Little Boy Blue

I am entering this for a challenge on Arty Girlz Challenge Blog this weeks' challenge is Blue.




I have altered a child's wooden domino.

First I primed it - then I painted on a lovely metallic blue paint, sandpapered it, painted on Gesso, sandpapered that - then painted on a top coat of metallic blue again - with the aim of giving it a distressed look.

When dry I stamped a Paper Artsy image onto it. I embossed the little boys hat with black embossing powder so too part of his cloak - to add definition and texture.

Around the edge of the domino I used textured paste to make a 'frame' then added different embossing colours - including gold, silver, distressed blue and clear embossing.

The sides and the back have had several coats of metallic blue paint too.

I drilled a hole through the top for a silver wire 'hanger loop'

The domino is a lot smaller than this photo! He looks lovely under a light.

Altered wooden domino - distressed

This is a wooden domino - altered for a forum swap




This one is supposed to look like peeled and cracked paint - a long lost Japanese 'treasure'

It has had several layers of paint which has been distressed with sand paper.

The image is stamped on and I went bonkers with the texture paste, all different colours and textures of embossing powders - including matt and distressed as well as well as gold and silver - and I have to say I am pleased with the result.





I even drilled to hole at the top - to put through wire to hang it up!

MADJAK DESIGNS - Butterfly Stamp

I am entering this for This Thursday Challenge Blog


At last I got to use one of my beautiful stamps from MADJAK designs. It is one of a set of four ATC sized stamps and they are gorgeous - I am trying to do them justice!

After a visit yesterday from Paula I was inspired by the way she colours her backgrounds with different shades of ink - so I had a go. O.K. so it looks mainly black - but there are different shades to make it look like that!

After shading the backing card, I stamped out a butterfly on acetate and coloured the back with firstly alcohol inked gold - then once dry added red acrylic paint. Although you can't see it here - it gives the butterfly a lovely gold shimmer on top of the red. A bit like painting in reverse!

I had a whale of a time with textured paste - as you can see - and incorporated butterfly red, gold, silver, black shades, and white.

I stamped on layers of ferns - with the top layer having some sea foam embossing.

I sprayed some dried twigs black and that was 'sunk' in place with a No Nails product and coloured to match the rest of the texture.

The butterfly is resting on the twigs - its head is the 'bud' from a dried twig as cutting out the head and antennae of the butterfly out of acrylic was a bit out of my scope. The butterfly antennae are twigs with 'buds' conveniently on the top, painted with gold leaf

It hangs by gold thread at the top.

I would just like to thank Linda for the stamps, together with Zuzu, Ginger and Paula all of whom have inspired and encouraged me - and I think that their guidance and influence is beginning to show in my work.

'Butterfly' ATC house shape swap

Firstly I stamped (with my new second hand stamp -thanks BB) the Asian Lady. Then I masked her.

The backing colours were done next in pastels (they look brighter and softer in real life) and then over the masked lady I stamped Oriental Calligraphy which I embossed to give texture.

The butterfly was an image I bought - which I covered in UTEE to enamel it. It sits proud of the lady so that the wings are not glued on just the body with a glue dot.

Mermaid - Third Coast Designs

I finally got around to finishing my texture mermaid - I bought the stamp from Third Coast Designs and wanted to make something to do it justice.

I got the chance when Zuzu and Ginger came to visit for a few hours and they showed me how to use texture paste. I didn't get to finish it at the time - but have spent a while adding bits and finishing it off since then.

In real life - it is lovely and shimmery and 'wet' looking just like a mermaid under the sea. The pearls around the edge and her necklace are all done with liquid pearls. There is silver and sea foam embossing too - and of course lots of texture!

I have been trying to find something to dangle at the bottom - a single pearl - but alas can't find one anywhere - so she is hanging in my studio until such times I can find what I have in mind.

Newsprint Japanese Arch

I decided to have a go at the Wednesday Stamper Challenge this week.

The challenge is to use newspaper in your art work, but also include some stamping.

The page I used came from a 2003 Japanese newspaper that was used for packing - which Haruko my daughter in law saved for me.

I covered the whole arch with a sheet of newspaper - then painted Guesso over it then painted it with distressed green ink.

Next I pasted on torn sheets of newspaper and stamped the bottom left hand corner and added another coat of distressed green ink, adding shades to emphasise the torn scraps.

I stamped a bit of calligraphy to tie it all in, and embossed the left hand side strip.

Next I added an image, and painted it with inks, watercolours and acrylics. I painted long hair, and her face white, with the pink flannel with white make up on it. I wanted her to look like a worn out Geisha, cleaning her white Geisha make up off.

The white is slightly textured with Gesso as is the white makeup on her face.

Across the bottom and the right hand side I used several layers of texture paste.

On the first layer I used Pine Needles - alcohol ink to make a dark base colour. The next layer of texture paste was bubbled up on top and I added some embossing gold and bronze.

When that was dry I added a little bit more paste here and there, and rubbed some metallic pink acrylic paint on it - then bubbled it all up again with a heat gun, including the clear embossed edge.

I finished it off with an Oriental colour co-ordinated bead threaded with gold wire to make a loop to hang it up by.

I hope they like it!

My first attempt at 'Twinches'

This is my first attempt at 'Twinches' and I thought I would try them out for a swap on Zuzu's forum.



Lots of texture are you can see - got to keep practising that!


At two inches by 2 inches they were rather fiddly to do! But I am pleased that I had a go.


As Zuzu reminded me - If I don't have a stamp to fit the subject/topic - I can collage - so I took her advice.


I bought a digital collage sheet (I know - but I took some of her advice and the sheet had lots of different portraits!)

I printed them out on best quality photo paper, then cut them out, backed them with card - and then just played around. Some I have used alcohol inks on the 'No Nails' paste, others I have used paints, and on all of them I used embossing powders.

Boy do you need to do this in a well ventilated room!

Circus

There is a new site called One Powerful Hour which challenges you to make a piece of art in an hour.

The title of this weeks challenge is Circus - and here is my entry




Zuzu and Ginger from Zuzu's forum I belong to - paid me an afternoon visit last week and showed my how to do textured work. (I haven't quite finished the Mermaid I did on that day - just need to get some beads to finish it off)

In the meantime I was raring to go to made the above circus arch.

I used a vintage circus poster from a CD collection of images I had, then with a pallet knife I spread on No Nails (an alternative to Texture Paste until I can get to the city to buy the real stuff)

I used alcohol inks and on top of the blender for the colouring and heat dried it until it bubbled. I then added lot so bright colours and glitter and sequins to get the feel of the circus.

I coloured the white clown and the lady acrobat with watercolour pencils, added clear embossing powder to highlight for example her legs and shoes (it looks white in the photo but isn't in natural light) more sequins, gold embossing, red liquid pearls to make the clown juggling balls, - and everything else I can think of!

It is hard to see in the photo - but with the naked eye it really glitters and shines which ever way you look at it.

Thank you my 'Mentors' giving me a wonderful afternoon - and kick starting me to try new techniques

Monthly tag swap July - Letter E

Blue tag - with a stamped image which has been embossed with distressed black embossing powder.

Outside the image the area has been aged with dark chalk and the edges have been embossed with distressed black embossing powder.

The letter E has been painted with gold.

Monthly tag swap this month is E

E is for Eyes.

Tag on dark green painted card - with lots of textured golds and greens bubbled up with a heat gun