Balzer Designs

#Printinktober: Days 8-16

Here is what I did for days 8-16 of #PrintInktober:

These are all videos embedded from instagram.  If you click on them you can see still photos too.  If you are reading this on e-mail, you probably have to click through to read this post on my blog if you want to see the videos.

As I mentioned last week, I'm trying to chase down the answer to a question I have: What makes a "finished print" as opposed to some stamps on a piece of paper?  

What I Like: The circle mask is giving me life.  It just makes the whole print look clean and neat.  And I love using lots of different little stamps to create a larger image.

What I Can Improve: Still need to try making the circle mask out of something thinner so that the stamping doesn't hit the "lip."

What I Like: I always like doing a "rainbow roll."  I'm glad I used the spray inks to see what would happen, even though I didn't like it.  I hope I never stop experimenting!

What I Can Improve: I would have liked to see more color contrast between the spray inks and the printing.  Maybe white printing with colored inks on top?

What I Like: This set of blocks still makes me swoon.  And I had fun using block printing inks instead of stamp ink.

What I Can Improve: Registration is always tough. I'm better at it now, but I still need practice!

 

 What I Like: This is a great stamp set and it doesn't feel overthought.  Sometimes I think I try to add too much detail to my stamps.  Also, I will never tire of printing on book pages!

What I Can Improve: Registration, baby.  It's a skill.

What I Like: I'm so glad that I experimented!  I love that I mixed foam stamps with a hand carved stamp.  I love that I resurrected this block I didn't like to try to breathe new life into it!

What I Can Improve: Thinking through what I'm doing before I do it.  I mean, obviously I should have reversed the reference image.  Duh.

What I Like: I love the look of chine-collé and this was my first time trying it.  So fun!

What I Can Improve: All that work and I still screwed it up.  Sigh.  Need to find a better and cleaner way to register or I need to stamp first and collage second.

What I Like: Good for me for going back to the scene of the crime -- so to speak.  I'm delighted with how this turned out!  Definitely worth the time and effort.

What I Can Improve: I'm still a super beginner at this technique.  I want to explore it more and find the best ways to make it work for me!

What I Like: You know I had a good time putting that MISTI to use! I love these blocks and I love the colors I chose.

What I Can Improve: I wish I had been a bit more careful about coloring the blocks.

What I Like: I dragged another old block out of storage and into play!  I like this block, but I barely use it because -- as I discovered in printing it -- it's carved on both sides and therefore doesn't print well.

What I Can Improve: I like the technique of using markers to stamp with.  But, I get impatient.  I can work on my patience.  Maybe.

Overall, I feel like I did a lot of experimenting.  I'm proud of that.  Listen, I do a lot of experimenting in general, but I don't often show the failures.  My failures are out in the open here and that's okay.  This project is about trying things -- not about being perfect.  And I just keep saying to myself: You learn more from a failure from a success.

Thanks for stopping by!

ScanNCut DX: Felt Cat Mask

Looking for a last minute Halloween costume? 

Put on some black clothes and this cat mask made from felt and you're ready to go!  Watch the video for the how to:

I used two different kinds of felt to make the mask: acrylic craft felt for the mask base and stiff felt for all of the decorative elements.  The one negative about cutting acrylic craft felt is that it really messes up your mat.  It takes a long time to clean all of that fuzz off of the mat and I hate cleaning.  The stiff felt, on the other hand, leaves behind almost no residue.  I do share my mat cleaning tips in the video, but if I were to do the project again, I would probably use stiff felt for the base so that I wouldn't have to take the time to clean the mat.

Some tips on cutting felt with the ScanNCut DX:

• Use a High Tack Fabric Support Sheet.
• Use a brayer to strongly adhere the felt to the mat.
• Use the metal spatula to help pull the felt pieces off of the mat.
• To get the most out of your mats, clean the felt fuzz off of the High Tack Fabric Support Sheet right away using an alcohol free, fragrance free baby wipe & the metal spatula.

This is a fun and easy project with great results!

I hope you give it a try!

Also, if you're not a costume person and you just want to decorate, there are some super cute new cut files for sale on CanvasWorkspace.

I used the treat box cut file (upper right in the image above and larger below)...

...but added my own flair with some glitter...

...and a few bats (one of the built-in cut files in the DX225):

You're supposed to put candy inside the box, but I thought the shadow was too cool to do that:

I love that it's so easy to add your own personal touch to any of the cut files you purchase -- choose your own colors, add elements, take away elements.  No one says that you have to create the item as intended.  Add your own flair!

Thanks for stopping by!

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P.S. I am a paid spokesperson for the Brother ScanNCut.  It is a machine that I love and use.  All projects and opinions are my own.

Product Registration: https://www.brother-usa.com/registermybrother/
Brother Customer Support: https://www.brother-usa.com/support/

Week Two of #Printinktober Faves

More #PrintInktober favorites to share!  Some are prints from hand carved stamps, some are prints from foam stamps, some are prints from commercial rubber stamps -- there's a lot of variety.  I love it!  Enjoy:

There are sooooo many gorgeous prints that I wanted to share.  Too many.  Do yourself a favor and check out some of the images online.   I am blown away by everyone's creativity and talent.  Amazing!

Thanks for stopping by!

Exploring Art Products: MISTI (Most Incredible Stamp Tool Invented)

I'm late to the party.  The MISTI or "Most Incredible Stamp Tool Invented" has been around for several years.  I've often looked at it, but never necessarily felt it was "for me."  Nevertheless, I had the opportunity to try it out in January at Creativation and I surprised myself by really liking it.  And the folks at MISTI surprised me by gifting me with a MISTI to take home.  #Printinktober was apparently the push I needed to take it out of the box and start to play.  And now that it's out, I really don't want to put it away again!

I filmed my experiments with the MISTI -- mistakes, discoveries, finger pinching, and more.  Here's the video:

Here are some of the prints I made in the video:

Do you have the MISTI?  Any tips?

Thanks for stopping by!

Art Journal Every Day: Stamp Storage

If you're new to Art Journal Every Day, there is a short introduction here.  All of the previous posts can be found archived here.  Remember, it's just ten minutes of nourishing your creative self every day!  No need to finish anything or even like it. If you've done some art journaling this week, use the hashtag #artjournaleveryday so that we can all take a peek.  Even if you're not on social media, you can see everything (from twitter, pinterest, instagram, and facebook) that uses that hashtag here. 

As you know, I love to use stamps in my art journal!  But, like any supply, they're difficult to use if you can't find what you're looking for.  Today I thought that I would share how I store and organize my stamps.  Like any organizational system, you must customize it to fit the way your brain works or it won't work for you.  This system is based on how I think about my stamps.

With some exceptions (notably alphabets) I store my stamps by type: 

• Foam
• Silicone
• Rubber on Wood Block
• Unmounted Rubber
• Hand Carved
• Wood

The smaller collections, like silicone -- or even wood mounted -- just get stuck in a drawer. 

The larger collections, like hand carved, get further sub-divided.  First, there are three major categories:

• Text
• Icons
• Pattern

Then there are a million minor categories.  These minor categories are the ones I use for labeling my storage containers:

I use a lot of plastic boxes of all shapes and sizes to store my stamps.  And I make sure to label every single box clearly so that I can easily grab what I'm looking for.  I also use some unconventional storage, like Altoid tins, for small collections.

I would never tell anybody to store their stamps the way that I do.  My stamp storage system has evolved over time as a reflection of the way I work.  When I'm creating, what am I looking for?  I say things like:

• I need that flower stamp I carved a few years ago.
• I want to create a background pattern.
• I need some text here.

Therefore, this system makes sense.  Stamps are stored based on my thought process and how I mentally catalogue what I've got in my stash.  Whatever system you have has to work the way your brain works, otherwise you'll never find anything!

If you don't have weekend plans, how about getting out your stamps and using them in your art journal?!

Just a thought.

Thanks for stopping by!