Art in Bloom - My version

After 3 days rest, Saturday proved to be quite busy!

Finished Piece

2 problems in France. 1. Lack of decent Local Store to buy materials to paint on. 2. What do you do  with the boxes once you've drunk the bag dry? Solved both problems, I save the cardboard and simply cut it to an 8 x 4 inch plate and altered it!!

After reading Sue Carrington’s third project of the week on the PaperArtsy blog “Art In Bloom”. I decided to do my version of it for the weekly competition. For the most part I did exactly the same as Sue, cut diamonds, peeled off a bit of the surface ....

scraped on and off some Grunge Paste ....

painted it all with Vanilla Fresco .....

Next, same as Sue, I painted it with Guacamole, wiped back with a baby-wipe. I washed the whole piece with Hey Pesto (again wiped back a bit), spritzed with Blood Orange, stamped with Mini 61, and tried the "bump" technique.... didn't work , well except on the lower diamonds. I used the Andy Skinner Baroque stencil. Buffed Treasure gold Renaissance, Emerald and Ruby on the corners, edges and to highlight the diamonds.

I covered some Grunge paper with newspaper and stamped some JOFY stamps, including the leaves/petals that I used to build the flowers.

Butterfly

Jofy

Also stamped some Ranger Specialty stamping paper..mistake really great for stamping but found it too smooth, the paint didn't adhere well, so it took several coats. I used a variety of colours, Hey Pesto and Hyde Park for the Greens, Vanilla, Zesty Zing, Smoked Paprika, Blood Orange, Claret etc

 I have no foil paper (or at least can't find it in my stash!) so I used gold paint to cover some left over bits of Grunge paper and stamped the text  with black Archival. I used Glossy Accents to stick the pieces together and also to highlight the butterfly and the flower centres.

Flowers at Bottom

Flowers and butterfly

 Happy with the final result. I will try the "Bump" technique with a different stencil and practice on a flat surface first. I think I'll use the corrugated card diamonds again. I really like the Grunge Paste and Treasure Gold combination!

Finished Project

#3UP, #PATWITS challenge by PaperArtsy

#3UP #PATWITS

Shortly after meeting up with the PaperArtsy team In Paris at the beginning of April I started to follow them on Twitter. Not long after that Leandra had as all going with two secret hash-tags, which we added to our Tweets with out Knowing why!

The secret ended up being a mystery parcel of 3 items being sent to #PATWITS with the challenge to make something from those 3 items, but keep it secret, from everyone. Well hard as I could, for once I kept my mouth shut. Yes for over two weeks.......... amazing I know, but now #3up #Patwits is no longer a secret, my challenge went up on the PaperArtsy blog this evening along with three others!

First Challenge

I’m new to this and this is my first challenge, so when I opened my parcel I went , 
“uh huh, ehhh ok! Why, oh why did I say yes?” ..........this lasted for about three days before the inspiration came.... a slow to get started crafter, me I am!

My #3UP ingredients were:

1. 10 x 10cm Artemio frame
2. metal numerals 6(9) & 4
3. and a Tando chipboard key.

I tried to find a connection between the key and the numbers and settled on the idea that there was a lock somewhere that involved the number 64 and therefore needed a lock.

My project

All the “added” pieces are die cut from Grungeboard.I started with the lock. I cut a mini label and a keyhole. I cut the keyhole plate down from an ornate shape to a circle. I stuck some pink newspaper to the label and washed it in Irish Cream and Mocha Mousse Fresco Paints and stamped it with sepia Archival using Mini 75 stamp.

I brushed on Grunge Paste to the keyhole plate and painted it with Mocha Mousse, rubbed on some Copper and Emerald Treasure Gold to get a metal/verdigris look and attached it to the label with brads. I dabbed Blood Orange around the edges of the label

The scrolls were smeared with Grundge paste and buffed with the same colours of Treasure Gold to give a plasterwork effect.

Keyhole plate and scrolls

The numerals were done in exactly the same way as the keyhole adding some Hyde Park. 

Numerals

I painted the key with Chocolate Pudding and then used Copper, Emerald and Ruby Treasure Gold.

 

key

The frame, and a 5 x 5cm piece of Grundgeboard were sponge painted in Nougat, Stone, Irish Cream and Mocha Mousse with Snowflake used through  Mini Bingo (for my 64) & Mini Brocade stencils and a final wash with Hey pesto (love that colour...and the way Leandra pronounces it!). Again I used the same stamp and Archival ink to stamp all around the frame and on the centre card

Bingo stencil and Mini 75 stamping with Sepia Archival

Final Ispiration

When it was assembled I decided there was something missing so I added keyholes on all the surfaces. These are die cut from the same die as the keyhole plate, covered in Treasure Gold Emerald and stamped with the same stamp but using Black Archival this time.

Keyholes added

Everything was given a “dusting” with Ruby and Renaissance Treasure Gold.

Boy did I have fun getting my fingers dirty...

Thanks PaperArtsy!!!
And a big "congratulations" to all the other #PATWITS, lovely work folks!

The finished project

Watch this space!

something special soon!

Project update

I'm starting to be good about making crafting time, space for me at last!!! Here are  before and after photos of the project I started in class at Version Scrap in Paris with Leandra.

before "white washing"

The "whitewashing" was done with thinned down coats of Fresco snowflake (three in all I think) this mutes the colours and pushes them into the background.  Lin Brown's Eclectica stamps for the background.

stamped and painted

the piece was then stamped using black archival and various stamps from the JOFY collection, Jo Firth-Young for PaperArtsy. Coloured in using Fresco paints, mainly the translucent ones. I'll be getting more brushes tomorrow to continue, especially with the Treasure Gold.

Paris in the spring time!

A little update since I haven’t posted in a while. I have been trying to organize my storage space. I did however take time out last weekend (4 whole days) to go to Paris. Despite the freezing cold weather the change of scenery was most welcome. I managed to tackle numerous metro changes entailing kilometers of walking and the most tiring for me the stairs.

I managed to pack in lunches and dinners with family, cinema  - The Place Beyond the Pines - in English - (excellent BTW), a trip to Shakespeare and Company, the iconic English bookshop, a photographic Exhibition, a visit to Les Ateliers de Paris for the arts and trades open day and, on Sunday morning, take in the Eileen Gray exhibition at Beaubourg (Centre Pompidou)

The main reason for going to Paris was to visit Version Scrap, which for those of you who don’t know, is a big 3 day Scrap event held every April in the Parc Floral of the Château de Vincennes.

Version Scrap Paris

Château de Vincennes

I’m not really a 12 x12 guy, prefering tags, inking, stamping, painting, journaling, card making and doing minis, so I was a bit apprehensive about going. Leandra from PaperArtsy send me invitations so I seized the opportunity to do a class, meet Leandra, try out the Fresco paints and see what else was on offering at the show.

It was predominantly scrapbooking but there was a fair amount of stands offering merchandise for mixed media, embellies and the usual paper and die cuts. Fiskars were there with their new machines AdvantEdge for edge punching and Fuse Creative System  for stamping & leterpress, impressive solid and versatile machines, just a pity that their designs are often not that appealing. 

For those of you looking for feet, drawer handles and closures for Cartonnage the Atilolou stand was a must but there were so many people cramming in that I only got close to the merchandise once at the preview evening, for the rest of the weekend it was impossible. Thankfully the sell on-line, so will be filling my basket there. 

Beautiful closures for my cardboard boxes

I bought loads of Fresco Paints and PaperArtsy Stamps, especially the Jofy collection, which we used in Class and in the Make and Take. I'll be trying out all the techniques I learned from Leandra and Lin Brown (if I can remember them).

Make & Take

This is made from a Tando Creative Arabian style Layered Arch Frame (using only one frame)

Painted with Fresco Acrylic Chalk finish paints

stamped with Jofy #11  from the Jofy collection by PaperArtsy Stamps,

 and finished with Treasure Gold

I didn't get time to finish the class project casue I had to leave in time to get the train home, but here is a picture of the midway stage, before "white washing"

More on this project as it comes along!

An all together fun weekend. special thanks to Leandra, Mr PaperArtsy, Lin Brown and Sally Cendral (traductrice hors pair)

Nearly forgot, My 5 seconds of fame (at 1:40)

A collection of great talent at CHA

Here's Tim Holtz showing off his design teams creations....what talent guys!

Lovely new stamps from Dyan

  

Here we go!!

Christmas Origami..

Here's some little Christmas trees that I made last week with the lovely Yuko. I added two more this evening.

Love the transparent one, difficult to fold, but worth it!

Distress Stain ideas from Tim

Well looks like I need to get more mini-misters!!!

Christmas Tags

Well I really did mean to post a blow by blow account (with images) of the design process for this year's tags, but time, work etc. Anyway here they are .

the finished tag from the front

waiting in line to be written ....

Back stamped

the production line!

the pocket which is sandwiched between the two tags

hmmmm needs some colour

The mat finished.

 The basic idea was to use the paper napkins that I've had lying about for a couple of years. I liked the colour and pattern. I peeled off the backing then used Glue ,' Seal to stick it to a tag.

A Joyous Christmas to all!

Happy Thanksgiving

Wow, is it really 9 months since I last posted. Okay getting into gear for Christmas and must craft more! Happy thanksgiving to my American friends