February tag

In February Tim Holtz is revisiting Stencil monoprinting and embossed paste.

I followed his step by step but I had to be creative with the embellishments.

For the monoprint I used a linen texture stencil with Antique Linen, Scattered Straw and Walnut DIs and instead of Tim Hearts stencil I used a Circle stencil with Tumbled Glass DI.

I applied paste with a chicken wire stencil (Crafters' Workshop) and embossed in Wow gold EP.

The photo on the tag is a fake... I used glossy photo paper but I actually stamped the image (Nostalgic Couples by Rubber Dance ). I coloured it with DI as per Tim's step by step though...
The tag is from a set by Crafty Individuals (CI-428), embossed, coloured and cut out.

I created the arrow from 2 cardboard die-cut arrows (Sizzix Love Struck die) and foil tape. The pendant is polymer clay painted silver and I have stamped and die-cut a small ticket (both stamp and die from Docrafts).

Another pic to show the tag in sunlight:

I am also entering the That's Crafty Circle it challenge.

Thanks for coming by,

Waxing lyrical

Paper Artsy is running a Wax theme and I was inspired by Darcy's use of supplies (see her post here). I don't have wax pellets, or a melting pot, or even Portfolio pastels, so I loved her approach of taking the kids' crayons and cheese left overs!

Here's what I used for wax:

I didn't even use a brush on account that I forgot to buy a cheap one at the weekend, so the application of the wax relied on my heat gun and moving the wax by tipping the cardboard base this way and that.

I used 2 pieces of foiled cardstock, a heart and an hexagon that were lying around and added stamped tissue paper (Paper Artsy Hot Pick 1008).







Since the lighting isn't great I took these snippets in the sun  for a truer colour rendition.

The highlight of this project is my experiment with mica powders as after brushing it over wax it turned beautifully liquid with the melted wax without sinking.









Not a great result but it had to be tried!
Thanks for coming by,

Also entering the We Love to Create and Tando Creative challenges

He-Art

Another make with hearts but this time NOT a Valentine. Phew!

Craft Stamper want to see script in the background for the February challenge so that was my starting point. I decided to combine an embossed script stamp (Calligraphic Mat 13 The Artistic Stamper) with a piece of recycled kraft cardstock (thank you Amazon!) and apply gelatos colours on top.

I stamped the brushes stamp (Rubber Dance) with black dye ink and drew the heart with Fresco paint. The "Altered Art" splat (Messy Art set - Artistic Stamper) has been stamped over the paint with a pigment ink which hasn't stamped as smoothly as it should have.
I used another stamp from the same set bottom left and in the heart with black dye ink and you can see the difference in colour as the fresco paint has absorbed the dye to leave a dark grey impression rather than black. With hindsight, I should have masked the splat or at least avoided it when stamping the script...

I used a stencil to add a bit of dimension, a linen stencil by Dutch Doobadoo in 2 corners.

Now for the fun bit... I scribbled some gelatos in blues, yellows, orange and pink and smudged them with a dry baby wipe.
On a whim I sprayed the corners with a fuchsia Starburst spray (lindy's stamp gang) followed by a fine mist of water to soften the effect.

I felt I needed an embellishments and, since I didn't have a brush, I plumped for the scissors as my most necessary arty item. I put it on a chain as I have seen seamstresses do in order to prevent them from straying...

Thanks for coming by

Also entering the The Artistic Stamper, Stamping sensations, SSS Monday, Stamplorations Mixed Media and the Craft Barn challenges.

Stamping CAS style

New letter, new word for this fortnight at the Craft Barn. This time we must add a heart!

I decide to follow a CAS approach to give my stamped image space to breathe.

I stamped 3 Hibiscus of various sizes (stamp sheet from Rubber Dance) with India ink markers (Faber Castell), although the little one (at the back) had some Spun sugar Distressed ink applied first to get a lighter colour.
It took me a while to find the perfect combination of paper (smooth stamping) and media (Big Brush pen) before achieving the depth of colour and the detailed effect I had in mind.

Since I had to include a heart I decided to use a felt shape as my base for the letter instead of a stamp die-cut as per my previous page. The letter is a die-cut from a very old Sizzix strip (Monde de Blonde) which I don't use very much because I can't get it to cut neatly in my machine. [I had to finish it with the craft knife]

Finally the dictionary definition of the word, very predictably, Flower!

Thanks for coming by,

Also entering the SSS Wednesday, Stamploration CAS and Stamploration Theme & Sketch challenges

3 is better than 1

Today I am guesting over at the Rubber Dance blog with a Valentine inspired make.

I can't resist photo realistic stamps so I couldn't wait to ink the Nostalgic Couples set from Rubber Dance. And one image wasn't enough... so how do you fit more than one image on a card?

I found the solution in the form of this Accordion die (Crafters Companion). I chose to have 3 panels but you can add as many as you want!

From left to right the 3 chosen images are organised in a chronological order, young (courting), older and married, older still, but together!

Each of the image has been stamped with Versamark and I applied chalks (pastel) on top in red and black. Once finished I cleaned up some of the stray powder using blue tack..

I added a heart border (Docrafts die) and some white embossed words/motif from the same Nostalgic Couples plate.

Many thanks to Bibi for having me on her blog, I thoroughly enjoyed it!
Happy Valentine's!

This Accordion card is entering the  Live and Love crafts, Tando Creative and Penny Black and more challenges.

First Love

Can't avoid it, it's February and card making is all about lurve...

Actually I don't mind, because I have the perfect stamp, one that combines my preference for photo realistic images and a Vintage feel.

First I had fun making a background with a Lindy Stamp gang spray, a Chicken wire stencil and some coloured Grunge paste (Paper Artsy) on a piece of watercolour paper.

I stamped my image and a quote (from a full Rubber Dance stamp sheet) on a separate piece of cardstock with Versafine black ink.

I combined 2 paper ric rac die-cuts with a punched heart border and placed a UTEE heart embellishment, which I have dusted with gold mica powder.

Not sure the male in my life will like it but I hope you will!
Thanks for coming by,

I am entering the Country View Crafts (Make your own background), We love to create, Penny Black & More, That's Crafty and SSS Wednesday challenges

Splatters & Drips background

Despite my paper mountain, I like nothing more than making my own background, which is why I chose Splatters and drips for the latest Vintage Stamping Challenge.

I had  no plan when I started and I have been entirely led by how my drips turned out...  I found them mesmerizing and couldn't bear to touch them:

I used my rock paper (made of rocks but also plastic as I found out) which is completely impervious to water. It has a slight grainy texture and this is what creates the patterns in the colours as the paint settles in the dips of the paper. To make my drips I used acrylic inks (Izinks).


I stamped my Fifties Girl and thought about paper piecing her to make her stand out from the background, but first, I tried painting some white over her dress to see if that would be enough.

Not quite, but I liked the effect of her coming out of that background and this is how my sentiment was born. It's supposed to be humoristic and I really don't know if it is or not!

I hope this inspires you to drip & splatter paint with abandon in the interest of Art and come and show us at Vintage Stamping Challenges . You could win a $20 voucher to spend at Flonzcraft, our lovely sponsor,  and your make doesn't need to be Vintage... it just needs to showcase some stamping (rubber, clear, foam etc...) but NO digis.
Thanks for coming by,

Also entering the Country View (Make your own background)challenge

Triplet of Valentine's ATCs

Less than 2 weeks to Valentine's Day and it's all hearts and red! Not my favourite, red, but an excellent accent colour to wake up underwhelming colour schemes. Paper Artsy want to see hearts and have shown some beautiful projects on the blog using special substrates such as glass and fabric.
But that seemed too challenging...

Did you hear about the Distress Crayons from Tim Holtz? These have had great publicity since their CHA debut and I wondered if they were the same as the Gelatos. (Until they land on this side of the pond we won't know for sure but the consensus is "pretty similar")

Which reminded me I must use them more... So I played with a Tando Creative stencil (Random Circles) and Gelatos on 3 ATCs using different colours but with one unifying theme (Hearts) and accent colour (red).

First I stamped the script stamp from the Paper Artsy ESN10 stamp set with Black Versafine ink, then I applied Vanilla Fresco paint through the stencil, coloured the ATC's with Gelatos and finally removed some of the colour with a wet wipe.

The large heart is a Tim Holtz die-cut, painted dark red, with a layer of crackle glaze and a bright red layer on top. The arrow is from the same steel rule die.

I find dealing with the small size of ATCs difficult but at the same time working on them is liberating as, when it doesn't work, there isn't much to lose, time wise of supplies wise!

Thanks for coming by,

Also entering That's Crafty, SSS Monday and Bunny Zoe and Craft Barn challenges.

Alphabet Challenge Letter Q

Things are getting tougher on the Dictionary challenge... The Craft Barn have given us the letter Q and there aren't too many words to play with.

I settled on Quaint and chose one of my oldest stamp to illustrate the word.

The stamp is from Art Kure, and represents Ponsworthy (Dartmoor). I stamped it in black dye ink and coloured it with alcohol markers.

I added the letter Q using an old alphabet stamp set and a stamp die from the Square Accordion set (Crafters companion).
     --- I also added the letter B to my previous page as I realised it was missing *sheepish look on face* after publishing the post!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend and keep on crafting!

Also entering the SSS Wednesday challenge .

Lace, Bits & Bobs

At Crafty Individuals, the theme for the January challenge is Lace, Bits & Bobs. I thought I should go for a shabby chic attempt on a scrapbook layout.

The lovely girl in the picture is NOT one of my relatives! I found her on my internet travels... I would have chosen one of mine but they aren't as lovely and clear as this one.

I transformed the base paper with Fresco paints (Paper Artsy) and the Crafty Individuals Inky Script stamp (CI-436). Later on I decided to give more colours with Gelatos in pink and light green.

I used a doily which I distressed with Tattered Rose and a piece of paper as a matt for the photo. I first punched (Martha Stewart) around the page and then sprayed some Lindy's stamp gang Starburst in Bougainvillea Fuschia. Wow this is STRONG! And it should have highlighted my stencilled texture but the dye reached under the transparent paste and spoiled the effect.

I stamped the lady from CI-285 and the perfume bottles from CI-341 and added a heart made with molten EP directly poured on the stamp (CI-342). The black rose in the lower left corner is also made out of EP this time in a mould (Wow).
A number of buttons were stuck with thick gel and painted with gesso and acrylic inks. I had to tone the bright colours down in order for them to fit in with the rest of the page, I use Distress inks for that.

Thanks for coming by,

 

Vintage inspiration

My favourite theme being Vintage, I was inspired by both the Vintage Journey and the We Love Vintage challenges. The first has a theme of travel and the second... not entirely sure as Google translate let  me down and, despite having spent inordinate amounts of time in the Netherlands, the Dutch I picked up could be written on the back of a (small) envelope. Actually strike that, since I wouldn't even know how to write the few words I did learn!
Anyway, I think it had something to do with lace and an edge, I hope I have fulfilled the remit, if not, you have my apologies.

For my background I used a Tim Holtz/Sizzix embossing folder (Eiffel Tower), inked up with Distress inks, sprayed lightly before running through the die-cutting machine. Such an easy technique for a colourful background! I added highlights with chalk for more variety as my base cardstock (kraft colour) is quite dark.

My focal image had to be from the The Journey stamp set (Stampers Anonymous CMS021) and I used Distress inks to age it.

For embellishments, in addition to the lace, I added some Calico Crafts gears/cogs and a DIY cog I embossed with a mix of embossing powders.

Thanks for coming by,

Also entering the Artistic Stamper, We Love To Create challenges.

Bottles

New Year new challenge at the Craft Barn... This year it's a dictionary challenge and the first letter we have been given is B. Coincidentally,  Paper Artsy's challenge first topic of the year is "Transparent" and Country View Crafts first challenge theme is Bottles, so without the need for imagination (my mojo is still not back to normal after the holidays) I had my theme!

For my background, a very loose "wall" was stencilled in blue Distress ink and a table top in Antique Linen. Both stencils were created with Tim Holtz Mixed Media Thinlit dies.
For the bottles, I used the stamps from Paper Artsy Hot picks 1203, 1204, 1205 with Archival ink on acetate.
I coloured my bottles with alcohol pen from the reverse and glued them on the background with glossy accents.

One last thing to finish this page... the dictionary definition.

Please tell me what  you think of this page in your comments!

Also entering the SSS Monday challenge.