Saturday, July 29, 2017

Blue Jean Baby...Journal Pages

Hello friends and visitors! Today I have a quick post to show off my latest journal pages. I am participating in an art journal round robin where we are to use two designated colors on a page spread. This time the colors are denim and neutrals.


My mind turned immediately to the lyrics in Elton John's ballad 'Tiny Dancer', and so my pages evolved from these words:

Blue jean baby, L.A. lady, seamstress for the band
Pretty eyed, pirate smile, you'll marry a music man
Ballerina, you must have seen her dancing in the sand
And now she's in me, always with me, tiny dancer in my hand
Elton John

(I goofed and inserted a word that's not part of the original lyrics on my page. I can't sing, either!)
  
I just used a bunch of stuff from my stash, but a few things bear mentioning. 

The photo was amongst hundreds of old photos my neighbor was trashing. I'll have a post August 9 using another bit of trash from that haul. Stay tuned! I colored the baby's 'jeans' with Stormy Sky Distress marker, because my Faded Jeans was dried up!


The wooden frame and the Tim Holtz Sewing Room mannequin die cut have been crackled with Deco Art Weathered Wood. I love this stuff for subtle crackling! The corrugated cardboard beneath is painted with DecoArt Prussian Blue--a new favorite color.  I added just a touch of dry brushing with Faded Jeans. The faded jeans strip under the frame and the patch on the opposite page is from my daughter's jeans when she was 4 or 5 years old! 



The flowers are cheapo store bought white paper flowers I colored with Faded Jeans and Chipped Sapphire ink and Denim Glimmer Mist, crinkled and layered. The burlap strip is a sweet gift from my blog buddie, Niki (Pawsitively Creative)--thank you, again, sweetie!

The denim design paper almost looks like a real pair of faded jeans thanks to the sanding I gave it.

I used Golden crackle paste and a Wendy Vecchi stencil and heat embossed an unnamed image using cobalt and white embossing powder on the backgrounds. I also stamped some music (MSE) in Archival ink and paint.



I had fun making the mannequin dimensional by using a scrap of muslin and some batting. I also did a little stamping for a vintage look. I used Tim's postage stamp die and some burlap paper to show it off.

 

The cheapo chipboard pieces are my favorite element. I painted them with Chipped Sapphire and Faded Jeans Distress paints, splattered them with rubbing alcohol and sanded them to show off the kraft within. Tiny dancer is Tim's smallest Paperdoll.



Here are some close ups of some of the details on this page.



Thankfully these simple pages came together really quickly, once I found all my goodies. It has to be in the mail by Monday! 

Challenges I'm entering:
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge-You’ve Got The Edge Odd shaped edges, handwriting and inking around edges. Frayed edges on burlap, ticking, and jeans, scalloped edge of lace, doily, and postage stamp die cut, flourish edge on frame, sanded edges of chipboard. Probably more...
Mixed Media Monthly-Mixed Media Monthly Challenge #38 - Altered Embellishments I altered the wooden frame, the mannequin, four kraft chippie pieces and flowers.



Well that's it for me! I'm so thankful for your visit today!
Hugs and Blessings!
Sara Emily


Wednesday, July 26, 2017

May Your Days Be Merry and Bright- Frilly and Funkie

Hello crafty friends! Today the Funkie girls at Frilly and Funkie present you with their inspiration for Cec's challenge "Christmas in July'. Cec says...

You might be experiencing summer heat but let's think cool by getting a head start on Christmas preparations.  Your vintage or shabby chic creation could be a card, something to present a gift in or a decor item for the house or tree.



Immediately, my thoughts turned to cool summertime colors, and I came up with this strange color combination for a Christmas card.


My background panel was made using Tim Holtz'  Poinsettia Layering Stencil. I pounced my embossing ink through the stencil onto  scrap paper, turned my inky stencil over onto card stock, covered with a paper towel and ran my brayer over it to transfer the ink. I applied Perfect Bronze  Perfect Pearls Pigment Powder with a brush and dusted the remaining powder off with a soft brush. I used spray fixative so the powder wouldn't smudge. Color was added with Peacock Feathers, Mowed Lawn and Peeled Paint Distress inks and my water brush.



The flower was made with Tim's Tattered Poinsettia die with Texture Fade, Cotton Crinoline and card stock. I made five layers with the crinoline and just the die. I colored three of these layers with Peacock Feathers ink and Turquoise Perfect Pearl mist  and one layer with the ink and bronze pigment powder.  I cut one layer from card which I blended with ink, embossed with the enclosed folder, tapped the raised areas with my Versamark ink pad and dusted with the  powder. For the flower's center, I colored a gem from my stash with Ranger Copper Mixative.


I layered on a panel edged with the blue Prima Patina Effect Paste which was layered on my card blank. I edged the blank with more of the paste in brass . For my sentiment I chose an appropriate Idea-ology Holiday Talk Metallic sticker.

That's it for me today, and now we turn the challenge over to you! Please stop by  Frilly and Funkie for more Christmas inspiration from my frilly and funkie teammates. Then I hope you'll find some time to get started on your own Christmas projects, and link them up to the 'Christmas in July' challenge for your chance to win a generous $25 shopping spree at The Funkie Junkie Boutique or to be chosen as one of the Design Team's four Top Picks!

I'm sharing this with the following challenges:



Simon Says Stamp-Monday Challenge-You’ve Got The Edge I simplified my edge by layering the colors of the busy focal panel.
ABC Christmas-N is for New & O is for Old New color combination and Patina Effects Paste; Old Perfect Pearls powder.
Thank you for stopping by today and for all your amazing comments! I read and appreciate them all!
Hugs and Blessings!
Sara Emily
PS That takes care of my monthly promise to myself to make at least one Christmas card per month this year!




Wednesday, July 19, 2017

Grungy Male Birthday Card-Scrapy Land #70

Hello crafty friends and visitors! It's time for a new challenge at Scrapy Land, and from here on all challenges will be 'Anything Goes' (jump for joy!). Today I have a grungy birthday card I made for my son. I have boy/girl twins, and they will have turned 19 by the time this goes live! My daughter's card is HERE.




I made my background panel quite some time ago when I first got this Spellbinders embossing folder.  I wasn't quite happy with it, but knew it's time would come. The panel is colored with Distress Oxide in Faded Jeans and blended with Frayed Burlap Distress ink.


The square panel is the negative left after cutting out Seth Apter's Broken Maze die cut by Sizzix. I smeared it with texture paste, DecoArt Texture Sand Paste and Crackle Paint. When dry, I colored it with Distress paints: Faded Jeans, Weathered Wood, Frayed Burlap and Ground Espresso. I added some watered down DecoArt Quinacridone Gold where the hardware will go.


The Broken Maze die cut was also smeared with crackle paint and colored with Distress Faded Jeans paint. Both die cuts were raised up with the help of scrap chipboard.



The screws and nuts were made from chipboard covered with contractor's foil, painted with Distress Black Soot and the Q. Gold paint. I used a hole punch for the screws and cut the nuts free hand. I did find this really cool die set from Tutti with tools and hardware in the shop that would make quick work of these!



'HAPPY' is Sizzix Alphanumeric (1") and 'BIRTHDAY' is Sizzix Holiday Words #2 Thin. You can find similar alpha dies HERE and HERE. I cut 'birthday' from a scrap of paper I colored with Distress inks and Perfect Pearls powders a long time ago and 'Happy' was cut from paper I am calling 'mercury glass' and I will be doing a tutorial on that in the future. After adhering, I felt the rust needed a little deepening so I went back with a tiny brush and more Q. Gold paint.


I'm sharing with these challenges:

My son was quite happy with his card, especially what was INSIDE the card! Please pop by the blog   to see more wonderful inspiration from my talented team mates, and then get creating for a chance to win one of TWO gift certificates to Scrapy Land's online shop. Have you heard there are two winners now? One picked by the team and another picked by Mr. Random! And we still pick our Top Picks and Honorable Mentions! We hope you will play along with us--we welcome all styles! Just remember to use any die that Scrapy Land sells on your project--be it a card, a tag, altered art or anything else your creative minds come up with!

Thank you for stopping by today and for all your wonderful comments!
Hugs and Blessings!
Sara Emily

Saturday, July 15, 2017

Flocked Wallpaper Wedding Card Box-Step by Step

Hello crafty friends and visitors! I will be over at Frilly and Funkie today with a step by step tutorial on my 'flocked wallpaper' technique. I will also be sharing with you a simple formula for making boxes for those dimensional cards. I hope you'll stop by for the details!



I'm entering my box in these challenges:
Lost Coast Portal to Creativity-Challenge #38 - Anything Goes
Mixed Media Monthly Challenge #38 - Altered Embellishments

Noor! Design- July Challenge - use Die Cuts
Word Art Wednesday-Challenge Weeks #290-#291 - Anything Goes

Thank you for dropping in and for your lovely comments! I sure do appreciate them!
Hugs and Blessings!
Sara Emily

Thursday, July 13, 2017

Emerald Creek Dares- Fireworks

Welcome friends and visitors! It's time to celebrate at Emerald Creek Dares with our 'Fireworks and Sparks' challenge this month! Through out the month you will see sparkly inspiration from my team mates and invited guests. Please stop over regularly for some great inspiration.

Happy Belated 4th of July to my American friends! The 4th is one of my favorite holidays! I am so thankful for the freedoms we have in our country and for our men in uniform that sacrifice dearly to preserve those freedoms. I wanted to make a tag for this month's challenge to celebrate this special day. I would also like to wish Canada a Happy 150th birthday!


I love how these Emerald Creek embossing powders show up on the black background. I used Faded Jeans Distress paint and Iridescent Shimmer powder and Picket Fence Distress stain and Red Sparkle powder for my fireworks. Lady Liberty was stamped in Versamark ink and  heat embossed with Oil Rubbed Bronze powder. I colored her with Distress Oxides and crayons. A Three Star Metal Band charm was colored with alcohol inks after I cut off one of the bails. I used Tim's Rays stencil and Oxide ink on the background and his old collection of Salvage stickers  and Remnant Rubs for my embellishments.






That's it for me today and will be my last post with Emerald Creek Dares for a while! I l hope you will join in our 'Fireworks and Sparks' challenge at Emerald Creek Dares. You could be the lucky winner of the $50 shopping spree at Emerald Creek Craft Supplies online shop!


I'm sharing with these challenges:
Challenge Up Your Life-CHALLENGE # 70: COLOR CHALLENGE
Simon Says Stamp Monday-Distress It  I distressed my Lady Liberty with color and paper tearing and 'FREE' and flag stickers with sandpaper.

Thank you for stopping by today and for all of your inspiring comments! 
Hugs and Blessings!
Sara Emily

Emerald Creek Products used:

other products used and available at Emerald Creek Craft Supplies:
Products used: Ranger black tag, Distress stain: Picket Fence, Distress paint:Faded Jeans, Distress Oxide: Broken China and Iced Spruce, Distress ink: Frayed Burlap and Ground Espresso; Distress Crayons: Walnut Stain, Vintage Photo, Peeled Paint, Adirondack Alcohol inks: Snow Cap Mixative, Watermelon and Indigo, Stamps: Stampin' Up, Denami Design and Inkadinkado; Tim Holtz Ideaology Salvage Stickers, Tim Holtz Christmas Time Remnant Rubs