Snowy window

Hello crafters, 

Another Christmas themed make today. Last month I was excited to find out I could make a realistic looking window with the help of dies and I thought it would be great to make ones with snow...

I first applied a specialty paper top left with gold. 

On the right hand side I stuck down a paper with vegetal inclusions which I had stamped on with 'Vintage Ads Background (CI-461).

On the bottom left I stamped the 'Just the Ticket Border' (CI-498) 

Behind the window are paper dolls and the Crafty Individuals 'Large Christmas Tree' (CI-462).

All stamps are Crafty Individuals.

The window have has "snow" applied, a mix of thick gel medium and flocking powder,

Finally I added collaged elements, a stamp from Graphic 45 and ephemera from Tim Holtz/Idea-ology Ephemera Pack (TH94396).

Apologies for the reflection in the window! A closer look at what is happening inside...

Thanks for coming by,

 Craftyfield   I am entering the We Love To Create, Creative Artiste,

                                                      Stamping Sensations and We Love Stamping  challenges

Halloween Door Sign

Hello crafters!
Today I have a second make on the Halloween theme for our Country View Challenge held in the Facebook  group. Still inspired by Tim Holtz and his latest release, I made a Halloween plaque to hang on a door.

The base is a recycled piece of light wood (ready meal container). I first tore a large piece of Tim Holtz/Idea-ology Halloween 2024 Collage Paper (TH94393) and glued it in place with Ranger/Tim Holtz Distress Collage Medium Matte, adding smaller pieces on top (insects).

Then I used Lindy's Stamp Gang Starburst Spray  (now stocked at Country View Crafts... yeah!!!).

 
When dry I added Distress Crayons (Halloween  Ranger Tim Holtz® Distress Pearl Crayons 2022 - Halloween Set #4)
I added Ranger - Tim Holtz® - Distress® - Texture Paste - Translucent  and sprinkled several colours of Wow Embossing powders (Violine, Grape, Chai Latte, Olive).

I added ephemera  (Tim Holtz® Idea-ology™ Halloween 2024 Ephemera Pack TH94396), a paper doll (Tim Holtz® Ideaology™ TH93555), a sticker (TH94263) a die cut number (AALL & Create #32 - Die-cutting set - Numberama)  and a hand drawn pumpkin. 

The book is made of 2 pieces of  ephemera folded and glued together, a book of magic spells maybe... 

To enter the challenge, hop on to our friendly group here and upload your project to the challenge album. You could win the Halloween Whatnots stamp set from Tim Holtzs' latest release!

Thanks for coming by,

 Craftyfield     I am entering the We Love to Create, Allsorts, Creative Artist, 

                                                           Simon Says Stamp Wednesday,  challenges 

All About the Gold

Hello crafters!
Today I am showing more Stencil Magic inspiration for our Country View Challenge held in the Facebook  group. This time I have used stencils with foils... 

I applied DecoArt Black Gesso as the base for my page. When dry I collaged a printed image (freebie) to this background with DecoArt Decoupage medium.

I then used several stencils (Mini Stencils sets 28,35 and 39 all from Stampers Anonymous/Tim Holtz with Cosmic shimmer Flake and Glitter Glue. This medium allows foils, metallic flakes or glitter to be applied on top, any time after drying, so there is no need to hurry up. Washing the stencils immediately though is strongly recommended....

I used 2 types of foil, Stix2 foils which work with adhesives and Go Press foils which are designed to work with heat (think Hot Foil Plates) but also work with the glue. I used both types because I wanted to have the 2 shades of gold.

I added colour around the gold stencilled areas and to darken or lighten certain "lost" areas of the image, such as the eyes with pencils, water based pens and gel pen (I tried different medias with varying degree of success).

With the foil reflecting light and surrounding colours getting a picture that gives a good idea of what the page looks like in real life has been difficult so here are 2 other photos in different lighting, the first taken with the sun on the page and the second in artificial light at night, 

In hindsight I should have painted the back of the image behind the woman with white paint or gesso to get the areas to shine through, whereas with the black Gesso she looks a bit too dark and that's without considering her decidedly morose outlook... 
Still, the end result gives a good impression of a centuries old painting, which I'm not unhappy with and I certainly had fun making this project.

To enter the challenge, hop on to our friendly group here and upload your project to the challenge album. You could win the FULL set of newly released Ranger/Tim Holtz® Distress Spritz 😲, yes you hear that right the FULL set... so what are you waiting for!!!

Thanks for coming by,
 Craftyfield   I am entering the Creative Artist, We Love To Create, 

                                                           SSS Monday, SSS Wednesday and Allsorts challenges

Stencil technique with gel medium

Hello crafters!
Today I have a first inspiration make for our Country View Challenge held in the Facebook  group. This month the theme is "Stencil Magic".
With different techniques and mediums, the possibilities are endless...
My tag uses medium with a stencil to preserve a colourful background: 

For the background I used my most colourful Distress Oxide  Inks. 

I then applied gel medium through one of the Tim Holtz Mini stencil set 10 (THMST010).

 

 

When dry I added water splatters, and Distress Oxide spray in Tea dye, wiping the inks off the gel medium. 

The focal image is a Paper Doll accompanied by several Field Notes Snippets, a doily die-cut and a butterfly die-cut from an inking session leftover piece of card. I also gave my lady a bit of tissue tape (old Ideology/Tim Holtz) to stand on, coloured with inks.

I added some liquid glass beads which came out yellow as they picked up the underlying tea dye pigment rather than stay clear...

Not for the faint hearted but instead of a light coloured spray you can use a dark ink instead for maximum contrast.

To enter the challenge, hop on to our friendly group here and upload your project to the challenge album. You could win the FULL set of newly released Ranger/Tim Holtz® Distress Spritz 😲, yes you hear that right the FULL set... so what are you waiting for!!!

Thanks for coming by,

 Craftyfield     I am entering the Allsorts and We Love To Create challenges

Of Friends and Flowers

Hello crafters!

More floral inspiration for you today as I am featuring over our Country View Crafts Facebook group. This month I chose the theme, "Flower Power".  

My second make is a mixed media tag with a touch of Vintage.

I first applied different colours of acrylic paint on a gessoed tag, choosing bright colours. 

Then I stuck pieces of Tim Holtz Botanical paper with gel medium. When these were dry, I coloured them with Distress crayons.

Next, I applied a thickish layer of Crackled paste, which turns transparent when completely dry. To enhance the crackles, I brushed a fairly wet wash of brown acrylic paint all over the tag and using a soft cloth wiped off the excess.

My focal image is a Paper Doll that I coloured with Distress Crayons and framed with paper flowers from my stash, adding some enamel accents for the flower centres.

The bee and butterfly are from the Ideology/Tim Holtz Field Notes Snippets as is the cluster bottom. The sentiment is from the Garden Treasures (JH1003) stamp set by Julie Hickey Designs,

Link up your project here for the chance to win a set of Distressed Watercolour pencils from the Country View Craft shop, just make sure flowers are the prominent feature of your make!

Thanks for coming by,
 Craftyfield   I am entering the Allsorts, SSS Monday challenges

Rice Paper Christmas decor

Hello crafters, 

I am back again for a 2nd Country View Challenge inspiration make, where the theme is "Christmas". I have upcycled a coffee jar again for another Christmas table centre piece. Warning this a photo heavy post... 

I used 2 of the postcards from the Stamperia  All Around Christmas Rice Paper (DFSA4808) and scraps of translucent paper with inclusions (at least 20 years old...). I applied the DecoArt Decoupage matte medium to the glass, smoothed the rice paper down and applied a layer of medium on top of the paper as well. 

  

That layer allowed me to add some white Distress crayon on the mistletoe berries to make them pop.	I used a silicone tip to smooth the crayon. I couldn't resist adding some light touches of Distress crayon on the leaves and the bells.	On the tree side I added Enamel accents on the tree, here and there,

Distress crayon on the bells and liquid glass on the baubles.

On the top of the jar I applied gel medium and dusted both glitter and Glamour Sparkle for a frosty effect. 
Some twine and a snowflake pendant serves as finishing touch.

Do click on the photos to get a closer look.

Some photos at night...

  

I hope you will join us in the Facebook group to enter our challenge, anything Christmassy will be welcomed for our Country View Crafts challenge, as long as you use products or brands stocked at Country View Crafts. If you do you could win a £25 voucher to win...

Thanks for coming by,

 Craftyfield   I am entering the Creative Artiste challenge

Christmas decor piece

It's Saturday!! A weekend of crafts awaits... 

To start you off I will share my Country View Craft Challenge  inspiration make for the Repurpose  challenge. 

The glass container is an instant coffee jar, onto which I have spread gesso, gel medium mixed with sparkles and glass beads.

The piece de resistance is of course the collection of leaves, acorns and berries I have moulded with the Stamperia Silicone Mould A5 Woodland Mushrooms : 

If you wondered, the other half of the mould has the mushrooms!

I stuck the elements on the jar with a mix of gel medium and white paint and added varying mixes on top as if covered in snow.

I'm hoping it will be a nice table centre piece for the holidays, especially at night...

The other side of the jar...

What will you make to enter our Country View Crafts challenge and be in with a chance to win the very mould I used? The challenge is run in Facebook and you will have to join our friendly group first.

Thanks for coming by,

 Craftyfield   I am entering the Creative Artist challenge

Recycled box

Hello crafters, for this month Country View Craft Challenge, where the theme is Repurpose, I have given a makeover to a large-ish biscuit box. 

I made a masterboard with Deco Art Mixed Media Fluid acrylics and the Stamperia - Sir Vagabond Aviator New York City stamp set. 

First, I calculated the length of paper I would need to go round the box, plus 1/2" tab to stick the paper onto itself. 

This was the first time I had to call on π since I left school and finally the sweat and tears of those geometry classes were (almost) worth it! The full length of the paper is 20", and with so much space I used all the stamps in the set and had to repeat them too!

Once dry I used Mod podge to stick the paper onto the box, applying the glue bit by bit to avoid it drying before I was ready. 

I finished the top of the box with tissue tape to protect the paper when taking the plastic lid on and off. I selected a piece of patterned paper to stick in the centre of the lid (you can see a bit of it at the back of the picture) to make the red a bit less overwhelming. 

Boxes are my favourite objects to upcycle as they make good storage item at no cost and can be replaced easily for a change of decor or usage. What will you make to enter our Country View Crafts challenge and be in with a chance to win a lovely Stamperia mould? The challenge is run in Facebook and you will have to join our friendly group first. 

 
Thanks for coming by,

 Craftyfield   I am entering the Stamping Sensations and We love stamping challenges

Secret Garden

Hello crafters! 

Today is a special day... I am featuring as GDT on the Creative Artist Challenge blog, where the theme is Anything Mixed Media goes!  I would usually have paints involved for a Mixed Media make but my muse decided otherwise... 
I was itching to use wood again and make a door hanger (see my previous one here) with a garden theme. 

For my base, I die-cut my wood panel (this is very thin food tray wood that I upcycle) and embossed it with the Sizzix/Tim Holtz 3-D Texture Fades Embossing Folder - Lumber (662718).

My background "garden" is a piece of sprayed cardstock in Distress Oxide Blue print, Tea dye and Cosmic Shimmer - Pearlescent Airless Mister in Hello Sunshine.  

All the garden elements have been stamped, die-cut and coloured with pencils and are all from the Crafters Companion Country Lane collection.

For finishing touches I added the embossed "garden" a stamp by Paper Artsy (ELB02) with Cosmic Shimmer in Aurora. It's a very thick EP with lots of small speckles that blew all over which gave that imperfect look (my heat gun is over enthusiastic shall we say!)

Finally, I dug deep into the stash to retrieve Flowersoft! Anyone remember how popular this was? I felt positively virtuous using it as, let's face it, my pot hasn't seen a lot of action and yet, at the time, I had to have it.

I hope you like this make and pop over to the Creative Artist Challenge blog to see all the DT makes and link up to the challenge.

Thanks for coming by,

 Craftyfield   I am entering the SSS Wednesday, Addicted to Stamps and

                                                        Allsorts challenges

Meerkats Antics

Twice in a weekend! Is that a burst of creativity? No, not really, just a catch-up exercise. 2 weeks ago, I showed again my Meerkats Got Talent page on Facebook and they are so funny I wanted to give them a new platform after their disappointment at the singing contest. Today they are just having fun with fallen leaves:

I used a N0 10 MDF tag (That's Crafty) and applied acrylic paints with a painting knife. I bypassed the Gesso step and the result isn't any worse for it, in fact it is one the easiest and quickest landscape I have ever painted!

I stamped a few of the meerkats in various colours of Distress Oxide inks and coloured them with pencils. Then, I had to fussy cut them.... my most hated crafting job, but it had to be done!

The leaves have been die-cut and punched from a piece of Kraft colour paper to which I applied Distress Oxide inks in Fired Brick, Twisted Citron, Scattered Straw and Walnut Stain. And since the Oxides have a tendency to lighten after a while, I enhanced them with some Distress dye inks as well. 

Finally I spattered a bit of Walnut Stain Distress spray.

I layered leaves and meerkats on different levels with foam pads to give the impression they are wading through a stack of fallen leaves.

The little guys still make me smile and I hope they will do the same for you!

Thanks for coming by,

 Craftyfield           I am entering the Allsorts, Stamping Sensations
                                                                 and Creative Artist challenges

Miniature Collage

Later than expected, I am showing you my final project for the Fodder Challenge #3.
The free access to these tutorials is now closed but you can join the Fodder School 3 to get those and a a year long tuition.
In the end I have managed 7 of the 12 lessons which I think is not bad at all! 

This project is using the day 9 lesson by @christinekarpiak. 

The process is described in the lesson, my own contribution is the use of eyelets to attach a piece of printed acetate (a square from a 12x12 sheet from 13@arts Bella collection).  

For the photo, I placed the "painting" on a square box to give the feel of a frame as I had none to hand, though I'm not sure it deserves one... 

Do tell me if you find the arrangement and colours pleasing or not!

Thanks for coming by,

 Craftyfield   I am entering the We Love to Create and Creative Artiste challenges

Eventful Journey

Happy 1st of May! 

For those of us having a bank holiday it might be the opportunity to fit in more crafting in the week and maybe enter our new Country View Challenge, hosted this month by Monika. 

She has chosen "Vehicles" as the theme and my first project features an old car:

 

I made the background with several layers of acrylic paint (a mix of PaperArtsy and Cosmic Shimmer matt paints) using a brayer and Distress foam. I added a brick wall (from Tim Holtz Mini Layering Stencil Set 28) and splodges (fromTim Holtz Mini Layering Stencil Set 43). 

I stamped the old car image (from the Stampers Anonymous set CMS021) in black Versafine. Sadly I lost some of the detail of the stamp because of the texture of the paper... hey ho as Tim (Holtz) says "you get what you get and you don't throw a fit". 

 I didn't and I hope you won't either! 

Talking of accidents... I had a major one with a bottle of Nuvo Drops (A Tonic Studio product). Even though the bottle was almost unused the product had dried at the top and couldn't come out of the very small opening. But I was on a mission, so I squeezed and I squeezed... lo and behold the bottle exploded, propulsing paste on the walls, table and even my hair. You've been warned...

I did save the little blob I had planned to add to my left hand corner wheel but the rest of the (broken) bottle went into the bin.

I added the cogs from the Sizzix/Tim Holtz Bigz L die - Mechanicals (665225) and the words from the Sizzix Thinlits Adventure Words set by Tim Holtz as embellishments.

The sentiment is also from the CMS021 stamp set.

Plenty of inspiration on the blog from my teamies so I hope you will join us and link your Vehicle projects to the Country View Challenge for the chance to win a £20 voucher for the Country View Craft shop. 

Thanks for coming by,

 Craftyfield     I am entering the SSS Wednesday challenge

Travel the world

I hope you are inspired by our Country View Challenge, which I have the pleasure of hosting this month. If not, here is my second make, a Vintage style tag: 

Supplies:

Greyboard

Piece of patterned paper

Ranger Texture Paste Transparent Matte

Stencil: Carabelle Studio Trame Tissus et chiffres

DecoArt Mixed media paints

Sizzix Thinlits Adventure words 660224

Cosmic shimmer ultra thick embossing powder in Tropic Red

Stamperia Artic Antartic 8x8 pad (map of the world)

I cut my tag out of greyboard and glued a piece of patterned paper, sealing it with the Texture Paste.

Raw umber and yellow ochre paint were added here in there, then texture paste mixed with acrylic colours was stencilled.

I stamped "Carte Postale" from a Crafty Individual stamp, added bits from my UFO box alongside the Stamperia Map of the World.

Finally the Thinlits Adventure words were embossed with the Tropic Red powder and glued on the tag.  

Over to you now, have a look at what the DT made on the Country View Challenge blog and link up your project to the challenge for the chance to win a £20 voucher for the Country View Craft shop. Just make sure you follow the them and the rules!

Thanks for coming by,

 Craftyfield   I am entering the SSS Wednesday and Paperbabe challenges

Stencils and foils double the fun

Today I am featuring on the STAMPlorations blog with a Mixed Media tutorial. Just in time for Christmas, I chose a technique full of shine.

And best of all it's a two-fer!!!

For the most reflective, metallic, shine, foils are the best. Today I am using Hot foils, which require the use of a laminator. (I think it is possible to use an iron but I  wouldn't risk it!)

Supplies:

Winter Flowers ARTplorations stencil

CUT-plorations Stitched Snow Hills

Stitched Spring Landscape 

Jingle All The Way Phrase Die - CUTplorations 

Tag O'Coffee

Gel medium (thick)

Hot Foils 

I made this card with the "positive" motif of the stencil:

 

The foil gives a mirror like finish which is difficult to photograph,

 so here's a picture showing the shine:

Then there is the "negative" which I used to make those tags to match:

And a picture without the sun reflection:

 

If you want details on the technique(s) I used , hop to the STAMPlorations blog to follow my tutorial.

Thanks for coming by,

 Craftyfield  I am entering the Addicted to Stamps, SSS Wednesday 

                                                          and River of creativity challenges.