I do like to be beside the seaside.

A quick post from me today, my entry in this week's Less is More challenge for week 187 where there is a song theme : "I do like to be beside the seaside".

Clear stamp from Acid Drops and Whatnots.

Image coloured with Promarker pen : poppy.

Panel matted on centura pearl black card and all mounted on a white deckle edge card.

Artful Times Challenge 62 - Sewing

The first set of Tim Holtz stamps that I ever purchased was Haberdashery so it was nice to revisit that set for the Artful Times challenge this fortnight. I decided to make a tag for my entry. Everything used on the tag with the exception of the word Couture uses Tim Holtz Ranger products. The word stamp was a silicon clear stamp, see the difference in sharpness when using exactly the same dye ink. I have to say, the red rubber is far far superior.

The background was made using distress stains : squeezed lemonade, pumice stone and antique linen, spritzed with water and dried with a heat gun. I then edged the tag with vintage photo distress ink.

Using pumice stone DI, I used the "Measured" stencil and then stamped the images in black archival ink and Red Pepper Adirondack dye ink.

The Tim Holtz Sizzix On the Edge die : Sewing was used to cut the embellishment for the bottom of the tag. This was coloured with distress stains and distress ink and glossy accents added to the scissors. I added three red buttons to finish off and the stitched ribbon.

Not wanting to waste any of the stain and ink I had left on my craft mat, I made a matching ATC.

This was fun.

Have a great bank holiday weekend wherever you are.

Playing with Stencils

Today I did some experiments with my JOFY flower stencil. Ink, paint and doodling, lots of fun. They all ended up on cards which is handy as I have a few birthday cards to send this month.

This one is stencilled with PaperArtsy Fresco Finish paints. The base flower is mermaid and the then I added Beach Hut over the top. Beach Hut is a translucent paint so the effect is quite interesting. There is a doodle flower on one of the new JOFY stamp sets that fits over the stencil flower but I don't have that set so I drew the doodle flower and added a few highlights in Haystack paint. Mounted on Kraft card with Happy Birthday sentiment.

The second card is the same base flower in Mermaid paint but I wondered what would happen if I added distress ink on top.

Peacock feathers distress ink on the flower overlay and highlights of Haystack paint. This one was supposed to have been a one layer card but I made a bit of a mess. I salvaged it with a Spellbinder hexagon die, mounted it on ribbed Kraft card and I think it works.

So, what does it look like using ink instead of paint?

This one has Tumbled Glass DI applied to the base flower and Peacock Feathers DI for the flower laid over the top. The image is crisper. I liked the blobs of Haystack paint added before so did the same with this one. The sentiment is coloured with Promarker pens to match the flower and the panel mounted onto a Kraft card.

This is a nice stencil. There are 4 flowers, a base flower and 3 that can overlay it to build up layers. 

PaperArtsy stencil PS009.

Go see the designer's samples at Jo Firth-Young's blog.

New JOFY Stamps!

Four new sets of JOFY stamps were launched at the Craft Barn demo day yesterday where I spent a lot of time deliberating over which should come home with me. I chose a Christmas set as I am determined this year as always to start making my cards early. August is pretty early don't you think.
Here is the card I made this afternoon.

The baubles are big. I like the sketchy images so left them black and white and just stamped the word JOY on some Studio Light paper, cut it out and added the letters to one of the baubles. Merry Christmas is stamped on the same paper and cut into a banner, doodles (oops, shaky hand today) around the edge and mounted on matching paper.
This set is JOFY 28. Should I invest in one of the other new sets? One of the flower sets? Probably!
For those of you who like Jo's design's and could not make it to the Craft Barn yesterday, I took a photo of the samples at the demo. That lovely turquoise flower is made using a flower stencil and the second limited edition set of JOFY paints, the colours are delicious, I think I need those paints on my shopping list.

Artful Times Tag

I was over the moon to be runner up for the Artful Times challenge 59 : A Postcard from Abroad, I enjoy those challenges and look forward to seeing what the design team and participants come up with.

Challenge 60 is a tag, sounds straightforward doesn't it, except not so easy for me as I feel guilty about tags!
I have not posted any for a very long time and there is a reason for this. In 2012, I agreed to do an Alpha Tag swap with my friend Sally, one tag for each letter of the alphabet. Sally completed her set and sent them to me last Autumn. I have yet to complete mine (9 to go, I'm getting there). I WILL finish them and when I do there will be 26 of them to post here.

Having said that, I just have to play along with the Artful Times challenge so this afternoon I made a tag.
Here it is:

Background : Distress inks in Peeled Paint and Shabby Shutters, a few water drops flicked onto the tag.

Foliage stamped using Peeled Paint DI - Zendoodles String Theory set CICSA6192

Kaisercraft Butterflies stamped in black versafine ink.

The sentiment is from a Butterfly Kisses set.

Some die cut leaves added - Tim Holtz Spring Greenery (love that die, one of my favourites).

The ribbon is stained with peeled paint distress ink to match and a few dots of green distress stickles added for a bit of interest.

I hope you like it, and Sally, if you read this, I really am working on the tag project, I have not forgotten!

A Postcard from Abroad

The Artful Times challenge 59 is A Postcard From Abroad.
I love mail art and had so many ideas for which country I would choose but in the end I choose Holland as it is less obvious and Dutch things are really so nostalgic for me. I had an Aunt who was married to a Dutchman. She spent 6 months of her year in Holland and 6 months in Cornwall and when she came back, she always brought gifts. I wonder how many little Dutch windmills are in people's houses in Cornwall due to my Aunt's gifting. I also had the misfortune of owning a pair of clogs, mine were red, the real wooden type - very uncomfortable.

Here is my entry for the challenge, my postcard from Holland.
The focal image is a windmill stamp called Delft Style Windmills from Katy Sue Designs stamped in Denim Adirondack dye ink and colour tinted with salty ocean distress marker. Salty ocean distress ink applied with a duster brush. The postcard stamp is a Tim Holtz one.

When I think of Holland I think of the blue and white of the Delft china and, of course, orange. I wanted to add some tulips to my postcard but have no tulip stamp but .... I remembered a Mariane Designs embossing and cutting folder that I have which has tiny tulips. The tulips are the waste from that cut and emboss folder, they took an age to pick out of the die and were devils to pick up, so tiny. The stamp is from a sheet of vintage images from my stash and the flowers were made using a Martha Stewart punch  with tiny orange gems in the middle.
Phew .... my postcard is done, and I loved doing this challenge.

Earth Tones

Earth Tones is the theme for this week's Less is More challenge. Resisting the temptation to produce yet another Autumnal leaves card as I'm pretty sure I did one of those last year for a Less is More challenge, I decided to use earth tones for the background on my card.

I used a Memory Box designer stencil with TH Distress Inks applied with some cut and dry foam on Crafty Individuals coated cardstock. Lovely result, the colours blend so well on that card.

The focal images are die cut from Crafters Companion Centura Pearl card, the poodle is mounted on 3D foam. These are lovely quality dies from Frantic Stamper purchased from Oyster Stamps with my winnings from the Artful Times Challenge last month.

Summary of Materials Used:

Precision Cutting Die by Frantic Stamper Inc. - FRA-DIE-09093 Toutou the French Poodle

Precision Cutting Die by Frantic Stamper Inc. - FRA-DIE-09091 Loretta

Memory Box designer stencil - Texture Mesh 

Centura Pearl black cardstock

Coated cardstock from Crafty Individuals

Tim Holtz Distress Inks : Vintage Photo, Ripe Persimmon and Wild Honey