My second project for the Facebook challenge Lace and Buttons on a card at #countryviewchallenges. Lots of #tim_holtz #ideaology products on this one. I haven’t actually put the panel on a card yet but I will when I need to.
Thursday, 12 September 2024
Tuesday, 10 September 2024
Christmas card - Tim Holtz snowflake
It's definitely Christmas prepping time with all the new seasonal products being released and I have a new set of @sizzix dies called Vault Winter Wishes from @tim_holtz. These are my two cards using the beautiful snowflake. One was covered with rock candy glitter and sparkles beautifully in the light, the other was dipped into mica flakes and looks as though it is covered in cracked pieces of ice.
Materials
DI - Tumbled Glass, Weathered Wood, Broken China. DO Speckled Hen
Stamps - Scribbled Woodland CMS282, Festive Sounds CMS048
Dies - Vault Winter Wishes, Holiday Blocks, Festive Gatherings.
Embossing powder - Winter White, Denim
Rock Candy glitter, Distress Mica Flakes
Monday, 9 September 2024
Shabby vintage Christmas card - Tim Holtz skates
My first Christmas card for 2024 showcasing the vault winter wishes die set by @tim_holtz and from @countryviewcrafts. I’ve used other Tim dies, papers, paper dolls, rock candy glitter, stamps, embossing folder, word chip, snippets and had great fun putting this together.
Friday, 6 September 2024
Using lace and buttons - Country View Crafts challenge August 24
Lace and Buttons on a greeting card was the theme over at Country View Challenges for August, but I'm a bit late posting this. It was my first contribution to the design team inspirations.
Materials
3D textured impressions embossing folder - LACE - Eileen Hull
Layer Frames - MONTAGE - Tim Holtz
Sizzix Thinlits - GARDEN GREENS and CROCHET - Tim Holtz
Paper Dolls - POSES - Tim Holtz
Distress inks (Victorian Velvet, Worn Lipstick, Dried Marigold, Walnut Stain)and Distress Spritz (Barn Door) - Tim Holtz
Rock Candy Glitter
Lace, threads, buttons - etc my own stash
Tuesday, 23 July 2024
Using stencils 2 for Country View Crafts
Stencils and distress watercolor pencils go well together.
I used a simple method with dry DWPs on a dry stencil, then spritzed it with water ready to monoprint. It's a fabulous technique and you can get a different effect each time depending on how much colour you rub onto the stencil, how much water you spritz and how long you hold the stencil on the paper. A GREAT TIP here is to place a piece of kitchen paper over the stencil once you have laid it down, rub gently over it and it will soak up any of the watery paint that seeps out.
ProductsStencildistress watercolor pencilswater Spritzercollage stripsephemerasnippetsspecimen slide die-cutsmall talk stickers
Tuesday, 16 July 2024
Vintage Shabby Collage Journal - Stamping with Tim Holtz Flowers
Using scraps from projects and snippets to create little collages.
I have a double spread today using materials from a variety of companies but the important ones are listed below.
The background stamping was done by using hickory smoke oxide, this leaves a fabulous impression of light on dark.
Here is the train driver who is carrying a cargo of flowers to the airport where it all will be sent to florists in Paris and New York. The boxes are carrying fragile freight and he does not want his cargo to get crushed. It is a great responsibility to get all the boxes delivered on time and safely, but he is experienced and wise and ready to do a good job.
Claude, this dedicated driver carefully carried all the packages for miles, stopping at stations to pick up and drop of passengers, many of them regularly taking this route and train knowing that Claude always did a good job at keeping the train to time. As he pulled into his platform at Charles de Gaulle Airport he was thinking of all the arrangements that had been made to transfer the cargo to the plane travelling to New York and to shops in Paris. He watched the handlers remove the boxes from their carriage and gave a sigh of relief knowing he had got them safely to the terminal and they were now off to their final destinations.
Claude was happy and satisfied that his task had been accomplished and he was ready to head off hme to his family.
- “Just living is not enough ... one must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.” – Hans Christian Andersen
Friday, 5 July 2024
Scrap Collage Journal
Using scraps from projects to create little collages.
Having spent a fair few days on creating six panels for my next workshop, using Alison Bomber's newest release of stamps, I needed a bit of a break. I have loved creating the panels and I'm really pleased with them but I felt I needed to design and create something small and more personal, just for me. Sitting right in view were a number of bits left over from my creative process, so I set about sorting some of the pieces I could use and also raided my collage tub to add to it and ......
...... Eh voila!
An inky scrap of card from the workshop collection of scraps plus the pressed foliage stamp that had been fussy cut, one of Alison's words snippet, an ephemera stamp in the right hand corner and a part of a delivered envelope I had saved in my collage pieces tub.
It was so satisfying getting something created in just over an hour rather than the days it takes me for much bigger projects. It's left me ready to do more ......
Monday, 1 July 2024
Using Stencils with Distress Watercolor Pencils - Deco Feather stencil and flower design
It's my turn to post over at the Country View Craft Challenge on FaceBook and I have chosen the theme of 'Stencils'. There are just so many ways they can be utilised and in my latest workshops at CVC Headquarters I was teaching about the Tim Holtz Distress Watercolor Pencils and I focussed quite a lot on monoprinting.
On my card the larger panel background was made using the Nordic stencil and the wet pencils on the dry stencil technique - spritz lightly with water and monoprint onto the substrate - in this case mixed media paper.
The small panel using mini deco leaf stencil in various greens was again using wet to dry ie wet DWP paint to dry stencil.
The die-cut flowers were washed with clean water and dribbles of DWP puddles added in with a small brush.
To put the panel together I added some snippets....
....some inked mummy cloth and a Tim stamped sentiment.
Materials
Distress Ink - Ground Espresso
Sunday, 30 June 2024
Pressed Botanicals Collage - Pressed grasses and pressed umbels stamps by Alison Bomber
Vintage Dreaming Collage
A vintage collage created directly in my Collage Panels journal, especially for using with Tim Holtz Found Relatives and Photobooth Pictures.
The Umbels silhouette stamp was inked up and directly added to the central panel .....
.... this particular young lady is looking thoughtful and reflective with eyes looking upwards to the foliage and wondering about a walk in the forest where she can lose herself in her dreams and find some peace and quiet.

















































