It’s no secret that I love when people use art and crafting as a supplement to their daily routines. I’ve known Pamela for twelve years – she sits right next to me at work. Pamela has two passions: tuneless whistling and painting. Like me, Pamela has an artistic passion outside of work and has been attending classes with her art teacher, Elizabeth Grimes, for 17 years. Elizabeth coined the phrase “art is my vitamin” (it’s trademarked or copyrighted or patented or…well, let’s say she owns the rights to the phrase). It’s a really cool concept, though. Art is a supplement for our day and gives us energy and strength and niacin – OK, maybe there’s no niacin in art, but you get the point.
Where was I? Oh, yes. Pamela and a group of five other women have been painting – watercolors and oils on canvases and objects – with Elizabeth for 17 years. Once a week for 17 years. The classes are coming to an end (Elizabeth is retiring), so Pamela asked if I would make cards for the members of her group. She knew she wanted “Art is a Vitamin” on the card. She also wanted a paint brush or paint palette and the color purple. Those were my guidelines. Here’s what I designed for her:
Tips, Tricks and Reminders
- A Pallet of Colors. I was stumped as to how I would create a palette or a paintbrush to meet Pamela’s request. On my drive home one day, it hit me! Why don’t I punch an oval and then snip the end to represent a pallet? I could add glimmer brads (a great way to get those gorgeous, little accents out of my craft room) to represent the paint on the pallet. Woo hoo!
- Gorgeous Grunge, Made Gorgeous. I’ve really grown to love the projects I’ve seen with Gorgeous Grunge. It’s a great stamp set to age a project, giving watermarks or spots. I brightened it up a bit, turning the images into beautiful spots of colorful paint. I matched the background colors with the colors available in the glimmer brads – except one. You don’t see any Gorgeous Grunge spots in Real Red. Wanna guess why? Because they look like blood stains – this ain’t CSI. π
- Crumb Cake, a Natural Complement. With all the colors popping on this card, it needed some Crumb Cake to bring the card back down to earth a bit. Along with the Crumb Cake palette, I added a thin border of Crumb Cake around the outside of the card and a thin layer around the sentiment. A Crumb Cake envelope is the perfect complement for this card.
Stamp Sets: Gorgeous Grunge Inks: Rich Razzleberry, Pumpkin Pie, Tempting Turquoise, Old Olive Papers: Rich Razzleberry, Crumb Cake, Whisper White Accessories: Squares Collection Framelits, Extra-Large Oval punch, 3/8″ Glimmer Brads (Brights), Stampin’ Dimensionals
I’m also entering this card in the Pixel Maven’s Retreat DigiChallenge, which challenges us to create a project with brads. Since I used glimmer brads on my project (and My Digital Studio to create the sentiment), I deserve credit for MDS and brads – and extra credit for using glitter brads (don’t you think?):
Thanks for stopping by my blog today!
Brian
Product Shares and Designer Series Swatch Books. I’m still receiving requests for swatch books and product shares. If you’ve been thinking about joining but haven’t yet, now’s your chance. Click here for more information.
I love it Brian! I’m an art teacher as well as an SU! demo and will have to case your idea but add my own touch! Of course I’ll change the sentiment too. love it! Can I add it to my Pintrest board as well? I don’t want to overstep any trademarks. be well -Vanessa
I think this card is your best ever and you do make amazing cards! You have a keen eye for artistic detail and you are able to explain it so well. I truly love reading your daily posts. Awesome, beyond awesome, card! Seriously consider making it into a poster (can print a jpeg into poster size) to hang in your fungeon!!!!!
WOW! What a way to rock the challenges and requests! I am sure your coworker (and fellow artist) will absolutely LOVE this card! You have inspired me to look into what MDS is all about. I want to do my own sentiments. π
This is PAINT-TASTIC!!! I am totally digging this Brian. I love paper crafts but I also have a passion for painting and you totally nailed it with this card.
Great card, Brian! I’m sure your coworker will love it. Your creativity never ceases to amaze and awe me. You are always an inspiration . THANK YOU!
hahahaha – you crack me up – This an’t CSI
Love the card.
Perfect card!
Follow every day..Love all your cards. Hilda ( Beth’s sister)
gorgeous card, Brian, you really nailed this one! quite surprised you allowed glitter brads in the fungeon though, are they securely stored in multiple containers to prevent glitter spread? lol
Another stunning card, I love the pallet idea, so clever. π
Wow, Brian! I love the pallet idea that you used. So creative!
I always love opening your blog to see what card you have created. They are great, but for some reason, this one FLOORED me! I’m not an art teacher nor do I paint, but this card blew me away. TFS π
But has Pamela seen the card? Inquiring minds want to know. I bet she loves it! What an inspiring sentiment she has claimed as her own. I think everyone who stamps was nodding their heads as they read it. She’s gonna miss working with you as well as her art classes!
Again, just when I think you can’t blow me away with your creations any more than you already have….you come up with this card. This is superb! Your brain is a creative machine–and has obviously had plenty of vitamins!
This is awesome! You mean I don’t have to BUY a palette die? Yours is PERFECT.
What an amazing card! Truly a masterpiece! Your post is great too! Art is definitely my vitamin! π
What an awesome card Brian!!! I may have to case this one. Love it!!!
Oh Brian!!!! I <3 this card! You always meet a challenge head on – and I'm so happy to see you used MDS to help your vision come to life! Thanks for playing this week at Pixel Maven's DigiChallenge – I'll keep your "extra credit" argument in mind when picking out my winner…. but, no guarantees! LOL!
Thank you, Brian, for another LOL post. I save your blog until the end of the day; it almost always makes me chuckle for one reason or another – and I love being in that humorous frame of mind as I let the day slip away. Please keep right on doing what you do so well and thanks again for sharing it with us! P.S. I know it was an inadvertent typo, but I’m really going to start adding “think layers” to my cards π
Pingback: Clean and Simple Birthday | stampwithbrian.com
Yes I agree, a masterpiece. I think the phrase “Art is my Vitamin” would be a great one for stampin up to use. They could have different words like cooking, gardening, reading, crafting, etc.
That is a work of art. So clever to create the palette as you did.
I agree – one of your best one…..yet! It really is clever and a work of art. Bravo!!
Magnificent!
Wow! I just came upon your blog tonight and started looking through. This card is amazing!! ! I love everything about it…the colors, the sentiment, the genius way you made the palette and you are right about the addition of the crumbcake mat! A masterpiece! Love your other work too and will be looking at it in length when I have more time.
ABSOLUTELY great card! Is the saying a stamp or did you do it on an alpha set? Love the idea of turning it into a poster, and loved your comment about CSI!
Leslie, I printed the sentiment with my computer and printer. I don’t think the alphabet sets were photopolymer back then. Glad you like the card! π