ROCKY CREEK DAM

Hi everyone! It's certainly been a while since my last post and quite a journey health-wise. Chemo treatments are almost completed and I feel as though I'm on the road to recovery.
This month's criteria at Pixels and Paper is to add paint to your creation. My layout of a favourite picnic spot in the local area features a painted background mat for the photo and title.

For this  I used acrylic paints, including metallic gold and silver, to create a background suggesting  light and reflections on water. This went perfectly with the photo I wanted to use. The bright zingy green from the inspiration piece caught my eye, so this colour was also used. The title was finished off with a black edging and some cross hatching.

Pop on over to pixelsandpaper and check out what the rest of the team has done with this gorgeous inspiration photo. We'd love to see what you come up with.
It's great to be back.
Cheers for now.
Di

CHANNELLING POSITIVE VIBES!!!!

Hi! It has been a while since I last posted, but I have a major health issue I'm coming to terms with at the moment. Doing what I love is helping greatly and today I'm sharing a couple of projects.
The first I'm entering  into the Kraft Plus challenge. You can see what the team has done over at:
kraftpluschallenges
This is the first time I've participated in this challenge, but when I saw that the criteria was to add the element of zentangling I couldn't resist!  This was done while recuperating  from my last lot of surgery..... very therapeutic.
I've created a fantasy garden, based around a Bird of Paradise plant.

 

The second was my August DT piece for ARTastic, using a black and white photo of one of my Tawny Frogmouth visitors to the garden. The additional criteria was to add texture so that it was a feature of the background. I've stencilled leaves using modelling paste and added gems and fibres.

 

 

 

Pop on over to: artasticchallengeblog  to see how  the rest of the team has interpreted this month's inspiration artwork.

 

 

Cheers for now. Di

GRAB THE BROLLIES!!!

Hi and welcome. As I'm writing this post, the temperature outside has dropped and I know we're in for another chilly night.... just right for snuggling up in a warm doona!
Our inspiration at ARTastic this  month was based on the artwork of Shirley Charlton (aka Shirlroma) called "Umbrellas, wet street". 
I loved this piece, with its wet, reflective appearance, the pops of colour from clothing and umbrellas and the texture on the pavement. 

I had a photo taken on our last holiday in Tasmania, showing the reflective view of yachts and old buildings on the waterfront area of Hobart, and the rain falling on the nearby Mt Wellington. This, was just right for our theme and added criteria this month. Minutes after taking this photo we had to make a dash for cover... no brollies on our holiday!

The background was stencilled onto white card, using a new stencil which I thought went so well with a flagstone look.

 

This was left to dry slightly before spraying with various ink sprays and building up layers of colour using Glimmer Mists and Lindy Stamp Gang Sprays. These gave a beautiful metallic , watery sheen to the whole of the background. Once these were dry I sprayed sections with Dylusions Ink Spays and let them dribble freely down the page... helped by misting with water.

 

 

 

Umbrellas were made from papers which had also been sprayed or inked in some way. This one I stamped with versamark and heat embossed using a white embossing powder. It was then overstamped and coloured with Inca Gold 'Rose Quartz'.

 

 

Two of the brollies were cut from smooshed Distress Inks, using some of this year's colour releases. two were cut from paper sprayed with Dylusions Ink Sprays, and the remaining one on the centre of the grouping was cut from tissue paper which had been painted with Dylusions Acrylic paints (the most yummy colours!)

 

The title was also cut from the same types of paper and then given a coat of Glossy Accents to give them a wet look. This was also applied to the ribs of the umbrellas.
A lot of messy fun, using techniques and mediums I love to play with.
If you want to play with us, pop on over to:artastic and check out what the team has done. We'd love to see your art here.
Cheers, for now.
Di

 

 

JONATHON LIVINGSTON SEAGULL?

Hi and welcome. Wow! July already... where has this year gone!
This month at Pixels and Paper we have a fabulous photograph inspiring summery days, brilliant whites and blues and maybe even the ocean.... which is where I've chosen to go.
I had a particular photo, taken by my son, in mind (as well as a completely different layout idea to what I finished with), before the AHA! moment struck.

First, I painted a seascape on A3- sized heavy watercolour paper. This was done with a combination of mediums: modelling creme (brushed on with both wet and dry brushes as well as being scraped on), 3D stamping paint, acrylic paint and a touch of permanent black marker pen.

To this background I glued an A4 copy of the seagull photo I was originally going to use. I tried this as a whole photo, but decided to cut it out instead...... heaps better!
I haven't painted for a while so I really enjoyed doing this as a background.... opens up all sorts of possibilities with other photos!

This is our inspiration photo... what a stunning place. (Santorini, Greece). Pop on over to:pixelsandpaper and check out what the rest of the DT has done.... awesome pieces as usual!
We'd love to see your art here.
Thank you for popping by and particularly if you leave a little love as well.
Catch you again soon.
Cheers, Di

THE HAZARDS

Hi and welcome. Today, I'm showing a layout which was started over a year ago and finally completed... and a perfect one for this month's theme at Anything But a Card: Out and About.
This layout was started at a workshop at :timetocreate where Julie demonstrated a technique we were to use: spraying white card with metallic paints, swiping over sections with daubers and when dry, putting through an embossing folder.

The board I prepared was cut into different sized strips and put onto black cardstock. I also used an A4 card to tear and distress additional strips of black.. These were placed on the background and some sections were then versamarked through a stencil, and heat embossed... and that's where it was left.

It was left until fairly recently, when iIretrieved it from my UFO pile (getting smaller). I decided to add additional embossing over the black background, some through a stencil and some by just dropping onto the page and carefully heating from some distance, adding more powder as it started to melt. In this way I was able to get flicks of embossing that looked like sea spray on some sections.

 

I added die cut circles put through an embossing folder. inked with silver and also heat embossed with a fine embossing powder, then added the photos.

The photos were taken on our last trip to Tasmania on the beautiful north-east coastline at a charming village, Coles Bay. This bay overlooked the cliff area known as The Hazards.  This is an area we wish to return to and explore further.

There's still time to check out and maybe even enter this month's challenge, so why not pop on over to:anythingbutacard and check out what my teamies have done this  month.

 

Thank you for popping by and leaving some love.

Catch you all again soon.

Cheers, Di

FLIGHTS OF FANTASY!!!

Hi and welcome. My DT piece for ARTastic this month has been formatted around two photos taken of some rather unusual markings on  tree with the required additional criteria of wood veneer and/ or birds.
I see owls, one in flight and the other on a branch.

I wanted a quirky look to reflect that of our inspirational artwork this month., a painting by Luka Va called "Bird King".

 

 

To achieve this, apart from the photos, I smooshed some manilla card with Distress Inks directly from the pads ( fossilized amber, cracked pistachio, abandoned coral and mermaid lagoon) and then stamped with archival black. The stamp I used was a funky mushroom edging. I added wooden mushrooms, inked with some of the same colours and then glazed with Glossy Accents.

 

 

I also added some additional wooden birds which were treated the same way as the mushrooms. To the whole of the background I glued cut and broken pieces of timber veneer to give the whole, a rustic look. Timber veneer leaves were also added. 

 

 I cut some feather shapes from my leftover smooshing and stamped on the letters for the title. Some extra words from Darkroom Door completed the piece.

I wonder what you see in the photos. I know some of my teamies have seen different things. It would be a hoot to find out.
While you're here, why not pop on over to:artastic to see what the rest of the team has done. You will be amazed! We'd love for you to join in.
Catch you again soon. Thank you to  those who have left such encouraging  comments.
Cheers, Di

SOAR

Hi and welcome. This month at Pixels and Paper our photo to inspire you features hot air balloons and quite an iconic Aussie structure... the windmill seen so often on farms and outback stations.

I've taken the idea of the balloons and the windmill and have created a layout without photos.

The balloons feature some of the colours from the inspiration photo and have been made in three different ways:- Iris Folding, Venetian Folding and the one in the centre at the bottom of the page, by gluing strips of paper to a balloon template. The lower edge of the paper has then been stamped  with trees and of course, a windmill. This stamping was also on top of the balloon to make it look as if it was rising behind the treeline.
The title "Soar" was cut from card which had been gessoed through a stencil then sprayed with Dylusions Ink while wet.

Pop on over to:pixelsandpaper and check out what the rest of the team has done. We'd also love to see your artwork here.
Catch you again soon.
Cheers. Di