A Stroll Through The Garden

Hello everyone, it's a thunder-stormy day here today and since it's a tad damp to be outside I decided to edit some of the pictures I took yesterday as I wandered about our garden.  We live at quite a high elevation here in the Thompson Okanogan region of B.C. so our trees and flowers are blooming a few weeks behind everyone else who lives down in the valleys which just means that we get to enjoy the profusion of blooms for weeks at a time as we travel to and from town on our infrequent shopping trips.

One of my favourite spring blossoms is our Flowering Almond bush, the blooms only last a short period of time but are so incredibly delicate and beautiful.

As the petals fall to the ground, the grass beneath the bush looks like it's been hit with a pink snowstorm!

The fruit trees are now coming into full bloom, this blossom is from a little gnarled and ancient apple tree that was here when we bought our home 20 years ago.  The apples aren't all that tasty but the blossoms certainly are!

And here are the blossoms from our sour cherry tree, can hardly wait to reap it's bounty in a few months time, sour cherry pie is the best!

The ornamental crab apple tree is just bursting with blooms this year, I adore the colour of the blossoms and also the colours of those beautiful variegated leaves.

And last but certainly not least, the fuchsia in the hanging basket by the front door is just starting to open, gorgeous don't you think?  They always remind me of petticoats!

Soon the columbine, irises and peonies will be in full bloom along with the day lilies and tiger lilies, how I love this time of year!

Hope that you've enjoyed this little tour around my garden and that you are able to get out and enjoy your gardens where ever you may be.  Thanks as always for stopping by,

Deb xo

A Strange And Wonderful Place For Tag Friday At A Vintage Journey

Hello everyone, so glad you could stop by today.  It's time for another Tag Friday over at A Vintage Journey where the Creative Guides get to create a tag in any style or theme that they fancy and where we invite you to link up any tags that you have made this month.

I was playing with my gel plate a few days back and so decided to print a few tags to use as journal inserts.  I chose this tag for my Tag Friday entry, welcome to a strange and a wonderful place!

I started out with a gel plate printed tag that incorporated StencilGirl Products' Black Bird In Trees and Leafy Trees Arch stencil and mask.  I then chose one of the stenciled birds and added a halo of Golden Transparent Yellow Iron Oxide around it by applying a touch of paint with my finger and blending it in (thanks to Mary Beth Shaw for introducing me to this fab colour in one of her Facebook Live sessions!).

To further emphasize the focal point I then added a circle of white paint with a bottle cap, repeating the circle motif a few other places on the tag.

Some white paint spatters followed along with some spatters of diluted DecoArt Metallic Lustre Champagne Ice which was also added around the edges of the tag.

The highlighted bird was then outlined with a white Sigma Gel Pen and a black Pigma Micron pen.  I reapplied the Black Birds In Trees stencil and stamped through the stencil with a fine script stamp over the highlighted bird and then added some second generation script stamping here and there elsewhere on the tag background.  Some doodling on the stamped paint circle around the bird ended up turning into a flower ... didn't plan it but that's where my muse took me!

I chose the sentiment from Tim Holtz's Clipping Stickers because this tag had certainly taken me to a strange and wonderful place.  I outlined the words with the black Pigma marker.

The back of the tag was inked with Frayed Burlap Distress Ink and then stamped with Tim's Lined stamp for a journaling spot.

And finally to finish it off, I found a bit of ribbon in my stash that coordinated quite nicely and then coloured some button thread with Tumbled Glass Distress Ink to tie it onto the tag.

Here are a few closeups of the finished tag.

I hope that you've enjoyed seeing how my tag came together and that you'll link up any tags that you've created this month over at A Vintage Journey, we'd love to see what you've made!  Have a wonderful weekend and happy creating,

Deb xo

Flock Birthday Cards Two Ways For Therm O Web

Hello everyone, hope this finds you well.  We've managed to flatten the pandemic curve here in B.C. and are slowly and cautiously re-opening services.  I hope that you are also seeing improvements wherever you may be and that you all remain safe and healthy as we enter this next phase in our fight against Covid 19.

I have a post over on Therm O Web's blog today for a couple of birthday cards created with their Deco Foil Flock Transfer Sheets.

The 'Happy Bird Day' card (yes, I know, a terrible pun!) was created with their Blue Diamond and Blue Sky Flock Transfer Sheets.

I used a Tim Holtz Flourish Texture Fades embossing folder to emboss the flock transfer sheet before cutting out my little bird shape.

The Blue Sky flock background was embossed with a We R Memory Keepers Polka Dot embossing folder and the inked mixed media background under the bird was coloured with several shades of green Distress Inks.

Lime Green Stickles glitter glue was added around the edges and also was used in the centre of the Small Tattered Florals die cut flower.

The Butterfly birthday card was created with Blue Diamond and Green Envy Flock Transfer Sheets.

I used Tim Holtz's Mini Detailed Butterflies dies and die cut the detailed overlay from Blue Diamond Flock Transfer Sheets.

The flocked background was first stenciled with Deco Foil Blanco Transfer Gel through Tim Holtz's Blossom Layering stencil and then inked with Distress Ink before flocking it with Green Envy Flock Transfer sheets.

The background was monoprinted with StencilGirl Products Leafy Doodle Border stencil and stamped with Tim Holtz's Ledger Script stamp.

I've got a full tutorial for both cards over on Therm O Web's blog, hope to see you there and happy creating everyone!

Deb xo

Patchwork Bird Cardboard Art Journal Page

Hello again, I've got the fourth page for my corrugated cardboard spring art journal page done, love that Patchwork Bird die from Tim Holtz!  (If you are interested, you can see page 1 here, page 2 here and page 3 here).

Used some of Tim's Aviary Collage paper on the background with stamping and stenciling overtop then added a wash of light blue paint and white gesso to push it back.  The branch was stenciled with StencilGirl Products' Three Owls And A Branch stencil and then the Patchwork bird and Garden Greens die cut from some gel plate prints.

A few scribbly lines around the die cuts with a black Micron pen and that was that!  Off to finish number 5 (think I will do 8 in all in case you are wondering how many more are to come!), stay tuned and stay safe.

Deb xo

In Flight Cardboard Art Journal Page

Hello everyone, hope this finds you and yours safe and well.  I finished up another corrugated cardboard art journal page for the mini album I'm creating (you can see page 1 here and page 2 here if you missed them), this one was quick and easy!

A quick slip slap of DecoArt Media Fluid acrylics in Darylide Yellow and Yellow Green Light on the background with just a touch of Tim Holtz's Ledger Script stamp here and there.

I then stamped the sentiment from a very old Tattered Angels In Flight Nature stamp set directly onto the cardboard with Black Soot Distress Archival ink and tried the same with the butterfly from the set.

The butterfly wasn't stamping clearly because of the undulations in the corrugated cardboard so I then stamped it onto a piece of Plain Collage paper and adhered it with some matte medium.  Colouring came next with a combination of Dina Wakley Scribble Sticks, Derwent Inktense Pencils and Staedtler Karat Aquarell Watercolour Pencils and Watercolour Crayons.  I wanted a bit more intensity to the wing colours so I embossed them with clear embossing powder.

I only had an embossing pad to apply the ink as my clear embossing pen had dried up so the coverage was a bit hit and miss as I tried to add it with my fingers LOL!  Really need to get that new embossing ink applicator brush, think it is from WOW?  Have to go shopping!

I added a scribbly black line around the butterfly with a Micron pen and it was done.  On to page four, see you soon!

Deb xo

Spring Mandala Cardboard Art Journal Page

Hello everyone, hope this finds you and yours safe and well.  I've been watching some of the provinces and states re-opening from their Covid-19 shut downs with more than a little trepidation and hoping that everyone continues to maintain their distance and wash their damn hands!  We are far from done with this pandemic and I'm hoping that people don't take the easing of restrictions as a signal to 'get back to normal' because things aren't going to be 'normal' for a very, very long time yet :(

On a brighter note, I've finished page 2 of a mini corrugated cardboard art journal that I'm working on inspired by Spring (you can see page 1 here if you missed it).

I made a collage background on the corrugated cardboard art journal 'page' with strips of stencil monoprints and then stamped it here and there.

Next came some Ranger Transparent Gloss Texture Paste through Rebekah Meier's Rosetta mandala stencil and then DecoArt Media's Patina Green Antiquing Cream was applied over the whole page.  I love the Antiquing Cream, it is endlessly workable and you can add and subtract it until you are happy with the look.

I added just a touch of Finnabair's Brass Patina Paste to the edges to finish it off, love!

Think I will do four pages front and back for this little journal and then bind it with a coptic stitch, off to start on the next, stay tuned and stay safe!

Deb xo

Pop Art Pears Frame For Therm O Web

Hello everyone, hope that this finds you and yours safe and well as we all weather this Covid-19 virus storm.  To hopefully help brighten your day I have a tutorial to share with you over on Therm O Web's blog for a pop art inspired pears frame that I created with Deco Foil Flock Transfer Sheets, Metallix Gel, a wee touch of Rina K. Designs Electro-Pop Neon Enamel Transfer Sheets and an altered cardboard box.

It's Fruit Week over on Therm O Web's blog and when I first received my design team assignment I thought no problem, I can make something with or about fruit.  And then I went looking through my craft stash and realized that I have NO fruit or veggie stamps, stencils, chipboard embellishments, dies ... I am fruitless!

Then I spied this pear stamp in Stampers Anonymous' Classics #16 stamp set;

and dug very, very deep in my stencil stash to find an ancient Plaid country kitchen themed stencil (yes, it's that old!) that had a pear on it.

Since I only had the one stamp and several colours of Flock Transfer Sheets, Andy Warhol's iconic pop art posters came to mind and the rest, as they say, is history!

Altered art was also part of my design brief so I decided to 'alter' a cardboard box to make the frame for my pop art inspired pears and have to admit I kind of like how it all turned out.  I have a step by step tutorial over on Therm O Web's blog if you are interested in seeing how it all came together, hope to see you there!

Stay safe and well and make some beautiful art everyone,

Deb xo

Hello Spring Cardboard Art Journal Page

Hello everyone, hope this finds you all safe and well.  Spring is finally here in British Columbia and I was inspired the other day to pull out some corrugated cardboard art journal 'pages' and start on a spring journal.

Lots and lots of background layers (some because I didn't like it in a couple of places and covered it up with some gesso!) with stenciling, stamping and alcohol inks, acrylic paints and some silk fabric dye that I found lurking deep in my stash.

I've no idea where this little journal will take me but I am loving the start, stay tuned for more pages in the coming days and stay well everyone!

Deb xo