DecoArt Blogger Outreach Program: The Black Death Mixed Media Layout

Hello and welcome

Today i am going to teach you a little about the dark history of the UK, The one the tourism industry like to sugar coat with tacky pens and that crap pewter jewelry you find in the gift shop. Well no amount of sugar could coat this one as The Plague also known as the Black Death killed between 75 to 200 million people across Europe which was about 50% of the population. Here is a wiki link for more info https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Death.

 This is a Plague Doctor, If dying of a horrible disease that made you flesh turn black on drop off wasn't bad enough you would get a visit from this scary man. The long  nose on the mask was stuffed with herbs to hid the smell of death and was long to prevent the disease from being breathed in. The Plague was spread by flea bite and was not air borne otherwise we would be extinct. The cane was to whack diseased people with to avoid contact with the infected.

The MDF tombstones are from Things to Alter and i painted them with DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics. The paper roses are inked with DecoArt Media Misters. For the background i used the Pixelated Stencil with some black DecoArt Media Acrylic ink that has been mixed with white texture paste. It created this lovely ash colour which is fitting for the subject.

I used The Coven digital paper pack from Gecko Galz for the paper layers and Mirabelle 12x12 paper pad for the base layer.

Don't worry the red splats are Red Media Mister and not actual blood because that would be gross.

Here is death who i painted with Paynes Grey Media Paint. 

Thank you for visiting and if you would like to see this macabre thing for yourself then pop over to the Falstaff's Museum in Stratford Upon Avon for a bit more dark history.

Trimcraft Simply Creative Introducing Folk Song

Hi all

I am showing off the new Simply Creative paper pads by Trimcraft. There are 6 different pads Folk Song, my guy, made with love, flower girl, so chic and Happy Days. I will start with the Folk Song paper pad first as it is my favorite.

I layered the papers up and then used the butterfly stamp set from Floral Muse and coloured them in. I used pink foil on the sentiment.

For this card i layered several sheets of paper in the corner of the card and added stitching to the layers before sticking it down.

I used a mixture of DecoArt products for this mixed media card. I used the Pixelated stencil with white gesso and flicked Yellow and Turquoise Media Misters over the card.

Thank you for visiting and you can find more inspiration at www.trimcraft.co.uk

Tando Creative May Challenge: Home Heart Wall Hanging

Hi all 

 I am back with another entry for the Tando Creative May Challenge. Ive been inspired by the Home Decor Week and all the DT projects so i have made this lovely wall hanging using the Home Heart Wall Hanging.

The Chipboard is very strong and hods paint and other mediums well. For the base i painted it with a layer of Artiste Lagoon Acrylic paint and the used crackle medium over the top and dried it off with a heat gun. i then painted over the top with Artiste Sea Spray Acrylic paint.

For the words i painted them with Artiste Avocado Acrylic paint and then a layer of crackle glaze and the use Artiste Sage Acrylic paint for the final coat.

I have decorated my wall hanging with paper flowers which i dyed using the DecoArt Acrylic misters. The Trimcraft paper flowers are the best because you get a variety of sizes in one pack.

I used the mini hearts as well and just painted them with purple and lilac paint. 

Thank you for visiting and for more product info visit  http://www.tando-creative.co.uk/catalog/

Introducing Santoro Mirabelle

I have a card to share today. 

I used the new Mirabelle range and it is a beautiful paper range.

I started off by flicking purple DecoArt misting spray over the card. And the added a few layers.

I used the decopage pad to create the topper and the cut out a frame from the Mirabelle die set. I cut it in half and slotted it behind the topper.

This is a wooden.shape from the Me to you Christmas range. I painted it with DecoArt crackle paste and the used the petunia antiquating cream over it.

To add a shimmer to flowers i used the metalic lustre and rubbed a bit of silver paste over it

Thank you for visiting and you can see the whole range at www.trimcraft.co.uk

Tando Creative April Challenge.

Hi everyone

I am having a go at the anything goes challenge over on the Tando Creative blog. You can join in here http://www.tando-creative.blogspot.co.uk/p/april-link-up.html

I am going to share my canvas i made using Tando creative masks and DecoArt products. This started life as a canvas wall hanging i bought from Cancer Research for 50p.

 This is an old project that i have spruced up a bit starting with changing the letters so that the sentiment shows up better.

The butterfly was a bare wooden shape that i covered in modeling paste and spritzed inks over. I let the ink drip down onto the canvas for added effect.

I've painted the edges of the canvas with the Americana Decor chalky finish paint so that it blends in better.

Here i have played around with the DecoArt crackle past which i have painted over with Antiquing cream and left to dry.

Thank you for visiting

I'm All Heart With Clearly Besotted Stamps

                                           A couple of projects up on the blog today.

I have been playing with my new Clearly Besotted stamps and dies again and this time i have an 8x8 layout for you and a card.

I used the min love hearts stamps and matching dies for these projects and you don't have to use them just for Valentines Day as you can see here.

I love ink drips and i love to add lots of colours so i grabbed my DecoArt Acrylic misters and went for it. I used my Clear Snap cats eye ink sets to match all the colours together using these lovely textured stamps.

 I chose these photos as they are of my Nan's last birthday so they are very special, its still a tough topic to document and i tend to use photos of her when she was still well and vibrant. This is why i have a scrapbook so that we can remember those who are no longer here. 

 Its really hard to deal with a family member who has cancer. 

The drugs affected her mind and in the end i'm not sure she knew who we were. Most people have the worry of whether or not the treatment will work but we had to deal with all the mishaps that happen when the mind decides to go missing in action, as well as all the visits to the hospital. It got to a point when she had enough and refused further treatment its a really tough decision but it was last one she consciously made.

I know everyone wants to scrap happy memories but we have to face the difficult ones too so that we can begin to heal. I shared this because i want others to know that they are not alone and that grief doesn't magically disappear.

And here is a little thank you card for listening

                                          Its really simple to make as i flicked ink over the card base and wrapped red jute around it, I cut out the mini hearts in craft foam and stamped over them before slotting them in between the jute.

Thanks again xx

Forever mixed media layout

As we approaches Valentines day, i would like to share with you some of my romantic makes starting with Dovecrafts latest range.

This is a scrapbook layout of my Grandparent's wedding back in February 1954. The Sweet Paris papers have a vintage feel to them so i thought it went well with the black and white photos.

 I love the resin flowers in this range especially the bright pink. I altered some of the white and cream paper flowers with misting spray so i could add extra colours that i didn't have in my stash.

You have probably noticed that i like to use die cuts on my projects, so it should come as no surprise that i have been using the new First Edition dies since they were launched in December. Here i used the key die set with Kanban metallic card stock.

And lastly the tag die set which has become a new favourite. I just cut out different sized tags and layered them up.

Thanks for visiting and you can view thius full range at www.trimcraft.co.uk

a new art canvas and introduction to Decomedia by Trimcraft

Hi everyone i have some more new products to demonstrate to you today. Trimcraft have just introduced the Deco Art range which includes a multitude of different paints and finishes. The range is suitable for both crafting and home decor. but today i am going to introduce the Decomedia spritzing inks.

i started off by coating a old canvas wall hanging with a thick layer of texture paste and let it dry over night. i then cut out three honeycomb background die cuts and pasted them to the background. i then just spritzed the colours around randomly adding a few stamps and let it dry.

i finished it off with a quote i made using different alphabet die cuts and a mixture of embellishments. i then spritzed over them again and added a few ink drops for effect.

i used the Magenta, Primary Yellow and turquoise inks and you can find them on the website www.trimcraft.co.uk

Thanks for looking.