A little babble, a little art, a little happiness...

Okay, since this is a very long post, I decided to put the art at the top, so if you really don't card about what I have to say, you can just look at the artwork! No hurt feelings, I am really not sure that anyone has the time these days to read a post this long : )

The card above was made with some new stamps I picked up over the weekend.Since I am in a phase right now where I can't decide if a fireball has hit the earth or if it is just me, I thought this was pretty appropriate. My "hot lady" was colored with Copics, cut out, and popped over a Splatter background that was decorated with the Heavenly Holes Technique. Both techniques are from the June 2009 issue of the Technique Junkie Newsletter.

Here's where things get long!

On Saturday I spent the day at the Heirloom rubber stamp convention in West Springfield MA. I had so much fun on Saturday...I came home inspired and invigorated, truly more than I ever have from any stamp show ever. I took tons of pictures and have alot of new ideas to share over the next few months. It was a good thing! I talked so much on the way home that I swear my friends Valerie and Jinny were ready to stuff a stamp into my mouth.

I was able to connect with so many people -- some of our great giveaway sponsors, some new giveaway sponsors, some advertisers, one of my design team members, and, of course, and most importantly, some Technique Junkie subscribers and patstamps followers. It really was a great day!

I was happy to see Judy Jackson, from the TJ design team, demoing at Gary Burlin's booth. Judy was demoing "Smoosh" -- I just love this stuff and you can bet your bottom dollar that Judy will be filming a tutorial or two for us! I was able to snap a few good shots off when she wasn't looking, too. I intended to go back to the booth and talk with her & talk our picture together, but they literally shoved us out the door at the end of the day -- I really should have gone back on Sunday, but family obligations prevented me from doing that. Next year, I am going to teach classes on Friday, and work on Saturday and Sunday at the show...so that I am there all weekend talking to my heart's content.

I cannot tell you the number of times people ask me "how do you keep coming up with new things?" (and honestly, I was asked it at least 20 times at the show!)...so I thought I might share some of the ways that I find techniques for the Technique Junkies:

First, you have to realize that I have filmed over 520 Techniques. Yes, Five Hundred and Twenty DIFFERENT Techniques. Just writing that amazes even me! I guess I never added them up before, but that is alot! So here is where I get my inspiration:

1. I stamp alot. I play alot. I stumble on interesting ways of doing things. ALOT.


2. Not everything is "brand-new". Stampers have been around for a long time...and there have been art techniques for a long time. I use old and new techniques. I spin off old techniques.


3. My design team develops and films new techniques all the time. Thirteen brains are better than one!


4. You, my readers, send me techniques constantly. Usually the best ones, too. And I try to be generous in compensation -- with at least a free year subscription and sometimes other things, too.


5. I am a big scrapbooker. I use scrapbooking techniques and modify them for stamping.


6. Things around me inspire me. I was in the hardware store with DH last month and was hit with a sharp pang of inspiration. After he watered me, my DH deposited me in my stamp room so that I could ease the pang by turning it into a technique!


7. I subscribe to blogs. If someone posts something cool, I ask their permission to use their technique and I compensate them. I would never knowingly take someones technique, re-film it, and NOT credit them. I think that is unethical! Although this is not a big source of stuff for me -- if I have seen it, you probably have, too!


8. I cruise art galleries of mixed media artists on the Internet for inspiration. Non-stamping, mixed media artists have some great ideas that I can modify -- or sometimes just ideas that set my mind going.


9. Finally, I go to stamp conventions, watch the demos, look at as many samples as I can, find new products, see what they are doing with old products -- I always come away inspired. Really, I can look at a sample and my mind starts to turn the background into a technique. It is a fun challenge for me!

Well, thanks for reading this if you made it all the way down : ) I hope that you find some inspiration today, too!