Balzer Designs

Art Before Housework

In case you need the reminder: Join me tonight to make some art in tonight's PrintInktober class, which is all about multi-color printing. Cheers to the weekend! I hope it's a good one for you! Read more →

Book Club: How to Paint Abstracts

In case you missed yesterday's live Book Club presentation all about the book, How to Paint Abstracts, here is the replay video. My Mom texted me after watching the livestream and said, "Each book club is like a free mini-class. Good value." Thanks, Mom! Here are a few things I made inspired by the book: As I mentioned in the livestream, I've just chosen the 2022 dates for Design Boot Camp -- both level 1 and level 2. You can check both out HERE. In November - in preparation for #CarveDecember - we will be discussing the book I wrote,... Read more →

Art Journal Every Day: September 2020 into October 2020

If you're new to Art Journal Every Day, the concept is simple: It's a commitment to take ten minutes each day to do something in your art journal. No need to finish anything or even like it. It's about making the time to nourish your creativity every day! If you have the time to flip through your phone, you have the time to Art Journal Every Day. If you'd like to share what you make, use the hashtag #artjournaleveryday so that we can all take a peek. You can find new Art Journal Every Day posts here on the blog... Read more →

ScanNCut Glitter Trick or Treat Bag

When I found a plain black fabric tote bag for $1.99 at a big box store, I knew that I could use my ScanNCut to transform it into a fabulous one-of-a-kind trick-or-treat bag! I designed the cut file in Adobe Illustrator and then used the ScanNCut Link Plug-In to wirelessly transfer it over to my ScanNCut. The most difficult decision I had to make was which color of Heat Transfer Vinyl (HTV) to use to cut out the design. You can choose from all kinds of colors and finishes (glitter, holographic, flocked) and even glow-in-the-dark varieties! In the end, I... Read more →

Lesson 2 from the #PrintInktober Class

Happy Monday! I wanted to share the three demo projects I did during Friday night's #PrintInktober class. The topic was printing on fabric (you can watch the replay now in the online classroom). We covered 4 different fabric mediums for printing and used all kinds of stamps -- hand carved, commercial rubber stamps, silicone stamps, and foam stamps (handmade and commercial). We printed on light fabric, dark fabric, and a t-shirt. Take a peek: Printing on fabric is one of my favorite things to do. It has a lot of impact and printed t-shirts, aprons, and tote bags make fabulous... Read more →

#PrintInktober 2021: Days 1-6

We are about a week into #Printinktober 2021! I wanted to share what I've been making with you -- most of these are short fun videos. (These videos and images are embedded from instagram. If you are reading this on email and can't see them, click HERE.) I have also been posting some short videos to my Facebook page. You can see a #PrintInktober one HERE. Finally, here are some of the prints from the first #PrintInktober class, all about making patterns with your existing stamps: You can watch the lesson right now in the online classroom. The second #Printinktober... Read more →

Laminated Storage Pouch with Stamping Inside

This is a post that I have been meaning to write for a long time and I finally sat down and filmed the tutorial for you. Yay! These are pouches made from laminating sheets. The stamping goes on the inside of the laminating pouch so that it doesn't chip or rub off. This is a super fun and easy project. You can watch the short (4 min) video for the full tutorial: LINKS: laminating sheets laminator Art Foamies A Year of Gelatin Printing Plastic Snap kit Here are some supply substitutions that you might find useful: No laminator: I think... Read more →

1 Sheet of Paper. 6 Christmas Cards.

As you may know, I decided that my #PrintInktober goal is to make hand printed papers that I can use to make Christmas cards. I thought I would show you how much you can do with one sheet of paper. I followed the pattern building principles I taught in lesson one of the #PrintInktober class to create this bold pattern: And here are the six cards I made with that one sheet of hand patterned paper: The original print was 8.5x11" and the cards are all 5x7." I actually was amazed by how far that single sheet went. I originally... Read more →

Half Circles That Make a Whole

Way back in 2014, I designed this stencil, called Stones Divided: It is no longer manufactured, though you can grab the SVG cut file in my online shop. The design is so simple, and yet I love it. And lately I feel like I've seen a lot of these half-circles-that-make-a-whole kind of designs and I love them all. Check it out: source source source source source source source So the next time you're stuck for inspiration, why not try some half circles that make a whole? You can paint them, stencil them, collage them, stitch them, stamp them...there are so... Read more →

Hooray! #PrintInktober Starts Tomorrow!

I'm so excited! Just one more day until #PrintInktober -- the annual daily challenge to get your stamps out of storage and into play -- begins! As a reminder, the challenge is free and open to everyone. If you want a bit of extra direction and some helpful instruction, join me for the #PrintInktober class. It's priced at $45 -- way below most of my other classes. It's a steal! :) Speaking of theft, I stole some tips from the #PrintInktober online classroom to share with you today. These are a few ways that you can plan ahead for the... Read more →