Happy New Year 2019

Wishing you a very Happy New Year; may your year be filled with peace, love, and happiness!

To start my sparkly New Year page, I painted some gold metallic acrylic paint around the edges of the page and blended it into the centre with some Pébéo white gesso. I then layered the background by stamping some snowflakes with Rusty Hinge Distress Ink using a Woodware Collection stamp and then stencilling Festive Berries Distress Ink with a blending tool. The stencil is a Decorative Flowers stencil which I won over at That’s Crafty Challenge Blog – thank you! I stamped more snowflakes from a BoBunny stamp set using a Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker which I also used to edge the page and then I added another layer of white gesso using a palette knife. I used the same Decorative flower stencil to add some Pébéo modelling paste and once dry I painted some Titanium White Liquitex Ink over the top. I stencilled more Festive Berries ink and stamped snowflakes again, this time using Potter’s Clay Memento Ink to get a clearer image which finished the background. Next I die cut the wording from grey design paper using a Docrafts die set and my Big Shot machine.

I used the same grey paper to back some bell and star-shaped outline stickers and cut them out; they are stuck to the page using Liquitex matte gel medium. I suspended some of them from silver strands which are outline border stickers and also a red ribbon and bow which are recycled from an old Christmas card. I decorated the page with silver glittery stars and more silver outline stickers including some scrollwork, small stars and holly. To finish, I added more sparkle to the wording using silver Stickles and to the holly berries making them red to match the ribbon and bow using Christmas Red Stickles.

As T Stands for Tuesday, maybe you would like to celebrate the New Year with us by trying some of our homebrewed pumpkin beer. As you can see we have plenty for everyone – Cheers and Happy T Day!

Wishing you all the very best for 2019!

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 Alison/Craftytrog and her Geometric Shapes challenge over at Art Journal Journey with all the star shapes that I included on my page.

I’m happy to join the Star Light Star Bright challenge over at A Vintage Journey as I had fun adding all the sparkly stars; I was inspired by the New Year to create this Art Journalling style page.

I’m joining in the Party Time! challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge as my page celebrates the New Year!

Over at That’s Crafty! Challenge Blog their theme is Anything Goes so I’m pleased to also join this challenge.

As I included stamping on this page, I’m also joining the Anything Goes challenge over at The Artistic Stamper – Happy New Year!

I’m also joining Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Anything Goes! challenge with my New Year’s 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:

• Poundland Metallic Acrylic Paint (Gold)
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Festive Berries, Rusty Hinge)
• Pébéo Modeling Paste
• Tsukineko Memento Ink (Potter’s Clay)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pen (Dark Sepia 233 B)
• Liquitex Ink! (Titanium White)
• That’s Crafty! 8x8in Stencil (Decorative Flower – TC8039)
• Woodware Craft Collection Clear Magic Singles (Snowflakes FRS027)
• BoBunny Clear Stamps (Snow Day #13705563)
• Clear Impressions (Woodland Christmas) – free with magazine
• Docrafts X-Cut A5 Die Set (Folk Alphabet XCU503284)
• Poundland Design Pad (Purple Paradise CRO701/PL3)
• Crelando Relief Sticker Set (IAN289011)
• Silver Border Outline Stickers (© DD6572)
• The Works (Christmas Glitter Stickers)
• Ranger Stickles (Silver, Christmas Red)
• Liquitex Matte Gel Medium
• Stix2 double-sided tape

Christmas Robin – Card

As you are probably aware I love robins, especially at Christmas, so today I created a Robin Christmas card using a Tim Holtz stamp and a pretty wintry background that was leftover from a previous project.

The leftover background was previously created using mixed media paper which I stamped with snowflakes using Simon Says Stamp Frozen Fractals stamp set and VersaMark Watermark ink and then covered with white Stampendous embossing powder. I shook and tapped off any excess powder and used a heat gun to melt the embossing powder until it became smooth and dimensional with a glossy finish. Next I used Milled Lavender, Chipped Sapphire and Salty Ocean Distress Ink to colour the background by spritzing the panel with water then applying the inks. Then I created my robin by stamping the bird on a branch stamp from Tim Holtz Urban Tapestry stamp set using Brushed Corduroy and Vintage Photo Distress Ink. I coloured the bird using Poppy Red and Charcoal Grey Derwent Inktense pencils and also added more details to the feathers, eye and beak using a black Derwent Graphik marker, white Uniball gel pen and a Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker. The foliage is stamped using the Urban Tapestry stamp set and the same brown inks too. I die cut the berry branches using Tim Holtz Sizzix Garden Greens Thinlets and my Big Shot machine from white card stock and also a brown design paper. They are layered together slightly off centre making the white card stock look like a coating of snow, then I added Christmas Red Stickles to the berries to give them a glittery finish. I also die cut the “Merry Christmas” wording from the white card stock and brown design paper again as well as some blue vellum. I layered the three pieces together slightly off centre so the white card stock was on the bottom, the blue vellum was in the middle then the brown paper was on the top using a Zig Memory glue pen. To finish, I edged the panel with the Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush marker, then I stuck the berry branches and wording in place using mini glue dots and the Zig glue pen.

I have a number of robin Christmas decorations around the house too, some of which you may be able to see in this photo of me and my hubby – we wish you all a very Merry Christmas!

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 be able to join Fashionable Stamping Challenges and their Winter challenge with my wintry Christmas Robin stamped card.

As the challenge over at Country View Challenges is Christmas, I’m pleased to join them too as my Christmas robin fits this theme.

With all the stamping, the red glittery Stickles and shiny white embossing, I’m also joining the Winter Sparkle challenge over at Stamping Sensations.

I’m pleased to be able to join the Christmas Challenge over at The Artistic Stamper with my stamped Christmas Robin.

Over at That’s Crafty! Challenge Blog their theme is Anything Goes so I’m also joining this challenge.

I’m pleased to join in the Anything Goes challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps 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:

• Simon Says Stamp Clear Stamp Set (Frozen Fractals SSS101694)
• Tim Holtz Stampers Anonymous Cling Rubber Stamps (Urban Tapestry CMS061)
• Tsukineko VersaMark Watermark Ink Pad
• Stampendous Embossing Powder (Detail White Opaque)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Milled Lavender, Chipped Sapphire, Salty Ocean, Brushed Corduroy, Vintage Photo)
• Derwent Inktense Pencils (Poppy Red, Charcoal Grey)
• Derwent Graphik Line Marker (Black 0.05mm)
• Uniball Signo Gel Pen (White)
• Faber-Castell Craft Stamper Big Brush Pen (Dark Sepia 175 B)
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Garden Greens 661206)
• Dovecraft Cutting Dies (Merry Christmas DCDIE052X16)
• White Card Stock
• Simon Says Stamp (Blue Vellum)
• Poundland Design Pad (Changing Seasons CR0701/16PL1)
• Ranger Stickles (Christmas Red)
• Zig Memory System 2-Way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
• Stix2 mini glue dots

All Good Wishes for Christmas

We have been visiting with family across the UK to celebrate Christmas the last few days, so I thought I would create a Christmas page to wish you all the best for the holiday season!

I started by stamping the page with a Collage Number stamp from Gummiapan using Versamark Watermark ink which I dried using a heat gun; I find drying this ink with the heat gun achieves better watermark images than leaving it to dry naturally. Then I applied Paris Dusk and Teal Zeal Memento Inks using a blending tool to gradually build up the colours. The blue colours were a bit bright so I toned them down by dragging a Platinum Planet Brilliance Ink pad over the page giving it a lovely shimmer and frosty appearance. Then I stamped some snowflakes over the background using the Platinum Planet Brilliance Ink and also the Paris Dusk Memento Ink again. The pine branches are stamped using Pistachio and Cottage Ivy Memento Inks and the pine cones using Rich Cocoa Memento Ink and I also splattered the page with white DecoArt acrylic paint. Next I used my Big Shot machine to die cut: some snowflakes by Tonic Studios out of white card stock; some green holly leaves using white cardstock which I coloured using the Cottage Ivy Memento Ink and Twisted Citron Distress Ink; some holly berries from white card stock which I coloured using Love Letter Memento Ink; and finally some berry branches from white card stock and brown design paper using Tim Holtz Garden Greens Thinlets. The white snowflakes are stuck in place using a Zig Memory glue pen and I added some silver snowflake relief stickers to the background too. I arranged the other die cuts with a recycled Christmas card, which I saved from last year as I loved the vintage design, and also a pretty white and silver snowflake sticker. To finish, I added some Christmas Red Stickles from Ranger to the holly berries to give them some glittery sparkle.

We found some lovely Christmas displays at our local garden centre this year, I love this one with the pretty snowflake lights and ceiling, and of course the owls!

This vintage style flower display looks very festive with the poinsettias and jewel colours.

It seems that upside-down trees are all the rage this year too (grin!).

We went to this local garden centre on our way to Garstang where we went to the Royal Oak for lunch. We sat in one of the little rooms off the bar which contained this beautiful stained glass window, isn’t it amazing! The drinks that are included in the window design means that I can join the T Gang over at T Stands for Tuesday too – Happy T Day!

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:

Bleubeard and Elizabeth who blog at Altered Book Lover are hosting My Favorite Season, or ‘Tis the Season challenge over at Art Journal Journey, so I’m pleased to join them with Christmas page!

I’m joining the Christmas Challenge over at The Artistic Stamper as I included stamping on my Christmas Wishes page.

I’m pleased to be able to join in the Christmas challenge fun over at Country View Challenges with my festive page.

I’m joining Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Christmas challenge with my Christmassy art journal page.

Over at That’s Crafty! Challenge Blog their theme is Anything Goes so I’m happy to be able to join this challenge with my Christmas page.

I’m also joining the Anything Goes challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps 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:

• Tsukineko Versamark Watermark Ink Pad
• Tsukineko Memento Ink (Paris Dusk, Teal Zeal, Pistachio, Cottage Ivy, Rich Cocoa, Love Letter)
• Tsukineko Brilliance Pigment Ink (Platinum Planet)
• DecoArt Crafter’s Acrylic (White)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Twisted Citron)
• Woodland Christmas Stamp Set from Clear Impressions
• Tonic Studios Christmas Trio Die Set (Falling Snowflakes 1792e)
• Cut & Create Festive Collection (5×5 Dies Holly)
• Tim Holtz Sizzix Thinlets (Garden Greens 661206)
• White card stock
• Poundland Design Pad (Changing Seasons CR0701/16PL1)
• Recycled Christmas card
• Crelando Relief Stickers (IAN289011)
• The Works (Christmas Embellishments)
• Ranger Stickles (Christmas Red)
• Zig Memory System 2-Way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
• Stix2 double-sided tape and mini glue dots
• The Range double-sided foam tape

Guess Who’s Coming? …. Santa

As Santa is on his way, over at Try it on Tuesday our new challenge for the next two weeks is Guess Who’s Coming? …. Santa, where you will find some amazing creations from my Design Team teamies to inspire you!

We would like to see a Santa somewhere on your creations, so here’s my Santa related art journal page – I hope you like it!

I started by covering the page with some Santa decoupage paper using a glue stick. Then I used some green card from a topper set which I cut into a rectangle and some strips, they are all edged with gold border outline stickers. I stuck them in place using double-sided tape along with a framed Santa image from the same topper set and an envelope addressed to Santa. Next I embellished the page with some gold relief stickers; this included Santa’s sleigh filled with gifts, snowflakes and stars and also some holly and candy canes which I added to the background. To finish, I added three 3D stickers of a candy cane, some holly and a little robin.

This pretty shop is in Lytham and is full of interesting items for the garden; it always has lovely displays that cascade onto the street front. It’s where our friends bought the metal Mushrooms for our garden, you can see them here.

It reminded me of my page with all the Santa memorabilia (grin!).

We always enjoy meeting up with our friends for a walk and a drink so whilst walking in Lytham we went to a café called Zest.

As T Stands for Tuesday I’m joining the T Gang with my hubby’s hot chocolate – yum!  Happy T Day everyone!

Sorry I haven’t been around the last week or so, my Dad has had heart surgery and I’ve been busy visiting him and helping my mum whilst he has been in hospital. I’m pleased to say he is home now and doing ok – yay!

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:

Bleubeard and Elizabeth who blog at Altered Book Lover are hosting My Favorite Season, or ‘Tis the Season challenge over at Art Journal Journey, so I’m pleased to join them with my festive Santa page!

I’m pleased to be able to join the Christmas challenge over at Country View Challenges with my Santa page.

With all the pretty gold stars I added to my page I’m joining in the fun over at A Vintage Journey and their Star Light Star Bright challenge; I was inspired by Santa and used a Mixed Media style.

I’m joining Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their Warm Winter Wishes challenge with my Santa art journal page.

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

I’m also pleased to be able to join the Anything Goes challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps 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 the materials that were used to create this art journal page:

• First Edition Paper Deco Mache Decoupage Paper (FEDEC282X17)
• Hunkydory Crafts Christmas Past Luxury Card and Topper Collection (He’s Checking His List PAST903)
• Pound Stretcher (Letter to Santa Pack 2-98195)
• White card stock
• Docrafts Anita’s Outline Stickers (Straight Line Borders Gold ANT8101016)
• Crelando Relief Stickers (Gold IAN289011)
• Docrafts Papermania 3D Stickers (A Christmas Wish PMA801901)
• Pritt Stick
• Stix2 double-sided tape
• The Range double-sided foam tape

Merry Moose Winter Wonderland

Our new challenge at Try it on Tuesday for the next two weeks is Winter Wonderland, where you will find some amazing creations from my Design Team teamies!

For my art journal page, I had so much fun creating a winter wonderland for my Merry Moose. I fell in love with this Merry Moose die set from Tim Holtz as soon as I saw it and finally succumbed to purchasing it last week, so I just couldn’t wait to use it and it didn’t disappoint – I love it (grin!).

To start, I stamped the pretty snowflakes using the Simon Says Stamp Frozen Fractals stamp set and Versamark Watermark ink which I covered with white Stampendous embossing powder. I shook and tapped any excess powder off the page and then I used a heat gun to melt the embossing powder until it became smooth and dimensional with a glossy finish. Next I positioned a circular stencil onto the page to depict the sun and also a hand cut paper template to mask out the foreground. Then I painted the sky background using my Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour paint set; I did this by wetting the page with water first and then applying Ultramarine Pale, Ultramarine and Turquoise Blue colours using my paintbrush, gradually shading and blending the paints so that they were lighter around the sun. When dry, I splattered the page with white acrylic paint and then I defined the edge of the foreground more using Paris Dusk and Danube Blue Memento Inks and a blending tool. I removed the foreground mask and also added another line of snow using a mask and the same inks. I added some colour to the snowflakes in the foreground by painting them with the Ultramarine and Turquoise Blue watercolours too. For the sun I applied a light wash of Lemon Yellow watercolour paint and when dry, I covered it with some Platinum Planet Brilliance Ink to add some shine. The wording is stamped using the blue Memento Inks again and overlaid with the Platinum Planet Brilliance Ink and I added a little of the Turquoise Blue watercolour paint to the letters so that it colour matched the background more.

The trees are die cut using the Merry Moose Thinlets by Tim Holtz from Sizzix and my Big Shot Machine. I used some brown wood effect paper from Tim Holtz and also some blue glittery paper for the dripping snow dies; they are stuck to the page using a Zig Memory glue pen. Next I added a puffy snow effect using Inkylicious Fluffy Puffy Stuff which you apply and then heat with a heat gun to make it 3-dimensional; it was so much fun seeing the snow come to life (grin!). I also die cut some snowflakes out of the same blue glitter paper and embellished them with the Fluffy Puffy Stuff too and then stuck them to the page. I really need to use the fluffy puffy stuff again, just so I can write fluffy puffy some more (double grin!).

To finish, I added the Merry Moose which is die cut three times, once out of cream linen finish card stock and then twice out of white card stock; I layered them together so the linen finish was on the top. I masked off his antlers and then coloured him using Tea Dye, Vintage Photo and Ground Espresso Distress Inks blending the colours with a blending tool. Then I removed the masking tape and coloured the antlers with Antique Linen Distress Ink. I stuck him in place and then decided that he needed a scarf to keep him warm, so I used the harness die cut from the Thinlet set and fashioned one together using the blue glitter paper and white card stock which I coloured with the Paris Dusk Memento Ink. It was fiddly to make but I think it completes his look beautifully, don’t you (grin!).

We have been lucky enough to see moose several times in the wild on our travels to America and so I love everything moose! We have a few moose items around the house from our travels too including these beautiful mugs which we were purchased at Booth Bay in Maine. Today they are filled with hot chocolate that has Pumpkin Spice syrup in it and topped with whipped cream – yum! As T Stands for Tuesday, I’m saying a big hello to the T Gang and wishing you all a very 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 with my modern Christmas page!

I’m also joining in the fun over at Moo Mania & More and their Tic, Tac, Toe theme (Designer Paper – Glistening Season from Tim Holtz Paper Stash, Die-Cut – Merry Moose, Circles – on the scarf and the sun).

I’m also pleased to join A Vintage Journey and their Paper Stash challenge this month as I was inspired by my new Tim Holtz Merry Moose Thinlets so used the linen and glitter papers that have been in my craft stash for a while as well as the Tim Holtz Paper Stash pad to create my Mixed Media style page.

Over at That’s Crafty! Challenge Blog their theme is Winter Wonderland so I’m pleased to join this challenge with my Merry Moose Winter Wonderland page.

I’m also pleased to be able to join the Baby It’s Cold Outside challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge with as it must be cold with my Merry Moose wearing his scarf (grin!).

With the embossing powder that I used for my pretty stamped snowflakes, I’m also joining Fashionable Stamping Challenges and their Resist It challenge 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 the materials that were used to create this art journal page:

• Tsukineko Versamark Watermark Ink Pad
• Stampendous Embossing Powder Basics (Detail White Opaque DP100)
• Kuretake Gansai Tambi Japanese Watercolour Paint set (Ultramarine Pale, Ultramarine, Turquoise Blue, Lemon Yellow)
• Tsukineko Memento Ink (Paris Dusk, Danube Blue)
• Tsukineko Brilliance Pigment Ink (Platinum Planet)
• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Tea Dye, Vintage Photo, Ground Espresso, Antique Linen)
• Faber-Castell Craft Stamper Big Brush Pen (Dark Sepia 175 B)
• Derwent Graphic Marker (black 0.05mm)
• Inkylicious (Fluffy Puffy Stuff)
• Simon Says Stamp Clear Stamp Set (Frozen Fractals SSS101694)
• Inkylicious Stencil (Sun & Moons)
• Winter Wonderland Stamp Set (free with Craft Stampers magazine No:62)
• Tim Holtz Alterations Sizzix Thinlets (Merry Moose 663103)
• Dovecraft Cutting Dies (Merry Christmas DCDIE052X16)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Paper Stash (Halloween #TH93712)
• Blue Glitter Paper
• Cream Linen Card Stock
• White Card Stock
• Zig Memory System Chisel Tip Glue Pen
• Stix2 double-sided tape
• Ranger Heat Gun
• Sizzix Big Shot

Good Wishes for Christmas

I’m so delighted to be guest designing over at Swedish House Crafts today!

With the Christmas season almost upon us, I created an art journal page inspired by the Glistening Season Pion Design papers, a Gummiapan stamp, some of my favourite colours of Tsukineko Inks and also some pretty Swedish House Crafts Fabric Flowers – I hope you like it!

If you would like to see how this page came together, the full process is detailed below.

To start I tried out a new technique which was great fun; I stamped the Reed Plant stamp from Gummiapan onto the background of the page using Versamark Watermark ink which I dried using a heat gun (I found drying the ink with a heat gun achieved better watermark images). Then I applied Paris Dusk and Teal Zeal Memento Inks using a blending tool, gradually building up the colour which made the reed images that I had stamped appear (grin!).

Next I stamped the Gummiapan stamp over the page again using the Paris Dusk and Teal Zeal Memento Inks. As I wanted more of a grungy vintage look, I dragged Rich Cocoa Memento ink pad over the edges of the page, then I applied the same ink to a blending mat, spritzed with water and pressed the mat onto the page. I also flicked some of this watered down ink using a paintbrush onto the page, along with some splatters of Parchment Liquitex acrylic paint.

With my background complete, I cut out some of the tags and images from the Glistening Seasons Pion Design paper and used scissors and Rich Cocoa and Toffee Crunch Memento Ink to distress the edges. Then I arranged these papers onto the page with some pieces of doily and die cut foliage using double-sided tape; for the foliage I used the reverse side of the Pion Design paper which was a lovely silver-grey colour and also some dark green paper from my craft stash.

I used the reverse side of the Pion Design paper again to create my snowflakes along with some blue vellum that was left over from a previous project using a die cut and my Big Shot machine. I also created a wreath and little fir-tree twigs from the remnants of the holly die cuts which was fun and a bit fiddly (grin!).

To finish the page, I added the snowflakes, wreath and twigs to the page along with some little blue gems, a bow, the blue Swedish House Crafts Fabric Flowers and three hearts which were cut from the Pion Design paper.

I’d like to thank Swedish House Crafts for having me as part of their Guest Design Team – Happy Crafting!

The Glistening Season paper design, that I used on my page, reminded me of some Christmas displays at a Garden Centre that we visit every year with family, isn’t this winter scene beautiful!

These little gnomes were really cute too …

… and not forgetting Santa Claus (grin!).

It’s hard to believe that there are only five weeks left until Christmas, but before I get carried away with thinking about Christmas … I just wanted to wish a very Happy Thanksgiving to those of you who are celebrating today!

Challenges

I’m pleased to join the lovely Erika from BioArtGal, who is hosting the Vintage or Modern challenge over at Art Journal Journey with my vintage Christmas page!

I’m joining in the fun over at Moo Mania & More and their Tic, Tac, Toe theme (Designer Paper – Glistening Season from Pion Design, Die-Cut – foliage and snowflakes, Circles – snowflakes and gems).

I’m also pleased to join A Vintage Journey and this month’s Paper Stash challenge as I was inspired by the pretty Glistening Season Pion Design papers to create my Vintage style page.

Over at That’s Crafty! Challenge Blog their theme is Winter Wonderland so I’m pleased to join this challenge with my wintry Christmas page.

I’m also joining the lovely Wen and her Simply Neutrals Tuesday party over at Apple Apricot with my neutral Christmas focal papers (I hope you don’t mind the pop of colour from my blue wintry background).

I’m also pleased to be able to join the Baby It’s Cold Outside challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge with my frosty snowy 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:

• Tsukineko Versamark Watermark Stamp Pad
• Tsukineko Memento Ink (Paris Dusk, Team Zeal, Rich Cocoa)
• Liquitex Artist Color Acrylic (Parchment)
• Gummiapan Stamps (Reed Plant
• Foliage Dies – Spellbinders (unknown), Cut & Create (Holly, Wreath)
• Snowflake Dies – Dovecraft (Merry Christmas DCDIE052X16)
• Pion Design Glistening Season Collection (Tags – PD6612)
• Doily
• Dark green paper
• Blue Vellum
• Swedish House Crafts (Fabric Flower Spots)
• Blue round gems
• Zig Memory System 2-way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)
• Ranger Glossy Accents
• Stix2 double-sided tape and mini glue dots
• The Range double-sided foam tape

Happy Halloween 2018

There were lots of fall and Halloween displays to be found on our recent holiday in America, so while I was there I treated myself to some Halloween crafting goodies which were on sale (grin!); this included some pretty Halloween Collage Paper and a Paper Stash pad by Tim Holtz and various washi tapes. Of course I couldn’t wait to use them and as it is my goal (this year) to use any new crafting goodies immediately so they don’t get forgotten and stay unused, I created this spooky page to remind me of our travels and to wish you all a Happy Halloween!

To start with I covered the top and bottom of the page with pieces of tissue paper using a glue stick; firstly some swirly recycled tissue paper from a gift that we bought ourselves whilst on holiday and also some of the Tim Holtz collage paper. Over the tissue paper I stamped some cobwebs by Molly Blooms using Spiced Marmalade and Black Soot Distress Ink. Next I cut some rectangles from the different Halloween papers of the Paper Stash pad by Tim Holtz and stuck them in the centre of the page using a glue stick. I added four different washi tapes to the top and bottom of the papers, then I spent quite a bit of time outlining them with black Glitterations outline stickers, some strands of black gems and also some thick neon orange strips. I die cut the words out of one of the design papers using an Alphabet die set from Docrafts and my Big Shot machine. Then to finish, I stuck them onto the page using a Zig glue pen, outlined them with a black Sharpie marker pen and then a white Uni Ball gel pen.

When we visited America we saw a few Halloween displays in people’s yard/gardens and on one of our walks we discovered this tree which was decorated with scarecrows and ghosts!

This “Nightmare Before Christmas” themed display outside this beautiful house was opposite a petrol (gas) station that we stopped at, isn’t it awesome …

… or as my friend says “it’s wicked good” (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:

I’m pleased to join the lovely Linda from heARTfullyinspiredby Linda, who is hosting the Creature Comforts challenge over at Art Journal Journey with my Happy Halloween page.

 I’m joining in the fun over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge and their Halloween/Spooky challenge with my Halloween inspired art journal page,.

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

I’m also joining Stamps & Stencils as their challenge is Spooky Fun with an Autumnal Twist.

 The theme is Anything Goes over at Paperbabe Stamps, so I’m pleased to be able to join this challenge with my Happy Halloween page.

I’m also pleased to join the Halloween/Spooky challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge too.

Don’t forget that there is still time to join in the spooky Trick or Treat …it’s Halloween fun at Try it on Tuesday, we would love 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 (Spiced Marmalade, Black Soot)
• Sharpie Permanent Fine Point Marker (Black)
• Uniball Signo gel pen (White)
• Molly Blooms Rubberstamps (MB-0065D)
• Docrafts A5 Die Set (Folk Alphabet XCUT 503286)
• Recycled tissue paper
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Collage Paper (Halloween #TH93727)
• Tim Holtz idea-ology Paper Stash (Halloween #TH93712)
• Washi Tapes (Happy Halloween, black & white floral, black & white stripe, measuring tape)
• Docrafts Papermania Glitterations (Black Borders ANT8181015)
• Docrafts Papermania Glitterations 3D Border (Neon Orange PMA818103)
• Poundland (Design Gems 134240)
• Pritt Stick
• Zig Memory System 2 Way Glue (Dual Action Glue Pen)

Trick or Treat … and a special T Day Meet

For the next two weeks our new challenge over at Try it on Tuesday is Trick or Treat …It’s Halloween, so it’s time to join us with your Halloween creations.

I had so much fun creating my spooky art journal page by layering lots of colours using stencils/stamps and getting messy with black ink drips (grin!).  I hope you’ll join in the fun too and if you need more inspiration please check out the wonderful Design Team creations over at Try it on Tuesday!

I started by layering different stencils by Craft Sensations and using Distress Inks to create the background; this included a number stencil using Antique Linen ink, a Chevron stencil using Hickory Smoke ink, a rose stencil using Rusty Hinge ink, a clock and a cogs stencil using Vintage Photo and Brushed Corduroy ink. Then I stamped a Diamond Background stamp from Art Impressions and a homemade grid stamp using black Archival Ink and applied white gesso over the top to tone them down a little. Next I added the lines and drips of Carbon Black Liquitex Ink and I also splattered the page with the ink; I love the grungy look this gave the page. The filigree swirls, crow and birdcage are all stamped with black Archival Ink using a stamp set by 7 Gypsies from Hampton Art, and the trick or treat wording is stamped using the same ink and an alphabet stamp set, also by Hampton Art. To finish, I added some drops of Pumpkin Liquid Pearls by Ranger to the filigree swirls, crow, birdcage and wording.

Talking of treats, as you may be aware we have recently been on holiday in Maine, USA for the last couple of weeks visiting our friends. We were visiting Portsmouth in New Hampshire so I just couldn’t miss the opportunity to meet up with my lovely blog friend Erika aka BioArtGal – yay!

As T Stands for Tuesday, we purposely chose a Tuesday to meet up and honour T Day (grin!). I’m saying a big hello and welcome to the T Gang and wishing you all a very Happy T Day!

We met at the Portsmouth Brewery for a pint and a catch up, thank you Erika for choosing such a fabulous place to meet! My hubby joined us too and we all got on so well that we chatted for some time over a beer or two and then decided to have dinner together – I can highly recommend their yummy pastrami sandwich!

We sat in a booth that had this beautiful wall art above it …

… and found that they had a large beer selection; myself and Erika had the Murphy’s Law Red Ale and my hubby had the Dirty Blonde Ale.

The actual brewery can be seen through the glass as you sit and enjoy your food and drink …

… and even the toilet/restroom doors are made from recycled metal brewing vessels – so cool!

Erika even kindly gifted me a bag of crafting goodies too, I can’t wait to use them! Thank you so much for your kindness and wonderful company, we had the most amazing time!

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 Linda from heARTfullyinspiredby Linda, who is hosting the Creature Comforts challenge over at Art Journal Journey with my creepy Halloween page.

I’m joining the Inktober challenge over at The Artistic Stamper with all the layers of inks and stamping I used to create this page.

Over at That’s Crafty! Challenge Blog their theme is Spookilicious so I’m also pleased to join this challenge with my spooky Trick or Treat page.

Over at Stamps and Stencils their challenge is Spooky Fun with an Autumnal Twist so I’m joining in the Halloween autumnal fun too with my Trick or Treat page.

I’m also joining the Shades of Autumn challenge over at Stamping Sensations as I used autumnal tones to create my page.

With my Halloween inspired art journal page, I’m pleased to join over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Anything But A Card challenge.

I’m pleased to join the Anything Goes challenge over at Paperbabe Stamps with my spooky Halloween 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:

• Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Antique Linen, Hickory Smoke, Rusty Hinge, Vintage Photo, Brushed Corduroy)
• Ranger Archival Ink (Jet Black)
• Pébéo White Gesso
• Liquitex Ink! (Carbon Black)
• Craft Sensations (Deco Stencil Set 154892)
• Hampton Art 7 Gypsies Vintage cling mounted rubber stamps (Birdsong ICO151)
• Art Impressions wood mounted rubber stamp (Diamond Background T-3335)
• Homemade Stamp – wooden block and Drywall Tape
• Hampton Art Ki (Alphabet Stamp Set WM1037)
• Ranger Liquid Pearls (Pumpkin)

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

Autumn Critters

As it was the Autumn Equinox last weekend it’s now officially autumn – yay! I really enjoyed summer but I love autumn too, so I found myself inspired by some critters depicted on some seasonal gifts that I had seen in our local shops.

I started by covering the page with Aquamarine Spectrum Aqua marker ink that I applied to an acrylic block, spritzed with water and pressed onto the page. I then divided the page into four quadrants and started to create a different background for each of my little critters, which are foam stickers. To create a home for the fox, I stamped lots of ferns from a Royal & Langnickel stamp set using Orange and Terracotta Spectrum Aqua markers and London Fog Memento Ink. The owl is sitting in some silver birch trees that I stamped using the same London Fog Memento Ink and I also outlined and doodled the bark detail onto the trees using a Uni Pin black marker. The golden leaves are stamped using a Gold Spectrum Aqua marker ink and a leaf stamp from Royal & Langnickel, and I outlined them and added more detail using the black Uni Pin marker. I used the same Royal & Langnickel stamp set to stamp the leaves for the hedgehog; this time I used the London Fog Memento Ink and three different colours of Spectrum Aqua markers which were Gold, Sepia and Crimson. Lastly for the squirrel, I used a stamp set by Craft Impressions to stamp lots of pine cones again using London Fog Memento Ink and also a Sepia Spectrum Aqua Marker and Sanguine and Dark Sepia Faber-Castell Big Brush Markers. Using the same stamp set I added a few pine branches using London Fog and Pistachio Memento Ink. Next I separated the quadrants using washi tape which I outlined using a Uni Pin marker, and then I added some star gems. The autumnal wording is cut from a magazine and stuck in place using a UHU Stic. To finish, I used some small gems to add a little sparkle choosing a different colour for each quadrant.

I just couldn’t resist creating my autumn critter page especially having seen these lovely glasses with beautiful animal designs on them and …

… these amazing sugar, tea, coffee and biscuit/cookie jars in a local store. I hope like me that you enjoyed your summer days and are looking forward to autumn too!

My drinking glasses and assortment of tea and coffee jars means that I am able to join in the fun over at T Stands for Tuesday – wishing you all a very Happy T Day!

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 be able to join the lovely Yvonne from Meggy’s way, who is hosting A World of Fantasy challenge over at Art Journal Journey with my autumn critter imaginary friends (grin!).

I’m also joining the Forever Autumn challenge over at That’s Crafty! Challenge Blog with my autumnal art journal page.

With my gems adding some bling and sparkle to my art journal page, I’m pleased to join Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Bling It On challenge.

Over at Paperbabe Stamps, their challenge is Stars so I’m pleased to join in the fun with the star gems that I added to my page.

I’m also pleased to join the September Link Party #43 – Anything Goes over at Cropstop Blog with my page as I included some products from companies that they carry in their store.

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:

• Spectrum Aqua Artist’s marker (Aquamarine, Orange, Terracotta, Gold, Crimson, Sepia)
• Tsukineko Memento Dye Ink (London Fog, Pistachio)
• Faber-Castell Big Brush artist pen (Sanguine 188 B, Dark Sepia 175 B)
• Uni Pin Fine Line marker (Black 0.1mm)
• Royal & Langnickel Clear Choice Stamps (Pressed Leaves)
• Craft Impressions clear stamp set (Winter Wonderland)
• Old magazine
• B&M Hobby World (Woodland Friends Foam Stickers 289338)
• Quality Toys Group (Washi Tape 2544960)
• The Range Adhesive Craft Gems (Assorted Shapes CR0869)
• UHU Stic