Let nature be your calming breath

This month over at A Vintage Journey our challenge is Tag You’re It, which is being hosted by the lovely Amanda. Here’s what it’s all about:

“We would love to see what you create with, or on, hang tags. Your hang tags can be created from any material or be any size. We would just love to see that iconic hang shape front and centre in your design.  Just remember to create your project in one of our preferred styles: vintage, shabby, mixed media, art journaling, industrial, timeworn or steampunk”.

Creating tags for an art journal page is always fun, so, inspired by nature I designed these layered tags – I love the way they turned out (grin!).

For the main hang tag on my art journal page design, I cut out the largest tag from Kraft card stock from the Tag Collection Framelit set by Tim Holtz. Like all the tags, I coloured the inside panel of the tag using a white Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and edged it with Vintage Photo Distress Ink using a blending tool and a Cold Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker. I also die cut the tag-hole reinforcement using the same Framelit set from butterfly/script design paper.

To embellish this tag I cut three panels from the same Kraft card stock and then layered papers over the top of them using a glue stick. The papers included: some embossed gold napkin; some dressmaking tissue paper which I had stamped using a Finnabair stamp and some black Archival ink; and some torn pieces of the butterfly/script design paper. I layered some Field Notes ephemera from Tim Holtz over the top and added some tiny leaves; the leaves were cut using some Funky Florals Thinlets by Tim Holtz from some recycled notepaper which I had coloured with Mowed lawn, Peeled Paint and Pine Needles Distress Ink. On the top and bottom panels I added the white wording “Live simple” and “Love this life” which are rub-on transfers from Tim Holtz. The three panels were stuck to the hang tag using double-sided tape.

I followed the same process to create the other tags layering them together with the ephemera and leaves – I love the pretty dragonfly! The letters creating the “Let nature be your calming breath” wording were cut from the same green paper that I used for the leaves using an Alphanumeric Labels Thinlet set by Tim Holtz and once glued in place they were outlined using a white gel pen and a black Uni Pin marker so they stood out more.

I mounted all the tags on my page which was covered with the same embossed gold napkin, dressmaking tissue paper (stamped using a Finnabair stamp and some black Archival ink) and butterfly/script design paper that I had used on the tags. Then to finish, I splattered the whole page with some Pébéo white gesso.

I hope you are inspired to join in the Tag You’re It challenge 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!

As you may know, my favourite colour is blue and this plant in particular from my garden reminded me of my page, it’s a Salvia nemorosa called “Blue Marvel” and the bees and insects love it!

My page also reminds me of a frequent visitor to our garden, a small blue butterfly called Common Blue which has proved difficult to photograph. So I was pleased when my dear friend who we walk with, shared this photo of a Large Blue which it is related to and this is one of the rarest blue butterflies in the UK.

I hope that you’re all keeping 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 Alison AKA Craftytrog over at Art Journal Journey and her Pockets and Tags challenge this month with the nature inspired tags on this page.

I’m also pleased to join the Use Your Favourite Tool challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge as I wouldn’t be without my Tim Holtz Thinlets and Big Shot machine that I used to created my page.

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

• Kraft card stock
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Framelits (Tag Collection 658784)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt Artist Pen (White 101, Cold Grey IV 233)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Vintage Photo, Mowed Lawn, Peeled Paint, Pine Needles)
• Napkin
• Style Dressmaking Pattern Tissue Paper
• Prima Marketing Finnabair Clear Stamp (Gothic Book 966966)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Butterfly/Script Design Paper – local craft shop
• Pritt Stick
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Ephemera Pack (Field Notes #TH94051)
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Funky Florals #2 662701, Alphanumeric Label 664177)
• Recycled Notebook Paper
• Stix2 double sided-tape
• Uniball Signo Gel Pen (White)
• Uni Pin Fine Line Marker (Black 0.1mm)
• Pébéo White Gesso

Create Art/Be Brave Tag

Today over at A Vintage Journey it’s Tag Friday, there is no particular theme as it’s all about creating something you love, experimenting and having fun! I hope that you will join our tag challenge, it would be lovely to see you there!

Spending more time in my garden means that my art is being inspired by some of the beautiful flowers which are blooming at the moment, so today’s double-sided tag features purple poppies and rudbeckia.

The tag itself was made from a large Poster Card by Tim Holtz and I added some texture and colour to the edges of it by applying some Broken China Distress Embossing Glaze and then some Rusty Hinge Distress Ink. As I planned to use Faber-Castell Gelatos on both tags, I applied some white gesso to the tag first; this enhanced the colours and made it easier to apply the Gelatos. When the gesso was dry, I scribbled Kiwi and Aqua Dolce Faber-Castell Gelatos over the top smudging the colour with my finger.

Next I removed some of the Gelato colours using a baby wipe through a Halftone stencil from Tim Holtz and I used the stencil again to add some Memento Inks; I used Cottage Ivy ink for the poppy background and Paris Dusk ink for the rudbeckia background.

I stamped a document stamp and a grunge stamp from two different Tim Holtz stamp sets using black Archival Ink and then some leaf stamps from Carabelle Studios using Cottage Ivy Memento Ink for the poppy tag and London Fog Memento Ink for the rudbeckia tag. To finish the backgrounds, I added some rub-on transfers from a Specimen Remnant Rubs set by Tim Holtz.

The flowers were stamped onto some Mixed Media paper using a Stamping Platform to ensure a clear crisp finish. The stamps are from a Flower Garden stamp set by Tim Holtz and are stamped using black Archival Ink. The foliage was coloured using Sap Green Kuretake watercolour paint and highlighted using Lime Green and Forest Green Winsor & Newton Promarkers.

I had fun painting the poppy using Colbalt Violet, Black and White Kuretake watercolour paints and I coloured the edges of the petals using Amethyst Winsor & Newton Promarker. I used Lime Green and Canary Promarkers to colour the centre of the flower and a white Uniball gel pen, a black Uni Pin marker and a Cool Grey Promarker for the stamens. The flower was stuck in place using a glue stick and some glue dots and I added the “Create Art” wording which was a Quote Chip from Tim Holtz that was edged using a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker.

The rudbeckia flower was painted using Lemon Yellow, Cadmium Scarlet, Black, White and Burnt Umber Sienna Kuretake watercolour paints and a Canary Promarker. I used a black Uni Posca paint pen and a black Uni Pin marker to add the texture to the stamens. I added the “Be Brave” wording and edged both tags using a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker. To finish, I added an eyelet with my Crop-A-Dile machine to reinforce the hole as I’m using a book ring to secure all of my double-sided tags together as part of my Tag Journal (grin!).

For more Tag Friday inspiration, please pop over to A Vintage Journey where you’ll find some fabulous tags created by my fellow Creative Guides. I hope you are inspired to join us as I’m so looking forward to seeing your tag designs!

These purple poppies are a welcome addition to our flower bed and were totally unplanned; I think the birds must have brought them into the garden (grin!). They have been flowering non-stop since the beginning of July. I’m featuring them again as some of you had never seen them before so I thought I’d share some more information about them:

• This particular poppy is called Papaver Somniferum “Hungarian Blue” and is an heirloom variety with single flowers.
• They are gorgeous purple-violet shades with dark inner markings on each petal.
• They are easy to grow being ideal as a cut flower and the dried seed pods can also be used in flower arranging.
• They grow to a height of 90cm.

The rudbeckia has just started flowering and adds a happy vibrant yellow to our flower bed; this particular one is Rudbeckia Fulgida ”Goldsturm” and is also known as the Golden Cone Flower or Black Eyed Susan.

I hope that you are staying 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 Summer challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with my summer flower tags.

I’m joining in the fun at Country View Challenges and their Do What Makes You Happy Challenge with my flower tags as although I always find making tags a bit daunting I always enjoy making them; they also make me smile when I look at them as they are always on display in my craft room.

I’m joining in the Anything Goes challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge too.

Here is a list of all the materials used to create this double-sided tag:     

• Tim Holtz idea-ology (Pocket Cards #TH93208)
• Tim Holtz Distress Embossing Glaze (Broken China)
• Versamark (Watermark Stamp Pad)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Rusty Hinge)
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Faber-Castell Gelato (Kiwi, Aqua Dolce)
• Tim Holtz Stampers Anonymous Layering Stencil (Halftone THS144)
• Tsukineko Memento Ink (Cottage Ivy, Paris Dusk, London Fog)
• Tim Holtz Stampers Anonymous Stamp Set (Documented CMS226, Urban Tapestry CMS061, Flower Garden CMS215)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Carabelle Studios Art Stamp (Dans la nature, il y a … SA60175)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Remnant Rubs (Specimen #TH94047)
• Daler-Rowney Mixed Media Paper
• Ranger Tonic Studios Stamping Platform
• Kuretake Gambai Watercolour Paints (Sap Green No.53, Colbalt Violet No.139, Black No.20, White No.10, Lemon Yellow No.40, Cadmium Scarlet No.31, Burnt Sienna No.46)
• Winsor & Newton Promarkers (Lime Green G178, Forest Green G356, Amethyst V626, Cool Grey 4 CG4, Canary Y367)
• Uniball Signo Gel Pen (White)
• Uni Pin Fine Line Marker (Black 0.1mm)
• Uni Posca Paint Pen (Black)
• Pritt Stick
• Stix2 Glue Dots
• Tim Holtz idea-ology (Quote Chips #TH96563)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt Artist Pen (Black 199)
• American Crafts Crop-A-Dile (Hole Punch & Eyelet Setter, Standard Eyelets – Black)

Summer

Our new challenge for the next two weeks over at Try it on Tuesday is Summertime.

I had fun using the hot colours of summer to create my seascape page capturing a summertime sunset. I hope you’re inspired to join our Summertime challenge too, it would be lovely to see you there (grin!).

The background is layers of paint and stamping; I started by applying Cadmium Yellow, Cadmium Orange and Ultramarine Blue Liquitex acrylic paints to the page using a brayer. Then I used a texture stamp from BoBunny to transfer some of the wet paint around the page cleaning it immediately so the paint didn’t ruin the stamp. When the page was dry, I stamped the same texture BoBunny stamp and also two other texture stamps from an Urban Tapestry Tim Holtz stamp set using black Archival Ink. Then I applied some Pébéo white gesso and the Cadmium Yellow and Cadmium Orange acrylic paints again over the top using the brayer.

I created the horizon using a black Uni Pin marker pen and a ruler, blending the marker pen along the bottom edge using a wet paintbrush. Then I doodled some waves using a black Uni Pin maker and white Uniball gel pen. The seagulls and boats are drawn and cut from a dictionary page which detailed the word “sail”. I stuck them in place using a glue stick, outlined them using a black Sharpie marker and shaded them using a Cold Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker. To finish, I added the word “summer” which is a rub-on transfer and highlighted it using a white Uniball gel pen.

For more Summertime inspiration, there are some amazing creations from my Design Teamies over at Try it on Tuesday, so please pop over and take a look (grin!).

We are lucky enough to live right by the sea on the west coast and the sunsets are often spectacular, whether it’s simply yellow and orange …

… or maybe clouds of blues and pinks – so beautiful (grin!).

As T Stands for Tuesday, I’m sharing my cup of green tea with a custard tart. This is a pastry case filled with egg custard, sprinkled with nutmeg and baked – so very yummy (grin!). Wishing you all a Happy T Day!

I hope that you are all staying 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 glad I found out about Challenge Blogs, like Try it on Tuesday, 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 Erika from her blog BioArtGal over at Art Journal Journey and her When It’s Hot challenge this month with the hot pink that I added to hot sunset page.

I’m joining in Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their A Day At The Beach challenge my seascape art journal page.

I’m also happy to be able to join the #123 – Photo Inspiration challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with the colours that I included on my page.

I’m entering the Do What Makes You Happy challenge over at Country View Challenges too as walking along the beach and seeing the sunset always makes me happy.

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

• Liquitex Basics Artist Color (Cadmium Yellow Light Hue Cadmium Orange Hue, Ultramarine Blue )
• Ranger Mini Brayer
• BoBunny Stamps (Rough It Up #1205155)
• Tim Holtz Stampers Anonymous (Urban Tapestry CMS061)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Uni Pin Marker (Black 0.1mm)
• Oxford Pocket Dictionary
• Pritt Stick
• Sharpie Permanent Marker Fine Point (Black)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt Artist Pen (Cold Grey IV 233)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Transfers (Summer Sentiments #ROY-505)
• Uniball Signo Gel Pen (White)

Create your own sunshine

Over at Try it on Tuesday our new challenge for the next two weeks is Use Book Pages.

I had fun using some book pages to create the sun and flowers on this page; I hope that you are inspired to join us too, I can’t wait to see how you use your book pages!

For the background, I applied some Cerulean Blue and white acrylic paint using a paintbrush and left it to dry.

Then I used a book page from an old encyclopedia to create the sun; if you look closely you’ll see the page I chose was about the universe and details information about the sun. I drew around a circular tray to create the round body of the sun and then used a ruler to create the sun’s rays. They are cut out, coloured using Mustard Seed Distress Ink, stuck in place using a glue stick and outlined using a black Sharpie marker. The wording was created using some alphabet stickers which I outlined using a black Uni Pin marker.

For the flowers I used another page from the encyclopedia, this time about growth and I die cut the flower heads and leaves using a Tattered Floral Thinlets set from Tim Holtz. The flowers are coloured using Festive Berries and the leaves using Mowed Lawn Distress Inks which were applied using a blending tool. Next I doodled the stems using a black Uni Pin marker and white Uniball gel pen and stuck the flower heads and leaves into place. For the centre of the flowers I used the cutouts from the centre of the lettering from the alphabet stickers. I outlined them all with a black marker so they stood out more and then to finish, I splattered the page with black DecoArt acrylic paint.

For more inspiration you can see how my Design Teamies have been using book pages for their amazing creations too, so please pop over to Try it on Tuesday and take a look (grin!).

Here we are enjoying the sunshine one evening along the seafront where we live, as T Stands for Tuesday you may have noticed the bottle of water on the wall in the background – Happy T Day everyone!

Hoping that you all staying safe and well! x

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 Erika from her blog BioArtGal over at Art Journal Journey and her When It’s Hot challenge this month my sunshine page.

I’m joining in Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their Play With Paint challenge with the painted background on my art journal page.

I’m also entering the Do What Makes You Happy challenge over at Country View Challenges too as sunshine always makes me happy and sometimes you just have to create your own sunshine especially with all the stormy weather we’ve been having of late (grin!).

I’m also pleased to join in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Bright & Cheerful challenge with my happy sunshiny page.

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

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

• Liquitex Basics Acrylic Color (Cerulean Blue)
• Artist Discount Acylic Paint (White)
• Pears Cyclopaedia 2007-2008 Edition
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Mustard Seed, Festive Berries, Mowed lawn)
• Pritt Stick
• Sharpie Permanent Marker Fine Point (Black)
• Aldi So Crafty (Alphabet Stickers – Multi-coloured)
• Uni Pin Fine Line Marker (Black 0.2mm, 0.8mm)
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Small Tattered Florals 661806)
• Uniball Signo Gel Pen (White)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)

Mountain Scene

Over at Try it on Tuesday our new challenge for the next two weeks is Create a Scene.

There are many options for this challenge so I decided to create a summer mountain scene. As I was creating the scene I knew I had to use my favourite Merry Moose Thinlet set – such fun (grin!).

Everything on this page is coloured using Kuretake Watercolour paints even the die cut Thinlets. To start I painted the gorgeous purple mountains using Colbalt Violet and a little Ultramarine watercolour paint. When dry, I painted the meadow foreground using Sap Green and Hooker’s Green paint, layering the colours to add texture. I also transferred some of the wet green paint using a piece of kitchen towel to blend the colours together at the base of the mountains.

The trees are from the Merry Moose Thinlet set by Tim Holtz and were cut from linen textured cardstock like all of the die cut Thinlets on this page. I coloured the cardstock using a mixture of Burnt Sienna and Black paint for the trunks and added some more detail with a Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker. The tree foliage was a mixture of Sap Green and Hooker’s Green. I cut out a circle of linen cardstock for the sun and coloured it using Yellow Ochre and Cadmium Scarlet paints, when dry I painted Lemon Yellow over the top and edged it first with a Cold Grey and then a White Faber-Castell marker. The sky was painted using Ultramarine Pale paint and I gradually built up the clouds by letting each paint layer dry before adding the next to ensure the clouds got darker as I added each layer.

For the shrubs at the base of the trees, I used a Funky Florals Thinlet set from Tim Holtz and coloured them first using Sap Green allowing it to dry and then adding dots of Burnt Sienna and Cadmium Scarlet paints. The moose was from the same Merry Moose Thinlet set and I coloured him using Burnt Sienna and Black paint, I also used Yellow Ochre for his antlers. To finish, I added three Small Talk stickers from Tim Holtz, they read “life was meant to be a great adventure”, “live everyday with intention” and “always take the scenic route”; they are edged with a Unipin pen.

I hope that you are inspired to join us too, for more inspiration my Design Teamies have created some amazing scenes for you over at Try it on Tuesday, so please pop over and take a look (grin!).

The mountains on this page reminded me of the purple mountains that you find in Wales, this is due to the purple slate that is found and was mined in the area. Of course the only moose that you’ll find there is the Purple Moose Brewery in Porthmadog in North Wales. As T Stands for Tuesday, I’m sharing our moose pint glasses that we often use at home to serve our home brewed beer in. They are a lovely reminder of the Purple Moose Brewery that we have visited on a few occasions, these were mementos from their Brewery Tour that we took on my birthday some years ago – Happy T day everyone!

Hoping that you are all staying safe and well! x

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

Challenges

I’m also happy to be able to join the #121 – Sketch challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with my page design; the bottom panel is depicted by the green foreground and the logo by the moose.

I’m pleased to join in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Summer Fun challenge with my summer mountain scene.

With my moose walking through a summery meadow at the base of the mountains, I’m pleased to join in the Summer Fields challenge over at Country View Challenges too.

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

• Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour Paint set (Colbalt Violet No:139, Ultramarine No:64, Sap Green No:53, Hooker’s Green No:52, Burnt Sienna No:46, Black No:20, Cadmium Scarlet No:31, Yellow Ochre No:44, Lemon Yellow No:40, Ultramarine Pale No:61 )
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Merry Moose 663103, Funky Florals #1 662700)
• Craft Sensations (Luxury Cardstock with Linen Texture CRO240/GE
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Artist Pen (Dark Sepia 175 B)
• Zig Memory 2-Way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Stickers (Small Talk #TH93193)
• UniPin Fine Line Marker Pen (Black 0.05mm)

Make it Masculine

Our new challenge for the next two weeks over at Try it on Tuesday is Make it Masculine.

I enjoyed creating this masculine page with the help of my hubby who chose the three stamps for the background and also the air balloon rub-on transfers which gave the page a lovely Victorian Steampunk feel (grin!).

I started by stamping the three Kaisercraft stamps that my hubby chose onto the background using Archival Distress Ink; these were an Alphabet stamp using Hickory Smoke ink, a Sketchy stamp using Vintage Photo ink and a Keys stamp using Ground Espresso ink. Then I scribbled some Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker onto an acrylic block, spritzed with water and then pressed the block onto the page to add to the grungy look.

Next I cut some rulers and also tore some grid and map papers from American Crafts and arranged them on the page with some leftover pieces of book pages and sheet music; they are all edged, like all the paper elements, using a Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and stuck in place using a glue stick. The “masculine” wording and shop advertising signs are from a Crowded Attic sticker set from Tim Holtz. I splattered the page using black and rust coloured acrylic paints and then edged it using a Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker.

I added some Men’s Accessories rub-on transfers which included some men’s trouser braces, a pair of spectacles, a lighter, a couple of gentlemen and a wallet. To finish, I added some Kaisercraft rub-on transfers detailing hot air balloons, tickets with the words “explore”, “discover”, “adventure” on them and some scrollwork.

For more inspiration, my Design Teamies have been making it masculine over at Try it on Tuesday with their wonderful creations too, so please pop over and take a look!

As T Stands for Tuesday, I’m sharing my cup of tea that we enjoyed with some homemade chocolate mousse – so very yummy (grin!). Wishing you all a Happy T Day!

If you are interested, the chocolate mousse was made using aquafaba (juice from a tin of chickpeas) which I whisked for 10–15 minutes until it was at the stiff peak stage, like you would meringues, and then I folded 250g of melted dark chocolate and a couple of tablespoons of castor sugar into it, poured the mixture into dishes and refrigerated overnight.

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, like Try it on Tuesday, 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 Halle from Halle’s Hobbies over at Art Journal Journey and her A Stitch In Time challenge this month with the men’s clothing and wallet accessory on this page.

I’m joining in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Masculine challenge.

I’m also happy to join the It’s A Man Thing challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge with this page.

The challenge over at SanDee&amelie’s Steampunk Challenge is Anything Goes – Steampunk/Industrial so I’m pleased to be able to join them too.

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

• Kaisercraft Clear Stamps (Alphabet CS887, Sketchy CS878, Keys CS801)
• Ranger Distress Archival Ink (Hickory Smoke, Vintage Photo, Ground Espresso)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Artist Pitt Pen (Dark Sepia 175 B)
• American Crafts Papers (DIY Shop 366665)
• Leftover pieces of book pages and sheet music
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Salvage Stickers (Crowded Attic #TH92898)
• Pritt Stick
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
• Liquitex Artist Color (Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Transfers (Men’s Accessories #ROY-853)
• Kaisercraft Rub Ons (Up, Up & Away Collection RB870)

Ladybird

It’s a new month now, so we are launching our June challenge over at the Creative Artiste Challenge Blog, and as always the theme is Anything Mixed Media Goes.

I had fun playing around with mixed media to create this Ladybird (ladybug) art journal page. I hope you’ll join in the fun too; it would be lovely to see you there!

I started by applying Cracked Pistachio Distress Stain, like all the other elements, horizontally across the page and then I added some Raw Umber, Burnt Umber and Bright Aqua Green Liquitex acrylic paint. I applied this paint using the long edge of an old gift card in horizontal lines. Next I added torn strips of three different washi tapes which detailed a green striped, an aqua/purple flower and a tape measure design. Then I applied some more of the Liquitex paints and also some Pébéo white gesso using the gift card again. I stamped an alphabet stamp from Kaisercraft with black Archival Ink and then added more layers of washi tape, this time a hexagonal design and a black & white flower design. Then I repeated the layers of paints and gesso and stamped a grid design using a Sheena stamp and Vintage Photo Distress Archival Ink.

The tags were created using Tag Collection Framelits by Tim Holtz and were die cut from white card which I covered with some paper from a Vintage Romance design pad. I edged them with Ground Espresso Distress Ink using a blending tool and a Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker to create an old and worn look. I stamped some foliage onto some of the tags using a Carabelle Studio stamp and Cottage Ivy Memento Ink.

The ladybirds are rub-on transfers and the wordings are Small Talk stickers which read “lucky” and “make a wish” relating to the spiritual meaning of ladybirds. The tags are stuck to the page using double-sided tape or foam tape and also two different sizes of brown brads. To finish, I added the “ladybird” wording using Kaisercraft letter stickers and then I splattered the page with black and also white acrylic paint.

I hope that you are inspired to join our Anything Mixed Media Goes Challenge too! For more inspiration please check out the amazing creations from my fellow Design Team members over at Creative Artiste too.

I’ve noticed quite a few ladybirds this year in our garden; here are a couple sitting on some bark in one of our flower borders (grin!).

If you’re interested here are some fun facts about ladybirds:

• They are called “ladybirds” in Europe but are also known as “ladybugs” or “lady beetles”. Technically, they are actually beetles.
• A ladybird’s spots warn potential predators and the most common type of ladybird in the UK is red with black spots, but in fact there are 5000 different species of ladybirds in the world.
• One ladybird may consume 5000 aphids in its one-year lifespan – so they are very welcome in my garden (grin!).
• They are much loved and in many cultures are considered good luck. 

I hope that you are all staying safe and well! x

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, like Creative Artiste, 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 in the Summer Fields challenge over at Country View Challenges with my summery meadow foliage and ladybirds on my art journal page.

I’m happy to join the Make Your Own Background challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge with the background that I created too.

I’m also pleased to be able to join the Quotes challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with the “make a wish” quote.

I’m also joining in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Masculine challenge.

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

• Tim Holtz Distress Stain (Cracked Pistachio)
• Liquitex Acrylic Basics (Raw Umber, Burnt Umber, Bright Aqua Green)
• Docrafts Papermania Capsule Collection Patterned Craft Tape (Spots & Stripes Festive PMA462302)
• Crelando Decorative Tape (Aqua/purple Flower)
• Michael’s Washi Tape (Tape Measure, Black & White Flower)
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Kaisercraft Clear Stamps (Alphabet CS887)
• Ranger Archival Ink Jet Black)
• The Works Washi Tape (Enjoy the Ride)
• Sheena Create A Flower Unmounted Rubber Stamp (Funky Textures 2 SD-CAFS-FT2)
• Ranger Distress Archival Ink (Vintage Photo)
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Framelits (Tag Collection 658784)
• White Card Stock
• Craft Sensations Design Pad (Vintage Romance 154897)
• Pritt Stick
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Ground Espresso)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Artist Pitt Pen (Dark Sepia 175 B)
• Carabelle Studio Art Stamp (Dans la nature, ill y a … SA60175)
• Tsukineko Memento Ink (Cottage Ivy)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Transfers (Insect Collection #TIP1484)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Stickers (Small Talk #TH93193)
• Stix2 double-sided  tape
• X-Press It! double-sided foam tape
• Craft Sensations Brads (CRO550/A)
• Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet (Mix & Match – Alpha SS252)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
• Art Discount Acrylic (White)

Adventure Awaits

This month over at A Vintage Journey our challenge is Rustic Charm, which is being hosted by the lovely Astrid. Here’s what it’s all about:

“Rustic describes a design that is natural, rough, aged and casual. We would love to see you create a project using these elements: think nature inspired textures and simple and earthy colours. Just remember to create your project in one of our preferred styles: vintage, shabby, mixed media, art journaling, industrial, timeworn or Steampunk”.

I had so much fun creating this rustic art journal page for this challenge. I thoroughly enjoyed making the wood effect background and this happy bear from my new Tim Holtz Theodore thinlet set really makes me smile!

I started by covering the page with blobs of Burnt Umber, Raw Umber and Burnt Sienna Liquitex acrylic paints and then I used an old gift card to spread the paint over the page in a criss-cross pattern. Any white spaces were lightly coloured with the same paint and a wet paintbrush, then the page was left it to dry.

Next I stencilled some tree trunks using some Ranger Texture Paste and a Pronty Mask Stencil.

When dry, I painted around the stencilled areas of the background with some Parchment Liquitex Acrylic.

Then I scraped the paint horizontally across the page very harshly using the gift card; I did this a number of times until I achieved the worn wood effect I was after. The mixed media paper I use is 250gsm so it can take this type of treatment.

The branches, leaves and flowers were die cut from some linen textured cardstock using a Tattered Florals Thinlet set from Tim Holtz; the branches were coloured using Ground Espresso Distress Ink, the leaves using Mowed Lawn, Shabby Shutters and Forest Moss Distress Ink, and the flowers using a mixture of Fired Brick Distress Ink and White Linen Distress Spray. They are edged, like all of the elements on this page, using Vintage Photo Distress Ink and stuck down using a Zig glue pen.

The signpost was made from some wooden panels that I cut out from some Tim Holtz paper and some wording from a Tiny Text rub-on transfers from Tim Holtz which reads “wander”, “adventure awaits” and “discover”. I added some grey tartan (plaid) paper from the same paper pad to define the ground under the signpost and the bear.

To finish, I created the bear using the Theodore thinlet set and some linen textured cardstock colouring him using Ground Espresso, Tea Dye, Vintage Photo and Hickory Smoke Distress Ink, a Black Faber-Castell Big Brush Marker and a Putty Winsor & Newton Promarker – such fun!

I hope you are inspired to join in the Rustic Charm challenge 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!

This page reminded me of a bear that we saw on our travels to Stratford-upon- Avon some years ago when our friends from America came to stay with us.

This bear can also be found on this beer glass and always brings back such happy memories of our time when we were in Stratford together – such fun!

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, like A Vintage Journey, 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 Halle from Halle’s Hobbies over at Art Journal Journey and her A Stitch In Time challenge this month with faux tartan/plaid that I included on this page.

I’m also happy to be able to join the Quote challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with my “adventure awaits”wording.

I’m joining in Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their Make Your Own Background challenge with the wood effect background that I created for this page.

I’m also pleased to join the Masculine challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge with my page too too.

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

• Liquitex Basics Acrylic Color (Burnt Umber, Raw Umber, Burnt Sienna)
• Pronty Mask Stencil (Tree Trunk)
• Ranger Texture Paste
• Liquitex Artist Color Acrylic (Parchment)
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Small Tattered Florals 661806)
• Craft Sensations (Luxury Linen Textured Cardstock)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Ground Espresso, Mowed Lawn, Shabby Shutters, Forest Moss, Fired Brick, Vintage Photo, Tea Dye, Hickory Smoke)
• Tim Holtz Distress Spray Stain (White Linen)
• Zig Memory System 2-Way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology (Halloween Paper Stash #TH937120, Tiny Text Remnant Rubs #TH93695)
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Theodore 664410)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Marker (Black 199)
• Winsor & Newton Promarker (Putty 0618)

Heuchera

At Try it on Tuesday our new challenge for the next two weeks is Cut It Out.

Like me, you could use die cuts that you make and colour yourself or pre-made die cuts and stickers or you could simply fussy cut something out, the choice is yours!

My page today was inspired by some beautiful heuchera flowers that are flowering in my garden at the moment (grin!).

I started covering the page with Botancial Collage Paper from Tim Holtz using a glue stick and then I covered it with white gesso to push the images back. When dry, I applied some Earl Grey, Caramel, Kiwi and Lime Faber-Castell Gelatos over the top, by scribbling them onto the page and smudging the colour with a wet finger. I then toned down the colours and added some darker shading by applying some Iced Coffee and Iced Chai Faber-Castell Gelatos to the page. Next I added some Ranger Texture Paste through a brick design stencil from Craft Sensations and left it to dry. The brick design is coloured using Rusty Hinge Distress Ink and the Iced Coffee Faber-Castell Gelato. I stencilled a trellis pattern using Black Soot Distress Ink and a Moroccan stencil from Creative Expressions, then I used a baby wipe to remove some of the colour allowing white patches of the collage paper to show through which added depth and contrast to the background. The page is also splattered with Rusty Hinge Distress Ink and then black and also white acrylic paint.

I used a Wildflower #2 Tim Holtz thinlet set to die cut the flowers from some linen textured cardstock and coloured the flower petals by painting on some Abandoned Coral Distress Spray Stain using a paintbrush. The leaves and stems are coloured using Olive Green and Forest Green Winsor & Newton Promarkers and they are stuck to the page using a Zig Memory glue pen. To finish, I added a pretty die cut butterfly from a Field Notes Ephemera Pack by Tim Holtz and the “Heuchera” wording which are letter stickers from Kaisercraft.

My Design Teamies have been busy fussy cutting and die cutting to create some amazing Cut It Out inspiration for you over at Try it on Tuesday too, so please pop over and take a look.

Here are the heuchera flowers that are in bloom in our flower bed, they are so delicate with tiny flower heads.

They look very striking with their coral colour especially when they catch the sunlight!

These plants come in all sorts of leaf and flowers colours, to find out more about them check out this Heuchera link.

You may already be aware that I have been completing a series of flower art journal pages inspired by my garden. If you are interested you can see the other pages here:

• Bluebells
• Tulips
• Welsh Poppy

As T Stands for Tuesday I’m sharing a new batch of Raspberry Gin that we made, it tastes so fruity and is ideal for drinking whist sitting in the garden on a hot sunny day – Happy T Day!

You can find the Raspberry Gin recipe here and I think Halle asked about the amount of sugar added – this is just for taste so you can add as much or as little as you like (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, like Try it on Tuesday, 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 my Heuchera flowered page.

I’m so happy to be able to join the #119 – Picture Inpiration challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with the pretty flowers on my page. Thanks so much for my win too, how exciting!

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

• Tim Holtz idea-ology Collage Paper (Botanical #TH93705)
• Pritt Stick
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Faber-Castell Gelatos (Earl grey, Caramel, Kiwi, Lime, Iced Coffee, Iced Chai)
• Craft Sensations (Deco Stencil Set 154892)
• Ranger Texture Paste
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Rusty Hinge, Black Soot)
• Creative Expressions That Special Touch Of Mica Mask (Moroccan)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
• Art Discount Acrylic (White)
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Wildflowers #2 661808)
• Craft Sensations (Luxury Cardstock with Linen Texture CRO240/GE)
• Tim Holtz Distress Spray Stain (Abandoned Coral)
• Winsor & Newton Promarker (Olive Greeb Y724, Forest Green G356)
• Zig Memory System 2-way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Ephemera Pack (Field Notes #TH94051)
• Stix2 Glue Dots
• Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet (Mix & Match – Alpha SS252)

Colour me beautiful

Over at Try it on Tuesday our new challenge for the next two weeks is Lovely Ladies.

We are asking that your page is not just feminine but also features a female image too. I used stamps to add the female images to the background of my page and fussy cut some old magazine images for the two lovely ladies – don’t you just love that hat!

For the background, I applied Antique Linen Distress Ink and Angel Pink Memento Ink to the page by applying the ink pads directly to the paper and pulling them vertically down the page to create stripes. Then I used a wet paintbrush to soften and blend the inks a little. Once dry, I stamped the cameos, perfume bottles and filigree over the background with a Kaisercraft stamp set using black Archival Ink. Next I applied some white gesso using my finger over some of the stamped images to push them back and add some depth to the design. My two lovely ladies and wording were fussy cut from some old magazines and stuck in place using a glue stick. I edged the wording with some black Glitterations border stickers and then stuck some striped black and white ribbon under the images. To finish, I added two large clear gemstones to the ends of the ribbon and three pretty pink acrylic daisy flowers.

I hope that you are inspired to join us too, for more inspiration my Design Teamies have created some Lovely Ladies creations for you over at Try it on Tuesday, so please pop over and take a look (grin!).

I’m also pleased to join the lovely Mia from Craftartista over at Art Journal Journey and her Flowers challenge this month with pink flowers on this page.

As T Stands for Tuesday, I think the glamorous ladies on my page might enjoy a Poinsettia which is a cocktail made from Cranberry Juice, Orange Liqueur and Prosecco. Here we are serving them in a posh champagne glass – cheers and Happy T Day!

Hoping that you all stay safe and well! x

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 (Antique Linen)
• Tsukineko Memento Ink (Angel Pink)
• Kaisercraft Clear Stamps (75 Cents CS864)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Old Magazines
• Pritt Stick
• Docrafts Papermania Glitterations (Black Borders ANT8181015)
• Craft Sensations (Self-Adhesive Deco Ribbons CRO244/16R)
• Poundworld DecoTime Scrapbook Accessories (Gems Art#54745)
• Stix2 Glue Dots
• Home Bargains Crafty Things (Acrylic Daisy Stickers 50650)