I am by no means an artist, don't claim to be one. I'm a pretty good paper crafter and stamper with other people's art, but I'm not the artist. So when Stampin' Up! introduced this new line of stamps that you can carve yourself, I was, well not entirely excited. I was curious, enough to buy it anyway. I've seem amazing things done with it. I knew mine wouldn't be so grand. But I did want to give it a go. I drew up this little penguin, more on him in a minute. I carved him. I took about 20 minutes. Overall I'm about 90% pleased with him. He's not perfect, he's got a few imperfections (don't we all). But I think he's cute and I'll probably use him more, Logan will use him for sure.
Where did a get a penguin. Well I wanted to carve something, I don't have a symbol or anything that 'defines' me (at least none that I can think of, if you know of something please let me know). So then I started thinking more about what I love. This little penguin card sits above my desk on a clipboard. He's lived there for years. So long that the cardstock is faded, due to being exposed to the sun. But I love him, he's one of my all time favorite punched guys. I love this little penguin! So I thought, we'll why not turn him into a stamp. Well as you can see my drawing it not quite the same, however it's a close relative. So then I carved.
Things I'd like to improve on: Accuracy of cutting. The rubber is easy to carve. The undefined kit comes with tools that cut through the rubber easily and quickly. However I did notice that it's easy to get carried away, perhaps cut something you don't mean to cut. For example, the little blade got away from me and cut a little into his beak. I didn't even notice it until it was stamped, and it became clear. It's not a huge issue or concern, but if I were to do him again I'd defiantly watch it a little more.
I gave his wings and the 'black' part of the penguin a little texture on the rubber. Mostly because I wanted some details and I wanted the beak and eyes to pop and not get lost in the rubber. So I just used one of my carving tools and gently cut into it, just to give it some texture. I also carved him a scarf and hat, I thought he needed it and it will be fun to dress him up. So that's my undefined story. He's not perfect. I knew anything I did wouldn't be. But it was fun, and easier than I thought it would be. So give it a try!
Thanks for looking, see you soon!!!!
1 comment:
Hi Ruth. Your little penguin is so cute. I like the way you did the texturing, and added the hat and scarf. The finished card is adorable! I know I want to try this - I have a little duck that I used as my "signature" as a kid and I thought it'd be fun to turn it into a stamp.
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