The world is full of beauty.....Fantasy and flowers at Cards in Envy.......

Good morning!

I was really pleased how this artwork photographed! Just how it looks here in front of me at home - bright and beautiful!

I produced this piece for my entry in to one of my absolute favourite challenges - Cards in Envy and their current challenge "Fantasy and Flowers".  

Lets talk you through exactly how I got there.....

I started with a new favourite card stock Bockingford hot pressed card.  The background was first and that was produced with Pebeo Deco Creme paints starting with the lovely pink at the top and blending down with the lavender and then the mine grey.  I then painted on the moon simply with some gesso. I knew that the background had to be kept quite plain due to the drama that I wanted to stamp on to it!

All the stamps used here are from Lavinia Stamps (Queen of fantasy stamping in my view) and the flowers are from Visible Image.

The fairy was first to be stamped on there in order for me to see where the rest of the artwork was going.  I have used versafine black onyx to give me that crisp black image.

I then stamped the lovely trees and some of the flowers directly on to that background but also stamped some of them on to a separate piece of card stock, cut around them and coloured them with alcohol pens.  I added the little inquisitive mice and some dragonflies to add to the feel of everything.

Having coloured in the flowers on the background I then stuck the brightly coloured ones over the top to give depth to where she is walking.

I finally stamped the sentiment (again, Lavinia Stamps) and mat and layered.

How nice to be walking through the flowers with what seems to be, not a care in the world....

I would like to enter this in to the Cards in Envy challenge "Fantasy and Flowers" :-
http://cardsinenvy.blogspot.co.uk/2017/04/fantasy-flowers-card-challenge.html

Thanks for stopping by,

Leanne xx

Frozen in Time..........

Good morning!

Well, did I get messy doing this one or what?!!!!! I decided to take up the challenge over at Stamps & stencils of "Texture, Crackle and Paint" - well, it's right up my alley isn't it!!!!!

I've taken some photo's along the way so lets take our journey and see how I got there with this one:-

OK, so I started off with a medium mdf tag and covered it in Decoart black texture paste.  I waited for it to form a skin on the surface and then stamped a couple of lots of cogs (PaperArtsy) and another PaperArtsy border stamp along the bottom to give me some texture at this stage. Left to dry naturally.

On some acetate (this was not heat proof but strong construction acetate) I stamped this image from Ken Oliver Crafts on to it using Staz On ink.  (I couldn't make my mind up if this was an image of a doll or of a baby??!).  I then painted a two step crackle on to the front of the acetate. The first step is to put on the step 1 medium, wait for it to dry clear and then apply the step 2 over the top (both Decoart) and wait for this to dry naturally and the cracks to appear.

I then painted Decoart paint on to the acetate and wiped back quite quickly so that the ink remained in the cracks that had formed.  By now, you will realise that I was trying to achieve a crazed look on a dolls face.  I then painted Pebeo paint on the back (reverse painting) and this of course, made the whole thing pop. Cut out the image.

Those cogs have now been painted with DecoArt paints and some Powertex pigment mixed with a little Powertex varnish to make them shine.  The upper part of the tag has been overlaid with some acetate which has had some hearts stencilled on to it and some Andy Skinner industrial elements nuts and bolts (hard board) that have again been painted with Decoart paints to give a rusted effect, mounted on top of each other to look more realistic and attached to the tag.  The doll (in this case!) image has been attached on to all of those antiqued cogs and the sentiment of "Frozen in Time" (again, Ken Oliver Crafts) has been embossed with cream embossing powder to help it pop off of the grunge of the tag. Fabric ribbons tied to the top of the tag.

Well, can you guess the colour of my fingers after making this one!!!!! - well, I made this four days ago and my fingers still look like they are bleeding (they ended up the perfect blood colour all over them!!!!!) - my mother even asked what I had done to myself!!!!!!!

Messy? - OH YES!!!!!!!!

I would like to enter this into the following challenges:-

Try It On Tuesday - "Lets Get Messy!":-

http://tuesdaytaggers.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/lets-get-messy-14th-feb.html

Stamps and Stencils - "Texture, Crackle and Paint":-

http://stampsandstencils.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/texture-crackle-and-paint.html

Hope you've like the journey today in to my world of inky fingers!!!!

Thanks for stopping by,

Leanne x

Love......

Good morning!

There is a lot of steps to this card so I hope I can remember what happened and when!

Lets take our usual journey and I'll explain along the way:-

Started with a 7 x 7 Sheena Stamping card and laid down some strips of old patterned paper that I had in my stash - I applied this with decoupage glue.  When dry, I knocked it back with some Decoart Tinting Base and left it to dry (not long).

I then went over the top with two shades of Pebeo Decocreme paints and then a final touch of Decoart Tinting Base to lighten some areas.

Stamped my antique roses (free gift in this months Papercraft Inspirations magazine) in black archival ink.

Partly covered three of the roses with masking fluid - you'll see why in the next step!

Stamped a part face stamp from Inkylicious. (This is why I partly covered some of the roses just in case I caught them while stamping). Then rubbed away the masking fluid.

Woohooo! Now the fun starts!!! Here I've added some texture with some Indigoblu Super Thick Slap It On mixed with bronze Luscious Powder (gives a stunning shine), stamped some hearts, some parts of a script stamp, and faintly in the background, the same roses as the ring in Artistry Ink.

I stamped out the roses six times and over stamped with the Indigoblu script stamp and Artistry Ink - I then cut out the leaves and the flowers and painted them with VERY diluted bronze Luscious Powder.

At this point I had put on some runs of diluted bronze Luscious Powder.  I had added some hearts that had been die cut with a Sissix Bigz Die, I'd paper pieced the roses over the original roses and coloured in some of the leaves with the Luscious Powder.  Stamped the word "Love" (Clarity Stamp) on there too.  All ok so far but that face needed to pop out a bit more for me and I was looking for a face "full of love" so I decided to enhance the face, both the side that we see here and had stamped and added part of the other side of the face freehand!

There! A WHOLE FACE!!!! I have tried to have the "look of love" in those eyes.

It's a mixed media piece of artwork with plenty going on.  I had a ball making this card and the colour of my fingers was quite impressive too by the time I'd finished it!!!!

Hope you've enjoyed our journey today.

I would like to enter this in to the following challenges:-

Allsorts Challenges - "Paper Piecing":-

http://allsortschallenge.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/week-401-paper-piecing.html

Try It On Tuesday - "Flowers and Hearts":-

http://tuesdaytaggers.blogspot.co.uk/2017/01/hearts-and-flowers-31st-jan.html

Moving Along With The Times - "Ring O' Roses":-

http://movingalongwiththetimes.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/38-ring-o-roses.html

The Artistic Stamper Creative Team Blog - "Love Hearts":-

http://theartisticstampercreativeteam.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/februarys-creative-challenge-love-hearts.html

Craft Stamper - "Anything Goes":-

http://craftstamper.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/take-it-make-it-challenge-february.html

Fussy and Fancy Challenges - "Fussy and Fancy":-

http://fussyandfancychallenge.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/challenge-180-fussy-and-fancy.html

CreativeArtiste Challenge - "Anything Mixed Media Goes":-

http://creativeartistemixedmedia.blogspot.co.uk/2017/02/welcome-to-creative-artistes-challenge.html

Thanks for stopping by,

Leanne xx

An Oriental Thank You.....

Good morning!

A quick mid week post again this week. This is a postcard that I have made for Sunday Postcard Art's theme this week of Oriental.  Shall I let you into a secret?.......I don't have many Oriental crafting items at all!!!!!!! So this is how you "make something out of nothing"!!!!!!!

I started on a piece of 6 x 4 inch Sheena Stamping Card and blended my sky down from the top with distress inks and my ink dusters.  I then met that sky with hills inked with torn paper until they met, leaving a nice bright bit of sky just over the hills.

The trees were stamped in black Momento ink (Inkylicious) and the oriental grasses (the only oriental stamps I'd got!) were stamped across the front and falling in from above. These stamps are from Chocolate Baroque.  The small pagoda was hand drawn with black india ink (this is what we call improvising!).  

Trees and leaves were coloured using distress ink and the moon was done using Pebeo Decocreme paint.

Stamped my sentiment of thank you (Chocolate Baroque) and the birds (Inkylicious).

Edged with distress ink.

There!  How to produce an oriental scene with very few oriental tools!!!!! (Think I got away with it - don't you?!!!). I'm glad I did because I do like Sunday Postcard Art, it makes you stretch the imagination and I hope that by doing that to me, I inspire others.

Thanks for stopping by,

Leanne xx