Friends touch your heart

Catching up with friends is always fun and I’ve been finding myself spending a lot more time chatting to friends since the lockdown.

I’m very grateful for all my friends including those here in Blogland, so with this in mind I created this page – stay safe and keep well everyone!

I started by using a button embossing folder and my Sizzix Bigshot to add buttons to some white cardstock. Then I used my new set of Faber-Castell Soft Pastels to add the Violet and Rose Carmine colours; I did this by rubbing each pastel lightly across the top of the embossed surface, rubbing lightly with my finger and then spritzing lightly with water. When dry I cut the button cardstock and also some flowery design paper from Create & Craft into squares, then I stuck them both onto the page using a glue stick to create a patchwork background. Next I added a pretty card topper which is from the same Create & Craft set and the wording which is a sticker from Kaisercraft; it reads “A friend reaches for your hand and touches your heart”. To finish, I added some flowers and leaves from Little Birdie using Ranger Glossy Accents.

Here is my new box of pastels and you may have noticed that they are sat on the white cardstock that I embossed with the buttons before it was coloured (grin!). I can’t wait to use them again so if you have any suggestions for techniques using soft pastels please let me know in the comments below – thanks!

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

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 Mia from Craftartista over at Art Journal Journey and her Flowers challenge this month with the flowers on my page.

I’m joining the Sew Sweet challenge over at the Frilly & Funkie Challenge Blog with the button embossed cardstock, patchwork background and dress.

I’m also happy to be able to join the Anything Goes challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with my tulip page.

Don’t forget that you still have time to join our Anything Mixed Media Goes challenge over at Creative Artiste, it would be lovely to see you there! Creative Artiste Challenge Blog.

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

• White Cardstock
• Darice Embossing Essentials (Buttons Assorted Embossing Folder)
• Faber-Castell Mini Soft Pastels (12 82 24 – Violet 138, Rose Carmine 124)
• Create & Craft (Birthday Celebrations Background Paper and Topper)
• Pritt Stick
• Stix2 Double-Sided Tape
• Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet (Cherry Tree Lane SS329)
• Little Birdie Flowers (SKU 213719)
• Ranger Glossy Accents

Bluebells

As the flower border in our garden is looking so lovely with all the beautiful flowers that are in bloom, I’ve been inspired to create some flower art journal pages; this one celebrates bluebells and is the first of the flower pages that I will be sharing with you – I hope you like it!

I started by stencilling Brushed Corduroy and Ground Espresso Distress Ink using a blending tool through a mixed media stencil from Paperbabe Stamps.  Then I added some water to the page and removed it with a piece of kitchen towel which also removed some of the stencilled ink. Next I cut the bluebell stems and foliage from some green design papers and stuck them in place using a glue stick. I added some more colour to them using an Apple Green and Field Green Inktense pencil. The bluebell flower heads are die cut, using a Funky Flower Thinlet from Tim Holtz, from recycled paper that was the closest match to the actual bluebell flower colour. I stuck them in place using a Zig glue pen and then coloured the veins of the flowers using a Bright Blue Inktense pencil. I added more detail to the flowers and foliage using a white Uniball pen and a black Uni Pin marker. To finish, I added a yellow butterfly which is a Botanical die cut from Tim Holtz and the wording “bluebells” which are Kaisercraft stickers.

You may remember that we have been working to improve the flower borders in our garden over the last couple of years.

As you can see the bluebells are looking particularly pretty this year and we even have small group of white bells (centre of photo) hence why I added one to my page (grin!).

Stay safe and keep well! x

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

Challenges

I’m happy to join the lovely Valerie from Bastelmania over at Art Journal Journey and her Geometric Shapes challenge this month with my geometric stencilled background.

I’m also happy to join in the Animal Magic challenge over at Country View Challenges with the butterfly on my page.

Don’t forget that you still have over a week to join our Have fun with stencils challenge over at Try it on Tuesday too, it would be lovely to see you there!

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

• Paperbabe Stamps Mixed Media Stencil (ISO Fun)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Brushed Corduroy, Ground Espresso)
• B&M Craft Goody Bag (Turquoise 321451)
• Studio Light Paper Pad (PPSL84)
• Pritt Stick
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Funky Florals #2 662701)
• Recycled Mixed Media Pad Cover
• Craft Sensations (Luxury Cardstock with Linen Texture CR0240/GE)
• Zig Memory System 2-way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
• Inktense Derwent Pencils (Bright Blue 1000, Apple Green 1400, Field Green 1500)
• Uniball Signo gel pen (White)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.05mm)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Layers (Botanical #TH93554)
• Stix2 Glue Dots
• Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet (Mix & Match – Alpha SS252)

The Beauty of Nature

At Try it on Tuesday our new challenge for the next two weeks is The Beauty of Nature.

I created a collage page of beautiful spring images using nature and my garden as my inspiration – Happy Spring everyone!

This page started by selecting some spring images from some old books and fussy cutting them out, then arranging them with some torn book pages onto my art journal page. With the general layout planned, I roughly marked where the papers were placed and then removed them. Then I added a textured effect in between the collage pieces by stamping a Marble texture stamp from Kaisercraft using Versamark Watermark ink and covering the ink with a mixture of Sea Foam and Gold (Shellac) Papermania embossing powders and heating it with my heat gun until they were glossy. Next I edged the torn map, text and worn brown papers pieces with a Cold Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and stuck them back in place using a glue stick. The spring flowers, bird (which is a Stone Chat which we have seen on the beachfront recently) and mushrooms are all fussy cut from an old book and stuck in place using a Zig glue pen. The feathers, beetles and moth are Anthology Collectables from Kaisercraft, the green grasshopper is a rub-on transfer and the hedgehog postage stamp is from the British Wildlife collection issued in 1977 which is from my hubby’s childhood stamp collection (grin!). I also added three thin strips of brown spotty washi tape which finished the page.

I hope that you are inspired to join The Beauty of Nature Challenge too! For more inspiration please check out the amazing creations from my fellow Design Teamies over at Try it on Tuesday too.

We’ve been spending more time in the garden with the sunny weather we had last week, the flower bed is coming to life with spring now upon us. As T Stands for Tuesday I’m sharing my cuppa in the garden (which is on the wall) and wishing you a very Happy T day!

Hoping that you all stay safe and well!

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

Challenges

I’m pleased to join the lovely Eileen from The Artful Crafter and her Green challenge over at Art Journal Journey the green grasshopper and foliage on this page.

I’m also happy to join in the The Eyes Have It challenge over at Country View Challenges with the birds and animals on my art journal page.

I’m pleased to join in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Anything Goes challenge too.

I’m joining in the Spring Mood Board challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge with the spring flowers and the book pages that I used on my page.

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

• Kaisercraft Clear Stamp (Marble CS293)
• Tsukineko VersaMark (Watermark Stamp Pad)
• Papermania Embossing Powder (Sea Foam, Gold – Shellac)
• Book pages –Discovering Britain, The Illustrated Book of Nature
• Sheet Music
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Paper Stash (Halloween #TH93712)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Marker (Cold Grey IV 233)
• Pritt Stic
• Zig Memory System 2-Way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
• Kaisercraft Collectables (Anthology CT938)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Transfers (Insect Collection #TIP1484)
• Hedgehog Postage Stamp British Wildlife collection issued in 1977
• Recycled white card
• Stix2 Glue Dots
• The Works (3 Washi Tapes)

Home Sweet Home

The new challenge for the next two weeks at Try it on Tuesday is:

Home Sweet Home/Where you would like to live

At Try it on Tuesday we are also saying a big hello and welcome to the very talented Helen and Mia who have both joined our Design Team, please check out their amazing first creations over at our blog!

My Home Sweet Home page design was inspired all the birds that are around at the moment that are setting up new homes in readiness for spring – I hope you like it!

I started by smooshing Salty Ocean and Blueprint Sketch Distress Ink onto the background by stamping the ink pad onto an acrylic block, spritzing with water and pressing the block onto the page. When dry, I stamped a Sheet Music stamp from Woodware Craft Collection and also the “Home Sweet Home” wording using a stamp set from Concord & 9^th and black Archival Ink. I added some more detail to the wording using a white Uniball gel pen and then I stencilled some Ranger Texture paste though a Carabelle Studio Art Template.

Using two different Tim Holtz thinlet sets I created the tree branches from brown paper that I coloured further using Vintage Photo and Ground Espresso Distress Ink. The branches are stuck in place using a Zig glue pen and shaded further using a Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker. The leaves were cut from green paper, which I coloured further using some Mowed Lawn and Twisted Citron Distress Ink; they are cut using a Fall Foilage thinlets set from Tim Holtz and are also stamped with some tiny dots using a Kaisercraft stamp and Mowed Lawn Distress Ink.

I created the birdhouse using some off-cuts of paper that were on my craft desk; drawing the birdhouse design and heart onto the paper and then cutting them out.

I added more detail using Winsor & Newton Promarkers; Henna and Canary to create the wooden panels and Ruby and Rose Pink for the heart and roof. I suspended the birdhouse from one of the branches using some white twine sticking the birdhouse in place using double-sided foam tape. The cute birds were stamped onto white linen paper using a Picket Fence stamp set and black Archival Ink and then coloured using Sky Blue, Cool Grey and Canary Winsor & Newton Promarkers. I also stamped the birds onto the page and the birdhouse roof using the black Archival Ink and then I stuck the coloured birds over the top using double-sided foam tape. To finish, I splattered the page with some black DecoArt acrylic paint.

My Design Teamies have created some amazing Home Sweet Home/Where would you like to live inspiration for you over at Try it on Tuesday too, so please pop over and take a look.

The birds reminded me of the tea tray that we use everyday at home, as you can see it has lots of lovely garden birds on it that we find here in the UK.

Here’s our tray being put to good use; as T Stands for Tuesday it’s pictured holding our daily cuppa and homemade fruit cake that we are enjoying at the moment – Happy T Day!

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

Challenges

I’m pleased to join the lovely Eileen from The Artful Crafter and her Green challenge over at Art Journal Journey this month with the green leaves on this page.

I’m happy to be able to join the Use Some Green challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge with my art journal page too.

I’m also pleased join the Anything Goes challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with my page.

I’m also joining the Stencil Fun challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge as I included stencilling on my art journal page.

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

• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Salty Ocean, Blueprint Sketch, Vintage Photo, Grounsd Espresso, Mowed Lawn, Twisted Citron)
• Woodware Crafts Collection (Sheet Music JG111)
• Concord & 9^th Stamp Set (Sophisticated Script 10056)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Uniball Signo gel pen (White)
• Carabelle Studio Art Template (Trame Tissues et Chiffres TE60034)
• Ranger Texture Paste
• Studio Light Paper Pad (PPSL84)
• Crafter’s Companion Luxury Designer Paper Pad (Angelica & Adam Collection A&A-PAP6-M)
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Funky Florals Large 664158, Fall Foliage 660955) 
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Dark Sepia 175 B)
• Kaisercraft Clear Stamp (Tiny Dot CS360)
• Zig Memory System 2-way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
• Home Bargains Special Occasion (Mini Decorative Stickers 22740)
• Paper off-cuts (Yellow, White coloured with red and pink Distress Inks)
• Winsor & Newton ProMarker (Henna 0225, Canary Y367, Ruby R455, Rose Pink M727, Sky Blue B137, Cool Grey 4 CG4)
• White Thread
• Picket Fence Studios Stamps (Chirp Chirp A130)
• X-Press It! double-sided foam tape
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)

Makes your soul sing

I was so pleased to see the robin in our garden this month that I created this art journal page to celebrate (grin!).

I started by painting the page with some white acrylic paint and when it was dry added some Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker by scribbling the ink onto a blending mat and then applying it to the page with a baby wipe. Next I tore some green heart designed paper and an old calendar page into strips, edged them with Cold Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and stuck them to the page using a UHU Stic. I die cut some foliage from recycled tissue paper using Tim Holtz Wildflower Stems thinlets, they are stuck in place using Liquitex matte gel medium. The robin is fussy cut from an old calendar and the wording is stamped using a Paperbabes Stamp Set and the music notes using a Docrafts Stamp Set using black Archival Ink. I coloured the wording using a silver Derwent Rowney Paint Pen and a Cold Grey Faber-Castell marker; it reads “Create what makes your heart dance and your soul sing”. Then I splattered the whole page using black DecoArt acrylic paint and added some wooden flowers using glue dots, which finished the page.

We haven’t seen our robin much this winter, so I was excited to see him sitting in the tree at the back of our garden; this is a European Robin not to be confused with an American Robin (grin!).

He also made his way to our bird feeder too (grin!)

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

Challenges

I’m pleased to join the lovely Eileen from The Artful Crafter and her Green challenge over at Art Journal Journey this month with the paper and flowers that I used.

I’m joining in the Bit O’Green challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge with the green that I added to my art journal page.

I’m happy to be able to join the Use Some Green challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge with my page too.

I’m also pleased join the Anything Goes challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with my page.

I’m also happy to join in the The Eyes Have It challenge over at Country View Challenges with my robin on my art journal page.

I’m also joining the Aquamarine challenge over at the Frilly & Funkie Challenge Blog with the blue/green coloured paper on my page.

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

• Art Discount Acrylic Paint (White)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Dark Sepia 175 B, Cold Grey IV 233)
• Studio Light Paper Pad (PPSL84)
• Old Calendar
• UHU Stic
• Recycled tissue paper
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Wildflower Stems #2 664164)
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• Paperbabe Stamps (Fun Alphabet Outline Stamp Set)
• Docrafts Creativity Essentials A5 clear stamp set (Musicality DCE907112)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Daler Rowney Acrylic Paint Marker (Silver)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
• Melinera (Scatter Decorations – Wooden Flowers)

Birthday Celebration

This month we are celebrating our 6^th Birthday over at A Vintage Journey with our Birthday Celebration challenge, which is being hosted by the lovely Brenda. Your projects don’t have to be about birthdays, here’s what she has to say:

“Yes! Let’s celebrate our 6th Birthday … so it’s over to you to show us what you are celebrating in your art and craft work at the moment. Don’t forget to link us into your blog post and if it’s not really obvious share with us how your project relates to the challenge theme. Just remember to create your project in one of our preferred styles: vintage, shabby, mixed media, art journaling, industrial, timeworn or steampunk”.

I’m so excited about our Birthday Celebration this month; I do hope you’ll join us! I was enjoying the party atmosphere whilst I was art journaling using Tim Holtz products to create this Happy 6^th Birthday page.

I used lots of Tim Holtz products for this page so unless stated otherwise it’s from Tim Holtz; there’s a full list of materials at the end of this post for your reference.

I started by covering the page with Pébéo white gesso using a palette knife and left it to dry. Then I cut a piece of vintage script paper into sections and die cut a flower from the larger piece of paper using Wildflower Stems Thinlet set.

I also cut the flower from some Craft Sensations white linen cardstock and inserted it into the flower space in the vintage script paper. I arranged the pieces of paper onto the page with some Aviary Collage Paper using Liquitex gel medium. Then I outlined the papers with a Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and a black Uni Pin marker to make them stand out more. Next I added some Crowded Attic and Destinations Salvage Stickers again outlining them with a black Uni Pin marker.

To finish the page, I added the wording using Label Letter stickers and also a No:6 Countdown Brad.

Did you notice the six intentional “No:6”s that I added to this page to commemorate our 6^th Birthday? They are all revealed below (grin!).

I hope you are inspired to join in our Birthday Celebration over at A Vintage Journey too, for more inspiration you’ll find some amazing creations from my fellow Creative Guides over at A Vintage Journey, it would be lovely to see you there!

1. Large No: 6 (LHS of flower)
2. Saftey pins x 6 (LHS of flower)
3. Needle packaging No:6 (top RHS)
4. Happy “6th” Birthday (wording)
5. Ruler No:6 (under wording)
6. Countdown Brad No:6 (bottom RHS)

All the “No:6”s are pictured here – did you get them all? You may have found lots of 6’s on the Sheet Music and other rulers too (double grin!).

As it’s a birthday celebration I thought I’d share this amazing birthday cake that I saw in a local bakery, doesn’t it look amazing and the Steampunk style is fabulous, just right for A Vintage Journey – Happy Birthday!

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

Challenges

I’m pleased to be able to join the The Eyes Have It challenge over at Country View Challenges with the birds on this art journal page.

I’m joining in the Something Feminine challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge with the pretty birds and flowers on my page too.

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

• Pébéo White Gesso
• Tim Holtz idea-ology (Halloween Paper Stash #TH93712, Aviary Collage Paper #TH93706, Crowded Attic Salvage Stickers #TH92898, Destinations Salvage Stickers #TH93005, Label Letters #TH93072, Countdown Brads #TH93631)
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Wildflower Stems #2 664164)
• Craft Sensations (Luxury Linen Textured Cardstock)
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Marker (Dark Sepia 175 B)
• Uni Pin Fine Line Marker (Black 0.2mm)

Makes me dream

A visit to the Blackbird Café had me thinking of stars, so I created this page from recycled used inky baby wipes and a fabulous quote from Vincent Van Gogh that reads “I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream”.

I started by collaging pieces of baby wipe that I had used to mop up some After Midnight Dylusions Ink Spray and Black Archival Ink using some gel medium. When dry I also applied some of the Dylusions Ink Spray using a paintbrush to water it down to any areas of the page that I hadn’t collaged and then stencilled some dots using a Creative Expressions Distressed Dots Mask. I splattered the page with some Pébéo white gesso, black DecoArt acrylic paint and a silver Daler Rowney paint marker. Next I fussy cut some images from a sheet of Stargazer Collection paper from Kaisercraft, edged them with a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and stuck them in place. I framed the quote using silver outline stickers and then I added some glittery silver stars which finished the page.

You may remember the Blackbird Café from previous posts, it’s such a lovely place and we normally go there with our dearest friends and chat over a cuppa (grin!).

As T Stands for Tuesday, here’s my cup of hot chocolate in a beautiful blue mug and it was served with a yummy white chocolate star – Happy T Day!

Of course we couldn’t visit this café without having a bacon butty too – so delicious (double grin!).

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

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 so happy to join in the Splatters, Splashes & Drips challenge over at Country View Challenges with all the splatters, splashes and drips on this page.

I’m joining in the Add A Sentiment challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge with my page.

Over at the Mix It Up Challenge Blog their theme is # 34 – Anything Goes + optional twist of Stenciling so I’m pleased to be able to join this challenge with my mixed media stenciled page.

As I recycled some used baby wipes this is also a reminder that you still have another week to join our Go Green or Recycle Something challenge over at Try it on Tuesday too, it would be lovely to see you there!

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

• Used baby wipes stained with Ranger After Midnight Dylusions Ink Spray and Jet Black Archival Ink
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• Creative Expressions That Special Touch of Mica Masks (Distressed Dots)
• Ranger Dylusions Ink Spray (After Midnight)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Daler Rowney Acrylic Paint Markers (Silver)
• Kaisercraft Stargazer Collection 12×12 Paper (Galaxy P2538)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
• X-Press It! double-sided foam tape
• Design Objectives Outline Stickers (Silver Borders 123551)
• Craft Sensations (Foam Glitter Stickers Silver CRO243/18GE)