Let the Games Begin - Rick St Dennis Airless Chambers post

There  are so many things about this image,  Smilin' Joe Skull with Roses, that really amuse me: the broken skull contrasted with the beautiful roses, the hat with the ace of spades tucked into the band, the burning cigarette (Live) in Joe's (not so live) mouth. Anyway, I just HAD to colour him and create a mixed media background where he could star. You can find Smilin Joe in Rick's Zibbet shop or his Etsy shop.

I coloured Joe with Prismacolor pencils and tried out a new tip I thought might work. I was watching an encaustic video and the instructor used a piece of pantyhose to buff the wax and remove some of the bloom. Anyone who colours with Prismacolor pencils knows that this will occur at times if you press too hard and get a waxy build-up. Well, guess what...the buffing with the nylon removes some of that build-up or bloom, too, allowing the colours to be more true without the haze. Bonus! Joe was fussy cut and matted in black both for greater strength to pop him up and also for greater contrast with the background.

The background began as a layer of subtly printed kraft paper, distressed and inked on the edges, and matted with black cardstock. Jet Black Archival was used to apply the Dylusions  harlequin stencilling. White gesso was used to apply the TCW Mini Circles stencilling. A strip of black cardstock was embossed with a chain link pattern and highlighted with Treasure Gold wax so the pattern would show. Two playing cards and a layer of cheesecloth were adhered behind the popped up image.

The sentiment was computer generated, torn around, and inked on the edges with Black Soot Distress ink. It was then popped up on foam and baker's twine was wrapped to the back from each end. Black enamel dots embellished the ends. The two final details were the skull charm and a black corner triangle to which more stencilling was applied. I love how this turned out...it makes me smile.

Thanks for joining Joe and me today. We do appreciate your fine company. For more inspiration using Rick's fabulous images, fun challenges, and some wonderful sharing of projects and knowledge, come and visit:
our Facebook group
our Airless Chambers blog
our Rick St Dennis Gallerie
our Tuts and Comments blog
Hope to see you there.

I am entering this card in the following challenges:
Cuttlebug Mania ~ We Think You Are All Charming (Cuttlebug machine and Lifestyle EF)
Creative Card Crew ~ #65 Masculine
Loves Rubberstamps ~ #110 Anything Goes
Haunted Design House ~ Macabre Monday Eerie Inspiration (skellies)
The Corrosive Challenge ~ #202 Color Me Happy (Prismacolor pencils)
Left of Center ~ #34 Use metal (skull charm)
A Step in the Dark ~ #5 Dark Fantasy/Anything Goes

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Irresistible ~ The East Wind Challenge #10

Happy Canada Day to my fellow Canadians and Happy Birthday to my husband, Steve! Once again this year, Steve has kindly arranged for most Canadians to take the day off...lol. He might even have fireworks near you to help celebrate his birthday.

Since it's July 1, it's also time for a new challenge at The East Wind. The first of the month is our challenge where the entire DT plays with the same image, the freebie that you will also receive if you subscribe to The East Wind newsletter. Our theme this time is Ribbon and the image is called Belle of the Ball. Isn't she pretty? I coloured her with Prismacolor pencils and fussy cut her leaving a narrow white border. I then matted her in black and fussy cut her a second time.

The card itself is very simple. I used a rectangle of Tim Coffey paper matted in black as the background. A length of orange mesh ribbon was layered over a strip of black cardstock and then wrapped to the back. A black satin ribbon with a picot edge was layered over that and tied in a bow. The sentiment which comes from Create With TLC was cut with a Spellbinders Label One die and then matted in black. Both the image and the sentiment were adhered to the background with foam tape. To complete the card, three black enamel dots and some doodling were added.

Thanks so much for stopping by today. I appreciate your interest and support. When you get a minute, pop over to The East Wind blog to see how my talented teamies have used this same gorgeous image. I love how different she looks and the various ways we used her. We're hoping you'll be inspired to play along with us in our Ribbon challenge.

I am entering this card in the following challenges:
613 Avenue Create ~ #78 Anything Goes
Opus Gluei ~ #186 Ribbon, Twine, or String (All Tied Up)
The Corrosive Challenge ~ #202 Use favourite colouring medium (Prismacolor pencils)
Speedy Fox & Friends ~ #218 Use Mesh
Suzy Bee's Bloomin' Challenge ~ #35 Anything Goes

Life is good; so is art

Bonnie

Hello ~ CYP Challenge # 220

Hi, everyone. It's time for a new challenge at Craft your Passion. The theme this week is Ribbon so we want to see you using some of that on your project. Our awesome sponsor this time is artbymiran and I chose to play with the lovely Shaylee Fairy. I coloured Shaylee with my Prismacolor pencils, inking the sky with Broken China Distress ink. Icicle Stickles was added to the wings with a paint brush. The image was cut along its frame lines, matted in black cardstock, and popped up on foam tape for dimension.

The background papers come from MME's Follow Your Heart – Be Amazing paper pad and were each matted with black cardstock to define the layers and add greater contrast. The yellow layer was given faux stitching with a Micron pen. Once the two were adhered to each other, a length of turquoise grosgrain ribbon was wrapped around the stack and glued to the back.

The Hello greeting was computer generated, cut with a Spellbinders die, and matted in black. It was then popped up on a double layer of foam tape and adhered over the ribbon. Two flat black pearls were placed on the ends. Tiny pale turquoise rhinestones were spaced on both sides of the greeting label. A black tab was cut to tuck in behind the image and then faux stitched with a white paint pen. A second tab was cut smaller and then faux stitched in black before being placed over the black layer.

Shaylee and I both thank you for joining us today. We appreciate your wonderful company. When you get a minute, pop over to the Craft Your Passion Challenges blog to see the wonderful creations by the rest of my talented teamies. We would love to see you join us for our Ribbon Challenge.

I am entering this card in the following challenges:
artbymiran ~ #9 Anything Goes
Crafting by Designs ~ Here Comes Summer
Crafty Creations ~ #266 Things With Wings
Crafty Sentiment  Designs ~ Summer/Summer Colours
613 Avenue Create ~ #78 Anything Goes
Dragonfly Dreams ~ #6 Anything With Wings

Life is good; so is art.

Bonnie

Hug Your Cat ~ TEW new release

Since it's Friday, it's time for a new release at The East Wind. This one features Unky's new character, Rainbow Raver Anj Hoola Hoop.

This particular image is called Kitty Kitty...love it! I coloured Anj with Prismacolor pencils and fussy cut her. I then matted her in black cardstock because I love that look and the way it creates contrast with the background. Ang and her sweet friend were popped up on foam tape and set aside to continue their cuddle while I created the background.

I covered a #8 manila tag with a scrap of yellow and pink music paper. Stencilling was added with Magenta Archival ink sponged through TCW's Tiny Circles template. A different pattern was added using Black Soot through the TCW's Well Rounded stencil. A strip of black and white dotty paper was inked on the edges with Black Big brush pen before being chopped into shorter lengths and added to the left side and bottom. Another little triangle was added to the top right for balance and flow.

The sentiment was computer generated, coloured in with a pink Sharpie, and matted in black. These words were popped up on foam tape for dimension and to create a shadow. A small heart was die cut from dotty pink DP as well as black. They were offset, faux stitched, and popped up on foam. Three tiny black buttons were threaded with pink and adhered to the bottom left corner of the tag. The final touch was to add a topper of green ribbon with a bit of sparkly gold in it. This pulls the green from the image into the background and draws the eye to the top of the tag. The eye looks for similarities/repetition so it goes to the image first and then moves through the tag to find that other snippet of green.

Thanks for visiting today. Anj, Kitty Kitty, and I appreciate your fine company. When you get a chance, pop over to our Facebook group to see other examples using this fun new The East Wind release. It's always so fun to see how differently the DT interpret and showcase the same image.

I am entering this tag in the following challenges:
613 Avenue Create ~ #77 Anything Goes/ twist: Pink
QKR Stampede ~ #94 Include a Dog or Cat
Crafters Cafe ~ #69 Polka Dots and Ribbon
Try It on Tuesdays ~ Tags
Digi Choosday ~ #25 Anything But a Square Card
Cutie Pie Challenge ~ #72 Girls, Girls, Girls + Cute
All Crafts Challenge ~  June/July Anything but a card

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Guest Designing at Cute Card Thursday

Hi everyone. Rick St. Dennis is sponsoring the current challenge at Cute Card Thursday so the EDT have the opportunity to guest design. The theme for their challenge is Circles and I had the ideal image to use for this: A Stitch in Time which can be found at Etsy or Zibbet. I love clocks and the image of this guy from the SIT Maintenance Company hand stitching the numbers onto the clock face is delightful. I coloured him up using my Prismacolor pencils, fussy cut the image, and then matted it on a die cut circle of black cardstock.

The background paper started out as a designer paper from BasicGrey in a kraft colour featuring a tiny check. The paper was embossed with a Sizzix Brick folder. The bricks were then darkened with Vintage Photo and Walnut Stain Distress inks and scuffed lightly with white gesso. The same treatment was done to the edges with the addition of Walnut Brown Big Brush pen. A larger rectangle of black cardstock was cut to fit inside the white card base and the brick rectangle was adhered on top towards the upper edge.

The image was popped up on foam dots. The sentiment, "You cannot find time; you must make time" was computer generated, edged with Walnut Stain Distress ink, and the words which would sit on the brick background were matted in black. All were popped up on foam tape. The two words I wished to emphasize were created with circle stickers which sparkle in the light. To complete the card and further the themes of clock mechanisms and circles, metal gears were grouped in opposite corners and adhered with Glossy Accents.

Thanks so much for popping by today and thanks to Cute Card Thursday for allowing us to play along with their Circles challenge. When you get a chance, why not check it out! We'd love to see what you create.

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Believe in Magic ~ RSD Altered Dictionary Spread

Hi everyone. I'm here today with an EDT project I created in my nearly completed altered dictionary. I chose to do L for Legend so I could feature this wonderful Rick St. Dennis image called Lil Wizard which can be found in Rick's Zibbet shop. My dictionary is filled with whimsical and humourous characters so this guy fits right in.

I coloured Wiz with Prismacolor pencils, fussy cut him, and then matted him in black. He was popped up on foam tape and then backed with cheesecloth to add texture and the feeling of mist..

The background started with the two pages being adhered to the adjacent ones for strength and to better stand up to the mixed media process. Then the pages were gessoed except for the word and definition. Blue and purple Neocolor II watercolour crayons were scribbled onto the background, spread with water, and then given a coat of gesso to knock the colour back. Black ink was added to the top of the pages and allowed to drip as well as being splattered onto the background. Various scraps of three different blue and purple designer papers were layered onto the pages. Stencilling was done with gesso and TCW templates. Stamping was added with a text stamp and Forget-Me-Not Archival ink and more stencilling was done with gold metallic paint.

Bits of washi tape, scraps of die cut borders, brads,  and punched circles were adhered around the page. Metal accents in the form of punched stars, letter stickers, and an embossed and punched circle were also scattered around the spread to bring in the play of light and create a little magic. The sentiment was computer generated, matted in black and popped up on foam. To emphasize the word magic, it was added in shiny black stickers with white raised letters. The Ll letters were adhered to the metal circle to mark which dictionary spread this is.

To complete the pages, Black Big Brush pen was messily used around the edges. Doodling with both black and white pen was added. Black gesso rings made with a bottle top and rows of dots made with a catalyst tool were  introduced. To tie the red from the image into the rest of the spread, an arrow was coloured with a red marker, Glossy Accented, and added to the top corner. The visual triangle was completed with a scrap of red scalloped border glued to the bottom left corner.

Thanks for visiting today. Wiz and I both appreciate it. For more inspiration using Rick's fabulous images, fun challenges, and some wonderful sharing of projects and knowledge, come and visit:

our Facebook group
our Airless Chambers blog
our Rick St Dennis Gallerie
our Tuts and Comments blog

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

eclectic Paperie and Add a Little Dazzle Blog Hop

Welcome to our joint blog hop with Add a Little Dazzle. We are so excited to partner with them and have had so much fun playing with their products.  They have a beautiful collection of metal sheets, in a variety of colors, that are perfect for mixed media projects.. We have two amazing days of inspirational projects so make sure to stop by tomorrow.

 First we’d like to share a little bit about the two companies…

eclectic Paperie is a different breed of craft store, conceived as more than just a place where you can purchase supplies, we believe in the strength of collaboration, in coming together and sharing with like-minded crafters. Our goal is to offer a mixed media marketplace where a generation of artists can congregate, explore, imagine, and inspire one another.

We specialize in an exclusive line of craft metal sheets that helps you take your crafting to the next level. Whether you are a seasoned or new crafter, our craft metal sheets will help you create unique projects that will make you stand out among the crowd. Are you ready to take your crafting to the next level? Add a Little Dazzle Craft Metal Sheets will help you turn the ordinary into the extraordinary.

Prize Alert!

Make sure to stop by and visit each of the Design Team Blogs for a chance to win 1 of 2 prize packages from eclectic Paperie and Add a Little Dazzle  valued at $25.  You have until Friday, June 27th to enter.  The winners will be announced on both blogs on Saturday, June 28th.  You must leave a comment on all blogs.

So Are You Ready for Some Amazing Inspiration?

I created a Steampunk altered canvas for my project using 4 different colours of the Add a Dazzle Craft Metal Sheets. I embossed a piece of Black Diamond with a Tim Holtz Sizzix diamond plate folder and cut it into two random shapes layering it with some scraps of designer paper in two different prints. All four pieces were adhered to the canvas with Scor tape. Stamping was done on the large piece of designer paper with Coffee Archival ink and Wendy Vecchi 's Mesh Background stamp as well as a Tim Holtz splatter stamp and text one. Jet Black Archival ink was used to add a little more texture using one of Dina Wakley's Textures stamps.

The heart was die cut twice: once from black cardstock and once from a Brushed Copper metal sheet which had been embossed with the Tim Holtz Sizzix Riveted Metal folder. This metal embosses and cuts like butter...love it! Gears were cut with Tim Holtz dies from Diamond Black, Golden Glimmer, and silver which is the reverse of the metal sheets. The copper coloured gears were cut from scraps of the heart embossed metal.

The Tim Holtz Daydream  face of the my gear-head woman was stamped with Pale Ochre Archival ink onto white cardstock and coloured with Prismacolor pencils before she was fussy cut and adhered to the background. Some gears were then adhered as her hair and three to the opposite corner to create balance. 

The butterfly was fussy cut from another scrap of designer paper and popped up on foam tape. To help the red make more sense in the piece, two lengths of red grosgrain ribbon were added under the chin and a few red rhinestones were added to the gears.

The lettering for "Follow Your Heart" is a mix of stickers. The ampersand is an Idea-ology Ransom Parts letter and the "Leave Ordinary Behind" comes from the TH Random Quotes stamp set. It was stamped with Versamark and embossed in black before being torn around and inked with Black Soot Distress ink.

Thanks for hopping by today. To continue the hop, visit Kim Schofield's blog and see her fabulous make. Remember to leave a comment on each blog for a chance to win. Tune in again tomorrow for part 2 of this fun blog hop from eclectic Paperie and Add a Little Dazzle.

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Here are the links for the Day 1 hop:

Monica Weaverwww.addalittledazzle.com

Bonnie Irvine - http://www.artfuldigits.blogspot.com/ (ME)
Kim Schofield – http://paperiepetals.blogspot.com
Martha Lucia Gomez- www.stampartpapel.com

Sherry Cheever - http://sherrycheever.blogs.splitcoaststampers.com/
Sue Lelli - http://suelelli.blogspot.com/
Toni Burrows - http://craftdabbler-toni.blogspot.com/

Lydia www.lydiawalker.blogspot.co.uk

Adriana Templeton - http://www.scrappygoddess.blogspot.com/