STAMP DRAW WINNER:  Our latest stamp draw winner is a little closer to home this time  We are pleased to announce the latest winner in our stamp draw is Denise Komoski of Winnipeg, Manitoba.  Congratulations to Denise!   The 'new' stamp draw is ready to go.  The prize is (again) a couple of new 'never seen before' stamps. Check it out and Good Luck!

    Wildflowers on the path into the studio. 
               "Nature's wildflowers are understated elegance"






AROUND THE STUDIO:  I could do testimonials for hot tubs.  I just love mine.  I use mine everyday in the dawn of the day or the pre-dawn darkness.  It is a great way to start each day.   It is my best time of the day for reflection.  So, there I was one morning last week when I saw a Western Flicker, and I was thinking is there any creature more beautiful than this bird?  They have this beautiful distinct pattern of vivid natural colours across their breast.  The sleekness of their design and the perfect texture of their feathers make them surreal.  They look too perfect to be real.   I was thinking that compared to the human body there is no contest.  They are exquisite!...and we look more like Gollum from Lord of the Rings in comparison.   I was lying back with my arms and head back on the edge of the tub with my legs spread eagle on the opposite seats.  I was reflecting on this, looking up at the blue sky hole formed by the towering trees around me, when an eagle soar across the sky hole.  Then he circled out of view behind the trees and soared overhead again.  He was riding an up-draft.  As the wind hits the island, the rising contour of the land forces the wind up at an angle.  The eagles can ride spread eagle on these up-drafts for hours.  They do not flap their wings; they just make seemingly effortless changes in the angle of the wings to go up or down or make turns.  When he made his third pass over my window on the sky, I realized I was the object of his attention!  Which was verification of exactly what I was reflecting upon.  My featherless, furless scrawny human body looked like a piece of roadkill to this magnificent creature soaring 100 feet above the tips of the douglas firs and cedars.  After a few more passes he landed on top of a huge douglas fir we call "Granddaddy".  The branches on top of these huge 400 plus year old trees are bare from being hit by lightning over the centuries.   From the bare branches my eagle friend continued to watch me for quite some time to see if I was going to make it.  I am sure I disappointed his breakfast plans when I finally showered and went into the house.  I know it is at about this time you begin to ask yourself, so what does all this have to do with rubber art stamps?...and I usually say nothing...I just thought you might find it interesting...but, not this time...to the contrary, it has every thing to do with rubber art stamps!  It immediately brought to mind the Flickers 249-E, which I think is one of the finest stamps I have ever made.  The engraving we made from the Frank Beebe pen and ink drawing was exquisite.  Also, if you are familiar with our line, how could you experience what I did and not think of Doris Kennedy's Eagle 319-E perched on the top of those lightening struck branches?  Most of our bird images are Frank Beebe images.  For decades Frank Beebe was an illustrator at the British Columbia Royal Museum in Victoria.  We had an opportunity to meet Frank a few years ago.  He appeared to be in his nineties at that time.  He was a fascinating man, and we are grateful for the legacy of his beautiful pen & ink illustrations.

TESTIMONIAL: Good Morning and Happy Easter, I want to thank you both for the opportunity to buy such great material for my stamping passion.   Yesterday I really enjoyed myself in your lovely space.  What a treat it was to be able to select so many wonderful stamps from your discontinued bins.  I was like a little girl in a candy store!  My time with you was a real highlight of my Saltspring day.  Thank you for all your service and amazing stamps!  Donna Hill, Victoria

E-MAIL BAG: Q. - I have been calling your toll-free number, but it continuiously rings...perhaps you are not open on Saturdays???
A. - The short answer is that I forgot to put the ansering machine on!  The real answer is, no we are not open on Satudays from April through October, because I am set-up with our stamps under the maple tree at the Satuday Market in Ganges.  If you are on the Island looking for UM supplies or you are only here for the day or whatever, we can open up for you in the afternoon after the Market.  Just make arrangements with me at the Market or call until you get a real person on the line!

MARGARET'S MUSINGS:  If you have had an opportunity to see our display at anytime over the past few years, you would have seen sample cards by our friend Margaret Appleton. Margaret is always trying something new, and comes up with some great effects with our stamps. She has agreed to write a short piece for each newsletter on stamping in general and on techniques slightly beyond the basics.

You don’t need border stamps to stamp borders! I realize that this is not BIG NEWS but sometimes we need to re-visit old ideas and rework them with new supplies and new stamps. Post-it notes, a sponge or stipple brush, a stamp and your imagination will make wonderful borders.

Down the left hand side of a piece of cardstock ( or the right side or the top or the bottom) place two sticky notes as far apart as you wish. I used 3inch by 5inch notes but any size can be made to work. You are going to treat the notes as a mask and stamp between them. The width of the opening will depend on how wide you want the border to be. That will depend on the size of the image you intend to put in the center of the cardstock as your main image (if you plan to do that).

Stipple gently over the open area and then stamp with a vibrant colour over the stippling OR stamp first and then stipple over the stamped part OR forget the stippling and just stamp right onto the open space. It is worth experimenting first on scrap paper.

Use the rubber stamp in creative ways:

     -  Turn it frequently
     -  Stamp off the edge so only part of the image will be seen
     -  Choose a part of the stamp and use that over and over
     -  Use light and dark shades of one colour
     -  Use more than one colour
     -  Use more than one stamp
     -  Use a large bold image
     -  Use a tiny image

I decided to put edges on some of the borders to make them more defined. You can use a very thin paper strip, a thin piece of ribbon, a thin stippled or sponged line using the post-it again, or just pen or felt marker lines for edging.

Once you have done even borders, try making the space between the notes wider at the top than the bottom or vice versa. Try making stripes of varying widths across the paper in different places. Try cutting fancy patterns from the edges of the notes before you use them.

You can do the border directly on to a card or mount the bordered piece on to a card choosing complimentary colours and textures.

If your border is along the side or at the top or bottom you will likely want to stamp a main image in the center of the card or stamp a greeting of some sort. If you have done stripes all over the card, you can add a bigger central image over the stripes but it is not necessary . The pattern alone might make an attractive card.

Happy Stamping!

Dear Overwhelmed,

Spring is here indeed! What a wonderful time of year. I, too am feeling the crunch, as the Saturday Market has begun here on Salt Spring Island and I am in production mode. Hand-stamped greeting cards are my number one seller, so I have to be able to create fast but beautiful cards on a daily basis. I think I can help you out!

 If you have a question for Emily’s Beginner Corner, email her at oldisland@saltspring.com.