I am creating...

Hello all, it's Alison (butterfly) here, with a catch-up hanging to share.  Since it fits right in with my January colour obsession of blues and greens, I thought now would be a good time to re-post it.

This was over at Artistic Stamper a few months back (in the final throes of moving house) and, as regulars know, I like to try to keep my virtual scrapbook of projects up to date here at Words and Pictures, so if you've already commented on this, please don't feel you have to again!

I've used some of the brand new Journalling Words stamps on this one.  If you haven't seen Jennie's fabulous new releases, check them out here... and don't forget there's a brand new line of Artistic Stamper masks too!

Back to the hanging... this was one of those makes where I just sat down and let it flow.  It was made in 5 minute segments, over several days, in between sorting and packing boxes, but oh my word, those minutes were lovely!  And I even like the finished piece too!

Because of the five-minute-flow-process, and the fact that my brain is really elsewhere at present, I'm afraid I haven't got any 'making-of' photos, but I'll show you some details and let you know approximately what I got up to as we go.












I started with the tag, doing a Distress Paint and Distress Stain combination with the wrinkle-free distress technique.  

You get lovely swirls of combined opacity and translucence - solid paint colours and glowing inks - and all in my favourite blues and greens.  

I then used some Broken China and Peacock Feathers Distress Inks to ink over the top, and then spritzed and flicked with water to add extra texture to the layers of colour.







Next step was some Picket Fence Distress Paint applied through one of the new Tim Holtz stencils.  

(I started the hanging before the new Artistic Stamper releases were out or I could have used one those new masks!)

And I then stamped the lovely Tim Holtz meadow grasses in Cornflower Blue Archival (one of the new Wendy Vecchi colours).
















I used Fresco paints to add some extra detailing to the flower heads, starting with Snowflake and adding South Pacific for some turquoise colour.  

Then I added some even finer detailing using the Inkssentials white pen.  I love how they've ended up.

I stamped the Tim Holtz bird in Wendy Vecchi's Potting Soil, and used the white pen again to add highlights to the image.

















The final step with the tag was to add some texture stamping, for which I used the TH Postcard stamp and one of my favourite Pink Paislee music advertisement stamps from my stash.











Next, it was on to the background and what else but corrugated cardboard?  

I started with a good coat of white paint, and then added texture paste through the same Cargo Letters stencil as on the tag.

I blended some Mowed Lawn and Broken China Distress Ink over them, and then added some texture stamping using the fabulous Artistic Stamper Mini Dots and Sequin Waste.

I used Distress Stains and a water brush to add some 'watercolour' inky detailing in the grooves of the cardboard - really love this!















I added some Tim Holtz Remnant Rubs, matching the Postcard rub to the Postcard stamp on the tag...










...and generally "keeping an eye" on things.  

I didn't want the Remnant Rubs to be quite as vibrantly black as they were, so I put a light wash of white paint over them, as well as inking them to blend in with their surroundings.

I was delighted to find that I could get these flourish transfers (sorry, that's what we used to call them when I was little) down into the grooves of the corrugated card too!












The words are stamped onto another tag that I'd done some wrinkle-free distress technique on - again with the combination of paints and stains.

The big create is embossed in Bright White over Versamark ink.

The new stamps - I am creating - are stamped in the Cornflower Blue Archival and then clear embossed.

I never tire of how the light catches on the glossy embossing - I love embossing my words!














So, a bit of Paper Distresser action around all my spare edges, and some torn, inked edges in other places...

Oh, and, of course, some Distress Stain dyed seam binding (but of course) and we're done.
















Can't tell you how much joy creating this provided in the midst of chaos and turmoil all around.  I hope it gives you just as much pleasure to look at!







I can remember so well the deep peace and pleasure it gave me to create this in between shifting boxes... Crafting has come to my rescue on so many occasions - what on earth did I do before I discovered it?!

Happy crafting all!

You can't use up creativity.  The more you use, the more you have.
Maya Angelou