All Things Bright And...

... colourful! Another in the 5" square canvas series that I can't seem to stop making at the moment! This is the third in just over a week... but it is deffo the last one because I have exhausted this design enough! When I set about making the first one (which is HERE) I told you that I have always steered well clear of the 5" size canvas as it was a size that just didn't appeal to me. Then later last week I altered another one (which is HERE) using slightly different colours and adding a mountainous rosette embellishment... well, this one is still based on the same prinicipal... but is it bright... very bright!!! SO much for not liking this size lol



Normally my colour palette is more subdued... I do love using bright colours but I always tend to steer towards the browns and blues... and just recently I have been really into creams and browns... which are nice but it does make a refreshing change to use brights. Well, you can't get much brighter than these colours. I used a combination of Dylusions Sprays and Glimmer Mists to colour this canvas... I made it in the same way as the other two... using papers to cover the canvas... the paper is that really bright flowery sheet from the Lost & Found stack... painted over with Traditional Tan, spritzed with Burnt Orange and Pomegranite Dylusions ... then I added a smidge of Turquoise Glimmer Mists... but didn't shake the bottle so there isn't much glimmer.. I didn't want the background to be too blinging.




The Rosette... I am... ahem... a bit... oh ok, a very lot... addicted to the new Mini Rosette Alterations... added to the original Rosette it just looks fantastic... the little Maya Road Resin Bloom looks like it was made especially for the rosette tower. Now, I have been an admirer of Kate Cranes art for a looooong time... I love the way she makes everything look so bright and cheerful and the different elements she layers onto her pieces... well, I have spotted her using a lid to make painty circles... so I thought that I would give this a go... and I have to say, it rather suits this design... to see more of Kate's art, do click here to go to her blog... she is very, very talented....



As well as the lid stamping, I also flicked a loaded paintbrush at the canvas too ... and where the splats have landed on the coloured papers, they have collected a bit of the colour into them... so they look fabbily blended. There are more diecuts from Grungeboard and Grungepaper - all cut using those gorgeous Alterations from THE Duke of Distress...all were painted with the Trad Tan and then spritzed with more of the colours. The ickle bottle is one of the new Idea-ology Vials - I just wrapped a bit of beaded ribbon around it... and this had had the Glimmer Mist treatment too.



So, I have managed to get almost to the end of my wafflings and I haven't mentioned... you know what... and I really wasn't going to... nope, I wasn't, honest LOL. However, you were all so lovely with your comments on yesterday's post saying that you wanted to hear all about it, I think it would be plain rude of me not to mention my little trip to the US of A. Ooooh, I am still buzzing and still having those little flippyflop feelings in my tummy whenever I think of it... and my concentration levels have plummeted to an all time low... and I can only see that I will get worse the closer we get to the actual date for me to depart these fair shores.




So far I have confirmed my place at Ranger U and booked my hotel... that in itself was a bit panic stations for me... the lovely peeps at Ranger give a couple of hotel recommendations... so when I went online to reserve my room at the first one, it said that there was no room at the inn! So, I went to the second one and... same again!!! Eeeeek!!! What to do!!! I had started to have visions of me taking a tent with me and camping in the carpark at Ranger LOL Well, thankfully a lovely lady at Ranger emailed us all and gave us some other suggestions... so... I have reserved my room...phew! Anyways... enough waffling for one day... I have just looked out of the window and see the yukky weather so I am planning a cosy day indoors - a spot of inkyness is the order of the day methinks!! Right, time to get moving... thanks for looking.. have a grand day! TTFN

Hels x

WOYWW... &...A Solemn Promise...

... to NOT mention every single time I blog that I am going somewhere in a months time... and I also promise not to waffle on alarmingly about my impending trip... but... I can't help but just say a ickle bit... well, you will indulge me... won't you??? There I was, sitting here (mm, not the best sentence construction there rofl) yesterday morning typing away on the blog when my email account did that little whoo/who noise that it does when a new email arrives... and in the bottom right hand corner of the screen were the message details... it said it was from Tim Holtz... I started to shake... like I mean... reaaaaally shake... because you see, I have been pouncing on my emails since last Monday... and then of course Lionel decided to go into major surgery at the weekend so that had me even more worked up in case an email arrived and I didn't get it... *pauses for breath* So... I calmly, ok, not so calmly... ok, I shook like a dog doing his proverbials and waited until the blog post was all done and posted... and then went and clicked the email to open... and I shut my eyes...




I know, I know... I haven't mastered seeing through my eyelids but... well, you know when you are watching TV and there is a gory operation scene and you kind of look but look away at the same time?? Well, that was me opening the email. So, this email... from THE Tim Holtz was actually in response to my application for Ranger U... and the email was... ACCEPTING ME!!!!! OMG!!!! Indeedily... I am going to Ranger U!!!! I am beyond happy, bouncy, ecstatic, over the moon, excited, fizzing and very nearly peeing my pants with the excitement and anticipation of it all!!!




So, the solemn promise in the title is ... promising not to talk about it every day... well, I could mention it in passing... you know, sort of... oh and it is now less than a month until I go to Ranger U... but I won't say things like that... nope, not me... much rofl Anyways... today is Wednesday... which means it is WOYWW hosted by the lovely Julia... click on her name to be whizzed off to her blog to see all the deets etc on how to join in with the event of the week in the diary of us bloggers... I had better get a move on... I have just remembered that I can't find my Passport and I am going to need that... you know... soon ;o)) *scuttles off to hide* Thanks for looking.. have a very goodly day!! TTFN

Hels x

PS.. just realised... I never said what the photo's were... well, after many comments in previous weeks about the tidyness of my desk, I decided to mess it up for you... I did... honest, I just grabbed stuff and popped it on there.. ahem... I hadn't left it messy at all... it was tidy so my New Year Resolution was, I mean IS, still intact... ahem....

And the other photo... some of you asked what 13-6 stands for on my arty book... that is my very special date... and then you asked what I did with all those tags I make... well, here are some of them in their basket... in there are the 12 Tags of last Christmas and some others I have been fiddling with recently... Right, I am deffo off now... have got a suitcase to find... rofl

Seeing Stars...

... I have been playing with a new set of Studio 490 stamps... the Celestial Art set, which is one of my faves from the range by the uber talented Wendy Vecchi. So, last week Wendy from The Stamp Attic sent me this set to play with for my DT projects... ooh, it is loverly indeedily! I made a tag to start off with and all of the deets are over on The Stamp Attic blog... HERE


So, do you ever get "that" feeling when you see a new set of stamps? You know, that "I need to have those because if I don't I will sulk and never be able to make anything else ever again" feeling??? Well, that is how I felt about this set... the stars did it for me... I love stars... I even once considered getting a tattoo of a starburst but then had a little think about the...dare I say that word... needle... and being as I am scared witless by needles I soon changed my mind. Well, it was a nice thought LOL Anyways... that new set... tis perfect and I lurve it... it is my new fave!



I am happy to report that Lionel Laptop has come through his surgery and is doing well... actually, he is about as good as he was when he was first bought... I have to say... I was seriously starting to panic that Lionel would never work again... but he has been going for a full 24 hours now and ... touching wood (yep, am touching my head) he is fine. Ohhh, and.. I normally don't do this but... I want you to see Minxy's hat. You may have found it already but if you haven't... you really do need to see this... a couple of nights ago me and Minx were chatting on Skype and she showed me this amazing hat that she had made... from scratch!!! It is... beautiful!!! I got all excited and tried to make one myself but...erm... it ended up looking like a cuff that a rocker would wear... so I resorted to Mr. Amazon and got one to alter... anyways... have a look at Minxy's hat... you won't regret it!! Right... time for inkyness I think.... thanks for looking... TTFN!

Hels x

Being Krafty...

...hurrah and thrice for the cleverest teckernical guy in the World... yep, Grim has saved the day! Actually, he has saved Lionel Laptop from being chucked out of a first floor window by a very moody and extremely grumpy Hels lol I have no idea what the problem was... all I do know is that Grim has taken everything off (the laptop, not himself lol) and restored it all to its brand spanking new glory... so all I have to do now is remember all those passwords that are usually saved and that I never thought that I would need because Lionel is clever and remembers them for me and now I am asking for email reminders all the time ROFL



So... you will be surely impressed when I tell you that I just installed Paint Shop Pro X2 back onto Lionel... and I didn't need to ask Grim for help once... I know, a five year old could probably do it but we are talking about Mrs StoopidWithAnythingTeckernicals here... so... because I have installed it I have managed to resize a few pics and here is a tag I made yesterday while Lionel was having his surgery...



It is made using some fab Crowded Attic Papers which have been painted and spritzed with Colorwash Sprays and then stamped... and then I used that lovely new Kraft Glassine paper to make a spikey flower from the Tattered Florals Alterations die... and a little rose for the middle of it... which I have bodged the photography on so the focus is on the butterflies... but they are sweet so I didn't bother taking another one... they are stamped with Archival and then spritzed with Heirloom Gold and Red Perfect Pearls Mists... the little banner thingy at the bottom of the tag is just some of the Kraft paper concertina folded and then glued on... all the goodies are at The Artistic Stamper.




So... now I have a biiiiiig task ahead of me... I have to... sort out my Outlook Address book... which Grim did back up... only... erm... I had never actually put anything in it... Well, I thought that I had because if I was sending an email to someone I would just type the first letter of their name and it would come up with the right address... so... now I have to go through all my sent emails and get everyone email addresses and then put them all into the Address Book....which I should have done in the first place... Ok, ok, I am quite able to cope with bits of paper and stuff... but put me near to a computer and I turn into an idiot... truth is... I am a divvy and I am a bit... technically challenged... I do just want to say... THANK YOU to Grim for being utterly patient and understanding when I was stamping my foot and sulking yesterday... you are a STAR!!! Right, wish me luck, I may be some time... Thanks for looking... TTFN!

Hels x

Sunday Stampers - Week 147 - Not Fade Away...

...Goodly Afternoon Stampers... erm... firstly, thank you for all the lovely entries last week... and secondly... apologies for posting the new challenge so late. The reasons are... last night the t'internet decided to go off... so I couldn't get online at my usual time... and I was fully intending to post first thing this morning... but... alas... Lionel Laptop is in a very grave situation and he is clinging onto life with his tiny little keys... dunno what it wrong with it... my tech guy is trying to fix it at the moment (that be Grim, of course, the font of all knowledge when it comes to anything computery or teckernicals... thank heavens for him!)



Anyways... the new theme today is ... to use... TEXTURE FADES/EMBOSSING FOLDERS/DRY EMBOSSING on your entry... along with a bit of stamping thrown in for goodly measures. To join in, as usual, leave a comment for me here along with a link to the place that you are showing your entry. The challenge will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 2nd April 2011. This weeks theme has been chosen by Ellen ... I am now recruiting for peeps to give me ideas for themes for the Sunday Stamper... so if you have a good idea and would like to choose a theme for us... please do email me... but wait til Grim has fixed the laptop rofl The only "rule" for the theme is that the theme has to somehow link to a song title... and that can be any song title at all :O))



For my entry this week I have embossed some cardstock that I had inked and sprayed... using Distress Stains and Ranger Colorwash Sprays, I created an inky background and then ran the cardstock through Victor and the sunray Texture Fade. I sanded the cardstock and then stuck it to the frame using Multi Medium



The little frame was attached with jump rings and those little hooky screwy things... being covered with more of the coloured cardstock and having a big layered Rosette in the middle... the card to make the Rosette was more of the inky sprayed stuff... stamped with a script stamp - but that doesn't show up too well on the pics. Oh and underneath the little hanging is a piece of card that I painted, inked, sprayed, splatted and then stamped... again, it doesn't show up too well on the pics.



Right... I had better go... my handsome tech guy is waiting to get back to sorting out the probs with Lionel... it is serious folks... which isn't a good sign - there is something wrong with Outlook... and that means that I can't get my emails... which is annoying...so, if you have emailed me and I haven't replied, it isn't cos I am rude... nope, it is because my stoopid computer is having surgery! Thanks for looking... TTFN

Hels x

In The Shadows...

...oooh, I love altering Shadow Boxes and usually I get covered in ink in the process... this little box however, kept my fingers ink free... and instead, covered in paint. A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to be able to pick up a few bottles of Paper Artsy's new Fresco Finish Paints... you know, on THE day... when I was in the class with... THE Duke of Distress.




Anyways... I had a little play with these paints a couple of weeks ago and have only just around to blogging what I did with them... the box is 6" square... the frame was painted with Honey Dew and then over the top on the outer framey bits I popped London Night which is THE most beautiful colour... the photo's really don't do it justice... it is like a smokey mauve in some lights and more purpley in other lights. Such is the finish of the Fresco Paints it leaves the surface feeling ever so slightly textured and a bit chalky, totally lush and it really does look like it needs to be touched.



The embellishments on the box are made from Gold Nugget TSS metal, stamped with Paper Artsy Hot Picks stamps, cut out, refined and scootched with TSS tools and then aged with Pitch Black Dabber - which, IMO, is THE best black paint ... in the World (hey, I used my Jeremy Clarkson voice again to say that lol) The title - that says Sanctuary, is actually just part of a bigger stamp, I cut it out and gave it some TSS treatment and then popped a couple of brassy coloured brads through it. Oh and the little pearls on the chain around the birdcage are partly Idea-ology Baubles and partly a ickle pearl I got from Sky Blue Pink... HERE is the linky to the website but I have to say... enter at your peril, you will come out a few pounds lighter (or Dollars) but it is worth a visit cos they have the cutest little trinkets... Anyways... I think that is it... oh yes... the base inside was covered with Thorndon Hall papers which I painted overand then distressed with a sanding block.




So... what you got planned for today??? It has been glorious here all week... to the point that I sat in the garden reading my book on Thursday afternoon and I went a bit pink and my freckles came out of hibernation.... today though, it is chilly and overcast. Actually, I know this is shocking but... yesterday... I didn't wear a vest!!! Nope, not a single vest all day long!!! I know they say that you should "Cast ne'er a clout til May be out..." whatever that means... I think it has something to do with wearing long johns and thermal knickers rofl.... anyways... I am going to get inky and messy today and make the Sunday Stamper for tomorrow... if you like a nice challenge, do pop back! Right, offski to get another coffeeee... thanks for looking... TTFN

Hels x

A Combo of Curiosities... Take II

...hands up who is missing the Compendium of Curiosities challenge!! I am... but I am also very excited about Grungy Monday which is starting this next Monday coming which has been devised and is hosted by Linda. Anyways, a few weeks ago I made a tag that was combining some of the elements from the Compendium challenge... and here is another one I have made!




The tag is based on Week 14 which was Basic Masks, Week 24 which was Rock Candy Stickles and finally, Week 30 which was Altered Metal with Paint. Now, as I have waffled on alarmingly in the past about how I am a bit rubbish with this masking lark... I decided to give it another go... I still can't seem to get my head around them but I am liking the letters more and more... so I let this one through and carried on and finished it...




Here are the three tags that I took my inspiration from... and, no, I still haven't done anything with all 35 of them... I am thinking I will just leave them on their book rings... they are accessible and all together there... my pie in the sky ideas about making boards for them and putting them up in the Room of Stash has erm... well... been rejected... well, thinking about it... I put 35 tags onto boards and stick them up on the walls... firstly I wouldn't be able to see them closely (on account of me being a shortarse) and secondly, think of the dust!! And I seriously do not want to have to de-cobweb my tags lol



The tag was stained with Antique Linen Distress Stains... and then I did the masky bit... and then coloured the rest of it with a combo of Mustard Seed, Spiced Marmalade and Fired Brick with a smidge of Walnut Stain around the edges. The Rock Candy Stickles bit it actually all over the Rosettes... I cut strips of paper from the Lost & Found Stack and coated these with Rock Candy and heat dried it... how cool that I can heat dry glitter glue... gotta lurve Ranger for coming up with this product... anyways... I made three Rosettes, popped them all together and then did the Altered Metal with Paint bit... using a Philosophy Tag and some Trad Tan paint... I wanted the tag to have a smudgey painty look so I left some of the Trad Tan on there... and then I added a ickle Foliage flower with a Snap in the centre.




Oooh, and I nearly forgot... tis my day for the Bubbly Funk DT and this week I have made myself a little notebook using Tando Creative Chip Sheets... all the deets are HERE on the Bubbly Scrumptious blog. This is a little piccie of the front of the book... and I have just been commissioned to make another two... one for Grim and the other for his Mum... I do love making these books - they are simples :O)) Grim doesn't want ribbons on his though... so I am going to make it all manly and hunky... just like he is lol



So... guess what time I got up today? Mmmm, 5am!!! Guess what time I went to bed last night? Mmmm, 3am! I couldn't sleep... I saw the Doc yesterday and he has tweaked my pain meds and I think I am having one of those "getting used to the new meds days"... I am feeling quite perky at the moment but I reckon once I have stopped waffling on at you all I will probably fall asleep and wake up with drool on my chin and imprints of the keys from the laptop on my chops lol Right... gonna go and do something to keep busy... oooh, I can do the books... that is a plan! Thanks for looking... have a very goodly day indeedily... TTFN

Hels x

Whole Lotta...

...Rosettes! Yesterday was a goodly day indeed because the new Alterations Mini Rosettes Die arrived in the Room of Stash... I have been patiently waiting for this forever... and it is here!!! Victor made light work of making the rosettes... and wow, I luuurve them! So, I was just faffing really, using Victor (who, btw, is the Vagabond that lives with me now) and cutting various of the Alterations dies... and I decided to do another canvas... similar to the Sunday Stamper canvas I made... deets are HERE if you would like to see it :O))



The canvas is that 5" square size again... you know, the one I haven't ever liked and now...erm... it seems to be my favourite! Well, I covered said canvas with papers from the Lost & Found stack... the page that is all bright blues and flowery... I have never used this page so I decided to chop into it... made the rosettes from it and then used it to cover the canvas. But first, I painted it with Traditional Tan paint (what else would I use) and then I used a combination of Cyan Dylusions and Butterscotch and Espresso Colorwash Sprays. And... combined it gave me this bluey green colour which I was rather taken with. (edit..for some reason I started to talk like I was in a Jane Austen period drama then LOL)




So... the base for the front of the canvas has some stamping on it... I used just water to stamp a script background... this lifted the sprays off and made the paint show through a bit...cool! I also used Coffee Archival to stamp a flourish. I then set about altering the colour of the Grunge that I had cut... the Gadget Gears and Hardware Findings are cut with Grungepaper and the Hanging Sign & Flourishes are cut with embossed Grungeboard... oh and check out the little zig-zaggy thingy at the bottom of the canvas... that is the new Pinking/Scallops On The Edge... that was cut from plain Grungeboard. All of these bits were painted with Trad Tan and then spritzed... I used Worn Leather to colour the hinge and the gears... and the largest of the gears is sitting underneath the rosette...



Which leads me nicely onto the rosette... each layer was spritzed with the Cyan and Butterscotch and then I dabbed Trad Tan over the top of them to make them pop a little. The centre of the rosette is a Maya Road Resin Bloom... which was also coloured using a dirty bit of babywipe... gotta love those cleaning up babywipes that are soaking with the sprays... they also coloured the trim at the bottom of the canvas and the word... which, BTW, I have just realised... is the theme for the Simon Says Stamp & Show challenge this week... and I know I have already entered... am wondering if I can enter again... shall I try and see what happens??? Do you double dare me LOL



Anyways... as usual... I have waffled on alarmingly and you have probably nodded off by now... You know how I have "favourites" and, well, most things are my favourites ... well, this new Mini Rosette die is my absolute fave ever.... I can see I am going to get heaps of use out of it... and the fact that I have been trying to make a layered rosette ever since I got the big one and keep bodging it just means that I can do it now without snipping and then whinging that I can't get it to work... oh and I got the new dies and the ...ahem... new Idea-ology from The Artistic Stamper... just saying ;O)) Right, time for bed.. again.. it seems it is always time for bed when I am blogging... that makes me sound like a right lazy old moo... am not... really... honestly... well, ok, sometimes lol Thanks for looking... TTFN

Hels x

WOYWW... An Unbelievably...

...Tidy Desk!!! I know, this keeping my desk tidy and clearing up after each project lark is getting serious! It is now three months since I had to spend about 12days cleaning my room up... the New Years Resolution is still intact... oh, pass me the duster so I can polish my halo ROFL So, this week... I totally forgot it is Wednesday today... until I came for a mooch on Blogger and saw everyone's desks there... so, here is mine... very boring with a Coffee Reinker sitting there on it and little else... what am I on about??? Tis the What's On Your Workdesk Wednesday phenomenon that sweeps the Blogasphere each week...hosted by the inimitable Julia.. if you click on her name you will be whizzed off on the back of a giant ladybird to see all the deets! **nope, I haven't lost the plot, I just went into the garden and saw seven ladybirds wandering around on the ..ahem...weeds!!! Spring is here, hurrah and thrice!!**




My other "desk" is actually a storage cabinet that has served as a home for Bertie the Bug, however, as of last Thursday, Bertie has had to budge up to make space for Victor... isn't he handsome, sitting there, waiting for gobble up some Grunge for me lol Above the cutting machines are some shelves, on the shelves are baskets and a RUBox for my Bug folders and Alterations dies...oh and my Alcohol Inks sit there too... and hanging over all of this loveliness are my two huge book rings full of tags that I made for the Compendium challenges... I still have to think of what to do with those!




Right.. I shall love ya and leave ya, things to do, things to er... make! Thanks for looking... have a very goodly Wednesday! TTFN

Hels x

Everything 490..

....corrrrr, I have had a lovely time indeedily... I have been playing with Studio 490 stash and have made my entry for the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo Group... the challenge this week is to use only one set of Wendy's Studio 490 stamps... ooooh, now this was harder than I thought it would be! I am lucky to have a lot of the sets and didn't realise just how many sets I can use on one project! So... I started out making a pretty tag... and didn't like it at all... so I chucked it onto the other desk and sulked for a short while... and then set about making a different tag, more "me" - you know, blue, brown, cream and grungey (not me personally, my style... that would be too weird if I was blue and brown and grungey... )




Anyways... this here is the tag I made using just the one set of stamps... the set being Dimensional Rose Art... which is one of my faves (ok, they are all my faves but you know what I mean LOL) I stamped the numbers in Traditional Tan paint and then slapped loads of Distress Stains onto my craft sheet and dipped the tag into them and dried it, then dipped again... and then just blended around the edges with Faded Jeans DI and then Walnut Stain DI.



The flower is made from Grungepaper, stamped, cut out and then coloured with Wild Honey and Rusty Hinge DI. I stamped the leaf and coloured this with Peeled Paint Distress Stain (from now on... it is DS... typing Distress Stain all the time is a pain and... I keep typing Distress Srain for some reason lol)



Now, I bodged the base of the tag up... I stamped the sentiment right onto it...and it was... yep, you guessed it... wonky! So, out came the Journal Tickets and over it went... sorted! The chippy bits are Maya Road and the birdy's wing is a petal from the main flower... and the birdy's "head-dress" is from the other flower on the sheet... with just three petals cut out.




So... I was in the mood for more 490 and I felt sorry for the abandoned tag... so I started working on it again and dragged it back from the brink of being filed in the big grey thingy and went back to the original set that I had chosen for this ... which is Botanical Art... another of my faves :O))




Actually, I love this set because it has a spider on it and I am a freaky weirdo and happen to like spiders.. I know, you are probably shaking your head in disgust and shuddering but I can't help it... they are... cute!! Right, this tag, loads of DI's smooshed onto the craft sheet, spritzed, dipped, dried, dipped, dried, blended... then Coffee Archival rubbed as opposed to tapped onto the text stamp, makes it a bit more patchy... and I didn't want to overload the delicate colours of the tag... the flower (which was the reason why the tag got chucked in the first place...) was made from cardstock (yikes! not Grungepaper!) I stamped it again three times and then layered it up and added a little Idea-ology flower. The butterfly is stamped twice on cardstock and then once on Clearly For Art and then assembled... finally... a row of pearls... and I am happy with it!!



And more Studio 490 yet... I have made an Art Parts piece for The Stamp Attic... tis over HERE if you would like to see more pics and how I made it and the sets I used ... it is called Home Time because I used part of an old ruler I had at school... and that is all I used to think about when I was at school... home time, not rulers ROFL



I got Grim to chop the ruler down to size - well, I did try to do it myself but I think Grim was concerned about the garage getting covered in blood!!! Oh and speaking of Grim... thanks for all the lovely comments about his moon yesterday... you know, the photo's of the moon... what else did you think I meant??? lol Right, tis time for my bed... I have had a headache for the most of yesterday and it is still here... I have even resorted to wearing my specs instead of my lenses... I hate my specs... they are nice, don't get me wrong but...they annoy me cos they keep slipping down my schnozzle... and I look like an old hag in them(whatcha mean I do anyway lol) Right, bedtime... thanks for looking... have a very goodly day! TTFN

Hels x

Simons Says...

...have a word! Actually, it is the theme for the new Simon Says Stamp & Show challenge this week and I have actually managed to get in early ... for a change! I have been having a lovely messy morning playing with those gorgeo-lush Dylusions sprays... The colours on this tag are Burnt Orange, Pomegranite and Cyan with a smidge of Worn Leather. I dried them with a heatgun and then spritzed lightly with water which gives some fabby dabbles. The stamping is using two of the new sets from the Duke of Distress... am loving the Stuff to Say... and the Papillon... perfect!



I used the Dylusions to colour the trim at the bottom of the tag... oh and I just remembered, I got asked the other day... did I make the flower trim? Nope, it is actually from the Idea-ology Trims pack... and I LURRRVE this stuff... you have probably noticed that cos it is showing on everything I am making at the moment LOL Ah, yes, those Dylusions... I NEED more! I started off with just the colours that I thought I would use, you know, like my faves... and now I am looking at the rest of the range and seriously thinking all of them are my fave colours now!! If you haven't seen them yet, click HERE and you will be whizzed off to Art From The Heart and you can see all the varieties yourself ;O))



The whole tag looked a bit flat so I stamped some more butterflies onto more cardstock and cut them out... I have left the cut edges of them white so they stand out a bit more... and then I puffed them using a paperstump onto a foam mat.



Oooh and... you know the other night there was a "super moon"...actually Professor Brian Cox doesn't like it being called that... no, he told me **actually he wrote it in a newspaper but a gal can D:ream - didya see what I did there...D:ream... cos he was in D:ream LOL** that is it called the Moon in Perigee so I shall be using that term from now on LOL Anyways... my Grim went outside with his camera and took a couple of piccies of said moon.. and oooh, they are ever so good... here are the pics:





Anyways... tis time for me to get back to inkyness... have a goodly day and thanks for looking!! TTFN

Hels x

Sunday Stampers - Week 146 - (I Just) Died In Your Arms

Goodly Morning Stampers and a very happy Sunday to you all! Thank you for all the lovely entries last week... twas grand to see so many lovely creations. This week the song title link for the theme is a bit... how can I put it... erm... dubious! The theme this week is ... DIECUTS but seeing as there isn't a song with diecuts in the title, I thought I would fudge it a bit LOL To join in with the challenge all you need to do is make a little something - it can be a card, ATC, tag, altered art - the choice is yours... then leave a comment for me here with a link to the place you are showing your entry... or you can email me a piccie of your entry if you haven't got a blog/flickr/picassa album etc. The only rule is to use some stamping and the theme on your entry. The challenge will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 26th March 2011.




Now, I may have mentioned a few *ahem* times this week that a certain thingymajig has just arrived at the Room of Stash... hence the theme for this weeks challenge... yes, I have used Victor (the Vagabond) a...very lot... since it arrived on Thursday afternoon and I wanted to use up some of the things I have been cutting... and also this week another new arrival into the Room of Stash were a few bottles of Dylusions sprays... which I wanted to have a play with... so, I altered a 5" square deep edged canvas for my entry this week.



I have to say... those Dylusions... corrrr, they are lush indeedily! I have used three on this project - Cyan, Nutmeg and Worn Leather - I have the normal sprays, not the Mica ones... mainly because I have loads of Mica sprays already and I fancied something without a shimmer. About 928 years ago I got myself a right bargain - a box full of 5" square canvases... and... I didn't like them... the size that is, I have nothing against a canvas as such. I just couldn't get my head around working with this size for some reason... it didn't help that they were deep edged either cos I am so used to working with skinny ones. Anyways, I bit the bullet (well, not literally because I happen to like my front teef as they are LOL) and got out said 5" square canvas.



And... I sat there for months yesterday afternoon just staring at it... and then I had a lightbulb moment... cover it... in papers! That way I could stamp onto the paper before I stuck it to the canvas and I would still have the depth of the piece... so that is what I did. I cut the papers (from the Crowded Attic stack) first and then gave them a wash with Traditional Tan paint applied with a baby wipe.... this makes a lovely surface for the sprays to go onto and they don't soak right in. I literally just sprayed and dried with a heatgun as I went.



I did a bit of background stamping on the papers using Coffee Archival ink and some Tim Holtz stamps... remembering to give the images a zap with the heat gun as the Archival doesn't dry quickly on painty and spritzed surfaces. Then I got the die cuts and painted these with Trad Tan which I applied with a piece of Cut & Dry foam... the die cuts are made using either Grungepaper or Swirly Grungeboard and the following Alterations Dies: Flourishes, Hanging Sign, Gadget Gears, Hardware Findings & On The Edge Scallops... I made a paper Rosette (ooh and this works a treat - using my old system (Bug) I had to tape the back of the paper otherwise the Rosette fell apart - using the Vagabond... perfection!) The book plate is using the Tag die... cut from Bronzed God TSS metal and then scootched with TSS tools.



Finally, I assembled it all together with lashings of Idea-ology thrown in for goodly measures... I love those new Placquettes... and I love the Trims too... which I coloured with more of the Dylusions sprays. Oh and I forgot to say... I copied the Duke of Distress and used Tissue Tape to cover the edges of the canvas, I saw he did this on one of his canvases recently... and I just coloured the tape with a bit of Pitch Black Dabber and the liberally spritzed with the sprays again.



Anyways, that is enough of my wafflings for one post!! I hope that you like the theme... tis an easy one this week I think :O)) I spent an age last night standing outside in the garden staring at the Moon... apparently it is a "Super Moon" because it is the nearest in its orbit to us... and I have to say when I looked at it at 7pm it was rather special, very big, very low and very bright... I did do a few barks at it just because ...I used to be a Werewolf but I am ... alright... nooooowwwwwwwwwwww ROFL Ok, ok, that doesn't translate too well in written word but I am sure you know what I mean!! Right, time to go and get inky again... thanks for looking... have a FAB day! TTFN

Hels x

Simon Says... Stars...

...the Simon Says Stamp & Show Challenge this week is Stars... and I have been busy and made a tag and a half. I say a half because that realllllly annoyinggggg thing happened whilst making the first version... yep, I dropped an Archival inkpad straight onto the tag... needless to say, the swearbox ihas just enjoyed being fed lol



So, I have made this tag from scratch... cutting the tag and the paper cover using the Alterations Tag Die... and...Victor (I promise I am not going to be annoying and mention the Vagabond in every post... ) I pasted the paper (Crowded Attic) over the top of the card tag using my last few drops of Multi Medium (sob, need more!) and then used a babywipe to smudge some cream paint to dull the text on the paper. I then splodged some Walnut Stain Distress Stains onto the craft sheet and smudged the tag through it... The stars are Tim stamps... and Idea-ology hanging from the Charm Clip (that I broke my nail on trying to prize it open... I am thinking, I should have left this tag alone after the first mishap LOL)




The butterfly is another stamp from the new Papillon set by the one and only Duke of Distress... coloured with a waterbrush and Distress Inks.. and then spritzed with Heirloom Gold Perfect Pearls mists - this makes it shimmer, like a real butterfly. The frame is cut using the Tag die again and Ten Seconds Studios metal (Bronzed God - my absolute fave!) Oh and I used Stains to change the colour of the seam binding and trim.




So, here is the bodged tag... I wouldn't mind but I had faffed for half an hour with it... and yep, I tried to get rid of the ink but... it is stuck fast... sometimes things just ain't resurrectable (is that a word???)





I am happy today because the sun is streaming in thru the window of the Room of Stash (hey, it is sunny outside too LOL) and it has put a ... spring (geddit) in my step! Right, time to get cracking on the Sunday Stamper for tomorrow... if you like a challenge pop by to see what I am up to :O)) TTFN

Hels x