Keep Your Head ~ inspired by a Vera Lane Studio image

Hi everyone! I'm here today with an art journal page featuring one of the new release images from Lil Queen of Hearts by Vera Lane Studio. I combined her with a saying which seemed appropriate for her as well as for all of us during this unsettling time.

I coloured Lil Queen with a mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils, adding a little silver gel pen beside the spots on her fur trim. She was then fussy cut leaving a narrow white border, matted with black cardstock, and fussy cut a second time leaving a narrow black border. I just love this image...she's so cute!

The 6x6 watercolour paper background was generously loaded at the top edge with Lindy's Rudolph's Nose Red and then Witch's Potion Purple Starburst Sprays. I used a waterbrush to encourage the drips to run down the page. Once those layers were dry, Candied Apple Distress Oxide Ink was applied through TCW Plaid Fringe stencil to tone down the white between drips as well as adding more texture. Hearts were die cut from German book pages and coloured with Festive Berries Distress Oxide Ink. They were edged with black Big Brush Pen before being adhered to the areas around Lil Queen. A length of black and white checked washi was glued to a strip of white cardstock and placed at the bottom of the page to ground the Queen. There's something about black and white check that always reminds me of Alice in Wonderland.

The saying was printed onto white cardstock, cut into sections, and matted with black. Black circles were created with a hole punch and scattered around the background. Black Pitt Pen was used to doodle some plus signs and a wiggly border around three sides of the page. The page edges were inked with black Big Brush Pen to serve as a franme for the page.

Thanks for joining Lil Queen of Hearts and me today. We are always glad for the virtual company. We hope that you are able to stay safe and keep your head even when others are not. If you are looking for inspiration, pop over to the Vera Lane Studio Etsy shop to see the plethora of fabulous images. If you want inspiration and company, visit the Vera Lane Studio Facebook group. It's a great place to hang out and you'll be among friends :)

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Hello Spring artist trading card - inspired by Vera Lane Studio images

Hi everyone! We had a Hello Spring Swap which has now become a Hello Spring Challenge going on in the Vera Lane Studio Facebook group. I have created a fun little card featuring two Vera Lane Studio images as a kind of inspiration piece for the Challenge since the DT are not eligible for the prize. I used one of the Fleur Fairy images as well as a bird from the Birdy set.This image is called FairieFleur and she was coloured with a mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils before she was fussy cut leaving a narrow white border. She was then matted with black cardstock and fussy cut a second time leaving a narrow black border. Foam tape was added to the back to pop her up off the background. The tiny bird was printed onto a scrap of pink patterned paper and shaded with a waterbrush loaded with Inktense pencil.

The ATC background, which is 2.5x3.5 inches, was cut from a gel printed paper. The black tracks were created by running a toy car through black paint and then printing the design on the gel plate (so fun!) Jet Black Archival ink was used to stamp the rings. Three tiny flowers were punched from yellow paper and inked with  a deeper yellow to shade the petal edges before a tiny peatrl was added to each center. The saying was printed onto white cardstock, matted with black. Black Big Brush Pen was used to edge the card creating the look of a frame.

Thanks for joining Fairie Fleur, her bird friend, and me today. We appreciate that. Be sure to pop by the Vera Lane Studio Etsy shop to meet all of Fleur's other friends. They will keep you distracted and creative in this difficult time. Come by the Vera Lane Studio Facebook group to say hi and see all of the gorgeous Hello Spring Challenge entries. We'd love to have you play along, too.

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Chessie's Advice ~ inspired by a Vera lane Studio image

Hi everyone! I decided to have a little Alice in Wonderland fun with today's art journal page. Last week, Janet from Vera Lane Studio released a fabulous new digi set called Cheshire Cat, Mouse, and Toad and I chose Chessie to star on my page.

 I coloured Chessie in Disney colours  using Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils, and adding some Clear Wink of Stella to make his grin sparkle. He was then fussy cut leaving a narrow white border, matted with black, and fussy cut a second time leaving a narrow black border to help him show up against the background.

The background (6x6 inch watercolour paper, was spritzed with Lindy's Drop Dead Gorgeous Green and Jack in the Pulpit Teal Starburst Sprays so there is quite a shimmer to the page. The circle in the center of the page was created by applying Jet Black Archival Ink to Carabelle Studio The Geometriks #3 stamp. Extra dots were added outside the circle with the same ink and a Rubber Moon Inksplat stamp. Olive Green Archival Ink was used to stamp two of the leaf stamps from Bo Bunny Simply Flowers set to create the foliage at the top. A few of the leaves were coloured in with a Zig Clean Colour Brush pen to add variety. A tree limb was cut from kraft cardstock and shaded with Neocolor II crayons and water. A Neocolor II crayon was also applied with a waterbrush to shade inside the circle and beneath the branches, as well as around the page edges.

Small white flowers were punched from cardstock. The centers were coloured with Gelatos and water and the outer petal edges with Picked Raspberry Distress Oxide Ink before the enamel dot centers were added. Tiny leaves were cut from dotty cardstock and shaded with Olive Archival Ink before being adhered to the branches and limb. The wording was printed on white cardstock, matted with black. A scribbly border was added around the outsides of the page and the edges were darkened with Black Big Brush Pen to finish the page.

Thanks for joining Chessie and me today. We are glad that you virtually joined us :) When you get a chance, pop by the Vera Lane Studio Etsy shop to see Cheshire Cat's friends and relatives. There are so many images to spark ideas and keep you busy while you stay home. Stop by the Vera Lane Studio Facebook group for a chat or a look-see, too.

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Happy St. Patrick's Day - inspired by a Vera Lane Studio image

Hi everyone! Happy St. Patrick's Day to those who celebrate, Irish or not...LOL I created a sweet little artist trading card to spread good wishes and maybe a little luck on March 17. The digi set by Vera Lane Studio is called Irish Luck and comes with three images and three sayings. I coloured Delaney with Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils, making her a beautiful redhead in the process.She was fussy cut leaving a white border, matted with black, and fussy cut again leaving a black border.

The background began with a piece of green and white patterned paper adhered to chipboard. It was inked around and had circles stamped with Fern Green Archival Ink. The circles were shaded with Inktense pencil activated with water. White Texture Paste was scraped through TCW Tiny Circles stencil and then brightened with white paint pen once dry. The saying was printed onto white cardstock matted with black and the shamrock in the top left corner was created with puffy heart stickers and a gel pen. A simple border was doodled around the edges which were then darkened with black Big Brush pen. Delaney was popped up on foam tape to add some dimension.

Thanks for joining Delaney and me today. We hope you have a lovely St. Patrick's Day and that you "get your Irish on"! Check out Delaney's friends in the Vera Lane Studio Etsy shop and pop by the Vera Lane Studio Facebook group for lots of inspiration and good company.

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Alice will decide - inspired by a Vera Lane Studio image

Hi everyone! Oh my word, did you see the new release by Vera Lane Studio yesterday? It's called Alice and White Rabbit and I am smitten! I love anything Alice in Wonderland but these two are absolutely adorable.I decided to create with them one at a time and today it's Alice's turn.

I coloured Alice with my usual mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils. Tiny pearls were added as buttons on her dress before she was fussy cut leaving a narrow white border. Alice was matted with black cardstock and fussy cut a second time leaving a narrow black border to help her stand out against whatever background I created. You know me...there's never a plan :)

I first added a layer of white gesso to the watercolor paper background because Distress Oxide Inks behave differently on gesso and it's fun to change it up. Salty Ocean and Squeezed Lemonade Distress Oxide Inks were applied to the background blending to a pretty green where they overlapped. Carabelle Studio Weft Fabric and Numbers stencil was laid over the now dry Distress Oxide and a baby wipe was used to remove the colour through the holes. Once dry, a Viva Las Vegas stamp was applied loosely using Manganese Blue Archival Ink and no block. A strip of black and cream dotty paper was glued across the bottom of the page to ground Alice. Before she was adhered to the page, a small version of a AIW page, A TH A card, and an Alice Tea Party ticket were inked with Coffee Archival and layered to form a collage with her as the focal.

The quote from Lewis Carroll's Alice was printed onto white cardstock and matted with black. A strip of checked washi was added under the first sentence to add emphasis. A tiny rub-on was added to the left of Alice's legs and two black enamel dots accented the sides of the dotty strip. To finish the page, a black border was doodled around the edges which were then edged with black Big Brush Pen to create a frame.

Thanks for joining Alice and me today. We are delighted you did that. When you get a chance, check out the Alice and White Rabbit set in the Vera Lane Studio Etsy shop and be sure to return on Wednesday this week...just sayin'. We would love to have you join us on the Vera Lane Studio Facebook group where this week you are sure to see more inspiration from this set. We have an ATC swap going on for March with the theme of Spring that we'd love to have you join as well.

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Ladies' Faces ATCs - inspired by Vera Lane Studio images

Hi everyone! For my second DT post today, I decided to play with two more of the four Ladies' Faces digi stamps from Vera Lane Studio. I absolutely love this set, having already created an art journal page with one of them when it was first released. Three down...one to go.LOL This time I decided to create two artist trading cards.

The ladies were coloured with Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils, fussy cutting them leaving a narrow white border, and a second time leaving a narrow black border. Foam tape was used to pop them up once they were adhered to the backgrounds.

The cards themselves were cut from thin chipboard covered with scraps left from a  background making session done at an earlier time. As near as I can tell, they are mainly Lindy's Starburst sprays mopped up with white cardstock. Stamping and stencilling with Jet Black Archival, as well as Texture Paste, and gesso rings were added to the cards. To ground the two ladies, a strip of checked washi tape adhered to white cardstock was added to the bottom of each card. The words are Chit Chat Stickers matted with black and popped up with foam tape. Black Big Brush pen was used to darken the outside edges, both to frame the cards and to disguise the layers of different papers.

Thanks for joining the Ladies and me today. When you get a chance, pop by the Vera Lane Studio Etsy shop to meet all of their friends. We'd love to have you join us on the Vera Lane Studio Facebook group as well. There is always something new to inspire you and the company is wonderful :)

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Wink ~ inspired by a Vera Lane Studio image

Hi everyone! Wow! Full moon, time change, and Friday 13th all in the same week...that's a challenge but no worries...this sweet image from the Daisy and Wink set by Vera Lane Studio has a wonderful strategy for dealing with all three and she's sharing it today on an art journal page.

I coloured Wink with Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils, fussy cutting her to leave a narrow white border. She was then matted with black cardstock and fussy cut a second time leaving a narrow black border which helps her stand out against any background.

Colour was added to the 6x6 inch watercolour paper with Picked Raspberry and Squeezed Lemonade Distress Oxide Inks. Jet Black Archival Ink was sponged through AALL & Create Lotza Dotz stencil with white Posca Paint Pen dots added inside some of the circles and black pen added as messy outlines. |A Viva Las Vegas background stamp was applied in a few places using Magenta Hue Archival Ink. The same ink was used to stamp some script to add more texture. Black gesso lines were added with a gift card once the two strips of washi were adhered to ground Wink.

The wording was printed onto white cardstock, matted with black. Once it was in place and Wink was situated, pieces of drywall mesh were added to add still more texture in three places. A die cut star topped with a threaded button and matted with black cardstock was adhered to the top left corner to balance the design. The page was finished by edging the page with Neocolor II crayon activated with a waterbrush, as well as a doodled border and black Big Brush pen to darken the page edges.

Thanks for joining Wink and me today. You can find Daisy and Wink as well as a plethora of other fabulous images in the Vera Lane Studio Etsy shop. Pop by the Vera Lane Studio Facebook group for more inspiration. We have a Spring ATC swap going on for the month of March and would love to have you join us.

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Captured!

Hi everyone! A while ago, I picked up these cute little mason jar tags on clearance at Michaels. I had no idea what I would do with them but the price was right and I always enjoy the challenge. They are  approximately 2 x 3 inches big which turns out to be the perfect size for the tiniest TH Paperdoll figures.

I first inked the outside edges with Coffee Archival and then used Inktense pencil and water to shade under the rim and between the white lines on the jar rings. White coloured pencil was used to highlight. The backgrounds were stamped and stencilled with Coffee Archival Ink or Gesso. To ground the people and give a little interest behind them, tiny collages were made with the smallest of scraps of vintage papers and washi tape, all of which were edged with Coffee Archival ink.

The people and the outside edges of the jars were edged with black Big Brush pen to help them stand out against the kraft background. To finish the tags, TH Remnant rub words were added as well as a number stamped die cut tag attached with glue and baker's twine. I think they turned out so cute!

Thanks for stopping by!

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

There is no tri - art journal page inspired by a Vera Lane Studio image

Hi everyone! I have a fun journal page featuring one of the new Dinos images released yesterday by Vera Lane Studio. All three of these guys are so cute. I chose the triceratops to combine with Yoda from the Princess Leia and Yoda set so that I could use this pun-tastic sentiment. It made me laugh and suited these two perfectly.

I coloured Yoda with a mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils. Ceratops was printed onto pink dotty cardstock and shaded with the same pencil brands. His spots were done with a black Pitt pen and his eye white with a Posca paint pen.

Both Yoda and Ceratops were fussy cut leaving a narrow white border, fussy cut, and matted with black cardstock. The black was then fussy cut to leave a narrow black border.

The paper in this journal is 6x6 inch watercolour paper. The top section was spritzed withHeidi Swapp Ocean Color Shine and the bottom with Patina. Painter's tape was used to mask off the area not wanted each time. Lucky Clover or Faded Jeans Distress Oxide was sponged through TCW Plaid Fringe stencil depending on whether \i was on the blue or green section. Jet Black Archival was used to stamp a VLV grid pattern and French Ultramarine was used to stamp Ellen Hutson Bokeh circles. Because I wanted bright white little circles and anything wet would pick up the Color Shine colours, I punched .25 circles from cardstock and adhered them in clusters. They were outlined with black pen and then shaded with Inktense pencil plus water. To separate the grass from the sky and ground Ceratops and Yoda, a black and white sticker was placed along the dividing line. Black gesso lines were added to the page with a gift card.

The saying was printed onto white cardstock and matted with black. Two labels from a Tracie Fox download were added after the word triceratops was printed from the computer. Pink pencil crossed out the tri as per Yoda's wishes. To finish the page, a black photo corner was added to the upper right, a wiggly border was doodled, and black Big Brush pen pluse French Ultramarine Archival ink were added around the page edges.

Thanks for joining Ceratops, Yoda and me today. We love that you did! To check out the new Dinos release as well as the other awesome digi images and collage sheets, be sure and pop over to the Vera Lane Studio Etsy shop. You can also see all kinds of inspiring projects by the VLS team and our wonderfully talented Facebook group members if you come by the FB group for a visit.

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie