12 Tags of 2015 : February

Last day of February and I have managed to finish my TH tag just in time.
I am not planning on writing details as the step by step tutorial is on Tim's website :
http://timholtz.com/12-tags-of-2015-february/

I really had to do this tag as I already had most of the ingredients. I improvised with the heart as the idea of using the sewing machine that has lived in the cupboard for years is a step too far for me. I loved doing the collage part of this tag and especially like the shadow effect using the black soot distress pen and smudging it around the collage parts. I have added a close-up of that.

Good fun to do this tag and I managed the deadine too!

Romance

I am feeling rather proud to have been recognised as Runner Up in the Artful Times Challenge for my Recycled Christmas card and it reminded me to try much harder to enter these challenges more regularly.

The Challenge 74 is Romance, not unsurprising as it is February. I actually completed this project on the 14th day of Feb and here it is :

Materials used :
MDF heart covered in paper from Tim holtz Menagerie paper stash.
PaperArtsy Fresco Finish paint : Nougat
Tim Holtz mini die : Cupid and heart
InkyDoodles clear stamp sentiment stamped and embossed in black.

I wanted to get a shabby effect on this so dry brushed around the edges of the heart and the die cut images. I used Ranger Glue N' Seal to stick the paper and die cuts on the heart and highly recommend it, best glue I have found for this type of work with a nice matt finish.

New PaperArtsy Products, Brushos and Demos

Having spent some time each evening watching the videos of the new PaperArtsy products launched this month, I was really looking forward to browsing them at The Craft Barn yesterday. I wasn't disappointed, a fabulous new range of plates.
Check out the PaperArtsy blog if you haven't yet seen the examples from the design team :
http://blog.paperartsy.co.uk/

The demos yesterday at the Craft Barn were particularly inspiring this month. The demonstrators are so generous with sharing their knowledge. This month we got to talk with Helen Chilton, Kay Carley and Carol Cockbain demonstrating the new Lynne Perrella stamps, Brushos and Sue Wilson dies.

So, I bought new stuff (no surprise there) and was determined to try the techniques I learned about yesterday. Fortunately I have some Brushos already so here is a little card inspired by Kay's examples. All products used in my projects today are available from The Craft Barn.

I used the same Woodware stamp as in my last post : Bubble Blooms

The image is stamped with a versamark ink pad and embossed with white embossing powder first. Then sprinkle some Brushos, a tiny bit of Brilliant Red first in the flower heads, spritz with water and dry with a heat gun. I added some Leaf Green roughly around the foliage and repeated the same.

To finish off, I added some Stampendous Shabby White embossing enamel. Kay uses that Shabby White a lot on her artwork, nice effect, I love the little gold bits in it. 

Here's a close up :

My second project this weekend was inspired by Helen and for this one I played with my new Lynne Perrella stamp plate : LPC033. I tried Helen's technique of using the same stamp for the background as used for the focal image. My panel is a bit messy but I had loads of fun with it.

The background was made using the same stamp coloured with Distress Markers : Peeled Paint, Broken China and Worn Lipstick. The focal image is stamped with Stazon ink on glossy card and colured with distress markers : Broken China, Worn Lipstick and Squeezed Lemonade. Some of the elements from the LPC033 plate added to the background and border. My Stazon ink pad is a tad juicy so I might try this again using second generation stamping.

I had some of the background left over so made a bookmark:

Many Thanks to Helen and to Kay for the inspiration for the above. I am feeling quite pleased with my crafting productivity this weekend.

Enjoy what's left of Sunday. x