Monday, March 12, 2012

Bring on the Spring....

Monday Morning Greetings to you all!
Boy, yet another swifty week indeed! March is living up to it's name and striding ahead! Here in lurvely England we had a weekend of fabulous Spring sun-rays, definitely more smiling faces and yes, white legs in shorts were spotted. I used that Spring mood in the new theme at Simon Says Stamp & Show where it's the mojo-soothing 'Anything Goes'. Hooray, since my crafty room is now but dusty tatters of it's former self, awaiting a makeover.
I pulled out two Bookplates from my Wendy Vecchi Art Parts treasure trove and wanted to see if I could get them 'working it' in a different way! I thought they would make a great pair of 'screens' and and framed setting for the other pieces. I felt like getting the paints out, using a selection of colours from Claudine Hellmuth and my Dabbers, mixing the colours as I went...

After painting the bookplates, I used Distress inks and Wendy stamps for a shabbier look.
My flower head is painted white and stamped with numbers before masking it off and spraying the stem with Lettuce Color Wash. I painted the scallop in Sky Blue and stamped it and the stem with dots. A press stud centre and a bit of old string for fun!
On this side I sprayed my leaves with Color wash too which is a fab, quick way to get colour onto your Art Parts! I over stamped with text and then made the little sign which is also from the Bookplate set. I used in a book page scrap, painted with Gesso and then stamped with a sentiment in Sienna Archival ink. On all my pieces I sanded the edges and adding shading with Distress inks.
I wanted flexibility but solid colour for my butterflies so Clearly For Art was perfect! I stamped them, cut them out and painted them with gesso, added a swipe of Rusty Hinge and over stamped with this great lattice effect and flowers from Art Rules. Then I could heat them and bend them just as I fancied!
I built up my base using pieces from the Flowers and Florals. Terracotta paint, more Sky Blue and old book pages made a great trio. Here you can also see more of the sanded, inky edges...and some upholstery studs for decoration. Then - 'twas the hour of assemblage! I used good old Glossy Accents...

with my secret weapon...
two metal nuts! They support the back of the book plates and hold everything bang on target!
As said - Anything Goes and a 'be nice to your mojo week!' Make time to just sit, play and create and see what you come up with. Then share it with us! Head over to the Simon Says Stamp & Show DT blog for a whole display of amazing inspiration! You'll love them all!

So I'm all finished with the blurb and arty stuff and must flee the nest... I have an agenda with love handles... Have fun with the theme and thanks for taking a stop here!
Sarah.

15 comments:

cheryl said...

oh wow this is just brilliant the detail is just fantastic hugs Cherylxx

Candy C said...

Sarah, you've done Wendy proud! Your Spring piece is so adorable! I love the bright colors! Love the hinged frame and the stacked flowers for the base! What a great design! <3 Candy

Marjie Kemper said...

Oh, Sarah, this is so artsy! I love it. Totally outside-the-box thinking, my friend. Gorgeous!

Craft Addicts - Tracy Evans said...

Gorgeous SPRING inspired piece. Live the colour way and your use of Art Parts is fabulous and the stacked flowers is a lovely idea. Hope you managed to sell lots of vintage wares at the weekend. Tracy x

lainey said...

I love these art parts, fab way you have used them!! lainey x

Juls said...

this is just fabulous!! Hugs Juls

Ink Art Designs said...

Oh I love this!!! So arty, and your colours soooo rich. It is absolutely beautiful.
Dot x

jude said...

This is absolutely beautifull.!Shame the weekend weather didnt continue here in suffolk yesterday thick fog today so cloudy and dull!

Unknown said...

Fabulous piece of art - love all the detail. Must get more paints! LOL :-) Maddy x

Lori said...

Perfect, just perfect!

Unknown said...

OMG! I LOVE your work!! So, so happy to have found you!!

email: Steph@SimonSaysStamp.com said...

Gorgeous spring project, Sarah! You've really brought these art parts to life in a delightful way!!

*mwah*
Steph
Simon Says Stamp!

Heidi said...

Sarah, this is beeeautiful! I love all the different layers on the base!

Cheryl S. said...

Ooooooh so nice! I love how you used the Clearly for Art to make your butterflies - mentally storing the idea. I wanted to know if you let the gesso dry on the modeling film or how you dried it before applying the Rusty Hinge.
Thanks for sharing your art and also for answering my question.
Have an artful day!

Sarah said...

HI Cheryl - just to say that I did indeed dry the gesso/paint I'd applied to the CFA before adding any Distress inks on top! Thanks so much for the visit and nice blog love!