Summer

It’s time for a new challenge over at Try it on Tuesday and for the next two weeks our challenge theme is Here Comes Summer.

I had fun creating the summer scenes on this art journal page; I hope you like it too (grin!).

I started by sprinkling the page with some Yellow and Lemon Colourcraft Brusho powders and then I spritzed the powders with water to disperse the colours over the page. I also splattered the two diluted Brushos colours around the edges of the page. For the silhouettes, I used stickers arranging the different elements together to create the summer scenes; for the boy fishing I added the flowers to the pre-cut silhouette and the flower scene was created from scratch using some flower heads, flower centres, foliage and grass stickers taking quite some time to put together. I added a zig-zag sticker along the bottom of each of the scenes and some rub-on transfers for the wording. To finish, I splattered the page with tiny flecks of black DecoArt acrylic paint.

The colours on my page reminded me of these pretty cat mugs that we saw in a local kitchen store; don’t you just love their expressions and the little bird that is perched on the end of their tails (grin!). I’m sharing these with the T Gang over at T Stands for Tuesday as I think Bleubeard and Squiggles will love them too – wishing everyone a very Happy T Day!

I hope that you’re staying well and enjoying your Summer so far!

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

Challenges

As well as Try it on Tuesday, I’m pleased to join the following challenges:

Art Journal Journey which is being hosted by the lovely Mia who has chosen Fish as her theme as there is a little fish that the boy has caught on his fishing line on my page.

I’m pleased to join Paperbabe Stamps and their #170 – Anything Goes challenge with my summer page.

Own Your Dreams – Recycle

Over at Try it on Tuesday our challenge for the next 2 weeks is Recycle.

I love to recycle and use up leftovers on my art journal pages so I collaged different paper pieces that I recycled from a Home Store magazine with some leftover sticker pieces.

I started by recycling a couple of the magazine pages by cutting out the different textured and patterned panels and arranged them onto the page using a glue stick. Then I added the large yellow flower which was a washi tape sticker and some leftover pieces of yellow and brown border stickers from Kaisercraft. I used some border outline stickers from Docrafts to frame the paper pieces and to finish, I added the “own your dreams” wording by Kaisercraft.

For more inspiration please pop over to Try it on Tuesday to see the wonderful Recycle creations from our Guest Designer and my Design Teamies too (grin!). I hope you are inspired to join our challenge; it would be lovely to see you there!

Now summers here with peaches are available in the shops and as T Stands for Tuesday, I’m sharing a yummy Peach Bellini. Like my page it’s simple to make (measurements are for a champagne glass):

Add 3tbl of homemade Peach Puree.
Add 2tbls of Peach Schnapps.
Add chilled Prosecco and stir if needed.

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.

Challenges

As well as Try it on Tuesday, I’m pleased to be joining the following challenges:

Paperbabe Stamps and their #169 – Anything Goes challenge with my recycled page.

LTCCB#155 Anything Goes over at Love To Scrap Challenge Blog with recycling old magazine pages to create my page.

For the man in your life

Over at Try it on Tuesday our challenge for the next 2 weeks is For the Man in your life.

My page showcases a tag with a wonderful quote from Alan Turing which reads “Sometimes it is the people no one can imagine anything of, who do things no one can imagine”.

I started by covering the background with some Hickory Smoke and Tea Dye Distress Ink and then I applied Liquitex matte gel medium to reactivate the ink so I could drag the colours horizontally across the page. When dry, I stamped the grid pattern over the top using black Archival Ink and a homemade stamp, and then I added lots of Remnant Rubs by Tim Holtz. Next I cut a large cog of design paper, which was from Kaisercraft, into pieces and added them around the page, this included creating a pocket for the tag.

The tag was die cut, using a Tag Collection Framelits set by Tim Holtz, from the remains of the cog paper. The quote was printed using a Dymo label printer and when stuck in place, I edged and coloured the tag using Vintage Photo Distress Ink. I added some of the Remnant Rubs and to Finish, I added a eyelet using a We R Memory Keepers Crop-A-Dile punch and eyelet setter.

My page is a tribute to Alan Turing, founder of computer science and cryptographer, whose work was key to breaking the wartime Enigma codes.

As T Stands for Tuesday I’m sharing a pint of Strongarm beer brewed by Lion Brewery (perfect for Henry!) that we had at a local Micro Bar, it’s a North East Ruby Red Ale and tasted out of this world – 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.

Challenges

As well as Try it on Tuesday, I’m pleased to be joining the following challenges:

Paperbabe Stamps and their #168 – Anything Goes challenge with my butterfly page.

Anything Goes challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge with my art journal page.

Butterflies

Over at Try it on Tuesday our challenge for the next 2 weeks is Butterflies.

I had so much fun creating this butterfly page using the huge Perspective Butterfly Thinlits Die by Tim Holtz – I hope you like it!

I started by covering the page using Mustard Seed and Scattered Straw Distress Inks and then I stencilled a Herringbone stencil by Paperbabe Stamps using Black Soot Distress Ink. Next I added the script and numbers to the background using an Etcetera Stamp Set by Tim Holtz and black Archival Ink, and then I applied some white acrylic paint through a hexagon stencil by Creative Expressions. The butterflies were die cut from some white cardstock using the Perspective Butterfly Thinlits Die from Tim Holtz. I coloured them using the Mustard Seed Distress Ink and Villainous Potion Distress Paint and when dry, they were stuck in place using Liquitex matte gel medium. To finish, I added the wording “Be gentle with yourself” which was from a Sentiments Sticker Book by Finnabair.

For more inspiration please pop over to Try it on Tuesday to see the wonderful Butterflies from our Guest Designer and my Design Teamies too (grin!). I hope you are inspired to join our challenge; it would be lovely to see you there!

My friend very kindly gifted me this delicious Ginger, Turmeric and Lemon Tea which I’m sharing today as T Stands for Tuesday – 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.

Challenges

As well as Try it on Tuesday, I’m pleased to be joining the following challenges:

Paperbabe Stamps and their #167 – Anything Goes challenge with my butterfly page.

MIUCB #59 Anything Goes + Optional 3-D Project over at Mix It Up Challenge Blog with all the different techniques that I used to create this mixed media page

Texture challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge with the texture that I created using the stencils in the background and Distress Inks and Paints on my butterflies.

Not A Card challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge with my colourful butterfly art journal page.

Flamingos

This page was inspired by the beautiful flamingos that we saw whilst visiting Blackpool Zoo (smile!).

I started by covering the page with Speckled Egg, Twisted Citron and Rustic Wilderness Distress Paints. When dry, I used the same Speckled Egg paint to stencil and also stamp a Waves mini stencil by Creative Expressions. Then I stencilled some Ranger Texture paste using a Carabelle Studio Art Mask and left it to dry. The flamingos were fussy cut from a topper sheet from Hunkydory and to finish, I added the wording “wild & free” which was a sticker by Little Yellow Bicycle.

Here are the gorgeous brightly coloured flamingos that we saw wading around in their lake. They are Caribbean flamingos and fly in flocks of several thousand in the wild; they fly in formation like migrating geese and make a similar honking sound.

They can live up to 40 years and are omnivorous in the wild, but, in captivity are fed on flamingo pellets which determine their colour and also small insects.

Challenges

I’m pleased to be joining the following challenges:

The lovely Matilde from http://craftowanie.blogspot.com/ is hosting this month at Art Journal Journey and her challenge is Birds so my flamingo art journal page is perfect (smile!).

Paperbabe Stamps and their #167 – Anything Goes challenge with my flamingo page.

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Not A Card theme with my art journal page.

MIUCB #59 Anything Goes + Optional 3-D over at Mix It Up Challenge Blog with all the different techniques that I used to create my flamingo page.

Using stencils on my page reminds me that you still have a few days left to join our Use A Stencil challenge over at Try it on Tuesday too; it would be lovely to see you there!

Common Bar

I created this page to remember one of my birthday celebrations, so today we are going to the Common Bar in Blackpool which serves South American Street Food such as tacos and burritos. 

I started by covering the page with some decoupage paper with a palm leaf and bird design, sticking it in place using a glue stick. Next I stencilled the bricks over the top using Rusty Hinge, Brushed Corduroy and Vintage Photo Distress Inks and then I applied some Pébéo white gesso using a brayer. I added the tropical foliage and flowers to the bottom and left-hand side of the page and the “Happy Birthday” wording, which were all stickers by Kaisercraft. To finish, I used some colourful letters to create the “Common Bar” wording and surrounded them with tile border stickers which were from the same Kaisercraft Sticker Sheet.

Here’s a video showing what the Common Bar looks like inside; we were seated upstairs in a window seat overlooking the street.

We had the most wonderful time and enjoyed these Plain Nachos (I think they are called “plain” as they have the basic toppings).

We also had three types of Tacos (Pork Carnitas, Shredded Chicken Tinga and Chipotle Mushroom) with a side order of corn – all of which were delicious (smile!). Here’s their food menu if you’re interested.

Our drinks were super fun too; I had a Havana Nights Cocktail and my hubby had a Pump Up The Jam beer by Tiny Rebel, yes it did taste like a jam doughnut (double grin!) – Happy T Day for those over at T Stands for Tuesday and here’s their drinks menu too.

Challenges

I’m pleased to join the lovely Matilde from http://craftowanie.blogspot.com/ who is hosting this month at Art Journal Journey and her Birds challenge with the two birds on the decoupage paper that I used on this page (did you spot them both, here’s one of them blowing kisses your way – smile!).

I’ve been having fun using stencils on my pages and this was inspired by our Use A Stencil challenge over at Try it on Tuesday; there is still another week to join in the fun too!

Do small things with great love

Over at Try it on Tuesday our challenge for the next 2 weeks is Use a Stencil.

I had fun using three different stencils on this page for both the background and main flower images.

I started by covering the page with Colbalt Blue, Cadmium Yellow Dark Hue and Bright Aqua Green Liquitex acrylic paints and left it to dry. I didn’t like the yellow so I covered it with the Colbalt Blue and Aqua Green paints, if you look closely you’ll just see some of the yellow peeking through. Next I used a Fun ISO stencil from Paperbabes Stamps and a Carabelle Studio Mask to stencil and stamp the patterns over the top using the blue and green paints again. When dry I added the white flowers using white acrylic paint and a Jofy PaperArsty Flower Stencil and Mask set. To finish, I added the wording which was cut from a Kaisercraft 12×12 paper sheet.

For more inspiration please pop over to Try it on Tuesday to see the wonderful Use a Stencil creations from our Guest Designer and my Design Teamies too (grin!). I hope you are inspired to join our challenge; it would be lovely to see you there!

As T Stands for Tuesday, I’m sharing a yummy beer from Brewdog Brewery called Hazy Jane which is an IPA with a 5% ABV and is described as “This is a full-tilt fruit machine of an IPA packs all the flavour but less of the alcohol. Notes of pineapple, mango, stone-fruit, and a hint of tangerine to mix it up. Brewed with oats and wheat and left unfiltered for a smooth juicy hit” – 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.

Challenges

As well as Try it on Tuesday, I’m pleased to be joining the following challenges:

Paperbabe Stamps and their #166 – Anything Goes challenge with my stencilled page.

A Study in Contrasts over at The Funkie Junkie Boutique Challenge Blog with the contrast between the bright white flowers and blue/green background.

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Anything Goes theme with my art journal page.

MIUCB #59 Anything Goes + optional 3-D project over at Mix It Up Challenge Blog with the stencilling techniques that I used to create this page.

Feeling Good

Over at Try it on Tuesday our challenge for the next 2 weeks is I Can Hear Music where we would like your entries to be inspired by a song.

We hope that you’ll join in the fun too and as you can see my song inspiration was “Feeling Good” but please be sure to let us know what song inspired your project if it’s not obvious.

To portray the first lines of the song, I started by sectioning the page into three panels. For the “Birds flying high” panel, I applied Salty Ocean and Speckled Egg Distress Ink using a Slimeline Starburst A4 Mask Stencil by Marianne Designs to create all the clouds. Then I stamped the Scribbly Birds in Flight by Dina Wakley over the top using black Archival Ink and I coloured them using Burnt Sienna and a mixture of black and white Kuretake watercolour paints. For the “Sun in the sky” panel, I used the same Marianne Designs stencil to apply Mustard Seed Distress Ink and I coloured between the sun rays using Salty Ocean Distress Ink. For the “Breeze Driftin’ by” panel, I used the same stencil to create the foreground using Rustic Wilderness Distress Ink and the clouds using the Speckled Egg and Salty Ocean Distress Inks again. The dandelions were stamped using a Molly Blooms Dandelion Clock Flower stamp and coloured using Sap Green and touches of Burnt Sienna, black and white Kuretake watercolours. I separated the panels using black Glitterations outline stickers and to finish, I added the song lyrics which were printed using a Dymo Label maker.

For more inspiration please pop over to Try it on Tuesday to see the wonderful song related creations from our Guest Designer and my Design Teamies too (grin!). I hope you are inspired to join our challenge; it would be lovely to see you there!

This “Peeling Good” beer inspired me to create this page as it always has me singing “Feeling Good” when I see it. This beer is a chocolate and orange stout, it’s rich and smooth with a lovely orange flavour and aroma. As T Stands for Tuesday, I’m sharing this beer with the T Gang too and wishing you all a very Happy T Day!

Hope that you’re all staying safe and well!

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

Challenges

As well as Try it on Tuesday, I’m pleased to be joining the following challenges:

The lovely  Alison the Craftytrog is hosting over at Art Journal Journey this month and has chosen Play it again Sam so I’m joining her with my “Feeling Good” page.

Paperbabe Stamps and their #165 – Anything Goes challenge with my song inspired page.

The “I Love …..” challenge over at Stamping Sensations as I love Art Journaling and enjoyed using all the stamps to create this page.

We Love Stamping and their Favourite Stamps challenge, as Scribbly Birds in Flight stamp set by Dina Wakely is one of my favourite stamps, I was so pleased when it was re-released so I could buy it (smile!).

Whatever The Weather challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge with the clouds and sunshine on my page.

Birthday Celebrations

Today I’m sharing a page that I created to capture my birthday celebrations – thanks so much for all your birthday wishes (smile!).

This page was created from recycled wrapping paper and envelopes that I received for my birthday.

They were simply ripped into pieces, arranged and then collaged onto the page using a glue stick. As it’s my first birthday without my dad, I thought the words “Dear self stay strong” were perfect for my page; this wording was gifted to me by my dear friend Tracey along with other happy birthday mail and goodies – thanks so much!

The present from my sister was wrapped in the Winnie the Pooh paper and as soon as I saw Tigger this is the song I sang (grin!).

For my birthday we went to my mums and had a birthday party; when I arrived this beautiful mum-made birthday cake was waiting for me.

We enjoyed a yummy Sunday roast dinner of lamb and we had Trifle for dessert (smile!). If you are not familiar with trifle, this is a very British dessert made by layering sponge soaked in sherry, jelly, blancmange, custard and cream topped with glace cherries (my mum added extra cherries as I love them so much!).

My sister spoilt us with this delicious Gin Rhubarb Fizz too and as you probably guessed I had such a wonderful day! As T Stands for Tuesday I’m sharing this drink with the T Gang and wishing you all a Happy T Day – cheers!

Hoping that you all stay safe and well! x

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

Challenges

I’m pleased to be joining the following challenges:

The lovely  Alison the Craftytrog is hosting over at Art Journal Journey this month and has chosen Play it again Sam so I’m joining her with my Winnie the Pooh and Tigger too page as it reminded me of the fun song.

Sweet Treats challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge with my sweet Winnie the Pooh birthday page.

Paperbabe Stamps and their #165 – Anything Goes challenge with my spring page.

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Happy Birthday! theme with my Birthday Celebrations page.

Don’t forget there is still another week to join our Spring Colours challenge over at Try it on Tuesday too.

Spring Colours

Over at Try it on Tuesday our challenge for the next 2 weeks is Spring Colours.

We hope you’ll join in the fun and you can use any medium you like as long as we can see spring colours as part of your design. There are lots of spring colours to choose from and I was inspired by the green, yellow and neutral colours of spring.

I love collaging so I arranged some recycled images of a cute bunny rabbit, a hare and the “Spring” wording onto the page with a pretty daisy paper from The Diary of an Edwardian Lady paper set, and some recycled Encyclopaedia pages; they were stuck in place using a glue stick. I stamped the wording “Spring is in the air” onto the Encyclopaedia paper using black Archival Ink, and then I added two lots of thin washi tapes and the offcut strips of paper. To finish, I added all the spring ephemera pieces which were from a Field Notes ephemera pack or cut from some Pocket Cards; all of which were by Tim Holtz.

For more inspiration please pop over to Try it on Tuesday to see the wonderful spring colour creations from our Guest Designer and my Design Teamies too (grin!). I hope you are inspired to join our challenge; it would be lovely to see you there!

As T Stands for Tuesday and to continue the spring hare theme on my page, here’s a couple of beers we enjoyed recently including Hopping Hare Pale Ale by Badger Brewery. The other is a Mango Wheat by Blue Moon – Cheers and Happy T Day!

I hope that you are staying safe and well!

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

Challenges

As well as Try it on Tuesday , I’m pleased to be joining the following challenges:

Easter/Spring challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge with my spring page.

Paperbabe Stamps and their #164 – Anything Goes challenge with my spring page.

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and their Anything Goes theme with my spring colours page.