AMY BRINKMAN

What's new with me - LOTS!

Whew...it seems this little blog of mine has been neglected for awhile, but with good reason. I have been busy launching two new businesses - Studio Gabby Girl and Vintagraphy, along with still selling some items on my Amy Brinkman Designs shop. Anyway, these two new ventures are my passion and joy. Studio Gabby Girl is my shop full of gorgeous designs for image transfer techniques and collage sheets. Very economically priced, these products are fun and easy to craft with. You can even see some of my techniques and favorite products at my Studio Gabby Girl website. You'll find lots of cool ideas here, I'm sure!

For the big surprise, I have been working, working, working on my newest business venture, Vintagraphy. Here you will find gorgeous original and vintage illustrations printed directly onto rare antique book and dictionary pages. These art prints are absolutely beautiful and the photos on the screen cannot completely display their vintage charm and beauty. The shop is still slightly under construction and I am adding new prints daily. I will also be launching my own website at: www.Vintagraphy.com within the next week to 10 days. I will make an announcement when I do.  You can follow Vintagraphy on Facebook and Twitter @Vintagraphy. I will be posting special announcements, coupons, promos etc. there from time to time.

You can find all three of my Etsy shops on the sidebars of this blog page, as well as in the direct links above.  

Thanks for all of your support over the past few months! I appreciate all of you!

Amy

Hello - I'm still here!

Hi Everyone,

Just wanted to let you know I'm still here. Busy working on a new business project! I will be sharing the details soon - I think you are going to love it!  Stay tuned!

Have a wonderful day!

amy

Japan - prayer and art journaling

AmyBrinkman_JapanARTJOURNAL a photo by Amy Brinkman Designs on Flickr.

Been watching the news and the horrific images coming from Japan. Somehow it all came out of me last night when I sat down with my art journal. I've been to Tokyo - and the Japanese people are wonderful. My niece, who is a flight attendant for Delta, is there right now, 2 days in Tokyo, 1 day in Guam, 1 day in Tokyo. She was called to fly right after the earthquake and tsunami hit. I'm scared for her. The crew is bunking together and there is no food or water at the hotel. Scary stuff with the radiation thing happening on top of it. So, it's with all of this brewing in me that I sat down to a fresh journal, a blank page and poured my thoughts out...my admiration for the Japanese people when faced with unbelievable circumstances and how their dignity prevails. The silly news stories that are getting ridiculous when politics come into play on the issue. Just the whole thing. I prayed for these people as I journaled, really focused my thoughts and prayers on them. Somehow, it helps me to know that in my own small, little way, maybe I am helping them.
Amy

Natalie Lawson - Who is this amazingly talented photographer?

A few weeks ago I had the privilege of working with Natalie Lawson, a photographer based out of Tallahassee, Florida.  Natalie needed artwork for her website, Natalie Lawson Photography, and had been searching for months for just the perfect look that really captured the essence of her personality and her work. When I saw this photo of her on her blog, I knew that she was someone I would love to work with. Fun and vibrant!

Photo courtesy of Natalie Lawson Photography

Inspired by the banner on my own blog, she asked me to create custom art for her site. I was tickled at the idea, not just for the chance to do something a little different, but because Natalie's charm, her enthusiasm and gorgeous photos really pulled at my heart. Seriously, once you see her photos, you think, oh my gosh, WOW!  Amazing, let me keep looking at these incredible shots! I want to see more!

Natalie's use of light and her ability to capture the soul of a person shows through on all of her photos. Honestly, I think that this job is right up there with my all-time top favorite jobs. Why? Because, not only can Natalie pull the best out of someone in her photographs, she pulled out the best in ME! Her sweet personality, her real-ness and her drive for greatness made me smile every time I sat down with my sketchbook and computer. Seriously, I'm not kidding. I can only imagine what it's like for Natalie's clients - the beautiful babies and children, the mothers, the families. How good they must feel when they work with her!

Thank you, Natalie, for bringing the light of your personality into my life! You truly are an amazing woman and I know, just know, that you will achieve great success!

Please check out Natalie's site where you too can be inspired by her talent. Natalie Lawson Photography

Natalie, to sum up my experience, a quote from William Shakespeare - 

I wish you all the joy that you can wish. 

Hugs,

Amy

 

 

Pretty Gabby - our puppy is growing

Pretty Gabi, originally uploaded by Amy Brinkman Designs.

Here's our sweet little Gabby Girl. She is growing so much - she is just a little over four months old now. 7.5 pounds at her last doctor visit. What a pretty little girl. I swear she is the smartest little dog - and so much fun too. She has finally won the hearts of our other guys. Check out how she conquers Fritz on my Flickr site!

More Vintage Blue Dennison Label Goodness

AmyBrinkmanDesigns_DennisonLabels4blue_Etsy, originally uploaded by Amy Brinkman Designs.

Yummy, yummy, yummy. I think I like these Vintage Dennison Style Blue Gummed Labels even better than the red version of Dennison labels in my shop. My husband just came home and saw the new designs and he said, "Wow, those are nice! Love that color!" Spoken from the heart. Gotta love that.

So, just because I love vintage stuff. Adore vintage labels and recently discovered BLUE Dennison Gummed Labels in an antique store near me, I thought I would re-create these beautiful blue babies for you - a la Digital format. They are so hard to find, so I was ecstatic when I found them.

You can find them in my Etsy shop. I have two versions in blue (Sets 3 & 4) and two versions in red (Sets 1 & 2).

Enjoy!
Amy

Art journaling my morning routine

Here's a little art journal page I took out of the vault to share with you. I've recently discovered a lot of my older art journal page scans on my computer and figured it was time to share. The older the better, right?  Anyway, this page documents my morning routine with my little dog Sadie. Sometimes its good to celebrate these little everyday moments, don't you think? Sadie has been diabetic for over three years and this has been a daily routine for me. I love that little dog so much, I would do anything for her.

Inspiring blogs:

Cesars Way

Hope Wallace

Rebecca Sower

Art Journal a la Copic

Fun art journaling with my Copic markers, vintage and new papers and images. Done up in my own hand-bound Fabriano journal. Still need to add some journaling, but I like how clean this image looks, so wanted to share it first.

 

Moleskine - what do YOU say on your Reward Page?

AmyBrinkmanDesigns_MoleyReward1, originally uploaded by Amy Brinkman Designs.

Here's one of my latest journals that I just started. Getting ready to take it on a trip to the Caribbean and wanted to make sure I had some sort of contact info on there (and a REWARD of sorts). The hard-cover Moleskine's usually have a reward page on the front inside cover, but since this is a Moleskine Cahier, I thought I'd make my own. Blurred out my phone number for display purposes. I kind of like this Cahier, it seems a little more doable and not as bulky to carry along. I offer you some food for thought....

What do all of YOU do with your Moleskine reward pages and what do you think is a fair reward? Have any of you ever lost a book and had it returned? Share your story in my comments section, please! I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. I added some humor to this page and I really like how it turned out.

You can find these Dennison style printable digital labels in my Etsy shop.  Super easy to cut out and I designed them to be replicas of the old Dennison gummed labels, from color to size.  I like little labels like this. They give me a nice little accent spot to write on. Fun!

More art journaling

Here's an art journaling spread I did some time ago, and just unearthed from the digital archive vault to finally see the light of day (haha). I really like how this one turned out, especially the woman's face and colors.

Inspiring blogs for you to enjoy:

Journal Girl

Happy Publishing

Feeling Stitchy