It's got to be Christmas at Stamps and Stencils...

Hi everyone and welcome to what will be our last challenge at Stamps and Stencils...... here's Sue to explain... 'It's Sue here with you today for the start of the new challenge but also the end of a journey. The December challenge will be the last one for Stamps and Stencils, we have had a lot of fun over the three years we have been together but now it's time for a change in direction. I personally want to thank everyone who has visited us and those who have participated in our challenges. I also want to thank the Design Team for producing fantastic projects month after month and some amazing Inspirational Posts. So now it's time to share the theme for this last challenge. It's got to be Christmas! Possibly predictive but as everyone gets busy for the festive season time seems to disappear at a fast pace, so we're keeping it simple . For this challenge we want to keep it festive and see your Christmas themed creations, just remember it must be mixed media and include stamping and/or stenciling.

All things come to an end so to wrap things up for this challenge (see what I did there!) I've created a snowflake gift box.

Lid on...

Lid off...

So to start - this was a container which I coated with gesso and then went mixed media mad, adding loads of textures, with stamps and stencils and all manner of pastes, sprays and glitter. See a gap and fill it!

Not forgetting the lid....just a touch of glitter...

Stamping

Tiny art stones

Die cut snowflakes and distress glitter

Crackle and gilding wax

A lovely soft green and icy blue give a wintry feel....warmed and softened with gold

And to put the lid on things...

Hope you'll be inspired to join in with our challenge, the DT have pulled out all the stops to finish the year and close on a high, hope you'll across to have a look.

I just want to take this opportunity to thank Sue and team members, past and present for being a joy to work with and providing such wonderful inspiration...I've enjoyed the journey! Ruth xx

Inspiration post at Stamps and Stencils

Hi everyone, I have an Inspiration post over at Stamps and Stencils today, please hop across to check out some of the quick cards I've been making. Ruth x

Grungy Christmas at PaperArtsy....

Hi everyone, I'm delighted to say I have a post this evening over on the PaperArtsy blog, the current challenge topic is 'foiling'  I love foiling and I've been playing with some of Seth Apter's new stamps and created some Christmas cards with a grungy twist! Hop across for all the details and also click on the foiling link for lots of inspiration. Here's a sneaky peek...

Hope you enjoy. Ruth xx

Remember, remember the 5th of November...at Stamps and Stencils

Hi everyone, time for our November challenge over at Stamps and Stencils, hosted by the lovely and talented Toni. Here's what Toni wants us to do.

I've got a 'bonfire night' challenge for you this month. As a child, I used to love bonfire night. My dad would come home from work with a box of fireworks and packets of sparklers for us and we couldn't wait to get outside and enjoy the show! I'd love to see your art works based on fire and fireworks. Think bursts of colour. Let rip with the colour sprays, glitter, and paints. Let's have a bit of fun and brighten up these dark days with COLOUR ! Just remember it must be mixed media and include stamps or stencils or even both.

Now I haven't gone down a traditional route and stuck strictly to the fireworks brief but I have been inspired by the colours and splashes of brightness against a dark sky that you get with fireworks and created some journal pages using bright...and I mean BRIGHT colours.

 I used black gesso to cover some white pages and I was certainly impressed with the new Pebeo black gesso I had bought, great coverage! I wanted the colours to pop against the night sky.

I then used gelli printed deli paper to cover the pages.

I stuck to pinks, purples, orange and a touch of turquoise...the wrinkles add texture.

More printed paper and fluorescent and pearlescent paint. I retrieved my foam stamps that looked like a Catherine wheel, but in the end I didn't use them...that's the joy of going with the flow on an art journal page. Layering up.

Finger painting is always great fun.

I punched out circles of colour to add even more contrast.

One of my most used stencils is a joggles one and I think it looks like fireworks exploding.

Hopefully you can see all the layers building...and hopefully reminiscent of fireworks exploding in colour.

Having added all this colour I now needed to rein it in and create some contrast with black...

and white.

I painted some blocks of black so I could add more contrast and add some words. Now the words have nothing to do with bonfire night unless you need to brave on Bonfire night! The words of Dina Wakley seemed appropriate for me personally at the moment, be brave, be strong, but most of all...be kind. A little kindness can go a long way in this world...and on that note I wish you a happy crafting time and hope you'll all join in and be inspired by the Design Teams fabulous creations.

Ruth xx

Mirror, Mirror over at PaperArtsy

Hi everyone, over on the PaperArtsy blog this evening I'm really lucky to be sharing a project for the 'A Box of Eggs' colour palette challenge using the new Courtney Franich fresco paints. I know we're saying goodbye to summer now but these yummy new colours inspired something a little a beach themed. Please hop across to see more of my home decor project which also use Urban Snapshot nature themed stamps.

Spooky Fun with an Autumnal twist... at Stamps and Stencils!

Hi everyone, it's October already and we're nearing the end of another year, the nights are drawing in and there's a chill in the air..all of which is a bit scary and the perfect time to have our new challenge at Stamps and Stencils and hosted by the talented Rachel.

'I would love to see your mixed media makes with a Spooky theme, but if Spooky is not your thing then Autumnal colours also fit the bill ! - you can make anything you like as long as it is in a mixed media style and involves stamps or stencils!!! Enjoy!'

So a Halloween themed door hanger is what I've created and I really enjoyed stepping out of my normal style and colours for this...but the glitter did creep in!

I used a calico craft parts mdf door hanger I've had for a while and after a coat of little black dress fresco paint I used the shatter stencil which always reminds me of a spider's web. I stencilled squid ink paint over the black so the black 'web' showed through. I also used some webbing spray.

The ingredients

I then used the stencil again with graphite texture paste and sprinkled black soot distress glitter over it and once dry added a few splatters of coral and snowflake paint

Smoothy card painted and some black knight infusions over the orange paint...then stamping and embossing in black glint embossing powder.

After a few trials I decided most of the images should be on purple and the script on orange...and of course the pumpkins had to be orange!

The stamps are a mix of a paperArtsy hotpicks plate and an old waltzing mouse stamp set.

I rather like how the skull turned out and there is lots of stamping an stencilling on this one. That's my spooky contribution for this month but if spooky isn't your 'thing' then you can still join in with our challenge and just go autumnal, for lots of inspiration hop over to see what the rest of the team have created!

R x

Inspiration Post...Sunprints!

Morning everyone, just a quick post to say I have an inspiration post over at Stamps and Stencils today, all about using the wonderful sunlight we've been gifted this summer in the UK....

Head across for more info. R x

Anything Goes at Stamps and Stencils!

Hi, Sue is our talented host for this months challenge at Stamps and Stencils and this month it's an 'Anything Goes' theme. Here's what she wants you to do.

It's been a while - Being creative often leads you in different directions and sometimes it isn't until you start that you know where you are heading. For this challenge I thought that as we've not done it for a while it would be good to let your creative spirit wander and have a theme of Anything Goes. Your project must be mixed media and include stamping and/or stencilling but apart from that it's up to you !

So this is an idea I've been thinking about for a while and definitely inspired by some artwork by the very talented Diana Taylor of 'Velvet Moth Studio', she produces exquisite work, if you haven't visited her before you're in for a treat.

This book cover was crumbling so I didn't feel guilty about re purposing it, inspired by the title I've created a little piece of 'Wonderland'  I think the book cover was originally yellow but has now turned lovely shade of ochre.

A little stamping with a Wendy Vecchi stamp in archival ink and I decided I would stick to a yellow, grey and white palette.

Tyvek ironed on a moulding mat... make sure you use parchment paper between your iron and the tyvek!

I roughly arranged where I wanted the collage elements to go and added some crackle paste underneath.

I added in the 'march hare' or is it the 'white rabbit'?

I'd originally stamped some bottles underneath, but they had almost disappeared so one bottle of magic potion nestled nicely on the binding with the invitation to drink me.

Although I liked the arrangement I was lacking a focal point or something to link the bottle to the spine; a little lace added texture and then these paper rosebuds seemed to fit the bill and when I remembered about the queen wanting her white roses painted red they became perfect.

A few details

Lovely crackle...

I hope you've enjoyed your little tour of 'Wonderland' and are inspired to have a go at ...well...anything creative, have fun and join in our challenge and for more fabulous inspiration hop across to see what the rest of the talented team have created. R x

Industrial/Grungy at Stamps and Stencils!

Hi everyone, time for our next challenge at Stamps and Stencils and the lovely Cec is our host this month; this time she wants us to include some metal in an Industrial or Grungy creation. Here's what she wants us to do...

Create a mixed media project with some stamping and/or stenciling that puts off a very industrial and grungy vibe - be sure to include lots of metal and texture.

It was lovely to get a bit grungy and rusty with paint, powders, bits and bobs. I've decorated a 7 x 5 canvas panel for my metal montage!

I started off by adding some texture through a  stencil.

Next painty layers; now I began using Seth's monoprint technique with paint on watercolour card but because the canvas was already textured I found that dry brushing and scraping on paint with a pallette knife worked really well. I used fresco paints in Brown Shed, Claret, Smoked Paprika, Green Patina and Little Black Dress.

Just keep layering until the magic happens!

I used some of Seth's chipboard shapes as well as chipboard cogs, metal gears, hinges....alsorts and added some texture paste before painting with Little Black Dress ( my black gesso had turned into a solid mass in the recent heatwave...but my fresco paints were still perfect) and the dry brushing with Snowflake.

I then used verdigris and copper embossing powder as well as lots of dry brushing with paints and treasure gold.

As Cec has asked for metal to be used I did patina some copper to add to the the canvas but I decided that was one embellishment too far and liked the result at this stage, however there are still lots of metal embellishments within the piece.

 Finally I stamped some letters on scrap card used during the painty process (I always think this is a great way to get a background for stamping that ties in with the finished result). I'd also used some number stamps in black archival on the piece but they've faded with the layering.

 Please hop across to see the wonderful inspiration from our talented team and I hope you'll be inspired to join in. Thanks as always for stopping by R x