When Plan A doesn't work, go to Plan B!

It's time for my second challenge choice hosting the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown this month.

The second week is always a colour challenge. This one was a pure indulgence - I didn't think about colour wheels or anything, just chose three of my favourite colours to play with.

My plan was to use acrylic paint on the gel plate, with a Clarity bauble stencil. That was a bit of a fail! The images were blurred and unclear, so not usable as they were.

However, with the failed prints, and lift off sheets, and brayer cleaning sheets, I had a lot of "collage fodder" in the challenge colours. And so this card rose from the ashes!

For a focal point, I stamped an IndigiBlu bauble with mixed media embossing powder, the sentiment is in the same powder. Looking at the photo, the bauble looks a bit flat, I think I should have torn the piece down smaller (too late) or added shading or some background - which I could still do.

Once everything was stuck down (on a base from a bit of junk mail, gesso'd), I went round each piece with purple, teal or grey inktense pencils to highlight the shapes and add depth. I used the purple paint round the edge, then a black ink pad. And finally some doodling.

This is an A5 card, I felt the proprotions worked better than a 5x7.

I have lots of "fodder" left, and a purple embossed bauble and sentiment, so may make a second version. I also remembered I have lint cloth dyed in these colours, so could add those for a more mixed media feel.

Gorgeously grungy - not how I'd envisioned these colours at all, but that's how it goes sometimes.

I hope you have fun playing with these bright and funky colours. Do visit us at 52CCT to check out the design team talent, and share your card with us.

Red and Brown

Oh, I'm struggling a bit at the moment so am running behind on my 52 Christmas Card Throwdown cards. But better late than never!

Majda has chosen Red and Brown for her colour challenge as host this month.

 

This card is quite simple, and is based on a scrapbook page Leonie Pujol did on the Craft Store telly last week.

I started with some second generation stamping with brown archival ink. I used a ledger stamp I really like.

Next, I pulled out red and brown designer papers, left over scraps from other projects.

I tore them up and arranged them, and glued down with mod podge.

Over this I stencilled with paint - a thick white for body, with a little brown added.

Once dry, I splattered watered down red and brown paint over - I may have over done this but it's fun!

The stag head is a die cut I painted with a mix of brown and black paint to be nice and dark; I used the same mix arounf the edge.

The sentiment is heat embossed onto a scrap of DP, I added red around the edge to brighten it.

This kind of grungy, torn, layered look, makes me very happy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

To join in, head over to the 52CCT blog, to see the inspiration frm my DT colleagues, and to share your card. You have until Friday 15th to play along.

Happy crafting x

Gel plate sleigh play

Branka's theme choice at the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown is Winter Sledges.

This includes sleighs - which gives me a chance to dig out a lovely stamp from one of the first sets I ever got!

And to play with my gel plate!

This print owes a lot to what was already on the plate from last time. I added heather, light blue and white paint, and used a variety of things to add pattern into the paint - one texture plate then the rest was packaging and waste.

When the paint dried on the plate, I then used white paint to reactivate and lift the print.

For the stars, I sponged red paint onto the gel plate through an IndigoBlu stencil, then lifted them onto the print.

Once I'd cut the print to size, I put it into the stamp platform with the stamp. I sponged paint onto parts the stamp, different colours (teale, purple, green, red), restamping until I had a reaonable impression. I also added a bit of black ink for definition.

The sentiment was stamped with the same black.

I then went in with pencils and drawing pens. I added definition to parts of the sentiment and sleigh, and brought out the presents. Doodles and dots grounded the sleigh and added detail and interest. Basically, I played with it until I was happy!

 

 

I love the finish the gel plate gives with paint, really textured and multilayered. This is such a fun card to me!

 

 

 

 

 

To join in with this super challenge, visit us at the 52CCT blog, where you can see the inspiration from my design team colleagues.

Entries close in a week, on Friday 23rd April.

I can't wait to see what you come up with!

Grungy Christmas jumper

 

On the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown, Majda has chosen Winter Sweaters as our theme for the week.

I had an idea for this ages ago, but hadn't made it. Then my daughter's bubble at school closed, and I've been homeschooling all week! So I swapped for a simpler design.

I used my gel plate and an embossing folder with a knitted design, as well as a jumper stamp.

I stamped the jumper then ran the card through with the embossing folder.

I then loaded the gel plate with acrylic paint, in shades of green and blue.

I brayered the paint to mix it, and pressed the embossed card into the plate, to pick up paint. I restamped the jumper - I'd used the stamp platform and had the stamp still in position.

Only at this point did I notice the embossing folder had an up and a down - so this one has the pattern the wrong way up!

I reloaded the gel plate and pressed an A4 embossed card into it, then also pulled a print with the paint remaining on the gel plate.

I stamped the jumper onto these.

I fussy cut all the jumpers - I think they look really cute!!

I used a white gel pen on the labels, and added ribbing on the cuffs and collar of one.

For the background, I also used the gel plate. I brayered dark red and dark gold onto the plate, cleaning the brayer onto another piece of card - on the right below. The print I pulled had lots of left over paint in it, which I love.

Using the gel plate as a palette, I used the gold paint to repeat stamp sentiments across the backgrounds.

I had a bit of a play with what was left on the gel plate, adding more red for a print, then adding teal stamping from the plate, and more red to pull what that left. This gave me two more backgrounds.

For the sentiment, I printed "Warmest Wishes". This was meant to be in greens and blues to match the jumpers, but my printer is out of yellow ink!

I mounted the sentiment on offcuts of the "knitted" card, and added to the card.

I have only put one of the cards together, for time, but have the rest to make at my leisure.

I think the card could do with some finessing, if I took more time, maybe something to the top right, maybe a drop shadow. But I do like the grungy jumper!

To join in with this challenge, pop over to the 52CCT blog. You have until Friday 23rd October to enter.

Mixed Media Christmas

 

It's a colour challenge at the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown this week.

Rosie has chosen for us:

 

My card has been inspired by a 5 day art journal challenge I did recently with Marjie Kemper. This is a version of one of the pages she taught.

The base of the card was cut to size for a 6x6 card. I then die cut over the edge with snowflakes. Cutting part way was tricky - and I couldn't get my head around which way to put the plates! I got the first version wrong - and as you can see, partially cut into the wrong side of this one.

As I had to add a strip to cover this, I could have cut the snowflakes separately and stuck them on - ah well, I'll know for next time!

I then embossed the rest of the card with a script folder.

I painted the snowflakes with gold paint, and dry brushed over the embossing.

 

This is the strip I made to go alongside the snowflakes - I used a border stamp. It's wooden stamp, so lining it up took a few tries - I ended up making a guide out of lego!

The next step was my topper. I blended orange shades of distress ink - spiced marmalade, wild honey, ripe persimmon and tattered rose - over my card.

 It was very bright! I splattered it with water and lifted some of the colour.

 

I stamped my tree with black ink, then went over with versamark (using a stamp platform) and heat embossed in clear.

The top left corner I embossed with a tile pattern folder, then dry brushed with black soot distress ink. I over stamped randomly with the same ink and a brick pattern stamp. I also edged in black sharpie, then heat embossed in clear.

To mount on the card blank, I cut the front panel of the blank down to size.

I also painted the back of the snowflakes in gold, and added a black strip at the back to give a neat finish.

 

I like the texture and shape of this mixed media inspired card. I needed something a bit different to make use of the unusual colour combination, I think this works well.

 

 

 

 

 

To join in with the challenge, visit us at 52CCT. I hope my contribution and that of my talented DT colleagues will help inspire you to make a black, orange and gold Christmas Card.

This challenge runs until Friday 18th September.

I've missed my gel plate!

Rosi is our host at 52 Christmas Card Throwdown for September. As always, we kick off with a sketch. This is what Rosi has chosen:

I resisted the temptation to take the snowflakes at face value!

I saw a video using card embossed with folders as a texture sheet for the gel plate, and had to try it. I have tried to find the video again but haven't saved the link unfortunately. It feels like ages since I've used my gel plate, and I do so love having a play with it.

I made a whole load of prints, but this is the one I wanted to use here.

I die cut the hexagons from masking sheet and added to the card before pulling the print.

The pattern is not super clear in this one, as the emboss wasn't that deep. Some of the others were much more distinct. There is a bit of a deer pattern in the background.

I love the grungy texture nonetheless, and the Christmas colours and shimmer (which doesn't really show in the photo).

(At this point I forgot to take photos for quite a while!)

I cut the card down to size for a 5x7 card.

I masked outside each hexagon, and stamped a light grey background with a fir branch stamp. The words "Merry Christmas" went in the smaller ones. For the larger I used a stamp that comes in the same set as the bauble I used last time.

I went round the hexagons with a gold pen, and added some swirls. I sponged gold paint around the edge.

To create the vertical element of the sketch ( which I've rotated), I used the embossed card that I'd used to pick the paint off the gel plate.

You could keep and reuse these, but as the emboss was shallow, I'd want to re-emboss it anyway. And the colours on these are rather lovely. This gel plate technique gives three for one - the embossed card, the print from the card with paint that's picked up, then the print pulled from what's left on the gel plate (used for the main piece).

I die cut chains from the embossed card.

I attched these along the left. I sponged black ink around the edge, and mounted on a card blank.

I really love the grungy look of this - the texture and detail doesn't come through in the photo. The gel plate never disappoints!






To join in with this challenge, visit the 52CCT blog. You have until Friday 11th September to play along.

Happy crafting!

Silhouettes - Winter vs Christmas

For Tracy's theme challenge at the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown, she has asked us to create a card using a silhouette.

So perfect opportunity to get out the Christmas Wee Folk from Clarity.

But first things first, the backgrounds.

I stamped the diamond shape outlines (also Clarity) onto card, and cut masks to cover them.

I used this stamp set, which I bought recently from a destash group - they are so dangerous!

For the first card, I used purple, yellow and turquoise acrylic paint. I brayered them onto the gel plate, then picked up the paint with the stamp to add to the card. I also dipped the card into the paint that was left, which had the stamp impression in it.

Because I was having fun, I made another, with red, lime green and teale.

This is how they looked with the masks removed.

I stamped the Wee Folk using midnight blue and fern green stazon inks. I used the stamp platform as I needed to repeat stamp, and the outside of the mask so I stayed in the apertures.

I used posca paint pens to outline the diamonds, and added chains up and down from the points. I also edged the cards. I used the white posca and a white gel pen to highlight the diamonds and chains so they stood out.

I did a little pencil work in the diamonds to ground the figures, but kept it minimal.

Finally I used a scrap of card I'd used to pick up spare paint from the gel plate, and stamped the sentiments (mini word chains from Clarity), in stazon ink. The white gel pen came out again to make the words stand out. I edged with the posca pens and added to the cards. I went around in the white posca pen to highlight.

I love the colours on this card, and the figures playing in the snow are my favourites.

These colours are more festive, and I do love how the background came out. I chose the more festive celebration Wee Folk for this one, which I like.



To join in with this challenge, and see the inspiration from the rest of the Design team, head ove to the 52CCT blog. You have until Friday 22nd May to enter.

Serendipitous snowflakes

The last challenge of the year at the 52 Christmas Card Throwdown is nice and open for those last minute cards (or the ones you don't want to enter until they've been received!)

As I have missed a fair few challenges with health issues, this is a chance to catch up on those ones I really wanted to do.

As my favourite colour is purple, I wanted to do the purple and white colour challenge from November.

I started with my gel press plate (the big 8x10 one) and acrylic paints - shades of purple, metallic white and titanium white.

I ended up with loads of backgrounds, but these are my favourites:

This used shades of purple, which I put my Clarity snowflake stencils over, and allowed it to dry while pressing star shaped punchinella into the paint. Once dry I lifted the stencils and used copy paper to lift the wet paint from under the stencils. I then brayered titanium white over and lifted the print. This was about my third print so there were remnants from the previous ones on the plate to add more interest and texture.

This one I added the metallic white paint first, then the stencils and brayerd purple over the top. I lifted the stencils, and stamped into the paint with Clarity snowflake stamps (they work well as they're so deep) and distress oxide inks in purple (I realised I have 5 purples - like I said, my favourite colour!)

This one was a bit of serendipity - it started as a very pale second print that hadn't really worked. But when I lifted the stencils from the previous print, covered in paint, I placed them on here and brayered over to transfer the paint. And I just love how this came out! Unexpected things like this from waste make me very happy.

So this was the first print I used for these cards.

I wasn't sure initially what to do with my lovely backgrounds, then I watched this video from Sam Crowe, and got my inspiration - very different backgrounds but the same layout.

I cut the print to make bases for two 5x7 card blanks (the print is just big enough to do this).

Using some of the waste, as well as the waste from the second print above after cutting a 6x6 base, I cut strips. I stamped on two of these in Gothic Purple stazon, using two very old sentiment stamps, and edged everything with the ink. I also die cut four snowflakes from the second print.

And put together with a lifting flap for movement - with snowflakes matched front and back so it looks good from both sides. This is where you realise your snowflake die isn't quite symmetrical - or the die cuts stretch unevenly while cutting or removing from the die.

This may be a well known card style but I'd never seen it before and really like the movement.

I'd like more contrast between the snowflake and strips on this one if I'm honest.

The paler strips I used here give more contrast, and the sentiment is clearer too.








And I still have lots of purple backgrounds to make more cards with!

To join in with the last 52CCT challenge of the year, head to the blog and enter your final cards.

Merry Christmas!