Snapdragons

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Dragonflies and Stars

This page is inspired by two things; firstly by some very magical water reflections under a bridge on a recent day out in Garstang and secondly by the most wonderful quote by an unknown author on one of my friend’s posts – so thank you Kristah.

“May you touch dragonflies and stars, dance with fairies and talk to the moon”

This page started with a background gone wrong, so I covered it in a thick layer of Pébéo white gesso and I rolled a clean brayer over the surface to create a textured effect. Once the gesso had dried, I scribbled Earl Grey and Caramel Faber-Castell gelatos over the top. Then I dipped my finger into some water and rubbed the gelato to smudge the colours. Next I dragged a Hickory Smoke Distress Ink pad over the page and also used a grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and blended them both onto the page with my finger. I like the way the gelatos and ink bought out the texture that I had created previously with the brayer on the gesso. Then I vertically stamped the rows of dots by Craft Sensations using black Archival Ink and I used the same ink to stamp a circle/heart design by Sugarloaf Inc. and also a small script texture stamp by The Works.  I used a circle stencil to add modelling paste to the edges of the page using a palette knife and when it had dried I painted it with white acrylic paint so it stood out from the background better. Then I used an acrylic block and a paintbrush to add splatters of white and black acrylic paint. I added the white circles by drawing round a tube of tape using a white Uni Posca paint pen. For the dragonfly circles, I used a circle cutter to cut three circles from some pre-stamped paper (this is the paper I create whilst completing other journal pages as I always test my stamps before using them on my pages). On each circle I stamped a dragonfly by Eco Green Crafts using black Versafine Ink and applied black Papermania embossing powder over the top. Then I shook the excess powder onto a piece of scrap paper and tapped the circles against the table to make sure I’ve removed any stray powder. Once the excess powder was safely returned to its container, I used a heat gun to melt the embossing powder. I swept the gun over the images, taking care not to direct the heat in one area for too long until the embossing powder changed to a glossy finish becoming smooth and dimensional. I used a black Faber-Castell big brush marker to draw black circle outlines and stuck the dragonfly circles over the top using a UHU Stic. Then I drew a dot border around the edges of these circles using the white Uni Posca paint pen again. I stamped the quote using black Archival Ink and I went over the wording with a black Uni Pin pen to make it stand out more. The stars are outline stickers which I coloured with a black Sharpie permanent marker. To finish, I coloured some paper flowers using a Red Violet Spectrum Aqua marker by liberally colouring the centre of the flower and then applying water with a paintbrush so the water spread the ink across the petals giving a shaded effect and once they had dried I stuck them to the page with Glossy Accents.

I’m pleased to be able to join Rosie who is hosting the “Circles” challenge over at Art Journal Journey.

Garstang is a lovely old market town in Lancashire, here you can see the view up the high street, and the gentleman in blue is sat under the Market Cross. The town is steeped in history and there has been a market here for over 200 years and we always enjoy looking around the weekly outdoor market stalls that wind their way up the high street.

We always go to The Royal Oak Hotel for lunch, which is a 17th century coaching inn situated opposite the Market Cross in the centre of the town. The pub is made up of several small rooms which are decorated in a traditional pub style with beamed ceilings, wood panelling and stained glass, along with china and brass adorning the walls. We sat in this little room off the bar which has a very cosy feel.

As T Stands for Tuesday, I’m sharing a beer called “Pint of Thrones” by Robinsons Brewery. It’s pictured with our usual choice of prawn sandwich with chips (shrimp sandwich with fries for my friends in the US) – so yummy!

After lunch we like to walk along the Lancaster Canal and also the River Wyre. We walked about 5 miles looking at the boats and scenery.  This white bridge is the Fylde Water Board Crossing and carries a water pipe across the canal which is so pretty and quite elaborate considering its rather mundane task (grin!).

There were quite a few boats along the canal as it was a hot sunny day. There were many narrow boats and we had just walked round a corner when we saw this one coming towards us – don’t worry though, it’s not going that fast, they are limited to 4 mph. I think my hubby secretly wants a narrow boat!

Then we made our way back along the canal approaching the Cathouse Bypass Bridge and I think dragonflies may well enjoy these reeds and iris.

We love the wonderful views and countryside in this area. At the Wrye Aqueduct, which is a bridge taking the canal over a river, we turned down some steps to continue our walk along the River Wrye. This aqueduct was first used in 1797 and is still going strong today!

As we passed under the aqueduct, we saw the most amazing circular reflections on the ceiling. These are caused by a few drops of water from the canal above dripping down into the river below.

The background of my page reminds me of these walls and the wonderful circle reflections that we saw. The circles were so magical, it’s as if fairies were dancing on the water – just like Kristah’s quote!

We then followed the path alongside the River Wyre through the trees and back into town. We always have such a lovely time in Garstang, it’s a beautiful place!

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 (White, Black)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Hickory Smoke)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Tsukineko Versafine Ink (Onyx Black)
• Spectrum Aqua Artist Marker (Red Violet)
• Faber-Castell Gelatos (Earl Grey, Caramel)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199, Cold Grey IV 233)
• Uni Posca Paint Pen (White)
• Sharpie Permanent Fine Point Marker (Black)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.5mm)
• Papermania Embossing Powder (Black)
• Pébéo Modeling Paste
• Craft Sensations (Clear Stamps CR0274/16R2)
• Sugarloaf Inc. Anita’s wood mounted rubber stamp (26645)
• The Works (Clear Stamps CR0274/TW3)
• Eco Green Crafts Recycled Rubber Stamps (Petal Party #04309)
• Dovecraft Essentials Alphabet Stamp Set (WDN ALPHA STMP DCVW0050)
• Creative Sensations (Deco Stencil Set 154892)
• Pre-stamped paper
• The Works M&C Boutique (Mini Paper Flower Embellishments)
• Outline Stickers (Gold Stars)
• UHU Stic

Be a Flamingo

This week I’ve had loads of fun experimenting with my super new Faber-Castell Gelatos, so I thought I’d use them to create a background with one of my favourite techniques – using a stencil. Having found some flamingo fabric bunting in my craft stash, I was inspired to use the brightly coloured gelatos to create a tropical look on my page.

I started by covering the page with a thin layer of Pébéo white gesso in readiness to apply the Faber-Castell Gelatos; I’ve found out that to achieve a smooth coverage on my textured mixed media paper, then prepping the page with gesso first is a must. Next I scribbled Bubble Gum, Orange Soda, Limoncello and Mango gelatos onto my page, dipped my finger into water and then rubbed them to blend the colours. I didn’t use too much water as I wanted a heavier coverage of gelato for the next technique. I covered areas of the page with a Distressed Dot stencil by Creative Expressions and rubbed with a baby wipe to remove and lighten the colour producing a lovely effect. Next I mixed some acrylic paints into a turquoise colour and applied it using a blending tool through a Dutch Doobadoo Mask to create different circles on my page. I also used the blending tool as a stamp to add circles of the paint straight to the page. Then I stamped tiny circles, tropical flowers and a postage mark using black Archival Ink. As I stamped the images directly onto gelatos I was able to remove some of the ink from the flowers by dabbing the images with a baby wipe and then I stamped the images again, this gave more of a layered 3D look. I used the same Doobadoo mask to add a grid of dots using Black Soot Distress Ink and Pébéo Modelling paste. Once the modelling paste had dried I painted the dots with white acrylic paint to intensify their brightness. Next I added circular shiny pink flamingo stickers over each of the turquoise circles and also added some rub-on flower transfers to the page. To finish, I used a piece of fabric flamingo bunting and arranged it on the page with some card embellishments and pretty pink buttons so it looks like it is hanging on a string of bunting. The saying on the flamingo bunting makes me smile, it reads “Be a flamingo in a flock of pigeons”.

As my background features lots of circles, I’m pleased to be able to join Rosie who is hosting the “Circles” challenge over at Art Journal Journey.

With all the interest that was generated from my previous post, I thought I’d share some of the techniques I have been using with my gelatos as well as my tips and learning so far. In the photos the mixed media paper I used is prepped with white gesso and the gelato colours are Red Cherry and Passion Fruit, so firstly let’s look at some of the ways you can use gelatos:  

Scribble on paper and smudge

Just scribble gelato onto your paper (which is a nice effect in itself) and then rub it with your finger. I have found dipping my finger in a little water first then rubbing the gelato works best for me. There are several ways you can smudge gelatos and the simplest one seems to be with your finger however you can also use a paint brush or a wet wipe. As you can see from the photo above you get similar results regardless of how you smudge them and all give a heavier coverage. Although you can achieve a more translucent watercolour look or a more opaque look depending on how much pigment you use and how much water you add.

Use like Inks

As gelatos are activated by water, I experimented by using the gelatos like I do my Aqua Markers and Distress Inks. So I scribbled the gelatos onto an acrylic block (acetate would work as well) and then I spritzed them with water and pressed the block onto the paper.

Use like paint

You can also pick up the colour with a wet paint brush and paint with them so it looks similar to watercolor. I found you can even use it straight out of the tube by touching a wet paint brush right up to the gelatos. Both of these techniques resulted in a softer colour which could be intensified depending on how much pigment is used and how much water is added.

Drips and splatters

For this technique, I applied a thick layer of gelato onto the top of my paper and then I sprayed it with water and tipped the page to make drips. Although, I found that I preferred to add the water with a brush to make the drips because I could use less water and therefore control how the gelatos blended to get a more vibrant colour. I accidentally found out that you can also create splatters of colour by flicking a wet paintbrush over the end of the gelato straight from the tube (grin!).

Use a Stencil

This is the technique I used on my page, in summary just scribble gelatos onto paper and smudge the colour. Then cover with a stencil and use a baby wipe to remove the colour. The colour can be lightened to varying degrees depending on how much you rub off with the baby wipe giving a great tone on tone effect. If the surface is prepped with gesso first, you’ll be able to remove more colour getting a higher contrast effect.

Stamp with it

This is where you apply the gelato right onto the stamp, spritz with water and stamp. You can also colour areas of the stamp with different gelato colours that may blend together a bit when stamped or you can apply the gelato by picking up the colour with a wet paintbrush and painting it onto the stamp to give a softer look.

Tips and learning:

• If you want smooth coverage, then prep your paper with gesso first. I have found that it gives the mixed media paper I use a much smoother surface, which helps to smudge and blend gelatos more easily. Plus if you are using cardstock, a layer of gesso helps the paper withstand water and rubbing.
• I have even experimented prepping the page with Matte Gel Medium which gives a slicker surface and is great when misting with water to blend the gelatos and create drips.
• Remember they are water based so when using a baby wipe be careful not to wipe away the gelato accidentally.
• If you make a mistake or don’t like you what you have created on gesso prepped paper, then you can just wipe the gelato off straight away with a baby wipe and some kitchen roll and start again.
• If you contaminate a gelato by getting another gelato colour on it, simply rub it off on a piece of paper.
• Cleaning up after using gelatos is very easy as they are water-soluble, so just use a baby wipe or a wet cloth to get everything clean.
• Unfortunately (for my hubby) these gelatos are nothing to do with ice cream!

Overall, I love the look you can achieve with these new gelatos and it’s been fun experimenting and learning what they can and can’t do. I really enjoy learning and I still have more techniques to try, I hope you have had fun 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:

• Pébéo White Gesso
• Faber-Castell Gelatos (Bubble Gum, Orange Soda, Limoncello, Mango)
• Liquitex Artist Color Acrylic (Christmas Green, Swedish Blue)
• DecoArt Artist’s Acrylic (White)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Black Soot)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
• Uni Pin Fine Line Marker (Black 0.1mm)
• Pébéo Modelling Paste
• Hampton Art Graphic 45 Cling Mounted Rubber Stamps (Tropical Travelogue ICO134)
• Sugarloaf Inc. Anita’s wood mounted rubber stamp (26631)
• Creative Expressions That Special Touch of Mica Masks (Distressed Dots)
• Dutch Doobadoo Dutch Mask Art A5 (Geometric Tiles)
• The Range (Craft Stickers CR1243)
• Poundland (Homemade Embellishments 138127)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Transfers (SYN1470G)
• Aldi Kirkton House (Bedroom Bunting)
• The Range double-sided foam tape

Peace, Love and Kindness

I started creating this page to join in with Rosie’s fabulous “Circles” theme over at Art Journal Journey and it turned into a wish for Peace, Love and Kindness.

I cut a couple of pages in half from a Pear’s Cyclopaedia book and stuck them to the page using a UHU Stic. Then I added some green dotty washi tape to the parts of my page where there was no text ripping the tape to soften its edges. I then covered the page with a thin layer of white gesso and used the small and large circles from a Dutch Doobadoo Mask to apply Hickory Smoke, Tea Dye and Black Soot Distress Ink with a blending tool. In the centre of the larger circles, I stenciled smaller circles using the black Distress Ink and covered them with a very thin layer of Lime, Margarita Mix and Mango Faber-Castell Gelatos. I used a baby wipe to blend the Gelato which removed some of the Distress Ink to give the grungy look that I wanted. I then added another layer of Gelato to these circles to intensify the colour which I blended using my finger. I used the circle mask again to stencil white gesso around the edges of the large circles using a sponge.  Next I cut different sized circles from green metallic craft papers using a circle cutter, I edged them with a black Sharpie permanent marker and stuck them to the page using a UHU Stic. I added some enamel dots and also some gold Glitterations circle frame stickers which I filled with Glitterations flowers. I then stamped the words using black Archival Ink and used the same ink to stamp the black dots masking the other circles as needed. I doodled more details onto the circles and dots using a white Uni-Posca pen, a black Dewent Inktense pencil and a black Uni Pin marker. To finish I stamped a heart and added a bee to signify the Manchester Worker Bee emblem – I ♥ MCR & I ♥ LDN.

Creating this page allowed me to play with two new craft goodies, a circle cutter which makes short work of cutting different sized circles and some wonderfully vibrant Faber-Castell Gelatos. The Gelatos are very easy to use and I’d like to thank Eileen for highlighting them on her post a few weeks ago, as you can see they didn’t stay on my “wish list” for long (grin!).

As T Stands for Tuesday, I am sharing my usual cup of green tea and to continue the circle theme my picture shows my tea with a huge round chocolate chip cookie that my hubby treated me to from the bakery whilst we were out food shopping (grin!). I’m saying a special thank you to Valerie for making those lovely cookies last week, I showed my hubby and he made it his mission to find one for me (grin again!). And in case you are wondering – yes I did eat this cookie all myself, it was so yummy!

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
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Tea Dye, Hickory Smoke, Black Soot)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Faber-Castell Gelatos (Mango. Margarita Mix, Lime)
• Uni-Posca Paint Pen (White 0.7mm)
• Derwent Inktense Pencils (Ink Black 2200)
• Sharpie Fine Point Permanent Marker (Black)
• Derwent Graphik Line Marker (Black 0.05mm)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.1mm)
• Docrafts Creativity Essentials A5 Clear Stamp Set (Alphas Trad DCE907116)
• Woodware Craft Collection Franciose Collection (Flower Style FRSW003-AA)
• Hampton Art Studio G (Clear Stamps VS4911)
• Dutch Doobadoo Dutch Mask Art A5 (Geometric Tiles)
• The Range (Craft Decorative Papers CR0411)
• The Works (Circle Cutter)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Transfers Designed by Roxanne Jarvis (Bee Mine Roses #JAR623 RUB-ON)
• Anita’s Glitterations (Circle Frames – Gold ANT8181028)
• Docrafts Papermania Glitterations (Flowers – Gold ANT8181020)
• Poundland (Washi Tape 171854-MC16)
• The Works (Pastel Enamel Dots)
• UHU Stic

Pretty mismatched china

With the glorious sunny weather last week we decided to go on one of our favourite circular walks from Scorton to Nicky Nook and back, with a visit to the Apple Store café. This page was inspired by our walk and the pretty mismatched china that we found at the café.

To start I sectioned the page in a starburst design to represent the sunny day and our circular walk, then I cut pieces of decoupage papers the same size as these sections and stuck them to the page using a UHU Stic. I used two different papers and alternated them, the pretty colourful butterflies represent the countryside and the lovely gardens we sat in at the café and the measurement paper depicts the miles we walked and the hills we climbed whilst on our walk. Next I drew black lines with a ruler and Sharpie Permanent Marker between each section and added some white gesso with my finger to soften some of the colours and designs. I stuck some black border stickers through each butterfly patterned section and some silver outline stickers along each black line outlining the shapes with a black Uni Pin marker. My mismatched tea spoons, teacups and saucers are rub-on transfers which I arranged around the page, I like the way some of the cups are hanging  from hooks along the black lines. To finish I added some shadows under the different images using a Slate Spectrum Aqua Marker and I stuck a pretty embellished teapot in the centre.

I’m pleased to be able to join Bleubeard and Elizabeth over at T Stands for Tuesday with my tea related page, as well as Gill from gibbyfrogettcraftations who is hosting the “Elegance & Grunge” challenge over at Art Journal Journey.

The walk was around 5.5 miles and this is the marker at the summit of Nicky Nook with the Red Rose of Lancashire painted on the side of it. In the distance you can just see where we had walked from, through woodlands and past a reservoir.

Nicky Nook is located in the Forest of Bowland and is 215m (705ft) above sea level. We live in an area that is known for being relatively flat and being by the sea we are just about at sea level,  so walking up this hill made a nice change and the views were breathtaking.

This is the view looking the other way, we were heading towards the lake on the left hand side which is where the café is located.

You may remember this walk and café from my post last year. The café is located in the Victorian glass houses of the grounds of Wyresdale Park.

This time we sat in the garden in the shade of the trees, because it was too hot to sit inside. I think everyone had the same idea as they were bringing the tables and chairs out from within.

This time we had a triple sausage sandwich, chips (fries) and a pot of green tea in the pretty mismatched china.

Here we are saying a big cheers to the T Gang and wishing you all a very Happy T Day!

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

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

• Pébéo White Gesso
• Memento Ink (London Fog)
• Spectrum Aqua Artist Marker (Slate)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.3 mm)
• Anita’s Sugarloaf Inc. (Retro Starburst 7146)
• Viva Gade Decoupage Paper (Helsinki 25586)
• Poundworld (Patch Paper DS9454)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Sentiments (Romantic Tea #PAR-244 Rub-on)
• Sandylion Kelly Panacci Scrapbook Collection (Stitches & Borders KSC102)
• Docrafts Anita’s Outline Stickers (Fanciful Floral Corners Silver ANT8101411)
• Outline Stickers (Time – Silver 90493S)
• Poundland (Handmade Embellishments)
• UHU Stic
• The Range double-sided foam tape

A very fine swan indeed!

On a warm sunny day whilst walking alongside the Lancaster Canal, my hubby captured a fantastic photo of a swan looking very regal whilst showing off his plumage; this swan definitely wasn’t an ugly duckling in fact “You’re a very fine swan indeed!” as the well-known song says.

The background is Yellow, Aquamarine and Slate Spectrum Aqua markers which I scribbled onto an acrylic block, spritzed with water and pressed onto the page. Then I used the same technique to add some Cracked Pistachio Distress Ink over the top. Next I added a series of stamps using London Fog Memento Ink and a Hobbycraft silver pigment ink; these stamps included a Script stamp by Kaisercraft to represent the Ugly Duckling lyrics, a feather stamp by Craft Sensations to depict those beautiful feathers and two crown stamps as he looked very regal. Next I stamped the swan images by Urban Stamps using Rich Cocoa Memento Ink and added torn pieces of a blue-green paper from a design pad using a UHU Stic. The swan is a print of the actual photo my hubby took which has been edited to give a vintage monochrome look and stuck to the page using the UHU Stic. Once the glue had dried I outlined the image and the papers with a black Uni Pin Marker and silver metallic paint. I added silver border outline stickers to the blue paper, as well as the small silver cross-like stickers, white diamante-centred flowers, colourful flower shaped stickers and purple rhinestone flowers across the whole page. I added a feather that I picked up alongside the canal on the day of our walk which I’m pretty sure is from a swan, and also some decorative diamante chain to hold it down. To finish I used the same decorative chain under each of the swans that I had stamped.

I’m pleased to be able to join Try it on Tuesday’s theme of “Feathered Friends” and Gill from gibbyfrogettcraftations who is hosting the “Elegance & Grunge” challenge over at Art Journal Journey.

Here’s the original photo my hubby took of the swan, isn’t he magnificent! I can just imagine him singing (grin!):

“Not a quack, not a quack, not a waddle or a quack
But a glide and a whistle and a snowy white back
And a head so noble and high
Say who’s an ugly duckling?
Not I!”

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

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

• Spectrum Aqua Artist Marker (Yellow, Aquamarine, Slate)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Cracked Pistachio)
• Memento Ink (London Fog, Rich Cocoa)
• Hobbycraft Pigment Ink (Silver)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.1mm)
• Poundland Metallic Paint (Silver)
• Script Metallic Pen (Silver)
• Craft Sensations (Clear Stamps CRO274/16R1)
• Kaisercraft clear stamp (Script CS752)
• Docrafts Urban Stamps (12 Days of Christmas – Icons PMA907909)
• Hampton Art 7 Gypsies Cling Mounted Rubber Stamps (Birdsong ICO151)
• Poundland Design Pad (Vintage Chic Creations CRO701/PL4)
• Swan printed photo
• Docrafts Anita’s Outline Stickers (Timeless Borders ANT810117)
• Fancy Stickers (Flowers & Butterflies 28965)
• Home Bargains Special Occasion (Mini Decorative Stickers 22740, Decorative Diamante Chain 26254)
• The Works Stickers (Rhinestone Flowers)
• Feather
• Ranger Glossy Accents
• UHU Stic

Bloom where you are planted

In May we always start planning our bedding plants for the pots and containers in our garden. I’m always excited to visit the plant nursery to select our plants and then plant them up, and we really enjoy watching the flowers bloom over the summer months, hence my page “Bloom where you are planted”.

To start the earthy background I applied Cracked Pistachio, Twisted Citron, Blueprint Sketch and Tea Dye ink from Distress Ink pads directly to the page, and then added water using a paint brush so the ink mixed and blended together. I stamped a Sketchy stamp by Kaisercraft using Potter’s Clay Memento Ink and black Archival Ink. Once the inks had dried I first painted Parchment acrylic paint and then white gesso using my finger to push some of the brighter colours back. Next I added some Mowed Lawn Distress Ink, again by blotting the ink pad onto the page and adding water with a paintbrush and I stenciled a honeycomb pattern by Craft Sensations using Rich Cocoa Memento Ink. Then I splattered and dripped grey and black Faber-Castell Big Brush markers; I did this by scribbling the marker onto an acrylic block, adding water and then dripping it onto the page. I also used Sanguine and Dark Sepia Big Brush markers to edge the page, smearing the ink with my finger and then I stamped the Sketchy stamp again using the Dark Sepia marker. To create the list of plants that we had bought at the plant nursery, I used a sheet from my “To do list” pad and then I stamped the plant names using black Archival Ink and added the ticks (check-marks) using a black UniPin marker. Next I distressed the edges using a pair of scissors, edged it and splattered it with the grey Big Brush Marker and stuck it to the page using a UHU Stic and washi tape at the corners. I added the rub-on transfer flower pot images and also the sentiment which I think links nicely with the theme. I also added the other wording which signifies that we start planting our bedding plants in May, ready to enjoy them flowering during June, July and August. To finish I added some paper flower embellishments in various colours that match the colours we have chosen for our containers this year.

As I created a grungy feel to my page I’m joining Gill from gibbyfrogettcraftations who is hosting the “Elegance & Grunge” challenge over at Art Journal Journey.

We decided to try a new plant nursery that was recommended to us and we were amazed by the large plant selection on offer, the quality of the plants and the very reasonable prices. The nursery sold both annuals and perennials but as there were three huge greenhouses of annuals alone, we only looked round these to make our selections for our containers and pots. The plants were fantastic and we will definitely be going back again to look around some more.

On our way back home from the plant nursery we passed a little village called Great Eccleston that has the most wonderful bakery, so we called in, well it would be rude not too (grin!).

There is lots of choice here with home baked breads, cakes, pies and a delicatessen counter. Needless to say we stocked up on quite a few treats.

The breads are amazing, especially the Spelt and Honey bread! As you can see by the empty shelves, their bread is really popular and it was only mid-morning. I like that the staff wear a traditional straw boater and a modern apron.

Their cakes are delicious too, so we bought a cream filled meringue for me and a black forest gateau for my hubby. The portions were huge (that’s a normal tea plate they are served on) so we only ate half each which meant we had two days of treats – yum! We enjoyed them at home with of usual cup of green tea and as T stands for Tuesday I’m saying a big hello to the T Gang – Happy T Day my friends!

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
• Liquitex Artist Color Acrylic (Parchment)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (White)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Cracked Pistachio, Twisted Citron, Blueprint Sketch, Tea Dye, Mowed Lawn)
• Memento Ink (Potter’s Clay, Rich Cocoa)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199, Cold Grey IV 233, Sanguine 188 B, Dark Sepia 175 B)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.5mm)
• Uniball Signo gel pen (White)
• Kaisercraft clear stamp (Sketchy CS878)
• Dovecraft Alphabet Stamp Set (WDN ALPHA STMP DCVW0050)
• Craft Sensations (Deco Stencil Set 154892)
• “Things to do … People to see” pad
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Sentiments (Summer #ROY-505 Rub-on, Spring #ROY506 Rub-on, Spring is coming #CUR-666 Rub-on)
• The Works Washi Tape (Enjoy the Ride)
• Poundland (Accessories Pack 60911)
• Ranger Glossy Accents
• UHU Stic