Creative Squad

Never Stop Dreaming – Jennifer Gallagher

  

Today we have a post from Jennifer Gallagher from my Creative Squad. She is sharing some really nifty paper doll inspired cards that use my new Millie and Actually I Can stamps. This month’s theme is:  Never Stop Dreaming – This month we’re sending a message of confidence and empowerment to all those in the world (near and far and maybe even you!) who have been told “You can’t”, “That’s not possible”, or “Not you”. Actually we can and we will! And we’ll never stop dreaming either :)

This month we are creating with positive affirmations and the idea of female empowerment in mind. While pondering a fun way to use Nat’s new Actually, I Can stamp set, I was reminded of all of the fun I had as a child playing with paper dolls. I would spend hours as a child daydreaming of parties with ladies wearing fancy clothes and shoes while changing the outfits on my paper ladies. This stamp set takes me right back to those days. I was inspired to create an encouragement card that plays on the idea of a paper doll.

I began by stamping the Millie stamp in the center of a 4 x 5.5 inch ivory card base with black archival ink.

Next, I brayered out a mixture of Dina Wakley Media Acrylic paint in cheddar and magenta onto my 5×7 gel plate. After placing Nat’s Buenos Aires stencil down onto the paint, I pressed my stamped card face on top of the stencil and pressed evenly across the surface.

I pulled up the stencil to find what is referred to as the “ghost print”. I laid a second card base down to pull that leftover paint off the plate.

Once the gelli print is dry, I colored in the image starting with the skin using a Posca Pen in light orange. Her hair, dress, and shoes were also colored in with various posca pen colors. You can really have a lot of fun with this step adding stripes, polka dots, etc. I finished off the front with the “Actually, I can” stamp in the upper left hand corner and a stamp from Nat’s Small Circle Jumble stamp set in the lower right corner.

I took a few extra card bases and cut them in half. Then I stamped the Millie image on the front of each one. Next, I fussy cut around the edges of her dress and colored them in with my Posca paint pens to create a few changes of clothes for Millie. Once dry, I placed scor-tape on the back of the dresses and added them to the insides of my two cards.

I took a Sakura Gelli Roll pen in black and drew a clothes hanger for Millie’s dress. Later, when I send it I will write in an inspirational quote for the recipient beside of her new fancy party dress.

I hope you have enjoyed my paper doll inspired cards. Be sure to check back each Tuesday to see more from Nat’s Creative Squad.

Thank you Jennifer! These are so fun and I know who ever receives them will love playing with Millie’s wardrobe :) You can find my new Millie and Actually I Can stamps, along with all my products, in my online shop. Jennifer also used some of the following supplies:



Feel inspired? Working on something yourself that you’d like to share?  I love to see how you interpret our monthly themes. Email me how you used my stencils and stamps with the theme and email me an image – I would love to share your projects in my next  “n*Spiration From Around the Globe“.

Nat

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Never Stop Dreaming – Josefine Fouarge

  

Today we have a post from my Creative Squad. Squad member Josefine Fouarge is sharing with us a fun art journal page that really shows off my new Millie rubber stamp, and my Hamburg and Lily Wallpaper stencils. Josefine was inspired by this month’s theme: Never Stop Dreaming – This month we’re sending a message of confidence and empowerment to all those in the world (near and far and maybe even you!) who have been told “You can’t”, “That’s not possible”, or “Not you”. Actually we can and we will! And we’ll never stop dreaming either :)

 

For me, creating is all about expressing myself and experiencing with new mediums, styles, etc. I love to sit down and come up with several ideas of how to use a specific stamp or stencil – sometimes I see a finished project, sometimes I just see the beginning – and then just start creating.

For this page, I decided to use Nathalie’s Hamburg and Lily Wallpaper stencil as well as the new Actually, I Can stamp set. I knew that my image would end up being rather long, so I grabbed my large Dina Wakley journal and primed one of the craft card stock pages.

I didn’t want to cover the entire page in paint, so I applied a very thin layer of white gesso to create a fog like coverage. This allowed the blue tones that I added on top to shine nicely.

To keep the page light, I added a few accents. I made these by mono printing different green and blue shades through the Hamburg stencil using a round Gel Press.

To clean up my Gel Press, I applied the leftover paint to the page, creating round shapes with the impressions from the stencil in them. To add a little more interest to the circles, I stenciled one lily from the Lily Wallpaper stencil into one of the circles.

I stamped one of the girls from the “Actually, I Can” stamps onto a piece of collage paper. This allowed me to adhere a crisp image of her to the page.

First, I adhered the hand with gel medium, then the girl. I overlapped them a little, so it looks like she’s standing on the hand.

Unfortunately, the collage paper didn’t merge with the background entirely, so I “fixed” it by applying a thin layer of gesso all around her.

This felt like an aura to me, so I decided to embrace that fact. I applied layers of yellow and orange all around her till it looked like she’s on fire. I also lightly colored her using Liquitex paint markers.

Now, she really felt magical to me. As a final touch, I added a few outlines around the hand and some finishing touches around her. She definitely can, no matter what anyone says :)

Everything came alive and played so well with each other – the elegant hand, the girl on fire – so it just needed a little sentiment, which btw, I interpret as something very positive.

It’s exciting to see all these layers melt into each other and shine through.

I hope you enjoyed my magical page with the girl that could and feel encouraged to let your dreaming girl out.

Thanks for stopping by and don’t forget to come back every Tuesday for more inspiration from the Creative Squad.

Thanks Josefine! Love how you layered the Hamburg and Lily Wallpaper stencils together! You can find my new Millie rubber stamp here in my online shop as well as all of my stencil designs. Here are some of the other products that Josefine used in her post:



Feel inspired? Working on something yourself that you’d like to share?  I love to see how you interpret our monthly themes. Email me how you used my stencils and stamps with the theme and email me an image – I would love to share your projects in my next  “n*Spiration From Around the Globe“.

Nat

Comments (1)

  • Sue Clarke

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    I love how this came out Josefine! I also like mixing magazine elements with other images/stamps…very fun page.

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Never Stop Dreaming – Tania Ahmed

  

Welcome to a post from my Creative Squad! Today we have a gorgeously layered art journal page from Tania Ahmed – showing off some of my rubber stamps including my new Actually I Can set and an oldie but a goodie – my Marks set. Tania was inspired by the new theme for this month: Never Stop Dreaming – This month we’re sending a message of confidence and empowerment to all those in the world (near and far and maybe even you!) who have been told “You can’t”, “That’s not possible”, or “Not you”. Actually we can and we will! And we’ll never stop dreaming either :)

It can be incredibly hard in today’s world with all its demands and expectations to make time to do what is right for ourselves and this is something that I personally struggle with. The theme this month for the Creative Squad was “Never Stop Dreaming” and to me this, coupled with working hard to achieve those dreams, has proved a powerful motivator for change.

I’ve had many conversations with people in my life and artists about what stops them from going for their dreams … there is fear of failure, disappointing others and the expectation that one must live a “conventional” life. I have lately discovered that the biggest motivator for me to go out and work hard to achieve my dreams is the consequences of not doing it! Life is too short for regrets, so I have learnt to do more of what makes me happy, look after myself and occasionally agree to do things that scare me or put me out of my comfort zone, haha!

I made an art journal page for my disc bound journal to celebrate and remind myself that yes, I can do anything I can dream of as long as I work hard for it and keep learning from the inevitable failures that come my way.

I hope you enjoy the video that I made using Nat’s stamps (I must confess I am in love with the Millie and Maiko stamps!) Please do let me know if you have any questions about the page that I made and I apologize for the strobing effect in my video which was caused by the craft mat. You might see me using Millie and Maiko in future projects as well :)

Thanks for popping by, and have a great day!

Thank you Tania for sharing with us – it’s always fun to see the process of a page coming together and to know the important ideas behind it :) To get your hands on my Millie stamp, just visit my online store. Here are some of the other supplies that Tania used today:



Feel inspired? Working on something yourself that you’d like to share?  I love to see how you interpret our monthly themes. Email me how you used my stencils and stamps with the theme and email me an image – I would love to share your projects in my next  “n*Spiration From Around the Globe“.

Nat

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Raiders of the Lost Stash – Maura Hibbitts

  

Hello from the Creative Squad! Today we have a post from Maura Hibbitts who is sharing a beautiful little notebook that she has personalized using a collection of supplies from her stash, as well as my Van Vorst foam stamp, Antique Tile foam stamp, Santiago stencil, and Small Circle Jumble rubber stamps. This month’s theme is: Raiders of the Lost Stash – It’s time to raid your stash of art making stuff. Pick a few things you’ve tucked away for later and use them NOW. Maybe you have some leftover scraps or deli papers that you couldn’t bear to part with. Maybe you’ve squirreled away a new product that you’ve been meaning to try. The time is now! Raid your stash and try it :)

I’m feeling a bit like Indiana Jones this month with our theme! First, I raided my stash to find something to work on – I was looking for a notebook I could alter, and found a small canvas covered one I use for notes on projects.  Then, because I was channeling Indiana Jones, I wanted to find something exotic to use, and came up with some great trims from India, Turkmen jewelry pieces and an head that reminds me of a deity.

I started by stenciling both covers with the mini Santiago stencil, using Pale Gold paint and a cosmetic sponge for a very subtle layer.

Next I added Ultramarine Blue to the gel plate and rolled it out with a brayer, so I could stamp on it to pick up the paint. I angled the Van Vorst Negative around all corners of the notebook.

I attempted to line up the positive Van Vorst Art Foamie with a corner section, and was totally off kilter, so decided to go with imperfection. I also stamped this image in the center of each cover over the gold, using the Cobalt Teal Hue.

Time for a contrasting color, so once again, I rolled out the paint on the gel plate with a brayer (this is a great way to “ink” up the art foamie stamps) and stamped the orange into the center using the Antique Tile pattern.

Now that I feel like I am on a global journey with my notebook it’s time to add in some more gold. I have found that gold adds a hint of the mysterious and exotic, so I stamped more onto the canvas using the Grove Street Small Circle stamp.

I tied bits of sari ribbon onto the notebook spiral.

Now that my background is done, it’s time to add the cover embellishments. I glued down the fabric trims, added the dangly bits to the metal piece, and glued that in place with the head. It’s almost like having a small shrine on my notebook.

Since I use this notebook for jotting down ideas, perhaps my little shrine will act like my muse and keep sending me creative vibes. It will certainly be colorful and fun to pull out and use!

Thank you Maura – I love the idea of creating a notebook that is a shrine to creativity! And this certainly is one that is so lovely to look at :) You can find the foam stamps, stencils, and rubber stamps that Maura used in her project right here in my online shop. And in addition to the canvas notebook and various embellishments from her stash, here are some of the other supplies that Maura used:




Be sure to check out all the Creative Squad projects on the Creative Squad webpage and if you feel inspired, share your projects with us! We love to see what you’re working on. I post projects almost every month in my Inspiration From Around the Globe posts!

Nat

Comments (2)

  • Claudia

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    Love the stamping and stencilling on the rough fabric cover, Maura, and the beautiful layers you have created! It all comes together so beautifully!

    Claudia xxx

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Raiders of the Lost Stash – Jennifer Gallagher

  

Welcome to a post from my wonderful Creative Squad! Today we have a project from Jennifer Gallagher who is using my Space Oddity and Mini Santa Fe foam stamps in a unique subtractive way to create some gorgeous cards. She was inspired by this month’s theme: Raiders of the Lost Stash – It’s time to raid your stash of art making stuff. Pick a few things you’ve tucked away for later and use them NOW. Maybe you have some leftover scraps or deli papers that you couldn’t bear to part with. Maybe you’ve squirreled away a new product that you’ve been meaning to try. The time is now! Raid your stash and try it :)

We are raiding our stashes this week. What good artist or crafter worth their salt doesn’t have a considerable stash of supplies just waiting for inspiration? In my stash I found a few sets of Sizzix thinlits dies by Tim Holtz that I haven’t used in ages. These dies, along side a few of my go-to supplies, were the inspiration for these beautiful note cards.

I adore my n*Studio artfoamies and wanted to show you a new way to use them. Begin by spraying a few colors of Dylusions Ink Spray onto a watercolor note card. Don’t be stingy with the spray! You will want a nice base of color to work with.

Next, spritz some water onto your artfoamie (I’m using Nat’s Space Oddity and Mini Santa Fe ArtFoamies) making sure the entire design is wet. Gently press the artfoamie onto the note card. After a few seconds, remove the artfoamie and dab a paper towel onto the card to pick up the excess moisture. (Dab – don’t wipe!) Because the ink sprays are water reactive, we will be pulling ink off of the card leaving the design of the artfoamie behind. Repeat until you have a design you like.

Choose a few sentiments from the die set and run them on black cardstock through your die cutting machine. Fix your sentiment onto your note card with a liquid glue like Tombow Mono.

This is a fun way to use your artfoamies so be sure to try this at home and share your creations with us! Get into that supply stash and get creative.

Wow these are beautiful Jennifer!!! Love the subtle variations in color and love this exciting way to use foam stamps – almost like a sponge. You can find all of my foam stamps and more in my online shop and if you’d like to try this technique, here are some of the supplies that Jennifer used:



Be sure to check out all the Creative Squad projects on the Creative Squad webpage and if you feel inspired, share your projects with us! We love to see what you’re working on. I post projects almost every month in my Inspiration From Around the Globe posts!

Nat

Comments (2)

  • lynda

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    Love this idea Jennifer! Question…….do you let the Dylusions spray dry before stamping with the foam stamp? Thanks!

    Reply

    • Jennifer Gallagher

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      Hi Lynda! I did let the layers dry. You can let them air dry or use a heat tool to speed it up a bit. Thanks for checking out my project.

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Raiders of the Lost Stash – Josefine Fouarge

  

Happy Tuesday from the Creative Squad! Today we have a cool upcycled jewelry box – something I know we all have in a drawer or closet somewhere just waiting for a new life – from Josefine Fouarge. Josefine is using my Beacon and Mini Toledo foam stamps, my Love Tag rubber stamp, and this month’s theme: Raiders of the Lost Stash – It’s time to raid your stash of art making stuff. Pick a few things you’ve tucked away for later and use them NOW. Maybe you have some leftover scraps or deli papers that you couldn’t bear to part with. Maybe you’ve squirreled away a new product that you’ve been meaning to try. The time is now! Raid your stash and try it :)

Wow, what a topic. I knew that I have a lot of “lost stash” but because we are renovating our house, there is even more that has come back to the surface. So, over the last weeks, I put aside a some of those lost items, thinking that they would be perfect for this theme – and I’m telling you, that stash was a hodge podge of stuff ;)

I really like this topic though. It gets you digging and you find some really neat things. For my project for the “Raiders of the lost stash” theme, I decorated a jewelry box. My idea was to do some paint pouring and then add a few of the little items all over it. Because paint pouring is so fun to watch and because I already knew that the decorating part would be a hot mess, I recorded everything. That probably makes it a lot easier to follow the process.

You might have seen more than two hands during the pouring process. These were my husband’s hands. He got into paint pouring a few months backs and we wanted to try the new Ranger pouring medium together. Everything afterwards is just me :)

As you can see in the close ups, the embossing powder melted beautifully and helped with creating a fuzzy outline of Nathalie’s Mini Toledo stamp. This way it looks old, as if this box has been through a tough time.

I also like the subtle pattern that the Toledo stamp left on the wood pieces. It looks like there is something going on, but only with a close look you get an idea of the pattern.

The “lost” gel print perfectly fits as a centerpiece in the middle of the jewelry box. It’s the right amount of contrast and different patterns to add to the entire look. I love contrasts and the entire box is a big contrast of everything.

I kept the bottom part simple though. At the end, you don’t see it as much and because of the pouring medium, it was already difficult to close the lids. So, I simply stamped the negative Beacon stamp all over it using a contrasting color.

I hope you enjoyed my little experiment. Don’t forget to look through your own drawers and boxes, I bet you have some amazing decorative pieces, leftover scraps, paints, pens and more laying around that just want to be tested and played with.

Thank you Josefine – I love watching you play in your video (and hubby too – so cool he was interested in trying out the pouring medium)! Here are some supplies that Josefine used and for my foam stamps and rubber stamps, be sure to stop by my online shop.



Feel inspired? Working on something yourself that you’d like to share?  I love to see how you interpret our monthly themes. Email me how you used my stencils and stamps with the theme and email me an image – I would love to share your projects in my next  “n*Spiration From Around the Globe“.

Nat

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Raiders of the Lost Stash – Tania Ahmed

  

Hello and welcome to a new theme from the Creative Squad! Today we have Tania Ahmed with us to share an adorable project with us using a mini birdhouse bank she had tucked away in her stash. She is also using my Clam Hex and Exchange Place foam stamps and this month’s theme: Raiders of the Lost Stash – It’s time to raid your stash of art making stuff. Pick a few things you’ve tucked away for later and use them NOW. Maybe you have some leftover scraps or deli papers that you couldn’t bear to part with. Maybe you’ve squirreled away a new product that you’ve been meaning to try. The time is now! Raid your stash and try it :)

This month we were challenged to use some of the newer ArtFoamies and some of the earlier releases! We were also encouraged to dig things out of our stash that we had been hoarding. So I fished out a birdhouse that I had been saving to alter.

I started by painting the birdhouse with white acrylic paint.

Luckily for me, the Exchange Place ArtFoamie stamp fit perfectly under the roof of the bird house! I brayered Opera Rose paint on to the stamp to get an even coating and stamped all the sides of the bird house.

I then stamped the Clam Hex ArtFoamie on the roof.

After drying the paint I inked all the edges with Walnut Stain Distress Ink.

To finish the project I added some metal trinkets I had in my supplies and added word sticker.

Thank you very much for popping by and reading my post!

Thank you Tania! I love that cute little birdhouse bank – looks like the perfect place to collect some cash for funding future dreams :) In addition to her wood birdhouse bank, here are some of the supplies that Tania used:



Feel inspired? Working on something yourself that you’d like to share?  I love to see how you interpret our monthly themes. Email me how you used my stencils and stamps with the theme and email me an image – I would love to share your projects in my next  “n*Spiration From Around the Globe“.

Nat

Comments (1)

  • Jean Goza

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    Tania, love the birdhouse! The theme of Raiders of the Lost Stash is well timed. I have been digging through my stash and amazed at what I am finding! Time to get to work. ;-)

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Endless Summer – Judi Kauffman

Today we have a very special Creative Squad post from Judi Kauffman, an honorary Creative Squad member and dear friend! Judi will be joining us from time to time with some awesome projects of her own, working with our monthly themes. (You can learn more about Judi from our Nice to Meet You blog post featuring her creative story and artwork.) This time Judi brings us two projects, using my Amsterdam stencil and my Grove Street foam stamps, inspired by our theme: Endless Summer – The days are long, the sun is shining, the air is soft… it must be summer! Let’s take a stroll down memory lane and save a summertime memory forever.

This month’s Creative Squad challenge theme – Endless Summer – conjures up long days at the beach, vacations in exotic places, away from work and the usual routine. In other words: Good times! For me, it’s the opposite. Endless Summer – yuck! I can’t think of anything worse than summer lasting an instant longer than it already does. Spring is lovely, I adore fall and can’t wait for winter. I’d be happy to skip summer altogether. It’s too hot, too humid. If I’m promised a lobster roll or fried clams, I’m willing to venture onto the sand, but only if I can leave the beach before nine in the morning or start the visit at sunset. And only if the seafood is followed by ice cream…

My take on the theme is about keeping summer at bay: A FAN! And about staying indoors to make a big batch of cards. Now that’s my idea of a good time.

Instructions: If you have a lot of experience with stencils and stamps, scroll through the photos and head straight to the supply list. If you’re a beginner,I’m providing complete instructions. (A lot to read, but worth it, I hope…)

Trace an existing fan (import stores offer many options), draw your own original fan shape, or find a template online. Choose a stencil (I chose Nat’s Amsterdam stencil) and two or more foam stamps (I’m using Nat’s Grove Street set) that your eye tells you would make a good combination. A fan handle and some flat wooden sticks are also needed. A stir stick from the paint store and thin stir sticks from a coffee shop are good alternatives.

Cut a window opening in newsprint or other lightweight paper, place it over the stencil, and move it around until the position of the stencil looks good within the fan shape. Position the foam stamps over the stencil to get a sense of the scale and proportions. This is the planning stage where it’s easy to change your mind and customize the project. And it lets you in on the design process – showing exactly how I created my fan.

  

Use the template to trace and cut a fan shape from light color heavyweight watercolor paper, cardstock, mat board or chipboard. (Use mixed media shears that cut heavy materials or a craft knife and self-healing cutting mat.) Cut a curved mask from newsprint to cover the bottom area of the fan. Tape the mask in place. Use a wide brush and random strokes to paint the surface with red paint. When dry, use a wide brush and very little paint to stroke on purple paint. Remove the mask. Let the paint dry. While you’re at it, brush excess paint onto pieces of tan cardstock and newsprint scraps. Set them aside.

Cut a clean mask to again cover the bottom area of the fan. Stencil the allover pattern using a stencil brush and gold paint. (Hold the brush upright, use very little paint as you go – work slowly and take care to keep the pattern as pristine as possible – there are lots of thin lines in the Amsterdam stencil and if you use too much paint it will seep under the stencil.)

Remove the mask. Cut another mask, this time to cover the stenciled area of the fan. Use a craft sponge to apply ink to shade the edges of the almond shape at the bottom of the fan. Use very little ink and a light touch so the effect is softly shaded.

If you like the look of the fan with no further embellishment, this is the last step. Cut pieces from the flat sticks and glue them to the almond shape; glue the top portion of the handle to the back of the fan and you’re ready to face the summer heat! (Or survive a hot flash in mid-winter…)

If you like more embellishment, keep going as follows:

Alter a 5” x 12” piece of Shimmer Sheetz with gold metallic alcohol ink. Shown: Ruby Gemstone SS dabbed with an ink applicator tool and Ranger Metallic Mixatives. Back the SS with double-sided adhesive sheet.

Using the same purple paint that was previously used, stamp the altered SS with the two foam stamps, alternating positive and negative images to fill the space (four complete and four partial circles. Shimmer Sheetz is a nonporous surface. Lift the stamp straight up to avoid smudges, but don’t worry if the images are not perfect. Paint that is pulled just a bit adds dimension and interest.

While you’re at it, stamp the circles with purple and Emperor’s Gold paint onto the cardstock and newsprint scraps set aside above.

Cut out the circles and the partial circles. Also cut out one lightweight paper circle. Trim the lightweight paper circle to use as a template when cutting the Shimmer Sheetz circle that fits near the almond shape at the bottom right of the fan. Position a full circle toward the left. Then arrange and adhere all other circles as shown, trimming at the edges of the fan after they are in position.

Hold onto the scraps from the circles, returning them to the release sheet to keep the adhesive from sticking to anything on the work table – they’re going to be part of the bonus card projects coming up…

Arrange Red/Gold glitter dots peel-offs around the edges of some of the Shimmer Sheetz circles. If you like dimensional gems, add them as well. In the photo below, I ‘auditioned’ flat-backed faceted gems to show as an option, but I did not glue them in place.

Instead of gems, keep going with LOTS of glitter dots in Violet/Silver, Gold/Silver, and more of the Red/Gold. Be sure to add a tiny one to the top of each of the flat sticks! (To order the dots – The color name is listed first, the metal rim is designated second.)

BONUS PROJECT – Use the stamped cardstock and newsprint pieces, plus the leftovers from the stamped Shimmer Sheetz (partial circles as well as surrounding areas) to create a series of collage-style cards! Shown: A2 size, 4.5” x 5.5”, cardstock in red and Kraft brown.

The photo gallery that follows is for inspiration only since it would be impossible to precisely duplicate the randomly stamped cardstock and newsprint.

  

  

Thank you Judi – love your rich colors and all the different ways to use the stamps and stencil that you’ve shared with us. Just gorgeous! In addition to a fan template and some chipboard or heavy cardstock, here are some of the supplies that Judi used:




Do you feel inspired? I’d love to see what you’re working on with my stamps and stencils. I post projects almost every month in my Inspiration From Around the Globe posts!

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Nat

Comments (1)

  • Jean Marmo

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    I am a big “fan” of Judi’s work. This is just spectacular! Love the many layers and finishing details! Wonderful cards! Thanks for the inspiration!

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Endless Summer – Maura Hibbitts

  

Hello from my Creative Squad this fine Tuesday! Today we have an art journal spread from Maura Hibbits who has expertly layered up a ton of pattern and visual texture to create a spread that is so fun to look at! There is so much to the layers, including my Crackle and Toledo 4×4 stencils, my Maze Hex foam stamp, and my Tread rubber stamp from the Cardboard stamp set. I love her take on this month’s theme: Endless Summer – The days are long, the sun is shining, the air is soft… it must be summer! Let’s take a stroll down memory lane and save a summertime memory forever.

When I was teaching, summer was the magic time to look forward to when I got to play and travel, and finally relax and rejuvenate for my next year. Now that I am retired, all the seasons are mine, so to speak, but summer still is very special. There are so many festivals, free music, barbecues, gardening and more to look forward to, but one of my favorite summer things is to do some traveling off the highways. I like to find the little roads that go through the towns and villages, even if it is just a crossroads with one building, there is so much more to see!  Do I ever get lost? Of course! But then I find my way again. Happy travels to you this summer!

I started by applying a thin layer of Diarylide Yellow with a key card onto my large Dylusions part journal. I swiped up and down in a random fashion.

Next, I sponged on Pyrrole Red and Cadmium Orange hue with the Crackle stencil. I moved the stencil around, and varied where I added the colors.

Ok, with my background started, now comes the fun! I squirted the Neon Torrid Orange and Sizzling Pink (hot summer colors, right?) onto a small gel plate, and spread it with the brayer. I stamped into the paint with the new ArtFoamie Maze Hex, and transferred this to my page. I repeated this step a number of times.

I wanted more of a contrast between my background and the neon stamped images, so added a bit of translucent color with the Green Gold and Cobalt Teal Hue. I wiped it back a bit with a baby wipe and blended it in.

Time for another stencil. This time it is the small Toledo stencil, and I sponged the heavy body Cobalt Teal hue on, focusing on the center of the stencil.

I stamped the Tread design around the edges with Quinacridone Gold, so it would be visible, but not overpowering.

Now that my pages are almost done, it’s time to add some detail. I went around each hexagon shape with a white Posca paint pen, and toned down the outer section with a layer of Translucent White.

Then I went around my neon hexagons with a graphite pencil and water brush, added my words, “Take the Road less traveled” with a black Pitt pen and Gold Sharpie. I decided to go around the outer section and add gold dots too.

You can see some of the details of the layers here.

Time to head out on the road and take the road less traveled. Happy Summer!

Thank you Maura – we love exploring all those little back streets too because it’s a great place to get all sorts of inspiration :) Here are some of the supplies that Maura used:



Do you feel inspired? I’d love to see what you’re working on with my stamps and stencils. I post projects almost every month in my Inspiration From Around the Globe posts!

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Nat

Comments (1)

  • Sue Clarke

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    I am in love…with this page layout!
    Thanks for the step by step details Maura.
    I may have to “lift” some ideas from you.

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