February Calendar Page

Kate Crane is hosting her 365 Calendar Journal page thing again this year, check out her blog The Kathryn Wheel.

So I have done January and gawd what a struggle it is to think of something interesting to write about my life each day in a one inch square, think my writing may get progresively larger as the year goes on, LOL.

Anyway here is February, due to a big date on the 25th, I have made it a homage to our Lord and saviour, Monsieur Holtz.  So I set myself a challenge to only use Tim's products, it was tough, so couldnt use sequin waste or paint to add depth, made myself some mica spray using reinker and perfect pearls and sprayed through some chipboard Id cut using his Tattered leaves die, for the background I tried to make a wash out of Wild Honey DI, it was quite hard and went patchy, but defn added to it.  Didnt intend to go quite so orange, but hey ho.

Oops forgot to post January's page, not quite completed as I tend to fill it in at the end of the day.



Stampotique Design Challenge no 23

The theme for this was Orange & turquoise, using a stampotique stamp.  See here for more info and some great design team art on the theme.

Hope you like my effort.

Pickleberry Crafts Demo Day

I didn't decide to go to thisevent until I woke up this morning, as I knew I would spend money, well its virtually a forgone conclusion, but I shouldn't be spending money I'm supposed to be saving for my date with Tim.  So was just going to have a look, then Kate only went and had 15% of Tims dies, hows a girl supposed to resist.  So a lovely couple of hours was spent at Pickleberry Crafts today.

Here's what I bought, along with some last minute bargains from Hobbycraft.


The lovely Vivien Howard from Creative Expressions (a fellow essex girl) was demonstrating, here she is playing with shaving foam.  She did some great demo's using DI, masks, stamps and Creative Expressions embossing powder, paint and mica sprays.  And at no time did I ask if one technique was a mistake, and she never took offense at my insinuation, and those are my final words on the subject. Signed Foot In Mouth Girl
LOL, no she was fine, great sense of humour, thankfully, LOL.

And finally a picture of Kate McNicholas and Jane Dean, I did have a funnier one, but am under threat of death if I publish it.

Was so tempted, but have decided to hold onto it for future blackmail. LOL.

Journal page journey

In case any of you are interested, some photos showing the development journey this page took to completion, so I took a photo each time I finished a layer.  Hope you like and if your persevere to the end you get to see the finished page. . . enjoy  (on an aside I work for a bank that does "for the journey" LOL)

                                                                                                             music sheets stuck down and gesso applied

contrasting paint over circle masks, so some music still shows through

paint through sequin masks (circles and stars)

stamping with art journey broken circle stamp

spraying with dylussion inks

some ink blots, a la Gonzo

more colours of dylussions ink sprays

drew around shoe mask, shadowing added with black acrylic

shoe mask glued down

title added using black uni-ball

journalling added in blank shoes

bottom text added using transfer letters

edging applied using eco friendly paint

heavy black edging using acrylic paint

bar code lines drawn

doodling on letters and lady of the shoe added

final wording on shoe in white sakurafinished page

Hope you enjoyed the journey, I have to thank the wonderful Kate Crane who helped and inspired me to develop, just by blogging her fabulous art.

Valentines Day

I've had a wierd week with not a lot of crafting, but quite a bit of sorting out.  Decided (as you do) that I needed a new storage method for my promarkers, now many people have previously commented on and liked my previous storage, which kept them in an old cd storage case.  However that worked well when they were on the desk in front of me, but it's made it difficult to use them now they are off to the side, so decided I needed individual pots for each colour group, so I could pick them up and bring them over to my desk easily. 
So went searching through town, tempted in Poundland by some baby beakers, but wasnt quite sure they were tall enough, so off to Wilkinsons, and had picked up two packs of cheap tumblers, then I saw them, pastel coloured metal utensil holders, more than double the price of the glasses, but oh to die for, had to get the utesil holders, £2 each which I don't think was too bad, but as I say, once seen I had to have them, also got a couple of pear ornaments, so cute, forgot to photograph them though.  Anyway so here is my new pro marker storage.  The ribbons are for the brown colours and the lilac and greys.

Yesterday, I was sorting out old jewellery with a ruthless eye, lots went in the bin, well it was going back to them 80's, but salvaged bits and pieces with a view to using them in the future, some bits I had to keep however tasteless they seem now LOL.  Now in case you haven't heard, I'm off to see Uncle Tim in February and we have been told to bring ephemera with us if we want, so some of these bits may well end up in my pile of goodies.  It is getting increasingly closer and we are all on a Yahoo group getting excited and counting down the days, sounds like there is gonna be a great bunch there, my phone is constantly beeping at work with new messages from them all, trying to keep the excitement in check is hard, Mario tweeted photos of them getting the stuff ready for it, and then packed up ready to make its way over to PaperArtsy HQ.

Today I have made my OH Valentines Day Card, used a quote I have seen on one of the DT I follow, and really liked it for its simplicity.  However not feeling very loving towards OH today, so have just left the quote on the front as "Loved you yesterday", (might make him worry for a bit . . LOL, I can be so wicked) inside it will (well might not) say "love you still, always have and always will".

He better buck his socks up or else. LOL

Stampotique Designers Challenge - Masking

Masking seems to be popular at the start of the year, have seen it on a couple of challenges, did one for the Tims Compendium challenge, so wanted to try a different method for this one, so used the masking stamps effect, had to use post-its sellotaped together, couldn't find where I've filed away my masking sheets, expect I shall find them tomorrow when its too late, typical, LOL.

So masked two stampotique characters so I could swap heads, then covered them up added a base DI to the backgound and then stamped through a mask with different colour DIs.  Made a background paper, using an old book page, sprayed Glimmer mist all over then used same mask to add contrasting colour, highlighted circles using black and white pens, then punched flowers using Uncle Tim's fab die .  Hope you enjoy, I love the paper I've made really vibrant, might have to try and make up another batch for another time.

two photos one with flash and one without, flash shows up some to the lovely shimmers and vibrancy of the colours, whilst non flash shows a bit more of the details.

iNk bLOts

I am so pleased with myself with a bit of advice from OH, have managed to design my own blog header on photoshop, am really pleased with how it turned out, and feel it now feels more like my place!!!!

Well this is post no 3 this weekend, obviously the house is sparkling tidy, cos surely I wouldnt do art instead of cleaning , LOL.

A couple of cards for you to look at, two use the tone on tone images I did with DI, both use stamps that I have long liked from Crafty Individuals but never bought, then lo and behold they were in the Craft Barn sale, well it would have been rude not to.  I also stamped my own oriental ribbon and added a bit of DI colouring and finally a really quick card for my nephew, the night before, ooops got so caught up in my other art forgot to check the birthday list, enjoy......  :)

Pay it Forward 2011

Found Greenpixey this week via WOYWW, and she makes the most beautiful crocheted figures, which is really not me, but they are quirky and funky and I have to have some, fave is  the pear, I think or is it the big elf with the dark hair, LOL.  Anyway she is taking part in "Pay it Forward 2011"

What this means is that I promise something handmade to the FIRST 5 people who leave a comment here. However, to be eligible, you must repost this status, offering something handmade to 5 other people. The rules are that it must be handmade (or homemade) by you and it must be sent to your 5 people some time in 2011. Ready, set, GO!

So anyone who would like something of mine, please leave a comment.  I shall consider it quite a challenge amd will be aiming to make something more than a card or an ATC, which would be easy, but no fun.

Compendium of Curiosities Challenge 27

This weeks challenge was page 60 of Tim's book, "Distress Misting Masks".  Something I've tried before but without the instructions from a qualified crafter, so was not very succesful.  Really enjoyed this and now feel the need to buy loads of Mini Misters so I can create more of my own recipe mists.  This is the tag I produced using the recipe.

to see more of other peoples attempts at this challenge visit the L3 studio.

WOYWW 84

Day off today so Im hoping to improve on my number position and get to see a few more other WOYWW postings.

This was my desk last night, I have been working on a couple of projects at the same time, which is so unlike me, but Im actually finding it quite good for the mojo, as Ive got more than one thing to think about.

At the back of the desk is a journal page I am working on, I made the base a week or so ago and have been playing around with some ideas to finish it off, well I've now decided and have printed out some images to use, hopefully I will get it finished this week, its to do with my work and the challenges Im having to face there at the moment, I have also taken photos at all the stages, so hopefully will be an interesting post.

On the very edge of the desk is my sky remote, yes my xmas present finally arrived, we have multi room and I can watch all my fave programmes whilst crafting away, I love all those trashy reality programs, currently on in the background is "17 kids and counting", also love medial programs, am a frustrated medical person,when I look back I wish it had been a path I had taken, unlikely to happen now but work near an ambulance station so often think about becoming a parmedic, just dont think it will fit in with where we are now as a family.

Ah well back to the desk, now I havent done much craft sale shopping this season, but did visit hobby craft and picked up some great stamps cheaply, two of them are in front of the tv remotes, a really cute saying and a lovely corner swirl.  The other side is my box of Art Journal stamps, a box that will defn need to get bigger, Ive got my eye on some of the other sets in their range.

Finally in the middle, WIP, read on someones blog over christmas about tone on tone stamping, which I had a go at, this one didnt quite work, so I went over with a sakura pen, the others did they were more detailed stamps, so perhaps works better on those types, will post them separately for you to see.

Right better go or Ill have no time to do anything else today, see you at your desk.

Visit here for more info on WOYWW

Compendium of Curiosities 26

Here is my finished tag, following the technique on page 45 of Tim's bible.  Check out here at L3 to see more.

had great fun trying to think up how to use this technique, dont think I got the actual technique quite right, but it looks OK,me thinks.

Hope you like the new blog name, am trying out "Ink Blots", which cover the dining table now, LOL.  Shall make my own header when I can work out how to do it, so dont hold your breath, LOL.

WOYWW 2011

My desk this afternoon, bag dumped after coming in from work and some post including a smear reminder (whoop whoop).  Spread across the desk is my start of my Tag for the Compendium Challenge which I did last night whilst watching Silent Witness (great show).  Also on the desk is my wheat bag, I had a horrible stiff neck last night and when I went to bed I couldnt get warm, just beginning to warm up and OH got into bed flinging the quilt back, I was not pleased at all.

Also on desk is my ATC from the lovely but definitely loony Donna Rodgers, some bits of xmas cards I'm going to try to reuse and my rubiks cube, I have got it to only three squares in the wrong place, but no further.

So to see more desks pop over to WOYWW HQ.

Wot no name

I have decided it is time to grow up and rename my blog to something that explains a little bit more what it is about.  The only problem is what to call it, some of the blog names out there are so brilliant and I'd love to have a really good one, ie The Altered Inker, Ink on my fingers, they are just so descriptive so I am suitably envious.  So please help me one and all and come up with some suggestions.

Some of the options I've come up with are, 

Plinkity Ink
Crafting Dreams
Artistic Splatters
Splatters of Art
Inky musings
Organised chaos

let me know what you think, I think I have a fave, but I shall sleep on it...... night night