Alcohol induced mirrors.. with a mini technique

Dear Blog, I am so sorry!  3 weeks! 3 whole weeks since I have blogged! Now I could say I have been busy making hay, or sitting on a sun soaked beach on my desert island...but somehow I am not sure you would believe me..lol  Where have I been, I have no idea?!! Well I do, but then it is mostly boring work related stuff, and not much fun at all :(  Yesterday I took a class at the shop, and we made an alcohol inked mirror, and it was gentle, and laid back. Thank you girls for putting up with me!

While creating , we did a technique which involves putting plops ( did you like that word?!) of alcohol ink on glossy card, and then blasting it with an air duster can! Great fun and great results. Now I have always poured the alcohol ink onto the card, and then blasted it with air. That works fine, but as Liz discovered yesterday why not blast the top of the bottle with air over the paper! wow! that created much better results and cleaned the bottle top too! You do have to angle it and don't squeeze the bottle or you will end up with it everywhere. Perfect results! What a blast!

Splatter technique

Splatter Technique 2

We all made mirrors and I made mine with stamps from the A4 Faces no #2 die sheet, using different techniques involving embossing folders, clear plastic, glossy card, and sticky back metal. For the first time in ages, I even managed to finish it!

 

 

 

Here are a few details from the frame....

 

 

If you fancy taking a workshop with me, and to delve into the wonderful world of discovering techniques and inks and paints and complete creativity, then we have new workshops here.  I hope you like my mirror and I promise faithfully to be back sooner than 3 weeks!
Have a creative day!
Hugs

Word Search!

Yesterday I taught an altered book class, and the pleasure was all mine with just 2 pupils, the delectable Rosemary and the gorgeous Sandra! We had a very chilled out day and managed to make as much mess as if there was a full class!! 

One of the techniques was using Tim Holtz's alphabet dies on the front cover with Distress paints, and I had done this cover. I have another one which is a work in progress, and may get finished soon...lol

and the girls did these...

Rosemary's

Sandra's

 now check out the words!! Love what happens when you do random!! he he... it was fun! Thank you both of you for putting up with me, and for creating such great work.
Have a  creative Sunday
Hugs

Gearing up for Craft Stamper!

It has been an amazing start to my 20th year in the craft business ( is it really that long?!!) with lots going on at the shop, and new stamps, guest designers and guests coming to teach in our classroom. I feel very blessed, and even more so that
 Craft Stamper feature one of my designs as their free stamp on the cover :)

Love this little stamp, and you can get some fabulous ideas from the magazine, with designs by Kaz Hall and myself.
I cannot show you anything in the magazine, but I did make a little tag book using Ice Resin paper as the cover, and featuring the stamp.
I made the paper by brushing on Ice Resin onto old dictionary paper, and letting it dry. I added the stamp  by embossing it in gold. Add a few charms and some distress ink to the edges of the page...and you have a mini notebook.  I do hope you like it, and check out the magazine for more ideas and great articles.

I have masses to catch up with today, and have a class tomorrow making altered books, and there are a couple of spaces on it, if you fancy an all day workshop tomorrow. You can book online or call the shop on 01795 597757. Always fun and games to be had! oh and cake , of course!

Have a creative day
Hugs
 

Challenge Time at The Creative Team

I really shouldn't be amazed that it is Easter , the 1st of April, and a new challenge from The Artistic Stamper Creative Team! Should I? I think I am more than amazed that it is summertime here in the UK, and the clocks have gone forward and we have snow in various parts of the UK!! Still the mornings and the evenings will be lighter and that makes me happy! The challenge for this month over on The Creative Team blog is texture this month, and a perfect way to show you my box from yesterday' class at the shop. We had a brilliant time, and all of these ladies created wonderful boxes, all of them very, very different.

 

Here are a few of them.

Here is a my box.

 You can check out this month's creations from some of the team here, and we would love you to join in.
Have a very Happy and Creative 1st of the month
Hugs

Dyan Reaveley is coming to The Artistic Stamper!

I have been bursting at the seams to keep this under my hat until today!! Mal and I are absolutely delighted and honoured to have Dyan Reaveley, one of Ranger's Signature Designers, and creator of Dylusions range of products, coming to teach at The Artistic Stamper Craft Store & Art Bar!!

Dyan will be here on June 8th and 9th teaching 4 new classes for 2013. Each one is unique and you can book any one of them, or all four of them. Never journaled before?  Dyan's unique talent will have you creating beautiful and fabulous pages that will set you off on that journaling road!

All of details on the classes and booking are now online, and if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask me.
Am I excited?  you bet!! Cannot wait! Hope to see you in June or before....
Have a very Happy Easter, and eat lots of chocolate and be creative!
Hugs

Tim's Tattered Floral Challenge

I am always up for a challenge, and when I saw Tim's Tattered Floral Challenge, I was so ready to take part and create something with what probably is my favourite die of all time. OK, so I am very, very close to the deadline... I like to sail close to the wind!! It finishes in less than a day! Actually Tim's pin inspired me to use some hessian that I have, and also use the Distress paints, which I love! I did prep the hessian ( Burlap in the USA and Canada) to stop it fraying too much with Ranger's Glue 'n Seal, and then die cut it.

 I also used the mini tattered florals too. I painted them with blue tones of the paint, and added lighter colours and some of the Picket Fence on the edges too.

A silver button threaded with very fine hessian string through the middle, and lots of manipulating of the leaves to make it more flower like. It is actually a brooch, and providing the sewing doesn't come undone, I will probably wear it!

I feel a few more of these coming on.... Thank you Tim for the inspiration....
You have still a few hours to join in if you feel creative, and I believe Mario has some great blog candy too!
Hugs

Tweet tweet!

I haven't really had time to do much creating this month..where has the time gone ? But I have a little demonstration and a make 'n take tonight, and I just wanted to show as many aspects of rubber stamping that could be fitted into a few minutes. So I thought, a wooden bird, a stamp, some embossing powder and a couple of colours of distress ink. What could be simpler. Stamp your image, (I used the Flourish Swirls set) and emboss it in silver embossing powder. Because the distress ink will slide nicely over the embossing powder, ink up the wood with a bright colour, add some darker shading around the edges. I added a gem as an eye and a  little silver flower as an extra. Very simple and will work perfectly for cards too.

I will let you know how simple it was later :)) Have a very creative day
Hugs

Tick Tock!

It has been a couple of weeks since I have blogged...no excuses, just work and life getting in the way! We had the infinite pleasure of having Mr. Andy Skinner come to teach at the Art Bar these past two weekends, and a wonderful time was had by all who took part in his classes. Thank you Andy, it was a pleasure :)

 

 

Paint techniques, chipboard, lots of chatting, lots of silence!! and lots of tea drinking took part to produce these beautiful eclectic clocks.

Mine is hanging in the classroom if you need to tell the time!

Thank you to everyone who took part, and Andy will be back later in the year for more classes.
Have a creative day
Hugs

Tag!- you're it!

Do you remember that game when you were at school? I certainly do, and I could never run fast enough !! lol. The workshop I taught on Saturday at the shop was full of tags, and lot of different distress products on different mediums, and was fun way to learn new ideas and surfaces. The girls all did fabulous tags, and I did a few.. well not many as I had already done them! Thank you to everyone who came along. Here are the girls hard at work,

 

and here is one of Sandra in her new best hat!! Sorry Sandra , just had to show it!!

I took a couple of scans of my tags, and thought I could enter them into the Creative Team Challenge , which this month is tags!

Well, OK, maybe not, but why not show us your tags? You can even be in with a chance to win £15.00 worth of Artistic Stamper stamps. Just have a look at the girls brilliantly creative tags here.
Have a creative day
Hugs

Stamping Contrasts in Craft Stamper!

I did tell you that buses often come along in twos, and today the third bus came along in quick succession, as I got my April copy of Craft Stamper today, and oooh I have been published! Actually, The Artistic Stamper supplied the stamps set for the projects that myself, Kate Crane, Gail Milburn and Joanne Allison created. I am loving them all.. I cannot show you any of them, but there will be an extra piece by myself on line after the magazine is officially out.   Check out the back page too! I have designed the free stamp for the enxt issue :)) The magazine is officially out on Friday, and we will have copies in the shop.
Here is a little sneaky peek....

Have a creative evening or day depending on where you are in the world!
Hugs

Jumping on the bus!

You know that saying "you wait all day for a bus, and then two come along together"? well today I have done two blog posts!! This morning's one for the winners of my blog candy, and now one showing you a couple of the samples that I did at Stamperama. I did give almost all of them away, and my phone didn't take good photos, and my camera battery died! So, I kept a couple that I liked, and thought I would show you them here.
I was demoing Distress paints and Dylusion sprays. This one is of the distress paints, and I stamped Kiki in black distress paint, and just loved the effect I got by accident!

This one is using a new Crafter's Workshop stencil, , Dylusions new colours of spray, and Kiki again!

You can come and play with the new Distress paints and learn or relearn some Distress techniques with me on Saturday at one of my pop up workshops. If you want to book, and find that postage is added, don't worry I will refund it to you.
I also have a workshop on Sunday at Christine Emberson's Spellbinders Academy, if you fancy creating a gorgeous canvas :)

I may well be back on another bus tomorrow..lol In the meantime stay creative
Hugs