Friday Feature - possibilities

Hi friends.  Melody here with your Friday Feature.  May is always a special month for me.  I have an anniversary, mother's day, and a birthday all within a week's time.  Among the gifts I received were some distress paints. 

I put some mowed lawn, salty ocean, and vintage photo distress paints on my craft sheet, and swiped a piece of white card stock through them.  After heat setting, I spritzed some water on the paint on the craft sheet and put the card stock in it again, dabbing a couple of times till I was satisfied.  I dried it and then die cut an arch with Arch Frame die and trimmed off the outer edge.  I also die cut a navy arch with the same die. 

I used some Tim Holtz stamps as well.  Two are stamped in jet black archival.  The third was stamped several times on the card base with salty ocean distress ink. 

I added some doodling on the card base with a black Pitt pen. 

I then inked only one of the pen nibs and stamped it next to the men.  I used a craft nib holder & nib to color the pen nib with salty ocean distress ink.  Then I painted some mustard seed distress paint on a piece of white card stock and cut out a candle flame.  I hightlighted the flame with distress markers and made the pen nib into a candle.  

Most of the products I used can be purchased from Outlaw Women Scrapbook Emporium. 

Thank you so much for stopping by. 

Friday Feature - big little things

Hi friends.  Melody here with another Friday feature.  Today I have a card to share with you. 

I started by gluing an old book page to a piece of chipboard from a tissue box with matte mod podge.  Then using artful dwellings die, I die cut one of the houses from the chipboard.   Using an ink blending tool, I added vintage photo distress ink. 

I used several papers from the Alla-Prima collection.  Each piece is edged with vintage photo distress ink.  One piece was put on the lower part of the house.  Another piece was die cut with the vintage lace die, coated with vintage photo distress ink and wrapped around the house. 

I stamped the small butterfly from Nature's Discovery stamp set with jet black archival ink on the house, and cut a heart from red card stock to add to the house.  The house is attached to the card with dimensional foam tape. 

The sentiment is from Good Thoughts stamp set, stamped with jet black archival ink. 

And finally, I added dots with a black Pitt pen. 

Most of the products I used can be purchased from Outlaw Women Scrapbook Emporium. 

Thanks so much for stopping by. 

Friday Feature - making stencils

Hi, Melody here with the Friday Feature.  I'm a little late posting, but late is better than not at all.  I really love stencils.  I would love to own every one that is available, but since I can't, I decided to try making some of my own.

I started by sketching the design I wanted on a piece of scrap paper, and then cleaning it up until I was satisfied with how it looked.  Then I placed a piece of stencil plastic over the drawing.  (What I use is some type of film that I rescued from the trash.  It's blue, which makes it easy to see.  You could also use any clear plastic packaging.)  I then trace the design onto the plastic with a ultra fine sharpie marker.  Then it is time to cut the stencil design.  I first worked with a craft knife, cutting out the design, but my index finger that was pressing on the knife started to go numb.

I know there is such a thing as a hot stencil burner, but since I don't have one, I decided to try my wood burning tool instead.  I picked the smallest pointed tip.  I worked on a piece of wood with my small craft mat on top, but I wouldn't recommend using the craft mat if you don't want to mess it up.  Apparently the wood burning tool is too hot and it left marks on the craft sheet, making the surface rough.  I'm thinking a glass mat would be better.  Other than that, the wood burning tool worked great for cutting through the plastic without much effort.  It was so much easier than using the craft knife. 

I made some flowers, all pretty much the same, but in different sizes.  I also made a leafy vine.

Another way to cut stencils is to use your die cutting machine.  The Sizzix bigz dies work especially well to cut through plastic.  I made some using those, and then I pulled out a few movers & shapers and my base tray from Tim Holtz, and cut some with those.  I wrapped duct tape around the edges on the stencils I made with the bigz dies, since you don't get a lot of margin on those, because only a 6" piece of plastic will fit through either of my die cutting machines, a cuttlebug and a Sizzix big shot. I learned that tape trick from Julie Balzar. 

Then I made a card using one of the stencils I had made.

First I sprayed a piece of watercolor paper with some adirondack color wash ink sprays in red pepper and sunset orange, as well as mustard seed made using reinker, water, and perfect pearls in a mini mister.

After that was dry, I used one of the flower stencils with modeling paste.  This was my first time using modeling paste.  I really like the texture you get with that.  After cleaning the stencil and letting the paste dry, I put the stencil back over the flower and applied acrylic paint to color the flowers.

I stamped a sentiment from stuff to say (Tim Holtz) in jet black archival ink.

I placed the watercolor paper on a bright blue card base.

To finish off the card, I drew some black around the flower and leaves, and then added some grungy lines along the edges with a black Pitt pen. 

Many of the products I used can be purchased from Outlaw Women Scrapbook Emporium.

Thanks so much for stopping by. 

Friday Feature - butterflies

Hi everyone.  It's Melody here with the Friday Feature.  Today I decided to make a background using a border stamp and distress markers.  I used the circle border stamp from dylusions around the edge set, and stamped it several times on watercolor paper with jet black archival ink, until the paper was filled.  I colored the circles with distress markers.  Then I trimmed it down to fit an A2 card, and used a foam applicator to add vintage photo distress ink all over.  I inked it a little darker along the edges.  Then I attached it to a black card base. 

I tend to be a lazy stamper and I didn't want to pull out my die cutting machine and dies if I didn't have to.  So I rummaged around in my scraps and found a black butterflight on the edge die cut and a yellow mini butterfly die cut.  Perfect -- I can work with these.  I trimmed the border die cut to fit my card and added vintage photo ink on the edges of the butterfly. 

For the sentiment, I stamped one from Just Thoughts (Tim Holtz) on white card stock and cut out a partial circle.  More vintage photo ink and I put all the pieces together on the card.  The butterfly wings are raised on dimensional foam tape. 

Most of the products I used can be purchased from Outlaw Women Scrapbook Emporium. 

Thanks so much for stopping by. 

Friday Feature - faux birch bark

Hi friends.  Melody here with another Friday Feature.  I have always loved the look of birch bark in crafts, but hate to hurt the trees to get pieces big enough to use.  So I thought I'd see if there was a way to make a look-alike.  I checked online for tutorials and didn't come up with much.  Although there are a few, I wasn't really thrilled with the final product, but I did get some ideas. 

I started with some brown paper bag.  Since birch bark has a very matte finish, I decided to use my snow white paint dabber.  But rather than using the dabber top, I simply opened the cap and poured some on the bag and used a foam brush to spread it, keeping my strokes all in one direction. 

Once the paint was dry, I sponged on some tea dye and gathered twigs distress ink, and then proceeded to add LOTS of little black lines with a black Pitt pen. 

I then inked up two stamps from Nature's Moments (Tim Holtz) with distress markers, spritzed with water, and stamped them on the 'bark'.  The sentiment was stamped with jet black archival ink. 

To give the bark an even more realistic look, I snipped the edges with a scissor and curled them with my bone folder, allowing some of the brown from the underside of the bag to show.  I also used a distressing tool and mess the edges up even more.  I really love how much it looks like real birch bark. 

I glued it to a pacific point (SU) card base that matched the faded jeans really well. 

Almost all the products used can be purchased from Outlaw Women Scrapbook Emporium. 

Thanks so much for stopping by.  I hope you'll try this technique. 

Friday Feature

Hi friends.  It's Melody with a new Friday Feature.  I recently got some new Tim Holtz dies, so I thought I'd use some on my card. 

I started by die cutting some watercolor paper with the movers & shapers cameo frame and ovals.  I stamped the image (La Blanche) on the oval with jet black archival ink.  Then I added some color wild honey, tea dye and spun sugar distress markers.  I used an ink blending tool to add some tumbled glass and vintage photo distress inks to both the oval and the cameo frame. 

Then I embossed the frame with wood grain texture folder.  I went over the embossing with vintage photo ink to make the texture stand out. 

The card base is a light aqua, to which I added some vintage photo around the edges.  Then I glued the frame down and attached the oval with dimensional foam tape. 

Next, I die cut the wreath on the regal crest die twice from navy card stock.  I cut them apart at the center, so I could change the curve a bit to fit around the oval.  After gluing them down, I die cut some buttons from a SU sweet buttons embosslit die.  I added color with sponge daubers.  Before attaching the buttons with foam dots, I pierced some holes in them and added thread. 

Most of the products used on my card can be purchased from Outlaw Women Scrapbook Emporium. 

Thanks so much for stopping by. 

Friday Feature - fan card

Hello friends.  It's Melody with another Friday Feature for you.  Last week in my monthly technique class, one of the cards we made was a fan.  It might seem complicated, but it's really quite easy to make.  A note or a sentiment can be put on the back. 

The first thing you need is a pattern for your fan blades.  There is a free pattern available here, but I ended up making my own.  My blades are about 6" long, and 2-1/2" to 2-3/4" wide at the widest part of the blade, and taper to about 3/4" wide at the base.  If your blade is narrow, you will need more blades to make your fan.  If you have a wide blade, you will use fewer blades in your fan.  You want your fan to open to about a half circle. 

To make a pattern, fold a piece of paper in half, and then measure about 6" along the fold for the length.  On one end, measure out from the fold half the width you want, so if you are making a blade 2-1/2" wide, measure out 1-1/4" and mark it with a pencil.  Draw the shape of the top of your blade.  This can be straight across, a gentle rounded end (trace the edge of a plate), or a point at the center, or you can get creative and make it fancy.  The widest part of the blade will be where the top comes down and meets the side (see picture below).  Taper the blade from the widest point down to the bottom, at just under 1/2" from the fold.  Then cut it out and open the fold.  I trace the paper pattern onto cereal box chipboard, but you could also use clear packaging material, so you can see through your pattern.  This would be helpful if you are tracing the pattern onto pretty paper and want to capture a certain part of the print.  Here are three different blade patterns I made.  You can also vary the shape of the narrow end, as you can see in the picture. 

The first fan I made had six blades, but I like five better, because the uneven number is more pleasing to the eye.  Here is my first prototype that I made.  It's very simple and has all kinds of craziness on the back, since I was figuring out all the steps to put it together. The last time I had made a fan similar to this was about 7 years ago, so I needed to rethink a little bit. 

The next one is my sample for my class.  You will note that the blades are a different shape.  As explained above, it is very easy to change what shape you use for the blades. This one has more stamping and details.  I also added a tassel, which I made from embroidery floss.  I did a Google search for instructions, and found many.

Here is a closer look at the details with the fan closed. 

I wanted to make a new fan for this blog post, and to also include directions on how I stamped and colored the blades.

If you want your fan to have a consistency from one blade to another, then it is important to make each blade the same.  You want a heavy card stock, so your fan isn't flimsy.  Trace and cut as many blades as you need for your fan.  I used five.

I stamped Dylusions background love (flower stamp) just once on each blade, trying to stamp in the same position on each.  I used jet black stazon ink, so I could color the flowers with twinkling H2O's, again making each blade the same.

There was quite a bit of blank space on each fan blade, so I used the wood grain cover-a-card stamp from Impression Obsession to stamp over the complete blade with sepia archival ink.  After stamping, I immediately wiped over the flowers with a paper towel to remove some of the ink from that area before it dried.

I then lightly sponged tea dye distress ink over each blade and then applied vintage photo distress ink along all the edges.

Now that the blades were finished, it was time to put the fan together.  Stack all the blades together and use a crop-a-dile to punch a 1/8" hole about 1/4" from the end on the narrow part of the fan blades.  Insert a paper fastener (or a fancy brad if you prefer).

Spread out the fan blades to the position you want them to be when the fan is open.  Carefully turn the fan face down on the table.  Make any necessary adjustments in the position of the blades, and place a post it note across the blades to hold them in place.

You will note the arrow is pointing to the blade that is now on the top of the stack.  You will start to attach your string or ribbon at the opposite end of the fan.  You only attach your string on one edge of each blade.  (If you do it wrong, your fan will not close.)  On the final blade (on left), I attach the string on both edges, because I think it looks more complete.  I used score tape and copy paper for the little tabs that hold the string in place.  Be sure to press firmly to make sure your string doesn't slip.  Once your string is attached, trim the ends and remove the post it.  You should now be able to gently open and close your fan.

I wanted a little tab attached to make it easier to pull the fan open, so I used half of a small oval and just attached it to the back of one side of the fan.

I really like how the wood grain stamp makes this look like the blades are made from wood.  The tassel on this one is made from crochet cotton. 

If you compare the open fans, you can see that the last one opens differently than the others (the front blade is on the left instead of the right).  I liked the design better when it opened this way.  I don't think it really matters which way your fan opens, but this is where that little pull tab is helpful to open the fan correctly. 

Just for fun, I have two more to show you.  These are tiny - less than 3" long and only 1-1/2" wide.

For my technique class, we always make a small sample of the technique for reference, and that's what these were for.

Some of the products used on my fans can be purchased from Outlaw Women Scrapbook Emporium.

Thank you so much for stopping by.  I hope you enjoyed the tutorial and will give it a try. 

Friday Feature - fabric flowers

Hi friends.  Today I have some fabric flowers that I made as my submission for Tim Holtz' tattered florals challenge. 

I pulled some fabric from my stash and die cut LOTS of flowers with the tattered florals die.  I used large flowers, which I folded into fourths.  I stitched across the folded corner to keep them from unfolding and then glued layers of four onto a fabric circle.  I put on three layers of the large flower and two layers of the small flower.  Then I added another layer of small flowers in between the two sizes to smooth the transition from large to small.  I added a pearl in the center.  This flower is actually quite heavy with all the layers and glue. 

I made a second flower, using the same folding technique, but stitching the pieces together instead of gluing.  There are only two layers on this one, with one small flower in the center underneath the button.  This one is not nearly as fluffy as the other one. 

The tattered florals die is available at Outlaw Women Scrapbook Emporium. 

Thanks so much for stopping by today. 

Friday Feature - live in the moment

Hello friends.  Melody here with another Friday Feature. 

This is a 4"x6" page for a book I'm putting together.  I started with my base (made previously) of cereal box chipboard, covered with reused coffee filters and coated with gesso.  Then I tore some newspaper and glued it on with matte Mod Podge.  When that was dry, I brushed some gesso over it. 

Being impatient, I used my heat gun to dry each layer. 

Next I used some distress ink sprays, made with reinkers and water, and sprayed my page.  I used mustard seed, barn door, and faded jeans.  Some I blotted away with paper towel. 

Next I did some stamping with Nature's Moments (Tim Holtz/Stamper's Anonymous).  Flowers were colored with distress markers and stains, and the bird and sentiment were stamped with jet black archival. 

I added some washi/tissue tape from Tim Holtz & 7 Gypsies, as well as some that I made myself.  A couple of them were brighter than I wanted, so I rubbed some gesso wash (watered down gesso) over them with my finger. 

Finally, I added a couple of black mini flourishes (Sizzix), but I again decided there was too much contrast, so I blotted some more gesso wash over the flourishes with a cotton ball. I like how that gave a mottled look to the flourishes. 

Many of the products used can be purchased from Outlaw Women Scrapbook Emporium. 

Thanks so much for stopping by. 

Friday Feature - winter arch

Hello friends.  It has been awhile since I've posted here.  Shame on me.

The OWSE Yahoo group has a monthly arch swap, with a new theme each month.  Although I didn't join the swap, I was intrigued by the arch shapes and wanted to try my own.  I thought I would follow the theme that the swap group is using.  January's theme was winter wonderland, so my first arch is a winter scene.  I searched online for arch shapes, because I wanted a different shape for each month.  I found some great arch shapes, but settled for the less elaborate shapes, since I had to cut them by hand. 

My arch base is cereal box covered with recycled coffee filters, and then coated with gesso.  This one I painted with white acrylic paint.  I created snow covered hills by cutting white card stock and lightly adding some tumbled glass distress ink on the top edges.  The one in the foreground is raised on dimensional tape.

The trees and bird are all Tim Holtz Sizzix dies.  I added some details with a black soot distress marker and added white paint with my finger to create snow covered branches.

The word winter is an old retired SU stamp, stamped with jet black archival ink.

As a final touch, I added star dust stickles on the snowy branches and on the hills.

Most of the products used can be purchased at Outlaw Women Scrapbook Emporium.

Thank you so much for stopping by. 

Friday Feature - bloom with joy

Hello friends.  It's Melody here with another Friday Feature.  I've been working on a monthly challenge at Motley Soul Mixed-Media Art.  The challenge is to make 21 (4"x6") cards.  This is actually my 21st card, although I do plan to make more, since I'm having so much fun doing them.  I've been making mine two-sided, so the back side of this one is still blank. 

I recently made an Inspiration Jar for myself.  Although the idea is not original, I tweaked it to make it work for me.  I've been reaching into my inspiration jar for ideas to get started on each card.  For this card, I pulled out the words, black, stencil, and chipboard.  I didn't use the word chipboard other than the card is made from cereal box chipboard covered with recycled coffee filters. 

I started by painting the surface black.  My paint dauber top is all hard and dried out, so I just opened the bottle and used a brush to spread the paint.  Once the paint was dry, I used my mini bricks stencil (Crafter's Workshop) and, since I don't have any texture paste, I spread some light spackling through it.  I've never used this stuff with a stencil before, so I guess I was a bit heavy handed, and some pushed underneath the stencil.  The bricks are quite as defined as they should be, but that's OK.  It dries very fast, so I proceeded to add color with a sponge and a number of different distress inks (tumbled glass, mowed lawn, mustard seed, spiced marmalade, picked raspberry, barn door, and seedless preserves), working gently, since I have no idea if the spackling is going to flake right off the card.  So far, it seems to be holding.  I hope it continues.  I'll just have to handle it gently. 

I stamped a bunch of flowers from Heartfelt Creations on a piece of white card stock with jet black archival ink.  I heavily sponged several with spiced marmalade distress ink, cut them out, and then sponged the edges with picked raspberry distress ink.  On three of the flowers, I removed some of the petals, so that when I placed them over the full flowers, the blossom looks fuller.  Two flowers were sponged with mowed lawn distress ink.  I cut the petals apart to make leaves.  After figuring out an arrangement I liked, I glued the flowers and leaves onto the card.  I then added some white dots in the center of the flowers with a white gel pen. 

The sentiment was handwritten with a white galaxy marker. 

Some of the products used to make this card can be found at Outlaw Women Scrapbook Emporium. 

I'm really happy with the bright colors over the black background. 

Thanks so much for stopping by. 

Saturday Special - Vintage Tag

I created this Vintage Tag for a Swap I'm in with the Yahoo Group Altered Designs.. 

To start I used a Tim Holtz Tag and embossed it with a Cuddle Bug Embossing Folder though  I did use my Vagabond Machine. I broke my Cuddlebug. LOL

Once I embossed it I sprayed Glimmer Mist on it. I used three colors.. Sand, Creme De Rouge and Jubilee..

Then I distressed the edges of the tag with my Tim Holtz Distresser and ran some Tim Holtz Distress Ink "Walnut Stain" around it and a bit into the edge.. I took some Gold Rub n Buff and went over the raised areas on the embossing. Be careful with this stuff. Use just a little bit on your finger tip.. 

Now while this was drying I painted all the flowers. I used Perfect Pearls and Twinkling H20's.. I like both.. I added some gum arabic to my craft mat and applied the gum arabic when I was painting the flowers. This is to seal the paint.. It's like a fixative. Then I let my flowers dry. Actually after a while I was impatient so I used my Heat Gun.. LOL

I adhered the flowers together using Glossy Accents..  Now it was time to put it all together.. I had printed my image out on Cardstock. So I used a Glue stick to adhere her to the tag.. Then I put my trim on using Glossy Accents.. Added the flowers once again using Glossy Accents.. I had added the pearls into the flowers once the were dried. I printed off the saying on regular copy paper then misted the paper with the same colors of Glimmer Mist I used on the Tag.. Once the paper was dry I glued it to some white cardstock.. Cut out the small pieces and ran some Walnut Stain around the edges.. Then I put some pop dots on the back. OMG that wasn't too much fun as it's so little and it kept sticking to my fingers, falling down to the floor or not in the right spot!! LOL  I finally got it done though.  I took some more trim and with my Tim Holtz tiny attacher attached it to the back and finally the last thing was to add the Bling! This took about three hours to do because of Drying time, painting the flowers and drinking coffee in between. LOL

Well that's my story and I'm sticking to it! ROFL!!   If you give this a try I'd love to see your Tags... Send them to me at owse@ididitcreations.com.. 

All of my products I bought a Outlaw Women Scrapbook Emporium.. Well not all. I bought the Trim at Joann's.. LOL

Have fun creating everyone!!

Friday Feature - happy new year

Hello, friends.  It's Melody here with another Friday Feature.  I normally make my own Christmas cards to send out, but every few years, I just don't get them done.  This was one of those years.  As an alternative, I decided to send out a some New Year cards.  Since this is the only paper crafting I've done this week, other than a couple of cards for my class next week, I thought I'd share it with you.  It's a very simple card, since I was making a bunch of them. 

My card base is light aqua and the sun and hill both started as white card stock.  Along the top and sides of the card base, I sponged turquoise and blue to give the look of the sky just starting to lighten at sunrise, with that lighter glow around the sun.

The sun is Spellbinders lotus pendant die.  To make it easy to release the card stock from the die, I used wax paper between the die and card stock.  I then added mustard seed and spiced marmalade distress inks to the sun with a sponge applicator.

For the snowy hill, I cut a curve freehand and then embossed the piece with musical flourish embossing folder from Provo Craft.  I added light aqua ink to highlight the raised embossing.

I glued on the sun and hill, and trimmed off the excess hanging over the edge.  The sentiment (SU) is stamped in jet black archival ink.

Some of the products used can be found at Outlaw Women Scrapbook Emporium.

I want to wish you all a Happy New Year, and, as the sentiment inside my card says, "

May God

bless this trip

around the sun

with joy and

many amazing

moments.

 Thanks so much for stopping by today. 

Friday Feature - enjoy the journey

Hi friends.  It's Melody with a Friday Feature for you.  With all the family things going on for Christmas, I didn't get a chance to sit down and create until today, so I'm a little late posting. 

My project today is a tag that could be attached to a gift.  I started with a pre-cut tag and swiped some distress stains onto it -- peacock feathers, ripe persimmon, and wild honey.  While that was drying I die cut a rosette from some pattern paper and put it together with hot glue.  I love how the geometric pattern on the paper changes when formed into the rosette. 

I stamped the tag with Dylusions stamp set, around the edge, in jet black archival ink and colored in the leaves with shabby shutters and crushed olive distress markers.  Then I added some vintage photo distress ink with a foam ink applicator and distressed the edges with a distressing tool. 

On a piece of ivory card stock, I stamped the sentiment from a Tim Holtz set, just thoughts, and cut it into a flag shape, adding vintage photo distress ink and distressing.  I attached this piece to a black flag with my tiny attacher. I pierced lines along the top and bottom. 

I used a strip of black card stock and punched several 7/8" circles, which I cut in half and added along a couple of the edges of the tag.  I decided to use the negative piece as well, tucked in behind the sentiment. 

To help the rosette stand out a bit, I cut two black squares and offset them behind the rosette.  Both the rosette and the sentiment piece are attached to the tag with dimensional foam tape. 

My tag just wasn't complete without a butterfly, so I dug one out of my stash of die cuts (Tim's mini butterflies movers & shapers die), and added it to my tag. 

The tie is made from black cord.

Many of the products used on this project can be found at Outlaw Women Scrapbook Emporium. 

Thanks so much for stopping by.