Saturday 11 May 2013

I Challenge Thee... Chunky Stylee....

...what a wonderful way to spend an afternoon!  Yesterday Ellen and I had an inpromptu Skypey sesh, it was indeedily a lovely surprise when the phone went and there was my lovely arty sister's happy voice saying "hello"  Turns out Ellen had a free afternoon... as I did (which has been unheard of since mid February!) and we did a Skypey I Challenge Thee.  We realised it was exactly THREE months since our last recipe challenge... how mental is that!!!  Anyways... we soon put that right and came up with the following recipe and challenge:

Chunky Canvas - any size
Distress Paints
Tissue Stamping Collage
Stencils
Texture Paste of choice
Embellishments of choice
Idea-ology
Alphapart to make word of choice
TIME LIMIT = 75 mins.



Well, it started off as me saying a time limit of 90 mins and Ellen got all exciteable and said "no, 60 minutes"  So I said  "gulp... erm.. how about we meet halfway and make it 75 minutes...."   Which we agreed upon.   Now folks, please do feel free to lift the recipe and go and have a play - especially handy when one's Mojo has naffed orf (as mine has a habit of doing...)  The recipe is quite flexible... just the bones of a creation really.  And if you do makes somethings... please do let me and Ellen know - BTW... to see Ellen's gorgelous creation HERE.   What I love most about our Skypey sesh's is that we get to really play.  This is not work.. it is all about the process of getting involved in creating... which makes my l'il ol' heart sing.  The other thing I loves about is that it makes me feel closer to my arty sister who is soooo many miles away... the wonders of yonder t'internet eh?  A marvelous thing indeedily!




The base of my canvas (which is a cool 4 x 6" and available from Paper Artsy) was coloured with Antique Linen, Bundled Sage, Broken China and a smidge of Salty Ocean Distress Paints... all blended and spritzed and blended some more with Cut & Dry ... and then I went a bit mental with some drippage (loves that word, thank you Ellen for educating me on that one)   This is SIMPLES with the Distress Paints as they are sooo liquidicious and lushulous (like the new words huh?)  I got some paint on a spatula, ran it along the top of the canvas and then spritzed like mad with water to get the paints to really go watery.  The brilliant thing about Distress Paints is that because they are 100% waterproof when dry, the drippage bit didn't ruin the base I already made.  Normal paints would have had a fit of the vapours and gone mucky.  Hurrah!   The stamping - well, the heart strings is a Stampotique stamp - available from The Stamp Attic... and the stalks are an ancient Magenta stamp also from The Stamp Attic, not sure if they are still available but if you give Wendy a bell, am sure she will help you out.   I stamped onto a single ply of Kleenex tissue with Black Archival ink and used Glue & Seal to apply the stamping... I loves how the tissue just melts into the background with the Glue & Seal (which is why I use cosmetic tissues and not proper tissue papers)   The texture pastey bit... that is Wendy Vecchi's Studio 490 Embossing Paste (black) mixed with my fave Crafty Notions Puff Paint (also black) and then spread through a Donna Downey for Prima stencil... and heat dried to make the puffy bits ..erm.. puffy!   As ever, the "trademark" (as Ellen called it) two tone border on the sides... that is another reason to loves (notice a lot of loves going on here today!) chunky canvases.  The stripes were made using Antique Linen and Black Soot DP's... and defined with my Stabilo All pencil... just to make the lines less clinical and more arty.   I used some Treasure Gold to bling up the edges, the stencilling and the embellies... Florentine and Emerald came into goodly uses... especially the Florentine which seems to be my "go to" colour at the moment.  I changed the colour of the Faucet Knob (a-top the canvas) and also the Bead Chain and Pen Nib (Idea-ology) and added smidges of it to the letters ... and of course, the word has to be WISH as that is Hels' word of 2013!   And there you have it... one very happy Hels and a very nice recipe challenge!  Oh and ... BTW... we... ahem... didn't quite finish it in the alloted time... to be honest, for me, it was more like 2 hours... which isn't tooooo bad... ahem!



In other news... the Case of the Missing Butterfly has now been solved.  In yesterday post (which also has a giveaway so please do scroll down to see how to join in) I mentioned about the clear butterfly on a stalk lighty thing I have in the garden and how the stalk was there minus butterfly after the high winds of Thursday.  Well, I have to admit, I was thinking AlfieCat had had his paw in its disappearance... but no, I apologised to him and gave him some treats to make up for doubting him... after some searching, I found it, nestled in the Borrage that I have been growing (ok, it is growing itself from last years seeds lol) and... it had severed a stalk of Borrage at that too!  Blimey, it is only a small thing too!    Anyways, to make up for his Mummy doubting his honesty, AlfieCat decided to turn into the Black & White Assassin!  Oh yesh, this time it was the turn of an unwitting Cabbage White that fluttered into the garden yesterday afternoon.  Alf the Assassin was having a mooch araaand 'is manor (said in my best Ray Winstone voice) when he happened across said butterfly.  Not only did he pounce and pat it and pounce again, he then proceeded to eat it!! Ewwww... and then we wonder why he leaves us very smelly parcels in the litbox.. you know, he goes out - can be out for a few hours at a time... and still comes home and dumps in the lit tray.  I have tried moving it outside but no, he waits til it comes back in!   And on that delightful (if ever so slightly smelly) note... I shall bid you a very goodly day!  Do check back tomorrow for a brand new Sunday Stamper theme. Thanks for looking... TTFN

Hels x

27 comments:

Nan G said...

Oh Alfie...you little scoundrel of a kitty...you make me laugh. :) Loving the canvas Hels! Love the way you use black and loves the gildy paste. Oh yes and loves the checker border. Notice a lot of loves coming back to you! :)

Mrs O crafty blog said...

Fab project.. Px

Patricia Howarth said...

Morning Hels, What a fantastic creation, I don't know how Ellen and yourself came up with these fantastic works of art in 75 mins, it would take me an hour to think of something ha ha, really gorgeous.
Glad you found out about the butterfly lighty thing, poor AlfieCat being accused like that, as if !!! my Lizzie can rush in from outside, use her litter cabin and then rush out again, she's such a good girl.
Lots of love from Patricia xx

Kirsten said...

I love seeing your I Challenge Thee pieces, they're so different, but always gorgeous. I've just left a comment on Ellen's fantastic canvas. Yours is, of course, very beautiful too. Geniuses, the pair of you!!

Helen said...

Love the recipe you & Ellen came up with, AND the canvas you've created. I'll add it to the things I want to try. Thanks for the suggestion of stamping on tissue too, hadn't thought of that before.

nattyboots said...

Hi a lovely project , you are so gifted

Elaine H X

nannapat said...

Love your Alfie stories Hels. What a gorgeous canvas you've created in just 75 minutes. It would take me that long to decide what to do. I love the background colour and the pen nib and . . . well everything really! Pat x

EmmaT said...

Morning Hels, gorgeous project love the little pen nib. Well my cat will not 'go' indoors even when she broke her leg and was suppose to be kept in, after crossing her legs for 48hrs i had to let her out for the loo. Emma

corinna said...

loving your creation, hels. why is this puffy painty stuff not on create and craft with you??? loving the hearts stamp, too. poor alfie cat, always gets the blame, and as for him eating a butterfly, well, he is only responding to the blame you lavished upon him by leaving you smelly p..s to clean up, hahaha, take care, corinna

nancyd said...

Morning Hels Fab. creation loving the puffy paint also you must source some for us
so we can try to recreate your magnificent
pieces.
Nancyd xx
p.s. just watching you on C&C at the moment getting called mells.

Helen said...

Oh Alfie.... This chunky canvas looks fabulous - i love that stencil too... off to check out Ellen's now.

Aquarius said...

Brilliant way to spend an afternoon and great results too - love it

Caroline said...

OMG (hate that abbreviated wordage but sometimes it's needed indeedily), I AM WATCHING ThE CLARE CHARVILLE on the box with GRapHIC 45 (excuse mix of letter cases)!!!!! Why oh why oh why do the best products (thinking of that Mels somebody what brings a melt pot UVA ?... That's all correct isn't it??) come on when I have no pennies left?? Arrgghh!

Oh Hels, I AM sorry, just needed to get that out!!
So, From one talent to another... Your canvas is SO cool!! Love it's lushousness! Apologies as not heard of your crafty sister before but sounds like you had lots of fun. At end of day, ALL that matters huh?? I will go check out her amazingness... Great usage of wordlings au jour'd wee, mange toute mange toute...(Wouldn't think I actually spk that language would ya?)
Alfie is SO like my baby was, he too used to go hours on end & still race through door, skidding along to litter box.... He would also sit & wait if I'd not cleared the minutest soil... And on THAT smelly nelly I bid you aurevoir lovely... I promise not to go on & on like this on nxt post!! Gosh my arm hurtsy. Sorreeey..... :-)

Emma said...

I LOVE this canvas and now feel the need to add texture paste to my ever expanding shopping list! I won't even go into what my dogs eat.....bleugh! ;)

ellen vargo designs said...

Hey skype sister! LOVE your canvas... 'tis gorgeous as always! We really *must* do another recipe... SOON! Love & Hugs... Els xxx

whyducks said...

Oh that is lovely, your canvas, not the little parcels left with love from Alfiecat!

Gerrina said...

The blue is my fav colour, but that would not be enough to get me saying this is beautiful...that comes with the way you made the flowers and used a pen nip! Have fun this weekend, Gerrina

Redanne said...

Fabulous canvas Hels, loving your trademark edging too. So glad you got your butterfly back and that the mystery has been solved. Hugs, Anne x

Linda Simpson said...

Brilliant Canvas Hels, love the design and the embellishments.
You did fabulously in 75 minutes to produce this.

Hugs
Linda xxx

rachel said...

loving this hels - absolutely brilliant xx

carol edwards said...

Hi Hels great project and a good way to spend a cold and wet afternoon. Like the puffy paintcan you tell us what kind it is please

Marjie Kemper said...

Wow! Gorgeous canvas, Hels. Love how your letters came out, too ... so gorgeous with the nib and chain.

Unknown said...

Oh Hels your poor Alfie cat and that poor butterfly! I'm thinking that Alfie cat was reenacting the whole lost butterfly thingy, very strange how one butterfly went missing and another butterfly got ate, very suspicious I'm thinking!!!! Anyway, talent defiantly runs in the family, If your canvas took two hours how long did Ellen's take? It is a beautiful recipe, need to pop and see your sis's one. Have a fab day. Crafty hugs Debbie R xx

sara j said...

I adore those hollyhocks and you have made them so awesomely...if that's not a word, it certainly should be. so nice you had the time with Ellen and so wonderful to share in your creations. Thanks!

Ann said...

Absolutely gorgeousness....Love it Hels xx

Anita Houston The Artful Maven said...

Oh I have to have this stencil!!!!! I love this flower! This canvas rocks...with all the gold! AWESOME!!!!!

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