Beautiful Autumn (by Judith)

Hello everyone, I hope that you are keeping well. We are really into the Autumnal weather now, the leaves are falling and the windy days are here. I love this time of year, we still get the odd sunny day, and it is not too cold for a good walk. I hope that you caught last month's TV shows, and saw the fabulous new stamp sets that Lesley brought to The Craft Store. The Design Team have had so much fun playing with these stamp sets, and you will be truly inspired by what they have to share with you this month.

I have three projects to share with you today. My first card was created on a left over background from another project. I had painted over a piece of scrapbook paper with a wash of white acrylic paint and added some stencilling with blue and orange Distress Oxide Ink. Some subtle stamping had been added with the same colour ink; butterflies, clocks, and splatters, etc. These colours dictacted the colours that I then chose for the rest of my project. 

I stamped Beauty is in the Eyes using Versafine Onyx Black and extended the bottom frame using a fineliner pen. I used the same pen and a circle stencil to draw extra bubbles on the right hand side. I coloured the image with pencils, and added white highlights with a gel pen. I had another scrap background for the larger background, created using acrylic sprays. Always keep your left over backgrounds, you never know when you might need them! I matted both backgrounds with black card for extra drama. The little word 'Focus' comes from the same stamp set.

My second project is a small chipboard panel. I used a piece of decorative paper and stamped one of the leaves from From Nature 1 across the background using green ink. I stamped and embossed the large leaf spray from the same stamp set onto kraft card using white embossing powder. I also stamped and embossed just the face from Beauty is in the Eyes, and the flower from Floral Grunge, also onto kraft card using white embossing powder.

I added a sentiment to the background paper, before attaching it to the chipboard panel with matte medium. Once the adhesive was dry, I sanded the edges to get a white edge. I coloured the face and flower with pencils, and inked the leaves with Distress Ink. I attached all of the images to the panel for a collaged effect.

My final project mixes and matches stamp sets, something that I really enjoy doing. I have used Distress Inks to create a blended background, and then taken a branch from the Sticks and Stones stamp set which I have stamped in first and second generation stamping, using a brown Versafine Clair ink. I have coloured in the first generation branches using brown pencil, and the second generation using a mixture of grey and brown pencils, to make them appear to be in the background. I have then used a mixture of Autumn colours to stamp the lovely leaf from From Nature 1 in first, second and third generation stamping across the branches. Finally I have added my absolute favourite Chocolate Baroque sentiment to the card. This comes from the Nature's Peace stamp set. As Design Team Leader, I should probably not have favourites, but I am still human, and I adore this stamp! I knew as soon as saw the stamp set From Nature 1 that I wanted to create this card, sometimes a card design just pops into your head.

Thanks so much for stopping by, take care,

Judith xx

Upcycled Box (by Gerrina)

Hello everyone, today sees the return of our Guest Design Team member Gerrina for her second post this month. She has upcycled a box that has been unused for some time, using some of our beautiful Autumn themed stamps.

Gerrina writes:

Feels so good...it is my turn again to show some things I made for the Guest Design Team at Chocolate Baroque! Three weeks in a row you will find not only here, but also at my blog, makes from me with the beautiful stamps from Chocolate Baroque....
This week is the second one already, and today I choose to go again with the Autumn season with this box that has been standing so plain and dull in my craft room for years:

Used materials:

Stamps:
Autumn Edges, Autumn Poppy, Nature Table, Nature's Peace, Lace Fragments
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black, Distress Ink: Tea Dye, Rusty Hinge, Walnut Stain, Fired Brick, Peeled Paint. Forest Moss. Memento: Cottage Ivy, Bamboo Leaves, Potter's Clay, Tangelo, London Fog.
Other: Box, Aquarel and masking paper, water brush, black fineliner, washi tape, brown cardstock.

Creatieve groetjes,

Gerrina.

An Autumn Walk (by Gerrina)

Hello everyone, we have a blog post from our regular Guest Design Team contributor Gerrina today. Gerrina will be creating three projects for us this month, and for her first post, she has made a beautiful Autumnal journal page.

Gerrina writes:

So good...it is my turn again to show some things I made for the Guest Designer Team. Three weeks in a row you will find not only here, but also at my blog, makes from me with the beautiful stamps from Chocolate Baroque...
This week the first; an Art Journal page with an Autumn scene that really fits what we saw on a walk this week:

Used materials:

Stamps: Autumn Poppy and Nature's Peace
Ink: Versafine Antique Sepia
Water based markers
Other: Watercolour paper, masking paper, water brush, stamping platform

Instructions:

Place the first mushroom stamp on the stamping platform and colour it directly with the watercolour markers. Repeat this with and without misting with water, and draw the colour out with a water brush. Mask the mushroom stamp and stamp and colour the next two images in the same way with the stamping platform on your page. Mask the second mushroom and place the flower image on the stamping platform. Stamp and colour again with and without misting with water, and drawing out the colour with a water brush. Stamp just the word Autumn from the text stamp using brown ink.

Creatieve groetjes,

Gerrina

Autunm & Spring ( by Magda)

Today I want to share with you two journaling pages, as I always return with lots of fun and pleasure to this technique.

For both projects I used the following products :
1. Dylusions Creative Journal
2. White Gesso :  apply randomly with the spatula on the pages and let dry
3. Distress Ink Pad : blend the different colours for the backgrounds with Blending Sponges

For the Autumn Page :
1. Chocolate Baroque Stencil "Seasonal Journey":  stencil the word "Autumn" using Distress Ink
    Pad - Walnut Stain
2. Chocolate Baroque Stamp "Nature Table" : stamp the mushrooms and the leaves with Versafine
    Onyx Black,  Vintage Sepia and Olympia Green and colour with watercolour pencils
3. Chocolate Baroque Stamp "Nature's Peace" : stamp the text with Versafine Onyx Black and repeat
    it in second and third generation

For the Poppy Page :
1.  Chocolate Baroque Stencil "Seasonal Journey":  stencil the word "Spring" using Distress Ink
     Pad - Mowed Lawn
2.  Chocolate Baroque Mask "Kaleidoscope of Butterflies": use White Gesso through the butterfly
     stencil and let dry
3.  Chocolate Baroque stamp "Just Butterflies": stamp the matching butterfly with Versafine Satin Red 
     and Deep Lagoon on the gesso
4.  Chocolate Baroque stamp "Poppy Meadow": stamp the big poppy with Versafine Onyx Black
      and colour with watercolour pencils
5.  Chocolate Baroque stamp "Autumn Hedgerow" : stamp the flower branch with Versafine Olympia  
     Green and Satin Red
6.  Chocolate Baroque stamp "Loving Sentiments": stamp the sentiment with Versafine Onyx Black
     on the page and randomly in second and third generation here and there again

I hope you enjoyed looking at my pages and I wish you a relaxing crafting time.

Magda

A few more cards ... (posted by Claire)

Good morning, Claire here with some of the projects made for Lesley's shows on Hochanda.

This first card was made using stamps from Nature's Peace. I began with a PanPastel background and stamped the tree using brown ink, the foliage in the top corner with green ink and then stamped the foliage in the foreground with a dark green ink, over stamping with the berried inked in red ink. The sentiment was stamped and embossed with a vintage gold ink.

This card features Butterfly Poppy Collage, I love this large image it's so pretty.

I made the background by swooshing some white card through Picked Raspberry and Peeled Paint distress inks misted with water on my craft mat. Once the ink was dry I used a harlequin stencil and glossy black stencil paste over the top. While that was drying I stamped the image and embossed with black embossing powder. I painted the image with watercolour painted and splattered a little paint here and there. I distressed the edges and layered it on black card. Lastly I assembled the card adding some pink organza ribbon and a big bow.

My last card today  uses the seed heads collage from Butterfly Poppy Collage. I stamped the image to the side of a linen card blank and then doodles the wiggly edges with a black micron pen. I painted the image with watercolour paints and added some paint splatters here and there before adding the sentiment which is from Pretty Poppies.

Thanks so much for visiting today

Claire xx

More Autumn by Brenda

Hello Peeps, I am back again with some more of my samples from Lesley's recent Autumn shows on Hochanda.

So more indulgence in inky Autumn colours and Poppies and my starting point for the top card was a background of  Mica powders spritzed with pearl mica spray to bleed the colours and add some sparkle. I then stamped the Poppy heads from the Poppy Meadow set along with some smaller ones from Natures Table and some grasses from the same set. Next I used a stencil and Distress Inks to add some sun rays, then stamped some more poppy heads across the top. The sentiment is from Natures Peace which is one one of the sets in the multi buy. I added colour to the Poppy heads using the same mica powders and highlighted with a white pen.

Scenes are something I really enjoy creating and for the card above I started with a cloudy sky using distress inks and bleaching out some clouds. I then stamped trees from the Autumn Edges and Tall Trees using Gathered Twigs DI and added leaves with DI's using just the top of one of the larger stamps in the same set. Using watered down DI I painted in some hills and stamped leaves along the top using another stamp from the same set. The fauna in the foreground is stamped with an image from Silhouette Grasses and sentiment from Birthday Words.

On this one I tried to create warmth using DI's for the background and then added some stenciling. The focal images is from Fantasy Woodland. After cleaning the larger stamp I masked off a section so I could ink and stamp just the tiny trees alongside the small tree to the right. Inking just the tip of the flower stamp in the set I added a border around the piece and finally stamped a sentiment from Birthday Words.

Another Oxide background here with some stenciling, followed by some background stamping using the scrip stamps from Butterfly Poppy Collage and then the lovely harlequin and Poppy head stamp using Versafine Black. After stamping I cleaned the stamp, masked the Poppy heads and inked just the harlequins to extend the pattern. The two Butterflies are from the same set and coloured in with the same inks used for the background.

I hope you all have a lovely day with some crafty time as well.

Looking at the Little Stamps (by Judith)

Hello everyone, I have a few projects to share with you today which were featured on Lesley's recent TV shows on Hochanda. I am focusing on the three DL sets that were on the show, using some of the little worker stamps, and showing how they can be used in a variety of ways.

For my first card, I created a very pale wrinkle free distress background, using a blue and lilac Distress Ink, before adding an oval mask over the top. I added a bit more Distress Ink, and some shading around the edge of the mask and the edge of the card with a deeper blue ink, to give the feeling of some shading and depth to the background. I also added a bit of grey pencil around the edge of the oval mask.

Using one of the silhouette images from the Autumn Hedgerow stamp set, I stamped over the background, using a variety of ink colours, using first and second generation stamping, to give a bit of depth to the background. I removed the mask, and stamped an image from the Pretty Poppies stamp set and added a sentiment from the same stamp set inside the oval. I coloured the image with Distress Inks and a waterbrush.

For my second project, I created a gelli plate background, by brayering some green Distress Ink onto my gelli plate, and then scrunched up a piece of cling film and dabbed some red Distress Ink onto the gelli plate with the cling film randomly. I took a print from the gelli plate and trimmed a piece of background to size. From the spare offcut, I stamped and embossed the two butterflies from the Butterfly Poppy Collage stamp set, using copper embossing powder, and added some extra colour, using Distress Ink.

I created another panel using green and orange Distress Ink, and then using a mixture of the small stamps from the Autumn Hegdrow stamp plate, I stamped and embossed the focal image using copper embossing powder. I added background stamping afterwards, using a mixture of Autumnal colours and first and second generation stamping, building up the design until I was happy with the result.

To create the card, I added some hessian ribbon and some olive green ribbon to tone in with the overall colours that I had used. I added my all time favourite sentiment, taken from the Nature's Peace stamp set.  I adore this sentiment, and love the opportunity to use it whenever I can.

For my final card, once I again, I created a gelli plate background, in much the same way as the previous card, using the same colours. From the offcut, I die cut a small rectancle, and stamped the small berry image from the Nature's Peace stamp set over the background, using second generation stamping, as I wanted a very pale effect. I stamped and embossed the verse from the stamp set, using dark brown ink and clear embossing powder.

For the main background, I stamped another small image, the leaves and nuts this time, again using brown ink. I coloured the images using pencils, for a vintage feel. I matted my layers using dark brown card, and created a very masculine card, great for lots of different occasions.

I hope that my projects have given you lots of ideas using these great little stamps, either by themselves, or mixing and matching with stamps from other stamp sets. Thanks for stopping by, Judith xx

Autumn Day by Brenda

Good morning Peeps, today it's my turn to share some inspiration using stamps which Lesley showcased on Hochanda recently. The shows were all about Autumn, Trees and Poppies so ticked all the right boxes for me as I love working with Autumnal colours and as those who know me can confirm Poppies are my favourite flower plus I am a self confessed 'Treeaholic'.

For the card at the top I used three panels of cardstock and stamped two with images from the Autumn Edges set colouring with DI's and on the the third panel used the same inks to add the words using the Seasonal Journey stencil.

The lovely Poppy from Pretty Poppies is the focal image on this card, stamped with Versafine Black onto a watery Burosho background, I mopped quite a lot of the colour away as I wanted a subtle finish and then coloured the flowers with sparkly pens, stamping the Butterfly a second time to decoupage. The corners are from Baroque Corners stamped in the same black and then I added a few leaves using Useful Leaves stencil and ties some red ribbon and added a Poppy button.

The same stencil as the top card has been used along with DI's to create the background for this card and the for the focal panel I created a Brusho background and stamped one of the tree from Fantasy Woodland adding a few stenciled leaves using the Seasonal Elements stencil.......I can't begin to tell you how useful these stencils are for building up interest and colour on your artwork.

This is another sample from last weeks shows on Hochanda, this time using one of the images from Butterfly Poppy Collage stamp set, it's an A4 stamp sheet and you get absolutely loads of beautiful images. The background is Distress Oxides, stamped with Versafine black and the colour added to the Poppy heads using the same Wilted Violet ink and Glossy Accents added, plus a little stamping down the left edge, again using the same ink and stamps from Nature's Peace and the same set as the main image.

I am tentatively adding this one as Lesley asked if she could use it as the basis of one of her demos, however I will be away on holiday when the shows are aired and this post goes live so it may or may not have featured. Using a circle as a mask I stamped a selection of flora and fauna from Nature's Table, Nature's Peace and Poppy Meadow, inking with Distress Markers direct to stamp and a spritz of water before each stamping. The horse chestnuts in the corners were stamped with DI and are also from Natures Table. After stamping I removed the mask and used the negative to stamp the focal sentiment, again from Poppy Meadow and added some shading around the circle.

And as I seem to have quite a number of pieces in my gallery which have not been blogged as yet I thought I would share a few of them in this and my following few posts.

A triptych design which was for the August shows featuring the beautiful Harlequin Bouquet stamped with Versamark and heat embossed with detail copper powder on to a Oxide ink background and some stenciling to carry the harlequin design.

This one features the lovely Summer Fayre stamped onto black cardstock using Versamark and detail white embossing powder, then coloured into metallic pencils, the colour is quite subtle but I rather like the soft finish.

Have a lovely day, I am hoping mine will be warm and sunny as today we sail into Rhodes in the Greek Isles.

Christmas Old and New (by Judith)

Hello everyone, I am sharing some Christmas projects with you today that were featured on last month's TV shows on Hochanda. Some of these were old projects that I made a few years ago, but I hope that you do not mind seeing them again.

I will start with a new project, where I created a background, using soft blues and pinks to represent a Winter sky. I added some deeper blue hills using torn paper masks, and stamped the tree from the Frosty Trees stamp set and the sentiment from the Let's Get Festive stamp set, using dark blue ink. Ensuring that the background was completely dry, I added some snowflakes using white embossing powder, and then used some flat-backed gems for added sparkle.

Using another tree from the same stamp set, I created an icy background using metallic paints, and on a smaller scrap of card, I stamped and embossed the tree panel using Versafine Onyx Black Ink and clear embossing powder, for a crisp image. I matted the layers onto black card, and added some small black gems. The sentiment comes from the Let's Get Festive stamp set once again.

 I wanted to create a piece of home decor especially for Christmas using my favourite sentiment from the new stamp set. I painted a chipboard heart in soft blue, adding some crackle medium here and there, and then added a vintage white paint over the top. I then stamped the sentiment in a bold red before adding the fabulous pine cones from the New England Winter stamp set around the edges. I used water based markers to colour the stamps, allowing me to add colour exactly where I wanted. A red ribbon completes the project.

This next card is an adaptation of an old card that I first made several years ago, using the Winter Birds stamp set, but I have made it in a different size. These days, I like to make 8" x 8" cards, and so the card does look slightly different from the original. I have added one of the new sentiments this time around as well.

Finally two golden oldies for you, I remade the first one, which was originally given as a Birthday card to someone. It just goes to show that these beautiful stamps can be used at other times of the year, not just at Christmas, with a change of colour. I have used the large image from the Reindeer Landscape stamp set, embossed with copper embossing powder, and coloured with Distress Inks and a water brush. The background was also created with Distress Inks, and I have then stamped leaves from the Sunny Sunflowers stamp set, and coloured them with pencils. The sentiment comes from the Nature's Peace stamp set.

Finally a luminary, also using the large image from the Reindeer Landscape stamp set. I die cut an aperture from four large printed tags. The images were stamped and embossed onto parchment using white embossing powder, and coloured from behind. I used metal tape to join the tags, which I embossed, and aged with a little bit of black paint.

I hope that my projects have given you some ideas using these fabulous stamps. Thanks for stopping by, Judith xx

Fabric Journal Pages (by Judith)

Hello everyone, I have a final Autumn project to share with you this month, and decided to mix up some of my old favourite stamps to create a couple of pages in my journal. I created these pages using lightweight cotton fabric and used iron on interfacing to attach the pieces to my journal pages.

I coloured the fabric with water-based inks, and then stamped all of the images with Archival Ink. I frayed the edges of the fabric, before adding the interfacing, as it is much harder to do this afterwards.

I  have chosen lots of Autumnal stamps from my favourite sets: Autumn Poppy, Essence of Nature, Nature's Peace, Autumn Fairy Collection, Words of Wisdom, Woodland Design a Tree, and used rich, warm colours that remind me of the season. I hope that I have given you some ideas that you could carry into cardmaking if you do not want to try a bit of journalling yourself, as you could easily use these colours and images to make some beautiful cards.

Thanks for stopping by, Judith xx

Autumn Trees (by Judith)

Hello everyone, I love this time of year, when the countryside is filled with warm colours, and the leaves are turning shades of orange, brown, gold and plum. It is still warm enough to go for brisk walks and enjoy the sunshine and appreciate the vibrant colours that Mother Nature still has to offer us before we hunker down for the Winter months.

I have created a card using some left over pieces of watercolour card from a previous project. I simply added some stencilling and stamping to the top layer, and then added some shading around the edges of the layers, using Seedless Preserves Distress Ink, to add a warm plummy tone to the background.

I have used a lovely tree from the Nature's Peace stamp set, which I inked with water based markers, enabling me to incorporate the various colours that I had used in my background. I also stamped around the edge of the background using a favourite tree from the Fantasy Woodland stamp set.

This really was a quck and easy card to make, and by varying the colours, could become a very masculine card.

Do keep checking back for more Autumnal inspiration from my team mates this month. Thanks for stopping by, Judith xx

Autumn's Smile (by Judith)

Hello everyone, I am sharing a project or two today, using our current stamps of the month. Along with the rest of the Design team, I have been enjoying working with these stunning stamps from Sue, and hopefully, I can add my piece of inspiration to the daily treats that the team have been giving you.

My first card uses the Autumn Medley rubber stamp to create a seasonal card. I stamped the image, and masked it before creating a leafy background, using leaves from my garden and Fossilized Amber and Rusty Hinge Distress Ink.  I coloured the image with water based markers, and added extra detail with pencils afterwards. I added one of my all time favourite sentiments, taken from the Nature's Peace stamp set. I matted the background onto green card, before adding it to a black card blank.

For my second card, I have created a wrinkle free Distress background, and combined the Tangled Birch individual stamp with stamps from Patchwork Landscape and Seasonal Fragments, to create a scene. I coloured the images with water based pencils.

My last card uses the lovely Autum Medley stamp once again, and I have created a border around the image, using stamps from the Autumn Poppy stamp set. I stamped the foliage using various colours of Archival Ink, and then coloured everything with Polychromos pencils. I decoupaged some of the leaves on the main image.

Thanks for stopping by, Judith xx