WOYWW 452

Another week has flown by and it is time to report for desk duty again - WOYWW (What's on Your Workdesk? Wednesday)  with Julia.

Still managing to keep up with the Facebook group challenge with France Papillon... this week's theme is "Darkness has its own beauty"
My page has suddenly developed a mind of it's own I think... injecting some quirky fun in the form of a Stampotique figure..

 there are a few days left to add layers yet...

my desk also sees a gift I was sent by my friend Lesley - a pack of wooden tulips from The Works, (I bought a few of these as gifts when several of us went on a workshop, but forgot to get a set for myself, and they happened to have them when Lesley was in her branch last week)

they were accompanied by a gorgeous tag and some fabulous die cut hearts which I can't wait to use on a project or several soon! 

My Paperartsy new releases haven't arrived yet (although the first package will probably arrive today, it has been despatched...) so will have to be patient a bit longer!

Journal page for a challenge prompt...

this week, the small group I am in challenging ourselves,  were set "people/photos"

I have no step by step photos this week as I got carried away in my A4 journal
I had leftover paint (I think the pink was Spanish Mulberry and Bora Bora) that I had wiped in the journal, very light patches to clean off the cut and dry foam.

However, I decided to make stripes so added more of both, and then knocked them back with gesso.

 I used two of the figures from a Dina Wakley set starting from the middle and working out so they look like they're kind of dancing..


Managed to get a photo in daylight so the colour is a bit more realistic here...

the quote is a Kaisercraft stamp, I just cut it into pieces.   then I stamped a second time and cut individual words

scribbled round them with a micron pen.

finally I edged the page with Picked Raspberry and I think a little swipe of Salty Ocean,  distress oxide


quick and simple, took maybe 15 minutes

France Papillon - ALAD/ASAW - week 4, Emotions in Shapes

Facebook group challenge - France Papillon and Creative Butterflies group - ALAD/ASAW (a layer a day/a spread a week) -Emotions in Shapes...

Found this a hard prompt to get started with.. but everyone loves circles so I used circles again..
Took lots of daily pictures of each stage, but all by artificial light or flash, so bear with me!

 my page was pre-gesso'd, and I added distress oxides in Fossilized Amber, Twisted Citron and Salty Ocean... the Fossilized Amber didn't show up as much as I wanted, so added some Wild Honey over the top. smooshed and blended them with water a bit...
When it was dry, I carefully (with a silicone brush) added clear gesso to seal it. That is the extra texture you can see in the colours)

Day 2, the first circles - a fantastic stencil by Stencil Girl (well part of a stencil (I wish they'd put the names on the packets, I don't know what this is called)  anyway, I used Deco Art crackle paste and let it do it's thing


(another never used before stencil!)





GORGEOUS crackles!

 Day 3 was more stamping - using the same colour distress oxides and a Dina Wakley stamp (I love this stamp)

if you click on the picture you will see some of the Honey/Citron stamping

Day 4 was some doodling - I could see faces in the crackle shapes so I decided to emphasise them (especially the one top left) 

Day 5, more circles, another stencil.  This is a That's Crafty Dinky stencil.  First, I used Paperartsy Fresco paint in Bora Bora ( a gorgeous blue/green) and when that dried, "bumped" the stencil - moved it just a fraction off centre to the original position and stencilled Snowflake Fresco.

 you get a great shadow.

it's ages since I used this technique

Day 6, more stamping, a Paperartsy JoFY Mini stamp - little circles and a criss-cross hatch design that mimics the shapes in the crackle and the other circles.





Doodled over them with a couple of Stabilo felt pens

close up of the doodles








Final layer - day 7, today
I had to decide on a title, and I needed words on my page..

Much searching of stamps in my (large) collection... until I used one that was staring me in the face from a Dina Wakley set.


Art Is Life,
Stop Thinking, Just Create. 

Edged the page in Black Soot distress oxide
Looking forward to the next prompt tomorrow..

WOYWW 451 - new journal pages, new stamps!

Welcome to another Wednesday desk-fest... Week 451...
I am still (buying new stash) using stash I haven't used before; using new stamps; creating art... did I mention buying new stamps?

I have had a bit of a splurge (and some!) on some of the new Paperartsy releases that have been launched at Creativation (what used to be called CHA, much easier!) and the first two sets have arrived..

so these are the first two  - designs by Raquel Burillo Perez ("Scrapcosy")  and I inked them up straight away (because I am going to now.  No more storing stroking not using stuff.. Buy it.. Use it..for a while at least!)

You can see they are laying against my square journal which I am having such fun in... so, Monday night I used the ship set, on the blue page... and Tuesday night (tonight, but don't tell) I used the seahorse set on the pink page..

 the blue paints were brayered and when the stamps arrived, I added a bit more white paint to allow the ship to show up... it stamps beautifully, as you would expect for Paperartsy stamps...

the pink page (applied paint with my fingers, something I never do, and really don't like to do much, but for some reason it felt right...)  It started as so often, with leftover paint from something else

I know pink is odd for a seascape, but hey it's a fantasty seascape! 

I had forgotten that the page beneath this one was the one with all the die cut flowers glued to it, so some dodgy stamping happened - so I re-stamped the big seahorse and the octopus on tissue and glued it over the dodgy images..
See, on WOYWW we share our secrets! 

and here they are on my desk!


There is a lot more stuff to come, but some of it is on pre-order, so I don't know exactly when it will be making it's desk appearance! 

you'll just have to keep watching..


Thanks for your visits last week (and in advance of today)  and I will catch you very soon

"Wings" - for a prompt

along with a few friends I am participating in a series of prompts to stir us into creativity..after a very non-creative year (for me especially)

I didn't share my first project (frames) because I didn't like it - couldn't find a decent frame -  but this week the prompt picked out of a hat was "wings"   (needless to say whilst looking for things for the wings prompt I have found LOADS of frames..... hey ho!)

I took an mdf tag (it's about 10 by 5 1/2 inches ) - in my 2018 challenge to myself to USE STUFF UP.

 I painted the tag with Fresco paints in pale blue and greens (after a layer of white gesso) blending the colours in..

 I used a (first use) stencil - by Stencil Girl (a 9x12 one)
and Decoart crackle paste.  I didn't want huge cracks (which was just as well!)

but eventually and in close up mode, they do show!

Used a couple of Lindy sprays, spritzed and dripped down the veins of the leaves.





Spent a couple of days deciding what I would do next...
hunted for various wing type images that might inspire me..

close up of the texture/sprays

such beautiful colours



after a few false starts for the wings part of the challenge, I was set...

a lot of rummaging in rarely used drawers was called for (it's very good for  me this!)

 In the end I used a Paperartsy stamp set by Emma Godfrey (never used before, would you blooming believe it!)
for the two dragonflies and a long long unused fairy (personal impressions)

I used a black sparkle embossing powder on the lower fairy and a green sparkle one on the other two. I think the base colour was distress oxide for the green one and I can't remember under other one


I needed something for them all to sit/fly amongst... I took a couple of leaf shapes (Artemio) which I painted with a variety of Fresco paints before gluing on with (hopefully) strong glue..

 Did something different on the dragonflies... I used my portfolio pastels to scribble colour on the wings, then heat set to blend/set and then used my Tim Holtz clear (dirty!) embossing ink pad and a Stardust - clear- embossing powder (by Funstamps!!  told you I was using old stuff)    for the glittery shimmer.

I did wonder if the embossing powder would stick to the pastels whilst they were still warm from the heat setting (no, is the answer!)

 the text comes from the same stamp set as the dragonflies.

am quite pleased with this... by now I will know what the next prompt is going to be...

France Papillon's FB ALAD/ASAW - week 3 "say yes to everything"

Hi, again.
I have another spread for you in my journal I am dedicating to the a layer a day/a spread a week Facebook group challenge - say yes to everything - you can see the details about the challenge here

Whilst saying yes to absolutely everything could get one or two people into serious trouble, in a journal it is no problem!

Here is my finished page, before I give you some step by steps - the joy of doing just one layer a day (it is still SO hard to stop!)  does mean at least there should be no problem with forgetting to photograph a layer!

I started with a layer of Paperartsy Fresco chalk acrylic (still my favourite go to paint for journalling - so pleased to see some new colours being launched at Creativation at the USA trade show this week)

Lake Wanaka,  a gorgeous blue - spread with an old credit card

 Day 2, I tore some old book pages (a Russian book text that was gifted me by my friend Chris)
which I stuck and sealed with matte medium








Day 3 I added another, lighter, brayering of paint (Antarctic, a really pale blue) to tone it down.

Day 4, I stamped a variety of circles.. who doesn't love circles?!

stamps by Paperartsy the blue inked ones) and a bottle cap dipped in white paint 

Day 5 I stencilled Coarse Texture paste through a Paperartsy stencil (you can possibly tell I was too impatient to link today's later to the FB group album to wait for it to fully dry...)

I used a paste by Reeves which I've had ages... using up stuff still, you see!

 Day 6, I added a row of skulls - stamp by Carabelle Studio - love these skulls... this is the first time I've used them - I did stamp them out when I first got them but haven't actually used them on a project before...

the row of skulls is about 12 inches, and I had to snip it in the middle to allow the page to close still

 final day, layer 7 - edged the journal with Cornflower Blue archival ink, and added the Dina Wakley stamped sentiment, stamped on a piece of the original Paperartsy Crinkly tissue, (hoarding it) which I tore and glued with matte medium to the page..

 was pleased how well the torn edges blend into the page so you can see them

you ca see the texture paste well in this one, and get a good idea of how coarse it is.



Say yes to everything - yes to using up stuff, yes to using new stuff, 






Really enjoyed this week's page coming together, but must now go and see if the next prompt is ready, to start all over again!

Thanks for looking.

WOYWW 450

Happy Wednesday again, deskers!  That week went fast (again).. it's time for WOYWW again.
Still in a creative buzz at the moment; I really hope I can keep it up!

so there are a mish-mash of things going on
balanced on the tubs of pastes, is this week's journal page for the France Papillon FB challenge,

in the middle of the workspace is an MDF tag that I'm working on (no more info, it's a secret!)


the scraps box just behind the tubs of paste is in serious danger of toppling its scraps everywhere.. I need to sort through that soon

this was a journal page for me I did at the weekend
(full details in the post below this one)











and last week's FB page (two posts down!) which many of you have seen


I am much more comfortable working in journals than on other surfaces at the moment, not sure why that is, I intend to pursue other projects to try and change it... watch this space!




I'd just like to thank the deskers who use Google + for always visiting and leaving comments, when I cannot respond...
to answer Sarah, that stencil you liked so much, by Stencil Girl is called Curves.  it's 6x6. 

Hope you all have a good week.

Oh, I nearly forgot to say... I spent part of Sunday throwing out some old magazines (Crafts Beautiful type from 2005/6 ) and stamp catalogues... from 2002/3.. a whole recycling wheelie bin full... the clear out has started!

Another Journal Page - Appreciate Beauty

When I was using the modelling paste for my ALAD/ASAW journal page, I wiped some excess on my square journal (that I'm loving)

Yesterday was time to add to it. 
I thought I'd taken a picture of just the stencilled background, but hadn't.   I sealed it with clear gesso as I didn't know then what was going on top, but didn't want the colour to soak into the paste.

The colour is Portfolio pastels, chosen randomly

 I blended the colours with a baby wipe, and then spritzed the page with water and dried it.

I loved the reaction of the portfolios over the paste

 but it was bright, so I added a coat of white gesso, using not the brush in the picture but my Prima silicone brush.

Stencilled the wildflowers with Paperartsy Little Black Dress paint - Tim Holtz stencil (the big one, not a layering one)










Created a Distress Oxide background on Paperartsy Smoothy card - various bright flowery colours.

Die cut the TH wildflowers
Over the journal, I stencilled (Crafters Workshop) , ringlets stencil in blue and green distress oxide, but it doesn't show up much
so used a stencil brush and pounced some blue and green on as well.

Spent ages gluing the diecuts onto the background, getting very sticky in the process.
Added a border of walnut stain and black soot DO ink to the page.

 sound some TH Big Chat stickers for my title/quote and outlined it in a black ecoline pen












Finished page