How does “that” work for you?

[Far North]

Sometimes we are so excited about a brand new product/tool that we are ready to purchase as soon as we see it for sale.  But other times we wait until we hear opinion from other stampers.  So please ask for review info that you would like to hear about as well as share your own experiences below.

I would like to hear about….

Misti-I see lots of designers using this tool but am still not convinced I would use it very much. Please share how much you are really using it and for what purposes.

Bristol paper
I know a few AIs have previously chatted a little about the use of this paper. But when using it for watercoloring I didn’t like how it worked for coloring stamped images.  I am now using it for mixed media and card bases.  KWerner used it in a recent tutorial for abstract watercoloring.  How do you use it?

Thanks for sharing!...Jan

[howdyheidi]

I use a Bristol paper, although I think there are two different kinds.  I am not at home right now so I can't look at my paper pad to tell you the exact kind.  I do use it for techniques that do not involve too much water.  I like the smooth surface for stamping. 

[Far North]

Everyone's summer days seem very busy...I know I am!  So no worries!
For the Bristol paper I went direct to the manufacture's information and here is what I learned about the brands I have...

Strathmore 300 Series Bristol 100 lb.
Choice of surface type: smooth or vellum
Media Applications for: Smooth - graphite pencil, colored pencil, charcoal, sketching stick, pen & ink, marker, mixed media, collage
Vellum – Same as above. And also soft pastel, oil pastel.

Canson® XL® Recycled Bristol 96 lb. features the first recycled 2-sided Bristol on the market.  The surface on the front is vellum and on the back is smooth.  Recommended techniques: pen & ink, marker, colored pencil, pencil

So it looks like watercolor is not top on their lists for using Bristol paper....makes me think I should stick with the recommended uses since I do have watercolor paper.

As for the misti I would still love to hear from our AI's!

Thanks!...Jan

[Iring]

Hi Jan!

Thanks for the info.  I have/had some Bristol, but I think last time I looked for it I couldn't find it!  I can't understand why you'd want to watercolor on it, except that it's smooth so your stamped image might be clearer than on watercolor paper.  I used to get frustrated at SU stamp camps when they would want us to watercolor on their smooth paper.  Unless you're very careful not to use too much water, and don't go over an area more than once it ALWAYS pills. 

I don't have a Misti.  I'm kind of on the fence.  I have a stamp-a-ma-jig. I've seen videos on how  to make a faux Misti, but I've never tried it. Maybe I should rig up something and see if I think I'd use it.  I don't know ... part of me says paper is cheap, if I mess up turn it over or get a new piece.  Of course it's more painful if you mess up late in a project than early on (but then I only see videos of people starting from scratch in their Misti).  Another part of me says ... hmmm, Mom gave me some birthday money, maybe I should get a Misti!

[CarefreeSadie]

I have a Misti and use it often.  Most times I don't put a sentiment on a card until I need to use the card so in the Misti it goes, if I don't get a good stamping then I can reink and do it again.  I also have some stamps that no matter how I stamp it isn't as dark as I want them the first time, with the Misti there is no problem, just stamp again and again until it is nice and dark and solid.  I paid full price for the original Misti and I have gotten my money's worth.  If it broke I would probably rebuy it.  I made a couple of the dvd case ones but rarely use them.  The Misti just works better. 

[Far North]

Cindi-I too am trying to figure out why stampers would use bristol paper for watercoloring...just wondering if I am missing something. At least the bristol paper is a heavier weight than most cardstock which often results in a uneven painted look.  Thanks for your comments.

Sadie thank you for your comments on the MISTI which are very helpful. It's really is great to get feedback from folks who do not profit from their product comments especially when considering a spendy item. 

[Far North]

This week's Online Crafty Chat focuses on the presenters wishlists of what would enhance their stamping work.  While a great deal of the discussion is on crafty items it also includes personal enhancements.  Again this topic may be of higher interest to stampers than some of the earlier chats.  I found the sound was not in sync with the lip movement through much of the chat so it was best to just listen to most of it.

[Iring]

Hi Jan,

I stamped on watercolor paper this week and maybe now I get why you might want to stamp on Bristol Smooth paper.  The texture of the watercolor was a little bit challenging to stamp on.  I got a not so great image (missing spots).  After a lot of inking and applying substantially more pressure I was able to get a solid image.  Since Bristol is smooth it might have fit my needs better, as I was using water-based markers and not sopping the paper with water anyway.

I found this conversation in the comments section following Kristina Werner's youtube about watercoloring on Bristol. 

Hey Kristina just wanted to let you know that the Bristol Vellum is for dry media only and the Bristol Smooth can be used for wet or dry. As a matter of fact this is my favorite paper to use with the Zig Clean Color markers because they blend amazingly on the Bristol Smooth. So I just thought I would let you know because it does say it on the front of the pad of paper which is which and what it can be used for 😊
Reply4     
 K Werner Design
K Werner Design2 weeks ago
Interesting. My Bristol Smooth pad only says "For finished artwork - pen & ink". Nothing about wet media. Are you using Strathmore?
Reply     
 Beau DeLeon
Beau DeLeon2 weeks ago
+K Werner Design ok so here is the skinny...yes mine is the Bristol Smooth and I have two pads of it. One older and one newer and one says wet and dry media and the other says pen and ink. So they must of changed the wording on it for some reason. I haven't found any difference in quality and I have added a lot of water without any peeling or anything. I wouldn't have even known they changed that had you not said anything because they perform exactly the same lol. But if you think about it ink is still wet so maybe they were just clarifying? Not sure but it works wonderfully with the Zig Clean Color markers blending with water and all, it really lets the color move beautifully 😊. Anyway love this card I love your work it is amazing and you are such an inspiration!

Still haven't found my Bristol paper!  Need to do more digging and cleaning!

ETA : Here isKristina's video about watercolor on Bristol Smooth.

[djc]

I use Bristol for colored pencils.

I use 140-lb hot press watercolor paper for watercolor.  The hot press is smooth so stamping on it is not a problem.  If you want the traditional look of the textured cold press, don't forget that one side of cold press is smoother than the other.  Stamp on the smoother side.  Cold press watercolor works great with paste embossing.  I use the 90-lb, and it can handle the moisture without warping and pilling.

Jan, I recently bought the Misti, and I really do love it.  I've always been afraid to stamp on the front of my cards not wanting to mess up an otherwise completed card. With the Misti, I can do it.  If I'm stamping on textured paper, I can re-stamp until it's the way I want it to be.  However, I recently realized that if I just use the cushion that comes with it, repeat stamping wasn't necessary when stamping a sentiment with a cling stamp; it was perfect the first time.  The cushion is actually meant to be used with clear stamps that have no cushion.  Also I was able to stamp the same sentiment on multiple focal pieces without having to re-position the stamp each time. 

What made me decide to get the Misti was the desire to stamp over inked backgrounds, Bruhso backgrounds and backgrounds made with other techniques.  Sometimes the image needs to be stamped more than once to get a really dark image.  The Misti helps out with that.

One other comment.  Since the door to the Misti is thin, it's possible to press down all over the stamp, including big background stamps so that you get a complete image with some that caused problems in the past. 

I bought the regular sized Misti; it's still small enough to pack and carry.  The Mini Misti seemed too limited, and I definitely don't want to buy two of them!

HTH
Daria

[Iring]

Thanks for your tips Daria! 

Maybe that's why I bought Bristol  (colored pencils)!

Still contemplating a Misti!

[Far North]

I too use the smooth side of cold press watercolor paper when stamping and watercoloring. When wanting to stamp on the textured side I use a stamp without a block so I can hand press the stamp into the texture.

Daria thanks for the MISTI comments!  I wonder what you think you would be limited by the cardmarker size?

[djc]

Jan, I thought that if I wanted to stamp only a part of an image in order to stamp off the card or for any other reason, I'd need to place the stamp further out than dimensions permitted.  Does that make sense?  Also it would be a tight fit to stamp an A6 card if you wanted to cover the entire surface of the card base.  Forget stamping an A7. 

Those were my thoughts when I decided to get the original size.  Since I almost always make A2 cards and A6 cards and seldom stamp the entire card base, maybe the Mini would have been fine (except the stamping off problem which I do frequently).

Daria

[Iring]

About the mini Misti

stamping off problem

I probably wouldn't have thought of that, and then regretted it later!  Thanks for sharing Daria!

About Spectrum Noir Sparkle Pens :

Likes :  colors, lots of shimmer, blendable
Dislike :  the shimmer is rubbing off!!!

I colored an entire card front and noticed after I handled the card I had some shimmer on my fingers.  Today I went back to my color swatch and ran my finger across the swatch, and yes there is shimmer on my finger and shimmer to the right of the swatch on the paper .  I'm disappointed!  They were fun to color with as they are nice and juicy and blendable but I wish the shimmer would stay put!  This test was done after the coloring had dried for days, so it's not a wet/dry issue.  I'm hoping maybe it's because they are brand new and maybe lots of shimmer came out in the first squeezes of the pen? 

Has anyone else had this issue?  I'm surprised I haven't read anything about it.  I just went to the internet to look at reviews and found only one person, on Amazon, mentioned it.  I guess everyone is so smitten by the shimmer (it IS really shimmery) that they don't notice/don't care?

So, this morning I tested a few of my Wink of Stella's.  I tested both brands on watercolor paper and smooth card stock.  At first I thought the Wink of Stella were completely permanent because I didn't see shimmer all over my finger.  With a closer look, there are maybe a few stray shimmers.  Very few, not a defined smear of shimmer that follows the path of my finger like the Spectrums did.  The Winks are very nearly perfect, and maybe perfect, on watercolor paper.  There is so much shimmer on my fingers and paper now that it's not really a controlled test any more.  Ha!

I'd love to hear if anyone else has experienced this, or if I'm doing something wrong, or if they will get better as I use up the first squirts of shimmer laden color?

[howdyheidi]

Wow, Cindi, that would be a disappointment!  I have not tried the Wink or the Spectrum Noir sparkle pens, so I have no experience to share.  I wonder if you could seal it with something, if it would be worth it to you...

[Iring]

I know, I thought of that, but it would be a PIA and might take away the shimmer.  I could go over it with glossy accents to seal it in, or maybe spray with a fixative?  Another step 

For now, I'm tempted to leave it alone.  It's not loose glitter that will make a mess of the recipient's home ... they just might have a little shimmer on their fingers.