Thursday 21 April 2016

SDC241 - TV Show or Movie Inspired

Time for a new challenge over at Stampotique this week the theme is,
"TV Show or Movie Inspired".
 Set by Kristen Catalano this is what she says about the challenge.
" This week I want to see what you can create that is inspired by your favourite TV Show or Movie".
Er, well, where to begin, I have loads of favourite films, however, on this occasion I thought I'd go for a TV series instead.
The 100 popped into my head, so I decided to go with it and create a journal page.

Quick recap of what the 100 is about, Planet earth basically kills it's self  with weapon of mass destruction and chemical warheads etc etc. Before it finally bites the dust humans are sent into space to live on a space station while the earth recovers.
Many hundreds of years later the space stations are falling apart and it is decided to send the criminals down to earth to see if it is habitable. Criminal is too strong a word really as its all the teenagers who have done something stupid like taken an extra slice of bread for lunch as rations were being monitored. Anyhow 100 kids are sent to fend for themselves to earth and meet a few of the locals who are not happy with the arrival of the space teenagers. Fighting ensues with a few friendships, deaths and survival problems as with any series it's beginning to go a bit off the rails totally not like the books. What's new, artistic licence prevails. Oh and its all very dark, greys and blacks just me all over.

So here is my page. 

I began by distressing the whole page with grey distress ink. Stamping heads on the page to give the impression of lots of people in the background along with  France Papillon journal page in watering can archival ink added a touch of interest.
Small flowers were stamped along the bottom edge in leaf green and black archival ink.
Washi tape was added to the lower edge to create the grounding. The title was hand drawn and overdrawn with an archival pen cut out and colour added again with distress ink.

The characters were stamped cut out and coloured, yes, in grey and black. What can I say its true to the series.

So that's me done for this week, hope you like it.
 
Visit the Stampotique  Challenge blog here and you will find loads of inspiration to get your creative juices flowing.
Sue X



Monday 18 April 2016

SDC240-Crack me up!

I made last weeks challenge by the skin of my teeth (as the saying goes), so I'm determined to get in a little earlier if I can. 

The challenge has been set by Kathi Rerek, here is what she says about this topic.
Create a humorous project that also has a crackle texture.

This weeks challenge Crack Me Up, has literally cracked me up. I'm at a loss at what to do.
It's not the texture crackle part, I can do that with my eyes closed. It's the humour bit, I don't have any of that. I do have a stamp on its way to me from Art From The Heart and I'm hoping to get a bit of  "humorous" inspiration from it.

Stamp has not  arrived! it was a Stampotique one of a mummy cat with a piece of string tied to her tail with kitten playing. Her expression is one of here we go again.
After my disappointment of opening my package to find the above stamp not being in it and not receiving an email to say the stock levels were wrong, I was stumped and returned to the drawing board.
I decided to make an ATC not done one before so all new to me, I began with a background  in the  hope something would develope from there.

The first layer was Distress ink blended all over the card, followed by water being spritzed through a mask and lifted off with a piece of kitchen roll.
Using a  France Papillon Vintage bill  Stampotique stamp, text was added in saffron archival ink. A layer of fake crackle (stamp by  Finnabair) in watering can archival ink was added over the top. 
The edges were inked in black archival ink.

 
Next up the image, after my first idea fell through I decided  to use Karen Hayselden's Herbert Hare, with a few alterations to the size to make it fit on the ATC, ( I wanted to use something a bit, dare I say weird! or maybe not so normal).
 
 Herbert was stamped cut out and coloured with watercolour pencils and glued into position.
The edges were then stamped with a stitches stamp to frame the ATC.

 
For the back of the card I found a saying on the internet, it seemed to match my image as its not everyday you find a pink hare wearing boots. This was hand written on the reverse, fake stitches were added and distress ink added around the edges.

 
That's it for now not exactly side splitting but there is definitely crackle on it.
For more inspiration check out the Stampotique blog here.
 
Sue X
 
 
 

Thursday 14 April 2016

MDF Pram

 
Self explanatory really a decoration made from MDF.
 
Now then I was convinced I'd taken photos at some point of preparing the MDF pram, I must be going mad, anyhow , moving on. First of all I put a base coat of lemon on the mdf with a brayer coating both sides.
Then added a crackle medium followed by chalk paint to create a nice texture to work on.
The MDF Pram was then glued together, modelling paste was mixed with  yellow mica powder for colour and put through a mask onto the lower section of the pram, this appeared a little too dark and so I lightened it with a touch of white gesso.
Die cut circles were added to make the tyres of the pram and a couple of cogs to add detail.
More die cuts were used to add detail around the hood and bottom of the pram.
Ready made flowers added to the detail.
 







 
Sue X

Mixed media book re-vamp.


Monday of this week bought on an impromptu craft day with my crafting bud Rebecca.
We decided to re-visit an old favourite of cutting out an inset into pages of an old book and creating a hiding  hole to embellish.
 


   
We began by carving out a hole (as previous mentioned), followed by roughly slapping on medium to stick the pages together. When I say roughly I mean not going into the corners and not paying that much attention to accuracy,  my dad would have a giddy fit if I were wall papering, as a child I used to help and his big thing was, " Make sure you go into the corners and get the edges".
As I wanted the edges of the pages to appear still loose my slap dash way was fine.

We began the outside of the book by layering on fabric and texture paste then moved to the inside of the book. Rebecca and I have the ability to come up with a project, be in the same room chatting about what we're doing and end up with completely different looking projects it's quite cool.
 
As usual mine was turning dark, black and rusty. Meanwhile Rebecca's was Claret and a lot  brighter (nothing new there) LOL. To see more of Rebecca's pop on over to her blog here.
Next up the fun bit, decorating!
Inside first.
I began by gathering together a few cogs, light bulbs, keys 'n' stuff. I had bought some rusty stars when at a Workshop a few weeks ago, my goal to retain the yummy rusty colour (these were glued into position after the painting was complete). Art stones large and small were mixed  with modelling paste  and added randomly to add texture, the inner resess was painted with black gesso leaving areas of white. When dry a layer of  rusty paper paint was added again randomly over the black and white areas to get different shades of rust.
A small amount of caramel paint was added to highlight the balls and cogs, edges etc.
The rusty stars were then added to the project along with micro beads and a touch of treasure gold.
Various die cuts were added to the cover to create interest and painted black using the same technique as before. The rusty embellishment was added along with more beads and a couple of tiny metal roses.

Tah Dah! project finished.

 




Sue X

Tuesday 12 April 2016

SDC239 - Nature

I've not been very attentive to the Stampotique blog challenges over the past few weeks, slap my hands. I've been a touch pre-occupied kids, holidays etc.
 Anyhow, I'm now ready for this weeks challenge which was chosen by Arwen McCullen, she is asking us to think "Nature".
Here is what she says about this challenge.
"Create a project with only nature items in it, no humans or animals".
 
Ummm! Think I chose the wrong week to start back, no characters!

 I decided to do a journal page partly because I had a fab textured piece of mixed media card which I had made weeks before and didn't know what to do with it.

It began life as a thick water colour card to which I had added texture through a mask or two, I then added art stones which were mixed with modelling paste.
My first layer of paint was clear gesso, not all over though as I like to see the difference between areas with and without gesso. My next layer was black gesso again not all over.
 
  
 
Now then this is the point I became soooo into my project I forgot to take in-betweeny photos, sorry! 

Brief description, lots of yummy silks paints to give tones of shimery blues and greens, micro beads for more texture and treasure gold for highlighting the art stones.

I loved the colours and textures which reminded me of garden undergrowth and decided it was perfect for the nature challenge. My next challenge was finding a Stampotique flower to add to the piece, unfortunately I didn't have one. However, I did have my new stamp delivery of Kate Cranes latest and created my own daisy's by rotating the cube and over stamping the design to make a flower.
Stems were added from a random stamp in my collection along with a nature type quote.

 
 
 
If you would like to take part or simply have a look at the inspiration available, hop on over to the Stampotique Challenge blog here

Sue X
 


 

 

Friday 8 April 2016

Yet Another Card!

An Anniversary Card this time!
 
 A Pearl one, I kept the colours simple and neutral for this one using a couple of background papers. These were torn and attached to create a background with the edges distressed with vintage photo ink first. A birdhouse embellishment was inked with embossing ink and white embossing powder used for colour.
 
Micro beads in silver were added around the roof edge and just below a couple of doves which were left over from a birdhouse canvas.
Flowers were arranged around a branch which was fashioned from green coated garden wire. Moss was used to add a touch of greenery and interest.
A sentiment was made from several different stamps as I didn't have a dedicated 30th/pearl one.
 
I'm not really a card maker and mum always complains because my cards do not contain a verse. (I'm not fond of verses, far too soppy).
 
Anyhow here is the finished card.
 
 



 
 
Sue X


Thursday 7 April 2016

Canvas Card

With a niece's birthday coming up I knew I would have to make a card, so I thought I would combine a gift and a card, here is the outcome. 
A canvas card!
 
I began by using an 8"x8" box canvas, layering torn paper lengths over the top.
 
 
This was then given a thin layer of gesso by spreading the paint over the papers with a plastic credit card.

 
Gelato's were used to add pale colours to the background. 



 Now for some reason my between photos have vanished so you'll have to used your imagination. Sorry!
 
I began by drawing on the Giraffe in pencil and filling it in with white gesso so that I could use watercolour pencils to colour my project.
Clouds were cut from a patterned paper then stamped with a Stampotique stamp then edged in black soot distress ink.
Flowers were drawn on and coloured in the same way as the Giraffe using a dark colour around the outside edge to make the flowers stand out a little more.
Random stamping of birds, grass, small flowers and stems added in black archival ink.
 The project was then sealed with varnish to protect it a little.
An 8" x 8" card blank was attached to the back and there you have it a card and gift in one.

 
A couple of close ups!




 Sue X