Summertime...

Hello crafty friends...

Hope you've all had a good weekend and ready for a brand new week ahead and a brand new challenge over on the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog. This week we challenge you to Stencil It and with so many different stencils available ~ we're sure you will have fun playing along with us and can't wait to see how you incorporate stencilling onto your project!

This week I chose to create a journal page and I used a stencil to create my background. The whole project was actually inspired by George Gershwin's, Summertime and I combined products from Tim Holtz, Sizzix and Stampers Anonymous to bring the pages to life and tell this week's story...

So, let's get this project started and here's how I created my pages...

To begin with I cut a piece of cotton watercolour paper, slightly smaller than the size of the pages in the journal so that once I mount it onto the page, there would be a border showing around the outside.

I then started adding the layers, and began by adhering some tissue tape from my stash directly onto the central area of the surface. I applied a layer of Matte collage medium over the top and dried it thoroughly before applying Grit Paste through the Gradient Layering Stencil, again concentrating on the central area, this allows me to have white space left on the final project. At this stage, i also added some Crackle Paste to the background, placing it around the outer edges of the stencilled area.

Once the paste was dry, I then started adding colour using Distress Oxide Sprays, together with the original Spray Stains. First layer, I spritzed the paper with a light mist of water before spraying Walnut Stain and Fossilized Amber Spray Stain over the background, concentrating on the central area of the paper where I'd fixed the tape and added the paste. I then just let the colours run and drip.

Heat dry the first layer of spray and then using the Oxide Sprays, I added Fossilized Amber, Squeezed Lemonade and Antique Linen over the top, together with a gentle mist of water and then just allowed the colours to mix, seep into the pastes and blend together seamlessly. You'll also notice how the stains sink into the crackles, highlighting the crackle paste. I heat dried the background thoroughly but very gently, you don't want to overheat any of the paste!!!

After flicking small droplets of Wild Honey and Walnut Stain Spray Stain over the background, I placed the stencil back over the top of my original stencilled area and randomly applied a little more Grit Paste, this just gives some added definition to the paste and highlights a few areas to add even more texture.

I added some ink around the edges of my paper before machine stitching a border.

Now to create the focal point of the pages and after choosing my image from the Photobooth set, (I love this photo so much, she has a face just full of character and warmth), I started by creating my daisies and foliage...

These are all die cut using a selection of dies from the Sizzix Wildflower Stems 1 and 2 dies sets by Tim Holtz, using Distress Watercolour Card. Once I had cut the images, I then watercolored them using a water brush and Distress Marker Pens, adding highlights of Mustard Seed, Fossilized Amber and Wild Honey to the centres of the daisies and the petals and applying Peeled Paint to the stems. At this stage, I also dipped the stems into Peeled Paint Oxide Ink, that I applied to my craft sheet before drying the foliage and then inking the outer edges with Walnut Stain DI.

I arranged my foliage into a posy, each layer was attached with Matte Collage Medium from behind and then tied a piece of twine around the stems and then setting it aside to dry.

For the tag that sits behind the photo, I used one of the small tags from Tim's Assorted Tag set and spritzed the surface with a combo of Frayed Burlap and Walnut Stain Distress Spray Stain, followed by Antique Linen and Pumice Stone Oxide Spray Stain. Whilst the tag was still damp, I scrunched it up to create some creases in the paper and then unfolded it before leaving it to dry.

The crochet lace section is cut from Mixed Media Heavystock card using the gorgeous new die set from Tim, and simply coloured with Antique Linen and Frayed Burlap Oxide Spray Stains before the edges are inked on the edges with Walnut Stain Distress Ink.

I now have all the elements to build up the story...

...for my first layer, I adhered some Keepsake Ephemera directly onto the background using Matte Collage Medium. I then attached the crochet die cut, the tag and finally added the Photo Booth image which I mounted onto black card.

I placed the daisy arrangement down the right hand side of the image.

For some little details, I added a button and a mini paperclip to the tag...

...a vintage melange pebble and the darling little bee from the Entomology stamp set, which I've stamped onto watercolour card, coloured with Distress Marker Pens and then die cut, using the corresponding die from the Entomology die set.

And I finished with a clippings sticker, 'she dreamed beautiful dreams'.

I now have my finished page and all that's left is to add it to my journal. I attached the completed panel using Matte Collage Medium and placing it onto the burlap page inside the journal itself. What I love about the Dina Wakley journal is that it has different substrates.

I applied some torn Designer Tape taken from the Tim Holtz Remnants sets and just attached these around the edges of the page, so they appear to be attaching the page to the book.

I then added some more on the opposite side of the book, I love how this just brings together the two pages to make them come together as one.

After adding some gesso and blending over Fossilized Amber and Vintage Photo Distress Crayons, I stamped the Paris Postmark and the numbers onto the page.

As a finishing touch, I added some Special Delivery Remnant Rubs and some flicks of Black Soot Distress Paint.

So, I hope you've loved my journal pages and all the techniques that create so much texture and depth to this project.

Have fun creating your projects and don't forget, you can find more inspiration from my talented teamies over on the challenge blog and every week, one lucky random participant has the chance to win a $50 gift voucher from Simon Says Stamp. You have until Monday 8am Ohio time. 1pm UK time, 2 pm CET to join in and good luck....

Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by today and hope to see you again soon, love Emma xxx

Recipe for project:

Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous: Gradient Hex Layering Stencil, Paris Postmark, Correspondence, Entomology
Tim Holtz/Sizzix: Wildflower Stems 1, Wildflower Stems 2, Entomology, Crochet
Distress Oxide Sprays: Fossilized Amber, Vintage Photo, Antique Linen, Pumice Stone, Squeezed Lemonade
Distress Oxide Inks: Peeled Paint
Distress Spray Stain: Walnut Stain, Fossilized Amber, Black Soot, Frayed Burlap, Wild Honey

Distress Paint: Black Soot
Distress Crayons: Pumice Stone, Gathered Twigs
Distress Marker Pens

Idea-ology: Clippings Stickers, Keepsake Ephemera, Photobooth, Remnants Design Tape, Special Delivery Remnant Rubs, Mini Paper Clip

Mediums: Matte Collage Medium, Black Soot Archival Ink, Grit Paste, Crackle Paste
Surfaces: Classic Kraft Stash, Cotton Watercolor Paper, Dina Wakley Journal, Distress Watercolor Card, Tim Holtz Assorted Tags
Prima Marketing Vintage Melange Pebbles

Tim Holtz Media Glass Mat

Heat Gun
Palette Knife
Twine and button from my own stash

Take A Walk On The Wild Side...

Hello friends and welcome back to my third post of this week ~ yep, it's been a busy but fun few weeks creating all these projects and I've loved sharing them with you and really do appreciate receiving all the lovely comments and feedback!

Today, I'm thrilled to be back as a guest over on the Simon Says Stamp blog and I'm so excited to share this project with you all! There's a sneaky peek below but you'll have to pop over to see the rest of this in it's entire glory and I hope you love what you find when you get there!

See you tomorrow and I can't wait to read your comments about this post ~ I hope you love it!

Thanks for stopping by...love Emma x

Simon Says Stamp Celebrate You Release Blog Hop ~ Day 1

Hello everyone and Happy Thursday!

Today, is the first day of the Simon Says Stamp Celebrate You Blog Hop and I'm really excited to be joining so many talented designers as one of the stops on this hop! You can see the fabulous new release in full by just popping over to Simon Says Stamp and if you've been hopping along, you'll have arrived here from Lea's blog but if you've just popped by and want to join us for this fun hop, then just head back to the beginning and Simon Says Stamp's Blog.

We are also have a special promotion running in conjunction with this hop and all you have to do is use this code: BTF842 to claim a FREE pack of Tim Holtz idea-ology Butterfly Adornments with any purchase. But hurry as you only have until 19th May at 11:59pm EDT or while supplies last to claim this gift.

For my project, I created a card that uses the cutest stamp and die set EVER ~ the Chillin' Frenchies and I combined this with the Filgree Message Circle die to create a background for my supercool pup!

So, let's get started and here's how I created my card...

This card has quite a few layers and plenty of dimension which you can see from the photo below, and I'm going to talk you through how I built up the layers, starting with my background.

I cut a panel of kraft card and using the little bone stamp from the Chillin' Frenchies set, I stamped the image in a random pattern over the card panel using Ground Espresso Archival Ink before using a white pencil to lightly colour the bones.

After inking the edges of the card with Frayed Burlap Distress Ink, I then matted my background onto gold metallic kraft stash, followed by a layer of brown linen textured card before mounting the panels onto a white card blank.

Moving onto the next layer, I cut a piece of watercolour card and to achieve the vintage feel I wanted for this piece, I applied Distress Inks to my glass mat ~ I used Antique Linen, Frayed Burlap, Antique Linen Oxide and Old Paper Oxide. I spritzed the inks and the card very lightly with some misted water and then swooshed my card through the inks, picking up the colour to create the look of old paper. I always heat dry the inks between layers so that they don't become too muddy and I also start of lightly, building up the colour by dipping in and out of the inks.

Once the card was dry, I then inked the edges of the card with Frayed Burlap Ink before placing my Filigree Message Circle die onto the top section of the card panel and running it through my machine. I then machine stitched a border around the outside of the card panel.

To create the frame that sits around the circle, I used Tim Holtz's Stitched Circle die set which was the perfect fit. I placed one circle die inside the a larger circle die and then cut a piece of woodgrain card to create my frame. After applying Distress Paint to the frame ~ Ground Espresso, Black Soot and Antiqued Bronze, I attached the frame to my die cut card panel.

Now to build up those layers and I attached my die cut panel using foam pads to a piece of card that I coloured green using Twisted Citron, Peeled Paint and Mowed Lawn Distress Oxide Sprays.

I attached the die cut panel over the top of the green card, which I then layered onto black kraft card, each time leaving a border showing around the outside.. I then wrapped some twine around the bottom section of my layered panels.

I adhered the panel centrally, onto the front of the card using foam pads.

Now for the focal point of this card, the cute Chillin' Frenchie which I stamped onto watercolour card using my Tim Holtz Stamp Platform and watercoloured with Distress Marker Pens.

I then used the corresponding die to cut out the image and placed him on some foam pads before attaching him to the front of my card.

The message is also taken from the Chillin' Frenchies set, and stamped in Black Soot Archival Ink onto a piece of card inked with Antique Linen, Vintage Photo and Frayed Burlap Oxide Inks. I then matted the message onto kraft card and popped it onto my card front using foam pads. In the four corners of the message I added some tiny Hex Fasteners.

All that's left is the details and finishing touches and I added an Index Clip to the top section of the card and a couple of Hardware Heads to either side of my cute pup. Each of the Hardware Heads are altered with a little Rusty Hinge and Evergreen Bough Distress Paint to create a more rusty, worn look ~ perfect for my vintage card.

 So, that completes my stop on this hop and my fun vintage style card, full of dimension and layers. Don't forget that we would love for you to share your work in our Celebrate You Gallery and look forward to seeing what you make using the products.

HOP DETAILS:

Simon Says Stamp is giving away a $25 coupon to every stop on the blog hop! This means you can leave a comment here and on every stop along the way to increase your chances. Winners will be posted on the Simon Says Stamp blog on Wednesday, 22nd May...

HOP ORDER:

Simon Says Stamp Blog
Jennifer McGuire
Kristina Werner
Cathy Zielske
Nina-Marie Trapani
Nichol Spohr
Jessica Frost-Ballas
Suzy Plantamura
Amy Rysavy
Lisa Addesa
Kathy Racoosin
Heather Hoffman
Lea Lawson

Emma Williams (YOU ARE HERE)

Thanks so much for hopping by today, hope to see you again soon and don't forget to make a date in your diaries for Day 2 of the hop, coming tomorrow!

Emma xx

RECIPE FOR CARD:

Simon Says Stamp Celebrate You Release: Chillin' Frenchies Stamp & Die Set, Filigree Message Circle

Tim Holtz/Sizzix: Stitched Circles

Distress Oxide Ink Pads: Antique Linen, Vintage Photo, Frayed Burlap

Distress Ink: Frayed Burlap, Antique Linen
Distress Marker Pen Set
Distress Oxide Inks: Antique Linen and Old Paper
Distress Oxide Spray Stain: Mowed Lawn, Twisted Citron, Peeled Paint

Distress Paint: Rusty Hinge, Evergreen Bough, Black Soot, Ground Espresso and Antiqued Bronze

Tim Holtz idea-ology: Index Clips, Hardware Heads, Hex Fasteners

Surfaces: Classic Kraft Card, Mixed Media Heavystock Card, Metallic Kraft Card, 
Foam Pads
Twine
Big Shot

Tim Holtz Glass Media Mat

Heat Gun

Top Hat...

Hello friends...

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend and you're ready for the new week ahead and a brand new Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge! This week our theme is called HAPPY HOUR and is all about cocktails and drinks. So, it's time to put your thinking cap on and be creative because we hope you will join us and play along with this fun challenge theme...

My happy hour was inspired by my love of black and white movies and I decided to create an Art Deco style piece, celebrating this era and a style that I absolutely love. As a child I was always surrounded by jazz music and Saturday afternoons were always spent watching black and white movies ~ for days after, I would dance around the house pretending to be Ginger Rogers in Top Hat, which is still one of my favourite films to this day. I was just hooked on every single detail, from the beautiful sets and clothes to the wonderful music and dance routines ~ I was in my element! So with this in mind, I wanted to capture the glamour of the jazz age and collected some of my favourite Tim Holtz products to bring the story to life!

So, let's get started, it's time to put on my top hat and take you through how this piece was created!

To begin with I took a 24 x 18cm pre-gessoed canvas board and began by adding a layer of Hickory Smoke Distress Paint to the surface. It's important to heat dry each paint layer as you don't want the paint to become muddy in appearance. The next layer is Picket Fence, which I dry brushed over the top, concentrating on the central section, so that it would leave a darker border around the outside. I then added a layer of Weathered Wood.

Once happy with the colour of the background, I started to create some more layers, and used tissue tape as a base, tearing pieces of the tape and applying it to the central area. I applied some gesso over the top, scraping the paint onto the canvas with an old credit card before adding some more depth of colour using Distress Crayons ~ Weathered Wood, Black Soot and Pumice Stone.

For the next layer, I inked up the Newsprint stamp with Black Soot Archival Ink and randomly stamped the text onto the central area, placing it over the top of the taped area.

Give the ink a quick blast with a heat gun to set it and then taking the Gradient Layering Stencil and a dry paint brush, apply Picket Fence through the stencil, moving it around and placing it onto different areas of the background. Allow for the paint to dry.

I now have a background and it's time to let my imagination run wild and take you on a journey to the roaring twenties...

...and we'll start by using the Cityscape Skyline die to cut black Classic Kraft cardstock, which is lightly sanded. I then cut a second skyline from gold metallic kraft stash and layered the black cityscape over the top of the gold, slightly offsetting the top layer to reveal a shadow.

I placed one of the layered die cuts onto foam pads, which creates a really nice dimension to the piece.

To ground my skyline, I used two of the longest length of Etcetera pinked trims, various widths. I primed the surface of the trims with gesso and then to create the wood grain effect, I applied a layer of Black Soot Distress Paint. Heat dry the paint before dry brushing Antiqued Bronze paint over the top. Heat dry again and then dry brush Ground Espresso over the top. This technique gives a wonderful look the striations of wood.

Attach the smaller trim over the top of the wider trim using Collage Medium and then attach to the board, placing the cityscape above it, so that it sits on the 'shelf'.

To create the Manhattan Cocktail wording, I used the Deco Alpha die and die cut my lettering from rose gold metallic kraft stash and a second layer from black card. For this I really do recommend adhesive sheets applied to the back of each layer of card, they are your best friend when it comes to smaller die cuts and save so much time.

I layered my rose gold lettering over the top of the black and then attached it to my canvas panel, Manhattan across the top and 'cocktail' placed along the bottom, attaching it to the trim so that it will stand away from the cityscape die and add even more dimension.

Now for the final part of this piece, it's time for me to put on my top hat...

I started by stamping the top hat and the jacket and tie from the Distinguished stamp set and coloured each piece with Distress Marker Pens. I then cut them out and set them aside whilst I created my circular section.

The first layer is cut from white card using the Stitched Circles die and coloured with the same Distress Paints as I used on the trims, as I wanted to create that wood grain effect for this layer.

I then cut a smaller circle and covered this with some Typography Collage Tissue. The tissue is adhered using Matte Collage Medium before I inked the edges with Walnut Stain Distress Ink.

I matted this layer onto gold metallic kraft stash and then matted it onto the larger circle before mounting my panel onto the canvas board, using foam pads.

I attached the stamped images with foam pads and then added a Foundry piece, complete with Hardware Findings, attached between the hat and suit jacket. The Foundry piece was coloured with Evergreen Bough Distress Paint and a touch of Antiqued Bronze.

Now, all that has to be added are all those finishing details. A large vintage clip at the top (I LOVE these so much)....

...and then some Hardware Heads, rusted with a little Distress Paint added to either side of the trims.

Stars cut from gold metallic kraft stash using the Crescent Moon and Stars die are placed directly onto the background...

...and finally, I added a snarky sticker, 'Why Limit Happy To An Hour' as the finishing touch to complete the panel.

So, I hope you've enjoyed this step back in time and that you've been inspired by the techniques I've used and the piece I've created ~ it sure was fun!

Have fun creating your projects and don't forget, you can find more inspiration from my talented teamies over on the challenge blog and every week, one lucky random participant has the chance to win a $50 gift voucher from Simon Says Stamp. You have until Monday 8am Ohio time. 1pm UK time, 2 pm CET to join in and good luck....

Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by today and hope to see you again soon, love Emma xxx

Recipe for project:

Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous: Newsprint, Distinguished, Etcetera Pinked Trims, Gradient Layering Stencil
Tim Holtz/Sizzix: Deco Alpha, Cityscape Skyline, Crescent Moon and Stars, Stitched Circles, Adhesive Sheets

Distress Paint: Black Soot, Evergreen Bough, Ground Espresso, Antiqued Bronze, Picket Fence, Weathered Wood, Hickory Smoke, Rusty Hinge
Distress Crayons: Pumice Stone, Black Soot, Weathered Wood
Distress Marker Pens

Idea-ology: Hardware Heads, Vintage Clips, Typography Collage Paper, Foundry, Small Talk Snarky Stickers

Mediums: Matte Collage Medium, Black Soot Archival Ink
Surfaces: Metallic Kraft Stash, Metallic Kraft Stash 2, Classic Kraft Stash, Mixed Media Heavystock Card, Media Board

Tim Holtz Media Glass Mat
Tim Holtz Stamp Platform

Heat Gun
Palette Knife
Tim Holtz Tissue Tape from my own stash