Breathe

Had a great day today with Jacqui as we spent hours playing with paint, paper and stencils. So nice to create just for the sake of creating. I finished off one journal page with my word of the year and am nearly done with a second page that I'll share later this week.

Materials:

• Dylusions Art Journal
• Gesso
• Dina Wakley paints
• generic acrylic paints
• TCW stencils - Flower Frenzy, Mini Dots
• Heidi Swapp stencil - Butterfly

I'm entering this journal page into a couple of challenges:

• DecoArt Create Dare - one word
• The Mixed Media Monthly Challenge - use something new to you (the flower frenzy stencil)
• The Mirror Crack'd - stencils

We might as well dance

Last week when my son told me about a dream he had where animals were dancing around on 2 legs, we both got a little (a lot) goofy and laughed ourselves silly imagining bulldogs in tutus and kittens doing plies. I couldn't get the images out of my head and so created this art journal page inspired by my son's creative idea.

The background is made using Dylusions inks and a mix of stencils. I'm still scrubbing the ink off my fingers cause I had so much fun playing with these fabulous inks. I used stamps from Dylusions as well - some of the leaves are stamped & coloured directly onto the page (heat-setting will allow you to colour with Copics over water-colour sprays!) whereas others were stamped on white card, coloured and fussy-cut.

Here's a close-up of one of the dancers. I found a vintage black & white photo of several ballerinas online, printed it off and coloured with Copics. I fussy-cut the dancers out, ran a black marker along the edges (to give some definition and help the images stand out more) and then chopped off the  heads! It was hard picking out the right animal faces but my son liked the expressions on the final choices.

 

I think the page needs something more - the space between the pink & green ballerinas seems too empty. Any ideas or suggestions? I'm not going to seal the page for awhile yet in hopes that inspiration will hit.

 

Anyway, I'm new to art journalling but I'll be doing more of it, especially if I can get the kids to share more ideas! Thanks for looking!

 

Challenges:

Crafty Creations - anything but a card

Simon Says Stamp - anything goes

Marker POP - pink

Totally Papercrafts - let's dance

Copic Marker Europe - anything goes with Copic

By the Cute & Girly - cute & girly

Jingle your own bells

Second post today but I wanted to share this second card that I started on the weekend in Debi's class at Country Lane Scrapbooking.

This card uses Stampotique and Dylusions stamps for an unusual card. The background paper was created with Dylusions spray ink and some unknown snowflake stamps - super simple to create! The image is coloured with Tombow markers and Stickles glitter glue. The stripes at top & bottom are some washi-type tape from Michaels. I love the non-traditional colours and image coupled with the traditional snowflakes in the background. I also LOVE the sentiment - haven't we all had one of those days?


Challenges:

Poisoned Peas Please - walking dead
Forever Night - anything goes
Sparkle & Glitter - twisted holidaze

Twisted Trick or Treat

UPDATE:  My card was chosen as one of the Top 3 at Forever Night! I'm just thrilled to be included among such wonderfully creative & creepy cards.

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I'm hoping that my BFF Jacqui is too busy to check any blogs but if not, Jacqui, please stop looking now!

OK, so today I'm sharing the Halloween card that I created for Jacqui and normally I'd wait until it arrived before sharing it on my blog but there are so many challenges right now with Halloween for a theme and I just love entering challenges, so ...

 

Sorry about the picture being a bit blurry but honestly, it doesn't really hurt the look of the card (lol). The card front started as a tag (made a couple of weeks ago in a class at Country Lane). I trimmed the top and then added a couple layers of patterned paper (Basic Grey). The final - and my favourite - touch is the netting wrapped and tied along the top. The net is actually recycled from a Halloween treat bag! I just love the ragged look of the knot. In case you didn't see the first post, the images on the tag are Stampotique and Tim Holtz and the background was created using Dylusions sprays.

 

Challenges:

2 Sisters - Halloween

ATC's and Cards With Attitude - Halloween

Card Makin' Mamas - Halloween

Come and Get It - Halloween

Crafty Calendar - All things spooky w/ optional recycling

Craftymess Challenge - Halloween

Fashionable Stamping - Halloween

Forever Night - Anything goes / picture inspiration (I think my girl has as much attitude! lol)

Loves Rubber Stamps - Get your spook on it's Halloween

My Sheri Crafts - Halloween

Paper Playtime - Boo

Party Time Tuesdays - Trick or Treat

Pile It On - Any holiday

Pink Elephant - Halloween

Sentimental Sundays - Halloween

Sweet Stampin' - Halloween

Top Tip Tuesday - Halloween

Tuesday Throwdown - Halloween



Inky Halloween fun

I have been having such fun attending classes at Country Lane lately. I've now taken 4 classes, all with the amazing Debi, and I so wish there were more I could fit in. The latest class was Halloween Fun and I'm just thrilled with how each turned out. Debi teaches techniques, not card kits, so even though we had her examples to work from, every card in the class turned out a bit different.

These first 2 cards involved creating our own backgrounds using distress inks and stamps. I still can't believe these started as blank white pieces of paper! I particularly love the second card with the 3D tree and creepy bunny. The main stamps are Stampotique and the background stamps are mostly Tim Holtz. The images are coloured with Copic markers. I'm not sure who makes the die cuts for the tree and fence - if I come across them in my travels I'll add later. I love the technique for the first card where we covered the initial stamps (the tree & fence) with masking medium and then created the background. Once the background was finished, I just rubbed off the masking medium - sure easier than trying to cut out these detailed stamps!

This card was incredibly simple. It started with a napkin (yes, a napkin) which we then embellished. I chose to colour the pumpkin eyes/mouths and add a popped-up/cut out head from a Stampotique stamp. Once home I also added a couple layers of black grass using a Martha Stewart border punch. Ever since this class, I've been looking at napkins with a whole different eye!

 And this last project is a fun tag that started with a sprayed background (Dylusions ink) that we then built up for interest. I chose spiderweb and spider stamps along with a Stampotique girl (stamped separately, cut out and glued) and a Tim Holtz apothecary label.

So, aren't these some fun techniques and cards? I've already used the ink background idea for a card I'm making for my niece. And did I mention that I've been noticing napkins a lot more lately? If you like any of these ideas then drop by Debi's blog - she promises to post pictures and instructions!

Challenges:
Catered Crop - Halloween
Corrosive Challenges - Monsters & villians
No Matter Which Challenges - Halloween colours
That Craft Place - Make your own background
Crafty Calendar - All things spooky
Forever Night - Anything but a card
Moving Along With the Times - In the dark
Craft Room Challenge - Alter it (I altered the napkin)
Partytime Tuesdays - Frightfully scary

Awesome recycling

Last weekend I was in a crafting class where we used lots of Dylusions' ink sprays and did lots of blotting to remove colour (to create lovely soft effects). I crumpled the paper towel I used and tossed it in my bag - when I removed it, I realized that the result was a bee-u-ti-ful background. Waste not, want not, right? It took some experimentation to get the paper towel cut evenly (one pointer - using a straight-edge cutter does NOT work, it just tears the towel even if it's glued onto cardstock). I just love the way it looks behind the monkey digi (from Mo's Digital Pencil) though!

Challenges:

• 4 Crafty Chicks - school's out
• Chocolate, Coffee & Cards - anything goes
• Digital Tuesday - amazing animals
• Fetch a Sketch - sketch
• Oldie but Goodie - summer holidays (monkey digi has been sitting coloured in my drawer for a year!)
• Totally Papercrafts - use a digi

Fishing boy

Today's card is based on the current sketch at Stella Says Sketch and uses an adorable Bugaboo digital stamp. I coloured him using Copic markers and the background was created using Dylusions ink sprays (aren't the colours gorgeous!). I love the blues on the bottom of the paper (suggests water) coupled with the browns/reds & green on the top (reminds me of the woods in Autumn). I chose an embossing folder from Cuttlebug for the kraft card base - I think the folder is supposed to be a space design but I thought it was suggestive of ripples in water. I plan to use the card as a thank you for my Dad (he recently helped me with a whole bunch of work around my house). He's an avid fisherman so I think he'll like this little guy.

Challenges:

• Little Red Wagon - kraft
• Paper Crafting Journey - kraft
• Pause Dream Enjoy - 3 of something (3 brads)
• Simon Says Stamp & Show - a bit of brown
• Stella Says Sketch - sketch 

Tags, tags, tags

Debi from Country Lane taught us not to waste ink in last weekend's class. When we were creating our backgrounds for the main project, she encouraged us to capture the extra ink by blotting onto manilla tags. I was pleasantly surprised at how gorgeous the tag backgrounds ended up looking and decided to use them for some additional projects. Debi also taught using magazine pictures as part of interesting collages (wow, didn't we do this in elementary school?) and I LOVED this idea. I have to pay more attention to the crafts my boys are doing in school as there are clearly some great ideas that I've forgotten! Here are the tags that I ended up with...

All 3 tags use Dylusions stamp elements that are coloured with Tombow and Copic markers. The tag backgrounds are all Dylusions spray inks combined with Dylusions stamps. I suspect that I'll end up adapting these tags into cards for Send A Smile 4 Kids but we'll see...
Challenges:

• 2 Sisters - anything goes
• ATC's & Cards with Attitude - anything goes
• Crafts & Me - anything goes
• Creative Belli - anything but a card
• Fat Pages & Cards with Attitudes - anything goes

Inky fun

The kids were with their Dad last weekend and I took full advantage of the time by taking an all-day class at my LSS, Country Lane. The class was "Bold & Kooky" and was all about using Dylusions inks and stamps to create amazing fun projects. The primary project was a small canvas (although I use the word canvas loosely since it was actually a really heavy card) which I ended up adapting into a large card.

The class was very much out of my comfort zone as it was unstructured and imperfect. We started by spraying the heavy card with Dylusions spray inks (I used purple, pink & orange primarily), then adding water and kind of swooshing the inks around. Once the paper was dry we added in stamping elements to create additional interest and then glued on stamped elements. I had a hard time letting myself just go with the process but it was such fun and I love, love, love the backgrounds that were created! I haven't used Dylusions before but have lusted after the stamps for quite a while so this was a great opportunity to give them a try too.

This card is going to be donated to Send A Smile 4 Kids - most of the cards that I make (and most donated) are more suited to kids but I think the Dylusions line is perfect for teenagers. I can hardly wait to play some more!

Challenges:

• ATC's & Cards with Attitudes - anything goes
• Fat Pages & Cards with Attitude - anything goes
• Papercrafting Journey - hand coloured image
• Squirrel & the Fox - sparkle (check out her tiara)
• Stamp and Create - bold & bright
• Use Your Stuff - use some hand-made elements (the background paper!)