Simple Art Card Background

Happy Mix Media Monday!! I am here for Topflight Stamps with a very quick & simple background. This card was all about fall but then it may have gotten a bit of a Halloween look to it. 

This is one of my "the100dayproject" mini art journal pages. I used PaperArtsy stamps on it, along with some ephemera. The background page in my book was a Gel Print & had Halloween type colors. 

Bubble bubble, toil & trouble here is the cauldron recipe!! Start with a piece of white card stock, then add in a few pinches of Infusions. I used Emerald Isle & Lemoncello.

Add a spritz of water which activates the powder. Add water until you are happy with the color blend.

If there is too much water just take a piece of paper & lay it on top to transfer. Now I have a nice bonus background which can be used for journaling or on a tag. 

Once that was dry, some color was added using Prism Ink in Fire Coral.The leaves were stamped in the background with Archival Ink. Washi Tape was added at the bottom, along with a pumpkin brad for fun. The funky cool cat was stamped on the background & a copy cutout. That's it boom, a quick mini art card, ATC or Gift card. Thanks so much for joining me now go get inky!!!

Supplies:

Infusions

Stamps by PaperArtsy- Eclectica ESCO5, ZA16. 

Washi Tape Art by Marlene

Ephemera by Tim Holtz

*Affiliate- some of these companies have given me product to use, play & experiment with. The ideas are my own but I tend to work with companies whose products I like so enjoy the inspiration. 

**some of these links are affiliate, I receive a small percentage from the company at no cost to you. This may help me continue to bring you techniques & more inspiration.

Dream of the Beach Altered Art

Hello Topflight Fans, this week the team are playing with MDF Life Quotes by Debbi Moore. There are many different kinds including Words, quotes, ATC coins & stands to put your creations on. 

MDF stands for medium-density fiber board, basically it is an engineered wood. I was given the word Dream. I went with my favorite colors & decided to do a bit of a beach theme even with the butterflies. My dream is the beach so that is the direction to go in! 

Here is what the Life Quote starts out as. It comes with a stand that the word fits into. I didn't add paint to the part that goes in the stand as the extra layer might not make it fit as well. 

I did a color test on a tag to make sure the colors I picked went along with some of my ideas to jazz the word up. Really loving the look of crackle so that was part of the test. PaperArtsy makes a Crackle Glaze Paint. Hot-Tip PaperArtsy paints come in translucent & opaque colors. Keep this in mind when choosing which ones to use. 

Next up was adding a base layer of color. This will be the color that shows through the cracks. South Pacific was painted directly onto the word. Fresco Finish is a matte paint & really goes on smoothly as a base. Once dry, a layer of Crackle was applied. While waiting for it to dry the butterfly were embossed in Eileen Hull's Golden Rod. Hot Tip- use an embossing heat gun, it is runs hotter & has less blowing so the powder stars put. Also shake the embossing bottle before applying to mix the different weights of powder.

Once the crackle was dry a top coat was added. This will be the majority color. I went with Aqua Duck Egg, a pretty pale minty blue color. A thicker coat creates bigger cracks & thinner creates smaller cracks. Set aside to dry. The butterflies were embossed with Golden Rod. 

The bottom of the word base needed a sandy look & Seth Apters Embossing powder Dirty Sand was perfect!! I masked off the edge that goes in the stand with tape & embossed letting it run up some of the letters because sand goes everywhere when you are at the beach!

The base was coated in more of an ocean water color, Blueberry. Using a heavy gel medium shells & art stones were added. I also used some Textured Sand Paste from Stamperia. Next crushed shells from our last visit to the beach were added. Once all that was dry, sequins, beads, and metal accents joined the fun. 

This is my favorite part just letting my imagination play. Adding details like the mermaid charm, painting the sand with a shimmery paint, adhering Diamond Sparkles from Hunkydory.

Finally a Tim Holtz quote was added with gold ribbon that resembles netting. More beads & Diamond Sparkles & a few more charms. Thanks so much for joining me today. I hope you jump in to the MDF quote game & make something pretty!!!

*Affiliate- some of these companies have given me product to use, play & experiment with. The ideas are my own but I tend to work with companies whose products I like so enjoy the inspiration. 

**some of these links are affiliate, I receive a small percentage from the company at no cost to you. This may help me continue to bring you techniques & more inspiration.

Textured Crow Art Journal Page

Hello Inky Fans, today I have a spooky, textured, crow, art journal page for my Topflight Stamps blog post. This week we are getting our Halloween on. I hope you hop over & see pictures of all the products that were used on this page. If you use my code KARENBEARSE you will save 12% off your order.

Now on to the project! The stamp I used is incredibly detailed & was best showcased, simply inked. So I decided to have the background be more colorful to highlight the image. I did want it to be somewhat spooky looking however & adding the cheesecloth really did the trick! The bonus is you can use a background page you have already made & simply add to it to get the same effect.

Start with a mix media page in an art journal. Add a layer or 2 of acrylic stenciling, and paint the edges of the page. Next decoupage cheese cloth over most of the page. Create wrinkles as you go. Add metallic paint by scuffing over the raised areas. This adds to the texture. 

I used the Gothic Crow by Crafty Individuals. The image is stunning & stamps like a dream. With so much detail using a fine ink like Memento in black & Archival in grey was the way to go. I stamped the base & cross using Watering Can, then marked off the areas with post it notes so the Tuxedo Black would only ink the raven. 

Time to fussy cut the image & adhered it to the page. I used Cosmic Shimmer Quick Grab Glue for the 1st time & it did a really good job of working on the uneven background, holding my stamped image down very securely. 

I cannot stop using the die cuts by Art by Marlene- the images add a bit of whimsy yet go surprisingly well. I added a few stars & the sliver of the moon. 

Love the the dead fish at the bottom! To give the page a finished look it was embossed around the edges using Eileen Hull's Molten Dimension in my favorite color Aqua Splash. This Emerald Creek emboss is unique & has chunky bits of white in it. 

Finally the crow was outlined with purple paint & the gravestone with a silver paint marker. A quote was the final touch. Thanks for joining me in playing with a bit of Halloween fun. 

Don't forget if you add my code KarenBearse you will receive 12% off your order...restrictions may apply.

Supplies:

Gothic Crow by Crafty Individuals
Paint by PaperArtsy
Die Cuts by Art by Marlene
Eileen Hull Embossing Powder by Emerald Creek 
Variety of Stencils 
Embossing Ink by Prism
Cosmic Shimmer Glue

*Affiliate- some of these companies have given me product to use, play & experiment with. The ideas are my own but I tend to work with companies whose products I like so enjoy the inspiration. 

**some of these links are affiliate, I receive a small percentage from the company at no cost to you. This may help me continue to bring you techniques & more inspiration.