Stamp Press / Positioner – in time for card making season…

I refuse to mention that people are planning christmas cards already… Just no… The cicadas are singing and I’m sleeping with warm breezes coming in the windows… So, no… Nope…

On to the post… I have been really sporadic on here lately… Partly because of life stuff, and partly because I’ve been trying to organize my space, computer, photos, and figure out how to film, edit, and upload videos… Almost organized… Almost have the film-edit-upload thing down… Almost… Still trying to figure out the lighting… Shadows and glare, oh my!

I did want to make a video showing how I use my WRMK Letterpress platform as a stamp press/positioner… It’s not pretty, but I show you the nitty gritty on how it works… And, I show you how to make a magnetic grid insert, different ruler options, and how it works with clear and rubber stamps…

Spoiler alert: it works AMAZING! It’s available a bunch of places, goes on sale, you can use coupons, and it also does that whole letterpress thing too! (You need a manual die cutter to do letterpress, but not to use it as a stamp press…)

I think I answer most questions in the video, but if you have some that I didn’t answer – just ask… Happy to help if I can…

Enjoy!

YouTube WRMK Letterpress as Stamp Positioner

Butterfly

After more of an absence than I expected, I’m back! I’ve been trying to learn how to film process videos, and how to edit and upload them. Have joined Instagram, joined YouTube. I still need to update my blog so that there are quick links for you guys to find me all those places, but in the meantime I’m The Light Up North in both places.

I’m also trying out posting blog entries from my phone. This will be my first post using the WordPress app, so we’ll see how it goes. What I really love about the blogging, Instagram, and YouTube, is the community. How much fun it is to share with others the projects we’re working on, products we love, design ideas, and the stories that are special to use. I’m hoping that I’ll be happy with the quality of the posts I make through the app, making it easier to keep things current and interesting.

So, finally onto the layout. I was driving downtown when a butterfly flew in my car window and landed on my arm. It stayed their for over twenty minutes, checking out my shirt with it’s proboscis and just chilling. It was so delicate that I was sure it would blow away with the wind coming in while I was driving, but it hung on.

Butterfly

I cut a circle with my Martha Stewart Circle Cutter, then cut pie shaped pieces out of it to create a pie chart. I filled in the pie chart with pieces from Heidi Swapp’s September Skies 6×6 paper pad. The building die cut is a die from Studio Calico that I ran through my WRMK Evolution Advanced die cutter. Some washi, some enamel dots, and some stamping with roller stamps filled out the embellishment clusters. I did my journaling in Becky Higgins Project Life app, and then sent it straight to my printer from my phone – too easy!

Heidi Swapp, September Skies, 6×6 paper pad
Martha Stewart coloured cardstock
Martha Stewart Circle Cutter
WRMK Evolution Advanced
Studio Calio buildings die
Studio Calico + Life.Love.Paper buildings stamp set
Tim Holtz, Pumice Stone Distress Ink
Ranger, foam blending tool
Tsukineko, VersaMagic, Niagara Mist chalk ink
Tsukineko, Memento, Tuxedo Black
Recollections, Simply Pastel alpha stickers
Doodlebug Design Inc., Sprinkles, Limeade Glitter

Put A Ring On It

Last week’s NSD (ISD?) activities tuckered me out! I was under the weather and couldn’t quite get as involved as I wanted, and missed posting something up here. I do have a couple of layouts to post and play catch up though…. Let’s get started!

This first layout has a photo I took at a friend’s wedding. It never fails, if it’s a big occasion – wedding, birthday, Christmas, I don’t take my normal hundreds of pictures. I go to the mail box and take more pictures than I do during big life moments! Argh! I’m going to say that I get caught up in the moments and am just too busy enjoying myself to click the shutter. Yeah, that’s it.

So, at my friend’s wedding and I take maybe a couple dozen pictures. The handful that turned out include two of a young boy that was peeking over the fence at the ceremony in progress, one of the patio (the actual patio – I was planning my own backyard projects at the time), and this one. This one definitely falls into the category I call “story pictures”. It’s one of those photos that has no meaning, no context, no interest to anyone and you have to say, “oh – let me explain….”

The explanation: when the band started to play, the room was lit in just violet lights and candles. It was such a pretty moment, it felt like everything was glowing. I love that the candle and flowers is in focus and the dance floor and band are part of the haze.

Put A Ring On It

The layout is pretty simple. I didn’t want to add too many details or embellishments because I wanted to keep the ethereal feel of the photo. I added the gold edge to the layout by running a watermark ink pad along the edge of the paper and then adding gold embossing powder. I love the organic, imperfect look it created. I don’t usually use ribbon but I did this time, so even on a basic layout I managed to try something new.

Products:

Studio Calico, white cardstock
My Mind’s Eye, On Trend, 6×6 paper pad
Altenew, Vintage Roses stamp set
Altenew, Vintage Roses die set
Tsukineko, VersaMark, WaterMark ink pad
Tsukineko, VersaMagic, Red Brick chalk ink
Tsukineko, VersaMagic, Perfect Plumeria chalk ink
Tsukineko, VersaMagic, Purple Hydrangea chalk ink
World’s Greatest Embossing Powder, Ultra Detail Mirror Gold embossing powder
My Mind’s Eye, Fancy That, Pearl stickers
We R Memory Keepers, Evolution Advanced die cutting machine
Marvy heat gun
Imaginisce rhinestone heat setting tool

This

This is the third layout featuring a picture from Fallingwater. You can check out the first two layouts here and here.

The view in this photograph is from the main house, looking up the hillside to the guest house. The two buildings are connected by a covered walkway, formed by one of the few curvilinear lines Wright used in his design. Most of the views are directed towards the water, but this view looking to the hills is beautiful.

This

Another simple layout with a narrow colourway. I ran a 4×6 journalling card through my printer for the journalling. If I’m going to add journalling, I love using my printer to do it so I can choose the font style, size, and formatting I want. To make the title, I ran some adhesive backed cork through my die cut machine. It was easy, and worked perfectly – crisp, sharp edges and no tearing. To finish it off, I added a couple metal staples, wood stars, and a subtly metallic horizontal line of paper.

Products:

Recollections, grey cardstock
My Mind’s Eye, Indie Chic, Ginger “Pictures” Flourish
Becky Higgins, Midnight Edition Kit, 4×6 journalling card
Crate Paper, Maggie Holmes, Open Book, “this” die
Karen Foster Design, adhesive cork sheet
We R Memory Keepers, Evolution Advanced die cutter
Tim Holtz, Tiny Attacher
Studio Calico, wood veneer stars

Lake Erie

This is another photograph taken at Presque Isle State Park (check out last week’s layout here). This was a beach at the east end of the park, that just sort of appeared between the trees while we were walking the trail and looking at the lighthouse. It was such an incredibly hot summer day. I still don’t know why this beach was empty, except that maybe it was so hot that everyone stopped at one of the many other beaches that we passed earlier on the trail.

Lake Erie

I find that one of my habits is the use of limited colourways in my layouts. It’s a look I like, and it’s something that comes easily for me. Using shades of brown and blue-green were a natural fit for this photo. To avoid having a narrow colourway look too simple, I always use a variety of shades. The browns include everything from a pale, off white beige, to a deep, cocoa brown. The blue-greens range from an almost true green to a turquoise. That variety helps add dimension, and the use of multiple patterns helps add interest. Everything from solids, to geometrics, to textures, to florals. They all add lines and weights that keeps your eye engaged.

Products:

American Crafts, white cardstock
We R Memory Keepers, Simply Spring, Sprout
We R Memory Keepers, Albums Made Easy, Dictate Journalling Cards
Crate Paper, The Open Road, Chipboard Frames
Basic Grey, Capture, Designer Chipboard Stickers
Amy Tan, Remarks, Noteworthy, Accent & Phrase sticker book
Crate Paper, Maggie Holmes, Accent Stickers
Becky Higgins, Project Life, Alpha Stickers
My Mind’s Eye, Lost & Found, Record It!, Antique enamel dots
Studio Calico, Mister Huey’s Color Mist, Clay

Presque Isle State Park

Back in 2005, we went on a road trip through parts of New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. Near the end of the trip we decided to stop and stretch our legs, and the map (no GPS – we did this old school…lol) showed there was a park nearby. We pulled into Presque Isle State Park. What a find! It’s on the south shore of Lake Erie, about halfway between Cleveland and Buffalo, and almost directly south of Long Point Provincial Park, in Ontario.

For anyone who’s been to and loves Long Point, you will love Presque Isle State Park. It’s got the same great expanse of beaches, the warm waters of Lake Erie, great opportunities to birdwatch and fish, and lots of places to put in a canoe or kayak and explore around the shores. It’s got one thing that Long Point doesn’t have enough of though – public beaches. Long point has a couple of public beaches – Presque Isle has a dozen, and they all have lifeguards during daytime hours. The park is really open and allows everyone to access and explore everything that exists there.

Just another quick note – there is amazing history associated with the area. So if you like military history, American history, naval history, or have a love of lighthouses, it’s a great place to look around.

Presque Isle State Park

I’ve been trying to make a dent in the box of scraps that I can’t bring myself to get rid of, and this layout was made almost entirely of scraps. The navy cardstock and the photo overlay (under the photo), were the only pieces that didn’t come from the scrap bin – everything else was repurposed. I do almost exclusively 8×8 layouts, so I have a lot of decent sized scraps and I love how punches and dies let me get so much more out of papers.

This is another layout where I used Copics to change the colour of letter stickers too. I love that trick. It means I can buy stickers that are on sale (score!), or that are a font I love but in a colour I’d never use, and know that I will be able to make them work. The script letter stickers were an orange colour and the others were white, and I changed them both using just two Copic markers. Using Copics lets me blend colours and add gradation if I want, but I’m sure other types of markers would work as well. I plan on trying some Distress Inks – those vibrant colours would be gorgeous, and I’ll be sure to post how they turn out.

Products:

American Crafts, navy cardstock
Crate Paper, Close Knit, photo overlays
Crate Paper, Maggie Holmes, Open Book dies
We R Memory Keepers, Evolution Advanced die cutting machine
Fiskars, Hexagon Punch, medium
Sookwang, Scor-Tape
Martha Stewart, gold glitter
October Afternoon, Daily Flash Alpha, Bonfire “Story Book”
Basic Grey, bas-3984, letter stickers
Copic Markers, R27 Cadmium Red, E08 Brown
Recollections, Fall, brads
My Mind’s Eye, Mistletoe Magic, enamel dots
Sharpie Pen, black

Lovely Mums

Every autumn, the greenhouses around here have chrysanthemum shows. They usually start in the middle of October, and the displays are so full of blooms that it’s hard to believe that winter is just around the corner. We visited the Floral Showhouse in Niagara Falls, and it was a great way to warm up after spending the afternoon walking along the river.

Lovely Mums

This was a quick layout I did, and it’s not one of my favourites, but it was fun to try a few new techniques. I had wanted to try using some of Tim Holtz’s Distress Paint along with a mask, to watercolour with Distress Inks, and to layer die cuts to make a Thicker-like title.

I love the way the Distress Inks worked for watercolouring! They keep their vibrancy and intensity in a way a lot of watercolour paints don’t. I coloured the flowers after I die cut them out of some Tim Holtz watercolour paper, first putting ink on with a foam blending tool in the areas I wanted the colour, then wetting the paper with clean water. To add depth and even out some of the colour, I picked up in from the ink pads with my brush and painted more colour on. The great thing about Distress Inks is how they reactivate with water, so it was easy to blend and move colour around just by adding a bit of water, and you don’t feel rushed to get it ‘perfect’ right away at all.

I like the way the layered die cuts turned out as well. It was easy and fairly quick too. I cut the die out of cardstock five times, and used liquid glue to layer them on top of each other. I always have some Tombow Mono Multi with a pen tip around, and it works perfectly for something like this. It gives you just enough time to slide the pieces so that they stack up evenly, but is tacky enough that you don’t have to spend time holding them in place.

Products:

Recollections grey cardstock
We R Memory Keepers, Evolution Advanced
American Crafts, lilac cardstock
American Crafts, Shimelle, “Lovely” die
Spellbinders, Die D-Lites, Asters and Poppies die
Tim Holtz, Distress Paint, white
Tim Holtz, Distress Inks, multiple colours
Ranger, Foam Blending Tool
Heidi Swapp, Color Shine, Gold
Tombow, Mono Multi Liquid Glue
Tsukineko, Memento, Tuxedo Black ink
date stamp
washi tapes

Let Your Light Shine

In the past couple of years, there have been a lot of ladybugs in our neighbourhood in the late fall. Every once in a while one will get in the house, and my cat loves when that happens. She’s not much of a hunter though. I once watched her calmly look on as one climbed onto her paw and then she went right back to napping. She does like to play chase though, so when the lady bug flew inside the lampshade – the game was on! She was gentle enough that the lamp slowly tipped against the bookshelf and didn’t crash down. After that, she happily joined the little bug inside the shade.

Let Your Light Shine

I bought some gesso and wanted to make a layout with some mixed media. I used a technique I saw Irit Landgraf use for getting a lovely smear of colour onto the page – put ink or paint onto some plastic packaging, add in a bit of water, mix, and press it onto your page. You can move around the ink by pressing on the back of packaging while it’s pressed against the paper. It leaves great colour with different gradations, and without the fuss of brushes or brush marks. She does amazing mixed media layouts and shares tips and techniques in her videos – check her out.

I added some gelatos and stamped images on top of the gesso, and I was happy with how it turned out. Most of it ended up hidden, but little bits peek out here and there. I found some scraps with the colours I wanted and cut out pieces that had light and electrical illustrations on them. I love when scraps end up being a perfect fit like that. I didn’t have such luck with finding letters for the title though. I ended up cutting four sets of the letters from black cardstock, gluing them together, and adding Glossy Accents on top.

Products: