Little Notebook

After stamping and watercolouring the octopus image, my paper was so warped that I almost threw it away. Then I had a light-bulb moment realising that all it really needed was a good firm base and some strong glue to hold it flat. My answer? Chipboard!

At this stage it was still my intention to use the octopus on a card. If I'd have thought a little further ahead I would have realised that the chipboard would be much too heavy for a card. But since I didn't think ahead I ended up with a piece of chipboard decorated with a watercolour octopus that was of no use for a card. What to do now? Believe it or not, I had a second light-bulb moment (I'm pretty sure that's it for the rest of the year) and a little notebook came into being.

It was between these two photos when I realised my

octopus would be much too heavy for a card.

By The Seaside Card

Yesterday's watercoloured pelican is today's beach-themed greeting card. I've added the starfish and shells from the same set, which I've also coloured with paints, as well as droplets of different mediums for a little bit of texture and interest.

Stamps: By The Seaside

One Image - Four Ways

I decided to do a little experiment to see what difference the colouring medium can make to an image. The four picture below are of the same image stamped or printed on different papers and then coloured with the associated medium. Clockwise from the top left we have Prismacolor pencils on Bristol paper, a pre-coloured digital image on Stamping Up Whisper White card stock, Copic markers on XPressIt blending card, and watercolour paints on cold pressed watercolour paper.

Have a play with the mediums you have in your collection, it's really quite interesting to see how different the end result can be. Don't forget to switch the paper too... although some mediums won't work well with certain papers, such as alcohol markers with watercolour paper, you can get great results by mixing and matching.

Stamps:

By The Seaside clear stamps

By The Seaside digital stamps

One Grand Adventure

A couple of days ago I shared a tutorial on how to stamp a focal image and background all at the same time. Happily, my demonstration piece has since found it's way to the front of a greeting card.

Here's a link to the tutorial on how I created the background:

TUTORIAL

Stamp Your Background

Stamps are fabulous for creating a focal image on our cards and paper craft projects, but we shouldn't limit their use just to the spotlight. They're also great for creating wonderful, coordinating backgrounds, which also means we're extending the usefulness of our stash and getting more value for our money. Happy days! Today I want to share a simple background technique that can be achieved using any of your stamps, even your digis if you're handy in Photoshop. Just grab your favourite image and get to work...

I'm using the starfish and shells image from By the Seaside for today's project, and I'm going to stamp the image repeatedly on a piece of kraft card stock using "Desert Sand" Memento ink.

1. Imagine you're making a CAS style card with just one stamped image... that's where you want to position your first impression. For the purpose of this tutorial, we'll call it the focal image.

2. Ink up your stamp repeatedly and stamp around your focal image, turning it each time to fit into the space. You're aiming for a "patterned paper" look.

3. Allow the stamp to go over the sides of the card stock and make sure you hit each of the corners. Try not to leave too many large blank spaces.

4. When you're satisfied with your stamping, add some ink to the edges of the card stock. It will help to define the borders or boundaries of your panel.

5. Time to add some colour! I'm using pencils, but you can use your favourite medium or even print out a coloured version of the digi, fussy cut and adhere it over the top. The panel is now ready to use on a card.

Stamps:

By The Seaside clear stamps

By The Seaside digital stamps

Layering Colour

Regardless of what medium you're using - pencils, paint, markers - you'll always get a much better result if you colour your image in layers. Start with a base coat then build on top of it until your image has depth and dimension.

I've coloured the octopus image from the new By The Seaside set with copic markers. As you can see, I began with a light base coat and then added layers of colour to create depth and shape. The light colours in the image are focused on the areas in the foreground, such as the top of his head and the front few tentacles, while the dark colours are added to the recessed areas to give depth.

Base coat with E51.

Second layer E53.

Leave a few areas with just the base coat showing.

Third layer E55.

Start to darken the recessed areas

and shape the tentacles.

Fourth layer E57.

Now you can see a distinct difference between

the lightest and the darkest areas.

Final layer E59.

These are the darkest places in the image.

First layer C5.

I've stippled cool greys around the image

to "ground" it on the page.

Second layer C3.

Colour over all the stippling you did previously,

then add more dots with the same pen.

Final layer C1.

Repeat the steps above using the lightest pen.

Pelicans

A few more cards from the By The Seaside set... I can't get enough of that pelican!

Stamps: By The Seaside

Octopus and Starfish

One of my brothers really loves the sea, so I made him this birthday card. What could be better than a seaside themed card to remind him how much he hates work and would rather be fishing?! Sorry Steve.

Stamps: By The Seaside

New Release: By The Seaside

A warm, sunny day by the seaside is like a little vacation from the stresses and routines of life. Most of us enjoy a day at the beach, exploring rock pools, building sandcastles and wading through the water.

Capture the spirit of the seaside with this set of clear stamps featuring three images and four coordinating sentiments. Perfect for masculine cards, Thank Yous, birthdays or just a quick card to let someone know you're thinking of them.

Available in Store Now

Carla and Anesha have created some fantastic cards and craft projects using the new set. Check out Anesha's fabulously bright coasters at the bottom of the post, and don't forget to visit their blogs for all the details!

Catalogue Page

I really enjoyed colouring the big octopus from the new By The Seaside set, and I think he would look great in greens and blues too.  If you're particularly keen, a blue ringed octopus would look fabulous with those gorgeous, if deadly, bright blue markings.

Stamps: By The Seaside

A Colouring Project

I've used the last four frames from my stash for a seaside grouping. The top two images are from the Smooth Seas clear stamp set and the bottom two are from the new By The Seaside set. These frames, along with the flowers I did earlier, will hang in my booth at the next craft fair.

Smooth Seas and By The Seaside

Lovely Lilies (August release)

Spring Tulips

Waratah

Geums

New Releases

It's release day, and boy do we have a great range for you to choose from this month! From the ocean to the nursery with a quick side trip to the candy store, it's definitely a mixed bag of fabulous images.

Available in Store Now

Sweet As Candy

digital stamp set

Available in Store Now

Bonsai

digital stamp set

Available in Store Now

Celebrations

digital stamp set

Available in Store Now