I am super excited to bring you a new series on the blog!
Along with some more long posts filled with amazing carvings and prints, I am going to be sharing short profiles of some of the talented people who participated in #CarveDecember 2017.
First up is Christina, aka tweeny:
Q: How many times have you participated in #CarveDecember
A: This was my first time taking part, I found the challenge on Instragram on the 1st December, so didn't have much time to plan!
Q: Why did you decide to participate this year?
A: I wanted to motivate myself to do more prints, and to try and learn to be less precious.
Q: How would you describe your stamp carving skill level?
A: I'm not as good as I would like to be (and probably never will be), but I'm learning all the time, Instagram (and #carvedecember) is full of inspiring work that makes me strive to be better.
Q: What is your favorite thing about #CarveDecember?
A: Am I allowed two things?
The community aspect, and the inspiring work.
Q: What are three things you learned from participating in #CarveDecember?
A:
- Be less precious about work and experiment more
- To make less excuses and just get on with it – It'll be worth it when you get that happy feeling when you print that first print.
- To do more things I wouldn't usually do – I hadn't ever really done repeat patterns before.
3 favorite prints from #CarveDecember:
Lego – this one was a really simple carve, but I really like how it turned out. I ended up printing them on some note books for a friend to give as a Christmas gift.
Rolleiflex camera – I love film photography and I've wanted to do this carve for a long time. Finally got around to it and I love it! (this one is also now on a notebook and a greetings card in my etsy shop)
Marmite – I used this as a bit of an experiment in using more than once colour – Registration isn't my strong point as you can see, but I don't mind a little bit of wonkiness.
Next up is Marta Harvey:
Q: How many times have you participated in #CarveDecember
A: At least 3 times: 2015, 2016, and 2017. Not sure if there was one in 2014 – if so, I might have carved a few but not shared; or maybe there wasn’t one at all?
Q: Why did you decide to participate this year?
A: It is pure fun, it challenges me, and makes me grow. I see it as a community of people who support and encourage each other – everyone enjoying carving, the challenge, and everyone else’s carvings. I even got a few messages from people in November asking me if I was planning on participating; I think I will try to participate as long as it lasts.
Q: How would you describe your stamp carving skill level?
Medium. I have carved lots of stamps, so the experience is there, but I feel like there is so much still to learn; so many things I need to improve on! I am in awe of some of the beautiful carvings in #CarveDecember – design aside – just the clean lines! I wish I had the patience; I have been focusing more on creating fun designs and patterns, but improving my carving skills is definitely one of my goals for 2018.
What is your favorite thing about #CarveDecember?
A: I think the sense of community, and how everyone is so willing to help each other, share tips, and encourage everyone else. Apart from my own growth, it is fun to see others try it for the first time and share our excitement about the possibilities. Each night, after having carved, printed, and shared my stamp for the day I would spend at least half an hour going through everyone’s submissions for the day. It is like going to an art gallery every day.
Q: What are three things you learned from participating in #CarveDecember?
A:
- Take your time to ensure your design is exactly how you want it before starting to carve.
- You may not be thrilled with a particular stamp, but share it as someone else can see it differently and it may become a source of inspiration for them.
- After seeing so many beautifully carved stamps, I started working on one of my opportunities for improvement – corners! I re-learned how to carve them. Even little things like this will give you more confidence and will help you grow.
3 favorite prints from #CarveDecember:
Other than being a completely wonky flower (which appeals to me), I really enjoy this one because it turned out so much better than I had imagined it would. It was a very happy surprise.
I really enjoy this print, maybe because the only fully outlined flower pops. I designed quite a few flower patterns during this #CarveDecember, but this one always makes me stop and take another look. Maybe it is just me.
Figuring out how much to carve so I could print this one correctly, was pure fun. Looking at the finished result doesn’t look like much, truthfully, but when I first printed it and it worked, I was jumping up and down, thinking this was the coolest thing! I get easily entertained.
I hope you enjoyed learning a little bit about Christina and Marta! I'll have lots more profiles of #CarveDecember participants over the next month or two. Also: If you participated in #CarveDecember and you'd like to be profiled, send me an e-mail and I'll send you a questionnaire!
Thanks for stopping by!
WOW. I lov these stamp carvings. Inspiring. I too enjoy having the community. Yet my carvings are not so straight. Thank you for sharing other people’s work and inspiration.
WOW. I lov these stamp carvings. Inspiring. I too enjoy having the community. Yet my carvings are not so straight. Thank you for sharing other people’s work and inspiration.
WOW. I lov these stamp carvings. Inspiring. I too enjoy having the community. Yet my carvings are not so straight. Thank you for sharing other people’s work and inspiration.
WOW. I lov these stamp carvings. Inspiring. I too enjoy having the community. Yet my carvings are not so straight. Thank you for sharing other people’s work and inspiration.
WOW. I lov these stamp carvings. Inspiring. I too enjoy having the community. Yet my carvings are not so straight. Thank you for sharing other people’s work and inspiration.
WOW. I lov these stamp carvings. Inspiring. I too enjoy having the community. Yet my carvings are not so straight. Thank you for sharing other people’s work and inspiration.
LOVE this new series!! What incredible talent and it’s interesting to hear their comments, see their work up close and how their stamps evolved. Christina’s camera stamp is ‘off the chain’ amazing, the detail!! And the seemingly simplicity of Marta’s stamps along with the stunning prints are just beautiful and inspiring … talk about getting a big bang for your stamping buck! Thanks Julie, love that you are always looking for new ideas for your art, your blog and that you provide a platform for other stampers, what a great community!
LOVE this new series!! What incredible talent and it’s interesting to hear their comments, see their work up close and how their stamps evolved. Christina’s camera stamp is ‘off the chain’ amazing, the detail!! And the seemingly simplicity of Marta’s stamps along with the stunning prints are just beautiful and inspiring … talk about getting a big bang for your stamping buck! Thanks Julie, love that you are always looking for new ideas for your art, your blog and that you provide a platform for other stampers, what a great community!
LOVE this new series!! What incredible talent and it’s interesting to hear their comments, see their work up close and how their stamps evolved. Christina’s camera stamp is ‘off the chain’ amazing, the detail!! And the seemingly simplicity of Marta’s stamps along with the stunning prints are just beautiful and inspiring … talk about getting a big bang for your stamping buck! Thanks Julie, love that you are always looking for new ideas for your art, your blog and that you provide a platform for other stampers, what a great community!
LOVE this new series!! What incredible talent and it’s interesting to hear their comments, see their work up close and how their stamps evolved. Christina’s camera stamp is ‘off the chain’ amazing, the detail!! And the seemingly simplicity of Marta’s stamps along with the stunning prints are just beautiful and inspiring … talk about getting a big bang for your stamping buck! Thanks Julie, love that you are always looking for new ideas for your art, your blog and that you provide a platform for other stampers, what a great community!
LOVE this new series!! What incredible talent and it’s interesting to hear their comments, see their work up close and how their stamps evolved. Christina’s camera stamp is ‘off the chain’ amazing, the detail!! And the seemingly simplicity of Marta’s stamps along with the stunning prints are just beautiful and inspiring … talk about getting a big bang for your stamping buck! Thanks Julie, love that you are always looking for new ideas for your art, your blog and that you provide a platform for other stampers, what a great community!
LOVE this new series!! What incredible talent and it’s interesting to hear their comments, see their work up close and how their stamps evolved. Christina’s camera stamp is ‘off the chain’ amazing, the detail!! And the seemingly simplicity of Marta’s stamps along with the stunning prints are just beautiful and inspiring … talk about getting a big bang for your stamping buck! Thanks Julie, love that you are always looking for new ideas for your art, your blog and that you provide a platform for other stampers, what a great community!
I really enjoyed “meeting” these artists – their work is amazing! thanks for sharing.
I really enjoyed “meeting” these artists – their work is amazing! thanks for sharing.
I really enjoyed “meeting” these artists – their work is amazing! thanks for sharing.
I really enjoyed “meeting” these artists – their work is amazing! thanks for sharing.
I really enjoyed “meeting” these artists – their work is amazing! thanks for sharing.
I really enjoyed “meeting” these artists – their work is amazing! thanks for sharing.
fab, fab fab! LOVE to see these carvings. Thanks for the new feature
fab, fab fab! LOVE to see these carvings. Thanks for the new feature
fab, fab fab! LOVE to see these carvings. Thanks for the new feature
fab, fab fab! LOVE to see these carvings. Thanks for the new feature
fab, fab fab! LOVE to see these carvings. Thanks for the new feature
fab, fab fab! LOVE to see these carvings. Thanks for the new feature
This was awesome! Julie – I really appreciate you sharing your platform to recognize, “promote”, (not in a sponsored way) and encourage other talented individuals. Thank you for the inspiration, Christina and Marta! And, thank you for being an awesome human, Julie!
This was awesome! Julie – I really appreciate you sharing your platform to recognize, “promote”, (not in a sponsored way) and encourage other talented individuals. Thank you for the inspiration, Christina and Marta! And, thank you for being an awesome human, Julie!
This was awesome! Julie – I really appreciate you sharing your platform to recognize, “promote”, (not in a sponsored way) and encourage other talented individuals. Thank you for the inspiration, Christina and Marta! And, thank you for being an awesome human, Julie!
This was awesome! Julie – I really appreciate you sharing your platform to recognize, “promote”, (not in a sponsored way) and encourage other talented individuals. Thank you for the inspiration, Christina and Marta! And, thank you for being an awesome human, Julie!
This was awesome! Julie – I really appreciate you sharing your platform to recognize, “promote”, (not in a sponsored way) and encourage other talented individuals. Thank you for the inspiration, Christina and Marta! And, thank you for being an awesome human, Julie!
This was awesome! Julie – I really appreciate you sharing your platform to recognize, “promote”, (not in a sponsored way) and encourage other talented individuals. Thank you for the inspiration, Christina and Marta! And, thank you for being an awesome human, Julie!
Thank you so much for this, Julie 🙂 I enjoyed learning about Christina, and I know I will enjoy the next ones to come :).
Thank you so much for this, Julie 🙂 I enjoyed learning about Christina, and I know I will enjoy the next ones to come :).
Thank you so much for this, Julie 🙂 I enjoyed learning about Christina, and I know I will enjoy the next ones to come :).
Thank you so much for this, Julie 🙂 I enjoyed learning about Christina, and I know I will enjoy the next ones to come :).
Thank you so much for this, Julie 🙂 I enjoyed learning about Christina, and I know I will enjoy the next ones to come :).
Thank you so much for this, Julie 🙂 I enjoyed learning about Christina, and I know I will enjoy the next ones to come :).