Red Lead

And the Red Lead Goodie Bags go to . . .

3 Red Lead goodie bags are going to:

Jean FB - Happy New Year, Chris & Sharon!  Thanks for all of the holiday inspiration these past several weeks.  Looking forward to the new Valentine's items and new charms.  Thanks for a chance to win one of your famous goodie bags!

JoAnne - Would love a goodie bag!  Thanks and Happy New Year!

Robyn Fergeson - I love Red Lead blog and everything Red Lead!  Hope I win - my craft room needs tre-organizing and re-energizing.

Hey Art Girls - E-mail us your address and we will send them out asap!  All of you are thanking us for a chance to win, but really we couldn't do it without you ordering, visiting, and commenting.  A heartfelt thanks to all of you!

-be true- Chris & Sharon

 

 

Your Heart's Desire

So happy that you all loved the inspirational bracelet as much as we do.  As soon they are in we will let you know. In the meantime, new charms flew in, new Valentine rubber stamps are expected today, more vintage style ribbons, and last but not least, check our our new Mini's.

Leave your comment and we will pick a name at random and send you a Red Lead goodie bag!

-be true- Chris & Sharon

Inspirational Bracelets

Here is why we love these bracelets - each bracelet has a story.  You know how Chris and I love words, phrases, and sentiments, and your stories! Our very first rubber stamps were our wood mounted word stamps.  This year we introduced words and phrases on atc sized cling mount stamps that have been really popular. Back to why we love the bracelets - each bracelet tells a story.  Wear this New Beginnings bracelet as a reminder of an old tradition.  On specal occasions, 7 almonds (pearls) were given.  Each symbolized love, health, happiness, prosperity, luck, respect, and a long life.  Each inspirational bracelet is hand crafted by stay at home moms, and low income single mothers that are getting their lives back on track.  Not only do the bracelets tell a story, but the women that create them have a story to tell as well.  Oh, and they are all handcrafted right here in the USA. The bracelets will be in stock at the store in St. Louis early next week. 

Plus we have lots of new papers, here is a preview of the new K and Co. 

And more collaged charms are on the way, take a look.

A little update about our Christmas  Eve shopping.  The 3 of us headed out early.  The day was bright and sunny. We ran into everybody shopping too!  It is pretty fun  to be shopping around town and have women wave and say "Merry Christmas Red Lead Sisters"  We had so much ground to cover that we ate our lunch in  the car - Burger King Jr. Whoppers. We don't usually eat fast food, but you know  it is the holidays. The day ended in a frenzy of wrapping, with big plans for the Christmas Day Cookie Bake.  Honestly, by Christmas morning we were pretty much in slow motion, but the show did go on.  We baked about 20 dozen cookies, Chris fixed a beautiful early dinner, and the day ended  around 5.  Rubber Stamped Cookies did not happen, but they are in the works for Valentine's Day. Hope your day was wonderful too!

Did I mention that we have new Valentine Stamps in the works?  Valentine's Day is the most favorite forever day of the year that Chris loves.  You know she will be stamping up a Valentine storm!  -be true- Chris & Sharon

Peace. Joy. Happiness.

Our wish for all is Peace, Joy, and Happiness.

Merry Christmas  - Chris & Sharon

Last Minute Christmas Idea to Share

Last Minute Christmas Gift Tags

Mixing your art with family photos is always in fashion in my book.  Call it scrapping, crafting, no matter, everyone loves to get something handmade from the heart.  If it is personalized with their photo, they love it even more!  I am behind with my Christmas wrapping this year, and when I went  searching for gift tags in my holiday stash box, none were to be found.  That was at 4am this morning.  Yep, I'm an early riser. So what to do?  Get to making!  Figured I might as well share with you guys how easy it is to whip up a few of these.

I started with 2 of my favorite things, #8 manila tags and vintage music paper.

Cover the tag with the vintage music paper, I always use a Uhu glue stick because they are acid free, and everything stays pretty much nice and flat. 

I colorized the tag with Tim Holtz Peeled Paint Distress Ink and Ranger Archival Vermillion Ink. 

I like just a hint of color on the music. 

For the embellishments, I like to use black and white photos because you don't have to worry about colors in the photo clashing with your papers or inks. Use any paper you like, black and white photos look good with all colors and patterns.  Stamp our Christmas Words stamp on manila tag paper with Ranger Vermillion ink,  punch out the word with a 1" or a 1-1/8" circle punch.  Edge the circle with a little ink for definition.  Did you know that you can ink and emboss brads?  Way easy. Do not hold them while embossing though, they get hot real fast.  Punch a 1/8" hole in a piece of paper, and insert the brad.  Ink the brad with Staz On Ink, emboss with Ranger Clear Embossing Powder.  Let the brad cool off for a minute, before removing and embellishing your tag.  So that's it.  Nothing better than early morning Christmas making!

-be true- Chris & Sharon

An Artful Christmas - Leave a Comment!

Only 3 more days till Christmas!

Yesterday we walked around the store and gathered up bits and pieces that we thought you would like for your Artful Christmas.  We will select one lucky art girl at random to win our box of Artful Christmas that contains a little bit of this and that - Red Lead rubber stamps, glitters, ribbons, glass vials, rhinestones, vintage images, scrabble tiles, art stencils, plus more!

The winner will be chosen at random, and we will announce the winner in our e-mail newsletter this Sat. Dec 24th.

Hope all of you are having an inspired Artful Holiday!

Don't  forget to leave your comment!

 

New Christmas Traditions

We are starting some new Christmas Traditions this year.  Shopping on Christmas Eve morning, Italian  lunch on the Hill, and Cookie Baking Christmas morning.  Christmas Cookies have always been a big part of our family holiday. Bake together - stay together!  Chocolate Chip, Peanut Butter, Oatmeal Raisin, White Chocolate Chip, plus more.  In the past we have baked for hours on end.  This year we are starting early, and not baking nearly as many dozens.  Maybe 15 dozen.  Of ourse, we will be eating them piping hot as they come out of the oven, so maybe 17 dozen.  We can count on Sheila to whip up a batch of her famous choclate fudge too! You all know we are always looking for some crafty thing to do on the holidays - so we are going to give our hand at rubber stamping cookies.  Have any of you heard about this?  If the results are good, we will take a few photos.  So any old or new Christmas Traditions you want to share with us?  We always love to hear what you are up to!  I had to throw in a few Valentine images beause you know what is right around the corner!

Check back often because Chris is itching to do another giveaway!

- be true- Chris & Sharon

Rubber Stamps - Scrap Book Stuff

Christmas is Coming!

We are overwhelmed by all of your sweet comments - thank you for inspiring us to make more, give more, do more.  The winner of the Boxful of Christmas was announced in our e-mail that was sent out this morning.  More give-a-ways are in the works, step by steps too, so check back and keep us on our toes!

Chris and I  are headed over to the store today - Saturday - 8 more days until Christmas - plenty of time for Holiday making.  You all know about that last minute thing.  Plenty of you - us too - will be rushing around looking for that perfect something.  I only have 1 more gift to scratch off my list - a pink snuggie for Jewel.  So far, no luck. Christmas cookies to bake, a little more decorating, and wrapping.  How about you?  All caught up, or just beginning? 

- be true - Chris & Sharon

Rubber Stamps - Scrap Stuff

A Boxful of Christmas - Leave a Comment!

It's the most wonderful time of the year! 

One lucky elf will receive a fabulous sparkly Boxful of Christmas filled to the brim with all things Red Lead . . . rubber stamps, Here Comes Christmas Junk Book Kit, vintage holiday images, ribbons, charms, glass glitter, bells, trinkets, reindeer, tiny trees, and oh! so much more!  

The winner will be chosen at random, and we will announce the winner in our e-mail newsletter this Sat. Dec. 17th.

Merry Christmas to all of you! - Chris & Sharon -

Don't forget to leave a comment!

Work in progress - Stamping - Cutting - Making -

Yep, we are still at it.  Once you get all of your stuff out, and we have a lot of everything, the possibilities are endless.  Stamp this, charm that. Cut this, paste that. You know exactly what I mean.  Here is the way we go about it most of the time - but not always. Stamp a bunch of your images in different colors.  For some odd reason we always end up with black or brown stamped images.  This time it will be different,  I am stamping in red on manila cardstock. After a few hours of stamping, we begin to cut, and place our images, take a look, and decide what works for us.  Then everything in glued down.  Sometimes we use pop dots for added dimension. As I write this it doesn't seem right that it should take all day to make a few pieces of small art, but it usually does.  A confession though-yesterday we took a 3 hour break, and did a little Christmas shopping, drank  some coffee, ate cookies, and had a great time walking around in our beautiful neighborhoods - Webster & Kirkwood.  -be true- Chris & Sharon

Rubber Stamps - Scrap Book Stuff