Through the window

Here's another card made using the Vintage Blue Inks from Oak House studio - both the Ink in a Bottle spray and the Pure Colour Chemistry Watercolour Ink.  

I started by spraying some watercolour paper with Vintage Blue Ink in a Bottle and added a little Delicious Damson too.  I silver embossed the Block Frame stamp, painted the frame with Vintage Blue Pure Colour ink and cut out the sections.  To add a little more interest I painted Pure Colour ink onto a small acrylic block and stamped this to create the mottled 'brick' pattern.   The flowers are from the Spring Blooms set (as is the sentiment) - these were silver embossed onto some card sprayed with Delicious Damson and Paris Pink Ink in a Bottle and arranged in a plant pot.  The net curtains are the Mack Rose stamped with White Brilliance onto vellum.

I'm loving playing with these new Inks - they're so intense and allow you to create the shade you want.  I'm looking forward to getting some more colours and having a mixing session in the lab....lol!!

Elaine x

Christmas Wreath and more!

The new Oak House Studio Challenge for November has the theme of WINTER - so winter scenes, Christmas etc etc.  I've made a few cards that hopefully will inspire you to have a go - there's a prize to be won.

For my first card I've used the Christmas Wreath set - 7 stamps including branches, holly leaves and ivy plus a sentiment.  It was designed so you can build your own wreath but in this case I've just created a corner of foliage.    I've used buff card and stamped with Yummy Chocolate, Forest Green and Green as Grass Pigment inks.  The Wishing you a Merry Christmas sentiment is gold embossed and I've added some Stickles for berries.

My other card is totally different and uses the Block Frame stamp - I saw someone use it as a window frame looking out to a moody sky but I decided to look from outside in.   I've used Yummy Chocolate Pigment Ink for the frame, and then using a Brick Mask stamped Winter Words and blended ink through to create the outside of the house.  Inside the net curtains are the Mack Rose stamped on vellum, the wallpaper is linen card and I've coloured both with Paris Pink Ink in a Bottle.  The Christmas Tree is embossed with Black Sparkle and coloured with Citrus Lime Ink in a Bottle.  I've added a few gems which caught the flash on my camera and I hope you'll agree it definitely looks Christmassy!

Pop over to the Oak House Studio blog for more inspiration throughout the month - I have another card to show you on Wednesday!   You can find further details on facebook - the Oak House Studio page or the INKspired group - its a closed group purely to keep spammers out so do ask to join.

If you have any Oak House Studio stamps and inks, then please enter the Challenge and keep an eye out for new stamps including Fireworks and Celebrate words!

Oak House Studio - Citrus Challenge

It's the start of a new challenge on the Oak House Studio blog - all you have to do is create something in Citrus colours and using one Oak House Studio product.

Here are my creations:

A card (could be birthday or mothers day) using the Pansy Pot stamp gold embossed about 4 times and decoupaged to make a lovely full pot of pansies.  I've mixed Brazil Nut and Citrus Orange Ink in a Bottle to make a terracotta colour for the pot and the flowers have just been painted with Citrus Yellow, Citrus Orange and Citrus Lime Ink in a Bottle.  I used a pipette to decant some ink into a paint palette and painted with a water brush.  To add further detail I've stamped and clear embossed a border of pansies.

My next piece is for all those scrapbookers out there.  I started with a 12 x 12 of white linen card and just flicked Citrus Yellow and Orange ink with a paint brush.  I made some homemade washi tape using 4 stamps (Mack Rose, Rosette, Checkerboard and Thoresby) and Pigment Ink Pads  (Spring Green, Daffodil, Valentine and Lemon Yellow.  I sprayed some white paper flowers with the Citrus Inks in a Bottle, added some brads  and finished with the sentiment stamp Bloom where you are planted.  

All the stamps, spray inks and ink pads can be bought from Oak House Studio.   Why not pop over to the blog to see what everyone else has created and have a go - there's a prize to be won!!

A Scottish Wedding

A friend of mine has asked me to do a few wedding designs - my desk looks like a bomb has  hit it with sprayed backgrounds and roses embossed and watercoloured.  Whilst waiting for it all to dry, I made a quick Save the Date card.

The design is A6 in size and can either be mounted on a card with the details inside or just used as a postcard with all the details stuck on the reverse.   I've used  two Oak House Studio stamps - the Mack Rose and the Save the Date stamp from the Wedding Words set - inked with Midnight Pigment Ink and clear embossed to add a little shine.  It's just finished with some tartan ribbon - obviously the colours used can be changed to match the tartan chosen. 

Off to see if there is enough light to match colours - it's gone so dark here I need the lights on already!!   Hope you all have a good (and dry) weekend. 

Painty Flower

Here's my tag for Hels Sunday Stamper challenge this week where the idea is to include Texture or Raised Areas.

I don't have any Distress Paints (yet!) so used what I have. I started with a Sky Fresco Chalk Paint (Paperartsy) background and then added some Ferro through an Imagination Crafts Leafy Swirl stencil.  Once that had dried, I replaced the stencil and painted with green acrylic paint.  It was a smidge too wet and soaked under the stencil - nearly threw it away at that stage but then decided to go back in with the Sky which luckily is opaque and covered it up.

The flower uses a variety of acrylic paints (blues, greens, teal & silver) spritzed with water and mopped up with card (see Tim Holtz's tattered floral challenge) and then cut using the Tattered Florals and Tattered Leaf dies.  I've overstamped the leaves with the Walesby Flourish stamp in Emerald Archival and some of the flowers with the Mack Rose stamp in Vermillion Archival - stamps are from Oak House Studio. I've layered the flowers up with some spacers and foam pads and then finished with a brad. 

So I have raised areas on my background and a raised flower so hope that fills the challenges.  Thanks for taking the time to look!!

Patchwork

Here's my card for the Less is More Challenge week 108 where the recipe is to use some Paper Piercing.
 

 
The first thing that jumped to mind was stitching and patchwork so that's what I've done.  The squares are all Kiss Stamping using Colour Chemistry pigment ink pads - Spring Green on Powder Blue and vice versa, then Daffodil on Lemon Yellow and Valentine on Daffodil..... I think!   I just armed myself with a square palette stamp and a few texture stamps - kissed them together and stamped till I liked what I saw.  They are all Oak House Studio stamps - Rosette, Mack Rose, Thoresby Scroll and Walesby Flourish.


Here's a close up showing my paper piercing around the edges!!

I've just finished the card by matting the squares onto some pale blue card.


Well that's my card and now back to watching the rugby!  Thank you for taking the time to look and for all your lovely comments.

Krafty Flower

Here is a card for the Less is More Challenge where the theme this week is to use KRAFT & CREAM.

I've die cut some Tattered Florals, Tattered Leaves and a Scroll from Kraft card and stamped some of it with Brilliance Cocoa Bean to create interest.  I've used the Mack Rose Stamp from Oak House Studio on two of the flowers layering it up with a plain one in the middle and stamped the English Garden Text on the leaves.   The flower is stuck onto Cream Linen card and is finished with a Hero Arts sentiment.

It's the Less is More Challenge's 2nd Birthday so congratulations to them and if you fancy a challenge, why not join in.  I like getting inky and messy, but sometimes it's challenging to do clean simple cards too!

April

Here's my April tag for The Craft Barn Calendar Challenge where the theme is to use Paper Tape.

I wasn't sure which month to do but then I got an email from my nephew to say he's getting married next April in Amsterdam so I went with an orange theme  - colour of the Netherlands and tulips!  Anyway the bright background is a mix of Spiced Marmalade, Barn Door and Mustard Seed Distress Inks spritzed with water and mopped up with the tag, edged with Barn Door and stamped with a Hero Arts sentiment. 

Now to add Paper Tape!! It's not something I possess and I didn't have any standard masking tape...... but then I suddenly realised I had some Eclipse Masking Tape which is nice and white.  I've stamped it with Oak House Studio's Mack Rose in Vermillion Archival and stuck the strip down the side of the tag.   It's just finished with some ribbons and the calendar of course.

Really enjoying this challenge - the 5 I've done so far are all so different but hopefully will make a nice gift come Christmas.  Next job is to tidy all the backs up and maybe create a space for writing notes.

Thanks for looking once again!!

Three Kisses

Here's a quick card for the Less is More one layer challenge week 76 where the theme is to use THREE of something, be it shapes, colours, stamps etc.

  

I thought I'd try some Kiss Stamping this week so I've used a Square Palette stamp inked with blue pigment ink and kissed this with a Mack Rose stamp inked in green.  The beauty is you never know what you are going to get in terms of depth of colour etc.  It's just finished with a Hero Arts sentiment.

I found this challenge quite hard as I had too many ideas and couldn't decide which to do, and then I had several failed attempts.  I'm not sure I like the finished card - I was oh so tempted to add more in that white space!! Maybe I'll have another go later in the week, but in the meantime, thanks for looking!

Olympics 2012 & Union Jack

Here's another card for the Less is More challenge 56 using SCRAPS. I was watching the Olympic Rings floating down The Thames this morning and realised I'd stamped the rings months ago and not done anything with them!!


The rings were stamped with Journalling Circles and I just made the backgrounds using a variety of ink pads and brush markers on Oak House Studio's Union Jack palette stamp.

Whilst I had the stamps out I had a go at Kiss Stamping using Brilliance Inks but the photos aren't good. There is so much Union Jack material out there I went for the pinky/bluey colour scheme.


This last one uses the Mack Rose stamp and is more Cath Kidstonish!


Thanks for looking.

Art Journal - Filled with Love

I came across The Craft Barn's Art Journal Challenge and thought I'd have a go. The theme is Filled with Love, so hearts filled with what you love.


Have to say I've never done this before but I do love making Distress Ink backgrounds - they always turn out differently hence the UNIQUE ART. I also love stamping and heat embossing. I don't have a journal so just used an A4 sheet of card which I can bind into a book later...as I enjoyed creating this page I'm now thinking of doing the House challenge from last month.

Anyway I've used Worn Lipstick, Fired Brick and Aged Mahogany Distress Inks spritzed with a Craftynotions Pink Lustre. There's a Glimmer Mist Screen in the background too. The stamps are from Oak House Studio - Harlequin, Mack Rose and Walesby Flourish - and the writing is my own and definitely the hardest part of the page.

Thanks for looking - I'm off to see if I have any house stamps!!

Kiss Stamping

Well it's a glorious day here but too cold to go out and as I received a new stamp in the post I thought it would be rude not to have a play.

It's a torn edged Heart Palette Stamp from Oak House Studio and as you can see from the images it's a solid palette stamp designed especially for Kiss Stamping. It's great fun and loads of different looks can be achieved. For the first set of three I used the nice juicy Colour Chemistry Ink Pads - Powder Blue and Forest Green.


Here the same Heart Palette has been kissed with the Mack Rose stamp inked with Forest Green.

On the hearts below I've used Orchid with a silver Walesby Flourish stamp, and Valentine Red with a gold Mack Rose stamp, plus some Inspirational Words.


Really the possibilities are endless - it's just great fun to get your stamps out and keep stamping and inking. If you're interested in learning more, Lynnda is teaching a Kiss Stamping class at Bishop Burton on February 11th - check out www.vip-stamping.co.uk/workshop-dates for more details.

What to do next to keep warm - well I'm thinking that heart would look good triple embossed with some glitter and micro beads added!!

Summer Wedding

A month or so ago I was invited to join in with an ATC swap hosted by Lexie and whilst June has been manic I did actually manage to complete a set of three. As with all these things, I think about it for a bit, decide what I'm going to do and then make something completely different.



I used Oak House Studio stamps - the background is the Mack Rose stamped in Brilliance. The leaf and flowers are from the Spring Blooms set, embossed in silver and then painted with Twinkling H20s. I then stamped the sentiments from the Wedding Words set and matted it all onto silver card.

Whilst these are ATCs, this selection of stamps could be used to make all your wedding stationary including place settings, thank you cards etc.

Mack Rose

I'm in a bit of a lull as far as crafting is concerned- no birthdays in the near future, no recent photos to scrap and no 2010 mini book to keep up-to-date - I blame the snow and exams in January as I never got started this year!!
So I had a look through my photos to see what I haven't shown you on here. One of the things I'd like to do more of is melt art - I invested in a melt pot and have had a few sessions playing with embossing powders and using cookie cutters. Its fascinating the colours and patterns you can create. My philosophy is if its looking a bit boring add some more!

The photos show both sides of a necklace and to be honest I'm not sure which I like the best - the pearly mackintosh rose front or the marbled back. What do you reckon??


I placed a frame over the Mack Rose stamp and then poured utee over the top. Once it cooled I rubbed perfect pearls over the surface, added one of t!m's philosophy tags and attached to cords using jump rings. E is for Elaine, not really excellence - for professional info on melt art then look at the videos on the Ranger website or on Suze Weinberg's blog.

Just spotted on The Craft Barn's blog they are doing a mini book challenge (a sketch a day for 9 days) so I might have a go at that although I'm out all weekend and working next week. Anyway I shall give it a try - if this appeals to you, check out The Craft Barn's Blog for details.