Hello Spring!

With sunny days and warmer temperatures, it feels more like spring! My garden definitely looks more spring-like too with the beautiful daffodils and birdsong. So today I’m capturing those happy spring memories on my art journal page.

To start, I applied Mustard Seed Distress Ink concentrating the colour around the edges of the page; I did this by stamping the ink pad to an acrylic block and picking up the ink using a paint brush. Then I sprinkled some Leaf Green Colourfast Brusho powder onto the page and spritzed with water and watched the colours magically explode into life; I did this a few times until the intensity of colour I wanted was achieved. While the background was still wet, I used a stencil to apply Hickory Smoke Distress Ink using a blending tool and I stamped a daffodil tile stamp by Papermania using the Mustard Seed Distress Ink and also black Archival Ink, and also a small Flower & Dot stamp from Magenta using Teal Zeal Memento Ink; I really like the way the inks blended with the other background colours. I added a border of thin washi tape around the edge of the page and also around the wording “Hello Spring!” which I recycled from some junk mail. The pretty birds and daffodils are from a decoupage set which I fussy cut and stuck to the page using double-sided foam tape. The eggs are from an incomplete set of outline stickers from a charity shop (thrift store), which I stuck onto some textured recycled card and stuck to the page using a UHU Stic. To finish, I added some yellow bows which I made using recycled ribbon from a birthday gift.

Here are some of the beautiful daffodils flowering in our garden to welcome spring!

My pottery lamb stopped by to check them out too (grin!).

Challenges

I’m glad I found out about Challenge Blogs as I enjoy taking part, they provide me with inspiration for my pages and are a wonderful way to meet like-minded arty people. So here are the challenges I’m joining today:

I’m pleased to join the lovely Alison/Craftytrog, who is hosting the Recycle and Collage challenge over at Art Journal Journey with the recycled junk mail, textured card and ribbon that I collaged onto this page!

With the stamping and pretty birds on my page, I’m pleased to join The Birds & the Bees challenge over at The Artistic Stamper.

I’m also pleased to join in the fun at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their Trio of Something challenge with my pretty trio of decoupage bird images (if you look closely you will see the bird sitting on the flowerpot repeated three times on my page) and also my trio of eggs.

I’m also joining the Allsorts Challenge Blog and their New Beginnings challenge as my art journal page depicts the change in seasons, to welcome spring.

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:

• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Mustard Seed, Hickory Smoke)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Colourcraft Brusho Colour (Leaf Green)
• Tsukeniko Memento Ink (Teal Zeal)
• Papermania wood mounted stamp (39454)
• Magenta wood mounted rubber stamp (Flowers & Dots 23111D)
• Craft Sensations (Deco Stencil Set 154892)
• Recycled junk mail magazine
• Hunkydory Spring is in the Air Designer Decoupage (Garden Birds and Bunny Meadow)
• Recycled textured card
• Outline Stickers (PP570)
• Yellow Ribbon – recycled from present
• The Works (Washi Tape Set)
• Wilko (Sticky Dots)
• UHU Stic
• Docrafts Stick It! double-sided tape
• The Range double-sided foam tape

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Fire and Ice

Today at Try it on Tuesday we are launching a new challenge called Fire and Ice, where you are asked to use hot or cold colours. This new challenge runs for two weeks and we would love for you to join us.

I had fun creating an art journal page using hot fiery colours and icy glittery flowers (grin!).

I started by applying Pébéo modelling paste using a Swoosh stencil from Creative Expressions and a feather mask from Craft Sensations. Once the modelling paste had dried, I spritzed the page with water and sprinkled Brilliant Red, Scarlet, Orange, Yellow and Lemon Colourcraft Brusho Powders over the top and spritzed them with more water so that the Brusho colours fully covered the page. I controlled where individual colours went by adding each Brusho colour separately then spritzing the powder with water after each application; replicating flames with a red glow in the centre and oranges and yellows around the edges. I then dried the page with my heat gun and stuck a glitter adhesive border strip along the bottom edge. For the quote I cut out a circle of patterned paper and stamped the quote using an alphabet stamp set and black Archival Ink. It is by William C. Hannah and reads:

“The day will be what you make it, so rise like the sun and burn”.

It is edged with a gold outline sticker and then with a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and a black Derwent Graphik marker. I stuck it on top of a circle of pink tissue-thin fibrous paper which I ripped around the edges leaving some of the silky fibres intact to give a textured feathery look; they are both stuck down using double-sided tape. Then I added some pearls, gems and glittery flower embellishments around the quote and to the background of the page; sticking the flowers in place using Glossy Accents. Next I fussy cut the phoenix from an old magazine and backed it with white card and I edged with a black Derwent Graphik marker. It is stuck to the page using double-sided foam tape and I stuck some torn pieces of the pink fibrous paper to represent feathers using a Zig Memory System glue pen and added some of the pearls and gems to give it a 3D look which finished the page.

I hope you will join in the fun over at Try it on Tuesday where you will find loads more inspiration from my fellow Design Team Members too.

As the quote I used inspires new adventures, I’m also pleased to join the lovely Erika N, also known as BioArtGal, who is hosting the “New Year, New Adventures” challenge over at Art Journal Journey.

We often visit the Blackbird café with our friends and as I’m featuring my favourite drink of green tea I’m pleased to join T Stands for Tuesday – Happy T Day! The drinks at this café are always served with a little treat on the side. If you look closely at the teaspoon you will see an Iced Gem biscuit, these little treats took me right back to my childhood (grin!).

If you haven’t come across Iced Gems before, you may be interested to know that:

• Iced Gems are tiny round biscuits (maybe 2cm diameter) with a swirl of hard icing on top.
• They were first made over 150 years ago in Reading and were apparently the result of a biscuit making accident back in the 1850s when Huntley and Palmer shrank their biscuits during the cooking process when experimenting with some new biscuit technology. They called the resulting mini biscuits Gems.
• In 1910 they added icing to these mini biscuits to create the product we know today.
• There were different ways of eating them; maybe the icing first, or the biscuit, or as I preferred both together. Leaving them to melt in your mouth was a good idea too as they were quite hard if you tried to chew them.
• Today’s iced gems have five colours of icing, white, yellow, orange, red and purple, which seem to be different from what I remember and there is also now a chocolate version too.
• They are said to be most popular in France, America, Canada, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Japan and Sweden.

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 Modeling Paste
• Colourcraft Brusho Colours (Brilliant Red, Scarlet, Orange, Yellow, Lemon)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
• Derwent Graphik Line Marker (Black 0.05mm, 0.1mm, 0.8mm)
• Creative Expressions That Special Touch of Mica Mask (Swoosh)
• Craft Sensations (Deco Stencil Set 154892)
• Dovecraft Essentials Alphabet Stamp Set (WDN ALPHA STMP DCVW0050)
• Paper bundle from local craft shop
• Fibrous light weight Mulberry paper (Pink)
• White card
• Old magazine
• The Range (Glitter Adhesive Border Strips CR0517)
• Starform Outline Stickers (Gold 1144)
• Trimcraft (Adhesive Pearls SCDOT056)
• The Range (Craft Embellishments CR0824)
• Poundland (Accessories Pack)
• Hobbycraft (Rose Gem Stones 5666091006)
• Ranger Glossy Accents
• UHU Stic
• Docrafts Stick It! double-sided tape
• The Range double-sided foam tape

Oh, Deer!

I’m so excited that December is here as I can put up my Christmas decorations; I started on Friday and it took me a couple of days to complete this task (grin!). I thought I’d create a page with the help of this deer who seems to be celebrating by decorating his antlers with Christmas baubles too (double grin!).

My idea was to create a snowy silver birch woodland background so I started by applying some torn pieces of white napkin using Liquitex Matte Gel Medium to add some texture. Then I added Brushed Corduroy, Spiced Marmalade and Hickory Smoke Distress Inks like watercolour by applying each ink to an acrylic block and then using a paintbrush to apply them to the page. I then sprinkled some Dark Brown Colourcraft Brusho powder over the top, spritzed with water and watched the powders explode with colour. I dried the page with my heat gun and then I applied a thin layer of PVA glue here and there in order to seal in some of the colour. Once the glue had dried, I applied a thick layer of Pébéo white gesso over the top using a palette knife and used the heat gun again to create some lovely texture as the gesso bubbled under the heat.  I emphasised this texture by using Silver Grey, White Sparkle and Apple Green metallic lustres by Craft-T products. I love how the gesso enhanced the background texture and that it looks like silver birch bark covered in snow. Next I ripped some branch and berry images from a napkin and stuck them around the edge of the page using a UHU Stic. With the background completed, I tore some silver Curling Ribbon (that was recycled from a present) into thin strips and then curled it with some scissors. I arranged the red and green baubles which are stickers and tied the strips of ribbon to them as if they were hanging down the page. I fussy cut the red reindeer from an old magazine and as the reindeer had white writing across it I covered it with small pieces of the red paper that I tore from the off cuts and coloured the edges with Crimson, Burgundy and Scarlet Spectrum Aqua markers. I mounted the reindeer image onto a piece of white card and outlined his eyes and nose with a Derwent Graphik marker so they stood out more. He is stuck onto the page using double-sided tape and I wrapped the ribbons around his antlers as I stuck him down so it looked like the baubles were hanging from them; this took a little time as it was quite fiddly. To finish, I added more sparkle to his antlers using some little silver dots and some red and green bells which are from the same sticker set as the baubles.

You may remember the Winter Wonderland Decorations that I made last month. I had a few requests to show them again when I had created my winter window display, so here they are (grin!). As you can see I made a few more of these decorations and trimmed them with lace, and as it’s December they are being displayed with some Christmas decorations too.

They look so magical at night with the fairy lights!

As T Stands for Tuesday I’m sharing my green tea in some new mugs that were bought for us, their design reminded me of the reindeer page (double grin!) – Happy T Day!

Challenges

I’m glad I found out about Challenge Blogs as I enjoy taking part, they provide me with inspiration for my pages and are a wonderful way to meet like minded arty people. Being a new month there are lots of new exciting challenge themes too, so here are the ones I’m joining today:

I’m pleased to join the lovely Sheila from Orange Esmeralda over at Art Journal Journey and her “Let’s Celebrate” challenge with my reindeer celebrating Christmas!

I’m joining the “Christmas” challenge over at Country View Challenges with my Christmas themed page and it was lots of fun also including their option of using reds and greens as part of my page design.

With my snowy reindeer scene I’m also joining in the fun over at A Vintage Journey and their “Winter Wonderland” challenge with my “Art Journaling” and “Mixed-Media” style page as it was created to remember the joy of putting up my Christmas Decorations this year and I used lots of different media to create it.

Being inspired by Chris and the fabulous textured backgrounds that she created for her happy snowman and baubles, I’m also joining the “Torn, Ripped and Burnt” challenge over at PaperArtsy with the torn and heated elements that I used to create my silver birch textured background and happy reindeer with baubles.

I’m also pleased to join the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their “Anything Goes” challenge.

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:

• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Brushed Corduroy, Spiced Marmalade, Hickory Smoke)
• Colourcraft Brusho Colour (Dark Brown)
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Craf-T Luster Rub-ons Color Kit #4 (Silver Grey, White Sparkle, Apple Green)
• Spectrum Aqua Artist Marker (Crimson, Burgundy, Scarlet)
• Derwent Graphik Line Marker (Black 0.05mm)
• Poundland (Luxury Napkins 70371)
• Old Magazine
• Bauble Stickers from Charity Shop
• Recycled Curling Ribbon (Silver)
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• UHU Stic
• The Range double-sided foam tape

Discover the Magic

We recently went on a beautiful circular walk up to Rivington Pike summit which has the most breathtaking views. This walk took us through some amazing woodland and terraced gardens and we had such a wonderful time that I created this journal page to remember the magic that we discovered there!

For the background I used Milled Lavender, Cracked Pistachio and Tea Dye Distress Inks as well as a Charcoal Spectrum Aqua Marker by applying each of the inks directly to an acrylic block and holding the block over the page I spritzed it with water until the ink dripped onto the page. I also pressed the block onto the page in places and then I repeated the process again with each colour. I used the Milled Lavender and Tea Dye Distress Inks as well as black Archival Ink to stamp a Script from Kaisercraft. As a reminder of the woodland I stamped a tree bark stamp from BoBunny using Ground Espresso Distress Ink and to depict the ferns that we saw in the terraced gardens I also stamped a fern image from Royal & Langnickel using Cracked Pistachio Distress Ink. The page was then splattered with black acrylic paint using a paint brush. Next I tore pieces of music sheet and a turquoise blue decoupage paper into strips, to represent the waterfalls and pools that we saw and heard on our walk; they are stuck to the page using Liquitex Matte Gel Medium. I also tore a Penny Black sticker and added the shards to the page to add further texture and colour. Once the gel medium had dried I outlined the paper and sticker pieces with a black Uni Pin marker so they stood out more. The words are rub-on transfers, these represent the wonder and magic that we discovered during our walk. I added some gold outline stickers to represent the sunshine and autumnal gold colours of the leaves in the woodland. As we discovered lovely brickwork throughout the terraced gardens I stencilled a brick design using Pébéo modelling paste and a stencil from Craft Sensations, as well as a stencil made from a piece of plasterboard/drywall tape. Once the paste had dried, I coloured them with Cold Grey and Sanguine Faber-Castell Big Brush markers.

Then I stamped a bird image from Craft Sensations using black Archival Ink; I like the way the bird is looking out across the page as we did towards the views whilst on our walk. For the autumnal leaves, I used some leaves that were leftover from a previous project. The large oak and maple leaf images are from a stamp set by BoBunny and the smaller leaves are from a stamp set by Crafter’s Companion; they are stamped using black Archival Ink on a white medium weight paper. The paper is sprinkled with Scarlet, Yellow, Orange and Dark Brown Colourcraft Brusho powders and spritzed with water to react the bright and colourful Brusho colours. I fussy cut the leaves and then added more colour to them using Mustard Seed, Spiced Marmalade, Fired Brick and Seedless Preserves Distress Inks and a blending tool. Once dry I covered them with DecoArt Media Crackle Glaze, varying the thickness over the leaves and left them to dry overnight. I used a russet metallic lustre wax from Craf-T Products to accentuate the crackle patterns and I stained the edges of the leaves with a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and stuck them to the page using matte gel medium. To finish, I also stuck some paper flowers, with sparkly gem centres, to the page using the gel medium again.

The circular route up to Rivington Pike started off in style with a beautiful tree-lined avenue leading up to the woodlands.

The woodland path leads to the Rivington Terraced Gardens that are situated on the hillside below Rivington Pike; they occupy 45 acres in total. They were originally created between 1905-1922 for soap magnate Lord Leverhulme as a spectacular venue for him to relax in and entertain. Here we discovered woodland paths that crisscross and link stone bridges, archways, pavilions and water features; they are all currently undergoing restoration.

After exploring the terraced gardens we came across this beautiful archway leading up to track which leads to Rivington Pike, isn’t it beautiful!

Rivington Pike is hill summit which is 1,191 feet above sea level and is a prominent local landmark, the earliest record of this hill dates back to 1325. The building at the top is Pike Tower which was built in the eighteenth century as a hunting lodge.

The view is amazing and on a clear day you can see Blackpool Tower, the Isle of Man and the Lake District fells. At the summit we stopped and sat at one of the benches and had our pack lunch whilst we admired the views (grin!).

We walked down a different trail heading back towards the terraced gardens and discovered this four-storey building which is Pigeon Tower. The top floor was Lady Leverhulme’s sewing and music room and the second and third floors housed dovecotes.

There were some lovely views over the countryside from the tower.

This is Lever Bridge and its design is based on a bridge that Lever saw in Nigeria. It’s also known as Seven Arch Bridge as its large arch is crossed by six smaller ones.

Being a warm sunny day, it was lovely way to see the last of the autumnal colours and discover the stunning views and scenery – what a wonderful place it was to visit (grin!).

Challenges

I’m glad I found out about Challenge Blogs as I enjoy taking part, they provide me with inspiration for my pages and are a wonderful way to meet like-minded arty people. So here are the challenges I’m joining today:

As walking keeps you warm on crisp sunny autumn days, I joining the lovely Chris and her wonderful “101 Ways to Keep Warm” challenge over at Art Journal Journey.

With two types of stencilled brickwork, I’m pleased to join Country View Challenges with their “Stencils” challenge and also Moo Mania & More with their “Put a Stencil On It” challenge.

I’m joining in the fun again over at Fashionable Stamping Challenges and their “Nature” challenge as I enjoyed using my stamps to create the leaves, background and pretty bird for this page.

I’m also pleased to join the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their “Tear It Up” challenge with the torn papers and stickers that I used for my background.

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:

• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Milled Lavender, Cracked Pistachio, Tea Dye, Ground Espresso, Mustard Seed, Spiced Marmalade, Fired Brick, Seedless Preserves)
• Spectrum Aqua Artist Marker (Charcoal)
• Liquitex Artist Color Acrylic (Ivory Black)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Pébéo Modeling Paste
• Faber-Castell Big Brush artist pen (Cold Grey IV 233, Sanguine 188 B, Black 199)
• Colourcraft Brusho Colour (Scarlet, Yellow, Orange, Dark Brown)
• DecoArt Media Crackle Glaze (DMM16)
• Craf-T Products Lustre Rub-ons Color Kit #4 (Russet)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.1mm)
• Uniball Signo gel pen (White)
• Kaisercraft clear stamp (Script CS752)
• Royal & Langickel Clear Choice Stamps (Pressed Leaves MIN-CCS102)
• BoBunny Stamps (Rough It Up #12105155, Falling Leaves #12105154)
• Craft Sensations (Deco Stencil Set 154892)
• Craft Sensations (Clear Stamps CRO274/16R1)
• Crafter’s Companion Signature Collection by Sara Davies Autumn Morning Stamp Set (Rustling Leaves S-AUT-ST-RUS)
• Poundworld DecoTime (Paper Patch DS9454)
• Bosworth Violin Studies music book
• Penny Black 2010 Stickeroos (Petals & Poetry 10-207)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Transfers (Motivate Sentiments #ROY510 Rub-on)
• Letraset transfer (Helvetica Bold Condensed 5mm RDC0251)
• Magenta Style outline stickers (Daisy Gold 93326G)
• Poundland (Accessories Pack 60911, Gem Florettes 117128)
• 151Adhesives Plasterboard & Drywall Tape
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium

Remember, Remember …

On the 5^th November we celebrate Bonfire Night here in the UK, and as I didn’t manage to attend our local fireworks display this year I thought I would create my own fireworks instead. Bonfire Night celebrations originate from the time of Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot, which dates back to 1605, so I incorporated this onto my page along with the first lines of a well-known poem that is often recited this time of year:

“Remember, remember the fifth of November, gunpowder, treason and plot.
We see no reason why gunpowder treason should ever be forgot!”

I started by sprinkling Black, Purple, Orange and Yellow Colourcraft Brusho Powders onto the page then spritzing them with water. As I wanted to control the coverage and the amount of starburst patterns that resulted I spritzed the water after each individual sprinkle of Brusho powder. Brushos seemed the perfect medium for the fireworks as they always mesmerise me by exploding with colour when the water is added. Next I dried the Brushos with a heat gun and then covered them with a thin layer of PVA glue to fix the colour in place; I choose PVA as it dries with a shiny finish which I thought was more appropriate for fireworks. By fixing the Brusho colour, it stopped them bleeding into the white Uni Posca paint pen which I used to doodle and splatter the firework patterns. The individual letters of the poem are cut from an alphabet paper sheet by Creative Sensations; I thought the old-fashioned text would be appropriate for the Gunpowder plot of 1605. I edged the letters with a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker, stuck them to the page using Liquitex Matte Gel Medium and used a black Derwent Graphik marker and a white Pentel gel pen to define them so that they stood out more. To finish, I fussy cut an illustration of the Gunpowder Plot from an old History Encyclopedia, edged it with black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and stuck it to the bottom of the page using the matte gel medium again.

I’m pleased to be able to join Chris from Pearshapedcrafting who is hosting the “101 Ways to Keep Warm” challenge over at Art Journal Journey; I join some esteemed company with my Bonfire Night inspired page as this inspiration has proven popular for a number of my blog-friends too (grin!).

This photo of the North Pier in Blackpool was taken last year at the annual International Fireworks Competition – the displays are always so amazing!

Some years we have sparklers, here I am being very, very careful lighting sparklers at a family Bonfire Night gathering!

For those of you interested, here’s some further information about the history of Bonfire Night:

• In Great Britain, Bonfire Night is an annual tradition and is also known as Fireworks Night.
• It’s a way of remembering the events of 5^th November 1605 when a plot to blow up the Houses of Parliament, killing all inside it including the King, was foiled.
• The most famous conspirator of the Gunpowder Plot was Guy Fawkes. Before the plot could be carried out, Guy Fawkes was arrested while he was guarding the 36 barrels of deadly gunpowder in the cellar of the House of Parliament. He was tortured, and later tried and then hung for his part in the plot.
• Some believe that Guy Fawkes was thrown into a bonfire after his conviction so sometimes straw dummies of Guy Fawkes are made and thrown into bonfires to celebrate the day.
• Historically, children used to collect money to buy fireworks by roaming the streets in the days leading up to the event, brandishing their effigies known as “Guys” and asking passers-by for a “penny for the guy”. I think this tradition has all but disappeared today.
• The 5^th November is celebrated with bonfires and fireworks to remember the Gunpowder Plot and Guy’s role in the event.
• There are many organised firework events across the UK, which are very popular and shops start selling fireworks in mid-October in readiness for this celebration.

As part of Bonfire Night celebrations, I always make parkin which is a type of gingerbread cake. This particular parkin recipe has been passed down through generations of my family and is made with oatmeal and black treacle. This homemade treat is lovely with a hot drink and as T Stands for Tuesday I’m saying a big hello to the T Gang and 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:

• Colourcraft Brusho Colour Crystals (Black, Purple, Orange, Blue)
• Uni Posca Paint Pen (White)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
• Derwent Graphik Line Marker (Black 0.05mm)
• Pentel Hybrid Gel Grip pen (White)
• Craft Sensations Design Pad (Travel Memories 154898)
• Miles Kelly Pubishers Encyclopedia of British History
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• Everbuild 501 Universal (PVA Bond)

Autumn Leaves

I know I’ve said it before – I love autumn! This time of year I’m always so inspired by the autumnal leaves and colours, so I created this page to enjoy autumn for what it is – my favourite season!

This page started with a piece of paper with leaves stamped on it which was leftover from a previous project. The leaf images are from a stamp set by BoBunny and I used black Archival Ink to stamp them onto a white A4 medium weight paper. I sprinkled Scarlet, Yellow, Orange and Dark Brown Colourcraft Brusho powders over the stamped images, spritzed them with water and watched the colours explode. Once dry I stamped some smaller leaf images from Crafter’s Companion using the black Archival Ink and then covered the paper with DecoArt Media Crackle Glaze, varying the thickness over the paper and left it to dry overnight.

Then I used a russet metallic lustre wax from Craf-T Products and diluted black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker to accentuate the crackle patterns. I added a border using striped paper as well as heart design paper from Design Pads by Craft Sensations using a UHU Stic and then I cut the A4 leaf paper I had created in half and stuck one half to the centre of the page. I added gold leaf peel-off stickers over the top of the border and also some Crochet Tape to create a frame. I stamped the quote “Autumn, the year’s last, loveliest smile” by William Cullen Bryant, using the same stamp set from Crafter’s Companion onto a piece of the striped paper using black Archival Ink, added some gold leaf peel-off stickers and also some Crochet Tape, which I had cut down to size, around the edge. To finish I fussy cut some of the smaller leaves from the other half of the A4 leaf paper I had created and stuck them to the page to give some more depth to the leaf images.

My seasonal window display shows my love for autumn leaves and colour too – it brightens my day and really makes me smile, I hope it does you too!

Challenge

I’m glad I found out about Challenge Blogs as I enjoy taking part, they provide me with inspiration for my pages and are a wonderful way to meet like-minded arty people. So here are the challenges I’m joining today:

I’m pleased to join Elke from Meerwolkenleben who is hosting the “Landscape of the Soul” challenge over at Art Journal Journey, I always find this time of year nurtures my soul’s wellbeing – I love autumn!

Over at Country View Challenges they are celebrating autumn with their “Mixed Media with Autumnal Hues” challenge, so I’m pleased to join them with my autumnal inspired page.

I’m also pleased to be able to join the “Crazy for Autumn Colour” challenge over at A Vintage Journey with my Autumn Leaves page which focuses on their “Mixed Media” genre as I have used different mediums to create it and their “Art Journaling” genre as it is a record of my favourite season, autumn, which inspired me!

I’m joining in the fun over at the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their “Photo Inspiration” challenge as my autumn leaves and colours match their mood board.

I had fun using all the autumn leaf stamps on this page so I’m also pleased to join the lovely Avril again who is a Guest Designer over at Stamping Sensations for their “Autumn Glory” challenge.

I’m also pleased to join the “October Challenge: Anything Goes!: (stamping MUST be included)” over at Craft Stamper with my happy autumnal leaf stamped page.

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:

• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Colourcraft Brusho Colour (Scarlet, Yellow, Orange, Dark Brown)
• Craf-T Products Lustre Rub-ons Color Kit #4 (Russet)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
• DecoArt Media Crackle Glaze (DMM16)
• BoBunny Stamps (Falling Leaves #12105154)
• Crafter’s Companion Signature Collection by Sara Davies Autumn Morning Stamp Set (Rustling Leaves S-AUT-ST-RUS)
• Craft Sensations Design Pad (Vintage Glory 154898, Soft Sweetness 154897)
• White paper
• Elizabeth Craft Designs Peel Off Stickers (Leaves Gold 0437)
• Home Bargains (Quaint Crochet Tape 22749)
• UHU Stic
• The Range double-sided foam tape

Hello Sunshine

Whilst out shopping with my mum recently, we saw cushion which she thought was perfect for me because it had “hello sunshine” written on it. To my surprise she picked it up straight away and said she was buying it for me (grin!). When I see it, it always makes me smile so I thought I’d create a page to share this happiness with you – I hope my page brightens your day and makes you smile too!

Inspired by the cushion design I started with the colour yellow. I sprinkled Yellow, Lemon and Dark Brown Colourcraft Brusho powders onto my page and then I spritzed them with water and watched the magic happen as the colours burst into life. While the Brushos were drying, I cut the flower petals out of some used dried teabags that I had saved and stamped them using black Archival Ink and a stamp set from the Tilly Daydream Collection by Docrafts. I stamped half the petals with a dotty ribbon design and the other half with a wavy ribbon design; these dots and lines were chosen to depict the fabric print of the cushion. I used the same black Archival Ink to stamp “hello sunshine”, from Bella Blvd by Hampton Art, in the centre of the flower which is also a teabag that I had cut into a circular shape as the words and circular design match the cushion. I stuck the teabag pieces to the page using a UHU Stic and when the glue was dry I outlined them with a black Derwent Graphik marker. To create more interest in the background, I stamped dots from a Woodware Françoise Collection stamp set using Mustard Seed Distress Ink; being a similar colour to the Brushos they add a subtle texture. Then I stamped a dotty garland from Craft Sensations, around the edges of the page using black Archival Ink. I added more detail by colouring the centre of the dots that I had stamped on the flower petals and the background using a white Uni Posca paint pen. Then to depict the cushion design, I coiled some pearl decorative wire to decorate the centre of the flower and used Glossy Accents to hold it in place. For the leaves surrounding the daisies, I stamped some leaf images, from the same Hampton Art stamp set, onto a teabag using black Archival Ink, fussy cut them out and stuck them down using a UHU stic. To finish, I arranged the daisies around the leaves with some of the pearl wire and stuck them into place using Glossy Accents.

Here is the wonderful cushion that my mum bought for me, it has pride of place on our rocking chair which sits in the bay window of our Beach/front room – I love it!

As happiness soothes my soul, I’m pleased to join Elke from Meerwolkenleben who is hosting the “Landscapes of the Soul” challenge over at Art Journal Journey.

With the autumnal yellows, browns and a spot of orange I’m joining the “Mixed Media with Autumnal Hues” challenge over at Country View Challenges.

Creating my page using these autumnal colours allows me to join a new challenge today over at A Vintage Journey, whose theme is “Crazy for Autumn Colour”, and I’m pleased to have focused on their “Mixed Media” genre as I have used different mediums to create this page and also their “Art Journaling” genre as it is a personal record of my mum’s lovely gift which was my inspiration.

It also makes me happy to be joining the “Not a Card” challenge at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge with my art journal page.

I had fun using all the stamps on this page so I’m also pleased to join the lovely Guest Designers and Design Team over at Stamping Sensations for their “Autumn Glory” challenge

I’m also pleased to join the “October Challenge: Anything Goes!: (stamping MUST be included)” over at Craft Stamper with my unique teabag stamped page.

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:

• Colourcraft Brusho Crystals (Yellow, Lemon, Dark Brown)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Mustard Seed)
• Uni Posca Paint Pen (White)
• Derwent Graphik Line Marker (Black 0.8mm)
• Docrafts Tilly Daydream Mini Clear Stamp Set (Ribbons TIL907104)
• Hampton Arts Bella Blvd cling mounted stamp set (Surf & Sand ICO226)
• Woodware Craft Collection Françoise Collection stamp set (Flower Style FRSWS003)
• Craft Sensations (Clear Stamps CRO274/16R2)
• Used dried teabags
• Home Bargains Special Occasions (Decorative Chain 26253)
• Hobbycraft Wired Paper Flowers (Daisy 16101642)
• Ranger Glossy Accents
• UHU Stic