Technique Thursday: Kansashi Templates

Sorry we are late posting this. Somehow the week got away from us.

Today we have a video on how to use the Clover Kansashi templates to make your own beautiful floral embellishments. Though the audio on the video is in Japanese, the video is wonderful, showing step-by-step how simple it is to make perfect petals for flowers. With these tools and your fabrics you will be able to make a perfect flower for your next project!



Check out the Clover Kansashi templates at www.FranticStamper.com

Hi everyone,

We've been back from CHA for a week now, and still digesting all the catalogs and orders we placed.

As usual, CHA was full of new products and our credit cards are maxed. :-)

We placed orders with all our regular companies such as: Graphic 45, Prima, BoBunny, Tim Holtz, Crate Paper, October Afternoon, We-R-Memory Keepers, Ranger, Clearsnap, Tsukineko, 7 Gypsies, Tattered Angels, My Mind's Eye, K&Company, Martha Stewart, EK Success, Inkadinkadoo, Marianne Designs, May Arts, Crafter's Workshop, Webster's Pages, Dreamweaver stencils, Northwoods, Penny Black, Hero Arts, Spellbinders, Sizzix, Darice, etc….

We also added a few new (to us) companies: Canvas Corp, Anna Griffin, JudiKins stamps, Studio Calico, WorldWin Papers, and Simple Stories. We also brought back some of your requested favorites: Die Cuts with a View (DCWV), Little Yellow Bicycle and The Paper Company.

Here are some highlights:

• -Ranger is introducing a set of Distress Markers by Tim Holtz in a range of 37 colors (36 + opaque white)
  
• -Also from Ranger, look for new colors of Ice Stickles and Liquid Pearls
• -Tsukineko announced 12 new colors of their popular Memento inks
  
• -Clearsnap has 6 new colors of Colorbox + 6 new colors of Fluid Chalk inks, as well as new smooch glitz
• -We're excited to bring you a selection of rubber stamps from Judikins
• -Graphic 45's two new collections should be here soon: Little Darlings and Olde Curiosity Shoppe
  
-We will soon be carrying the clear stamps from Marianne Designs in the Netherlands

• -Tons and tons of gorgeous new ribbons from May Arts are coming in March
• -We are expanding our selection of papers for the cardmaker, including shimmering cardstock, animal skin patterns and vellums coming soon

We're still unpacking and reviewing all that we bought. We're working hard to add products to the site as they come in too!

Hugs,
-Fran
www.franticstamper.com

Coloring Corner: Selecting Ink for Copic Markers

Welcome to our newest feature, Coloring Corner, which is replacing our regular Tip Tuesday feature (we will still offer tips from time to time, but not on a weekly basis.) The focus of the Coloring Corner posts will be coloring, with an emphasis on Copic Markers. As parts of this feature we will offer coloring samples, coloring tips, challenges, and more.

Today we would like to start with something very basic; ink selection. No matter what coloring media we want to use, we want to be sure that the ink we use to stamp or to draw is not going to run or bleed when we color.

One of the first things we did as part of the Copic Basic Certification was to learn to chose paper and ink suitable to the markers. The technique used is valid for ANY coloring media, though, and we would like to share our take on the ink portion of it with you now.

On a piece of standard white copy paper, draw a circle about an inch in diameter or stamp a simple open image as shown below, depending on if you will be drawing or stamping your image.



Next, use your coloring media of choice to color inside the circle or stamped image, up to but not touching the ink line (touching the line will potentially contaminate the tip of your media). Fully saturate the paper with the media (water for watercolor, Gamsol for colored pencil, or with the marker for Copic markers) you plan to use. I plan to use Copic markers, so that is what I will be sharing. (At first I was going to color my sheep gray, but then realized that in the photograph you would have trouble seeing the lines, so I switched to a pink tone. Please ignore the gray spot in the first photo.)

For the purposes of this article, I stamped my image with Memento, Memories, and Stazon inks. I next put the tip of my Copic marker a little distance from one of the lines of my stamped image and just held it there, allowing the Copic ink to saturate the paper. I made sure not to let the tip of my marker touch any of the lines.

Here are the three different samples:

Memento
Memories
Stazon

Check carefully for ink feathering from the drawn/stamped line outward from the circle or inward into your colored area. (Feathering is what ink moving on the surface of the paper is called; bleeding is what ink moving through the surface to the back side is called.) Feathering is a sign that the media of choice acts as a solvent for your ink, and that the ink will smear or smudge with that media; try a different ink!

Can you see how much the Memories and Stazon inks feathered in our samples? Obviously, given that amount of movement in the other two inks, the ink of our choice Copics is the Memento ink.

However, you may find that another ink works well for you, or you might be without that preferred ink sometime and need to pick an alternate. This method will assure your ink is suitable to your task. And no matter what your ink needs might be, you can find them all at FranticStamper.com.

Sketch Sunday: February 5, 2012

Here is the card sketch for this week.



Isabelle Drouin-Vachon shares her take on the sketch with us this week. Isabelle chose to create the illusion of the basic shape of the elements with little banners rather than be literal with the oval. Nice effect, don't you agree?



Linda Phinney remembered that a sketch is just a starting point, and had fun rearranging the elements of the sketch a little to come up with this wonderful card.



Here is Jane Larsson's version. She, like Isabelle, got the oval shape by arranging elements to give that illusion. I think this is a playful and fun card; don't you agree?



And last but not least for today, here is a card from Jennifer Willis, who, like Linda, rearranged some of the elements of the sketch.



We hope you will give the sketch a try and share a card or two with us, too. Just email your photos to FranticStamperSketchPhotos@yahoo.com and we'll add it to this blog entry.

A little something from CHA...

Kaiser Tigerlily collection coming out in March:



And made with Tigerlily:



Graphic 45 Olde Curiosity Shoppe coming out late February:



Also from Graphic 45 in late February, Kraft Collection:



Here is one of the new Dreamweaver stencils.  Cute!

Fourth Sunday Template: Football Card

The design team will be posting a template on the fourth Sunday of the month this year instead of on Tuesdays.

With the Superbowl coming Next week and lots of football (American Football, that is) parties being planned, we thought it would be fun to give you a "football" card template to play with. The finished card should be about 7x5 1/2" if printed at full size, but feel free to size to your needs.



We'd love to see what you come up with. Email photos to FranticStamperSketchPhotos@yahoo.com and we'll add them to this post.

Technique Thursday: Hero Arts and Sizzix

Today we would like to share a great video from Hero Arts on their great collaboration with Sizzix; Hero Arts stamps that coordinate perfectly with Sizzix dies and embossing folders. We hope you will enjoy it!

Warehouse Wednesday: Meet the 2012 Design Team (Lis Whiting)

Warehouse Wednesday: Meet the 2012 Design Team (Lis Whiting)

Hi! I'm Lis Whiting and I have been crafting for many years now, and have been part of the Frantic Stamper design team for two years, joining it for a third as an alternate.

I currently live in California with two kitties who view my craft room as their personal toy factory, so they have to have monitored visits! I work full time at a hospital in the Finance Division which I also find very interesting.

I am a lover of art in all its forms. I love most types of music, my favorite art "period" is hard to say. I love impressionist painters but I love art deco jewelry. I enjoy classical music as well as rock. I really like the Victorian period - steam punk really appeals to me. I am a real fan of Tim Holtz and his distress/grunge. My favorite color is cobalt blue. I like deep rich colors like emeralds, burgundies and browns.

One of the questions that I was asked to answer is "how often do you window shop at Frantic Stamper?" I must admit that I look forward to coming home each day and spending a little "me" time (even if its only 5 minutes) by going to FS and seeing what's new! My favorite can't-do-without tool is, of course, my paper trimmer. I still have one of the old Fiskars grey trimmers that I use most often although I know I need to get a new one some day. If I had to choose any other tool it would be my die cutters. I have one from Sizzix and I also have an Accucut. I like to use thicker materials and these die cutters are absolutely essential!

I have two sisters who think I am a little nuts but hey....at least they know where I am!

The inspiration for my artwork...hmmm. That's hard to say. I think I am still finding myself. My biggest influences are the shapes of books, gears and the victorian period in general. I SO enjoy making cards and other paper creations. Putting paper together to make something beautiful is always a wonderful thing.

Here are my submissions for the DT call.

Sketch Sunday: January 22, 2012

Happy Sunday!

Today we have another simple card sketch for you. The bold pattern at the bottom of the sketch was intended to invoke the thought of a geometric patterned paper, or perhaps a geometric texture, but please feel free to interpret it YOUR way! These sketches really can be just starting points.



Here are some of the Design Team members takes on the sketch.

First up I have a card by Jane Larsson.



Next are two cards from Linda Phinney (I just love black and white themes; don't you love them, too?)



Here is a card by Jennifer Willis. The stamp is from FranticStamper's line of stamps: Cat Tarot Card - Le Pendu.



And how about a card by Sharon Jeffs?



And here is Kathy Berger's take on the sketch (a Valentine's Day card).





Reader Marcelle (Moz) Roberts decided to play along and sent us this photo of her card.



Reader LaCretia Ogle also shared with us. Here is her card.



We hope you, too, will give the sketch a try and share a card or two with us, too. Just email your photos to FranticStamperSketchPhotos@yahoo.com and we'll upload this to this blog entry.

Technique Thursday:Hero Arts Cling Stamp and Technique

I have only one video for you today, but it is a long one, with a fun finger-painting technique. I tried the technique, and I have to admit I felt like I was 5 years old again! I just loved it!



Check out Hero Arts Stamps and Distress Inks at FranticStamper.com.

Warehouse Wednesday: New Web Site and Shopping Cart!

Warehouse Wednesday: New Web Site and Shopping Cart!

Frantic Stamper got a major facelift on Sunday! For the past several months we have been working diligently to bring you a brand new web site. In addition to a new look, the site features a powerful search engine that makes finding items easier than ever and a shopping cart to make shopping more convenient and secure for you, our customers.



We have moved our most popular and newest items into the new site and are working to port the rest as rapidly as possible. There are already hundreds upon hundreds of man-hours (actually, mostly woman-hours) in this site, and we know we aren't done. So, we hope you will bear with us if something you need isn't on the site yet; the site is still a work in progress, and should be considered somewhat under construction. We hope that even with that caveat you will have an enjoyable experience using the site.

Please note that though the shopping cart provides you with a convenient and secure way to shop, we will ALWAYS be here to respond to your questions and will continue to take pride in giving you the best possible customer service. You can always call us (during business hours) at 541-826-2500 or email us at fran@franticstamper.com.

Quick, Clean, and Simple!

by Jane Larsson

Quick, Clean, and Simple!

I bet many of you are like me: in the middle of a hectic life. Sometimes we just don´t have an evening to spend making a card you need for someone’s special occasion. That doesn´t mean you have to go buy a card!

Today I made a card in five minutes, and that included the planning! I will tell you how I did it!

Items used: 3xBazzill cardstock, 1xpatterned paper, stamp, ink, embossing powder, fluid chalk, glue, button, stickers, paper cutter and a heat gun.

The size can be chosen by the stamp you use. I used 9901-O Timepieces from Fran’s plate #99 which is the size 4.25" x 4.50" so here is how I worked with this clean & simple card.

First I stamped on the patterned paper. I used Bo Bunny’s "Smoochable - Heart Strings" and put on the Embossing Powder and heated it up with my gun. Powder used: a shiny powder that has become one of my favorites: American Crafts Zing - Black with Opaque Finish.

Then I glued it on my first cardstock (I used the color brown, I like to get great contrasts. The second cardstock is red. And the third and last is black and the base (scored in the middle, size 10,25"x6" before I scored it) I chalked the edges and glued it all together. At last I glued on the text (alphabet stickers) and the button…

…TADA! All done! Quick, clean and simple!

Warehouse Wednesday: Meet the 2012 Design Team (Sharon Jeffs)

Meet the 2012 Design Team (Sharon Jeffs)

I live in sunny South Australia with my husband Matt and my daughters Emma (15) and Sarah (11). I am currently a primary age school teacher working with year 5 and 6 children.

I began card making after finding a card making kit at a local market. By the time the kit was finished, I was hooked! Since then I have discovered scrapbooking and love working creating all sorts of different projects.

This begins my third year as a member of the Frantic Stamper Design Team, and I am energized and excited for the new year. I am looking forward to getting to know the new team members and to sharing all sorts of my work with you!

Until my DT work is posted, you can see more of my work at my blog, http://www.justmeandthem.typepad.com, where I post my latest creations.

Here were the pieces I submitted with my application for this year's team. I hope you will enjoy them!