Dreaming about Spring

Hello dear bloggers, I hope you are all doing well.    I'm still not in blogland much but again thought I would show a few things that I've worked on recently.

This first abstract mixed media painting is from a LB2018 Lesson (with Laura Horn), I followed her techniques, but my painting is not like hers, I went my own way.

Next is another whimsical (or stylized) girl using inks (her face has some acrylic):

And finally a couple of cards that I created using Distress Inks, stencils and stamps in the background along with paper flowers that I molded with a stylus.  I used rolled roses in the center of the larger flowers.  So much fun :)

Well again that's enough for one post !

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day,
Cheers
Shirley

Sending a Smile

Hello everyone, I hope you are doing well.

We are still in packing mode here but I have another card to show that I created recently (before my craft studio was packed up) using Heartfelt Creations Tattered Flowers and Creative Expressions Leaf dies.

The background was created with Distress Inks & water, stamping with water, stenciling with white paint, sprinkled and heated white embossing enamel and gauze painted with Gesso.   I also stamped the background using Design by Ryn's Circle Cluster stamp set.   The sentiment is by Chocolate Baroque but it seems to be discontinued.    Using glue, I added a little Prills and glitter here and there.

The flowers were coloured with Distress Inks, spritzed with water and molded on the back with a stylus and foam mat.

Thanks for your visit, have a great day,
Shirley

Miracle of Christmas

Hello everyone, I hope you are doing well.

It's a rainy cool day here and I hope to get into my craft room for a while :)   I have another Christmas card to show that features the same background shown in a previous post that I created with Acrylic inks.   I also used Sweet Juliet 'flower' die set by Heartfelt Creations (it's discontinued) and Star Flourish by Creative Expressions.  The text is by Impression Obsession.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend,
Shirley

Wedding Card with Tattered Flowers

Hello everyone, I hope you are having a great weekend.

I have a non-traditional wedding card to show today that I created for my sister and new brother-in-law who just exchanged vows this weekend in an intimate ceremony.    They like the Caribbean Sea and spending time down south (in warm climate) so I decided to use favourite colours that remind me of tropical places.

The background is Distress Inks along with stenciling using inks, paint and a Tim Holtz heart stencil.   The die cut heart is from Heartfelt Creations and the heart sprays from Impression Obsession.  The Tattered flowers are from Tim Holtz as well.   The back words are from the Chapel Road - Synonyms stamp set.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day,
Shirley

Christmas in Greens

Hello everyone, I hope you are have a great weekend.

I had more time to create Christmas cards while it's extremely hot and dry here.  These are a little more traditional using greens.    

The background is various colours of Distress Ink along with the stenciling and stamping.  'Christmas' is from a Tim Holtz stencil, I used some gel gloss and added glitter.  

Dies:

•   Tattered Poinsettias by Tim Holtz (I love this set)
•   Star Flourish by Creative Expressions
•   Ornate 'snowflake' design is by Heartfelt Creations - from the Arianna Lace set to which I added glue and glitter

Below is a smaller card that started with the same background but with different stamping and embossing.

Dies:

• Tim Holtz's Tattered Poinsettia
• 'Greeting' is by Tim Holtz from the Holiday Words Script thinlits se
• Pine branch is a punch by McGill - Designer Pine

Thanks for stopping by,
Shirley

Whimsical Flowers

Hello everyone I hope you are having a great weekend.  Here it's raining and cool but we enjoyed some pleasant sunshine the last couple of days.

I have a whimsical card to show today:

The background is a 'mess' of Dylusions spray inks, stenciling and stamps from Chocolate Baroque's Spring Foliage Set.

I used Heartfelt Creations - Stripped Sun Kissed Fleur stamps and matching Dies for the flowers.  I molded them and pinched the ends.   I doodled the stems and leaves to create a whimsical look.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great week,
Shirley

Bicycle Themed Wedding Card

Hello everyone, I hope you are doing well and enjoyed the Easter weekend.   It was a beautiful day here yesterday, sunny and warm enough to sit out on the back deck.  Today it's raining and so I will play in my craft room for a change.

I have a different card to show today.   A couple that we bicycle with recently married and we thought it would be fun to give them a cycle theme wedding card.   We were heading to a bike show the day we gave it to them with a wedding gift so it was well received :)

I realize that this is not my usual vibrant colour scheme and I did not create the background.  I used paper from a Heartfelt Creations collection that I've stashed away to use for a travel album.  I cut out a piece that had a vintage bicycle image.  I stamped congratulations and created flowers and flourishes using die cuts.  I coloured the flowers with Distress ink to co-ordinate with the paper.  I added Wink of Stella and the hearts to the wheel centres.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great week.
Shirley

Gelli print and more Flowers

Happy Weekend everyone, I hope you are doing well.   Time is flying, it's March already and Spring is around the corner.  

The background of this card is a Gelli plate print that was hanging out in my stash along with paper flowers using dies by Heartfelt Creations.

Heartfelt Creations Dies:  Sun Kissed Fleur (flowers embossed with Striped Sun Kissed Fleur) molded and pinched, Border Essentials and Bella Rose die (flourish)

Sizzix (Tim Holtz design) Die:  Written Love 660218

Joy Crafts:  Vintage Flourishes (leaves)

Background was created using a Gelli plate along with tools, bubble wrap and my own hand carved flower stamp

Thanks for stopping by
Shirley

3D Flip Fold Album

Hello everyone, I hope you are doing well.  It's a beautiful sunny day here, the cold weather and snow left us about a week ago.   It's been a mild winter but we expect more snow and cold ahead.   Life in general is busy and I have not been in blog land as much this year. 

I've been working off and on over the past six weeks during crafting time creating a 3D Flip Fold Album using Heartfelt Creations products.   It was fun to create,  I took a long time as I added photos and lots of embellishments.  I could not resist trying out one of these albums and while working on the first I ordered the materials for a second one.   It's a nice way to keep those old photos that were just sitting in the basement in boxes.

I am showing some photos of the album, not all of it or you would probably fall asleep.  The flowers were all created using HFC dies and papers and molded using a stylus and mat. 

Album front, I used paper from HFC Everyday Hero Collection as it has a vintage feel.

Next are some photos from the inside and some of the older black & white photos.   Closer to the back of the album are more recent photos (less than 30 years)

There are lots more pockets and flip outs that I haven't shown here, but you get the idea that this album has lots of elements.   I like to scrapbook but don't take the time very often as I'm more focused on playing with inks and paints for backgrounds etc and other activities.

Well that's all for today, have a great week,
Shirley

Happy Valentines Day

Happy Valentines Day!   I hope you are doing well, thanks for stopping in at my blog.  I haven't been around in blog land too much these days, I have a lot going on.

It has been extremely cold this weekend, minus 40 with the windchill.....brrrrrrrrrrrrr.   However when it's cold the sun shines which makes me feel good.   We stay warm inside and wear warm clothes for the times we go out.  I went for a long walk over the weekend in spite of the bitter cold, our thick Canadian blood keeps us warm :)

I have a tag to show today with a background using Brushos and flowers by Heartfelt Creations.  I'm still enjoying creating and shaping paper flowers :)

I started with mixed media paper.  Next I sprayed white Goosebumps.  When dry I sprinkled Turquoise, Violet and Lemon Brusho ink powers, spritzed with water and let it run a little.

The flowers by Heartfelt Creations:  Majestic Morning HCPC3578 stamp and HCD742 die.   These are the same flowers that I used in my previous post but molded them differently.   They are coloured with Twisted Citron Distress Ink and painted over top with Lime Green 3D stamp paint which gives it lovely texture and sparkle.    I also died Tim Holtz crinkle ribbon and attached.

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy your day,
Shirley

Heartfelt Creations and Chocolate Baroque

Hello everyone, I hope you are doing well. I haven't been around in blogland too much lately, there just hasn't been time. 

I have a design to show that combines die cut flowers by Heartfelt Creations with stamps from Chocolate Baroque.  I think they go well together :)

The background was created using Dylusions spray inks and over stamped and embossed in silver and Distress Inks using a beautiful damask design.  I also added a little white acrylic paint over a stencil.

The leaves are a stamp and the flowers are die cuts that I spent time to shape.    I start with white card stock and blend distress inks to colour.

Stamps:  Chocolate Baroque:  Dusty Damask (background design) and Sunny Sunflowers (leaves).  The sentiment is a limited edition door gift from an Art Specially Event in the Netherlands.

Dies:  Heartfelt Creations:  Majestic Blooms HCD74 (coloured with Distress Inks & molded using a stylus and mat) and Die-namics: Fancy Flourish Small.

Stencil:  Memory Box:  Texture Diamond

Below you can see the shimmer of the embossing:

Below a close up of the flowers:

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day
Shirley

Heartfelt Creations Flowers

Hello everyone, I hope you having a great weekend.

I have card to show that features paper flowers combined with an inky background. 

The inky background was created with Dylusions spray inks along with Tattered Angels Glimmermist.  After die cutting I added Frantage enamel and embossed the edges with gold.

The die cut flowers and foliage were embossed with gold using the co-ordinating stamps before die cutting.  After colouring the flowers and foliage by blending distress inks, I molded them with a stylus and foam mat.  I added micro beads to the centres with Glossy Accents.
 
I used a bumpy embossing folder on one of the layers, but it doesn't have a name or number on it and I don't have the packaging. 
  
Spellbinder Dies:  Romantic Rectangles S5-090, Decorative Labels Twenty-Eight S5-191, Labels Twenty-Eight S5-127 

Heartfelt Creations:  Arianna Blooms Stamp Set HCPC-3608 and Die - HCD748, Italianna Grapevines stamp HCPC-3696 and Die HCD1-772

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day,
Shirley

Arianna Blooms

Hello everyone I hope you are doing well.

I have a card to show today in blues and purples and not for Christmas.    I love working with paper flowers using die cuts -  my collection of dies is growing.  My flower dies are mainly from Crealies and Heartfelt Creations.

The background is Dylusions inks, the stamping is Blueprint Distress Ink and then sprayed with Precious Metal Glimmermist. The flower were cut from a Gelli print from my stash and also white cardstock and then  coloured with Wilted Violet Distress Ink (love this new colour).  I used a stylus and mat to mold the flowers and attached small beads with Glossy Accents.

Stamp:  Chapel Road - Flower Words
Dies:  Heartfelt Creations:  Arianna Blooms (flowers) & Bella Rose (flourish)

Thanks for stopping by, enjoy the rest of the weekend,
Shirley

Experimenting with Modeling Film

Hello everyone and Happy Weekend!

I couldn't resist purchasing Clearly for Art Modeling Film by Arts Parts and below is the result of my first experimental play using it for flowers.
 

I needed to use a shim with my cutting machine so wasted some of the clear film on the first try.

A heat gun is used to shape the flowers.  It takes some experimenting as it cools quickly and then hardens, but you also have to be careful not to burn your fingers when it's first heated. I found heating in sections to work better but had to be careful as re-heating shaped areas will flatten again.   So a bit tricky but also fun to play with something new.

However, I'm not sure how often I will use the film as I enjoy working with paper flowers more, but the effect is pretty cool.  I coloured the flowers with alcohol inks and Wink of Stella.

The background started with a sheet from my stash that I had sprinkled Brushos and spritzed water over top.   I die cut the background using Tim Holtz's - Tag Die set.   Next I stamped the circle designs (from IndigoBlu's - Limor Circles set), embossed the entire tag and then added paints & inks.     I added crackle paint to the piece with the sentiment.

'Just a note' is from Chocolate Baroque's Mackintosh Sentiments set.   The flower die I used was from Heartfelt Creations, - Tattered Blossoms.

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of the weekend,
Shirley

The Voice of the Sea

Hello everyone, I hope you are doing well and enjoying summer.  It's quite hot and humid here but still better than minus 25 Celsius and snow blowing.  

I have a page from my small Art Journal to show today.  I actually started this back in May when the Art Journal Journey challenge was "in the Sea"  but I was too busy to finish it until recently.

This is a mixed media piece but I can no longer remember the steps.   I used acrylic inks and paints along with a couple of stencils.    I also added some glitter with spray glue and silver embossing enamel.

Stamps:  Quote is by Impression Obsession which I used crackle paint over top.    Sea horse Set by Designs by Ryn.

It's hard to see but I also used Design by Ryn's Floral Spiral Stencil in the background.  The flower die cuts are from Heartfelt Creations.  I used white cardstock, blended ink, molded and added micro beads to the centers. 

You can see some of the detail on the close up below:

Thanks for stopping by and have a great week,
Shirleyx

Mackintosh Bride

Hello everyone, I hope your summer is going well.

I created the card below for one of my niece's wedding using her bridal party colour of deep purple.  This design is the same lay-out and stamps as a previous card that you might recall.  I used a stamp from Chocolate Baroque's gorgeous Mackintosh Beauty set.

At the suggestion of a friendly & talented blogger Chrissie, I'm joining in at Try it Tuesday as their current challenge theme is 'In the Frame'.   

I stamped the bride on designer paper and coloured with Prisma pencils.  The frame is a die cut by Spellbinder.

I made the rose using Heartfelt Creations Vintage Floret and Bella Rose sets.  I stamped the flower layers with a fragment from Chocolate Baroque's Texture Fragment set before shaping and layering.  I have the stamp set that goes with the Vintage Floret but I find it easier to just random stamp with texture.  Heartfelt Creation's newer sets are in one piece (die and stamps) which are easier to work with.  I rubbed Inka Gold on the flower when it was finished.   It's so much fun playing with die cut flowers. 

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day,
Shirley

Whimsical Congratulations

Hello everyone,

I hope your week is going well.   I was in the middle of creating this card when I decided it would work well for one of my granddaughter's high school graduation. 

The background is Dylusions inks with lots of stamping and stenciling.  

The pretty lady and the flower circle behind her are Kico stamps (plate 65) designed by Marja. I have other sets designed by Marja that I'm looking forward to playing with.

The die cut flowers are by Heartfelt Creations (from the Vintage Floret set).

Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend,
Shirleyx

Mixed Media with Circles and a Flower

Hello everyone I hope you are having a great weekend.    It's very cold here, but at least we are seeing the sun again.    I  can deal with cold by dressing for it, but I find the lack of sun makes my brain foggy and drains energy.

I have a card to show today that was great fun creating.   I gained the inspiration to start using mixed media again from Astrid's gorgeous artwork and detailed tutorials.

I started with mixed media card stock and took the following steps to create this card design:

• Covered with Tim Holtz tissue using gel gloss medium and wrinkled when adhering (see Tim Holtz's January Tag)
• Painted with Distress Paints, spritzed with water
• Sprayed with Distress Spray, spritzed with water
• Stenciled circles using white acrylic paint
• Added outline to circles with black Neo-colour crayon, blended with water & brush
• Covered background with Gel Medium
• I distressed the edge and painted with black acrylic paint

The Tattered Blossoms (dies with co-ordinating stamps) by Heartfelt Creations were coloured with Distress Ink and 3D Stamp Paint.  The centre is tiny beads adhered with Glossy Accents.  Branch die cut is by Tim Holtz - Sizzix, coated with clear Glimmer Glaze.

'Art' is from Chocolate Baroque's Artistic Expressions set, coloured with Distress Spray and painted with Distress Crackle paint

I'm joining the challenge at The Mixed Media Card Challenge, as my card fits the theme - this is the first time I've used Distress Sprays over Distress Paint and I used tissue in the background.

I've also used the Tattered Blossoms stamp for the first time so this card qualifies to join into the fun challenge over at Darnell's  Blog- Never Before Used Stuff Challenge

Thanks for stopping by and have a fabulous day,
Shirleyx