Mini canvas with cogs and rusting powder

This corrugated panel nearly ended up on a kraft card base, but I thought it looked better on this mini canvas. 2 down 3 to go in the pack I bought late last year!

I used black gesso on the canvas, then added stripes with black texture paste and a stripes layering stencil. I coloured a scrap of corrugated card with brushed pewter distress stain spray, then added some glue and rusting powder and a spritz with white vinegar. Love how the rust appears like magic!

 I diecut some Memory Box cogs and coloured them with the pewter stain spray and brushed them with black soot distress ink on some edges. The heart is an Mpress die that I coloured with weathered wood and black soot distress ink. The last time I used these gears in a heart was when I cut up a Johnny Walker scotch package. Still have some of those so I must do some more!

 The sentiment is from 2 different sets stamped onto tissue paper and glued on with glue n seal. 

I found some little d rings at an art supply store to glue onto the back of these canvases so I can hang them up.

I'm linking up to a few challenges.

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday has an anything goes theme.

Stamplorations Mixed Media Challenge wants us to use a stencil. I used Tim Holtz stripes layering stencil.

I used snippets of card to decut the cogs so I'm visiting the playground at Pixie's Crafty Workshop

Supplies:

Tim Holtz stripes layering stencil; black texture paste; Dusty Attic rusting powder; brushed pewter distress spray stain; black soot & weathered wood distress inks; Memory Box antique gear set & min gears dies; Mpress heart die; Annabelle stamps and Happy Little Stampers stamps; heart brads from stash.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x

Rusting powder on a corrugated scrap

Hi everyone, I've been playing with a new toy, rusting powder.

I had a piece of a cardboard box and tore most of the top layer off to expose the corrugations.

I sprayed with antiqued bronze distress stain, well actually I painted this on as the nozzle was blocked! 

When this was dry I painted on some collage glue then sprinkled on the rusting powder, tipping the excess back into the jar. Next, spray with white vinegar and set aside to dry. I love the rusty texture as it is really rough and scratchy.

I'm linking up to a new to me mixed media challenge at Anything but cute.

You can create any project but you must use a wet medium. So distress stain and vinegar count hopefully! The rusting powder is my new item.

I stamped the tiny you onto tissue paper and attached it with glue n seal.

The heart was cut from a snippet of metal sheet. I painted it with snow cap alcohol mixative then coated it with glossy accents. I decided I wanted a red heart so I coloured it with an alcohol pen.

The bird was punched from a scrap of watercolor paper and coloured with distress inks.

The love diecut was coloured with platinum inka paste watered down and painted on.

I'm also linking up to the challenges at Simon Says Stamp Monday where love is in the air with a touch of red.

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday where it's anything goes.

The playground gates are about to clang shut, so I'm rushing over there too.

Pixie's Crafty Workshop. You only need to use 1 snippet to play along.

Supplies:

SU bird punch: Memory Box woodland branch and heart delights dies: Couture Creations Love script die; Dusty Attic rusting powder; antiqued bronze distress stain; Happy Little Stampers thinking of you stamp; versafine ink; tissue paper; glue n seal; platinum inka gold paste; distress inks.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x

Owl love!

I was inspired by a few challenges with this card.

Color Throwdown for the colours.

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday challenge, create with critters. I've already recently made cards with dogs and frogs, so my choices were limited, and the owl won!

The background was made by soaking my watercolour paper in water and adding brushos. I ended up smooshing it all around on my craft mat so I could get more of an even blue. 

Happy Little Stampers CAS challenge has a smooshing theme.

I coloured the owl with prismacolor pencils, so I'm also linking to Addicted to Stamps & More where the theme is to make your mark.

Supplies:

Stamps: SU owl; Lawn Fawn scripty sayings.

Other: versacolor and versafine ink; clear ep; brushos; prismacolor pencils; hearts diecut from snippets from another project using Memory Box heart delights; googly eyes.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x

More smooshed soft colours

Hi everyone. my holidays are nearly over so I thought I'd better get back into the craft room before life gets too busy again!

This tag uses up the rest of the sheet I made smooshing leftover distress inks from another project. I'd used fired brick, mustard seed and walnut stain. This piece has less yellow and more red so I thought I'd go with a valentine's theme. The colours are pale as I used a lot of water picking up the inks.

The hearts are diecut from some of the pink sheet and 2 are coloured with gold champagne gelatos, they turned out kraft coloured! The Love diecut was coloured with the gelatos too. I masked the tiny you stamp from a stamp in the Happy Little Stampers thinking of you set.

I stencilled on top with TH flourish stencil and antique linen distress ink.

Inkspirational is celebrating their 100th challenge, congratulations!! I've gone with the colour challenge#87, anything goes with Kraft.

Happy Little Stampers CAS challenge has a smooshing theme.

Simon Says Stamp Monday has a best friends theme.

That would be my hubby, so this card is for him!

At Addicted to Stamps & More the theme is to make your mark. I used distress inks.

Supplies:

Dies: MFT tag & pierced tag stax; Memory Box heart delights; Couture Creations script love.

Other: distress inks; Tim Holtz flourish layered stencil; Happy Little Stampers thinking of you stamp; versafine ink; gelatos; scrap of ribbon; foam tape; kraft card base.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x

Smooshed distress inks & a stencil

Hi everyone, when I colour butterflies I usually do a couple or more. It makes sense while you have all the bits and pieces out.

 I used the partner of this one on my canvas and thought I'd try another technique that I don't do very often, stencils.

The background was made when I picked up or smooshed distress inks left over on my craft mat from another project. I'd used fired brick, mustard seed and walnut stain. They are very pale as I spritzed them with lots of water so I could cover the watercolour sheet.

I used the flourish stencil by Tim Holtz with antique linen distress ink to keep the colours muted.

The theme at Simon Says Stamp Monday challenge is to use a stencil.

At Seize the Birthday its anything goes birthday with the option of clean and simple.

I don't think there's enough open space on my card to be CAS so I'm going with anything goes.

At Addicted to Stamps & More it's anything goes.

I've used a snippet of black card in my layering so I'm also visiting the playground at Pixie's Crafty Workshop. You only need 1 snippet to play along.

Supplies:

Watercolour paper; distress inks; Darkroom Door butterfly stamp; versafine ink & clear ep; Inktense pencils; Tim Holtz flourish layering stencil; bling; sentiment sticker, kraft card base.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x

Inka gold flowers

Hi everyone, I made up a card using the leftovers from my butterfly canvas.

The flowers are inlaid and the border is embossed.

I'm linking up to these challenges:

CASology where the cue word is simple.

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday are looking for something new, my inka gold pastes.

Happy Little Stampers CAS challenge where the theme is smooshing. Jade and champagne inka gold pastes were mixed with water and watercolour card smooshed through it to pick up the colour.

Since I've used  snippets I'm also visiting the playground at Pixie's Crafty Workshop.

Supplies:

Simon Says Stamp fresh daisies die; inka gold pastes; Annabelle Stamps sentiment; versafine ink; 

Stately embossing folder.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x

Butterfly canvas

Hi again, I'm back with my very first mixed media canvas!

This was so much fun and I tried out so many techniques.

I bought these canvases in the September school hols last year and I've been procrastinating ever since. A pack of 5 cost $2.50 so I thought there was no harm in experimenting. I think it's still a CAS sort of canvas but I'm getting more adventurous.

I started with a layer of gesso, then tore up some old dictionary pages and attached them with glue n'seal. I added a little distress ink then some sand texture paste with the dot fade layering stencil. While it was still wet I tipped on some verdigris embossing powder, it has a lovely shimmer that doesn't show in the pic. I swiped some versamark ink on some of the edges where I wanted more embossing.

A tip I'd seen on a few blogs is that you stamp your sentiment on tissue paper then glue that on, especially if you get carried away with the texture paste! It worked! I sealed that with glue n'seal.

The butterfly is from a Darkroom Door set called Wings, stamped with versafine, clear embossed then fussy cut. I coloured it with Inktense pencils. My waterbrush still had some white twinkling H2O paint on it so there's a bit of added shimmer. I also added a layer fussy cut from the dictionary page.

The flourishes are cut from scraps of watercolor paper that I'd smooshed in some Inka gold pastes, jade and champagne. I've been wanting to try these for ages. The paper is so shimmery!

I'm linking up to some challenges.

Simon Says Stamp Monday are looking for something new,

and so is Simon Says Stamp Wednesday. I used  a new technique and some new stash.

Happy Little Stampers Mixed Media Challenge has a stencil theme.

Stamplorations also has a mixed media challenge for anything BUT a card where you must use a stencil.

Since I used scraps or snippets of watercolor paper for die cutting my flourishes, I'm also visiting the snippets playground at Pixie's Crafty Workshop.

Supplies:

Stamps: Darkroom Door Wings & Viva La Flora Vol 2.

Dies: Crafty Ann flourish.

Layering Stencil: Tim Holtz dot fades. 

Other: 4"x4"mini canvas; gesso; sand texture paste; distress ink; glue n'seal; inka gold pastes; Inktense pencils; Tsukineko verdigris embossing powder; versafine & veramark ink; clear ep; bling & foam tape; old dictionary page; tissue paper.

Whew! Thanks for hanging in there, this was a long post.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend,

Cathy x

Silver butterfly

Hi everyone, I needed an anniversary card and thought I'd use up some of this designer paper I bought a while ago. It's a metallic silver print so I've used a silver paper for the butterfly.

The challenge at Stamplorations CAS card challenge is anything CAS with an optional twist of using silver.

Silver also fits the theme at Just us girls, to use something metallic.

Supplies:

Memory Box Theo & Whidbey butterfly dies; silver paper; vellum; Signature Sensations cotton handmade paper; sentiment sticker; silver shimmer paper.

Thanks for visiting, enjoy the rest of your weekend,

Cathy x

There's a lot of frogs around at the moment!

Hi everyone, we have loads of green tree frogs around at just now. They are so noisy in the down pipes when we're expecting rain!

I'm linking this card up to Seize the Birthday where it's anything goes.

This stamp is a new to me one that I bought just before Christmas. 

I've coloured "him"with Prismacolor pencils, then fussy cut.

Simon Says Stamp Monday 

.

and Simon Says Stamp Wednesday are looking for something new.

Supplies:

Stamps: Amazing Creations

Other: Prismacolor pencils; sentiment sticker; glossy accents; foam tape.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x

Butterfly in browns

Hi everyone, I love butterflies, so when I saw  these on pinterest I wanted to case them.

I love how the layers use old scores and book pages.

I don't have a butterfly stamp and punch or die that match so I inked the stamp in versamark, clear embossed an old dictionary page and musical score, then fussy cut them to match the top butterfly.

 I stamped and coloured on both kraft and white card. Here's the difference using the exact same pencils and zest it to blend them.

The kraft base is on the left and that's the one I've used on this card.

I'm linking up to the challenge at Less is More where it's a neutral colours theme.

I've used a range of brown (ginger root, burnt ochre, terracotta) and white

 prismacolor pencils.

I'm also linking up to Allsorts where the challenge is to use something new.

I've used the Musical Interlude die from Memory Box. I've used an old score for this die too, although it's a bit hard to see in the pic.

At Simon Says Stamp Wednesday it's a party theme. 

Birthdays + music=party!!

Supplies:

Memory Box cocoa bean butterfly stamp and musical interlude die; versafine & versamark ink & clear ep; Prismacolor pencils; old score and dictionary page;kraft card; black felt textured card base; bling & gold sentiment sticker coloured with brown alcohol pen.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x

Rustic thank you

Happy new year!

I hope 2016 is full of happiness and positive things for everyone.

This is a new to me stamp set from Inkadinkadoo so it fits the theme at a couple of challenges.

At Inkspirational its thank you using something new.

At Allsorts it's also time to use something new.

At Just Us Girls it's a thank you theme.

Supplies:

 Inkadinkadoo Meadow stamp; veracolor gold ink & gold ep; distress ink; MFT traditional stax tag die; kraft card; Papertrey Ink burlap impression folder; sentiment sticker, raffia.

Thanks for visiting,

Cathy x