Vintage piece number 3

Hi once again Folks!  Last piece in this little trilogy for my friend and once again using Clarity Stamps.  You can tell they are my favourite of all the stamps out there in the crafting world!

In this last little piece I used the Large Amethyst stamp and Plum Adirondack ink.  I then coloured the image with Promarkers but this time I used them with my Ultra Fine Nibs. 

Using these nibs on stretched canvas gives you the effect of very tiny strokes which gives the impression that you have painted in oils or acrylics which in turn gives your picture a lot more texture.

The colours I used were: Plum and Leaf Green for the
flowers, Maroon for the dress, Gold for the cushion, Spice for the back of the seat and Henna for the arms of the seat.

I used Maroon for her hair touching it here and there with my Blender to give highlights and Blush for the flesh.

I stamped and then cut out a mask to cover the central image and used Pearlescent Crimson - Brilliance ink with my Ink Duster to cover the background.

I stamped Large Ivy in each corner using Pearlescent Crimson - Brilliance ink. Then using a combination of Ink duster and Foam Pad and Plum Adirondack ink I shaded in the corners and edges of the work.

So now that these little pieces are done I can get on with some larger pieces for my friend ( I have a whole wall to cover for her....I think I am going to be busy for a little while).

Hope you are all well and Happy crafting everyone!

Vintage Piece Number two

Hi Folks!  That's me finished with the first lot of artwork for my friends new home.  I have made her three little pieces for her bedroom.  I have already blogged about one of them (Vintage Challenge) and here is the picture of piece two.
The central image is a larger version of 'La Petit Musique' from Clarity Stamp.  I do not know what this one is called as it was an EBAY job lot purchase.  (this version has the added attraction of the birds, plant and moon/sun in the background, I just love it) 
The corner stamp is the Large Art Nouveau Corner from Clarity Stamp. 

I stamped the image onto stretched canvas using Plum Adirondack ink.  Using my promarkers I coloured the image thus:  Blush for the flesh (of course), Maroon for the hair, Plum for the dress and for the Art Nouveau corner.  I used Coral for the foliage and Canary for the birds. I coloured the moon in Rose Pink.  I used my Blender pen around the outside of the moon to give it a bit of a halo effect.

I then covered the image with a mask that I had made and using my ink duster and Plum Adirondack ink shaded the background, putting a bit more at the corners.

I removed the mask and decided to put more colour to the stocking that the lady is wearing to give it a bit more definition and a little bit of shading under her chin and that was that piece finished.

Piece three coming soon. Hugs to all !

Vintage Challenge update!

Hi Folks!  Just a little update, blowing my own trumpet here!  My entry for the Vintage Challenge with Clarity Stamp Challenge Blog for September has been chosen by the lovely Design Team Ladies to be in the TOP 5 Favourites (Thank you VERY VERY  much Ladies)  this is the 2nd time for me and I am obviously really happy about it.  (you can tell by the big grin on my face) (Oh and I got a new Blinkie for my Blog for this).
Congratulations to the Winner #35 Angela Simpson, and congrats to the other ladies who were picked to be in the TOP 5....#9 Linda Barton , #18 Hermina Speksnijder, #37 Julie Wheatman, and #45 Julie Rose  who all made lovely cards.

Good Luck to all in the next challenge WINTER.

Happy Crafting xxx

Charity Find recycled!

Hi Folks!  In between helping my friend decorate and doing some art work for her I did manage to get some time off and I did a little piece for myself.  I was browsing through a charity shop and I found this item going for £1.50 and I thought I can do something with that!

As soon as I got home I went to work on it.  I had to cover up the background image (it was of a very bright orange and green plant of some sort) using white tile paint  (two coats) then left to dry overnight.   I then stamped my boxes for my letters and then my letters (from the Letterbox set)and then I placed letterbox masks over the boxes (you get all of these items from Clarity Stamp....just click on the highlighted text for each of them and you will be taken directly to the page that they are displayed on their website....and no I am not on commission, just think that they are such good quality and value for money and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to anyone)
Back to my sign....I then placed the masks of the Jigsaw pieces randomly onto the tile, and using torn copy paper, sponge, Starry Starry Night Whispers ink and Faded Jeans distress ink created a landscape. 

I removed the jigsaw masks one at a time and created a scene using the Cat, Squirrel, Birds and Floral Branch from the Birdhouse set.  I replaced the masks and then did a bit of shading around each piece.  I removed all of the masks and left to dry.   I had to then draw round the jigsaw pieces using Teal Zeal Distress Marker just to give them a bit more definition.
I now have it attached to the wall just outside my crafting area and I am very happy with it (especially as now I don't have to keep picking up my aprons from a chair...usually one that my cats have sat on). 
So not only did my little purchase go to a good cause it put a smile on my face too. xx 

Vintage Clarity Challenge!

Hi Folks!  End of the month again!  Time is just passing too quickly!  So I have been busy helping a friend decorate her new home and she asked me to do a few pieces of art work for her.   So now that the walls are painted I have finally got round to making a start on her art work.  I have managed to finish this one in time to enter it into the Clarity Stamp Challenge for this month. 

The theme for September is Vintage and this piece fits the bill.  This is an Ink on Canvas 5 x 7 inches.

I have used the  Beatrice stamp along with the Wild Rose Clever Corner.  I started this piece by making a mask from post-it notes of the lady and placing it over my stamped image, I also stamped the corner of the wild rose stamp cutting out the rose (two layers of post-it were required...cut once).  Next I shaded the canvas with Plum Adirondack ink using an ink duster to begin with over the corners then using a foam pad to darken them.  I added shading around my mask of the central image being careful not to go near the lines of the framework in the wild rose image.  After removing the masks I used a promarker (Blush) to colour in the exposed arms and face and also to the centre of the flowers.  I then very lightly tinted the petals with Pearlescent Crimson Brilliance ink.  I chose the colours in this piece as they will fit in with my friend's colour scheme and also because the images have a nice serene feel to them.  Pieces two and three coming soon!

Happy crafting everyone x

Lighthouse Birthday Card and Lighthouse painting

Hi Folks!  This project was made for my big brother David who is 70 today.  He has spent a lifetime at sea and now lives looking out at the lighthouse at Newhaven Harbour in Edinburgh.  I decided to give him another lighthouse to look at by making him a card and also doing a painting for him to match. 

The card was made using Clarity Paper (coated) and Clarity Stamps for the trees and the detail in the foreground island. 

I made a mask out of post-it notes for the lighthouse and houses which I then put in place on my paper.

I used a makeup sponge to colour in the sky with Whispers Starry Starry Night ink. I then used torn copy paper to form hills with my sponges and whispers Savoy Green and Memento Olive Grove.

For the front island I partially removed the masks for the lighthouse and houses (I used the masks as I wanted them to stay mainly white except for the shading that I was going to do.) I then coloured in this island using the same colours as above making sure that they were a bit darker. I used a pointillism stamp from Clarity Stamp to give extra detail.

I used Starry Starry Night and Ranger Distress Faded Jeans to colour in the sea.

I stamped my trees with Memento Olive Grove and to add a bit of shading I used a mix of Lettuce and Pesto from my 'Big and Juicy' pad Spice.

Highland Landscape Birthday Card

Hello Folks!  Well since my last blog I have managed to get a few pieces done but I still have lots of Christmas cards to design.  I had a lovely few days visiting relatives in Edinburgh this weekend as it was my brother David's 70th Birthday and also my son George's 36th birthday.  We had a lovely family gathering and then I came back to my little town and I had a few parcels to open....more Clarity Stamps, ink, alcohol inks and my design club letter and stamp from Clarity Stamps.  So I thought I had better get my blog on the go before I get lost in playing with my new stuff!

So first up is the card I made for my son George.  He loves to travel all over Scotland on his bicycle and he does guided treks too, he especially loves to be up in the hills.  So when I got an ATC stamp of a cyclist a while back I knew what I wanted to do with it.  I have had this card made for a few weeks now but couldn't show it as he reads my blog.

To make this card I used Faded Jeans Distress Ink for all the stamping and the shading to make the hills (torn copy paper and makeup sponge).

I made a mask with a post-it note of the upper body of the cyclist so that his face and arm would stay white. 
I stamped on to Clarity Paper (coated).  I just love this paper, it is of excellent quality and once your design is dry polish it with a bit tissue or kitchen roll and the design looks like a print....which is what I did.  I then matted onto white cardstock which was then matted onto a blue textured card that matched the stamping in colour....I used my Perfect Layers Ruler to get my matting right, they are a really great crafting tool.

All the stamps used were of course Clarity Stamps .

My hubby said once the card was finished " it's not snowing so why have you made a winter scene"....my reply..." It's just meant to be blue for a boy and besides there is always snow up Ben Nevis".

To finish off I made the envelope and stamped my name and the cyclist on the inside using Slate Adirondack ink.  (I get a row from my kids if I don't )  My son loved his card especially the cyclist.

P. S. if anyone wishes to know what stamps were used please contact me and I will let them know.

Picture Time

Hi Folks! Perfect weather for crafting here in Scotland....yes its raining and that wasn't a hard guess.
Its going to be a busy few weeks for me so please forgive if I forget to post my blogs, I will try to remember.  I have 3 Birthday cards to do, 5 more pictures, samples to make for a company for their Christmas card selection ( could be an order in excess of 200 in it for me ) and a 70th birthday cake to decorate and two competitions to enter.

The first competition is of course for my favourite -  clarity stamp challenge which you can enter via the link:  http://claritystampchallenge.blogspot.co.uk

This months entry is all about Animals and I have decided to enter the picture that I have just finished and framed.  It features my two cats Billy and Blue doing what they love best...hassling the birds.  We have a tree right by our little pond and on a daily basis you can find one or both of the cats hiding amongst the plants and there is a couple of blackbirds that come and sit in the tree chirping away at the cats.  Thank god that my cats are not quick enough to get them but they do try!

As per the rules I have used ONLY Clarity Stamps, which I will list at the end of this blog.

I used Clarity Paper (170GSM double sided coated A4).  I cut it down to fit in the frame and then attached it to A4 copy paper (with LOW TACK Masking Tape) giving it a .5cm border.

 
I decided on Teal Zeal Memento Ink to represent my black cat Blue (so named for his blue eyes) and I chose Whispers Starry Starry Night to represent our ginger and fawn striped (with leopard spots) cat Billy (so named after a comic character...which those of a certain age will remember...Billy Bunter...and you will also know the reason why!) 

I stamped up Blue first on to my Clarity paper, then I stamped on to a bit A4 copy paper 3 times.  1 - mask for Blue, 2 - Stencil for Billy, 3 - mask for Billy.  So obviously I cut around for two masks and then cut out the cat shape to make the stencil. I then stencilled Billy using the reverse image of the stamp to put him in to the left of the picture.  Next I stamped the Hollyhocks and grasses  around the cats making sure to mask up the cats for the planting going on behind them.

Trellis Wedding Card

Hi Folks!  Its been a little while since my last blog...been ill, been busy, been to a wedding, needed to recover....and forgot to post blog...silly me!  So at the beginning of the month I received my new Clarity Stamp Stencils and Masks...really pleased with them especially as I had a wedding card to make and wasn't quite sure where I was going to go with it. 

I was informed by the bride's mother that the colour would be white and (Cadbury's) purple so I had that in hand and as soon as I saw my new stencils I knew what I wanted to do.
The Trellis Stencil measures  9 x 11 inches and was a great size for what I had come up with.

I placed the stencil over some copy paper and drew around the pattern in black pen.  This I then placed underneath 4 sheets of white vellum which I had cut to just over 4 x 8 inches and using my two needle tool I pierced around the lines.

I trimmed the vellum to 4 x 8 inches and using my parchment scissors I cut out around the shapes to make parchment trellis to add to my card.  I had decided to make a gatefold card and I used A3 White card to make an 8 x 8 inch (when folded).  I cut out two panels of super smooth white card (4 x 8 inches again) and using a purple ink pad (hobbycraft) and my favourite stamps (Clarity Stamp), I created a landscape that spread over the panels with a white border all round which I then attached a vellum trellis using foam tape.

 

Birdhouse ATC Card

Hi Folks. Hope you are all well and busy crafting away.

My latest card creation for all to see was made using the items opposite.  (I left out the Versamark pen from the photo oops!). Sea foam White Embossing Powder, Stencil Tape, Post-it note masks, Heat Gun, Ink Duster, makeup sponge, copy paper (torn in half to make hills) 3 ATC's from the set I got from Clarity Stamp  I used Pitch Black Adirondack and Archival Brilliance Pearlescent Crimson ink.


I used the complete set of stamps from Lesson 18 - Birdhouse set from Clarity Stamp (I was determined to use every stamp).

The picture is of my sample sheet for my records as the full set comes with the Bird table already mounted while the other stamps in the set are re-mountable.

I keep my Clarity Stamps on sheets of acetate once I take a sample print then store them in A4 poly pockets in a large binder

I keep all my other clear stamps in A5 pockets and binders






So what did I do.......