Celebrate

It’s time for our new challenge this month over at Country View Challenges which is being hosted by the lovely Evelyn whose theme is Mother’s Day.

Inspired by my mum and her love of freesias, I created this art journal page to celebrate Mother’s Day.

To create my bokeh background, I covered the page with Peacock Feathers, Tumbled Glass and Mowed Lawn Distress Ink using a blending tool. Then I applied the circles using a Sun & Moon stencil and white gesso, slightly overlapping some of the circles as I went. To finish the background, I splattered the whole page with black DecoArt acrylic paint. For the freesias, I die cut the flower heads using a Fresh Freesia Sizzix Thinlits set by Prima Marketing from some white cardstock that I had coloured using Abandoned Coral, Mustard Seed and Scattered Straw Distress Ink. The stems were die cut using the same Thinlits set from some green Kraft cardstock by Tim Holtz. Once arranged on the page, I added the wording which reads “Celebrate”, “It’s your day” and “XOXOXO” which were Sentiments Label Stickers by Tim Holtz.

It was my first time using these pretty Fresh Freesia Thinlits and I love how they look on my page with these Sentiments Label Stickers by Tim Holtz; both were from Country View Crafts and I’m sure I’ll be using them again soon (grin!).

For more inspiration please see the amazing Mother’s Day creations from my fellow Design Team members over at Country View Challenges. I hope you’ll join us, it would be lovely to see you there and you never know, you might even win a £20 voucher for the Country View Crafts shop! Before you enter, please read the rules!

As T Stands for Tuesday, here’s the cute mug that I usually have at my mum’s when I visit (grin!) – Happy T Day everyone!

Stay safe and well! x

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

Challenges

As well as Country View Challenges, I’m pleased to be joining the following challenges:

The lovely Valerie of Bastelmania is hosting over at Art Journal Journey this month and her theme is Spring; as Mother’s Day is synonymous with Spring here in the UK and the colours are spring-like I’m joining her challenge with my page.

For The Love of Mixed Media challenge over at The Funkie Junkie Boutique Challenge Blog as my mixed media page was created for my mum and mother’s day.

Paperbabe Stamps and their #162 – Anything Goes challenge with my freesia page.

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Anything Goes theme with my celebrate Mother’s Day page.

Use At Least One Stencil challenge at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge as I used a stencil to create my bokeh background.

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Adventure

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

My page today was inspired by one of our walks along the beach front and a sea view that reminded me of adventures (grin!).

For the background, I dragged Hickory Smoke and Black Soot Distress Ink pads over the textured mixed media paper and then I added some water using a paintbrush to activate some of the ink. Next I framed the page by painting some white gesso around the edges using my finger which gave a cloudy appearance. The postcard, world, rectangle and bird sitting on the world globe were all fussy cut from some Vintage Travels design paper and the three alphabet tiles were cut from a wallpaper sample; they were arranged onto the page using double-sided tape.

I added two chipboard pieces from BoozyBear which I covered with Versamark Watermark ink and some specks of white and then clear embossing powder; they were stuck in place using Ranger Glossy Accents. I added all the motivational wording which were from Sentiments Sticker Pad by Finnabair. To finish, I embellished the page with some metal and glass beads which were recycled from an old necklace.

You need to use three different mediums on your projects to join our Anything Mixed Media Goes Challenge and for more inspiration please check out the amazing creations from my fellow Design Team members over at Creative Artiste too. I hope you are inspired to join us; it would be lovely to see you there!

Here’s the view that inspired my page; I captured this sea view whilst out walking as I loved the grey moody clouds and sunshine with the boat in the forefront, which seems to be waiting for new adventures (grin!).

Hope that you’re 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.

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

• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Hickory Smoke, Black Soot)
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Creative Expressions Design Pad (Vintage Travels)
• Wallpaper sample
• X-Press It! double-sided tape
• Boozybear chipboard pieces
• Versamark (Watermark Stamp Pad)
• Wow! Embossing Powder (White, Clear)
• Ranger Glossy Accents
• Finnabair Prima Marketing Art Daily Sticker Pad (Sentiments)

Challenges As well as Creative Artiste, I’m pleased to be able to join the following challenges today which are: I’m so pleased to be able to join Art Journal Journey where the theme is Inspired By in honour of Eileen from The Artful Crafter’s Blog who picked the theme and was supposed to host this month but sadly passed away shortly after her heart surgery last month – she will be greatly missed! I’m so pleased to be able to remember her by joining AJJ with my page which was inspired by one of my walks along the seafront and new adventures. Paperbabe Stamps Challenge #141 – Anything Goes with my page. MIUCB #48 – Anything Goes + optional twist of No Stamping challenge over at the Mix It Up Challenge Blog with the background, collage and EP techniques I used to create this page and there was no stamping too. Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Blog and their Anything Goes challenge with my art journal page. LTCCB #144 – April Anything Goes challenge over at Love To Craft Challenge Blog with my mixed media page.

Tis the Witching Hour

Here’s another Halloween page, this time in a vintage style to celebrate the Witching Hour with steampunk clocks, recycled chains, bats and I thought I’d never say this but a spider too – eek!

I started by colouring the background of the page with Parchment Liquitex acrylic paint and Pébéo white gesso using a baby wipe. When dry, I tore a piece of Pion Design paper called Midnight Spell that details clocks, lace and cobwebs and stuck it to the page using a glue stick. Then I added stamping and collage layers to blend the paper into the background; firstly by stamping a Gothic Book stamp from Finnabair over the page using black Archival Ink. Then using the same Gothic Book stamp and ink I stamped some tissue paper from an old dressmaking pattern, and ripped and stuck pieces of it onto the page using Liquitex matte gel medium. Then I applied some more white gesso and layered more of the stamped tissue paper over the top. Next I stamped the pretty foliage over the page which was from a Floral Silhouette stamp set by Penny Black and some cobwebs around the edges of the page using a stamp by Molly Browns; both were stamped using black Archival Ink.

I used the black Archival Ink to create the “Tis the Witching Hour” wording using an alphabet stamp set by Hampton Arts and also to add the bats which were from an Autumnal Treasures stamp set that was free from a magazine.

The clock was made from wooden chipboard pieces from Boozybear which I covered with white gesso and then coloured with the black Archival Ink and a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker.

I backed the cogs and face with some recycled cream card that I die cut into circles and then I painted them with some watered down black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker. The clock pieces were stuck together using Ranger Glossy Accents making sure that the hands on the clock showed midnight (the Witching Hour!) and I added some highlights using a silver Daler-Rowney paint pen.

The clock is arranged on the page with some pieces of chain and pendants from an old necklace that I had coloured with the white gesso and then some black DecoArt acrylic paint. To finish, I suspended a spider from the top of the page; it was stamped using the Autumnal Treasures stamp set and black Archival Ink and I drew a line using a black Uni Pin for the little spider to dangle from (grin!).

As T Stands for Tuesday I’m sharing my hubby’s Hobgoblin beer which is brewed by Wychwood Brewery in Oxfordshire.

I thought of this beer as the Wychwood logo, (which is hard to see, but it’s etched onto the neck of the bottle), includes a witch flying on a broomstick which is perfect for my page too (grin!).

I hope that you’re all staying safe and well!

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:

• Liquitex Artist Color Acrylic (Parchment)
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Pion Design Paper (Midnight Spell PD8103)
• Prima Marketing Finnaibar Clear Stamps (Gothic Book #966966)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Style Dressmaking Pattern tissue paper
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• Penny Black Clear Stamp Set (Floral Silhouette 30-563)
• Molly Blooms Rubber Stamps (Cobweb MB-0065D)
• Boozybear wooden chipboard pieces (Clock Face)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
• Recycled Cream Cardstock
• The Works (Cutting Dies – Circles)
• Ranger Glossy Accents
• Daler-Rowney Acrylic Paint Markers (Silver)
• Recycled necklace – chains and pendants
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
• Hampton Art (Alphabet Stamp Set WM1037)
• Creative Stamping Issue 61 (Autumn Treasures Stamp Set)
• Uni Pin Fine Line Marker (Black 0.5mm)

Challenges I’m pleased to join the lovely Chris aka Pearshapedchris, who is hosting the Hold The Line challenge over at Art Journal Journey with the lines of chain and cobwebs on my page. I’m joining in the fun over at Country View Challenges and their Halloween challenge with my Tis the witching hour art journal page. I’m joining the Purple, Orange, Green! Eek! It’s Halloween! challenge over at the The Funkie Junkie Boutique Challenge Blog with my vintage witching hour page. I’m pleased to join the Not A Card challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge with my art journal page. I’m also joining in the fun over at the Two Old Bats Halloween Challenge and their Halloween Jump Start challenge which is their very first challenge – thank you Dar for inviting me to join in the fun, I hope you like my witching hour page! I’m so pleased to be able to join in the Anything Goes over at Paperbabe Stamps with my witching hour page too. I’m also pleased to join Sandee & aimlee’s Steampunk Challenge and their Anything Goes -Steampunk/Industrial challenge with my vintage steampunk Halloween page. I’m also joining the Mix It Up Challenge Blog and their Anything Goes + optional twist of Distressing (ink or tool) with the stamping and layering background techniques and the techniques I used to create the Steampunk clock. Don’t forget that you still have another week to join in the Halloween fun over at Try it on Tuesday too!

Just Perfect

I recently won one of the challenges over at Paperbabe Stamps so I was very excited to use the new stamp set that I chose as my prize – thanks so much!

The Paperbabes Stamp Set was “just perfect” for decorating the recycled tags on my page which I found when I was tidying my craft room; the tags were from clothing as well as towels and pottery.

I started by adding lots of the tags to the page using a glue stick and then covered them with several layers of Pébéo white gesso, letting each layer of gesso dry before adding the next.

Then I edged the tags with a Cold Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker, smudging the ink with my finger. I added some washi tape to some of the tags and splattered the page then coloured the tags using Cerulean Blue Winsor & Newton watercolour paint. When the paint was dry I edged the tags and washi tape using a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker. Using black Archival Ink, I stamped the tags using a Spritz & Speckles stamp set, also from Paperbabe Stamps and then using a Gothic Book stamp from Finnabair. I stamped the tags using a Floral Icons stamp from Docrafts and Teal Zeal Memento Ink and then I splattered the page with black DecoArt acrylic paint. To finish, I added three copper butterflies and also a Kaisercraft sticker which reads “Just Perfect”.   

The washi tape and watercolours that I used for this page were part of the fabulous goodies that I received from CJ over at CJ & Ink – thanks very much!

Here’s the Spritz & Speckles stamp set that I won from Paperbabe Stamps too, I’m sure I’ll use this one a lot as it adds such lovely textures and grungy effects – thanks so much!

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.

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 all the tags on my page.

I’m joining in Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their Grunge It Up challenge with my grungy art journal page.

I’m also happy to be able to join the #126 – Anything Goes challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with my page.

Don’t forget that you still have time to join our Tag You’re It challenge this month over at A Vintage Journey too, it would be lovely to see you there!

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

• Recycled tags from clothing, towels and pottery
• Pritt Stick
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Cold Grey IV 233, Black 199)
• Winsor & Newton Watercolour Paint Set (Cerulean Blue)
• Paperbabe Stamps Stamp Set (Spritz & Speckles)
• Prima Marketing Finnabair Clear Stamp (Gothic Book 966966)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
• Docrafts Creativity Essentials A5 Clear Stamp Set (Floral Icons DCE907123)
• Tsukineko Memento Ink (Team Zeal)
• The Range (Craft Butterflies Stickers CRO420)
• Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet (Pen & Ink SS360)

Art Colours Life

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

Today’s mixed media art journal page was inspired by happy summer sunflowers and the beautiful quote by John Lubbock “Like the sun colours flowers, art colours life” which resonated with me. I hope you like it and that you are inspired to join us over at Creative Artiste; it would be lovely to see you there!

I started by applying Snowcone, Boysenberry, Bubble Gum and Lime Faber-Castell Gelatos, scribbling them onto the page and then smudging the colours with my finger which I had wet with water. Then I used a baby wipe to remove some of the Gelato colours through two different sizes of honeycomb stencils which gave the page depth and contrast. I used the smaller of the two Honeycomb stencils to add Rose Bud and Paris Dusk Memento Inks using a blending tool. Next I stamped an abstract numbers stamp from Kaisercraft and a Solar & Lunar stamp from Finnabair using black Archival Ink and then I stencilled Ranger Texture Paste through a Reversed Honeycomb stencil from That’s Crafty.

I had fun creating the large sunflower, drawing the petals and cutting them out of some design paper. The petals were coloured using Lemon and Limencello Faber-Castell Gelatos and a Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker which I also used to edge the petals. The centre of the sunflower was die cut from some glossy brown card stock to which I then applied Ranger Texture Paste through the Reversed Honeycomb stencil. To finish, I added the quote which I created using an alphabet X-Cut die set with some yellow paper. Like the sunflower, the letters were highlighted using Limencello Faber-Castell gelato and edged using a Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker.

All you need to do is to use three different mediums on your projects to join our Anything Mixed Media Goes Challenge. For more inspiration please check out the amazing creations from my fellow Design Team members over at Creative Artiste too.

We have sunflowers in our garden this year which have flowered beautifully …

… and as you can see the bees love them (grin!).

Hoping that you’re 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 joining the Stencilmania challenge fun over at the The Funkie Junkie Boutique Challenge Blog with the three stencils that I used on this page.

I’m pleased to join in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Use Your Favourite Tool challenge too as I used lots of stencils which is one of my favourite tools to use on my mixed media pages.

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

• Faber-Castell Gelatos (Snowcone, Boysenberry, Bubble Gum, Lime, Lemon. Limoncello)
• Creative Expressions That Special Touch of Mica Masks (Honeycomb)
• Craft Sensations (Deco Stencil Set 154892)
• Tsukineko Memento Ink ( Rose Bud, Paris Dusk)
• Kaisercraft Clear Stamps (Mister Fox CS173)
• Prima Marketing Finnabair Clear Stamp (Solar & Lunar 966997)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• That’s Crafty Dinky Stencil (Reversed Honeycomb)
• Ranger Texture Paste
• Design Paper and Card Stock – giveaway from local craft shop
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Artist Pitt Pen (Dark Sepia 175 B)
• Pritt Stick
• X-Cut Alphabet Die Set (Centurion D-XCU503083)
• Leon X-Large Coloured Paper Pad

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

Beautiful Self

Inspired by a beautiful notebook that my sister bought me, I created this fun Highland cow page as a reminder to ‘Just be your beautiful self’ (grin!).

I started by taking a page out of the notebook to use as part of the collage background. I dyed the page with inks, firstly Bluebird ink for the sky and then with Leaf Green, Fern Green and Prickly Pear ink for the grass; they are all Wendy Vecchi Blendable Dye Inks.

As the page was lined I ripped the paper diagonally, positioning the pieces so the lines ran from left-hand side up to the right-hand side diagonally across the page. I collaged them using Liquitex Matte Gel Medium along with some torn pieces of kitchen towel and baby wipes that were used to mop up blue and green inks and paints from previous art journal pages that I had created. When dry, I painted Ultramarine and Sap Green Kuretake watercolours to add more colour to the sky and grass. The highland cow is from an old magazine and layered some of the pieces of coloured paper, kitchen towel and baby wipes over the edges to blend it into the background. As you can see, I created my page background so that it matches and blends with the felt/fabric look of the highland cow image background.

For the foliage and daisies I used a Wildflower Stems #2 Thinlet set from Tim Holtz: cutting the tall grasses from brown tissue paper and layering them on top of the background using Liquitex Matte Gel Medium; I used white cardstock for the leafy foliage which I stamped using black Archival Ink and a Finnabair Stamp, coloured using the Leaf Green, Fern Green and Prickly Pear Wendy Vecchi Blendable Inks and Mowed lawn Distress Ink, and edged using a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker; and I used some linen textured cardstock for the daisies which were coloured using the Leaf Green and Prickly Pear inks and also watered down Watering Can Wendy Vecchi Blendable Ink for the petals. Once stuck into place using a Zig glue pen, I edged the leafy foliage and daisies using a Cold Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker so they stood out more. Then I added a Kaisercraft sticker which reads “Just be your beautiful self” which finished the page.

Here’s the beautiful A4 notebook that inspired my page.

You may notice that I always list the materials I use for pages at the end of my posts and as you can see here I use this type of notebook to record these details, so this gift was perfect (grin!).

As T Stands for Tuesday I’m also sharing my cuppa (of Ceylon Tea) which I often enjoy whilst crafting – wishing you all a very Happy T day!

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 Halle from Halle’s Hobbies over at Art Journal Journey and her A Stitch In Time challenge this month with the faux felt/fabric background.

I’m pleased to join in the Summer Fields challenge over at Country View Challenges with my highland cow summery field art journal page.

I’m also happy to be able to join the #121 – Sketch challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with my page; the green and blue splits the page and images.

I’m also joining in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their Sprays and Splashes challenge with the splashes of green ink on the die cut foliage.

Don’t forget that you still have time to join our monthly Anything Mixed Media Goes challenge over at Creative Artiste Challenge Blog too!

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

• Notebook page
• Ranger Wendy Vecchi Make Art Blendable Dye Ink (Bluebird, Prickly Pear, Leaf green, Fern Green, Watering Can)
• Recycled kitchen towel and baby wipes used to mop up inks and paints
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour Paint set (Ultramarine No:64, Sap Green No:53)
• Old magazine
• Pritt Stick
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Wildflower Stems #2 664164)
• Recycled brown tissue paper
• White cardstock
• Prima Marketing Finnabair Clear Stamp (Old Receipt #966980)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Mowed Lawn)
• Craft Sensations (Luxury Cardstock with Linen Texture CRO240/GE)
• Zig Memory System 2-Way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt Artist Pen (Black 199, Cold Grey IV 23)
• Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet (Fiesta! SS284)

Welsh Poppy

Today I have another page celebrating the flowers found in my garden. This time we have the Welsh poppy which are flowering so beautifully at the moment (grin!).

I started by stamping the poppy heads from a Tim Holtz Flower Garden stamp set using black Versafine Ink. Then I added some white gesso to the background using a palette knife, leaving the gesso thick in places; I left it to dry overnight. Next I painted Sap Green, Hooker’s Green and Burnt Sienna Kuretake watercolour paints over the background by applying water to the page first and then painting on the colours and letting them blend together. I added more detail to the background including: the numbers using a stencil from Craft Sensations and Black Soot Distress Ink; the text which was stamped using a Script stamp from Kaisercraft and the same Black Soot ink; and also a Solar & Lunar stamp from Finnabair using Cottage Ivy Memento Ink.

The poppy heads are coloured and shaded using Yellow and Gold Spectrum Aqua markers and also Canary, Honeycomb and Lime Green Winsor & Newton Promarkers. Then I stamped the stems and leaves using the same Flower Garden stamp set and black Archival Ink. They are shaded using Olive Green and Forest Green Winsor & Newton Promarkers.

I added some Mini Squares using a stencil from Creative Expressions and some Rusty Hinge Distress Ink. The “Welsh Poppy” wording was created using letter stickers from Kaisercraft and the huge bee was from a Field Notes Ephemera Pack by Tim Holtz which finished the page.

If you are interested you can see the other pages that were inspired by two of my spring flowering plants in my garden here:

• Bluebells
• Tulips

Like my page there are two shades of Welsh poppies in our garden, here are the golden orange ones …

… and these are the yellow ones, aren’t they beautiful (grin!).

Hoping that you are 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 Mia from Craftartista over at Art Journal Journey and her Flowers challenge this month with my Welsh Poppy page.

I’m so happy to be able to join the #119 – Picture Inpiration challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with the green and yellow colour palette, poppy flowers and Mini Squares scattering the background. Thanks so much for my win too, how exciting!

I’m joining in Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their We’re All A-Buzz challenge as I added a huge bee on my page.

I’m also joining the Oh, Man! challenge over at the The Funkie Junkie Boutique Challenge Blog with the masculine styled background of my page.

Don’t forget that you still have time to join our Beautiful Blooms Challenge this month over at A Vintage Journey; my art journal page would be perfect for this challenge and I hope you will join in the fun too – it would be lovely to see you there!

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

• Tim Holtz Collection Sampers Anonymous (Flower Garden CMS215)
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Zig Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour Paint set (Sap Green No:53, Hokker’s Green No:52, Burnt Sienna No:46)
• Craft Sensations (Deco Stencil Art 154892)
• Kaisercraft Clear Stamps (Script CS752)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Black Soot, Rusty Hinge)
• Prima Marketing Finnabair Clear Stamp (Solar & Lunar 966997)
• Tsukineko Memento Ink (Cottage Ivy)
• Spectrum Aqua Artist Marker (Yellow, Gold)
• Winsor & Newton Promarker (Canary Y367, Honeycomb C547, Lime Green G178, Olive Green Y724, Forest Green G356)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Creative Expressions Mini Stencils (Mini Squares CEMSSQUARE)
• Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet (Mix & Match – Alpha SS252)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Ephemera Pack (Field Notes #TH94051)
• Stix2 Glue Dots

Creative Card Making at A Vintage Journey

Today I’m over at A Vintage Journey with our Monthly Creative Card Making tutorial.

I’m sharing how I created some Mixed Media cards that are suitable for different occasions such as birthdays, to say thank you or even just simply to say hello (grin!).

I was really pleased with the design and how they came together!

You may have already guessed that I used one of my favourite smooshing techniques using inks to create a Masterboard background.

It was fun making the Masterboard with all the layers of stamping and stencilling, and when it was complete I cut it into four background panels.

I kept the design simple by adding a pretty white flower and butterfly die cut and some inspirational wording; I really like how they contrast against the colourful inky background.

Please check out my full tutorial over to A Vintage Journey where you’ll find lots more photos and details of how they came together.

Challenges

I’m pleased to join the #117 – Sketch challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with the splatters, border and sentiment that I included on these cards.

I’m pleased to join in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Flower Power challenge too with the flowers that I added to my cards.

I’m also happy to join in the Animal Magic challenge over at Country View Challenges with the butterflies on these cards.

I’m joining in the Create A Scene challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge with my pretty flower and butterfly nature scenes.

Of course some of you may remember me using the leftovers pieces of this Masterboard on my Happy Easter page and ….

…. Easter cards too (grin!).

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

Stay safe and keep well! x

Here is a list of all the materials used to create this card:

• Daler-Rowney A4 Mixed Media Paper
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Peeled Paint, Peacock Feathers, Twisted Citron, Black Soot)
• Creative Expressions Mini Stencil (Interlocking Circles CEMSINTER)
• Ranger Distress Archival Ink (Black Soot)
• Prima Marketing Finnabair Stamps (Old Receipt #966980)
• Tim Holtz Collection Stampers Anonymous (Documented CMS226)
• Art Discount Acrylic Paint (White)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
• Ranger Texture Paste
• Tim Holtz Layering Mini Stencil (Set 16 THMST016)
• Craft Sensations (Luxury Cardstock with Linen Texture CRO240/GE)
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Wildflower Stems #2 664164)
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Sidekick Die Cut (Springtime 662711)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Marker (Black 199)
• Zig Memory System 2-Way Glue (Dial Action Glue Pen)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Stickers (Small Talk #TH93193)
• White cardstock
• X-Press It! double-sided tape

I’ve got nothing to do today but smile

My page today is in memory of my dearest friend who passed away last year, it would have been her 50^th birthday this month. She was well known for her smile so I created it with this in mind using the quote “I’ve got nothing to do today but smile”.

I started by smooshing the background using Peeled Paint, Peacock Feather, Twisted Citron and Chipped Sapphire Distress Ink by stamping the ink pad onto an acrylic block, spritzing with water and pressing the block and also dripping the ink onto the page. I did this a number of times drying the page with a heat gun between each application of ink. I stamped an Invoice stamp from Finnabair and a letter stamp from Tim Holtz using Black Soot Distress Archival Ink over the background. Then I stencilled some Peeled Paint and Peacock Feather Distress Ink through a Mini Specimens Template by The Crafter’s Workshop. I outlined some of the stencilling with a black Uni Pin marker and then splattered the page using a white Uni Posca paint pen and also some Black Soot Distress Ink. Next I stencilled some Ranger Texture Paste through a tape measure design Tim Holtz Stencil and when dry, coloured it further with a white Uni Posca paint pen. I added some white text rub-on transfers from Tim Holtz which read “Create Art”, “Shine brightly” and “explore”, a large white butterfly and some daisy flowers which are all Botanical Layers from Tim Holtz. To finish, I added two green hearts and the wording “I’ve got nothing to do today but smile” which are all Kaisercraft stickers.

Our days were full of smiles when all the girlies (and their boys) got together, here we are having happy times when we met up in Chester. What happy memories we made over the years – she will always be in my heart (grin!).

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

Challenges

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

I’m pleased to join the Hearts challenge over at Art Journal Journey that is being hosted by the lovely Bleubeard & Elizabeth this month with the hearts I added and sentiment behind this page.

I’m pleased to join in the Splatters, Splashes & Drips challenge over at Country View Challenges with my inky background.

I’m pleased to be able to join the #113 – Sketch challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with my page too; inspired by the sketch design with the central butterfly and splatters that I included.

I’m joining in the Anything Goes challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge with my art journal page too.

Over at the Mix It Up Challenge Blog their theme is # 32 – Anything Goes + optional twist of Stenciling, I used two different stencils on this page so I’m pleased to be able to join this challenge too.

Don’t forget that you still have until next Tuesday to join our Go Green or Recycle Something over at Try it on Tuesday too, it would be lovely to see you there!

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

• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Peeled Paint, Peacock Feather, Twisted Citron, Chipped Sapphire, Black Soot)
• Prima Marketing Finnabair Clear Stamp 4 (Invoice 966980)
• Tim Holtz Stamp Set (Documented CMS226)
• Distress Archival Ink (Black Soot)
• The Crafter’s Workshop (Mini Specimens Template TCW454S)
• Uni Pin Fine Line Marker (Black 0.2mm)
• Uni Posca Paint Pen (White)
• Tim Holtz Mini Stencil (Set #16 THMST016)
• Ranger Texture Paste
• Tim Holtz idea-ology (Text Remnant Rubs #TH93695, Botanical Layers #TH93554)
• Stix2 glue dots
• Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet (Fly Free SS289, High Tea SS336)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Marker (Black 199)
• Uniball Gel Pen (White)