0+1+2+3+4+5+6+7+8+9 = Peacock

Feathers keep showing up all over the projects at Simon Says Stamp & Show, in addition to the usual lovely birds that love to flock onto craft projects of all sizes and styles. So it only makes since to have a challenge for it. This week we’re "Flying". It is up to you if you choose to jump onto the feather trend, from charms to paper accents to stamps, or you can just put a bird on it. You can even take the challenge more loosely and take a different soaring approach with just blue skies, or talk about what you feel like when you’re on cloud 9 in your art journal, or even use a metal bird (aka an airplane) on your project. Whatever approach you take, we can’t wait to see how you spread your wings and fly creatively this week.

Ah the peacock...probably the most gorgeous bird in the land, the male that is. He can't fly far, but the beauty of his feathers make up for any self-esteem problems he may have. I love the deep beautiful jewel toned colors in the peacock's feathers, and I tried to mimic those tones here, but as you can see this bird is sort of strange looking. That is because I used all 10 of the numbers in the Tim Holtz Numeric Stamp Set from Stamper's Anonymous to create the body of this peacock. WHY did I do that??? Well...it's a sweet story. When I was little, my mother who was not a very good drawer, but who knew I loved to draw all the time, and all over everything, would sometimes take a napkin and write letters and numbers on it, and then would connect them to form pictures for me. I always squealed in delight. My favorite was the first one she showed me how to draw when I was about probably five or six, which of course I also taught my own children.

As I grew older, this became my doodling...usually on the back of the phone book while on the phone for hours...and I'd turn numbers and letters into animals all the time. I made some great ones, and I'd give anything to have those old phone books and memo pads back. They were my first Art Journals! Sigh!

I found this pack of cedar planks in the getting ready to bar-be-que pile, and I swiped them. The gorgeous grain of the wood makes a fabulous base pattern underneath any Art piece. This measures 15x5 1/2 inches. I played with the numbers for a bit and configured them the way I thought best, but even changed them up again before I was through.

I began stamping the numbers on using Ranger's Adirondack Acrylic Paint Dabbers in Stream, Butterscotch, a mixture of Citrus and Bottle, and Eggplant.

I painted in an eye, a beak, and feet. This really helped me to visualize the peacock, although my kids had their opinions. They think it's a turkey. Hey...I tried! I also knew I wanted a tree branch somewhere on here, so I die cut one from Tim's Bird Branch Die from Sizzix using some scrap I had.

I didn't want to paint the body on, because then I would lose my numbers in the process, but I needed color, so it was Dyan's Dylusions to the rescue. I used some paper to help keep it in place. I matched the colors to the paint, so I used Calypso Teal, Pure Sunshine, Fresh Cut Grass, and Crushed Grape. I allowed the Dylusions to sit awhile as this is wood and is porous.

Then it was time for water. I wanted to see if the Dylusions would still blend and run. The answer was yes! I love the properties of wood. I added a little London Blue around the bird. I let this sit now for about an hour and came back and dried it a bit with a heat tool. The grain is still perfectly visible and the color is wonderful.

I traced around the peacock with a pen, and started added some background. I stamped one of my favorite script images from Tim's Letter To Santa Set using a Pearl Dabber.

Then I stamped the mini Alphabet Letters from the Going Somewhere Set using Eggplant.

Next, came the flower from the Floral Tattoo Set using Butterscotch.

Then I finished the background by stamped the sentiment several times in Pitch Black.

Now, it was time to finish up my feathery friend. I stamped Tim's mini peacock feather looking images from Mini Ornates in Jet Black, along with several of the images from Maya Road's Vintage Peacock Feathers Stamp Set.

I gave the feathers some detail with the same colors of paint from the Numbers and added a turquoise colored rhinestone in the center of the main feather to help them pop. I painted the border with of the plaque with Pitch Black to give the piece a frame as well.

Back to the branch...I painted it with Pearl, and embossed it with the Wood Grain Texture Fade.

I painted the buds on the branch with the mixture of green paint, and highlighted the raised areas with Mushroom Pigment Ink. Some gold wire and beads from my stash made a quick hanging to finish this off.

 

 

Do you like birds, feathers, or things to do with flight? If it's your thing, create some type of Art depicting it and enter it into our challenge. You just might be the lucky winner of a $50 voucher to Simon Says Stamp. You can also be named as one of the "Top Three Picks" for this challenge. Good luck, and please visit the other DT member's blogs to see projects that just soar!

 

Supplies:


I hope your hands get creatively dirty soon!

Distress Powder Flower Power!

Well...not really, but it sounds cool! I absolutely HAD TO participate in the Making Art Challenge #7 over at the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo Group, which is based on Tim's Distress Embossing Powder, because I missed the last one (No time!) and am going to miss the next. 

Why am I going to miss the next one you ask? Well...ahem...it's because...ahem...I AM GOING ON A TRIP TO ENGLAND WITH DEBBY SCHUH!!! Yes...I am soooo excited! Debby is the ultimate tour guide, and she twisted my arm real hard and made me go on this trip, and then twisted my hubby's arm to allow it all to happen! I am one of seven, and we have a week of adventures awaiting! I'm hoping for good weather! And I am really hoping to see Hels!!! We have a plan in the works, and I have the Cheetos's ready, among a few other things! So of course, I am linking this tag to her Sunday Stamper challenge this week for "Nature"...it will be the last one for a while. After England, I am taking a little super secret side trip that I will want you to guess about a little later! ;0)

Layers and layers of Distress Paint made the background! I love this stuff!

I painted Ranger's Specialty Stamping Paper with Mustard Seed Distress Paint, dried it, and stamped the Wendy's flower with Picked Raspberry Distress Ink. I covered this with Spiced Marmalade Distress Embossing Powder. I should have removed a little here and there...forgot. I heated and removed the release crystals when it cooled. I cut this out, and inked the edges in the same Distress Ink.

I thought using Wendy's new British Art Stamp Set was appropriate for this...hehehehe! I stamped the pen in Jet Black Archival, and poured Peeled Paint Distress Embossing Powder on it, heat, cooled, brushed...you got the picture. I love the green on the black. The pics do not do this justice. I stamped the Ford's Pen sign in Broken China Distress Paint.

I started stamped some of my favorite background images on the tag using various brightly colored Distress Inks. I messed up on stamping the sentiment with the Jet Black and got ink in places it shouldn't be, so out came the pen to help with doodles and such. I stamped the grass portion with the Houndstooth in Mowed Lawn Distress Paint.

I loved the Houndstooth so much, I kept going onto the ribbon.

The Blossom Bucket center needed to be orange for this, so Alcohol Ink came to my rescue. More doodling and outlining with Distress Markers helped the scene, and I finished the tag by inking the edges with Picked Raspberry Distress Ink.

 

 

Supplies:


I hope your hands get creatively dirty soon! Cherrio Chaps!!!

A Very Strict Challenge!

It's Monday, and time for a new challenge at Simon Says Stamp & Show, but sadly, we need to clarify some stuff on our challenges to those of you who are just not playing along correctly. It's time for us to be a little more strict with the rules crafters! First of all, APRIL FOOLS!!! (Did I sound mean? Hehehehe! That was hard to do, and I couldn't even go longer than three lines!) We could not do a regular challenge on April Fool’s Day. There is no fun in that! So this week it is absolutely "Anything Goes", and if that includes a joke or two, great!

Wendy Vecchi puts a lot of humorous quotes and sentiments on her stamp sets along with her fabulous images from Stamper's Anonymous. I thought it would be fun to make a birthday card using one of them, which would be perfect for April Fool's Day, but then I had this little canvas journal from Maya Road, so I thought why not make a whole journal type card using several of her funnies and images?!? Tim's Mini Birthday Blueprints worked perfectly here as well, and I've used lots of his Distress Paint by Ranger to color things up. 

I used a jumbo sized #10 Manila tag From Ranger. First, I folded it into the shape I wanted, then came stripes of Distress Paint and water to blend it in for side 1.

Side 2 received a layer of SAntique Linen Distress Stain first then it was pressed into dots of beautiful colors of Distress Paints. I loved the dots so much, that I went back to Side 1 and gave it some dots. It looks like confetti...very party ready!

This was going to be the cover of the card/journal so I wanted it to be tough, so out came the Ink Refresher. I misted both sides liberally.

I waded it up, unfolded it, and gave it a good drying. I love it! The texture is very much like leather, and super soft too!

I coated the spine areas with Glue N Seal just to reinforce them and make sure I wouldn't get any tears along the way. BUT then, I decided I didn't want the fold over cover like I had planned, and I cut the portion off with the tag hole and converted this into pockets for the inside, to be seen further down. I wanted them to hold coupon tickets for the birthday recipient.

I misted the canvas pages with water first and began adding paint and misting. I added more dots to the craft sheet and dipped the journal in. I tried to color each page different, except for one 2 page spread. The paints and the canvas work perfect together.

I sewed on some trim to each page, and then found the center of the journal and stitched it directly onto the cover, right down the middle of the spine.

The Glue N Seal helped to keep this nice and tough...no big holes here.

I was given a package of My Little Yellow Bicycle Canvas Shapes, and I decided to stamp Wendy's images onto them, as well as on the journal for a 3D look. The white makes them pop. I glued them onto the pages to match the images up. I stamped the sentiments and quotes right onto the pages in Jet Black Archival, which I used for the images as well.

I added Blueprint images to the front, first on the cover itself, then the label piece, then the canvas flower piece to match up when I layer them.

I added more color with Distress Markers, in a few choice areas to bring some things to life.

 

Do you like jokes or joking around? Is humor your thing? If not it doesn't matter this April Fool's week, because anything goes! Create any ol' type of Art you wish enter it into our challenge. You just might be the lucky winner of a $50 voucher to Simon Says Stamp. You can also be named as one of the "Top Three Picks" for this challenge. Good luck, and please visit the other DT member's blogs for some fun, laughs, and entertaining Art!

 

Supplies:


I hope your hands get creatively dirty soon!

12 Tags of 2013 - March

It's almost Easter everyone! Truly, it's a roller coaster of emotions during this week..good thing there is chocolate bunny waiting to be eaten! ;0)

I bring you a quick post with my tag/pop-up card inspired by Tim's most awesome 12 Tags of 2013 for March. Wasn't that bunny genius with the tinsel???  I loved his tag!

 

For my take on Tim's tag, I decided to turn the Mini Ornamental Die into a basket instead and make my die cut of a cross inside of an egg. I also couldn't have an Easter basket without a chocolate bunny, so one pops up when you open the card, even though a bite has been taken out of it...I just couldn't help it!

Using a #10 Jumbo sized Ranger tag as a guide, I cut two pieces of paper into into cards by doubling the tag. I used the Sizzix Pop Up die on the Idea-ology Easter paper for the inside.

More Sizzix die action here. I cut apart the Washer Border to use as a strap and decoration for the basket. Rock Candy Crackle covered the basket, and Weathered Wood Distress Stain highlighted the cracks for a great distressed look. After I colored the seam binding I weaved it through the holes of the Washer Border.

I stamped and cut out the eggs from the Blue Print Easter Sets. I die cut the cross into the larger egg. These were colored with Distress Markers and misted with Heirloom Gold Perfect Pearls Mist. I freehand cut the toothmarks on the rabbit and covered him with foil.

 

 

 

 

I am also submitting this to Inspiration Emporium's monthly blog challenge for "Add A Little Pop", and Hels Sheridan's Sunday Stamper challenge for "Shiny".

Supplies:


I hope your hands get creatively dirty soon!