"Ice" Stickles

 
Today's blog post comes courtesy of Lisa, Ranger's web/graphic designer!

Hi everyone!

I've been working for Ranger Industries since November 2009, but prior to my hire, I'd never heard of the company or of any of their product lines before!  I know, I know... I'm sure all of you have your jaws dropped right now!  But it's true. (Don't worry though, I'm learning quickly! :-)

I fancied myself quite a crafter before coming to work for Ranger.  I came from an invitation designing background and my entire wedding was full of DIY-projects running the gamut from screenprinted cocktail napkins to a 75-foot-long hand painted aisle runner. 

But once I came to Ranger, I realized that I was definitely a crafting novice.  I'd never used an ink pad before, let alone a stamp, or embossing powder, or glitter glue. And since I wasn't in-tune with that whole side of the crafting world, I'd never noticed Ranger's products in my local craft stores and art supply shops.

A month after my hire, my husband and I took a long-weekend trip to Reykjavík, Iceland.  While wandering down the main shopping street in the city, Laugavegur, we happened upon an adorable little art supply store. And guess what I found there?

 

Stickles!  (And our bubble gum scented Stamp Cleaner too!)  I was highly amused that my first encounter with Ranger products outside of the office happened over 2,600 miles from home, in the northernmost capitol city in the world!

(Incidentally, the post-it on the shelf says that the price for "Stickles Límglimmer" was 695 Icelandic krona at the time, roughly $5.77.)

And ever since, I've been noticing Ranger products everywhere!  It makes me wonder how I managed to miss them in my local shops in the past ;-)

How did you first become aware of Ranger products?  What was the first Ranger product you used? Let us know in the comments!

Organization 101: Color Swatch Charts

 
We're back with more tips to help keep your craft space as neat and tidy as possible!  (Assuming you're into that sort of thing, ha!)

In addition to the convenient Ink Pad Label Sheets that we offer on rangerink.com, we also offer free Color Swatch Charts to download and print!  What is a Color Swatch Chart, you ask?

It's a convenient way to display your inks/paints/Stickles/etc for a quick color reference!  We all know that sometimes inks and paints can dry to a slightly different color than you'd expect by looking at them in the bottle, so having actual samples of your colors can be extremely helpful.  And they look so pretty to boot!

To view and print the PDFs you will need the free Adobe Acrobat Reader. When printing, be sure to set your printer settings to "Shrink to Printable Area" so the edges of the document aren't cut off:

 

Then just apply your colors within the grids and display 'em on a bulletin board or on your studio wall!

Color Swatch Charts are currently available for Adirondack Acrylic Paint Dabbers, Distress Inks, Distress Stickles, the new Liquid Pearls collection, and Stickles.  We are making new ones often, so check back to see if your favorite product line is featured!

Do you organize your crafting products by color?  If so, what method do you use to keep them organized?

Organization 101: Ink Pad Label Sheets

 
Continuing our Organization 101 series... also known as "How to Make Room for Even More Ranger Goodies!!"

Did you know that we offer free Ink Pad Label Sheets on the rangerink.com website?  These sheets, available for Adirondack, Archival, Distress, and Jenni Bowlin for Ranger ink pads, are formatted to be printed on an Avery 5267 label sheet (or anything with a similar label size: 1¾" x ½", 80 labels per sheet).

All you have to do is download the PDF (you'll need the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to view it) and print it directly onto a label sheet.  Then just stick the labels onto the sides of your ink pads for easy organization.  You'll be able to stack your ink pads or store them on a shelf and still be able to easily retrieve any color you want!

And, if you want to get really fancy-dancy you can always ink the labels themselves to have a color reference as well as the name of the ink on the side of the case. (EDIT: for dark colors you might want to just edge the label with the ink so the type is still legible.)

How do you keep your ink pad stash neat and tidy?  Share your favorite organization tip in the comments!

Lights, Camera, Action!

 
Ranger's Creative Director and Signature Designer Tim Holtz took some time out of his busy schedule to drop by Ranger's headquarters earlier this week.  While here, he filmed a new series of video tutorials with Ranger Signature Designer and Queen of Melt Art Suze Weinberg, Ranger's Marketing Coordinator Patti Behan, and Ranger's Fine/Graphic Artist and Photographer Debbie Tlach. 

The videos are being edited as we speak and will be debuting on our site very soon! In the meantime, here are some behind-the-scenes shots courtesy of Mario, King of Tweets!

Tim and Debbie work with Adirondack Pigment Inks while Patti films a close-up.

Tim and Suze explore the world of Melt Art with To Dye For and UTEE Brightz.

Tim and Debbie show off their handiwork!

Debbie, Patti and Tim film close-ups of Claudine Hellmuth's new Creative Layers stamp collections.

Patti and Tim set up a demo using the Creative Layers stamp sets with Adirondack Dye Inks.

When we film our videos we put signs outside the room asking passersby to be quiet.  Here's a fun behind-the-scenes video that shows what happens when the signs aren't exactly heeded ;-)

We'll be posting links to the brand-new videos soon, so continue to watch this space!

Congratulations to our winners!

 
Thanks to everyone who entered our most recent blog giveaway!  We received over a thousand comments by noon EST on Monday, wow! 

All of those comments were entered into a random drawing and we chose not one, not two, but TEN lucky winners to win a sampling of new Ranger products!

Each lucky winner will receive: one package of Claudine Hellmuth Studio 8.5 x 11" natural Sticky Back Canvas; one package of Inkssentials Surfaces manila ATCs; one package of Claudine Hellmuth Studio Creative Layers foam stamps; and one Jenni Bowlin for Ranger acrylic paint dabber!  (Colors of dabbers and styles of stamps will vary.)

Here are the winners and their comments:

Mathilde: OOOOOH! I'm having a hard time picking my favorite. But I think I have to choose the Distress Stickles. Sooo useful! Hugs from Sweden!

Laura F: It would have to be the Perfect Pearls Mists since I love spraying colors, but a close second would be the Claudine Hellmuth natural sticky back canvas. I love her white canvas so much, and the natural sounds wonderful!

Birute Pilipaitis: My inky fingers are waiting for that scrubber!!!

Lisa Crofts: It all sounds so yummy but I love the idea of buying the craft sheet by the foot. To able to cut it up into a range of sizes for different applications would be awesome.

Anita: Oh i would like to get my hands on the multimedium. Why???????? Because i don't have it :)

Tracy: All of it..but I am most excited about the sticky back canvas. I have lots of things in mind for it :)

Susan Leslie: I am so excited about all of Rangers products because I know that they are designed and tested to be the best. You guys have really out done yourselves for the CHA summer show. I absolutely have to add the 12 by 12 sheets of Manila card stock so I can create larger art and collages for all my scrap booking and card making. I love working with this perfect medium. I can't wait for it to hit the selves. It is so WOW!! Thanks Ranger!! There is no comparison to manila tags and now 12 by 12 sheets. No more file folders for me!!!!

Lori Hudson: I NEED Claudine's new stamps. Looking to design a class with them.

Jan: Sticky back canvas...just watched T!m's video using the impression folder with canvas...amazing possibilities!!

Trae: I want LIQUID PEARLS! I need them because all of my crafty goodness is made better by just a touch of shimmer, shine, pearly-ness...oh, please pick me!

Congratulations, everyone!  Keep an eye on your inbox today: we'll be contacting you regarding your shipping addresses so that we can get these goodies out and on their way to you!

Enjoy, and happy crafting!!

So... who wants to win a prize??

 
It's been a while since our last giveaway, so we have a special treat in store for you!

Over the past few weeks we've been announcing all of our new products for Fall 2010: Jenni Bowlin for Ranger, new Claudine Hellmuth Studio Sticky-Back Canvas in Natural, Studio Craft Sticks, the Inkssentials Craft Scrubbie and Custom Non-Stick Craft Sheet by the Foot, Claudine's new Creative Layers foam and clear stamps, new colors of Distress Stickles, new smaller bottles of Studio Multi-Mediums, the Inkssentials Surfaces line, Perfect Pearls Mists and the new formulation of Liquid Pearls.

To be entered in a random drawing to win one of these fabulous new products (and to make all your friends jealous since you'll have them before they're available in stores!!), all you have to do is comment on this blog post and tell us:

Which product are you MOST eager to add to your crafting supply stash, and why?

The contest will be closed at noon EST on Monday, August 9, so be sure to leave a comment before then!

Good luck!!

Video: CHA Summer 2010 Recap

 
Check out our highlight reel from CHA Summer 2010! It's the next best thing to actually being there!