I Challenge Thee... A Revisited Recipe!

...cor blimey, it has been toooo long since Ellen and I did a good old I Challenge Thee!  Seriously, the last time was August!  Anyways, we had a proper Skypey sesh on Sunday... and being as Ellen has a bit of a Mojo deficit going on, I suggested we do a "revisit" of an old one to see how differently we would make it now.  The one I chose was from 6th January this year... not that long but enough for styles and preferences to change right?  Well, erm... in my case... wrong!  Cos whilst I did the whole recipe, I still managed to go right OTT with the embellies... nowt new there then eh?  Here's the recipe - please do feel free to use the recipe too, if you do, please show us what you created too :O)

Large Canvas
Scraped Paint Technique
Embossing/Texture Paste
Stabilo ALL Pencil *aka The Magic Pencil*
Word - not stamped
Tissue Paper Stamping collage
Ink Sprays
Drawn border/edging
Embellies of choice *uh-oh, I knew I would go OTT!*

So. My canvas is a 12" x 9" canvas and isn't deep edged, which I do prefer but being as this was the only one I could find, I used it.   The colours are predictable for me aren't they?  Well, if you CLICK HERE you will be transported away on the back of a giant paper flower to see the original canvas I made.   When you get back I will prove that it is different... sort of....  ok, yes, that one is predictable too... brown!  I know, browns, greens, blues... one day I will use bright colours and shock myself stupid (mmm, stupid already so not much shocking needed for that!)

The scraped paint is done with a spatula.  Ellen uses a plastic credit card scrapery thing... I prefer the spatula method as I feel more in control... plus, don't tell anyone but my hands are rubbish and I tend to drop the plastic credit card scrapery thing all over the job... teehee.  Tissue stamping - using Wendy's fabby Watering Can Archival from the Ranger Designer series... that colour makes my heart sing!  It is THE perfect and proper shade of grey to *be there* without *being there!* if you know what I means.  The stamp is the gorgeous background from Heirloom Art from Wendy Vecchi too. And the tissue is always a cosmetic tissue... whilst it is more delicate to work with, to me it kind of dissolves in the Glue & Seal so you can't see the edges so much.   The stencil is from Imagination Crafts and the embossing paste is my fave Wendy Vecchi Dreamweaver Matte Black... this stuff is THE best... like a moussey lushly smoothy bouncy paste.  Perfect.  
  

Once all that dried, I painted a two tone border (yep, predictable... but I loves it...) and then the embellies.  LOTS of them.  I haven't seen Ellen's finished creation... but I kind of know that there won't be many embellies... because that is the massive difference with us.  I go totes over the top with chucking flowers and metal and stuff... Ellen is more restrained... mmm, I needs to try and be more restrained... just to see how I gets on!  The ink spray part of the recipe came in with the coloring of the flowers - check out Kaisercrafts new paper blooms... they are GORGEOUS... and the base colours of the roses are Sage (wish I hadn't gone so mad with the Black Marble Dylusions, over did those a wee bit) and I added some blue Cosmic Shimmer spray for blingyness too.  Then the tonne of embellies... all were tinted with Treasure Gold Pewter and Sapphire to tone them in.  Oh and the leaves... painted with Forest Moss Distress Paint.  Do you like the word???   That is like a big metal buckle.  Dan got me it from Michael's for my birthday... and I been saving it for a spesh project... so thanks Dan, excellent taste my friend!    And there you have it!  So, you wanna see the original one now?  I have to say... out of the two, I prefer the first one... I think it is because the size of canvas is perfect for me. I get a bit scaredy kittycat when I start on a larger size.. but hey, it is a challenge after all!  And I also prefer the colours on the original... and it was a deep edge canvas...

Don't forget to bob over to our Ellen's place for a nosey at her amazing creation.  I am saying amazing even though I ain't seen it finished cos it will be... I just know it.  I saw it after the painty bit had been done and I was a-drooling big stylee. Anyways, I guess that is more than enough wafflingtons from me for one day.   I have class kits to get ready for my classes this weekend at Busy Bee's weekend retreat in Sheffield... and also, my old war wound is really playing up again... grrrrr... so I will be resting up too.  Well, thank heavens for Victor the Vagabond, he die cuts all my stuff so efficiently... saves straining meself lol   Thanks for looking, have a grand day... TTFN

Hels x

Like A Sieve!!!

...oh yesh, that is what my memory is at the moment!  Tis shot!  I can't remember anything so my life is now one big list!  A list to remind me what to do on any given day, a list to remind me to phone someone, a list for the shopping, a list to remind me to write a list... you get the picture lol   Anyways.... the point about discussing my much beleagured and much missed memory is that I "found" this canvas that I made as a workshop sample a couple of weeks ago when I taught at Craftstation in Kirkby-in-Ashfield.  And how can one forget about a whole canvas?  Wellllll, erm.... I hadn't unpacked a box (ok, I hadn't unpacked two boxes!) and thus it lurked unassumingly in the bottom of said box. 

Anyways... here it is! I have decided that it isn't finished, it needs extra flowers or something and obviously there isn't the requisite ten ton of embellies on it so that needs rectifying too... a little job for me for later on perhaps.

Oh and... much excitement in the Room of Stash yesterday when I took delivery of the stock for my Melt Pot Pick of the Day which starts on 29th October and runs through 30th October.  You should see some of the lush new colours... I am in UTEE heaven! 

With all that going on.. plus my Middlesbrough retreat next weekend, I won't be about as much as usual... busy kitting for the workshops and trying to find a magic wand that will make Ferdy bigger.  The amount of stuff I needs to take with me... and Ferdy is only tidgy... mmm, I think I might have to bat my eyelashes at Grim and see if he will lend me Gordon instead (who is much bigger... and faster too which is why I need the eyelash batting going on because I inadvertantly told him that I had been going a little bit fast, well, all that power and my heavy left foot... teeheee)  Anyways... enough of this waffling, I shall away to carry on with the prepping and stuff and things!  Don't forget to check back tomorrow though, brand new Sunday Stamper theme!  Thanks for looking, have a brill Saturday!  TTFN

Hels x

I Lurves It...

... I do!  Oh yesh indeedily, I have said it a gadzillion times already, I know, but... I lurves beeswax and the cool (or hot!) things you can do with it.  And, it seems, that you all loved the look of it too!  Not only did it sell out once, it sold out twice!  I had managed to get a few more pots for the shows on Tuesday and by Tuesday evening they had gone!  I hear that peeps are already receiving their orders... if you have got your goodies home now, have a fabby weekend playing!  Remember... if you get stuck, gimme a quick email and I will be able to help.  A few of you also left me questions in your blog comments here but I can't answer them directly unless you have email enabled on your comment options... if you have asked a question and not received a direct reply from me, just bob me an email over and I will be able to respond.  Right, on with todays wafflings, I mean post!

Two samples today:  They have both been made using beeswax and fabulous Studio 490 Art Part goodies... plus Eco Paints and Spellbinders and those cute Button Floral stamps I had on the shows.  First up is a 4" canvas I altered.  I started by painting the edges with black paint and then popped a piece of scrapbook paper onto the front, adding a strip to the right to connect the dots on the flowers to the dots on the scallop at the top.  A good old coat of beeswax was added to the front and a smidge on the sides... and then whilst it was still warm (but set) I pounced Forever Blue Perfect Pearls around the edges... then I re-heated the wax and it drags the PP's into lovely patterns and as it sets, they go all blendy and cloud like. 

I added the word Love - from the Love, Hearts and Stars Art Parts set.  The spiral blossom and leaves were cut from more papers, dipped into the beeswax and left to set... I love the way the wax soaks up into the paper and makes it look all vintagey and old.  The bits behind the flower and at the top of the canvas were painted with more eco paints and then overstamped with the large dotty stamp and then glued together... adding a couple of pearl pins to finish.

Next up is a little 4" shadow box that I flipped over and decorated the back of.  This time, I painted the box sides with black and the front with cream and Lime Eco paints... using the scraped paint technique.  I cut a piece of cosmetic tissue to fit the front and then randomly stamped the retro circles from the stamp set... I love these stamps, very funky and perfect for layering.  I then painted a bit of wax onto the box front, applied the tissue and pressed it into the wax and then re-heated the wax - ensuring the heat tool was directly over the tissue - this stops it from flapping about.  More wax was then added and spread about with the brush all whilst the heat tool was still going... this makes it easier to get an even coverage of wax and the whole tissue stuck down.  Don't forget, if you apply the tissue and it is in the wrong place, simply reheat and move whilst the wax is still hot.   The flower is a rose made up from scrapbook papers and dipped into the beeswax... as was the leaf... and then these were popped onto an Art Part and then I added the Love word to finish.  Et Voila, two pieces of art that can be popped onto the wall or bobbed onto a shelf.  Simples.  Just remember, paint on the beeswax, use your heat tool to control it whilst you paint it around... and then once set, give it a buff with a soft cloth.

Right, I shall away... I needs to get myself organised and stuff boxed up ready for my class today... I shall let you into a smidge of a secret though... I have been working on something that should be coming to your screens very soon... I will keep you in suspenders until I know for deffo that the date is set... all I will say is that I am beyond excited!!! TEEHEE!!!  Thanks for looking... have a grand day... TTFN

Hels x

A-Tissue....

...mwhahaaa... did you see what I did there... I did a play on words! I know... groanworthingly groaningtons but... I did actually use a tissue (tis true) to make this sample for the Melt Art shows this week.  I am on again today at 9am and 4pm... as ever, all the deets for the shows and how to watch are over in the sidebar.    Firstly.. THANK YOU!!!  *shouted that loud* for all your amazing emails, Facebook messages, Tweets, comments on here and emails into the studio... they are all so very kind and making me very smiley indeedily!  I am so chuffed that you are enjoying the shows.  Now, because we were concentrating on getting as much demo-ing done as possible, we didn't have a chance to read out all the emails that arrived... and the last show at 7pm received an immense amount of them... so... if you sent in a question and I didn't get a chance to answer it for you, please do email me... if you leave the question in a comment here, the only way I will be able to reply is if you have your email addy enabled in your comments.. if you haven't activated that option, just pop an email over to me (my addy is in the sidebar) and I will do my best to answer asap.

On with todays offering... which is one of the large Square Art Parts (Studio 490) as the base and some of the Art Parts from the Heart, Love & Stars set.  I LOVE Art Parts.. you all know that anyways... and I especially love that they are so sturdy and the perfect base for a nice beeswax project.  As I mentioned in my guffaw inducing (ahem... quite) post title, I indeedily used a tissue to make this piece.  You know those little packets of pocket tissues you can buy that are all jazzy and posh?  They make THE perfect thing to collage with beeswax!  Oh yesh... this one was 3 ply (told you it was a posh 'un) and I pulled the plys apart so I just had a single ply.  You need to do this for two reasons: firstly, the beeswax kind of melts the tissue away so you are just left with the image, so the thinner the better... and secondly, two layers invites air bubbles... which are ugly and I disuade air bubbles from my arty stuff :O)  The Art Part base was painted with Mushroom Eco Paint and then I used a Tim Holtz script stamp, stamping onto one of the other tissue plys, tearing out the images, beeswaxing them on and buffing the wax once it had set.  The hearts were done in exactly the same way, using Black Eco Paint on a bit of Cut & Dry foam to add a frame around each piece.   The butterfly... well, he is a Studio 490 Embellish Your Art piece.. I only have one of him so I decided to make a mould of him from Mold & Pour, I painted him black (the UTEE was the old bits of amber coloured clear) and then used one of those gold liquid leafy pen jobbies to add the border and the dots... I love him and can see the possibilities in using him with different colours of UTEE... pretty!

Right, I shall away.. I have another early start in the morning so I am scheduling this, although it is gone 11pm now... so please do excuse the excess baggage I will be carrying under my eyes later lol   Thing is, I get myself all excitable and my brain is a-buzzin ('scuse the pun, beeswax... buzzin... ah, just me then lol) and I then get to thinking about demo's on todays shows and by the time I realise it, the alarm is going off... and while I sit here waffling that will be sooner than I want... so, as ever, thanks for looking... and thanks again for all your support, you are all stars!  Have a great day... TTFN!

Hels x

One Thousand Six Hundred....

...cor! blimey! and! thrice! (sang that word)  This is my 1600th post!!!  That is one heck of a lot of waffling... and if I had a care to, I could always go back through all my posts and see how many words I have typed... yeah, right!  Can't see that happening too soon lol   Anyways, today sees the start of my 4 Day Deal on Create & Craft, starting bright and early at 8am.  All the deets on how to see the shows are in the sidebar... and remember, if you aren't in the UK or can't get the channel, you can always watch online on the website.  

Today I have another canvas sample I have made for the shows.  This one has the scraped paint technique (am hoping to demo this) and a tissue (good old Kleenex) stamped background, applied with beeswax and then a diddy canvas on top to add a bit of extra depth and somewhere for my sentiment to go... which also ties in with this weeks Sunday Stamper challenge too... deets HERE.  

The pretty flowers are made using the Spellbinders Spiral Blossom die, three of them in total and all dipped into the molten beeswax and then dusted with Forever Blue Perfect Pearl powders to add a smidge of blingingtons.   The leaves are the Spellbinders Nested Leaves (loving these!) and they have also been dipped into the wax.  Once I had done the background, I added some more splodges of molten wax to the corners of the canvas, once it had set, it had some Biscotti (my FAVE) Perfect Pearls pounced over the top and then a quick buff to make it all pretty and shiny.

Much mirth and merriment (what? again?) in the kitchen again last night!  So.  Grim cooked the most delish roast dinner for us - we had bought an "extra" turkey thingywotsit from M&S at Xmas and frozen it... so we had that, oh my word, it was deeevine... along with swede and carrot, brocolli, cauliflower cheese (nom! sorry Ellen) and Grim's special roastie spuds.   For afters we had also bought an "extra" Kirsch soaked Cherry filled Xmas Pud from Sainbug's at Xmas... so we had that.  But!  No rum sauce!  So I decided I would make some custard.  No matter what Grim says, Xmas pud and cream is just plain wrong... and it needed a sauce so custard it was.  Now, I loves custard, one of my fave things... but I am ... ahem... not that good at making it and usually resort to a tin.  Which we didn't have.  So I decided to use the Bird's powder.  After carefully checking to see if it was still in date... and reading the instructions and getting everything out I needed, I attemped to open the tub.  And the lid was stuck fast.  So, I pulled a little harder.  And the lid flew off, covering my face, hair, chest and most surfaces in the kitchen with said powder.  And did you know, if you try to pat a big dump of custard powder off your chest and breathe in at the same time, you can inhale said custard powder and then practically choke to death?  No? Well, you can lol   Anyways, undeterred, I carried on and made my custard... and oh my word! I can indeedily make custard... I didn't burn the pan (most unusual that) and it was lovely and thick and creamy and... ooooooooh perfect!    With that lovely image in your mind, I shall bid you a goodly day.  Thanks for looking... TTFN!

Hels x

Sunday Stamper - Week 251 - Mother Nature's Son

Goooodly Morning Stampers and a very Happy Easter Sunday to you all.   Big, big thanks for the whopping amount of entries for last weeks' challenge - I think we set a record with 40 entries!  Before I announce the winner,  I will let you know the new theme... and do the usual housekeeping:  So this week the theme is... NATURE.  To join in is simples: make a little something, it can be anything you fancy.  Add in the theme and some stamping and then pop back here to leave me a comment with a link to the place you are showing your entry.  If you haven't got a blog, worry not, you can also join in via email or on Facebook.   The challenge will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 6th April 2013.

So, before I waffle on about this weeks challenge, I have the winner of the last weeks candy to announce.  Like I said, there were a massive 40 entries to the challenge - thank you all, I truly appreciate each and every entry.  I fed the number into Mr Random.org and the winner he picked is #14 which tallies with Sue's entry.  Congrats to Sue, please can you send me your addy and I will pop the candy into the post for you :O)

The theme this week is a poignant one for me.  I decided to dedicate the theme this week to my lovely Grandma who passed away, this day, 25 years ago.  I chose nature for the theme because she taught me more about nature than anyone else.  We used to spend hours walking along the river Aire and fishing for sticklebacks and tadpoles in the Leeds - Liverpool Canal and the time she devoted to teaching me names of plants and different uses for them will always stay with me. 

I am sure I am the person I am today because of the time I spent with her when I was growing up.  I still miss her incredibly, I wish that she had been around to see me mature into a woman, I wish she had been able to meet Grim, I know she would have loved him but more than anything, I miss her wisdom and her unfailing faith in me and unconditional love for me.  We used to get up to all sorts of larks too, like the time we went for a walk and inadvertantly wandered into a field of bulls... or the time we were watching Jasper Carrott on the tellybox and she was laughing so hard, she fell off her chair (I still reckon that Sherry might have played a part in that too....)  Anyway, this one is for you Grandma.....

This canvas is one of the samples for my upcoming shows this week (all the deets are in the sidebar)  I think all of the products on the show are online now so they won't come as a massive surprise.  I used Eco Paints, Beeswax (LOVE the new Creative Expressions beeswax, tis lush) and some stamping to make the background for the canvas... and then added some ickle canvases to add depth to the design. 
 

 
The leaves are Spellbinders and the roses are made from a stamp... well, not the actual stamp, you know what I mean lol   And the spiral flowers are also a Spellbinders flower.  I dipped the flowers and leaves into melted Beeswax - bit like a Faux Porcelain but with wax... and check out Mr Owlington ... he is made using Mold & Pour and a pendant I have... and then beeswax poured into the mould and a dash of Perfect Pearls to jazz him up a little.  Cute huh?

Right, I shall away... I am going to be having a busy day today... not only am I going to be doing my demo prep and last minute samples, I will also be eating lots of chocolate (I have two Easter eggs! Yay!) and it is the start of the new British Touring Car Championship season today at Brands Hatch so we will be watching the races... and cheering on Jason Plato as usual.  Grim is cooking our dinner and we have a Christmas Pud for afters that we have saved, tis one of those Kirsch Cherry filled ones from Sainsbug's... ohhhlllaaaaallllaaaaa... I am turning into a little piggy!    Thanks for looking... have a lovely day!  TTFN

Hels x

PS.... GO PLATO!!!

Sunday Stamper - Week 249 - Brown Eyed Girl

Goooodly Morning Stampers and a very happy Sunday to you all.  Big thanks for all your grand entries for last weeks challenge... on with this week which sees a nice and easy "colour" theme... to use... BROWN somewhere on your design.  To join in with the challenge is simples: make a little something, it can be anything you fancy.  Add in the theme AND some stamping and then pop back here and leave a comment with a link to the place you are showing  your entry.  If you haven't got a blog or web-photo-hosty thingy, you can also join in via email or on Facebook.  The challenge will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 23rd March 2013.

It is a little known fact about me... you know, that I loves brown (ok, everyone knows it is my comfort zone lol)  Anyways, when I got my Snazzy's DT pack last month I fair did a whoop-de-whoop because it was the Engraver collection from Prima... and lots of browns and neutrals in the colour palette.  I had hoped to be able to get this particular piece finished before today but alas, I ran out of time.  So, instead, I finished it off last night after my class and decided to use it for the Sunday Stamper.

You will see my fave paper blocking technique going on, this is a really cool way of using up all those ickle scraps of paper you have kicking about in your crafty stash.   The blocks were just glued onto the canvas with a bit of Cosmic Glue and layered as I went to add in some depth.

The stamping is a little bit frugal on this piece but it still qualifies because if you look closely you will be able to see some script on the metal Graphic 45 butterfly... I did that with Jet Black Archival and then heat set it... and also the little black dotty patches... that is a brand spanking new stamp from the genius that is Finnabair (HERE is her blog) and it just so happens that Snazzy's have some of her new Sunrise Sunset collection fresh in stock.. ooohlalalaa... don't tell anyone but... ahem... I have a little basket sitting there, FULL of the new goodies... and they will be coming home with me later today!  Teehee!  Well, it is compensation for my terrible disappointment with the gorgeous shoes that were made for pixie feet... I got the refund... so ... erm... I spending it on... stash!  Like I said before... stash doesn't have to fit rofl

Anyways... that is more than enough wafflingtons from me for one day... I shall away as I am up early again for my second class at Snazzy's... thank you to the lovely ladies who came along to get all hot and bothered in my Melt Art class today, was lovely to see you again/meet you!   Have a fabby weeks peeps.... Thanks for looking... TTFN!

Hels x

PS... don't forget my giveaways... scroll down for deets :O)

And The Winner Is....

...cor blinking blimey and thriceingtons!!!  Thank you everyone for your lovely comments on the tutorial giveaway post I did on Tuesday!  I had 151 comments! WOW!  Actually, there were a few comments that were duplicates, you know, when you post and Mr Blogger decides to put it on there twice? In one case it was four times!  Anyways, I deleted all those extra ones off so it was fair for all.. .and there were 151 left.  So, I popped that number into Random.Org and the number chosen was...   Number 5 which tallies with the comment left by Miriam.  Congrats to Miriam and thank you all again for your lovely kind words.  Please drop me an email with your shipping deets Miriam... the goodies will be on their way to you next week!

Right, on with todays offering... another demo tag from last weekend at Birds In The Barn... This is my fave one of the day - a lot of goodies that are my faves went onto this tag: I started by scraping a couple of different colours of paint onto the tag and then layering some torn bookpages over the top of it.   Next I added some Dreamweaver embossing paste thru a Studio 490 Stencil for Art and once this had dried I added some smudges of Treasure Gold over the embossy bits to add some bling.

I had stamped an Artemio stamp onto cosmetic tissue for a different demo and had some of it left so I used a smidge of it and applied Ranger's Multi Medium over the top of it to stick it into place collage stylee.  Whilst I was in collage mode, I stamped the Crafty Individuals butterflies onto tissue paper and collaged these with the Multi Medium onto the tag.  Once these had dried, I added a generous splodge of Rock Candy Cracklepaint onto the tag.  I love Rock Candy Crackle because it is clear, it crackles perfectly and... it smells gorgeous too!  Once the crackle had...erm... crackled (!) I set about adding some embellishments to the tag, namely, stamping the butterflies onto bookpage and cutting them out and layering them over the collaged ones... and adding an Artemio metal embellie to the middle of the stencilled flower. Now I do like to add a frame to my arty things so a smidge around the edge of the tag with some black Gesso on a piece of Cut & Dry was just the ticket.

I have a confession to make... hanging head in shame... the Room of Stash... remember the FIVE days I took to tidy it before I went away?  Pointless waste of time.. tis a complete mess again!  I have no excuse other than dire laziness too!  I needs to unpack after last weeks classes and some new stuff has arrived this week in readiness for the trade show and I have samples to make... before I sit and play, I mean work of course, I needs to tidy... so that is where I am now headed... I have a feeling it will be a late night!  Right, I shall away... thanks for looking... have a FAB day! TTFN

Hels x

Sunday Stamper - Week 243 - Animal

Goooodly Morning Stampers and a very happy Sunday to you all. Many thanks for all the great entries for last weeks challenge.  This week is a nice simples one.... ANIMALS.  To join in is a doddle... simply make a little something, add in the theme AND some stamping and then hop back to leave me a comment with a link to the place you are showing your entry.  If you don't have a blog/web-photo-thingy, you can join in via email or on Facebook.  The theme will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 9th February 2013.

This weekend I am teaching and demo-ing  at Birds in the Barn in Essex and Friday's class was all about altering a book.  My entry for the Sunday Stamper this week is the fruit of my labours on Friday... and it all started with these two little guys whom I have fallen in lurves with.   Now, you might recall my waffling on about my collections of hares... I lurves hares, especially moon gazing ones (I reckon it is my inner pagan wanting to escape lol) so when I spied that Crafty Individuals had made these two little fella's I knew I neeeeded them.

And... on Friday morning lovely Janet, the owner of Birds in the Barn, very kindly gave me these two little chaps to keep!  Well, of course, I had to use them straight away and they became the stars of the class. This is the front cover of the book with an aperture cut out to fit the little chaps in behind... They are actually stamped onto a page from the book that I had applied paint to... and they are coloured with Stabilo All pencil and waterbrush... and I just added some foliagey bits using a fine 0.01 marker.  The wheat like grasses were a fluke from moving the pen too quickly, I liked them... so made more!

That is the full page... with, of course, the word WISH on it... cut from Tim's Word Play die... thank you Karen for cutting those for me... and painted black and smidges with Treasure Gold.   The moon is cut from plain bookpage... I sketched it first, then cut it and then applied more Stabilo All around the edges.  The heart is handcut, spritzed with Cherry Pie Dylusions and then I doodled the string onto the page once the pieces were in place.

Before I go... just a very quick shout out:  I have a workshop running in Rochdale on the weekend of 23/24 February with the Jollie Stampers craft group.  The 2 day workshop is called the Treasure Tray: we will be altering a Printer's Tray, using lots of stencils, embossing, stamping, Treasure Gold and trinkets... Unfortunately, one of the ladies has had to drop out so there is one place available for the weekend - this is a two day class and cannot be completed in just one day - for price and details, please drop me an email and I will respond this evening.   Right... I shall away... THANK YOU for all the comments on Friday's blog hop post!! WOW and THRICE WOW!!!  I haven't had a chance to catch up and read all of them yet... being as I have had my teacher hat on this weekend, I shall spend some time this evening catching up when I get home.... tis making me smile very biggly to get so many comments on one post though!!!  **hoping they are all nice rofl**   Oh yesh... I must not forget... tis the Superbowl this evening... and the Baltimore Ravens are playing... so... GO RAVENS!!!   Thanks for looking... have a FAB day!  TTFN

Hels x

I Dreamed A Dream...

...oooh, that sounds like a song title *hahahaaa*  Anyways, last night a very strange thing happened!  I had a dream.  Not that strange really because most of us have dreams... but this was a particularly weird dream because for the first time ever, I dreamt that I was crafting!  And I was making a tag.  And I was using lots of my fave things on the tag.  I was a bit annoyed with my brain when it woke me up before I had finished my project I can tell you... so instead of snuggling back down, I got up, went downstairs and made meself a coffee and drew what I could remember of my dreamy tag.  And then I got all sensible again and went back to bed and tried to get back into the dream... but my brain was having none of it.  Next thing, I was dreaming again and I was eating a giant marshmallow and when I woke up, my pillow was missing... boom-boom... hahhaaa *whoops, made meself laugh again!*  Anyways... all of that waffle is to point you in the direction of The Stamp Attic blog where I have blogged my dreamy tag today. To see it in full and how I made it, please CLICK HERE.  In the meantime, here's a sneaky peek.

COR BLIMEY!  I am about to combust!  I have news!  Like probably the most boring news for you all and you will probably think "why you getting excited?" but... the news is... I have entered the 21st Century!  Oh yesh indeedily!  And how?  Well, I now am the proud owner of a... smartphone!  You see, Grim is the teckernologikal person of the house and he has had a smartphone for about 3 years.  And recently he had his upgrade to a posher, smarter phone.  And he said "would you like my old one?"   And I thought "yes! because my phone is steampowered and very slow and very annoying and I too want to be able to swish my fingers over my phone and make it do magic"   So, last night we decided to spend a few minutes setting it up for me... and showing me how to use it.  Well, those few minutes turned into an hour!  And then they turned into 2 hours... and then, finally, FIVE hours later, at 2am, we decided to quit.  I am up to speed with the basics, I can send texts (hurrah!) and I even know how to answer the thing if it rings!  And... more importantly for me, I can do Tweets without having to sit at the laptop or send one by text message... and I can also get onto yonder t'internet too!  It is indeedily a hurrah and thrice moment!   We hit a stumbling block when we tried to set up the Google account because it wouldn't let me do it because I needed to change my primary email addy to the gmail one.. but then the internet was saying my gmail couldn't be a primary email addy... all because Google ate Blogger... so after much hair pulling and grumbling, I finally changed all the email addresses, fixed up gmail and got it sorted into Outlook (believe me, that makes me tired just thinking about it... ) Anyways... it is sorted now (phew!) Now I just have to remember to charge the phone up regularly (apparently the battery life is rubbish)   Right, I shall away... things on the to do list because... it is now... THREE days to CHA!!!!  Thanks for looking... have a brill day! TTFN

Hels x

Fragile...

...me? Fragile?  Nah... I am made of strong stuff apparently.  Thank you again for all your lovely messages and emails and comments... I am feeling a heap better than I did this time yesterday and I am thinking I am over the worst... phew!  Whatever that buggetty-bug was, I sure am glad it...erm... bugg-ed off!  Anyways... being as the sum total of arty things made this week is a big fat zero, I thought I would share another of my show samples with you.  This time I have used paint to colour the Art Parts... and it just goes to show how versatile they are!  Because they are, in effect, a paper product, they take inks, paints, sprays etc really well.  My chosen paints are Sand, Black and Bronze Eco-Paints... which I lurves because they are so creamy.  Ohhh and whilst I think on... Simon Says Stamp & Show have Inspired by Wendy Vecchi as their theme this week... so I shall be entering this into that challenge.  Do go and check out the blog, there's a F A B couple of tut's on there by Wendy herself... and a discount in the store too! CLICK HERE for all the deets.

I used Cut & Dry Foam to apply the paint... I have developed a cunning way of applying the paints so they blend nicely - otherwise I always seem to get a line between the two colours.  Use one piece of Cut & Dry (be generous, a scimpy square ain't gonna work) about 2" square *you will wash it out after use so it is reusable!* Blend the palest colour right over the piece (be it canvas, card, Art Part etc) and use a "pouncing" action, lightly tapping the paint onto the surface.  While this is still wet, pick up your darker colour on one half only of the foam.  Have the darker colour furthest from you (so it is outer on the foam) and pounce this onto the edges of your surface. This means when you pounce it onto the surface, the darker colour hits the edgey bits and where the lighter colour is still wet on the foam and surface, it will blend nicely.  Hope that helps :O))  Check out the buttons! They are the blue ones from the Embellish Your Art Antique Buttons pack... I painted them with the same Cut & Dry Foam and Bronze paint and then once dried, I rubbed a smidge of Archival Jet Black over the raised bits with my finger.  Cool huh?

Anyways... being as I have been on my death bed all week (1,2,3 awwww) I figured I deserved a little treat.  I have to say, Grim has been an amazing hubby this week *well, he is every week but you know what I mean*... he is good with cuddles and magic hugs and sympathy... and made me a lush dinner last night (he is such a good cook but won't admit it) and he bought me flowers and Strawberry Laces (which I have snarfed already, *the laces, not the flowers lol* I must be on the mend lol)  Anyways... I have been eyeing up a pair of shoepods for several weeks now... and last night they accidently fell into my basket and checked themselves out and are now on their way to live on my feet!  Thing is, I live in Birki's all Spring/Summer/Autumn because they really help my posture, which helps my back when I am standing up teaching or doing shows.  And being as it is now Winter and wet and chilly and yukky, I needed a proper pair of shoe Birki's... and being as I have the mental age of a toddler, I neeeeeeeded these sooooo much.   Aren't they just the cutest!!!!

Right, I shall away.. I have a date with my new book, tis called The Dark Heroine and is about... vampires! I know, more vampires, I am obsessed with them... not long til Breaking Dawn II now!!!  Oh and today I am going to venture out into the big wide world and take some stuff to the Post Office.  Our local one is situated in the Co-Op which is just undergoing a re-fit... which means it is closed... which means I have to drive into town to go to the nearest one.  Which means... yep, another foray into THAT car park, I shall have my wits about me this time though.  If you hear high pitched squealing you will know that it is me, doing the involuntary splits again!  Have a good day all... thanks for looking.... TTFN!

Hels x

Watch The Birdy.... Plus **Candy Winner**

...I dunno about you but it is going faaaaar too quickly now-a-days... that old thing called Time.  Disappearing away in mercurial fashion.  I can't believe that it is October already.  Yesterday I spent some time playing with some new Tim Holtz Xmas goodies... and I was thinking "tis a bit early to be making Xmas tags....."  And then I thunked "actually, no, it isn't, it is October!"   Anyways... enough of the waffle about time passing too fast, on with the announcement!  Tis time to tell you who won my special candy giveaway from last week.  So, I had 68 lovely comments... thank you all btw.  I fed this number in Mr Random.org and he spat out #33 as the winner, which tallies with the comment left by RACHEL.  Please can you drop me a line with you addy and I will pop it into the post for you :O))

On with today's offering.  A few months ago I got all painty and altered this papier mache birdy.  I have altered a fair few birds over the years, from big 'uns to small... and this one was by far the most taxing because she has lots of nooks and crannies that need covering with paint... and in my infinite wisdom I decided to colour each level a different... errrrm... colour!

Good old Cut & Dry foam is a God-send for me - applying paint with it just gives a really smooth blended effect, better than I could achieve with a brush at any rate.  The paints are all Eco Green... I love the smooshiness of these paints and the colours are all gorgeous too.   I used Sand colour to do the pedestal and mixed some white with it to do the standy bit under the bird.  The bird herself was painted with Lake and Birch.  I did about three coats in all to get a nice smooth effect.   Decorating is always the fun part and I went a bit bonkers with the Studio 490 stashly bits.  I stamped the open floral pattern onto the bird using Aquamarine Archival and zapped it with a heat tool to set it.  The standy bit had a dotty stamp rolled around it in Black Archival to make that pop a bit more.

I then got inky with the embellies.  The flowers are stamped onto Grungepaper and coloured with Tumbled Glass and Bundled Sage DI's - colouring front and back so there are not nasty grey bits showing.  I then used a background stamp and Black Archival to add some stamped detailing on the flowers.  

Her wings are based on a couple of Art Part Leaves that I snipped into two, colouring with Peeled Paint Stain and overstamping with the dotty stamp to give it some cohesion.  Her head-dress is an Art Part Floral coloured with Bundled Sage Stain.  I added some Creative Expressions Dazzlers to the middles of the flowers - I wanted her to be a bit jazzy and these are fab because they sparkle nicely.

Of course, no self-respecting birdy would be complete without a pair of specs.. these were formed out of 26 gauge wire - and my thumb also took a hit - my hands are not as strong as they could be and I had a bit of a scrap with the curly bits of the specs... I wanted to get them even... erm.. nope, that didn't happen lol   Finishing touches are scraps of CE lace... I love this stuff and I know, I know, she looks like she belongs in a bordello but I rather like that sexy look to her.

Anyways... that's about it from me for today.  I hope you like her... she hasn't got a name just yet.  I can't decide, last time I made a bird I called her Fanny and we had much mirth and merriment making comments about my Fanny *HERE's that post*   Any ideas for a name will be gratefully received...   Right, I shall away!  Thanks for looking, have a F A B day!  TTFN

Hels x

Busy As A...

...butterfly!  Last Saturday I travelled up to Sheffield to take part in a Dabble Day with Busy Bee's Crafts.  There were three teachers, me, Jo and Julie... and 27 peeps taking part.  I had the pleasure of teaching a mixed media class, altering a wooden plaque with paints and inks and some fab Indigo Blu stamps.  Because I am a numpty, I totes forgot to take photo's of the two plaques I had prepped already for the classes... but I have got this one which is the one I used for me demo-ing and I finished it this morning.

The background was painted with EcoPaints, blended with Cut & Dry foam to get a nice smooth blend and mixed with Aged Mahogany Distress Stain to get that gorgeous pinky colour at the edges.  The other two plaques I had done were very masculine so I decided to pretty this one up and used a Kaleidoscope of butterflies... actually it is a moth but I don't know the collective term for a group of moths lol  There are 11 moths, stamped onto card using Jet Black Archival and then coloured with Victorian Velvet & Aged Mahogany DI and the backs were coloured with Frayed Burlap DI.

The cogs stamped onto the plaque have been jazzed up a bit with some Idea-ology Gears, Mini Cogs and Snaps (oh how I wish Snaps were still being produced, I know you can get them from haberdashers but it is the metal colours that I lurves)  All of the bits and bobs have been glued on with the best wet glue in the world... *used my Jeremy Clarkson voice for that one* Cosmic Shimmer Dries Clear.

Anyways, that is todays little offering.  I must take a moment to say a hoooge thank you for all your lovely comments on yesterdays post... I was blown away by all your kind words!  Right, I shall away, I am prepping for my demo's at Ally Pally tomorrow - I will be on the Creative Expressions stand, playing with Studio 490,  Distress and... Tim Holtz stamps... you know, the new ones!!  Oooh and I am doing a 20 min demo in the downstairs demo area too... not sure of the time yet... but they will be announced periodically during the show.  If you are going, please do pop by to say hi... t'would be F A B to meet you in person.  Thanks for looking... have a grand day... TTFN

Hels x

Birds In The Barn...

... I had a wonderful weekend at Birds In The Barn in Essex. I love that shop - tis chockful of gorgeousness and owner Janet is a brilliant hostess. Over the two days I did two completely different classes. Both were fully booked - so hooge thank you's to all the lovely ladies who came along and got messy with me, especially as it was the hottest weekend we had this year!



Saturdays class was all about getting painty. You all know how totes inspired I am by the wonder that is Finnabair (click her name to see her art) Well, the class subject was a 9 x 12" canvas, lots of textures and layers applied and then painted over. And then came the decorations. This is my favest part... cos you all will have sussed by now that I do lurve metal embellies and of course, flowers.



Mixing the two together makes me very happy... add in the use of Dylusions sprays (yep, addicted to that Black Marble) and some Perfect Pearls Mist (Turquoise) to jazz up the Prima Flowers and I am positively ecstatic! I did a smidge of spritzing onto the canvas too just to tie the background to the embellies. Check out the ickle knife, fork & spoon... Janet has loads of these little goodies in the store - I just love how the fork was manipulated... I had, indeedily, a Uri Gellar moment lol


Anyways, these here pics are of my canvas. Strips of punched and die cut watercolour paper, strips of canvas, smidges of lace, tonnes of flowers and flashes of bling. Thank you to Janet for having me teach at her store again, we are getting our heads together to have another weekend before Xmas - as soon as we have the dates, I will pop them into the sidebar :O))


Right, I shall away... I have decided to take a day off today. I have a special date with a gorgeous hunky bloke (Grim) - he is taking me to the cinema to see The Sweeney (can't wait) and then maybes a little meal in Nando's (loooove Nando's, I am a "medium" girl... what about you? Hotter? Or milder? Grim always has a "hottest" he is a nutter lol) As ever, thanks for looking.... TTFN!

Hels x