De Stempelwinkel - Brain Power

It is my turn over at De Stempelwinkel and I have a little ATC to share today.

Head on over to see the full pic. xxx

Thanks for stopping by x

I would like to enter this into the challenge over at Smudgy Antics, they are having an ATC challenge.

Old And Gray - Design Team Throw Down.

 I'm back again,
Sorry about that but it is the deadline for the Design Team Throw Down hosted by Smeared ink. I am playing as part of the team from the Haunted Design House. The throw down challenge has been running for a little while but is now being hosted on a brand new blog instead if part of their forum, so there is no need to be a member to head on over and see what the different design teams have created and to vote for your favourite team.
 The theme this challenge was selected by last months winners Quoth The Raven, and is 'Old And Gray'
We have until today to get our pieces in  then their will be two days of voting, so if you get a chance to stop by and vote that would be great. xx
The throw down is open to any Design Team, just head on over to see what you need to do to take part x.

 As you can see I have another Dolls head to share today.The theme got me thinking about old statues and I thought a porcelain head could be turned into a Buddha.
There are a couple of pics below on what I did to transform the head.

The head was striped of all the hair and cleaned up, I used Pinflair glue and added all the beads to create the hair. I left it over night to dry and gave the whole thing a good cover of Decoart Gesso, stippling lightly to add some texture and get rid of any brush lines.
The head was then given a base coat of black Decoart  acrylic paint.The head was finished with some dry brushing with some gray paint adding white as the layers built up.

The arch Is from Tando-creative and the base is a small card box, the arch was glued to the base and bot pieces were given a thick coat of Decoart's Dimensional Effects paste, when that was dry it was given a coat of Paintable texture, fine., The same paint technique was used to tie both pieces together.
 The image inside the arch has been stamped with a paper artsy stamp from one of the Lynne Perrella oriental sets.
The colour has been provided using Decoarts Glass stains. more details on how are HERE.
I finished the piece off with a word tag from Tim Holtz. The I painted it red and then swiped it back so the paint remained in the letters and matched the back ground.
 Thanks for stopping by again. It would be great if you have time to swing by the Throw Down page and cast some votes as of tomorrow, there are some fab teams taking part and if you like the alternative you are in for a treat. xxx

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge theme this week is Dotty. I have made my Dot's 3d and used the beads to create the hair. x

Fun With ATC's - Black, White and Red

 Morning all. Another Tuesday has rolled around and that means we are starting a new challenge over at Fun With ATC's.The challenge this fortnight is Red, White and Black.
 We also have some exciting news as we have 2 new DT members joining the family, I am sure some of you will recognize them, head on over to Fun With ATC's to see who the new members are and to see what they have created for inspiration.

I have gone all shabby and rustic for my ATC today, the two pics are of the same ATC, the first pic is before the clear embossing went on just to show the difference and how much the embossing brings out the colours.

The ATC was cut from mount board and run through a Tim Holtz embossing folder,It was given some coats of Decoart Americana and Traditions paints and sanded back. A little Original Rust was added to give it that old enamel sign look.

It would be great to see you over at Fun WIth ATC's. There are two weeks for you to get your thinking caps on xx.



I would like to enter this ATC into the challenge over at Smudgy Antics  they are having an ATC challenge.

The Octopode Factory - New Mystiacl Hollow Images

 I hope everyone is making the most of their Bank Holliday?

 Over at The Octopode Factory Lily has just released a new set of Images Called Mystical Hollow, you can find them HERE in her Etsy shop.
 They are available individually or as a set, If you buy the set you get a couple of silhouette images thrown in as well.

 I have used three of the new images, Both fairies and the Beautiful new lady image.They put me in mind of the typical fantasy images and for some reason the flower fairies.

 The images have been printed on to craft card and Coloured with Copic's. I flipped a couple of the fairies before printing so they were not all facing the same way.


 They were fussy cut,
next time I will make the fairies bigger, small is a pain when fussy cutting ;)All the images have been given two coats of clear embossing powder. The back ground paper is from Tim Holtz and has been cut to fit the larger Dyan Reaveley Journal. The images have been glued in place and I used a small alphabet stamp set to stamp the 'Once Upon A Time In The Land Of Fairy' as well as the stars.

 Thanks for stopping by and a big welcome and thank you to my newest followers. xx

 Remember we still have a week left of our current challenge over at our Challenge blog, here The Octopode Factory the theme is 'Eye's' You can make any type of craft project and you do not have to use and Octopode Image, although if you do your name goes into the prize draw twice xx

de stempelwinkel - autumn canvas

Morning and thank you for stopping by. It is my turn over at De Stempelwinkel to share something with you. Here is a little tease off what's there ;-). 

As always you can see more pics and a write up on their blog. Hopefully I'll see you there. Xx

Haunted Design House - 'Nailed It' Challenge

It's a double post day for me today, sorry about that.
 We are also starting a new theme over at Haunted Design House, the theme this time is 'Nailed It' Now you can create any sort of project for this challenge, your typical paper crafting all the way through to mixed media pieces, all we ask is you put an element of creep in there, the creepier the better ;)

As you can see I have altered another dolls head, I really enjoy working with these and with a new Micheal deMeng workshop starting all about creating different finishes with dolls heads I was inspired to reach for my bag of heads again. I am not on the course at the moment but plan on signing up in the future, I am still having fun playing and discovering new looks on my own and did not want to be too influenced by Michaels amazing work.I still have a few ideas for some more before I sign up but it is something I shall be looking forward too.

Ill keep this post fairly short today but full of pics.
All products are from Decoart. I have used their Paintable Texture Fine paste and base coated everything in white acrylic pain. I then used some of my fave Decoart Traditions acrylic paints, the traditions range is a high pigment artist quality colour and is great for using watered down or as a colour wash. This is what I have done here, the colours are Hansa Yellow, Sap Green, Pathalo Blue and Quinacridone Gold.

The nails have been given a Time Worn Technique that I learnt on the Andy Skinner online workshop. Well worth looking into if you like grungy and worn metal effects.

I almost forgot I added Alice Cooper eye make up. It seemed like the right thing to do ;)




The base is a block of 2''x 4'' wood and the additional embellishments are from Tim Holtz. The name tag was cut from card and distressed with distress inks and stamped in coffee archival ink with her name, 'Aurora'
My better half said the colours reminded her of the Aurora Borealis.

I really love how these colours have turned out, there is an almost luminescent glo going on, I know I will be playing with them again soon and already have some ideas, maybe ill figure out a step by step if people are interested, I may do it even if your not ;) xx

Thanks for stopping by. As always it really is great to have you here. And of course it goes without saying we would love to see you get your freak on and join us over at HDH. Why not stop by anyway to see what the rest of the DT have created, and remember there will be more from the DT next Monday xxx

Simon Says Stamp's Monday Challenge are having a 'Carnival' themed challenge this week. I have gone for more of the side show freak show element of the Carnival ;)

Smudgy Antics are having a burnt offerings challenge, I used my heat gun to heat set and bubble the paint in places for more texture, my stamped element is the name plate x  stretching the rules here I know ;)

The Octopode Factory

Morning all, It's once again time to start a new challenge over at The Octopode Factory, Our new theme is Eyes.Basically we want to see any creations based around that theme. The images do not have to be Octopode if you want to play along but if you do use one of their images your name goes into the prize pool twice.

I have created a tag using Cap'n Jack as the main image and the back ground has been made using the Steampunk'd Flower, Luckily my GF knows how to figure out programs like photoshop and was able to digitally cut around the flower heads and over lay them, I was able to position the eyes where I wanted them and adjust the sizes as required, this really helped other wise it would have been a nightmare time fussy cutting.

Everything has been coloured with Copics and clear embossed. the tag was printed onto craft card and then glued to a tag cut from mount board.

The sentiment was a font found on line and printed onto normal cheep printer paper, this was also clear embossed and as a happy accident the paper turned semi translucent.

 Thanks for stopping by, it would be great to see you joining in over at the Octopode Factory

you have the best part of two weeks to get creative.

xx

De Stempelwinkel Steampunk canvas and Jus Steampunk magazine bits.

Hi and thank you so much for stopping by, A special post for me today, I am sharing my Steampunk canvas over at De Stempelwinkel head over for more pics and a what's what  of what I did.

This is special as we were encouraged to submit some work for the latest Just Steampunk vol3 magazine, (you can get your copy from De Stempelwinkel),

I submitted a couple of pieces, you can see the other bellow, (you may hae already seen it on my blog).

I was over the moon to get the mag through and find both pieces had been published.

It's a first for me and something I had never considered before being asked by Jetske as being part of her DT.

Thank you for stopping by, It really means a lot to have you here. xxx

Here is the other piece.

I would like to enter the Canvas into the challenge over at Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge, their theme is Die Cuts, I have used the ATC die for the frame and ATC also the swirls are cut from one of Tims dies.

De Stempelwinkel - Ideas tag

So how is everyone? Thank you all for stopping by, Sorry I have been quiet on the visit front, life is getting in the way at the moment, work is busy busy I promise Ill be better once the winter comes round ;)

It's my turn again over at De Stempelwinkel and here is a sneak peak. To see the full tag and find out what I did head on over, it would be great to see you there. xx

Haunted Design House - HorrorScopes ;)

It's challenge time again over at Haunted Design House, This fortnight we have our very own Teri of Delicious Doodles providing the images and prizes for the new challenge, the theme in case you have not guessed is Astrological Atrocities/HorrorScopes.

Basically we want to see something Gothic/Horror inspired based around the astrological star signs. 

Teri has created both Macabre and Horror inspired images as well as the more traditional cute stylings of the classic astrological star signs. Head on over to her store to see the full range of images,

Teri is kindly offering up the full set of the HorrorScope images as a prize for this challenge.

Head on over to the HDH blog to see what the DT have created for insiration and remember to head back next Monday to see what the rest of the DT will have for you.

Being a Virgo I of course had to go for this fab image, not only is it the heavenly body Virgo but it makes a brilliant Zombie image, and who does not like a good Zombie?

Excuse the tongue in cheek phrase but I have always hated the 'Virgo the Virgin' saying and this was a goof  way to rebel away from it ;)

The Door hanger started off as a plain wood and was given a good coat of Decoart acrylic paints, randomly applied and then given a coat of white.It was then sanded back so some of the colour showed through. The Teri's Virgo image was printed out and I used an image transfer technique to apply her to the hanger.

The words were stamped with archival ink using the October Crow Alphabet from De Stempelwinkel. The whole thing was given a good coat of Decoart Traditions faux finishing medium to seal the image.It also helps bring the colours out after the image transfer.

Thanks for stopping by, Hopefully we will see you over at Haunted Design House.

The Octopode Factory - Make A Card

A new challenge is starting today over at The Octopode Factory, The theme this time round is 'Make A Card'. You can create anything you like as long as it is a card. You do not have to use an Octopode image either but it's great when you do and your name will be entered into the prize draw twice if you do.
 Now if you know me you may have noticed, I do not do cards, Not a big fan of creating them unless it is for my better half or family. Fortunately my GF's aunt is getting married in a couple of weeks and she asked me if I could come up with something for her.
 This is what she got ;)
 I have used the Day Of The Dead bride and groom digi characters, printed them onto craft card and coloured them with copic's, they were fussy cut and clear embossed, I used some design papers from Authentique's Enchanted 6x6 inch pad.
they were all stuck down to a 6x6 card blank.

We would love to see you joining in over at The Octopode Factory you have 2 weeks to join in the fun xx

Thank you for stopping by, Id like to say thanks and welcome to my newest followers xx

I would like to enter this into the challenge over at Smudgy Antics
they are having a Fussy Cut challenge.

Decoart Glass Stain Key Chain Tutorial.

Hi all, thanks for stopping by, Today I am trying something different, this is my first tutorial, I have been thinking of having a go for a while and a couple of weeks ago I made some key rings using Decoart Glass Stains and thought they might be a good place to start.

I hope you don't mind the waffle and a whole load of pics.

Here is what you will need.

 Decoart Glass Stains
Decoart Triple Thick Glaze
Tim Holtz Fragments
Glossy Card
Distress Ink
Key Chain's (you can use pre made, I have some with the Tim Holtz clips and some made from scratch using parts from the Bead Shop in Brighton )
Any type of charms.
Fine Sand Paper/Sanding Block
Pliers
And of course a selection of stamps.

You can find a list of Decoart Suppliers HERE

 1) The first step is to take your glossy card, I cut my sheet into half but you can go as small as quarters depending on how many you want to make and your colour choices.
I have found it best to use three colours to get a nice blended look.
Squeeze the Glass stains out randomly and quite generously across the piece of card, I have used red yellow and orange here.

 2) Take the other half of your paper and place it face down on top of the first piece, slide the paper around making sure you push the stains into all the corners as much as possible, I rotate the paper a little between my hands as well to get nice swirls of colour mixed. Do not worry too much about any small areas of white card showing through, they can be dealt with latter on.Once you have mixed them together enough you can either peal the top layer off, this leaves a more textured finish to the Stains or you can slide the top sheet off leaving a much smoother look to the blended colours.
Set the sheets aside to dry, they will probably be workable in about an hour and if you are careful you can help them along with your heat gun.

   This one has been made using Green Yellow and Blue Glass Stains

And this has Blue, Brown and Black Glass Stains.

 3) Now you get to break out your stamps,I have used black Archival ink for all my stamping and found this to give the best results. You will find some stamps  work a lot better than others, I found the stamps with finer lines gave the best results rather than larger areas of rubber. If you look at the Gent, his body is quite patchy, When you stamp on top of the Stains it is almost like stamping on to glass or acetate, be careful the stamp does not slide and the larger areas of rubber sort of suck when you peal the stamp away lifting off some of the ink. (I hope that makes sense)

 If you are not keen on the white patches of card showing through the gaps now is the time to grab some Distress Ink, The piece of card in the top left of the picture has had some Mustard Seed applied. The Glass Stains act as a resist to water based inks so can be wiped back with a wet wipe or damp piece of kitchen towel.

It is also amazing that you will pick out stamps you may not have used in a while or maybe have never used as you will only see part of the stamp.

 4)  Roughly cut the pieces of card to size, I have laid the Fragments on top of the card to give an idea of what they will look like when finished, It also helps you decide what part of the stamped image you want to use. I'll list the stamps I have used at the end, recognise many?

 5) When you have the card cut down to a manageable size grab your Triple thick. you will not need a lot for each key ring.

Apply a small dollop to your image, grab the fragment that you want to use and push the fragment down firmly making sure all the triple thick is squeezed to the edge and all the air bubbles have gone, do not worry too much about the excess that has squeezed out, you can use a cocktail stick just to pull it away from the fragment but this is also easily tidied up a little later. It is a good idea to use a cocktail stick just to clear some of the Triple thick from the fragments eye hole, this will make it easier a little later when you attach the key chain.

 Leave all your fragments to dry, it is best to leave them over night although  3-4 hours will probably be enough if like me you are impatient ;)

 6) When dry use a craft knife to cut around the Fragment as close as you can, do not worry  if there are little bits sticking out as they will go in the next step.

Grab some fine sand paper or your sanding block and get rid of those rough edges, this also helps get rid of any Triple thick that is sticking to the sides.(It is worth remembering to sand towards the fragment, if you sand away from it you run the risk of tearing the card stock.)

 7) You should now have all your Fragments ready to be added to your key chains, for some I used the Tim Holtz Key chains, I just opened the bottom loop and attached the Fragments closing the loop after, I then added some charms to the top loop, I used some of Tims Word Sticks and other tokens but you can use what ever you like.

The other Key Chains were made from scratch, the chain was cut to length, rings added to the top and bottom with the Fragment and the Key Ring clasp added as well, the charms were added in the same way.

Here are all the key chains I made from my card stock. I still have several sheets left from this make, I used one sheet of each colour.

The other sheets are ready for either more key chains, Journal Pages like THIS or for ATC's like the second one in THIS post.

I have had great fun playing with the glass stains on card, not just glass. Here are the key chains finished.with details of the stamp used.

If you have any questions leave a comment xx

Thanks for stopping by x I hope you managed to stick with it. ;)

These are both from Paper Artsy

Lynne Perrella 003

Lynne Perrella 022

 De Stempelwinkel Dali
 De Stempelwinkel Diamonds and Decorations

De Stempelwinkel Dali
















Tim Holtz Papillon

This one Is a design from Rick St Dennis and is part of his first rubber set for Smeared Inks Rubber Club
















Again Thank you for stopping by, I hope this was not to painful, I think I shall be trying more of these in the future so I am sure I will be able to fine tune the waffle ;) You can find this tutorial and many more by some amazing crafters on the Pinterest page Mixed Media and Altered Art Tutorials, Hosted by Andy Skinner.

I would like to enter these into the challenge over at Simon Says Stamp And Show, their challenge is Ode to Sunshine. I think the colours of the glass stains are so vibrant and summery x these would also make great end of term gifts for your kids teachers ;)

Fun With ATC's Kitsch

Morning all, Hows things?
 We are starting a new challenge over at Fun With ATC's
the theme this fortnight is Kitsch. Now to be honest this was a tough one for me, Kitsch is one of those words that you kind of know what it means until it comes do create something Kitsch. A quick look at the definition and I was still struggling with what to make.Kitsch basically translates as something tacky but with some sort of iconic or mass appeal. Think of all those posters sold in shops like the G store or athena etc.
 I decided to go for an Icon of my childhood, The A team was my favourite tv show for years, I still like it now to be honest so I found an Image of Mr T on the net.
 I made 2 ATC's both using the same image but just changing the backgrounds.
 The first one uses the paisley stamp from tim holtz, It was coloured with distress markers and Mr T was glued down, the edges have been darkened and then the whole thing has been clear embossed twice.
 For the second ATC the background has been created from a blank ATC that I used to mop up some Dylusion sprays, I just dabbed it into the over spray and stored it till I found a use for it.
 Both back grounds put me in mind of those tacky 80's style posters you could get.
 Hopefully I have got somewhere near our theme of Kitsch, It would be great if you could come along and join in just to show me how it should be done ;)
you can enter HERE

Thanks for stopping by, Ill be back tomorrow with my first Tutorial style post. xx