Show a .... not a leg but a tag!

I've really missed taking part in the challenges that lurk around the old blogasphere, so this week I was determined to take part in the Simon Says Stamp and Show, the theme this week being a tag!

To be honest I've attempted the challenges for a couple of weeks and time has run away with me and I've missed the deadline.   Not this week though I have even missed a trip to the gym tonight in order to finish this tag off - dedicated crafter me (easily distracted athlete as well to be honest).

So I wanted to use lighter colours this week and go quite shabby girly chic as well. So took out some Orchid Fresco Finish and put that all over the tag.  Added some PaperArtsy Crackle Glaze and then washed over the top with Vintage Lace that had a small dollop of Dolly Mix as well.

It was still a bit "pink" so went over the top of that with Picket Fence Distress Stain and finally a bit of Antique Linen Distress Ink.

I also knew I wanted to use sewing as a theme so used the Tim Holtz Haberdashery plate for all the stamping.  

First off used the pattern stamp in Pumice Distress Ink all over the tag, so subtle it's now faded into the background!  

Then stamped one of the circle cotton reel tops all the way down the side in Coffee Archival and then the dress form  in Coffee as well.  

On the dress form I added some Antique Photo Distress embossing powder and Milled Lavender Distress Embossing powder over the cotton reel tops, not all over left some ink.  Some of the Pumice Distress Ink can't have been completely dry so powder stuck there as well and I really like effect.

I painted spare scrap card with Orchid and Dolly Mix and some Walnut Distress  Stain and stamped in Coffee again.  Distress the edges and added Walnut Distress Ink. Finished off with mini staples, some sewing (wouldn't be me without some sewing), some gluing and ribbon.

So really pleased I've managed to complete a challenge this week, so no excuse for the gym tomorrow night , where I will show some leg!

hugs

jo

xx

WOYWW 147

Tum te tum, another Wednesday, another entry for WOYWW instigated by Julia.

So this is what's on my work desk this week:

• Fresco Finish paints in pinky tones
• PaperArtsy stamps
• Distress Stains
• Fabric
• Ribbons / string
• Felt
• Scraps of paper
• Archival ink
• Adirondack ink
• Distress tool (love this)
• Work in Progress for Simon Says stamp challenge

Hoping to have the work in progress finished tonight!

hugs

jo

xx

This is the happy house

Wow, WOYWW certainly got quite a few people coming to look at little old me and my creations - thank you everyone who commented.

So what was on my work desk was this, yet another mixed media creation inspired by a fabric house Gabrielle and I saw last Saturday in a lovely quirky coffee shop.  I hadn't used this plate much from PaperArtsy yet and as it has a house on it, decision made!

I've had these scraps of fabric lying on the sofa in my craft room for ages (off cuts from the strippy quilt that still hasn't been sewn up - sigh) and I knew I wanted to use them randomly sewn on a background.

The canvas is one I've had knocking around for ages, it's had so many layers of paint and stuff on it a few more wouldn't hurt! Gessoed it and then added some sand acrylic and Victorian Velvet Distress Stain in  a shabby splodgy way.

 

The calico layer had some sand acrylic paint as well and then I stamped some text in coffee Archival, used the holes stencil from Crafters Workshop with some Antique Linen Distress Stain.  stamped the butterfly in Pale Ochre Archival and added some Cosmic Shimmer powders (green and pink) in places to make the background.

The fabric offcuts (all in pale pink, off white) were sewn on using pink variegated thread and then I rolled some gesso over the top just to flatten out the different pattern, rubbed some of the gesso back to let bits of the fabric show through. Overstamped this with the chines script stamp from the plate in maroon Archival.

The house was stamped on some thick paper and coloured with oil pastels.  Some White Picket Fence Distress Stain was put over the top just tone it down, the edges were scuffed up and then it was stuck onto some other rougher calico that was sewed onto some white felt to give a bit of padding, some weight and height but still keep the "fabricness" of the piece.

To finish off odd bits of fabric sewn on, a chipboard border from Artist Trading Post which had a little bit of Picket Fence Distress Stain on it and a fabric flower from PaperArtsy with some Victorian Velvet and Picket Fence Distress Stain added. 

It took me ages to finally finish off this piece in terms of the embellishments, I was really happy with the chipboard but it needed something else. I tried loads of buttons scattered about, no not quite right. The flower in it's white state, um sort of but it detracted from the house.  It lay on my desk for a couple of night and then this morning - yes of course the flower works it just needs toning down! 


It's a lovely sunny morning here in the Shires so i was able to take some photo's OUTSIDE, I know how fantastic!


hugs


jo
xx
   

WOYWW 146

Ok, so I've been reading all your WOYWW entries for the past couple of months and I've thought about it and then Wednesday disappeared or it was too dark to take a photo either on Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning because I get up so blinkin early.  But now we are in March and the mornings are lighter I thought - why not, I can quickly take a snap on my phone, go to work and quickly write a post.

So that's what I'm doing.

On my desk this week you will see:

• two rolls of kitchen paper for dealing with inky spraying activity
• some gesso
• some oil pastels
• PaperArtsy stamps
• some chipboard shapes from the Artist Trading Post (they are well good and were in the sale) 
• some felt
• some fabric
• a canvas
• some Distress Stains
• some Archival ink
• some paint 
• some paint brushes  

Under the table in her basket is a cat, but I didn't take a photo! You'll have to wait and see what I'm actually making, maybe tonight, maybe tomorrow.

hugs

jo

xx

Beach hut bliss

Helloooooooooo!

Ages ago (it might only have been last week, but I can't remember, the weeks are just racing by at the moment and I have trouble remembering what I did yesterday let alone last week!) I said I wanted to play with kraft card and yellow and I ended up doing something completely different.  Well the idea stuck with me and I needed to make it to get it out of the system if you know what I mean (do you or is it just me, it could be just me, I'm happy to accept that I might be a bit odd).

So in between green and chocolate I made this.

Started off with an 8x8 square of heavy kraft card and stencilled lovely Fresco Finish Pumpkin Soup and Haystack over the bingo mask in a couple of the corners bumping it a bit to get the shadow. Didn't cover it all just sort of haphazard and a bit shabby grungy!

Round the edge of the kraft card I did some sewing and added a scrap of calico and the seaside stamp from this PaperArtsy plate.  Love the fishes and the shells on this plate, so added a few shells in a very green Stazon. Distressed the seaside  words with a sanding block and some Walnut Stain Distress Ink.

The kraft tag was rollered with gesso and a very faint stamping in pumice of a large damask stamp.  The little house from PaperArtsy was painted in Beach Hut and South Pacific Fresco Finish and the edges given a good sand. A little red heart free hand drawn in red pencil. 

Under the tag I put loads (loads might be a bit of an exaggeration, but lets say less than 10 but more than 2) of layers: a yellow tab cut from a Tim on the edge die, some corrugated card and a scrap of yellow dotty card edged in Mustard Seed Distress In.

On the top of the tag a strip of yellow felt given a scalloped edge with a Tim on the edge die and a strip of large yellow ric-rac.  Little bit of stitching to anchor it down and add a bit more texture. And of course a yellow Prima flower.

I am pleased with it, it's what I sort of envisaged, fairly clean, minimal colours that were fresh and vibrant.  The embellishments sit togethr nicely, there are different textures and shapes, so yep - it's a good 'un! 

hugs

jo

xx

 

Green

You know how sometimes you think, I want to make art and I need to make it with xxx (insert a colour, an image, a certain type of material), you know something SPECIFIC.  Well that was me Saturday morning.  

My husband had treated me to some of the new Vintage Collection stamps from PaperArtsy for my birthday. I had given him very specific (see that word again) instructions on which ones I wanted and that they had to be on EZ mount (no faffing around for me with that blinkin sticky stuff).  Seeing this one I knew I wanted to use green especially given that huge leaf behind him which looks like ivy (or it could be a maple leaf but he looks English to me, so it's ivy - ok?).

Got all my green Fresco Finish paints out and started. Oh and I knew I wanted to use metal as well.

The 8x8 background was a thin sheet of card with odd scraps of patterned paper glued on top, I then rolled over some gesso, before it dried fully I scraped a credit card over it in places to create lines and reveal the background papers which all had pinky and blue hues to them. Clear embossed the numbers from the plate randomly over the gesso.

Went over the lot in Limelight and Hey Pesto and then used the circle stencil over that in places with Toad Hall and then Hyde park as well in places.  the scroll mask was also Hyde Park.  Used a wet wipe to "clean" the embossed numbers and gave the whole thing a good sand.  Stamped the text stamp in Sepia Archival in random places. Edged with Pine Needles Distress Ink.

Mr Melodica (for that is his name you know) was stamped and embossed in black soot distress powder on a background piece of scrap painted with Hey Pesto  and Hyde Park. I then used my Oil Pastels to colour him in.  The ghosting around the edge of him is done with the grey oil pastel.

The green metal was cut with with a Tim on the edge die and embossed.  Gave it a good sand to reveal the silver. The green tag was one I had knocking around for ages already painted so I just edged it with some Walnut Stain Distress Ink.

I was tempted not to do any sewing as I've done a lot recently but I couldn't resist so got my box of silks, fibres and threads out out, selected some bits and bobs and stitched away!

Couldn't resist the bottle green velvet ribbon and finally some Prima flowers.  I ummed and aahed over the flowers as they are a bit "green" if you know what I mean but I think they work (you will tell me won't you?).

Right that's me done for the night I have an idea for the Sunday Stamper challenge from Hels but first I really need to do some ironing, no really I do or else I'm going to arrested tomorrow at work for nude librarianship!

hugs

jo

xx

Chocolate Delight!

Having to get up early in the week, often means I wake early at the weekends, sometimes I can roll over and go back to sleep but not today.  So I put a pot of coffee on and settled down to catch up with some blogs.  

I love these early mornings to myself sat the at the PC in the study catching up on blogs, the window is open I can hear the dawn chorus (a sure sign the days are starting to get longer) and my cats come and say hello -me time and it's bliss.

So this morning I caught up with Ellen Vargo's blog ten thirty-six and crafts and her fab tutorial on using a mix of ranger products to create backgrounds.  I was inspired by the Expresso colourwash and Picket Fence Distress Stain tag and raced (well gently ambled as John was still in bed)  to the craft to try it out.

I also knew that I wanted to take part in Hels Sunday Stamper challenge the theme being Life.  So hunted out some stamps with life in them.  Top of the pile a PaperArtsy one about cookies and chocolate chips! 

So started with a tag, actually make that two tags and smooshed them around in some Picket Fence and Expresso colourwash a couple of times, drying in between to get the desired background.  

Using a Glimmer Mist in Latte and Butterscotch colour wash I sprayed over a Glimmer Mist mask to add some more layers of colour.  Then adding some Fresco Finish paint in Irish Cream and French Roast over a flower mask from Crafters Workshop.  I was going to bump it to get some shadow but actually liked it unbumped.  Gave both tags a good sanding, some areas a bit harder than others to soften all the edges and reveal some of the Butterscotch.

Cut a couple of hearts from Grunge Paper using a PaperArtsy die and painted those with some French Roast and Irish Cream, one had some crackle glaze in between,the other didn't! Both again got a good sand to rough them up a bit.

So let's concentrate on the cookies tag first.  

I stitched some old book text and a scrap of linen on the tag. On the heart I added some swirls from this PaperArtsy plate, in Coffee Archival edged in walnut stain and then faffed around trying to to tie the string in a pleasing way (good job I'm chilled today).

The ATC underneath was smooshed around in the debris paint left on my craft mat.  I often do this with the dried paint, just spritz it with water, smoosh away and see what happens.  Stamped the text stamp from the plate in Coffee Archival. Attached this to the tag with tiny attachers that I coloured with ginger alcohol ink  The small quote tag was smooshed on the same way and stamped in Coffee Coffee Archival, and a button added. 

Ok, the second tag let's call this one creating.

I stitched all round the tags LOADS using straight and zigzag stitch. Then sewed some fabric strips on the tag and stamped the dressform in Coffee Archival from Tim Holtz Haberdashery plate.  Stamped the quote on a scrap piece of card and attached using the stained tiny attachers.  Added some string and a button.

Both of these took me all morning to make, I didn't mind though, it was nice to craft slowly, do something, go away and do some house work whilst waiting for things to dry or for me to think about the next stage.   I really love the colour scheme and how they are different but similar because of the colour and elements used. 

So thanks Ellen for the inspiration!

hugs

jo

xx