Yet Another Present!- 3 of 3

This is the last in my little run of gifts for my friends- at least for a while. This mini-book (and it is mini- only 4" square) was for a friend who loves philosophy and psychology, so I thought I would go all out, and use most of my set of Elusive Images words stamps. I also used patterned paper, for the first time in ages, thinking it would be a quick option. Ha ha, I was so wrong! I found it a real challenge to tie in the printed paper with all of my stamped elements, and in hindsight I feel that it was not textured or tactile enough. But it did give a good surface for stamping on, although you will need to click on the photos to see, as I used Versafine Sepia for all of the stamping, which didn't photograph too well! In real life, you can read every word :-)

Colour: Distress Inks, Versafine, Whispers marker pens
Stamps: Elusive Images (words), Crafty Individuals (everything else)
Papers: Bazzil card, Crafty Individuals, gingham paper from France
Other: Cuttlebug embossing folders, Sizzix 'Sunset' alphabet and tags, linen fabric, mulberry paper, old manila envelope, Flora doodles flowers, old buttons from my box, raffia.

The centre image was stamped onto mulberry paper, then glued onto the linen fabric using PVA. The mulberry paper was almost invisible. The two images either side were stamped onto pieces of an old envelope which I had scrunched up then smoothed out. It was soft and tactile after the scrunching, and took the Distress Inks I used for watercolouring really well.

PS Each of the tags had a phrase on it, too, but my camera was running out of battery life!

Present For a Friend- 2 of 3

This is a present I gave to my best friend and scrapping buddy, Vicky. She has started to commute by train recently, so has suddenly got time to read more. I did a challenge where we were asked to make bookmarks, so I made this bookmark for Vicky, then did the card to go with it. The card uses my three most favourite stamp sets- one of the PaperArtsy Squiggly Ink plates, my new Inkadinkado Scribble Flowers, and the Elusive Images sayings plate.

Colour: Distress Inks, Silver Paint Dabber, Versafine, Stickles
Stamps: Paperartsy, Elusive Images, Inkadinkado, Crafty Individuals (On bookmark)
Other: Silk dupion, laminating pouch, Cosmic Shimmer embossing powder, Papermania gem brad, watercolour crayon background paper.

The flowers were made in the same way as on previous cards, by stamping onto the crayon background paper and cutting out. The bookmark was made by laminating a torn piece of silk dupion fabric, then stamping and heat embossing on the outside of the pouch. I used a silver Paint Dabber in places for added effect- I my do my Christmas cards in the same way, as it looks like a frosted window!

Serendipity

I wasn't planning to blog again today, particularly without a photograph of some creation of mine, but I was skimming the BBC's news website and came across this article. It rambles a bit towards the end, I'm afraid, but I love the point it makes at the beginning, about the meaning of art. Please enjoy.

PS In the case of Tracy Emin, I saw a roomfull of her art at the Tate Modern a while ago. In my opinion, that is art, not pretty but full of emotion and meaning. I hope others get that, too!

A Present For a Friend- Part 1 of 3

I have had a couple of weeks of making presents for friends, luckily the ones who appreciate hand-stamped. This is a little wallhanging for a friend, and I sent it late as I didn't want to send any old stamped thing! All three of these pressies use the same Elusive Images sayings stamps- I can't stop using them!

Colour: Distress Inks, Glimmer Mist, Perfect Pearls, Paint Dabbers, Versafine
Stamps: Tanda, Paperartsy, Elusive Images
Other: Mountboard, metal tape, acetate, piece from necklace, leather thong, silk dupion, Glossy Accents

The shimmer on the stamping was created by swirling Perfect Pearls onto an image stamped with Distress Ink- not when it's too wet, but before it dries. The beads were made using long thin triangles of the silk, wetting them with Glossy Accents, then winding them tightly around a cocktail stick- exactly like making paper beads.

I will try to blog all of the other projects I have been making soon- I have such a backlog of photos as I have been too busy creating!

Here at last- Photos of my Cherry Pie swap!

I love being part of an international group of stampers, and I recently participated in this 4"x4" swap entitled "Tribute to Women". I have watched from the sidelines on many swaps in this group, partly as I didn't feel I had the right stamps to participate (it's Cherry Pie only, and I only had two sets for a while), and partly because of the postage costs. Well, this swap really inspired me, and I am so glad I joined, as you can see what I got in return for making my squares! Marina did a fantastic job of presenting the artwork, and this wall hanging currently has pride of place in my living room.

Participants, from top, left to right: Linda Kilsdonk, Bibi, Brandy Wickham, Linda Jennings, me, Kathy Ronan, Loretta D'Onofrio, Janie Husband, Marina Lenzino, Melanie. All stamps by Cherry Pie.

If you like what you see, click here to go to Cherry Pie's site. Love those stamps!

Birthday Cards- Inspired By...

...Sid and Jo!
I tend not to enjoy card-making at the moment, as I am finding it hard to reconcile my arty-farty, distressed side with the need to make pretty things for people who nothing about my hidden nature! I am quite pleased with these, though, as they have been made using arty and interesting techniques, even though they are essentially cute and pretty.
The first card features Robin Beam's Bandanna technique. Sid did a great step-by-step tutorial, which is on his blog, and he challenged me to have a go. I don't have a lot of solid image stamps, so I tried it with these Inkadinkado scribbled flower stamps, and I love the effect. The card is for a friend's nine-year old daughter, and I think she will like it, especially as I bedecked it with Stickles!
The flower on that card, and the flowers on the second card were made using a technique from Craft Stamper magazine last month, which was from Jo Capper-Sandon. The idea is that you scribble randomly on watercolour paper using water-soluble crayons. I used my ancient set of Caran D'Ache here. Once you have scribbled, you spritz with water, then use a straw to blow the colours around until you have an effect you like. You can keep adding colour and water until you are happy with the finish. I tried this on two different kinds of watercolour paper. The top flower was from a really heavy textured paper, and the effect was very bold. The colours didn't mingle very well. The second card is from the second try (which I remembered to photograph before cutting!), and is on a much smoother finished paper. I was much more able to create a blended effect. In both cases, I stamped in black and cut the flowers out.
Thanks for the inspiration and great tutorials, Jo and Sid!

Stamps: Inkadinkado (flowers), Heidi Swapp (sentiment)
Colour: Caran D'Ache watercolour crayons, Brilliance, Versacolour, Versafine, Ranger Inkessential white pen
Other: Ranger Stickles, braid from my stash.

This morning I have had a huge session cropping and sorting photos of things I have made. I will have lots to show next week! Bye for now!

Another Page for my Altered Board Book

This is the last page of my altered board book- I thought it was safest to work in from both ends, and then decided what to do in the middle if my maths is wrong! And it really isn't my style to start at the beginning and just work straight through to the end, like I should do! This page actually has no Glimmer Mist at all, although it does have Paint Dabbers, dabbed on to create lots of texture. It also uses some of my favourite Paperartsy stamps. stamped onto the letters to create a pattern, and onto the book itself. Everything else is pretty straightforward, for a change, I must have been having a calm and chilled out day!

Stamps: All Paperartsy
Colour: Versamagic, Brilliance, Paint Dabbers
Papers: Basic Grey, Crate Paper
Other: Sizzix Sizzlets alphabet (can't remember which one as it is my friend's), Chipboard letter from cheap shop.