Wonderful world

Time for another song title challenge at The Craft Barn and this month's song is "What a Wonderful World". It doesn't always feel very wonderful when we look at the news so this is probably a timely reminder that there really are lots of wonderful things for us to appreciate.

I combined stamping with a laser printer (or photocopy) image transfer technique for my postcard this time.

The world map and compass are stamped around the edge of the card (the shapes are very simple to mask so they all overlap) and then sealed with a satin varnish. Make sure you use a waterproof ink if you do this (ask me how I know!).

I found a vintage handshake image and added tiny text for the lyrics onto one of the hands and the song title around it before printing on a laser printer. Because there's text, it needs to be a mirror image print otherwise your finished text will be backwards - explore your printer settings if necessary! I used acrylic paint (white for the cuffs and sleeves, flesh toned for the hands) on the print out so those bits would be opaque and then sealed with the same varnish.

Once everything had dried, the base got another coat of varnish and while wet the image was burnished onto it and left to dry thoroughly (image transfer is not for you if you're in a hurry!). Dampening the paper and rolling the pulp off to reveal the transferred image has some magic about it!

Louis Armstrong is the only man for me when it comes to this song so I hand wrote his name onto a shirt cuff - as it's an acrylic paint surface there's enough "tooth" to make that feasible.

Stamps:
Journey set by Crafty Secrets (no longer making stamps, they've gone digital only these days)

Paper: kraft

Ink:
Vintage Sepia Versafine by Tsukineko

Other:
Vintage image
Computer and laser printer
White and Desert Sand acrylic paints by DecoArt
Satin Varnish by DecoArt
Black fineline marker

Thanks for stopping by!

Figure it out

My dad celebrated a "round number" birthday recently but didn't want to make a big thing of it. So I decided to use number punches rather than featuring BIG numbers on the card!

I started with a loose explosion of turquoise courtesy of some Brusho and stenciled brickwork over the top with white pigment ink. The script is stamped with Distress (which kind of disappears over the pigment ink - nice effect if unexpected!).

The big cog is a couple of die cuts stuck together for a bit of body (I didn't have a chipboard shape of the right size and I don't have a suitable steel rule die to cut my own - if you own the die that cut this cog, you'd be OK to cut your own from something like mountboard).

I used metal stamps and a hammer to emboss dates around the edge of the cog, added a little sand texture paste in some areas and dots between the dates with glue. Once those hardened, I painted the whole thing black and then dry brushed acrylics over that base layer (metallic Espresso and then Bronze) to bring out the textures. The texture paste gives a corroded or rusty texture under the paint which you might be able to see better on the close-up view.

I brushed out excess paint on a bit of scrap card before dry-brushing the cog and that got used to make the matching dots - I just punched/die cut circles and domed them out with a stylus tool. A few tiny turquoise nail art gems, a stamped sentiment and wonky stitching finish it off.
 
I thought this would still fit the current That's Crafty challenge which is to use numbers/figures on your project, even though the numbers are fairly subtle rather than in your face. Lots of the supplies I used are available from That's Crafty, too!

Stamps:
19th Century French Script and Essential Messages by Hero Arts

Paper: Bristol Board

Ink:
Tim Holtz Distress ink by Ranger (Blueprint Sketch)
Adirondack pigment ink by Ranger (Snowcap)
Memento Luxe by Tsukineko (Tuxedo Black)

Other:
Brusho (Turquoise)
Dutch Dubadoo stencil (Bricks)
Cog die cuts
Metal punches
Decoart acrylic paints (Black,  Metallic Espresso, Bronze)
Decoart Texturizing paste (the sand ones in the current Media range would be perfect)
Nail art gems
Sewing machine and thread 

Thanks for stopping by!

Deconstuction - PaperArtsy

The current challenge theme at PaperArtsy is "deconstruction" - all the details and some great inspiration starts here.

I let a few thoughts brew for a while and eventually settled on a plastic bottle and a net bag as the basis of my project. I eventually threw in some toilet paper (deconstructed with water and glue, nothing more radical!) for good measure.

The toilet paper got used to make a paper cast of the sentiment. The cast worked OK but the words "and" and "wait" were missing a couple of high spots and since I wanted to dry-brush (making height difference crucial) I used a tiny paint brush and some glue to build those areas back up.

I cut the top off a plastic bottle "on the wonk" and then Mod Podged some torn netting bag onto it. Some texturising medium, spots of glue and the paper cast sentiment provided the texture and I heated one side of the bottle to get it to collapse a bit.

The whole lot got a couple of coats of Prussian Blue acrylic paint. Once that was dry, I dry-brushed with Mermaid and then Snowflake Fresco Finish paints and finally glued on the fish charm and some glass "bubbles". The charm started life as a brassy gold so that got a coat of Prussian Blue acrylic and then some silver Rub n Buff so it tied in better.

I'm not sure if this is destined to be a wee vase or a pen pot. I shoved some rosemary prunings in to take the photo but we'll see.

Supplies:
Clocks Plate 3 by PaperArtsy
 Empty plastic bottle
Netting bag from garlic
Toilet paper
PVA glue
Prussian Blue Americana acrylic paint by DecoArt
Mermaid and Snowflake Fresco Finish paint by PaperArtsy
Texturising Medium by DecoArt
Mod Podge Matte
Silver Rub n Buff by Amaco
Glass bubbles
Fish charm

Thanks for stopping by!

Paint time

I decided to play along with the current PaperArtsy challenge, originally as a nudge to use some new stamps although that went out of the window and I ended up reaching for some older ones!

Leandra's starting post for the current theme of "paint" mentioned stencil bumping. I was intrigued and found she has a good video tutorial demonstrating the technique here. I went for a tag as it was nice to experiment on something rather than aiming for a piece to use on a card or other project.

I really liked the effect Leandra got by using the translucent paints over the opaque ones so my colour choices for the base were dictated by what I had in my stash (I've had a transparent blue in my paint collection forever and a day and I had PaperArtsy's Hey Pesto translucent as well as Tinned Peas so blue/green it was!).

I followed Leandra's guide for the base layers and the stencilled circles and then did an extra layer by adding the stars, overlapping the circles in places. My "stencil" was created with a couple of circle punches and a Crop-a-Dile as all my existing stencils are really a bit too fine-patterned (certainly for a learner!).

Using both Mermaid and Snowflake when sponging in the top shapes gives a nice subtle variation of colour, I think and the sanding step really helps with overall coherence.

When I overstamped the painty base, I wanted the word "time" to stand out more so I went over it with a black marker and then clear Wink of Stella. I hadn't planned to stamp on the circles but that swirl was just the perfect size on the larger circle that I couldn't resist the temptation.

There's a second painty thing on the wee hanging tag - the chipboard piece with the year (just metal punches bashed into the chippie with a hammer) was given a base coat of very dark blue and then dry brushed with a couple of lighter paints. I think it gives a nice patina-ish look.

I thought I might use this as a bookmark so steered clear of adding any embellishments on the body of the tag.

Stamps: Clocks Plate 6 by PaperArtsy

Ink:
Brilliance Graphite Black
Hero Arts Charcoal

Other:
PaperArtsy Fresco Finish acrylic paint (Mermaid, Snowflake, Tinned Peas, Hey Pesto)
Midnight Blue and Turquoise acrylic paint by DecoArt
Random transparent blue acrylic paint from stas
Sizzix Thinlits Tag Collection dies
Small tag cut from waste mountboard with Tim Holtz Apothecary Bottles die
Number punches and leather pattern punch
Jump rings
Wink of Stella clear pen
Circle and star punches by Fiskars

Thanks for stopping by!

Inchie birthday

Last Friday was Lydia's turn to set the Mixed Media challenge at Splitcoast Stampers and she asked us to use 1, 2, 3 or 4 inchies on a project. The wheels were obviously turning slowly as although I managed to join in with this one, I didn't manage it in the week of the challenge!

It was a bit of a nightmare to photograph - I'm not sure the texture shows well but it refused to get better than this - I hope you get the idea!

I stamped the wavy border and then cut out three inchies from sections that pleased me on the small scale. I used glue to trace over the lines of the stamped image and let it dry then painted each square with black acrylic paint.

Once the paint was dry I dry brushed with a pearlescent rich blue to catch the raised glue lines.  I used a Versamark pen to fill in some of the open circles, brushed on green Perfect Pearls and finished with Glossy Accents over the top. A tiny gem adds to the glitz on each square.

The card base has a really simple stamped "anchor" for the inchies and a birthday greeting.

Stamps:
Bubble Border by Lost Coast Designs
Brush Strokes by Hero Arts (paint streak)
Big Day Today by Waltzingmouse Stamps (sentiment)

Ink:
Brilliance Graphite Black by Tsukineko

Other:
Scotch Quick Dry adhesive
Lamp Black Americana acrylic paint by DecoArt
Pearlescent blue acrylic paint
Sour Apple Perfect Pearls
Glossy Accents
Nail art gems
Pinflair glue gel
Corner Chomper

Thanks for stopping by!

Another mono printing adventure!

While thinking about mono printing for the current Craft Stamper challenge, I had an idea that might get me round my patterned paper problem - what happens if I incorporate a focal point on the print itself by using masks, I wondered?

This is what happened. I didn't get my masks quite right and ended up adding the small heart as a separate layer cut from another print but it basically worked!

I brayered red paint onto the acrylic block and pressed a background stamp into it then lifted a print. Then I did a layer of burnt umber and burnt sienna textured with plastic canvas and placed my two heart masks on there before pulling the print (I used acetate to cut my masks as it's a bit easier to handle than damp paper!).

Here's where I slipped up - for the final layer (which is white with a smidge of gold, textured with a very open weave, cheesecloth type fabric) I wanted to subdue the background heart by overprinting and leave the foreground one more vivid but I used the wrong mask so the big heart overlapped the small one! To rescue it, I did a second print with the the red paint and stamp (no layering this time) and die cut the smaller heart from that.

The flourish in the corners is stamped with gold ink and shows up differently at different angles (which makes it hard to photograph, sorry!). It's finished with a stamped and heat embossed sentiment, charcoal pencil drop shadows for both hearts and the small heart stuck down with some Pinflair glue gel for a little height.

There's still time to play along in the Craft Stamper challenge to use your acrylic block for some mono printing - you'll find all the details here and we'd love to see you!

Stamps:
Leaves #3 background stamp and sentiment (CHF, retired)
Vintage Flourish (Indigo Blu)

Ink:
Delicata Golden Glitz by Tsukineko, Versamark

Other:
Titanium white, true red, burnt umber, burnt sienna Americana acrylic paints by DecoArt
Dazzling Gold acrylic paint by DecoArt
Charcoal pencil
Detail black embossing powder
Sizzix primitive hearts die
Pinflair glue gel

Experimenting with mono prints!

The Craft Stamper blog challenge has gone monthly so that means it's time for a new one!

This time we're using an acrylic block for mono printing (effectively using the block like a Gelli plate). I've resisted the lure of the Gelli, mostly because I suspected I'd make prints I liked and then my PPP (patterned paper problem) would kick in and I'd have no idea what to do with them.

When Trish told us what this month's challenge would be, I decided I'd have a go. Not sure if I set myself up for it but I proved myself right - made prints I liked and then couldn't use them! This is the attempt I'm happiest with.

I used Americana craft acrylic paints on the biggest acrylic block I own. If I remember rightly I did a layer of gold with plastic canvas pressed into it and lifted before taking a print, a layer of burnt umber and black with star masks scattered over and finally a layer of white with a piece of lace pressed in and lifted before taking the print (you can see the large diamond design of the lace as well as the overall texture if you let your eyes relax a bit!).

I've stamped a sentiment in one of the larger stars, some astronomy charts towards the bottom and then stamped and cut out a pointy finger to highlight the sentiment. The gold stars are punched from tomato paste tube metal (with the smaller punch I used when I made masks for the printed layer). A wee snippet of film strip ribbon seemed to tie it all together.

Not very typical for me but it was fun to get painty for a change! It may not be the perfect mono printing surface but the acrylic block made a good play surface if you're anything like me and just fancy a dabble!

Stamps:
Past Times by Hero Arts
Reach for the Stars by CHF (retired)

Other:
Large and small star squeeze punches by Fiskars
Lamp black, burnt umber and titanium white Americana acrylic paints by DecoArt
Dazzlong gold metallic acrylic paint by DecoArt
Tim Holtz Film Strip ribbon
Brilliance ink - Graphite Black
Tomato paste tube metal

As ever, there's the chance of a prize (lovely limited edition paints from PaperArtsy this time!) and of having your card in print in the magazine if you're the winner - we'd love to have you play along! All the details, including the deadline, can be found here.

Atmospherics!

Lydia has set this week's Mixability challenge at Splitcoast Stampers - Through the Mist.

The idea is to clean a painty brayer by rolling on clean cardstock and use the resulting piece as the basis for something.  The brayered prints are often reminiscent of a misty landscape. Lydia's put together a great little video, you can check it out of the SCS thread linked above.

When I watched the video, I kept mentally filling in bare tree shapes on the prints so that's where mine had to go, I'm afraid! I stamped the tree over the brayered base and added a bit of white pen for some moonlight highlights. I smudged a little charcoal pencil along some of those higlights to soften them.

I helped the brayering along just a tiny bit with a pen line under the tree to define the ground a bit more and stamped and white embossed the sentiment. The moon is finger-painted with silver acrylic paint and I added some lowlights with a Copic fine liner once the paint was dry (again smudging with my finger).

I kept the setting really simple, just sticking it slightly offset on the cardbase and running the fineliner round the edge of the panel - I thought the simplicity went with the tranquil feel.

Stamps:
Winter Trees by Stampendous
Scene-it Sentiments by Hobby Art

Paper: smooth white

Other:
Lamp Black Americana acrylic paint by DecoArt
Shimmering Silver metallic acrylic paint by DecoArt
Graphite Black Brilliance ink
Copic fineliner
Posca white pen
Bright white embossing powder by WOW!
Charcoal pencil

Thanks for stopping by!

Book of Secrets!

I've been doing something new! I've never taken part in an online workshop before but I'm currently doing Andy Skinner's Book of Secrets one and having fun! Andy gets some fantastic finishes on his projects and steampunk is way outside my normal comfort zone so I decided to sign up and see what I could learn.

This post is a bit picture-heavy - sorry!

Andy uses a wooden box as the base for his tutorials but I decided to take the "book" part of the workshop title literally and I've used a real book as the base for my project. The people who owned our house before us left behind loads of "books by the yard" and we've never done anything with them. I chose one that looked extremely unlikely to have any financial or cultural value and set to work!

One of the things I struggle with on steampunk is the "more is more" aspect. I find it difficult to add lots of stuff and still feel happy with the overall composition. I think I did OK here and I didn't go for a straight copy of Andy's sample (trying to copy something is always a recipe for disaster at my craft table!).

The "power indicators" (flat back gems) were something that struck me as a fun addition to the mechanical components.

Andy adds dates to his large compass with metal punches. I liked the idea but didn't have the punches to achieve it. What I did have was an embossing tool with interchangable tips that my dad picked up for me at a car boot sale (thanks Dad!). I used it with a hammer to add detail right round the inside of the compass. I think it works quite well.

The spine has been given a leather-look makeover. It's not easy to tell that the book started life as a blue cloth-bound hardback and I think this would probably look quite convincing lined up with other volumes on a shelf!




I carved out a niche inside the book for the inner workings of the machine. I thought a butterfly would provide a suitably unexpected power house for a steampunk contraption and the light/bright colouring makes a nice contrast to the industrial tones.

Lessons for niche carving - be prepared to even up the right hand side once the pages are glued together as there's a surprising gradient on the pages of a closed book!  The slope on the left goes towards the spine and can't be seen but the slope on the right obviously goes into the niche itself.

Here's a detail of the texture on the cogs - nice and rusty!



Supplies:
Old book
Tand Creative chipboard shapes (Compass Duo and Cogs grab bag)
Die cuts
Cardstock
Lamp black, Burnt umber, Burnt sienna Americana Acrylic paints by DecoArt
Texturizing medium by DecoArt
Brads, googly eyes, flatback pearls and gems
Sun charm (saved from a freebie chiffon scarf)
Wings stamp set (Darkroom Door)
"Engine" and number from a retired B&O Railroad set (CHF)
Ranger Perfect Pearls
Copic markers

This is not quite complete yet - I need to do the back and as the niche only goes about half way down the depth of the book I've stuck together some pages so I have a couple of surfaces to decorate. I got distracted into trying a second project though, I'll share that soon!

The Book of Secrets workshop is running again at the end of the month - details of what it entails are here if anyone would like them.

Thanks for stopping by!