Ronda Palazzari Designs

Create Daily: see one, do one, Teach one

A while ago Julie Fei-Fan Balzer taught me how to carve stamps.  I had been seeing her carve stamps and always wanted to give it a try.  I am so happy she showed me.  We don't always have a master to show us but we can still learn.  In teaching we sometimes using the education model, see one, do one, teach one.  I had Julie carving one right in front of me, teaching me the tips & tricks to creating your own stamp. 

Then i began to practice my skills, first with guided help, then on my own.  I find that the more i do, the better my stamps look, and i feel my skills are growing.  With the growth, i find myself thinking more creatively.  You know how those thoughts start to tumble around in your head, what if i did this? oh this pattern would look great carved, etc. 

Once you find yourself comfortable with the process, i encourage you to Teach one to your friends.  It really reinforces what you have learned and how to convey it in a way to that makes sense to them.  Your friends will inspire you with their creations and cause you to think, hmmm why didn't i think of that?

Isn't her little birdie just the cutest thing?  I love the way she doodled inside & outside the bird with the carving knife.  It's got me to thinking about adding details to new ones i create.  I used Distress Markers and a spray bottle to stamp her bird creating the watercolor look.  Again something new i hadn't thought of before until i was sitting with her & encouraging her.  I wanted to show Lisa how cute the birdie is so i pulled out those markers.  Funny how that happens.  And now i have lots of ideas for more new stamps and how i want to stamp them. 

have you created something this week?  Anything goes...doodle, art journal, atc, tag, scrapbook page, card...just something creative.  Share a link at the bottom of this post with the inlinkz button.  Just leave a link to a specific blog post, image on flickr, or any online gallery, rather than a general url. This way we can see your stellar creation.

 

 

Create Daily: Texture

There's no doubt that i love texture.  I love the way it looks & feels in my pieces as well as other pieces.  I think it adds depth and character.  One of the many reasons i am drawn to Van Gogh's work is his broken brush strokes that created emotion through the use of texture.  So why not play around with texture in your pieces?

The textures in these canvases were created using super heavy gesso & a palette knife and stencil.  You can see the stencil texture pop with the color photo above. 

Embossing plates like this texture fade by Sizzix/Tim Holtz make it easy to add texture to your pieces.  It's easily the largest collection from sizzix i own and that's saying something.  I love pulling these out to add a little pop of texture here and there.  Break yours out when you feel you need something more.

Tags are a great way to add another layer without adding bulk.  On this tag i used my gelli arts printing plate to create the texture with acrylic paints & my kaleidoscope stencil. 

Here's a technique i love using to add a bit of texture.  See the white circles?  I used a heavy layer of acrylic paint and then used the end of a paint brush to make swirls in it while it was still wet.  Love the color peeking through the swirls.

How about some clear embossing powder?  it makes a great subtle texture that i just adore.  My favorite kinds is Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel commonly called UTEE.  Love it!

So how are you going to create some texture today?

Have you created something this week?  Anything goes...doodle, scrapbook page, art journal, card...just something creative.  Share a link at the bottom of this post with the inLinkz button.  Just leave a link to a specific blog post or image on flickr, rather than a general url. This way we can see your stellar creation.

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Create Daily: Take a Day Off

I know i am a big proponent of creating daily but every now and then we need to take a day off to recharge.  it doesn't have to be  a full day but we do need to find some time outside of the craftroom to just be.  We all tend to go, go, go.  I know i do this, jump from one project to the next, working all too hard and way too many hours.  When i feel my energy depleting or i am stressed, i walk away from my table.  My favorite way to relax & refresh in the house is to go sit in the library curling up with a magazine or a good book and a cup of tea.  Sometimes i need to get out of the house.  I've been cooped up in it too long.  There is always something to do outside the house.  Go for a walk or bike ride, or go somewhere creative like an art gallery/museum, a quaint little town for some real or window shopping.  I think it's important to just take a break to refresh & renew our creative mojo.  So i invite you to take a day off every now & then. 

How do you like to refresh?

have you created something this week?  Anything goes...doodle, scrapbook page, art journal, card...just something creative.  Share a link at the bottom of this post with the inLinkz button.  Just leave a link to a specific blog post or image on flickr, rather than a general url. This way we can see your stellar creation.

Word Up #70: FRESH

I have always been delighted at the prospect of a new day, a FRESH try, one more start, with perhaps a bit of magic waiting somewhere behind the morning. J. B. Priestley

It's time for a new word up over at OLW, my word FRESH.  Sometimes i think we need to see ourselves through others to gain a FRESH perspective on our lives.  It's happened not to long ago for me and it really made me rexamine something things in my life.  I love how friends can say just the right words at just the right time.  They make you think about things with FRESH eyes.  it sends you digging deeper, chasing down all these thoughts & ideas.  I'm ready to start FRESH.

This little art journal piece started with lots of layers of paint, gesso, stamps, and stencils.  There is even some deli paper and old text in the background.  A few hand carved stamps, some new texture paint brushes, and lots & lots of thoughts. Everything means something to me and i am pleased with how it all came together.

If you could start FRESH, what would you do?

April Stencil Round Up

I have to say that seeing my stencil designs in your hands is the greatest thrill.  i love seeing all the different types of projects & uses of something i design.  it's so surreal and makes me completely giddy.  i am always happy when someone shares with me their designs.  Feel free to tag me on twitter, instagram, or facebook, or add it to the Ronda Palazzari Designs Flickr group.  here are a few of the latest i spotted, pulled from flicker, and/or twitter.  Thank you for sharing with me!

Sharmaine Kruijver - Layouts & ATC

Oh my dear talented friend Sharmaine has gotten a hold of my kaleidoscope stencil.  I love the texture she creates on her layouts using the stencil.  You can see close ups on her blog here: EbonyJ, Autumn Stroll, and Moments ATC. 

Maggie Alvarez - Art journal

I met Maggie online and then in real person in one of my classes at Rocky mountain Memories.  She is such a delightful person, warm & friendly.  I spotted her art journal on Facebook using my Quatrefoil stencil.  I love how she doodled inside the shape for that extra touch. 

Danielle de Konink - Sugar Cookie

I found Danielle's layout on the crafter's workshop facebook page and traced it back to her blog.  I have to say i am totally digging the light grey spray ink with this stencil.  Here she is using the 6x6 confetti stencil in bits & pieces around the page.  Isn't it just lovely with the lily bee paper? 

Marjie Kemper - Bloom

Marjie has been playing again with the kaleidoscope stencil.  I think she really likes it.  I found this beautiful piece in the Ronda Palazzari Designs flickr group.  (You too can add your layouts, journal pages, etc there if you are on flickr).  Love the green and orange together along with the stencils in black. 

Lastly i have a little sneak for you.  Here's a peek at some new stencils being released this July at the CHA Create-n-Connect show.  While most of these aren't mine, you can find one hidden in there but my lips are sealed.  I have a LARGE release coming out this next round.  I am super excited to share with you.

Mono Print Tag with Borders

I adore this tag i did for the release of my kaliedoscope stencil back in Decemeber.  I created it using my gelli arts printing plate and my 6x6 stencil.  I had lots of questions on how to create the border so i made a video to share how you too can create this look. 

The video details how to create some simple "pulls" from the gelatin plate along with creating that scrumptious border all in about 6 minutes. 

This weekend i will be teaching this Simply Sweet Mini album class at Scrap 2 it in Ft. Collins.  See this post for more details  Make sure you call today to reserve your seat (970-797-2174).  Class Cost is $40.

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Pieces of My World

Over the years I have learned to collect bits & pieces of art and knickknacks, no matter how big or small, that speak to me.  Color, shape, size, story.  They don't have to be expensive pieces or found in galleries for me to fall in love with them.  Andrew & i sometimes find pieces together, ducking into little shops seeing if anything strikes us.  We have been slowly filling our house over the last twenty years. 

Today i am sharing a few pieces i completely adore, like the one above.  i found this plate in a little shop in Frisco, Colorado.  Main street Frisco sits below a mountain and is filled with quaint old buildings, wonderful bakeries and bistros, and fun shops.  The plate feels like the artist colored on it with crayons.  It's her own little technique that is so fresh and striking.  I had to scoop up this plate the moment i saw it.

Mademosielle under the Rain by Blanca Gomez

Oh do i adore this piece. I kept stopping by Blanca Gomez's Etsy shop the Cosas Minimas over and over again just to look at it.  That told me that i really wanted in my house.  It arrived ever so quickly and i immediately went out to purchase a floating frame for it.  It hangs happily in my library where i visit it often.  It reminds me how i want to be, looking classy and seeing the rain as colorful opportunities. 

This adorable little hand pottery piece is a gift from my mother-in-law.  She was in a shop in Golden, Colorado which is just around the corner.  Maggie said it just reminded her of me.  I love that.  It's quirky and unexpected.  It sits on my studio desk so i can stare at it daily.  I will occasionally hold little embellishments that i am using on a project.  I completely adore it.    

This matryoska doll was another travel find, not in an art shop, not in a tourist shop, but in a toy shop.  We were ducking in there to find something to bring home to the kids when we found this little beauty.  She only sits about 4" high and had 10 dolls total.  It's been a house hold favorite, so much so that the little Ant Boy use to open it up daily.  Now the Ant Man at age 16, he confessed that he lost the smallest piece (yes there is one smaller that pictured here) and was heartbroken.  How could i be upset when he got so much out of it over the years?

The last piece i am sharing with you today is a stunning Murano blown glass.  It is definitely a WOW piece that sits in our library as a focal piece in the bookcase.  We were wandering down the street, turned around and saw it calling out to us.  Breath-taking.  I am just enthralled with the layers of glass in this piece, the bubbles, the interior silver blue piece, and the flame like shape.  it's just so fascinating. 

Create Daily: Handwriting Practice

With all the computers, smart phones, and tablets surrounding us today, it almost seems we are losing the ability to write by hand.  I often hear from people via emails and in my classes that they don't like their handwriting.  I say embrace who you are including your handwriting.  Don't be afraid of it not looking pretty for it is beautiful because it's yours.  You can also practice different ways to write because there's power in your words. Gaining confidence in writing in different ways gives you freedom in your art work.   In the above sample i used my favorite pen to write the smaller cursive and a paint brush & black paint to write the word grow. I practiced lots and lots with a paint brush & black paint until i got the "feel" of the brushes.  I practice  those on scrap pieces of paper, watercolor paper scraps being my favorite. 

I sometimes print my words.  I practice my printing in those small journals i mentioned before on this post.  uppercase & lower case.  exaggerated lines, outlined, different "fonts," etc.

sometimes my own handwriting has more of a slant.  I practice this too.  I hold the paper a different way.  I push my letters a bit more to give them a more of a loopy feel to them. i turn the paper at an angle to really slant the words. 

and sometimes i even push it more so it becomes unreadable to most.  I started doing this in some of my art journals when the journal is really deep.  I don't necessarily want every one to read it but i still want to write it.  again i practiced it to get it this way.  and even though you may not be able to read it, there's power in those words for they are full of emotions.  they are also artistic in a way becoming more like shapes than words to most eyes. 

try out writing in all different ways.  grab a small journal and fill it with handwritten words and see the beauty & power of your words. 

have you created something this week?  Anything goes...doodle, scrapbook page, art journal, card...just something creative.  Share a link at the bottom of this post with the inlinkz button.  Just leave a link to a specific blog post or image on flickr, rather than a general url. This way we can see your stellar creation.