Please help!
 

I've been there! I still have a hard time coming up with really "original" ideas! I would suggest finding a stamper who you really like, whose style seems to be your favotie, and CASE (copy) some of her cards; as you get more comfortable, add in your own touches, change the colors, the stamps, the embellishments....soon enough, you'll develop your own style and designs! Another idea is to try the weekly challenges: http:////www.splitcoaststampers.com/...splay.php?f=40
With these, they give you the jumping in point fo rthe card, whether it's the layout, the colors, the supplies to use, etc. You'll be amazed how many cards are made from the challenge! Good luck, don't give up! :D

I have had to learn through the years NOT to have expectations of myself when I sit down to stamp......I have rescued many a "mistake" out of the trash and ended up with something totaly opposite of what I intended to make, but they still come out nice. (most of the time) Dont be afraid to just keep going....add a little of this and a little of that......worse case scenerio, you start over.
I use my digital camera to upload......my scanner doesnt do so well. I also downloaded the free version of Adobe Photoshop (www.adobe.com) to "auto fix" the photos for me.....this automatically corrects the brightness and colors of my photos and I've been very pleased with the results.
Most of all, dont get discouraged.......and dont be afraid to try new things.....it took me YEARS to learn that. (and hearing my mom say it over and over again while HER cards were always so much better than mine!)
Looking forward to seeing some of your posts in the future! ;)

I am in the same position. I am a member of a stamp club (my upline for SU!) and my cards from club are wonderful! When I come home I have a lot of crappy ones before I come up with the one that I actually like. I have been stamping for a year, a lot of the artwork in the galleries are from women who have been scrapping and making cards for two, three, ten years.
Use the layout of other people... it can still take time to make the images look just right, but use the gallery for ideas, then it gets easier.

Coming up with a good idea, layout, color combo seems to be the hardest part. One thing that I've learned is to limit my colors to no more than 3. Once I do come up with a card that I like, I make a copy to keep for myself as a reference and then I experiment with 'what works' to make more cards of the same type & have on hand. The Stamper's Sample and Rubberstamper provide inspiration as does spending an hour in the Hallmark aisle of the store. Don't give up.

Thanks!
 

homemade
 

I was just in my first card swap. Thought I made decent cards! But when I opened up my pkg...oh my...I have a long way to go. The ones I received were beautiful. So, yes, I know what you are talking about.

Learning the principles of design can help speed the process everyone recommended above! You may want to check out Simple Scrapbooks Designing Scrapbooks 2. It teaches basic design theory with lots of scrapbook page examples and concepts that could easily be used on cards, too.

I've been stamping for 5 years and still have trouble from time to time. Here are some things that help me:

1. When looking at a card you like, try to decide if you like the stamp set used, the layout, the colors or the techniques used. I've often found cards where I love just one of the above and gone from there.

2. Ribbon and raffia almost always seem to rescue a card that seems to be missing something.

3. Sometimes I have an idea for what I think will be a great card and once executed, doesn't end up how I envisioned. But you know what? That's ok because I've had fun playing!

Be easy on yourself. You'll get better with practice. My DH often makes a point of telling me, "You're a lot better than you used to be." And I'm still learning.

I keep a little notebook by the computer and jot down notes whenever I see an idea that I like such as a unique layout, embellishment, color scheme, technique, etc. Then I have something to refer to when stamping.
It might be helpful to print off some of the cards that you really like and keep them near while you work. Just keep at it! It'll come, but it does take practice!

Don't be so hard on yourself. It only take some practice. I know sometimes my cards are beautiful and some days, well I have no luck!

In addition to what's been stated above, keep "quality of work" in mind. I don't mean "creativity of work". When I think of the difference in handmade vs homemade, I think of these things:
More than one layer of cardstock
Layers of CS lined up properly--not crooked)
Edges cut straight with no frays
No excess adhesive showing
No ink smudges (unless there for distressing!)
One or two embellishments
Remember less is more - you can always add, but sometimes too much of a good thing is TOO MUCH

all the previous posts gave some really good advice in the learning to design and creativity aspect of cardmaking. but i especially agree with redapron. more often than not, what makes a card look 'homemade' rather than 'handmade' is the quality of the work. concentrate on making good stamped images- no extra ink lines or smears or light areas. if you don't have a good 'eye' for lining things up, measure. color combinations are important. sometimes i see a card that has a pretty good color scheme going and then the maker adds some off the wall color that just totally clashes. i know color oft times is a matter of opinion, but if you're not sure of your color sense, borrow color schemes from the cards of people whose work you admire. or use the color challenges on this website. and just remember what everyone has already said...we all have to start somewhere. find someone you know whose taste you admire and whose honesty you trust and ask him or her for some honest criticism because you truly want to improve. happy stamping!

I wanted to jump into this discussion as one of my best friends that stamps with me has the same problem. She's always saying her cards look like "crap" and they always look like a kid made them. And, honestly, they aren't too good. But she absolutely refuses to take the time to cut carefully, measure, keep her cards clean and she just powers through everything, rushing along like it was a race. She's always saying it doesn't matter that much to the people she's sending them to, but then later she hates the cards. I've tried everything tactful I can to get her to slow down, use a ruler, take that extra minute to doublecheck and trim things evenly. I even bought her the perfect layers set and she can't seem to get it even with that. Not sure what the answer is but it is frustrating for me to try to help her.
Margaret

Here are my best tips:

Make sure your trimmer blade is sharp! - I see SO many nice cards that would be great if the person had just changed their trimmer blade!

Take your time. - It's not a race to finish first, or make the most, or anything. When you rush, your work gets sloppy.

Use embellishments! - That's what they are for, don't hoard them! Sometimes all a card needs is a brad or some ribbon or maybe a section popped up to make it really great.

Ask for suggestions. - I learned a LOT by asking "What does this card need?"

Take the time to figure out what you like about other people's work. - I LOVE how SweetMissDaisy uses black layers on many of her cards. I LOVE that atomicbutterfly uses pop dots on many of her cards. Jeanne S. uses a gazillion layers and backgrounds, all which make her cards stand out. These things can then be combined to make your own style.

Pay attention to detail! - The little things DO matter.

Most of all, HAVE FUN! - that's what this craft is all about :)

HTH

Sometimes a coloring job is the thing to ruin a nice card. So, I tend to use stamps that dont need coloring, or I use chalks- very forgiving, and I can erase too.

Lots of good ideas here. I have had the same struggle. Usually I am not in a location to attend a workshop, stamp camp, etc. - when I do, they help a lot.

Since I am usually doing this on my own, I find that blatently casing cards I like a lot (from this site or the catty) does help. But then I probably don't have the same stamps, or the sme color cs, etc...

For me, using good cs in an appropriate color makes a huge difference. I also do a lot of distressing or smudging of edges - I think that often gives a more finished look.

Hope you are getting a lot of ideas here!

Lisa, I completely understand! I got a card from Sarah (aka MrsE) that was so incredibly, meticulously done. I mean, absolutely FLAWLESS. That makes a huge difference between just doing a card, and really creating a card.
Also remember that people have different tastes and styles. I have a neighbor who, IMO, overdoes it with embellis and stamps. But another neighbor just loves her work! I personally prefer my cards to be embellished, but strategically done so.
I would suggest you join full card swaps. This will give you visual and tangible examples of cards, and challenge you to create some that you are proud of to send off to the others.
I think back (and not that far back by the way) to some of the cards that I first attempted. HA! That's why I don't have a gallery yet. heehee! And I was introduced to stamping almost 6 years ago!!
Also find a technique that you are good at, and milk it for all that it is worth. I am so into spinner cards right now that I swear I would make a Sympathy spinner card if it wasn't so tacky. ;) Waterfall cards are so beautiful that they will eventually be my newborn's birth announcements within the next month. Most of all, enjoy yourself! And send cards to your family first to boost your ego. Anything handmade or homemade still starts from the heart.
Take care!
Joni

thank you all of you that have taken the time to respond to this thread. I think it is so great that even those of us that have been stamping for a while can take these hints and tips and make them work for us. Another thing I have done to improve my stamping is to do the different challenges that are posted, especially the sketch challenge and the color challenge, they are a great way to get good layouts and good colors and make a card your own. I have seen many cards I think are beautiful and I have just changed them around and plugged them into one of the challenges and viola, amazing card. You don't even have to do the challenge that is for that day or week, check the back ones and the cards made with them, they always get my creative juices flowing!

Everyone has had some thoughtful and relevant advice. However, there is one thing no one has mentioned yet:

You are your own worst critic!

As a SU! demo I have come up with many ideas/layouts that I was not thrilled about. Regardless, I showed them to my customers. Several would comment on how much they liked them with what appeared to be genuine admiration. Then a few would go home and reproduce them. That is the true compliment. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Keep creating and you will come up with your personal style. Then your style will change and you are back at the beginning!

Good Luck,
K