As it’s the end of December, I’m sharing my last page for the Snowy Winter challenge over at Art Journal Journey which I’ve been hosting this month.
Thank you so much to everyone who joined me; I really appreciate all your kind comments and support throughout the month and have thoroughly enjoyed visiting your blogs and seeing all your wonderful artwork (smile!).
Please note: I took this photo earlier this week and will add any names I’ve missed when the challenge has finished (smile!).
My page celebrates all of you who joined in the fun and I chose to design a page full of gifts, like you’re artworks were this month. I started by die cutting lots of squares from different Christmas design papers by Docrafts and arranged them onto the page with some blue square stickers. Then I painted some Cracked Pistachio Distress Stain between the squares giving it an icy snowy look. When dry, I added lots of stickers to the squares and background; they included tags, presents, bells, snowman, trees, snowflakes and stars. Next I printed the names of those who joined the challenge using a Dymo LetraTag Label Maker and once stuck in place, I decorated them using some silver Stickles glitter and a sequin snowflake.
I hope you had as much fun as I did, I enjoyed creating snowy winter pages for this challenge whether it was in my mini journal or …
… in my A4 sized journal.
Thank you all for your participation and lovely comments, you made it such a joy to host this challenge!
I’d like to say a special thanks to Bleubeard & Elizabeth and the rest of the AJJ Team for asking me to be a guest host; it’s always a pleasure to join you!
Not only is tomorrow a New Year, it’s the start of a new month which 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 – see you there!
I hope you’ve had a safe and happy Christmas. Wishing you all the very best for 2023! Hugs Jo x
Thanks for joining me and if you have any questions or comments, I would love to hear from you.
Today I’m over at Country View Challenges with my second page for our Christmas Anything Goes challenge this month.
I love robins especially at Christmastime and had lots of fun creating this page using some of my favourite crafting goodies by Tim Holtz.
I started by covering the chipboard page using Twisted Citron and Rustic Wilderness Distress Paint and when dry, I applied some white gesso over the top using a brayer. Then I stamped some fir tree branches over the page using Pine Needles and Rustic Wilderness Distress Ink and a Sketch Greenery stamp set; all by Tim Holtz. The page was splattered using white DecoArt acrylic paint and left to dry. The papers are from a Tim Holtz Worn Wallpaper Christmas set; I tore them into pieces before sticking them in place using a glue stick. The snowflakes were die cut from the same paper using a Paper Snowflakes Mini Thinlits set by Tim Holtz. For my robins I cut three different birds using a Silhouette Birds Thinlits set by Tim Holtz from some brown and red Kraft Cardstock – Classic by Tim Holtz and once stuck together added some glitter to their red breasts using Red Stickles and a tiny black gemstone for their eyes. To finish, I added the wording from a Tim Holtz Christmas Sticker book which reads “A Christmas Song” and “Message of Love”.
I hope you are inspired to join our Christmas Anything Goes challenge over at Country View Challenges too, if you do, you’ll have a chance to win a £20 voucher to use on the Country View Crafts (grin!).
As you may have seen from a previous post, I always visit our local garden centre for their Christmas evening with my family and this year there was free face painting. I know what you’re thinking this is for kids, but as no one was waiting I asked the lady if she would paint my face and she said yes so of course I couldn’t resist – can you guess what I asked for?
Yes I love robins so much that that’s what I asked for; well maybe it looks like a cross between a robin and a cardinal, but who cares, as you can see it really made me smile – wishing you a Merry Christmas and all the very best for the New Year! x
Thanks for joining me today! If you have any questions or comments, I would love to hear from you.
Art Journal Journey which I’m having fun hosting this month; I chose the challenge theme Snowy Winter so like me all you need to do is add snowflakes and/or snow on your pages. I hope to see you there!
Today I’m over at Country View Challenges sharing these very sparkly snowflakes for January’s A Year to Sparkle & Shine challenge, which I’m delighted to be hosting this month.
The chipboard background was covered with white gesso and then some Ranger Texture Paste was applied through a snowflakes mini stencil by Tim Holtz. When dry, I coloured the page using Peacock Feathers and Prize Ribbon Distress Ink. All the other snowflakes were recycled from Christmas present wrapping; the felt snowflakes were coloured using the Distress Inks and when dry, they were arranged onto the page with a large snowflake. I covered them all with lots of Icicles Ranger Stickles Glitter Glue which made them shimmer and shine beautifully. The wording was from a Christmas Sticker book by Tim Holtz and reads “the snowflakes come down, the winds of winter blow”. For some extra sparkle, I added lots of Crystals, from a Twinkle Stars set by Creative Expressions, to the centre of the large and each of the stencilled snowflakes.
I hope you are inspired to join our A Year to Sparkle & Shine challenge over at Country View Challenges too, if you do, you’ll have a chance to win a £20 voucher to use on the Country View Crafts.
Snowflakes decorate my windows this time of year and these window clings are very sparkly too (grin!)
For the sake of brevity I am no longer listing the individual items that I used to create my page, however I’m more than happy to let you know which particular product was used if you contact me via comments below or using the following contact me link. You can also check out the products over at Country View Crafts too.
I hope that you’re staying safe and well!
Thanks for joining me today! If you have any questions or comments, I would love to hear from you. Hugs Jo x
Over at Try it on Tuesday our challenge for the next 2 weeks is Oh So Cute.
These really cute owls were recycled from a Christmas card and with all the cold weather we’ve been having of late they are sat in a snowy wonderland. I thought the wording was cute too, it reads “It’s cold, let’s cuddle”.
I hope you’ll join us with your cute creations too; it would be lovely to see you there!
I started by colouring the background using Bluebird Wendy Vecchi Blendable Ink from Ranger. When dry, I splattered the page with white acrylic paint and left it to dry.
It’s one of my goals this year to recycle and use up any leftovers from previous pages, so I was pleased to recycle these cute owls which were fussy cut from the Christmas card and stuck into place using a glue stick. I arranged them with some white foliage die cuts that were leftover from last year’s Happy January page. The foliage was decorated using a Cold Grey Faber-Castell marker, a silver metallic pen, some Icicle Stickles from Ranger and also some Inkylicious Fluffy Puffy Stuff which added the lovely texture. The Fluffy Puffy Stuff was a fun product to use as it’s applied and then heated with a heat gun which turns it all puffy and 3-dimensional. The snowflakes were leftover too, having been previously die cut from different patterned papers and white cardstock; they were arranged onto the page using Liquitex matte gel medium.
For more Oh So Cute inspiration, please pop over to Try it on Tuesday and take a look you at the amazing creations from our Guest Designer and my Design Teamies (grin!).
So far this month, it’s been cold and we’ve had quite a few snow flurries; I was surprised one morning to find it snowing so I took this photo out of my craft room window – brrrr!
As T Stands for Tuesday and it’s cold outside, I’m sharing our hot chocolate with whipped cream and marshmallows, and also some yummy lebkuchen – Happy T Day everyone!
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:
Ranger Wendy Vecchi Blendable Ink (Bluebird)
Art Discount Acrylic Paint (White)
Recycled Christmas Card
Pritt Stick
Leftover foliage pieces – Sizzix Thinlits Tim Holtz Alterations (Garden Greens 661206, Holiday Greens 658759, Woodlands 660978), White cardstock, Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Cold Grey IV 233), Script Metallic Pen (Silver), Ranger Stickles (Icicles), Inkylicious (Fluffy Puffy Stuff)
Stix2 glue dots
Leftover Snowflakes – Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlits (Paper Snowflakes Mini 661599), Tonic Studios Christmas Trio Die Set (falling Snowflakes 1792e), The Works (Cutting Dies – Snowflake Garland), Craft Sensations (Creative Paper Collection CR0458/GE), White Cardstock, Poundland Design Paper Pad (Purple Swirls)
I’m also joining in the fun over at the Love to Scrap Challenge Blog and their LTSCB #145 – Love is … all about cuddling your partner when it’s cold as I’ve depicted here on this cute owl page.
Jenny is hosting, here’s what she has to say about this challenge: “Although it’s not always evident in my projects, I have a real passion for delicate laces, fragile flowers, fine stitching, intricate artwork and exquisite architecture. For this challenge create something delicate or a vintage/shabby chic project that features delicate things in it.”
I enjoyed using different techniques and mediums to create this delicate page starting with the delicately painted background. I covered the background with water first and then added Kuretake watercolours over the top using a paintbrush; the colours I used were Ultramarine Pale, Yellow Ochre, Sap Green and a mixture of Black and White.
The elegant lace flower heads were stamped using one of my favourite stamps from Carabelle Studio and black Archival Ink. The flower heads were coloured using a Cold Grey Faber-Castell Big Brush marker and then I added lots of sparkle using some Silver Stickles from Ranger.
For the wording and butterflies, I coloured some white tissue paper using Peacock Feathers, Mowed Lawn, Mustard Seed and Chipped Sapphire Distress Inks. I did this by stamping the ink pads onto a blending mat, spritzing with water and pressing the tissue paper over the top. When dry, I die cut the letters for the wording using Alphanumeric Label Thinlits set and the butterflies using Springtime Sidekick Thinlits set from Tim Holtz.
I glued the wording onto the page using Liquitex matte gel medium which was a bit fiddly as the letters were so fine; it reads “be still and listen, the earth is singing”. To finish, I arranged the butterflies around the page using some glue dots. I love how the tissue paper butterflies and wording look so fragile and delicate (grin!).
Thanks so much to The Funkie Junkie Boutique Blog for having me as Guest Designer! I hope that you are inspired by the So Delicate challenge too and are able to join in the fun (grin!).
There are so many delicate things to observe in nature and as I live by the sea, my watercolour background was inspired by this sea view with its pale colours and soft lighting; this was taken whilst walking along the beach near our house .
The lace flower heads, touches of green and pretty butterflies on my page were inspired by our garden. It reminded me of all the Painted Lady butterflies that visited last summer; here are a couple on the lavender (grin!).
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:
Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour Paint set (Ultramarine Pale, Yellow Ochre, Sap Green, Black, White)
Carabelle Studio Art Stamp (Dans la nature, il y a … SA60175
Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Cold Grey IV 233)
Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlit (Alphanumeric Label 664177)
Tim Holtz Sizzix Sidekick Thinlit (Springtime 662711)
Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
Stix2 glue dots
Challenges
I’m glad I found out about Challenge Blogs, like it The Funkie Junkie Boutique Blog , 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 over at Art Journal Journey and her Favourite Things challenge as I used one of my favourite flower stamp sets.
As I used my favourite Carabelle Studio stamp set to create the lace flowers on my page, I’m also pleased to be able to join Stamping Sensations and their Favourite Stamps challenge too.
I’m also joining the Beautiful Blooms challenge over at the Allsorts Challenge with the pretty sparkly flowers on my page.
I’m happy to join in the LTSCB #141 – Anything Goes challenge over at Love To Scrap Challenge Blog with my delicate nature page.
As we live by the sea we don’t get many frosty mornings, but we have seen both frost and snow this month which inspired this frosty winter page.
I started by recycling a piece of kitchen towel which I had used to mop up blue inks by tearing it into pieces and sticking them in place using some Liquitex matte gel medium; I used the wet gel medium to reactivate the inks which gave some of the white areas a slight bluish tinge. Next I arranged the pretty blue flower images and wording which were from a Paper Collection by Craft Sensations; the wording reads “A beautiful thing is never perfect”.
I continued the frosty theme by adding some glittery silver snowflakes, some Silver Ranger Stickles and also some round blue gems using Ranger Glossy Accents which finished the page.
As we walked along the promenade by the beach, we were surprised to still see a thick frost still lingering in the shadows behind the wall. The jagged edges inspired me to arrange the square corners of the images/wording diagonally across the page.
The flower and plant images that I included on my page were inspired by the frosty silhouette of the palm tree that we found on the slate in our front garden one morning – so amazing (grin!).
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:
Recycled kitchen towel that was used to mop up Ranger Dylusions Ink Spray (After Midnight), Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Speckled Egg) , DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (Black)
Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
Craft Sensations (Creative Paper Collection CR0458/GE)
Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Black 199)
I’m pleased to join the lovely Erika from BioArtGal over at Art Journal Journey and her Favourite Things challenge this month as seeing the snow and frost is always one of my favourite things
I’m so pleased to join the Squares Challenge at Country View Challenges with the square of wording on my page.
I’m happy to join The Funkie Junkie Boutique Challenge Blog and their So Delicate challenge with the delicate wispy edges of the kitchen roll background and pretty snowflakes.
I had fun creating this page out of recycled teabags to showcase the fun quote “Have a cup of Positivi-Tea” (grin!).
For the background I covered the page with used teabags using Liquitex matte gel medium and left it to dry; I found them difficult to stick down as they were a nylon type material which wasn’t very malleable, luckily I wanted texture so the lumps and bumps didn’t matter. To add to the texture you can see black speckles which are dried tealeaves and I also stuck the strings and tabs from the teabags onto the page too. I stamped the page with a Chevron stamp from Kaisercraft and black Archival Ink, and then I added more colour using Tea Dye Distress Ink which was spritzed with water to blend out the colour. Then I applied Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker along the edges of the page to frame it.
The wording was created using some silver glitter foam letter stickers which added some sparkle and dimension.
The teacups and saucers were cut using a die cut from Crafter’s Companion from some turquoise paper that I backed with card. I added some shadows to saucers at the base of the teacups using a silver Daler Rowney paint pen and also some lines to the teacups and saucers using a black Uni Pin marker and some silver Stickles. As the surface was uneven I stuck the teacups and saucers in place using glue dots and to finish I added some little cupcake stickers.
The Hot Cinnamon Spice tea I have been drinking is made by Harney & Sons and is a black tea with cinnamon, orange and sweet clove – so delicious! This pretty tin of teabags was gifted to me (I normally buy loose leaf tea) so I thought I’d recycle the teabags especially as they were made of this nylon type material as I’m pretty sure that they wouldn’t break down in the compost bin (grin!).
As T Stands for T Day, I’m sharing my page and tea with the T Gang and wishing you a Happy T Day! Also for those who love lions and kittens (you know who you are – grin!) you may wish to check out my last post (I was thinking of you while I was creating it – double grin!).
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
With the texture from the teabags, stamping, foam stickers and Stickles, I’m pleased to join the Texture challenge over at Art Journal Journey that I’m hosting this month; it would be lovely to see you there!
I’m also pleased to join in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their Frame It challenge with the simple frame I created with marker on this page.
I’m also happy to be able to join the #128- Dimensions challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with the dimension from the letters and teacups on my page.
Here is a list of all the scrap materials used to create this art journal page:
Recycled teabags
Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
Kaisercraft Clear Stamps (Chevron CS149)
Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Tea Dye)
Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Dark Sepia 175 B)
Crafty Things (Eva Letter Stickers 51114)
B&M Craft Goody Bag (Turquoise 321451)
White cardstock
Pritt Stick
Crafter’s Companion Signature Collection by Sara Davies Vintage Tea Party Metal Die Set (Toppling Teacups)
Let's Art Journal 