Believe in Yourself

Thank you SO much, anonymous friend. You know who you are - I do not.

But I wanted to share with you today a quote, that a kind, anonymous friend shared with me, along with an extremely generous gift.

Watch carefully the magic that occurs when 

you give a person enough comfort to 

just be themselves. ~Atticus

That absolutely is the key to life, the universe, and everything. It should be your goal, and your wish for all of your friends.

While I love that book with my whole face, I did not remember this quote. Maybe I was too young when I read it a billion times to appreciate this wisdom.

Part of being an artist demands this of course. You come to terms with the fact that people don't understand what you do. You become at home in paint-covered clothes, and you try to explain retreats to people, and you try to explain why you would make a card with a unicorn on it, or why you have a stamp with a lemur wearing glasses. And then, eventually - you just stop. You find your tribe. You don't notice people anymore staring at your hands that are covered in red paint when you go into a store. And THAT, is when you start to get really good at what you do. So have enough comfort to be yourself. And if you're not there yet, believe in yourselves, you little sparkly unicorns.

These thoughts inspired my card today, with the adorable new Picture Book Unicorn from Simon Says Stamp. I can't resist any of these Picture Book dies, because it's so fun to piece them together - ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU CAN MAKE A GLITTERY-MANED UNICORN.

I made a Polaroid frame for him using these Stitched Squares dies. (They are double stitched). The sentiment is from this stamp set.

Picture Book Unicorn [ SSS ] Picture Book Dies at Simon Says STAMP! [ SSS ] Unicorn Awesomeness Stamp Set [ C&9 | SSS ] Simon Says Stamp STITCHED SQUARES... [ SSS ] Whisper White Cardstock - Thick [ SUP ] Silver Glimmer Paper by Stampin' Up! [ SUP ] MISTI Stamping Tool [ MSW | SSS | ELH | ART | AMZUS ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] Multipurpose Liquid Glue by Stampin' Up! [ SUP ] Absorber - Synthetic Cleaning Cloth [ AMZUS ] Mudder 10 Pack White Buffer Sanding... [ AMZUS ] Xyron ADHESIVE ERASER 23675 [ SSS | ART | AMZUS | SSS | ART | BMS ] Bone Folder by Stampin' Up! [ SUP ]

You don't get extra time on earth to get to the magic, so why not get there now?

Loveyameanitbye.

Brusho DTS

I played around with Brusho a few weeks ago and actually filmed it, so I have a fun video for you today. I wanted to take the images in the new Waterfront set and have them be multicolored, so I did a very simple technique that gives solid images life the way only a powdered watercolor can. I showed my team the technique the weekend before Creativation and they loved it.

I don't like to do a lot of spraying on my cling stamps, because water and glue don't play well together, so I tend to stick to photopolymer stamps for this technique, but a lot of people wash their cling stamps and have no issues with them separating from the foam - so you do whatever your preference is!

So let's peek at the cards. The first one was the one I did in the video, where I ended up overstamping the mountains to show less of the watercolor paper texture - although I do like the subtle pattern that still shows through. The big hello is this set from this Altenew set. (All supplies linked below third card.

 The next one I did with my team last weekend on our FB live. I added more yellow and separated the lake a little. The sentiment is from this Altenew set.

 This one was done live too - I added two mountains and a little forest down front. The sentiment is from this Simon Says Stamp set.

Waterfront Photopolymer Stamp Set... [ SUP ] Altenew FLOWER ARRANGEMENT Clear... [ SSS | ELH ] Altenew FLOWER ARRANGEMENT Die Set... [ SSS | ELH ] Altenew PAINTED ROSE Clear Stamp Set [ SSS | ELH ] Altenew PAINTED ROSE DIE Set [ SSS | ELH ] Simon Says Clear Stamps ONE WITH... [ SSS ] Brusho Crystal Colour (144101) [ SUP ] Stampin' Spritzer (126185) [ SUP ] MISTI Stamping Tool [ MSW | HA | ELH | SSS ] Tsukineko VersaFine SMALL ONYX BLACK... [ SSS ] Fabriano Artistico 140 lb. Cold Press... [ AMZUS ] Absorber - Synthetic Cleaning Cloth [ AMZUS ] Lemon Lime Twist 8-1/2" X 11"... [ SUP ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] Whisper White Cardstock - Thick [ SUP ]

Today is the last day of Creativation, so I'm ready to get home and focus on spring - in my yard, on my cards, everywhere.

If you're ready to check out this waterfront stamp set and some Brusho - use host  code 9YXHJ4VR for some host goodies from me - and don't forget it's Sale-a-Bration, with free items 
for each $50 you spend.

Here's the video - enjoy!

Thanks for stopping by.

Loveyameanitbye.

Simply Colored Notecards

I'm back with another bunch of stamps I bought in September and never had time to play with! I shopped a LOT that month so I have a backlog of things to get creative with, and these have been in the top spot since then.

I wanted to do a little set of notecards with them - as I've told you, I'm using the Whisper White notecards and envelopes a ton lately - I like the smaller size. I thought that these images were sized perfectly for those cards, and I thought I'd make a little set with the four sets that I bought.

Once I saw the main set, I then had to have the other three because they are just so danged cute! The sentiments work across all the images too, which is nice.

Since the designs are so detailed, I wanted to keep the coloring simple, so I really just colored the design elements, and VERY simply - no shading, just single colors for each element. Then I shaded the cats themselves with grey. So easy - no coloring skill required, and it lets the images have the spotlight, as they should. Because look at them!

Waffle Flower FLORA CAT MEOW Clear... [ SSS | ELH ] Waffle Flower FLORA CAT DREAM Clear... [ SSS | ELH ] Waffle Flower FLORA CAT PLAY Clear... [ SSS | ELH ] Waffle Flower FLORA CAT Clear Stamp... [ SSS | ELH ] Whisper White Note Cards & Envelopes... [ SUP ] Multipurpose Liquid Glue by Stampin' Up! [ SUP ] MISTI Stamping Tool [ MSW | HA | ELH | SSS ] Absorber - Synthetic Cleaning Cloth [ AMZUS ] Whisper White Cardstock - Thick [ SUP ] Rotatrim Professional Series Cutter -... [ BLIC ] Mudder 10 Pack White Buffer Sanding... [ AMZUS ] Xyron ADHESIVE ERASER 23675 [ SSS | ART | AMZUS ] Bone Folder by Stampin' Up! [ SUP ] Y06 - Yellow Sketch Marker (4682) [ MFT | ELH | SSS ] BG07 - Petroleum Blue Sketch Marker... [ MFT | ELH | SSS ] RV02 - Sugared Almond Pink Sketch... [ MFT | ELH | SSS ] FYG2 - Fluorescent Dull Yellow Green... [ MFT | ELH | SSS ] BG01 - Aqua Blue Sketch Marker (4427) [ MFT | ELH | SSS ] RV29 - Crimson Sketch Marker (4623) [ MFT | ELH | SSS ] C3 - Cool Gray Sketch Marker (4472) [ MFT ]

Aren't they adorable? This would make such a fun gift to give to a non-cardmaking friend. Everyone needs cards and everyone loves cute cats :).

They're the right size to put two sets in your MISTI and be able to stamp two cards at once, so you could make a lot really quickly. 

FYI - the price of a stamp is about to go up - so if you want to save some money - stock up before January 21st! I buy them online from the USPS, and they have a beautiful Love stamp that you can preorder now. It doesn't sound like much, but if you send a lot of cards, a difference of 20 cents a book will add up quickly.

Don't forget to check out my favorites lists if you didn't have time over the new year. I add to them whenever I find something new I love. 

Loveyameanitbye.