ABC...

A is for AKRON...

here's a quick shot of my demo space before the crowd arrived...see all those wood mounted stamps in the background? that's just a tiny portion of the booth...

for as many stamps as I have...it still excites me to see a huge amount of wood mounted...

my Blossom Bucket embellishments are on the left side of the photo...

B is for Blossom Bucket...

                        what a lovely sight...
Akron was the first convention to have all the resin pieces...
thanks to everyone who took some home...
                             I hope you'll have fun with them...

C is for crowd...

this is the line up about an hour before the show started...

I guess the line was gigantic when the doors opened...

I didn't get to see that...

I'm headed to Rocky Mountain Memories in Estes Park, Colorado for some inky/stamping classes this weekend...

I'll spend 7 hours on Saturday teaching 

Ranger U comes to YOU...

my most favorite class to teach...

I LOVE techniques...

I LOVE stamps

I LOVE all types of inks...

so this is a great way to spend the day...

after that, I head to Novi, Michigan for Mega Meet...

I thought I should have a sample made using 

my Blossom Bucket postmark...

it's a perfect flower center...

I added a tiny bit of gold paint around the edge of the resin postmark with the gold paint dabber...

those little blings (is that a word?) you see on the flower are turquoise Perfect Pearls mist...

studio 490 kits for art #3 is shipping...

this was very popular in Akron...

everyone LOVED that the Blossom Bucket resin pieces are included in the kit, along with all the art parts, instruction & step out photos...

and there's also the black metal corner, which allows the shutters to be dimensional...not glued down flat...

the photo below shows the finished art...

there's 2 shutters, the clear resin bottle & the black metal corner in the kit...

 one of the best BB sellers @ the convention was this large fancy flower...
it's cream colored right from the package, but easily alterable, with tim's alcohol inks...
2 minutes or less & you can make it any color that fits your need...
I used caramel & butterscotch for this one...

other BB best sellers @ the show...

the clear resin bottle...

the large clear jar...

all of the eyeglasses...

the postmarks...

the sewing machine was the very first to sell out...

the yellow flower, which fits right in the clear bottle...

and the bouquet, which is a perfect fit for the large jar & 

my art parts jar too...

the 2 clear resin pieces are unique, because I designed them with a slit/open area in the back, which allows you you insert flowers in the slot & everything still glues completely flat...

the red hearts were popular...these are fun to stamp on to customize them...just stamp with jet black archival ink

 these pink posies were gone in a flash...

and these large lips had everyone laughing...

how about a giveaway???

would anyone like my new kit for art that's shown above?

I have one to give to one random commenter...

just leave a comment...

I'll be back on Monday with the winner's name...

now it's time to pack, so I have all the supplies I need to...

make art!

wendy

clicker cutts, blossom bucket and........

MORE...

you might want to grab a beverage...

it's been a LONG time since I could squeeze in a post...

but today is THE day...

let's get started...

BREAKING NEWS!

clicker cutts have entered the building!

clicker cutts are die cut from my Clearly For Art material...

packaged & all ready for you to play...

there are clicker cutts pages, specifically designed to fit the art parts small creative covers...

BUT...

they are awesome for cards too...

or think about using them for covers for a journal/mini book...

since CFA is very strong & won't bend or break...

they are perfect for a light weight, durable journal for your purse...

I've got one in the works...

and we have clicker cutts flowers in CFA clear, blackout & whiteout...

the package looks like this...

there are many ways to alter these clicker cutts flowers...

today I'll show you a 5 minute OR LESS...

custom flower, created with clicker cutts whiteout...

grab your ink applicator with felt...

I used cloudy blue & butterscotch alcohol inks...

apply a quick squeeze of each color to the felt & tap the applicator over the flowers...

I like to twist & turn the applicator, so the inks don't create a pattern...

the flowers will look like this...

here's a better look...

beautiful blending of the inks...

next, I stamped this background stamp, using jet black archival...

after stamping...

use the heat it tool to dry the archival ink...

now the flowers look like this...

and closer shot...

and the largest flower...

it sure looks different than the basic whiteout flower that I started with...

these clicker cutts flowers are the same shape as my art parts flower...

perfect for layering, if you desire...

or use just one clicker cutts flower with the art parts flower...

there are LOTS of mix & match options...

the art parts flower was inked with pine needles distress stain, dried & then stamped with the same background stamp & jet black archival...

now, use the heat it tool to warm the clearly for art flowers & shape them...

I did this flower a bit different than I usually do...

I wanted to create dimension...

but not a lot of height...

so when the petals were warm, I just pressed my thumbnail into each petal, to shape them...

and then glued the 3 layers together...

oh...see that cool center?

it's a new Blossom Bucket piece...

more on that @ the end of the post...

I might add a word to the center??

or I might leave it as is...

depending where it ends up...

and a side shot, so you can see it's fairly flat...

but still dimensional & it adds texture...

I'm *thinking* I want it for a journal cover...

I think this will work...

oops...forgot to say that I used the gold paint dabber, randomly along the petal edges...

this seriously took less than 5 minutes to create!

I like that you can create any custom color flower you need for your art...

EASILY!

a few other tips...

clearly for art is VERY forgiving...

if you don't like the alcohol ink colors you chose...

a few drops of alcohol blending solution on a paper towel will completely remove the color & you're right back to a plain white flower...

and...remember that every time clearly for art is heated, it goes completely flat!

don't like the shape?

just put it right back on your craft sheet...

blast it with the heat tool & start again...

I made this flower in less than 5 minutes...

but you can play with one flower a MILLION times!

seriously...it's so much FUN...

next topic...

I *think* I may have mentioned before that I am TOTALLY IN LOVE with Ranger's specialty stamping paper...

addicted just might be another word...

Rick said it's all I talk about...

yikes! sorry dear...

I want to use it on every project...

I had no clue that a piece of plain white paper could WOW me like this stuff has...

I was thinking it would be fun to have a square journal/ mini book...

the crop a dile works like magic on art parts, to create holes...

this is made from the bases of the large square art parts frame...

and a page in progress...

and here is a really nice size larger journal/book...

this time I used the large creative covers...

I can't wait to have some spare time to play...

what I like about making these is that the pages can be made from anything...

you bet...

mine are Ranger's specialty stamping paper...

but you sure can make it a really MIXED MEDIA journal...

just use anything you have...

I like that I can have the pages on my table & work on nice flat pages...

it really makes it so easy...

MORE BREAKING NEWS!

Cindy told me this morning that

my NEW "embellish your art" trinkets

are shipping... starting TODAY!!!

CHA orders ship first...

So...they should be in stores in just a few days...

start watching!

and MORE BREAKING NEWS!

because the Blossom Bucket pieces are shipping...

my #3 kits for art will be shipping very soon too...

check your LSS, favorite on line...

Ranger, if you are a store owner...

or order them right from Stampers Anonymous...

this is a fun kit, because in addition to all the art parts, step out photos & instructions...

this kit is THE FIRST to include

the new Blossom Bucket pieces...

here's the finished art...

the resin shutters & the clear resin mini bottle are included...

this kit also teaches my technique for altering the clear resin bottle to make it very vintage & cracked...

also included in the kit is the metal corner from Blossom Bucket...

I show you how to use it to make the shutters dimensional...

if you look closely, I hope you can see that they aren't glued down flat...

I'm thinking this will make a fun Mother's day, new home, or special friend gift...

thanks for letting me share my excitement...

MORE BREAKING NEWS!

Just got this email as I was typing...

DESK TOP ORGANIZER...UPDATE!

it's HERE & shipping too!!

AWESOME!~

I'm waiting for the photos...

I'll post it on Twitter & Facebook, just as soon as I get them...

that's it for today...

let me know your thoughts & I'll have a prize package...(including clicker cutts!)

for a random commenter...

as always...

MAKE ART!

wendy

metallic Clearly For Art...

today I wanted to share another fun technique that uses

clearly for art blackout...

it creates a very cool metallic effect...

and adds a fun twist to CFA...

this is one of the techniques I demoed @ CHA.

Christine & Mark from Scraptime, in Canada,

filmed the video...

THANKS Christine & Mark!

check out their site...

there's tons of videos & inspiration there...

I wanted to share a few close up shots, so you can really see how cool these turned out...

the first sample shows the CFA blackout flower on a card I did for the Ranger booth...

the flower was created with my flower stamps...

the smaller flower was stamped with my

polka dot background,

using jet black archival...

the cute center is a new Blossom Bucket piece...

oh...

new art parts flourishes are there too...

the next shows the new clicker cutts small journal pages...

and this flower was made with the new clicker cutts blackout flower...

I don't think the clicker cutts have shipped just yet...

the gold center flower is new from my Blossom Bucket line...

this one is my MOST favorite...

seriously...it IS!

this is what it looks like right from the package...

very vintage...

and here's a close up of a whole sheet of CFA blackout...

that has been painted with a layer of Glue N Seal...

use the matte finish...

then tim's Rock Candy crackle paint...

then I added both silver & gold metallic mixatives...

you can really vary the amount of each mixative you use & get lots of cool looks...

in the video I also show how you can add other colors of alcohol inks over these layers...

and you get yet another totally different result...

try it...this is so much fun!

ok...

pop over to SCRAPTIME...

I'll be interested to hear your thoughts...

while you watch a video...

I'll...

make art!

wendy

ps...I see a "DELIVERY" is scheduled for today...

guess what?

could it possibly be BOOK #6?

I'll be back tomorrow when I actually have them in house!

yippee!

introducing studio 490 clicker cutts...

grab a beverage...

I have LOTS to share today...

I *think* I should have started these posts sooner...

YIKES!

let's start off with a brand new item, that I've not even hinted about...

I just got the final word YESTERDAY that they would be ready for CHA...

I'm excited to introduce you to...

CFA CLICKER CUTTS...

what is it?

it's the "clearly for art material"

that has been die cut & packaged

so it's ready to use...

why the name?

the machine that does the cutting is called a CLICKER...

and Ted's last name is CUTTS...

this popped into my head & it's the perfect name...

clearly for art...

clicker cutts!

I have wanted these flowers forever...

so we have 8 petal flowers, with 3 sizes in each package...

this is the prototype package...

the real deal will have 4 of each flower in the package...

there is a package of CFA clear flowers...

we also did the whiteout and the blackout flowers too...

so each package will contain one color, with 12 flowers...

I have a new technique with the blackout that I'll be demoing @ CHA...

and I'll do a tutorial for you when I get back...

it's really cool...

the other clicker cutts I really wanted is pages...

each package will have 6

"pages" of the clearly for art material, perfectly sized for the small creative covers and the gatefold journal...

gatefold journal?? what??

the pages will come packaged with 6 CFA clear pages...

or 6 whiteout pages

or a package of 6 blackout pages...

6 pages in each package allows us to make 3 cards...

think about the dimensional cards we can create...

heat the edges & curl them???

this will be FUN!

so that's CFA CLICKER CUTTS...

my samples are arriving this morning...

if the plane is on time

YIKES!!

now for some NEW stamps!

if you like vintage or steampunk...

you'll like ...

mechanical art...

this guy is a great size...

he's 5 inches tall...

he's an art part too...

boot/shoe label...

another vintage find...

hold onto your hat,

we're going for a ride...

this is the saying on the cover of book 6...

I flat out love it...

and I like to use it with the handle...

the handle is an art part too...

gears background...

fits right in with the steampunk trend...

sweet dreams & flying machines in pieces on the ground...

think steam punk!

steampunk definition...

you got it...steampunk again...

this also has some words that can be used individually...

whenever possible,

fly under the radar...

I like this used with wings...

fun for funky art...

that's...mechanical art!

next up more Blossom Bucket goodness...

this is a

LARGE looped flower center...

another...use as is or

alter it to any color you need...

I inked it with pitch black alcohol ink & then dusted it with heirloom gold perfect pearls powder...

and used it with my original large art parts flowers...

the photo does not do justice to this next beauty...

it's the bling blossom

& it's a really pretty blue-ish grey color

with a big bling center...

on the photo below, I added just a bit of coffee archival ink to highlight the edges...

you do not see the gear...RIGHT?

and then we have beaded blossoms...

another alterable...

& they're upside down on the card...oopsie...

these are so cool with the alcohol ink metallic fixatives added to them...

or any color of alcohol ink...

and I LOVE the lace leaf...

lots of detail...

how about some new art parts???

this shows the art parts large pages...

which are sized for the large creative covers...

this is a great alterable sturdy surface...

I love that they're cut & ready for action...

books are fun to create

and they're perfect for card makers too...

and new small art parts pages,

sized to fit the small creative covers and the gatefold journal too...

and again...

I've been using them for cards...

don't pay any attention to the guy...

you'll meet him tomorrow...

and here's the new gatefold journal...

if you were on Tim's cruise last fall...

this is the journal you created with him...

each package has enough art parts to create 2 journals...

so...the small art parts pages & the CFA clicker cutts pages both fit...

the gatefold journal...

this is the prototype...

there are 4 spines included...not 2...

it will be fun to mix art parts pages with CFA clicker cutts pages...

moving on to the new desktop organizer...

here's how this developed...

back in 2008, my studio was on the cover of Cloth Paper Scissors, studios magazine...

there's a cover photo on the right sidebar...

when the issue was released, I got lots of comments about Ranger, the cover cat...

because he's so stinkin adorable...

and the other thing that people asked about was the organizer on my worktable/island...

here's what it looks like...

it's a 2 tiered perfect storage solution...

it holds a TON...

and it's so convenient to have your tools within easy reach...

the basic concept is the same as Ranger's craft spinner...

add another level & double your storage, with the same small footplate...

I talked to 2 people who said they would make the organizer, but I wasn't happy with the quality or their price...

so it got put on the back burner...

yes...picky...I DO know that!

but over 3 years later, I still get emails asking where to get it...

when I met Cindy from Blossom Bucket, I asked her about the possibility of creating the organizer & it worked!!!

I'll take some photos @ CHA to post later, but here's the basic scoop...

it's large & holds a ton...

A TON!

the bottom is 14 x 14 inches & the top is 12 x 12...

it's black with yellow stars...

all ready to load up...

all 37 of the distress stains take up less than 20% of the bottom tier...

I estimate that 200 stains would fill it...

that's LOTS!

it's perfect to store paint dabbers, scissors, paint brushes, craft sticks, brayers... adhesives...

any supplies you use...

I LOVE the fact that it can be customized to hold anything you need...

if you have limited space, it's square, so it can be butted right up to the wall to take up less space...

if you have more space,

I put mine on a turntable (kitchen store purchase) and I LOVE it...

give it a spin...

anything you want is right @ your fingertips...

I wish I had it when my studio was the dining room table...

it would have make clean up much easier...

if you travel or attend crops...

it's perfect to pickup & go...

and the retail price is a very reasonable...

$64.00...

THANK YOU BLOSSOM BUCKET!

this is a funny outtake from the cover photo shoot...

this is Ringo & I really wanted him on the cover...

but...after about 200 photos he got mad & left...

he wouldn't cooperate...

and the little bugger nipped me to prove his point...

so that's how Ranger ended up to be the cover cat...

this is another outtake with Ranger...

if you look to the far right...

you can see my hand, holding a piece of chicken...

I'm telling him to be a good boy, sit & smile & he'd get the chicken...

bribery @ it's finest...

phew...bet your eyes are tired...

I'm interested to hear what you think...

come back tomorrow for more...

I hope the Fed-Ex guy is on time so I can

make (CFA clicker cutts) art!

wendy

day 8...we're headed to art school...

welcome to day 8!

7 more reveal days to go...

I hope you're having as much fun as I am...

I've heard from quite a few people that Blogger is being a pain when you try to leave comments...

sorry about that...

not sure what's going on there...

sadly, it's out of my control...

I've also been asked about shipping dates...

here's THE SCOOP...

my stamps are made & will ship immediately after CHA...

YIPPEE!!

art parts have been in production for over a month...

so those will ship after CHA too...

YIPPEE!

all the "embellish your art" products will be available early April...

they'll be worth the wait & that spreads out the shopping $$!

book #6 is PRINTED & will ship after CHA!

it looks really GOOD!

Kits for Art...

YES...you asked...we listened...

more kits for art...

Kit #1 is shipping now...

Kits for art #2 will ship in February...

Kits for Art #3 will ship in April...

and is a whole new adventure...

in addition to the art parts needed to complete the project...

kit #3 will include all the Blossom Bucket pieces you need to complete the art!

guess what...that little clear bottle...YES!!

this is so exciting!

I'll show you the kits next week...

today's new stamp set is called

art school...

this is a very FUN useful set...

I love it so much, that the cover project for book #6 uses this set...

(and another coordinating one)...

coming soon to a blog near you...

I thought an art school project

seemed to be appropriate for the book cover...

6 images in this set have coordinating art parts...

making this great for mini books...

and stand alone art...

let's start with the...

the paint tube...

you may remember the peek from about 10 days ago...

some people thought it was a vase or bottle...

it's the paint tube & it's an art part too...

the eraser...

is also an art part...

if you're an artist...

you know we need an eraser...

YIKES! some days are good...

some days NSM...

pencil sharpener...

this is flipping FUN...

it's a 2 piece layered art part...

making it easy to ink the base a color & then paint the top piece another...

here's what the art parts look like...

the base was inked with peeled paint stain &

the top piece of the sharpener was painted with the silver paint dabber, stamped with jet black archival & then I sanded it pretty much for a really worn vintage effect...

and added some walnut stain...

ink & stain remover tin...

a cool vintage find...

it's an art part too...

this looks really cute clear embossed...

lead pencils label...

another vintage find...

a good filler stamp...

very simple to stamp in any color & cut out...

makes a good border too...

there's nothing better than a good sale or a new rubber stamp...

ah...this is so TRUE!

the paint brush...

it's an adorable art part...

I LOVE to add Ranger's memory tape for the finishing touch...

I'll show you in a bit...

the pencil...

I simply LOVE LOVE LOVE this...

it's a nice big size & I use it to make a little ledge on projects...

it's much larger than

the current pencil art part &

they coordinate just as planned...

no thanks...

I'd rather make art...

pretty much says it all...

want to cook dinner?

no thanks...I'd rather make art...

lol! I'll be using this guy LOTS!

poor Rick...

and finally the art school logo...

another vintage find from a 1901 booklet...

here's a peek @ the cover project from book #6...

do not pay attention to the 3 images I have not shown yet...

got it?

remember the 2 piece layered art parts jar I showed you?

see how things fit IN it?

and here's another cover peek...

the art school logo fits in the current art parts mini frame...

do not pay attention to that "thing @ the top"...

got it?

that's a story for another day...

hmmm...

what's that curve?

could that possibly be a new large art parts frame?

now for some embellish your art...

Blossom Bucket fun...

I will be getting a boatload of these guys...

here's a large (2 inches tall)

clear resin star brand jar...

the logo is raised on the front...

the jar is flat on the back with the same little open area as the clear mini bottle I showed the other day...

I wanted this jar to use with art parts flowers...

it's fun to make the stems from wire...

& slip them right in the jar...

use it right from the package if you want a clear bottle...

or below I painted it with Glue N Seal, then

Rock Candy Crackle Paint &

then added alcohol ink to add color...

it also holds the paint brush art part...

and I LOVE these guys too...

very detailed

large flower centers...

vintage gold...

exactly what I wanted...

one inch diameter...

they fit lots of art parts flowers...

here's one used as a flower center...

do NOT look @ the vintage bottle cap the center is sitting in...

got it?

I can't wait to hear your thoughts about these...

only a week left for me to...

make (CHA) art!

wendy

ps YIKES...still a MILLION things to make!

art works on day 7...

today we start with embellish your art/Blossom Bucket goodies...

one of the embellishments I am always looking for is hearts...

I took the opportunity to make some...

like everything else...

very dimensional on the front...

nice & flat on the back...

I started with beautiful red hearts...

use them as is, it's a good red...

I've also added vermillion archival ink over it, to change them up a bit...

and red pepper alcohol ink over them on another project...

want to add text or a pattern?

simply press them onto a stamp that has been inked with archival ink...

dry...

done...

10 seconds...

simple to alter...

want them a bit more worn?

LIGHTLY sand the high spots & add a bit of coffee archival to the sanded areas...

they're perfect!

but I LOVE polka dots too...

so here they are again...

it's simple to add words between the dots...

or change the color...

now suppose you want a black heart...

or a blue or green...

or a gold...

with these natural color hearts...

it's simple to change them to any color you choose...

stamp on it or not...

LOTS of possibilities to "embellish your art" with these Blossom Bucket cuties...

next up is another new stamp set...

this one is...

art works...

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the flowers...

and they are art parts too...

use them individually or layer them...

like this...

there would have been a Blossom Bucket center on this...

BUT this sample was made before they arrived...

poop...

it you look closely...

you just might see another art parts peek...

spot it?

only where the heart is, can the treasure be found...

just a sweet little saying that I like...

it also fits with the hearts above...

it's not the size of the wings, it's believing you can...

wings remain popular in the mixed media world, so this fits everywhere...

plus...

it's inspirational...

when the head, heart & hands all work together...

it is then that you can make art...

YOU make art...

YOU know this is seriously TRUE!

it takes all 3...

if one part is missing...

it's not a good arting day...

plus I got to squeeze in another...

make art!

this giant background stamp is from a cool

vintage ledger that we found @ an antique mall...

it's great for backgrounds...

duh...

or use just a portion of it on smaller arts...

so that's day 7...

hearts & art works...

thanks so much for popping in...

it's time to head back to the studio to...

make art!

wendy

ps...talk to me!