A Blast From The Past Exterminate.

 Thanks for stopping by, now I know some of you have seen this before but I thought I would share with you how you can transform the Tando-creative Xmas tree advent calendar into the Doctors deadliest enemy just in time for Christmas usingthe Decoart Media Line. 
sorry it's not a step by step but my big fat cat has broken my laptop by sitting on it and I am writing this on a mobile device.

 I made this a little while back after Di from Tando-Creative  set me the challenge of converting her existing Xmas tree into the classic Dr Who villain.
I started by assembling the kit into all the component parts with a couple of small changes, the feet of the xmas tree were trimmed off at the ankles level with the lowest point of the tree to create a level base.the top of the tree was also trimmed down, I used an old telephone bell to create my domed top but a plastic top from a deodorant can should do the trick, just play around with different lids till you find something with the right contours.the neck piece was made from some grey board. Some plastic mesh was added to the top and some rings were cut using some circle dies.a wooden kebab stick was used for the arms and a cocktail stick with a couple of beads was used for the nose.
 Around the base I added strips of masking tape for the skirt.

To the right you can see how the Tando kit look normally.

Below I'll show how to get a tarnished look for the main body. The other sections were first painted black using Decoart carbon media fluid acrylic and once dry I used their Metalic Lustres  rubbed on with a finger gently.
The inside of the drawers were also painted black, the fronts of the drawers had some large half pearls added.













I picked the tarnished technique up from Andy Skinners online workshop Timeworn Techniques and have adapted the technique for the Media line which is easy to do with all the timeworn techniques. The course is well worth having a look at if you love the grungy and industrial look of mixed media. Andy has kindly let me show a little step by step of this process.

Start by painting the surface with the gold fluid acrylic, you will be surprised how little paint it takes to get coverage .

The next step is to add colour washes, I start with black you only need a tiny amount of the fluid acrylic and then add water to really dilute the paint, play around with the intensity, I always keep a mister bottle of water close by incase the wash is still to strong. Just spray to thin the intensity down.

Cover the surface with the wash, I then tilt the surface to get the wash to run and at the same time I apply heat from my heat gun to speed up the drying process and to keep the run patterns on the surface. 

This step is the repeated with Quinacridone Burnt Orange.

Keep going till you get the results you like.

The surface was then finished off with some Quinacridone Gold. I  used a tiny amount of Quin gold  and really worked into the surface.the Quinacridone colours have a beautiful rich but transparent quality about the, that really helps on this type of look.

The Dalek was then finished of with a satin varnish for protection but you could easily use the matte varnish for a nice flat look to the piece.

Thanks for taking a trip down memory lane, this is about as Christmassy as I will get I'm afraid ;-) 

And a big thank you to Helen who was able to add the last of these pics for me when my computer died, you really saved me on this one xx 

http://cromscubbyhole.blogspot.co.uk/

Spesh-chic sneak peek Shabby Chic ageing process step by step

Thanks for stopping by, another very quick post today from me. I have just blogged a little step by step Shabby ageing tutorial on my shabby Blog Spesh-chic. If you have time I would love to see you over there. xxx

Shabby Chic Sneak Peek

Afternoon all. A very quick little teaser post today as I am sharing my latest Shabby make on my Spesh-chic blog.

If you have time it would be great to see you over there. xx

Daventry Craft Retreat Feb 7&8 2015

I am very Pleased to announce that I have been asked by Ali of Ali-Craft to be one of the tutors at her next crafty retreat in Daventry next Feb 7th & 8th. I will be holding my workshop on the Sunday and the very talented Hels Sheridan  will be holding the Saturday workshop.

You can find the details HERE.

Now the class will actually be a mixed media canvas using lots of the new Decoart Media Products

I will get my sample up and share more details with you as soon as I have my move sorted out,.  We are aiming to complete on my fave day of the year Oct 31st. These pics are just for an idea of the textures we will be creating

So if you fancy a little treat and a weekend away it would be great to see you there for the Sunday and I am sure Ali and Hels would love to see you on the Sat. 

If you want any more information you can contact Ali via her face book page HERE

Industrial Grunge how to.. Guest Designer for Our Creative Corner

Morning all, Sorry things have been so sporadic but I am pleased to say progress is being made on the house front, we are signing papers on Monday and hope to have our place by the end of the month so please stick with me, Ill be a little quiet but things will get back to normal.

A little while back Laura from Our Creative Corner very kindly asked me to be their guest designer for October, Now I am a fan of all the ladies over at OCC so it was a very simple yes, and when I found out the theme was Rust-ic I was even happier.

If you are new to OCC you are missing out, it is a fantastic blog with awesome artists, their projects always inspire and you will find lots of ideas with their technique tutorials.

This is my finished piece and if you follow the link you will find a little step by step for what I have done,I think I used pretty much everything in the new Decoart Media Line.

Thanks for sticking with me. xx Hopefully i'll see you over at OCC

I would like to enter this into the following challenge.

A Vintage Journey are having a Heavy Metal Challenge

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Are having a Falling In Love With......  I have always been in love with the rusty tones of distressed metal, and they tie in with the fall colour scheme perfectly. x 

De Stempelwinkel - Step By Step Shabby Chic Table

Morning all, A little teaser pic for a shabby chic table I have painted for my post over at De Stempelwinkel as I am getting set for the Hand Made Fair.

The show runs from the 19th-21st of September at Hampton Court.

Ill be there along with Andy Skinner on behalf of Decoart, we will have the paints,stencils and varnishes for sale and I will be doing some demonstrations on how to get the various finishes.

If you make it to the show, please come and say hi. xx

You can also find the Step By Step on my Shabby Blog HERE.If you like all the shabby makes it would be lovely if you would follow me there xx.

De Stempelwinkel - Prophesies Tag

Morning all, thanks for sticking with me and sorry my posts seem to be short and sweet and sharing on other sites, Hopefully things will get back to normal soon, We have now bought our house, well it is in the final stages of going through, I am also getting set for the big Hand Made Fair show later this month at Hampton Court where I will be selling and demoing the Chalk Finish Paints for Decoart I will also have a lot of my Shabby Chic Items at the show.

Anyway, I digress ;)  Today I am sharing over at De Stempelwinkel  a Mixed Media Board Tag. I managed to have my first little play with some Gelatoes, Thanks That's Crafty for fixing me up with these. I love the vibrant colours but think I need a lot more practice ;) x

De Stempelwinkel - Live In The Surreal Art Journal Pages

Thanks for stopping by, I am sharing a couple of Art Journal pages over at De Stempelwinkel, I have been playing with the New Acrylic Paint Spritzers from the Decoart Media Line.I love these, the colours are  intense and being paint they lend themselves to so many uses, I love how the colours wont bleed into each other if you let them dry between colours,but I really love how you can varnish over the top with out them being reactivated like water based ink sprays.

Thanks for stopping by. xxx 

De Stempelwinkel - Door hanger with Decoart Paint Spritzers

Morning and thanks for stopping by.

I have a little make over at De Stempelwinkel where I have used the new Decoart Paint Spritzers from the new media line.

I am loving these, finally a spritzer that will work over paint and not get reactivated when you want to put a varnish over the top.The colours are beautiful and vibrant (my pic has been taken indoors and does not do the colours justice)

If you have time it would be great to see you over at De Stempelwinkel xxx.

De Stempel Winkel - Shabby Picture Frame

Afternoon. I hope you are all keeping well and not getting to wet with the changeable weather.

Well today it is my turn to share over at De Stempelwinkel and I have a little Ikea Picture frame that I have shabbied up using Decoarts Chalk Paint and their new Media fluid acrylics.

I also have a large peg to share, my internet has been all over the place the last week or so, thanks EE you are rubbish so I was not able to post a link at the time, you can find the peg HERE

The Craft Barn - Oriental candle holder with Decoart Interference Paints Step by Step

Evening all, I'm back with my second post of the day today, My guest post for Calico Crafts can is HERE.

I have been very lucky this month and have also been asked to guest over at The Craft Barn.

I have made a couple of oriental inspired t-light holders. You can find a simple stemp by step tutorial over on the craft barn's blog.

Thanks for stopping by xx

Calico Crafts - Mixed media wall hanging

Morning all, I hope you are keeping well and all set for a great weekend.

I have a couple of teaser pics this morning for my second and final make for my guest spot over at Calico Crafts using the new Media Line from Decoart. It would be great to see you over there if you have some time. You can find the Calico Crafts Shop HERE.

Of course a great big thank you to the amazing team over there for asking me to join in. 

De Stempelwinkel - Oriental Present Topper

A very small peek of my make over at De Stempelwinkel today.

Sorry for the quick posts, I will hopefully be back to normal soon ish, Our offer on the house we want has been accepted so fingers crossed this time it will all go smoothly.

Thanks as always for stopping by, It really means allot having you stop by. xxx

Grungy Mirror Class at That Craft Place

Morning all, A very quick little post to share all the wonderful Ikea mirrors the Ladies at That Craft Place created yesterday. I love the variation in finish seeing as the same colour pallet was used throughout.

Here are the ladies in action.

Ill be back at That Craft Place  in October.

Thanks for stopping by. xxx

De Stempelwinkel -Embrace Your Dreams Tag

Running late with my post today as I have been teaching my Grungy Ikea Mirror class over at That Craft Place in Eastbourne today, More of that tomorrow. ;)

Back to today's post and it's my turn over at De Stempelwinkel for a little share. I used a Tando-Creative  media board for my base and Decoart Media Acrilic Fluids for the colour ;)

Thanks for stopping by xx.

A Little Peek of my Shabby make on my New Blog.

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you are all keeping well, I would like to thank you for all the lovely comments and support I have received.

Just a very quick post this arvo as I have just blogged a couple of tables on my New Shabby Chic blog Spesh-chic.blogspot.co.uk 

If you have some time I would love to see you over there where you can see more pics and the other table xxx.

Stampendous Stack Art with Decoart Media Line

Thanks for stopping by. After the Stampendous blog hop a couple of weeks ago that the Decoart International DT took part in we were kindly asked back to play along in their Stack Art week.

You can find all the details HERE with a list of the Blog Hoppers.(this will be up a little later as I am on UK time and they are USA) 

There are prizes on offer for those that hop through the list and leave comments.

You can find the Stack Art Kits HERE, In short they are kits that work together, there are several to choose from and they are interchangeable, You start with the Kraft board packs, You get enough for 4 stacked cards (about ATC Size), there is also a stamp kit for each pack that is designed to fit the pieces in your kit. Finally there is an elements pack with glitter, fragments and frantage embossing powders to decorate your Stacked ATC's

All Products used are from the New Decoart Media Line, You can sign up for Our new Media News letter HERE, The news letter should be startting in August.

For my Stacked ATC I Used the New Crackle paste on the base and used the fluid acrylics to paint, These new paints are pretty much 100% pure pigment with no fillers or bulking agents, this basically means a little goes a long way, a couple of drops is enough for something like this.A coat of the black Antiquing Cream helped make the cracks stand out.

I used one of the back ground stamps and stamped over the top of the cracked surface with archival black ink.

I used the frame section from the kit and used Decoarts decoupage glue to stick the mica fragments to the surface, a coat of Gesso and some paint effects left a nice flakey rusty look.

The Heart,Wings and Sentiment were also painted and given a worn cracked effect with the crackle glaze and the ATC was finished by adding a couple of screw heads from Prima, Thanks Susan ;) an old Fuse and a Dragon fly charm that has been aged with a little paint.

Thanks for stopping by, It means so much to have you spend your time here, If you have some more time please check out the other artists taking part in this week long hop, there are new artists and projects every day. 

xxxxx

I would like to enter this ATC into.....

Try It On Tuesday are having a Things With Wings challenge.

De Stempelwinkel - Media line heart

Morning, I hope you are all keeping well, Thanks as always for stopping by xxx.

A quick sneak peek today of my make over at De Stempelwinkel using products from the new Decoart Media Line.

If you have time it would be great to see you over there x.