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Tuesday 12 March 2013

Quoth the Raven

Hello everyone, lovely to have your company here at Words and Pictures.  It's Tuesday: time for a new challenge at Fun With ATCs, and our theme for this fortnight is Gothic.  There's lots of inspiration from my fabulous team mates, so get your spook on and come and play along!


I've kept it quite simple this week, allowing this wonderful Crafty Individuals stamp to do most of the work.  It's a fabulous Edgar Allan Poe-ish image - I just love the looming tower, the dynamic raven, and the barbed wire criss-crossing it.



What's also great about it is that it's just marginally larger than ATC sized (2.5 x 3.5 inches is what we're looking for) so I was able to mount it onto thick chipboard and fold the borders of the image over to decorate the edges too.










I stamped in Versamark Watermark ink, and then embossed with Stampendous Fine Detail black embossing powder.  

I'm incredibly impressed with the "fine detail" achieved with the powder - it really is a very detailed image, and the powder has captured it perfectly.








I used Distress Markers to colour in the church tower, softening with water applied with a water brush to get a subtler look.

And then I simply blended Chipped Sapphire DI over areas of the image, leaving the moon glowing white, and keeping some highlighting on the raven himself.  I considered colouring him black, but decided I preferred the ghostly look!










I also thought about doing some spritz and flick to zhuzh up the background, but again decided on the simple route, leaving the image to shine.  

And if you catch it in the right light, it really does shine - almost to invisibility... which also seems suitably strange and Gothic, in accordance with our theme.




There have been so many glorious entries to recent competitions at Fun With ATCs - it's a real joy to visit them all, and it's incredibly hard to whittle them down to our top picks each time...  I hope you'll be keeping us all on our toes again with your Gothic ATCs - you'll find everything you need to know right here!  Thanks so much for stopping by, and I'll see you again soon, here or elsewhere in Craftyblogland.

It's a massively long poem, so I'm going to leave you with just the last couple of verses of The Raven:

`Be that word our sign of parting, bird or fiend!' I shrieked upstarting -
`Get thee back into the tempest and the Night's Plutonian shore!
Leave no black plume as a token of that lie thy soul hath spoken!
Leave my loneliness unbroken! - quit the bust above my door!
Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door!'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'

And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted - nevermore!
Edgar Allan Poe

40 comments:

Helen said...

I love this stamp, Alison, it has a very goth like feel to it, and I love the way you've wrapped it round the mount.

Annie said...

Wow Alison x what a fabulous background you have created here. The stamped images and wire are stunning and the Raven........totally brilliant.

I love your moon.........it's just perfect with the shadows. An amazing piece.

Thanks for sharing the How To.......hugs Annie x

chrissie said...

So much atmosphere in such a small space Alison. Your fine embossing is wonderful.

Have a great day

Love Chrissie xx

Sophie said...

Super, Alison.
Irgendwie wirkt das so real auf mich.
Eine schöne Arbeit.

Liebe Grüße

froebelsternchen said...

just fantastic!

brenda said...

A very striking piece of artwork Alison. I always use the fine detail embossing powder from Stampendous as it does give a wonderful finish.

B x

Claudia N. said...

LOVE that Crafty Individuals stamp too and what you did with it even more, Alison!

The colouring is awesome - very subtle but it adds so well to the mood of the scenery.

I am glad you left the moon white. The perfect thing to do! Awesome ATC!

Hugs,

Claudia xx

Rita said...

Fascinating piece of art Brenda. Love it. Have a Good Day. Hugs Rita xx

ionabunny said...

This is glorious. I have that stamp. I need to wheel it out.

Redanne said...

Fabulous Alison, love the way the moon shines behind the wonderfully imposing tower. Hugs, Anne x

craftytrog said...

A wonderfully dramatic piece Alison! Love it! x

Deborah said...

Wonderfully gothic1 Love it :-)

Rosie said...

Your ATC is gorgeous, Alison

Dianne said...

Perfection as always my dear you never fail to amaze and inspire me every time I visit, you are the BOMB Thank you foe all of that. Have a great day..

csutkailda said...

Öröm az alkotásaid látni,csodálni.:) Köszönöm! Mosollyal:Ilda

Sarah said...

The Raven and your ATC...the epitome of Gothic. Beautifully done, Alison,

Janny Jager said...

Fabulous Atc Alison.
Great stamps you used.
Love it.
Greetings Janny

maj. said...

Looks wonderful! Love all the stamps!!!

Terry said...

Love EAP!! Such a cool ATC and the stamps may do all the work, but you made it awesome! Hugs!

Kelly said...

I love the depth you have accomplished. I love the glowing moon and the string across is really neat, great gothic art here!
Hugs Kelly

Anonymous said...

Dark and rather menacing!
I so like the way you wrapped the edges of the image over the chipboard to create depth.
Wishes
Lynne

Katherine said...

Just beautiful Alison - it's gorgeous :)

Paper Profusion said...

Awesome stamp! I love your colouring Alison - that's a fantastic ATC. Nicola x

Netty said...

Loving the wonderful scene you have created Alison. Hugs Annette x

May said...

Brilliant ATC Alison, Love the embossing & colours... Hugs May x x x

Alie Hoogenboezem-de Vries said...

Beautiful Alison, what a great stamping! It looks like a 3D scenery...amazing!

kind regards, ALie :-)

Ephemera said...

Beautifully stamped and lovely tones, very partial to a bit of gothic . xx

Brenda Brown said...

I love this stamp, you have made it very 'moody'.
hugs {brenda} x0x

catherine said...

This looks brilliant Alison and so dramatic
x catherine

Bonnie Irvine said...

Fabulous depiction of the gothic theme, Alison. The background creates a lovely spooky atmosphers for the glowing moon. Love the colouration of the tower and the raven. Can't believe that the detail powder caught it all...very cool.

Sandy said...

Edgar Allen Poe was certainly (and still is) amongst the best of the best. I loved that poem when I studied it in school - you have really captured the essence. What?
What is that I hear - thumping from under the floor board - Have you checked your room lately Alison?
Cheers!
Sandy

Sandy said...

One more thing! Thanks for including some of the poem. It seems to me that no one can write as well as he!
Sandy

Anita Houston The Artful Maven said...

These are scary and cool! Love the view of everything...cool perspective!

Nan G said...

I like that you've let the images carry this! It is really cool and scary to have the looming tower behind barbed wire. And the crow reminds of the birds in Alfred Hitchock's The Birds. Love it!

Vee Cassidy said...

I love this ATC Vee xx

Jenny Marples said...

So dramatic! Love it. Hugs, Jenny x

Bärbel said...

Das AtC ist absolut fantastisch, es wirkt interessant, aber auch mystisch!
Liebe Grüße, Bärbel

Sue said...

This is wonderful Alison, a fabulous stamp that you've used so well. I love how you've wrapped the images around the edges of your ATC - fab idea xx

Kasia said...

Wow, love your ATC! All those details are fabulous :)

pearshapedcrafting said...

I'm way behind on commenting but have been able to see what you've been doing via my phone - just get frustrated with trying to type! Love this atc - the wrapping round technique really extends this well! Love the stamp too! Chrisx