Distress Inks and Flowers

Hello everyone, I have a couple of bonus projects to share with you this month, not featuring on the Design Team blog. I have created a large tag using some favourite stamps from the Pretty Poppies and Poppy Meadow stamp sets.

I started to make my tag by stamping the main image, and then adding a mask. I coloured the background using Fossilized Amber and Peeled Paint Distress Ink, spritzing the background with water, and allowing it to dry completely. I stamped around the edges using the Large Crackle Background stamp, and Peeled Paint Distress Ink. While the mask was still in place, I stamped the small silhouette flower around the poppy image, using first and second generation stamping. I used red and green ink on the image for a more realistic effect.

I removed the mask, and coloured the image with Distress Ink and a waterbrush. I used Ripe Persimmon and Festive Berries for the flowers, and Peeled Paint for the foliage, adding a touch of red to the leaves and stems for depth. I used the same colours on the butterfly.

I coloured the seam binding ribbon with the same inks, blotting off the excess ink onto a piece of cartridge paper, then scrunching the ribbon, and drying it with a heat gun.

I spritzed the piece of cartridge paper that I had mopped my ribbons onto with some water, and stamped some images from the Silhouette Grasses stamp set over the top using various different colours of Versafine Clair Ink. I used first and second generation stamping. The butterflies are from the Baroque Meadow stamp set, and the sentiment comes from the Words to Dazzle and Sparkle stamp set.

This was a really quick card to make, and was just using a scrap piece of card. Thanks for stopping by, xx

Some of my favourite stamps

Hello everyone, I am taking a look back at some of my favourite Chocolate Baroque stamp sets during this blog post. It was a tough call, but poppies featured heavily in my choices, so here are a couple of cards, that I came up with.

For my first card, I have chosen to combine stamps from the Poppy Meadow and Flora and Fauna stamp sets. I have stamped these images, and after masking them off, created a sponged background using Distress Inks, and a Crafters Workshop stencil. I wanted a crumpled finish to the background, and the soft grey ink really helped to achieve this effect. I have added a sentiment from the Loving Sentiments stamp set, and a grey mat behind the background.

My second card uses a stamp from the Poppy Edges stamp set, which I have stamped several times onto watercolour paper using Dylusions in red, orange and yellow tones to spritz the paper. I cut the images out, and stuck them onto another sprayed background, adding a smaller image from the Poppy Meadow stamp set. I used some black card to mat and layer the background, and then added a sentiment from the Mackintosh Sentiments stamp set.

Thanks for stopping by, xx

Autumn Tones

Hello Folks, I have some cards to share today, using some of the lovely new stamps that have been recently launched over at Chocolate Baroque .  This has to be my favourite time of year, as the leaves start to fall, and there is a riot of different colours displayed in the trees and hedgerows.

For my first two cards, I made a wrinkle free Distress background, using Ripe Persimmon and Seedless Preserves Distress Inks. I have used a stamp taken from the Poppy Edges stamp set, and stamped around the corners of a piece of the background, using plum archival ink. I masked the corners, and then stamped an image from the Poppy Meadow stamp set over the background using the same orange ink that I used to make my background. However, I stamped the image onto scrap paper first, before I stamped onto the background, as I did not want the image to be too vibrant. I masked off part of the poppy edge stamp with masking tape, before I inked up one of the flowers, and then peeled off the masking tape. I then stamped the single flower onto a piece of stampbord. I coloured the image with pencils, and then covered the surface with three layers of ultra thick embossing powder, to create a tile effect. I added a sentiment from the Mackintosh Sentiments clear stamp set.

On my second card, I used a strip of the same wrinkle free distress background, matted onto burgundy card, and placed it onto a kraft card base. I stamped the poppy edge four times onto card, and coloured sections of the image with pencils, before cutting them out, and layering them onto the background. I added two of the little bees, which were also coloured with pencil. The sentiment was taken from the Amazing Birthday clear stamp set.

For my final card, I made a gelli plate background, using a selection of green inks, and stamped the single leaf and foliage stamp taken from the Autumn Poppy stamp set randomly over the plate. I took a print from the plate and trimmed it to size, before edging the background with a Tea Dye Distress Ink. I stamped the main image onto a large oval die cut, adding some colour to the background with green and orange Distress Inks. I coloured the image with pencils. The sentiment comes from the Nature's Peace stamp set, and is one of my favourites.

Thanks for stopping by, xx

Wooden Hanging

Hi Folks, I have a project to show you that is showcasing on the Chocolate Baroque Challenge Blog today. The challenge is based around an inspirational photo and a colour swatch. My colours are a slightly muted version of those on the swatch, but nonetheless true to the originals.

I have covered three wooden hearts with some scrapbook paper, and added some yellow ink to the background. I used Dandelion Memento Ink. I sanded the edge of each heart. I stamped each heart using a harlequin stamp from the Harlequin Fragments stamp sheet, using Olive green Archival ink. I stamped the image quite faintly, as I only wanted a hint of the harlequin on the background, so I used second generation stamping.

I stamped a poppy image from the Poppy Meadow stamp set three times onto tissue paper, and coloured this with pencils, before adhering it to the hearts. I then stamped three butterflies from the Briar Rose Butterfly stamp set onto Clearly for Art. I cut these out, painted them green on the reverse, and heated them to mould the shape slightly. I stuck one to each heart. I then tied all of the hearts together with some green and turquoise ribbon.

 

There is still plenty of time to enter the challenge, and you could win a £15 voucher to spend at Chocolate Baroque. So head over to the blog to find out how to enter.

Thanks for stopping by, xx

Summer Fairies

Hi Folks, there is now a fourth set of fairy stamps which has been recently released at Chocolate Baroque completing the seasonal collection. This one is the Summer Collection. This set is full of lovely fairy images, and some great floral images as well.
My first card uses one of the large silhouette fairies, which I have placed on an inked background, made using Distress Inks. I chose several colours which I blended across the page, and then placed a leafy stencil over the top, and used the same colours again to stipple colour through the stencil. I added some deeper colour around the edges of the background to create a frame, and then stamped the trailing ivy across the top of the page, using Paris Dusk Memento Ink. I added a border around the bottom half of the card, using a tree stamp taken from the Fantasy Woodland stamp set. The two trees are a stamp from the same stamp set. I added some shading underneath the trees using a paper mask, and Old Paper Distress Ink. I stamped the silhouette fairy, and the little butterfly, which comes from the Autumn Fairy stamp set, using Versafine Onyx Black Ink.

I added some glitter glue to the fairy and butterfly wings for a little bit of sparkle.

My second card uses a couple of the flower stamps from the collection to create a fairly clean and simple card. I cut a rectangle of smooth watercolour paper, and stamped the freesia stamp at the bottom of the card. I covered the image with a mask so that I could stamp the image again on either side of the original image.

I coloured the silhouette freesia stamp with Distress Markers, blending several colours, and stamped the background with the mask in place. I placed the mask on top of each freesia image in turn, so that I did not stamp over them. I then coloured the three freesia images with Distress Markers and a waterbrush.

I matted the picture onto a piece of dark green card, and then placed this onto a larger square of light green card, adding some orange and green ribbon to my main image. I added three Crealie butterflies to the large background. These Crealie butterflies are great, they co-ordinate to create dimensional butterflies. You can use them individually, or layer them together as I have done for my sample.

My last card was created using lots of masking again, and a hand cut stencil. It is very easy to cut your own stencils using blank stencil sheets.

I used one of the large fairies from the collection, which I stamped and masked off, before stamping poppies from the Poppy Meadow stamp set. I then masked these flowers and stamped the little silhouette flower from the same set. I love this little stamp and it is going to be a favourite from now on. That's the beauty of revisiting older stamp sets, you often discover stamps that you have never used before! I added the stencil and coloured the sun rays using Distress Inks, before inking the remaining sky with blue. I have added a shimmer spray over the top.

I have coloured the fairy and flowers with Distress Markers. The two tiny butterflies are half of a butterfly stamped twice, taken from the Spring Fairy stamp collection. I simply covered half of the stamp with masking tape before I inked it up, then removed the masking tape before I stamped it onto the page. I have decoupaged them, and added glitter glue to their wings. The sentiment is taken from the Fairyland Words clear stamp set.

Anyone who knows me, knows how much I love poppies, and I had great fun creating this card. I hope that it has given you a few ideas as well. Thanks for stopping by, xx

Golden Poppies

Hi Folks, I have a poppy sample to show you today. I love poppies, they are my favourite flower, so I have really enjoyed working with these lovely stamps. For my sample, I have created a wrinkle free distress background, and then used a poppy stencil over the top with two different colour green inks. With the poppy stencil still in place, I added a script stencil, and used a permanent marker to write over the words. Once the two stencils were removed, the poppies have script over them.

I stamped the main image onto white card, adding two little dragonflies from the Flora and Fauna stamp sheet. This is another beautiful set of stamps with some amazing poppy images that would go really well with this new set. I coloured my image with Distress Markers. I made a flower using handmade paper that had been coloured with re-inkers. I simply scrunched the layers up while they were wet, and set them with a heat gun. This makes the flower set really hard. I added a brad to the centre of the flower and placed it onto some lovely olive green ribbon with some Crealie leaves.

This card really makes me think of hot Summer days, and we are certainly enjoying those at the moment! Thanks for stopping by, xx