Designer Spotlight #3

Hello, my sweet friends!  It's Judy here with my next installment of "Designer Spotlight!"

Today I have the pleasure of introducing Kim Singdahlsen and her blog, Joyful Creations with Kim.  Welcome to the Sweet Stamp Shop, Kim!  I have admired Kim's amazing card-making skills for some time, and I'm guessing many of you are familiar with her work, too.  After all, she currently serves on three Design Teams including CAS(E) This Sketch, Curtain Call, and Catered Crop.  She has served on many other design teams at some point as well, and I can't even count how many Guest Designer spots she has done!  (Today we add another one to her list!)  You really need to check out her blog HERE...you'll see why I admire her so much!

So, Kim was not only willing to share some cards with us today but she also entertained a few questions for all of our readers.

First up...her amazing cards!  Kim had two sets to play with (seen below) and she really displays her skills in making amazingly clean and simple designs...check it out!

But wait, there is more!

And yet another!  (My guess is that somebody had a very busy World Card Making Day!!!)

All this amazingness with two sets of stamps!  Here is what Kim had to play with when making her cards:

Starts Here

Triangle Style

Amazing, right?!  Next up...my interview with Kim.  Here is what I thought we all might like to know:

Q:  On average, how many cards do you make in one week?

A:  Currently, I average 7 cards a week.  I try to create a card and post it each and every day mainly to force myself to sit down and unwind at my craft table even on busy days.  In my real life, I am surrounded by men and boys, and I am a full-time college student getting my second degree in accounting.  Being surrounded by men and by numbers, there is nothing better than spending some time surrounded by stamps and patterns and sequins!!

Q:  What is your favorite stamping technique?

A:  There are many techniques that I love and use regularly - as long as they fit into a clean and simple style!  I love to color.  I am by no means an artist, but coloring with my Copics does take me back to my childhood!!  I love the look of paper-piecing and it can often add a special touch to a clean card.  I love white heat-embossed images on colored paper. And I'm not at all against using heat-and-stick powder and glitter all over a panel or an image!  Just due to my style, there are a number of techniques and coloring mediums that I don't tend to use - but I certainly admire them on other crafter's cards!

Q:  Do you have any advice for beginning stampers?

A:   I have two pieces of advice for beginning stampers.  (1) Play along with challenge blogs even if you are not sure you are ready.  They are the best place to learn and to grow in your own crafting.  You get ideas for color combinations.  You see new ways to lay out your card.  Be sure to study the design team cards to see how they have used the challenge in creative ways.  I've been doing this for well over a decade and I still learn from studying other cards!  (2) If you like a certain companies' products, stick with them.  It's very tempting to buy every stamp that you see and like, but it is so much easier in the long run to build a collection from a few companies.  Their stamps will work together so it's very easy to use a border from one set, an image from another and a sentiment from a third.

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I have to agree with that advice, Kim.  (And might I suggest that Sweet Stamp Shop stamps would be a great company to go to in order to build your stamp collection?!)

So, my sweet friends, let's give Kim a big shout out of THANKS for letting us spotlight her as one amazing designer!  Be sure to visit her blog for some amazing inspiration, and stop by my blog for a flat-out CASE of one of Kim's cards using my Sweet Stamp Shop stamps!

We are preparing for our October stamp release coming on October 16th...be sure to check it out, I promise you will not be disappointed!  Details can be found at our Facebook Events Page.  

Have a sweet day, friends!

Judy

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Designer Spotlight #2

Hello, sweet friends!  It's Judy and I'm back again with my second segment of "Designer Spotlight" at the Sweet Stamp Shop! 

This time I have the honor of spotlighting the super talented queen of clean and simple: Maureen Merritt!  Maureen's blog, Mama Mo's Stamps, is one of my favorite stops in blog land...it reads like a favorite magazine and is always full of inspiration!  Not only has she been a winner in pretty much EVERY card challenge known to stampers, but she has also been published multiple times in both CARDS and Paper Crafts Magazine.  This past August, Maureen was featured as a Moxie Fabber of the Week because, indeed, she is moxie fab!  You can check out those details HERE. 

Maureen graciously agreed to share her talents with us here at the Sweet Stamp Shop.  Her card demonstrates exactly why she deserves to be in the spotlight...check it out!

Wow, this IS amazing, indeed!

Here are the stamp sets Maureen used:

Starts Here

Triangle Style



Maureen was also gracious enough to answer a few questions for me and the readers here at the Sweet Stamp Shop.  Here is what inquiring minds wanted to know:

Q:  On average, how many cards do you make in a week?

A:  I'd say that I make about 5-7 cards per week. I'd love to make more and get inky every day, but sometimes life just gets in the way! Apparently my family prefers to wear clean clothes and eat dinner rather than have me stamp daily :)   If I get in a card a day, I'm happy.

Q:  How do you approach the card-making process...do you wing it or do you like to follow sketches, color cues, challenges, etc.?

A:  Each stamp session is different. There are times that I head to my desk with a specific challenge in mind, other times I wing it. I mostly have an idea about a stamp set I'd like to use or a color combo, but it doesn't always work out.  My beginning point is always so much different than my end result!

Q: Do you have any bits of advice for beginner stampers?

A:  You don't need to have it all. There are so many products out there that it gets overwhelming. I know, I've been there. You really only need the basics...paper, ink, stamps and a paper trimmer. I find that my favorite cards are the ones that just use just stamps and ink. Play with different techniques to make the most of the supplies you have!

And THAT, my friends, is the best advice...ever!  Her card above is proof of that...a one-layer masterpiece using nothing but stamps and ink!

Thank you, Maureen, for sharing your time and talents with us...you are so sweet!

Hop on over to my blog HERE to see the card I made inspired by one of Maureen's cards.  Here's a little sneak peek!

Remember...the September release stamps are still available at the Sweet Stamp SHOP.  Be sure to follow us at our Facebook page, too! 

Have a sweet day!
Judy

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Throwback Thursday's - Pattern Craze

 >>>>>>>>>> Give-Away Alert<<<<<<<<<<

(FOR INFO ON THE GIVE-AWAY READ THRU TO THE BOTTOM FOR ALL THE DETAILS!)

Hi everyone!!! Welcome back to this week's Sweet Stamp Shop's Throwback Thursday. I am featuring Pattern Craze on the blog today and....

This is a MUST HAVE stamp set! 

Just look at it lol. It pretty much speaks for itself :) Patterns, geo-metric shapes, sizes, OPTIONS!!!!! HOT and TRENDY!!!!

Pattern Craze

 I use this stamp set a lot because of the versatility I get from it.

This week I took my inspiration from the Play Date Cafe's challenge blog. The theme for this week's challenge was, It's a {Splash} of Neon. I just LOVED their color scheme they had going...Black, white, and neon yellow (although it looks green to me and that is what I used for my card, neon green)

 

It's VERY TRENDY this week just like the stamp set. I didn't enter my card in the challenge since it was over before Thursday's Throwback, but it is still fun to play along and a GREAT way to draw your inspiration from. I was also going to use a sketch from another challenge blog, but I ended up doing my own thing once I broke out the stamp set and got to work.

This is my card that I came up with:

I got out my watercolor pencils for this card and colored in some of the hearts with black on the panel I created, just to give it a little pop and add a little something! Then to give the panel I stamped and embossed on separation, I matted in black. Next, I grabbed the plain hexagon and the dot hexagon and stamped on white and trimmed out. I like the idea of just layering them slightly underneath with out being "neat" about it. For a little more texture, I broke out the trusty mist and added some neon splash and then my black and neon pens and did some border lines. Then I just accented with a few embellies and a sentiment.
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For my sentiment I first stamped Epic from Starts Here in neon green and then stamped right in the middle, Happy Birthday from Zombies. I love how perfectly they fit together.

 Starts Here

Zombies

Loving Pattern Craze??? Head on over to the Sweet Stamp Shop  HERE and snag one up before they are gone, we only have limited stock on hand. So don't procrastinate ;)

SO, wanna know how you can get in on my giveaway??? Simply go to my BLOG HERE. And follow the three (VERY SIMPLE AND EASY) steps. Also here is a sneak peak at a bonus project you will want to check out!

Happy Crafting,
xoxoxo
Danni Pin It

July New Release is HERE!

July release is HERE - finally! We're so excited to show off our new sets... and we are so proud of our sweet-selfs for being right on time with the holidays! (actually, I might even say we're early!) So, THIS is what it feels like to be 'on time' - sigh, something tells me we might never feel this again - lol!

Are you ready to see the new stamps and what our fabby designers did with the stamps?

Let's get the coupon code out of the way first - yes?

Through tomorrow only - save 30% off your TOTAL regular priced stamp order. Use coupon code NRJ30 --- and it's good on everything new and all the re-stocked items you've been waiting for!

So, without anything further - let me introduce our THREE new stamp sets... (warning - scary is coming!!)

Dia De Los Muertos 

Jessica Pascarella

Jessica Kephart

Michele Duffy

Starts Here 

 

Jennifer Stricker

Danielle Pandeline

Jessica Pascarella

Tracy Gruber

Jessica Kephart

Tenia Nelson

Michele Duffy

Dannielle Robeson

Zombies

 Jennifer Stricker

Danielle Pandeline

Dannielle Robeson

Tracy Gruber

Tenia Nelson

Kristen Foreman

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Ok - couple QUICK reminders.... 

1. Coupon code good through tomorrow 30% off - NRJ30 

2. Join our Use What You Have Challenge #10 - HERE 

3. SHARE our Use What You Have Challenge to win the 'Kiss Me' set - HERE 

4. IF you're not already - become a 'fan' on facebook to stay up to date with us - HERE 

5. Be sure to join our newsletter - HERE - we send out newsletter only sales and deals. AND, we promise not to email you more than 2 or 3 times a month! (we hate junk mail too!) 

Thanks for stopping in today and be sure to head over to the website to see the new stamps in all their glory! www.sweetstampshop.com 

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