Enjoy Your Day

Reeling in the fun with Penny Black's Sunny Days transparent stamp set.

Wishing you a day full of all kinds of big "catches".  

Enjoy,
Elizabeth

Supplies:
Penny Black Stamps: Sunny Days 30-180

Penny Black Mix & Match Cardstock: Storm 0-001, Grand Canyon 03-003

3M Scotch Dimensional Foam Tape

Copic Markers

Image Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Dandelion Memento Ink, Jumbo Sponge Dauber, Clear Embossing Powder

Spellbinder's: Labels Two S4-162

Mini "No-Sew" Wallet

Using duct tape today instead of needle and thread to create this fabric-lined wallet.

Finished size 2 1/2 x 3 3/4

To create the lining, a piece of muslin was covered with strips of duct tape.  A  3 3/4 x 6 1/2-inch rectangle was then trimmed from the taped material.

A 2 1/2-inch segment was folded up from the bottom and duct tape was used to secure the sides.  The remaining portion at the top (when folded down) will become the top flap.  The exterior was covered with book text and then painted with clear gesso.  Tip/Hint:  Blue painter's tape is helpful for temporarily protecting the exposed lining from becoming marred with ink during the project.

The wallet was then painted with a combination of Ranger Distress Paints and Dr. Ph. Martin's Hydrus Watercolors.  A number of flowers from Penny Black's "Floral Applique" were stamped on white cardstock in Onyx Black VersaFine and heat embossed with clear powder.  The colored and trimmed flowers were then applied to the wallet with Mod Podge.

Two coats of gloss varnish protect the piece as well as adding flexibility.

A view of the fabric interior after the blue painter's tape has been removed with the addition of a magnetic snap for a classy closure.

A close up of the layers showing the appliqued flowers floating over the colored book text with white polka dot accents.

Thank you for stopping by to visit.

Smiles,

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps:  Floral Applique 40-238

Basic Grey: Magnetic Snap 

Copic Markers

Dr. Ph. Martin's Hydrus Watercolors

Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Clear Embossing Powder

Ranger Distress Paints

Other: Duct Tape, Muslin, Mod Podge, Clear Gesso, Gloss Varnish, Blue Painter's Tape

Paper Mache + Mixed Media = Bird Whimsy

As my imagination flew by the sun, moon and stars, my heart was tattooed with indelible, colorful happiness.

Meet Starlight and Sunbeam.

These little 5 1/2-inch tall birds are a collision of paper mache and mixed media techniques.

To begin, I drew my components on a piece of corrugated cardboard and covered them using book text and Mod Podge.  Each segment was then prepped with clear gesso.

Color was added in layers using Ranger Distress Paints and Dr. Ph. Martin's HYDRUS Watercolors.  I like the depth you can achieve with the combination of opaque and translucent paints.

For "feathery" detail, Penny Black's "Lace Trims" were stamped in Black Soot Distress Paint.  Accent dots were created with White Linen Distress Paint applied with the tip of a stylus.

After heavy-gauge florist wire was thread through the birds for legs, they landed on old buttons that had been updated with more Ranger Distress Paints and "moon dust" (crystal glitter).

May your imagination take flight...

Elizabeth

Supplies:
Penny Black Stamps:  Lace Trims 30-181
Ranger Distress Paints
Dr. Ph. Martin's HYDRUS Watercolors
Other: Corrugated Cardboard, Book Text, Floral Wire, Buttons, Crystal Glitter, Mod Podge, Clear Gesso

"Petite" Mixed Media

One stamp and a whole lot of fun color.

This tiny mixed media was created on a 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 piece of mat board decorated with Ranger Distress Paints.  The dabber applicators are great for making quick and festive circles.  A coat of Shimmer Creative Medium adds a semi-gloss finish with sparkle.

Tutu and Cupcake (illustrated by Mo Manning) was stamped on a separate piece of white cardstock, colored and trimmed.  After the piece was adhered to the decorated mat board, a layer of Gloss Varnish was painted on top of the birthday dog and his cupcake for an enamel finish.

The completed piece was attached to a trimmed Les Petites card base measuring 3 1/8 x 4 1/8.

Design Variations

Magnet:  Attach a magnet to the back of the mat board and temporarily adhere to the card.  The recipient can remove the design for a magnetic piece of art.

Tag:  Attach a decorative ribbon to the mat board and use as a tag to adorn a gift bag or present.

Wearable Art:  Attach a pin back to the mat board.  Punch two holes in the card base to accommodate the pin and attach.  The recipient can remove the design and has a "birthday badge" to wear.

Speaking of wearable art and "pins",  if you enjoy "pinning" be sure to check out the Penny Black Blog all this week as they have daily features spotlighting their Pinterest Page.   

Thank you for visiting today and taking a peek at some "tiny" art.

Elizabeth

Supplies:
Penny Black Stamps: Tutu & Cupcake 4334J
Penny Black Les Petites 90-001
Copic Markers
Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Creative Medium (Shimmer), Clear Embossing Powder
Ranger Distress Paints
Other: Mat Board, Gesso, Matte Medium, Gloss Varnish

Hello Sunshine

Some fun in the sun with Penny Black's new Sunny Days...

A one-layer card PLUS.  

A trimmed Les Petites card with PanPastels create the one layer and the dimensional cat and banner are the "plus".

Here are the sunny details for this cool cat:

1. Trim a Les Petites card base to measure 3 1/4 x 3 and mask off a 1/4-inch border along the outside edge.
2. Stamp the cool cat in Onyx Black VersaFine and heat emboss with clear powder.  Apply Diarylide Yellow and Phthalo Blue Tint PanPastels around the image.  
3. Remove the mask strips and add a dotted border with a Summer Sky Memento marker.
4. On a separate piece of white cardstock, stamp the cat in Onyx Black VersaFine and heat emboss with clear powder.  
5. Color the image as desired.  In this sample, the cat was watercolored with Staedtler's Karat Aquarell Watercolor Pencils.  Fussy cut the image.
6. Stamp the banner in Habanero VersaFine on white cardstock and trim.
7. Attach the trimmed images to the front of the card with dimensional foam. 

Wishing you a bright and sunny day,

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps:  Sunny Days 30-180, Friendship 30-160

Penny Black Les Petites 90-001

3M Scotch Foam Tape

Imagine Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Habanero VersaFine, Summer Sky Memento Marker, Clear Embossing Powder 

PanPastel (Colorfin): Diarylide Yellow, Phthalo Blue Tint

Staedtler: Karat Aquarell Watercolor Pencils

Penny Black Blog Hop

In honor of Penny Black's newest collection, the Penny Black designers are sharing projects and inspiration with the new stamps!

Not only are we hopping, we're giving away stamps, too!  Leave a comment on each blog, including the Penny Black blog, for a chance to win a selection of these brand new stamps.

For my blog hop project, I recycled a tin and gave it a makeover.   

Penny Black's "With Flourish" frame combined with a flower from "Floral Applique" were perfect for showcasing the tin's window.  Both images were colored with Dr. Ph. Martin's HYDRUS watercolors which includes titanium white.  It is superb for adding highlights.  

The base and lid of the tin were painted with Ranger Distress Paints and stamped with Penny Black favorites Letter Background and Fleur De Lys.  The "So Happy For You" banner is part of the new Sentimental set.

Here is a closer look at the new stamps used in this project:

   

               40-238 Floral Applique                                  40-241 With Flourish                                    30-176 Sentimental

To begin the hop from the start and for a complete list of all blogs involved, visit the Penny Black blog HERE.

Penny Black Blog

                 Elizabeth (You are here)  

                               Jill (next hop stop - click "here")

Heather

Cathy

Therese

If you are participating in the blog hop and would like to leave a comment, please feel free to share your note for this stop on my Flickr post "here".

(This event is active until June 2, 11:59 PM PST)

Thank you for "hopping" by.  The next hop stop is at Jill's.

Have fun, 

Elizabeth

Art & Soul (Mixed Media)

No fancy supplies needed to jump into mixing your media.  This piece is created on a wood block! 

Alphabet stamps are wonderful for creating your own expressions in a variety of fonts.   

For the "artful/soulful" message of this piece contained in a hand-drawn frame, I used a combination of Robust Alphabet (lowercase) and Kate Brushstroke (uppercase).  The Robust Alphabet has fabulous chunky letters that can be fussy cut and accented with additional design features.  These pieces were stamped with Paisley Outline.

The wood block was covered with book text.  Here, around the side, you can see the text peeking through the paint and the stamped Brick Wall pattern.

This flower stamp (Sunburst) is amazing for mixed media.  I love the stunning presence of the size and it is large enough to wrap around the edge of the piece without diminishing the impact of the image.

What I find so freeing about mixed media is that anything goes.  The more you mix it up the better.  Here I have gone full tilt with stamping dots (Pointille), flicking paint, adding book text and doodling a border.

Here is a peek at the "not-so-fancy" wood block I started with.  

Just dive in and have fun experimenting with Gesso, Modeling Paste, Acrylics, Matte Gels all kinds of coloring mediums.  

The most unexpected paths often lead to the best places.

Smiles,

Elizabeth

Supplies:

Penny Black Stamps: Sunburst 4236K, Robust Alphabet (lowercase) 30-002, Kate Brushstroke Alphabet (uppercase) 20-001, Paisley Outline 40-048, Brick Wall 40-137, Pointille 3860J
Image Crafts/Tsukineko: Onyx Black VersaFine, Clear Embossing Powder
Other: Wood Block, Book Text, Gesso, Mod Podge, Matte Gel, Acrylics, Variety of coloring mediums