Encore - I am...

Encore Posts
Projects which made their first appearances elsewhere for Design Team duties or Guest Designer opportunities, but which only had a sneak peek here, are being gathered together in the pages of my virtual scrapbook while I'm away.  Please don't feel that you have to comment all over again!

Okay, I said we had lots of new things in a row - I'm glad you enjoyed my Trash to Treasure guest spot for Stamps & Stencils, and there is another new project up next - but I decided to squeeze in an extra Encore for fun.  As the page says, "I am..."

Well, "I am..." celebrating my birthday today in New York - and I've had a wonderful time visiting the Brooklyn Botanic Garden where the Cherry Blossoms were just hitting their peak.

There's also a huge collection of lilacs, which have always been my birthday flower, so I was pretty much in heaven - and here are just a couple of quick glimpses for you.







There's just a week left to go in my stay here, so it seemed appropriate to share this page which began its life in New York when I was working here in 2014.  Here's what I wrote when I posted it at the Artistic Stamper Creative Blog in November of that year...

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Hello all, Alison (butterfly) here with a journal page for you today.

This one started a while back when I was in New York with only limited supplies.  I got as far as having all the texture in place and a sharp monochromatic look.  But then it got a bit stuck, wondering where to go next.

Then the new Distress Stain Sprays appeared, and suddenly the game was on!  Faded Jeans and Vintage Photo and we're away.  I'll show you some close-ups of my favourite bits as I let you in on the steps I took to get here.

I started with strips of tissue tape across the page and added crackle paste in various areas.

I spread it quite thinly so that the crackle would be very fine.

The large heart was created with a hand-torn stencil shape, through which I first spread texture paste and then added a coat of crackle once that was dry.  I wanted a really thick, dimensional look, and that's what I got.

I embedded the pen nibs before the crackle heart had set, so no need for glue.

This was the point at which things ground to a halt.  However, once I knew there was spraying in the offing I gave the whole thing a wash of Fresco paint in Chalk.  It's part of one of the JOFY Limited Edition sets.  As well as muting the tape, it gives a lovely warm base colour.

In order to really add depth to the crackles of the heart, I splodged Black Soot Distress Stain over it, then wiped it back, leaving it just in the cracks.  Then I let loose with the two chosen Distress Stain Sprays.  It's such a delight finally to have sprays in the Distress colours without having to tip my Distress Stains into spritzers.  Perfectly possible, yes, but fiddly and always with the risk I'd knock the lidless stain over and lose it all!!

I added some of the fabulous Katy Leitch splodges and blots from the Messy Art plate, stamped in Coffee Archival.

And I used the I am... stamp from the Journalling Words #5 set on a Chalk-washed tag also stamped in Coffee Archival.

It wasn't quite popping enough, so I drew around the edges with a PITT pen and used an embossing ink pen to fill in the letters, followed by clear embossing powder to give it a hint of shine.

As you can see, I also used Treasure Gold to add a touch of warmth and glamour.  It also helps to highlight all that texture.

So there you have it.  I am... rather happy with this one.  It pleases me, and I'm looking forward to lots more Distress spritzing!

Thanks so much for stopping by today.  It's always lovely to hear what you think.

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I hope you're having a lovely Sunday, whatever you're up to, and I wish you all a wonderful week.  I'm happy to say I should have plenty of spare time to enjoy my last week in New York - many things on my to-do list, and I'm looking forward to them all.  See you soon!

I am happy being what I am.
Paul Theroux