will decorate your life for years.

I love making and teaching this "no fuss" quilt idea, so I will bring you more examples in the future. Please let me know if you try this technique how it turns out for you and your friends. I'm sure you will get just as hooked as I have. For me, the best part is the buttons! I am a button junkie!!!

I am so glad I got to check back in before such an important life changing holiday. I pray, that your family remains well, as mine now is. I want to say that my business means the world to me, and it allows my mind to play and create in so many amazing ways I could never have dreamed of 20 years ago. But the time with my family, like this week, helps me keep balance. So, it is a give and take like everything in life. Some days there will be work and blogs, some days there will be family. I thank you God for the best of both!

May you have a blessed, blissful Easter with the people who mean the most in your life,

Judi

Surprise!

Judi Lynn of SOX — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 17:30:24 -0600

Here at Stamp of Excellence, Inc. we love birthdays! Every woman receives a glittery tiara, happy clapping hands, a party horn and best of all bling! Do you know what a "summer" diamond is? Well, some are diamonds, and some are not. Ours are not! Ours are plastic, but they still seem to make everyone smile and that is the fun of all this silliness.

So, for my last "go green" magazine page art, which I started on April 6th, I found this delightful birthday page just calling out for me to turn it into celebration tag art. See what you think from the beginning page to the end tag.

If your birthday is in April, this tag is for you!

I used our Glue Brushes GLB699 and spread a thin layer of The Ultimate! Crafter's Pick™ ULT118 glue over the front of a #8 tag. Covered the tag with this bright magazine page and used a bone folder to smooth it flat. Once dry, I used Jet Black StãzOn® SZ31 BLK solvent ink to image our bold Happy Birthday 3032E and Surprise 3031D designs, both from stampofexcellence .com. While the ink dried I punched a large pink rectangle and a smaller yellow oval to which I added the three button charms with sticky dots. Adhered this to the tag, and added fun fibers on top to complete the color theme and finish the art piece. (More complete instructions can be found on our 04/06/2011 entry.)

Sometimes it is so easy to let a pretty picture be your inspiration for creating a tag or card. With these magazine pages they are not only the inspiration, but also the foundation for my art. I hope you have a chance to try this simple art form. I'm sure you'll love it if you do.

May the remainder of your week be surprisingly, blissfully happy,

Judi

Bright, Happy mess of Strings!

Judi Lynn of SOX — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 17:31:38 -0600

The second installment of my "go green" with magazine pages is a bit brighter than our last Flower Day entry earlier this week.

Is this such a bright, happy mess of strings? I couldn't resist seeing what this recycled page would look like on a tag with some of stampofexcellence .com images to decorate it. To get all the details of how to turn your old magazine pages into foundations for amazing tags skip down to my last entry. It is all there, once again easy as can be. If you are following my blog by now you may have learned that I like "easy" a lot! And the good new, easy can be powerful and striking and hopefully not intimidating.

So, here is what I did with this rainbow of fibers:

What do you think? This is about as simple as it gets. Just glued the printed page to my tag with The Ultimate! Crafter's Pick™ ULT118 glue, our favorite, applied with our Glue Brushes GLB699. Smoothed it out and let it dry. Once I tore away the excess paper I was ready for the art to happen. With Jet Black StãzOn® SZ31JBLK solvent ink, (it will adhere to non-porous surfaces and my paper was glossy), I imaged Royal Monarch 4050J, Side Monarch 4051G, and Set Free 3128D, all from stampofexcellence .com. Gave them a few minutes to dry and added some flaming red and colored fibers. Now, who couldn't do art that is this simple?

I hope this gives you ideas of setting your spirit free to create some artistic bliss of your own!

Have a blessed weekend my friends,

Judi