M for Map

Only 5 more sleeps to go until CHRISTMAS DAY!!!!! How exciting is that?!

Well we are nearing the very end of the Craft Barn Alphabet Challenge and I have to say that I'm pretty proud of managing to keep up and hand something in on time...every time. What a real sense of satisfaction it gives you, especially looking through the pages of my book. 
Well seeing as I've probably only started properly crafting like this for a year and a half, I can officially say I have caught the crafting bug......even received an early Christmas present from my husband.... a crafting table, mainly so that our dining table isn't covered with my 'stuff' anymore ... hehe! I will properly get it set up after guests have gone and we've got the room to put it up but he wants me to paint it a colour at the moment (just a white primer on it so far) but I'm sure that I will be too desperate to start filling the shelves and using the surface!! Not too sure what sort of paint to use on it either (it's made from MDF), I think something hard wearing but obviously not my crafting paints!

Well, here is my M for Map picture. I glued down a large page from an old atlas (knew it would come in handy one day!). Then just gessoed over it, adding some texture paint mixed with brown paint and scraped through a stencil to create some height for the Peak District underneath! Didn't actually think about what page I had torn out but have since learnt that they have a 'Leek' in the Peak District National Park!!

Ok, off to quickly start on the final page before the mayhem of Christmas takes over - Happy Christmas everyone!

Challenges entered:

thecraftbarnblog.alphadictionary-challenge-M

Bye for now, Rachel 

Yule

We are so close to Christmas now and I decided to choose a festive word so I could use my new Visible Image snowflake stamp set! This will be entered into the Craft Barn Alphabet Challenge - letter obviously Y. I like the way the white embossing on the snowflakes really pop against the blue background.

Challenges entered:

thecraftbarnblog/alphadictionary-challenge-Y

craftstamper.december-challenge

theartisticstamper-decembers-creative-challenge-christmas

countryviewchallenges-december-christmas

Thanks for visiting, Rachel

Fun is GOOD

Playing about in my Dylusions journal, I decided to make a page that could be entered into the Rubber Dance Blog challenge, the colours in the challenge were my 'go to' colours anyway, pink, purple and turquoise

Having thrown paints, inks and twinkling H2O's and stencils and stamps at it, I like the vibrancy - plus I thought the Dr Seuss quote was quite fitting!

Challenges entered:

rubberdance-challenge-november - turquoise, pink, purple

craftstamper.take-it-make-it-challenge-november.

Thanks for visiting, Rachel

Insect

So here is my picture for this fortnight's letter over at the Craft Barn's Alphabet Challenge - 
 I - Insect
One of those rare pictures that I didn't plan anything beforehand, apart from the idea I was going with  a butterfly.  It's nice just to go for it  - I don't know why I don't do that more often, seeing as with most kinds of mixed media art, there are always plenty of layers and so mistakes are usually easy to cover up!
Mainly used my Neo-colors here and stamped with a little, hexagon and circle Jofy stamp.

Challenges entered:

thecraftbarnblog.alphadictionary-challenge-I

rubberdance-challenge-november

craftstamper.challenge-november

Thanks for visiting, Rachel

Lucky Stars

WOW, WOW, WOW - I am SOOO happy!!

I think it must be my lucky week!!!! I have won stamps in both of the competitions I entered, I can't believe it! I have won one of Tracy Easson's beautiful, beautiful Wonky Tonk stamps and now have just found out that I've also won a Zini stamp (one of Elena Zinski's stamp set with Paperartsy). I've been excitedly waiting for my Wonky Tonk stamp to arrive with the postman today but I think it must take longer than I think to travel down from Scotland - lol!

Well, I am definitely attaching my lucky streak to this art journal page - because I love it so much!!

This is all down to my wonderful Gelli Plate - I just love using it and am really pleased I took the plunge to buy it. I started by basically throwing all the blue paint I had onto the double spread, that's probably about 5/6 different shades and makes, plus some orange, cream and gold. 

I was beginning to hate it and thought about giving up at this stage. But then looked through my notebook that I use to gelli print in and found the perfect page, tore it into 3 strips and added two along the centre and stamped and embossed stars onto the third. Some text stamps and stars made from texture paste, plus a quote and I very happy with the result.

The background has a sheen on it, where I had mixed some Paperartsy Metallic Glaze in with some blue paint - ooh pretty!

Challenges entered : 

countryviewchallenges.november-2016-stars

craftstamper.take-it-make-it-challenge-november

paperartsy-typographyfonts-and-quotes

Thank you for visiting, Rachel

Union Jack

So, we are so close to the end of the Alphabet Challenge over at the Craft Barn blog. Although it has been difficult sometimes getting a picture finished on time, I'm still really enjoying it and my book with each alphabet picture in it, will be a great memory of my first year as a 'blogger'!

I remember that it was at this time of the year, last year, that I started thinking about what projects I might attempt for 2016 and I find myself thinking that again. What worked, what didn't - usually time is a factor on how many projects we can take on and I certainly don't want to start feeling that any of my crafting is a chore!

I have managed to keep up with my diary/journal (just about) but I'm not sure that I will do it again. I'd like to experiment a bit more with new crafting techniques and if I give up with my diary I will probably have more time to do that.

Anyway, here is my U for Union Jack picture - mainly paper-piecing from gelli prints, the red was bubble wrap and the blue had my favourite Ellen Vargo stamp set stamped and embossed with white, it looks a mash-up because I have cut it up, plus a little texture paste on the white stripes.

Challenges entered:

thecraftbarnblog.alphadictionary-challenge U

paperartsy-typographyfonts-and-quotes

craftstamper.take-it-make-it-challenge-november

Thanks for visiting, Rachel x

Christmas already?

Last year was the first year I had a bash at making my own cards....and I started early, back in August. I hadn't started my blog at that stage, so no evidence of the actual card as I didn't save any but I did remember it took me longer than I had predicted!

With this in mind, I looked around for a simpler project this year. I'm not the greatest at 'clean and simple' or giving the precision needed to generally making cards too - I'm just too messy! 

In the end I chose a Jofy stamp - JM01 - the sentiment came from the stamp I used for my Christmas cards last year - Christmas Wishes by Lindsay Mason and the trees came from another Christmas set from Lindsay Mason. I added some glittery dots around the words.

Carried the trees around the back of the card too! Sorry couldn't turn the picture around!

So here are a couple of cards finished.I'm pleased with how they turned out and most of them are perfectly 'clean and simple'! Job done for another year!

Challenges entered:

thatscraftychallenges.clean-and-simple-challenge

craftstamper.blogspot-take-it-make-it-challenge-october

Thanks for visiting, Rachel

Violet

Yeah!!! Finally, after a few weeks I have worked out why the quality of my photos on my blog have deteriorated. I have been sending my photos in a small file, so the quality was being compromised.
I would consider myself with very, very basic computer skills, that have improved since I've started up my blog....yeah, go me!! It is a big learning curve and thankfully my husband (ok, I had to confess it was him that solved my problem....yeah, go hubbie) has helped me, SOOO frustrating when you are happy with a piece of art and then posting a picture results in a fuzzy image!! When I get a chance I will re-edit some of my old pictures from past posts, so they are nice and clear.
I have to admit that I still don't know what lots of the settings on the right hand side of the blog page mean, you know the ones under the heading 'Post settings', ie labels, permalink etc - it's a slow journey in the world of computer learning for me - I am leaning more and more on my kids for help, lol!

Anyway, back to the art, this week over at the Craft Barn it is V for their alphabet challenge. I have chosen Violet and thrown a few different shades of violet at it. I started by getting out all my violet shades of paint and working out which ones worked well together.
The main pinky/violet Gelli print background is Violet by Dina Wakeley and the flowers and border are Violet by Graduate. Still really happy with my Gelli plate, I use it alot. The flowers are Jofy stencils.

Funny because the colours that I have chosen are real Halloween colours, completely by accident! I never make any Halloween art as I have no Halloweeny stamps or stencils!

Challenges entered:

thecraftbarn-alphadictionary-V

craftstamper-challenge-october

pennyblackatallsorts-challenge-autumn

Thanks for visiting, Rachel

Echinops

Late again!! Must try better! We get 2 weeks to complete our piece of art on the Alphabet Challenge over at the Craft Barn and I seem to sit back and relax in the first week, thinking about what word I will choose and generally getting on with life and then before I know it, it is Sunday and I am dashing madly to finish my picture and post it!

Never mind - this fortnight is E and I have chosen what I think is a beautiful and architectural plant called an Echinops or globe thistle, the flower heads are a bit like spiky alliums. 

Only the background has stamping on, music paper stamped onto green tissue paper and some more Ellen Vargo abstract printing at the top. The leaves were me looking at pictures of Echinops on the web and creating some stencils to paint through and then painting lots of long blue brush strokes as spikes for the flowerheads.

The dictionary definition is painted yellow right at the bottom, not very clear in this picture though!

Challenges entered:

thecraftbarnblog.alphadictionary-challenge-E

craftstamper.take-it-make-it-challenge-october

Thanks for visiting again, Rachel

A tree full of Love

So, by the skin of my teeth, I have finished my X picture for this fortnight's Alphabet challenge! Of course the letter is X and following in the footsteps of one of the design team, I decided to cheat a little and make an Xmas tree - with a love theme twist.

Sometimes when you leave things to the last minute, you end up just doing it without too much fuss and umming and urring! It takes me ages sometimes wondering just what colour or stencil or stamp to use next but I loved that I just went with my first choices and that I am happy with the result.

The picture just blurred when I tried to enlarge so I have kept it this size instead -  

One bit that I especially love is my star. You can't really see the glitter but I just drew the star, coloured it in with neo-color crayons and over-stamped with the rectangle stamp from the Paperartsy Ellen Vargo EEV02 set - I bought this set with the money from a Paperartsy challenge win and have used it ALOT, very pleased with it. It then has some glitter glue squeezed on - looks fab and the kids oooed and ahhed when they saw it!

Challenges entered:

thecraftbarnblog-alphadictionary-challenge - X

theartisticstamper-octobers-challenge-patterns

Thanks for visiting, Rachel

Owls in an Oak Tree

Wow, I've just bought myself a Gelli Plate with a voucher I was given for my birthday way back. I had 'ummed and 'arred over whether to spend my precious voucher on one as I've heard mixed things about them - mainly from people saying they were fun to use but then didn't know what to use the prints for.
Well, I must say the surprise element you get every time you peel the paper away can be a squealy moment, no 2 prints are the same and the options of what strange household object to use next to get a different print are endless.
With this in mind, I decided to get my browns and orange paints out and create a few prints to use for a branch for my O picture for the Craft Barn Alphabet challenge. After my positive paper piecing picture called Colour a few weeks back, I thought that I would try the same process to stick my Gelli print pieces down.
Love this process! Tear and stick!
The owls are from one of the first stamp sets that I ever bought, but unfortunately I haven't kept the packaging so don't know who made them and the leaves are of course from Jofy 12 Paperartsy set.

Challenges entered:

thecraftbarn/alphadictionary-challenge - O

stampotiquedesignerschallenge-september-challenge

craftstamper.blogspot.take-it-make-it-challenge-september

simonsaysstampblog.mondaychallenge

Thanks for visiting,
Rachel x

Hedgehog Home

Over at the Craft Barn alphabet challenge this fortnight is the letter H. I thought that I wanted to do - house - and so set about creating the background - lots of book paper, and various colours of paint were stencilled over this, some neo-color II crayons added and blended in - all good fun.
But then when I came to creating a house, I seemed to draw a flower pot - if a flower pot is a house, then which animal would live in it and that was when I found the only stamp creature in my stamps, that would fit through the door - a hedgehog - another H and of course she has to be named Henrietta!

So I ask for a little poet license as I filled my pot with flowers that look as if they are sitting in water - not sure what Henrietta would think of that! The flowers were cut out of paper napkins, stolen idea from other artwork, this seems to be a popular thing to do!

Challenges entered:

thecraftbarnblog-alphadictionary-challenge H

craftstamper.take-it-make-it-challenge-september.anything goes

Thanks for visiting,
Rachel

Children's art

What a wonderful idea - over at the Simon Says Stamp blog they have a children's challenge - basically anyone between 2 - 16 years of age can enter and their artwork has to contain glitter.

Well  Jessica (12) thought that would be a fun challenge to enter and after setting her up in front of my craft mat with paints, stencils and stamps, she set to work. 

This isn't an easy thing for a crafter to do - leave their child with access to all their precious supplies, so I half lingered nearby, I guess we all become immersed in the project we are making but at least I was on hand to make sure that brushes were washed fairly quickly, and stamps were cleaned after use etc - you get the idea!

She added her glitter on the roses but it isn't very obvious in the picture and she was very happy with her outcome - I love that, no worries over how it could have been improved, such a lot to learn from one's own daughter!

Challenge entered:

.simonsaysstampblog.summer-vacation-kids-challenge

Thanks for visiting, Rachel and Jessica

ZIGZAG

Inspired by the very colourful work Tracy Scott produces, I've thrown practically all the Dina Wakeley paints I own at this flowery Zig Zag picture. That is proper playing!

This fortnights letter at the Craft Barn challenge is Z and I had chosen the word zigzag before I realised that it would also pair up nicely with the Paperartsy challenge, which is patterns!

I've also managed to squeeze a pearl in right at the bottom of the picture, this was something that had to be added for the Craft Barn challenge - not sure what relevance it has but it's there!

Challenges entered: 

blog.paperartsy-patterns-challenge.

thecraftbarnblog-alphadictionary-challenge-Z

paperbabestamps.blogspot.anything.goes

thatscraftychallenges.zest-zing-challenge

Thanks for visiting, Rachel

Zesty enough?

I've seen so many people using pictures out of magazines in their artwork, mainly pictures of models but it can give you a focus for journal pages when you are needing some quick inspiration - plus I never would have been able to draw Zac Efron!

Anyway, after pinching the Sunday magazine supplement, I set about cutting out all the people in it that were 'talking to me'! 

Zac was shouting - 'pick me' - I'm just desperate for some flower ears and a zesty hairband! 

Well, it puts a smile on my face......

Challenges entered:

thatscraftychallenges zest-zing

theartisticstampercreativeteam-august-anything-goes

paperbabestamps.blogspot.anything goes

countryviewchallenges.august-challenge-hot-summer-days

Thanks for visiting me today,

Rachel

August journal page

I was a bit stuck for ideas on how to proceed with the background of this page - needed some inspiration. So looking through my Dina Wakley Art Journalling book, I decided to try a 'Analogous' page - this seemed to mean 3 colours next to each other on the colour wheel. Not sure whether light blue, dark blue and pink count but I liked the finishing result. Darcy talks about Analogous schemes over on the Paperartsy blog for this fortnights 'colour mixing challenge'.

The butterflies are a much lighter pink than in the picture, more like the hexagons and they have lovely glittery 'tails' (if there is such a thing on a butterfly) but of course glitter seems to be a difficult thing to pick up in photographs! Thought I would post it before I added my journalling.

Challenges entered:

blog.paperartsy-colour-mixing-challenge

craftstamper.blogspot.take-it-make-it-challlenge-august

paperbabestamps.challenge-39-anything

Thanks for visiting as usual, Rachel

Colour

Well I love this picture so much, it's so bright and those little circles, whilst they were very laborious to cut out each one (from text paper) , as I slowly stuck each one on, I loved the look of each completed segment of the colour wheel. 

Once I finished the wheel, I thought it felt as if it needed more in the surrounding space, so I added corresponding coloured paper pieces on the outside - so satisfying and relaxing - 

                                                            -glue.stick.glue.stick.glue.stick!!!

So of course the picture is C for Colour and will be duly entered into The Craft Barn's Alphabet challenge, which closes this Sunday, am loving this challenge and very pleased that the timings worked just perfectly with my holiday away, I was a little worried that I would have to miss a letter!

I was also inspired by a picture on the colour mixing challenge over at the Paperartsy blog, it contained many circles of various colours all created bumped up to each other in an abstract art piece.

Challenges entered:

thecraftbarnblog alphadictionary-C

blog.paperartsy-colour-mixing-challenge

stampotiquedesignerschallenge.text-background

Thanks for visiting, Rachel

Enjoy the ride

I had this little girl that I had drawn and coloured in with Neo-color crayons and Inktense pencils - it was my first attempt at drawing a whole person, inspired from a Willowing video - just love Tamara Laporte's artwork, it is stunning, have a look (www.willowing.org).

 Well I had created her about 6 months ago and so I thought that she needed adding into my lovely Dylusions Journal, always a bit scary, as I was really happy with how she had turned out and just wanted to create a beautiful background that she would be happy to 'live in'!! 

SOOo using only various blue and green sprays (Dylusions) and paints (Paperartsy) created a 'field' - plus a texture paste cloud and with one of my free stamps from my Craft Stamper magazine, created her little bear friend and lots of flowers.

I love how the colours have blended together in places.

Challenges entered:

blog.paperartsy-colour-mixing-challenge

theartisticstampercreativeteam/julys-challenge-all-things-bright-and-beautiful

paperbabestamps-challenge-38-anything goes

Thanks for visiting, Rachel

N for Nine

Another entry for the Craft Barn's Alphabet challenge - N for nine flowers. I finally spent a voucher that I had been given ages back - so amongst my new stash was a variety of luscious Dina Wakley Acrylic paints that were used in this background and a gorgeous WOW white embossing powder, which I have already used quite a bit.

Challenges entered:

thecraftbarnblog alphadictionary-challenge - N

thatscraftychallenges feminine-challenge

pennyblackatallsorts july-challenge-anything-goes-with-stamp

craftstamper.blogspot take-it-make-it-challenge-july

Thanks for visiting,
Rachel

Sparkle

I guess it seems strange to call a page 'Sparkle' when I've created black flowers but I think the black card really pops against the pastel background. The sparkle I have added is from a WOW black sparkle embossing powder spread around the flowers - adding to their general happy feeling, well they are all smiling so I'm guessing they are happy!

I really loved making this journal page, adding lots of circles from a fab new background stamp from Visible Image, (well new to me anyway). I love the pink hexagon paint splodges on the flowers too. I don't have a lot of black card in my stash, which is a pity, as painting on a black background always seems to make bright colours really pop in a very satisfying way.

Challlenges entered:

thatscraftychallenges feminine-challenge

theartisticstampercreativeteam july - all things bright and beautiful

countryviewchallenges july-challenge-have-fun-with-circles


Thanks for visiting,
Rachel

W for WINDOW

I've created a picture where I have taken inspiration from 2 challenges -the Craft Barn challenge has the letter W and PaperArtsy challenge is paper piecing - looking through my dictionary for help, I came up with the idea of just using papers to make a window.
Looking through the pictures in Darcy's introduction for the PaperArtsy paper piecing, I was drawn to the Jofy, vase of flowers, I always love anything JOFY style, the style of her stamp artwork really appeals to me.

My picture was originally going to be a view out of the window but with the bunting added, I think it may be a view of a vase of flowers into a party room - just that you can't see the vase!?
Everything has been cut out of various paper - including the flowers, that came from one of the girls old magazines, they were meant to be used for a flower headband!
The bricks and letters were from stencils and the leaves were from a JOFY stamp.

It was quite satisfying being able to cut out all the main pieces and see what the finished picture would look like before they were all glued down. I always find the process of a picture evolving quite tricky when using mainly paints and stamps, it's the fear of the unknown outcome and not wanting to 'ruin' it!




Challenges entered:

CRAFT BARN thecraftbarnblog alphadictionary- W

PAPERARTSY paperartsy - paper-piecing-challenge

THE ARTISTIC STAMPER theartisticstamper - july-all-things-bright-and-beautiful

Thanks for visiting,
Rachel

K for Kite

So, there seemed so many options for the Craft Barn's challenge letter this fortnight - with a K - quite fancied the word 'knickerbockers' with a line of knickerbockers hanging on a washing line but instead went for a safer and easier set of 'Kites'. Have to say that I am very happy with this picture, I really love the bright colours. The kites were just lots of painted circles (done with fingers) and simply doodled around - love it when you can do in front of the telly!

I thought that I would make the background a bright pink to tie in with the 'pink' challenge going on at the That's Crafty blog too, plus a purple, turquoise and magenta theme over at the Rubber Dance blog.

Challenges entered:

thecraftbarn alphabet challenge - K

thatscraftychallenges - pink-challenge

rubberdance.blogspot june - purple, turquoise and magenta

Thanks for visiting,

Rachel

T for Triangle

I've completed another letter in the Craft Barn's fortnightly Alphabet challenge - T for Triangle - and I'm really happy with it, I always love looking at Tracey Scott and Kate Crane's beautiful vibrant pictures and feel as if my page has a flavour of them. 

It's funny but when I think that I have finished my picture, once I've posted it onto the computer I can always see something else I could have added - not sure whether anyone else has that happen?

Anyway, am loving my triangular girl!

Challenges entered:

thecraftbarnblog-alphadictionary-challenge - T

allsortschallenge-366-great-outdoors

Thanks for visiting,
Rachel

HOUSES

This was a page that I had already applied the blue Moroccan design and the black flowers to in my journal. It's so much easier to liberally apply left over paint to several pages throughout a journal - then when you turn the page you aren't confronted with a completely blank page.

Anyway, I had the houses already printed out from a stamp set, sitting on my desk and thought, maybe, just maybe I can turn it into a picture to enter into the Paperartsy blog challenge this fortnight, which just happens to be 'Our House'.

Looking through the inspiration that Darcy from Paperartsy came up with, I was very happy to see a video by Nicoletta Zanella entitled 'three little houses', this was one of the first mixed media videos I ever watched and was fuel to start my journey into the arty world! 

I wasn't really feeling that the picture was working throughout most of the process, just that I was throwing a lot of different media pieces at it, until the idea of the sunset formed, then I started liking it! So with that in mind too, I am entering into also into the Our Creative Corner blog challenge with the theme of 'A beautiful mess', seemed quite apt!

Challenges entered:
                                           paperartsy-our-house-challenge

                                           ourcreativecorner-a-beautiful-mess
Thanks for visiting,
Rachel

               

Flower Doodle

Couldn't resist adding this last art journal piccy! Fancied doing some more doodling in front of Game of Thrones (so good) - will quickly add it into the Paperartsy blog, they have a doodle theme going on and it finishes tomorrow evening.........

........hand made stencil for the rectangular blocks and hand-drawn doodles everywhere else, think I'm rather enjoying this doodling malarkey!

Challenges entered:

paperartsy - scribbles-and-doodles-challenge

countryviewchallenges may-challenge use-stencil

As always, thanks for visiting,

Rachel

EVERY DAY

Well I'm so happy with my little art journal page today, it's actually an old diary that I was given but never used. After perusing the internet at the end of last year and finding that lots of people art journal in books, I thought it would be a great idea to do this myself....

                              I went through my cupboards and found a garden diary, it only had limited writing in it, mainly just lines, presumably for noting down ideas for the garden - well, apart from crafting, gardening is also a passion but I was just too excited about the idea of painting over all the pages and so seeing as it happened to be December, I thought, perfect timing, I can start an art diary next year....  a bit of journalling about what's going on in my week but mainly art....

           Well, I've found that if you paint in an old book..... that you haven't paid for ........... you are a bit more relaxed about the art you create - not surprising I guess.   It has been a bit arduous to keep up with writing a little something for everyday of the year but sometimes I create pages that I really like, including the one below.....

...it was just fun and I loove the two little bears, that was the free stamp with the January edition of the Craft Stamper.

The background was a cling-film technique from MixedMediaMorsels by Cat Hand, then some stencilling. I've also been practising a bit of doodling, so I doodled the trees from scraps I had and doodled a matching border.

Challenges entered: paperartsy-scribbles-and-doodles-challenge

                                countryviewchallenges-may-challenge-blog-hop-use-stencil

                                theartisticstamper.creativeteam-may-collage 

Thanks so much for visiting,
Rachel

ROAR

When I saw some pictures on a wildlife pamphlet I thought, I've got to put them in my art journal..but in what context....?

So after seeing that the theme over at the Paperartsy blog is doodles, and I still need some practise at that, I thought that this would be a good opportunity!

I painted the page with black dylusions paint....just because I was using it up from my sponge on a previous page and then thought, that looks cool, lets just cover the whole page in black! Well, once the cat pages were stuck down, my doodling needed to be done in white...mm...well I only have a white sharpie and it is very good but it did prove difficult trying anything that needed a fine line, maybe next time I do it I will use my black pens!

The doodling is supposed to look like the cats manes but probably looks a bit more like leaves.... got a bit carried away with the eyes, not sure that the cats would have been too impressed with that bit but I couldn't help myself!

Challenges entered:

blog.paperartsy scribbles-and-doodles-challenge

craftyourpassionchallengeschallenge always-anything-goes

paperbabestamps.blogspot-challenge black and white

Thanks for visiting,

Rachelx

Australian

I'm really loving the Craft Barn's Alphabet Challenge. I love that it has a theme, that all my pictures are in one book, that you are only limited by your imagination, as we will be going through every letter in the alphabet of course and so, every word is available for us to use.

Some weeks I'm happy with my page and other weeks...not so....this week happens to be a not so happy week! Not loving the blue paint I added behind the blue spots.

Anyway, I thought I would try out some Aboriginal art inspired by some pictures I saw on the internet, my version of a sun blazing over Ayers Rock....thinking about it now I should have used more orange colours for the rock, to make things a bit more realistic but I had the pink/red tissue paper to hand and went with that. Making the dots was quite relaxing, much like doodling I guess.

Challenges entered:

thecraftbarnblogspot.alphadictionary-A

countryviewchallenges may-challengr-use-stencil

Thanks for visiting,
Rachel x

Journey

I have to say that I'm struggling a bit to find time to craft at the moment - the garden is competing big time, especially last week and all the glorious weather, I was almost sleeping out there.
Well, I was determined not to miss one single letter for the Craft Barn Alphabet Challenge and so finally, here is my picture.....
                                                                ...... wouldn't it be lovely to say that my garden was filled with flowers so vibrant! I do have a gorgeous path that wiggles down to the bottom of the garden though, so maybe subconsciously that's where the inspiration came from?

Funnily enough, I realised that the main colours that I felt drawn to use - Paperartsy Limelight, Orchid and Caribbean Sea - were the same colours that I had used for Sam the Snail, (the previous letter) - I guess we all have colour combinations that 'sing to the soul'!

Challenges entered: 

thecraftbarn alphadictionarychallenge - J and dragonfly

simonsaysstampblog.com/wednesdaychallenge - flowers

craftyourpassionchallenges -always-anything-goes

rubberdance - pink, blue and brown

pennyblackatallsorts maychallenge-anything-goes

ourcreativecorner - books

Red and White

I've created a new page in my journal.

Challenges entered:  thecraftbarnblog.blogspot/two-weekly-challenge - red/white/black
                                 
                                http://thatscraftychallenges.blogspot.co.uk/

                                    simonsaysstampblog simon-says-anything-goes

Thanks for visiting,
Rachel

Jess the manga girl

Ok, so when I mentioned that there was a 'face challenge' going on, my daughter Jess piped up, 
                                'You can enter my manga girl! Please mummy!', 
she takes quite an interest in my craft, and often sits with me painting,she's been desperate to enter some art into a challenge for ages.
Jessica loves drawing Manga faces and received a book for Christmas with lots of designs in. As she wanted to make it extra special, I let her use my treasured Paperartsy paints instead of the basic children's paints she usually uses.

I

I'm not sure whether 12 year olds are allowed to enter into the challenges but we looked up in the rules and there didn't seem to be anything to state not.
So here goes:

   thatscraftychallenges-about-face-challenge

Thanks for visiting,

Rachel and Jess

Snail Post

I'm out of my usual comfort zone today by creating something with more 'white space' than I normally do - just why I should find it more difficult to make a picture that contains a smaller image and less to look at, well it doesn't make sense but I do find it particularly tricky when everything needs to be perfectly stamped, the white just shows up all the mistakes.

So, I felt as if the picture needed some kind of border but then I messed that up - not greatly in love with my blue dashes, especially when I turned the page round to find that they weren't even straight - lol!

Well, to focus on the things I like instead - I do like Sam the snail, (name chosen by Megan, my daughter) which was hand drawn and I like my background, which was created by several vibrant Paperartsy chalk paints and a credit card (technique by Kim Dellow)

As my picture is S for Snail and the snail has a shell, I am entering it in the Craft Barn Challenge and  also the Paperartsy challenge which is focusing on 'white space' at the moment.

CraftBarnAlpha/Dictionary Challenge 2016 - S and shell  

                                              paperartsytopic-8-white-space

Thanks for visiting,
Rachel

Deep Blue Sea

Hello there,

I've been busy recently over the school holidays with visitors, so only just able to enter my D letter for the Craft Barn Challenge -
                                                 D for Deep, Blue Sea

Lots of different shades of blue tissue paper to make the background and a Lindsay Mason stamp for the seaweed at the bottom. So I wonder whether anyone that subscribes to any craft magazines can guess what I made the jellyfish from?

The free stamp from the Craft Stamper Magazine - love it! 

Challenge entered: the craft barn alpha-dictionary-challenge - D

Thanks for visiting, Rachel