Chilli Hot

I wanted to join in a few challenges this weekend to push me into doing something despite the hot weather... It was (still is) hard to breathe and the cloud cover was keeping the heat in even at night.

… it is seriously hot!

Like my man, who has a birthday coming up... hence this card
 

To stamp the chillies from the Spice it Up stamp set by Rubber Dance,  I made use of my favourite tool, the stamping platform, which is essential for this result as I stamped first in colour, sometimes twice to get variation in the colour (I used Kaleidacolor inkpad with red and oranges) and then over stamped in Versamark.
For powders I used Wow! clear EP and Primary red EP "mixed" directly on the image.
The left most chilli is made up of 2 of the stamps in the set, I think the "wrinkly" one is supposed to be a dried chilli but I used it as a shadow texture on the "fresh" chilli.

For the sentiment, I partially stamped the "you are so hot" and combined it with the "Seriously" die-cut (STAMPlorations) and the "HOT" from the same stamp set as before.


To finish I was going to add some splatters but the control freak in me had a panic attack at the thought and instead I fished out an old stamp set by The Artistic Stamper, Messy Art (probably retired now). It has mostly large "splats" aimed at journaling but this particular bit is perfect for cards and I inked individual ink splats, stamping without a block exactly where I wanted them. It's all about control....
  
Now off to cool down...

Thanks for visiting today!
I am entering the SSS Monday, SSS Wednesday, Allsorts, Lost Coast Designs, The Artistic Stamper, and Stamping Sensations challenges.

Men of numbers

Welcome to my second inspiration post for the Country View Challenge, where our theme of Letters or Numbers has been chosen by the lovely Evelyn.

Today I have another journal page, yes mine are like buses... and this one is focusing on numbers, since my first was all about letters.

A trip through Paris

If you missed the plane(s) at the beginning of the month, here's a second chance to catch some inspiration for our Country View Challenge on the theme of Planes, Trains & Automobiles chosen by the lovely Miriam.

My precious Treasure

I am delighted to be featured on the A Vintage Journey blog today as a Pinworthy guest after my Snowman wowed the DT.

I have to say when I discovered the chosen theme for Vintage Journey's challenge in March, I felt panic... using some of my Treasure... How will I be able to cope?!! But cope I have and it is certainly better to use these precious items rather than keeping them for that elusive special occasion!

Today my main treasure is a beautiful resin frame by Prima.

I started with a gessoed canvas and applied texture paste through 2 stencils.

I added pieces of cardstock and die cuts before coating everything with black gesso for a dark base.


For colours and shimmer I used DecoArt Extreme Sheen paints as well as Paper Artsy Frescos, in shades of blue, violet and green.




To add interest to the background I did a bit of stamping and embossing, all in shimmering or glitter EPs.

The frame was treated in the same way with a coat of black gesso followed by some Extreme Sheen paint.


For embellishments, I finally opened an old packet of glitters and sequins and used them alongside some Glitterbitz and micro beads.
I created a few metallic embellishments with bottle caps, the top one has also a glass bead that magnifies the image but doesn't photograph too well!

Supplies:
Stencils: The Crafter's Workshop Garden gate and Dutch Doobadoo A5 Fabric
Paints: DecoArt Extreme Sheen paints, Paper Artsy Frescos
Mediums: Pebeo White Gesso; DecoArt black Gesso, Golden Gel medium
Stamps: The Artistic Stamper Chicken wire and Harlequin
Embossing powder : WOW Sea Glass, Cosmic Shimmer Ultra Thick Silver Pearl and Tropic Red.

Another look at the completed piece at an angle...

I hope you will be inspired by my treasure....
Thanks for coming by,
I am entering the Mixed Media Monthly, WOW Embossing powders, We Love To Create, Creative Artiste and The Artistic Stamper challenges.

Countdown

Eek!! Just in time for the Artistic Stamper Black & White challenge....

I saw this as the perfect opportunity to kill several birds with one stone, as a) 2 of the stamps from the Artistic Stamper Family Values set were as yet un-inked, b) I wanted to test my new stamping platform.

To make use of the Black & White, Yin and Yang concept I decide to create a flip card. I struggled so much that if I ever feel the need again I will get myself a die to do it for me!

Front and back when closed.

Front and back when opened.

I stamped the Numbers image with black dye ink on linen textured cardstock, and the stamping platform allowed me to go over several times for an acceptable print.
Equally difficult is getting a white enough white with inks, unless this is embossed, so my second test is with the Letters image stamped with white pigment ink, which I stamped many times (I lost count...).

Quite pleased with the result on both counts, so the platform gets my vote!

Thanks for coming by,
Also entering the Penny Black and more challenge.

Weird or What

And the choice was... Weird. I'm of course talking about the latest Dictionary challenge at the Craft Barn, where the letter is W.
My word suggested itself when I saw the Dream in Darkness challenge who goes for anything Quirky, Weird, Odd or Dark.

I had a picture in my mind of what I wanted to do with the zip stamp I bought recently from The Artistic Stamper and it was weird...

The Butterflies in the zip opening are by Crafty Individual (CI-231), which I inked with dry Brushos and sprayed with water for stamping. [I now have a considerable number of cardstock odds and ends full of butterflies as the Brushos give a large number of impressions]
The rest of the stamping is the Collage BIGZ by Katzelkraft inked in Versafine black.
For colours I added a mix of inks with Distress foam.

And for final touches, the printed dictionary definition and the letter W, a die-cut (Die-namics alphabet).

Thanks for coming by,
I am also entering the The Artistic Stamper, Sandy & Amelie Steampunk, Craft Barn (Butterflies), Penny Black and more challenges

Straight A

This time no twist, the Craft Barn Dictionary challenge is a straight A!

That, I have under control... I own all the stamps (and more) to illustrate my word, which had to be, Art. I purposefully avoided looking at the other entries but I am betting I won't be the only one choosing this word!

I have used papers from my scraps bin to create my collage and stamped in black Versafine, the Mona Lisa  and Art Definition (I only stamped the first 4 lines) from the Da Vinci set by Rubber Dance, the Collage and Art (word) from the Collage set, also by Rubber Dance.
Top is a scrap from a very old  Docraft 8x8 paper pack, bottom is a Kaisercraft paper and right are scraps from Paper Artsy Chatsworth paper with a wash of magenta Inktense.
I added a splat (embossed with white EP) and 2 coffee mug rings from the Messy Art set by The Artistic Stamper.

I didn't even have to print my usual dictionary definition since it's part and parcel of the design!

Thanks for coming by,
Also entering the Artistic Stamper, Stamping Sensations, WOW embossing powders, Craft Barn and Stamplorations challenges.

Tic Tag Toe

Sandy & Amelie Steampunk Challenges are playing Tic Tac Toe this month and I selected the top line.

For my crackle I used Imagination craft crackle medium on top of red and black acrylic paint. My top layer was originally pale lavender but looked awful and I applied Transparent oxide to change the colour.



For my words, I created this panel with selected Steampunk words - who knew there are dedicated sites to Steampunk words? - using Wordle.net and printed it on cardstock that I had already stamped with a Harlequin motif (The Artistic Stamper) in ombre fashion.


The top Hat is a stamp by Flonzcraft (True Gentleman set), die cut with a Nellie Snellen die and complete my Tic Tac Toe line!


To that I added bits from my odds and ends jar, previously cut, stamped etc..:

• The Eiffel Tower: Tim Holtz Alteration Paris embossing folder
• British flag:  The Artistic Stamper London set

If pressed to justify how these all fit together, I can come up with a reasonable explanation... coz I had to do precisely that when my OH challenged me.
In short it's a representation of the "Entente cordiale" between the France and Great Britain.
The English lord is tipping his hat to the Old Lady (that's the Eiffel tower, BTW). And since the Eiffel Tower was built in 1889 it's the correct period for Steampunk. Phew!! I should get points for that...

Thanks for coming by,

Also entering the Craft Barn, The Artistic Stamper,  and Crafty Sentiments challenges.

Butterflies

Memory Box is having a challenge on their blog for the first time and I wanted to be part of this moment.
Sadly, unlike Memory Box dies, their stamps are not so easy to find on this side of the Atlantic,  so I didn't have any to use on my make. I used some home-grown talent instead and chose the biggest butterfly from a Crafty Individuals set as well as a greeting by The Artistic Stamper to go along with my Madera Corner die.

The butterfly image is made up of 2 stamping, one in black and one where I inked the stamp with coloured pens.
The Madera corner has been coloured with the same blue pen to match the butterflies.

Thanks for coming by,

Also entering the Craft Barn, The Artistic Stamper, Stamping Sensations and  Inky Chicks challenges.

Blue

I took advantage of the nice long week end to take my time creating something just for me. I would say journal but I had to do it out of it since I intended to have 3D elements.
I attempted to put MORE on my make and took inspiration from Artful Times challenge who are asking for some Finnabair style.
I haven't quite managed the profusion of objects Anna puts on her creation but I'm still pleased with the result as it's certainly more busy and more 3D than usual.

For supplies I have thrown lots of mediums at my "canvas",  with lots of Finnabair products such as the doily stencil and some stamps.
I applied some Gelatos in blue, pink and violet in some places and instead of spraying with water I used a mix of Fresco Blueberry and Prima Bloom in Cobalt.

I selected my embellishments in my box of bits and everything bar the bottle cap is recycled: old buttons, shrink plastic waste, aluminium from food packaging etc...I prepared them with a coat of Gesso before spraying with the same mix as before and finished them with Fresco glaze mixed with micas as well as a bit of gilding wax.

In the background I used the Messy Art set (Artistic Stamper), a texture stamp (Finnabair). The heart is from a cling set from Prima/Finnabair and I replaced the inside by the word "Art".

Finally where Finnabair would have a photo I created my own with a Paper Artsy stamp (Hot pick 1207)

I have stuck my page to a cardboard backing to flatten it and I might crop the excess later although I kind of like the frame effect.

Thanks for coming by,

Also entering the Artistic Stamper, Pan pastel UK and Paper Artsy challenges.

Inspired by Deco Patch

This week's Craft Barn  challenge is to cover something with a Deco Patch type paper.
Last year I gave a makeover to a cheap glasses case to give to my OH (you can see it here) and the closure mechanism broke last week so I needed to do another one.

I created my paper with a white tissue paper and stamps. On one side the London cityscape and London name is from a set by the Artistic Stamper, on the back are some Street names from a Paper Artsy set and Big Ben comes from a set by Rubber Dance.

 

I glued my paper in place with Mod Podge over my gessoed case and applied Fresco paint (Blueberry) everywhere but the cityscape, where I only applied a wash of orange to evoke the London night glow.

I finished by several coats of Paper Artsy matt glaze.
I'm crossing my fingers he doesn't break that one too soon...



Other challenge: Pan Pastels UK

Calendar Challenge February

For this second page of the Craft Barn calendar challenge, our given colour is Red and we must include Hearts.

February is an odd month, the glow of the end of year festivities has passed, the cold and wet weather is firmly installed and there is little to celebrate. I decided to focus my page on Valentine's day, as most "significant" occasion of the month.

Don't go thinking I don't own any heart stamps, I do. Several in fact, and in a bind I could even die-cut some!
It's just that I had a vision and I couldn't rest until I tried it.

I drew a heart shape on scrap paper and cut it out with a craft knife. Then, using both the innies and outies heart shapes as masks, I stamped in red ink the edges of the big splat from the Messy Art stamp plate (The Artistic Stamper). Here and there I stamped the small spots from the small splats stamp of the same set.
The execution could have been better but the result is fairly close to what I had in mind.

I added the word Valentine in the postal stamp frame (Craft Stamper freebie) and the arrow from another heart stamp, also a Craft Stamper Freebie, extending the line to fit my heart.
As for my January page, the calendar itself is attached by a brad and rotates to open and close.

I am also entering the Artistic Stamper challenge.

Thanks for coming by,

Of Time and New Beginnnings

January is a month to reflect on the past year, how the time is marching on and also for new resolutions and new beginnings.
This is the inspiration for this panel, as well as Gelatos since I have just started using them and want to experiment with them.

For the background I die-cut a piece of cardboard with a Spellbinder label die and I stamped the Calligraphic Mat 13(The Artistic Stamper) before appling Gesso and Vanilla Fresco paint roughly over it in a thin layer.

Then I scribbled the Gelatos over the dry panel and used my fingers to smooth the colours.
The doily pattern was created with a doily stencil and a wet wipe by taking the colours off.

I used a Craft Stamper freebie stamp for the large clock and sentiment,  and the small clock from the True Gentleman set (Flonzcraft).

In the foreground I stuck a Papertrey Ink clock die-cut and stamped the letters of the month instead of the usual numbers. J for January etc...

I am entering the Artful Times, That's Crafty, The Artistic Stamper and Stamping Sensations  challenges.

Thanks for coming by,

Faith and Harmony

So here it is the very last quote of the Craft Barn challenge... can't quite believe I managed to stay the course to produce 25 pages!

I chose the quote purely because it was the only one I could try to illustrate.

I stamped the Harlequin background from The Artistic Stamper with Chalk ink over a Fresco paint layer.
I added some Vanilla Fresco to provide a light area for my main image, a Paper Artsy stamp from Hot Pick 1206.
I added 2 stamps from the Messy Art set (also the Artistic Stamper) and the quote penned with India ink.

Thank you all for your kind and supportive comments throughout this year, it's been fun (as well as hard work at times) and I'm hoping for more fun challenges from the Craft Barn next year.

I leave you with my best wishes for Christmas and the New Year,

Quote challenge Journey & Friendship

Settle down for a long post or go down to the last image for the latest Craft Barn challenge.
I have chosen the word Friendship and managed to find stamps to represent the quote, all from Crafty Individuals. Just as well, as I wanted to play with some of the new CI stamps in my collection which I just won on their blog. I am so grateful for Jean and Malcom's generosity!

Another recent supply I wanted to play work with was the Brushos as they're just fun!

My first attempt turned out very dark as you can see in this page for the quote challenge Knowledge or Hurt, that I finally managed to catch up with:

I should have used "Knowledge is experience" as a quote because this page is all about experimenting and it shows! I started by a Brushos background with blue, violet and a bit of green all cool colours but... too much!
I tried bleach stamping and it worked to some extent but is quite subtle. If you look very closely, you'll spot a script stamp (ESN10 from Paper Artsy) and a Harlequin stamp (C349 from the Artistic Stamper). I also tried the splats from (Messy Art from the Artistic Stamper) but they can be seen a lot better when I stamped them with white paint.
The central stamping in white paint is of a much too detailed stamp from Impression Obsession (Rose impression background-F8867), which hides the best bits of the Harlequin bleaching! Never mind...
I penned my quote in ink and chalked it all up to experience! I am entering the page in the Pan Pastel UK challenge.

So first Brusho lesson: Don't use too much! The small spoon I reserve for embossing powder is definitely too big for the Brushos. You need a light touch with them and I came up with 2 methods that worked for me.
        1. A small brush. Dip the dry brush in the pot and tap the handle to sprinkle the powder on your pre-wetted paper.
        2. Transform each pot into a salt/pepper shaker of sorts. An internet search revealed that some Brushos aficionados pierce holes(s) into their pots to do this but I wasn't prepared to deal with any resulting incidents where a pot, or worse the whole box of pots, would hit the floor ! Brusho on carpet is no laughing matter...
Here's a pic of my impromptu shakers:

If you have pre-teens in the households pinch a few of their loom bands to secure cling film on top of the pots and pierce a few holes with a needle.

My second attempt with my new tools yielded the background below:

 With a lighter touch I obtained this one (the photo is NOT blurry, it's the brushos) :

Finally the last one is the one I chose for the quote page:

This one is made with a lot of black powder, which dissolves into brown and blues on contact with water, my favourite powder of the set because of this effect. I added a dash of purple and a small sprinkling of red.

For all these experiments I used watercolour paper since a lot of water is necessary to get the brushos moving and card isn't good for very wet work.

Enough of my experiments, onto the page itself:

I stamped the girlfriends (CI-284) first on a piece of vellum & masked them before stamping the music score (CI- 309).
I stamped the heart (CI- 342) directly on the page and added white highlights with gel pen.
To isolate the girls further from the colourful background I applied white and black pencils on the back of the stamped vellum.

If you are a lucky owner of Brushos please share your tips in the comments section!