Makes me dream

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

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

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

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

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

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

Challenges

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Wander-Found-Noted

Today’s page sees me creating rust again, this time building up the layers of colour and using a new technique with texture paste and a piece of plastic bag from some packaging.

I started by applying some Neutral Gray and Bright Aqua Green Heavy Body Liquitex paints quite thickly to the page with a paintbrush. Then when dry I added some Rusty Hinge and Vintage Photo Distress Ink using a blending tool concentrating the ink colours where I hadn’t painted any colour.

Next I applied some Ranger Texture Paste to the page by placing some of the paste onto a piece of plastic bag then pressing it onto the page, crinkling the bag and lifting it off the page; I then transferred the paste around the page using the same technique to create the raised texture. When dry I added more of the Rusty Hinge Distress Ink over the top of the texture paste using a blending tool and used a Sanguine Faber-Castell Big Brush marker. Then I applied some Iced Chai and Iced Coffee Metallic Faber-Castell gelatos to emphasis the texture more; smudging the colour with my finger. I repeated all the layers of Rusty Hinge, Sanguine, Iced Chai and Iced Coffee colours until I got the look I wanted.

To add to the rusty vintage feel, I added two moth stickers, some word stickers and some quote chips all of which are from Tim Holtz; they read “Wander – To Dreamland – All the beautiful stars of the sky”, “Found – A fortunate find – And let it fly away” and “Noted – The most beautiful thing – Till morning light”.

Living by the beach as we do, we have quite a few metal sculptures which are worn and weathered creating beautiful rusty artworks. This one is called Desire and can be found along Blackpool South promenade and casts a shadow of a heart at certain times of the day, it represents beach holiday romances.

This one is the High Tide Organ which is played by the sea at high tide through pipes attached to the sea wall, such fun (grin!).

Challenges

I’m joining the Something New challenge that I’m hosting over at Art Journal Journey as I used a new technique to create the rusty background and also my new Ranger Texture Paste (grin!).

I’m joining in the Rust It Up challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge with my rusty background, thanks for the inspiration!

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

• Liquitex Heavy Body Acrylic (Neutral Gray 5, Vivid Aqua Green)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Rusty Hinge, Vintage Photo)
• Ranger Texture Paste
• Recycled plastic bag
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Sanguine 188 B)
• Faber-Castell Gelato (Iced Chai, Iced Coffee)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology (Salvage Stickers Crowded Attic #TH2898, Clipping Stickers #TH93583, Quote Chips #TH93563)
• UHU Glue Pen

Seek

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

Enjoy this theme and have fun, all we ask is that there is an animal somewhere on your project. If you want to see which animals my Design Teamies have chosen please feel free to pop over to our blog.

When I saw this cheeky squirrel in a magazine, I thought he looked inquisitive so wanted to use him on my page; I like the way that he seems to be looking out at us, do you think he is trying to tell us something (grin!).

I started by painting the page with Kuretake watercolour paints, for the sky I used Ultramarine Pale and for the foreground I used Burnt Sienna. Next I stamped the trees using Rich Cocoa Memento Ink and then painted the foreground with some white DecoArt acrylic paint to look like snow. I stamped foliage and berries using Pistachio, Toffee Crunch and Potter’s Clay Memento Ink and then I splattered the whole page with some of the white acrylic paint to give a snowy appearance. The squirrel is fussy cut from an old magazine and once he was stuck in place I drew his whiskers with a black Derwent Graphik marker. To finish, I added the wording “adventure awaits you”, “wander”, “go where your heart takes you”, “embrace the journey” and “make it count” which are rub-on transfers and the word “seek” which is a quote chip; all of which are from the Tim Holtz idea-ology collection.

The squirrel on my page is a red squirrel also called a Eurasian red squirrel which has a darker coat in wintertime, hence the winter theme of my page. If you are interested here are some fun facts:

• You will only find flourishing populations of red squirrels in the Lake District and the Highlands in Scotland. They very shy and timid, not at all like American Red Squirrels.
• Red squirrels are largely vegetarian although they find acorns indigestible. They like to build larders of cones to provide food through the winter. Some larders have been found holding as many as 2,000 cones.
• Beatrix Potter’s Tale of Squirrel Nutkin, first published in 1903, did much to popularise the red squirrel; she was inspired by the squirrels that she watched in Lake District.

My red squirrel reminded me of the Scottish shortbread, can you see the red squirrel on this pretty tin (grin!).

As T Stands for Tuesday I’m sharing my cuppa and shortbread with 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.

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 Eileen of The Artful Crafter and her Dreams or Wishes challenge over at Art Journal Journey with all the inspirational wording on my page.

I’m joining the Autumn Glory challenge over at Moo Mania & More with my wintry page with pops of autumnal colour.

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

I’m also so happy to join #103 – Picture Inspiration challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with the pops of autumnal colours on my page which match the picture inspiration too.

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

• Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour Paint set (Ultramarine Pale, Burnt Sienna)
• Creative Stamping Magazine (Autumnal Treasures from Issue 61, Winter Wonderland from Issue 62)
• Tsukineko Memento Ink (Rich Cocoa, Pistachio, Toffee Crunch, Potter’s Clay)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (White)
• Old magazine
• Derwent Graphik Line Marker (Black 0.05mm)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology (Remnant Rubs – Special Delivery #TH93188, Quote Chips #TH93563)
• UHU Stic
• Stix2 double-sided tape

Card Making Tutorial at A Vintage Journey

Hello Everyone!

Today I’m over at A Vintage Journey with this month’s card making post.

I always make cards for family and friends, so I’m pleased to be sharing a Shabby Chic style card that I made for a forever friend of mine.

I hope that you’ll pop over to A Vintage Journey to see my tutorial which includes lots more photos and full details of how this card came together. If you are interested, you can also find a full list of materials that I used below.

As I’ve been enjoying the summer flowers in my garden and we have lots of lavender flowering at the moment, I was inspired to included lavender as part of my card design.

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

Happy and creative wishes! Jo x

Challenges

I’m pleased to join the Gold challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with the gold ribbon I added to this card.

I’m also pleased to join the Tim Holtz challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Work it Wednesday with all the Tim Holtz products I used to make this card.

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

• Kraft Cardstock
• Sizzix 3D Texture Fades A6 Tim Holtz Alterations (Botanicals 662716)
• Annie Sloane Chalk Paint (Old White 01)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Tea Dye, Vintage Photo, Mowed Lawn, Milled Lavender, Seedless Preserves, Mowed Lawn)
• White Cardstock
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Collage Paper (Botanical #TH93705, Halloween #TH93727)
• Recycled white paper coloured green with Mowed Lawn, Forest Moss, Pine Needles and Twisted Citron Distress Ink and purple with Milled Lavender and Seedless Preserves Distress Ink)
• Sizzix Thinkets Tim Holtz Alterations (Wildflowers 661190, Wildflower Stems #2 664164)
• Recycled Purple Chiffon Ribbon
• Cream Lace
• Recycled Gold Ribbon dyed using Mowed Lawn and Forest Moss Distress Ink
• Tim Holtz idea-ology (Quote Chips #TH93563)
• Home Bargains (Sweet Hearts)
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• Stix2 double-sided tape

Books

My art journal page was inspired by books, things with wings and some of my favourite quotes about books. I had in mind creating an aged and old look design for this page and also had fun trying out some old and new techniques too!

I started by using one of my favoured techniques to create the wood grain effect background by sprinkling Sandstone, Terracotta, Yellow Ochre and Dark Brown Colourcraft Brusho powders onto the page and applying Liquitex matte gel medium over the top using a paintbrush. The gel medium was watered-down so it was easier to apply and I ensured that I dragged the paintbrush horizontally across the page to create the wood grain; I left it to dry overnight. The book spines are fussy cut from wallpaper and are stuck into place using the matte gel medium. All the book spines were white originally so I coloured them with Cold Grey, Dark Sepia and Sanguine Faber-Castell Big Brush Markers, smudging the ink with my finger, to give them an old and worn look. Then I added detail to the spines and outlined them using a black Uni Pin marker and a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker to add shadows around and under the books. The butterflies and moths are Crowded Attic Salvage Stickers and the three white blocks of wording are Small Talk Stickers, both from the Tim Holtz idea-ology collection. I chose wording that I thought related to books, they read “be amazed”, “live, create, tell the story” and “stay curious”.

I had fun making the small booklet, a first for me (grin!). I cut some old diary pages to size, stamped script on them using a Kaisercraft stamp and black Archival Ink, aged them around the edges using Old Paper Distress Ink and a blending tool, folded the paper in half and then bound them together using thick thread down the centre. I stuck a cover on the front of the booklet which was fussy cut from a Kaisercraft glossy paper, it reads “Once upon a time…”. The booklet is stuck onto the page using double sided tape.

I stuck two of the inside pages together to make them more sturdy so I could add some of my favourite book quotes along with some embellishments. The quotes are stamped using an alphabet stamp from Dovecraft and black Archival Ink and I coloured the letters using Fawn, Boulder and Topaz Spectrum Aqua markers. The first quote reads “Between the pages of a book is a wonderful place to be” and I added an Anthology die cut shape from Kaisercraft which reads “ Today’s Story”.

The second quote is by Neil Gaiman and reads “A book is a dream you hold in your hand”. I used the same Kaisercraft glossy paper to fussy cut the word “dream” which I folded so that the booklet closes, and stuck in place using a UHU Stic.

The third quote reads “Books give a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and life to everything” and I added a little butterfly to the bottom right-hand corner.

This page reminds me of Blackpool Central Library, which I have featured before in a previous post, that dates back to 1911 and was built in the Edwardian Baroque style.

The entrance is spectacular with the staircases running either side of the domed roof.

It is such a beautiful airy space and …

… the butterflies and “Once upon a time…” on my page remind me of two of the amazing stained glass windows that can be found in the library too (grin!).

Challenges

I’m pleased to join the lovely Erika from the blog BioArtGal  and her In the Sky/In the Air challenge over at Art Journal Journey with the butterflies and moths that I included on this page.

Over at A Vintage Journey, the theme is Book It! and I’m very pleased to be able to join this challenge too with my Book inspired art journal page, I had so much fun creating the book spines and small book for this Mixed Media style art journal page.

With the butterflies and moths I added to the page, this is also a reminder that you still have until next Tuesday to join our Things with Wings Challenge over at Try it on Tuesday too, it would be lovely to see you there!

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:

• Colourcraft Brushos (Sandstone, Terracotta, Yellow Ochre, Dark Brown)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Cold Grey IV 233, Dark Sepia 175 B, Sanguine 188 B, Black 199)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.1mm)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Old Paper)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Spectrum Aqua Markers (Fawn, Boulder, Topaz)
• Kaisercraft clear stamp (Script CS752)
• Dovecraft Essentials Alphabet Stamp Set (WDN ALPHA STMP DCVW0050)
• Wallpaper sample
• Recycled paper from diary
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Salvage Stickers (Crowded Attic #TH92898)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Stickers (Small Talk #TH93193)
• Kaisercraft Collectables (Anthology CT938)
• Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet (Fly Free SS289)
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• UHU Stic
• Stix2 double-sided tape

Everyday is a New Beginning

Now spring has arrived, the evenings are getting lighter, we have had more sunshine and blue skies, spring flowers are blooming, there are new shoots on trees and new plants are sprouting up from the ground.

So my page today is celebrating these new beginnings to say Hello Springtime over at Art Journal Journey where I’m guest host this month. I’ve been amazed by all your support and wonderful creations, thanks so much!

I started this page by stencilling a clock face on brown cardboard that I recycled from some packaging using Pébéo modelling paste and left it to dry. Then I die cut some trellis with a pretty flower design out of some recycled paper using my Big Shot machine and stuck it in place using Liquitex matte gel medium so that it filled the centre diagonal of the page. I cut the clock face out of the cardboard and stuck it to the page along with some cardboard number stickers that I had, and then I covered everything with Pébéo white gesso. When the page was dry, I stuck a piece of pretty design paper which I had torn in half to the top left and bottom right hand corners of the page using a glue stick; they are edged with a Cold Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker which I smudged with my finger. Next I applied Fig, Snow Cone, Caramel, Coconut and Earl Grey Faber-Castell Gelatos to the trellis-work to highlight the texture and pattern. The numbers stickers and clock face are both coloured using a Cold Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker which I applied and then smudged with my finger. I also used the same four Faber-Castell Gelato colours to highlight the numer stickers and modelling paste. The clock face numbers are coloured using a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and I applied some of the Coconut Faber-Castell Gelato over the top to give them a worn look. Next I splattered the whole page with black DecoArt acrylic paint and then to finish, I added some paper flowers, a pretty blue butterfly and a sticker from Kaisercraft which reads “Everyday is a new beginning”.

My springtime colours were inspired by the beautiful glass domed roof at the Marine Hall where the Fleetwood Beer Festival is held. The Marine Hall sits on the sea front and the building dates back to the 1930s so has an art deco heritage which includes this beautiful glass domed roof.

The Festival Beer Bar is situated right under this dome and I actually had to lie on the floor in the centre of the two bars to take this picture, luckily no one saw me as I was well hidden by the bars (grin!).

Challenges 

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

I’m also very happy to be able to join the Letters and/or Numbers challenge over at Country View Challenges as I had fun adding the numbers and letters to this page.

I’m also joining the Embrace The Journey challenge over at A Vintage Journey where they are celebrating their 5^th Birthday as my Mixed Media Style page depicts the journey of springtime where “Everyday is a new beginning” – Happy Birthday!

I’m joining in the fun over at Creative Artiste Challenge Blog and their Creative Artiste’s #47th Challenge – Anything Mixed Media Goes with all the different mediums (listed below) that I used to create this 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 Modeling Paste
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Faber-Castell Gelato (Fig, Snow Cone, Caramel, Coconut, Earl Grey)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Cold Grey IV 233, Black 199)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
• The Works M & C Boutique (Cutting Dies)
• Recycled brown cardboard packaging
• Recycled paper
• The Works Design Pad (Vintage Love CRO707/TW25
• Leftover cardboard numbers from a Hobbycraft  Alphabet Letters set
• Poundland (Gem Florettes 117128, Accessories Pack 60911)
• The Works (Make Your Own 3D Butterflies – Assorted)
• Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet (Fly Free SS289)
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• Pritt Stick

Creativity

It’s time for a new challenge over at Try it on Tuesday, so for the next two weeks our challenge is Powder your …

 We are asking that you use powders on your creations; these could be Embossing, Mica, Infusions, Perfect Pearls, Brusho, paint powder or even just images of powders. Please remember to note on your post what ‘powder’ you have used.

There are some amazing creations from my Design Teamies too, please pop over to our blog to check them out. I can’t wait to see how you use powders on your creations too!

I had so much fun using both Brusho and embossing powders to create all the elements on my industrial style art journal page.

I started by using a new technique for the background by stamping a steampunk stamp from Docrafts onto my page using a Versamark Watermark stamp pad. Then I sprinkled Sandstone, Dark Brown, Terracotta and Yellow Ochre Colourcraft Brusho Powders onto the page and used a soft paintbrush to lightly brush the powder over the stamping so the Watermark ink was covered with the Brusho powders.

I then spritzed the page lightly with water a few times and watched the background colours burst to life until the stamping was defined but not totally lost by adding too much water – such a fun technique!

The light bulbs and cogs/gears are Boozybear chipboard pieces which I covered using the Versamark Watermark ink and then some Gold Shellac and Black Papermania embossing powder. I heated the pieces with my heat gun until the embossing powder melted and became glossy and dimensional. For the light bulb backgrounds, I added some Yellow and Yellow Ochre Brusho Powders to a sheet of white paper and spritzed with water. When dry I drew around the light bulbs shapes and cut these shapes out of the paper.

I stuck the yellow backgrounds behind each of the embossed light bulbs using a Zig Memory System glue pen and stuck them and the cogs onto the page using glossy accents. The panel of words is a Tim Holtz Pocket card which I edged using the Versamark ink and embossing powders; it reads “Creativity is seeing things everyone else has seen, and thinking what no one else has ever thought”. I also covered three metal brads with the Gold Shellac and Black embossing powders and added them to the panel to give it more of an industrial look, which finished the page.

As T Stands for Tuesday and to continue the industrial look of my page I’m sharing a photo of me and hubby at the Banded Brewing Tap Room in Biddeford, Maine when we were on holiday last year – Happy T Day!

We had the “Flight of 4 Tasters” and the beers we tried were Oktoberfest, Veridian, Wheat ‘N’ Potatoes and Greenwarden – cheers!

Challenges 

I’m pleased to be able to join the lovely Rike from rike’s art and her The Colour Yellow challenge over at Art Journal Journey with my yellow lightbulbs.

Over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge, their theme is Things with Wheels, so I’m pleased to join in the fun with the cogs and gears, that make wheels go round, which I added to my page.

I’m also joining in the Anything Goes – Steampunk/Industrial fun over at Sandee & amilie’s Steampunk Challenge with my industrial 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:

• Tsukineko Versamerk (Watermark Stamp Pad)
• Colourcraft Brusho Colours (Sandstone, Dark Brown, Terracotta, Yellow Ochre, Yellow)
• Docrafts Creativity Essentials A5 clear stamp set (Steampunk Background DCE907128)
• Papermania Embossing Powder (Gold Shellac, Black)
• Boozybear Chipboard Pieces (Light Bulbs, Cogs & Gears)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology (Pocket Cards #TH93208)
• Craft Sensations (Brads CRO550/A)
• Zig Memory System 2 Way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
• Ranger Glossy Accents

Friends and Family

Its time for a new challenge over at Try it On Tuesday and our theme for the next two weeks, is Friends and Family.

You’ll find some beautiful inspiration from my Design Team teamies over at Try it on Tuesday too. My art journal page today celebrate Friends, Family and Life – I hope you like it!

I started by stencilling the background of leaves using a Falling Leaves stencil from Newton’s Nook and six different colours of Distress Ink. I blended and shaded the colours so that the Vintage Photo and Mowed Lawn Distress Ink were around the edges of the page, then as I worked towards the centre I added Seedless Preserves, Fired Brick, Spiced Marmalade and finally finished with Mustard Seed Distress Ink in the centre of the page. I also positioned the stencil so that the larger leaves were around the outside of the page and the smaller leaves were in the centre. Then I stamped a maple leaf stamp and oak leaf stamp from Tim Holtz Autumn Blueprints stamp set onto the page using black Archival Ink. I coloured the leaves and also the leaf names using the Seedless Preserve, Spiced Marmalade and Mustard Seed Distress Ink with a paintbrush. Then I shaded under the bottom edge of each leaf using a Cold Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker to give them a shadow so they had a 3D look. Next I added some Tim Holtz Small Talk stickers which read “let life surprise you”, “live your life” and “life is good”. I drew boxes and arrows around them to match the blueprint design of the leaves using a black Derwent Graphik marker. The large sentiment which reads “Life doesn’t have to be perfect to be wonderful” is a Pocket Card from Tim Holtz and is stuck to the page using double-sided  foam tape. I also added the words “Thankful”, “Friends” and “Family” using Tim Holtz Letter Labels and used the Cold Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker to add a shadow under them which finished the page.

The bands and shades of colour on my page reminds me of the beautiful mat that our forever friend’s bought us for our wedding anniversary present; it travelled back from America with us and now sits in my hallway at the bottom of the stairs. It is such a happy reminder of the time we spent with them (grin!).

On our wedding anniversary we also had an amazing Maine lobster dinner at their house too, which was so delicious!

As T Stands for Tuesday, I’m saying a big hello to the T Gang and sharing our drinks, red wine, iced water or a beer which as you can see is served in my special Red Sox Beer cooler (grin!) – 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 as this page celebrates happy memories with friends and family!

As I incorporate squares into the design of this page with the frames of colour from the stencilled background, stamped Autumn BluePrint leaf images and also the sentiments, I’m pleased to join the Square It challenge over at The Artistic Stamper.

I’m also joining in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Thanks/Thanksgiving challenge with my art journal page.

I’m also pleased to join the November Link Party #45 – Anything Goes over at Cropstop Blog with my page of fall leaves too.

Don’t forget that over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge the theme is Thanks/Thanksgiving this week, it would be lovely to see you there!

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

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

• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Vintage Photo, Mowed Lawn, Seedless Preserves, Fired Brick, Spiced Marmalade, Mustard Seed)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Cold Grey IV 233)
• Derwent Graphik Line Marker (Black 0.05mm)
• Newton’s Nook Designs Purr-fect Stencil (Falling Leaves NN1709T01)
• Tim Holtz Collection Stamper’s Anonymous (Autumn Blueprint CMS133)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology (Pocket Cards #TH93208)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Stickers (Small Talk #TH93193, Label Letters #TH93072)
• The Range double-sided foam tape

Delicious Autumn

Autumn is one of my favourite months and finding this pretty tissue of a robin sat amongst autumn leaves I decided to create a page using some leaves that I had pressed and a beautiful quote from a poem by George Eliot.

I started by ripping the tissue into pieces around the robin, leaf and branch images and adhering them to the page using a glue stick and matte gel medium. Next I applied DecoArt crackle glaze using a palette knife in between the tissue pieces and left it to dry overnight.

To highlight the crackle effect, I painted Yellow Ochre from my Kuratake watercolour paint set onto the page and also Dark Sepia Faber-Castell marker by scribbling the pen onto an acrylic block and picking the ink up with a paintbrush. I also added droplets of Carbon Black Liquitex Ink and then applied water with a paintbrush making it spread between the cracks. I repeated this process using Black Soot Distress Ink too. For the wording, I used my new label maker, which was fun (grin!). The quote is from a poem by George Eliot who wrote “Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns”. I distressed the edges of the labels with scissors and used Antique Linen and Vintage Photo Distress Inks to edge and colour them; once they were stuck in place I outlined them using a black Uni Pin marker. Then I added some leaves to the branches which I collected last year and had dried and pressed; they are stuck down using wood adhesive. To finish, I applied some little dots of Pumpkin Liquid Pearls to add a pop of bright autumnal colour.

I love the quote from George Eliot too; wouldn’t it be amazing to be a bird and fly about the earth experiencing one autumn after the other (grin!). There is so much I enjoy about autumn especially the colours of autumn which can be seen in this beautiful view of the River Yarrow when we visited Duxbury Woods.

One of my favourite places for autumn/fall foliage with its amazing reds, oranges and yellows is New England. This photo was taken a few years ago, it’s lovely to be transported back there and maybe it is possible to chase those successive autumns after all!

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 Yvonne from Meggy’s way, who is hosting A World of Fantasy challenge over at Art Journal Journey with my successive autumn wishes, wouldn’t it be amazing to experience one autumn after another!

I’m pleased to join their Back To Nature challenge over at A Vintage Journey, as their brief for this challenge inspired me to use the leaves that I had collected last year and dried. I hope you like my Art Journaling and Mixed Media style page.

Over at That’s Crafty! Challenge Blog their theme is Forever Autumn so I’m pleased to join this challenge with my Delicious Autumn page.

I’m also joining the lovely Wen and her Simply Neutrals Tuesday party over at Apple Apricot with my seasonal nature page.

I’m joining in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Anything Goes challenge with my autumnal art journal 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:

• DecoArt Medium Crackle Glaze
• Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour Paint set (Yellow Ochre)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Dark Sepia 175 B)
• Liquitex ink! (Carbon Black)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Black Soot, Antique Linen, Vintage Photo)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.2mm)
• IHR Ideal Home Range tissues (Red Robin PT89600)
• Dymo LetraTag Personal Label Maker LT-100H
• Dymo LetraTag Tape 12mm (White Paper)
• Dried and pressed leaves
• Ranger Liquid Pearls (Pumpkin)
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• Pritt Stick
• Evo-Stik Wood Adhesive

Take a Ride

Today we are starting a new challenge over at Try it on Tuesday called Take a Ride. It’s up to you how you wish to travel, maybe by plane, boat, train, car, fantasy machine or like me in a vintage hot air balloon.

There are more fabulous inspirations from the Design Team over at Try it on Tuesday too, we hope to see you there!

I started by adding a used baby wipe which had lemon and violet paint on it to the background, some purple vintage hot air balloons torn from some decoupage paper and lots of bits which I had saved from die cutting papers and card and couldn’t bear to throw away (grin!); they are all stuck in place using Liquitex matte gel medium. When the gel medium had dried I wet the page with water using a spray bottle and sprinkled Lemon and Purple Colourcraft Brushos over the top watching the colours burst to life as the powders were activated by the water. I added a few layers of Brusho powders until the colour intensity was to my liking and left it to dry. Next I sprinkled water over the page with my fingers and blotted the page dry which removed the Brusho colour where the water droplets had landed. I then cut another set of the purple vintage hot air balloons from the decoupage paper and stuck them over the top of the ones on the page, matching the designs; I did this because some of the Brusho colours had bled into the original images. Once the glue had dried, I outlined the balloons using some Derwent Graphik markers.

Next I applied some Titanium White Liquitex ink to the top of the page tilting the page so it ran downwards depicting paths etched into the sky. I also splattered the page with some black DecoArt acrylic paint and the same white ink drying it with my heat gun so the Brusho colour didn’t seep into it. I used a rub-on transfer set from Kaisercraft to add more hot air balloons and the inspirational quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson which reads “Don’t follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail”. To finish, I outlined all the die cut bits and white splatters with a Derwent Graphik fine line marker.

There are lots of different textures on this page, it looks so amazing close up!

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 it’s a joy to be able to travel; this page reminds me of the time we saw a sky full of hot air balloons, whilst on holiday in America, at the Alburquerque Balloon Fiesta in New Mexico (grin!).

As my vintage hot air balloons and fantastical sky reminds me of steampunk, I’m pleased to join SanDee & amelie’s Steampunk Challenges for their Anything Goes – Steampunk/Industrial challenge.

I’m also joining the Summertime challenge over at Moo Mania & More with my summery coloured page.

Over at Paperbabe Stamps their challenge is Anything Goes so I’m pleased to join in the fun with my vintage hot air balloon page.

I thought the T Gang, over at T Stands for Tuesday, may like this arrangement of the everlasting sweet peas from our garden; they are arranged in my old fashioned teapot which I picked up for 50p at our local carnival weekend. It didn’t have a lid but it’s perfect for these pretty sweet peas (grin!) – 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:

• Colourcraft Brusho Colours (Lemon, Purple)
• Liquitex Ink! (Titanium White)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
• Derwent Graphik Line Marker (Black 0.03mm & 0.8mm)
• Recycled Baby Wipe – used to mop up paints
• Recycled die cut bits – paper and card
• Docrafts Deco Sheets Papier Patch (Vintage Air Balloons PMAT69328)
• Kaisercraft Rub Ons Up, Up & Away Collection (Black & White RB869)
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium