Technique Thursday:

Today we have a video for you from Clearsnap on marbleizing paper with Smooch inks. We hope you will enjoy it!

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Warehouse Wednesday: Just Announced! Tim Holtz...

JUST ANNOUNCED

Tim Holtz SPRING limited edition inks. You can pre-order them on our site. We will be receiving 160 sets of pads.



Also available are REFILLS for the Spring, Winter and Fall inks. Only 100 each available.

Order quickly!!!

-Fran
www.franticstamper.com

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Cousins at Disneyland (DT Project by Linda Phinney)

Cousins at Disneyland

by Linda Phinney



Scrapbook layout using the Authentique Loyal Collection, papers, stickers, and alphas.  Additional items include: embroidery thread, the rhinestone bling, punched icon heads, and Crate Paper alphas.

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Linda - Q1 March Colored Image

Today Linda Phinney would like to share Frantic Stamper's Le Soleil Chat Tarot colored with Tombow Dual Brush Markers used with paint brush and water. Here are the markers she used:

• Purple Sage 623
• Mist Purple 553
• Tan 942
• Process Yellow 055
• Light Orange 025
• Green Ochre 076
• Glacier Blue 491
• Ivory 942

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Sketch Sunday: April 15, 2012

We hope you will give our sketch a try this week; a few of our DT members did!



First we have a card from Sharon Jeffs. We think her little touches make this card just perfect for any little boy.



Next we have a card from Linda Phinney. She opted to bits of paper to make her horizontal pattern...what a great way to use those small scraps of paper we all have!



Kathy Berger has a card for you, too. She used Frantic Stamper's Chicken Wire background stamp (This is a BIG stamp that really covers a WHOLE card. I thought it worked well as chain link fencing, too!), some Echo Park This & That Yardsticks paper, and a small stamp in a masculine set, For Him, by Stampendous to make a card for a friend to give to her Dad for his retirement from the construction industry.



Jane Larsson shares a card with a twist on the sketch. She turned the sketch on its side!



And last up, we have a bright, fun card from Jennifer Willis. She layered the sketch onto a square card...what a great way to get even more from one sketch!



If you decide to make a card from this sketch and want to share it with us, just email a photo to FranticStamperSketchCards@yahoo.com and we will add it to this post.

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Lace background

Lace Background

by Jane Larsson


I was attending an easter-crop on a Swedish forum and this is a card I made for one of the challenges. We were supposed to make a Chrismas-card or a Christmas-layout.

Products used: White cardstock, Anna Griffin Border sticker, Prima Alphabet stickers, a Bo Bunny Jewel, Martha Stewart punch, Ice Stickles, and Frantic Stamper; Lace Background stamped with Memento Rhubarb Stalk ink.

This stamp instantly became my favourite. When sometimes background stamps can be hard to stamp correctly on the paper this wasn't! And it is the most beautiful stamp I have ever seen!

/ Jane

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Technique Thursday: Ranger melt art project

Today we have a really fun melt art project from Ranger, and though Easter has passed, we think the technique is worth sharing. And there is always NEXT Easter to get ready for!

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Abstract Card (DT card by Linda Phinney)

Abstract Card by Linda Phinney

Two Frantic Stamper Cling-Mounted Rubber Stamp - Leaf Background images were stamped on white cardstock with black Memento ink.  Diamonds were punched from one piece.  The diamonds were folded and and inked across the creases to form the +.  Strips cut from red and black card stock were mounted on stamped background, the diamonds adhered on top of strips and zig-zag machine stitched onto background.  This piece was mounted on black cardstock, then onto a folded red card.  The KaiserCraft - 2.25"x3" clear stamp - Thank You was stamped on white cardstock, layered with foam tape on red & black cardstock, then this was mounted on the base card.

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Absinthe (DT project by Jennifer WIllis)

Absinthe by Jennifer Willis

I enjoy making cards just to make them, so many times I don't really have a theme, such as Happy Birthday, etc., and this card is one of those I can pull out whenever I just need something to say "hello!" It was created with the Frantic Stamper image titled Lg Absinthe.

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Technique Thursday: Hero Arts die trick

Today we have a video from HeroArts with a wonderful technique for getting more from your dies...by eliminating part of the cut. We hope you will enjoy the video and have fun with the technique.

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Warehouse Wednesday: Savvy Stamps Dies

While we currently don't stock Savvy Stamps' stamps (yet… who knows, it may happen some day), we just fell in love with their newest offerings:  dies.  

Just like your favorites Memory Box and Cheery Lynn, Savvy stamps dies are made in the USA of the highest quality stainless steel. I just love their cityscape die, and the birch trees is just awesome too!  


 

Dies are so very popular right now!  The designs are becoming more intricate and versatile.  I'm sure Savvy Stamps dies will soon be among your favorites too.  

More new dies are on their way… watch for Die-Versions dies coming soon! Find all our dies and embossing folders here: http://www.franticstamper.com/type-die-cutting-and-embossing-folder.html  

Happy Die-Cutting,
-Fran
www.franticstamper.com

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Coloring Corner: another look at Spectrum Noir

By Lis Whiting

Hi everyone! I was given a few of these new alcohol ink pens to try out. I am not a great colorist. I am still learning to blend! I have been using Copic markers for about a year so I think this will be a beginner’s comparison.

First of all, I like the way the marker feels in my hand. It’s about the size of four pencils put together in a square. There is a marker side and a bullet nib side. There is a grey line on one end cap so you know which side is which and there is a picture on each end also.

I decided to color one of Fran’s own stamped period women stamps, Erte in fur-edged dress (I think I have all of these – they are great!).



I do admit that I like the flexible brush that Copic offers but if you really want tight detail then a nib might be the way to go. I was able to get into some of the tiny spots easily.

Shading can be tricky with these alcohol ink pens but not impossible. I tried shading lighter and darker of the same color on the dress. I think it came out all right. It was very easy to let the ink dry and then go over it again to get a darker shade. (Remember your alcohol ink properties!). I used the light blue-green on the dress. There was no problem staying inside the lines using the bullet nib. You may notice that I have lines in my coloring. I did this on purpose to create the look of texture. Since I had a pink, I used the red on the stamp accent lines on the dress. You will notice that the pink did not blend with the blue but stands out as a color in its own right. WOW!

One thing to remember: as with all alcohol inks, the paper you use them on is important. The more porous the paper, the more likely the ink will feather. This will happen with any alcohol ink.

I had the new Inkssentials craft nib holder, some craft nibs (there are also Cut and dry brush pen nibs which I don’t have but plan to order) and some Ranger Blender so of course I experimented! First off, the brush nib was too large to place in the pen (rats!). But the blender solution works well with the nib and the pens. I did try some blender solution with the inks and it worked well. The hard thing is to get a very small amount of blender solution on the nib before you start working your inks otherwise one can wipe out the coloring. And this is exactly what I did…and on purpose! I smudged the shoes a bit and was able to “erase” my ink lines.

Overall, I like these pens. The colors I received were vibrant. And the pens were fairly easy to use.

Now, about the Viva Décor Pearl Pens… I couldn’t help myself. This stamp screamed for decoration so how could I not add some beautiful pearl accents? The stamp image is a nice size. In order to add pearl accents I would normally work with 2mm or 3mm stones BUT with these pens I could create pearl accents as small as 1mm. This was really great!

I hope that you enjoyed my review and will give these pens (and the Viva Décor pens) a try.

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Sketch Sunday: April 1, 2012

Here is today's sketch for you. Team-member Jane Larsson created a card from this sketch for you this week. I hope you will enjoy both the sketch and the card.





Products used: Stamp: Frantic Stamper ”Grandfathers letter” Die:  Go Kreate die - medium concentrics - Tags #1 (set of 4 dies) Anna Griffin paper and border sticker The backside of Bo Bunny Chiffon dot Prima Say it in studs and alphabet stickers Memento Rich Cocoa

Team member Sharon Jeffs made this lovely card to share, too.

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