Grungy Christmas at Stamps and Stencils

Hi everyone, can you believe that it's the last challenge of the year over at Stamps and Stencils? This time the very talented Julia, in keeping with the time of year has picked a Christmas theme...but with a twist. Here's what Julia has to say about 'Grungy Christmas'.


'I love Christmas but I'm a little shy when it comes to the bling, glitter and tinsel bit. We'd like to see you step away from the normal Christmas colours and create a mixed media piece which has a real touch of grunge. Think alternative colours, layers, antiquing and all things which are not pristine red and green!' 

I decided to alter a couple of mdf star ornaments. I thought the new Christmas fresco paints by PaperArtsy would be great alternative colours and originally was going to do them in 2 colours, the Plum and the Peacock. A base coat went on beautifully.

Lovely but I changed my mind to just the blue. I used small images from a favourite PA Xmas set. Stamped in black archival and quickly added WOW embossing powder in Black glint...still grungy but a touch of sparkle!

Next I mixed some  3D gloss gel with primary elements pigment in green pearl (which is irridescent) and using a snowflake mask by Clarity spread the gel across. I kept lifting the spatula up and down to roughen the texture. Before it dried I sprinkled a little WOW sparkling snow embossing powder on and heat set it.

On the Joy ornament I added text stamping and used a Damask TCW stencil instead. The green which antiqued them both is a glaze I made with the green pearl. A touch of treasure gold to the raised areas and we're nearly there.

Lastly I coloured and aged some silky seam binding to hang them up by. I love how they turned out and thought they would also work well if you wanted to celebrate Christmas in a rustic style....

.....or maybe a Victorian Christmas. Red has crept in but I hope Julia will like this red.

Please hop across and see what my very talented team mates have produced and hopefully inspire you to join in with our Grungy Christmas challenge.

As always thanks for stopping by... x

White Hexagons at Stamps and Stencils

Hi everyone, I have another inspiration over at Stamps and Stencils today. I've created a scrapbook themed canvas in keeping with the current memories themed challenge. Hope you'll pop across to see what I've been up to.

Thanks for stopping by....and happy crafting! 

Textured Canvas at PaperArtsy

Good evening, I have a guest designer spot over on the PaperArtsy blog tonight...yippee! The current fabulous theme is Abstract Art. Oh the ideas were flying around in my head for this one...what to choose? I eventually settled on a textured canvas. Please pop over to here to see what I've created...and here's a sneaky peek.

Edited to show the full 'picture'

Thanks as always for stopping by. Ruth x

Frosty Green

Hi everyone, sharing a layered textured page from my large dylusions journal today. Following on from a glorious autumn, the weather has turned blustery and we are probably not far off from some frosty weather.

There are always patches of green around even in winter and I love a crisp morning where the frost has touched everything. I was reminded of this as the layers built up on my pages and a frosty green scene appeared, a white frosted bird and foliage just seemed a perfect touch alongside the sentiment.

I used a leafy clarity stencil with colour blooms and then added further stamping and stenciling with coordinating fresco paints.

Stencils with clear gel medium and a sprinkling of rock candy distress glitter gave dimension and added to the frosty feel. 

Book text and washi tape were also used in the background.

 Some stamping in black archival.

The foliage is a memory box die which I scraped some puff paint on and added a sprinkle of white embossing powder before heating.

Same treatment to the PaperArtsy bird diecut.

A little shading and finally the sentiment stamped under the 'branch'.

It's a little hard to see the subtle sparkle, but it's there.

It's been lovely to have some fun creating and  be able to enter this in the following fabulous challenges.

 Craft Stamper - Take It Make It challenge - take a stamp and Anything Goes for November.

Mixed Media World - Anything Goes

Try It On Tuesday - Create a Scene

Mixed media Monthly Challenge- all about Texture

As always, thanks so much for stopping by and hope it is peaceful wherever you are....

Remember, Remember challenge at Stamps and Stencils

Hi everyone, it's time for our next challenge at Stamps and Stencils but before I announce the theme can I thank everyone who took the time to blog hop and enter our word search, we were thrilled with the amount of entries Thank you!

Onto this months challenge then and it's my turn to host! When I realised that the challenge fell on 'Bonfire Night', the words 'Remember, Remember the 5th of November' came into my head and the idea of a memory themed challenge formed. So this month we want to see projects inspired by favourite memories. This could be a  favourite holiday or destination, childhood memories, something from last week or your first memory or it could be as I've chosen something that brings back happy memories. Here are my journal pages.

So here's the story...we stayed in a cottage this summer and there were beautiful hydrangea bushes in the garden and it struck me how they always remind me of 'Auntie' Eva & 'Uncle' Jack, so why not make some pages in those beautiful pink and sage green hues of the fading flower heads. So I did.

This is my upside down book journal, pages were gessoed and then I tinted some embossing paste with Green Pearl and spread it through the Prima doily stencil. I then made up some sprays of Primary element pigments in Pear Blossom, Green Pearl and Ginger Flower. Sprays, splats and drips later I was a happy bunny.

Next some stamping with white fresco paint and some Sara Naumann Eclectica background stamps and then some Granny Smith fresco paint for the very appropriate quote from a Lin Brown Eclectica set. 'We do not remember days, we remember moments'.

Card stock and paper in green tones were given a wash of the Primary Element colours already used and then flowers from a JOFY set were stamped in black archival and cut out. I also added their names to the centres of the flowers.

So why do hydrangeas remind me of  Eva and Jack? Well here's the rest of the story..

Eva and Jack were very good neighbours and like a lot of family friends they were known as Aunt and Uncle by the children on our road, sadly they had no children of their own. Whilst my mum was a very good cook and baker, Eva would also teach me to make and bake things and Jack who was a very good gardener first instilled me with a love of gardening giving me cuttings and seedlings to plant.
They gave my mother a cutting from a beautiful hydrangea bush many many years ago, and it grew and flowered every year. When my mother moved house nearly 30 years ago she took a cutting from it, nurtured it and it still grows now. Without fail as the hydrangea flowers she will say Jack and Eva are flowering again, and that's why hydrangeas will always remind me of Eva, Jack and my mother.

So what are your favourite memories?

As always thanks for stopping by and can't wait to see what you come up with. x

Take 3 spoons at Stamps and stencils

Hi everyone, it's my turn for another inspiration post over at Stamps and Stencils. This time I've been playing with spoons...to find out more please hop across here.

Thanks for stopping by and happy crafting!

Blog Hop and new challenge at Stamps and Stencils!

Hi everyone, it's time for our next challenge at Stamps and Stencils and as it's our 6 'monthaversary' we're also having a blog hop. If you've arrived here from Yvonne's blog you're in the right place... if you haven't and you want to join in then hop across to Stamps and Stencils for the details. There's also a PaperArtsy giveaway for one lucky hopper!

On to this months challenge then, Sue our talented DT lead is our host this time around and the theme she's chosen is 'Whatever it is make it 3D!'. Here's my altered tin.

I decided to alter an old tin I picked up in a charity shop that I thought had an interesting shape and set about burning it ...see this post for more details. 

You can just about make out the original design on the lid which was oriental in look and in quite garish colours. However the sides post burning I just fell in love with...happy accident!

Building on that I decided to use alcohol inks sponged over the tin with more on the top than the sides.

I didn't want to add anything more to the tin itself and decided I'd have fun creating a floral embellishment for it.

Stamps and stencils were used on a variety of surfaces.

This is PaperArtsy crunchy waxed Kraft paper with silk glazes brushed on top and heat set...I've used paint before and it doesn't blister just seals it it, but the glaze was another happy accident ...love the blistered effect.

The reverse of the paper with primary elements sprayed and heat set, this won't rub off now, plus some archival stamping.

This is white  Khadi paper (cotton rag paper) sprayed with black glimmer mist (another lost and found product since my craft room makeover) with burnt umber primary elements mixed into 3D gloss gel.

The last surface is clearly for art film stamped with the bubble stamp. I used the tattered florals die to create my flower just layering up and adding some mica flakes to the centre.

This was one of those projects that was a joy to create, happy accidents, quite simple and just came together beautifully.

 The inside which is how I expected the outside to initially look...not sure what I'm going to store in it yet!

 A few detail photos.

Hope you'll be inspired to join and hope you'll hop across to Julia's blog, but before you go you also need a letter from me which is 'C'. 

As always thanks for visiting... Ruth x

Just blue

Hi everyone, firstly thanks for still following me when I've been such an absent visitor of late..... I'd really hoped to spend some leisurely time catching  up with all your lovely posts whilst we were away last week but alas only GPRS available, so I'm just as behind as ever....sorry!
I managed to have some messy play though and for the first time in a few months I'm posting something that isn't for a DT. I've just been messing about with scraps and fibres and glazes to create some texture and not overthink things...a little less structured, no pictures or main image...which is out of my comfort zone but I like the result. Think it's the Inspiration Wednesday influence!

Blue? I always thought I didn't really have a favourite colour palette and used most colours in turn but when discussing with a good friend she thought I didn't use blue much, so my 'just blue' challenge to myself  really came from her. No step by steps.....and yes I did check which colours I use most. I was surprised to find it's browns and neutrals...but I do have quite a few blue items in my collection as well!
Thanks so much for stopping by and taking the time to leave a comment, I really do appreciate it. Ruth x

Feathers at Stamps and Stencils

Hi everyone, It's my turn for an inspiration post over at Stamps and Stencils, please pop over and see what I've been making inspired by the current challenge theme of Up,Up and away with a twist!

Thanks for stopping by. Ruth x

Stencilled Circles at PaperArtsy

This evening I'm delighted to say I have another guest design post over at the PaperArtsy blog! The current theme is circles and here's a sneaky peek of my interpretation.

To see the rest of the project and how I created it please hop across to the PaperArtsy blog. Hope you'll be inspired to join in, there's still a few days left of the circle theme. Thanks as always for stopping by.

Up, Up and Away at Stamps and Stencils!

Hi everyone, Sharon is our lovely host this month over at Stamps and Stencils. The theme is Up, Up and Away with a Twist! Pop over there to see all the details and find out what the twist is! The theme had me humming a certain song and I was inspired to create a mini canvas.

For some reason when I think of hot air balloons it brings to mind the turn of the century and Victorian gentleman and ladies going ballooning. So the copper hot air balloon has just taken flight over Paris for the 1900 Paris Exposition.

I used some french text paper and a piece of map. A little distressing and splatting.

Grunge paste through stencils and treasure gold.

I heated the copper to change the colour, isn't it wonderful?

Stamping onto then puffing out the images.

Finally a little copper wire around the edge. Lots of lovely autumnal colours.

Hope you'll be inspired to join in. Lots of things go up in the air, so we're looking forward to seeing your interpretation of this theme. Thanks so much for stopping by and don't forget to hop across and see the rest of the teams fabulous creations. Ruth x