Be happy, be you

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

I always love to use mixed media to create my art journal pages and this month’s celebrates summer.

I started by sticking the orchid flower napkin pieces onto the page using a glue stick. Then I coloured the remaining white areas of the page using some Gold, Light Green and Hooker’s Green Liquitex acrylic paint. When dry, I used a Flutter stamp from Kaisercraft to add the trellis pattern using Cottage Ivy and Pistachio Memento Inks and also black Archival Ink. I outlined and defined the flowers using a black fine line marker and I added the two dragonflies which were rub on transfers. I applied some Glistening Gold Lustre Polish by Cosmic Shimmer around the edges of the napkin which added some lovely texture and sparkle. Finally, I splattered the page with some black and also some white acrylic paint using a paintbrush. Then I added the wording which are stickers from Kaisercraft; they read “be happy”, “be you” and “celebrate the little things”.

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. I hope you are inspired to join us; it would be lovely to see you there!

This page reminded me of these amazing orchids that we saw hanging in a garden centre some time ago; so beautiful (grin!).

I 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 all the materials used to create this art journal page:

• Orchid Napkin
• Pritt Stick
• Liquitex Basic Acrylic Color (Gold, Light Green, Hooker’s Green Hue Permanent)
• Kaisercraft Clear Stamps (Flutter CS853)
• Tsukineko Memento Ink (Cotage Ivy, Pistachio)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Uni Pin Fine Line Marker (Black 0.05mm)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-On Transfers (ROY1643G)
• Cosmic Shimmer Lustre Polish (Glistening Gold)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
• Art Discount Acrylic (White)
• Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet (Say Aloha SS281)

Challenges As well as Creative Artiste, I’m pleased to be able to join the following challenges today: Art Journal Journey which is being hosted this month by the lovely Alison from Words & Pictures; she has chosen Summer Countryside as her theme so I’m joining with my summer inspired page and the green and gold colours and pretty dragonflies that you find in the countryside. Paperbabe Stamps and their Challenge #147 – Anything Goes with my mini art journal page. LTSCB #147 – Anything Goes over at Love to Scrap Challenge Blog with my summer inspired mixed media page which includes stamping. Anything Goes challenge at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge with my page too.

Here comes Summer

Over at Try it on Tuesday our challenge for the next 2 weeks is Here comes Summer.

I created a page full of summer sunshine – I hope you’re inspired to join our challenge too; it would be lovely to see you there!

I started by stencilling the sunbursts over the page using a stencil from Marianne Designs and some Mustard Seed, Spiced Marmalade, Fossilized Amber and Scattered Straw Distress Inks. Next I painted some Salty Ocean Distress Ink in-between each of the sun rays to create blue skies and then I splattered the page with the same blue ink and also some Mustard Seed Distress Ink. I added the black wording to the background using some rub-on transfers and to finish, I layered together some black and yellow paper to frame the beach notecard which reads “Seagulls on the ocean breeze, sandpipers and shimmering seas … the best of days are made of these”.

As you may remember I’m trying to use up leftovers on my pages this year and I’ve been meaning to use this notecard on a page for a while now, it was leftover from a pack that I used to notify people of our change of address when we moved here, by the sea, many years ago (grin!).

For more inspiration please pop over to Try it on Tuesday and take a look you at the wonderful Here comes Summer creations from our Guest Designer and my Design Teamies too (grin!).

As T Stands for Tuesday, today I’m sharing my hubby’s summer mug that reminded me of my page and also the beach where we live – wishing you a Happy T Day!

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 the materials that were used to create this art journal page:

• Marianne Designs Craft Stencil A4 (Slimline Sunburst PS8080)
• Tim Holtz Distress (Mustard Seed, Spiced Marmalade, Fossilized Amber, Scattered Straw, Salty Ocean)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Transfers (Summer Sentiments)
• Leon X-Large Coloured Paper Pad
• Cape Shore Notecard
• X-Press It! double-sided tape

Challenges As well as Try it on Tuesday, I’m pleased to be able to join the following challenges today: Paperbabe Stamps and their Challenge #146 – Anything Goes with my summer art journal page. Love to Scrap Challenge Blog and their No Rulz 4! theme where their are no rules and you can create anything, so I’m joining in the summer sunshine page. LTCCB #59 – June Anything Goes over at Love to Craft Challenge Blog with my fun summer page too.

The Singing Ringing Tree

As you may remember, I was surprised that I had never featured The Singing Ringing Tree before on one of my posts. We visited this sculpture a couple of years ago for my birthday, so it inspired this page – I hope you like it (grin!).

I started by adding the image of The Singing Ringing Tree, which was from an old magazine, using a glue stick; it was edged with a Cold Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker. I coloured the white areas of the page by stamping a Steampunk Background stamp and the “Explore, Discover, Journey” wording using Hickory Smoke Distress Archival Ink and adding some Hickory Smoke and Salty Ocean Distress Ink. The letters were die cut using Alphanumeric Bold Thinlits set by Tim Holtz and were cut from some silver corrugated cardstock. I covered the letters using Silver Grey lustre wax and black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker to give it a grungy metallic appearance. Before sticking them in place I added some Pébéo white gesso over the stamped areas to push the colour back and then I stuck the letters down using Liquitex matte gel medium. I outlined the right-hand side of the letters using a black Uni Pin marker so they stood out more and then to finish, I added three metal music notes using Ranger Glossy Accents.

Reminded of our visit, I also found some of our photos to share with you (grin!). The singing ringing tree is located a little way from the road so we parked and then walked to the sculpture; Panopticon means “structure providing a comprehensive view”.

It was a short trek to The Singing Ringing Tree which is a wind powered sound sculpture resembling a tree and set in the landscape of the Pennine Hill range overlooking Burnley in Lancashire.

This 3-metre (10 ft) tall sculpture was designed by architects Mike Tonkin and Anna Liu of Tonkin Liu and has amazing views across the Pennine Moors.

It comprises of galvanised steel pipes; some are structural and others are cut across their width to produce sound by harnessing the energy of the wind.

It was a windy day when we visited so we got to hear the haunting sounds of The Singing Ringing Tree, if you are interested to hear the sounds and see more of the view please check out this video.

As T Stands for Tuesday, I’m sharing a photo that you may remember of me with my cup of green tea and a Chorley cake which was actually bought the same day that we visited this sculpture – Happy T Day!

You can find out more about Chorley Cakes which are a sweet treat here in Lancashire on my previous post Use Your Scraps; the title of this post also reminded me to wish Elizabeth a very Happy bEARTHday for later this week!

I hope that you’re 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 all the materials used to create this art journal page:

• Old magazine image
• Pritt Stick
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Cold Grey IV 233, Black 199)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Hickory Smoke, Salty Ocean)
• Docrafts Creativity Essentials A5 Clear Stamps (Steampunk Background DCE907128)
• Royal & Langnickel Clear Choice Stamps (Traveller MIN-CCS103)
• Ranger Distress Archival Ink (Hickory Smoke)
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlits Die Set (Alphanumeric Bold 665205)
• Wilkos (Corrugated Cardstock – Silver)
• Craf-T Products Lustre Rub-ons (Color Kit #4 – Silver Grey)
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• Uni Pin Fine Line Marker (Black 0.1mm)
• The Works (Metal Musical Notes)
• Ranger Glossy Accents

Challenges I’m pleased to be able to join the following challenges today which are: 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 is greatly missed! I’m so pleased to be able to remember her by joining AJJ with my page which was inspired by The Singing Ringing Tree. Paperbabe Stamps Challenge #142 – Anything Goes with my page. LTCCB#57 – April Anything Goes over at Love to Craft Challenge Blog with my Singing Ringing Tree mixed media page.

Miss You

Today’s page was created in memory of my dearest friend; I found myself thinking of her as it was her birthday this week. She passed away two year’s ago after battling ovarian cancer, she was a shining light and I miss her very much!

I started by painting some gold metallic paint over the background and then I stamped a Serpentine stamp from Art Impressions using the same paint and some Black Soot Distress Ink. I recycled one of the papers that I had tested inks and stamps on; this time the paper had black and gold stamping on it so I cut it into pieces and stuck them into place using a glue stick.

I edged paper pieces and also the page using a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker smudging the ink with my finger which was fun. All the different words were added using rub-on transfers and I arranged some gold sparkly flower and circle Glitterations stickers which added some lovely texture and finished the page.  

Thinking of my dear friend bought back so many happy memories; here she is, on the far left, the year before she passed when we were celebrating our friend’s wedding (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:

• Poundland Metallic Acrylic Paint (Gold)
• Art Impressions Wood Mounted Stamp (Serpentine Background T2773)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Black Soot)
• Old paper pieces with gold and black stamping
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
• UHU Stic
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Transfers (Spring Sentiments #ROY506, Motivate Sentiments #ROY510)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Remnant Rubs (Tiny Text #TH93695)
• Docrafts Papermania Glitterations (Gold Flowers ANT8181020, Gold Circle Frames ANT8181028)

Challenges I’m pleased to join the lovely Valerie over at Art Journal Journey and her Heavy Metal challenge this month with the gold elements on this page. I’m joining the LTSCB #142 – Love is … remembering dearest friends so I’m joining the Love To Scrap Challenge Blog with my Miss You art journal page. I’m also joining Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their Add Some Texture challenge with the texture from stamping the acrylic paint and Glitterations stickers. I’m also pleased to join the Favourite Technique challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge, as collage and edging the paper pieces by smudging ink with my finger are some of my favourite techniques. I’m happy to join Paperbabe Stamps and their #138 – Anything Goes challenge with my art journal page too.

Banana Cream Daisy

Today I’m sharing another page inspired by the flowers in my garden, this time a pretty daisy called Banana Cream – such fun (grin!).

I’m pleased to join the Texture challenge that I’m hosting this month over at Art Journal Journey with all the texture I added to this page using stamping, inks, paint splatters, stencilled texture paste, linen textured paper, rub-on transfers and gems. Thank you for your lovely comments and wonderful creations so far, I hope you are having as much fun creating texture on your pages as I am!

I started by covering the background using Leaf Green Wendy Vecchi Bendable Dye Ink, Peeled Paint and Forest Moss Distress Inks; stamping the ink pads onto a blending mat, spritzing with water and pressing the mat onto the page. Once dry, I stamped some foliage using a Leaf Prints Tim Holtz stamp set and Peeled Paint and Forest Moss Distress Inks. Next I applied some Scattered Straw Distress Ink using a blending tool and some Pébéo white gesso with my finger which added more texture and depth to the page, and then I splattered the page using black DecoArt acrylic paint and the white gesso.

The daisy flowers are rub-on transfers which I applied to some card and cut out; they are all edged with a Cool Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and then stuck to the page using a glue stick with some cream linen textured card. The cream linen card was decorated with the rub-on transfers and edged with Scattered Straw Distress Ink and Cold Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker to give it a worn look and add more texture. Then I stencilled some Ranger Texture Paste that I coloured with Cadmium Yellow and white gesso through a Reversed Honeycomb stencil. To finish, I added the “Daisy” wording using letter stickers from Kaisercraft and some orange gemstones to add some sparkle.

These are the Banana Cream daisies in my garden; they are a Shasta daisy and have a lovely creamy yellow colour.

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 in the Use Your Favourite Stamps challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge as the Tim Holtz foilage stamp set that I used is one of my favourites, especially the fern design.

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

• Ranger Wendy Vecchi Make Art Blendable Dye Ink (Leaf Green)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Scattered Straw, Peeled Paint, Forest Moss)
• Tim Holtz Stampers Anonymous (Leaf Prints CMS273)
• Pébéo White Gesso
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
• White cardstock
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Transfers (White Flowers #ROY-668)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Artist Pitt Pen (Cold Grey IV 233)
• Craft Sensations (Luxury Cardstock with Linen Texture)
• Pritt Stick
• That’s Crafty! Dinky Stencil (Reversed Honeycomb)
• Ranger Texture Paste
• Liquitex Basics Acrylic Color (Cadmium Yellow Light Hue)
• Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet (Mix & Match – Alpha SS252)

Summer Fun

I received another lovely surprise in the post, a gorgeous summer vibe card from my dear friend Nan. She knows how much I love the beach and ice cream so her card is perfect – thanks so much!

My page was inspired by Nan’s fabulous card design with the pastel-shade colours, the beach and summer vibe, the words/text, and of course the ice cream (grin!).

I coloured the background using Spectrum Aqua markers by scribbling the marker onto an acrylic block, spritzing with water and then pressing the block or dripping the ink onto the page. I mopped up wet ink with a piece of kitchen towel so the colours merged into each other; the Spectrum Aqua colours I applied were Yellow, Sea Green, Topaz, Aquamarine, Orange, Crimson, Purple and Gold. My hubby says it looks like melted ice cream (grin!).

When dry I added lots of words related to summer which are rub-on transfers. I stamped the beach huts onto some mixed media paper using black Archival Ink and then coloured them with Uni Posca paint pens; the colours I used were Violet, Pink, Yellow, Light Blue, Red, Orange and Light Green. I fussy cut them out and stuck them to the page using a glue stick. The little tags were cut from white linen textured card stock using Tag Collection Framelits from Tim Holtz and edged using a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker.

I added some little hearts to the tags which were cut from some different colours of Sizzix adhesive backed cardstock that was kindly sent to me by Nan, using a heart punch kindly gifted by CJ – thank you both! To finish, I added some black brads to the tags and then some ice-lolly/popsicle stickers.

With Nan’s amazing writing and adornments, my hubby instantly knew who the card was from when he saw the envelope on the door mat; he was all smiles when he told me something had arrived in the post (grin!). On opening it he noticed the ice cream van straight away, not surprising as he loves ice cream so much (double grin!). It’s so kind and thoughtful of Nan and very much appreciated – thanks very much!

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 pleased to join the lovely Alison AKA Craftytrog over at Art Journal Journey and her Pockets and Tags challenge this month; the hearts on my tiny tags were inspired by Alison’s journal pages – thank you!

I’m joining in the fun I do like to be beside the seaside challenge over at Country View Challenges with my summer beach vibe page.

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

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

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

• Spectrum Aqua Artist Markers (Yellow, Sea Green, Topaz, Aquamarine, Orange, Crimson, Purple, Gold)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Transfers (Summer Sentiments #ROY-505)
• Daler-Rowney Mixed Media Paper
• Hobbycraft Clear Stamp (Beach Huts 50254HC)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Uni Posca Paint Pens (Violet, Pink, Yellow, Light Blue, Red, Orange, Light Green)
• Pritt Stick
• Craft Sensations (Luxury Linen Textured Cardstock CR0240/GE)
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Framelits (Tag Collection 658784)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Artist Pen (Black 199)
• Heart punch – thanks CJ!
• Sizzix adhesive backed cardstock – thanks Nan!
• Home Bargains (Puffy Sticker Sheets – Sweet Like … 14227)

Summer

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

I hope that you are all staying safe and well!

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

Challenges

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

I’m pleased to join the lovely Erika from her blog BioArtGal over at Art Journal Journey and her When It’s Hot challenge this month with the hot pink that I added to hot sunset page.

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

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

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

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

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

Heat of Summer

Today I am sharing a page that I created especially to join in with the fun themes over at some of my favourite challenge blogs. This includes using a ballpoint pen to create the grids on my page, dividing the page so it has a distinct panel along the bottom, some splashes and splatters and celebrating summer with the hot colours and wording – I hope you like it!

I love the contrast between the black and white and the sunny summer colours (grin!).

I started by drawing the grid patterns on the page using a black ballpoint pen and a ruler which was fun and took quite a bit of time (grin!).

Then I stamped the central leaf, the numbers and letters using my new Postal Mix stamp set from Woodware Craft Collection and black Archival Ink. Next I coloured the bottom of the page with some hot summer colours using Yellow, Lemon, Orange and Rose Red Brusho powders. I did this by sprinkling the Brushos onto the page and spritzing with water; it always amazes me how magically the powders burst with colour when water is added (grin!). When dry, I splattered the page with black DecoArt acrylic paint.

I stamped the leaf three more leaves onto some white cardstock using my Ranger Stamp Platform, this helps get a clear crisp image as you can re-stamp over and over again until you get the ink intensity that you want. Then I fussy cut them out and stuck one of them over the stamped image and then arranged the other two leaves around it. I used rub-on transfers for all the summer related wording which includes “summer”, “hot”, “sun”, “easy”, “June”, “July” and “August”. To finish, I added two small black butterflies and drew on some antennae with a UniPin marker. 

The colours on this page reminds me of a lovely lily that we have flowering in our garden – it certainly is a spectacular sight (grin!).

Hoping that you are all staying safe and well! x

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

Challenges

I’m pleased to join the Positively Pensive challenge over at the The Funkie Junkie Boutique Challenge Blog with the grid designs that I drew on this page.

I’m joining in Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their Sprays and Splatters challenge with the splashes of Brushos and paint on my art journal page.

I’m also happy to be able to join the #121 – Sketch challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with my page design; the bottom panel of colour and leaves match the sketch.

With the hot summer colours and wording, I’m also pleased to join in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Summer Fun challenge too.

Don’t forget that you still have time to join our Anything Mixed Media Goes challenge this month over at Creative Artiste Challenge Blog too, it would be lovely to see you there!

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

• Bic Ballpoint Pen (Black)
• Woodware Craft Collection Clear Magic Singles (Postal Mix FRS781)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Colourcraft Brusho Crystal Colours (Yellow, Lemon, Orange, Rose Red)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
• White Cardstock
• Zig Memory System 2-way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Transfers (Summer Sentiment #ROY-505)
• Poundland (Mini Embellishments)
• UniPin Fine Line Marker Pen (Black 0.05mm)

Make it Masculine

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Challenges

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

I’m pleased to join the lovely Halle from Halle’s Hobbies over at Art Journal Journey and her A Stitch In Time challenge this month with the men’s clothing and wallet accessory on this page.

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

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

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

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

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

Happy Easter

Having visited Tracey’s blog she gave me the idea of creating a journal page based on the Easter cards I made this year – thanks for the inspiration Tracey and Happy Easter everyone!

I started by stencilling a trellis background using a Moroccan mask from Creative Expressions and some Brushed Corduroy and Ground Espresso Distress Ink. Then I added some off cut pieces of green mixed media paper from another project (which will be revealed later this month) using a glue stick. Next I die cut some foliage using a Wildflowers Thinlet set from Tim Holtz and coloured them green using Mowed Lawn, Peeled Paint and Peacock Feather Distress Ink. They are stuck in place using a Zig glue pen and adorned with some small glittery white flowers. Then I added the “spring”, “Good life” and “the sweetest thing” wording which are rub-on transfers.

I stamped “Happy Easter” using a Sophisticated Script stamp set from Concord & 9^th and some black Archival Ink. Then I created the butterfly, bunny rabbit and chick using a Springtime Sidekick Thinlet set from Tim Holtz. The large butterfly wings are coloured using a Canary Winsor & Newton Promarker and some Fossilized Amber Distress Ink and the smaller wings with Festive Berries and Seedless Preserves Distress Ink, I coloured the butterfly body with a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker, layered it together and stuck it in place. Then I applied some Ranger Glossy Accents over the body and the edges of the wings.

The bunny is coloured using the Brushed Corduroy and Ground Espresso Distress Ink and the bow with the Canary Promarker and Fossilized Amber ink. The bow is covered in Ranger Glossy Accents and I also added a white pom pom for the bunny rabbit’s tail.

The chick is coloured using the Canary Promarker and Fossilized Amber ink again, the chick’s breast using a Saffron Promarker and some Ground Espresso Distress Ink, the chick’s beak and feet using a Bright Orange Promarker and the eyes using a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker. Once layered together, I applied Ranger Glossy Accents to the chick’s eyes and beak. 

Here’s the Easter card that inspired my page!

As its Easter it’s time to make Easter Chocolate Nests – yum (grin!). These homemade treats are Rice Crispies coated in milk chocolate and filled with a chocolate fudge icing then topped with chocolate mini eggs, chocolate covered raisins and mini marshmallows – Happy Easter!

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 happy to join the lovely Valerie from Bastelmania over at Art Journal Journey and her Geometric Shapes challenge this month with the rectangles paper pieces on this page.

I’m also pleased to join in the Animal Magic challenge over at Country View Challenges with the bunny rabbit, butterfly and chick on my art journal page.

I’m joining in the Add Some Texture challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge with the texture from stencilling, papers, linen cardstock and white bunny pom pom tail (grin!).

I’m also pleased to join in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Spring Moodboard challenge with the colours, chick, butterfly and spring wording that I included.

Don’t forget that you still have until next Tuesday to join The Beauty of Nature 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:

• Creative Expressions That Special Touch of Mica Masks (Moroccan)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Brushed Corduroy, Ground Espresso, Mowed Lawn, Peeled Paint, Peacock Feathers, Fossilized Amber, Festive Berries, Seedless Preserves)
• Leftover green mixed media paper pieces
• Pritt Stick
• White cardstock
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Wildflower Stems #2 664164, Sidekick – Springtime 662711)
• Zig Memory System 2-way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
• Poundland (Mini Glitter Embellishments 59409)
• Tim Holz idea-ology Remnant Rubs (Tiny Text #TH93695)
• Royal & Langnickel Rub-on Transfers (Spring Sentiments #ROY-506)
• Concord & 9^th Stamp Set (Sophisticated Script 10056)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Craft Sensations (Luxury Cardstock with Linen Texture CRO240/GE)
• Winsor & Newton Promarkers (Canary Y367, Bright Orange 0177, Saffron 0739)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
• Ranger Glossy Accents
• Home Bargains Christmas Crafts (White Pom Poms 03007)