Saturday, January 28, 2017

Revisiting My Three Favorite Steampunk and/or Industrial Projects From 2016

Welcome friends and visitors! Sandee and Amelie and their talented Team are having a look back into our favorite Steampunk and/or Industrial projects for the year 2016. I don't do much in the line of Steampunk, although I love looking at it, but I've had a few handfuls of Industrial projects I've managed to make last year that lean toward Steampunk. Picking three favorites is a challenge all unto itself, but here goes:

I made this Industrial canvas in February of 2016 and titled it Stay Curious. It's probably my favorite project of all time, excluding anything made for Halloween. Lots of metal, texture and RUST! I can almost smell the old engine oil when I look at this photo! Beware, the post is very laden with photos!



Oh, another favorite, also with lots of rust is this birthday card I made last May for my friend Niki of Pawsitively Creative. You can see how I made that rusted sheet metal background at my post Celebrate Your Style.


And for my third pick, I chose my Grungy Gift Box I made for my husband's Father's Day gift. Lots of crust on this, and I guess that's why I chose it for my final fav!


Be sure to stop by Sandee and Amelie's Steampunk Challenge and see which of Top projects the Design Team members chose of their own personal favorites! I think you'll agree that they are your favorites, too! I am submitting this to the Sandee and amelie's Steampunk Top 3 2016 Steampunk/Industrial Projects Challenge.

Thank you for dropping in today! I understand if you do not wish to comment. For those of you that have already experienced my delight in these projects one time, you certainly do not have to go through this a second time!

Hugs and Blessings!
Sara Emily

Thursday, January 19, 2017

Vintage Winter Wonderland Canvas-Guest Designer For Frilly and Funkie

Welcome friends and visitors! I'm so honored to be crafting along side the talented Design Team at Frilly and Funkie as their Guest Designer after winning the 'Bountiful Harvest' challenge in November. Today I am sharing a canvas for the current challenge theme 'Winter Hues''  chosen by the talented Suzz.

Winter time brings such a beautiful mix of colors. This challenge requires you use any or all of the following colors:blue, white, silver, gray in your vintage or shabby chic project.


I started by adhering Tissue Wrap on my 3 1/2 x 5 canvas using Multi Matte Medium and wrinkling it up a bit. When dry, I trimmed the excess tissue and painted the surface with various Distress paints in blues and Picket Fence. While still wet, I added a sheet of Saran Wrap (plastic food wrap) and wrinkled that up. I set it aside to dry overnight. The photo below shows what it looked like after removing the plastic wrap.


I sprayed with Picket Fence Distress spray  and Perfect Pearl mist and wiped it back, resulting in this toned down shimmery surface.


I stamped some trees from the Woodland Scribble set in the background using Jet Black Archival ink, some with Picket Fence ink and some embossed with Emerald Creek Soft Fallen Snow embossing powder.  I stamped and embossed the cabin from Holiday Drawings on Plain Tissue Wrap, using Versamark ink and Watering Can and Soft Fallen Snow embossing powders, tore it out and adhered it to the surface with Multi Matte medium. 




Splattering on Picket Fence paint and adding Remnant Rubs add to the snowy atmosphere.


 

You can see in the photo below and on the finished canvas that blending some paints around the tissue edges blends this into the background. I also highlighted the windows with Fossilized Amber Distress ink and my water pen.


Distress Crazing medium was added and allowed to dry and Distress Crayon rubbed into the cracks around the edges and randomly over the canvas. I mixed crushed glass glitter with Multi Matte medium and wiped it on with my finger to finish it off. You might notice the tree inked in Picket Fence, but not heat embossed disappeared when I added the crazing! Oops!



The crazing looks great around the edges to give this a real aged look.


I took a few photos outdoors when the sun finally came out.



Most of the products I used can be found at The Funkie Junkie Boutique:



Additional products used:
Canvas, Saran Wrap, Emerald Creek Soft Fallen Snow embossing powder, Stampendous Silver Crushed Glass Glitter, Tim Holtz Christmastime Remnant Rubs

I am sharing with the following challenges:
Thank you for taking your time to visit my blog today, and I hope I have inspired you in the tiniest way to join the 'Winter Hues' challenge at Frilly and Funkie!
Hugs and Blessings!
Sara Emily


Wednesday, January 18, 2017

Celebrate Good Times and Everyday Moments Masculine Card

Welcome! I've got a quick post today of a masculine card made with A Vintage Journey's 'Going Round in Circles' theme in mind.It's been a while since I've done anything good and grungy or used my clock die, so I thought it might be time to break it out.


Wanting to play along with Scrapy Land's 'Favorite Colors' challenge, but so undecided as to what actually is my favorite color, I thought instantly of rust! I think that's a color!


When you closely at it, rust actually comprises many colors, some of which could be considered just the opposite of what I would call my favorite. I used DecoArt Texture Sand Paste and some of their Media fluid acrylics to get the rusty look of my Tim Holtz Weathered Clock. Oh, how I've missed my RUST!



The 'wood' panel is made following my tutorial here.



I know what you're thinking...that's not Tim's Weathered Clock! Oh, yes it is, and I couldn't repeat this cut again if I tried! I pulled it out of my stash when I was doing a clean out, and if I remember correctly this mis-cut when I rolled it through for a second pass. I thought it looked too cool to throw in the trash. Just another way to get more use out of your dies!

The Memory Box gears are also out of my stash and these were colored with Distress paints and embossing powders.



I used a Tim Holtz Debossing Folder (Documented) for 'Moments', Remnant Rubs, a Chit Chat sticker and a splash of Black Soot paint to finish this off.




Well, that's it for my second post of the day! Quite different from my abstract canvas I posted earlier today!

I'm sharing this one with the challenges it was specifically designed for:
-Scrapy Land Challenge #58-Favorite Colors I used Sizzix and Memory Box dies.
-Deep Ocean Challenge#146-"Anything New" How about a new way to use a die--by shredding it to bits in your Big Kick!

Thank you for dropping in today, and for the second time, if you came by earlier! I love reading your comments!
Hugs and Blessings!
Sara Emily
UPDATE: Yippee!


Abstract Mixed Media Canvas-Emerald Creek Dares Sneak Peek for Creativation

Hello, crafty friends and visitors! If you have been to Emerald Creek Dares you know the Design Team has been revealing some new products that Kim, owner of Emerald Creek Craft Supplies is introducing at Creativation. I've never made what I would call abstract art before, and I've been dying to give it a try.  I was totally inspired to try an organic sort of abstract canvas when I opened my package of goodies from Emerald Creek Craft Supplies! It's with tremendous pleasure I bring something new to my blog today! Not a stitch of paper nor die cuts on this!


Before going on, I will apologize for my blurry shots and my lack of in process photos. My I phone camera wants to focus on everything at once, since this is a highly sparkly canvas. I was in the creative zone (chillin' out!), paste dries quickly, and my phone needed charging...need I say more about the lack of process shots? But I do not lack in photos in general; this is an extremely photo heavy post. I'm still trying to figure out how this looks best--landscape or portrait.


I started with a canvas board and used my palette knife to add layers of various texture mediums including Ranger Grit Paste, Liquitex Modeling Paste and Golden Crackle Paste. I even mixed up Fractured Ice Embossing Crystals with my modeling paste for more texture, and when the paste dried heated it up with my heat tool to melt the crystals somewhat. I added Charred Gold Embossing Powder and more Fractured Ice randomly and along peaks and crevices while some of the paste was wet, and when dry, heated until it just started to melt.


Viewed from the side you get a sense of the texture on this. These photos were taken before I decided it needed a black "frame" of Black Soot Distress paint.


In areas that were relatively flat, I added stamping with Ranger Watering Can Archival ink and a few of Emerald Creek's new shell images. I immediately saw the value of these images not only for their use as a shell image, but for the intricately carved lines that would make great background stamping on an organic piece such as this.



Next I dabbed various colors of Distress paints on my craft mat and spritzed with water. I brushed this watery paint in random areas of the canvas and spritzed with more water to allow it to travel around the ridges and valleys. When satisfied, I dried with the heat tool and repeated with additional colors.




I'm not sure why, but some of the paste did not want to be colored, but I liked the look, so I've embraced imperfection.



I applied Ranger Emboss It Dabber directly from the bottle with a tiny brush to random ridges, sprinkled with Onyx Frost Embossing Powder, and heated to melt. I glued various Mixed Media Gemstones to some of the ridges using Ranger Multi Matte Medium. More embossing fluid and Onyx Frost powder was added around the stones and heated. No powders were added to the stones themselves--the rich gold and sparkly black are their natural colors, and there are purple, amber and clear stones as well.



Lastly, I cut the six tips off a Victorian Snowflakes charm and the bail off one of the tips. These were pressed into my Versamark embossing pad and then dipped in Onyx Frost Embossing powder, then heated. I glued these randomly near the stones to suggest ice crystals. Can you spot them in the photo below?



After my canvas sat on my desk a few days, I decided it needed to have a black frame around it, so I simply swiped around the edges with Black Soot Distress paints a few times. I think it's obvious I prefer it in this orientation, and I find it's colors and texture are even more beautiful when observed in natural light.


Well that about does it! I hope you are inspired to try something new and to use your products in a new way. In the meantime, I encourage you to visit my teammates at Emerald Creek Dares; you will be amazed at the way they have used Kim's new products she is introducing at Creativation (formerly know as CHA) this week. I am sooo jealous that most of the Emerald Creek Team will be there in Phoenix to provide inspiration for show goers. Sadly, I could not make it due to family obligations. Ladies, I know you will have a blast!

Emerald Creek Craft Supplies used:
Mixed Media Gemstones (new product)
Seashell Stamps (new product)

Other products used which are sold at Emerald Creek:

UPDATE: Yippee!