Stamping on Fabric

Hello everyone, I have some projects to share with you today incorporating fabric. I really like to add some texture into my projects whenever I can, as it adds a bit of interest and makes the project look and feel quite expensive, for very little cost. I demoed these three projects on last month's TV shows on Hochanda, and I hope that you managed to watch Lesley and I in action.

To create the first card, I cut some small pieces of cotton fabric, and put some Distress Ink onto a craft mat, which I spritzed with water. I chose relatively earthy colours, Fossilized Amber, Ripe Persimmon and Shabby Shutters. The colours are quite muted, and you could go for much bolder colours if you like, it depends on what sort of look you want, I just wanted a subtle backgrop for the stamps on this occasion. I patted the fabric into the ink, moving it around to blot up the ink. I added more ink and water if necessary to get a good coverage of the fabric, but was happy to leave some areas uncoloured. I left the pieces of fabric to dry by themselves, so that the colour did not fade too much, drying the fabric with a heat gun would cause the colour to be much lighter in the end.

I frayed the edges of each piece of fabric, and stamped a silhouette image from one of the stamp sets: Tranquility, Serenity, Wisteria Lane or Eastern Grasses, and added a sentiment as well. I chose words from Artistic Affirmations, Amazing Mackintosh Words, and Words to Dazzle and Sparkle. I used Archival black ink to stamp all of the images onto the fabric, leaving the stamp on the fabric slightly longer than I would on card or paper, to allow the ink to grab onto the fabric. You do not need to press any harder.

I attached the fabric pieces to a piece of black card before matting them onto a card blank. A little button with paper string tied through was a finishing touch to each card.

For my next card, I created a paint swatch effect by masking sections of a piece of cartridge paper, and inking three toning colours of  Distress Ink. I chose Peacock Feathers, Salty Ocean and Shaded Lilac. I stamped the silhouette image from the Eastern Grasses stamp set onto the piece of card. I matted the panel onto black card before adding the panel to a piece of linen card.

I coloured a piece of cream ribbon with Peacock Feathers Distress Ink and stamped it with Archival Ink as before, using a sentiment from the Amazing Mackintosh Words stamp set. I attached the ribbon to the background and then placed the background on a square card blank. I like to colour my ribbons to match projects, it is so quick and easy, check back to this project for another example.

For my final project, I used a Crafty Individuals tag, and stamped the main image from the Tranquility stamp set across the bottom of the tag. I coloured the image with pencils. I added the wisteria image using water based markers across the top, using first and second generation stamping for a fuller effect. The ribbon was made in exactly the same way as before, picking up colour from the craft mat, and then once dry, stamping with Archival Ink. I used a word from the Serenity stamp plate.

 

I hope that my projects will inspire you to try some stamping on fabric, I will be back later in the month with more projects to share. Thanks for stopping by, xx

Affirmation Journal

Hello everyone, I hope that you are all enjoying your Easter break. If you are in the UK, then like me, you are probably wishing that you were somewhere a little bit warmer! However, there is always something to be positive about, and that is what I hope my project will help you to discover.

I have made a little journal full of individual cards with positive and motivational phrases. You could make this project for yourself, or to give to a friend, who is struggling with their creativity at the moment. I have covered some pieces of white card with an injection of bright colour, and left the backs either blank, or covered them with plain paper to write your own thoughts. You could add extra stamping if you wish.

I started my project by blending two colours of Distress Oxide Ink over the pieces of white card, and spritzing them with water. I blotted the cards with kitchen towel so that the background had a lovely splattered effect.

 I added a border or background to the cards by selecting some of the stamps from either the Artistic Affirmations, Wisteria Lane, Serenity, or Tranquility stamp sets. I chose a phrase from the Artistic Affirmations stamp set, and added this to each card using black ink, then I added some white highlights to the words to make them pop.

I created some pages to contain the cards by cutting some A4 sheets of black card in half. I then scored these sheets at the 10cms point, and then took half a centimetre away, leaving a 9.5cms flap. I trimmed this flap down to 7cms high and stuck down the side and bottom edges with very thin double sided tape, to create a pocket. I stuck two pages back to back, and then punched two holes a third of the way along from the top and the bottom.

The outside covers were made just a fraction bigger than the actual pages, with black card, and then I coloured the slightly smaller pieces of white card in exactly the same way as I made the little journal cards. I used two book rings to attach everything together, which allows me to add more pages whenever I want to make some more.

I really enjoyed making this project, and hope that you caught my demo on last month's TV show when I made a couple of the cards.

Thanks for stopping by, xx

Diverse Textures from Chocolate Baroque

Hi Folks, I have some cards to show you today using the Harlequin Fragments/Tangled Fragments multibuy from Chocolate Baroque . I wanted to show how versatile these stamps can be and have created three very different looking cards, using these great new stamps.

My first card was created using the watery background stamp, which I stamped onto a strip of white card, using black ink several times. I then created three pieces of decorated stampbord, using three layers of embossing powder and stamping into them while the last layer was still molten. I brushed a little bit of gold Perfect Pearl powder into the crevices to pick up the detail of the stamp. By stamping my background first, I could work out roughly where on the rubber stamp I needed to press to create the UTEE pieces to achieve a pattern running down the card.

I matted the background onto a piece of toning card, and stuck this onto a larger piece of black card. I added a sentiment taken from the Artistic Affirmations stamp set.

 

My second card was created using a piece of smooth watercolour paper, which I sprayed with diluted Weathered Wood Distress Ink. I then stamped the dotty stamp, and the stone effect stamp using the same colour over the background. I embossed the single stone spine in the centre using platinum embossing powder. I added some ferns around the edges, taken from the Wild Meadow stamp set using Pear Tart and Sweet Plum Memento Inks.

I stamped and embossed a flower from the Tangled Garden stamp set, plus the leaf fragment using platinum embossing powder, which I then painted with Splash inks. I decoupaged the flower, added the larger leaves to the stem, and used the smaller leaves for a grass effect. Finally, I added a sentiment from the Amazing Birthday clear stamp set to the background.

 

My third card was created again using watercolour paper for my background. I sprayed the paper with turquoise Dylusions spray, rolling off some of the intense colour for a paler effect. I added a touch of Perfect Pearls turquoise spray at this point. I stamped the large bubbles stamp, and the dotty harlequin stamp with forget-me-not archival ink over the background, and then added some Vintage Photo Distress Ink to the edges to age the colour slightly.

I embossed the butterfly from the Steampunk Buterfly stamp set and some flowers from the Punky Flowers stamp set, using copper embossing powder. I coloured them with splash inks. I added a stamped swirl from the Artistic Expressions stamp plate to resemble leafy tendrils behind the flowers. The sentiment was taken from the Amazing Birthday clear stamp set.

If you love our DT blog then keep your eyes open for something new and colourful coming next week. All will be revealed soon, keep visiting the DT blog to make sure you don’t miss it. Getting excited yet?

Thanks for stopping by, Judith xx

Eastern Adventure

Hi Folks, I have been working with the new MagicalLandscapes/Fantasy Castles Multibuy stamp set again and wanted to show their versatility. I have made a card with a bit of an Eastern flavour which I am showing you today.

I created a wrinkle free Distress background using Ripe Persimmon and Antique Linen Distress re-inkers, and then stamped a large paisley stamp from Indian Elephant using Ripe Persimmon Distress Ink. I used a palm tree stamp from Peace on Earth showing that Christmas stamps can be used all year round, not just at Christmas! The sentiment is from the Artistic Affirmations stamp set.

I stamped the main image onto a piece of white card using gold embossing powder, and coloured the image with Distress Markers, sticking to the blue and orange theme of the card as much as possible. Finally, I swirled some blue and orange Distress Ink around the edge of the card to soften the white background. I used some Versamark around the edges of the main background card, and added some gold embossing powder, which I heated to melt. Some dark blue card to mat the layers completed the card.

I thought that this would make a great 'Bon Voyage' card for someone heading off on their travels. These castles are so adaptable, and I have lots of plans for different settings, so watch this space!
Thanks for stopping by, xx

Altered Tag Book

Hi Folks,  I have a project for you today showcasing the Fancy Flowers stamp sheet from Chocolate Baroque



I have a huge amount of alterables lurking in my stash, and knew that I wanted to make some tags using these new stamps. So I decided to use a tag book which I covered with patterned papers. I then  stamped the edges of the front cover with a flower stamp from the Wisteria Lane stamp sheet. I added a sentiment from the Artistic Affirmations stamp sheet. I stamped the flower head three times onto white card, using Memento Tuxedo Black ink, and coloured the images with my Copic markers. Once I had worked out the position of the flowers on the tag, I stamped the dotty stems, again, from the Wisteria Lane stamp sheet, onto the background. I then attached the flower heads.

For the tag, I stamped the texture background from the Texture Fragments stamp sheet, using clear embossing powder. I coloured the background using Distress Inks, and then ironed off the clear embossing powder, to create a faux batik effect. I sprinkled the background with water, and dried it with a heat gun. I stamped the flower image twice, using archival ink, masking the first image, before I stamped the second one. I bleached the images, and then coloured them using Inktense pencils and a waterbrush. I added a sentiment from the Artistic Affirmations set to my tag, and a piece of lace that I coloured with Distress re-inkers and water. The swirls around the edge are from one of the flowers that also belong to this stamp sheet.

I die cut a couple of Crealie butterflies, then ran them through an embossing folder, before swiping some black ink over the raised areas. I added some yellow flat-backed pearls to make the bodies. I have added some crinkly green ribbon to the top of the tag for now, but will take it out if I put the tag into my book.

I'll be back in a few days with another sample to show you, thanks for stopping by, xx

Verdigris Tree

Hi Folks, here's a sample using the Fantasy Woodland tree set again. I've stamped the image of an orange tree onto some Prima Firefly paper, and coloured it with pencils. As it is a fantasy tree, I have used my own colour scheme, and so the fruit have become a rather fetching plum colour! I then edged the paper with Verdigris embossing powder.

For the background, I used a deep purple iridescent card, which I embossed, and then painted with Vintaj patina paint. Once it was dry, I rubbed some of the paint back, to reveal the dark card underneath, to give the feeling of old lead. I added a word on a label made from the Firefly paper again, and some burgundy satin ribbon.

This is the first time that I have used these paints. I had them set aside to use with metal, but they work really well on card, so I'll definitely use them again this way.

Glenda is currently doing a giveaway on the Design Team Blog if you are quick and make a comment on the giveaway post, you are in with a chance of winning some of the fabulous new stamps.

Thanks for stopping by, xx

Stained Glass Window

I have another sample to show you today using the new Steampunk Butterfly stamp set from Chocolate Baroque

When I saw the circular fragment, it reminded me of a church window, and I wanted to try and create that effect. After a bit of practising on scrap paper, I managed to achieve a reasonable attempt! I made a background using Distress Inks spritzed with water, then stamped the four sections of the fragment. I needed to mask a small portion off each time, using masking tape, as the fragment is too large otherwise. I then added the two spires from the Gothic Fragments stamp set. I needed to mask a tiny portion of these to then stamp the corners so that they appeared to be behind the spires. I coloured the images in tones of brown, using my Polychromos pencils, and added touches of gold Mica ink.

I stamped a flower from the Bold Bloom stamp set onto acetate, using Stazon, and then added some multi-coloured flakes behind the image. Once this was dry, I added this to the centre of the 'window'. I used fine line masking tape coloured with a black Copic pen to represent the leading on the window.

To complete the background, I used a stamp from the Texture Fragment stamp set, using three different colour Distress Inks, and stamped randomly to create a stone effect. I then used a sentiment from the Artistic Affirmations stamp set in the top corner.

This card is showing over on the Design Team Blog today, but if you keep checking back there will be lots more inspiration from my Design Team mates over the coming days. Thanks for stopping by, xx