Jolly as F*ck | Scrap the Girls December Challenge

Ho, ho...no!

Can you believe we are on the final countdown to Christmas?! If you are one of those people I affectionately refer to as "Christmas freaks" then you have probably been ready for the big day since mid-June and have had your tree up for at least a month already. (You are probably also the sort of person that thinks hot cross buns DO belong on the supermarket shelves at the beginning of January?!) *mumble, mumble*

If you are more like me however, then Christmas always seems to creep up waaaaay too quickly every year, you've only just put your tree up, and at some stage next week you will start preparing everything else. (Look away now Christmas freaks! hehe)

So all this Christmas talk has led me to the latest design team project that I have to share. This page was created for Scrap the Girls for the "No Traditions Here" challenge this month. This is the image inspiration we were provided with the instructions "could be colour, what you see or what you read".

I bowed to the Christmas theme, and in keeping with the challenge title, there was nothing traditional about my page...

I used the gorgeous Cocoa Vanilla Studio 'Happiness' collection for this page, which I combined with my own watercolour background.

I started by fussy cutting the beautiful wreath from the So Fresh paper, which I backed with some scrap cardboard to help pop it up from the page, and then set it aside to create the background.

I used a Colour Blast 'Deep Water' Shimmer Cube (unfortunately these are no longer available, but you could substitute any watercolour paint) to create a ring on my cardstock where my wreath was going to sit. Next, I added some small splatters of gold, green and pink inks before sticking my wreath down over the top.

I then added my photos, tucking them under the edge of the wreath on the left side of the page.

For my title, I used the Jolly as Fuck Christmas ornament (with gum leaves - also available in a bottle brush version) from Kinder Kreations. These ornaments have a hole so you can add string or ribbon to hang them, but I couldn't resist giving this one a starring role on my layout instead. I painted it with a metallic gold acrylic paint to give it a festive feel and added some twine to the top of it.

To compliment my gold title, I grabbed a few cut file leaves I had left over from a previous project and painted them to match. I then tucked them in under the edge of the wreath, leaving some of them white as well. (This leaf design is from the Cocoa Vanilla Studio 'Colour Me Happy' cut file set.) To help blend my title with my page I stuck a small flower and butterfly from the 'Happiness' Die Cut Ephemera pack onto it.

 To finish off the page I added two flair buttons to my wreath from the 'Happiness' flair button set and some handwritten journalling with a felt pen.

I hope you will join in with our challenge this month - you can make your layout as Christmas-sy as you like (or not), just be inspired by the image! Make sure you visit the Scrap the Girls blog for all the details of this month's Australian and International sponsors and to see what the rest of the design team created.

Until next time, happy scrapping! X 

Brave Wings | Colour Blast

Hi everyone!

Popping in with a recent Colour Blast design team project for you. Today I have a mixed media scrapbook layout to share featuring the 'Spread Your Wings' collection; combined with a bit of the 'Graffiti Grunge' collection; Colour Paste; Colour Shimmer Cubes and Heavy White Gesso.

I created this page to document a selfie of my best friend and I as we sat on top of Mount Beerwah (after climbing it in 36 degree heat.) 

Here's a look at the supplies I pulled out to start my project with...

I began with the Fly paper from the 'Spread Your Wings' collection for my background. To give the page some extra depth, I added some stamping using the Do It Stamp Set and 'Stormy Sky' Distress Oxide.

I then added a piece of the Fearless paper from the 'Graffiti Grunge' collection across the centre of the page, distressing the edges to give texture, before stamping over the left edge to blend it in with the background sheet.

Next, I wanted to tone down some of the colour and pattern, so I used a small brayer to apply Heavy White Gesso to the centre of my page.

Whilst the gesso was drying, I gathered up some paper pieces to create a layered mat for my photo. I arranged the pieces in a small stack and secured them with staples before sticking it down.

Next, I took the Peony Dreams paper and fussy cut some of the large floral designs from it, which I then tucked in under the edges of my photo mat. 

Once the floral pieces were stuck in place, I rubbed a small amount of white gesso over each of them to help blend them into the background.

Then it was time for some texture! I wanted it to be subtle, so I used a small floral design stencil with 'Snow White' Colour Paste and applied it in a few areas on the page and left it to dry.

To embellish my layout, I dug through my (extensive) flower stash and pulled out an assortment of paper and fabric blooms (most of these were from D-lish Scraps). I created a circle using a pip berry stem, which I layered behind and over my photo before sticking my photo down. I then adhered the flowers on my page using hot glue; starting with the largest flowers first and working my way down in size until I was happy with the arrangement.

With the flowers all stuck in place, I then dry-brushed a small amount of gesso over them. This helped tone down some of the brighter colours to make them more subtle.

To finish my page off, I fussy cut the with brave wings she flies quote from the Earth Angels paper and stuck it down using a strip of cardboard behind it to pop it up a bit.

I then took 'Apple of My Eye' and 'Singin' the Blues' Colour Shimmer Cubes (these are now discontinued, so simply substitute another product if you don't have them in your stash); and used a small brush to apply pools of colour to the page. This added subtle, shimmery detail to the layout once it had dried. 

You can see how brushing the gesso over the flowers not only toned down the colours, but also provided cohesion to bring the mix all together.

That's all from me today, thanks for stopping by so I could share this with you. Perhaps you might be inspired to pull out some old flowers from your stash and create something too? It's fun mixing old supplies with new!

Until next time, happy scrapping! X

Love.Repeat - Art Journal Page | Viva Las VegaStamps

Hi everyone!

Today I have a mixed media art journal page to share that I created recently for Viva Las VegaStamps. This piece was inspired by a gorgeous art journal page shared last month by Jenn Engle. (You can see Jenn's page on the VLVS blog HERE) I really loved the balance between colour and white space on her page and wanted to create something similar - but with my own twist, of course.

I was working in my 9x6" Jane Davenport journal for this one (it has watercolour paper pages and takes wet media fairly well with no bleed through). I started by putting down multiple layers of Colour Blast Colour Artist Ink; drying between each one with a heat gun to get the "hard" water lines.

Once I had the colour down, I began adding some structure. I started with the Punchinella/Sequin Waste Border; which I stamped vertically using black Staz On ink.

Next, I used the Double Coffee Rings stamp with 'Mowed Lawn' Distress Oxide; stamping it several times over the top.

I then used the Cross Marks Background with black Staz On to add some marks around the edges of the colour.

Now it was time to add some texture to my page. I used small torn pieces of washi tape and some snippets of punchinella.

I also added a piece of paper doily, some plasterer's tape, and some frayed gauze - all layered in the central focal point of the page.

I then stamped out the focal image for my page using the Squiggle Heart stamp and Staz On ink onto some white cardstock and fussy cut around it. I used a shimmery watercolour paint to colour the heart before sticking it down onto the page.

To finish off, I stamped the sentiment Love.Repeat a few times and then splattered a little bit of blue ink around the edges.

I was really happy with how this page came out - thank you Jenn for the inspiration!

That's all from me today, thanks for stopping by. I hope I have inspired you to get inky too! X

VLVS stamps used:
- Punchinella/Sequin Waste Border
- Double Coffee Rings
- Cross Marks Background
- Squiggle Heart
- Love.Repeat

Say Yes to New Adventures | Colour Blast

Hi everyone!

I'm back with some art journal fun to share today! This time, a whimsical style double page spread I created in my altered book journal for Colour Blast using Colour Shimmer Cubes and Colour Paste.

Unfortunately, the Colour Shimmer Cubes are now a retired product (you may still find them available from selected retailers); but despite this fact, if they are in your stash they still need to be used! (If you don't have any cubes, you could still create a project like this using an alternative product, such as Colour Shimmer Dust, Colour Shimmer Spray or even Colour Artist Inks.)

Now, onto my process.

I began my spread by adding a coat of white heavy gesso to my pages using a brush. I chose to use a brush this time as I wasn't concerned about getting a thin, even coverage. If I was working on a scrapbook layout I would usually apply it with an old gift card, but I am less fussy in my journal, so a brush it was.

Whilst the gesso was drying, I chose the Colour Shimmer Cubes I wanted to use and gave the surface of each one a spray of water, then set them aside for a few minutes to moisten. I then grabbed a medium rounded brush and a cup of water and began applying my first colour - 'Sunshine', using a dabbing motion. As I applied the watercolour, I kept dipping my brush into the water to ensure that it was nice and wet going onto the page, allowing me to move the paint around.

After I had the Sunshine on the page, I then repeated the process with 'Singin' the Blues'; 'Envy' and finally, 'Lipstick'. (It is important to remember that the shimmer cubes, like all watercolour paints, will re-activate each time they are wet, so take care when applying one colour over another to ensure you don't make "mud".)

After I had all the colours dried, I decided that a couple of areas weren't quite as vibrant as I would have liked, so I added a little extra colour over the top before drying again.

The next step was to apply some stamping, so I reached for the new August release Colour Blast stamp set and used some of the stamps to add extra interest to my page.

After the stamping was complete, it was time for some texture and shine. The gorgeous golden 'Bling' Colour Paste fit the bill perfectly, and I used it with another of the August new release products -  a stencil. I used the dot section of the stencil along the top portion of my page, applying the paste using a palette knife, and then wiping off the excess paste randomly along the bottom edge of my pages.

I then added the focal points of my spread - some digital collage elements sourced from Mischief Circus that I had printed out and fussy cut. I used a liquid adhesive to adhere them to the page.

At this point my collage pieces were looking a little flat on the page and were in need of something to give them some depth and to help them pop. The answer? My trusty Stabilo All pencil. I added a rough outline around each of the pieces and then used a water brush to blend the lines out. (These pencils are water soluble.) I also used the pencil to add some outlines to the stamped stars, some small crosses, and a few random scribbles. (I left these lines untouched though.)

Now my all my spread needed was some text. Enter yet another new August release Colour Blast stencil - this one with a fabulous quote. I used a permanent ink and a sponge dauber to apply the ink through the stencil. (Confession time - I actually changed my mind after I took this photo and began sponging the title, and switched to black ink.)

To finish off, I used a fine white paint pen to add some detail to the inked letters.

Let's take a closer look at the details...

Adding the shadows around the outlines of the collage pieces makes a big difference in helping to bring them to the foreground.

Close up you can see the different layers and how they all work together to give depth to the page.

Wiping off the excess Colour Paste from the palette knife roughly onto the page gives a great textured result. And look at that pretty shine too! 

And who doesn't love a bit of bling, right?

Thanks for stopping by today so I could share this with you. If you have some Colour Shimmer Cubes in your stash I hope I have inspired you to get them out and use them. If not, why not try creating a similar style project with an alternative Colour Blast product?

I will be back again soon with another project to share. Until then, happy scrapping! X 

Stash-busting Traveler's Notebook Pages | Flutterby Designs

Hi everyone!

After being away on retreat last weekend and then playing catch up all week at home since my return, it's time to do some catching up here. Today I am sharing some recent design team work I created for Flutterby Designs.
To switch it up and keep things interesting for myself, I have recently begun working in a traveler's notebook. People use TN's in all sorts of ways, but I have stuck with the memory keeping format just like I use my scrapbook layouts for. I have found the smaller size great for a change, and perfect for documenting some of the photos from my phone that I wouldn't necessarily create a large layout for. It has also given me the chance to use up a lot of bits and pieces from my stash.

For my "Let's Pug It Out" page that I created to feature some silly photos of my daughter trying on animal masks in Kmart; I took the opportunity to use up an Everyday Etc card from the 'Furever Friends' collection for my title and the pug picture. 

Other items on this page included 'Mad About You' Sticky Quotes; Photo Cut Out tabs; Blackboard Sticky Alphas; Rainbow Heart Stickers; and a Snippet Strip.

I also used some washi tape and a Colour Blast Colour Shimmer Cube from my stash.

For my "Box Head Fun" double page spread documenting a workshop my kids attended during the holidays; I used some 12x12" paper from the 'Happily Ever After' collection for the quote and also to fill space on my pages, but any Flutterby Everyday Etc Cards, would also be perfect for this purpose.

Again, I used a random assortment of items across these pages including left over stickers from the 'Xtreme Teen' and 'Good Vibes Only' Sticky Quotes sheets; Teal Sticky Alphas; and another Photo Cut Out tab. Again, I added some watercolour paint using a Colour Blast Colour Shimmer Cube.

For my "Netflix" themed page, I used one of the 'Good Vibes Only' Everyday Etc cards to create my title; and the watercolour feature underneath my journalling came from one of the coordinating filler cards. I also used the large icecream from the 'Good Vibes Only' Die Cut Bits & Bobs pack. 

I finished off with an assortment of items - 'Happily Ever After' Sticky Quotes; die cut from the 'Mad About You' collection; and Rainbow Heart Stickers.

I also used washi tape from my stash and another Colour Shimmer Cube.

If you haven't tried working in a traveler's notebook yet, why not give it a go? It's often good for your creativity to change things up a bit, and this is a fabulous way to use up some of those left-overs in your stash. (To make way for new ones, of course!) 

Until next time, happy scrapping! X