Believe – Positivity Journal

When Astrid came to stay I told her about my little positivity journal – it was she who had inspired it – and while we were out shopping together I bought a couple of new stamps, this gorgeous long birdcage is one of them and it wasn't long before I had a play.

Background – distress paints peeled paint, broken china and picket fence daubed onto the page and spritzed with water then dried. Next I sprayed with some goosebumps (haven’t used that for ages) dried it with a heatgun and then sprayed with white linen dylusions ink and spritzed with water, this gave a fabulous mottled effect when dry.

To create more depth I used Dyan Reaveley's basic backgrounds alphabet stamp with cornflower blue archival

and then my favourite Tim latticework stencil with broken china DI.

Now I needed some contrast so I used another new stamp

– handwritten script by inkylicious to give some more depth and added a few scraps of tissue tape.

The bird cage was stamped onto some card on which I’d used the wrinkle free technique and added some distress paints over it and I drew some white pen lines to add highlights. This was cut out edged with walnut stain and adhered to the page along with some left over trellis framework die-cut piece.

To finish I added the quote, some small remnant rubs which I distressed with my new Prima distressing tool and then some black soot marker and DI around the focal image to create shadow and help it stand out more on the page.

I am really quite pleased the way this turned out, the goosebumps created real texture and then the masks and text stamps created depth and interest over the mottled colours.

I shall enjoy doing more of these pages when I get home as they don’t take too long but they keep you focussed and involved allowing Mr Mojo to do his job.

I didn’t get to create a Creative Guide project this week for the new challenge ‘All about Him’ chosen by Anne, but I hope you will be able to pop over to ‘A Vintage Journey’ see what the other amazing Creative Guides have made for you and to get some wonderful inspiration for cards and items for the men in our lives.

Have a wonderful weekend whatever you have planned.

hugs Brenda xxx

Small Practice Journal Cover

Having started my new practice journal – which really is just for playing in and having fun on a small scale – I decided it needed a decent cover on it.

So there are no mistakes in my journal – as I said 'just for fun'.

I began by covering a piece of card with printed tissue paper and blending some clear gel through a mask.

When dry I added some distress stains and wiped it over gently with a baby wipe to remove any stains from the structure gel.

Next I blended DI through the mask to begin to get the layered look.

And I stamped over that with picket fence distress paint which added even more interest.

I wanted to add some dimension and as the tissue paper had lovely roses on it I thought I would stick to the flower theme. The leaves were daubed with peeled paint distress paint and then several different coloured distress stains

I edged the leaves with walnut stain DI.

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I had these hand made flowers in my drawer so I coloured them up a bit and added a small bought flower to make it an odd number…..

…. and found some odd letters to make my quote – the original said ‘There are no mistakes only lessons’, but I didn't want to add the last bit.

So there it is finished. I rather like the brighter colours and the depth created by the layers of inking etc..

I found this little quote about keeping notes and it fits me exactly only I don’t think my brain can even retain information for three minutes lol.

  Now to get down to some more little playtimes for the inside pages.

Hope things are all well with you.

hugs Brenda xx

Mini Journal Pages

Since teaching the Journal Day last month with the Technicraft Club in Wales, I have been spending just short amounts of time creating some pages, just as warm ups and time fillers really and it’s so nice to get some small works of art done in a short time – there’s something gratifying in that.

This first page was made by scraping some paint over the page and leaving to dry – which really didn’t take very long. I stamped the harlequins and text over in black archival – heat dried it – then scraped some white acrylic paint over the top.

I have some hearts printed out in various colours so I tore one of those and adhered to the page and a stamped butterfly. I have various computer generated quotes so I added one that fitted the images then added some remnant rubs. To finish I added shadow around areas and stamped a small bottle with distress ink. Done!

This page started off with distress stains rubbed over and then spread with a damp babywipe. I sprayed some white linen dylusions ink over the top and heat dried it. The focal image is one of my altered playing cards created with book paper, tissue tape and some stamping which I followed through onto the background. An off-cut of patterned paper aged with walnut stain DI, some text stamping and hey presto complete.

My altered playing cards have been inspired by taking part in the 52 card pick up on line course by Stephanie Ackerman.

I hope you get to create small pieces of art sometimes and keep them in a journal. It’s lovely to go back over what you have made and be refreshed and re-invigorated to create something different again. I now have my large dylusions journal, my collage journal, this small practice journal, a small ideas journal and a learning journal I take with me when I attend workshops. Lots here to keep me going then.

Keep well and have fun.

hugs Brenda xx

Life is Good – Wallflower card for CVC

My last card in the Wallflower collection that I have been making. Using one sheet of 12 x 12 paper from the Tim Holtz Wallflower paper stash to make 4 cards – bargain. If you have missed the others you can find them here, here and here on my blog or fuller versions here, here, and here on the Country View Crafts Updates blog.

Other products I have used -

Vintage flowers from the Thrift Shop Ephemera pack

Stamps – simple sayings, shabby french

Butterfly Frenzy strip die

Movers and Shapers butterfly die

Raffia made into a bow (my supplies)

Distress Inks – victorian velvet, aged mahogany, scattered straw, walnut stain

Distress crackle paint – rock candy

I would love it if you popped over to see the full details and more photos on the Country View Crafts Updates blog.

Thanks as always for stopping by and taking a look at what I have been creating.

I hope you are having a good week and getting some creative time.

hugs Brenda xx

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Fond Memories at a Vintage Journey

Todays challenge at A Vintage Journey has been chosen by my lovely friend Terry. Ken and I have been really lucky to be able to go to California for the last two years and have met up with her and her husband for lovely meals and some great crafty shopping. In fact when this post goes live I will be back over again, heading off to Hawaii for a couple of weeks and then back to California where Terry and I have another date set to rendezvous, which will be amazing.

So for my project for Terry’s challenge I have made a tag book which brings back very fond memories of our visits to CA in 2012 and 2013, just a few photos but a couple that Terry will recognise I am sure.

This little album is one that Tim has taught around the world and I was very lucky to be at his workshop in England when he taught it last year. This is my version of it.

To bring some continuity throughout the album I have used the new TH trellis frameworks die cutting them from embossed card, silver mirri board, hessian, felt and cork which has given me lots of texture.

My youngest granddaughters who struck a most amazing pose when we were in san Diego.

I used a small set of alphabet sticks to stamp everyone’s names and added butterflies ……..

…… stamped ephemera, journalling tickets and lots of other bits and pieces.

This is my daughter Maddie enjoying the sunshine as we waited for the boys to come off one of the ships in San Diego harbour.

The back of the flap page with one of Tim’s quotes.

My son Ben, daughter-in-law Bev and eldest granddaughter Becca with the younger ones also in San Diego when out one evening for a meal.

We are very lucky that we have friends in Garden Grove just outside of LA who we stay with when we go over, Leo is Hawaiian and is taking us over to his home islands of Oahu, Kauai and Hawaii Island, we have so many places to visit planned in.

So here is the four of us, Terry and Steve with Ken and I.

Michaels? Could be.

And another store …………………

….. and guess what? Yes another.

The backgrounds were made with the wrinkle free technique using the new TH mini DI sets in peacock feathers, mustard seed, spiced marmalade and walnut stain on #8 tags and Tim’s classics #1 and #3 stamp sets. I also used his cargo stencil, the butterfly frenzy strip die and the typeset alphabet strip die.

I do hope you will pop over to the challenge blog to see what amazing inspiration awaits you from the other Creative Guides and I hope you will be able to come aboard and join us for this leg of the journey.

hugs Brenda xx