Studio Calico

Sunday Sketch

This week, we invited SC member Monika (username MonaLisa) to share her take on one of our sketches. She couldn't resist seeing the ability to use both, and we're excited to share them with you!

First up is our card sketch, based on a card from Stephanie Washburn:

Our scrapbook sketch this week is from Stephanie Bryan's gallery:

Monika dove right in with the scrapbook sketch first...I love how she used color paired with her black & white photos!

Supplies: SC kit - Front Row ; Spencers, SC Sundrifter Sticker sheet

When I saw the sketches, I knew I have to use the layout sketch because of its composition, and the original work by Stephanie.  I used older SC kits with colorful papers and black and white photos of my son. I loved work with this sketch.

But I liked also the card sketch, and I couldn't resist it. I had to make another layout! I flipped the sketch and grabbed this month's SC kit.  I loved the star in a circle and I thought I could use different papers to make the arms of the star,  and colorful cord to make the circle.  I love how the sketch turned out! Thank you Studio Calico again  for the invitation. It was fun to play with these sketches! 

Look at her gorgeous interpretation of the card sketch, featuring the star!!

Supplies: SC MAIn kit Roundabout Addons - Navy pier ; Outer Banks 

Monika's ability to think outside of the box really shines through in this second layout...I love that she focused in on the star element. We love what she came up with, and hope you do as well. If you'd like to see more of her work, check her SC gallery or visit her blog. She is also active in the Twitter community: @ _Monalisa1_ . Thank you for sharing these with us, Monika! :)

Now it's your turn! Make a project with using one of this week's sketches as a starting point, then share it in the Studio Calico gallery. Leave us a link to your project by July 1st in the comments here to be entered to win a $5 GC to the Studio Calico Shop.

 

weekly challenge | Shanna Noel & Steph Washburn

Hi! For this challenge, we thought it would be fun to create projects featuring the softer, more feminine colors in the Atlantic collection and the Planetarium kits! Check out this gorgeous color combination!

From Steph: When I saw these pretty colors, I knew I wanted to include that pretty vintage lace from the North Star Kit on my card! So soft and pretty! I started by choosing three patterned papers and adhering strips to a thin sheet of printer paper. I cut the Home Sweet Home cut design with my cameo from those papers. I adhered a pretty lace bow to the tag before adhering it to the card front! Then, I printed out a quick "congrats" sentiment and adhered it to the card. A clean and simple, quick card to take along to a housewarming party!

(supplies - patterned paper : Studio Calico Planetarium Card Kit, North Star Kit; vintage lace trim: Studio Calico North Star Kit; digital cut file: Planetarium Home Digital Cut Design; font : KG Eyes Wide Open)

From Shanna: When I first saw the Atlantic collection online I was excited to get it, but when I saw it in person I just feel in love with it! I love all the pinks, yellows and golds intertwined throughout the collection! As I was putting this layout together I wanted to use lots of the papers (which is rare for me!) and thought a layered hex design was in order. I haven't done a layout like this in a long time so it was fun to create a pattern with the papers. Within each hex you have a spot to highlight some of the fun embellishments that come in the Atlantic line. 

(supplies- pattern paper: Studio Calico Atlantic Collection - embellishments; Atlantic Fabric Bows; Atlantic Glitter Stars;  Wood Veneer Hearts - Alphas: Rockabye Thickers Atlantic Collection Tools: MIni Anchor Punch Digital Stamp; Planetarium Digital Stamps ) 

Make a project with our color scheme, then share it in the Studio Calico gallery. Leave us a link to your project by May 20th in the comments here to be entered to win a $5 GC to the Studio Calico Shop.

-Steph Washburn and Shanna Noel

Sunday Sketch

We know that our members love sketches, so this week we are again offering you TWO...one for cards and one for layouts!! The card sketch is from Stephanie Washburn's Planetarium gallery:

And the layout is from Gillian Nelson's Planetarium Gallery:

We invited member Nicole (justnick) to choose one of these to use as a starting point this week, and she opted for a twist on the 2-page sketch. :)

Supply list:

Cardstock (American Crafts), Patterned paper (Elle’s Studio),Die Cuts & Tags (Elle’s Studio), Washi Tape (Freckled Fawn), Wood Veneers (Studio Calico), Clip (K&Co), Enamel Dots (My Mind’s Eye)

When I saw the sketches, I knew right away I wanted to use the 2nd page of the 2-pager. I was drawn towards the basic grid shape, that allowed lots of flexibility in my design. I started with the basic 9 squares from the sketch and then went crazy with layering and adding lots of wood veneers! I loved the left handed part of the sketch too, so I used it as inspiration for all the layering on the page. In the end, I ended up using the sketch almost exactly – I didn’t plan on it that way, but my journaling just fell into place in the same spot as the sketch.

We loved seeing Nicole take on this project! She is a master at pairing patterned papers and embellishments together for BIG impact...thank you for joining us this week, Nicole! You can see more inspiration from her in her SC Gallery or on her blog.

Nicole is also active in the Twitter community:
@justnick_

How will YOU use this sketch? Whether it's a layout, a card or something else, link us up to your project in the SC Gallery by May 20th for a chance to win a $5 gift card to the Studio Calico Shop. (Please remember, your project MUST be loaded into our gallery to qualify...and your comment has to link it back to the SC Gallery)

  

 

NSD at SC | 2013 | card team challenge 2

We've all been there. A zillion pieces of patterned paper in your stash, and none have the color scheme or design that you're looking for. Or maybe you have some new stamps you can't wait to get inky - or you just want to try something new. We're challenging you to stamp your own patterned paper!

Stephanie Washburn | I LOVE using stamps to create my own backgrounds! On this one, I picked this tiny ampersand stamp (from Snippets Miss You So Much stamp set) and stamped it in different color inks to create a fun pattern. Then, I blended some distress ink across the card front to create a more rustic look. I finished it off with the sentiment, "you're awesome" stamped in gold ink! Stamping your own background is a great way to create flat, easy to mail cards!


Laura Kurz | So I have been meaning to do these pages for the last four months. Ha. I decided to use my square punch to punch out people's pictures from Christmas cards (if the pictures were bigger than the punch, I just punched it more than once). I have four whole pages of photo inserts! These are coin collector pages that I use in my Project Life album.

I used the hot air balloon stamp to create the background for two of the squares. I typed my title/journaling in red to give it a holiday-esque feel. 

Suzy Plantamura | Stamped backgrounds are perfect for a Project Life album - they bring in a lot of color and interest without bulking up the cards too much!

On the week card, I stamped the word “week” from the Amy Tan stamp set in the May PL kit all over a 4x6 piece of light blue paper; stamping it each time on a piece of scratch paper and then on this paper so the ink is lighter; for a few of the words, I stamped my background first so the ink is darker and those words stand out more. I then added a piece of yellow paper along the bottom and stamped the word “week” in a yellow just a bit darker than the paper. To finish, I stamped the word “week” in red ink on coral paper and cut the numbers out (draw or print on the back side backwards and cut out) and attached them to the front of card. I think that the repetition of the word “week” adds to the theme of this being a weekly introduction card.

For the “confetti” card, I stamped the two borders in one color several times and then stamped over them in a second color so they are just above the first.

To make the card with circles, I stamped the blue ink on a piece of scratch paper first and then stamped; sometimes I would try to leave more ink on the circle so there were different variations of the color; I stamped the words “you are loved” on top of the circles in the same color so it is subtle; then I stamped a yellow circle stamp on a yellow circle and stamped the same words in black and layered it over the background.

Sasha Farina | Using the circle stamp in Big Dipper, I randomly stamped the circle with versamark and embossed them in white before adding the mist. I spray the mist onto my kraft skeet and very lightly put my white cardstock facedown, making sure some parts stay white for the marbled effect. It's a gamble every time, but I love how no two pieces can ever be the same using this technique. Once I'm happy with the background, I gave the embossed parts a good wipe with some tissue.

To be entered to win a prize from the fabulous Studio Calico prize stash, leave a comment here with a link to your new layout, card or PL spread/cards in the Studio Calico gallery by May 13th. We can't wait to see what you make!

product spotlight

Here's a peek at how our Creative Team has been using our Here+There, Snippets and Sundrifter lines : 

Becky Novacek - Peck Peck Peck

Natalia Bun - Hello Again : 

Julie Campbell - Barnyard Greetings : 

Stephanie Washburn - I Love You So Much

Sasha Farina - Today I Am Enough

Amanda Caves - Project Life Week 9 : 

workspace wednesday

Hi! I'm very happy to show you all my little craft space today!

I do NOT have very much space to spare in my home, so I craft in the corner of my bedroom. Over the years, my space has grown and grown from that corner and you have NO idea how much I would love a space of my own! Haha! But for now, it's my little, happy corner of the house!

The first thing you'll notice is my bed in the bottom left corner and my husband's dresser to the right. This is very much my bedroom... you can craft from anywhere, people! :)

You'll also notice the lovely phone and headset sitting on my desk- I use this area for my day job, too. I'm currently working part time as a call center agent from home while I finish school- I spend A LOT of time at this desk.

Since my space is fairly small, I am really strict with myself about what I keep- if I don't have an immediate use for an item, it gets donated! My son's art teacher LOVES me.

I LOVE these wall shelves that I found at Michael's a couple of years back. They aren't exactly the same (the shelves are different), but they are just right for what I use them for. On the one to the left of my desk, I store ribbon, twine, washi, buttons, and some other miscellaneous things. Love how colorful and pretty everything is on the wall, and it makes it super easy to find things!

 

Ribbon makes me happy....

I also love the little wooden spools that I store extra twine and ribbon on- they were really inexpensive (I think I got them from Ribbon Carousel) and they are perfect for those little bunches of twine you can get!

I got the idea to store my buttons in these little jars from Dawn McVey. The jars are PERFECT for small embellishments like buttons and the lids are wide enough that you can easily dig through to find just what you want.

 
On top of the shelves to the left of my desk I have a carousel caddy that I keep markers, pens, scissors, and ribbon scraps in and an organizer for my "TO USE" products! This is the really fun stuff, folks! This is where I keep all the current kits for the month and any other products that I blog with for the month. It's the happiest spot in the room.... sigh.... makes me smile. Ha! Gotta love new stuff!

To the right of my desk is a shelf that is literally FULL of ink and markers... lol! I have *a little bit* of a problem when it comes to ink pads- gotta have them all! I also have my Copic markers, Distress markers, Distress Stains, Mister Huey's, and embossing powders up there. I reach for this shelf OFTEN!

I created these very helpful little color labels for my ink pads with coordinating cardstock- love the way they look all lined up in a row...

I keep all of my Project Life supplies in a basket that tucks in nicely under my desk. I very rarely work on Project Life at my desk because my desk is pretty small. Keeping the stuff in a basket makes it easy for me to tote out to the kitchen or living room to work on it.

I keep all of my page protectors in clear envelopes that are labelled with which design it is and a small sketch of what the page looks like. This has really helped me to use the pages that I don't reach for as often.

And above my desk I have a board where I display all of my projects for that month along with some family photos and notes from friends. I love looking up to see what I've made for the last release- so much fun!

I hope you all enjoyed the tour of my bedroom/office! Thanks for stopping by! :) 

-Stephanie Washburn