Catch up part 2....

Quick edit...following on from my brief post yesterday about our new challenge blog Stamps and Stencils, it's my turn today along with my lovely teamie Yvonne to be introduced. As the name suggests it's all about using stamps and stencils in your mixed media projects...I'm so proud to be working with these talented ladies again...our first challenge starts on Thursday!

 Hi, part 2....I attended a Sue Carrington workshop a few weeks ago where we created a wonderful canvas panel with lots of lovely techniques but what I especially liked was that we were using beeswax. I haven't used it as often as I'd like to and have to admit I have a desire (even more so now) to dabble in encaustic artwork, layering wax on panels  to create muted shapes of depth a la Donna Downey and France Papillon. Anyway before I get carried away...here's what we created.

I won't give too much away but there is some stamping on tissue and when combined with wax gives a soft quite beautiful finish.

Some lovely paint techniques to age things

And there is some drippage here and there!

I'm lucky that Sue has become a good friend since I've attended some of her workshops and felt really honoured when she made a lovely present that I thought I'd share with you. You may think it looks familiar, she made a similar one here for another crafty friend.  

It has pride of place on my pen draw where I can see it when I 'create'. Thankfully Sue has taken my big hint and her next workshop is a metal work one.....

...can't wait. If you're around the West Hallam area of Derby June 20th you might be interested, you can find all the details on her blog here. 

Whilst on a green theme, I've signed up for Donna Downey's Inspiration Wednesday workshop and thoroughly enjoying experimenting and just enjoying her videos she has such an enthusiasm for art and never fails to make me laugh. I've made my art journals, although I love fabric, me and sewing machines aren't a match made in heaven, so I'm quite pleased with how they turned out.

I said a green theme, well there's a you tube video here of a past Inspiration Weds post from 2013 that I wanted to have a go out. This is my version, it's paint and gesso, UTEE and paper flowers. It's a textural piece...or in my words, touchy, feely.

This is part way through.

If I was doing it again, I wouldn't add as much colour to certain areas, but then that's what experimenting is about.

It really is a glossy dimensional piece. Hope you enjoyed this catch up, exciting times ahead this week. Thanks so much for stopping by. 

New Challenge Blog!

Hi, just nipping in with a quick post before 'Catch Up Part 2'. Eyes right to click on the link that will take you to a new challenge blog....yes I'm so excited to be part of a fabulous team and raring to go for our first challenge which will start later this week... :)

Catch up part 1...

Hi everyone, I attended a Finnabair weekend workshop last November and thought it was about time I shared the pictures of what I'd made....if only because I have some pics from a much more recent Sue Carrington one which I'll be sharing in the next post!

I won't be explaining how they were made but hope you enjoy seeing the end results....she has some new workshops for this year and I'm looking forward to going to one of them in May (yes just one this time)....just love her work, I find her so inspirational...and she is such a great teacher.

I've left my favourite till last.

As always, thanks so much for stopping by.

Sunday Stamper - flowers

Hi everyone, a quick post. I've been blogging just over a year now. It's my 96th post and I'd hoped I'd do my 100th post on March 16th but never mind. Why mention this? Well my first leap into blog land was a Sunday post and with a few minutes to spare I entered 'The Sunday Stamper' challenge. Hel's left some lovely comments and a few weeks later Astrid dropped by and I want to thank these 2 lovely ladies for their encouragement and starting me off on what has been a fabulous journey so far!

I haven't entered the challenge for a while but just had to it being 1 year on, so here's my entry for this week, the theme being flowers.

It's a brayered background of the new Lin Brown limited edition paints, lovely bright colours.

Then Darcy's new stamps with pink and blue archival and some distress markers to shade. To finish some gold pen highlighting....a really quick card....but love it when a plan comes together!

Thanks for following ...that was a surprise which I never expected (thanks Donna for being the first). Thanks for all your encouragement and for inspiring me with your wonderful art out there.....see you soon! Hugs Ruth x

Deconstruction?

Hi everyone, I wasn't able to join in with the last topic over at PaperArtsy so I was determined to do something for this one. There has been some wonderful inspiration on the theme of 'Deconstruction' or it could be Reconstruction and Repurpose. I set myself the challenge of making something out of stuff I might otherwise throw away....there is beauty in the ordinary.

Regular visitors will know I love Finnabair's projects, where she uses all sorts of metal embellishments and trinkets. I decided to create a  'canvas' of found 'trinkets'... using frescos and treasure gold.

I decided to use stuff from the little scrap tub that sits on my desk which has half bits of flowers and petals and leftovers from other projects. There were some buttons from an old slipper and tiny pieces of lace, some grunge paper flourishes from an experiment with rusting which didn't work.... I wasn't allowed to use my jars of buttons or rolls of lace and only leftover scraps of paper

I also have a box with old lids, bottle caps, insides of a tape runner, tyvek 'outcuts' which I raided and a coke tin and tea bag paper from the kitchen!...you get the picture.
Photo heavy now with Step outs

 Greyboard base with chosen papers

Grunge paste through a doily stencil

A wash of chalk fresco

Sorry blurred photo, this is heating the tyvek oucuts, which ended up in the base of the upturned lid.

Building up the layers....having faith at this stage, though it looked very deep.

Chalk and then stone fresco.

Of course frescos cover up beautifully.

Some cornflower blue and cobalt archival stamping to tie it together.

I've used treasure gold in white fire, onyxite and sapphire.

Hope you don't mind...just a few more detail photos

Hope you enjoyed looking at  my entry for 'Deconstruction'. I so enjoyed making this. Thanks as always for stopping by. x

Guest Creative Guide at 'A Vintage Journey'

Hi everyone,  I was lucky enough to win a recent challenge over at 'A Vintage Journey' and as part of the prize I was invited to be a guest creative guide and create a piece for their latest 'anniversary' challenge. If you hop across here...you'll find out a little bit more about me, my Tim influences and there's also a rare photo of a young me!

Here are some close ups of the top and sides of my Tim Technique Tin....

'A Vintage Journey', this brayered embossing technique is one of the first I saw on Tim's dvd 'An Altered Journey' ....I've used butterscotch, ginger and hazelnut Alcohol Inks, some texture tools over the metal and a hint of blue treasure gold.

For the sides I started off with some mixed media paper and 'spritz and flick distress'

The heart and wings are grungeboard elements and I've used crackle paint and vintage photo distress glitter.

I do love this cobalt blue shade of archival ink, and I've stamped on the flower as well. I've also used gilded glassine paper to mount each piece of card on.  

A little rusty grunge board and ephemera.

A little crackled butterfly. Top right is the shabby chic technique from CC vol 1 and you can't really see but I used the 'perfect distress' technique on the text stamp from the first CC vol as well. 

Hope you enjoyed this post and get the chance to join in with the 'anything Tim' challenge. Thanks as always for stopping by.