Spring has sprung...journal page

Spring may have sprung...but what happened to the Summer..?  Huh?  Did i blink and miss it!!! 

Personally, spring is my favourite time of year, i love that its bright and everything is bursting into life...its the most affirming time of year for me...everywhere you look there is something to make to me feel hopeful and happy.  I love that my garden fills with birds and leaves start bursting out...not to mention the huge clematis flowers that are the first thing to bloom in our yard, so it seemed a fitting thing to document in my journal.

I'm still working on trying every style and medium going in my journalling to see what suits me best, but this combination of Neocolour II's and lots of doodling is certainly my favourite at the moment.  Of course it would have all worked better if i'd used the right kind of paper so it didn't warp with all the water i added...but i don't really mind that in my journal...i'm just playing...there is no need for perfection here...that only makes me nervous!  And speaking of perfection...i really need to work on drawing birds!! lol

Family Fun...a LO for Bubbly Funk

I've got a quick and easy summer LO over on the Bubbly Scrumptious blog today...click here to see all the details 

50 points to anyone who can spot me in the LO...I am in one of the photos...can you find me??? :0)

Jubilant at the Jubilee...

We don't let a bit of torrential rain and freezing weather spoil our days...so here is Granny and two of my Aunts sporting the Jubilee headgear I made them and enjoying the Great British outdoors!! lol  Pretty game to sit there for hours at 93, huh?? *Go Granny*

Actually, I think they came for the quiche and the pavlova as much as the Queen... ;0)

Hats off for the Queen!

It seemed it was about time I did a little crafting in honour of the Queen and her upcoming Diamond Jubilee...so I've created some headgear for a few of my relative that will be joining us over the long weekend.

First up, a red, white and blue headband:

 Secondly, with more of the red, white and blue flowers...a hat band for...well for a hat, clearly! ;0)

And finally, because every family has someone who thinks she's Queen bee...a tiara!! 

An unseasonal LO...Christmas at Berko!!

Hi everyone...its beautifully sunny here and so hot you could fry eggs on the pavement...so i thought i'd scrap a very unseasonal photo and immerse myself in cooler times. ;0)

I only allowed myself to use papers and cardstock from my scraps pile...and i even created the background pp with a scrap, some Versamark ink, a few mica powders and my hand carved damask stamp...did you spot it?
{To see the LO more clearly just click on it and it will pop up big enough for you to see all the details :0) }

The embellishments all came from the tray on my desk where I keep leftovers from other projects.  The paper flowers are both dipped into UTEE after being coated in Brilliance ink, and the wire flower is held in place by a cute brad that was also in my tray.

I stamped the journalling block using an ancient stamp and rounded the corners to match the tag i've used (upside down) on the top left.

Its another case of, not feeling great so throw it all at the page and see what happens...but i'm quite liking how it came out! :0)  And how can you fail to love the cheeky look on my BIL's face!!

I do hope you are managing to keep cool...and not get burned...but taking the opportunity to have an ice~cream or two!

Stamp Carving 101...faux woodcut stamps

Hello again...I'm back with some more of Julie Fei~Fan Balzer's Stamp Carving 101 course...this lesson was  all about recreating the look of woodcut stamps with carvable rubber.  Basically its easy, simply don't remove all the excess and try to keep what you leave as random looking as possible.  Here is my design:

I drew 5 simple flowers in a row, and because my design was so simple...I left alot of the background to create a fairly heavy woodcut pattern and balance this out.  It is quite possible to go back though and remove more and more rubber to create a more subtle look if you prefer that.

Simply stamped in black on cream cardstock is my favourite way to show this design off:

But you can change the look dramatically by using different inks...here i've used rainbow pads, and for the bottom right I stamped in Versamark and used chalks to colour it:

So what is stopping you..?  If you still haven't had a go...go on...its easy!

Check out the Prima Iron~ons Product Focus...

...over at Bubbly Scrumptious this week.  We've all been playing with these easy to use, velvety wonders designed by Donna Downey...and I loved them so much i've made 2 projects for you!!

 one is paper based...a cute little gift bag...

the other is fabric based...and intended to help you get into the idea that these are not just for papercrafts...a cute baby's bib!

I added little die~cut felt pieces to embellish this...and its super soft and they tell me you can wash these iron~ons on cool...so we'll soon see how the bib holds up after being used!!

Details for how I made both these projects can be found here :0)

Bubbly Scrumptious update...Valentine projects...

have you been over to the Bubbly Scrumptious blog to see my latest creations...i've gone all romantic for Valentine's day :0)  if not...just click here!

who said Valentine's have to be red or pink, eh? ;0)

beginning again...art as therapy!

do you ever completely lose all sense of yourself?  in the last 5 months i have been diagnosed with breast cancer, had two surgeries which have altered my body forever and embarked on a journey of chemotherapy that has taken my hair, my energy all that remained of me.  i am no longer the *busty blonde* i have come to think of myself as...and so i'm currently going through a bit of an identity crisis!!  in order to help me tackle this, i decided to create this journal page as a way to look back at a time when i was very clear who i was {and heaven help anyone who got in my way ;0) }...maybe, from looking back at the deeper essence of who i was and who i am...i'll eventually come to a place of acceptance...and a new sense of *me*...afterall...i've got more to me than boobs, right?

i studied art as therapy at universitiy and am a firm believer that the most crucial impact of art for me is the process...the act of letting go and expressing my emotions and *being real*.  art can be very healing and also revealing...if we let ourselves go and explore the inner workings of our psyche...so here i am...exposing myself and making myself vulnerable...its not something i generally share with people...but maybe there are other of you out there with your own struggles and emotional journeys who might be inspired to have a go yourselves.

its a thoroughly mixed~media affair this page...i've used water colours, water soluble pastels, acrylic paint, stamping, doodling, paper punches and brush pens as well as masking tape, tissue paper and a sponge!  i guess that represents that i don't want to be constrained, or categorised! 

a little wine...bottle!

Hi there bloggers...i do hope you've all had a wonderful Christmas and are looking forward to the New Year celebrations.

Despite alot of illness throughout the whole family...we all managed to be well enough on the big day to spend a few hours together and had a thoroughly fabulous time...which i plan to scrap later today! :0)  Have you scrapped your day yet??

Now...back to the wine...its not a Christmas whine...but a Christmassy bottle of mulled wine...a perfect but inexpensive gift {depending how much brandy you put in it}.  I decorated this empty brandy bottle with Viva Decor Croco paint and tinted it with Saddle Brown Stazon to give it a lovely golden glow.  I die cut the label using a Nestability die and stamped and embossed the words "a little festive spirit" in gold embossing powder using a PaperArtsy alphabet.  I edged the die cut with Cranberry Adirondack ink using some cut and dry foam to add a little age and depth to the label.

Obviously, the glass changes colour completely when you pop the mulled wine in...

To embellish the bottle i tinted some Prima flowers with the Stazon ink and then used Alchol Inks, dropping them directly onto the white pearl centres and letting the ink run along the veins in the flower.  I then dipped the edges of the petals into drops of ink placed onto my craft sheet to get the coppery colour around the edges of the petals.  Finally i added some Prima leaves and beads...and i think you have a pretty spectacular gift in minimal time...with maximun impact!  The lace i've used was also tinted using the Stazon so all the colours tone beautifully which really helps to create a project that *works* and looks well thought out.

Now...who can you think of in your life that needs a bottle like this..?  I think it would make a lovely gift to take to a New Years' Eve party...and if you're not a drinker...you could do a similar bottle and fill it with luxury bubble bath for an alternative kind of treat!

Happy New Year to you all, 

alixxx

I'm a creative girl!

ok...i think i can post if i don't add any pictures...which is a shame Mr. Blogger!!!

i've made a very vintage styled Christmas wreath...but if you want to see my latest creation you'll have to pop over to the IACW blog here :)

i'll be back later if i can get this to work...as i have other things to share...

*frustrated*

30 minute Thursdays...interchangeable faux amber charms!

I love it when a happy crafting accident leads to a discovery...and today's 30 minute Thursday project is a classic example of this...i discovered through laziness that if you don't clean your Melt Pot thoroughly enough when you've been using gold embossing powder in it...and then you add clear UTEE...you get something that looks remarkably similar to amber!!  Personally, i've always had a love affair with amber...so i'm particularly tickled by this discovery :0)  Add into that the fact that it occurred to me that this technique could be used to make interchangeable charms...and i have to say i'm rather chuffed with today's offering! *blushes slightly*

What you need:
Clear UTEE
Flex
Ranger Ink Essentials Memory Frame
Chipboard shape/costume jewellery pieces/small flowers...whatever you like really as long as it fits in your frame!
leather thong

What you do:
This is such a simple project that i haven't even bothered to give you step by step photos...i really don't think you need them.
First off, melt the clear UTEE in your Melt Pot with a tiny smidge of gold embossing powder {less really is more here and the gold powder is opaque and we want a beautiful translucent liquid}...while that is heating...lay your frame onto a non~stick craft mat and arrange your inclusions in the frame.  In the sample above i've used a chipboard flower {from Bee Crafty} which i coloured with gold Brilliance ink.  When the UTEE is liquid carefully pour it into the frame, over the flower and gently press half a press stud into the flower centre...leave it to cool...add a thong and some beads and you're done!!  See...i told you it was easy!!!  I''ve only popped a short length of thonging on this one as we both like the look of it hanging in the kitchen window.

As long as you are careful not to add too much UTEE {no going over the edges}...and because of the way the frames open and close...you can remover the cooled charm...and then do another one with all sorts of other things in the *amber*...i've used a chipboard letter with a fabric rose and some small flowers with some glass chips...but if you want to go for realism with your pendant maybe you could try a dead fly!! ;0)

My favourite of the pieces i tried was this one...with a rather yummy piece of broken jewellery in the middle and i've hung this one on a long thong to wear as a Winter necklace over a cowl neck jumper.

The jewellery piece was quite chunky so the gemstone *ahem* section sticks up above the *amber* and the whole thing feels rather sumptuous. :0)

And there you have it...a simple idea that can be used to create pendants to wear or for hanging in the window...even to hang on the Christmas tree would be lovely.  I'm bursting to make a steampunk version of this too with clock parts and cogs...i think that would be fabulous!

Thanks for stopping by and i do hope you'll give this technique a go...

Bubbly Scrumptious update...another slice of apple

Hi all,

if you fancy seeing what i've created here...just pop on over to the Bubbly Scrumptious blog for the full details :0)

30 minute Thursdays...shoe revamp!

I bet i'm not the only one out there with a really comfy pair of shoes that have seen better days...so today's project shows a cute way to revamp a scruffy/stained/scuffed pair of pumps...into a new and rather unique pair!

You'll need an old pair of shoes {obvious really}, some sheets of newspaper, an ink and some Mod Podge:

Tear your newspaper into lots of pieces {not too small or you'll be all day, not 30 minutes!} and mix some Mod Podge with a few sprays of black ink in a glass jar:

Paint your shoes with the Mod Podge mix and cover with the pieces of newspaper.  Add a layer of the glue over the newsprint too to add colour and to seal the paper to the shoe:

Continue until you have worked your way all around both shoes.  At this point I decided to remove the elastic straps:

When the glue has dried enough for you to handle the shoes, neaten all the edges with a permanent marker pen:

And finally, add a toning flower to each shoe.  These are Prima flowers which i've sprayed with the black ink and sealed with Marine Varnish to toughen them up a bit:

Assemble yourself a cute outfit...i'm thinking these will look good with warm tights and a cute grey dress i own...and model your new shoes for all to admire!

I hope that's got your creative juices flowing...and feel free to adapt the idea by using tissue paper instead of newsprint...a pretty coloured pair would be lovely!

30 minute Thursdays...a properly puzzling card!

Hello again Thursday crafters!

This week's offering is a properly puzzling card...literally a card made onto a puzzle...that you disassemble and pop into the post for the recipient to recreate themselves!  Cool, huh? ;0)  It can be made as my example shows from a pre~bought jigsaw blank {available in lots of craft shops} or by reusing an old jigsaw and sanding off the picture...so you have no excuses not to have a go!! 

Warning!

You'll see from the photos that i have used a selection of the fabulous Dylusions mica and non~mica sprays to create this design...so do work in a protected environment and not over the dining room carpet...and if you've got to go to work later...wear gloves!! lol  These sprays are gorgeous...but they do get everywhere...so don't forget your non~stick worksheet...

To begin with, spray some colour onto the blank jigsaw in a light colour, leaving some areas uncoloured:

Next layer some mica infused colours over and around the first colour and allow to blend.  Shake the bottles to allow some splattering to occur:

Move your jigsaw to one side to dry.  Spritz the ink on the non~stick sheet with a little water and create co~ordinating embellishments by allowing plain paper flowers to absorb the colour:

Dry these with a heat gun and draw in two stalks for your flowers using a large marker pen:

***Glue your flowers onto the stalks, being careful not to glue over the lines of the puzzle ;0)***

Now add a little stamping around the edges of the puzzle {this makes it more fun to put together} and if you wish a message at the bottom:

To finish the design, swipe a permanent black inkpad all around the edges, add a little pen work with a fine black pen and glue some gems into the flower centres:

Turn the puzzle over and create a simpler version on the back...and write your message:

Now all you have to do, is heat set all the ink, and pop all the separated puzzle pieces in a sturdy envelope...and wait for the excited call when your properly puzzling card reaches its destination!

I do hope you've liked this idea...and as always i'd love to hear what you think...
happy crafting,
Alixxxx

Bubbly Scrumptious update...a little Christmas sparkle

hi all,
just to let you know that over on the Bubbly blog this week i have a quick, vintage style Christmas card for you to make...you can see it here :0)