Sara Jane's Studio

Stampin' UP! Color Renovation - Means Retiring Colors

For those of you who do not receive my newsletter, you may not be aware that Stampin' UP! has re-vamped their entier color offering this year. They are calling it their Color Renovation, and it will debut on July 1 with the new Stampin' UP! catalog.

We all know, although we may not be completely aware, that what makes something stylish and "NOW" is not just it's shape or overall design, but also the color.  Those of you, like me, old enough to remember Avocado Green and Harvest Gold from the kitchens of the '60s know what I mean.  The colors were fresh and modern then, but just look old and dowdy now.

Stampin' UP! realized that it was time to take a look at their color offerings.  The company did extensive researh to identify the best colors to use in their collections.  And while we may not agree with all of the choices they made, the result is a great, fresh new take on color for all of our crafting needs.  They are still offering cardstock, patterned paper, ink, markers, scrapping kits and ribbons in color-coordinated families with new family names:  Brights, Subtles, Regals, and Neutrals.

This also means that many colors are retiring as of June 30.  Unfortunately, some of these are already out of stock.  So if you want to try to stock up on your own favorites before they are gone, please order right away.

I have archived my newsletters which highlighted Color Renovation, and show examples of projects for each of the families.  Just click below to read the newsletters and see all of the details! 

Retiring Colors

Brights

Subtles

Regals

Neutrals

 

 Contact me if you'd like to receive the new catalog on July 1 so you can start ordering your own!!  (You only pay $5.50 postage for the catalog- payable however you like: check, credit card or PayPal.)

P.S.  Of course the new catalog also means retiring stamp sets - You have until June 30 to order them.  Click here for the complete list of retiring stamps, and here for the retiring accessories.

A Father's Day Greeting

You have to love a good patterned paper!!  It can make your design decisions very easy, and even carry the whole design for you.

My Father's Day card this year used the new Designer Paper from Stampin' Up! called Greenhouse Gala (coming out on July 1).  The bold zig zag pattern carries the day, together with the equally bold graphic sentiment from All Holidays, a perennial favorite stamp set.

The card base is textured Early Espresso (also being released on July 1, part of the overall Stampin' Up! Color Renovation).  I cut the patterned paper along the lines of the design.  The sentiment was done using Real Red, Early Espresso, and Baja Breeze markers (the latter is a returning InColor), direct-to-rubber on the stamp image.  The word "Father's" was stamped again separately, cut out, and mounted with Stampin' Dimensionals.  The whole image was mounted with Stampin' Dimensionals on Early Espresso and then again on Pumpkin Pie. 

To finish things off, I added four red brads along the bottom, to help balance the overall use of red.  My loving sentiment was added inside (on a piece of white cardstock, of course!), and off it went to my dad!

Happy Father's Day to all!!
 

A Year of Collage - June 2010

Most years I manage to create a calendar that consists of a unique collaged design for each month, and call it "A Year of Collage".  I try to play with different techniques for each month, and as much as possible, of course, have the design be appropriate to the month.

Here is June for 2010.

I used cold press watercolor paper for the base together with some great watercolors from Stamp Zia.  She formulates her own sprays which create these vibrant colors that just come alive.  I used a plastic template with a flourish design, and simply kept spraying.  I'd move it, and use another color, and move it and use a third color.  Then, using a heat gun, I'd dry the whole design and start over again.  The key is to keep layering colors, drying when needed so they don't all blend together and create a muddy mess.

The gold embellishment is a piece of chipboard from my stash, painted gold with Jacquard Lumiere paint, and then highlighted with a gold Dew Drop. 

The colors seemed to match perfectly with Crushed Curry and Rich Razzleberry cardstock.

You can see all of the other months for 2010 by clicking here.  If you are lucky, you can join me late in the year for a two-part class to create your own calendar for next year.  Just sign up for my newsletter so you can get notice of my upcoming classes as a reminder.