Mr. and Mrs.

Having recently attended my friend’s wedding, I kept some of the table stationary and decorations as I wanted to create a journal page to keep them safe and remember the wonderful time that we had.

The question was how to include the menu, name cards and gift envelopes on my page so I could take them out and look at them in the future … then I remembered a tutorial about making Junk Journal corner pockets that my dear friend Astrid from Astrid’s Artistic Efforts published the other day and viola my problem was solved – here’s my page (grin!).

The background is stamped using three different stamps from Docrafts and three different inks, this included: a rose flower stamp using Dandelion Memento Ink as yellow roses featured in the brides bouquet, grooms lapel and table centrepieces; a rose garland stamp using Summer Sky Memento Ink as the wedding stationary was blue and white; and a music stamp using black Archival Ink as the music at the wedding was amazing with the violinists and also the band in the evening. Then continuing the yellow rose theme, I fussy cut one from an old garden book and stuck it to the page using Liquitex Matte Gel Medium. When the gel medium was dry, I outlined the stem and leaves with a black Uni Pin marker. The lace, which reminds me of the bride’s dress, is fussy cut from some design paper and has a bleached out wood grain background which looks like the old wooden beams of the barn where the wedding was held.

For the corner pocket I used white cardstock and followed Astrid’s tutorial which you can find here; I have to say it worked like a dream – thanks so much! As you can see, I embellished the outer flap of the corner pocket using a Spellbinders die cut to add a pattern and inserted a piece of the wood grain design paper. The die was kindly gifted to me by Astrid too, thank you! I also added a piece of the fussy cut lace and then along the bottom edge I stamped yellow roses from the Docrafts stamp set using the Dandelion Memento Ink again. I finished the corner pocket with a piece of blue satin ribbon which I recycled from a birthday card. I used glue to stick the pocket in place and then added some tiny clear gems to add some sparkle and also the wooden Mr. & Mrs. and heart decorations that were on our table. To finish, I inserted the wedding menu, place markers and gift envelopes into the pocket for safe keeping (grin!).

The flowers were so beautiful at the wedding; this was our table centre piece!

As you can see the pretty yellow roses also featured on the wedding cake which looked and tasted amazing too!

Challenges

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

I’m pleased to join the lovely Chris from Pearshapedcrafting, who is hosting the Arts for Art’s Sake challenge over at Art Journal Journey as I tried a new technique to create the corner pocket for my journal page using Astrid’s tutorial .

Over at Moo Mania & More the theme is Sheet Music so I’m pleased to join their challenge too with my music sheet stamped background.

With all the flowers that I included on my page, I’m joining in the fun over the Allsorts Challenge Blog and their Flowers all over challenge.

I’m also pleased to be able to join the Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Anything Goes challenge with my Mr. and Mrs. 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:

• Tsukeniko Memento Ink (Dandelion, Summer Sky)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Uni Pin Marker (Black 0.2mm)
• Docrafts Creativity Essentials A5 clear stamp set (Musicality DCE907112, Floral Icons DCE907123)
• Spellbinders Die Cut Systems Samantha Walker (Botanical & Accents)
• The Oxford Book of Garden Flowers
• Design paper bundle from local Craft Shop
• White cardstock
• Wedding Stationary – menu, name cards, gift envelopes
• Home Bargains Special Occasion (Mini Decorative Stickers 22740)
• Blue satin ribbon – recycled from a birthday card
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• UHU Stic

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Time is …

Our new challenge over at Try it on Tuesday is Add a Quote, and this time we are looking for your creations to include a quote rather than a sentiment. You’ll also find lots of wonderful inspiration from my fellow Design Team over at Try it on Tuesday.

Today my art journal page was inspired by the quote “Time is the most valuable thing one can spend”; it’s by Theophrastus who was an ancient Greek philosopher and pupil of Aristotle.

The quote inspired my clock background which is created using a new Kaisercraft stamp called Tic Toc and Ground Espresso Distress Ink. Next I fussy cut three rulers from a design paper sheet by American Crafts and stuck them to the page using a UHU Stic; they are outlined and distressed, like all of the paper elements, using a Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker, a Baked Earth Derwent Inktense pencil, a black Uni Pin marker and a white Uniball gel pen. I added patches of the Baked Earth Derwent Inktense pencil to the edges and background of the page, applying water over the top using a paintbrush to blend the colour. I also added some drips of Antique Linen Distress Ink by stamping the pad on an acrylic block and spritzing with water so it dripped onto the page; I love the distressed look that resulted as the inks merged together. Then I edged the page with a Sanguine and Dark Sepia Big Brush Marker. The satchel/briefcase, pocket watch and pen are rub-on transfers from Royal & Langnickel which I defined with a black Uni Pin marker so they stood out from the background more. The “Dream” butterfly ticket, chair and two flower pictures are all stickers and the different metal frames are fussy cut from a die cut topper set and stuck in place using a UHU Stic.

I added a wooden die cut decoration which says “memories” and for the quote, I cut a piece of white card and added the wording which is a rub-on transfer. Then I distressed the white card using the Antique Linen Distress Ink and mounted it onto a frame which I had die cut from some recycled paper and edged with brushed Corduroy Distress Ink. It is stuck in place using double-sided tape and edged with black Glitterations border stickers. To finish, I splattered the page with white and also black DecoArt acrylic paint using a paintbrush.

As T Stands for Tuesday I’m sharing an unexpected treat that I had whilst having my hair cut and coloured last week, a yummy piece of chocolate cake lovingly made by my hairdresser served with a glass of cold water – it was so rich and delicious!

Wishing you all a Happy T Day!

I know some of the T Gang requested to see some photos of the flower beds in my garden that I have been sorting out and replanting this year – if you are interested you’ll find some photos on my previous post here (grin!) – enjoy!

Challenges

I’m glad I found out about Challenge Blogs, 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 Chris from Pearshapedcrafting, who is hosting the Arts for Art’s Sake challenge over at Art Journal Journey as I had fun creating the distressed look and using my new craft supplies.

With the distressed look and feel of my page I’m joining the  Distress It! challenge over at The Artistic Stamper too.

I’m also joining the Get Sentimental challenge over at A Vintage Journey with my quote inspired page which I created in their Mixed Media and Vintage Styles.

I’m also pleased to join in the fun over at Paperbabe Stamps and their Photo Inspiration challenge as I enjoyed incorporating the lovely colour palette for my design.

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 (Ground Espresso, Antique Linen)
• Derwent Inktense Pencil (Baked Earth 1800)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Sanguine 188 B, Dark Sepia 175 B)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.3mm, 0.8mm)
• Uniball Signo gel pen (White)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (White, Black)
• Kaisercraft clear stamp (Tic Toc CS796)
• Spellbinders Die Cut System (Marvellous Squares 1122)
• Brown Paper – recycled from an old notebook
• White card – Docrafts Papermania Mini Cards & Stamp Set (Capsule Geometric Krafts PMA105308)
• Royal & Langnickel Create A Collage Rub-on Transfers (Men’s Accessories #ROY-853)
• DécoTime (3D Stickers 54742)
• Craftime Colour Connection Stickers (Enchanted Brown ACO155E)
• Docrafts A5 Die Cut Toppers & Sentiments (Mr. Smith’s Workshop PMA157261)
• The Works The Crafts Place (Wooden Decorations)
• Colorbok Rub-ons (Memories Made Easy)
• Docrafts Papermania Glitterations (Black Borders ANT8181015)
• UHU Stic
• Stix 2 double-sided tape

Mr. Finch

I’m really enjoyed creating the masculine page that I posted on Tuesday so I thought I would continue with the masculine theme and create a page with the additional inspiration of the goldfinches that we have seen a number of times this year, both in our garden and on our walks. So here’s my fun steampunk page which showcases the fabulous Mr. Finch (grin!).

I started by covering the page with Peeled Paint and Antique Linen Distress Ink using a blending tool and then spritzing the page with water to give a soft covering of colour. While the background was still wet I used a stamp from BoBunny to add the crackle texture mainly around the edges of the page using Hickory Smoke Distress Ink; the wet page blended the inks so the stamp looks smudged in places which I love. Then I used a stencil from Craft Sensations to add the numbers using Frayed Burlap Distress Ink and a blending tool. The black wheels are also stencilled using a Dina Wakley stencil from Ranger and I varied the depth of the Black Soot Distress Ink that I applied to give more of a distressed look and to add some dimension. I then splattered the page with the Black Soot Distress Ink using a paintbrush. The fountain pen and pocket watch are rub-on transfers by Royal and Langnickel and I also applied some leftover black letters from a Letraset transfer set to use them up. Next I fussy cut the roses from some design paper and stuck them in place, like all of the paper elements, using Liquitex matte gel medium.

For my steampunk Mr. Finch, I used a bird stamp from Stampendous, a Steampunk stamp set by Docrafts and black Archival Ink. I started by stamping the bird onto thick paper and fussy cutting it out, and then I distressed this image by covering it with some watered down white gesso using a baby wipe. Once dry I stamped the cog images over his breast and head and also a feather image over his back and wings to add more texture. I also stamped his steampunk style top hat and his wheels onto another piece of design paper; his wheels are from the Penny Farthing stamp which I stamped twice and then fussy cut out. I added three strips of music washi tape horizontally on the page and then I layered his wheels, body and hat together so Mr. Finch is rolling along one of these strips.

Inspired by seeing the goldfinches, I painted his cog design and added detail to his feathers using Iridescent Gold Liquitex Ink. As goldfinches also have red feathers on their heads that look like a mask, I also thought it would be fun to paint the goggles on his top hat with a Poppy Red Derwent Inktense pencil. I used a black Derwent marker, white gel pen and also the gold Liquitex Ink and red Inktense pencil to add further colour and detail to the design including his mask, hat, wheels and cogs. For his eye I added a black gem and coloured some of it white using a Uniball gel pen. Next I die cut three small labels using my Big Shot machine and stamped “Explore” using black Archival Ink. Once stuck in place, I coloured the edges using the red Inktense pencil and gold Liquitex Ink and then outlined them using a black Derwent marker and a white Uniball gel pen to frame the words, and then I embellished them with some round black brads. To finish, I splattered black and white DecoArt acrylic paint and also gold Liquitex Ink using a paintbrush over the page.

Here is one of the goldfinches that we saw on one of our walks along by the sand dunes, isn’t he magnificent!

If you are interested here are some facts about this bird:

• There are just three species of goldfinches in the world – our European goldfinch, the widespread American goldfinch and Lawrence’s goldfinch which is found in the southwest USA.
• The European goldfinch is a highly coloured finch with a bright red face and yellow wing patch.
• They are very sociable birds, often seen in large groups and have a delightful liquid twittering song and call. The collective name for goldfinches is a charm and is derived from the old English c’irm which describes the birds’ twittering song.
• The shape of their beak allows them to extract seeds from thistles and teasels.

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 Gill from gibbyfrogettcraftations who is hosting the Inspired by … challenge over at Art Journal Journey I took inspiration from seeing the goldfinches to create steampunk page.

With the focal image of Mr. Finch being created using different stamps, I’m happy to be able to join Stamping Sensations and their Anything Goes challenge.

I’m so pleased to join the lovely Maura who is on the design team and is co-hosting over at SanDee & amelie’s Steampunk Challenges this month for their Anything Goes – Steampunk/Industrial challenge.

Over at A Vintage Journey this month the challenge is Stencil It so I’m pleased to join this challenge with my goldfinch inspired page fits their challenge focus with its Steampunk and Mixed Media Style.

I’m also pleased to be able to join the Written Word (add some text in some form) challenge over at Country View Challenges with stamped wording I added to this page.

I’m joining in the fun at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their Anything But A Card challenge with Mr. Finch art journal page.

I’m also joining the Craft Stamper Take It, Make It Challenge and their June Challenge: Anything Goes!: (stamping MUST be included) with my unique, one of a kind Mr. Finch.

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 (Peeled Paint, Antique Linen, Hickory Smoke, Frayed Burlap, Black Soot)
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Liquitex Inks! (Iridescent Bright Gold)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.2mm)
• Uniball Signo gel pen (White)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
• Derwent Inktense Pencil (Poppy Red 0400)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black, White)
• Craft Sensations (Deco Stencil Set 154892)
• Ranger Dina Wakley Media Stencil (Wheels MDS45588)
• BoBunny Stamp (Rough it up 12105155)
• Stampendous Cling Rubber Stamps (Jumbo Songbird CRS5029)
• Docrafts Creativity Essentials A5 Clear Stamp Set (Steampunk DCE907125)
• Spellbinders Nestabilities Card Creator (A-2 Fancy Ribbon Threader S5-135)
• Royal & Langnickel Clear Choice Stamps (Journey MIN- CCS104)
• American Crafts (DIY Shop)
• Craft Sensations Design Pad (Soft Colours CRO730/R, Authentic Vintage CRO730/R)
• Royal & Langnickel Create-A-Collage Rub-on Transfers (Men’s Accessories #ROY-853)
• Letraset Transfers (Helvetica Bold Condensed 5mm DCO251)
• Hobbycraft (Assorted Black & White Decorative Tape 5971481007)
• Poundland (Design Gems 175751)
• Brads (Round Black)
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium

Smile

I’m sharing my last page for this month’s challenge over at Art Journal Journey (AJJ) which I’ve been hosting and I’d like to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who joined in the fun!

I thoroughly enjoyed visiting all your blogs to see your wonderful Flora and Fauna artwork and I was delighted by all the different styles, techniques and mediums used as well.

Your amazing creations have really made me smile so I created this page to remember you all – I hope you like it!

I started by covering the page with some old recycled graph paper that my hubby used to mount his childhood postage stamp collection on and then I applied some Pébéo white gesso over the top using a palette knife to exaggerate the worn look. Next I tore the following: some book pages defining Flora and Fauna from a very old encyclopedia that I bought at a charity shop; a wildlife leaflet; a map leftover from a previous page; and a pretty floral paper by Kaisercraft. I edged all of these torn pieces with Frayed Burlap Distress Ink using a blending tool and stuck them onto the page using Liquitex matte gel medium. I also fussy cut some flora and fauna images of birds and flowers from the wildlife leaflet. Next I outlined the Flora and Fauna wording using a black Uni Pin marker and framed it using an oval die cut which I created using a Spellbinders Die and my Big Shot machine; the inside edge is coloured using a black Big Brush marker. I also added a die cut butterfly and Smile banner using double-sided tape. The hydrangea image and flowers are fussy cut from a wallpaper sample. I actually cut two of these images out, which took some time – those who know me will know I love nothing better than fussy cutting, it’s so relaxing (grin!).

So there is a reason that I fussy cut two hydrangea images as this page has a surprise on the far right-hand side, it opens up like a leaflet to reveal those who took part in the AJJ challenge this month. I don’t think you would know this by looking at the page as I fussy cut and arranged the hydrangea flowers on top of the folded section to match the hydrangea image underneath.

Inside, it is decorated in the same way as the main page by backing it with the old graph paper and then collaging the other papers on top. I printed the names from AJJ and tore them into strips, edged them with the Frayed Burlap Distress Ink and stuck them in place. Then I added some of the leftover hydrangea flowers, the wording and the sentiment, which reads “So many wonderful reasons to be grateful” as I am truly grateful to all of you who took part (grin!).

I sure had fun creating all my pages for this challenge and I hope you did too!

I’d like to say a special thanks to Susi and Bleubeard & Elizabeth for asking me to be a guest host, they have really provided such valuable support and encouragement, thank you!  I have also been overwhelmed with everyone’s participation and lovely comments; it has been such a pleasurable experience – thank you all! Jo x

Tomorrow is a new month and brings a new challenge at Art Journal Journey and I can’t wait to see what the new theme is and say hello to our new host – I hope to see you there!

Challenges

As I used die cuts as part of my art journal page design, I joining in the fun at Moo Mania & More and their Die Cuts challenge.

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

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

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

• Pébéo White Gesso
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Frayed Burlap)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.5mm, 0.8mm)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
• Spellbinders Die Set (Unknown)
• Recycled graph paper – hubby’s childhood postage stamp collection
• The New Standard Encyclopaedia and World Atlas
• Recycled RSPB leaflet – Gardening with wildlife in mind
• Leftover map pieces from previous project
• Wallpaper sample
• Recycled black paper
• Kaisercraft Provincial Collection 12×12 Paper (Willow P1979)
• The Works (Vintage Die Cut Shapes)
• Letraset Transfer (Helvetica Bold Condensed 5mm RDC0251)
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• The Range double-sided foam tape

Beer from Japan

The Fleetwood Beer Festival always has interesting World Beers available and we have tried different Hitachino Nest Beer from Japan two years running. The one we tried this year is called DAi DAi Ale which has the most amazing fruity orange taste. I just fell in love with the cute owl on the beer bottle labels too, so inspired by Erika’s recent visit to Japan I decided to use them to create this page!

I started by covering the page with an orange decoupage paper which I patched together so it was mostly pattern matched; like all the paper pieces it is stuck in place using a UHU Stic. The red vertical lines are cut from the same decoupage paper and I fussy cut the Japanese documents from a design paper. They are outlined with a black Derwent Graphik marker and I used a Topaz Spectrum Aqua marker to add shadows smudging the ink with my finger as it was applied. Next I painstakingly added some navy blue dots to the centre of each of the flower circle designs of the decoupage paper; they were made from the die cutting the circular borders. I added the circular borders vertically over the red lines and they are die cut using my Sizzix Big Shot and a Spellbinders die. I used some of the same recycled blue card to back the beer labels that I had soaked from the front and back of two beer bottles; they are stuck to the page using double-sided foam tape. To finish, I added the beer cap to the top left-hand corner of the page from one of the beer bottles.

This beer is brewed by Kiuchi Brewery and they have been brewing Japanese Sake since 1823. They make a number of Hitachino Nest Beers including the two beers shown on my page which are:

• DAi DAi Ale which is brewed with fukuremikan orange and special hops. This is an Indian Pale Ale with a ABV of 6.2%.
• White Ale is a wheat beer flavoured with coriander, orange peel and nutmeg. This is a Belgian style white beer with an ABV of 5.5%. We tried this one last year and I saved the label.

With the owls I have included on this page, I’m joining the Flora and Fauna challenge that I’m hosting over at Art Journal Journey this month and I hope to see you there!

Some of my blog-friends created some beautiful tulip artworks over the last couple of months, whilst thinking of spring, so I thought I’d show you our tulips which are now in full bloom!

Here they are when they started flowering and I received them with the fun metal owl (in the background) as a gift last year. I like that the colours and the owl remind me of the page that I sharing with you today (grin!).

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:

As I used die cuts on this page, it fits the Stencils, Die Cuts or Both over at Try it on Tuesday where you still have over a week to join in the fun!

Over at Moo Mania and More the theme is Flowers so I’m pleased to join this theme with my orange flowery background.

I’m also joining Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Animal Magic challenge with the owls I included on my 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:

• Derwent Graphik Line Marker (Black 0.03mm)
• Spectrum Aqua Artist Marker (Topaz)
• Spellbinders Nestabilities Die Cut System (Pearl Effects S5-194)
• Viva Gade Decoupage Paper (London 25584)
• Japanese Panel A4 Design Paper
• Recycled navy blue card
• Beer bottle labels
• UHU Stic
• The Range double-sided foam tape

Captured Moments

Over at Try it on Tuesday our new theme for the next two weeks is Stencil, Die Cuts or Both. I decided to have some fun and use both of these to create my Captured Moments art journal page!

I hope you will join in the fun too and for further inspiration why not check out the wonderful creations of my fellow Design Team over at Try it on Tuesday!

To start I lightly rubbed an ink pad of Hickory Smoke Distress Ink vertically down the page and spritzed it with water to give a washed out effect. For my stencils I chose a fleur-de-lis design which I applied using Hickory Smoke Distress Ink and a blending tool and also a Shabby Diamond stencil using Shabby Shutters Distress Ink, again using a blending tool. I also stamped a Script stamp by Kaisercraft using Ground Espresso Distress Ink. I left quite a lot of white space in my background to showcase some lovely fabric and papers that I added next. So with the background complete, I added a strip of fabric to the page using a UHU glue pen. Then I selected a Spellbinders die cut set and used my Big Shot machine to cut out some circular shapes from the same fabric which I had backed with card, and I also die cut some dark brown, pink dotted and grey-brown patterned papers. I edged all the paper pieces with a Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and arranged them on the page using a UHU Stic and then I layered the fabric die cut pieces on top. I added some pearl embellishments and a circular image of a pretty lady which is a sticker from Graphic 45. To finish, I added two lace butterflies which are stuck in place using a UHU glue pen, some pearls and a “Captured Moments” die cut using double-sided foam tape.

This page reminds me of a beautiful chandelier glass lamp that we saw at our local auction room Gerrards, and I think the pretty lady on my art journal page may have owned one like this. I was very tempted to purchase it myself but in the end refrained as pink really doesn’t match any of the rooms in our house.

As T Stands for Tuesday, I’m also sharing this array of pretty china teacups which were also for sale at the auction rooms. As I write this post I’m thinking that I shouldn’t go to the auction rooms so often, it’s far too tempting, don’t you think (grin!). Wishing you all a very Happy T Day!

If you are looking for my post featuring the Flora and Fauna challenge over at Art Journal Journey that I am hosting this month, please click here.

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:

As I included the flower designs and lace butterflies on my page I’m pleased to join Art Journal Journey where I’m hosting the Flora and Fauna challenge this month; it would be great to see you there!

I’m pleased to be able to join in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their Time Out challenge with my Captured Moments art journal page.

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

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 (Hickory Smoke, Shabby Shutters, Ground Espresso)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Dark Sepia B 175)
• Kaisercraft clear stamp (Script CS752)
• Spellbinders Die Cutting Set (Unknown)
• The Works M&C Boutique (Fabric Roll)
• Poundland Design Pad (Urban Style CR0701/16PL2, Pretty Pastels CR0701/PL1)
• The Works M&C Boutique (Design Block)
• The Works M&C Boutique (4 Crochet Butterflies)
• Poundworld (Pearl Embellishments U-80929)
• Home Bargains Sticker Mania (Gel Stone Stickers 74749)
• UHU Stic
• Docrafts Stick It! double-sided tape
• The Range double-sided foam tape

Winter to Spring

I started this page sometime ago; it’s been sitting on my craft table these past three weeks waiting patiently for me, which is quite ironic given the quote I had chosen to use (grin!).

You may remember we had snow and storms during February/March despite the fact that spring should be just around the corner, which inspired my design.

I started by covering half of the page with a piece of paper depicting snowflakes from a design pad and the other half with a piece of magazine cover depicting cherry blossom, they are stuck into place using a UHU Stic. Then I stamped a star border from Dovecraft and also the “Winter” and “Spring” wording using an alphabet stamp set from Hampton Art and VersaMark Watermark stamp pad which I covered with Stampendous white embossing powder. I shook off the excess powder onto a piece of scrap paper and also tapped the page to make sure any stray powder was removed. Then I used a heat gun to melt the embossing powder until the embossing powder melted to a glossy finish and became smooth and dimensional. Next I added some silver stars to the edges and centre of the page which are outline stickers. For the central image I used the VersaMark ink and white embossing powder again to add blossoms and snowflakes to the opposite sides of a piece of mixed media paper. Then I coloured the paper using Picked Raspberry, Peacock Feathers and Salty Ocean Distress Inks with a blending tool. I used my Big Shot to die cut a panel and some round shapes from this paper and also a smaller panel from an American Crafts design pad. I edged them all using the Distress Inks and a blending tool and also a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and stamped an Art Deco lady in the centre of the smaller panel using black Archival Ink to represent Mother Nature. I also stamped the quote onto the leftover mixed media paper and cut the words out; they are edged with a black Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and stuck to the page using a UHU Gluepen. The quote is by Ralph Waldo Emerson and reads “Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience”. To finish, I added some silver snowflakes, pink paper blossoms and clear jewel stickers to add some sparkle.

As you can see we didn’t get much snow during the storms. We live right by the sea and I think because of our location, being in a flat part of the country and surrounded on three sides by hills and mountains (Lake District, Pennines and Welsh Mountains) we miss out on the snow as it falls in those places before it gets to us. We found that Storm Emma was the worst thing with very high winds which increased the chill factor – brrrr!

With the cold weather of late and having been unwell with the flu, I have found myself wishing for warmer weather so let’s hope Spring is here soon!

Also I really appreciate all your kindness and get well wishes for my dad who is much better now, thank 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 lovely Rosie from Rosie’s Bastelwelt who is hosting the Spring challenge over at Art Journal Journey.

With the focal images being stamped I’m also happy to be able to join Fashionable Stamping Challenges and their Springtime challenge.

I’m also pleased to be able to join the Allsorts Challenge Blog and their Bring on the Bling challenge with my sparkly and blingy art journal page.

With all the pink blossoms on my art journal page, I’m joining in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Floral Frenzy challenge.

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:

• Tsukeniko VersaMark Watermark Stamp Pad
• Stampendous Embossing Powder (Detail White Opaque)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Picked Raspberry, Peacock Feathers, Salty Ocean)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
• Derwent Graphik Line Marker (Black 0.05mm)
• Dovecraft Studio G Designer Clears Stamps (DCRS86)
• Hampton Art Mini Wood Peg Rubber Stamps (Alphabet Set #1037)
• Dovecraft Essentials Alphabet Stamp Set (WDN ALPHA STMP DCVW0050)
• Stampendous Cling Rubber Stamps (Blossom Spray CRP136)
• BoBunny Stamps (Snow Day 13705563)
• Craft Sensations Clear Stamps (CR0274/16PL4)
• Spellbinders Nestabilities (Labels Thirty S5-157, Unknown)
• Old Magazine
• Poundland Design Pad (Pure Frozen CR0701/16PL4)
• Crelando Relief Stickers (12 Sheets IAN289011)
• The Works (Mini Paper Flower Embellishments)
• The Works (Jewel Stickers)
• The Works (Christmas Embellishments)
• Home Bargains Special Occasion (Mini Decorative Stickers)
• UHU Stic
• UHU Gluepen
• The Range double-sided foam tape