Sunday Stamper - Week 324 - Lavender's Green

Goooodly Morning Stampers and a very happy Sunday to you all!  Thank you all for your fabby entries to last weeks bright challenge - it was great to see all those eye popping summer colours on display.   The theme this week is colour based one... this time, USE PURPLE TONES.  You can interpret the challenge how you like: go for deep purples, add a smidge of violet, a little flash of mauve, the choice, it be yours!  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 *this is THE important bit guys, please remember your rubberstamps!*  and then hop back here, leave me a comment with a link to the place you are showing your entry and I can come see you.   If you haven't got a blog, you can join in via Facebook (just tag me name) or by emailing a small res.pic to me.  The challenge will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 13th September 2014.

 My entry this week is actually the very first page of a new "I Challenge Thee" project that Ellen and I started last Sunday during our Skype session.  We have a recipe to follow and over the next few months we will be making pages and then altering covers to make a special little book.  The main ingredient is Studio 490 - it has been too long since we both got our heads together and did an homage to our Wendy...   My base is a bit of manila cardstock, measuring 7 x 5" (ish) and I coloured it with Milled Lavender, Tumbled Glass, Dusty Concord and Tattered Rose Distress Paints... I made a nice smooshy background and then once dried, I set about adding more layers using lots of inks and stencils.  All stencils used are Wendy's... and the inks are Wendy's Archivals.  Starting with diamonds and Cornflower, moving on to dots and Hyacinth.   I made up my own colour embossing paste - popping a couple of drops of Hyacinth and Cornflower Archival re-inker's into Wendy's white embossing paste and then spreading it thru the stencil (can't remember the name of this one)  Now, the embossing paste colour is shown better on the butterfly - that was the colour I chose... and then once I had used it for the flowers, it looked tooooo pale, so I rectified that and use Hyacinth Archival to colour over the embossed flowers - I just popped the stencil back in place and inked over the top so I didn't get any overspill inky bits on the base card.

I added the wreath, inked in Fern Green Archival, adding dots and Glossy Accents and a sentiment to finish off that bit... I wasn't happy with the overall look tho, it looked bare!  So I did some "second generation" stamping, using Wendy's massive script background and Watering Can Archival and randomly stamping onto the background.... ahhh, better!   I added some embellies - Wendy's Embellish Your Art and some bits of ribbon and lace and stuff and that was about enough for this page.  At the moment, the page is curling up - it will be glued to the next page finished and flatten out then... I made a schoolgirl error tho, I didn't punch the holes yet... ooopsies... I might have to fashion a fastening if I can't get the holes lined up properly!  I won't be making that mistake again.

I am excited today!  We are away to Rockingham to watch the British Touring Cars.  This is the first live meeting we have been to this year and I can't wait!  I need to feed my inner petrol head!  As ever, I shall be cheering along and shouting GO PLATO!   Thanks for looking, have a goodly day!  TTFN

Hels x

Sunday Stamper - Week 313 - Green Onions

Goooodly Afternoon Stampers and a very happy Sunday to you all!  Thank you for all your fabby entries for last weeks challenge and it is lovely to see some new peeps joining in too.  This week is a another nice easy challenge... GREEN.  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, leave me a comment with a link to the place you are showing your entry and I can come see you.   If you haven't got a blog, you can join in via Facebook (just tag me name) or by emailing a small res.pic to me.  The challenge will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 28th June 2014.

My entry this week has seen me return to my true love... oh yesh, it is all about Studio 490.  I make no secret of the fact that I am Wendy's #1 stalker erm, fan and I don't get enough time to really play with all my Studio 490 goodies.  So I treated meself to an evening of all things Wendy and had a total blast playing!   I used Wendy's technique for Archival Re-inkers, CLICK HERE for her fabby video.  I use Surgical Spirit, I think that is rubbing alcohol in the UK... it works anyways so I guess it is right (!)  I also use Ranger's Specialty Stamping paper.. this stuff is the bomb!  It has a coating on it but it isn't glossy... nor is it matte, more of a satin finish and it is perfect for Wendy's technique as the inkyness doesn't soak through the card and sits on top of it so you can move the inks about whilst they are still wet.   The Re-inkers I used are: Dandelion, Tree Branch, Fern Green & Leaf Green.

Once I had the inky background sorted, I set about layering on lots of different stencil images. Apart from the sentiment and flower cluster, everything on the creation has been stencilled.  I used lots of Wendy's stencils and the following Archival Inks:  Leaf Green, Tree Branch, Fern Green, Dandelio and Jet Black.  The butterfly is actually a stencil too, I just cut it out and bunged a little pearl onto the body.  I added Glossy accents to dots I added to the laurel wreath (used a Sharpie to add those) just to add a little extra texture to the background.  The base is a canvas board that I covered with hessian using Multi Medium to stick the hessian down and then colouring with Black Soot Distress Paint. I added the flowers, which are Kaisercraft ones, leaves from Tim's Garden Greens die and voila, finished!

I shall away!  It is Friday morning at the moment, which always confoooses me when I am actually pretending it is Sunday... I am away this weekend teaching at Pickwell Farm in Southampton... and I am reliably informed that the PYO strawbs are ready (cue Hels covered in strawberry juice) and there be cherries too... ohhlalalaaa.. I have already eaten several hundred weight of cherries already this year - must be a good season for them cos they are all delish!  Thanks for looking.. have a grand day!  TTFN


Hels x

Sunday Stamper - Week 304 - Memories Are Made of This

Gooooodly Morning Stampers and a very Happy Easter to you all!  Big thank you to you all for your great entries to last weeks challenge.  This week the theme will be... MEMORIES.   As ever, how you interpret is entirely up to you... it could be the word memory or memories... it could be something that evokes a memory with you... the choice is yours.   To join in is simples:  make a little something, it can be anything you fancy.  Add in the theme and some stamping then pop back here, leave a comment with a linky to the place you are showing your entry and I can hop over to visit you.  If you don't have a blog, you can also join in via Facebook (just tag my name) or by emailing me a small res. photo.   The theme will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 26th April 2014.

My entry this week is the result of a "playtime" I had the other day.  I have been itching to try this technique out ever since I saw the awesome Wendy Vecchi demo it.. you can see her VIDEO HERE.   She is a GODDESS!!!   I won't spoil it for you... but I will give you a hint: rubbing alcohol in the UK is Surgical Spirit (well, at least I think it is cos it worked perfectly for me!)

As well as the base technique, I was also very inspired indeedily by Wendy, check out HER BLOG .. adding stencilling (all her delish stencils btw) and layering up the background with different colours and stamping.  I also added little puffs of Forest Moss Distress Marker using the new Distress Spritzer.  I forgot how fun using one of these little puffers is!  My stepson had one in an arty kit I bought him yonks ago.  I have to say that the Distress one is much better, you get a better grade of puffage with this one :O)   It would have been remiss of me not to add a big bundle of embellies... so I die cut some greenery using Tim's new die and Distress Core-dinations.  Also in there are some bits of Embellish Your Art, some pearls and a smidge of Idea-ology.  Oh and the rose?  Was actually one I made during a class last weekend and I liked the colours so much I didn't chuck it away.  The whole piece was actually made around the rose!

I must dash... not only am I late posting my Sunday Stamper (was a bit knackered last night so decided to get up early and then decided to ignore the alarm!)  I am also going to be late for the start of the British Touring Car Championship programme on ITV4 - which is starting in ...er.... 2 minutes ago!!!   As ever I am shouting.... GO PLATO!!!   Thanks for looking, have a great day!  TTFN

Hels x

Sunday Stamper - Week 297 - All Things Bright & Beautiful

Gooodly Morning Stampers and a very happy Sunday to you all!  Thanks for so many fabby entries to last weeks challenge, it is a pleasure to hop around to all your blogs to see your grand creations.  This week the theme is... USE BRIGHT COLOURS.  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 to leave me a comment along with a linky to the place you are showing your entry.  If you haven't got a blog, you can join in via Facebook - simply tag my name, or by emailing me a small res. photo of you creation.  The challenge will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 9th March 2014.

My entry this week has been borne out of my love for all things Studio 490... starting with the brains behind Studio 490, the wonderfully talented Wendy Vecchi.  To see all of Wendy's art and amazing tips and design inspirations, CLICK HERE.  Now, it is no secret that I am Wendy's number one stalker of course, I mean fan (ahem) and have been avidly collecting all the products and stamps that she designs and brings to market.  This creation features tonnes of her stuff... and a whole lot of inspiration from her too.

A few days ago I came down with the snots - yes, I am still resembling Moomin Mamma - and when I get all stuffy and blocked up of nostrils, I can't sleeps.  So, early on Friday morning, like stoopid early 4am, I crept into the Room of Stash for a little nocturnal dabble with a new stashly goody that arrived in the Room of Stash in the past few weeks... and I hadn't had a chance to open the pot, let alone have a play!  And what is this stuff?  It is the brand new Crackled Texture Paste from Studio 490. **available from Art From The Heart HERE**  Now, I have been stalking staring watching... ok, all of those, I have been viewing Wendy's blog over recent weeks and seeing all her demo's and tutorials for the new paste, I thought "aha, Sheridan, you have some FREE crafting time... "  So I got crafting!

Firstly, I will just say this... I haven't thought up a single thing about this project apart from the layout.  The colours, stamps, stencils, inks, pastes etc are ALL Wendy.   I splodged a generous dollop of Crackled Texture Paste onto a piece of grey board that I had splatted some 490 Black Embossing Paste onto... and then edged over the top of the black with White Embossing Paste so the crackles then have white and black underneath them.  As Grim has been on nights, it meant that I could secretly whack the heating on which meant my radiator was nice and toasty... so I popped the greyboard onto it to speed up the cracklage... ooooh my! It was fascinating, I literally sat there and watched the crackles appear!  Once the piece was completely dry, I used Cut & Dry foam and Wendy's Signature Archivals for Ranger and blended Fern Green, Orange Blossom and Cornflower inks over the crackles... ooooh.... mega swoonage going on here!   
 

I wanted to add a real zing of colour so I went for Barn Door, Rusty Hinge and Wild Honey Distress Inks to colour the stamped flowers and butterflies and Forest Moss for the leaves.  You see the tiny flowers nestling under there?  That is the same flower are the one next to it, I just made the petals shorter when cutting it out. Stencilling was done using more Archivals, Watering Can and Jet Black and more Cut & Dry foam to blend... and then I set about assembling it all.  As you can see, there's a little birdy sitting there... isn't he cute!  Well, he has been roosting in my stash for over a year now.  When I went to CHA Winter 13, I followed Wendy around whilst she was demoing... oh yesh, such is my obsession. Well, she was demoing away and everyone else was getting a bit of her demo art from her... except me... so I cheekily asked if I could have the ickle birdy she had just coloured with Distress Paints... and *to shut me up/get rid of the irksome Brit/whatever* bless her, she said yes!  Hurrah!  I have been saving this ickle birdy for THAT long to use on something special.

Anyways... enough of my wafflings for one day!  I hope you have a great day and you get a chance to hop on over to Wendy's blog to see her gorgeous art... she is such a giving designer too and you will find tonnes of hints and tips there too.  *can you tell I loves her?*   Right, I shall away... thanks for looking... TTFN!

Hels x

Sunday Stamper - Week 291 - Ultraviolet

Goooodly Morning Stampers and a very happy Sunday to you all!   Huge thanks for all your entries for the last challenge, it was lovely to see some new peep's entering too.  This week there be a new theme (and my fave U2 song is the title)... and that is... VIOLET/PURPLE.  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 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, you can also join in via email - just email a small res pic to me or via Facebook, simply tag my name and I can view your entry.  The challenge will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 25th January 2014.

 My entry this week is a tag that I started yesterday at my class at Craftique in Hessle.  We were doing a Distress Paint mixed media canvas and I decided to do some demo-ing onto a tag too... hence this one was born.  Also, I seems to have a bit of a "purple" thing going on at the moment because my chosen Paints were Dusty Concord (LOVE this!!!) Broken China and Bundled Sage.  Once they were applied onto the tag (drippy layers technique) I dried them off and then got some of Wendy's Embossing Paste and spread it through her Three Flourishes Stencil (which is there, down at the bottom of the tag, hiding 'neath all the embellies)

A bit of stamping in the form of the gorgeous background stamp from Studio 490 Heirloom Art, stamped onto tissue and applied with Glue & Seal so I could add stamping over the top of the embossing.

As you can see, I went a bit mental with the embellies... nowt new there then lol   The flowers were sprayed with Black Marble Dylusions and Egyptian Blue Cosmic Shimmer sprays.  The leaves are from Tim's new Garden Green Sizzix die, painted with Forest Moss DP and dabbed whilst it was still a bit wet to add some dimension to them.  Check out the little word "dream".  That was kindly donated by one of my workshop ladies, Susan, so thanks Susan, I love that ickle word!  Adding another word using Alpha Parts onto an Ornate Frame finished the tag off nicely.

Today I shall mostly be beavering away in the Room of Stash making samples for my tellybox shows on Tuesday.  I am on at 11am and 7pm with some really cool goodies... hope you can join me!   I shall away now... thanks for looking, have a great day!  TTFN

Hels x

Sunday Stamper - Week 288 - King of Wishful Thinking + CANDY!!!

Gooodly Morning Stampers and a very happy Sunday to you all!  Thank you for the fabby entries for last week's challenge.   This week sees the return of a fortnightly challenge - being as it is Christmas and New Year and time in our crafty spaces will be limited!  The challenge for this fortnight is... USE THE WORD WISH.   Also, I have some candy to giveaway to one randomly chosen entrant - my thank you to all my lovely Sunday Stampers for your entries this year.   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 me a comment with a link to the place you are showing your entry.  If you haven't got a blog, you can also join in via email (small res pic please) or via Facebook by tagging my name.  To be in with a chance of winning the candy, simply leave me a comment on this post - if you ENTER the challenge with a piece of artwork, you will be entered TWICE into the giveaway.  The theme will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 4th January 2014.

 The challenge theme is because during 2013 the word WISH has been "word of the year".  I have loved having this word as my special one... it has brought me lots of inspiration throughout the year and I will be a little sad to see it go... however, the word of the year for 2014 has already been chosen and I will be blogging about that at the end of December.

My entry this time is a papier mache board hanging that I have altered using the gorgeous Craftwork Cards Vogue Collection papers, using the paperblocking technique I lurves so muchly.   Once I had blocked all the papers, I did a very light wash of Mushroom paint over the top to tone the papers in to each other.  I good old coat of Matte Glue & Seal to ... yep, you guessed it... seal those papers and then I added a border around the edges using Black paint.  Once this had dried I got out my Stabilo All pencil and added shading to the paper blocks.  My stamping is the flourish stamp, randomly onto the edges of the base using Jet Black Archival ink.

Next up came some delicious stencilling using Wendy's Dreamweaver black paste and the new to me (hurrah, finally got this one!) "Three Flourishes" Studio 490 stencil.  I spread a nice generous layer of the paste over - I love this stuff... it is the same as the one in the giveaway too :O)  Once this had dried (with a little help from Mr Heat Tool) I started decorating the edges and stencilled bits with Treasure Gold White Fire and Spanish Topaz.  I wanted a bit of a bright colour on my design as the background was quite muted so I picked some gorgeous turquoise blooms from Kaisercraft and layered them up with white paper flowers and then coloured them with Stream Colorwash, Black Marble Dylusions and Ancient Blue Cosmic Shimmer spray for the extra bit of bling.  I keep saying this but I really loves the way spraying the Cosmic Shimmer over Black Marble gives a real metallic effect.  I added lots of bits and bobs of metal and resin embellies - all given a smidge of Treasure Gold to bling them up a bit (check out the ickle spark plug - how cute is that!!)

So, the Candy giveaway package is as follows: Wendy Vecchi's Signature Archival Inks: Watering Can, Potting Soil, Red Geranium and Fern Green, Dreamweaver Embossing Paste, Glossy Accents, Large Cosmic Shimmer glue and a bundle of metal charms too.  There will no doubt be a few extra bits and bobs making their way into the package too :O)  Remember, to be in with a chance of winning, leave me a comment on this post... and if you enter with a piece of artwork, your name will be entered twice.  Closing date/time for the Sunday Stamper is 21:00GMT 4th January 2013.  Entries received after this time will not be entered into the draw and duplicate comments will be deleted to make it fair to all who enter.  The winner of the giveaway will be announced on Sunday 5th January 2013.

Right then, tis time for me to get myself to bed!  I have still not got my voice back... I had a little bit of a croaky squeak earlier but it has gone again... boohoohoo!  Thanks for looking.. and thank you all for your continued support of my little challenge this year too.   Have a great day!  TTFN

Hels x

Giveaway Time!!!

...yes indeedily, it is that time again.  As a thank you for all the lovely comments and messages and emails and stuff, I am giving away this little piece of artwork that was prepped as a demo and I didn't get chance to do it live on air... so I finished it off at home and here it is.  To be in with a chance of winning the plaque, simply leave a comment on this post (click on the "inky thinkings" button at the bottom of the post).  The closing date/time for the giveaway is 23:59 GMT tonight, 6th December 2013. The winner will be chosen at random and announced on tomorrow's post.  In the event of the winner not claiming their prize in the next seven days, I will do a re-draw and a new winner will be announced.

I love these MDF Rectangular Plaques.  This one is the largest one and I painted it with a layer of Lake Mist Dabber... and added the edging in Pitch Black Dabber to give it a frame.  The stencilling is the gorgeous Fuchsia That Special Touch mask... I loves this mask muchly seeing as I am collecting Fuchsia's at the moment and now I have my new greenhouse, I can keep them over winter too!  Anyways, once I had popped the mask into position, I spread a layer of Gold Pearl Texture Paste through it and then allowed it to dry.  I tend to pop things onto the radiator to dry - I am impatient!  You can gently heat dry the paste, just make sure it has formed a "crust"  on top of it to start with otherwise it can bubble and distort.

The decorations are made from flowers stamped onto the lush Teresa Collins Creative Expressions papers... the flower stamps are from the Studio 490 Live & Make Art set... loves them muchly because they have so many petals, you can make them more 3d.  I added some hand cut leaves that I lightly coloured with Forest Moss Distress Ink and then bunged a few embellies onto the plaque too... the buzzy bee is an Embellish Your Art resin piece (how cute!) and the key is a Creative Expressions Assorted Keys embellie... and the ickle bottles are Glass Vials which I filled with Persian Dawn Gilding Flakes to add a smidge of bling.  The words are a combo of stencilled (Always from the Classic Words Stencils for Art) and the Be You is a stamp from the Art For You 490 set.

Right, that is all from me for today... I am tackling my "to do" list ... starting with the dreaded trip to Morrison's... oh how I love doing the grocery shopping... not!!!  Wish me luck, I thinks it might be a bit busy in there!  Thanks for looking... have a grand day!  TTFN

Hels x

Always Be You...

...today is the day!  I am back on the tellybox at 8am and 1pm with Dimensional Art shows.  I have been having a whale of a time playing with all the goodies from the shows... my very fave Studio 490 stashly goodies along with the cool Pronty MDF and some delish Creative Expressions delights too... the show details are over in there *points left*.  Don't forget, if you aren't in the UK, you can also view online, the deets for that are also over there *points left again*  I wish I could help you out with time differences etc but I have enough trouble remembering what time it is here in the Room of Stash (my brain is numerically challenged... along with other challenges too lol)

When I was younger, my dear old Dad always dispensed sage advice... and one of the most important pieces of advice he ever gave me was "just be yourself!"... if I had a job interview I used to get meself in a right old two and eight, and Dad just used to look up from his Daily Telegraph and say "just be yerself love".  Bless him, he was right though!  All those years I thought that I had to be the person that someone else expected me to be.  As I have got older, I realise that actually, no, I am me and being true to yourself if the most important thing ever.

When I started making this Shadow Box, this sentiment was bopping around my head.  The "Be You" part is a Studio 490 stamp (from Art For You) and the "Always" is from the Studio 490 Classic Words Stencils For Art... marry the two together and there you have it.  So, the frame is paper blocked using my fave Creative Expressions Teresa Collins papers... I loves these papers and it is a pleasure to be able to use them again.  The colours are just my thing, muted, natural and quite masculine... but prettied up with the addition of flowers (of course there are flowers!) but the cool thing about the papers is that there are two other colour ways in the set too.. result!  And, as ever, no self respecting paper flower is complete without a zap of spray ink and Cosmic Shimmer mists... I used the Antique Copper one for this... another match made in heaven.

I guess I should stop with the waffle and start with the packing of the boxes for today.  I am rubbish at packing... and I do tend to prevaricate when it comes to the deed.  I am an excellent list-maker though, so the list of stuff-to-pack is ready and waiting to be ticked off (not as in, told off.. no, I tick things off as I pack... brain like a seive at the best of times!)  However, actually putting stuff into boxes and then moving them into Ferdy is just one of those jobs that deserves a smidge of prevarications :O)   I hope you can join me today and please do email into the shows if you can... I love to read all your emails and if you have any questions, please do fire away... I will try and get as many answered as possibles.  Have a great day... Thanks for looking... TTFN!

Hels x

Sunday Stamper - Week 269 - Diamonds Are Forever

Goooodly Morning Stampers and a very happy *birthday* Sunday to you all!  Many thanks for the entries for last weeks challenge, I am a little late visiting every one who entered last week (a day without internet is the excuse!)  so apologies for my tardyness, I shall be around later today/tomorrow to see all your beautiful creations.   This week I have chosen the theme DIAMONDS.  Be it a diamond pattern or a proper diamond (well, ok, gem/diamante) that you use, the choice be yours.  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 to leave me a comment with a link to the place you are showing your entry.  If you haven't got a blog/web-photo-hosty thing, don't worry, you can also join in via Facebook (simply tag my name on your photo) or via email (email address found by clicking my pic on left hand side) by attaching a small size pic to the email.  The theme will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 10th August 2013.

The reason for my theme choice for this week is because this one is dedicated to my lovely Grim... because he truly is a diamond to me!  This week sees the return of my guest designer, making his third appearance on this blog.  He has been wittering at me to show off his crafting prowess so I have relented and am allowing him blog time today!  And who is this very special designer?  None other than Lord Alfonse of Sheridan!  Oh yesh, AlfieCat has been busy getting ink on his paws for a very special reason.... for today is Grim's birthday!  And here is the card that Alf has made for his special Daddy! 

He wanted to use Grim's colour - which is most definitely orange being as that is one of the colours of his beloved Luton Town FC - so a smidge of Squeezed Lemonade, Spiced Marmalade and Barn Door DI's onto the craft sheet, a spritz with water and a pick up with cardstock for the Wrinkle Free Distress effect... and then some stencilling!  I had to help him at this point as his little paws weren't big enough to hold the stencil in place (ahem)  Using Wendy Vecchi's Diamond Stencil for Art with first Spiced Marmalade and then a very light hint of Orange Blossom Archival (from Wendy's new range... love this colour muchly)   Next came some stamping ... using the big background from Tim's Papillon set and Orange Blossom again and then some "pop" stamping... ie in Jet Black Archival so the image pops from the page.... with the butterflies from the same Tim set and one of my most used and beloved stamps, the ickle harlequin diamond stamp from one of Tim's mini sets.   Of course, he wanted to personalise his card so I helped him with the Alphaparts (they got stuck to his furry paws!)  And yes, it is completely true... I appear to have lost the plot!

So... moving on! Yesterday I did a 24 hour giveaway and I had a whopping 91 comments (there were 93 but two were duplicates so I deleted those)   After feeding the numbers into Random.org, the generator picked out number 14 as the winner...which tallies with the comment left by LISA WINNARD.  Congrats to Lisa on winning... please email your addy to me... and THANK YOU all for your lovely comments... it seems that you are all lurving your Melt Pots, that makes me VERY happy!   

I shall away now... I have a birthday boy to spoil, a cake to make... and it is the British Touring Car Championships from Snetterton today so we shall be sitting watching the tellybox coverage whilst shouting... GO PLATO!   Thanks for looking, have a lovely day!  TTFN

Hels x

Rules To Live By...

...well, I have always loved this stamp from the hand of Wendy Vecchi... her Studio 490 stamps are my most beloved (oh, you already know that though right?)  This stamp has oft been the starting point of a creation and today this tag is no different.  You know I said I have the brand new Wendy Vecchi Signature Designer Archival Inks?  Well, I have got thoroughly inky and made a few tags and had a play, you know, just cos it would be rude not to!  This is a quicky tag I made, just trying out the inks on different surfaces and for different stuff.

I had seen on Wendy's blog that she had been using her new Archivals with her Stencils... so being as whatever Wendy does, I have to try, I ...erm... had a try!  Using small squares of Cut & Dry foam to apply the inks thru the Stencil is simples... the inks are a beautiful medium to use and because they are Archival, they won't budge when you then ink with a waterbased ink (like Distress) right over the top.  I started out doing the leaves at the top with Fern Green and added a stripy bit at the bottom with Cornflower Blue.  Little Mr Birdy was added with Watering Can (excuse me whilst I have a fit of the vapours, this is my new FAVE colour... I have oft yearned for a grey Archival... and now we have one... and a chuffing brrrilliant one at that!)

I then gave the inks a quick zap with the heat tool just to ensure they were set and then did some Distress Ink blending with Broken China, Bundled Sage and Forest Moss and added a frame with Walnut Stain.  I squidged Broken China onto my craft sheet, spritzed with water and use the large background from Heirloom Art, dipping it into the inky/watery mix, stamped over the tag and then allowed it to react with the Distress for a few moments... once the ink had started the react with the water, I heat dried the tag.  I love the bleached stamped effect of this technique.  Very delicate.  I made a little messagey bit for the Rules to Live By stamp and then made a floral embellishment. Stamping the flower onto Grungepaper three times with the Watering Can and colouring with Wild Honey and Rusty Hinge DI... and the ickle spiky flower from Funky Flower Art was stamped with Cornflower Blue and coloured with Broken China.  I stamped the leaves in Fern Green and overstamped with the same and then coloured with Forest Moss DI.  Check out the ickle rose in the centre... that is an Embellish Your Art piece, lightly coloured with Orange Blossom Archival... so I think the only one I didn't use was Red Geranium... but I made up for that with another tag I made earlier soo..... 

I must away... I keep glancing at the clock... any second now Mr Virgin is going to turn off our internet... yikes, how will I cope without my internet allll day???   Typically, the day that the internet is changing, Grim is on a loooong job... so when the new jobbywotsitthingymibob arrives from BT today, he will be out ... so the setting up of the new internet and email stuff will have to be done tomorrow night when he gets home... or on Friday.  Whatever, I have a swanky smart phone now and it has 3G stuff (you can SO tell how teckernologikly minded I am right?) so I will be able to get online... I just won't be able to blog.  Hopefully, all will be set up and I will be back blogging over the weekend!  Or sooner!  I am off to sit by the backdoor now and wait until the Lord Alfonse of Dirty-Stop-Outsville turns up.  He snuck out about three hours ago and when I tried to get him an hour ago he looked at me, hooked his tail over his back and scarpered off down the path.  He isn't allowed out at night for this very reason... ie, he turns into a loony!  So, I shall be awaiting his return... pointless me going to bed as there is no way I will sleeps til I know he is home safely... could be a long night eh?  Thanks for looking, have a cool day (gonna be a hot one again I hear!)  TTFN

Hels x

Love Of My Life...

...cor blimey, I don't know about you but I am sure some greater good has their finger pressed firmly on the "fast forward" button... already it is July!  But more than that... on Friday last, Grim and I celebrated our 11th wedding anniversary!  Come on... really?  ELEVEN years?  WOW!  Where did that go huh?  I don't normally make a card for our anniversary because I am rubbish at making cards, you know, those really special ones that in years to come you get out of a dusty old box and reminisce about?

So, this year was different because I had a pile of goodies sitting on my desk and the card just kind of made itself... well, obviously I had a hand in it, I haven't quite mastered the spell that will make stuff... erm... make itself (yes, dear readers, it appears that I am losing the plot)  Anyways... I made a card for Grim... and here it is today.  It isn't a secret that I love all things Wendy Vecchi (she is an art goddess, click here for her blog)  The Art Part word was the starting point of the card... if you haven't used Art Parts yet, you are missing out... they are brrrrilliant!  So, that was coloured with Treasure Gold and then I set about colouring a piece of cardboard (thank you Alfonse for scoffing more food for Mummy) with Fresco Paints... pouncing the colours on so they blended nicely.

Next up I popped the Heart Stencil (another Studio 490 delight) and spread some black  490 Embossing Paste through the heart, rather like icing a cake (yes, I do have some experience of that... I just have to remind myself it is embossing paste and not chocolate frosting, therefore no licking the spatula...)  Once that had set, I added smudges of Treasure Gold over the raised bits and also around the edges of the cardboard.  I saw a design from Wendy for the last CHA that used the LOVE and some cool Embellish Your Art, so I copied her idea, placing the flowers (also Treasure Golded) around the word... and then popped Mr Crow a-top of the word so he is perching.  The piece was still looking a bit "clean" (IYKWIM) so I edged the heart with a Stabilo All pencil and then gave the whole thing a spritz with Black Marble Dylusions to grunge it up a bit.  I was sooo tempted to bung a bit of wire in the top of the cardboard and turn it into a hanging but no, I was a good gal and matted it onto black card and then made it into a proper card :O)

Right, I shall away... I have an appointment with an ironing board today... and whilst ironing, I shall be watching Homes Under the Hammer (I LOVE that programme... addicted!) and then I will be doing a spot of making stuff in the Room of Stash.  Hope you all have a goodly day!  Thanks for looking, TTFN

Hels x

Sunday Stamper - Week 256 - Diamonds & Pearls

Gooooodly Morning Stampers and a very happy sunny (hopefully) Sunday to you all.  Many thanks for the gorgeous blue themed entries for last weeks challenge.   This week is a nice and easy theme... just use DIAMONDS & PEARLS on your creation!   To join in is simples: make a little something, it can be anything you fancy.  Add in the theme AND some stamping.  Pop back here with a link to the place you are showin your entry and then I can hop and visit you.  If you haven't got a blog/web-photo-hosty thingy, you can also join in via email or on Facebook.   The theme will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 11th May 2013.

My entry this week is actually my class sample from yesterdays canvas class at The Craft Den in Sheffield.  We had a fabby day getting painty and messing about with embossing pastes.  For my canvas, I used Fresco Paints to do the background and then set about adding some embossing paste through stencils onto the canvas.

I mixed up White, Black and Silver Studio 490 Embossing Pastes ( I lurved the look so much, like a glinty gunmetal, that I made a whole pot of it!)  I used one of the flower Stencils for Art, spreading the paste thru and using the palette knife to make ridges in it... and then added my diamonds to the top of the canvas, again this is another Stencil for Art.   Once the paste had dried, I stamped the background (from Heirloom Art) onto a single ply of a mansize Kleenex using Jet Black Archival and then used Glue & Seal to apply pieces of the stamped tissue to the canvas... this is a cool way of adding stamping to a bumpy base!   A few smidges of Treasure Gold to bring out the textures... including my *word of the year* WISH which had been die cut using the Word Play Alterations die. 

The butterflies - the big one is a Studio 490 one and the ickle ones are Darkroom Door ones from the Wings set.  They were stamped onto card, coloured with Vintage Photo DI and then I popped the pearls onto the bodies.   The flower centres are Embellish Your Art buttons ( I LOVE THESE!!!)   You might be able to spy a little birdy on the edge of the canvas... he is actually a Prima embellie which I made into a mould using Mold & Pour and then used UTEE to make him; he too it coloured with Treasure Gold, which sits perfectly on UTEE.   A few spritzed with Black Marble Dylusions to finish the piece, I do love adding the black spritzes... and because I used the Glue & Seal, that is my safety net, should I muck up the spraying :O)

So, what have you got planned for today?  I hear it is bank holiday tomorrow... I never do bank holidays'... mainly cos we have always worked them, tomorrow is no different and Grim is working alllll day.  Today, however, we have a veritable feast ahead of us!  Namely the British Touring Cars are at Thruxton, it is just that bit too far to travel so we will be watching from the sofa.  And, I brought fish n chips home with me yesterday, so they will be re-heated for lunchingtons...nomnomnom!   I shall away now, I need to conserve energy so I can cheer... GO PLATO!    Thanks for looking, have a grand day!  TTFN

Hels x

Deeply Distressed...

..for once, it isn't me that is deeply distressed. Oh no indeedily, I have been playing with all things Distress and have made a tag.  I haven't made a tag for a yonk and a half so it was nice to return to my preferred medium.  For those who haven't yet succumbed to the lure of the new Distress Paints... well, all I can say is... you are missing out... big stylee! Not only are they as gorgeous as they sound, the colours being made to tone with the other Distress lines in the range, your Broken China pad will tone with the Stain, which will tone with the Paint and in turn, tone with the Markers.  For the base of my tag, I chose Bundled Sage, Broken China and Seedless Preserves (one of my all time fave colours)

I scribbled the Paints onto my craft sheet, lightly misted them with water and then dipped and dragged the tag thru the painty mix.  I then gave it another mist of water before using the old heat tool to dry it off.  The gorgeous drippy effect is a firm fave of mine now... it is like drippy Stains but opaque.  Cool huh!  I then used the same method to colour some Tattered Florals flowers, cut from cream card, once dried, I used a new Studio 490 diamond stencil and blended Seedless Preserves DI over the flowers... you can see how the two colours are meant to go together in harmony.  I assembled my rose and then coloured up a couple of Tattered Leaves using Bundled Sage and Forest Moss.

A bit of background stamping using Plum Archival and the new background stamp on the Studio 490 set, Heirloom Art, and then I copied Wendy's idea of pricking through the centre of the pattern to make little raised dotties.  Now, I like a product to be able to do several things... and the Paints don't disappoint - I got a blob of Studio 490 White Embossing Paste and mixed a few drops of the Forest Moss paint into it, cor, it colours beeeeautifully!  I popped the paste through the new leafy 490 stencil and then dried and I lightly blended Forest Moss DI over the top of the leaves... just to add some more depth to the colours... and the cool thing with the paste is you can colour it with Distress!  A few little metal flowers and some Film Strip to go under the main floral embellishment... and the bookplate which has my word of the year "wish" stamped into it finished the tag nicely.  Oh and check out the ickle blue flower on the smallest metal flower.. that is a grey metal rose and I dabbed the Broken China paint onto it... see, it sticks to metal... result!!!

So!  Do you want to know about the old broken hip?  Turns out it isn't broken... well, I am assuming it isn't because I can walk and I can climb stairs... just as well really as I have a busy busy week ahead of me... starting with tomorrow at The Stamp Attic in Wantage and my Hidden From View class... then Ally Pally on Sunday... and then prepping for the tellybox shows next Wednesday.  Poor old Grim is on nights and I am doing my best to be a mouselike wifey, tippytoeing around and trying not to be as clumsy as normal... that in itself is exhausting, I didn't realise just how noisy I normally am!  I have even refrained for singing along to the radio!   Anyways, I shall away... lots to do and that old clock is ticking away!  Thanks for looking, have a fabby day!  TTFN

Hels x

Distressingtons...

... oh yesh, I am still with the "ingtons" going on the end of every word... and today be no different as I did, indeedily, go to distressingtons when I was playing and making this little Studio 490 Art Part piece.  In fact, you could say I got inkingtons whilst distressingtons this taggingtons... yes, quite!     Anyways... playing with the new Distress Paints sure has kept me happy and combining them with my fave Studio 490 goodies, well, a very happy playtime it was.   The background of the Art Part Tag was painted with Antique Linen and Bundled Sage DP, splodging the paint onto the Art Part and then blending them together with a piece of Cut & Dry foam and whilst they were still wet, adding some Forest Moss DP in patches with the same Cut & Dry so they were nicely blended.   I grabbed a couple of the new Stencils For Art - the Diamonds and Stripes ones... using Stormy Sky DI to blend the patterns onto the tag base... I loves combining stencils ... just a hint of a diamond here and there and the odd stripe to balance the background.  The leaves are another Stencils For Art - the Forest Moss DP was applied again with the same C&D foam and I gave it a quick zap with a heat tool to dry the paint off and then added some ickle lines with a fine marker to give the leaves a smidge of definition.  

Mr Birdy (another new Art Part) was given a reallllly cool technique that I saw Wendy Vecchi demo-ing at CHA: slap Rock Candy Cracklepaint onto your base piece, in this case I used Mr Birdy.  Once the Rock Candy is dry and crackled, splodge some DP onto the crackles and rub in with a finger, adding different colours as you go and smooth out the colours together so they blend nicely.  Cooool technique or what!  The floral embellishment was made up of Black Clearly For Art, stamped with Gold Dabber and Clear Clearly For Art that was covered in a bookpage and then stamped and cut out... the ickle resin rose is an Embellish Your Art piece, coloured with Broken China DP and then gilded with the new Creative Expressions Gilding Wax.  I did the same with the little Star Knob too, adding some more gilding to it to make it pop.   Did you spy the ickle skeleton leaves?  They are the Creative Expressions Metal Leaves, simply cover with Peeled Paint DP, start to dry, rub off the wet bits and voila, a perfectly painty and grungy altered leaf!  Simples :O))

I am very excited today because I have a VERY special visitor joining in me in the Room of Stash!!!!   Nay and thrice, not only is he joining me in here, he is also going to be making some art with me too!  Who is this tall dark and handsome stranger I hear you cry?  None other than my Grim!   I have finally pursuaded him to come and have a little play with ink and stuff... I can't wait to get him all inky (mmmm, that does sound wrong on so many levels but you know what I mean lol)  Anyways, I shall away, I have things to attend to before he can come and play... like clearing a space for him and moving all the crud from under the desk so he can actually get his legs under... ahem... best get a move on!   Thanks for looking... TTFN!

Hels x

In Stitches...

...aha! A play on words today - yep, still coming up with exciting and witty blog post titles (not lol)  Anyways... yesterday was Day 1 of the Stitches Trade Show at the NEC in Birmingham and I spent the day playing demo-ing for Creative Expressions with the gorgeously delectable new Distress Paints along with the latest and fabulously wonderful Studio 490 stamps, Stencils for Art and Art Parts with a few Blossom Bucket Embellish Your Art goodies thrown in for goodly measures.. and here is one of my demo samples:

One of the new Art Part tags - looooove these, perfect size, perfect shape and the little scallop trim makes a cute addition.   I started by covering the tag with an old book page and using a palette knife to spread Antique Linen Distress Paint over it in patches.  A quick zap with a heat tool and then Bundled Sage DP, another zap with a heat tool and Broken China DP spread over the top... and then one of the brand new and brilliant That Special Touch Masks... big big thanks to the Mask Queen herself, Ali Reeve for giving these to me... check out her blog HERE for more inspiration... the new dotty mask was popped onto the top of the tag and I used Cut & Dry foam to sponge and blend Black Soot DP through it.  A quick smidge of Black Soot around the edges to frame the design and then I set about making the embellies.

The stripy flower was made using the new Stencils For Art Layered Flower stencil, first using Broken China DP through it and then using the other flower on the stencil and Chipped Sapphire - this is so cool because once you have your first colour down, you pop the next flower over the top and it masks the first layer at the same time as being a stencil too... genius!  This was then cut out, edged with more of the Black Soot and embellished with a Star Knob Blossom Bucket embellie... I added some of the brand new Creative Expressions Gilding Wax to the centre to tone it in and finally, after colouring and adding the scallop trim, I coloured another Star Knob for the top of the tag and an EYA rose, coloured with Broken China DP.  Oh and the word, I almost forgot the word... again coloured with Black Soot DP, sanded, coloured lightly with Gathered Twigs DI and then all stuck together with Cosmic Glue.  Oh and I forgot the leaves!  Creative Expressions metal leaves... painted with Forest Moss DP... look how it sticks to metal too! So versatile!  

I had a fabby day, it was great to see so many peeps... and I get to do it all again today!  Hurrah!   I shall away... another scheduled post, another early start... another night panicking that I have slept through the alarm... so tis time for my bed!  Thanks for looking... have a fab day!  TTFN

Hels x

Sunday Stamper - Week 244 - Endless Love

Goooodly Morning Stampers and a very happy Sunday to you all... many thanks for the fabby animal entries last week!  Apologies for the slightly later than planned post today... Mr Back Pain came to stay last night so I took to my bed!  Anyways... on with this weeks challenge.  As it is Valentine's Day this week (yep, that time of year already) I decided to theme the challenge in to match with that... so the theme is... LOVE & HEARTS.  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 hop back here to leave me a comment with a link to the place you are showing your entry.  If you don't have a blog or web-photo-thingy, you can also join in via email or on Facebook.  The challenge will remain open until 21:00 Saturday 16th February 2013.

My little entry for this week is a pressie for Grim... I like to make him something 3d for Valentines... I am rubbish at making Valentine cards so I usually *whispers* buy one for him!  Yikes!  Don't tell anyone!  This year I set about altering a little 4x4 deep edge canvas.  Starting with a layer of patterned music paper over the front of the canvas, a layer of Glue & Seal to ... yep, seal it!  I then used one of the new gorgeously fab Stencils for Art from Studio 490 and then genius that is Wendy Vecchi.  I used Studio 490 Embossing Paste - this time I used the white flavour and added some Fired Brick Distress Paint into the mix to make the heart red.

Once dried, I made a two tone border around the edge of the canvas - I know, I have gotten addicted to making two tone borders!  Once this was dry, I zapped the heart with some Cranberry Colorwash and then spritzed Black Marble Dylusions over the canvas to add some grungyness to it.  A whizz around the heart with my Stabilo All pencil added some shading and then I set about making some decorations.

The feet for the canvas are diddy bottles from Creative Expressions, how cute are they?  I took out the corks and then used Cosmic glue to stick the bottles to the bottom of the canvas.  Next, I coloured up two white paper flowers with the same sprays, dried them, added a Mini Cog to the middle and popped a brad to secure them.   I added Florentine and White Fire Treasure Gold to the heart and around the edges of the canvas for a smidge of bling and then stamped the word with some Alpha stamps.  Finishing touches are bits and bobs of Idea-ology and the letters are Alpha Parts - ILY - obvious... and 13... for this year! 

Right, I shall away... I have a date with a homemade chicken pie - I got a little over-excited yesterday and made a chicken pie, then saw left over pastry and made a quiche (and I made the recipe up myself and apart from a smidge too much cheese it is yummo!) and then I made a choccy cake for Grim... no wonder my pain was out of orbit last night lol   Worry not though, there won't be any more baking for a while!  The chicken pie is for dinner today and I can't wait to get my gnashers on it.... tis BFF Andrea's recipe and oh boy, it is lushness indeedily!  Speaking of Andrea...HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!  She has a very special birthday today but being as I am such a good pal I won't tell you all that it is her 50th (snort!)   Thanks for looking... have a fab day!  TTFN

Hels x