Basic cutting tools that make your crafting easier, 2012 Winter CHA links and more!

Good morning everyone (or afternoon/evening), hope you are enjoying your day.  We have had very unseasonable weather for January, last week I had the windows open almost every day, not much rain, and the temperatures have been very mild.  Now, last year we had endless rain and not to complain, but it would be nice to not go from fall straight to spring : )  Having said that I will no doubt be sorry if we get rained upon in February : )

I do get around to making cards, here are a few from this week:

Butterfly is colored with Luminarte - Twinkling H2O's

 and then added Aleene's Paper Glaze

 to the image.

 This card was made using Copic markers after watching a video (cannot find the link right now, will post when I do find it), stamped with Versa Mark, embossed with clear embossing powder and then colored over the set embossing powder with Copics.  Took a blender pen and moved the color off of the embossing powder and around on the paper and finally sprayed with a glimmer mist to add some bling.  I did not do all the steps in the video, and this card did not take much time, unlike the card in the video.  Thought the technique was quick, easy and loved the water color "look" to the image.

Close up of the card, very easy!

Used two punches, one for the hearts and one for the flowers, paper is actually paint chips!  I love that you get all of the various tones of a color on a paint chip, makes matching colors oh so easy (yes I have a stash of paint chips.)

Stamped a music sheet stamp on water color paper, embossed with white pearl embossing powder, then  put Distress Inks

 on my craft sheet, then sprayed ink with a glimmer mist, put a piece of water color paper on the ink, and finally punched out the butterflies (Martha Stewart Punch, Classic Butterfly).  Added some Viva Decor Pearl to the butterflies. 

This one was fun to make, I really like the color combination (and need to remember that so I use it more!)  In hindsight I think a black ribbon might have been better, may make the card again to see how that looks : )  The punch is the Martha Stewart Scallop 3 Dot Punch Around the Page Punch, really nice punch with lots of uses. 

I am becoming more and more a fan of Clean and Simple (CAS) cards, love the look and also how easy they are to put together.  Having said that, creating a CAS can sometimes be much harder than putting lots of layers and embellishments together : )  

Still have not finished the video of my craft area, have done a number of videos but have not liked any of them, so will try again this week and will post when finished (will be just the video, no links to anything else).  Funny how such a small thing can take so much time!   My little area is quite small but I am so used to it that moving into an entire room no longer appeals to me : )

Given that my area is so small the tools I have a limited to those that are useful and also can (for the most part) serve multiple purposes.  How many of us have tools that just sit because they are either too hard to use or just require too much work to use?  Today we will explore some really great basic cutting tools that will make your crafting easier, as well as far less frustrating.  Before that though, the 2012 Winter CHA starts tomorrow (our son's bday too), and there are tons more new products coming our way, here is a short list of sneak peaks for the week:

NEW Distress Ink Markers:  LOVE these (but not the price, $3.50 each), am hoping that they will end up on sale somewhere so I can try them out.









Pink Paislee Paper: Great new paper!  And no, I am not ordering ANY paper until my "stash" is used, have wayyyyyy too much paper right now : )

New Ice Stickle and Liquid Pearl colors:  Great new additions to the collection, can't wait to try some of these!

Next week I will post updates and live blogging as I can find them, will also be updating on Facebook daily.






Finally, the TOOLS!  So many tools to choose from, and how to pick what is best for your particular crafting needs?  There are some very basic tools that I think every crafter should have, tools that end up being used all the time and are easy to use (complicated tools do NOT rank highly in my book).

So here is a short list (with links for purchasing: please note that I am in the Amazon referral program, if you click on the links below and make a purchase I receive compensation.  Given that I am currently unemployed I am hoping to supplement our household income through this program.  If you are an Amazon Prime member you receive free shipping on most items, and I have tried to find good prices on the items linked.) and explanations of why I think these are must have tools to make your crafting easier:

Ek Success 5 Inch Tweezer Bee:  I use these ALL the time, for so many things, and love the design of these particular tweezers. These are non stick, use reverse grip (they stay closed until you open them up rather then you having to hold them closed) and have a very fine (and sharp) tip.  These tweezers also come with a small looped chain so you can hang them up near your craft area which makes storage easy, and finding them easy as well.   While these tweezers are not "cutting" tools, I had to include these as they are a basic must have for crafting.

PERFECT LAYERS - Perfect Paper Crafting:  I just bought these and wonder why I did not buy them sooner.  My layers are so much more even now, and this tool is very easy to use.  Nothing bothers me more than working on a card image only to try to layer some paper and end up with uneven and messy looking layers.  Critical to using the Perfect Layers are two other must have tools, see below. 

Martha Stewart Craft Knife: I have had many craft knives over the years, this is by far the easiest and best one to use.  The protective cover fits nicely on the knife when you are cutting, and goes back on the tip easily after you are finished.  I find myself using this knife a great deal more then I used to use my old knives.  Don't forget that when using a craft knife you want to make sure you keep a sharp blade, keep replacement blades on hand. (There is a GREAT deal right now on Crafty Steals for all a great collection of Martha Stewart tools, but the "steal" is only good for January 28th).

12x12-Inch Self Healing Mat: Again, a must have for cutting with your craft knife and using the perfect layer tool.  I also use the mat to make sure cuts I do on my paper trimmer are square.  Along with this self healing mat consider getting a glass cutting surface as well (for using circle cutters and other types of cutting devices). 

    

Scissors:  I have too many scissors, especially when just two of them are used all the time.  Don't scrimp on your scissors!  The two that I use all the time are the Cutter Bee Precision-Cut Scissors and Tonic Studios Tim Holtz Non Stick Micro Serrated Snips.  The Cutter Bee scissors are a must have for cutting out your stamped images, and the Tim Holtz scissors are fantastic for everything else!  Ribbon cuts like a dream with either of these, and the Tim Holtz scissors are also very good at cutting through thicker items. 

Paper Trimmer:  You can get many different types of trimmers, rotary blade, straight blade, or a guillotine type of trimmer.  There is a great discussion on types of trimmers on SplitCoastStampers, many people recommending the Genesis Trimmer.....however be prepared for sticker shock, while it may be the best on the market, the price tag is just too much for my little budget. 

I have many different trimmers, the best (in my opinion) in my collection is the Making Memories Rotary Trimmer, however it is bulky and I don't find that I use it as much as my other trimmers, and other people have noted problems with the trimmer as well.  One option for those of us with limited space is to get the Tonic Studios Guillotine Paper Trimmer 12-Inch-by-6-Inch, which I am seriously considering at the moment.  Nothing is more frustrating than to have uneven cuts, and why frustrate yourself if you can get a tool that will make your crafting easier?  

Note that this is my list, and I would love to read what tools you have that you can't do without.  This list is the result of my own personal experiences with purchases (some good, some bad).

I hope you have a wonderful week!  Until next time, happy crafting : )

Tons of Freebies, 2012 Winter CHA links and more!

Another week has almost flown by, where does the time go?  I have been busy making cards but no video this week, will work on the video's for next week.  From my last post someone asked that I do a video on matching patterned paper to your image and ways to make a great card, will work on that video first, then move on to the tour of my craft area and other tutorial type videos.

You might have noticed a new button to the left of this post, at the top of the page, "Follow me on Pinterest."  Yes, I have really fallen for Pinterest!  Love how easy it is to find just amazing things and also share what you find, have been pinning away over there like crazy.  (Pinterest is an online bulletin board of sorts, you scour the web for images of things you like then pin to your boards, you can have numerous boards on many topics, like cooking, card making and so on.  People see your "pins" and like them and share, you see their pins and can like and repin as well.)

What a week!  My girlfriend and I are working on a cool project that will launch the AfterHoursStamper store, stay tuned, I think you will like our first original offering!  It is going to take a while for us to get everything we need together, but two things 1,) it will be something that experienced and novice crafters can use and 2.) we are working on keeping the price very affordable.  We are in the development stage, but hope to get everything together within the next month of so.

Oh, and I won a prize!  Every week Factory Direct Craft has a contest on their facebook page, and last week I was one of the winners, am impatiently awaiting my box of goodies : )  When I get the box will take a picture for you.  Factory Direct Craft has some great prices on ribbon (yesterday I was in a fabric store and couldn't believe how much the small rolls of grosgrain ribbon cost).  Their site has all sorts of things for general crafting and their pricing is very good.


In my web-surfing I happened to find that Jennifer McGuire (who is simply amazing) has an online class for Clean and Simple cards!  Yes, I signed up ($25 for the class which started at the beginning of January, the fee entitles you to a lifetime access to the class), the class runs for two weeks and is filled with all sorts of inspiration.  Am LOVING the clean and simple ideas for card making, beautiful cards with little effort, small amount of supplies and huge wow factor!  Here are three cards that I have made for the class, we are on day 9 so I have some catching up to do : )   (each day there are at least three examples of techniques and videos, as well as downloads).

Using water color paper: Stamped image and saying in versamark, then added clear embossing powder, heat set.  Added distress ink to a foam blending tool, then sprayed some glimmer mist on my craft sheet and dipped the foam with ink into the glimmer mist.  Placed the blending tool on the card and as I was applying the ink I turned the handle to get softer edges.  I did the blue, then the green and the middle color last.  Sprayed the entire piece with water to get more blending of colors.

Same technique as above, this time the image is placed on top using black ink and clear embossing powder.  This time I did not turn the blending tool, wanted crisper lines for pattern, sprayed the image with water after to get a more blended look.  This was an easy card to make and the results are very nice!

This card was designed after viewing one of the classes which discussed having one focal point, the butterfly was stamped on water color paper, colored with H20's and then I sealed the image with glossy accents.

You can still sign up for the class, and in my opinion it is worth every penny of the $25 : )



Now, onto the link list for this week, and do I have a TON for you!  My "January" bookmark folder is getting so long that I will need to start a "January 2" soon!

FREE Strathmore Online Art Classes:  Yes, signed up for this as well, all three of these classes and can't wait to dive right in.  Card making/scrapbooking, paper crafting...all of these things are based in the fundamentals of art, expanding your art knowledge base helps you to become a better paper crafter.


Free Scrapbook printables:  A few nice printouts you can use on your scrapbook pages.






.

Free digital paper:  Really nice paper, and make sure you check out how you can print in 6x6 size as well





Free scrapbook sketches:  Loved these, very nice and easy to use!







And more FREEBIES!  Page layouts, papers and embellishments.

FREE Digital Stamps:  GREAT site with tons of free digital stamps, she adds to her blog all the time so keep checking back.  Wonderful resource!


How to use Heat and Stick powder:  I love heat and stick powder, but you have to be really careful about not overheating the powder when you heat, thought the following was a good video to show you how to use the powder:



And a few CHA links:

Technique Tuesday:  New stamps!  Can't wait to see this collection.

Fiskars interchangeable border punch:  YEAH!  For those of us who have limited storage this is a GREAT idea, the punch has removable cartridges for borders which makes storing them oh so nice!




Donna Salazar:  Loved her mixed media items!  Birdcage in Chipboard is soooooo cool!  Watch her video to see everything she has coming out.






Tim Holtz Stamps:  Just LOVE these retro stamps, so cool for cards and scrapbook pages!





PHEW!  That is all for today, hope you like the links, next week I have a tip for you, stumbled across it by accident, and it "saved" one of my projects.

And I LOVE when you leave comments!  Please let me know what you think of the links this week and if there are other topics/types of links you would like me to post.

Have a great week, happy crafting : )

2012 Winter CHA Sneak Peeks plus other fun links

Hellllloooooo crafters : )  Hope your crafting week has been going well with lots of time to create.  Since I am now unemployed I find that my crafting time has expanded into hours of playing and creating, something that soothes my soul and gives me peace (except when there are problems lol, you know what I mean).

Am working on a list of videos to make in the future, would love if you could let me know what you would like to see.  Distress ink water coloring?  The Melted Crayon Technique?  Simple cards?  Matching paper to your stamped image?  Quick and easy cards?  What ever you would like to see, just let me know and I will try to create a video.

Deco Lady with cork background

So far I am thinking of doing videos on the techniques that already have written directions, which can be found here on Scribd.  And I am working on a "tour" of the AfterHoursStamper craft area, as well as a really cool gift idea (with a DIY embellishment tutorial) for your craftng buddies (new crafters or experienced crafters).  In the future I will be writing directions for all of the videos I do, and will work on written directions for the most recent video, "Make your own designer paper with a wine cork."

As someone who loves to craft I also love to help others learn how to do anything related to paper crafting, especially as so many things can be frustrating when you are not sure how to do them properly.

What I have discovered is that practice is key to learning any type of technique, and also getting rid of any thought that your first attempt has to be perfect, rather the worse you do the more room for improvement : )  And sometimes you discover a way to change a technique to fit your style and your way of crafting, which is also fun and a bit exciting as well : )

There is no technique out there that can't be changed, or done differently if that is how YOU want to create, and don't be afraid to change techniques, even if your idea or effort doesn't turn out like you thought, well, the next time it might be even better!

Let's get on with some links, shall we?  Today will have some links to the upcoming 2012 Winter CHA, lots and lots of new paper, stamps and other goodies to drool over.  And of course there are a few other odds and ends as well.  So....grab a cup of coffee, tea, wine, or water, sit back and start craft surfing : )

Blitsy:  If you need some distress stains run over to Blitsy and stock up!  Great price, $2.99, (as of this post many of the colors have sold out so hurry over to get what is left) and there are also albums and other things on sale there.  Remember that every Monday, Wednesday and Friday new items are posted at Blitsy, and the more popular items sell out quickly.  I check all the time and love when they have something I need (want lol).






Kirstens Blog Tutorials:  Love these projects, and don't forget to visit her entire blog, link here, to view some amazing coloring with colored pencils.  Some of her posts are not in English, but most are.



Becca's Distress Ink Blenders Storage:  Love this idea, and absolutely LOVE Becca's blog (she has the most amazing work, as well as lots and lots of tutorials).  And her blog leads us to.....CHA Sneak Peeks!




Spellbinders CHA Sneak Peek:  WOW, wow, WOW!  You are going to LOVE these new die cuts!  Am really going to have to save up to buy at least one of the new sets.  The link is to day one of the release, click here for day two (which has the most amazing die cuts).



Tim Holtz 2012 CHA Sneek Peeks:  LOVE the new dies, papers.....just so much to see and drool over!  Don't forget to click on day two to see more new products.







CHA Sneak Peek from Studio 490 Art:  Lots of cool things here, especially like the retro stamps and embellisments.





Petaloo Sneak Peek:  Love the soft colors of these embellishments, just in time for spring!





Lifestyle Craft Sneak Peek (used to be QuicKutz):  Love these dies, and just in time for Valentines Day!  Make sure to check out all of the projects on the blog as well, beautiful projects there.




Prima Sneak Peeks:  The paper and embellishments are just breathtaking....link is to one of the release days, make sure you check them all out and be ready to part with some $$$ : )





Ok, that is all for now, will have more CHA links in the next post, hopefully the video of my craft area, and of course other links (I have literally hundreds of cool links saved that are just waiting to be posted : )

As always I want you to know how much I appreciate your emails, comments and support, without you there would be no AfterHoursStamper : )

Enjoy your day, and don't forget to find some time to craft.