Painted plate by Brenda

Good morning, Brenda here with some more Butterfly inspiration.

I have been wanting to try decorating a plate for ages but seemed unable to source any Pyrex plates, turned out they are not called that anymore and now go by the name of Duralex! The photos does suggest the plate is upside down but it I promise it's not and does have a conventional indent.

I started by stamping Briar Rose Butterfly several times onto tissue paper which I then cut out and coloured with sparkle pens, I found the consistency of the pens perfect as the liquid blended over the tissue without tearing it. Next I used black archival ink to stamp some leaves to give contrast. 

Next I adhered the tissue to the plate making making sure the coloured side was placed against the glass, I used a dried clear decoupage glue for this. When dry I pained the whole of he back of the plate with metallic acrylic paint. I am not totally happy with this one especially the blending of the pain, but it was a good starting point to try and master the technique.............be warned I have more plates waiting for be decorated.

This card features the lovely Honeysuckle Butterfly image which I stamped onto a Distress Oxide background and coloured with Distress Inks. Using part of the script stamp from Paisley Elephant, stencils and black Distress Ink I added some background interest and also some spatters of watered down ink. The sentiment is from Artistic Affirmations

I managed to incorporate stamps from all sets featured in the shows on this one, Harebell Butterfly, Briar Rose Butterfly, Thistle Butterfly, Honeysuckle Butterfly and Butterfly Daisy Collage. The base card is a shape a few people asked about at a recent show so if you would like the details I have then on my own blog here. The background for all panels was created with Distress Oxides, everything stamped with Versafine Black, colouring with sparkle pens, some background stamping using Useful Leaves and Kaleidoscope of Butterflies masks and finally a few decoupages Butterflies.

Many thanks for your kind words and visits which myself and the team always appreciate.

Pretty in Pink by Brenda

Good morning, Brenda here and it's my pleasure to welcome you to our first post of November. This month myself and the Design Team are showcasing some beautiful Butterfly stamp sets which Lesley launched on Hochanda TV in October.

For my card at the top I used two stamps from Butterfly Daisy Collage, stamping onto a piece of watercolour card lightly coloured with Distress Inks, stamping the first to the left and then lining up the harlequins using a second stamp from the set. I stamped the Butterfly again along with several of the flowers onto a piece of card coloured with the same pink DI, cut out and decoupaged.

I am always rather partial to a floral wreath so used several of the stamps from Harebell Butterfly, Brier Rose Butterfly stamping round a circle mask and using Distress Oxide inks, added a little shading around the circle and stamped Artistic Affirmations centrally, inking the stamp with Distress Markers.

And finally a DL card next inking the stamp from Thistle Butterfly with Distress Markers dragging the colour out a little, then stamping the large Butterfly a second time and adding a quote from Patchwork Butterfly and finally adding some background interest with a stencil and DI's. 

My thanks as always for popping in today.

My own unique self (By Marga)

Hello everyone, here I am again, my own unique self.

This time with a card. I made the background from this card with Brusho and stamped the edges and the sentiment with Versafine Onyx black. I put some white gel pen drops in the bubbles and in the flower edge I put some colour with my pencils.

Stamps I used are: Artistic Affirmations and Decorative Edges

Hugs 

Marga

Natural Colours by Penny

Goodly Morning lovely peeps, and a very warm welcome to you all.  Today it is my pleasure to share a couple of projects with you featuring the beautiful stamps from last month's tv shows.  So grab a cuppa and spend a few minutes getting crafty with me.  

Nature's Colours.

For this card I have used stamps from the Lords and Ladies, Artistic Affirmations, Square Bubbles and The Rose Tree sets: Distress Inks, crayons, white embossing powder, Kraft card.

On a piece of Cartridge paper I scribbled three colours of crayons randomly all over it, then blended them with water using my finger.

When dry I stamped and embossed the  Square Bubbles in white all over the background panel.  I then used a white marker pen around the panel edges and matted it onto Kraft card.

On another piece of Kraft card I stamped and embossed the bunch of grasses image in white, then painted it with Distress Inks. I did the same with a sentiment and a bee then cut them out as panels and edged them with white pen as before.  I cut the bee out separately.

I took a cream base card and stamped the focal image along both sides before attaching the background panel.  I then attached the panels and the bee to complete this cheerful card.


Feather Bookmark.

This is a lovely quick and easy project.  I have used a stamp from the I Shall Be Your Wings set; colouring pencils, colouring Kraft card, coloured card, ribbons and pearls from my stash.  

I used an offcut of colouring Kraft card for this little project, and stamped one of  the feathers with Versamark ink and embossed it with white powder.  I then stamped and embossed the sentiment underneath it.  I coloured the images with pencils, adding a shadow line around them, then  I added white marker pen to the edges.

I took a piece of coloured card and cut it slightly wider and about 10cm longer.  I then cut a fringe  at one end.

I attached the focal panel to the coloured card base.  I then added some ribbon and ric - rac in         co-ordinating colours, and some tiny pearls.  Not only is this a quick and pretty project to create, you can use up some of your spare card off cuts too!


Thank you all for dropping in today, see you again soon,


                                                                               Penny xx

Make Time to Make Art cards (by Anne)

Good morning. Today I am sharing a few cards created with Wisteria Lane and Artistic Affirmations stamp sets from Chocolate Baroque.

Full of Colour Card

Materials:

• Wisteria Lane and Artistic Affirmations stamp sets
• 9 X 21cm card blank, white stamping card, black card
• Ink sprays (pink, purple, black)
• Embossing Powders (pink, yellow, white)
• Versamark Inkpad
• Border die
• Alcohol marker (black)
• Faux gems and sequins, PVA pearls (pink)
• Straw to blow inks

How it was done:

1. Inks were spritzed onto a craft mat and picked up onto the stamping card. The wet ink was spread by blowing through a straw.
2. Images were stamped with Versamark and embossed with a mix of coloured powders. The sentiment was stamped onto a coloured strip. Black marker was used to edge the card and frame.
3. The black die cut strip was glued to the top of the card. The sentiment strip attached with 3D foam for added dimension.
4. Finished with faux gems and sequins plus a few PVA pearls along the die cut border.

 
Make Time Shabby Chic Card

This card uses the same stamp sets but looks totally different.

Materials:

• Wisteria Lane and Artistic Affirmations stamp sets
• 10.5 X 15cm card blank (turquoise), white stamping card
• Versamark Inkpad and archival dye ink (purple)
• Embossing powder (silver and gold sparkle)
• Ink spritzers (purple, turquoise, gold and opaque white)
• Fine tipped marker (black)
• Faux gems and organza ribbon

How it was done:

1. The card blank was lightly spritzed with opaque white ink. The stamping card was coloured with purple, turquoise and gold ink spritzers. The sentiment was stamped with Versamark and embossed with silver powder.
2. The background images were stamped with purple dye ink. Further images were stamped on top with Versamark, heat embossed with gold powder and outlined with fine tipped pen.
3. The edges of the topper were roughed up with the edge of my scissors. A little turquoise ink was also sponged around the edges.
4. Finished with a ribbon and faux gems.

Make Time to Make Art

My third sample was different again using a bright sunshine yellow backdrop.
Materials:

• Wisteria Lane and Artistic Affirmations stamp sets
• 6 X 6 inch square card blank, white stamping card, yellow card
• Versamark Inkpad
• Embossing Powders (pink, yellow, purple)
• Mylar stencil with polka dots
• Alcohol marker (purple) and fine tipped pen
• Glitter glue (yellow)

How it was done:

1. I had some cheap glitter glues that were past their best. To use them up I embossed some of my stencils (through my die cut machine) then applied the glitter through the stencil using a palette knife. I used up my glitter glues and created a batch of textured backgrounds ready for my cards.
2. The sentiment was stamped onto the textured card using dye ink (embossing with stencils only gives a shallow texture so it is fairly easy to overstamp – add just a little extra pressure on the stamp). Note the ‘I’ was left uninked.
3. The mat was edged with marker and faux stitching drawn around the border of the card blank with fine tipped pen.
4. The floral stems were stamped onto white card with Versamark, embossed with a mix of coloured powders and cut out.
5. Cut outs were glued to the card front and finished with a ribbon.

waterlily (by Veronica)

 

 Today I have a couple of projects to show you using the waterlilies from the serenity set of stamps   and sentiments from artistic affirmations.

The first is a very simple card - I stamped the waterlily three times across a spare piece of white card using black versafine ink, and coloured the centre image with pencils. Added a mat of dark pink card, mounted onto a square white card blank, stamped the sentiment in black at the bottom corner - very quick!

 The cheap wooden box from a local discount store was covered with white gesso and then a rough coat of distress paint, leaving a mottled effect which I hoped would look watery. I stamped the waterlily images direct onto the box using memento ink.- if I could have crossed my fingers while stamping, I would have done!The leaves were coloured with alcohol pens, and the petals with white acrylic paint

My final sample is a cheap mirror, from a well-known flat-pack store, thanks to a friend who was going to pick up some furniture and was happy to add to her list.
I used leftover peces of card coloured with brushos, cut into squares to fit round the central mirror. Two squares were embossed and rubbed with gilding wax, and two stamped. The butterflies from Steampunk butterfly were stamped in black versafine onto more spare pieces, cut out and glued in the corners.
Definitely something that would wake you up in the morning!

Eastern Sunrise - by Penny

Morning lovely peeps, it's my turn and my pleasure to bring you today's blog post.  It's a mixed media card that I created for last months 'Eastern' shows, and I've used stamps from the Serenity, Eastern Grasses, Landscape Edges and Artistic Affirmations sets, Distress Inks, black Versafine ink, clear EP, stencils from my stash.

On a piece of white card I stamped and embossed the lady and two lamp images in black, then masked them.  I created the background with Distress Inks, and using a stencil I made a sunrise for the sky then I stamped some trees on the horizon.  The lady is meditating at the edge of a stream or lake so the bottom of the panel is blue and I added some clear paste through a stencil to add texture and movement in the water.

When the paste was dry I removed the masks and coloured the images with pens.  I then added glitter glue to the paste to give a shimmer to the water.




I stamped some floral images and a sentiment onto white card in black ink and embossed them.  I coloured them all in with DIs and cut them out. After matting the background panel onto black card and attaching it to the card I added the florals and the sentiment in 3D. 

This mixed media card is such fun to create, I hope I've inspired you to have a go yourselves.  Just look at your own crafty stash and see what mixed media artwork you can create! 
Thanks for dropping in today, I hope everyone has a great weekend.  You can see more details and pictures on my blog  https://ladypenelopesfabcraftyblogspot.blogspot.com

See you soon,

                                                        Penny

Creativity takes courage by Brenda

Morning Peeps, Brenda here with some more Easter inspired creations.

To create the background on the top card I used a combination of Distress Inks and Pan Pastels along with Silhouette Palaces Mask. The focal image and lamps are from Serenity stamped with Versafine black, coloured and cut out before placing over the background. I stamped some Wisteria from Wisteria Lane across the top and crackle using Large Crackle Background around the edges and liquid pearls to finish.

This one has has a background of metallic acrylic ink which I brayered on to give a random finish and also used the rougher side of watercolour card as it adds nice textures to the finished piece. Using Versafine black I stamped two of the quotes from Artistic Affirmations, wisteria from Wisteria Lane and two little Doves from Serenity and finally some liquid pearls and gold glitter to finish.

This one is probably one of my favourites from those I created for the shows, albeit it the colours of Buddha from Serenity are not authentic as my ethics lecturer daughter reminded me several times. The background is made up of acrylic paints and crackle glaze with some stenciling using black DI, then the image stamped in Versafine black and coloured in with pencils and a fine line gold pen. The three words are from Artistic Affirmations.

My final share today has a focal panel created with Pan Pastels through a mask cut from a die, then with the mask still in place I used a stencil to add some background interest before stamping the Agapanthus from Wisteria Lane using Versafine black. After removing the mask I stamped a quote from Artistic Affirmations.

As always, my thanks for popping in today.

Artistic Affirmations (by Julie)

Hello again, I have two more cards to show you today.

My first card is a very simple design, which I have stamped using the Artistic Affirmation set.

I started my design by inking up the sentiment "My Creativity is Limitless" with Onyx Black Versafine ink and stamping in the centre. I then cleaned the stamped off and re-inked with red Versafine ink and stamped over my original design but slightly off set so that you get a drop shadow. You may want to practice this technique on scrap paper but if you cut your rubber stamps close to the design it is quite easy to judge. If you have a stamp positioner then it's even easier.

I then went on to stamp the rest of the sentiments and scrolls around the layout, using red, blue and black Versafine inks. I finished off the design by stencilling over the layout with mini diamonds and splats, before mounting onto black card-stock.

My second card has been stamped with Wisteria Lane and Artistic Affirmations. I started by stamping the three main images with clear embossing ink before adding white embossing powder and heating with a heat gun. Distress inks (Picked Raspberry, Mustard Seed and Lucky Clover) were applied over the top, followed by the little flower head being stamped around the design with Onyx Black Versafine.

I finished the design off with the Art sentiment and a doodled border with a black fine line pen.

Thank you for stopping by. Please call back for daily Design Team inspiration.

Julie xx

Decorative Mixed Media (by Anne)

Good morning. Today I am sharing a couple of mixed media projects created with Wisteria Lane and Artistic Affirmations stamp sets.

My first is a small decorative hanger.

Materials:

• Wisteria Lane and Artistic Affirmations stamp sets
• White board panel (15 X 10cm) and circles (White Board Shapes kit), gold metallic satin card, pink card and turquoise glitter card
• Decorative lace and border dies
• Acrylic paints (turquoise, pink, purple)
• Versamark Inkpad
• Embossing powders (yellow, pink, purple)
• Texture paste and gilding wax 
• Texture stencil 
• Glossy Accents
• Scrap lace trim and pink ribbon
• Faux gems, pearls and sequins
• Glitter glue and 3D glue gel
• Variety of small plastic container lids and a straw (for printing)

How it was done:

1. Texture paste was applied onto the background panel through a stencil.
2. The white board shapes were coloured with acrylic paints. Plastic lids and a straw were used to print circles. Gilding wax was applied to the edges.
3. Images were stamped with Versamark and heat embossed with coloured powders.
4. The hanger was extended on the top and base using die cut panels.
5. Elements were glued down using 3D glue gel for added depth and dimension.
6. Finished with lace trim, faux gems, sequins and glitter glue for sparkle.

My second is a small canvas.

Materials:

• Wisteria Lane, Tranquility and Artistic Affirmations stamp sets
• 20cm square canvas board, white stamping card
• Embossing powders (yellow, pink, purple) and WOW (Clear Gloss)
• Viva Décor crackle colour (pearl teal)
• Ink sprays (pink, teal, purple)
• Inkpads: StazOn (black), Brilliance Pigment (variegated pink & blue pearl)
• Sparkle pens (pink, purple)
• Fine tipped alcohol pen (black)
• Puffy paint (green)
• Glossy Accents and silver gilding wax
• Faux gems and sequins, 3D glue gel

How it was done:

1. Crackle paste was applied to the outer edges of the canvas and left to dry overnight.
2. The canvas was spritzed with coloured inks. Some pink spray was also applied so that it sunk into the crackle crevices, excess being removed from the top surfaces with a damp cloth.
3. Images were stamped onto the background with Brilliance Ink and embossed with clear powder. Floral stems were also stamped onto white card, embossed with coloured powders and cut out for decoupage.
4. The sentiment was stamped with Stazon and quickly embossed with clear powder. Black pen was used to enhance the sentiment (the canvas is quite textured so detail doesn’t stamp well).
5. Images were coloured with sparkle pen and floral stems stuck down with 3D glue gel for added depth.
6. Glossy Accents was added to some of the flower heads, and dotted over the background.
7. A little silver gilding wax was applied around the canvas edges and over the crackle texture.
8. Puffy paint was applied along the base of the canvas and heated to give extra texture.
9. Finished with lots of faux gems and sequins.

Eastern Dreams by Penny

Goodly morning everyone!  Penny here again with a couple of projects from the 'Eastern' shows last month.  I hope you are all warm and well despite the weather, and that you'll join me for a few minutes of crafty inspiration.  

Tag of the Orient

My first project is a simple, pretty tag using the Eastern Grasses,   Artistic Affirmations, and Serenity stamp sets; Distress Inks, black Versafine ink, acetate, clear embossing powder and a few embellishments and dies from my stash.  

I began by blending the Distress Inks onto a piece of white card and die cutting it in a large tag shape.  I then stamped the grasses in black ink along the bottom  and top edges of the tag and added gold pen around the edges.  I stamped the word 'Dream' near the top of the tag and a little bird beside it.  I then added gold pearldrops around the stamped images.  

I took a piece of acetate and stamped the grasses in a frame image with black ink and embossed it with clear powder.  I cut the acetate into a strip a little bigger than the stamped image and wider than the tag.  I scored the ends of the acetate about a quarter of an inch from the edge of the strip.  I used red double sided tape along the edges of the strip and attached it to the back of the tag.  The acetate forms a dome over the stamped grasses on the tag.  I then matted the tag onto black card and cut around it leaving a border.  I punched a hole in the top centre of the tag and added a Chinese coin and some fibres from my stash.  I also added a clay butterfly that I painted gold, and attached it to the acetate with glitter glue. 

To finish this tag off I added a little black glitter glue to the flowers for extra sparkle and texture.  This tag makes a lovely piece of home decor or a present.


   

Oriental Garden

For my second project I have a mixed media card featuring stamps from the Serenity and  Artistic Affirmations sets; Distress Inks, Versamark ink, gold embossing powder, alcohol pens, gold pen and liquid pearls and a stencil from my stash.


I began with a piece of white card and blended Distress Inks on it.  I then took my stencil which happened to be Oriental themed and added one of the inks through it, giving a subtle layer on top of the background.  I added gold pen around the edges of the card. 

The next stage was to make the focal elements.  I stamped the serene lady and some foliage onto white card and embossed them in gold.  I used the same inks to colour the images as on the background panel, except for the lady's skin which I coloured with pens.  I then carefully cut all the images out, including the background of the lady.  

 

I took a white base card and used one of the inks to stamp some foliage and little swirls along both sides of the front of the card.  I finished it off by blending the same ink around the edges. 

I stamped a word  in one of the top corners of the background panel using black Versafine, then added gold pearl drops around it.  I then matted the panel onto black card and attached it to the base card.  I took the embossed focal images and attached them in 3D onto the card, and added some more pearl drops.

I wanted to create a calm, soothing scene for this card, with the serene lady in the cool calm garden.  I absolutely LOVED creating with these stamps, I hope you do too! 

Thanks for popping in today, another of my teamies will be here with more lovely artwork tomorrow.

Crafty hugs,

                                                             Penny