new FLOWERY challenge, and congrats to the LOVE challenge winner!

***THIS CHALLENGE IS NOW CLOSED!***
thank you all for playing, and the rest of the Angel Maggie images will be emailed on Friday, February 5th. :)





First of all, a very quick note to let you all know that the big SALE at The Town Scrapper is still going on, right up until February 14th - EVERYTHING is on sale! The details are in the sidebar to your right, so contact Phebe to take advantage of the fabulous savings!

Now, how about that challenge? WOW! We had a record number of players last week for our LOVE-themed challenge - plenty of red, white and pink, and hearts to boot! Thank you all SO very much for playing along!

We let random.org do the choosing for us, and thank goodness, because it would have been a VERY difficult decision if we had to pick a favourite!

The winner of the Maggie in Love stamp is...........



RAQUEL, of The Creative Barn!
Raquel submitted this sweet card for the LOVE-themed challenge:


Absolutely beautiful, Raquel! We loved your card! Congrats on being the lucky winner - please send your snail mail details to info@townscrapper.com, and the fabulous Phebe will send your stamp for you to enjoy, hopefully in time for Valentine's Day!

Today, another wonderful recipe from the Humble Pie kitchen, and the Bakers went to town on this one!

We want to see you get FLOWERY! Please use a MINIMUM of five flowers on your project (layers will work just fine!), like our Bakers did... Check it out!

Angie


Shelly


Kim S.


Lisa


Our first guest Baker, Bonnie


And our SECOND guest Baker, Zoe




Katie (you can get this cute Magnolia stamp at The Town Scrapper - Phebe carries lots of great stamp companies besides Humble Pie!)


Leah the Orange




Janet


Ann


This should be an easy one, friends! We hope we've been able to inspire you all a little bit, and we can't wait to see what you're going to do with all these fabulous flowers! And...... I should mention that there will be a very SPECIAL gift for everyone entering this challenge... I can't show you anything, and I can't give you any hints, but we think you're going to love the surprise! For this challenge, we are asking that you PLEASE leave your email address with your comment, so that we can contact you with your little gift! Remember that your project must be created new for this challenge, and that you do not have to use a Humble Pie image for your creation, but we'd love to see them if you've got 'em! Leave your comments and link your projects up by next THURSDAY (February 4) at midnight, EST. Don't forget to link back to our blog in your post for your chance to win another of the sweet Maggie in Love rubber stamps, as seen above on Angie, Lisa, Zoe and Leah's cards!

Have fun flowering your creations up, and have a fantastic weekend!

a thought for Thursday...

Good morning, friends!

Leah here, bringing you another little something to think about. Today, I'm not quoting anyone famous, but sharing with you my motto for 2010, because I think we could all use this little lift.

"Stop doubting yourself!"

Want to do something, but question your ability? Well, questioning and doubting yourself will prevent you from success if it means you're unwilling to TRY! We can't accomplish a thing without making the effort.

And when someone pays you a compliment, accept it! Take it in stride, enjoy it for what it is, and LET your ego swell just for a moment (just don't let it get INFLATED!). If you've done something praise-worthy, and someone takes notice, FEEL GOOD ABOUT IT!

See you tomorrow with a brand new Humble Pie challenge, folks!

Tutorial - Watercolouring with Tombows

Today's watercolouring tutorial is brought to you by our super talented Phebe, owner of The Town Scrapper.

Supplies:

• Permanent Ink ~ i.e. Black Staz-On
• Watercolour Paper ~ Hot Pressed Ice Water Paper with glitter on it
  
• Paint Brush – finest point you can find & I prefer mine soft or Aquapainter
  
• A small bowl of distilled room temperature bottled water
• Tombow Markers in 3 shades ~ light-medium-dark

Step 1:

• Ink the image with Staz-On and stamp it onto watercolour paper
• Figure out where you want the light to come in from (I chose the back side)
• Use the lightest Tombow colour and apply to image
• Wet paint brush or use Aquapainter to remove excess colour (you want wet but not dripping)
• Go in circles until the colour is blended in
  

Step 2:

• Apply Medium Tombow colour
• Wet your paintbrush or use the Aquapainter to blend the medium colour and bring it out

Step 3:

• Use the darker Tombow marker and blend/bring the colour out
• You can also take a wet brush directly to the Tombow marker to control the amount of colour you are getting on the brush
  

WHAT NOT TO DO:

• If your paint brush is too wet, it could leave huge water marks on the image and could be difficult to correct.
• Also, too much water will wash out your image and lift your paper.

Hope you have enjoyed today's tutorial. Try it out and let us know how it worked out for you. Don't forget about our challenge here.

Tip Tuesday #4 - Chipboard

Welcome to another edition of Tip/Trick Tuesday. Let's talk about chipboard. Sanding chipboard edges after applying papers gives your project or chipboard item a great finished look. The trick is to sand in a downward motion. A sanding block is perfect for larger surfaces but for those smaller, harder to reach areas, like around chipboard letters, I recommend using smaller-sized files. Don't forget to get inky for this week's Love challenge here for a chance to win the Humble Pie Sweetie Couple stamp.

WELCOME Aboard

Great news to share today! We are honoured to have 2 fabulously super-talented crafters joining our design team for the next 4 weeks as our Guest Designers. Welcome aboard Bonnie and Zoe! Here's a little something about these talented ladies and a link to their blogs so you can go for a quick peek at their fabulous creations.

Bonnie
I am a farm wife with a love for stamping and golfing. I have a wonderfully supportive husband, (with his OWN expensive hobbies - thank goodness!) 3 fabulous children, all grown up, and a precious little grandson and now granddaughter, who have us wrapped around their fingers and toes! I gather eggs on our farm and in my spare time I LOVE to stamp! Here's Bonnie's blog, The Lucky Clucker.

Zoe
I have always been one to be ‘making’ things with my hands.

My main crafting passion is definitely stamping and making cards. Over the years I have had a number of craft product ideas but have let them slip by only to kick myself afterwards. So this year my New Year's Resolution is to "Go For It!" and so Make'it'Crafty is born!

new LOVE challenge, Guest Baker Bonnie, and a winner!

Hey there, fellow crafters! It's Friday again, and that means we have THREE big pieces of news to share. First, a big thank you to everyone who participated in our BLING Challenge! We had the best turnout yet, with 25 submissions! TWENTY-FIVE! Which means we're also VERY happy that we don't have to choose a winner from the amazing projects, but we rely on random.org to do the dirty work for us. :)

That said, I am pleased to announce the winner of the Bling Challenge..... congratulations to LISA! Your snowman card was adorable! :) Lisa, please send your mailing information to Phebe so she can get your prize sent out, and thank you so much for playing along!

Our next piece of news involves a GUEST in the Humble Pie kitchen! We are very pleased to welcome Bonnie to our team for the next four weeks! We love Bonnie's work, and we're so pleased she's agreed to join us!

And last, but not least, we have a brand new challenge for you today. The theme? LOVE! Use RED, PINK and WHITE, and you MUST include hearts somewhere on your creations! The use of Humble Pie stamps is not required, but if you have them, we'd love to see them! Take a look at some inspiration from our Bakers....

Bonnie, our GUEST Baker!:


Phebe:




Leah the Orange:




Shelly (didn't have to play, but couldn't resist!):


Maria (obviously this is NOT a Humble Pie image, but Phebe carries many wonderful Magnolia images in her store!):




Lisa:


Kim S.:


Katie:


Janet:

Ann:




The winner of this challenge will get the Maggie In Love rubber stamp featured in most of the projects you see above. You have until next THURSDAY, January 28th at midnight EST to comment below with a link to your entry. Don't forget that your project must be created NEW for this challenge, and you must link back here on your blog post! HAVE FUN! We can't wait to see your sweet projects!

Confucius says...

"Wherever you go, go with all your heart."

Friends, be passionate about every thing you do. If you're giving someone a hug, hug warmly and meaningfully. If you're creating art, put your whole SELF into it, and do it with love. Don't do things with half effort, and don't do anything you wouldn't be proud of.

Confucius knew.

Marble Background Tutorial

Super Baker Katie has cooked up something special in the Humble Pie kitchen today. Look at this gorgeous card with the funky background created with you'll never believe it but MARBLES - wow!



For this tutorial you will need: marbles, re-inkers, a plastic stamp case and cardstock.


Step 1: Add a few drops of reinker to your plastic case. The first color chosen here is red.


Step 2: Insert marbles into the case and roll them around gently, making sure they are coated well.


Step 3: Insert cardstock into case or using an adhesive attach to the lid of the case.


Step 4: Gently roll the marbles over the cardstock. If you've taped the cardstock to the top, close firmly and flip over to roll marbles over cardstock. Isn't this awesome!


Step 5: Clean your plastic case with baby wipes and repeat steps 1-4 with brown re-inker (this pic shows both the red and brown). This can be repeated as many times as you like to get the look you prefer.


So what do you think? Pretty amazing, right?! Give this technique a try and let us know how you like it. Maybe you could even try it for this week's BLINGY challenge here.

Happy Inking!

Tip Tuesday #3 - Un Gooing Scissors

Welcome to another edition of Tip Tuesday. Hope you are enjoying the tips and tricks so far.

Our talented Baker Ann has a wonderful tip for us today on 'un gooing' scissors. Nail polish remover works wonders and cleans up scissors right away. So give this tip/trick a try the next time your scissors get sticky with accumulated glue.

Don't forget to join in on our Bling challenge here.

it's HOPPIN' in the Humble Pie kitchen!

We have seen a FABULOUS turnout for the current BLING Challenge at Humble Pie, and we are absolutely thrilled to see so many participants!

THANK you to all the lovely crafters who keep visiting us, week after week, and who have been playing along and helping spread the word about our blog, our challenges, and our STAMPS! We are very grateful!

So, who wants to know what the PRIZE will be for this challenge?
Phebe, the owner of The Town Scrapper and sole proprietor of Humble Pie Stamps, is offering up the ADORABLE Humble Pie Sweeties COUPLE stamp, as featured on MANY of the Bakers' cards for this challenge! Here's what the image looks like all done up in true Humble Pie fashion:


Perfect for Valentine's Day, dontcha think? :)

Well get those projects linked to the Challenge Post! The deadline is this THURSDAY, January 21st at midnight EST.

And we have some TERRIFIC NEWS to share!

Phebe's SALE has been so popular she's decided to extend it until February 14, 2010. Everything in the store is buy 1, get the 2nd of equal or lesser value for 50% off!

EVERYTHING in the store!

Contact Phebe at info@townscrapper.com or by phone at (519) 882-0623.

Flourish Winner, and new BLINGY challenge at Humble Pie!

Happy FRIDAY, fellow crafters! Hope you are all about to enjoy a restful and crafty weekend - are you ready for a new challenge and loads of yum from the Humble Pie Bakers?

WAIT! Before we announce this week's challenge, we'd like to thank everyone who played with us last week for the Flourish Challenge - we saw some wonderful work, and it's always nice to check out the variety of submissions. Our dear friend, Mr. Randomizer, has selected the winner of the exclusive Humble Pie "Snowman with Shovel" stamp, and congratulations goes out to.....

SHENG! Here's the lovely card she created:


BEAUTIFUL! Well done, Sheng! Please drop Phebe a line with your mailing information to info@townscrapper.com and she will see to it that your stamp gets to you!

So, to celebrate the fact that another Friday has arrived, we have a brand new challenge for you, and we think you'll enjoy it... What crafter doesn't LOVE a little BLING on their creations?! :)

This week's challenge is to use AT LEAST TWO DIFFERENT TYPES OF BLING on your creations. Think of the possibilities! Jewels/rhinestones, pearls, Stickles/glitter, shimmery paper, Glimmer Mists, shiny metal objects/charms, shimmery ribbons and trims, and the list goes on! Remember, at least two DIFFERENT types (so a ton of rhinestones won't quite work, but add some silver ribbon and we're in business!). Check out what our Bakers have prepared:

Kim S.:


Lisa:


Ann:


Melanie:


Shelly:


Katie:


Maria:


Janet:


Pretty tasty, no? :)

So do you think you can whip up a yummy recipe for this challenge? You do NOT have to use a Humble Pie image in your project, but we'd love to see them if you have them! Please be sure to link to your project by adding a comment below, and make sure you link back to us as well! Projects must be created new for this challenge, and you have until next THURSDAY, January 21 at midnight EST to play along. One lucky winner will get the Humble Pie Sweetheart couple stamp as their prize. Remember this stamp line is exclusively available only at the Town Scrapper and by popular demand, Phebe has extended her SALE until February 14, 2010. Everything in the store is buy 1 get the 2nd item for equal or lesser value for 50% off. How great is that! So what are you waiting for? Get busy inking in your kitchen and join in the fun with our challenge.

We can't wait to see your BLINGY projects!

Hmmmm... ponder this!

"A Good artist has less time than ideas." - Martin Kippenberger (German artist)

Friends, how true is this? We are all artists (yes, even you!), and no matter how much time we set aside for the craft we love so very much, it's never enough to accommodate all the ideas in our heads. NOT ENOUGH HOURS IN THE DAY! You say this a lot, right? (I sure do!)

Create one project, and several more are born before its completion. This is the sign of a true artist. Our thoughts are forever evolving, churning new ideas and possibilities - the trick to make them a reality. And those you can't get to right away - DOCUMENT THEM! Don't lose those precious ideas!

Most importantly, be patient. This is so common of artists, and while it may be maddening to never find time to let this whirlwind of ideas take shape and come to life, it's a neverending circle in the art world. Instead of letting the frustration take hold and interrupt your creative process, promise yourself you'll get around to it "eventually". :)

Xyron 150 Create-A-Sticker Tutorial

Today's tutorial explains how to use the Xyron 150 Create-a-Sticker. It's available in 2 funky colours: sparkly purple or sparkly pink.

You can turn virtually anything up to 1.5 inches wide into a sticker. I've used mine for letters, embellishments, long thin swirly trims and ribbon. The unit is also small enough to easily take to crafting classes.

To use the unit, drop or place the item into the top of the X-shaped dispenser, making sure the side you want the adhesive on is facing down.

To apply adhesive, gently pull the item through the unit by grasping the film on the lower right corner of the X-shaped dispenser.

Tear off the film and pull off the clear layer of film. Lift the item gently off the white layer of adhesive backing and voila you're ready to place it wherever you want on your card, scrapbooking page or altered item. If you find a bit of residue glue on the front of the sticker just use an eraser and the glue comes right off.

I was going to take pictures of each of the steps but instead found a great video online demonstrating how to use the Xyron PLUS replace the cartridge of adhesive. Click here to watch the video.

If you're interested in purchasing one of these handy dandy tools, please contact Phebe at info@townscrapper.com or by phone at 519-882-0623.

Have a great day and don't forget to join in this week's Flourish challenge here.