Dragon care

 Today I got inspired by colors, quirky characters and the call for distressed paper (but make it cute). Let's see...

This is what I pulled out. I haven't used this dragon mama for ages (if ever?) I bought it in a charity shop last year and have no idea of the maker, sorry. I also selected the pencils to match the color inspiration. That picture (see below) has also waves, and this inspired me to grab a piece of corrugated cardboard, as this would also answer to the call for distressed paper. The die cuts from my ready stash are lined up, too, as is my sentiment stamp collection. Not shown is the roll of lace paper which I grabbed later.

 

I started by stamping and coloring the dragon mama and her baby, then I fussy cut it. (I love my Cutter bee scissors for that, they go snip-snap and the cut is ready in no time.) I then glued the piece of corrugated cardboard in place and flicked some color around the card (Abandoned coral). 

Then I placed a piece of paper lace onto it, twirled a bit of linen thread and placed the dragon on top. I selected two die cuts, and placed the sentiment between the die cuts and the dragon's head. It reads: I will always be there for you.

Entering this in these inspiring challenges:

Pinspirational: #340 Jade and peach

 

Conjurer of Dreams: #23 Quirky characters & Anything goes - I'd like to think this dragon is quirky!

Let's Craft and Create: #234 AG+ Distressed paper

Creative Moments: #285 Make it cute 

Daisy Chain Challenge: #110 Animals

Kleuren met potloden: Augustus alles mag /AG August

Critter Crazy: #113 AG with featured critter(s) 

Find your song

 The starting point for today's card was the prompt 'use envelopes'. This was the nudge I needed to get out the stash of envelopes I have been meaning to work with... some day. The second challenge that led my way was a sketch and the third one was the theme 'nature'. 

This was my desk when I started: circular dies, pressed flowers and windowed envelopes. (It was that glassine window I wanted to work with!)

I didn't need much in terms of paper, a few remnants from an earlier used sheet were enough. I cut the circles twice and glued the bottom one on one envelope window, then applied some glue onto the flower and pressed it against the glassine. Then I glued another envelope window on top, waited till everything was dry and cut the circles out very neatly. Lastly I glued the purple circle on top of this floral sandwich. 

 

I placed the circles according to the sketch I was using, the smallest is raised with a foam strip. The sentiment comes from a bird collection (via Creative Stamping magazine), but I found it suited the rather poetic mood of this card.

 

Entering this in these wonderful challenges:

Little Red Wagon: #870 Card plus / Use an envelope

Freshly Made Sketches:  #748

 

 

 

 

 

Simply Clean & Simple: #SCAS August AG w/ option Nature - I am playing with this option

Just Us Girls: #835 AG w/ die cuts

 

 

 

Creative Artiste Mixed Media Challenge: #129 AG mm

and as I used snippets/ remnants today I am showing this in the

Snippets Playground: #538 AG 

 

Shiny and earthy for your birthday

 Yesterday I made a square non-white card to fit certain challenges. Then I thought: what if I change one parameter of those four (of yesterday's card) and see what else I can do?

I removed the color challenge and kept 'blooms' and the 'square non-white card' requirement. I added stencil and shine. Out came the supplies:

 

I brayered a background paper first with cream, then pearlescent white acrylic paint. When it was dry I stenciled over it with gold paint. I cut it to size, then die cut the flower silhouettes from white card stock. I painted two of those with brown and left one white. Lastly I adhered the sentiment "Congratulation". 

 

This card became completely diffrent from yesterday's.

 I am entering this in these lovely challenges that were my inspiration today:

Seize the Birthday: #331 Square card, non-white base (2nd entry)

TioT: Summer blooms (2nd entry)

Just Us Girls: #833 Stencils week 

 

Creative Moments:  #284 Shimmer and shine

Creative Artiste mixed media: #128 AG Mixed Media

#woodblockstamps

 Woodblock stamps - you gotta give them some love. I still have quite a few from my early days of paper crafting. They are beautiful - but as they are stored in a box it is difficult to remember what I own. I was overjoyed to find a challenge that will, hopefully, activate my usage.

Today I picked a large heart stamp as my focal point. I can't remember when I used it last. It has no markings anywhere, so I don't know whom it is by.

 I stamped the giant love-heart onto a piece of card stock that I had brayered with acrylic paints in a few colors, resulting into a marbled look. The stamping was done in Versafine ink (in turq) which was then embossed with a clear embossing powder. I selected a pink matting layer to go with both the theme (love) and the other stamped items.

For challenge purposes, the bird was stamped with hero Arts Color layering stamp set CM552, the text says "hugs".

Entering this in the following challenges that I used as my guideline:

Allsorts Challenge: #765 Anything but square

Stay Crafty with a blog named Hero: Something old is new again - for me it's the use of mixed media

Stamping Sensations: Mood board - I was inspired by red, pink and birds

Simon Says Monday Challenge: Have a heart

#Woodblock Wednesday January challenge

New again

Something old that's new again: I have been neglecting my mixed media work lately. What is actually new: the stencil. I treated myself to a Christmas calendar that had a stencil for each day. That makes 24 shiny new stencils to play with.

I started with a background that had random streaks of paint on it. I covered it with a stencil and some Simon Hurley Lunar paste (Slippery when wet, a lovely gold tone) to get some texture. When the paste had dried I sprayed the background with blue ink.

The card didn't need much else. I wrote a sentiment onto a die cut oval, and because it did look like it needed something I used 7 little half pearls in iridescent blue. I am definitely a pearl person, I love that subtle sheen whereas jewels feel too gaudy.

Entering the card into these lovely challenges that inspired me today:

As You Like It: What's your favorite, pearls or gems

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge: Add some texture 

Double D: Sparkle and/or shine

NBUS: #58 January schtuff

 

Thank you for your visit!

Mixed media for Christmas

 Today I wanted to play with acrylics and metallic flakes. I have a set of mixed metals, gold, silver, brass and bronze. Back when I purchased it, seven years ago, I thought I would just pick my metals, but it is not that easy. These metal flakes are small and have static,, they cling everywhere they are not supposed to. Anyway, I made two backgrounds, a pink and a pale turq.

I was inspired to pull out my old rubber stamps with musical notes. I purchased them as long ago as 2007 from Above the Mark.  I used two die cut snowflakes, a golden one in the back and the one cut from my gold flake card stock in front. I also used a Altenew circles border stencil for the side strips.

Entering this into these lovely challenges that served as my guide and inspiration:

Simon Says Stamp: Use dies in Die-cember

CreativeArtistes Challenge: #100 Anything mixed media goes

Retro Rubber Challenge: #rrcb 221   - I was inspired by the sheets of music

Shopping Our Stash:  #SOS511 Whatever weather - it is snowy weather!

Atlantic Hearts Challenge: #555 sketch --- I went very literal with the sketch, it was just too beautiful!

Thinking of you

Some sad news from a dear friend prompted to make card as a pick-me-up. I have a new stamp set that comes with this large bird and also the leaves. I stamped them onto black card stock. Then I embossed the leaves with mixed metallic embossing powder and the bird with clear. I colored the bird in with metallic markers and used a collaged background.

The text mimics the colors of fall leaves.

Entering this in:

Allsorts Challenge: Week 754 Friendship

Inspiration Station: Inspiration photo. I was inspired by the colors and leaves.

Shopping Our Stash: #509 Emboss like the boss

The Card Concept: #201 Fall leaves - I took mine from the leaves, and used the colors.

Happy happy

 Today it is a happy happy birthday card which I made from strategically cut gelli plate pulls. The text stamp is an old one, wishing Double Happiness.

I am entering this into challenges that inspired me today:

Woodblock Wednesday: July challenge - this inspired me to pull out my old Paper Source stamp

Simon Says Monday Challenge: We can see clearly - I put the sentiment on vellum.

We Love to Create Mixed Media: #7 AG 

Addicted to Stamps and More: #451 make your mark

 

Thank you for your visit and comments, I truly enjoy reading them.

Tea Bag Wisdom

 For ATC's (Artist Trading Cards) anything is game. So *of course* I collect stuff that I think I can use on these small 2.5" by 3.5" gems. Tea bags or tea bag envelopes have text and peppy saying these days. Of course I have some of them put by.

I started the background with acrylics, first by swiping with a credit card, then through a stencil. The tea bag wisdom really dictated the imagery.

Fusspilz

Thank you for visiting!

kaa-oo

Entering this into:

ATC around the World: #103 Bunt / Colorful

The Outlawz Paper à la Mode Challenge: July Challenge / not a greeting card 

Silpputehdas ATC Challenge: Pitipäs sattua

A collection of fish

 This set of ATC cards was created using a cereal box as substrate, in fact you can still see a bit of the bar code behind one fish.  I lightly sanded the background so it takes color better. 

 

After painting the background with acrylics I for the fish and applied different colors. Then I removed the stencil and stamped the fish with black ink and heat embossed them with Psychedelic transparent emboss powder.

It makes the fish glitter and glimmer. Lastly I applied "waves" through a (flower!) stencil, stamped a bit of background noise and applied the collector numbers.

Entering this into challenges that inspired me:

ATC around the world: Im/am Meer

Make my Monday: On water

Creative Artist Mixed Media. #94 

The Outlawz Paper Challenge: He's some guy 

Simon Says Monday Challenge: Pick a number

 

Thank you for your visit!

Christmas moods

 There are so many ways to do Christmas cards. This year I am going with critters, non-traditional at that. I am not a dog person, but this stamp set was too cute to pass by. (there are three different ones in this.) This dog seems a bit rowdy and a bit messy and I know just the person who will love to receive this card for Christmas.

I splattered a blue background paper with some bleach to create a messy mood suitable for this rowdy dog who also sports a red Christmas hat. A large die-cut snowflake and a hand stamped sentiment reading Merry Christmas complete the card.

The color inspiration came from Hand Stamped sentiments #304 challenge mood board. I am linking it even though I was too late to enter.

I am entering my card into these challenges:

The idea of creating a mood to suit the recipient came from here:

Paperminutes: #772 Winter, Weihnachten, Stimmungen

And the use of a non-traditional animal on a Christmas card was inspired by As You Like It

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge: AG

Dragonfly Dreams: Christmas

Through the Craft Room Door: AG November 22nd

 

Thanks so much for visiting!

Whale hello there!

This cheery Congrats or Happy birthday card (the sentiment can mean either) was made with several gelli printed papers and my new stamps.

I am entering it into these lovely challenges:

Use your stuff - #452 Mood board

Simon says Stamp Wednesday challenge- Make your own background

Double D Challenge - Creatures in or under the sea 

NBUS Challenge - AG / never been used - these new stamp sets. I used the waves and the banner (which is hiding beneath the top of packaging) from the first set and the whale from the second one.

 

Hey Courageous!

This industrial style card has loads of grungy texture. First, there is the embossed background. It's done on a antique gold cardstock which I then messed up with black acrylics.

The letters were die cut from canvas. I then painted them black, applied some bronze and green, and to top it off, black mica flakes.

Lastly I applied industrial style brads, a TH token 'Courageous' and a real rusty washer. And I call it finished.

 Entering it in:

Frilly and Funkie: Industrial/ grunge

Can You Handle the Pressure: AG Embossing / Twist: use green - technically I used green here, but as it's not showing, let's go without the Twist option

Mixed media Lovers: #12

613 Avenue. AG /twist April showers - I didn't use the twist

Simon says Wednesday Challenge: AG

Happy happy

 Inspired by the spring light I made an exuberantly happy birthday card for a dear recipient.

I started off by pulling a page on my gelli plate using blue, white and some lemon yellow. I love the technique using stencils, as you can combine colors and get  positive and negative aspects of the stencil. I used very dry color as to texturize the background and give it a slightly distressed look.

Then I pulled another gelli print, this time just with a few colors (yellow, green, turq) but not a stencil. When it was dry I stamped the butterflies and fussy cut them.

I had quite a fun time combining stamped words. The three smaller ones are from a scrapbooking set, the bigger ones from Stampers Anonymous CMS 325 sheet.

 

entering in:

We love Stamping:  Anything (stamped) spring

Addicted to Stamps and more: #424 Any occasion

We love to Create: Anything mixed media

Beyond the Blue: BB57 Texture 

Through the Purple Haze: #190 It is Sweet

Something yellow

 I just love challenges that, well, challenge me. At Frilly and Funkie the brief is to do something or use something that you find challenging.

For me it's the color yellow. I like to use many other colors but not yellow.

So I used it, and found out it needs rather strong colors as counterparts, but even when combined with a riot of colors it still manages to hold its own.

All leaves are cut from papers that I first made with a gelli plate. I used acrylics and printed paper as my substrate. I find the print gives the color a nice structure.  The flax twine is from my knitting stash, it miraculously matched the color of the yellow twig and brings a whole other dimension to the mix.

The sentiment was stamped and then heat embossed.

 

 I'm entering this card into:

Frilly and Funkie: A rather blustery day

Fab 'n Funky: #546 Dies or Stencils - dies!

Creative Artiste: #80 Anything Mixed Media 

HLS: Anything goes with Dies Challenge 

A happy little note

 - is what the text strip announces. I was inspired to use colors from the current Color Throwdown challenge. My papers are most likely to be gelli printed, and this is what I used.

 

I stamped each tree onto a different color, then heat embossed it with clear embossing powder and cut it out and arranged onto a card.

As this fits into several fall themed challenges I will be entering it into these:

More Mixed media: AG with optional orange - I am using this option

Mixed Media Lovers: #6 Challenge

Uniko Challenge: #67 AG with twist of autumn colors

Make My Monday: #158 Embossing - either

Color Throwdown: keyword #ctd663