April's Review	Catherine's Review	Chris' Review	Penny's Review	Tammy's Review

Review by April

Over the past year I have had the opportunity to review several wonderful and unique crafting products, supplies, DVD's, and idea books. I look forward to trying new things and experimenting with new techniques, and because of this the prospect of being included on a Stampington & Company review is always exciting! I have yet to review anything by Stampington & Company that I haven't found to be totally enthralling and well worth the time.

For this review I received the Autumn 2008 edition of Stampington & Company's Somerset Workshop. This publication has 144 pages, filled with over 85 exquisite samples and finished projects. Every dazzling piece of artwork in this book is displayed in a beautiful color photo and includes detailed instructions on how the project was created. The cover of the book is super smooth and silky to the touch, and the project samples on the front are not only eye catching, but in my opinion entrancing. The book binding is very secure and can definitely withstand all the page turning and referencing you are sure to do after acquiring this book. Photo image transformations, altered books & boxes, tin metal artistry, and rustic woodworks are the main project themes in this issue, and each are represented by several stunning projects. The Somerset Workshop also includes a section where you can learn a little more about the contributing artists and the publisher.

After reading all the articles and studying over the different projects, I went back and dog eared the pages of the projects I wanted to try first. After realizing I had dog eared over half the book, I narrowed it down to two project techniques I was almost immediately captivated by. For my first project, I decided to try Shona Cole's photo altering technique on page 92. I wasn't quite sure what I would do with the photo after I altered it...but I knew it didn't matter because this was one technique I had to try! I printed a picture of my daughter Charlie and her friend Piggy, and then soaked it in hot water for 30 seconds. Afterwards I patted it dry and then sanded around the main images. I then applied a coat of watered down quinacridone gold acrylic paint from Golden and let it dry. After it dried I used oil pastels to add a little color around the edges and fill in some of the scratches. To complete the photo altering, I stamped pretty flourish images around the corners of the photo. I decided the picture would make a great wall hanging, so I painted a 12x12 sheet of cork board with white gesso and then layered on a ton of embellishments around the photo. I was downright thrilled with the results and I definitely plan on using this amazing technique from now on!

She is Cherished
Products used:
Ideas & Inspiration (Stampington & Company: Somerset Workshop Autumn 2008)
Corkboard (Hobby Lobby)
Gesso (Golden)
Acrylic Paint (Golden)
Oil Pastels (Sakura Cray-Pas)
Ink Pad (Staz On)
Stamps (Fancy Pants)
Mask (Heidi Swapp)
Spray Paint (Krylon)
Stickers (Heidi Swapp, Making Memories, & American Crafts)
Flowers (Prima, & Bazzill)
Rhinestones (Heidi Swapp, Wal-mart)
Brads (Reminisce, 7gypsies)
Glitter Glue (Ranger)
Chipboard (Scenic Route)
Spiral Notebook Sheet (Making Memories)
Pins (Fancy Pants)
Crochet Flowers (Fancy Pants)
Felt (Fancy Pants)
Pen (Staedtler)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

The second technique I found fascinating was an image alteration with watercolor pencils by Tena Sprenger. The idea for my mine came from one of the many projects in Tena Sprenger's gallery starting on page 134. When I first saw the photo she had altered I couldn't take my eyes off of it and I kept thinking that's pretty darn creative...I have to try that! So for my second project, I started by adjusting the contrast and brightness on a black and white photo and then I printed it out on watercolor paper. I colored in the areas of the images I wanted to stand out with watercolor pencils, and then I outlined them with a fine tip black sharpie. I have to admit I almost didn't attempt to use the black sharpie in fear of messing something up, but the whole purpose of this publication is to encourage others to try something new and I am so glad I went for it because I really loved the end result. To complete the layout, I placed pop dots underneath the photo for added dimension, and then embellished around the photo.

Our Last Night in Disney
Products used:
Ideas & Inspiration (Stampington & Company: Somerset Workshop Autumn 2008)
Patterned Paper (Prima, & Creative Imaginations)
Watercolor Paper (Canson)
Watercolor Pencils (Staedtler)
Pen (Sharpie)
Rhinestones (7gypsies, Heidi Swapp, & Glitz)
Stickers (Jenni Bowlin, 7gypsies, & Making Memories)
Die cuts (Jenni Bowlin, Tim Holtz)
Alcohol Ink (Ranger)
Paint Dabber (Ranger)
Chipboard (Unknown)
Cardstock (Hobby Lobby Kraft)
Clay Tile (Lil Davis)
Button (Fancy Pants)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

If I were going to recommend an amazing idea book that truly has the ability to inspire others it would be a Somerset Workshop publication. I thought the Autumn 2008 edition was outstanding and I think it would be a great creative asset to all crafters whether they are a beginner or an advanced paper crafter. It's not often that you can sit on your couch in your pj's reading a magazine, and then feel like you've taken an entire art class without leaving the comfort of your living room. With complete instructions for creating unique projects and trying out innovative crafting techniques, you can't go wrong and I would say that Somerset Workshop Autumn 2008 is definitely the next idea book to add to your stash!

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Review by Catherine

Somerset magazines from Stampington and Company are such a wonderful source of inspiration. I find myself turning to these publications over and over again to spark my creativity. The Somerset Workshop publication is a slightly different twist on the regularly published Somerset magazines, but is no less inspirational and even more informative and educational for the papercrafter.

I have reviewed several Stampington publications in the past, and am always impressed and inspired. As I opened my Somerset Workshop Autumn 2008 magazine the first time, I noticed right away that this publication is a bit different. The main idea of this magazine is “Teaching unique crafting techniques from start to finish.” There are four “Workshops” included: Woodworks, Altered Books and Boxes, Tin Metal Artistry, and Altered Images. Within each of the workshops there is an article written by an expert in the medium, as well as several different project created by the artist. Each project has complete instructions, from beginning to end, in order to recreate the project. The project instructions are more detailed that many of the other Somerset publications, such as Somerset Holidays and Somerset Studio Gallery.

Each of the projects in the Somerset Workshop magazine is extremely detailed and includes a wide-array of techniques. I was enthralled by every one of the different workshop sections, and have spent hours pouring over every project reading the instructions on creating them. The artists included in this Workshop are: Audrey Hernandez, Linda Trenholm, Marsha Williams, Shona Cole, Jill Marie Shulse, and Tena Sprenger. All of these artists are extremely talented and innovative, offering a plethora of art techniques to learn and try.

I found it extremely hard to decide which workshop to choose my project from. I finally settled on creating an altered canvas loosely patterned after the canvas by Shona Cole on page 102 in the Altered Images Workshop. My intention is to add a smaller altered canvas on top of the base to create a more three-dimensional piece as Shona did. For this project, I followed the directions on painting the background, stamping images, applying papers, and subduing the look of my canvas with gesso.

Title: Just Begin Canvas
Canvas (Blick Studio)
Paint (Kaiser Colour)
Stamps (BasicGrey; Stampers Anonymous)
Colored Pencils (Heidi Swapp )
Rubons (Ronna Farrer)
Gesso (Liquitex Basics)
Other (Vintage Music papers)
Adhesive (UHU Stic Glue Stick- Saunders)

Title: Just Begin Canvas Close-Up
Canvas (Blick Studio)
Paint (Kaiser Colour)
Stamps (BasicGrey; Stampers Anonymous)
Colored Pencils (Heidi Swapp )
Rubons (Ronna Farrer)
Gesso (Liquitex Basics)
Other (Vintage Music papers)
Adhesive (UHU Stic Glue Stick- Saunders)

Even after having this publication for a month, I still do not feel like I have explored it completely. There are so many things to learn from a Somerset Workshop publication. This is a perfect jumpstart to creativity for papercrafting, altered arts, and metal arts. I can see myself opening this magazine and learning from it for a very long time to come. If you are looking to delve into new techniques, or are just looking for inspirational images, artwork, and artists then this magazine is a must-have. I will be subscribing to the Somerset Workshop publication in the very near future, as I am always looking to learn new art techniques. I give the Somerset Workshop my highest praise and recommendation!

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Review by Chris

The Somerset series of publications by Stampington have become some of my all-time favorite idea books. I love the diversity of the projects, the media used and the creativity of the artists. Also, the quality of the publication is outstanding, with excellent photography and explicit, easy-to-follow instructions. They are a crafter’s dream!

As I leafed through their newest publication, Somerset Workshop, Autumn 2008, I was treated to a seemingly endless stream of unique and extremely inspiring projects. I oohed, ahhed and just about drooled over every page! This 141 page publication is divided into 4 “workshops” each addressing a different medium: woodworks, altered books & boxes, tin metal artistry and altered images. The first three workshops are instructed by a single artist, whose biography and qualifications are included at the end of the book. The final workshop, Altered Images, includes sections by three separate artists; the three combined include a wide variety of techniques for altering photographic images.

Every project includes detailed step-outs with instructions and a corresponding picture. As I read through several of the projects, I realized that even the beginning crafter could successfully complete the project. Every project includes a detailed supply list and most of the supplies are readily available and probably are actually in most crafters’ arsenal. Each workshop also includes a gallery of additional works by the instructor, accompanied with instructions. As an example, the Woodworks workshop includes five projects with supply lists and detailed step-outs plus the instructor’s gallery which adds an additional twelve projects as inspiration!

I was drawn to the Altered Images workshop, as I am always looking for creative ways to incorporate all the photographs I have taken into interesting projects. My first project was to use scenic photographs to create hand-colored postcards. This very simple technique creates very impressive artwork. By lowering the opacity of colored photographs, resizing them and printing them on watercolor paper, I was able to use the photograph as a guide to create watercolored images. As you can see, the outcome is gorgeous and I now have hand-colored postcards to use, or give as a gift. This would be a great way to remember a favorite vacation or series of photos.

Watercolor Postcards
Products used: Inspired by Tena Sprenger’s Watercolor Sketchbook workshop in Somerset Workshop, Autumn 2008
Watercolor paper (Canson)
Watercolor pencils (Derwent)
Watercolor crayons (Lyra Aquacolor)

Continuing in the Altered Images workshop, I wanted to try Shana Cole’s altered emulsion photo technique. After placing a professionally printed photo face down in hot water for approximately 30 seconds, you can sand away a busy background and leave just your focal image surrounded by a distressed finish. I then applied layers of diluted fluid acrylic paint to color in the background. This very simple technique results in stunning altered photos and I am sure I will be experimenting more with it.

Angel Baby Canvas
Products used: Inspired by Shana Cole’s Laura’s Brag Book workshop in Somerset Workshop, Autumn 2008
Patterned paper (Daisy D’s, Moda, Antique Rose Stripe, Boho Floral)
Stickers (NRN Designs)
Paint (Golden fluid acrylic, Quinacridone burnt orange, Irridescent gold, fine)
Button (SEI)
Die Cut (Cuttlebug, heart)
Stamp (Inkadinkado)
Ink (Tsukineko, Staz-On black)
Adhesive (Golden, soft gel)

I always look forward to Stampington’s Somerset publications and I was surely not disappointed by the new Workshop, Autumn 2008. It is packed with fantastic projects along with great techniques that can be used again and again. When you consider the average cost for any class to be at least $20, the price of this book at $14.99 makes it an extremely great value! My only suggestion to Stampington would be to bind these idea books in spiral format to make them easier to use.

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Review by Penny

Flipping through the 144 pages of Somerset Workshop's Autumn 2008 edition, I felt like I had received hands-on instruction. The projects are clearly demonstrated with step-by-step photographs and instructions. Each project begins with a supply list and ends with several examples to inspire you.

There are four separate workshops in this issue: (1) Woodworks; (2) Altered Books & Boxes; (3) Tin Metal Artistry; and (4) Altered Images. Each workshop is broken down into at least five different projects created by its contributing artists.

The Woodworks Workshop, for example, illustrates a shadow box project, an altered cutting board and a paperweight project, just to name a few.

The Altered Books & Boxes Workshop shows an altered tin project, an altered board book project and altered boxes of varying sizes and styles, among others. The one that caught my eye here was an example of a Bug Box created by Linda Trenholm and shown on Page 62. I love the orange colors and vintage images of her project and decided to alter a purse for my own project. I drew inspiration from Linda's box when choosing the colors, stamping, inking and masking for my project. I also took her dragonfly image and altered it to a butterfly on my project.

Title: Serendipity Purse
Product Used: Purse Box (Creative Imaginations)
Patterned Paper, Stickers (BasicGrey)
Glitter Dimensional Stickers (Chatterbox)
Flowers (Prima)
Stamp (Tim Holtz)
Ink (Tsukineko, VersaColor)
Adhesive (Stampin Up, Ad Tech Glue Runner)
Other: Buttons

The third workshop is Tin Metal Artistry. This workshop shows several ways to use tin. One project involves snips of tin to create flowers, and another to form a beautiful bird placed on a nest of wire. There is also a stunning project called Raven's Dance by Marsha Williams (p. 78) creating a double face image. One side of the face is created with embossed copper flashing, the second is a profile picture of a face on the opposite side which was painted blue on this project. It is very eye catching with lots of little details in the embossing and beading and the opposing images of the faces and colors. This is one project that I found extremely inspiring.

The final workshop deals with Altered Images. The first project shown is demonstrated by Shona Cole and involves altering a photo with water emulsion and sanding out the background of a photo, leaving the main subject of the photo intact. The background is then stamped, inked and modified to make a much more dramatic and beautiful image. This technique works especially well for photos with a cluttered background. The softness of Shona's altered images inspired me to try it for my second project. After sanding my photo, I painted it with a wash of dye ink. Once dry, I stamped images using Staz On ink and finished the photo off with a bit of color from oil pastels. It sure gives a different look to your photos!

Title: Cole
Products Used: Cardstock
Patterned Paper, Stickers, Chipboard, Stamps (Sassafras Lass)
Ink, Punch (Stampin Up)
Stamps (Tim Holtz)
Ink (Staz On)
Adhesive (Ad Tech Glue Runner)
Mod Podge
Other: Sandpaper, Oil Pastels

This workshop also shows projects involving acrylic paints, colored pencils and gel pens to add color to photographs and other three dimensional projects. I found this section of the book particularly inspiring with several techniques I want to try.

The softcover book contains over 85 samples and finished projects. There is a nice mix of styles here from collage, to vintage, to modern. Each technique is demonstrated step-by-step with large full color photos. For it's retail price of $14.99, I can't think of a better way to learn. This is truly the best instruction you can imagine without having to attend an actual workshop. There is enough here to get you trying the techniques on your own and feel confident doing so.

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Review by Tammy

Have you ever wondered, "How did they do that?" Or, spent countless hours trying to find directions for a particular project? I know I have! The new Somerset Workshop Volume 5 from Stampington & Company will answer a lot of your questions and save you time trying to find directions for a particular technique or project.

The Somerset Workshop is a 144 page soft bound book that is packed with over 85 samples and finished projects! The book is broken up into four separate "workshops" (or chapters) and concludes with a section entitled "Meet the Artists", followed by an article about the Publisher. You will also notice that each Workshop is also color coded making it easy to locate a project or artist in the book.

The Workshops in this book are as follows:

• Woodworks by Audry Hernandez
• Altered Books & Boxes by Linda Trenholm
• Tin Metal Artistry by Marsha Williams
• Altered Images; Story by Jana Holstein; Artwork by Shona Cole, Jill Marie Shulse, & Tena Sprenger

After reading the book from cover to cover I had to make a decision, "Where would I start?" The directions for these workshops were very clear and easy to understand and the step-by-step and finished product photography was really great! These two things made me feel like I could accomplish any of the projects with ease. Of course, the decision of which workshop I would create my first project from was still looming over me and so I finally decided to start with Workshop 4, Watercolor Sketchbook by Tena Sprenger.

As I read through Tena's story and directions for this watercolor technique, I was completely intrigued. I had seen something similar to this years ago and thought the finished product was beautiful. Since I am not much on sketchbooks, and I wanted to share my artwork, I decided to skip the bookmaking portion and dive right into the watercolor portion of this workshop. I found this vintage Christmas image on the internet and as Tena suggested, I used my Adobe Photoshop Elements to turn the image into a watermark. Tena left her image in color but I opted to change my to black and white which worked better for me. Once I had the image the way that I wanted it, I printed it out onto Watercolor paper. I would have preferred to use the 90lb smooth finish watercolor paper that was suggested but all I had at the moment was some Prima Paintable cardstock (a watercolor paper) which I used the reverse side for in this project.

 

Once I had the image printed onto my watercolor paper, I began to color in the areas of the image using watercolor pencils. Having this "watermark guide" image to follow helped me with proper shading and placement of color. Once my image was completely colored I went over it with a damp waterbrush to blend the colors. This technique made me look like a watercolor artist yet it was so quick and simple!

Title: The Bells are Ringing card
Products used: Cardstock (Prism Prismatics)
Watercolor Paper (Prima)
Image (Christmasgifts.com)
Watercolor Pencils (Stampin' Up)
Gold Pen (Krylon)
Stamp (TAC)
Ink (Whispers)
Scallop Template (bgladpapercrafts.cuttersmarket.com)
Gold Ribbon (Hobby Lobby)
Adhesive (Adhesive Tech, Permanent Bond Glue Runner)

My second project comes from Workshop 2 by Linda Trenholm. Linda's workshop is all about altered books and boxes - and boxes I have - lots of them! I keep just about every tin or box that comes my way thinking that one day I might use that on a project. When I saw the Dance project, I knew it was time to dust off a canvas and a saved tin from days past. As I followed Linda's instruction on getting the crackle effect on the canvas, I had a completely different idea in mind for my canvas than what I ended up with. Somehow when I get out paints and various mediums my projects take unexpected twists and turns. The canvas was originally going to have a John Deere theme, but then as I began to work, I could see a different kind of farm theme appearing. The larger Altoids tin was replaced with the smaller Maya Road tin and instead of hanging embellishments from the tin as Linda did in her Dance canvas, I chose to use stickers to create a background for my canvas. I adhered the painted tin to my canvas as the last step.

Title: Fresh Eggs Canvas
Products used: Cardstock (Prism Prismatics)
Acrylic Paint (Golden & Liquitex)
White Gesso (Liquitex)
One Step Crackle (DecoArt)
Antiquing Medium (Plaid)
Instant Age Varnish (Delta Cermacoat)
Copper Ink (Tseuniko)
Embossing Powder (PK Glitz)
Stickers (Tumblebeasts)
Tin (Maya Road)
Canvas

The last section of the book is devoted to the artists themselves. A short one page interview/bio, with picture, provides an in depth look at who these people are that create such treasured pieces of art. While each of these artists may not represent my "style", they have provided a platform to create art that I can springboard from.

It would be difficult to find classes in my area that were offered from each of these talented ladies. Stampington & Company has brought them all into my home through the pages of this book - Somerset Workshop Volume 5. Pick up a copy and join me in class - you won't be sorry!

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