Be Happy. Be You.

 

This layout, with the blend of teals and oranges and rustic settings, was inspired by Tres Jolie’s February Mood Board, along with the Scrapbook Kit, and features a photo of my granddaughter taken back in the spring of 2018.

The 49 and Market Alena collection makes a perfect setting for my image. I chose the Happy Dancers sheet as the foundation because I wanted a not-too-busy background for what was going to be a very busy focal piece.

I cut the Peek-A-Boo sheet into 4”x6” sections, selected four of these to serve as background layers, and backed each of them with cardboard to add plenty of dimension. I glued them together and added my photo.

Now for the embellishments! I took out my Finn Waxes and selected the two that best matched the color scheme to treat the chipboard pieces. Before attaching them to either side of the photo, I gave them a blast with a heat tool to melt then set the wax.

I added a few flowers from the kit and finished it all with some of the laser cut elements, using one of the word strips to provide the title of my piece.

A few closeups:

 ***************************************************

*****Supplies*****

***Paper***

49 and Market – Art Options – Alena Collection – 12 x 12 Double Sided Paper – Happy Dancers #AA-37315

49 and Market – Art Options – Alena Collection – 12 x 12 Double Sided Paper – Peek-A-Boo #AA-37285

***Embellishments***

Tres Jolie – Laser Cut Chipboard – Split Flower

49 and Market – Art Options – Alena Collection – Laser Cut Elements #AA-37360

Little Birdie – Handmade Flowers – Vincy Vivid Palette - #CR76710 – 9 Pcs

***Mediums***

Ranger – Tim Holtz – Distress Ink – Mini Ink Pad – Brushed Corduroy

Prima – Finnabair – Art Alchemy – Metallic Wax – Firebird #966720

Prima – Finnabair – Art Alchemy – Metallic Wax – Peacock #966775

***Other***

Beacon – FabriTac

ScorTape – 1/2”

Scrapbook.com – Double-Sided 3D Foam Circles – Small #sbc-bcadh-3122

***************************************************

As always, I want to thank you for peeking into my blog; your visits mean a lot to me.

 

Dreamer of Dreams

 

Très Jolie’s Mixed Media kit for October contained an assortment of Dina Wakley acrylics, a bottle of Sparkle Spray from Nuvo and – best of all – a wooden dreamcatcher kit from Kaisercraft’s Lucky Dip collection. Here’s what I came up with:

I didn’t receive the string that came with the kit, so I went into my stash and pulled out several spools of jute twine, one an all-purpose packaging item that I’ve had forever and another “craftier” spool from May Arts. While deciding which one to use to dangle the “feathers”, I had an “aha” moment and began to envision a rustic look.

I began by painting the dreamcatcher itself, starting with Tangerine in the center, then Lemon, then Peacock and ending with Eggplant at the edges, allowing each color to dry before going on to the next. I used light strokes and a minimum of paint, so this process went very quickly.

I wanted my “feathers” to look like feathers, so I applied thick layers of each color, using a texture tool to spread the paint diagonally from the center to the edge. This process took a few days because these layers took a long time to air dry.

Meanwhile, I began to wind the thicker all-purpose twine around the edge of the circle, using glue dots ever inch or so to make sure that it would stay put.

I applied the mica-rich Sparkle Spray on all the surfaces, then rubbed most of it off with a paper towel to allow the colors to show through while toning down the very bright hues.

 I especially love the results that I got with the feathers; the mica settled in the grooves and bought out the textured look that I was going for.

I used more of the twine to attach my feathers and to create a hanging loop at the top. I couldn’t make up my mind as to whether to treat these lengths to match the wrapped edge; at the end, I decided to let them be.

I used several blooms from Prima to create my embellishment in the center and surrounded them with a few bark flowers given to me by my good friend, Heather Thompson. The title is a Tim Holtz Quote Chip, covered with Sparkle Spray and rubbed with a paper towel.

The best part of this cluster must be the feather bunch. It’s one of two that I’ve been hoarding for a long, long time; I do wish I could remember where it came from… It’s all of one piece; I simply added a few twists of the May Arts jute to the bottom before tucking it under and gluing it down.

Here are a few more closeups:

***************************************************

 *****Supplies*****

***Très Jolie Mixed Media Kit***

Kaisercraft – Lucky Dip – Decor Flourish – Dreamcatcher – Large #LDB1092

Nuvo – Sparkle Spray – Cocoa Powder #1665N

Ranger Ink – Dina Wakley Media – Heavy Body Acrylic Paint – Lemon #MDQ54023

Ranger Ink – Dina Wakley Media – Heavy Body Acrylic Paint – Tangerine #MDQ54092

Ranger Ink – Dina Wakley Media – Heavy Body Acrylic Paint – Eggplant #MDQ59813

Ranger Ink – Dina Wakley Media – Heavy Body Acrylic Paint – Peacock #MDQ59851

 ***Other***

Prima – Amber Moon Collection – Flower Embellishments – Pumpkin #596989

Prima – Autumn Sunset – Flower Embellishments – Gourds and Pumpkins #642815

Bark Flowers

T W Evans Cordage Co – Jute Twine – 2-Ply – Brown #13-205

May Arts – Jute Burlap String – 1mm – Natural #SM-10

Advantus – Tim Holtz – Idea-Ology Collection – Quote Chips #TH93563

Feather Bunch

***Tools***

Ranger – Texture Tools Pack 1 #INK44567

Glue Dots – Mini Dots – 3/16 Inch

 ***************************************************

As always, I want to thank you for peeking into my blog; your visits mean a lot to me.

 

Let's Make Today Beautiful

I was inspired by Très Jolie’s November Mood Board to create this layout featuring a photo that my Daughter-In-Law took a year ago.

Lots of layering and a bit of fussy cutting, along with plenty of flowers and other embellishments all came together to achieve this rustic look.

I love the papers that came in the kit with the jewel-like colors and touches of gold foil; there are several sheets of cut-aparts to make this a very versatile collection. (Luckily, Kim loaded our kits with two of each design so it was a lot easier to pick and choose just which papers to use!)

I decided to use one of the “B” sides for my background. Not only did it allow me to load my layout with a lot of details, but the ledger design captured part of the Mood Board perfectly.

I lightly distressed all of the edges before inking them with Vintage Photo Distress Ink.

The edges of the photo were treated with Faded Jeans Distress Oxide Ink.

The typewriter was fussy cut out, inked and backed with packaging before I tucked it behind the photo.

I altered the Rose Flourish chipboard from Creative Embellishments to match the foil in my layers above the photo. After cutting the vine in two, I painted the stems and leaves with Metallique paint. Once it had dried, I colored the roses with the Prima Chalk Edger from the kit that I watered down and applied with a paint brush. 

After selecting a few of the wood embellishments from Kaisercraft, I colored them with more of the Chalk Edger and tucked them under my flowers.

I tucked another piece under my title card and then attached that gorgeous butterfly that came in the package of flowers.

I treated one of the Melissa Frances keys and one more wood embellishment with the same Metallique paint that I used on the chipboard vine.

I added some excelsior here and there to fill some gaps and called my layout “done”.

***************************************************

*****Supplies*****

***Très Jolie November Kit***

Prima – Darcelle Collection – 12 x 12 Double Sided Paper – The Biggest Step of Your Life with Foil Accents #849450

Prima – Darcelle Collection – 12 x 12 Double Sided Paper – Plot Twist with Foil Accents #849429

Prima – Darcelle Collection – 12 x 12 Double Sided Paper – Just Wing It with Foil Accents #849443

Prima – Darcelle Collection – Flower Embellishments – Glamorous Moment #644413

Prima – Darcelle Collection – Flower Embellishments – Sweet Notes #644444

Creative Embellishments – Laser Cut Chipboard – Rose Flourishes

Kaisercraft – Lucky Dip Collection – Wooden Flourish Pack – Bollywood #FL601

Melissa Frances – Vintage Resin Appliqué – The Key to My Heart #CX881

7 Gypsies – Architextures Findings Adhesive Embellishments – Iron Fence #7G25024

Très Jolie – 5” Doily

Prima – Ingvild Bolme – Chalk Fluid Edger – Blossom Bud #891350

***Other Embellishments***

Michael’s – Excelsior

***Other Mediums***

Ranger Ink – Tim Holtz – Distress Ink Pad – Mini – Vintage Photo #TDP40262

Ranger Ink – Tim Holtz – Distress Oxide Ink Pad – Faded Jeans #TDO55945

Prima – Finnabair – Art Alchemy – Acrylic Paint – Metallique – Gold Rush

***************************************************

As always, I want to thank you for peeking into my blog; your visits mean a lot to me.