Live a colourful life

Posted on January 25, 2019 by Let's Art Journal

In January we always start to fill our calendar with things to do during the year which are often the things that inspire my art journal pages (grin!). So to capture my excitement and happy feelings, I created this colourful page.

I started by covering the page with some music sheet pieces which were left over from another project using Liquitex Matte Gel Medium. Once the gel medium was dry I scribbled Red Cherry, Watermelon, Mango, Peach, Guava, Kiwi and Lemon Faber-Castell Gelatos over the page and used my finger which I wet using a baby wipe to smudge and blend the colour. I used a Geometric Tiles stencil from Dutch Doobadoo to remove some of the gelato colour, using a baby wipe, to create the blocks of white circles. Then I stamped three different Gummiapan stamps using black Archival Ink to create my landscape of flowers; the stamps were Worn Rings 2, A Lot of Splats and Large Rudbeckia. To finish, I added the wording “Live a colouful life”, which is from a Kaisercraft sticker sheet, and outlined it with a black Sharpie marker.

There is so much that we are looking forward to this year: spring calls as we always enjoy visiting Lytham Hall to see the snowdrops.

At the start of summer we have the St. Anne’s Carnival to look forward to and then the summer ends with the St. Anne’s International Kite Festival.

In autumn there are the International Firework Championships.

Then, in winter we always enjoy the Victorian Festivals too!

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 and her Geometric Shapes challenge over at Art Journal Journey with the circles from the Geometric Tile stencil and Worn Ring stamp that I used to create my page.

Over at A Vintage Journey their challenge is Put Your Stamp On It so I’m pleased to join this challenge too as I used quite a few stamps to create my happiness inspired colourful Mixed Media Style Art Journal page.

I’m also happy to be able to join the Landscapes/Cityscapes challenge over at Country View Challenges with my colourful landscape of flowers.

I enjoyed using all the stamping to create this page so I’m pleased to join the Anything Goes challenge over at The Artistic Stamper.

With the focal images being stamped, I’m also joining Fashionable Stamping Challenges and their Anything Goes challenge.

I’m also happy to join the Anything Goes + optional twist of Sentiment As Main Focus over at Mix It Up Challenge Blog with my art journal page too.

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

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

Faber-Castell Gelato (Red Cherry, Watermelon, Mango, Peach, Guava, Kiwi, Lemon)
Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
Sharpie Permanent Fine Point Marker (Black)
Dutch Doobadoo Dutch Mask Art A5 (Geometric Tiles)
Gummiapan Stamps (Worn Rings 2 11050601, A Lot of Splats 11050106, Large Rudbeckia 15030501)
Music Sheet – Bosworth Violin Studies
Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet (Fiesta! SS284)
Liquitex Matte Gel Medium

Believe in the Magic of Christmas – Card

Posted on December 24, 2018 by Let's Art Journal

Today I’m sharing one of the Christmas card designs that I made for family and friends this year and some treats from the Garstang Victorian Christmas Festival that we went too a couple of weeks ago – Happy Christmas!

This card is designed with an embossing folder and stamp set that came free with a crafting magazine. To start, I embossed some white blank cards using a village scene embossing folder and my Big Shot machine. Then I stamped Santa and his reindeer flying across the sky and the wording “Believe in the Magic of Christmas” using a VersaMark Watermark stamp pad which I then covered with Tinsel Red embossing powder. I shook and tapped off any excess powder and used a heat gun to melt the embossing powder until it became dimensional with a sparkly glossy finish.

Next I used my Big Shot machine to die cut some snowflakes out of some festive design paper; I adhered a single snowflake to the front of each card adding a gem to the centre. Then I stamped some snowflakes around the snowflake and wording using Love Letter Memento Ink.

To finish, I also decorated the inside of the cards using a panel of the design paper that matched the die cut snowflake, another one of the die cut snowflakes and the snowflake stamp using the Love Letter ink again.

The Garstang Victorian Christmas Festival was wonderful! We enjoyed walking around listening to the music, shopping, sampling the food and taking in the joyous atmosphere. We particularly enjoyed these German marshmallow treats called ” Schokokuss” or “Christmas Kisses”.

We bought a box home with us; the flavours we chose were Caramel, Cherry, Rum and Raisin, Cinnamon and Baileys. If you are interested you can tour the factory and see how they are made here.

This is what they look like inside, so light and yummy! They were a lovely treat for our elevensies with our green tea being served in our new mugs (grin!). As T Stands for Tuesday I’m pleased to join the T Gang and wish you all a very Happy T Day and Happy Holidays!

Challenges

With my wintry village scene, I’m pleased to join in the fun over at Fashionable Stamping Challenges and their Winter challenge.

As the challenge over at Country View Challenges is Christmas, I’m pleased to join them with my Believe in the Magic of Christmas card.

With all the stamping and sparkly Tinsel Red embossing, I’m also joining the Winter Sparkle challenge over at Stamping Sensations.

I’m pleased to be able to join the Christmas Challenge over at The Artistic Stamper with my Believe in the Magic of Christmas card too.

As this is the first time I have used an embossing folder, I’m joining the Try Something NEW! Challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Work it Wednesday.

I’m also pleased to be able to join the Picture Inspiration challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps too with the red and white colours and snowy village scene that I included on my card.

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:

Tsukineko VersaMark Watermark Stamp Pad
Papermania Embossing Powder (Tinsel Red)
Memento Ink (Love Letter)
Winter Wonderland embossing folder and stamp set- free with magazine
Dovecraft Cutting Dies (Merry Christmas DCDIE052X16)
White card stock
Poundland (Christmas Craft Pack)
Oaktree UK Eleganza Craft Stickers (3mm 418 Gems Red No. 16)
Zig Memory System 2-Way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
Stix2 double-sided tape

Christmas Robin – Card

Posted on December 21, 2018 by Let's Art Journal

As you are probably aware I love robins, especially at Christmas, so today I created a Robin Christmas card using a Tim Holtz stamp and a pretty wintry background that was leftover from a previous project.

The leftover background was previously created using mixed media paper which I stamped with snowflakes using Simon Says Stamp Frozen Fractals stamp set and VersaMark Watermark ink and then covered with white Stampendous embossing powder. I shook and tapped off any excess powder and used a heat gun to melt the embossing powder until it became smooth and dimensional with a glossy finish. Next I used Milled Lavender, Chipped Sapphire and Salty Ocean Distress Ink to colour the background by spritzing the panel with water then applying the inks. Then I created my robin by stamping the bird on a branch stamp from Tim Holtz Urban Tapestry stamp set using Brushed Corduroy and Vintage Photo Distress Ink. I coloured the bird using Poppy Red and Charcoal Grey Derwent Inktense pencils and also added more details to the feathers, eye and beak using a black Derwent Graphik marker, white Uniball gel pen and a Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker. The foliage is stamped using the Urban Tapestry stamp set and the same brown inks too. I die cut the berry branches using Tim Holtz Sizzix Garden Greens Thinlets and my Big Shot machine from white card stock and also a brown design paper. They are layered together slightly off centre making the white card stock look like a coating of snow, then I added Christmas Red Stickles to the berries to give them a glittery finish. I also die cut the “Merry Christmas” wording from the white card stock and brown design paper again as well as some blue vellum. I layered the three pieces together slightly off centre so the white card stock was on the bottom, the blue vellum was in the middle then the brown paper was on the top using a Zig Memory glue pen. To finish, I edged the panel with the Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker, then I stuck the berry branches and wording in place using mini glue dots and the Zig glue pen.

I have a number of robin Christmas decorations around the house too, some of which you may be able to see in this photo of me and my hubby – we wish you all a very Merry Christmas!

Challenges

I’m so happy to be able to join Fashionable Stamping Challenges and their Winter challenge with my wintry Christmas Robin stamped card.

As the challenge over at Country View Challenges is Christmas, I’m pleased to join them too as my Christmas robin fits this theme.

With all the stamping, the red glittery Stickles and shiny white embossing, I’m also joining the Winter Sparkle challenge over at Stamping Sensations.

I’m pleased to be able to join the Christmas Challenge over at The Artistic Stamper with my stamped Christmas Robin.

Over at That’s Crafty! Challenge Blog their theme is Anything Goes so I’m also joining this challenge.

I’m pleased to join in the Anything Goes challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps too.

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:

Simon Says Stamp Clear Stamp Set (Frozen Fractals SSS101694)
Tim Holtz Stampers Anonymous Cling Rubber Stamps (Urban Tapestry CMS061)
Tsukineko VersaMark Watermark Ink Pad
Stampendous Embossing Powder (Detail White Opaque)
Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Milled Lavender, Chipped Sapphire, Salty Ocean, Brushed Corduroy, Vintage Photo)
Derwent Inktense Pencils (Poppy Red, Charcoal Grey)
Derwent Graphik Line Marker (Black 0.05mm)
Uniball Signo Gel Pen (White)
Faber-Castell Craft Stamper Big Brush Pen (Dark Sepia 175 B)
Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Garden Greens 661206)
Dovecraft Cutting Dies (Merry Christmas DCDIE052X16)
White Card Stock
Simon Says Stamp (Blue Vellum)
Poundland Design Pad (Changing Seasons CR0701/16PL1)
Ranger Stickles (Christmas Red)
Zig Memory System 2-Way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
Stix2 mini glue dots

Merry Moose Winter Wonderland

Posted on November 27, 2018 by Let's Art Journal

Our new challenge at Try it on Tuesday for the next two weeks is Winter Wonderland, where you will find some amazing creations from my Design Team teamies!

For my art journal page, I had so much fun creating a winter wonderland for my Merry Moose. I fell in love with this Merry Moose die set from Tim Holtz as soon as I saw it and finally succumbed to purchasing it last week, so I just couldn’t wait to use it and it didn’t disappoint – I love it (grin!).

To start, I stamped the pretty snowflakes using the Simon Says Stamp Frozen Fractals stamp set and Versamark Watermark ink which I covered with white Stampendous embossing powder. I shook and tapped any excess powder off the page and then I used a heat gun to melt the embossing powder until it became smooth and dimensional with a glossy finish. Next I positioned a circular stencil onto the page to depict the sun and also a hand cut paper template to mask out the foreground. Then I painted the sky background using my Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour paint set; I did this by wetting the page with water first and then applying Ultramarine Pale, Ultramarine and Turquoise Blue colours using my paintbrush, gradually shading and blending the paints so that they were lighter around the sun. When dry, I splattered the page with white acrylic paint and then I defined the edge of the foreground more using Paris Dusk and Danube Blue Memento Inks and a blending tool. I removed the foreground mask and also added another line of snow using a mask and the same inks. I added some colour to the snowflakes in the foreground by painting them with the Ultramarine and Turquoise Blue watercolours too. For the sun I applied a light wash of Lemon Yellow watercolour paint and when dry, I covered it with some Platinum Planet Brilliance Ink to add some shine. The wording is stamped using the blue Memento Inks again and overlaid with the Platinum Planet Brilliance Ink and I added a little of the Turquoise Blue watercolour paint to the letters so that it colour matched the background more.

The trees are die cut using the Merry Moose Thinlets by Tim Holtz from Sizzix and my Big Shot Machine. I used some brown wood effect paper from Tim Holtz and also some blue glittery paper for the dripping snow dies; they are stuck to the page using a Zig Memory glue pen. Next I added a puffy snow effect using Inkylicious Fluffy Puffy Stuff which you apply and then heat with a heat gun to make it 3-dimensional; it was so much fun seeing the snow come to life (grin!). I also die cut some snowflakes out of the same blue glitter paper and embellished them with the Fluffy Puffy Stuff too and then stuck them to the page. I really need to use the fluffy puffy stuff again, just so I can write fluffy puffy some more (double grin!).

To finish, I added the Merry Moose which is die cut three times, once out of cream linen finish card stock and then twice out of white card stock; I layered them together so the linen finish was on the top. I masked off his antlers and then coloured him using Tea Dye, Vintage Photo and Ground Espresso Distress Inks blending the colours with a blending tool. Then I removed the masking tape and coloured the antlers with Antique Linen Distress Ink. I stuck him in place and then decided that he needed a scarf to keep him warm, so I used the harness die cut from the Thinlet set and fashioned one together using the blue glitter paper and white card stock which I coloured with the Paris Dusk Memento Ink. It was fiddly to make but I think it completes his look beautifully, don’t you (grin!).

We have been lucky enough to see moose several times in the wild on our travels to America and so I love everything moose! We have a few moose items around the house from our travels too including these beautiful mugs which we were purchased at Booth Bay in Maine. Today they are filled with hot chocolate that has Pumpkin Spice syrup in it and topped with whipped cream – yum! As T Stands for Tuesday, I’m saying a big hello to the T Gang and wishing you all a very happy T Day!

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 BioArtGal, who is hosting the Vintage or Modern challenge over at Art Journal Journey with my modern Christmas page!

I’m also joining in the fun over at Moo Mania & More and their Tic, Tac, Toe theme (Designer Paper – Glistening Season from Tim Holtz Paper Stash, Die-Cut – Merry Moose, Circles – on the scarf and the sun).

I’m also pleased to join A Vintage Journey and their Paper Stash challenge this month as I was inspired by my new Tim Holtz Merry Moose Thinlets so used the linen and glitter papers that have been in my craft stash for a while as well as the Tim Holtz Paper Stash pad to create my Mixed Media style page.

Over at That’s Crafty! Challenge Blog their theme is Winter Wonderland so I’m pleased to join this challenge with my Merry Moose Winter Wonderland page.

I’m also pleased to be able to join the Baby It’s Cold Outside challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge with as it must be cold with my Merry Moose wearing his scarf (grin!).

With the embossing powder that I used for my pretty stamped snowflakes, I’m also joining Fashionable Stamping Challenges and their Resist It challenge too.

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

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

Tsukineko Versamark Watermark Ink Pad
Stampendous Embossing Powder Basics (Detail White Opaque DP100)
Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour Paint set (Ultramarine Pale, Ultramarine, Turquoise Blue, Lemon Yellow)
Tsukineko Memento Ink (Paris Dusk, Danube Blue)
Tsukineko Brilliance Pigment Ink (Platinum Planet)
Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Tea Dye, Vintage Photo, Ground Espresso, Antique Linen)
Faber-Castell Craft Stamper Big Brush Pen (Dark Sepia 175 B)
Derwent Graphic Marker (black 0.05mm)
Inkylicious (Fluffy Puffy Stuff)
Simon Says Stamp Clear Stamp Set (Frozen Fractals SSS101694)
Inkylicious Stencil (Sun & Moons)
Winter Wonderland Stamp Set (free with Craft Stampers magazine No:62)
Tim Holtz Alterations Sizzix Thinlets (Merry Moose 663103)
Dovecraft Cutting Dies (Merry Christmas DCDIE052X16)
Tim Holtz idea-ology Paper Stash (Halloween #TH93712)
Blue Glitter Paper
Cream Linen Card Stock
White Card Stock
Zig Memory System Chisel Tip Glue Pen
Stix2 double-sided tape
Ranger Heat Gun
Sizzix Big Shot

You melt my heart

Posted on October 5, 2018 by Let's Art Journal

I created this page with my hubby in mind, as we are celebrating our 30^th Wedding Anniversary in a few days (grin!). The colours I used were also inspired by the turquoise pools and glazier photos of the Austrian Mountains over at Apple Apricot, I love these colours and had fun creating this page.

I started by stamping a Script stamp from Kaisercraft onto the page using black Archival Ink. Then I applied Emboss ink using a blending tool through a heart stencil from Creative Expressions and covered it with white Stampendous embossing powder. I shook off the excess powder onto a piece of scrap paper and also tapped the page to make sure any stray powder was removed and then I used a heat gun to gently melt the embossing powder until it became glossy and dimensional. I repeated this process for all the embossing powder and enamel which included: a crackle stamp from BoBunny which I stamped using the Emboss ink and covered with white Stampendous embossing powder; a Serpentine Background stamp from Art Impressions using Emboss ink and Chunky Silver Stampendous Frantage embossing enamel; and stamping the Emboss ink pad directly to the edges of the page then adding the Chunky Silver embossing enamel. I also sprinkled some of the enamel pieces onto the page and heated it from a height to stop it blowing away until it adhered to the page, and then I moved my heat gun closer to melt it fully. With the background heat embossing finished, I applied some Cracked Pistachio Distress Stain and left it to dry. Then I added some white gesso using my finger and when dry I applied more of the Cracked Pistachio Distress Stain and also some diluted Mermaid Lagoon Distress Ink using a paintbrush to layer and blend the colours together; the gesso gave the ink colours more of a chalky look which I was after.

For the heart, I used a wooden heart tag which I covered in Emboss ink and the Chunky Silver Stampendous Frantage embossing enamel. I used a heat gun to melt the embossing enamel to a smooth glossy finish and before the enamel had cooled fully, I imprinted it using the Serpentine Background stamp again, being careful not to touch the enamel with my fingers as it gets super hot. I also covered a metal key embellishment with the same embossing enamel using the Emboss ink. They are all stuck in place using Ranger Glossy Accents.

For the dragonfly “love…” trails, I stamped some white tissue paper with a stamp from Craft Sensations using the black Archival Ink and covered it with black Papermania embossing powder. I was careful with the heat gun as the embossing powder melted very quickly due to it being on tissue paper. I repeated this process for the “You melt my heart” which is from a BoBunny stamp set. They are all fussy cut from the tissue paper and stuck in place using a UHU Stic. Then I attached the dragonfly brads and also some black round brads by pushing them through the page and fastening them into place; I also covered the back of the brads with masking tape to protect my next journal page. To finish, I splattered the page with Cracked Pistachio Distress Stain, some diluted Mermaid Lagoon Distress Ink and also black DecoArt acrylic paint using a paintbrush.

Here’s me and my hubby, it’s been a wonderful 30 years and he has always and will forever “melt my heart” (grin!).

If I remember correctly we won’t be the only ones celebrating our 30^th Wedding Anniversary in October so will Erika and her hubby – Happy Anniversary!

Challenges

I’m pleased to join the lovely Linda, who is hosting Creature Comforts challenge over at Art Journal Journey with my art journal page as to love and be loved brings me comfort.

I had fun creating this page with all the different inks and stains so I’m joining the Inktober challenge over at The Artistic Stamper too.

With the quote and all the stamping I used to create this page, I’m also joining Fashionable Stamping Challenges and their Quote Away challenge.

I’m also pleased to join Topic 17 Colour Challenge is A Box of Eggs over at PaperArtsy with the blue and green pastel shades that I used for this page.

Over at Simon Says Stamp Work It Wednesday the challenge is Celebrating Stamping & STAMPtember®! so I’m pleased to join them too.

I’m also pleased to join the September Link Party #44 – Anything Goes over at Cropstop Blog with my page as I included some products from companies that they carry in their store.

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)
Tsukineko Emboss Embossing Stamp Pad (Clear)
Tim Holtz Distress Stain (Cracked Pistachio)
Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Mermaid Lagoon)
Stampendous Embossing Powder (Detail White Opaque)
Stampendous Frantage embossing enamel (Chunky Silver)
Papermania Embossing Powder (Black PMA4021006)
Kaisercraft clear stamp (Script CS752)
Creative Expressions Mini Stencil (Heart Cluster CEMSHEART)
BoBunny Stamps (Rough it up #12105155, Snow Day #13705563)
Art Impressions wood mounted rubber stamp (Serpentine Background T-2773)
Craft Sensations (Clear Stamps CRO274/16R1)
White tissue paper
The Works (Chalkboard Tags)
The Range (Key Embellishments CRO954)
Brads (Dragonflies – Black, Round – Black)
Ranger Glossy Accents
UHU Stic

Journey, Destination and Adventure

Posted on September 15, 2018 by Let's Art Journal

This week we have had family staying over, so we have been on journeys, travelled to destinations and had a few adventures along the way too (grin!). So I created this page to remember their visit and capture our time together; the background depicts the ripples of the water at high tide on our walks, the car reminds me of our outing to a local car show, the natural colours and pretty flower serves as a reminder of all the nature we saw on our walks as we walked their dog three times a day, and then the maps, clocks, compass and postage stamps to remember our days out and adventures exploring new places.

I started by applying Pébéo white gesso with a brayer and then I added dots of black DecoArt acrylic paint and also Bright Aqua Green Heavy Body Liquitex paint over the top and used the brayer to create the wonderful texture. When the paint was dry, I stencilled a large clock on the right-hand side of the page using black Archival Ink and a blending tool. I stamped some Vintage Circles from Woodware Craft Collection using black Archival Ink and then I applied Rusty Hinge and Ground Espresso Distress Ink through a stencil by Andy Skinner using a blending tool. The white circles are stamped using a cardboard tube and white DecoArt acrylic paint, I used the Andy Skinner stencil and Distress Inks again to pattern the inside of the circles and defined the edges more using a white Uniball gel pen and a black Uni Pin marker. Next I added three pieces of washi tape horizontally across the page and then stamped lots of different images using black Archival Ink onto some paper from American Crafts. The stamped images included: some postage stamps, lace and a clock from Kaisercraft; a car stamp from Tim Holtz which I cut up to produce the car, bingo sheet, map and ruler; a patterned circle from Kaisercraft; a compass by Graphic 45 from Hampton Art; a hand pointing the way from a Steampunk stamp set from Docrafts; and some numbers from a Collage Number stamp from Gummpanian Stamps. I fussy cut all the stamped pieces out, edged them with Rusty Hinge and Ground Espresso Distress Ink and then a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker. They are stuck to the page using a glue stick and Liquitex matte gel medium. Once the glue was dry, I edged them with a black Uni Pin marker and added white detail to both the images and stamping in the background using a Uniball gel pen. Next I cut a wildflower out of white cardstock using a die cut by Tim Holtz from Sizzix and my big shot machine, stuck it in place and outlined it using a black Uni Pin marker. I added two Small Talk stickers from Tim Holtz idea-ology collection which read “the journey is the destination” and also “and so the adventure begins”, again they are outlined using a black Uni Pin marker. To finish, I added some Pébéo white gesso using a palette knife through a Vintage Diamond stencil from Creative Expressions.

Last Sunday we went to a Vintage Car Show with our visitors. It is a local show and was held on the green by the beach just round the corner from our house. We saw some beautiful cars including this one which is an Austin and looks a bit like the one on my page (grin!).

There were so many different cars there and we liked this one which was originally from Canada.

Or maybe this is more to your liking, it’s a Wolseley and I’m not sure my hubby would fit in it (grin!).

Some cars are Vintage now, even though I remember them whilst growing up … does that mean I’m getting old (double grin!). VW Beetles for example and we often see this gold one driving around town and look at the kettle and mugs, just right for T Stands for Tuesday!

Then we have local car clubs like this Land Rover Club which I thought Yvonne from Meggy’s way may like (triple grin!).

It turned into quite the adventure as we also saw the high tide which we don’t see that often and some kitesurfers right next to the beach.

Challenges

I’m pleased to join the lovely Yvonne from Meggy’s way, who is hosting A World of Fantasy challenge over at Art Journal Journey with my Journey, Destination and Adventure art journal page.

As this page includes circles, I’m also joining the Circles challenge over at Moo Mania & More.

As I included circles on this page, I’m also joining the Going Round & Round challenge over at The Artistic Stamper too.

I used 3 different stencils on this art journal page, so I’m also joining in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and there Use More Than One Stencil challenge.

Over at Country View Challenges their challenge is Planes, Trains & Automobiles so I’m pleased to join them with the car and journey art journal page.

With the quote and all the stamping I used to create this page I’m also joining Fashionable Stamping Challenges and their Quote Away challenge.

As I used quite a few Tim Holtz products to create this page I thought of A Vintage Journey, so I’m pleased to join their Back To Nature challenge this month as I was inspired by the nature we saw on our walks so included the natural colours and pretty flower on my Art Journaling and Vintage style 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:

Pébéo White Gesso
DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black, White)
Liquitex Heavy Body Acrylic (Bright Aqua Green)
Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Rusty Hinge, Ground Espresso)
Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
Derwent Graphik Line Marker (Black 0.1mm, 0.8mm)
Uniball Signo gel pen (White)
DecoArt Andy Skinner Mixed Media Stencils (Shedded ANDY08)
Woodware Craft Collection Clear Magic Singles (Vintage Circles FRS665)
Cardboard tube – stamp
Kaisercraft clear stamp (Magnolia Grove CS822, Provincial CS243)
Tim Holtz Components Collection (COM013CAR)
Hampton Art Graphic 45 cling mounted rubber stamps (Tropical Travelogue ICO135)
Docrafts Creativity Essentials A5 Clear Stamp Set (Steampunk DCE907125)
Gummpanian Stamp (Collage Numbers 14030103)
Sizzix Thinlets by Tim Holtz (Wildflowers 661190)
Creative Expressions Mini Stencil (Vintage Diamond CEMSDIAM)
American Crafts Papers (DIY Store 366665)
White Cardstock
Poundland (Washi Tapes 156456-GE16)
The Works (3 Washi Tapes)
Tim Holtz idea-ology Stickers (Small Talk #TH93193)
Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
Pritt Stick

Just for you – Card

Posted on August 24, 2018 by Let's Art Journal

Excited to use my new Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour paint set again, I created some cards using my favourite stamps and embossing powders (grin!).

I started by cutting a panel of mixed media paper to fit a white 6×4” card which I made from white cardstock. I embossed white doily shapes and black butterflies onto the panel by first stamping a Doily by Kaisercraft using VersaMark Watermark Stamp Pad and applying white Stampendous embossing powder over the top. Then I shook the excess powder onto a piece of scrap paper and tapped the tag against the table to make sure I’ve removed any stray powder. Once the excess powder was safely returned to its container, I used a craft heat gun to melt the embossing powder until the embossing powder melted into a glossy finish. I repeated the same process for the butterflies using a stamp designed by Graphic 45 Hampton Art using the VersaMark Watermark stamp pad again and this time I used black Papermania embossing powder. I added a filigree leaf stamp by Crafter’s Companion using Cottage Ivy Memento Ink and also a Script stamp by Kaisercraft using black Archival Ink. Next I painted the watercolour to the background by first wetting the paper and then adding Sap Green Light, Viridian and Lemon Yellow watercolour paint with a paintbrush and once dry I painted the filigree leaves with the same colours. I also added some Yellow Ochre watercolour paint to the centre of the card to break up the white space, then when the card was dry I splattered it with black DecoArt acylic paint. The “Just for you” is from the same stamp set from Crafter’s Companion and is stamped using black Archival Ink. I edged the paper panel with black Faber-Castell Big Brush Marker and stuck it on the 6×4” card using double-sided tape. Then to finish, I added silver glitter details to the butterfly wings using Ranger Stickles and also some glittery heart decorations using Glossy Accents.

Just discovered this gladioli in our garden this morning, isn’t it beautiful! I may just use this colour combination on one of these cards as I created several panels of the same design for painting later (grin!).

Here’s my new Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour paint set, the box is lovely!

You may remember this set of watercolours from a previous post; I’ve been so impressed with them so far, the colours are amazing!

Challenges

I’m pleased to join the Anything Goes challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with my watercolour card.

Over at A Vintage Journey the challenge is How can you resist? so as I used embossing powders with my new watercolour paints, I’m pleased to join challenge this challenge too with my Mixed Media Style card.

Using my favourite Kaisercraft Doily stamp on my card means I’m also able to join in the fun over at Stamping Sensations and their Use your ‘current’ favourite stamp challenge.

With all the stamping and the butterflies on my card, I’m also happy to join Fashionable Stamping Challenges and their It’s A Bugs Life challenge.

As butterflies are part of the animal kingdom, I’m pleased to join the Animal Magic challenge over at That’s Crafty! too.

I’m also pleased to join the August Link Party #42 – Anything Goes over at Cropstop Blog with my card as I included some products from companies that they carry in their store.

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 card:

Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour Paint set (Sap Green Light, Viridian, Lemon Yellow, Yellow Ochre)
Tsukineko VeraMark (Watermark Stamp Pad)
Tsukineko Memento Ink (Cottage Ivy)
Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
Stampendous Embossing Powder (Detail White Opaque)
Papermania Embossing Powder (Black PMA4021006)
Kaisercraft clear stamp (Doily CS297, Script CS752)
Hampton Art Graphic 45 cling mounted rubber stamps (Tropical Travelogue ICO134)
Crafter’s Companion Signature Collection by Sara Davies stamp set (Just for You – Butterfly Lullaby S-BL-ST-JUS)
Daler Rowney Mixed Media paper
White Cardstock
Home Bargains Special Occasion (Mini Decorative Stickers 22740)
Ranger Stickles (Silver)
Stix2 double-sided tape

Bee Happy

Posted on August 14, 2018 by Let's Art Journal

Today I’m sharing my first attempt at painting with my new Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour paint set. I think I’ll be using them again soon as the vibrancy of the colours is amazing and I love how they blend together to create this summery page.

I also used a new bee stamp set and the “Don’t worry bee happy” sentiment which made me smile as it reminds me of the “Don’t worry, be happy” song. Don’t forget that you still have a week to join the Inspired by a Song challenge over at Try it on Tuesday, it would be great to see you there.

I started by die cutting some flowers out of pages from of my old pocket dictionary using my Big Shot machine. On the page I stuck both the die cuts and the page they were cut from, so as to get a positive and negative flower image, using Liquitex matte gel medium. I also stuck some pieces of leftover decoupage paper and white leftover tissue paper that were sitting on my craft desk, which already had a floral stamp from Docrafts, a Sheet Music stamp from Woodware, a Vintage-Believe stamp and a Script stamp from Kaisercraft stamped on them using black Archival Ink. When the gel medium was dry, I wet the page with water using a paintbrush and then I added Rose Madder, Sap Green Light, Viridian, Ultrmarine, Turquiose Blue and Colbalt Violet watercolour paints over the top using a paintbrush; it was fun as I learnt how to apply the paints. I concentrated the Rose Madder paint over the flower shapes and added Lemon Yellow to their centres. They are outlined using Black watercolour paint and later with some black Uni Pin markers to add more detail. Next I stencilled a honeycomb pattern using modelling paste and stamped a hexagonalGeometric hexagonal stamp using black Archival Ink. I applied some white gesso to the page using my finger to dull the black stamping and some of the watercolour which added more depth and dimension to the page. The heart was a leftover piece of dictionary page which already had a heart shape punched out of it, I coloured it using the Rose Madder and Lemon Yellow watercolour paints and outlined it as I did the flowers. I also used the top of my spritzer bottle to stamp the small round circles using black Archival Ink and they are painted using Rose Madder, Colbalt Violet and Lemon Yellow watercolour paint. Next I stamped the bees onto some white card three times and also onto the page. For the ones that I stamped on the card, I coloured their body using Lemon Yellow watercolour paint and an extremely diluted Ultramarine Pale watercolour on their wings, then fussy cut the body, head and wings out. I then coloured the legs of the ones that I had stamped on the page using a brown Uni Posca paint pen and stuck the body and wings over the top using a UHU Stic, bending the wings upwards so they looked more 3D. As this page is so bright and cheery, I added the sentiment “Don’t worry bee happy” using black Archival Ink which is from the same stamp set as the bees; this finished the page.

As T Stands for Tuesday I’m showing a drink of apple juice and ginger beer again, you may remember it from last week (grin!). Well, following all of the comments from the T Gang I was getting a bit confused until my lovely friend from Drivers and Sundry made me realise that Ginger Beer here in the UK is similar to Ginger Ale in America. They are both non-alcoholic soft drinks although ginger beer is spicier with a more fiery ginger flavour than ginger ale, so as an alternative half apple juice and half ginger ale will work too – Happy T Day!

Also if you look at my glass closely you will see a bee etched upon it, which links back to today’s page (double grin!).

In case you are wondering, this is my box of new Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour Paint; I’m looking forward to using them some more and trying our new techniques too.

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. As well as Try it on Tuesday, here are the challenges I’m joining today:

I’m pleased to join the lovely Bleubeard & Elizabeth from Altered Book Lover, who is hosting the Count your blessings challenge over at Art Journal Journey as I feel very blessed to be able to create art and share it with others.

I’m joining in the fun over at Moo Mania & More and their theme is Summertime challenge with my summery watercolour page.

Over at Simon Says Stamp Work It Wednesday the challenge is Watercolour! so I’m pleased to join this challenge too.

I’m also happy to join the Anything Goes! challenge over at The Artistic Stamper with my Bee Happy stamped art journal page.

With the bees and stamping, I’m also pleased to be able to join Fashionable Stamping Challenges and their It’s A Bugs Life challenge.

I love my new bee stamp so I’m also joining the Use your ‘current’ favourite stamp challenge over at Stamping Sensations too.

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:

Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour Paint set (Rose Madder, Sap Green Light, Viridian, Ultrmarine, Turquiose Blue, Colbalt Violet, Lemon Yellow, Black)
Pébéo Modeling Paste
Pébéo White Gesso
Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.1mm & 0.5mm)
Uni Posca Paint Pen (Brown)
That’s Crafty Dinky Stencil (Reversed Honeycomb)
Docrafts Papermania Capsule Clear Stamps (Geometric Mono)
Dovecraft Premium Clear Stamps (Bee Happy DCSTP129)
The Oxford Pocket Dictionary
Leftover decoupage paper
Leftover stamped white tissue paper
Cardstock (White)
Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
UHU Stic

Wedding Card

Posted on July 20, 2018 by Let's Art Journal

Today I’m sharing the wedding card that I made for our dear friends who got married last Saturday – I hope you like it!

I started by creating a square card using white cardstock which has a glossy finish on one side, then I cut a square piece of Daler Rowney Mixed Media paper that was slightly smaller so it left a 5mm (3/16”) border when placed on top of the card. Next I stamped some tree branches from a Kaisercraft stamp set and also two lovebirds in a birdcage using a VersaMark Watermark stamp pad. I covered them with white Stampendous embossing powder, shook off the excess powder onto a piece of scrap paper and also tapped the paper to make sure any stray powder was removed. Then I used a heat gun to melt the embossing powder by sweeping the gun over the stamped images, taking care not to direct the heat in one area for too long until the embossing powder melted to a glossy finish and became smooth and dimensional. Next I applied three different Distress Inks using a blending tool to give an ombré look, which emphasised the melted embossing powder beautifully. The ink colours I used were Chipped Sapphire at the top of the card, Salty Ocean in the middle and Peacock Feathers at the bottom; I blended the colours together so one colour merged with the next. I then flicked some water onto the paper using my fingers to re-activate the ink then dabbed with a piece of kitchen towel to leave a mottled effect – I love the dreamy look this created. I edged the paper with the Chipped Sapphire Distress Ink using a blending tool and stuck it onto the card using double-sided tape. To finish, I added the sentiment topper and lots of tiny pearls to the tree branches.

For their wedding present we gifted them some money towards their honeymoon, so I created a little card wallet using a card and envelope from the Docrafts Papermania Capsule Collection which I stamped using black Archival Ink; the stamps I used for the outside were an alphabet stamp from Dovecraft, a scroll stamp from Penny Black and a heart stamp from Hallmark Cards.

For the inside I used the same scroll and heart stamps and some Destination and Travel stamps from Royal & Langnickel – such fun!

Challenges

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

I’m pleased to join Fashionable Stamping Challenges and their Use inks anyway you want challenge as I enjoyed using my Distress Inks with the stamped white embossing to create this card.

As I created an ombré effect with my blue inks, I’m also pleased to in the fun over at Stamps and Stencils and their Ombré challenge.

With the sparkly look I created using the Distress Ink background, white embossing and pearls, I’m also pleased to join Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their Add A Little Sparkle challenge.

Over at the That’s Crafty! Challenge Blog, their challenge is Close to Nature so I’m happy to join them with the pretty branches and bird detail on my card.

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 wedding card:

Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Chipped Sapphire, Salty Ocean, Peacock Feathers)
Uniball Signo gel pen (White)
Tsukineko VersaMark (Watermark Stamp Pad)
Stampendous Embossing Powder (Detail White Opaque)
Kaisercraft Clear Stamp (Magnolia Grove CS822)
Dovecraft Clear Stamps (Birdcage DCCS015)
White cardstock
Daler Rowney Mixed Media paper
Card Topper
Home Bargains Special Occasion (Mini Decorative Stickers 22740)
Stix 2 double-sided tape
The Range double-sided foam tape

Find Inspiration in Nature

Posted on May 23, 2018 by Let's Art Journal

My art journal pages are often inspired by nature which is why I chose the Flora and Fauna theme for this month over at Art Journal Journey. I had so much fun creating the background and steampunk vibe flowers for this page – I hope you like it too!

Taking inspiration from the beautiful red sunsets we see in nature, I started by covering the page in a mixture of Cadmium Yellow, Cadmium Red and Apricot Liquitex acrylic paint, varying the blending slightly to give different shades of colour. I added some torn book pages using Liquitex matte gel medium and some washi tapes, and then I applied a thin layer of the same acrylic paints over the top using my finger to achieve a translucent look. When dry, I applied some white DecoArt acrylic paint using a brayer and also a circular Worn Rings stamp from Gummiapan, making sure I washed the stamp as soon as I had finished so the paint didn’t dry and ruin it. I then splattered the whole page with black DecoArt acrylic paint using a paintbrush. The flowers are fussy cut from an old flower book that I found in a charity shop (thrift store) and arranged on the page with three stamps from the Vintage Circles Woodware Craft Selection Stamp Set using black Archival Ink. I used Liquitex matte gel medium to stick the flowers in place and once it was dry I outlined them with a black Derwent Graphik marker so that the stamping was incorporated into the flower design.

Both the fussy cutting and outlining took some time to complete and it really made a difference to the flowers as you can see on this before and after photo. The bees and wording which reads “Find inspiration in nature” are both Royal & Langnickel rub-on transfers and I added more detail to the bumblebees using a Derwent Graphik marker. To finish, I stamped some circles of white DecoArt acrylic paint using a bottle cap and added some more splatters of black DecoArt acrylic paint using a paintbrush.

Everytime we visit Garstang we see these beautiful metal flowers and the yellow ones reminded me those on my page today – aren’t they stunning!

I like that they stay in bloom all year round for us to enjoy, no matter what the weather … grin!

Challenges

I’m joining Art Journal Journey and the Flora and Fauna theme with my flowers and bees; there is just one more week to join in the fun (grin!). I’ve really enjoyed seeing all your fabulous creations that you have linked to this theme so far, thank you!

I’m pleased to join Moo Mania and More for their Even More Flowers challenge with my flowery page.

I’m joining Fashionable Stamping Challenges where the theme is Floral, which has been chosen by the lovely Avril, with my Vintage styled flowers, .

I really like the Vintage look of my new Woodware Stamp Set that I used on this page against the mixed media background which also included stamping, so I’m also pleased to join the Backgrounds challenge over at The Artistic Stamper.

Stamping Sensations challenge is Close to Nature so I’m very happy to be able to join them with my “Find inspiration in Nature” page.

I’m joining in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Use More Than One Stamp challenge as I used more than one stamp to create this art journal page.

My page reminds me of a classical music piece called “Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nikoli Rimsky-Korsakov and I can just imagine my bees flying around my page to this music exploring the Steampunk Style world of flowers that I created, so I’m also joining A Vintage Journey for their Words and Music challenge.

With the stamping I used to create this art journal page, I’m also pleased to join the Craft Stamper Take It, Make It Challenge and their May Challenge: Anything Goes!: (stamping MUST be included).

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: