By the Sea

This is a first for me...well a page I have completed, most of my journal pages are doodled on, but never really finished...not quite sure if it's downright laziness, or I just run out of inspiration. Sometimes all it takes is for the phone to ring and I lose my thread...and I end up putting everything away...
So here is the complete page I have done for this months challenge over at Art-Journal-Journey
The theme is "The Sea"....I kind of messed up a bit with the sea part on my page,but overall I actually like it....who said it has to be perfect anyway,lol.

I have used a selection of stamps by Crafty Individuals, Artistic Outpost and Viva Decor-At the Seaside.

The lovely sentiment by crafty Individuals

So if you love the sea theme, why not pop over and have a look at the challenge...be sure to check out their rules before entering.

You can find their challenge here...Art-Journal-Journey

Same girl...different background

I just couldn't resist making another Atc for the challenge over at Lost Coast Designs.

For this Atc,I used distress inks for the coloured background,in Evergreen Bough and Pickled Raspberry.

I stamped this gorgeous  Lost Coast Designs Gibson Girl and coloured her using a damp brush and picking the colour straight off the distress ink pads...using Walnut Stain for her hair.

Once that was completely dry I masked the image and stamped over the background with a Lost Coast Designs Atc Stamp in Tattered Rose distress ink...

To add an extra touch I lightly dusted the atc in pearl chalk and then lightly brushed it off...I just wanted to give it a very slight shimmer....unfortunately the photo dosen't do it credit.

Why not pop over to have a look at the challenge...you must use their stamps to be eligible....

You can find the challenge here at 

Lost Coast Designs

Beautiful Gibson Girl

This has to be one of my most favoured stamps from all the hundreds ( probably well over a  thousand ) that I have in my stash. This one is by Lost Coast Designs...and as their challenge this month is to make an Atc ( Artist Trading Card ) it was just the perfect size to use.

I shaded the background using Walnut Stain distress ink, taking care to keep the centre section slightly lighter.

I stamped one image, then another on a piece of spare paper, which I cut out to use as a mask for the second stamped image....I must say, it's been a while since I used this technique and to my embarrassment it took me three attempts to get it exactly how I wanted it.

I allowed the inks to completely dry before adding colour to the hair and face...this I did by using a damp brush and lifting the ink straight off the distress ink pads.

So if you own a few,or even one Lost Coast Design Stamp,why not pop over and enter their challenge...

You can find their challenge and all the details here at

 Lost Coast Designs

A little "Dark"

Well, here goes,you'll either love it or hate it...my entry for a new challenge.
This new challenge blog ....Dream in Darkness.....is partly owned by Nanette, who is one of my fabulous design team over at...Rhedds Creative Spirit...as this new challenge launched the 1st May...I wanted to support Nanette and her friend in their new venture.

My entry has been digitally created, no theme,but it must lean towards the Darkside...as you can see I'm not that experienced with digital work, but I so loved the images I wanted to use them for this challenge.
So if you like a bit of the Darkside do pop over to
Dream in Darkness
and join in with the fun.

Not quite Shabby Chic

Over at  Rhedds Creative Spirit  the new challenge for May is now under way.
As always it is for Altered Art only, so definately no paper-crafting.
My design team project is this gorgeous glass topped box....an unexpected find in TKMax.

What I like about it is the glass is actually real glass....so I decided to alter it as a trinket box for my dresser.

I gave the box a light sanding before applying 2 coats of gesso.

Once dry I painted it using Docrafts Artiste Acrylic paint in Sage.

I allowed the paint to dry over night and then stamped the images using a lovely postscript stamp and another of the butterflies.

Using frayed burlap ink, I distressed all the edges.

Leaving the whole piece to dry thoroughly before I added the embellishing on the lid...for this I used some glass beaded spray,which I cut down to suit, some lace that I stitched to give it a bit of a ruffle, finally adding the flowers...

Do pop over and have a look at the challenge blog, you may find enough inspiration to join in with the challenge,would be lovely to see you there.

You can find Rhedd's Creative Spirit HERE

The Smell of the Sea....

The May Challenge has just launched over at Altered Eclectics...such a fabulous blog, I am privileged to be on their design team.
As always the theme is Anything Goes, so long as it is Altered Art/Mixed Media...definately no paper-crafting.
Here is my design team project, which I hope will give you some inspiration to enter the challenge....

I've had this fabulous large chunky wooden heart in my workshop for well over a year, was never sure what I was going to do with it, it was one of those spur of the moment buys, lol.

The Nautical theme hit me one day when I took my great grandson out for a stroll in his pram, I ended up overlooking our beautiful bay and I could smell sea...had a flash back to when I was a small child collecting shells on the beach...

The whitewashed background was all that was needed as the base, which I distressed around the edges with dried marigold ink.

I stamped the Paperartsy stamp in coffee Archival Ink and mounted that on some dark brown card.

Using a hot glue gun I  added some hessian and scrim and some shredded orange netting.

To finish I white washed some small pieces of driftwood and tied them off with sting...added the star fish and a selection of shells,

I've now got this hanging in my bathroom......

You can find the Altered Art Challenge here at...Altered Eclectics

It's a Girl Thing....

This is the theme over at Mandy's Tagalong Challenge this week...

I'm not an avid TV watcher,so have spent most of the evening in my workshop...While I was sorting through my stamps I thought this one was perfect for the Tagalong theme...so I made a Tag,lol...

You can find Mandy's challenge here at....Tagalong

Artist Trading Block

I was challenged to make an Artist Trading Block for a "Fun Challenge"....I call them cubes or blocks, I never knew the correct title for them.
So with a free Graphis45 paper pad, measuring 6"x 6" that I got a while back with a craft magazine, I set too and designed my cube.

                              From this 3"x 3" wooden cube.......

to this.......

The papers were just perfect for this project and so were all the little images...each side depicts a month of the year, May,June,July,August and September....the underside holds my details...