Make your own stamps! Journal Starters

There is nothing more satisfying than creating your own printing imagery. Eraser carvings are pretty simple to complete and there is a wealth of tutorials available both in print and on the internet. Here is a fabulous one from Geninne's Art Blog. 

The craft is pretty straight forward to learn and requires minimal tools and just a bit of practice. The real trick to creating your own stamps is coming up with imagery. There isn't a ton of info out there on designing so I address it in my classes and on my DVD. I use resources such as textiles and paintings with a strong graphic, Matisse is one of my own personal favorites. Draw, draw, draw then design. 

These wonderful stamps were made by my students at A&S Hampton. They each printed one into my journal for me. These pages are a lovely reminder of the day and positive proof that if you take some time to look, gather information and design, you can be very successful with eraser carving. We looked at artists and textiles and made some drawings which we then translated into stamp format. 

Tonight, my teen journalers went to town after I showed them some of Matisse's paper cut outs and designed stamps using craft foam (available for very cheap at craft stores). Here is a video I made using craft foam for stamps. It is one of my first videos, before I had a tripod and editing equipment but it gets the point across!

It is still brutally hot here; 103 F today so the studio is still out of the question. No painting rounds this week :( but there is plenty of art to be made right in the cool comfort of my livingroom and diningroom. and believe me: I am grateful to have all of this space and that nobody ever seems to care that there my "stuff" is everywhere. 

Stay cool everyone and you Aussie & NZ readers, go on and enjoy your socks and sweaters.