Demo Day at Birds in the Barn....

Finally getting back to the blog! ... here are the cards/samples I created for a demo day at Birds in the Barn (Marks Tey, Essex) earlier in the month.  I really enjoyed using Kim Dellow and Zinski Art's stamps and stencils/masks to create masterboards, cards and panels.

 Lots of cutting out, paper piecing and layering up the flowers...

It was nice to use embossing powders again - the white embossing gives the masterboard a lovely delicate fresh look.

Stamp sets used were PaperArtsy EKD05, EKD06 and ZA08

#365Challenge.... 01-07 March

Hello there!

A new month means a new book for my #365challenge.  This month's book is made up of an abandoned 'journal' I found in a box (while I was looking for something else.... isn't that always the way!), the pages are 16.5x12cm... I really like the book's colour scheme so am happy to use it this month AND it means I'm using up the stash - win win!

I wasn't even put off by the liberal amount of yellow in this collection of papers! Its 'Brook' by Crate Paper, I really like the patterns and the slightly retro designs.  I teamed it with plain pages of dark grey, buff/kraft and white.

This month I'm 'framing' each of my pages to get photo continuity through the month. Marion Emberson, of Sugar&Spice Crafts & WOW! Embossing, used this frame on the WOW! retailer day - such a nice, interesting & inexpensive frame... originally it was white but I painted mine (Slate, Fresco Finish) grey  (we seem to paint a lot of things grey in our house!.... its the new black lol)

01 March:  I wanted to set myself 'goals/aims' on the first day but didn't necessarily want them on show so I stamped (in white ink) a pattern all over a sheet of vellum, cut it to size and attached it with wood print washi tape to the main page... cute way to disguise images and text you don't want seen...

and I also doodled onto the stamped images...  (I used stamps from EKD05, PaperArtsy)

02 March:  I doodled flower heads onto this cute flower print paper, and because I wanted to retain the print I painted a 'fade' over it so the paint (Chalk, Fresco Finish) is more opaque on one side of the page than the other - done by painting over in layers (drying between each layer).  The grass and stems were doodled on when the paint was dry.

03 March:  The word 'focus' always seems to be on my 'list of words to live by this year!' Always and this year is no exception - but this year I am actively doing this... not being swayed/ distracted by the things around me. (big white flower is from EKD05, again! Such a great set of stamps!)

04 March:  This page was created when I was experimenting/playing with the new Distress Oxide paints... that page was as dark as the frame when I started applying the ink - look how opaque they are! Really interesting inks. The background black images are from EKD05 (yes again!... they're on the desk - I can't help reaching for them!)
The 'flowers' are created with a die from a French company called SimplyGraphic.

05 March:  Today's question in the Flow Calendar (yes, I'm still considering those when creating my pages) was 'What can you not throw away?'  Corrugated cardboard!! love it! its so useful and easy to get hold of  - this page was made out of a box that tins of cat food came in.. :o)  Always happy to help with the recycling! lol

The sparkly splats were created using WOW! Mint Macaroon embossing powder - such a pretty colour.

06 March:  I'm getting ready for a demo day at Birds in the Barn, Marks Tey, Essex this coming saturday (11.03.17) and this is one of the samples I made in readiness for that.  Demo'ing paints, stencils and stamps (Kim Dellow's designs).  If you're in the area please come along, its free and runs from 10-3.30.

07 March:  Flow Calendar question of the day: 'What countries would you like to visit?'  For this page I cut up the atlas that formed the cover of February's book.... attacking the stash!  its a book that keeps on giving lol

So that's week 1 of March done... I'll try and post a page a day on Instagram, and a weekly round-up here on the blog... that's the plan... fingers crossed.

Thanks for popping by - if you have any questions pop them in the comments.

x

#365Challenge.... 25 February 2017

I've received a couple of questions about the page for 25th February so here's a simple step-out of how I created the page...

The page was created by die cutting circles from post it notes (you could use paper instead) and randomly placing them on the surface.

Then I sprinkled 'a bit jaded' Infusions onto the surface and spritzed with a fair amount of water and while it was still damp I removed the circles....

The leaf stamp is from a lovely set from PaperArtsy, by Kim Dellow ref: EKD06.  I stamped these in Archival Ink Potting Soil to tone in with the walnut stain in the Infusions.
The leaves are painted with 'blue green' watercolour paint and copper pencil.

I replaced the circles and stamped on words (using Potting Soil), these are from a mini stamp: JM15.

Hope that answers all the questions  - if not please add them in the comments.

Thanks for stopping by

Oops I did it again!

... well not quite but I found another bag of bits and pieces I'd saved from previous projects - not as big as the pile I worked through in October last year (go HERE to see that)...but still a pile..

From this.....

To this, thinned out, cut out and ready to select....

and finishing up as this page in my #365Challenge February 2017 book..

and this page in my junk journal....

Feels good to make something nice out of bits and pieces that are simply cluttering up the place!

Attack your stash - it feels good!!

Jo

#365Challenge.... February!!

Here are all the pages for February in one picture packed blog post - you might want to get a cuppa before you sit down... :o)

I'm simply going to show you the pages and give some background information/explanation on a few of them - when I think/hope it might be helpful to you in some way...

Here we go:

The pages in this book are 6x8inches, the book is an upcycled atlas I bought in a charity shop aaaaages ago (and according to the inscription on the front page is the property of the 'Geography department, South East Essex Sixth Form College'! lol)

 

Gelli printed page + stencilled flowers (PS055) + small flowers (JM49) in Snowflake Fresco Finish Paint.

This page was created from a piece of 12x12 scrapbook paper....
I really like the starburst effect but really couldn't use the cowboy illustration (!!) but I didn't want to waste the background, so I started thinking of ways to cover it up (still only using things from the stash)

I liked how the doily covered pretty much everything but the sparkly burst still shows from underneath which is what I wanted...

 Panel of paper added to cover the word 'cowboy' and another smaller one to stamp the date onto

 Then I realised that the whole page looked better rotated 180degrees - allowing for the binding holes and also for the other elements that I was planning on adding...

 The strips of music score running under and over the patterned strips help tie everything together (stops them 'floating'), the bird is die cut from a gelli print (there are lots of those in my workroom! lol) and the branch is a die cut (Tim Holtz/Sizzix). The phrase is from JOFY15.

and not a cowboy in sight! lol

 I've 'rediscovered' my spirograph! can you tell! (its cropping up on several pages this month)

This page was created by taking a clean-up gelli print, stencilling on top with  PS056 (using Snowflake Fresco Finish) and adding words from Emma Godfrey's EEG17 & 14

The question in the Flow calendar for the 22 February (yes, I'm still considering those questions when I make my pages) was 'Who knows you the best?'... well it has to Matt, my husband... but, he's not overly keen on having his photo taken so I disguised his face by writing over his photograph - I really like the way this looks and I think it works really well (& I think printing the page in black and white helped too)

lol, yep more spirograph! lol  I should clarify - this isn't the kit I had as a child. This is one I bought relatively recently (probably in The Works) - it came with an activity book - the book has long gone but I am making full use of the kit that was attached to the front!

Question for day 24 was 'does wisdom come with age?' hhhmm I hope so! but I also think that you should keep on learning, keep trying new things... learn something new every day - however big or small.

Phew... another month finished... 59 down, 306 to go.....

I'm still enjoying creating these pages - March's book is 5x7 inches in size and landscape!  oh yes.. another small challenge- most of my stamp designs are portrait ie tall rather than wide so working landscape might be a bit of a challenge but that is what this year long project is all about - goal setting and learning something along the way..,

Thanks for stopping by.

Jo