Small plaque 2

This morning I made a second small plaque, using the same techniques that I used on the plaque below.

Small plaque

I made this small plaque, 3 x 3 inches, this afternoon.

I started with a scrap of metal which I embossed with the uneven rectangles, using an embossing board. This was then stuck on half of a chipboard square previously primed with gesso. I painted the other half of the square with copper Ferro paint, overlapping the embossed metal. Whilst the Ferro paint was still wet I stamped into it to create a textured pattern. Once dry, I painted both the metal and Ferro paint with turquoise Viva paint. I highlighted the texture of the metal with copper Viva paint before applying some green Viva paint to both the metal and Ferro paint. The bird is made of Grungeboard, stamped twice so that I could add a second wing to give some dimension.

Halloween

The theme for Sunday Postcard Art this week is 'Halloween.' I decided to go for a ghostly image. This is my digital creation - staircase and image of the woman courtesy of iTkUpiLLi.

Tick Tock, Tick Tock

The main project of the ArtsyCrafts weekend was to make a clock. This involved several stages:

1. Stamping and cutting out the metal numbers

2. Decorating the clock face by applying gesso, using Terra Paint and stamping into it, colouring with acrylic paints and highlighting with Viva Paint

3. Making rectangular, metal motifs to go onto the main canvas - these were decorated using embossing boards or Cuttlebug embossing folders and sprayed with Glimmer Mist

4. Stamping and decorating small metal motifs to complement colours on the clock face

5. Painting and decorating the main canvas that the clock sits on - again using acrylic paint and stamping

6. Once home, I edged both the clock face and main canvas with copper Krylon pen

7. Assembling all the above

Hey presto, my own unique time piece!

Winged motif

Here is the winged motif I made at the ArtsyCrafts weekend.

We started by drawing a circle on Grungeboard, using a cookie cutter as the template. Next, we stamped wings either side of the circle, colouring them (front & back) with Viva Paint and stamping a pattern on them. We used the cookie cutter again to cut out a piece of cream metal and onto this circle we stamped a different image, which we then puffed and refined. Then the exciting bit - having melted some UTEE (ultra thick embossing powder), we poured this over the metal circle and after a minute or so pressed down with the cookie cutter around the metal. Once the UTEE was solid and had cooled enough to hold we broke off the excess outside the cookie cutter. This was then stuck onto the Grungeboard. Once home, I sprayed the Grungeboard with gold Radiant Rain to coordinate with the UTEE and, for fun, added a bird's head and legs. Voila!

Mini book

The first stage of this project was to make the pages and glue them to the chipboard covers. We then decorated the surfaces of the book by dabbing on acrylic paint, aqua and mushroom in my case. The quotes and arches were then stamped onto the inside pages. The borders were darkened by masking the stamped areas and then stamped upon. Masks were then placed around the arches and clock images stamped within them. Metal birds were strategically placed over the clocks.

The back surfaces were decorated with stamps and the large metal bird added to the front.

Decorative box

Pink is not usually a colour I would choose, and so for this project I decided to move out of my comfort zone, although I wasn't brave enough to go for the pale pink! We painted the box surfaces in the colour of our choice i.e dark pink for me.

We created two collages with stamps and painted them with various Glimmer Mists (a technique discovered by Lin & Leandra). When ready, these were glued to the inner surfaces of the box and a quote stamped onto the inner flap.

Next came the copper embellishments. The strips around the box, a corner piece on the first collage, the wings on the front of the box and some time pieces inside. These were all stamped onto the metal, cut out and decorated with pink Glimmer Mist.

The decoration on the front was made by sticking a painted, stamped image behind a chipboard fob and filling it with crackle paint (left overnight to dry).

Exhausted but happy!

Yesterday, my sister and I returned home after the ArtsyCraft weekend. It was an intense, but fun time.

When we arrived we were all presented with a badge that featured a clock, as the theme for the weekend was 'Time'.

During the weekend we carried out four projects, the biggest of which was to make a clock ( I still have some finishing touches to put to this!). The other projects were a winged motif, a decorative box and an arched mini book.

ACF 46

ACF provided a gorgeous background to us in their challenge this week. Here is my digital entry:

I copied the flowers on the left and laid them along the bottom, softening the edges, to create a frame. Then came the tag and the flower on top. I softened the light of the flower making it a little translucent and then erased the writing on the tag underneath the middle of the flower, to make the middle look solid. To finish, I added the three buttons in the right-hand corner and the frame.

Hope you like it!

In my house there is a butterfly ....

Dans ma maison il y a papillon.

Whilst on holiday, I bought a plain wood little house. Time to play.

I primed the wood with gesso and once dry painted it with turquoise and copper paints. On top of this I painted a splodge if crackle paint and highlighted the cracks with copper paint. Once I had added some stamps to some of the edges I stuck on some German Scrap that I had stained with stream alcohol ink. Having stuck on some relevant quotes I coloured these with turquoise ink. To add some finer detail I highlighted some of the stamping with a turquoise metallic pen and added some turquoise and coppers pearls, using pearl pens. Last but not least, I added the grungeboard butterfly which I decorated with a butterfly stamp and Glimmermist.

Grungy Gothic

Grungy Gothic is the challenge posed by Sunday Postcard Art this week. Here is my entry, which is digital. All the images come from iTkUpiLLi.

I started with a rusty background and superimposed the image of the house. then came the characters. I changed the colour of the children so that they fitted in better. To give it more focus, I added the frame and changed the background colour from white to black.

Bird Book

I have just completed this book, which has alternate perspex and chipboard pages. I covered the chipboard pages and edged them with silver Krylon ages ago but then didn't know what to do, so the book sat on a shelf for ages. Recently, there seem to have been a lot of challenges regarding birds and so these gave me my theme.

To start, I daubed some white gesso randomly onto some of the pages. Once dry, I just started stamping, using Stazon on the perspex pages and a variety of inks on the others.

I added some words, in a variety of forms, and also added some colour and embellishment in various places using marker pens. To set the whole book of, I added some ribbon in complementary colours to the jump rings holding the pages together.

When you look at the pictures below, you can see how the images change as the perspex pages are turned.

Brown & pink tag

So far, I feel I haven't been too successful in making tags. Tag Tuesday set the challenge of making a pink and brown tag, so I thought I would have another go.

To start, I rubbed Distress Inks over the tag. I then embossed it using my Cuttlebug and rubbed vintage photo Distress Ink over it again to highlight some of the raised numbers. Next, I sprayed on some Radiant Rain to give the metallic shine. I had a scrap of paper that I had previously coloured with Starburst Stains, so I added this to the right-hand side of the tag and edged it with faux stitching in brown ink. The brown and pink flower, ribbons and three pink brads were added as finishing touches.

Let me know what you think.

Remember when you were young ...

ACF provided the picture of the young girl for their challenge this week. This digital collage is my entry. It imagines the girl now grown into a woman, looking back nostalgically to her childhood.

Black Birds

I created this piece in response to Sunday Postcard Art's challenge.

The 4 x 6 inch background is by iTkUpiLLi. Onto this I stamped an arc and the word 'bird' several times. I then stamped a blackbird so it appears to be standing on one of the words and glued on a larger bird onto one of the lower words. In the top right-hand corner I collaged a piece of grey and white napkin, over which I added a ticket. I darkened this using Distress Ink. To finish I added some black peel-offs to three of the corners and filled in the gaps with faux stitching.

All the stamps are by Paper Artsy.

More 9ers

I was dreaming about 9ers all night! So I have created another set, this time trying to make them more cohesive.

I made a collage background and covered it with a wash of burnt sienna acrylic paint. Then came the arrows, stamps by Blonde Moments used with brown Stazon Ink. To give some colour I drew some patterns with gel pens and then added the children with wings (care of Lisa's Altered Art). Now for the cut! I divided it into the 9 sections. The individual cards needed something else, so I then wrote a story making sure it made sense as one big picture and on each individual ATC. Done!

A different light

Here is a picture of the 9ers I made yesterday, taken in different light. There is less reflection and so it is easier to see the colours and patterns.

9ers ATCs

The challenge this week from Saturday's Workout is to create a page of nine Artist Trading Cards i.e. 9ers.

To start, I covered a 7.5 x 10.5 inches piece of card with various colours of Distress Ink. Once dry, I sprayed some Radiant Rain over several masks. When this was dry, I stamped on a variety of Tim Holtz stamps with Dusty Concord Distress Ink. Then came the words, stamped on using black Stazon Ink. I edged these with purple gel pen and darkened the inside with a black pigment pen. Finally, I cut the 9 ATCs (2.5 x 3.5 inches each) and edged them all with Peeling Paint Distress Ink.

I feel I have cheated somewhat by only having the background overlapping. I can see there is quite an art in creating one large image which can then be cut up into 9 smaller sections that can stand in their own right. That's a challenge I set myself for the future! I am in awe of some of the other people who have completed this challenge. Check out Saturday's Workout page (see link on right of page).

Key to my thoughts?

Dans ma maison il y a une clé. In my house there is a key.

I have been saving a ticket from the Courtauld gallery for ages and today seemed just the right time to use it. The picture is a segment of Manet's 'Bar at the Folies-Bergere.'

I have also had this chipboard key, which I had coloured previously with crackle paint, knocking around for ages, so it was time it was used. Today, I added some teal paint to it to give a coppery look.

Having cut the shape of my house, I tried a new technique. I divided the layers of a paper napkin and attached part of the patterned sheet onto the right-hand side of the house using matte medium. It is difficult to see as it has a black background with light coloured flourishes, but I wanted it to be subtle. I then added a variety of patterns using a metallic paint dauber. This done, I added the picture of the barmaid and then added some arches over her head with Brilliance Ink. Having stuck on some paper lace at the bottom, also coloured with Brilliance Ink, the key was affixed and some Fresco Flakes added either side of the woman. To finish it off, I wrote the caption 'key to my thoughts', as I think the barmaid looks quite pensive and thoughtful. Who knows what she is thinking?

Apologies that there is some shine on my picture, it was difficult to eliminate the reflection from the metallic ink.

Enchanted Decades

ACF 44 provided the picture of the woman to do with what we like. So this week I decided to create a hand-made collage.

To the right hand side of my background I added some paper that I had previously coloured with Starburst Stains. Hopefully, the light in the photo picks up the glimmer effect. I then stamped on a large Tim Holtz decoration with Distress Ink in the left-hand corner. To create a shabby effect I dribbled water through this, causing it to run a little. More stamping (Tim Holtz again), this time using black Stazon Ink. To soften the background and make it more cohesive I painted on a wash of burnt sienna acrylic paint. Having torn out the image of the woman, scrunched the paper, rubbed on vintage photo Distress Ink and edged it with black, I stuck it on the background. Lastly I added the DooDads, also edged with black.

Hopefully, the finished collage creates a sense of reminiscence.

Maps

The Mixed Media Monday challenge this week is maps.

I made this collage using an image of an old book, an old map of Paris, a Tim Holtz ticket, a small postcard and various stamps (Blade Rubber Stamps and Blonde Moments) used with Distress Ink. To add extra detail I inked through some sequin waste to give the pattern on the left-hand side and I added the faux stitch border.

Laugh and Live More!

Crafting on a wet afternoon!

For this item I used a piece of card 4 x 6 inches printed with the image of an old ledger. To start, I stamped on the image of the woman with teal Archival ink. This was closely followed by the flower border, corner and swirl stamps using cobalt ink. I then decorated all of these with Gelly Roll pens. To add a little depth to the face, I lightly water-coloured the lips and eyelids. Then came the faux stitch border, edging the card with pink and I added the flower as the finishing touch.

True Friendship

When I made my Petit Doll I had some acrylic paint left over, so I started a background on a 7 x 5 inch piece of card. Today I applied some Adirondack Colorwash, the colour stream, over it and then stamped on the images you can see in different colour inks. To finish, I edged the card with black.

Petite Marie

I have been following a second Suzi Blu course 'Petite Marie'. Another mixed media collage but this time with Marie Antoinette as the theme. I have to say, this wouldn't normally be my thing, but I decided to do it as a challenge to myself. Pastels are not normally colours I would choose and placing a swan in someone's hair just seems downright quirky, but I have learnt that one can learn new things from going out of one's comfort zone, so here she is!

Last time I used purified beeswax on my doll, so this time I used the natural wax, which tends to be yellower in colour. She is strangely different, but I have to say she is growing on me!

Magic Zetti Morphosis

This digital collage is my response to three challenges!

The Three Muses challenge was 'Slightly Zetti', so I altered the lady's face and legs. The Dans ma Maison challenge was 'magic' so I gave the lady some wings. ACF 43 provided the original image of the woman.

I merged two pictures of houses to make the background, altered the woman and added the lace, moon and text.