Creative Carte Blanche: Witchy Woman

Happy to be joining Creative Carte Blanche with their challenge Witchy Woman.

Well her is witchy woman as a young girl!

I think you can just see the gold gilding highlights in places.

Good to be playing again. It does the soul good.

Less is more: Challenge #298 Theme

SPIDERS!

Just had to get Spider Girl out for this challenge. Love the simplicity of this stamp. She looks just as I was as a little girl. A real minx. Of course I had to add some smudges as tom boys are never without these.

Thank you once again Simply Less is More for a fun challenge and for getting me back to my workroom.

Art Journey Design Challenge 70: Music

Piper Boy

 

I am very happy that I have managed to join in this Art Journey challenge. Oh how good it is to play again and to use this adorable stamp that I just love and have used many times. 

I used various distress inks smooshed onto a mat and water added. The card was then dipped into the mix. A purple ink was then added through a ledger style stencil. Piper boy was stamped with Plum Archival Ink and a piece of rick rack finally added.

I did a bit more playing to the card today as overnight I felt I could improve it?

I re tsamped the image onto a piece of card. Cut it out and stuck it over the first stamp. Then I added so subtle colour to the face and hands and the tin pipe.

Less is more 276: One layer card

Bamboo Lake

The Legend of the Bamboo Lake goes like this. At the edge of a lake lined with bamboo stands a woman. Her husband is away on a long journey and her heart is sad. She fears that he will never return. Then looking up to the sky she sees a flock of geese flying homeward. Her heart is now no longer sad. She knows her husband will soon return.

Ok I know they look more like cranes but a touch of artistic licence. Maybe I should change the story to fit? What do you think?

3 stamps were used and three ink pads. Olive archival, black archival and Stazon Cherry Red.

Thank you once again Less is More!

Paper Artsy: #3UP

So glad I have had time this Sunday morning to participate in Paper Artsy #3UP. It was good to get painty with Fresco paints whilst lsitening to The Archers and Desert Island Discs. What better way to spend a Sunday morning?

I decided to play with the Urban Snapshot stamps. Since I have been making quite a few CAS cards recently I have continued this approach with much white space although it is not white! Just a fair bit of background and carefully placed focal images.

 

I have used a canvas frame which does not have a solid back to stamp onto, so one of the techniques I like to use in this situation is to stamp onto tissue paper. To then tear out the image to reduce any hard cutting lines which are more likely to show when it is glued into place. It is attached to the canvas using Matte Medium. I used Archival Smokey Grey ink to stamp with and dried it with a hot glue gun before introducing Matte Medium to it.

This is a close up of a section that I particularly like. It shows layers of Fresco paint that have been built up plus the use of the paint with rubber stamps and jar tops. You can also see how well the stamped tissue paper has merged with the background. You would never know this technique had been used.

Less is More: Colour Challenge 275: Pastel

Here is my contribution to the pastel colour challenge at Less is More.

Not much explanation need. Stamped the background pastel shades first and then over stamped with some Chocolate Baroque stamps.

Again really enjoying these restrained challenges and the designs that come from them.

Less is more: Challenge 274

Scraps of paper challenge.

 

So this is what I did with my scrap of paper.

I am relly enjoying tcreating hese CAS cards at the moment.

Thank you Less is More!

Less is More 273: Saints, Dragons or Heros

Well I decided on Dragons for my theme.

 

I am really enjoying the challenge of these Less is More challenges. How to do enough but not too much, that is the question?
After applying the stamped dragon that was stamped on to mulberry paper and then attached, followed by the scipt stamp the design felt it needed just something else. But what and not too much? The three pearls in the lower corner just seemed to finish it off perfectly. Without them it felt empty. With them complete.

Art Journey Challenge 68

Art Journey's challenge this month is to decorate an envelope. So here is my contribution. Accept for one stamp the stamps used are all Art Journey stamps.

Less is more challenge 272: Use 3 stamps

This is my contribution to Less is more challenge 272 to use just 3 stamps or 1 stamp 3 times. I opted for 3 stamps and to create a very still and calm image.
Hope you enjoy!

April's Creative Carte Blanche: Cigar box

Well I didn't have a cigar box but what I did find was one of my Dad's tobbacco tins from when he used to smoke a pipe. Unfortunately now without lid, but as the Creative Carte Blanche challenge says, inside a box is just fine. Dad has been dead now for 20 years so it was a rather poignant and delightful alteration. My Dad loved his garden and had quite an affinity with birds. He also loved his flowers. So what we have here is a Secret Garden in remembrance of my Dad.  

The viola was stamped onto fabric by pounding it with a hammer. Then it became the top layer of a sandwich with wadding as the filling and free machined. The blackbird stamped onto fabric and stitched into place. Other elements added including a four leaf clover, ladybird and a delicate shell button. Then finally Secret Garden stamped and sewn into place.

Less is more: Colour challenge 270

Here is my contribution to Simple Less is more colour challenge 270.

I have used a cream card and stamped in the lower left hand corner. Firstly I stamped some spots from a distress stamp in light green then I over stamped with an Alice Palace stamp available from Crafty Individuals.

Creative Adventure 2: Creative Carte Blanche

Metal, lace and corrugated card

Continuing to allow myself play time I am happy to be joining in with Creative Carte Blanche at the last minute. This was my sort of challenge. Thank you.

Ultimate Portfolio Builder Competition

The Art and Business of Surface Pattern Design 'The Ultimate Portfolio Builder' in association with Printsource

The challenge:
'Turn a positive mantra or uplifting quote that you live by into  beautiful typographical design'

#makeitindesign #upbcomp

These are my two entries.
The reason I would love to win is because I really need  help building a portfolio of work. I think this is one of the things that is holding my progress back.

Time to play again: Craft Stamper Take It, Make It Challenge

Take it make it challenge: Anything goes

I have decided to allow myself time to play again. It is far too long a time since I have joined in challenges and I had forgotten how much I enjoyed them.

So my first return I have made a card for Craft Stamper with their March challenge Anything Goes. As a bonus there is a  prize sponsor which is BASEMENT STUDIO but this is not my main reason for playing. It is for the fun.

To make a new beginning I have used 2 of my favourite stamps. Marci from Stampotique and a stamp from Paperbag Studios 'Little Feet' sheet.

CC3 challenge

I am happy to be joining in this CC3 challenge. I love the faded layers and the effect it gives. Subtle but wonderfully effective.

Just love elephants!

The Funkie Junkie Boutique is sponsoring the challenge.

Chocolate Baroque Challenge

I have begun to make cards  again and it really is making me feel better.
I was pleased to see that Chocolate Baroque have a monthly challenge which I am now pleased I can contribute to.
It is a colour challenge: Red, green, yellow and blue. Here is my make.

Go confidently in the direction of your dreams.

Kraft with Art Journey

I thought it was about time I joined in another challenge.
Hoping I catch the deadline, here is my contribution for July!

 

Swooshed colours over some Kraft resist paper. love this man and I always feel he may be a wise yogi living in the Himalayas, hence put him on a backdrop of some mountain ranges.

Guest Designer for Roc Nicholas

Time to break the ice and actually post something again on this blog!
It is largely due to Roc Nicholas who kindly invited me to be a guest designer for April.
I do so thank her as I really enjoyed playing again and probably would not have if this invite was not given. So thank you Roc. What could be better than playing with Roc's quirky stamps. Everyone who knows me knows quirky stamps are the ones that I really love to use.

bgrateful for tea, memories and laughter

This is my first contribution using Roc's Stacked Cups and bgrateful sentiment. I played around with paper piecing and I also got my Sakura pens out again.

Love bird

This is my second contribution. Love bird. This involved Dylusions sprays for the background with a swirl over stamp. The Bird stamp was kissed stamped to form the b for bird. This is a way of reversing a stamped image. Ink the stamp in the usual way then stamp onto an acrylic block. Quickly stamp this new image onto the paper. Again paper piecing was added and Sakura pens used. A random frame was added to draw the eye in.

Stamps used:

Bird

Love (words)

Artiste (words) This is where the i and r came from.

I hope you enjoy the contribution. I certainly enjoyed playing again.
Do follow the link to Roc' amazing blog and she can also be found on Facebook.

Less is More 143: Recipe: String or twine

Love string or twine and since Less is More I thought you can't get much less than this. One stamp, one length of twine.

The stamp is from a French company called KatzelKraft, if anyone is interested.