A little bit of re-cycling for the HLS Mixed Media Challenge ......

Happy middle of the week ......

I've had a lovely day today crafting with a friend,  We were actually putting the last minute touches to this weekend's workshop .... looking forward to this one.  We're going to be doing a little mixed media using rice papers, which by the way are quite addictive once you start using them!!!

Speaking of Mixed Media ..... it's time for this month's Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media Challenge.  We've got a fun theme for you this month ...... LAYERS

For me, that could be layers of inks and/or paints, layers of papers, stamps and texture pastes with stencils, adding embellishments, ink sprays, ......... the list goes on.

For my inspiration piece I've re-cycled an old plaque and used most of the above!! 

I came across this in a box when we moved house.  I'd obviously made a start on re-cycling it at some point and then just put it away.  It's been sat on my desk since it was unpacked, waiting to have a make-over, so here it is ...... there's lots of layers here!

The flowers and the brick wall texture were on the original design ...... done back in 2015!

I just took off the sentiment panel, and gave the whole thing a coat of black gesso to give me a nice matte finish to the base.

I love the flowers so I left those as they were, just added new colour over them.
They're simply paper flowers, layered onto the base using a good strong glue. I added in a few die cut leaves here and there too.
I use Prima 3D Matte Gel from Finnabair's Art Basics range as the glue, it sticks everything, and holds its shape brilliantly so you can get great dimension. It dries clear too.

This is also a good way of using up all those paper flowers that you're not too keen on the colour of, you know the one's I mean .... we all have a box full of them.  It doesn't matter what colour they are, especially if you're using black gesso as your base.

I then started adding various colours of metallic paints and sprays ..... shades of turquoise, and greens a little bit of purple, and believe it or not, there's even a touch of pink in there too .....

 
I kept spritzing the paints with a little water, just to blend the colours ........ especially around the flowers.

For the brick wall I kept mainly to the blues and greens, with just a touch of deep purple to add shading here and there

Once all the paint was dry I went in with some metallic waxes to add even more colour, and highlight the textures ......

If you've never used coloured metallic waxes give them a go ....... there's a few different brands to choose from, my favourites are Prima's Finnabair Art Alchemy waxes, they have some fab colours (some of the ones I've used here are from this range), and then there's Treasure Gold, these are gorgeous.  Again great colours, and so easy to use.

I applied most of mine using my fingers but you could use a sponge or a brush, to get in all the detailed areas .

I added some pretty layered, die cut butterflies ..... cut from scraps of card from my bit box .... and highlighted using the metallic paints and the waxes

And finished off with a sentiment .... stamped and then fussy cut, and layered onto the bottom ....

As always, there's a $20 Gift Certificate for the challenge winner, which will be DOUBLED if they've used HLS stamps on their project.

Have fun!

Thanks for popping by ........  enjoy the rest of your day.

Mixed emotions again for me today,  as this is my last DT post for the Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media Challenge ....... (sad face)
I've had nearly 3 years of Mixed Media fun as part of this fabulous team but, it's time to give someone else the chance to be part of this amazing family!  Thanks again Kylie for having me on the team, it's been a fabulous Mixed Media journey ......  mwah!!

Cheerio until next time .....

Going for Gold with the Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media challenge

Happy Sunday evening .....

I hope you've had a nice weekend ..... the good thing is, here in the Isle of Man, and the UK, it's not over yet!  We've got a lovely Bank Holiday tomorrow ..... no early Monday morning start, and the weather forecast is looking good! 

It's time for another challenge now though ...... fancy some Mixed Media?  Then pop over to the Happy Little Stampers blog because it's time to get this month's  Mixed Media challenge underway.
The theme for May is ......... GOLD!

I've gone for adding a little bit of gold heat embossing onto a pretty MDF heart, using one of my favourite IndigoBlu stamps .....

I painted the heart with white gesso, and then covered the front using a piece of the Tim Holtz Botanical Collage Paper 

I added a touch of colour to the paper BEFORE I laid it onto the MDF which had been given a coat of Ranger's Glue and Seal.
I used Distress Inks on the back of the paper so that the colour wouldn't run when I applied the medium again over the top to seal the paper to the MDF.

Once everything was dry I then heat embossed the gorgeous flourish over the top with a gold embossing powder ......

On the back, I gave the heart a coat of a pale grey paint and dry brushed over the top with white to give a worn look .....

and then heat embossed that gorgeous flourish in full, again using the gold powder .....

I love how this looks ..... it could be used as a decoration or why not use it as a beautiful tag on a special gift.

As with all the HLS Challenges there's a $20 Gift Certificate for the Challenge winner, which will be doubled if the winner has used Happy Little Stampers stamps on their project.

Thanks for popping by .... enjoy the rest of your day.  And if you have the Bank Holiday tomorrow .... enjoy it!
We're hoping for a repeat of today .... its been glorious!  We've had blue skies, and sunshine all day ...... it's been lovely.

And yes, the BBQ was on again earlier.  I don't think I've used the kitchen at all this weekend .... it's great!
We popped into Douglas this afternoon ...... went to see Chris in his new place and had a lovely Sunday lunch down there. He's had a busy week but the hard work has paid off .... The British looks fab! 
We popped round to see Lauren too, who was putting together a HUGE trampoline in the garden for the little man .......

guess who had a fun afternoon there! No ...... I'm not talking about me ..... although hubby was quick to try it out!!! 
Then it was back home to enjoy the afternoon sun, sat in the garden with a good book.

We drove along the prom and it was really weird ..... Manannan's Cloak was coming in across the bay .... or was it a heat haze perhaps!!

Manannan's Cloak is this strange wall of mist that occasionally comes in low across the sea and covers the island, supposedly to shroud it and protect it from unwanted visitors.  It's fascinating to watch it come in .....

It obviously did it's job today ....... we're still here!

Cheerio until next time ......

Hello ......

Happy Tuesday evening  ......

Sorry I'm late .......

Well that's another birthday over.
I had a lovely day yesterday. Thank you to everyone for their best wishes, cards and gifts.  As always I've been well and truly spoiled ...... with flowers, chocolates, jewellry amongst other things, and a meal out last night which we hadn't planned which was nice .

Anyhow .... birthday's over now (although the celebrations will probably go on for a few more days!)
It is however time for another challenge ..... a little bit of Mixed Media this time for Happy Little Stampers

I'm really in my CAS phase ..... what that really means is I'm still getting used to the new craft room. In other words, I can't find a flippin thing!!  And when I do  .... it's not exactly what I was looking for.  Oh well, I will get sorted .... eventually!

My take on this months challenge is not about lots of layers .... or getting messy with inks or paint.  There's not even an embellishment on there .... CAS like I said

I've used watercolour card, ZIG markers, rubber stamping and as you can see .... die cutting.

I sprayed the card with a little water before applying the colours using my ZIG markers.  I simply scribbled a little colour onto the wet card and then used a brush to spread it around and give this pretty watercolour effect

Because the cardstock was already wet the colours moved around very easily and blended so well.
I did add one colour at a time and allowed each one to dry a little before adding the next, so as not to mix the colours together but to blend them gradually

Once it was dry I die cut the word Hello from the coloured card and again from plain white, layering the letters together before inlaying the word back into the cardstock

A little stamped sentiment finishes off the front .....

and I used the same colouring technique on the inside .....

There's another $20 Gift Certificate for the challenge winner, and don't forget if the winner uses HLS stamps in their project ...... then the prize goes to $40!!

Happy stamping!

Thanks for popping by ... enjoy the rest of your day.
 
It's another busy week here, what with challenges, DT commitments, preparing for something special happening next week (oooh .....wonder what that can be ........ are there some new stamps being released perhaps .... hint! hint!) and ....... I've got a workshop at the weekend. 
And it is my birthday week ......  there's not enough days to fit everything in!

Plus another birthday present turned up today .... and I'm dying to have a play.  Nothing for the craft room but it's going to be fun ...... I hope.
Did I mention I'd asked hubby for a new food mixer for my birthday ....... well look what's found its way into my kitchen ......

 I'm going to have to treat myself to some new bakeware now I think .....

and find time to use it.  It's a while since I've done any baking!

Cheerio until next time ....

We have moved ....... (again!)

Happy Tuesday evening .....

It was moving day today.  The removal men arrived first thing this morning and it's been non-stop all day.
We've got boxes everywhere ..... can't find a thing ..... I'm tired ..... and I'm hungry!  But hey .... we're in!  It won't take me long to make it home!

Today sees the start of this month's Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media Challenge .....

As you can see the theme for February is ...... Butterfly
Here's a little inspiration for you ..... an ATC block

It's the size of an ATC ...... just made from a block of wood.
I simply painted it black and then heat embossed my butterflies in gold, before adding some colour using metallic paints

I added butterflies to the two large surfaces of the block ......

And also splattered on some gold and silver ink

Down the sides,  I added some pretty leaves .... stamped in Verasmark and embossed in clear, and then added more ink splatters.

The sentiment was stamped onto white card and then cut into pieces, before attaching to the front of the block

And to finish off I added feet on the bottom ...... simple wooden beads painted gold, and a decorative metal embellishment on the top

I love how this turned out .... it's going to sit on my craft desk I think .... when I remember which box it's in!!

As with all the HLS challenges there's a $20 Gift Certificate for the winner .... which will be doubled if the winning project has been created using HLS stamps.

What are you waiting for ..... Happy stamping!!

Thanks for popping by ..... enjoy the rest of your day.

Cheerio until next time .....

How does your garden grow ......

Happy weekend .......

Well .... that's the first week of 2018 over .... it wasn't so bad.
Back to normal now though .... the tree and all the decorations are down and put away for another year, and the house is nearly tidy but hey! ..... I'm not too bothered about all that, seeing as we're moving again at the beginning of February! I'll be starting to pack boxes again soon ...... whoopee!!
There's never a dull moment at the Walmsley's ....... life is always an adventure.

I've got another Blog challenge for you this evening .... it's the turn of the Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media challenge

As you can see, the theme is ...... GARDEN
Now I'm not much of a gardener myself ...... I can't even keep a cactus alive!  But .....I do love a nice garden, that's why I usually pay someone else to look after it.
For the last three years we haven't actually had a garden as such because we've been in the centre of Douglas .... we have had the rather large square outside though which has been lovely .... all the benefits, none of the work.
When we move though, that will change.  There's a huge garden at the new place, with a patio area to put garden furniture, and I think it gets the sun all afternoon.  Better start looking for that gardener!

Anyway ..... back to the challenge.  One of the lovely things from a garden are the beautiful blooms that grow ......

I used the large bloom from the HLS Especially for You set, stamped it a few times onto white cardstock and then fussy cut the flowers, before colouring each one using ZIG Markers

The background is the faux wood grain technique.  There's a great step by step tutorial over on the Snippets Blog by Karen Dunbrook.  Check it out and give this a go ..... it's so much fun.

It's a really easy technique to do and depending on what colour of Distress Ink you use, you will get a different looks ..... I've used Weather Wood on mine.

Simply apply PVA glue onto a piece of white cardstock.  Don't cover the card completely, and apply the glue in lines, down the card.  This gives the best wood effect when the ink is applied.
When the glue is dry, turn the card over and score down the card at quarter or half inch intervals, depending on the size of your finished card (I think mine are quarter inch)

Turn back to the glue side of the card and apply Distress Ink ...... rub the ink directly from the pad down the cardstock.  You will begin to see where the glue was ...... continue applying the ink until you get the finish you are looking for.  I used just the one colour here, but you can use as many as you like .... depends on the look you want.

I attached the flowers over the top .... some flat and some with foam pads for dimension ....

A simple stamped sentiment ......

and a few dots of glossy accents finish everything off.

I also added a couple of the flowers to the inside of the card ......

How will you interpret the challenge theme? I can't wait to see.

There's a prize for the challenge winner ..... a $20 Gift Certificate to spend in the HLS store and .... if the winner (randomly chosen) has used HLS stamps on their winning project then the prize will be doubled!!
You might want to check out the HLS store ...... Kylie has been busy designing and there's some fabulous new stamp sets available for pre-order.  There's an amazing offer on them too .... if you order all six sets then there's 20% off the price! 

Thanks for popping by ..... enjoy the rest of your weekend.
I'm off to grab a take away, put my feet up, and catch up on some TV.  No G&T tonight though, not even a small glass of wine ..... I've decided I'm having a dry January.
So far it's been sparkling water with my lunch out yesterday, and then just a Fever Tree Aromatic tonic with ice and pink grapefruit when we popped into the Prospect.
Hubby is trying too ..... although he's going for more of a damp January rather than dry ..... no will power!!

Cheerio until next time ......