A Touch of Magic - an art journal spread

First Friday of the month obviously means first process video of the month! This time I'm making an art journal spread with some twinkles of magic. You can watch the process video here (link) on my YouTube channel.

Halloween and magic seem to be a theme of the first couple videos of the month. This particular one was inspired by those gorgeous die cuts I fell in love with. I admire their vintage palette and the delicate luster. But, if you know me, the tipping point for me was that crow. When I saw him in the set, I just needed to order it, even though I have plenty of stash already. But it's sometimes nice to get something new so you see the older stash in a different light, right? 

As you can see from the process video, I used alcohol inks to color the background, yet I was working on top of regular cardstock. The trick is to seal the paper before applying the inks, so they're not just a muddy puddle but instead can flow freely. Other option, of course, is to use paper fitting to the inks.

Thank you for stopping by today! Wishing you a lovely Friday and splendid weekend!

Materials: 

Stamperia - Fortune ephemera

Fabriano - Accademia 160 g cardstock

Ranger - Distress collage medium

Ranger - Adirondack alcohol ink Denim, Stream, Pesto, Cloudy Blue, Mushroom

Ranger - Adirondack Alcohol Blending Solution

PaperArtsy - Fresco Finish acrylic paint Chalk, Chocolate Pudding, Caramel

Ranger - Archival Ink Jet Black, Vintage Photo

PaperArtsy - TS065 stamp set

A.B.Studio - Mixmedia thick cardboard ID-290

Tsukineko - Versa Mark ink

Ranger - embossing powder gold

Posca PC-1M white

P13 Paper Products - New Moon stickers 01

art journal

masking tape, washi tape

drinking straw

brushes, scissors, paper cutter, heat tool

foam tape, craft glue, double sided tape

Summer sparrows - a painting

During August, I blogged a big canvas (link) I had painted for my co-worker. Her choice of background color too me by surprise, but I followed the que and painted it in grey tones. When I was writing the post it was already in the know, that I would re-paint the background. 

Here the canvas is re-painted! I was able to save the swallows and needed just to add some minor re-touches to them, but if you compare the two, the background has undergone a drastic change! I prefer this one over the grey-toned as it's so much more like the recipient! She's all about color and summer and the inspiration for this palette was a sunset. So, there's the clear blue summer sky, the pinks, oranges and pastel purples of the sunset and some fluffy clouds as well.

Which one of the backgrounds you prefer? The burst of color or the serene grey one? 

Thank you so much for stopping by today! Wishing a lovely day to you and yours!

White angels - PaperArtsy

Moikka moi! It's not only another new week but a totally new month as well! Happy October everyone! 

Today I share my first Holiday cards for the year. I made these for PaperArtsy and the theme this time was "White". As you can see from the photos, my cards aren't totally white, but have also a brown tone included, but the main colors are different shades of white. You can see and read the step by step process here (link) at PaperArtsy's blog.

The focal point of these cards is a Lynne Perrella stamp. I first thought to use black stamping ink, as I often do, but that seemed too harsh of a contrast in these. That's why I chose the brown, which went nicely with the overall weathered and vintage look.

Have you started the Holiday makes yet? Or is it first Halloween and then Christmas on your craft table?

Thank you for stopping by today! Wishing you a wonderful October!

Materials: PaperArtsy, Ranger

Bee Adventurous - a pair of cards

Hi there! It's again Friday and that means a new process video! Funnily enough, I thought to use the pumpkin printable I used in the tag I blogged on Wednesday on these too, but then decided against it! The funny thing is that even though these projects follow each other on the blog, there's maybe a year between making them!

As you can see from the pictures here, I made a pair of cards this time. I used a printable to do the background but the rest of the elements are die cut using Sizzix dies. I combined elements from different sets to make these bee cards. Want to see the process video? You can find it here (link) on my YouTube channel.

Thank you for stopping by today! Wishing you a nice Friday and sunny weekend! See you again on Tuesday, the first of October! 

Materials:

Fabriano - Accademia 160g cardstock

Sizzix - Thinlitz Bee die set 663852

Sizzix - Thinlitz Funky Wreath die set 664434

Sizzix - Thinlitz Vault Flowers die set 666565

Kate Crafts - Vintage Fabric digi papers

Ranger - Distress watercolor pencils set 1, set 4

PaperArtsy - Fresco Finish acrylic paint Butternut

Ranger - Distress Ink Vintage Photo

Tim Holtz Idea-ology - Metallic sticker book #TH94134

twine, sisal, kraft cardstock, sequins

brushes, palette knife, scissors, stapler, sponge, paper cutter

craft glue, foam tape, double sided tape, double sided adhesive sheet

Stop to see all the beautiful things - a tag

Moikka moi! Here's another little creation from a workshop that didn't come to life. This time it's a mixed media tag with quite unusual transfer in the background! 

Last week I blogged a little canvas (link) for the same online workshop thing. Like with that canvas, I used Kate Crafts printables to add some pattern to the background. This time I used a cardtsock mounted printable also as the focal point. The sentiment strips are from Korttipaja, stating: "Stop to see all the beautiful things". That kind of serene saying of seizing the day, carpe diem, fits nicely the the autumn mood, in my opinion. It's a time of letting go but also for new beginnings. 

Thank you for stopping by today! Wishing you a wonderful day! Carpe diem!

Materials: Ranger, Kate Crafts, Korttipaja, PaperArtsy

Happy gatherings - a YouTube live recording

Hi there! It's the last whole week of September and here I'm blogging the card I made during the September YouTube live. If you were unable to attend it while the live was happening, you can watch the recording here (link) on my YouTube channel.

This time the live didn't have that much technique, but more I was trying to share my passion for clustering and using different elements in my projects. I just love to add different textures to a card! In this case there's sleek paper, delicate gauze-like fiber, fluffy thread and solid molded embellishment, for example. I also used embossing powder resist with acrylic paint in this make.

I used PaperArtsy stamps as my focal point and made the little flower-like embellishment using Prima Marketing Re-Design mold. You can see the complete materials list in the announcement post here (link).

Thank you for stopping by today! Wishing you a nice autumn week!

Materials: PaperArtsy, Prima Marketing, A.B.Studio, Ranger, GelliArts

Margaret, Louise and Sheryll - an art journal spread

Moikka moi! This Friday it's an art journal kind of process video! This spread had a couple of inspiration sources, one of them being putting cut items to use. The other was that wonderful group of ladies. 

Last Friday I made a pair of cards and die cut circles out of a patterned paper. I then stashed the left over - or in all honesty, was going to, but instead thought to use it immediately. I used that as the top part of the background and covered the bottom part with strips. On top I then layered acrylic paint and inks, using them like watercolors. 

When I had the background done, it was time to concentrate on the layers coming on top. I first die cut a bunch of little houses and painted them with acrylics. I used the same inks I used in the background to turn them a bit weathered, then. The focal elements are mainly from Tim Holtz Idea-ology. The car and the group of ladies made me conjure a story of these ground breaking mechanics, who opened the first garage in their part of town. That's why I added the gauges around the spread and tried to choose the little labels also fitting to the theme. 

As always, you can see the process video here (link) on my YouTube channel.

Thank you for stopping by today! Wishing you a fabulous Friday and weekend!

Materials:

Fabriano - Accademia 160g cardstock

Tim Holtz Idea-ology - Backdrops volume 4 #TH94308

Tim Holtz Idea-ology - Collage Strips #TH94328

PaperArtsy - Fresco Finish acrylic paint Chantilly, Sand, Blah Mange, Butter

Stampers Anonymous - Brush Arch stencil THS168

Stampers Anonymous - Sticks stencil THS172

Sizzix - Thinlits Ghost Town die set 664194

Ranger - Distress Ink Vintage Photo, Scorched Timber

Tim Holtz Idea-ology - Paper Dolls Poses #TH94376

Tim Holtz Idea-ology - Layers Photo Studio #TH94374

Tim Holtz Idea-ology - Gauge Dials #TH94225

Tim Holtz Idea-ology - Snippets ephemera pack Number strips #TH94222

Ranger - Adirondack alcohol ink Butterscotch, Rust

clear tape, washi tape

art journal

craft glue, foam tape, double sided tape

scissors, brushes, sponge, paper cutter