Monday, January 28, 2013

Starry, starry night...

Blink and you'll miss it! What? The weekend that is! Where did it go to and when are they bringing in the five day weekend??? Monday graces us with it's presence yet again, a new week arises and best of all it's time for another challenge over at Simon Says Stamp & Show. This week we are all celestial, galaxian (?) or even a bit show-bizzy with our 'Stars" theme. I don't own many starry stamps but thankfully the one I do have is one my faves and also by Wendy V so I was ready to ink...
only to be met by a shambles of a mess from the last seven post  baby months. Mountains of dirty stamps, heaps of paper, unfinished journal pages and non-shelved new stash, all carpeted in dust, are running riot. Sigh.
Sink or swim then. But when I started sifting through the debris I could see a glimmer of hope as certain stamps, scraps and colours seemed to be looking pretty good together. I also wanted to have a dabble with my Phlax Alpha stamps. I luuurve letter stamps in all shapes and forms!

I up-cycled an old art journal page by punching different sized circles and then I edged them with Distress ink.

I really like how your eye then gets drawn to see the finer detail and tones! I went for a kind of modern but inky style...
by combining the Pickled Raspberry ink stars with dictionary and stitched letters. It was until I was working on the composition I thought, hey, these look a bit like planets or moons - just perfect to go with the stars!

It's always funny to read the words on dictionary pages and purely by coincidence the first card I made has the words kingdom of heaven at the top! This one however, reads kidnap and kidney!!! Oh well...
l stamped the letters onto Kraft card, trimmed them all slightly differently to achieve a more random effect and just added a few lines of machine stitching. I decided on a set of four and played around a little with the design of each one for variation.
They came together very quickly and I really love them all. I normally take AGES to create anything, so it was really great to enjoy a quicker creative process without thinking I had rushed things!!!
So before you decontaminate your crafty space, take a look at the potential may be hiding amongst all those scraps and unfinished pages.
Stars can take you in many artful directions! Just take a look at the fabulous takes on this theme from the rest of the amazing Design Team for more inspiration... Do join in and make a play for the Top Three Artist and this generous $50 voucher from Simon Says Stamp!
That's it from me today, see you all soon and happy inking!
Sarah.

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Monday, January 21, 2013

What I'm known for...

is the new challenge theme over at Simon Says Stamp & Show this week! I must say that "talking" was definitely my first thought, and until my wee lassie came along, I was just as verbally active in my blog posts. Aaah, those were the days...
 Anyway, back on Planet Crafty, what am I known for? Tricky, as I love a whole range of styles. After a lot of thought I could see a few things that definitely make my list. In the past I have mentioned how my dance background has effected my art and therefore I'm going for my "Three D's!" Dimension, detail and design. That trio always gets a look-in when I'm busy creating.

Also, after taking a ride through my blog, it wasn't long before I had to admit that I do like to host the odd Wendy Vecchi Arty Party!

So, I decided to create a piece with three small offerings of the said Wendy goodies...
 All my Art Parts are now residing in a bright red valise case under my desk and I have built p quite a collection. I decided to dive in and make use of many of the smaller pieces which I often have left over after creating a bigger work. I used some panels from the five panel frame set as my bases, covered them in Retro Grunge Paper and then stamped the backgrounds. Then I set off in full "My Three D's" gear playing around with the design and dimension...

I love to spend hours working on composition, just playing around until it feels right to me. When I was happy I then used my trusty Distress Stains to colour my pieces before stamping them all with an array of fabulous Wendy stamps. I also like to edge the pieces with Distress Ink for extra effect.
As you can see I have managed to create some depth by layering the pieces up and the details come from a little Idea-ology, Blossom Bucket Buttons and the stamped wording. I wanted to display them together and this old folding wooden ruler winked at me at just the right moment! A perfect fit, even f I do say so myself. So there you go, a bit of crafty me and by golly, a lot of wordy waffle after all!

This is a really great challenge theme - the chance to celebrate your own inky style and share it with everyone. How fabulous is that? Take a look at the wonderful creativity from my talented team-mates over at the Design Team Blog and then get started on your masterpiece! 

You could be in with a chance of winning this generous $50 voucher from Simon says Stamp! Cards, layouts, journals, altered, Grunge, mixed media, vintage...whatever floats your boat!
It's over and out from me. Thanks so much for popping by... Sarah.

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Monday, January 14, 2013

Lace and lurve...

Who said hearts and lace have to be all girly? At Simon Says Stamp & Show we are celebrating the joy lace! Lace is definitely up there with the big guns if you are a bit of a vintage buff but it could be a stamp, the long stuff that comes by the metre, an embossing folding or even a bit of stencilling... Loads to choose from!
 Although I have a huuuuge bag of long stuff (known as the the ribbon rage zone) breeding under my craft table I went for a stamp, namely a Wendy Vecchi one from the Sentimental Art Stamp set.
It's a great background stamp, looks fabulous and can be used on lots of different projects. l was able to put this Art Part creation together very easily but I still love how it looks. It makes a great hanging and would be a really lovely alternative Valentine gift. I used a combination of Distress Stains and Summer Distress Inks to achieve the vivid colours and think the green is really great.
l always like to over-stamp my pieces in Ranger Archival Inks as you get a good crisp result that shows up well against the background. By adding the hand and scallop I was able to create a bit more dimension and I think the hand and heart go together well.
I finished off with just one Blossom Bucket button and decided a rusty old wire would make a good hanging so I grabbed my Crop-a-dile Big Bite which I still love and use a lot! So there you go a quick and simple, little lacy love.
Take a look at the really great ideas the rest of the Design Team came up with and then head off into your crafty zone to think up yours! Do join in and share your work with us. Not only do we love seeing what you all get up to, there's also the chance of winning this great $50 voucher from Simon says Stamp! Righteo, Sarah is over and out and signing out for today. A new week awaits me - as does the house-work. 
Thanks for calling by. Until soon. Me.



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Monday, January 7, 2013

A look back in time...

As we paddle in the shallow waters of 2013, you do of course glance over the years already gone. That is just what I have done - inky style - because this week at Simon Says Stamp & Show we are 'Embracing the Old' with our new challenge theme.
Back in the year dot (so it seems) I took my first steps into this mad, but wonderful crafty and bloggy world. As a right old  technical dunce, I remember secretly teaching myself how to build a blog through some long Googling nights. I was so nervous and was trembling the day I first hit publish!
After following a basic stamping workshop I plucked up the courage to attempt more than a Christmas card and created my first triple tag which you can see here... So I thought it would be fun to go back to that time for this challenge theme.
I love the series of Mini's from PaperArtsy. They are wonderful images and such high quality stamps. If you haven't tried Leandra's fabulous stamps, dies and amazing paints, then do! NOW! My background is created using Walnut Stain and Weathered Wood Distress Inks with lots of splatters, followed by lots stamping in both Distress and Archival inks.

I have a kind of nostalgic family mood going on, with the mother, father and son. The tag edges have been distressed and stitched and joined together with thin wire. You can then bend the tag into different shapes for standing. I often like to give a triple tag instead of a card to friends. It's just that bit different and it looks good too.
I really did embrace the old and used all my typical trademarks and crafty touches to create an aged look like this rusty old key and jute scrap. I just have to add words to my pieces and Tim's ChitChat sticker book has more than enough words to allow you to create your own little story.
So before you rush into the New Year, take a little time to wander down Memory Lane. There are lots more fabulous creations from my teamies over at the Design Team Blog here!

Do join in with your take on the "Embracing the Old" theme. It's fun and you could also be in with a chance of this generous $50 shopping spree - just what you need after the festive season! Stay inspired... and thanks for calling by!
Bye for now, Sarah.

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