'Tis The Season

Hi and welcome. Today I have a seasonal card. I am in the midst of lots of deadlines but I have taken a few hours break to make a few more seasonal cards.

I created a textural card using a bauble stencil along with texture paste. I applied the texture paste randomly to give more texture to the design.

I then sprinkled some Infusions 'A Bit Jaded' onto my card and then spritzed with water. I am using a 300gsm card so this can take all the medium that I am applying.

I also added a touch of the Infusions to the inside of my card just to add a little more detail to my design.

I love the touches of walnut in the Infusions, it adds to the vintage feel of the card.

I added some Distress Crayon Salty Ocean around the outside of my bauble and smudged with a finger. I also included a ChitChat Sticker and an Adornment Star embellishment. I added a few scribbly lines around the outside of my card for a touch more detail.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Tracy
xxx

A Vintage Journey - Tag Friday

As there are five Fridays in March we have a Tag Friday post for you this week. Pop over to A Vintage Journey to see my fellow team members artwork.

I decided to decorate one of Tim Holtz Etcetera tags using Seth Apter's monoprint technique. I use this technique usually with acetate for Distress Inks but thought I would try Seth's adaptation using card.

There are so many layers of paint on this tag that I have lost count. Adding paint in this way gives fantastic texture to the design and each piece is unique. I used Seth's paints Mud Splat, Green Patina, Smoked Paprika and Key Lime from his PaperArtsy range. I did begin by adding a random layer of Mud Splat paint to the background using a paintbrush but I did not think about this too much and left some open areas that were not covered with the paint. I then began layering the paint over and over, applying the paint to a piece of card and then pressing the card onto the background of the tag, using different pressure each time.

I used one of Seth Apter's Wood Chips for the centre piece which I painted with Green Patina and then added Mud Splat using the monoprint method. I love how random this technique is and it really does take away the thinking process of applying paint. I also added a vintage wood/bone domino wrapped with rusty tin wire for added interest. I have also included an embroidery hoop for added dimension.

From this picture you can see all the fabulous texture and layers I have added to the design. I also included some twisted rusty tin wire using Eileen Hull's Twist and Style Tool along with a Tim Holtz Quote Chip.

For me texture really adds to a design and this piece really has texture in abundance from many layers of paint and added wooden pieces and rusty wire.

I also included two more vintage dominos to the bottom of the tag along with more rusty tin wire.

One of Tim Holtz Paper Dolls sits nicely on the rusty tin wire and finishes the tag perfectly for me.

Thanks so much for stopping by. Tracy x x

Dreamer!

Today I have been creating with Trish Latimer's WhimsyGirl Three, one of Trish's newly released stamps, which you can find HERE.

I opted to use Trish's stamp in conjunction with PaperArtsy Infusions to give her a mixed media feel.

I applied Grunge Paste through one of Tim Holtz number stencils and then added the Infusions to colour; layering the colour bit by bit until I was happy with the depth.

I applied Grunge Paste through Tim Holtz Stars Layering Stencil onto her dress and again coloured with Infusions. I added two layers to her dress for added dimension. She is also holding a small wooden star to echo the stars on her dress.

I added white highlights with a white pen and added splatters of white paint to add contrast to the design.

I also added a circle of white paint using an old lid along with a touch of shading around the edge of the Whimsy Girl using Pumice Stone Distress Marker. The circle of paint acts as a spotlight to the image. I added a touch of colour to her face and hair with pencil crayons.

Thanks Trish for the opportunity to use one of your fabulous stamps.

Tracy
xxx

Eileen Hull Art With Heart Challenge

I can't believe another month has passed by and we are now onto March, wow time really is passing by so quickly. Anyway I digress, a new month means the start of a new challenge for the Design Team with Eileen Hull's Art With Heart Challenge.

This month the Design Team are showcasing Sizzix Paper Leather Sheets and Inksheets which come in White, Black, Red,  Silver, Gold and Green . To use the Inksheets you need an Inksheets Transfer Pad. There is also a starter kit available HERE.  I decided to create a piece using Eileen Hull's Passport Book Die.

I began by die cutting the front and back cover and spine for the Passport Book, die cutting from the Paper Leather Sheets.

I then embossed each of the die cut pieces with Tim Holtz Keyboard Texture Fade and I then sanded the raised areas very lightly.

To highlight the raised areas and add to the aged feel I rubbed over the embossed areas with Vintage Photo Distress Ink, applying the ink directly from the inkpad.

To add further to the ageing process I spritzed each die cut piece with Walnut Stain Distress Spray Stain, mopping up the excess ink with kitchen towel and then drying with a heat tool.

I then bent the die cut pieces to add creases and then applied Gathered Twigs Distress Ink over the creased areas to add further to the leather/aged feel. I also applied Gathered Twigs Distress Ink to the edges of each piece.

I then began decorating the pages for the inside of my Passport Book. For a couple of the pages I added embossed detail using the Inksheets. I used the Tim Holtz Keyboard Texture Fade once again. I am using the BigShot Plus so I used my Platform, Adapter B, Inksheets Transfer Pad, then the Texture Fade with my book page inside with a piece of the white Inksheet on top of the card with the glossy side facing up and then the final cutting pad on top and then run through the machine to emboss.

This shows the embossing and the inksheet next to it.

I spritzed the embossed pages with Walnut Stain and Broken China Distress Spray Stains and then dabbed the excess ink up with a piece of kitchen towel. The embossed area which has the Inksheets applied will resist the ink and leave white highlights.

This is the page completed in the book, as you can see the white areas have resisted the ink.

Inksheets are also fantastic for turning your thinlits dies into stamps. Here I have used Tim Holtz Handwritten Journey Words. Again I am using the BigShot Plus so I have used my Platform, Adapter A, then the Inksheets Transfer Pad, my book page or the card you are using, a black Inksheet with glossy side facing upwards and then the thinlits die facing down and then Cutting Pad on the top and then run through the machine.

As you can see the black ink has been transferred to the page and the die now acts as if I have stamped the sentiment onto my page.

I repeated the same process with a second word, using the same Inksheet.

And the second word is now transferred to my page. The Inksheets add a further interest and use to your thinlits dies.

I also used the black Inksheets with my Texture Fade.

On this page you can see I used the 'discover' die with a white Inksheet; spritzed with Distress Spray Stains and the wording applied with the Inksheets resists the ink and shows in white.

I machine stitched my front and back covers along with the spine to add further interest and texture and I also included a Tim Holtz Baroque Frame which I painted with Titanium White, Cobalt Teal Hue and Carbon Black DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics; applying the paints with my finger and dabbing off the excess paint with kitchen towel. I also added one of Tim's Found Relative images behind the frame.

A circular piece of rusty tin wire has been added around my focal image along with some vintage pen nibs either side of my 'ADORE' sentiment stamped onto tape, which I have aged with Vintage Photo Distress Ink. I also added splatters of Titanium White Fluid Acrylic.

This picture shows all the layers and texture in more detail.

Each page of the book has been sprayed with Distress Spray Stains and I have added delicate stencilling using a PaperArtsy stencil by Lin Brown; applying DecoArt Titanium White over the stencil.

A touch more stencilling to this page along with more splatters of Titanium White paint.

One of my favourite Tim Holtz stamps added to this page, coloured with Vintage Photo Distress Ink.

A few touches of white paint to lift the whole design.

Inksheets detail using thinlits dies.

Thanks so much for stopping by. Tracy x x

New Release PaperArtsy - Kim Dellow

Well I am absolutely thrilled to be here with you today showcasing two new releases from PaperArtsy designed by Kim Dellow.

This is the first piece I created for Kim brayering the background with Hey Pesto, Chartreuse, Cheesecake and a touch of South Pacific Fresco Finish Paints.

This is the first of Kim's releases and I have to say I was really taken with the small birds at the bottom and they are the focal point for this first piece.

I applied South Pacific Fresco Finish Paint first to my white card, brayering lightly over the background and then I applied Hey Pesto, Chartreuse and then touches of Cheescake, each time applying only a light pressure to apply the paint with a brayer so that all the layers of paint are visible.

I coloured the birds with coloured pencils and added touches of white with a white Sharpie pen.

I added touches of Autumn Fire Fresco Finish Paint using an old credit card to add scratchy lines to the background. I am loving these colours combined together.

This next card uses both of the releases from Kim.

This is the second of Kim's releases, I love the quirky flowers and those hedgehogs are adorable!

I applied book pages from an Alice In Wonderland book to a piece of white card and then placed die cut circles to the background, holding in place with low tack tape. I then brayered over the background with Fresco Finish Paints, South Pacific, Hey Pesto, Chartreuse and Cheescake, applying in that order.

I stamped imagery from both of the new sets, stamping with Black Archival Ink and then colouring each one with coloured pencils. I highlighted the circles with a black charcoal pencil.

I also aded delicate splatters of Autumn Fire Fresco Finish Paint to the background and stamped the word GROW using a part of the sentiment in the second set of stamps.

My third piece is a canvas. To begin I added some crumpled tissue paper, recycled from my package from PaperArtsy. I then applied Fresco Finish Paints to the canvas with my fingers, blending here and there with a baby wipe.

I added stamping around the edge of my canvas.

I used Kim's background stamp to add further layers of interest to the canvas and outlined the flowers with a charcoal pencil.

Splatters of paint have also been added along with scratchy lines using an old credit card.

I stamped part of the sentiment onto card coloured with Fresco Finish Paint and then cut out each one and added to the canvas for added interest and dimension.

My next card features the fabulous branches and those quirky birds once again showcased in a painty circle stamped with a lid and Autumn Fire Fresco Finish Paint.

For added texture I included machine stitching to the stems of the branch and some random stitching to the card.

I coloured the quirky birds once again with coloured pencils and grounded them with a touch of shading with a grey pencil.

I had an old piece of sequin waste on my desk and used that to add a touch of delicate stencilling in the background using Cheesecake Fresco Finish Paint, applied with a piece of Cut 'n' Dry Foam.

For my final piece I created a tag accordion again brayering the background with Fresco Finish Paints.

What I love about this imagery is that it can stand alone or be mixed with other imagery. The background stamps will be really good fillers for backgrounds too.

I added shading to the quirky flowers with coloured pencils and added a touch of background stamping with Autumn Fire Fresco Finish Paint.

Thanks so much Kim and Leandra for the opportunity to use your fabulous imager, I  had great fun!

There is also a fabulous video below.

•

Tracy xxx