It’s Useful & Cheap! DIY Desk Blotter for Stamping & Crafts!

Hi friends! Tonight I have a quick, easy, cheap and useful DIY for you. We are going to make a desk blotter that is the perfect surface to stamp and craft on and if you make a mess simply pull out the top sheet and keep on creating! I am using 12″x18″ black construction paper and white drawing paper in mine because the black is great to shoot video against and the white is neat if I am using spray mists because I can use my paper as backing paper or gift wrap later but you can use whatever size and type of paper you like. If you have old 12″x12″ scrapbook paper you want to use up you can make it 12″x12″ and use the back sides of the paper, same if you have old 8.5″x11″ office paper. Make it whatever size you like and use up that old paper you don’t know what to do with. I recommend having a stack of paper about 1/2″-1″ thick to have a nice amount of give for stamping. Watch the video to see how to make it!

Video!

Supplies:

• Scrap paper
• Cardboard cut to the same size as your scrap paper
• Duct tape

If you do not have any scrap paper to use up you can simply tear the cover off an old phone book and use that as a stamping/crafting/gluing surface too, or grab a pad of newsprint at the dollar store and just tear off the top sheet when it gets too dirty. The thing I like about using the backs of scrapbook paper or office paper is that it is likely acid free and sometimes you end up with pretty waste papers after projects and if they are good quality they can spawn more art but really, use what you have. I will have episode #2 of stamp school tomorrow and this is the perfect stamping surface so I hope you give it a try, it only takes a few minutes to make and it is really useful. Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

Hey Bloggers & YouTubers, this Art Marketing Videos is for YOU!

Hi friends! It’s Art Marketing Monday, I think that’s going to be a thing (at least until I run out of ideas) and today I want to talk to the bloggers and vloggers out there who enrich our lives with their inspiring content. I know many of you have blogs and YouTube channels and I know how hard it is to get your channel large enough to be hired or sponsored by companies or even get on design teams working for product. You likely have a passionate audience who often buys things you use and recommend, so why not get some of that money that you have earned? I am going to talk about affiliates today. Anyone with a blog or YouTube channel can sign up to be in an affiliate program. You put a link to the product you used and if someone clicks through and buys it (or anything else on that website) you get a small % of the sale. It will not cost your viewer extra either. It is a way your viewers can support you while purchasing stuff they want. I’ll explain more in today’s video!

Video!

Unfortunately there some states where you can not be an affiliate with the major companies, Maine is one of them so no Amazon, Blick or Joann affiliations for me which is a shame because I send so many people over there anyway for the deals but I have found smaller companies who are more than happy to have me like Hallmark Scrapbook and honestly, I’d rather promote an independant family run business who stocks all the new products at the lowest prices. See what I did there? 😉 I bet most of the bloggers you follow also take part in affiliate programs and I know of a few who make a near full-time income at it. They don’t live in Maine. Many other bloggers use it as a way to offset costs of keeping their website up and running. However you choose to approach it remember to be honest about your affiliations, it will only help you in the long run. I really hope this helps some smaller crafty content creators out there bring in some cash so they can continue doing what they love and (selfishly) keep inspiring the rest of us! The rising tide lifts ALL boats. Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

Oh, the Consumption…I feel faint…

My name is Lindsay and it’s been 28 hours since my last craft purchase. Hi friends! Do you ever feel like you are consuming more than creating? I feel like I have been very productive crafting but I have also been a productive shopper. I seem to go in spurts with shopping, I can go months with only buying necessary items for my business (framing supplies, packaging material) and then occasionally I fall off the wagon! June had been a big craft shopping smorgasbord with the Heirloom Stamp Show and tonight I will share some things I ordered on a great sale (to be fair I had a  gift card for all but $10 at Jerry’s Artarama.) Oh and yesterday, I needed new sneakers and while I was out I stopped into Joann and ACmoore and some 97 cent a roll duct tape and other deals leaped into my basket, phew, it feels good to get that off my chest. I feel conflicted when I post a haul, on one hand I am excited and I like sharing the deals in case anyone is also looking for the items I found and I am interested in hearing what you would like me to demo first BUT I don’t want anyone to feel let down if they do not have access to what I have. I sometimes feel like “How can I call myself frugal when I have so much?” Although I hope that my videos can help others save money I’d rather spend my money to test out stuff and see if it is worth it (and share it in videos) so others can make informed decisions with their money. But on the other hand it might be enabling people to buy stuff. Hmmmm, what to do. Post a warning maybe? This is a haul video and may cause the overpowering urge to buy craft supplies?

Watch at your own risk.

Video!

I am actually really excited to try the creative palette vs the Gelli plate as the creative palette is generally cheaper and thinner to store. I hope to give it a try before my vacation, I am shooting double videos every day to make sure I will have videos for you when I go offline for a week. Let me know if there is any product you are excited about me trying, i have a very crafty week ahead of me! Oh and the other spree I mentioned earlier will be posted sometime when I am on vacation, I guess there are worse kinds of sprees to go on…nobody’s perfect. Thanks for stopping by and being my support group tonight and til next time happy crafting!

Pretty Peacock Stamped Card!

Howdy friends! Today I have a colorful card using lots of fun stamping techniques!

Video!

You can get the stamps I used from Carmen’s Veranda. You can get the Spectrum Aqua Markers at Hallmark Scrapbook (affiliate link, clicking the link and shopping supports me blog and YouTube channel, thanks!)

Other Supplies:

• glossy photo paper
• cardstock
• patterned paper
• Kaliedacolor (rainbow) ink-pad
• chalk
• color duster or brush for inking

I hope you see what fun you can have with your stamps, ink-pads, chalks and markers soon! If you liked this project please share it on Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter 🙂 Have a great night and til next time happy crafting!

Let’s Paint a Ruffly Flower! {Real-time mini painting!)

Hi friends! I was looking for something the other day and came across a box of small frames I bought years ago when I needed cheap ways to display my art for sale. There was a bunch of 3.5″x6″ acrylic frames with a magnet on the back, they were meant for displaying photos on a ‘fridge but I would put small watercolor paintings in them and sell them for $5. I like making small watercolor paintings. They are a great way to warm up before attempting a large painting or a fun thing to do if you can only squeeze in 15 minutes of painting in your day. Often I will work on 4 or 5 paintings at a time so I can skip around when I am waiting for stuff to dry. As you can imagine I can end up with stacks of these little paintings so the small frames are a great way to display and sell them. I hope you like these mini paintings because I chopped up a bunch of paper to 3.5″x5″ and I am going to flip on the camera and film them as I do them. So, here is the first one, a ruffled pink flower:

Video!

Here is the reference photo I used by Christine Coffey at Paint my Photo. I used Yarka watercolors and Albright Druer watercolor pencils on Canson Montville 140# cold pressed paper. You can use whatever brands you like though:) Thanks for stopping by and have a great night!

My Mermaid Amulet! What will you make?

Hi friends! Sometimes I am just playing with supplies and I feel a bit of magic happen. Old supplies mix with new and fun things happen. That is how I felt when I made this:

I love funky jewelry. I had a box of 100 small kraft jewelry boxes from our sponsor Papermart and I wanted to do something different with them. They are really rugged and I thought they would make cool shadowbox necklaces. I went with a beach theme but you can do whatever you like with the supplies you have on hand. You can use mini photos to make more of a locket too! Watch the video to see how I made mine.

Video!

Supplies:
Small Kraft Jewelry Boxes
Washi Tape
2mm Satin Cord (AKA Rat-Tail)
Ephemera, beads and found objects
Glitter
Acrylic Paint
X-Acto Knife (craft knife)
Cardboard
Scissors
Scrap yarn/fibers

I can think of dozens of themes for these necklaces all using the vintage stuff I have collected over the years. How about you, are you going to try  something similar? I hope you do and share pics over on Facebook. Oh, and I’d love it if you pinned this idea on Pintrest and shared it on your favorite social media, sharing is caring! Thanks for stopping b and til next time happy crafting!

Stamp School! A Free Stamping Class for Beginners! Episode 1-Basic Products

Hi friends, I have been wanting to create a beginner stamping series for a long time. Many of us got into stamping 10+ years ago and we built on techniques as new products became available. For new stampers entering the hobby it is overwhelming. This summer I am going to bring you a weekly class right here on my blog and YouTube Channel teaching you the basics of stamping using a limited palette of supplies so you can try it out without going broke. In this first lesson I will go over the basic supplies we will be learning in the class.

Video!

Of course there are many more supplies on the market for stampers and we will look at some of them later in the series but these I find to be the most versatile and useful to new stampers.

Supplies:
Stamps-your choice but I recommend versatile images you can use for many occasions as well as a few sentiments (greetings)
*If you are using clear or cling stamp you will also need a stamp mount (you can use a piece of plexiglass or clear plastic packaging if you want in a pinch)

Waterproof black or brown inkpad, I recommend Ranger Archival

Color media-I will be using these 3 items in the course but you do not need to have them all if you are just starting out, pick the one that you think fits your style more. Look for multi packs to keeps your costs down.

Waterbased markers: A few good brands are Spectrum Aqua, Tombow, Memento, Stampin Up, Letraset Aqua, Pitt or Distress. I will be using Spectrum Aqua

Dye ink pads: Memento, Hero arts, Distress, Lawn fawn, Stampin Up, Altenew or any brand dye inks, the smaller pad multipacks are great if you have little storage space and or budget

Watercolor pencils: Prima, Derwent, Faber Castell, Reeves and others are available. I’ll be using Prima

White cardstock: Any kind you can pick up from the office supply or craft store is fine.

This video is sponsored by Art Neko (Formally About Art Accents) and they have a special deal for Stamp School Students:
10% off merchandise (not shipping and handling) or FREE shipping on $50.00 orders. You get either the 10% or FREE shipping, whichever is more. All you have to do is mention The Frugal Crafter to get the deal.

This post also contains affiliate links to Hallmark Scrapbook, if you click one of the links and then shop I get a small % of the sales and it goes a long way to bring you free courses like this. Plus they have all the new stuff at low prices so it is a win-win! 😀

Don’t worry if you are an advanced stamper, I’ll still have my regular stamping videos as here and there, but I will be posting the beginner classes Wednesday nights on my blog through the summer. I hope you liked the first installment and til next time happy crafting!

Patriotic Hairbows!

Hi Friends! Today I have a hairbow that you can make in 10 minutes using supplies from our sponsor Offray.

DCF 1.0

In today’s Video I will show you how to make this triple-looped bow. It’s easy!

Video!

Supplies:
3/8″ Dippy Dot Red/White Grosgrain ribbon
2 1/4″ wide double faced satin ribbon (blue)
1/2″ Maggie 341 Sapphire ribbon (metallic chevron design)
Spring clip barrette
Star shaped rhinestone
Hot Glue
Bow making tool or strong clothespins/binder clips clipped to a box

Directions:
1. Place pegs 4″ apart in a bow making tool.
2. Unravel several feet of each ribbon.
3. Lay the smaller ribbons over the larger one and carefully wrap around the bow maker 3 complete times making sure to keep the smaller ribbons facing out. Do not twist the ribbon.
4. Clip the ribbon and twist the ends together, then wrap one end around the ribbon bunch and ties securely in a double knot.
5. Slide the bow off the bow maker and “fluff” the ribbon loops.
6. Trim the ends and secure with glue then glue the barrette over the knot in the back.
7. Embellish with a rhinestone if desired.

You can make these up by the dozen this 4th of July using the super size ribbon rolls from Offray! Thanks for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!

My Journey {How I became a working artist}

Hi friends! I have been meaning to make this video for a while. I get asked a lot if I went to art school and how did I get into YouTube, blogging, designing for magazines and teaching art. It is probably a rather odd path to take but I did not have anyone’s footsteps to follow in so I just plowed ahead in any direction that looked fun and I could make art. It occurred to me that there really is not a roadmap for artisans to go about making a living for themselves. I hope my journey gives you some ideas if you want to make a living for your art or craft.  I hope you find it useful. 😀

Video!

I think what I want to express is that it takes time, a thick skin and perseverance (even to the point where everyone but you thinks you are wasting your time) to get anywhere worth going. Everyone suffers disappointment and rejection but the people who succeed suck it up and go back for more. Basically, just don’t give up if you really want it BUT if you would be happier with a 9-5 job and doing art in your spare time just to please yourself that is absolutely fine too. You have to do what you know in your heart is right for you. If running an art related handmade business is your goal I encourage you to devour anything that our sponsor Renae Christine from Rich Mom Business has to say. She is such a smart cookie and she is giving away a free handmade training course to all of my readers. You can register here. If you have already taken my advice and taken her free course (well done you!) make sure you are also subscribed to her YouTube channel because she keeps everyone up to date in changes to ETSY, new online selling platforms, SEO, and lots of online selling and marketing stuff. She is my online guru and I am proud to call her a friend, or “Bestie” as she would say. 🙂 I love introducing my friends to each other! Thanks so much for stopping by and til next time happy crafting!