More Butterflies

Just a quick post as life at the moment is very busy........in fact I am questioning how I managed to work full time and still manage daily life.....but you do !!

When my lovely friend Jenny ( Buttons) was playing with the new Limor Webber stamps for Indigo Blue, I knew that I just had to have the butterfly and of course some of the fabulous IB Flitter Glue.

 The flitter glue was placed on a Kaiser Clear stamp with fine detail and you can see that it worked very well.  The background was created using Brusho's, which I really need to practice with as you don't need much to obtain amazing colour. I had to apply Gesso over my painted Brusho colours as it was just a tad too bold for my liking. 

 Limor's fabulous stamp was inked with archival ink and stamped on to torn book pages, which were treated with gesso. Vintage Photo DI was used to create the colour and then spritzed and flicked with water a la Tim Holtz style. 

 Idea-Ology numbers and a little sentiment from my stash, which were stapled on using Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher as well as some pieces of lace

Sending you all big hugs and I will be back on Friday with a new DT project for AVJ's monthly challenge.

Take Care

Anything Goes @ Artist Trading Post Exchange Challenge

Welcome to the brand new "Mixed Media" challenge being launched today by the Artist Trading Post.

Sue Carrington, our Design Team Leader, is leading the way with the first challenge theme, which is "Anything Goes"  You can read more about the challenge theme and rules by clicking HERE

We are all so excited to be part of this new challenge blog  and hope you will join in with our excitement too.

Here is my first DT project, which uses a mix of Decoart Paints and Crackle as well as Dark Room Door Stamps, Prima Papers, Idea-ology,  Tim Holtz Stencils, Distress Inks and Paints, Ranger Archival Ink, Cosmic Glue and Decorative Metal Corners, most of which you can purchase at the Artist Trading Post Shop or Online Store by clicking HERE

 The Recipe:

First of all I painted the canvas with Decoart Paint in Rustico, leaving it to air dry.

 I then applied the Decoart Crackle Medium, again leaving it to air dry.

 Finally a coat of Decoart Paint in Whisper. The cracks start to appear immediately.

 Dried Canvas/Paint below ..............fabulous :-)

 I wanted to make a collage of  vintage stamps and decided to use the Correspondence Set from Dark Room Door. I used Ranger Archival Inks, stamping on some of Finnabair's papers, which were then distressed around the edges using my Tim Holtz scissors, before blending with Vintage Photo and Walnut Stain Distress Inks.

 Distress Inks were blended through two Tim Holtz Stencils, building up layers of interest around the outside edges. ( Stencils used were Measured and Dot fade, which you will see in a close up of the canvas further down the page.) I then sprayed with a Matte Varnish from Windsor and Newton to seal.

 To alter the decorative metal corners I used Salty Ocean Distress Paint, which I  dried with my heat tool, then sanded to give an aged appearance. Some  More Distress paint in Antique Linen was applied and again sanded off using Tim Holtz sanding tool. Finally a touch of Treasure Gold  Renaissance was applied.

 After playing around with the layout this is what I ended up with, some splatters of watered down paint give a further aged appearance.

 You can see the Dot Fade stencil much clearer in the photograph below. I also matted the main image to some black card for definition.

 Some twine and a piece of newsprint to make this look like a bundle of letters.

Thank You so much for visiting and for taking the time to leave a comment. 

I do hope you can join in with us and we look forward to viewing your "Mixed Media" makes. 

For further inspiration and to view the projects of my very talented DT Roomies please click HERE

I shall catch up with you all over the weekend x

Crafty Hugs as always

Inspired by a Tattoo Challenge at the Craft Room

Hi Everyone.............another fortnight has passed and its time for the next Challenge at the Craft Room, hosted by the fabulous Zoe.
Zoe is fascinated with Tattoo Art and would like you to make a project inspired by a tattoo style that appeals to you. She also asks that you let us know the 'style' of  the Tattoo Art that has inspired you and there's also a little twist !! Zoe would like you to add a hand drawn element to your project ( from your own hand)

I have to say that this was a huge challenge for me and I started off with cherubs and fairies, but I was not happy with the outcome...................so I went for the Gothic Style.

My hand drawn element was the squiggles on the side of the skull. ( I should have taken the squiggles further, by adding some Zentangle designs, however, the photograph had been uploaded and edited, maybe this is something that you could  consider adding to your entry)
Stencils, Distress inks,stamps  and the pen nib are all from Tim Holtz products range. The ribbon at the top of the tag was stained with Black Soot distress ink as I did not have any black ribbon.
I have to say that I was totally amazed by the numerous meanings of a skull tattoo as I always saw them as being related to anger and mortality. Having searched online I found out that they can mean protection, strength and power as well as overcoming tough times, past life and renewal.  I now understand Zoe's attraction as many of the tattoos I have seen are the most amazing works of art.

Our sponsor this fortnight is the fabulous Tando Creative.....who are offering a prize to the randomly drawn winner of Zoe's challenge. We also have a Top 3 too :-)

For further inspiration  from my DT sisters and to see Zoe's wonderful inspiring project please click HERE

Remember to check out the pesky rules as this challenge has quite specific requirements i.e tell us what style of Tattoo Art and  about the hand drawn element.

Look forward to viewing your creations

Hugs Annie xx

Fond Memories at AVJ

Hi Everyone......its Friday again and time for another new challenge at AVJ. Our challenge host is the lovely Terry, who has chosen the theme 'Fond Memories'.

You can see the details of Terry's challenge theme by clicking HERE. We are a Tim Inspired Challenge so please make sure you check out our Challenge Rules to qualify for entry  to our prize, which is sponsored by Country View Crafts.

Below you can see my DT project..........a fond memory of my Nana ( maternal grandmother) who was an inspiration to me  throughout my childhood and teenage years. She is always on my mind, but more so recently as my son has just got engaged and we are looking forward to his wedding in 2015. She would be so proud of him as he is such a fine young man.  

                                                                                   
I started out with this box, which  previously contained a candle. I decided to cover it in Tim Holtz French Industrial Papers. Once I cut the papers to size I adhered them with Ranger Multi Medium inside and out.

 Once dry I took Vintage Photo DI to distress the edges of the box and lid.

 I then took Tim's Tattered Florals Movers and Shapers Die and cut out more of the FI papers, inking them with Vintage Photo Distress Ink. I so love these Roses :-) ( Tutorials for the Roses can be found on You Tube)
Some Vintage lace was adhered with Ranger Wonder Tape and pearls added with Ranger Glossy Accents

 I scanned my Nana's photograph and adhered it to a die cut frame, decorated with a rusty heart, button and Tim's chit chat sticker. More lace and a little butterfly cut from some lovely ribbon from my craft friend Anita H. ( Thank You Anita)

The Photo Frame was coloured using Tim's Distress Markers  ( Shabby Shutters and Barn Door) and Vintage Photo DI.

 More lace ribbons and buttons were applied to complete the look as well as some twine and a small tag.

 I hope you like my Fond Memory and if there's anything you want to know just email me using the button on my sidebar x

For more inspiration you can pop over to AVJ blog and view the fabulous projects created by my DT sisters.

Looking forward to viewing your entries but most of all have fun.

Huge hugs xx

KNock KNock !!........ It's Humour at CRC

Hi Everyone ...Over at the Craft Room Challenge blog my lovely DT sister, Mervi, is the host for this fortnight's challenge, which is HUMOUR!!
Laughing, smiling, joking really brightens your day and we hope you can join in with us. Many of you will have humorous stamps/sentiments, but if not you can mix stamps up, creating really funny images :-)

The Stamp Man is our sponsor this fortnight and if you enter  the challenge you may be lucky enough to be chosen, by Mr Random.Org as our Winner.
                                                            
Here is my DT make                

Unfortunately my camera had ran out of battery whilst I was making this project and I could not find my charger, so apologies for the lack of photographs, but I will talk through  the process.

First of all I took a piece of  paper , distressing the edges  with my  TH scissors, and blended Warm Honey Distress Ink all over it, applying more colour in certain areas. I then took two of Tim Holtz stencils ( Rays & Dot Fade) applying more Warm Honey and Peacock Feathers. Black soot was then inked around the edges. The SA stamp and mat was also distressed  as was the Calendar. 

I love these stamped hands as they are so useful in many of my projects. Some wire was twisted round a paint brush and then attached using Ranger Wonder Tape ( RWT). I pierced a hole with my paper tool and placed the wire through, securing with more RWT . 

The giggle stamp is also a wooden one from TH Stamper's Anonymous collection and was inked in Jet Black Archival ink.

The film Strip, Arrow and Adage Ticket are from Tim Holtz Idea-Ology range

Below you can see the dimension/depth created by placing the hands on the wire.

This really is a fun challenge theme and you can see more inspiring makes  by my DT sisters by clicking HERE  Hope to see you there x

Take care and have a great day on April Fool's Day....................... see what jokes/tricks you can play x 

CRafty Hugs 

Tim Holtz Tags of 2014 - February

Hi Everyone.........hope you have had a lovely week and enjoyed the weekend. Today I am sharing my take on Tim Holz February Tag, which you can find HERE

Tim inspires us every month and it sure is fun to play along. Learning new techniques and generally just having fun !!

 I did not have Tim's Heart Stencil so used the Stripes one to create a plaid or tartan effect. 

The green background was created using Distress Paint in Mowed Lawn, spritzed with lots of water. 

Once dried I used the Distress Inks  you can see in the photograph below. 

I also improvised using some item's from Tim's New  idea-ology Ephemera Pack

The heart was a die cut using Tim's  Movers and Shapers Sizzix Die and as I did not have red glitter I added some Watermelon Alcohol Ink to colour some glitter from my stash. 

The lace at the bottom was cut using  the TH  Vintage Lace Sizzix die. 

The tartan ribbon is also from my stash. 

 

Crafty Hugs xx

Colour Inspiration at Craft Room Challenge this fortnight

Hi Everyone..........Thanks for dropping in to my crafty corner in blogland. I truly appreciate your visits and I know I haven't been visiting as often as I should lately, but as I work full time that is not always easy. Please excuse me for that and I will drop in as soon as I can x

This fortnight at Craft Room Challenge my DT Roomie, Amber, is hosting the challenge theme, which is Colour Inspiration, using Spring Colours. PLease click HERE to view Amber's Colour Inspiration Challenge. 

Our sponsor this month is Stamp Addicts and as always we have a random winner and Top 3.  

Here is my DT project

 It's not quite as Pink as seen here under artificial light. I painted the canvas with Pickled Raspberry Distress Paint, toned down with Walnut Stain DI. Mowed Lawn was used through some Tim Holtz Stancils, Dot Fade and School House.  The torn napkin has many of the Spring Colours shown by Amber and was adhered with Ranger Glue 'n' Seal. 

ART was cut from some TH lost and found papers, then adhered to some cardboard and distressed around the edges with Walnut Stain.

Some fabric from Prima, obtained at a Finnabair Workshop, was torn and coloured with Mowed Lawn DI and attached with small screws. (the chain and key were in my stash) 

The Idea-ology plate, dragonfly and key were painted with Wild Honey Distress paint, then I took some Treasure Gold wax to highlight a few areas.

THank You once again for dropping in and I do hope you can join us over at Craft Room Challenge. 

It would be great to see you there plus you can also view some more fabulous inspiration from the very talented DT members

Crafty Hugs xxx

Time.......to Build It Up at FSC

Happy Sunday friends and I am so excited to let you know that this fortnight I am the Guest Designer over at Fashionable Stamping Challenge............!!!

This fortnight the challenge is "Build it Up" and boy did I go for it!!!.............I love it when I have time to play :-) Its's also important that you only use 3 stamps on your project and you can see that I used 2 of Tim Holtz SA Time Traveller stamps and a sentiments stamp from another SA set. 

There are numerous layers that I have built up.......i.e layered dies, cogs and the time traveller himself. 

As I am in London, returning home today,  I  have scheduled this post and will add on the 'How To' details tomorrow for those of you who like to read them. Be warned there are lots and lots of Photographs...so grab a chair and a coffeee/tea

Take Care and Catch up soon xx

Ribbons and Lace at Craft Room Challenge

Phew....my first challenge theme at Craft Room Challenge is Ribbons AND Lace and I do hope you can play along with us this fortnight. Just remember to check out the rules and then have lots of  inky fun x

Crafty Individuals is our sponsor this month and  the winner of our challenge has the chance to win a prize.

                        

I adore Ribbons and Lace and had just purchased some amazing pieces from Live and Love Crafts that I was desperate to play with. As its February and Love is in the Air I decided to go with a Romantic/Vintage project. 

I started out with  a couple of canvases ( 5" by 7") that I painted with Distress Paint in Antique Linen. I felt the colour required to be a bit stronger and applied some Frayed Burlap DP to the Antique Linen along with some water,  creating a wash of paint. 

 Texture paste was applied through Tim Holtz bubble stencil. Should have applied this before I painted but to be honest I was not sure where I was going with this project. I started off with one idea in my head then went in a different direction !! ( sounds familiar right !) Once the paste was dry I painted over it a couple of times using the same colour as applied to the canvas.

 I began stamping and gathering items to place on the canvas. The stamps used are from Dark Room Door........... Love Letters and Correspondence. You can also see some  TH die cuts that I had originally planned on using. The papers are  by Brenda Walton for K& CO and I have had them in my stash for years...!!  The stamps were treated to some Distress Ink in Vintage Photo/Walnut Stain as well as Bundled Sage. Some edges of various pieces were distressed around the edges, creating an aged effect.

The filigree corners , butterfly, cameo and rusty heart  below were all purchased from Linda at the Funkie Junkie Boutique and lastly I added the  number plate14 from Tim Holtz Idea-Ology. ( love the distressed look of this piece and just could not bring myself to alter it in any way)

White Fire Treasure Gold was applied to the textures area using my fingers, creating even more opulance once buffed with a soft cloth.

 When we attended a Burns Night last week I was very moved by the voice of a female artist called Rachel Sermanni. She sang My Love is Like a Red, Red Rose and it was so beautiful. You may be able to view on Google/You Tube. The words are so meaningful and my favourite two lines were generated on my pc and a pllied to the back of this project.

As part of my birthday last year my mum gave me  a beautiful box filled with various flowers that she had made. Although not exactly a rose ( more of a wild rose....which I prefer) I painted  one of her flowers red and then applied some spray matte varnish. 

 More stencilling on the back  using Crafters Workshop ART IS and Tim Holtz  Dot fade

Below is a close up of the stamped  DD images :

 

 More lace and filigree as well as the DD stamps and a time piece/key/heart

 Below is a close up of the other panel, which was embellished with some  trinkets provided in a kit by Finnabair.

 Almost there !!!

Thank You for dropping in and for staying to the very end. Any questions just send an email, details in my sidebar. 

Hope you can join in this fortnights challenge and also drop in to view the fabulous inspirational makes by my DT roomies HERE

Take Care and Catch up soon xxxxxxx