Love Gelato

We love summer because of all the ice cream we can eat, so I thought I would create a page to celebrate this summertime love and join the many others who have created ice cream pages over at Art Journal Journey for Bleubeard and Elizabeth’s “Summertime Love” theme.  My page focuses on gelato rather than ice cream though and also the delicious flavours that you find in the many gelateria (ice cream shops) when holidaying in Italy.

I started by covering the page in Aquamarine, Kingfisher, Topaz and Gold Spectrum Aqua markers; I did this by scribbling the marker onto an acrylic block, spritzing the block with water and pressing it onto the page. I also used a paint brush to transfer some of the diluted ink across the page. Next I fussy cut magazine images that reminded me of our holidays in Italy. I also cut out some birds, an Italian ice cream shop banner and an ice cream cone which details possible holiday destinations. Once they were cut out I stuck them to the page using a UHU Stic. As I chose Italy as the destination for this page, I coloured the word “flavour?” with green, white and red Uni Posca paint pens to represent the colours of the Italian flag and outlined them with a black Uni Pin marker so they stood out more. Then using black Archival Ink I stamped the names, in Italian, of our favourite flavours of gelato that we had when we visited Italy (you will find an English description of each of these flavours below). I created the border using a heart stamp and the black Archival Ink and I also top and tailed the gelato names with this stamp. I coloured each heart with the green, white and red Uni Posca pens to represent the Italian flag design; this took some time as there were so many hearts but I think it was well worth the time and effort as I love the detail. Next I used some gold alphabet outline stickers which I coloured black with a Sharpie permanent marker to add the words “Love Gelato”. I connected the gelato names, created a heart and embellished the magazine images using some small green, red and clear gemstones. To finish I added the ice cream cones which I made using some leftover petal outline stickers that I crisscrossed with black Uni Pin marker to represent a waffle cone and a large gemstones that I placed on the top to represent the gelato.

There are gelateria everywhere in Italy and it wasn’t hard to find this shop in Verona. It had the most beautiful display with the carved fruit, intricately shaped gelato and corresponding toppings to depict the flavour, such as a lemon, coconut or strawberries.

Needless to say we couldn’t pass by without trying some, so we had three scoops of different gelato piled into a waffle cone. It was so yummy and although I could have probably eaten both of these, one was for my hubby (grin!).

When we were in Tuscany, we had this Amarena, Tiramisu and Stracciatella gelato.

Gelato is the Italian word for ice cream, so you could argue that gelato and ice cream are the same. However there is a big difference and it comes down to these factors: fat, air and serving temperature. If you are interested to find out more, then:

• Gelato has less fat than ice cream because gelato uses more milk than cream compared to ice cream.
• Ice cream is churned faster and harder than gelato which is churned at a much slower pace. As a result, gelato is denser with less air while ice cream can consist of 25% to 90% air. The higher density gives gelato a more intense flavour.
• The temperature at which the two are served is different too. The higher density and lower fat composition means that gelato is typically served at a higher temperature than ice cream. If gelato were served at the same temperature as ice cream it would be too hard and if ice cream were served at the same temperature as gelato, it would melt and become soupy.

On summer evenings you will find that the Italian gelateria is the busiest part of town, often opening until midnight. There are so many different flavours to choose from including:

• Fragola: Strawberry and this is usually a deep pink colour due to the addition of crushed strawberries.
• Limone: fresh, tangy lemon flavour. This is a traditional flavour in Italy as lemons were introduced into southern Italy in the first century and are still grown there today.
• Tiramisu: One of the most popular Italian desserts is turned into a frozen delight. The name tiramisu is often translated figuratively as “pick me up” or “cheer me up” in Italian, in reference to the effects of sugar and coffee and also traditionally Marsala wine.
• Stracciatella: chocolate chip style, this gelato was invented in Italy and is a light vanilla gelato with crunchy shards of chocolate running throughout.
• Vaniglia: Vanilla and the colours and taste varies depending on how many vanilla beans are used to make the gelato.
• Crema: Italian crema is a pale yellow colour and is more like custard than cream.
• Frutti di bosco: translates to fruits of the forest and is normally a mixture of strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, blackcurrants and raspberries.
• Cioccolato: good old chocolate, my favourite!
• Panna Cotta: this is the frozen version of the traditional Italian dessert; it is rich and velvety due to the addition of heavy cream.
• Amarena: Plain ice cream with swirls of cherry sauce which is made from Amarena cherries which are small, slightly sharp cherries that are grown in Italy.
• Malaga: Rum and Raisin.

My hubby loves this gelato sandwich called “brioche con gelato”; you can choose your gelato flavours, this one if filled with Tiramisu and Panna Cotta, and they are served in a brioche roll. These can be found in gelateria across Italy and this particular one was in Lake Garda – yum!

Thanks for joining me today! If you have any questions or comments, I would love to hear from you.

Here is a list of all the materials used to create this art journal page:

• Spectrum Aqua Artist Marker (Sea Green, Kingfisher, Topaz, Gold)
• Uni Posca Paint Pens (White, Red, Dark Green, Light Blue)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Sharpie Fine Point Permanent marker (Black)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.3mm)
• Pentel Arts Hybrid Gel Grip (White)
• Dovecraft Essenitals Alphabet Stamp Set (WDN ALPHA STMP DCVW0050)
• Old Magazine
• Docrafts Anita’s Outline Stickers (Modern Alphabet Gold ANT8101000, Simple Flowers Gold ANT8101102)
• Hobbycraft Rhinestone Stickers (Green Rhinestone 5971381004)
• Oaktree UK Eleganza Craft Stickers (3mm 418 Gems Red No.16)
• Poundland (Design Gems 175751, 504 Gems 128133)
• UHU Stic

Jazz and Blues Festival

A couple of weeks ago we went to the Blackpool Jazz & Blues Festival, the musicians and singers were so amazing that I created this page to remember them!

I started by fussy cutting a trumpet from an old magazine and positioning it onto the page so I could draw wavy lines to create sections as if music was flowing out of the trumpet. I then removed the image and coloured the different sections with Kiwi, Butter Cream, Acqua Dolce, Watermelon, Guava and Peach Faber-Castell Gelatos; I did this by scribbling them onto the page and smudging the colour with my finger which I had dipped in water. I also blended the gelato colours across each section to soften the edges. Next I stamped butterflies by Crafter’s Companion and music notes by Docrafts using black Archival Ink so they looked like they were flowing out of the trumpet and over the page.  I chose butterflies because an amazing singer, Lauren Dalrymple, had butterflies on her top. Between the stamped images I added the names of some of our favourite singers and musicians from the festival. Next I fussy cut an image of a musician playing a saxophone from the festival programme, the name of the festival from a flyer and a treble clef (which incorporated a piano keyboard design) from a magazine. I added a piece of thin green washi tape to the left-hand side of the page and then the saxophone image which like the other images are stuck to the page with a UHU Stic. I then added a piece of piano keyboard washi tape and treble clef to represent the amazing pianists at the festival. The festival name is edged with a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and stuck down using double-sided foam tape. I used black and white Uni Posca paint pens to add dots to emphasise the wavy lines, add definition to the names and also details to the butterfly images that I had stamped. I also outlined the saxophone image with the white Uni Posca paint pen so it stood out more. To finish, I added some pearl gemstones that matched the gelato colours to give more interest.

As we always look forward to the festivals that take place over the summer, I’m pleased to be able to join Bleubeard and Elizabeth from Altered Book Lover for the “Summertime Love” challenge over at Art Journal Journey.

Blackpool Jazz & Blues Festival is a non-profit event and all proceeds are donated to Trinity Hospice. Over the last 3 years this festival has raised over £11,000 for this charity and as we love live jazz and blues music we always go along to support this great cause. Musicians and singers from all over the country come and perform here on a completely voluntary basis.

Lauren Dalrymple is a very gutsy and soulful singer who simply wowed us with her amazing voice! She sang an incredible rendition of “Bye, Bye Blackbird” as well as her own composition Walking in Lille  – she is a truly astonishing singer songwriter!

This is CDF# , this group consists of the three members Christopher Hodder (Guitar), David Minshull (Drums / Percussion) and Frank Flynn (Piano / Keyboard).  They are very talented and have a wonderful respect for each other’s musical ability, and by far my favourite piece of music that they play is St. Thomas.

I have to say I have never heard such spectacular sounds resonate from a guitar before, these guys from a local band called Shotglass were fantastic!

As it’s T Stands for Tuesday‘s 4th Anniversary today, I’m so glad to be able to offer my heartfelt congratulations and join Bleubeard and Elizabeth’s T party with a pint of Amazon Amber beer by Bowness Bay Brewery in the Lake District. This is a lovely refreshing English Bitter 3.8% abv (alcohol by volume) which is light in colour and has a distinctive flavour with hints of oranges and spiced berries. I’m celebrating and saying a big cheers to the T Gang – wishing you all a very Happy T Day!

Thanks for joining me today! If you have any questions or comments, I would love to hear from you.

Here is a list of all the materials used to create this art journal page:

• Faber-Castell Gelatos (Kiwi, Butter Cream, Acqua Dolce, Watermelon, Guava, Peach)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Uni Posca Paint Pens (White, Black)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.3mm)
• Crafter’s Companion Signature Collection by Sara Davies Photopolymer Stamp Set – Just for you (Butterfly Lullaby S-BL-ST-JUS)
• Docrafts Creativity Essentials A5 Clear Stamp Set (Musicality DCE907112)
• Dovecraft Essentials wooden alphabet stamp set (WDN ALPHA STMP DCVW0050)
• Festival programme and flyer
• Old magazines
• The Works (3 Washi Tapes, Washi Tape Set 7x3m)
• Trimcraft Simply Creative (Adhesive Pearls SCDOT056)
• UHU Stic
• The Range double-sided foam tape

Seaside Days

We feel really blessed to live right by the sea and with it being summer it’s great fun to see all the holidaymakers who visit our beach. Having also seen the lovely seaside and beach hut photos that my good friend Gill from Gibbyfrogettcraftations had posted of her home town I was doubly inspired to create a page to remember the sunny seaside days we have been having of late.

The background textures and colours represent the sand, sea, dunes and pebbles of our shoreline. I started by applying Yellow, Moss and Teal Spectrum Aqua Markers to an acrylic block, spritzing the block with water and pressing it onto the page, gradually building up layers of colour. I then stamped a pebble pattern using a homemade polystyrene stamp using Tea Dye Distress Ink and London Fog Memento Ink.  Next I added a piece of netting using a UHU Glue Pen to stick it down and I chose some words to add to the background with a seaside theme which are rub-on transfers. I positioned an old postcard onto my page which was from my mum and dad when they were on holiday in Cromer, Norfolk. This beach hut image is called “Seaside Days” by M.Heath and as I wanted to be able to read the back of the postcard I attached it to my page using hooks that I secured into place using Glossy Accents. The hooks are from a pack of Hook & Eye Bar Fasteners by Newey which were in my sewing box.

I like the way the postcard is securely held into place by the hooks and also slides out with ease so I can still view the back. I fussy cut the crab, boat and seagulls from a leaflet and also some nautical images and paper squares from a wallpaper sample. I stamped the letters on the paper squares using black Archival Ink and then I stuck everything onto the page using matte gel medium. I used a Slate Spectrum Aqua marker to add shadows once the gel medium had dried. To finish, I added some dried palm leaves to the page, using Glossy Accents, so they looked like grasses.

For me seaside days celebrate summertime so I’m pleased to be able to join Bleubeard and Elizabeth from Altered Book Lover for the “Summertime Love” theme over at Art Journal Journey.

We have beach huts on our beach front too and and these huts can be rented for the day. This time of year they are very popular, more so at weekends and some evenings.  They have a lovely outlook on the promenade overlooking the beach and you often find people sitting in the sunshine and enjoying the facilities the beach hut provides. People often bring a picnic with them, walk into town to get fish and chips or arrange for a pizza to be delivered to their hut. They always seem to be having so much fun!

On our particular beach there is plenty of space for everyone (the tide often goes out 1.8miles that’s 3km) and for the children there is usually a bouncy castle and also donkey rides, which are traditional at seaside resorts here in the UK. The donkeys usually have their names on their harnesses, so let me introduce you to Rambo, Teddy and Bobby who were being very well looked after by their owners.  I remember as a child going on donkey rides up and down the beach which were definitely happy seaside days (grin!).

Thanks for joining me today! If you have any questions or comments, I would love to hear from you.

Here is a list of all the materials used to create this art journal page:

• Memento Ink (London Fog)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Tea Dye)
• Spectrum Aqua Artist Marker (Yellow, Moss, Teal, Slate)
• Docrafts A5 Clear Stamp Set (Alphas Folk DCE907115)
• Homemade polystyrene stamp
• Postcard “Seaside Days” by M.Heath
• Wallpaper sample
• Craft Planet Metallic Waterfall Stickers (Beach)
• Newey No.2 Hooks & Eye Bar Fasteners
• Netting
• Ranger Glossy Accents
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• UHU Glue Pen

Carnival

Every summer we attend our local carnival weekend and we always have so much fun watching the parade that it inspired this page! I’m pleased to be able to join Bluebeard and Elizabeth at Altered Book Lover again for the “Summertime Love” theme over at Art Journal Journey.

I started by cutting different decoupage and design pad papers into squares and rectangles to create the background. The papers I choose have seaside theme images and colourful patterns to represent our town, the carnival atmosphere and the fun we had. They are stuck to the page using a UHU Stic and I incorporated some pretty patterned fabric tape into the background design as well. Then I added vertical black lines along the edge of some of the papers using a Uni Posca paint pen. Next I added all the embellishments with the aim of layering them and to only use one of each item or design on my page so that I created an eclectic feel to represent the parade and give the page contrasting pops of colour. This was also a good way to use up bits and pieces I had leftover in my craft stash. This included some cardboard bunting with buttons on from Poundland and glittery bunting from Poundworld, which represent the bunting we saw along the parade route. As there were lots of bands taking part and music played throughout the parade I also added some music note washi tape, along with some camera film washi tape as we and many others were taking photos. There were vintage vehicles in the parade so I added an image of an old vintage car which is a Victorian tag embellishment. I added some pink circle stickers with palm trees and flamingos by The Range and lots of different flowers to represent some of the floats we saw during the parade; the flowers included a lovely sunflower border by Docrafts, a mini white flower, a red rose (for one of the bands) by The Range, a 3D sticker, a blue organza flower recycled from a gift bag and some glittery blue flower rub-on transfers. I also used some foam craft stickers from Wilko; a flower shape, a star, a balloon and lollipop which some floats were giving out to children, a crown to represent the carnival queens in the parade, a lion to represent the jungle theme of one of the school floats and an ice cream as there were bicycle ice cream carts. I especially liked the lorry carrying children from a local football club who had water guns. Needless to say they were having great fun covering everyone in water, so I added a foam football to the page with a half circle of tear shaped gem stones to depict the water droplets from their water guns (grin!). There were actually many children taking part in the parade from schools, clubs and community groups, they are represented by “A,B,C” and “1,2,3” mini gel stickers that I added to my page. As well as the “Sand; Sea; Sun” wording on one of the decoupage papers, I added more words that I associated with the carnival using stickers from Craft Planet, rub-on transfers and a “Hidden Joy” fabric sticker by Little Yellow Bicycle. The garland flag and ticket represent the fun rides and stalls that were in the park as part of the carnival. To finish, I added a glittery heart, some buttons, a couple of ribbons that I had tied into bows and lots of gemstones to add sparkle and interest.

Thought you might want to join in the carnival fun so here’s our Town Crier opening the parade, as you can see we had beautiful sunny weather.

There was lots of music throughout the parade and my favourite was this New Orleans style brass band; they are called Red Rose and played great music, I also enjoyed watching the gentleman with his umbrella, he looked so happy dancing in front of his band!

If you prefer there was also a traditional UK brass band.

Or even bagpipes for those of you who prefer more of a Scottish vibe which was loud and fabulous too.

This is one of the many vintage cars that took part in the parade.

There were quite a few horses in the parade this year and the carnival queen was travelling in style in a Cinderella coach.

Here’s the children from the Football Club, don’t they look pleased with themselves squirting the spectators with their water guns.

There was also a troop of local gymnasts performing in the parade and if you look at the photo closely you can see one of them in mid-air.

I was in awe of the work that must have gone into all the wonderful knitted car – isn’t it amazing!

As we were walking by Anton’s café, we saw some friends sitting at one of the tables outside and they kindly asked if we would like to join them.

Of course we were delighted to and had a great time chatting and enjoying the sunshine. So as T Stands for Tuesday I’m saying a big hello to the T Gang and wishing you all a very Happy T Day! Our drinks were a pot of green tea for me and a hot chocolate for my hubby, you can also see our friend’s cappuccino in the background which I’m sure will please any coffee lovers in the T Gang, namely Valerie and Elizabeth (grin!).

Thanks for joining me today! If you have any questions or comments, I would love to hear from you.

Here is a list of all the materials used to create this art journal page:

• Uni Posca Paint Pens (White, Black)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.1mm)
• Trimcraft Deco Mache Decoupage Papers (Tiled Seaside FEDEC102)
• VivaGade Decoupage Paper (Helsinki)
• Craft Sensations Design Pad (Soft Sweetness 154897)
• The Works (Fabric Tape)
• Poundland (Handmade Embellishments 138127)
• Poundworld (Paper Lace U-83197)
• The Works (3 Washi Tapes)
• The Works (Victorian Style Embellishments PO/19702)
• Docrafts Papermania Signature 3D Floral Borders (Sunflower Stickers PMA801100)
• The Range (Craft Stickers CR1243)
• Home Bargains Special Occasion (Mini Decorative Stickers 22740)
• The Range (Rose Garland CR0951)
• Free & Easy (3D Stickers 002157)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Sentiments (SYN14709, Summer #ROY-505 Rub-on)
• Blue organza flower (recycled from gift bag)
• Wilko Little Steps (Safari Foam Stickers)
• Graham & Brown The Wall (Adhesive Jewels)
• Home Bargains (Mini Gel Stickers 30287)
• Craft Planet Metallic Waterfall Stickers (Beach PO#9622)
• Little Yellow Bicycle Stickers (Fabric Favourites PD-220)
• Trimcraft Garland Flags (Fun Fair HCGF001)
• Ticket
• The Works (Glitter Heart Stickers)
• Buttons
• Ribbon
• The Range (Adhesive Craft Gems)
• Poundland Self-adhesive gems (504 Gems 128133)
• Hobbycraft Gem Sticker Strip (Assorted Pink Squares 5971461001)
• Ranger Glossy Accents
• UHU Stic
• The Range double-sided foam tape

Snapdragons

Snapdragons (antirrhinums) are one of my all time favourite summer flowers and as they are in full bloom in my garden I thought I would create a page. With my love for this flower I’m pleased to be able to join in the fun with Bluebeard and Elizabeth from Altered Book Lover with her “Summertime Love” theme over at Art Journal Journey.

I started with Potter’s Clay and Rich Cocoa Memento Ink which I applied to an acrylic block, spritzed with water and painted onto the page using a paintbrush. Then I stippled the same inks through a brick design stencil and also a wood grain stencil; these designs remind me of the area in our garden where the snapdragons are flowering. Next I tore up a page, that contained information about plant biology, from a Pear’s Cyclopaedia and layered the paper pieces onto my page using a UHU Stic. Once the glue had dried, I applied Butter Cream, Watermelon and Earl Grey Faber-Castell Gelatos and edged the papers with a black Sharpie Marker, smudging all the colours with my finger. I splattered the background with black acrylic paint using a paint brush and once dry I covered the whole page with white gesso. While the gesso was drying, I used a baby wipe to remove it from the papers and some of the brick and wood grain designs allowing the writing and colours to show through. The snapdragons are from a wallpaper sample which I fussy cut and stuck to the page using Liquitex matte gel medium. Once the gel medium had dried I outlined them with a Derwent Graphik marker and added shadows using Desert and Slate Spectrum Aqua Markers. To show my love for these flowers, I used some pretty pink heart brads. I pushed them through the page and then covered the back of each brad with a piece of masking tape to prevent any damage to the next journal page. I drew a very faint green circle around each heart using a Moss Spectrum Aqua Marker and then I added splatters of the Moss and also a Chocolate Aqua marker using a paintbrush; I did this by scribbling the Aqua markers onto an acrylic block and spritzing the block with water to dilute the ink. The “snapdragon” wording is made up from some leftover Cardstock Stickers by Little Yellow Bicycle that I had in my craft stash, and as I didn’t have the full complement of letters to spell out the word, I also made some of the letters using card and Uni Posca paint pens. The antirrhinum definition is cut from my old school dictionary, it is stuck to the page using a UHU Stic and outlined with a Charcoal Grey Derwent Inktense pencil and a black Uni Posca paint pen. Next I edged a pink “Love this” sign by The Works using a black Sharpie marker and stuck it to the page using double-sided foam tape. To finish, I added some gold flower outline stickers, green pearls and green lace trim.

Here are the lovely snapdragons in our garden! These flowers are also known as “dragon flowers” and their Latin name antirrhinum means resembling an animal’s snout.

They bring back the most wonderful childhood memories of when I used to play with these flowers and make the dragon open and close its mouth by gently squeezing either side of the flower head– well in actual fact I still do this, it is such fun (grin!)

Thanks for joining me today! If you have any questions or comments, I would love to hear from you.

Here is a list of all the materials used to create this art journal page:

• Pébéo White Gesso
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
• Memento Ink (Potter’s Clay, Rich Cocoa)
• Faber-Castell Gelatos (Butter Cream, Watermelon, Earl Grey)
• Spectrum Aqua Artist Marker (Desert, Slate, Chocolate, Moss)
• Uni Posca Paint Pens (White, Black, Brown, Pink)
• Derwent Inktense Pencils (Charcoal Grey 2100)
• Derwent Graphik Line Marker (Black 0.05mm)
• Sharpie Fine Point Permanent Marker (Black)
• Craft Sensations (Deco Stencil Set 154892)
• The Pocket Oxford Dictionary
• Pear’s Cyclopaedia 2007-2008 Edition
• Wallpaper sample
• The Works M&C Boutique (Vintage Die Cut Shapes)
• Little Yellow Bicycle Cardstock Stickers (Fresh Verse PD-140)
• Docrafts Anita’s Outline Stickers (Flower Blossom – Gold ANT810143)
• Trimcraft Simply Creative (Adhesive Pearls SCDOT056)
• Docrafts Papermania Botanicals (Adhesive Lace Trim PMA358334)
• Brads (Hearts – Pink BRHEP1)
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• UHU Stic
• The Range double-sided foam tape

Happy 4th of July!

As today is 4^th July, I was inspired to create this page to join in the celebrations with my American friends and wish you all a very “Happy 4^th of July”.

I started by covering the page in a thin layer of white gesso in readiness to apply gelatos. I scribbled Red Cherry and Boysenberry Faber-Castell Gelatos in starburst patterns over the page, to resemble fireworks, then dipped my finger into some water and used it on the gelatos to smudge the colour. I then covered the page in a thin layer of Liquitex Matte Gel Medium to seal the gelatos and stop them reactivating when wet. Once the gel medium had dried I applied Topaz and Desert Spectrum Aqua Markers and some Cold Grey and Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush Markers and blended them with a baby wipe; this gave an antique look to the background. Next I stamped the sentiment using black Archival Ink and edged the letters with a white Uni Posca paint pen. I added four “star and stripe” rub-on transfers by Royal & Langnickel and distressed the background around them with a baby wipe so that they stood out more. The stars are also rub-on transfers which I covered with glitter glue and outlined with red, white and blue dots using Uni Posca paint pens. I continued these red, white and blue dots around the edge of the page and also in starburst patterns on the background. I made the round swirls using vintage striped paper by American Crafts; I did this by scoring the paper with a paper craft tool and then folding it along the scored lines to give a concertina effect. I then attached a piece of plastic coated wire to secure the folded paper in the centre and fanned the paper outwards so they joined at each end to give a circular shape. I secured the paper edges on the back with tape and added a gold star to the centre. I painted some of the folded points white using a Uni Posca paint pen and then drew blue and red dots to tie into the background and theme more. I connected the wires together and attached them to the page using Glossy Accents. To finish, I added some small red star sequins using the Glossy Accents again to stick them to the page.

As we are celebrating the 4^th July I’m pleased to be able to join Bluebeard and Elizabeth who are hosting the “Summertime Love” theme over at Art Journal Journey.

I know some of you were asking about my new Uni Posca Paint Pens so I thought I’d show you my new set (grin!). They are a water-based pigment ink being both alcohol and solvent free and I have the extra fine markers which are a 0.7mm bullet tip. They produce poster-paint-style vibrant colours and once dry, you can easily layer more colours over the top to correct any errors and build your design. Apparently they can be used on virtually any surface and I have found they don’t bleed-through paper. I’ve been very impressed with them so far .

As we are celebrating the “4^th July” or “July 4” (grin!), I thought we could have some fun and compare some English to American words which have different meanings. To this end you may remember Lisca listing some English Slang words last week which prompted a conversation with Bluebeard and Elizabeth who listed some English to American words. This inspired me to put a list together of the word differences that I have come across when I travelled and worked in America – see what you think …

English	American		English	American
Crisps	Chips		Flat	Apartment
Chips	French Fries		Semi-detached	Duplex
Biscuit	Cookie		Ground Floor	First Floor
Scone	Biscuit		First Floor	Second Floor
Jam	Jelly		Lift	Elevator
Swiss Roll	Jelly Roll
Sweets	Candy		Chemist	Drugstore
Ice Lolly	Popsicle		Off Licence	Liquor Store
Pudding	Dessert		Pillar Box	Mail Box
			Queue	Line
Aubergine	Eggplant		Solicitor	Lawyer / Attorney
Courgette	Zucchini		Post Code	Zip Code
Rocket	Arugula
Coriander	Cilantro		Private School	Public School
Spring Onion	Scallion / green onion		Public School	State School
Porridge	Oatmeal		Term	Semester
Plain Flour	All Purpose Flour
			Holiday	Vacation
Cooker	Stove		Fortnight	Two Weeks
Grill	Broil		Autumn	Fall
Tin Foil	Aluminum Foil
Dustbin	Garbage / Trash Can		Road	Pavement
Jug	Pitcher		Pavement	Sidewalk
Tap	Faucet		Carpark	Parking Lot
Curtains	Drapes		Petrol	Gas
Lounge	Living Room		Estate Car	Station Wagon
Cupboard	Closet		Saloon Car	Sedan
			Lorry	Truck
Trousers	Pants		Number Plate	License Plate
Pants (m) or Knickers (f)	Underwear		Boot(car)	Trunk (car)
Dressing Gown	Bath-robe		Bonnet (car)	Hood (car)
Handbag	Purse / Pocket book		Motorway	Freeway
Label	Tag
Nappy	Diaper		Film	Movie
Spanner	Wrench		Football	Soccer
Torch	Flashlight		American Football	Football
Mobile	Cell Phone		Draughts	Checkers
Serviette	Napkin
			Full Stop	Period
			Tick	Check Mark

As T Stands for Tuesday and it is the 4^th July, for breakfast I thought I would celebrate by having homemade waffles with fresh summer fruits (strawberries, nectarines and blueberries) and maple syrup all the way from Maine in America! To go with it I’m drinking a cup of hot water – Happy T day!

Thanks for joining me today! If you have any questions or comments, I would love to hear from you.

Here is a list of all the materials used to create this art journal page:

• Pébéo White Gesso
• Faber-Castell Gelatos (Red Cherry, Boysenberry)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Cold Grey IV 233, Dark Sepia 175 B)
• Spectrum Aqua Artist Marker (Topaz, Desert)
• Uni Posca Paint Pens (White, Red, Dark Blue)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.2mm)
• Docrafts Creativity Essentials A5 clear stamp set (Alpha Folk DCE907115)
• American Crafts Paper Pad (DIY Shop 366665)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Sentiments (Uncle Sam #MAL-203 Rub-on)
• The Range Adhesive Craft Gems (Assorted Shapes CRO869)
• Poundland (Assorted Sequins)
• The Range 3D Glitter Glue (GLT 43210000 3D Glue Pen)
• Ranger Glossy Accents
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• Masking Tape
• Plastic coated wire – recycled from packaging

Dream

I had so much fun creating this page for the “Letters or Numbers or Both” theme over at Try it on Tuesday and the “Circles” theme over at Art Journal Journey. I chose the word “dream”, the grunge design and some of the colours from a sign that adorns my craft room wall.

This grunge look took sometime to create and it started with a mop up background of Red Cherry and Passion Fruit gelatos which I covered in a thin layer of white gesso to tone down the colours a little. I stencilled the clock and some numbers using two stencils by Craft Sensations and black Versafine Ink with a blending tool; I wasn’t very careful in applying the ink and didn’t mind the splodges of ink that formed around the edge of the stencil as it added to the grunge look. I applied black Papermania embossing powder over the top of the ink and then shook the excess powder onto a piece of scrap paper tapping the page against the table to make sure I’ve removed any stray powder. Once the excess powder was safely returned to its container, I used a heat gun to melt the embossing powder. I swept the gun over the images, taking care not to direct the heat in one area for too long until the embossing powder changed to a glossy finish becoming smooth and dimensional. Next I scribbled a Coconut Faber-Catell Gelato onto the page and I dipped my finger into some water and rubbed the gelato to smudge the colour. I removed the gelato that had gone over the embossed images straight away with a piece of kitchen towel returning them to a glossy finish. I added some small leftover pieces of torn black and white polka dot washi tape to the page and then I applied Pébéo modelling paste through a Shabby Harlequin stencil by Creative Expressions.

Once the paste had dried I used Dark Sepia, Sanguine and Cold Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush markers to add more colour to the modelling paste and the background; I did this by scribbling each marker onto an acrylic block, spritzing the block with water and then pressing and dragging it across the page. I then painted some white gesso onto the page using my finger. I applied a Snow Cone blue gelato to the pieces of washi tape and to the top of the modelling paste which highlighted the texture and shape wonderfully. Then I used the Dark Sepia marker to outline the stencilled shapes.

I drew the larger circles and shaded them using the blue gelato and edged them with white and black Uni Posca paint pens. I used the blue gelato again to add the smaller circles using a Dutch Doobadoo mask and when it had dried I added some detail to the edges using the Uni Posca paint pens.  I used black Versafine ink to stencil cog shapes using a Viva Décor stencil and also stamp a circular postage mark using a stamp from The Works. Then I stamped a Kaisercraft Script stamp using Rich Cocoa Memento Ink. To add more depth of colour to the clock, cogs, circles and background around the modelling paste, I used Gold, Fawn, Desert and Chestnut Spectrum Aqua Markers by applying the ink to an acrylic block and using a wet paintbrush to pick up the ink and apply it to the page.

To finish, I added some circular and small cog shaped sequins using Glossy Accents, some 3D butterfly stickers from The Range and the letter buttons from Home Bargains to add the word “dream”.

Here’s the sign that is on the wall of my craft room, I love the sentiments it contains and to me it’s a wonderful reminder of how to live and enjoy life to the full! As you can see the design is a bit worn and grungy just like my page (grin!).

I often listen to music while I’m crafting and when I created this page a particular song by Elvis, called “If I Can Dream”, caught my imagination. Here’s a link to Elvis singing this song as part of his famous 1968 Black Leather Comeback Show – I love the lyrics:

Thanks for joining me today! If you have any questions or comments, I would love to hear from you.

Here is a list of all the materials used to create this art journal page:

• Pébéo White Gesso
• Tsukineko Versafine Ink (Onyx Black)
• Memento Ink (Rich Cocoa)
• Faber-Castell Gelatos (Coconut, Snow Cone)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Dark Sepia 175 B, Sanguine 188 B, Cold Grey IV 233)
• Spectrum Aqua Artist Marker (Gold, Fawn, Desert, Chestnut)
• Uni Posca Paint Pen (White, Black)
• Papermania Embossing Powder (Black PMA4021006)
• Pébéo Modeling Paste (High Density)
• Kaisercraft Clear Stamps (Script CS752)
• The Works (Clear Stamps CR0274/TW3)
• Craft Sensations (Deco Stencil Set 154892)
• Creative Expressions Mini Stencils (Shabby Harlequin CEMSHARL)
• Duth Doobadoo Mask Art A5 (Geometric Tiles)
• Viva Décor Universal Stencil (Past Times 900270300)
• Poundland (Washi Tape)
• The Range (Craft Stickers ST5256)
• Home bargains Love Letters (Self Adhesive Letters 22738)
• Poundland (Assorted Sequins)
• Ranger Glossy Accents