Orange Spiral Arts

Fancy Stamps

Hello and Happy Winter Solstice to You!

I would like to share a little more of my journey in stamp carving for Julie Fei-Fan Balzer's #CarveDecember challenge.

At first, I carved the alphabet and a set of numbers. I drew these myself, then carved them out. After those sets were done, I wanted to carve some cool designs. Julie's book, Carve Stamp Play has fantastic instructions for making patterns that repeat. I was intimidated, but excited to try to make some of these stamps.

The results are good. I am pleased with how my stamps turned out. Pictured below (in reverse order) are the following stamps:  a triangle stamp, a quarter repeat stamp, and a stamp I made based on a stencil called Tracks. The Tracks stencil is designed by LynnK and can be found on the artistcellar website.

If you wish to have hand carved stamps like I did, I am here to share that it is possible. I am a messy artist, so I am not after perfection. Carving stamps works for both kinds of artists- precise or messy.

As far as choosing a design, there are several great stamp carving books with designs you can trace. Of course, once you get the hang of it all, creating your own designs is also fun!

I hope you found this post helpful.

Happy Creating!

-Briana

PS  Scroll to the bottom for a list of stamp carving books.

1.  

Carve, Stamp, Play: Designing and Creating Custom Stamps

2.  

Making an Impression: Designing & Creating Artful Stamps

3.  

The Weekend Crafter: Rubber Stamp Carving: Techniques, Designs & Projects 

4.  

Print & Stamp Lab: 52 Ideas for Handmade, Upcycled Print Tools (Lab Series) 

5.  

Yellow Owl's Little Prints: Stamp, Stencil, and Print Projects to Make for Kids

6.  

Put Your Stamp on It: 20 Adorable Projects, Plus Instructions for Hand-Carving Beautiful Stamps

Carve December Challenge

Hello Wonderful Readers,
This month, I have been participating in the Carve December Challenge introduced by the artist Julie Fei-Fan Balzer. Most of us are over on Instagram with the hashtag #CarveDecember. I thought I would share a little of what I have achieved so far.
I have done very little stamp carving prior to this month. And, I have dreamed of having boxes and drawers full of my own handmade stamps for years! So, I accepted Julie's challenge to carve a stamp everyday for the month of December.
I am a mother to a fabulous two year old, so sometimes finding the time to create can be difficult. I have carved out time (no pun intended) each morning, before my family wakes up. To ensure that I did not fail at this challenge, I started carving up to six alphabet letters per morning. As you can see, I have completed an upper case alphabet, as well as a set of numbers, and it is not even mid-December! Let's just say that I have been on a roll! The structure of having a routine, a specific task, and prepping for the next day at the end of each studio session, have been keys to my success.
Thank you for being here to see my art and read about this Carve December Challenge. If you are on Instagram (IG), you can look me up to see even more of my stamps. My name on IG is BrianaCreates.
Thanks again for your interest and support.
Happy Creating to You!
-Briana

2015: Year of the Spark

Dearest Ones,

I'd like to let you know about an amazing year-long project created by Carla Sonheim and Lynn Whipple called, "Year of the Spark".  Carla and Lynn have been collaborating on some online classes in 2014, and now they are teaming up to teach together in 2015!  I adore both of them, their styles, their kindness, and their art work.   If you are interested in delving more into your creativity and your life as an artist, I highly recommend that you take a look at this offering.

Here is the promo video with Carla and Lynn:

 

As you can see, this is going to be amazing.  

I would like to ask for your help, so that I too, can join in on this amazing creative, artful adventure.

I have many offerings to share with you that would help me afford to sign up for Year of the Spark.

1.  I recently listed many items for sale in my OrangeSpiralArts Etsy shop.  

I have original mixed media art pieces and paintings.

I have a really amazing handmade, messy artist, art journaling kit.

I have a digital download of a set of hand-painted watercolor papers, as well.

Please stop by my shop and see if anything catches your eye!

2.  Last year, I created my first online class.  I made it incredibly affordable, so that I could reach as many people as possible.  The online class is all about making a vision board, and how to make your dreams become reality.  I invite you to sign up and make your own vision board for 2015.  Even if you have made many vision boards, you will get inspiration and my unique perspective on the vision board making process. It only costs $12.50!  Now that is an affordable investment in yourself, if you ask me!

3.  Speaking of investing in your education, I highly recommend Leonie Dawson's Amazing Biz and Life Academy.  I am an affiliate for Leonie's program, so you get something amazing, and your purchase helps to support me and my family, too.  (Thank you!!!)

4.  If you are looking for an amazing planner for 2015, you can purchase Leonie's planner through my affiliate link here.  Again, you get a wonderful product by Leonie, and you get to help support my little family at the same time.  It's a win-win!  (Thank you!!!  I truly am grateful).

5.  Finally, I was part of an incredible project last year.  A group of women, spiritual, artistic women from around the world, gathered online to create a powerful, beautiful oracle deck of cards.  The deck is called, Awakening to Your Divine Self:  Wisdom and Love from Your Fearless Sisters Oracle Deck.  You can purchase one of the last four decks I have for sale right here.

Thank you for reading this far and for your support.  I am truly grateful.

From You I Receive

To You I Give

Together WE Share

And from This We Live

May It Be So