International Art and Soul Challenge 127

 The challenge for this fortnight has been set by my team mate Hazel, and she wants things on the theme of Light and Dark.

There are a lot of potential ideas for this theme, but I went for one which seems obvious to me - a scene with light and dark within the picture.

I started with a rough area of shading - green shading to blue with some brighter sunshine/sunset colours in the middle, achieved with Distress Ink. I then added a Lavinia fairy - which I got by subscribing to a magazine many years ago - and continued with the overhead brances which use a much more recent Lavinia purchase. The lower vegetation is mainly (or perhaps all) Inkylicious. I must admit, both ranges have some very similar vegetation, and it can be hard to tell them apart. All stamping used Versafine Clair ink in black (for the fairy/toadstool) and green for the vegetation. I then added more depth to the background shading, darkening the edges to create a 'tunnel' effect. Then I added a little water sprinkle to the background sky, and some colour to the overhead berries with a paint pen and sparkle to the fairy with a glitter gel pen. I made the toadstool more opaque using Koh-i-Noor pencils in a variety of brown shades. Finally, I further darkened the outer areas using some Versafine Clair ink for its opacity.

I used similar techniques here, but started with a Brusho background printed from a gel plate. The result was very pale, but I added Distress Ink to define the edge colours. The stamps this time are Lavinia (fairy) and Printable Heaven (extra dandelion heads and fluff) as well as Inkylicious (flowers). As above, I finished the flowers with some paint pen, and added some sparkle to the fairy with glitter gel pen.

International Art and Soul Challenge 112

 The challenge for this fortnight has been set by my team mate Christine, and she's asked for projects which are red, white, and blue.

My card was almost a week in the making. I tried a few things, discarded some, kept others. I didn't have any specific ideas beyond using the stamps and the colours.

I started with the image piece. I used a gell press to apply Distress Ink to some card, then did a second layer with the same colour, this time applying a stencil first. The effect is subtle, but it did give some teture. Then I stamped the Lavinia images, and the sentiment which came from a Creative Expressions set. I added some further texture with a text stamp, and added some detail to the flower with a Posca pen in red. I trimmed the result, rounded the corners and matted it on red card and then stopped to think again.

I had intended to make a six by six card, but that was too small, so I switched to 7 by 7. The background started similarly with a gel imprint with the same Distress Ink. Although it's not obvious, I added some red using Versfine Clair ink and a lacy floral stencil. I then used the same text stamp to the background, and edged the piece with Distress ink. I tried several things for the side panel, but finally settled on some red and blue card with some floral lace. And that's it. I hope you can join us this time,

International Art and Soul Challenge 110

 The challenge for this fortnight was set by my team mate CG, and it's to use a pre-coloured topper.  Now, that's not something I do very often, although as I get more in to designing and decorating my own background papers, it's becoming more frequent. I recently bought a couple of packs of Hunkydory Topper Decks, and I've used a couple here.

For both, the backgrounds started as gelli prints. The first was first generation and fairly clean, the second was a second generation print to which I added ink through a stencil. In the case of the first card, I just added some inky colour to the background to take away the whiteness. In both cases, the ink was Distress Oxide.

I do hope you can join us this time.

International Art and Soul Challenge 106

 The challenge for this fortnight is Winged Creatures chose and hosted by my team mate Christine. I normally immediately go for butterflies for this sort of challenge, but not this time. Two cards, and not a butterfly in sight!

I have been inspired recently by some Lavinia Stamps videos, and this has resulted in both the cards in this post. This first one, started with a second gelli plate impression with distress oxide ink and a stencil. (The first impression will be used elsewhere!) The result was very understated, but I liked it, and added some more detail. First, I used a circular mask and Victorian Velvet distress ink. Then I added the foliage and added the raven using stamps from Lavinia stamps. I coloured the blossoms with pencil. I wanted a bit more texture in the background, so I used a couple of stamps from Creative Stamping magazine - some text and another small one with a 'cracked' appearance. And that, apart from some silver mirror card to matt, is that.

The second card used very similar techniques:

This card used similar techniques, although the gelli print was first generation, and a lot bolder as a result. I added some trees, and the fairy on a toadstool image. The fairy was from my first ever set of Lavinia stamps - I think they were a subscription gift for a magazine some years ago. The toadstool isn't opaque - so I added some colour using coloured pencils. And again, some mirror card to finish, and a fairly simple card.

I do hope you can join us this time.

International Art and Soul Challenge 102

 The challenge theme for this fortnight is Off to Dinner. I chose to use a stamp depicting two very glamorous ladies drinking cocktails as I imagine their next stop will be dinner somewhere very exclusive.

The stamp is from Crafts and Me which I've had for several years. I know the company went out of business a while ago, and I don't know if the image is available from anyone else now. I coloured with watercolour pencils and added some glittery accents with Sakura Stardust pens. I gave the background area an extra glitz with a Crafter's Compaion glitter marker.

The background started as a simple smooshed piece with Distress Oxide inks, but I wanted to add something to it, so I added a gel press impression with white acrylic paint and a stencil.

I do hope you can join us this time.

International Art and Soul Challenge 95

The challenge for this fortnight is on the theme Fairies and/or Elves.

I used a variety of stamps - mainly from Lavinia (the main image was a magazine freebie quite a long time ago), Inkylicious, and Printable Heaven. I combined them on a background which I printed from my gelli plate using Distress Ink and Brushos on to watercolour paper. The stamped images were stamped with Versafine Clair ink.

I hope you can join us this time.

International Art and Soul Challenge 85

The challenge for this fortnight is Under the Sea and can be anything so long as there is an under-sea theme.

My immediate thought when I saw this challenge was to reach for my Josephine Wall Enchanted Dreams CDRom. Having said that, there weren't so many under sea images there, but I found one that's lovely and went with it.

I love the images on that CDRom, but I'm generally disappointed by the background papers supplied - they always seem rather plain and drab compared to the gorgeous, vibrant images. This time, I decided to make my own but not using digital means. I started with my 6in gelli plate. I added an all-over layer of Distress Ink, and printed it on to copy paper. Then, I chose a stronger, bluer shade and again applied a layer to the plate, but before printing to paper, I used a stencil to remove areas of ink. The result was the wavy pattern. I wanted to add a subtle hint of seaweed, so the next stage was to use a stencil of long fronds (from Crafter's Companion) and I added Distress Oxide ink through that. The result was definitely subtle! To get the stronger shades at the edges of the background, I stamped with Versacraft Ink. That's the most opaque of the inks I own, and it definitely gave the desired effect. I used some Creative stamps for this. They're supposed to be watercolour greenery images, but I think they pass for a stylised sea weed!

And, apart from some matting and layering, that's it.

I do hope you can join us this time.

International Art and Soul Challenge 73

Our last challenge of the year is to make anything other than a card. So, a perfect chance to showcase a hand-made gift, tag or piece of home decoration. (Or something else ... so long as its not a card.)

My son's partner loves to travel, so I decided to make her a travel journal.

 I made a box to keep all the bits in too. The front is decorated with Acrylic paper and acrylic paint applied and textured using a rubber tool. The compass was cut using a Tonic die, and both it and the edges of the paper were brightened up with some gilding wax.

And the journal in the box.The journal was cut using a Sizzix/Eileen Hull Wrapped Journal die. I put a layer of Kraftex over some grey board before cutting, then decorated using acrylic paint, my gelly plate, and various stamps and stencils. I added a little gilding was to complete the effect, and made a closure with gold elastic. When the messy bit was done, I covered the inside in some white paper.

I used papers I printed from a Crafter's Companion CDRom to create the pages, although I did make them less saturated, as I wanted a more subtle effect. I printed direct to Ryman Matte double-sided card.

You'll note that I didn't add any details to the pages. That's because I wanted her to be able to add things where she wanted, rather than where I'd stuck something. So, I provided some bits to do that.

 A box containing some tiny envelopes. The post mark stamps are from Marianne, and the envelope die is from Printable Heaven.

A box filled with pouches cut using a Tonic die set, and offcuts of the Crafter's Companion papers.

And finally, some pockets cut using a Sizzix/Tim Holtz die.

 This is my first time using Kraftex. I would have preferred to use some leather or even faux leather or the journal, but I've struggled to get supplies. I know I could buy faux leather by the metre, but then I would have loads of a single colour and I'd like variety. And each piece needs to be about 6 by 13 inches, so most offcuts wouldn't be big enough. I hope the Kraftex gives the journal a robust enough cover, but won't know that for a while!

I do hope you can join us.

International Art and Soul Challenge 64

The challenge for this fortnight is to use embossing - either heat or dry.

I've done some heat embossing on a Chocolate Baroque stamp I've had for a long time. It's fair to say it comes out most years as I get into making Christmas cards, and I'm always searching for a different look.

I stamped with Versamark ink and embossed with gold detail powder. I added some colour to the diamonds using a Spectrum Noir Glitter marker. The background was made using stencils and a gelli plate with distress oxide ink and gilding wax. Even though the script in the background isn't the same as on the image, I do like this combination. Some gold mirror and white matting and that's it!

I do hope you can join us this time.

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge 237

The challenge at Crafty Cardmakers for this fortnight is to use a die or punch. Once you've done that, there are no restrictions on what you produce!

For this card, I started with a background which I created using my gelli-plate, some Distress Oxide ink and a stencil. The die cuts were cut using a die from Tonic's Sew Pretty range. I stitched them with metallic gold thread. The sentiment was stamped with a stamp from John Lockwood/Creative Expressions, and I highlighted the pretty flowers with a little glitter using Crafter's Companion glitter pens in yellow and teal. I completed the card with some sticky gems.

I do hope you can join us this time.

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge 235

The theme of the challenge for this fortnight is Masculine. And like many cardmakers, this is a theme I always find difficult.

I started with some basic copy paper, a gelli plate, stencils and some acrylic paint. I added some further detail using silver gilding wax and another stencil.

The sentiment is stamped (but I don't have a record of the manufacturer. I think it might be Personal Expressions, but I'm really not sure. I do know it''s a stamp set I bought a number of years ago and it includes many different sentiments. The die is from Sizzix.

The result is a card for my husband. He likes green, and doesn't like things which are heavily embellished, so I hope this will appeal.

I hope you can join us this time.

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge 233

Our challenge for this fortnight is 3 - 2 - 1! You need to use elements in those quantities, but what those elements are is up to you! To help those visiting your blog, it'd would be great if you could specify somewhere what your 3 - 2 - 1 are.

In this case, my three is flowers, my two is papers and my one is the sentiment.

The main background paper (and the flowers) use paper decorated using acrylic paint, stencils and a gelli plate. The gingham paper has been in my stash I'm not completely sure where it came from, but I suspect it was from Payper Box. (I used to see them at Olympia at a craft show, but that was many years ago. They might have visited Ally Pally but again, not recently.)

To cut the flowers, I used Crafter's Companion dies, and I finished them with some liquid pearl.

the sentiment is computer- generated. I cut and matted it using dies from Spellbinders.

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge 229

The challenge for this fortnight is Make it Green.

I decided to have a go at various techniques which are new to me, and while I'm happy with the result, there are things I'll do differently next time.

I started with a die from Eileen Hull/Sixxix: the Travel Journal. Now, this die does give a very tall, narrow journal in its original form, so I followed a tutorial from Eileen on how to make it a bit wider. For me, it's still rather narrow, but it's definitely an improvement on the original. I think the reason for the odd shape is that Eileen always restricts herself to designing for small die cutters, so this die will go through a basic Big Shot. I do wish she's design for bigger machines and give us something that takes standard size paper: A4 or A5. But still. Her suggestion is to cut a back and front as usual, but instead of using the scored edges to form a spine, you cut an extra bit and put the spine scores and holes at both edges, which is what I did here.

Before cutting, I covered some grey board with Kraftex on one side only. Then, I coated the Kraftex and back sides with gesso. This is definitely something I'd do differently. The Kraftex probably doesn't need the gesso, and the grey board absorbed quite a lot so the pieces had a distinct curve which, while not a visual issue (to me) meant that attaching the three pieces was problematic. But, I'm getting ahead of myself.

After the gesso, I used a gelli plate to apply distress oxide inks to give an overall greenish shade. (I only have a few of these inks, and none of them is green!) Then, I used stamps and inks (mainly Memento) on the front and back inside and out.

I was playing, so I've used a range of stamps and stamping techniques. The inside uses repeating background stamps from Inkylicious. The front uses a lace rubber stamp for which I have no record of the manufacturer, and the back, stamps from Printable Heaven, I think.

Although its not obvious, I added a piece of lace to the centre of the front. I used Modge Podge for this, and because the inks I used were water based, there was some transfer, so the lace definitely matches the rest!  To finish the front, I added some lacy flowers cut using Tattered Lace dies. I used Coredinations card and gently sanded the pieces before sticking them, again with Modge Podge. I used Modge Podge over everything as a sealer before assembling the pieces.

Here, I found that glue wasn't going to work, at least, not on its own. So, I used the otherwise unused punched holes in the front and back covers and spine to reinforce the structure with thread.

You can just see the thread in this photo.

Because I'm using the die cuts in a way that was not intended, I had to manually punch holes in the spine for attaching pages inside and a further one so I can add an elastic closure when that becomes necessary.

And to give an idea of the inside, I've put a single double-sheet in each of the four elastic holders.

Next time, I'll probably revert to covering the inside of the cover with paper rather than using gesso. That should make it easier to assemble the journal, but I might still use the reinforcement technique!

I hope you can join us this time.

International Art and Soul Challenge 51

For this fortnight's challenge, we want you to forsake your patterned paper, and make your own background. How you do that is entirely up to you!

I made a variety o backgrounds using a gel plate, stencils, and acrylic paint. The base layer here was an impression used after removing a Crafter's Companion stencil (bark?) and the layer beneath the sentiment is a second impression of the same plate. The sentiment was cut using a Crafter's Companion die, and I completed the card with a couple of lengths of sticky-backed paper lace that I've had for ages and keep forgetting about. I bought it at Ally Pally several years ago and it's in the box with my embellishment, but I never think to look there when looking for something like that. I'm more likely to either look at border dies or ribbon.

One interesting thing which shouldn't really surprise me. Having let the acrylic paint dry, I layered things together with some Collal all-purpose glue. I left it under a flat surface to flatten it while it dried, and came back to find that the paint had migrated to my white matting. Obviously, the solvent in the glue is also a solvent for dry acrylic paint. So, I had to re-do that bit. I'll know better next time.

I hope you can join us this time.

International Art and Soul Challenge 45

The challenge for this fortnight is Autumn Colours! Now, a few weeks ago, another design team had a similar challenge, and I posted a couple of suitably-hued Christmas cards. But, I actually made four, so here are the other two!

Like the other two, these have background made using my gelli-plate and acrylic paint. I do love the rich colours you get with this technique!

Other than that, I've used dies from Joanna Sheen (border), and a magazine freebie (tree), and I can't actually remember whose die the oval is. I completed the card with some sticky gems - the last five I had of this size and hue.

A different stencil this time - but similar colours and technique. The card was completed with die cuts from Sizzix and Joanna Sheen, and some gold ribbon.

I do hope you can join us this time!

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge 218

Our theme for the fortnight at Crafty Cardmakers is Autumn Colours. No other requirements, other than to link back to the challenge blog, so it would be lovely to see what you can come up with.

I've reached the point in the year when I'm pretty up to date with cards, and I've got a reasonable selection in my box, but of course, the biggest card-sending occasion of the year - Christmas - is looming. So, especially since I've got a couple of Autumn Colour challenges to make for, I've made some autumn-hued Christmas cards!

This first one started as a first print off my gelli-plate. I added some acrylic paint then applied a stencil (Sheena Douglass). While the stencil was in place, I brayered a piece of copy paper on top,and got the grid pattern.

Once it was dry, I got out my Kaleidoscope Autumn Colours ink pad, and shaded the background with my Ink Dusters. Then, I used stamps from a Leoni Pujol set of swirls and snowflakes, and added those. The sentiment was stamped with the same ink pad, using a stamp from a Sweet Dixie set, and again, some colour was added in the background.

The die cut was done with a Joanna Sheen border die.

I edged the backing and sentiment with some Rusty Hinge Distress ink, and added some matting.

The background for this one came from the same gelli-plate as the last one, but this time, I used some mixed-media card after the stencil had been removed. There still seemed to be a lot of paint on the plate at that point, so I used another piece of card and took a second impression. I used that sheet for the immediate background to the tree.

Dies used are from Sizzix (the frame) and Joanna Sheen (the tree). To complete, I added some sticky gems, some translucent gold snowflake ribbon and some rust-coloured ribbon from my stash.

So, two more Christmas cards done - but there will be a couple more coming soon!

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge 204

This fortnight, we want you to get Inky or Messy! Any theme of project is fine so long as you've had brightly-coloured fingers at some time while you were creating.

I started by getting pretty messy. The background was created using a couple of different stencils and acrylic paint on my gelli-plate. I don't seem to be able to get anywhere near that technique without getting more paint on me than on the paper, but I did like the result - no doubt helped by the fact that it uses my favourite colour combination.

The image is a magazine freebie from Creative Stamping magazine. I've recently got hold of several back-numbers of this magazine and I've been quite impressed by the quality of the stamps. I coloured the image using pencils - a mixture of Spectrum Noir and Derwent Coloursoft, and edged the image with Distress Ink. Dies used are from Spellbinders.

The flowers were made using Sizzix dies, and I've shaded petals and leaves using Pan Pastels. I completed the card with some ribbon from my collection.

I hope you can join us this time.

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge 202

Our theme for the last challenge of 2017 is Christmas!

Another Gelli Plate background from me for this one.

I've used acrylic paint on my plate, and then I edged the paper with Distress Ink in Blueprint, and then Alchemy Wax in bronze from Imagination Crafts. The baubles were cut using dies from, I think, Joanna Sheen, and the sentiment die is from Tonic - part of their Christmas Cracker set. I completed the card with some bronze thread, sparkly orange ribbon and a bit of matting. I liked this background so much, I really wanted not to cover it up too much, so I haven't!

I hope you can join us, and I'd like to wish you a very happy Festive Season.

International Art and Soul Challenge 23

For our final challenge of the year, we'd like to see Lots of Sparkle! Other than that, you can make anything you want, although, at this time of year, I suspect we'll see quite a few Christmas cards.

I used the same image I used a few challenges ago, but this time, I've done a few things differently. First, I coloured with Sakura Glitter pens. They're not great for colouring large areas, but this image with its narrow swirls and sweeps is ideal. The background is another foray into the world of the Gelli Plate, and I've used acrylic paint and stencils. to add to the sparkle, I've used some glitter card for matting both the image and the background.

 I hope you can join us, and I wish you all the best for the Festive Season when it arrives!

International Art and Soul Challenge 22

The challenge at International Art and Soul for this fortnight is Buttons and Bows!

I immediately thought of my bow dies - from Creative Expressions, I think, and from there, I thought Easel Card, and this is the result.

The main image uses a stamp from Creative Impressions, stamped in Memento ink and coloured with Promarkers. I edged the image with a little Distress ink.

The background was created with Distress Ink. I used my Gelli Plate for the first time here. First I applied an overall layer of Distress ink Old Paper, then used a stencil. Through that, I applied some Peeled Paint  and Crushed Olive. I printed the result onto some card, but was a little disappointed at the lack of background colour. So, I applied some more using some Ink Dusters - using Peeled Paint, Crushed Olive, and finally some Pine Needles. On the base of the card, that's it. For the background of the upright section, I then added a regular stamp using more Pine Needles. The stamp is one of the small ones from an Inky Doodles repeatable background set.

And finally, the last bit, but actually, the first bit I thought of, is the die cut bow.

I rather like the image and suspect it'll turn up in a number of colour combinations among this year's Christmas cards. I definitely need some practice with my Gelli Plate - I suspect it'll prove versatile, but we'll see!

Hope you can join us!