Friday, December 20, 2019

Stampers Anonymous Holiday Cards

Hello friends,

Today I'm sharing a few cards I made using Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous Christmas stamps.

Scenic Holiday
I love this winter scene from the Scenic Holiday set so I stamped it on Distress Watercolor paper (smooth side) and then colored it with a Detailer Water Brush and Distress Inks that coordinate with the plaid paper in the background (one of the favorites from the 2019 Christmas Paper Stash).
Seasonal Scribbles
Lumberjack (background)
For my second one, I started with the whimsical Seasonal Scribbles to create the small center card.  The background was stamped using the woodgrain stamp from the Lumberjack set then cut to size and stitched to a green card base.
Yuletide Gatherings (floral)
Christmastime 2 (sentiment)
The last card was again created on Distress Watercolor Cardstock.  I used a wide paint brush from the Ranger set of brushes to hand paint stripes across the cardstock in Festive Berries Distress Ink.  When the ink was dry, I stamped the sentiment in the center with Embossing Ink and added Gold embossing powder.  Once the embossing powder melts, the sentiment comes to life in the rich gold color.
For the floral images, I stamped over the stripes with the Yuletide Gatherings stamp and Black Soot Archival Ink.  Then colored the image with the Detailer Water Brush and Distress Ink.
As an added touch, I squeezed dots of Mercury Glass Stickles onto the dots of the embossed image.
Hope you like the cards and they give you inspiration for your holiday makes!
Now carry on,
paula

Sunday, December 15, 2019

Cathedral Window Gift Tags

Hello Friends,

I am so excited to share these Cathedral Windows gift tags today! They were so fun to make! Just so many options for color and background.  One tag uses Alcohol Ink over a special surface, one uses a great Christmas stamp from Stampers Anonymous, and yet another used a product we have had in the idea-ology line for many years (it just doesn't get used enough in my book!).  You can find the step-out tutorial over on the Simon Says Stamp blog with all the "how-to" information!

These were really fun to make - I love working small because you can add so much detail!  I hope you will stop by the Simon blog to see all the details!
Now carry on,
paula



Friday, December 13, 2019

Winter Vignette Box

Hi friends,

Today I am sharing a cute winter scene I made with a handsome guy from the Christmas Paper Dolls pack.  This is an easy project (my favorite kind at Christmas) that can be done in an afternoon.  Follow along and I'll show you how I made it!  
I painted the interior walls of the largest Vignette Box with white paint.  Once dry, I added a piece of paper from the Worn Wallpaper Christmas pack.  I love this one with the winter scene.  If you add a layer of Collage Medium it will seal the paint and the paper and you will be able to create a wash over the surface using Distress Crayons and damp paintbrush.
NOTE: What you can't see in the picture is that the outside of the box has been covered with brown plaid paper from the Christmas paper stash.
Paint the matching size Vignette Frame with Candied Apple Distress Paint.  Once dry, sand the frame just a bit then seal with Collage Medium to create a slick surface for the Distress Crayon.  When the crayon was added here, I scribbled HEAVILY over the frame then wiped away the excess with a wet wipe to remove the top layer, exposing the red paint underneath.  This allows the dark crayon to remain the intricate design of the frame.  I also used a Splatter Brush and Picket Fence Distress Paint to splatter over the frame surface.
So here is the basic steps:
1. paint
2. sand
3. seal with CM
4. scribble with crayon
5. wipe away excess
6. splatter
As you know, coloring Paper Dolls is my favorite thing in the world.  Remember, to color over a dark surface (like his coat), use the crayon directly on the surface rather than with a damp cotton swab.
 He is just so cute!
I created a fence using a Metal Gate and Ruler Piece.  I rubbed white paint over the Metal Gate.  Once dry, I added Mushroom Alcohol Ink over the top to age.  If you bend the Gate it will break (which is what I did) so that the fence will fit into the box.  I wanted the Metal Gate to have more weight so I glued a broken Ruler Piece to the bottom to raise it up.  Once it was set, I added it to the box with Collage Medium then set it aside to dry!  I also adhered the painted red frame to the front of the Vignette Box and a stick to the background (seriously my signature this year).
Adornments Yuletide pack has this perfect little wreath.  I painted it with Distress Paint and rubbed Distress Crayon over the top to age.  I did tie it to the Paper Dolls hand, but I also added glue to the left side to adhere to his leg for stability.
I'm not sure if you can see or not but I use yet another skinny stick as a sign post in the background.  This time I tied an old piece of string around the tip of the stick.  Then I picked a piece of ephemera (the 25 card) from the Mini Ephemera Christmas pack, roughed up the edges and adhered it to the stick (right up to the string) so it looked like the string was holding the card in place (in reality its only glued on).
The Christmas Tree was added (sprayed with Bundled Sage Distress Stain) to the corner after I added Distress Mica Flakes.
I also used a wood Final (that I painted black and sanded) to the top of the Vignette Box.  A Christmas Token was aded to a piece of chain from a dish on my desk (I have no idea where it came from, lol) and I pinned it to the green ribbon with a Mini Pin.
 I used Mini Foundations to add feet to the box - they are tiny but I like the look.

I added polk dot Design Tape to cover the break between the Vignette Box and the red Vignette Frame.  I always love a good polka dot!
This was an easy little project that would make a great little gift.  I hope you will give it a try!
Now carry on,
paula

Wednesday, December 11, 2019

Christmas Kits

Hi friends,

I am back from my last teaching trip of the year.  Thank you to all of you who came to a live class this holiday season.  It was fun to see old friends and also nice to meet new people.  In my last class in Florida there were seven new people that came to sew the Fabric Journal.  We had people from New York, Michigan, Wisconsin, Miami, and Orlando!  Now that is heartwarming!

Now on to the news of the day...the remaining Christmas kits have been posted in my ETSY shop, which you can access by clicking HERE or on the ETSY button on the right sidebar of this blog.  There are a limited number of each kit.  Descriptions and prices of each kit can be found in the individual listing.  Thank you for supporting my shop and my little side business of creating kits and teaching.  A little love has been put into every one of them.

Dear Santa...

Christmas Fabric Journal


Winter Wonderland
(trees can be sprayed any color of Distress Stain)

Now it's time to jump into Creativation preparations (that are already happening around here).  I have a few new posts coming and a tutorial on Simon Says Stamp on Sunday so it's going to be busy!  

now carry on,
paula

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Giving Thanks

Hi Friends,

I was inspired by my friend Michele H. who posted her 'Thanksgiving Tree' on Facebook last week. To be honest I had never heard of a Thanksgiving tree...I guess I'm always so busy this time of year that Halloween seems to melt into Christmas around here!  Anyway, I just kept thinking about it all weekend and how I could create something with that theme and frame of mind...giving thanks.  Follow along as I share what I made.
For my "Thanksgiving Tree", I chose to use a Woodland Half Tree.  The Half Tree is a large 7" sisal tree that has been shaved at the back so it can be placed on a flat surface such as the Divided Box.  The tree fits beautifully into the box space once the dividers have been removed.  So now I've got my substrate to work with.
I decided to use a gilding technique over the sides of the wood box.  To do that you will need a few die cuts.  I chose Organic which gives you a nice big piece to work with.  It is also important to use heavy weight paper like Distress Heavystock which can hold up to the paint layers.  I found I could get two strips from each cut rectangle.  I promise it will make sense as you read along.
Paint the outside of the box with Media Acrylic Paint in Gilt (a beautiful metallic gold color).  Once the paint is dry, adhere the Organic die cut to three sides of the Divided Box (no need to add to the bottom).  To do this, I added Collage Medium over the painted side, then placed the die cut into the glue and added a thin layer over the top to seal.  Don't worry too much about any build up of Collage Medium in the die cut shapes.  Collage Medium shrinks when it dries and it also dries clear.  I let the first piece dry while I worked on adding the next one.  Then once a piece was secure, I cut away the excess paper.
Repeat on each of the three sides until all are covered.
Now take the Media Gilt paint and paint all three sides once more.  
Set aside to dry completely.
Add Mushroom Alcohol Ink to a Blending Tool.  Pounce the Blending Tool over the die cut shapes to add the Alcohol Ink.  Add in layers to allow the Alcohol Ink to build up in intensity in random places.
You can see here that I not only added the AI to the raised surface but also some of the background where there were more open spaces.
I love the look of this technique over the wood of the Divided Box.  It has such great texture under the die cut shapes - looks like old carved wood.  This technique also works over a paper surface like paper mâché.
I added the plaid paper from the Christmas Paper Stash to the inside of the box.  Why does my paper have a missing strip?  Well I cut the paper the wrong size and I was unwilling to use another one so i'll fix it later as soon as I figure out how, lol.  Everyone makes mistakes, right? I always see it a a challenge rather than a mistake and my mind just starts working to figure out how to best fix it.

Next up is to disguise the lip edge of the box.  I chose the matching plaid Design Tape to add to the edge.  The tape is much wider than I need so I placed it on the lip edge, pressing it into place, then cutting it with a sharp knife.  Sounds hard but I was surprised how easy it was to get the perfect size (if the knife is sharp - it cuts like butter).
And there you have it - the perfect size I needed for the lip edge.
So this is the box so far.  I know I still have a SPACE in my box, lol!
On to the Woodland Half Tree I talked about at the beginning...
We all know Baubles + Alcohol Ink are pure magic together.  Here I split one package of Baubles into three random piles and colored each with a different Alcohol Ink: Oregano, Honeycomb and Cloudy Blue.  Once coated in the main color, I pounced Mushroom Alcohol Ink to add more depth.
I love these Half Trees because they are so fluffy!!  I sprayed the tree with Gathered Twigs Oxide Spray and then finished it with just a touch of Old Paper Oxide Spray.  Normally I would not choose Oxide Spray since it's opaque but for this "thanksgiving" tree it seemed the perfect choice for a warm wintery feeling.
I used a hot glue gun to add the Baubles.  I like to add the glue to the tree and then push the Baubles up into it.

Two more layers to go...the first being Distress Mica Flakes which were added with Collage medium. Remember, once dry, the glue is clear and the Mica will look very natural.
I waited till the tree was in the box to add the last layer, which was Mercury Glass Stickles on the tips of the branches.  Don't skip this step because the Stickles gives the needed sparkle - even in daylight.
In the end, this was the most beautiful tree.  The colors and layers worked beautiful together for this fall scene.
One more item for the center of the box: a #8 Etcetera Tag.  It's the perfect size for the box and what I want to do with it.  But first I painted it black, sanded the edges and sealed it with Collage Medium.
I spelled the word, GIVE using the Christmas Stencil Chips which are silver.  The Stencil Chips do come in gold in the regular idea-ology line so that could make a good substitution.  NOTE: I did have to trim both the V and the E to make them the same width as the G and I.  Once they are the right size, I glued them to the tag with Collage Medium.  I also took a Walnut Stain Distress Crayon a scribbled around each rectangle.
I rubbed the crayon to blur the lines I had drawn then added Hardware Heads to the corners.

I decided not to use the reinforcer that comes with the tag but instead use one of the Vintage Clips.
I added Iced Spruce Distress Paint to the Vintage Clip as well as a Metal Star.  The paint and brown crayon make the two different metal pieces look like they were meant to be together.
I added foam tape to the back of the #8 Etcetera Tag and added it to the box.  Hot glue was added to the back of the tree to secure in place.
Notice I filled in the small space on the right of the letter E?  No more gap in the paper.
The bottom of the tray was filled in cheesecloth, some that I literally shredded into strings.  I also added Wood Slices, a glittered pinecone, and some greenery made with the Large Funky Festive die and of course more Distress Mica.
  (this is our last year for Wood Slices so if you like them you might buy a few packages - I know I have my stash!)

 "For we carry the heavens with us" is from the Clippings Sticker pack.  A nod to a heartwarming Christmas movie I recently watched called, "The Christmas Candle".  We can often be the answer to someone else's prayer or hope if we just look to help or serve others in our neighborhoods or community.


 


I hope you liked my Thanksgiving Tree and I'm grateful to Michele for posting hers. I hope that you'll try something like this - using a different color than you are used to, to create something unique!

now carry on,
paula