A couple of tags

Alison Bomber was back this week over at Paper Artsy with some stunning projects as always..you can pop over and see them here. On day one she did some gorgeous tags which is where my inspiration came from..

I used the same techniques as Alison..using frescos with stencils and stamps for the back ground. I cut the arches from a die I bought at Stevenage from once upon a stamp and painted,crackled and distressed them. I didn't have rusting powder for my embellishments so used distress embossing powder instead. Once everything was assembled on the tag I used rafia and string to tie the top. I really enjoyed this project so thank you Alison for a great week!!

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Inspiration from Jo

Over on the paper artsy blog this week we welcomed back Jo Myhill with some great projects you can see them here My piece was inspired by all the techniques she used this week...

I started off with a piece of grey board and painted it with holly and crushed olives. when dry I added crackle glaze and put that aside to dry.
Next a piece of an old cardboard box with a bit of the corrugated showing, I painted that in  mix of green frescos, and a tiny bit of beach hut. I then stamped the key from LP013 in olive archival.
Back to the crackle glaze, I painted a coat of honey dew and dried it off with a heat gun. Then added some hey pesto and beach hut with my fingers. when that was all dry I stamped the script from backgrounds 2 in coffee archival.

I took a piece of hessian and painted it with watered down choc pudding and a bit of squid ink, sprayed it with water and scrunched it up and left it to dry naturally. I made the flower with thick mulberry paper and the primitive hearts die by sizzix and painted in honey dew and beach hut, added a small flower and sizzix button in the centre. I edged it all in black soot distress ink and layered it up with foam pads and silicone glue.

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Have a Heart

Just a quick post...I have been playing around this morning before getting ready for work. I had a go at Frances project on day 1 over on the PA blog. You can see it here.

I took a size 8 tag and gave it a thin coat of blood orange, dried that and added a thin coat of crackle glaze, dried that and added a layer of snowflake. I distressed the edges and added a small amount of black ink.
Next I cut two paper artsy primitive hearts and stuck them together, added a thick layer of grunge paste and pushed a chain into it....let that all dry. I painted it in london bus and when that was dry sanded it back to reveal some of the grunge paste underneath. I gave it 2 coats of gloss glaze and let that dry.
To finish it off I wrapped some chain around and added a tiny padlock and key from my stash..stuck it to the tag and added some black ribbon.

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A much needed tray!!

Over on the Paper Artsy blog Sue Carrington has just finished her last week as a GD and what a fantastic week it has been!!! On the last day Sue did a beautiful box you should go check it out here.

I had bought this little tray from the MDF man at AP in April I think it was...so thought I would use the inspirtion from Sue's box to paint it for all our keys as everyone just comes in the house and chucks them on the side!!!

I started off by painting it all in snowflake.Then  I then put some grunge paste in a couple of the corners just roughly and then added some crackle glaze all over the rest of it. Next I sponged sage and tinned peas all over,I used the sponge as I only wanted tiny cracks. Then I roughed it up a bit more with sandpaper.
I use the bingo stencil with snowflake and coffee archival to stamp the text and the swirly stamp.I then added some chocolate pudding randomly over the tray for some contrast.

I die cut a memory box label  and distressed it a bit with paint and did the same with the key. I had a little metal frame which I painted in sage and stamped a no 2 as that is our door number. Everything was stuck on using glossy accents. Lastly I brushed onyxite treasure gold around the edges..

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Tissue Tag

Frances third project over on the Paper Artsy blog this week was a tag with crackled tissue paper, you can pop over and see it here.
This is my inspiration from her tag...

I painted some tissue paper with butternut fresco and dried it. I then put a layer of crackle glaze over this and when that was dry some haystack and vanilla. This was stuck onto a size 8 tag...

 Next I stitched around the outside and attached some orange ribbon using a zigzag stitch.

I then added some stamping in vermillion archival using the quote from Jofy 10 and the script from the Sarah Newman set 03. Made a flower from wax paper,added a red flower and pearl to the centre and add a piece of cream coloured tape underneath. Lastly I added some ribbon..

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Sizzling Summer

I was very surprised to be chosen as a top 3 merit winner on the  country view crafts challenge. When I was told the challenge was *Sizzling Summer* I thought hmmm have to get my thinking cap on here. So I sat down with a cuppa and thought what does sizzling summer bring to mind?

Well it takes me back to when I was a little girl when summers were long hot sunny days down in Cornwall or Camber Sands with my parents and sisters...lovely memories.
So I took a 4"x4" canvas and painted in the sea with a little bit of the beach showing using fresco paints and a tiny bit of grunge paste coloured with haystack fresco. I used a stampin up stamp..(I think it is from a retired set) and stamped the girl on crackly tissue paper. I painted it from the back finishing it with snowflake frescos to make the colours pop. I stuck it onto the canvas using matt medium and touched up the edges so they disappeared into the canvas.
I then prepared a 6"x6" wooden box frame, I distressed it using paper artsy crackle glaze, then sanded it back to age it some more. I added a Tim Holt word  band with string and some shells, reindeer moss and netting to the bottom and a starfish on the top of the frame. I lightly brushed some walnut stain ink around the edge to finish it off.

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Hand made book

France Papillon was back this week over on the Paper Artsy blog. Her first project  was a lovely little Art Journal Book...you can pop over and see it here. Well I do love hand made books so knew I would definately have to have a go at this.

I didn't have a canvas to hand so used a small wooden frame and covered it with sticky back canvas, and painted it  in honey dew. I cut a back cover in grey board and because of the different frame had to cut 2 smaller doors. All of it was painted in honey dew and when dry had a thin coat of crackle glaze. Next was a coat of London night and when that was dried I rubbed away some more of the top coat with a baby wipe Darcy style. then sanded it to rough it up a bit more.

I used grunge paper for the hinges which were embossed and a little metal fastener on the door closure. This was painted honey dew and a tiny bit of onyxite treasure gold.

I followed a video on U-Tube to do the coptic binding and it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be








On the inside I stamped and painted an image from Eclectic plate 6 and painted it..used a rub on and glued it to the inside of the cover. I used a TH rub on just over the image.

After putting the book together I added some Royal amethyst TG randomly around the edges. Here is the end result!!

I enjoyed this project and will definitely use the binding method again!!

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Inspiration from France Papillon

Well France was back on the paper artsy blog this week, she did 3  great projects and a video on day two you can see them here.

My project that was inspired by France is a bit of day one and a bit of day 3..I didn't have a mini chest of drawers or any little bottles for the canvas, so I had a rummage and found a wooden calender thingy that I bought at an artsy crafts many moons ago!



I started of by scraping tinned peas and sage all over the piece with an old credit card. I than scraped crackle glaze thinly all over and left it to dry.


Next painted a thick coat of snowflake for nice big cracks..









 I made a lid for the numbers out of greyboard and put little piano hinges on it so the top could open..It is painted he same as the main piece. I then stuck it across the opening and added some lace along the front.














I stamped  the script form backgrounds 2 randomly all over in coffee archival..I watered down some snowflake and tinned peas and roughly rubbed it over the wooden blocks.

I cut a piece of wire and dabbed it with chocolate pudding and french roast, I then stuck in on the back. I twisted some strips of wire and placed those over top and then placed a die cut book plate over the top of that.. It has a quote inside which reads *enjoy today,live for tomorrow and dream for the future*. I added a hitch fastener to the top so the lid can be opened to change the days and months.

Finally I Edged the whole piece with coffee archival and as France would say Ta Dah..

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It's Father Day!

Happy Fathers Day to all the dad's out there...hope you all have a great day.

As you probably know some of the PATWITS and I did an up cycling challenge last week and one of the items was a small cigar tin...and I mean small about 8cm x 7.5. Emma decorated her tin for her dad as a gift and I thought what a great idea...so I'm borrowing it Emma with your permission of course as I really can't get into making cards at the minute. You can see Emma's here.



I base painted it black after sanding it..then put a thin layer of crackle glaze over that, When that was dry I added a coat of stone fresco. I also painted the inside black and added old book pages which had been dragged through a puddle of walnut stain distress ink.
The stamp on the front is from the paper boy set by Artistic Outpost colured with distress and promarkers.



I cut the June calender out of the lost and found paper stash and roughed up the edges and inked it with distress..attached a tiny paper clip and stuck it in the tin. I die cut a small movers and shapers fob watch and painted it with white fire TG then added some black paint..sprocket gears and watch hands in the middle. attached some chain and a small toggle and stuck that down as well. Also stamped dad and covered the letters with some epoxy stickers.
On the other side of the tin I repeated the process with the book page then die cut a memory box label die with grunge paper and painted it in stone, I cut a photo of my mum and I taken many years ago on a family holiday put string in the top and slipped it behind the label. I added 3 washers with brads down the side. Lastly I added white fire TG around the edges.
I'm sure my dad will like it far more than a card so thanks for the inspiration Emma!!

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