Projects 1

Projects I

Introducing inspiring Stampsmith projects by stampers the world over. See something you like? Just print out the directions and give it a whirl ~ enjoy!

Tea-Dyed Medieval Tile Stamped Fabric Cards by Lenna Andrews Foster

First, Lenna dyed some pieces of fabric in a pot on her counter. Then, Lenna says, "I took that fabric when it was dry, and stamped some of the images from the Medieval Tile Kit #1 onto the fabric. I used 2 colors of Fabrico Ink: Pine and Autumn Leaf. I heat set the stamped images when they were dry, and cut the tiles out. I took some large square cards and stamped a different image from the same medieval sheet with Fabrico ink, in Sand. Some cards I stamped 2 colors - all Fabrico ink. Then I just played! I used the fabric tiles like quilt squares and made different arrangements - it was a lot of fun." The top two cards have wonderful quotes available from LennaLines.

Mosaic Ophelia Card by Debbie Givens

Debbie stamped Ophelia with Memories black ink and colored with Radiant Pearls. She ran the image through her Xyron then cut it up and re-layered it to black cardstock. Then came a thick layer of Diamond Glaze over the image and sprinkled beads, Beadazzles and glitter while wet. Let dry. The real-tile look is great on cards, in collage and beyond.

Mother and Child by Debbie Givens

The central image is from The Baron's Daughter.
Debbie says: "I stamped the image stamped on glossy cardstock with artprint brown dye ink layered (using mounting tape) on
a scanned and downsized page from children's book. This was attached with
cream color eyelets to a burgundy background and then cream-colored card. I ran fibers through the eyelet. The quote is a LennaLines stamp on glossy with artprint brown and stippled with same, then attached to mother and child image with mounting tape.

Medieval Tile Cards by Lise Steenerson

Card #1 Card #2
These cards use stamps from the Medieval Collection
Card #1:
Condition some black Sculpey and roll it through the pasta machine at the highest setting (or roll by hand to about 1/8 inch). Lay flat on top of Amy's Magic Leafing. Pick it up, the leafing will adhere to the Sculpey. Roll out a piece of translucent Sculpey on the smallest setting of the pasta machine (paper thin). Roll the whole thing through the highest setting of the pasta machine, turn one quarter and pass it through the machine again. This will create a crackle effect. When you are satisfied with the results, stamp the beautiful Medieval image with black Brilliance on top of the Sculpey. Trim the edges. Save the scraps into thin lines to decorate the card with. Bake according to directions.
Cut a piece of black corrugated cardboard. Spread some glue on the outer edges and dip into small gold beads. Let it dry, overnight it better. Shake lightly in the morning to get rid of any loose beads. You can add more if it needs it.
Stamp the same Medieval image on black shrink plastic (previously sanded) using Brilliance ink (mineral was used here). Shrink according to directions. Cover with Crystal Lacquer or Dimensional Magic and let dry.
Assemble the layers together and add fibers. Et voila!!! It's hard to miss with those gorgeous images.
Card #2:
Stamp the image with Zim Print black ink onto acetate masking one of the corner*. Add the matching larger image to fit snug into the missing corner and add the other image in the same fashion than you stamped the first one. Use a stamp positionner to make certain everything lines up. (I practiced on scrap paper first to make I did it right).
Flip the acetate over and cover the back of the image with leafing adhesive. Let it dry to tacky and cover with leafing material. Lightly brush on top to make sure the pieces that are not glued are removed.
Stamp the same image with black Brilliance onto black cardstock. Trim an opening to fit the acetate, using an x-acto knife. Use double sided tape to attach the acetate to the frame. Layer with opal cardstock and adhere to a copper metallic cardstock.
Punch some gold eyelet in each corner.
*( I found it easier to mask while you are inking your image than when you are stamping it. Lesser chance of a boo boo)

Chalk-colored Photo Cards by Estrella Bianchi

When stamp teacher Estrella Bianchi led Make 'N' Takes doing this technique at the August 2001 Pennsauken, New Jersey stamp convention, stampers just fell in love with it! And it's so simple:
Materials:
Glossy cardstock
Dye ink, sepia is what we used. Other colors are fine
Vintage photo stamps from The Stampsmith
Chalks
Cotton swabs
For background card:
Dark cardstock
Gold embossing powder
Embossing fluid
Corner stamps from The Stamping Ground - click here to see their selection.
DIRECTIONS:
Stamp your photo image on glossy cardstock using archival dye ink - we used Ranger's archivals, but any dye ink would be fine. Estrella stamped in Sepia.
Now, you wouldn't think the next part is logical, but it works: After your image is dry, take a cotton swab and dab the tip onto chalks and simply swirl it around the area you'd like to color in. Cut out your image when you're done coloring. (The stamps above come from the My Honey and Think of Me plates, also look at the At the Theater sheet for more such images.)
On a piece of dark cardstock, stamp and emboss in gold Nouveau borders from The Stamping Ground (you can find the ones we used by clicking here. Affix your romantic photo image to the card with glue, tape or thicker foam tape to set the image off a bit, as Estrella did.
Have fun and let's see your art pieces!

Koosh Ball Background by Brigid Lally

That's right, Brigid used a Koosh ball tapped in ink to make this fun background to which she added an Art Nouveau stamp from the Belles Femmes #2 plate.

Fruit Crate Label Candles by Lenna Andrews Foster

Lenna says: "I stamped with Memories and a Big and Juicy Rainbow pad on tissue paper with the Fruit Crate Label stamps, and let it dry. Then I used Mod Podge decoupage medium to stick the tissue paper to the candle. I coated over the top of the papers with the same medium when it was on the candle, and while it was wet, sprinkled some tiny holeless beads on. I also added a few other bits of gold or textured paper."

Brilliance-Sponged Heroines by Ro Snyder

1. Stamp background with black pigment ink.
2. Emboss with black detail embossing powder, let dry thoroughly.
3. Pick three colors of the Brilliance Pads and just sponge on, they do dry
fast, which is great when making this background.
4. Stampsmith images were stamped on matte coat or glossy paper and then
colored with pastels. Just enough color for these images.
5. The other images are stamped on acetate, colored with acrylic paints on
back. I used acrylics, because they dry fast and will cover the acetate.
6. I ran acetate pieces through the Xyron, so acetate images would not show
glue marks.
7. Apply acetate images in a pleasing design.

Fresco Backgrounds with Ophelia by Gaye Medbury

Renowned stamp teacher Gaye Medbury shares some of her tips on making the ethereal card, above:
Sponge Vari-tone ink (from Coffee Break Design) onto "Beauty" stamp and stamp on white matte cardstock. Sponge a few areas of card with what is left on sponge. You won't be able to see it because it is clear.
Heat with a heat gun which takes about a minute or you can also use a blow torch to bring the "burnt" look up really fast.
*Vari-tone ink also comes in a spray bottle allowing you to just spritz it on
the card. Interesting effect also.
Stamp the large Ophelia in Black permanent ink. Color with colored
pencils. I use Bruynzeel Full Color pencils because they are transparent and you can color directly over Ophelia and not lose the detail.
Apply Medici Marble, Venetian Sunrise, Tuscan Earth and Mediterranean Tide Fresco inks in that order to the card. I use direct to paper method using the corner of the ink pads in a circular motion, layering color over color. This takes a little practice, especially if your pads are new.
When inks are dry, you can stamp more designs on top.

Tea-bag Stained Card by Elinor Jensen

Elinor Jensen says: "I stamped one of the 'My Honey' beauties on King James glossy with Ancient Page Henna and covered it with a dried and flattened tea bag. I also embossed a skeleton leaf, using it for an accent."

Old Dutch Tile effect by Nancy Olson

Nancy Olson explains: "I stamped on white/ivory mat board using blue and burgundy from the ColorBox Crafte's pigment ink Mediterranean palette. (I think the gold one was stamped in Adirondack Butterscotch dye ink.) I trimmed the image, leaving a small margin, then sanded the edges and rounded the corners with fine sandpaper. I then set the Crafters ink with a heat gun and applied 3 coats of clear UTEE. The ink colors became more intense, and the mat board became more 'milky' looking with successive coats of UTEE. With the third coat I carefully sprinkled some metallic UTEE around the edges of the image to give a glazed/antique appearance (platinum for the blue tile, gold for the rest). To finish I ran a line of Krylon silver or gold around the edges.

Heroine Puzzle Pins by Debbie Givens

Here's an example of great teamwork and inspiration: Elaine Akers posted to The Stampsmith egroup telling of a class she'd just taught, which other egroup members also attended, in Massachussetts. After showing off beautiful samples, other Stampsmithees gave it a whirl and above are Debbie Givens' gems.
Debbie's instructions, with a big nod and thanks to Elaine:
All I did was sand the shrink plastic and stamp my image of Portia and
mask. I then stamped over that with a text stamp. I colored with pencils, punched
holes and shrank the plastic. Then I took about 7 or 8 little puzzle pieces,
went around the edges with my gold Krylon pen and smeared some around on
the tops too. Then I laid then all connecting on a piece of cardboard and
dribbled Diamond Glaze all over the pieces, making sure they were all touching
in some way and then I laid the shrink plastic on top and smushed it down. I
kept moving it around so it wouldn't stick to the cardboard. Then I
embellished with Suze's Beadazzles, added a couple of beads on a head pin and
secured them to the hole I had punched and left it to dry.

Acrylic paints on Luna card by Lea Everse

You'll find the work of stamp artist Lea Everse in many stamp publications. Lea mentions Luna paper for this project and notes that she'll have an article about it in the Jan./Feb. 2002 issue of Somerset Studio magazine. To make this card she used one of the images from Art Nouveau 1 ~ L'amour.
Use acrylic paint on Luna paper and let dry. Stamp image on acetate. Let dry. Run through Xyron and apply high-tack adhesive to stamped side. Place sticky side on prepared Luna paper. Cut out, set aside. Prepare black glossy cardstock with acrylic paint. Let dry. Trim and match together. Tape and cut to size. On small piece, punch corners and wrap with purple iridescent thread. Mount to black glossy and trim. On larger piece, punch moon corners and mount to black glossy and then to folded raspberry card. Mount image on top using black foam tape. Attach irridescent star beads with craft cement.

Tote Bag using Transfer Technique, by Linda Reid

Linda Reid, known to stampers as Duchess, presented me with this fabulous canvas tote bag adorned with many Shakespeare Heroines and other stamped images. Here's how Linda did it:
The transfer paper comes from this website: www.EDPS-NJ.com - it is the best I have used. If you turn the garment inside out when you wash it, the design fades very little.
I used Ranger's Adirondack inks and Memories black for the stamping. Because you cannot stamp text (remember everything comes out backwards!) I ran the transfer paper through my printer, printing the chosen quote backwards (so it would come out forward when ironed on) Then I stamped the images with the inks. You can use fabric inks but you do not need to as the ink is sealed in under the transfer.
Allow the ink to dry before ironing. I iron the transfer on to the shirt with a hot iron (NO steam) and move the iron over the transfer for 2 minutes, taking care to iron the edges well. When it cools, peel off the backing paper and voila!

French Tarot Pencil Box, by Karen Lawton

Karen says:
Although many have stated that Ancient Page pads are too juicy, I found they stippled beautifully for these detail stamps. The scan doesn't really show how vibrant the colors are and it is important that you let all coats of paints and inks dry before going onto the next step.
Materials: 1 (8") upright flip top wooden cigar box
Krylon black matte spray paint
Krylon Crystal Clear
Powdered Pearls iridescent red, blue, wisteria
Liquid gum Arabic
Sea sponge
Gold webbing spray
French Tarot card stamps
White matte coated CS
Ancient Page primrose, sienna, foxglove, cobalt blue pads
Black dye ink
Stipple brushes
Hot glue Gold
Rub N' Buff
White glue Blue/purple glitter
Directions: Stamp 5 images with black dye ink on white CS. Stipple Ancient Page inks all around the images and let dry. Apply white glue and glitter to highlight areas like the scepters, crowns, skirts and let dry. Cut out in card shapes except the top front-cut top of card only. Spray box thoroughly with black paint. Mix different colors of PE with gum Arabic and apply with wet sea sponge all over box-let dry between colors. When everything has dried, apply gold webbing spray all over-hold can about 15" to get a really webbed look. Spray with Crystal Clear. Glue an image to each panel of box and one on top (I glued the tarot card image with a design on top). Apply hot glue all around images like a frame and let dry. Rub gold Rub N' Buff all around glue frame. Not hard to do but boy do the colors pop!

Clay Portia Pin, by Laura Woofter

The scan's a bit blurry, but this pin is gorgeous in person!
Laura's directions:
1. Stamp an image on plain white tissue paper. A STAMPSMITH image of course!!!!! I used a black Memories dye ink pad.
2. I used Modge Podge on the under side of the glass piece, put the stamped image on the modge podge, right side up,then one more coat of Modge podge on the back side of the stamped image. When all that is dry. Trim off the excess tissue paper. I always paint the back then with a metallic marker or paint, If I am using them for a pin. ( I also use the same glass baubles on cards, without painting them, if you are interested to see the difference, I have started an eboard with other pieces of my art. Here is the addy www.artdujour.eboard.com )
3. I then stamp on polymer clay, when I have the images and the shape the way I want it, I press the glass piece into the clay to make a small indentation. I remove the glass and bake the clay according to the manufacturer's instructions.
4. When the clay is cooled I dry brush the polymer clay, usually with metallic paint. Let that dry and glue your glass piece to the indentation. I use E6000 for the glass and pin back.
5. That's it!

Heroine Pendants by Lenna Andrews Foster

These are featured in the Jan./Feb. 2002 issue of Rubberstampmadness magazine.
From Lenna:
I was inspired to create these pendants after reading about Fabric Pins in the book Making Gifts with Rubber Stamps by Sandra McCall. I adapted her project to fit my needs for a LennaLines stamp swap I was doing through the Stampsmith egroup. Here's how I did it:
I took a piece of plain white, washed fabric and painted it with slightly watered-down acrylic paints, using a foam brush. I used Delta Ceramcoat Acrylics in Wedgewood Green and Straw. Any fabric paint would work well for this, giving a variety of results with different types of paint. While the paint was wet, I took some Powdered Pearls in two kinds of gold (opal and regular) plus white and sprinkled it over the wet paint. The paint acted as the adhesive medium for the Powdered Pearls, and this is what gives the pendants their luminescence.
I hung the fabric up to dry, and then later stamped it the Stampsmith Heroines using a burgundy Fabrico pad. Since I was doing a swap, and wanted extras, I must have stamped about a dozen Shakespeare Heroines. I also stamped another part of the fabric with the Stampsmith's China Ink and Petite Playing Card stamps in a random fashion. I would use this random stamped fabric as the backing for the Heroine pendants. I also got a length of ribbon and stamped a variety of the Stampsmith's LennaLines quote stamps on the ribbon, using a black Fabrico pad. When everything was dry I ironed the fabric for permanency even though it would probably not get washed.
I cut out all the Shakespeare Heroines and a matching shape of randomly stamped fabric for the backing. Placing the stamped ribbon across each Heroine and putting the backing under, I used my sewing machine and sewed up all the raw edges with the right sides facing OUT. This made my work quicker. Now that the whole pendant was sewn up, just like Sandra McCall did with her fabric pin project, I cut a slit in the back of the pendant and used a skewer to stuff some polyester batting into it. I cut strips from my leftover background fabric to cover the slit I had cut. I then cut silk cording and placed it on top of the slit in the back, and the glued the background strip over it.
The final and most fun part of this was to embellish the different heroines with small beads and a very thin tapestry needle. I did each pendant differently. When Estelle and I wore ours to a recent convention, we got lots of compliments!

Powdered Pearls: http://www.powderedpearls.com/
Lenna Andrews Foster: http://www.lennastamp.com

Acetate Playing Cards by Lise Steenerson

Lise's tips:
I stamped the lovely playing cards on acetate and embossed with black detail embossing powder. I turned it over and dripped a generous amount of Crystal Lacquer. I added drops of Adirondack ink and smeared them around (only add one color at the time otherwise you end up with a brown glob, not that this ever happened to me... lol). Thoroughly scrunch up a piece of white tissue paper. Open and flatten it lightly. Layer on top of the Crystal Lacquer (which also act as glue) and push it in lightly until it is attached. Let it dry (glue side up... again this is experience speaking) and trim. Layer on the card as you wish. Easy as pie and not nearly as fattening!!

HOME List of Plates | Mounted Stamps | Individual Unmounteds | Collage Packs | Opheliaware! | Gallery I | Gallery II | Gallery III | Gallery IV | Gallery V | Gallery VI | Ebay | Domino Art | Attitude! | The Conspiracy! | Mini Books | Art Swaps | Romance | Featured Artists I | Featured Artists II | Featured Artists III | Featured Artists IV | Projects I | Projects II | Projects III | Book Review | Convention Calendar | NY Stamp Show/Nov. '03 | In the News | Printable Order Form