Mixed Media 'M'

Well hello there!

This is another of the lettered gifts that I made for family at Christmas. 

I started off by 'gesso-ing' the MDF letter before applying white crackle glaze.

I also added light paste through a stencil for added texture.

Once dry, it was time to add the embellishments...

...a photo frame, art stones, heart decorations....

...flowers, glass stones, chipboard shapes.....

...and ooooodles of glitter.

Of course, don't forget the sisal. This stuff gets everywhere...lol.

To finish, I gave the letter a very light wash with pink, acrylic paint, which seeps into the cracks of the crackle paste. 

That's it!

Have a great weekend everyone.

Mama Elephant - The Cat's Meow

One for the cat lovers today, using The Cat's Meow stamp set from Mama Elephant. 

This is a big stamp so I used my Misti to make sure that I got a good inked impression.

No fancy, schmancy colouring, just a bunch of Zig Real Brush Markers.

I fussy cut the cats, plus a few balloons (also from the set) and stuck them to my card base with foam pads.

Nice and simple.....purrrrrrfect.

Alcohol Ink Card

Ahoy!

Today's a sleety, rainy, cloudy, brrrrr kinda day and I for one am going stir-crazy not being able to get outside in the garden.

Roll on spring!

My card today is similar to one I made a while back using just 2 alcohol inks and foil.

I did make a video (Click here) of the process but since then I've been asked many times about the foiling and what I used to blow the inks around.

Firstly, on this card and the original, the foil adhered to the inks because some colours, like Teakwood, have a tendency to remain sticky where it pools. If it hadn't remained sticky then I could have just used glue like Flitterglu. If you Google 'Decofoil' you'll find tonnes of ways of adding foil to your projects, whether it's using a laminator, glue pen, adhesive tape, etc, etc... Trust me, you don't need anything flashy or expensive, just sticky.

Again, on the original card and in the video, I used a Tim Holtz air spritzer to blow the inks about but honestly you don't need a fancy gadget. I didn't buy the spritzer for these inks originally but it did work great with this technique and saved me having to get in close and blow the inks. If you've got enough puff then go ahead and just blow the inks or (if they don't ban them completely) use a straw. If you're doing large areas then use a hairdryer. Again, you don't need anything fancy.

Alcohol inks are free spirits.

They have a mind of their own, but that's part of the fun. 

Just go with the flow and enjoy! 

If you'd like to see the original video click here.

Fav' Son's 18th

Today is a very special day in our house...our son's 18th birthday.

I know what you're thinking....how can a spring-chicken like myself, possibly have an 18 year old child (Cough!)

Moving on (Cough!)

Now the whole planet knows that finding the right card for a male is almost impossible. Cute cards just don't cut it anymore and he's not into the stereotypical male card activities of sailing or beer drinking, so for a while I just sat staring at my desk....I say 'a while'....I mean 'for EVER!'

With my new 'mixed-media' head on I eventually decided on this...

I started by adding a brick textured effect background to my piece of card with Light Paste and a Tim Holtz stencil. I used the tiny square border stamp from MFT's 'Whimsical Greetings' to frame the photo, attached it all to a piece of black card, then flicked black & white ink splatters everywhere...

...and I mean EVERYWHERE!!! 

I need to practise my flicking technique...lol.

The handsome creature in the photo is my gorrrrrrrrjuss son Oliver...truly a Limited Edition.

If you do read this Oliver (which I know you won't coz it's uncool to follow your mum's blog)...then Happy Birthday kiddo.

Love you loads!!

Mixed Media - Very Kind-Hearted

Well hello there.

I hope you're having a good week. 

Today I have another of the projects, that I made as a gift for Christmas, to share with you.

 The beautiful lady in the photo is my cousin, one of the loveliest people on the planet. 

Having found out that her fav' colour was orange, I gathered up a selection of elements from my stash and set to work.

I gesso'd the heart before adding texture with white crackle paste and light paste through a stencil. 

 Adding the decorations is the best bit. It's amazing, once you start looking, how many treasures and decorative elements are out there that you can add to these kinda projects. A bag of sisal has become my new best friend...lol.

The perfect sentiment and this project was complete.

That's it from me today, I'm off to nurse a rather runny, red nose...no...not for Comic Relief or Rudolph. 

Will be back again soon...Sniff!

MFT Stamps - Lucky

Ahoy!

I hope you've had (or are still having) a great weekend.

Wish it was still Christmas....I miss the happy colours and twinkling fairy lights on dull days like we've had today.

Roll on spring with its sunny days and cheery colours!

I made this card a few weeks ago prior to my son's driving test. I can't believe he's all grow'd up...life is flying by. I used the 'Lucky' stamp set from MFT and Lucky Clover & Twisted Citron Distress Inks to 'smoosh' a background pattern.

Alas my card was a disaster on the 'Good luck' front as he failed his test, so we tore it up, he re-took his test and passed...Yay! 

I had fun making it and he appreciated the thought, so that's all that count.

Thanks for stopping by.

Have a fabulous week and I'll be back soon.

Alcohol Inks - No 11

It's the weekend...Yay!

A quickie today of an alcohol ink project that I made back in the autumn of last year.

Just 3 colours, Adirondack's Latte, Mushroom & Hazelnut (sounds delicious...huh?)

Can't wait for spring when I can throw open those windows and start playing with the ol' inks again, but for now it's not wise to be using them indoors without adequate ventilation.

This was originally a 9" × 11" piece of Yupo. However the final piece was tinged with blue on the edges, not sure if it came from a previous project or from one of the colours itself, as there are hints of blue in the centre if you look closely.

Fascinating how these inks can reveal such different colours from the original.

But it didn't matter.... I rather like how this one turned out.

Mixed Media Heart

Today I have another mixed media project that I made for a friend for Christmas.

This time I decorated a wooden heart and added 2 frames to include all of the family members.

 The heart was prepped with white gesso before adding a thick layer of white crackle paste to give it an aged, shabby chic look. I also added extra texture (although you can't see it very well in these photos) with a Cell Theory stencil and texture paste.

The exciting bit is adding all of the decorations and embellishments.

I used art stones, wedding accessories, flowers, glitter, wooden embellishments, Christmas table decorations, glass stones....you name it, I used it....lol.

I used Metallique acrylic paints for the pink highlights...

...and then white gesso again to tone down the colours where they were a tad too brash.

More mixed media projects to follow, so I'll be back soon. 

Still learning and still lovin'.

New Year, New Beginnings

Well ahoy there and welcome to 2018 on my wee bloglet.

Something a bit different from me today and a step away from anything I've ever done before.

Just before Christmas I thought I'd have a go at some different mediums and make personalised gifts for the family.

This is the first in a series of wooden initials that I altered with a selection of pastes, gels, paints, stencils and 3d elements.

I have fallen in love with these mediums and have become a bit of a magpie, hunting n' hoarding bits of string, scraps of cardboard and random bits of recycling.

I think this will be my crafty passion for the year ahead and I hope to incorporate my other love, alcohol inks, into my creations later on in the year when I can open windows and get better ventilation. 

So for now, I want to wish you all a Happy New Year and Happy Crafting!