Dreaming Of A White Christmas...

Hello friends and welcome to this week's Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge! Our theme is called Icy Inspiration and the DT are showcasing PaperArtsy products within their projects.

For my piece, I used PaperArtsy's Fresco Finish Paints and Infusions to create a background on this icy blue panel, which I've packed full of layers and dimension all created using Tim Holtz products.

So let's get started and here's how I made this project...

 

To begin with, I cut a piece of canvas paper (but you could also use Mixed Media Heavyweight card) to measure 17 x 15cm. I then mixed some of the Mermaid Fresco Finish Paint with the Snowflake paint so that it would give me this beautiful shade of blue that I then painted over the card to create my background. I then added torn strips of tissue tape to my background, dry brushed some gesso over the top and then added some depth of colour using Pumice Stone and Chipped Sapphire Distress Crayons. Once I was happy with the layers of colour, I used an old credit card to scrape gesso over the surface which created the icy white patches. I then machine stitched around the outside to create a border.

To add some texture to the piece, I then laid down the Starry Layering stencil and applied Grit Paste through the stencil. Whilst the paste is still wet, I sprinkled Rock Candy Distress Glitter over the top and tapped away the excess. Let the paste dry.

The background is now complete and ready for some layers...

...and for this, I used some Tim Holtz Christmas Ephemera pieces that I collaged onto the background, attaching some directly onto the surface and layering other pieces onto pieces of corrugated card, painted with the Snowflake Fresco Paint.

For the snowflakes, I used the Stacked Snowflakes die. I used the die to die cut seven flakes from chipboard and applied a layer of gesso over each of the flakes to prime them.

Once the gesso is dry, I painted them with the same colours as I used on the background, dried the surface and then added a layer of Rock Candy Distress Crackle Paint over the top. At this stage, I also added a small amount of Art Stones, by sprinkling them over the medium. Set this aside for the gorgeous crackles to appear and once the medium has done it's job, then apply a very small amount (less is more) of the A Bit Jaded Infusions. Spritz the colour crystals with water and allow it to sink into the crackles.

Gently heat dry the snowflakes, dabbing away any excess moisture.

Place three, various sized snowflakes over the top of the ephemera pieces, stacking some of them and leaving the others singular and using foam pads to attach them. Once the flakes are in place, I attached my Christmas Paper Doll. I decided to keep this image black and white, as I didn't want to introduce to much colour to the piece, just keep it icy blue with a pop of red.

With the remaining two snowflakes, I added Jingle Brads to the centres and then attached these to my project.

To complete the project, I added the Dreaming Of A White Christmas Quote Chip and placed this over a small amount of cheesecloth and attaching it so that the paper doll is standing on the wording.

I then added an adornment arrow and a Christmas Remnant Rub to the arrangement in the centre.

Finally to complete the panel, I added some crystal gems to each corner and matted the artwork onto layers of kraft card, silver metallic card and a final layer of pewter coloured card.

I hope you've enjoyed the creative process behind this project and loved the techniques I've used to create texture, sparkle and dimension.

As always, if you do need any further inspiration, then look no further than our blog to see all the wonderful creations from all the very talented Design Team members 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 stopping by today and see you again very soon!

Love Emma xxx

Recipe for project:

PaperArtsy Products: Mermaid Fresco Finish Paint, Snowflake Fresco Finish Paint, A Bit Jaded Infusions
Tim Holtz/Sizzix: Stacked Snowflakes

Distress Crayons: Pumice Stone, Chipped Sapphire
Layering Stencils: Starry

Idea-ology: Tissue Tape, Jingle Brads, Christmas Quote Chips, Christmas Remnant Rubs, Christmas Ephemera, Christmas Paper Dolls, Adornment Arrow
Mediums: Collage Medium, Rock Candy Dry Glitter, Gesso, Grit Paste, Rock Candy Crackle Paint
Surfaces: Metallic Kraft Stash, Chipboard
Ranger Craft Sheet

Big Shot

Heat Gun
Cheesecloth, crystal gems, sisal fibres and canvas paper from my own stash