Nancy Wethington

Graphic 45 mini & me . . .

 

While in California for CHA-W,

Timi, Nancy N & I were stuck in L.A. during the

storm of the century

(that never really was the storm of the century in St. Louis).

We made the best of it with a day long tour of Los Angeles.

This past CHA-W is when Graphic 45 introduced Curtain Call.

I wasn't yet on the Design Team

and knew these would be the perfect papers

for this little jaunt to Hollywood & beyond.

The most difficult part of making this mini was waiting for

Curtain Call

to be delivered to For Keeps Sake!

You can see more of my mini here:

http://g45papers.typepad.com/

Class this Saturday, May 21 . . .

This Saturday I'll be teaching the 7 Gypsies Junque Drawer class at For Keeps Sake.  If you're in this class, I will post a list of supplies later this week. 

The class will begin at 10:30 am and will last all day.  We'll have fun with a myriad of ephemera, techniques and what-nots. 

In the meantime

• gather the photos that you don't know what to do with.  Those where one person may look good but the others - not so much.  Those extras that you just can't throw away.  Duplicates or even your favorites. 

This is the one class where I am encouraging you to bring your photos. 

Let the gathering begin! 

Look at what I found . . .

on Mathew Mead's blog today.  Go see more.  These teeny treats are amazing!

Old Wives Tales . . .

is this week's theme at Simon Says Stamp & Show challenge blog.

Not sure what I wanted to create this week and trying to find an old wives tale I could live with (!) I googled *old wives tales* and nothing really hit me.  Buck the Wonder Dog was bugging me to take him for a walk.  As we did our little procession thing (he walks himself and I follow), I found a penny and the result was

Once home, I started gathering things that represented luck:  7 Gypsies Bingo paper, Tim Holtz Bingo stamp and miscellaneous ephemera on top of Graphic 45 background paper. The lucky penny finished off the card front.

 

Find a penny

Pick it up

and all day long

you'll have good luck.

Give a penny to a friend

and then your luck

will never end.

Hope you can play along this week at Simon Says Stamp & Show challenge blog. Use your favorite Old Wives Tale and enter it on the challenge blog.  You could be the lucky recipient of this:

 

or you may be chosen as one of the top 3 designers for the week!

Hope you can play along with

Simon Says Stamp & Show Challenge Blog.

 

Monday Musings . . .

at For Keeps Sake Scrapbook:

and a good time was had by all . . .

Yesterday, Stacey, Timi, Judy and I grabbed our tools and headed for Springfield IL.  Love going to Springfield from St. Louis.  Just about an hour and a half away, we visit some of our favorite places including Prairie Art Stamps.  Terry owns the store and there couldn't be anyone nicer greeting you inside.  And talk about talent - WOW!

The purpose of our visit yesterday was to take a bookbinding class.  I've wanted to learn this binding for a long time and finally had the opportunity yesterday. 

Most of my classmates worked with Graphic 45 papers. Here's the sample that our instructor, Jan Worms, brought with her:

I brought some Botanicabella to work with.  Each students' book turned out uniquely their own with carefully chosen papers as their covers.

Here's my book with my newest harlequin bookbinding.  I'll have to do about 10 more of these before I'm comfortable with this stitch but I did love learning how to create this binding.

Because I wanted the birdcage to be a bit more prominent, I colored in shadows under the *shingles* with Copic Markers. And thanks to talented Terry, the little bird now has a perch.

Hope you can visit Prairie Art Stamps soon.  Terry and the girls are always welcoming and willing to help with their vast array of tricks and tips! 

(Judy and Gail, sorry we missed you.  Hope to see you on our next trip.)

Gettin' inky with it . . .

Remember that Will Smith song - Gettin' Jiggy With It? 

Well it's stuck in my head so I thought I'd share . . .

some ink stories.

The other day I was at For Keeps Sake in the Ranger aisle (yes, there are two+ aisles of Ranger products at For Keeps Sake!) when someone said they get really confused by all the types of inks. I used to be a bit confused also (sometimes still am) until after I was asked to write an article for an on-line magazine about inks. YIKES! Talk about pressure. I really had to study-up. Then I attended Ranger U and learned even more.

So that got me thinking about an ink post.

Please keep in mind that almost every ink out on the market has been formulated by chemists.  And you know how crazy those chemists can be!  Can you just picture one in the lab, rolling his hands together and saying *ah ha ha ha* in a deep throaty voice.  Well, even though an ink has a name like water-based, permanent, archival, dye, etc . . . those scientist have worked on their own particular formula for the company who's paying them.  So each ink still may contain its own properties particular to the brand itself.

The other thing to keep in mind is how the ink will react to the surface you're stamping/inking. Each paper, for example, also has its own properties.

No wonder this is all so confusing!

Here goes anyway with just the basics on a few inks. 

Ranger/Tim Holtz Distress Ink: 

Distress Ink is a water-based dye ink. This is an easy one right? Distress = dye (D=D) Add water and dilute the ink.  Kind of like making a cocktail.  So that if you are using any kind of water on your layouts or cards or stampings, and you want the ink to run, then this is the ink for you!  If not, then move on to another type.

When adding a water based dye ink to a pourous surface (like paper for example), it tends to dry quickly.  This particular ink (Distress Ink) is made to dry a bit slower so that YES you can heat emboss with this ink. You can't wait all day to add the powder . . . but you do have a tiny bit of time.

A dye ink is also a thinner ink so it is good to use when stamping images with fine details.

Something to keep in mind:  Acrylic paint and most markers are water based.  If you're stamping an image with Distress Ink and then using acrylic paint or some water based markers, your stamped image may run. 

Adirondack Dye Ink:

 
Dye inks are also water-based inks and will do exactly as their name suggests: it will dye your paper.  It is fade-resistant but not permanent (although it will probably far outlast my lifetime).  It is not waterproof.  This is not exactly what you use in your inkjet printers at home but as a reference the normal ink in an inkjet printer is dye ink.  And you know if that gets wet it will run.  Same thing here. The ink dyes the paper but it will run if water hits it.

So what's the difference between dye inks and Distress Inks?  Both are dye inks. Choose the colors that work best for you and consider the paper you're using as well as the medium you're using to color a stamped image.

Ranger's Archival Ink: 

 
This ink is just as the label promises: permanent and waterproof (two really important words).  In fact, it is permanent on either matte or gloss papers (heat set if using glossy paper).  It is also acid free. 

Stampers/Copic Notes:  If using a waterbased paint or marker to color your images and you do not want your images to run, then this is a great ink for stamping. I'm not crazy about this ink for use with Copics.  It tends to fade a bit when using Copic Markers. (Remember, Copics are alcohol based so that properties of the ink in Copics are mixing with the properties of water based ink. One never knows what will happen when water and alcohol are mixed - and I know you know what I mean!)

Adirondack Pigment Ink:

 
Pigment ink is a permanent ink.  (P=P) It is NOT necessarily waterproof.  Some pigment inks are waterproof, some are not.  You have to read the label of each brand to be sure.  It it is waterproof, it will say so on the label.  If it's not waterproof, that word will not appear on the label.  Some pigment inks need to be heat set in order to be permanent.  Check the label on the back of each ink pad.  Pigment ink tends to stay wet a bit longer (although it will air dry on paper) so this is a really good embossable ink.  It can be used on the following surfaces when heat set: glossy paper, vellum, shrink plastic, metal and glass. 

Stampers/Copic Notes:  Pigment inks tend to be a bit thicker so if you are stamping an image with lots of details, you may want to use another ink type. Not a fan of this ink for Copic Markers.  The ink will run when used with Copics.

Now for other inks:

Tsukineko (the *t* is silent) Staz-On: 

 
This is a solvent ink. (S=S) 

(S=S=S . . . tSUKINEKO is STAZ-ON is SOLVENT . . . sorry, I'm a bit out of control.)

It is a permanent ink that contains some kind of oil or resin. If you used this ink before, you know it is a *sticky* ink so it does take a bit of drying time on non-pourous surfaces.  And that's exactly what its beauty is . . . it will STAZ-ON any surface including metal, shrink plastic, acrylic, cellophane, aluminum foil, leather and glass (but not your craft mat ; )

Note: If you're a fan of Copic Markers (alcohol based), do not use Staz-On.  The properties in Copic Markers will run the Staz-On ink.

Tsukineko Memento Ink: 

 

 
This is a dye based ink so it is a fast-drying ink and fade resistant. 

Stampers/Copic Notes:  This is the best ink I have found to work with Copic Markers.  I never have an issue with my stamped image running or fading.  It is a thin ink so great for stamping detailed images. 

Once more experiment for you.  I used my Copic Markers with all the inks above and here are the results (with the exception of Tsukineko Staz-On which will definitely run). Just to be fare to each ink, I stamped and then heat set each ink before coloring with Copics.  All cupcakes were stamped on the same Neenah paper.

 Review:

• DYE ink = water based.  Dye ink brands include: Ranger/Tim Holtz Distress Ink; Memento dye inks; Adirondack dye inks.
• Permanent Ink = pigment ink.  May or may not be waterproof.  Read the label to be sure. Brands include: Ranger/Adirondack Pigment ink; Ranger/Adirondack Archival
• Solvent inks are a breed all their own and usually contain some type of oil or resin!  Brands include: Tsukineko Staz-On

See ya another day for more inky stuff.  Leave a comment if you'd like to know about a specific brand not mentioned here. 

WOYWW . . .

What on my workdesk today?  A serious case of procrastination and a smattering of too's.

That's right . . .

too many deadlines.

too much stuff to put away.

too much glitter on the floor.

And what am I doing?  Playing on my computer with google reader, facebook, everyone else's blogs.

oh but look . . . my Pink Paislee order just arrived . . .

the procrastination continues as I fondle the new papers and embellishments.

I had a blast last night at . . .

CYI.  Hope those who attended had as much fun as I did. 

First up:  We received our altered books back.  Last month we brought in a book whose title meant something to us.  We traded those books and the recipient was charged with decorating the cover according to the title of the book.  Last night, we got them back and here's the results:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After that exciting trade, we started altering the inside pages.  Each month, someone from the group will volunteer ; ) to teach us how to alter pages in our books.  This month, our *guest instructor* was Bonnie H and she did a terrific job.  She had written instructions for each of us!

Everyone brings their own supplies from a supply list I post on my blog and we get to working.  Here's a few photos from last night's class:

 

 

 

 

This was all FREE to anyone who attends CYI.  It was so much fun to learn in this beautiful classroom with friends (both new and old) where everyone is invited to join this group.

2nd Tuesday of every month.

6 pm

@

For Keeps Sake Scrapbook

4530 Lemay Ferry Road - St. Louis MO 63129

(314) 487-8131 

Hope you can join us in June when our guest instructor is Mary June W!

Workshop Wednesday . . .

over at For Keeps Sake Scrapbook.  Run on over and meet my Grand-Nephew!

 
Note: Luke's photo by HSR Photography