Snoopy Love

Okay I said I would show some birdcage cards today but I changed my mind because I wanted to show my latest mini canvas.  This is a little gift I made for my lovely boyfriend, Andy.

I bought some mini canvases that come with cute little easels from The Works, such a bargain at 99p each!  I covered it with some Sugar Dumpling paper from Art from the Heart.  Then sealed that with a border of Tim Holtz tissue tape edged with distress spiced marmalade.  The heart is die cut from grungeboard and stained with distress Mustard Seed and Barn door and then covered in Rock Candy crackle.  I typed the words and printed out Snoopy.  I used glossy accents on Woodstock to give him more dimension.  I layered Snoopy to make him stand out .... actually in truth I kept getting yellow ink all over him so had to ... ahem .... cover up my mistakes (too many times to mention!), quite pleased with his 3D effect :).

I enjoyed making this and really it's no bigger than an ATC so I'm going to be making more as, unlike the bigger canvases, you don't need so many things to cover it.

I will be back tomorrow with the bird cage cards.

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Altered Art Birdcage

Using another acrylic canvas i came up with this idea.  To be honest, I love the Tim Holtz bird and birdcage die but was not so thrilled with the rest of my design.  Well it's okay, but I like to love things I make and I just didn't love it, I need to make more and hope I get better ideas.  Actually I have made another one I'll show soon, it's a mini one and it's cute.

I cut the bird and cage using Tim Holtz grungeboard.  I painted the cage with pewter distress crackle paint.  I inked the bird with blue china distress inks and edged it with mahogany.  Then I covered it in rock candy crackle and added a bead for it's eye.  Here is a closer look

The 'Listen to your heart' sentiment was a clear Tim Holtz stamp (yes it's meant to look that distressed :)) and I bought the bronze mini birdcage and bird from Craftasmic.  The flower brad attaching the birdcage was from Stampin up.  I used Tim Holtz tissue tape to edge around the acrylic bloc and the heart and swirls were more grungeboard shapes.

Tomorow I will be back with some birdcage cards I made awhile ago .... keep meaning to add them but life just keeps getting in the way of me updating my blog :).

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Brush free watercolour

Another technique that I love to use is the brush free watercolour technique. Tim Holtz also taught this on his online 'Creative Chemistry 101' course. This is where you apply colour to your stamp, either by marker or ink pad (using water based ink), and then spritz with water (while your stamp is lying flat, stamp side up) and then quickly stamp your image onto paper (absorbent paper preferably, definitely not shiny, glossy).

Then heat the image to dry it.  As you can see you get a lovely watercolour effect as if it was you with your brush in hand that created the masterpiece :).  The sentiment is from a Hero Arts clear stamp set.

And then, because I loved it so much, I decided to make another one

I added a butterfly die from Tim Holtz' movers and shapers die sets. I am loving all the new dies by Tim Holtz, Sizzix and Hero Arts, I would love to be able to collect them all.  And also, Memory Box have some really beautiful ones.  Honestly this craft world is so addictable and once I get back into it I'm hooked.  I'm going to have to stop looking at all the new products coming out!!!

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Wrinkle Free Distress

I have been enjoying the 'Creative Chemistry 101' classes by Tim Holtz.  He has shared many techniques, some of which I know about, some I didn't.

For example, wrinkle free distress .... love this technique and effect it gives.

The technique is really easy.  Just smoosh your distress inks over your Ranger craft sheet, don't mix them up, leave gaps between them.  And then use your card to blot up the colour until you've covered it.  Dry with heat gun and then blot up some more colour in any spaces left, or layer colours.  Just make sure you apply heat gun between the layers to avoid a muddy effect.  After, I stamped, using Archival black ink, some Tim Holtz clear stamps 'Playful Journey'.

We are having an amazing warm March here in the United Kingdom, I hope it lasts all the way through to next Winter :)!

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Craftasmic Workshop

Lately I seem to have got my crafting mojo back.  It all began when QVC had an all day craft day featuring Tim Holtz.  Well that did it for me.  I got all my distress ink pads out and got addicted all over again.

Luckily for me Taunton has Craftasmic which is a craft shop full of crafting goodies including lots of Tim Holtz products.  And even luckier for me, I was able to do a workshop with James (owner of Craftasmic) on altered art.

With James' guidance, and using Ranger and Tim Holtz products provided by Craftasmic, I came up with this ......

Ooooh what is it?  Well it's a square piece of canvas covered in kraft resist, stained with distress markers, sealed with distress tissue tape and adorned with a Tim Holtz die cut tailor's dummy (with birdcage skirt and wings!)  With a few sewing related accessories added :).  Well that is 'altered art' you know!  Well you know now :).

Okay it isn't my usual style but I loved making it because I learned some techniques I didn't know about with regard to using distress stains and kraft resist paper. And it means I can make my own designs in future.  Artists canvases are a really good surface for decorating and can hang on walls easily too.

I've been doing an online course 'Creative Chemistry 101' by Tim Holtz and I will be back to show some of the techniques I've learned from it.  It's still going on this week too and I'm loving it.  Good ol' Tim, his enthusiasm really is catching.

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I'm back!

Oooh 3 months into 2012 and I'm finally back at my blog.  Where does time fly?

I've re-edited this post and uploaded a new picture of the card I took.  This time Andy took a much better picture for me.  I sent the card to him because as the card says, he is so special to me :).

Well there is a lovely craft shop in Taunton called Craftasmic.  It's been there awhile, it's just that I haven't been in it (not wanting to be tempted!).  But now I have, OMG I've got addicted into craftmaking again.  It is full of fantastic craft products.  And has lots of lovely Tim Holtz goodies inside.

So I was in there the other day and bought this cute birdcage die from Cottage Cutz.  I had to make the birdcage because the die does not give you the complete birdcage.  Oh no, it's all in seperate bits and quite fiddly to put together.  I stamped the branch in white and embossed it in white to 'hang' the birdcage from.  Quite a simple card really.  The sentiment is by Hero Arts (I'm sorry, I can't remember which clear stamp set it is from).  I sponged the two little birds with distress inks and dotted in their eyes with a black biro.

I'm hoping to update more regularly from now on.  I really hope I can put up better quality pictures in future.

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Christmas coming to Taunton

On Sunday 20th it was the annual 'Turning on the Lights' in Taunton.  This is a fun family kinda day where the roads are cut off for traffic and the town is full of little market stalls, fun fairs and music.

This is part of our Deparment store 'Calvert's window - which is on the other side of town but it's pretty so I included it.

What was really cute was the little farm animals.  I asked Andy to take lots of photos as we are rather partial to cute furry animals :)

When I was little I always wanted a miniature pony.  This one would fit in my flat easily and I'm sure Miaowski wouldn't mind .... much!

Well, little hen, you have a rather spectacular hairdo

And you look very proud of yourself

*Kiss*, *kiss* little pony

Check out the ears ... I would have liked to give this donkey a big kiss

A few of the stalls in the middle of town

And I'm impatient to get going ....

Pretty, I love this tree

This is the inside of Mr Miles tea shop ... we love the lovely things it has for sale

I love red in my kitchen

Some blue things, very nice

I like these cat mugs and the Moo salt and pepper shakers

Peeking through the window to check out people enjoying their afternoon teas

This was outside the Cornish Pasty shop - just shows how mild it was that people were sitting outside as it was getting dark

Outside Cafe Nero ... love this building.  Made famous by Judge Jeffries .... Andy told me that but I can't remember why (if you really want to know leave me a comment I'll get back to you :))

Thank you for taking the photos Andy xxx

You may have noticed we didn't take photos of the lights going on.  Well to be honest it was so crowded we just had enough so didn't stay for the big switch on and fireworks.  I will show photos of the lights later this week

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