Hi everyone! It’s Kelly Klapstein here, and I have some special news for you….I made a couple of scrapbook pages! Since I started calligraphy, my scrapbooking has taken a backseat and I haven’t designed a layout in FOREVER. I tell you, it felt really good to be playing with paper again! For both layouts, I used the Vicki Boutin collection from American Crafts and my Deluxe Lettering kit. This kit is perfect for hand lettering projects because you have every tool you need: ruler, pencil, eraser, fineliners, black brush pens (fine, med, bold) and 3 colour large brush tip pens. There are a few simple steps to follow when adding your own lettering to your layouts. 1. Think of a title and write it out in different ways on scrap paper with a pencil. 2. Arrange your page elements onto the background paper and decide where and how your title…
When I first picked up a brush pen 3 years ago and began practicing lettering, I quickly started to think about how I could teach others how to learn this beautiful art form of calligraphy. Soon I developed my own set of tracing worksheets (just like I used in elementary school) that would help others develop the skills to write pretty letters. Then American Crafts came along, and we collaborated to design an entire product line of pens, workbooks, practice journals and more that would make learning calligraphy easy and fun. Now I can teach workshops with my own Kelly Creates pens and workbooks! If you can’t attend a workshop, here is what you need to learn brush lettering: Workbooks, a Practice Pad, and The Deluxe Lettering Kit, which has both large and small brush tip pens for both workbooks. You could also use the Dream Pens (large brush tip)…
Hello everyone – Kelly Klapstein here today on the Creative Scrapbooker Magazine blog. Fall is the time of year when I like to change up the home decor and add some new hand lettering projects to celebrate the season. I have been inspired by our resident colouring artist Betty Hung, who illustrates and colours like no one I have ever seen! So I decided to design a hand lettered Autumn-themed piece and use my Chameleon Pens products to colour it. I have used the Chameleon Color Tone pens before, but I haven’t used their Color Tones pencils…and this rainbow of pencils are just gorgeous in the box. There are 25 double-ended pencils, which adds up to 50 colours! For every hand lettered project, my first step is to sketch a design roughly with pencil. I have an 8 x 10″ frame for this piece, so I knew the measurements of the…
A new way to organize our lives is taking the creative industry by storm….look out planners, here comes the bullet journal! What is a bullet journal, or ‘bujo’ for short? Essentially it’s a way to organize our daily lives, tracking anything like daily schedules, tasks, or moods or exercise or nutrition….the list (no pun intended) is endless. All you need to start with is a blank notebook, and there are lots to choose from. One of the more popular journals is a Leuchtturm brand, which is a hardcover book with grids or lines or dots. I decided to get a Leuchtturm with a dot grid, and then I went online to learn more. A few YouTube videos later, I joined a bullet journal Facebook group and jumped in to create my first ‘weekly spread’ with a big bunch of fabulous Tombow products. To design all the colourful elements, I used…
Hi Everyone! It’s Kelly Klapstein here today, and I’m sharing a project I designed using Tombow products and the Brother ScanNCut machine. I love making inspirational signs and home décor pieces and thought I would brighten up my studio space with a rainbow. Of course, I knew I would use Tombow Dual Brush pens to create the rainbow because, well, Tombow pens come in every colour imaginable and more! I started by drawing the clouds on Creative Scrapbooker Super Stock with my Tombow drafting Mono pencil. And whenever I am using a pencil, I have one of Tombow’s erasers on hand. I just love this MONO Knock eraser that dispenses like a pen, so you have a fine tip eraser for lines. Then I traced over my pencil lines with the bullet nib end of the black Tombow Dual Brush pen. Now I was ready to cut out my clouds…and not…
Today on our blog, we welcome colouring artist Betty Hung who is sharing her thoughts on Chameleon Pens. I received a set of 22 Chameleon pens, plus a box of 16 Chameleon Color Cards last week, and I am off this week. Lucky me! What better way to spend your vacation days than trying out new coloring products? After playing with them for two days, I have to say I am in love with these Chameleon pens. Simply put, Chameleon pens are alcohol markers. They are designed so that you can achieve multiple tones from light to dark using one pen. These are alcohol based, so I wouldn’t use them on my coloring books unless they are single-sided. It soaked through 70 lb card stock paper that I used to print my coloring cards, so make sure you put extra protection underneath to protect your desk while coloring. Each pen has 3 parts: a brush nib, a…
Hello everyone! It’s Kelly Klapstein here today sharing a cute “Good Luck” card with you. I designed this card using only a few supplies: Chameleon Pens, Creative Scrapbooker Super Stock, Tombow Adhesive, Westcott Trimmer, and a pencil. You might know that I’m slightly obsessed with brush lettering and calligraphy, so I wanted to show you a way you can ‘fake’ out lettering in an easy way. Start by writing a word with a pencil. Then add a second line to the downstrokes of the letters. When you finish sketching the rest of the card, you trace over it with a permanent pen. I love the black detail pen that comes in with the Chameleon Pen set. It has 2 nibs of different sizes on either end. I used the larger .6mm nib for my card. For the lettering, you can either fill in the strokes with the black pen or leave…
Are you enjoying our free colouring cards designed by Betty Hung? We sure are! And look at this month’s creative illustration! Betty coloured her card using Tombow Dual Brush Pens and the Tombow Irojiten Vivid Coloring Pencils. To download and print this coloring card, click HERE. You can print the card on regular copy paper sized 8.5″ x 11″ and then cut out the card however you wish. The original is sized approximately 5″ x 5″ . We would love to see your finished coloured cards….so tag us on Instagram or share on our Facebook page! You can visit Betty at her fabulous website and blog www.colorart.ca to get more coloring and art tips and techniques. SUBSCRIBE TODAY to our quarterly publication – delivered right to your door!
Today on our blog, Cathy Caines shares her tips and techniques for creating 8.5″ x 11″ scrapbook pages. ‘I had been waiting for this. This was the part of the road trip on my old stomping grounds in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. We had pitas and marched down the main road to check out Jane’s thrift shop. Before we left, I took a moment to take in the view. The old mail box in the tall grass with the mud flats in the back ground. It’s funny how nostalgia works. I miss this place. A place I once called home. A place that helped me grow. Where I made mistakes but had great successes. It’s a part of how I came to be.’ My scrapbook albums are now 8.5 x11”. I switched from my 12×12” albums to the smaller size in 2016 for a couple reasons. I personally enjoyed…
The Heartfelt Creations booth is like the biggest and most beautiful flower shop in the world! Well-known in the paper craft industry for their gorgeous detailed rubber stamps and matching die sets, the projects on display showcased everything from cards to 3D paper crafts to scrapbook layouts and more! The newest collection “Flowering Dogwood” is so beautiful! It can be used for Easter themed projects and more. Another recent release is “Wildwood Cottage” with adorable fairy themed patterns and images in woods and gardens. It was exciting to see one of our team member’s gorgeous projects on display. Tracy McLennon’s scrapbook layouts are just stunning! To learn more about Heartfelt Creations and be inspired, click HERE to visit their blog and website. SUBSCRIBE TODAY to our quarterly publication – delivered right to your door!