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Is it just me longing for more cards with just some beautiful stamping? Don't get me wrong, I love die cuts but they seem to be taking over my beloved rubber.:(
There is some wonderful stamping out there. I love some of the techniques I see, like masking, distress inks backgrounds and brayered backgrounds etc. But to tell you the truth, I am not a great stamper and I don't have the time to practice to become one. Yet I can make some great cards with dies, like the Detailed Floral Thinlits by Stampin Up.
I totally agree! I like diecuts waaaaay better as accents than focal points - a pretty lacy layer behind something, a fun shape for the image or sentiment panel, a little flourish... There are some gorgeous dies, and I've seen some beautiful cards made with them, but I tend to click past most of them to see the stamped cards...
This song is the same one I was singing a few years ago when DSP took over cards in place of stamped backgrounds. I'm old school -- stamps, paper, ink. To me, dies are for accents or to cut a nice shape around a stamped greeting or image.
Mary Beth
And have we talked about how $$$ dies are? I know I have been talking about this for a while! When the matching dies cost more money than the stamp set they are meant to coordinate with, then you know it's gotten out of control!
I'm feeling a big shift in my paper crafting coming on for 2017. No dies, no patterned paper, not even any stamps. None of it really gets me excited anymore.
I'm challenging myself to learn print making using linocuts. I love the look, and I can create any images I desire. This is a big leap from being crafty to being creative artistically, but I've wanted to try this for years.
Maybe it will even save me money? That's my goal for 2017!
I love dies, but they're more expensive to manufacture than stamps - metal costs more. I have a few stamp/die sets, and and haven't ever used them together, only apart. But they're like a bunch of sentiment stamps plus one die that says Congratulations.
I did finally buy one matching flower die/stamp set but the jury is out how I'll use them. I may even draw (wonkily!) on the die cuts.
There are a couple other very popular trends that don't do it for me, but style is so individual, I figure it's just my personal taste.
I quit stamping 10 or so years ago because I could never get a consistent stamp. Sometimes I would stamp clearly and sometimes I wouldn't. Then I found MISTI and it made stamping so much easier. But I still use dies. Why? I like the tactile feel. And maybe it is because I have invested soooo much money in dies.
So far, I've resisted buying a die cut machine so I'm still fussy cutting if I want something like that.
But since I came into this late in life ;) I really enjoy stamping images and then coloring them, most of my tools are watercolor pencils, colored pencils and markers. So far, it's all I seem to need to create the types of card I make. I'm a simple needs type of gal!!
__________________ We can't all be stars but we can all twinkle.
I agree with the OP and others here that dies are so popular now that they seem to be taking over a lot of the cards I see. Many of them are beautiful and I have bought and use my fair share of dies, but my real love is stamping, coloring in particular, or creating scenes with backgrounds and silhouette type images. I kind of feel like I'm cheating when I make an all-die cut card.
I have to agree that die cuts are becoming more popular than stamping......most of the major stores are doing away with their rubber stamps completely. That being said, I do like dies but stamping is still my first love and always will be.
I agree with the OP and others here that dies are so popular now that they seem to be taking over a lot of the cards I see. Many of them are beautiful and I have bought and use my fair share of dies, but my real love is stamping, coloring in particular, or creating scenes with backgrounds and silhouette type images. I kind of feel like I'm cheating when I make an all-die cut card.
Your post gave me a wow/memory moment I had forgotten, though it wasn't all that long ago. When I started stamping that's how I felt about stamps. IOW, if I didn't draw an image myself, it was cheating. Because it wasn't "real" art.
I came to terms with it, fully embraced the word "craft," and when I added die cuts, it didn't dawn on me that there was a parallel, but of course there is.
Stamping and coloring will always be my favorite way to make cards but it takes a lot of time to color the type of images I like. I stamp a lot of images and color them in when I have time. But this year I have made lots of cards with patterned paper and dies and all my 2016 Christmas cards are die cards, only stamping is the inside sentiment. This gave me tons of extra time to color my already stamped images for the rest of the year and not feel rushed to get a card done. I hope family and friends will like the die cut cards and I'll be interested to see if I get comments about my cards.
Thanks, Vickie, for mentioning my cas card this week. It is the challenge I try to get dome each week not matter how busy my week. I am happy that you liked it.
__________________ LizThe joy of the LORD is my strength.Right Brain Madness --My blogProud member of the redDivasKSS certified multi-step stamperFan Club member since 2004
What do you mean by die cuts? When I read the comments I'm getting mixed messages on what everyone thinks is a die cut. There are the dies you use with your stamps, there are the dies you use to make a dimensional element for you project and there are die cuts that are pre-printed and cut out. When I think if die cuts I think of the latter. The former two are dies that cut. As for the dies that cut, I much prefer to either die cut or fussy cut images I stamp. I don't care for flat one layer cards. They are just to blah for me. But...we all have different tastes. I've done a few cards in the past where I used actual die cuts and I have no shame admitting that.
I work full time and am a single homeowner. So I don't have a lot of time to sit around all day or evening stamping and coloring. For some that makes a difference in the style of card making they do.
I like the diversity and dimension that a die can add to a project. Stamping, coloring, and using pretty DSP is also fun! Trying something new and adding variety keeps me interested in paper crafting.
I had a real jolt this year when, after I signed all my Christmas cards, I looked at them and realized that they were mainly made with die-cuts! If there was stamping, it was to stamp the image - then die cut it with the matching die! I really did feel like I 'cheated' this year.... Although I love the dies (thinlits & framelits), I'm really looking forward to getting back to 'basics' - stamping & colouring - with the new stamps & watercolour pencils from SU!
I had a real jolt this year when, after I signed all my Christmas cards, I looked at them and realized that they were mainly made with die-cuts! If there was stamping, it was to stamp the image - then die cut it with the matching die! I really did feel like I 'cheated' this year.... Although I love the dies (thinlits & framelits), I'm really looking forward to getting back to 'basics' - stamping & colouring - with the new stamps & watercolour pencils from SU!
The cheating aspect has come up twice and is interesting - and a little confusing.
We didn't design/create the stamps, and we didn't design/create the dies. So for me they're equal. One leaves ink on paper; one leaves paper on paper. Or foil, felt, etc.
With both we do create design: placement, color (of ink or paper), and if we choose, coloring. (We can color stamps and we can add color to die cuts.) We can emboss or embellish both.
I don't consider using dies "cheating" any more than I consider digital stamps "cheating" (which also got a lot of flack when they first appeared - I'm not going to re-hash that mess, though) - I just prefer to have more "image" and less "other stuff" on cards - totally a personal preference thing.
I also prefer fussy-cutting to cutting images out with dies because I'm not a fan of the white border left by most dies-to-match. Again - personal preference. I do have the Crazy Birds dies because those are next to impossible to fussy-cut, and a few others, so I'm not a zealot, by any stretch. I totally, completely, and in all possible ways understand people who use dies because of personal preference, physical limitations, time restraints, or whatever reason.
I think it's amazing and wonderful and exciting that there are so many ways to approach what we do! Still, it's nice to get validation on a particular thing where we might feel "odd man out" or something, which I think might have been the original intent of the thread...?
I don't consider using dies "cheating" any more than I consider digital stamps "cheating" (which also got a lot of flack when they first appeared - I'm not going to re-hash that mess, though) - I just prefer to have more "image" and less "other stuff" on cards - totally a personal preference thing.
I also prefer fussy-cutting to cutting images out with dies because I'm not a fan of the white border left by most dies-to-match. Again - personal preference. I do have the Crazy Birds dies because those are next to impossible to fussy-cut, and a few others, so I'm not a zealot, by any stretch. I totally, completely, and in all possible ways understand people who use dies because of personal preference, physical limitations, time restraints, or whatever reason.
I think it's amazing and wonderful and exciting that there are so many ways to approach what we do! Still, it's nice to get validation on a particular thing where we might feel "odd man out" or something, which I think might have been the original intent of the thread...?
Ditto your last paragraph. What's meh for one is hurray for another and vice versa, and it's comforting not to feel like you're the only one.
BTW, I love dies, but don't have any dies-to-match sets of the type you mention with one exception. I don't even have die-stamp sets, other than what was mentioned above. I like pulling from different sets to make a card, whether it be stamps, dies, or both. I get a little itchy when things are too matchy.
This thread got me curious about my own use so I looked at my most recent page in my SCS gallery - 96 cards made between July 13 and yesterday - and worked out some numbers. I counted the number of times I used stamps, dies, stencils, and embossing folders on cards. Here's what I used:
This thread got me curious about my own use so I looked at my most recent page in my SCS gallery - 96 cards made between July 13 and yesterday - and worked out some numbers. I counted the number of times I used stamps, dies, stencils, and embossing folders on cards. Here's what I used:
Interesting to see how my thread was interpreted. Thanks Sue, you understood where I was coming from. I love dies, have many of them, embossing folders too, but my first love and what got me into paper crafting was stamping. I guess what I was getting at is that you see so many cards now that use mainly dies. Yes, they are beautiful, yes, I love them. I just have noticed that plain and simple beautifully stamped cards are not the norm anymore. Love reading all of your thoughts and feelings.
I can recall that years ago I didn't like that cards were beginning to look more like scrapbook pages with all the die cuts items being used. I also recall I didn't really care for digi images. Fast forward to now and I've "mellowed". I use digi images for one time images when it just doesn't make sense to buy a stamps and I've fully embraced dies. I have very few dies that match stamps. My dies are boarders, shapes, and things that I can use in mixed media.
Perhaps dies are used more frequently because it's easier than learning how to stamp and color and dies can be faster. Overall, I welcome any type of card so long as it's done well.
Neat transition description stamphappy. My dies sound somewhat similar to yours, though I do have an abundance of leaves.
For me dies are simply another element to consider when designing a card, box, mini-book, etc., not a replacement due to being easier. (I had a great teacher and love stamping.)
I'm not drawn to the huge coloring trend, even though I've made stamped coloring books, but they were gifts. I add color with a variety of mediums though. Trend history is pretty interesting, if you look back.
Neat transition description stamphappy. My dies sound somewhat similar to yours, though I do have an abundance of leaves.
For me dies are simply another element to consider when designing a card, box, mini-book, etc., not a replacement due to being easier. (I had a great teacher and love stamping.)
I'm not drawn to the huge coloring trend, even though I've made stamped coloring books, but they were gifts. I add color with a variety of mediums though. Trend history is pretty interesting, if you look back.
Oh crud! I should have mentioned my boat load of flower dies because I love to make 3-d flowers. :p
I'm not into the coloring books either. Why bother when I have stamps.
A stamp/die cut marriage. : ) Jennifer McGuire shows stamping with a die cut in today's blog video. The first part of the video demos die inlaying, but if you fast forward to 5:40, you'll see how she uses her die cut as a background stamp.
A stamp/die cut marriage. : ) Jennifer McGuire shows stamping with a die cut in today's blog video. The first part of the video demos die inlaying, but if you fast forward to 5:40, you'll see how she uses her die cut as a background stamp.
A stamp/die cut marriage. : ) Jennifer McGuire shows stamping with a die cut in today's blog video. The first part of the video demos die inlaying, but if you fast forward to 5:40, you'll see how she uses her die cut as a background stamp.
I can see with the fine outline detail in that heart die that using the sticky sheet would be much easier, any time I've done it I've just used a glue stick.
The tree in THIS card turned out so well that I actually stuck it to a wood block to use again, I loved the way the contouring in the die gave a two-tone look.
Like many of you have stated, I, too am a stamper who mostly makes cards. Sometimes I make decorative pieces, but mostly cards. Some people make cards using die cuts, layers of decorative paper and or embossing folder layers. Their cards are beautiful and in many cases more intricate than stamping. If people are creating things, whether cards, pictures, scrapbook pages, wrapping paper or any other paper art, then I say, "Woohoo!" I wouldn't say that an object that has only a greeting or sentiment stamped as stamping, no would I say that a digi image the was colored is stamping. The digital image has been printed, much the same way as a newspaper or book is printed, not stamped. Nonetheless, I have seen some great cards/pieces of art made this way. I just think the term "stamping" should be reserved for art that has been mostly stamped. That does not mean a card that has a background that has been embossed or the focal point set on a die cut panel aren't stamping if there is more stamping than just a few words. They are all paper crafting, for sure, but not all paper crafting is stamping. This is just me speaking, but if I stamped a greeting on an oil painting, I wouldn't call that stamping either, whether I painted it or someone else had.
I can see with the fine outline detail in that heart die that using the sticky sheet would be much easier, any time I've done it I've just used a glue stick.
The tree in THIS card turned out so well that I actually stuck it to a wood block to use again, I loved the way the contouring in the die gave a two-tone look.
That's beautiful, Sabrina - saving it is just the right thing to do!
Kinda funny to run across this thread now. Just yesterday I was watching a recently released video by Gina K where she masked a background and added silhouette stamping. No die cuts, no sequins and she even added a bow! I was going to look at the date to see if it was a re-release but then wondered why. If it's fun to make and someone might enjoy it, go for it!
I like to stamp and I like to use die cuts on a card. But when I am in a huge rush, I purchase graphics from a place like Creative Market, print them off, cut or die cut into cards or tags, add some stamping and manage to produce a lot of cards/tags quite quickly. Here are a couple of examples using a wreath graphic from Creative Market, Papertrey dies, stamps from Michaels, and a few rhinestones.
Those are some super cute cards! I have the die from PTI (Quilted, I think), and I need to use it more often. I do love the versatility of some of my dies. For example, I used Holly dies from PTI to add a felt accent to a cross stitch piece I made recently, and it was just the right accent to the project. If I can get double mileage out of basic shape dies, then I think they are worth it.
And here's another project I made using dies (PTI) to make a fun felt and ribbon bookmark. I doubt I could have fussy cut these, so the dies really made the project easier.
Those are Thinlits? I didn't realize they would cut felt. I kind of thought that when we moved away from the big thick dies, we moved away from cutting anything but paper.
Those are Thinlits? I didn't realize they would cut felt. I kind of thought that when we moved away from the big thick dies, we moved away from cutting anything but paper.
I've cut felt with my My Favorite Things framelits and thinlits and I assume most would do the same!
I think they can also cut corkboard and thin matboard
It's my understanding that you can cut anything with fibers with a thin die. They "cut" by forcing the fibers apart. Can't cut anything like a tin can, though (although it would emboss it)...
Die cut to death!
