let's celebrate summer, blog friends &...

the fact that...

FINALLY...

Blogger let me in...

phew...

I couldn't log in for 5 LONG days...

couldn't leave comments on other blogs...

couldn't blog here either...

makes me wonder how we ever survived without social media...

anyway...

get ready...

ALL CAPS...

yep...I'm YELLING...

NEW ART PARTS HAVE ENTERED THE BUILDING...

and they are now residing on the dining room table...

I'm over the moon excited to have them here...

it's one thing for me to design them...

and see them on the computer screen...

or to print them out...

but holding the real deal is always a cool exciting surprise when they arrive...

right now there will be 12 new art parts packages...

it's possible there may be 14...

but those other 2 might be saved for January???

real peeks will start around the first of July...

so only a month away...

I got 3 new art parts projects done over the weekend for book #5...

and the instructions/supply list all written...YIPPEE!

if you like art parts...

you'll flippin flip when you see these new babies...

I did...

Rick did too!

so...

I suppose if you get the magnifying glass, you might be able to see some in the photo above...

but I hope not...

NOW...

my bags are packed...

I'm ready to go...

headed to Dallas, Texas this afternoon...

I'll be @ the GASC all weekend...

this is my first time & the word on the street is that it is AWESOME & HUGE...

well...it IS in TEXAS you know!

if you're planning to attend...

I'll TWEET a secret word (on Twitter)...

be the first to come to the booth...

say the secret word...

and you'll win a prize!

if you're not signed up for Twitter it's fun & simple...

you can follow me @wendyvecchi

I had major studio time this past weekend & got to really PLAY with Ranger's new archival inks...

my new favorite combo is vermillion, stamped over tim's wild honey distress stain...

LOVE it lots!

cobalt, monarch orange & saffron look great stamped over weathered wood distress stain...

and speaking of tim's distress stains...

I have a set of all 12 distress stains to give to a lucky blog friend...

compliments of RANGER...

a comment will be your entry ticket...

the winner will be chosen next Tuesday...

that's June 7th @ 7am...my time...

just leave a comment for your chance to win...

let's celebrate summer...

and being blog friends...

and the fact that we LOVE to...

make art!

wendy

ps...see y'all next week...

just practicing for Texas...

TOTALLY...blown away!

no...not by the strong spring winds...

but by the HUGE amount of TALENT

over @ the Simon Says Blog Challenge...

I was thrilled to wake this morning & see that the challenge this week is to...

show some wendy vecchi style...

WOW...I'm honored...

how flippin cool!

it's such a thrill for me to see what others have created with my stamps & products...

I swiped 2 photos to whet your interest...

how about this beauty from Candy?

AMAZING...agree?

and here's a tiny peek @ Kim's project...

LOVE it!

and believe me...

there's more...

each design team member has created WONDERFUL art...

grab a beverage...

then pop over to Simon Says & I'm sure that you'll find lots of eye candy there...

THANK YOU TO EACH & EVERY DT member...

I'm TOTALLY impressed...

you ALL rocked the challenge &

you ALL sure know how to...

make art! (studio 490 style)

wendy

ps...wow!

Ranger's new ARCHIVAL INKS...

have ARRIVED!

I've edited the post below, with links to some of my most favorite colors...

now I'm off to the studio to USE those new inks to...

make art!

wendy

cake stand art...***EDIT***

I just finished another page in my art journal...

I thought you might like to see it...

this started with the flat cake stand & now it has LOTS of fun stuff sitting on it...

like the art parts ink bottles, flower, leaves &

tim's new pen nib...

the art parts page was inked with peeled paint distress stain...

stamped with the ticking stamp, using olive archival...

a portion of the doily was stamped at the top, using the gold paint dabber...& I also used the gold dabber around the edge...

the shading/distressing was done with walnut & the blending tool...

the trim strip @ the bottom, is a piece of the art parts straight flower stem...

stamped with a portion of this stamp...

I added tim's long fasteners to accent the holes in the scallop trim...

the large ink bottle art part was stamped with the coordinating stamp (jet black) then inked with broken china distress stain...

the smaller art parts bottle was also stamped with the coordinating stamp, then inked with wild honey distress stain...

I stamped an extra label on a manila cardstock scrap, using black soot distress ink & embossed it with clear embossing powder & then very lightly inked it with brushed corduroy...

remember...

distress inks are GREAT for embossing...

did you spot the "look" embellishment?

I painted tim's sprocket gear with the gold dabber & punched LOOK, to make a custom epoxy embellishment...

it's simple...

fill it with Glossy Accents...

and allow to dry for several hours (4-5?)...

and I LOVE the larger space when using the sprocket gear...

more options to add LOTS of words...

or numbers...

or...?

the flower & leaves are stamped on vintage dictionary paper which was added over Clearly for Art...

I cover a whole sheet of the Clearly for Art with Glue N Seal, add the dictionary page, brayer it to make it nice flat...

dry...

then I stamped the leaves with the NEW Sap Green archival ink...

and the flower with jet black...

***EDIT*** THE NEW Archival ink colors have arrived...

WOW...THANK YOU RANGER for NOT making us wait!

Sap Green is linked above...

other MUST have favs...(so far)

French Ultramarine...

Saffron...

Monarch Orange...

Vermillion...great for holiday's

Cobalt...

I think these are a good starter group when used with my other fav archival...coffee, jet black & olive...

don't forget the re-inkers too...

OK...

now back to regularly scheduled programming...

by adding paper to the Clearly for Art, you create the look of a fragile paper flower, but because it's over CFA, it very strong & durable!

I like to have a sheet ready to go...

it saves time...

just stamp, cut, ink & make art...

I'm LOVING the Glue N Seal...(the matte finish)

NO BUBBLES...even when using thin papers...

heaven...

plus...the built in brush saves clean up time...

the cute flower center is a Maya Road gingham blossom...

I'm not sure if it's finished...

I may add a butterfly or something the the pedestal bottom???

or not...

speaking of the flat cake stand...

my original thought was to use it for a birthday/graduation/baby/anniversary card...

just set a little package on it...

then stamp a sentiment...

fun...

I have a new art parts piece coming that is a perfect fit...

just sayin... I can't wait!!!

I got the proofs for the new stamp sets yesterday...

12 large sets this time...

I'm flippin excited...& can not wait to get the REAL stamps here...

ideas are brewing...

and speaking of ideas...

Ranger just released their Foil Tape Sheets...

these are FUN...

I've been playing...

and I'll be posting some projects soon using them...

I was headed to the studio,

but I just got an offer that I CAN'T refuse...

Rick asked if we should do a road trip...

COOL...we love antique stores...

I find them very inspiring...

because I seem to get ideas to...

make art!

wendy

ps...I hope your weekend is FULL of fun & art...

I AM an artist...

good morning!

first order of duty is to thank everyone who took my Ranger Inks, studio 490 style marathon workshop last Saturday...

it's 6 hours of pure inky fun...

The Scrapbooking Studio in Moline, Illinois is a shoppers paradise...

WOW...

it was LOADED with wonderful products you need to...

make art...

we had a great fun TALENTED group of 36 gals...

lots of space to spread out...

LOTS of inks to play with...

pizza for lunch...

treats for energy...

a birthday cake to celebrate a birthday...

thanks to everyone who came from all over Illinois, Iowa & even Indiana...

thanks for all your sweet comments...

believe me...I had fun too!

Rick even made a guest appearance!

I had been sick all week, so he drove me there & helped with set up & packing @ the end of the day...

gotta LOVE a hubby who *gets* what I do...

NEXT...

a few days ago, I showed the cover of an art parts journal that I started...

here's a page, also made from a small creative cover...

take note of her stylish (freaky) eyelashes...

no I wasn't drinking...

I just thought the mini crown turned upside down & trimmed a bit could work as eyelashes...

the small manila tag was inked with tim's new antique linen distress stain...

then distressed with walnut stain distress ink & the blending tool...

I added some machine stitching...

the ticking background stamp was inked with the new AWESOME french ultramarine...

I WILL be using this color lots...I LOVE IT!

the creative cover was inked with weathered wood distress stain...& the script was stamped with french ultramarine archival...

I *told* you I LOVE it...

moving back a bit...

I made a tag swatch so that I could show the new archival colors @ my workshop on Saturday...

I like to do this when we get new colors...

I'll refer to it until I'm sure what each color will look like...

I do this until I've used them a few times & I KNOW them well...

for this journal page I used 3 of my NEW FAVORITE archivals...

in addition to my usual jet black & coffee...

the labels do not do justice to the ink colors...

IMHO...

they are much prettier when stamped...

here's a better look @ those eyelashes...

the mini metal heart started out as silver, but I altered it with the new rose madder archival...

just tap the pad right on the heart...

the flower center is a Maya Road resin flower...

I added a tiny rhinestone to accent the center...

the art parts flower was inked with weathered wood distress stain...

yep...addicted to the stains...

they make you LAZY...

you'll especially see this with antique linen & weathered wood...

they are so quick & give awesome coverage...

how did we live without them?

how much longer do we need to wait for the other 24?

just asking...

the art parts key was textured by pouncing the gold paint dabber over it...

when dry, I distressed it with coffee archival & the new monarch orange archival...

just rub the pad right over the dry paint...

*** here's a tip...***

if you add too much ink...

just wipe some off before it dries with a paper towel...

if you REALLY hate it...

a drop of alcohol blending solution on a Q-Tip will remove it all & you can start over...

the textured paint & archival colors really give the appearance of rust...

here's something I forgot to mention...

a few weeks ago, Anika asked about starting a Flickr group, as a place to share photos of projects using studio 490 stamps...

I thought she had a GREAT IDEA...

THANKS Anika...

here's the link she created if you're interested...

Flickr group...

now it's time for me to head back to the studio to...

turn that key...

I AM an artist...

I...

make art!

wendy

ps...YOU ARE TOO!

my favorite 4 letter word is...

sale...

if you NEED any supplies to make art,

Simon Says is offering a

10% off your entire purchase sale...

the secret code you need to enter in the comment section is

baby

this is good thru today

MAY 12th only...

I *think* Heidi's baby will make her appearance today...

now there's 2 ways to look @ this...

#1...I am an enabler...

or...

#2...you can save 10% off your purchase...

maybe your hubbies will like me...

or maybe not...

here's the cover of an art journal I started, using the art parts small creative covers...

this time the binding is done with tim's D RINGS...

the crop-a-dile makes it simple to punch holes in art parts...

I used tim's AWESOME distress stains...

I LOVE the combo of weathered wood, wild honey & peeled paint...

then I added the shading with walnut distress ink & the blending tool...

the gold paint dabber was the finishing touch for the edge...

I stacked 2 art parts book plates to make a resting place for tim's mini bird...

he's cut from grungeboard and painted with the black paint dabber...

tim's Sizzix mini dies are a great way to use up those small grungeboard scraps...

the saying & polka dots are stamped with jet black archival...

I used coffee archival for the floral background & the ticking background...

by using coffee archival for my background stamping,

it really makes the main images pop when they are stamped in jet black...

the gingham background is stamped on the scallop with jet black...

I LOVE it with the wild honey...

and speaking of archival...

they have entered the building...

the names are cool, but the colors REALLY look GREAT!

I'm sooooo anxious to play...

but...

I forbid myself to open them until some major projects were completed...

like 12 new stamp sets...

yep...got them all sent in today...

YIPPEE!!!

it's SHOCKING...NOT one flower to be found!

now the wait to get them...it KILLS me...

today we need to make kits for Saturday's workshop & pack a million ink pads, distress stains & Perfect Pearls Mists & a whole lot more...

then look out...

I'll be opening those archivals...

I've got ideas brewing to...

make art!

wendy

AWESOME...Archival...

I'm back from the Great Lakes Mega Meet &

MEGA it was...

there were 8500 pre-registered for the event...

and that does not include those who purchased their ticket @ the door...

so...I hope you can see the name was right...

it really was MEGA...

lots of stamps, art parts, books, tim's idea-ology & Ranger goodies went home to new homes...

next stop on this art adventure is The Scrapbooking Studio in Moline, Illinois...

this Saturday (May 14th) I'll be teaching a Ranger MEGA workshop called

Ranger INKS, studio 490 style...

it is my MOST FAVORITE class to teach...

ever...

as of Saturday 34 seats were taken, leaving only 2 more...

but...my reason for this quick post is to show you something I have been eagerly waiting for...

NO...It's NOT the other 24 tim distress stains...

when you see a post in ALL CAPS (meaning that I'm shouting),

you'll know that we're getting the other 24 colors...

still got my fingers crossed...

but I AM VERY excited to tell you that

RANGER IS GIVING US ...

NEW ARCHIVAL COLORS...

if you are a frequent blog reader, you'll know that I LOVE the archival inks & use them on every project...

I LOVE them because when dry, they are waterproof & fade resistant...

I know for certain, that I can add any waterbased product over them & my stamped image will not bleed...

(think tim's distress ink or stains, Perfect Pearls Mists)...

over the archival...

they are the basic go to ink for stamping on art parts, grunge, chipboard, Claudine's sticky back canvas, paper, cardstock & even metal...

here's the revised/updated packages and the AWESOME yummy colors...

you can see that there is now a color for ALL our needs...

the original colors are...

COBALT, COFFEE, JET BLACK, LIBRARY GREEN, OLIVE, PLUM, SEPIA & SIENNA...

the 16 NEW ARTISTIC colors are...

CHROME YELLOW,

MANGANEGE BLUE,

VERMILLION,

EMERALD GREEN,

DEEP PURPLE,

VENITIAN ORANGE,

AQUAMARINE,

BLUE VIOLET,

SAFFRON,

PALE OCHRE,

MAGENTA HUE,

ROSE MADDER,

SAP GREEN,

VIRIDIAN,

MONARCH ORANGE

AND FRENCH ULTRAMARINE...

I'm thinking AWESOME for background stamping...

these are shipping in MAY...

so be watching for them...

I'll keep you posted...

I'm sure I NEED EVERY COLOR

of these new archival inks to...

make art!

wendy

E-TEAM BLOG HOP!

it's a BLOG party!

the E TEAM is hopping TODAY...

and they are featuring...

YIPPEE!

I'm EXCITED to see what the team has created with my stamps & *I HOPE* art parts too...

to see each person's challenge,

please visit these blogs...

Daisy Sparks
Broni Holcombe
Latrice Murphy
Linda Duke
Linda Ledbetter
Micki Harper
Sherry Cheever
Starla Nelson

I'm sure that DAISY will be having/or giving something *SPECIAL* just for this event...

I haven't heard what it is...

but I bet it's something arty & GOOD!

be sure to leave comments on each blog to be entered...

remember...gotta comment to win...

happy hopping!!

I'm @ The Great Lakes Mega Meet in Novi Michigan...

getting very inky and...

mak(ing) art!

wendy

282 THANK YOUS!!!

WOW! THANKS from the bottom of my heart for the AWESOME comments!

I hope you know how much I appreciate ALL OF YOU!!!

YOU all make this blog thing FUN!

Let's try for another 700!

Rick said it was too much STRESS for him to choose the winners...

so we did the Random . ORG thing...

there were 273 comments @ the 7AM deadline...

a package of ART "stuff" from me is headed to...

True Random Number GeneratorMin: Max: Result:173

BETTY said...

hi Wendy
congrats,keep on doing the good work,it's queen's day in Holland you are my inspiration queen.

hugs betty

April 30, 2011 4:03 AM

now the DRUMROLL...

The winner of THE VAGABOND...

compliments of

Heidi @ SIMON SAYS STAMP IS...

True Random Number GeneratorMin: Max: Result:112Powered by RANDOM.ORG

Sandi said...

Wendy I just love reading your blog! Congrats on your 700th post!
I would love to win a vagabond or even 2nd prize would thrill me. I am coming to your class in Moline and am so excited to meet you. I'll see you there!
Sandi Figura

April 29, 2011 10:11 AM

BETTY & SANDI...please email (wbv1213@me.com) your shipping info...

Betty...your package will go out next week, when I return from Michigan...

SANDI...I'll pass your info on just as soon as I hear from you & THE VAGABOND will be shipped to you right from Heidi...

AGAIN...THANKS so much to everyone who took the time to comment!

If you happen to be in the Detroit area, we'll be @

The Great Lakes MEGA MEET Thursday, Friday & Saturday...

it's in Novi Michigan...

info is HERE...

please stop by & say HI...

I'll be the one with the inky fingers...

if you follow me on TWITTER,(@wendyvecchi)

be watching for some random TWEETS, giving away some random prizes...

I did the first one & Eileen was the winner...

if you're attending the convention...

you might want to be watching TWITTER...

just saying...

last convention we gave a prize to the first person who came & said the magic word, which I TWEETED...

the Saturday after the convention, May 14th, I'll be teaching a 6 hour Ranger Inks, studio 490 style, inky marathon @ the Scrapbooking Studio in Moline Illinois...

last I heard, there were 4 seats left...

it makes me happy as this is about 1 1/2 hours from my home...

SO I CAN DRIVE...YIPPEE!

Ok...that's it from me...

hey...SOUTHWEST AIRLINES...

I'll be seeing you again tomorrow.

I hope you all have a great week...

and as always...

make art!

wendy

ps...sorry for the UGLY color...Blogger won't let me fix it!