Go With Your Heart

Hope you all had a good long weekend, did lots of fun relaxing and art making. I have my Make The Day Special project for this week and I went with a grungy, shabby chic tag using the Unity Itty Bitty and Authentique Co-branded stamp Go With Your Heart.

Such a pretty stamp. I've used the ZIG Black Sparkle Embossing Powder to emboss the stamp on top of an acetate panel treated with Eco-Green acrylic paint and ZIG Alcohol Inks which are also known as their Kurecolor Refill Inks.

The papers are from the Prima 6x6inch Printery paper pack (which I am totally in love with!) and then added some pearls to finish the piece. 

Have you checked out some of the new stamps in the Make The Day Special shop? Here are some of them:

Flourishes

Simply Betty

Paper Smooches

PICTURES OF THESE STAMPS HAVE BEEN REMOVED - people have been pinning these pictures into their 'Digital-stamps and Printable' boards on Pinterest BUT THEY ARE NOT digi-stamps they are copyright protected images.

Please respect people's copyright - not respecting copyright is stealing.

Which are your favourites? 

Have a great day.

Kim

Home Is Where...

Hello folks, how are you all doing today? I'm watching the rain on the window and happy to be at home today :)

Perfect day for a Home is Where the Heart is card :) This stamp is one of the co-branded Itty Bitty stamps from Unity.

I've used the ZIG Art And Graphic Twin Pens from Kuretake to stamp the image and you can now get these pens over at Make The Day Special! Wahoo!

Hope it is sunny where you are.

Kim

Ghosts Of Times Past

It is Saturday and that means it is my day on the Quixotic Paperie blog and I have another Artistic Outpost ATC make for you this week. I'm enjoying making these inky ATCs!

This one uses the Artistic Outpost stamp sets Bird Of A Feather and Windows And Doors.

I used Ranger Archival ink Coffee to stamp the girls and the sentiment and Archival Coffee and Sepia to add distress to the make. The door in the background is stamped in Archival Plum on a map collage background that I'd coloured with ZIG Art and Graphic Twin pens from Kuretake.

The splash of colour was also provided using ZIG Art and Graphic Twin pens this time with some stamping.

Some further detailing was added with embossing and metallic rub.

All great fun but you really should have seen the state of my hands afterwards! I should have taken a photo!

ps. I've linked this up to the Artistic Outpost August referral program and whilst you are there also check out their lovely stuff.

Have an Inky Saturday!

Kim

Friendship

My goodness I am finding this a very hard post to write. Some of you will know that I am a Londoner through and through and some of you will have been following the riots and looting that have been occurring across my city, that I love, and is even spreading through other major cities in England. I am just gutted, I don't understand how people can be so disconnected to the society that they live in that they feel they can do this to themselves and others just so that they can take their fill of pointless merchandise. What a piece of art the human is.

This is not a political blog, it is a blog about art and craft and making things so I shall show today's make in a hope of lightening hearts and to carry on.

It is Tuesday so it is my Make The Day Special DT make. I've used stamps from the Unity Bold Insight and the sentiment is from Unity Adventures In Happiness.

The background has been coloured with ZIG Kurecolor Refill Ink from Kuretake.

Hope you have a day full of Friendship.

Kim

Stamping With ZIG Fabricolor Twin Pens

Thought I would play with some fabric for this week's Make The Day Special make. I've been meaning to try out the ZIG Fabricolor Twin pens so I've used them to colour and stamp on some calico to make this little flower ATC.

I've used stamps from the Unity Adventures in Happiness Store kit. 

If you are interested here is a quick step by step for this project, so time to grab that coffee!

You Will Need:
Stamps: Unity Adventures in Happiness Store kit
Colouring: ZIG Fabricolor Twin pens
Substrate: Card (thin); Calico
Usual Suspects: Bondaweb; Scissors
Equipment: Heat Tool; Iron; Sewing Machine
Other: Craft mat (or stick free surface); Threads; Baking paper; Spray bottle of water; ZIG Water Colour System BrusH20


Prepare The ATC

Cut the thin card to ATC size (2.5 by 3.5 inches) and iron on some Bondaweb to fit the ATC. Don't forget to use your baking paper to protect your iron from the Bondweb!

Rip the Calico to fit the front of the ATC and iron into the Bondweb side of the card.


Colour The ATC

I used the 'Scribble' Technique to colour the ATC, so scribble the brush end of the ZIG Fabricolor Twin pen onto your stick free surface and spritz with water then use the fabric side of the ATC to pick up the droplets of colour. Dry with a heat tool if you are as impatient as me! Repeat this until you achieve a look you are happy with.


Stamp The Image

Again using the brush end of the ZIG Fabricolor Twin pen to colour the Unity Adventures in Happiness Store kit stamp and spray with a fine mist of water before stamping. I wanted the sentiment to be merged into the background so I stamped on a spare piece of paper first before my ATC.

The beauty of the pens is that you can put different colours precisely where you want them on the stamp and I stamped the flowers using different colours.


Add Defining Touches

I then used the bullet tip end of the ZIG Fabricolor Twin pen to define some of the areas of the image and added shading by 'pulling' the colour across with a ZIG Water Colour System BrusH20.

When I was happy with the look a gave it a final pass over with the iron (again using the baking sheet to protect the iron) to dry and fix the colour.


Add Some Stitching

I got my baby out (aka Sewing Machine) to add some machine stitching and 'Voila' one fabric ATC coloured and stamped.

There is just something about the texture of colour on calico that I just love!

Happy Creating!
Kim

ps. scroll down for some lovely Blog Candy give away news

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Where's Your Post At?

Thursday pm and I've realised that my last blog post was on Monday, by now you must be wondering where my posts are? Well the week has slipped past and I've not managed to finish anything. You know those weeks when you are just slightly under the weather but you can't quite put your finger on it? Well I've been having one of those weeks. Never mind, it will pass!

So rather than posting a make I thought I would drop by to give you some heads-ups instead. La-La Land Crafts fans out there have you seen the super cute new releases released at the CHA this week?

There are 14 gorgeous images including a Fairytale collection, a Halloween 2011 collection and a Christmas 2011 collection you can see them all on the La-La Land Crafts blog and if you hop over there now you can find out how you could win 12 Copic Sketch Markers! Yay!

Other news, the new Ippity July release stamps are available over at Ippity Inspirations, it is only a small release, well very small as there are only two stamp sets but they are both very cute!

Another heads-up for you all - Quixotic Paperie is having a Summer Sale so time to bag a bargain I reckon.

Lots of yummy stamps and papers at reduced prices - you know you want them!

Well before I pop off to try and get something finished before the week completely disappears I do have a sneak peek at a work in progress, well more like a bit a play in progress. 

I've used Kuretake ZIG Art and Graphic Twin pens to colour this piece as I wanted that vivid watercolour colour they can give. By the way don't forget to pop on over to the new Kuretake blog to be in with a chance to win some fabulous ZIG pens!

It is one of those pieces where I just love how the background has turned out but now I think I'm spoiling it by trying to make it into something! Do you ever get that?

Hope you are all having creative weeks.

Catch you later.

Kim

Shhh! Don't Feed The Monster!

Got a bit of a monster for you all today but he is a friendly monster, well, sort of friendly.

Perhaps you better tiptoe around here today and just avoid making any sudden movements.

That's right just scroll down carefully!

See he is quite harmless really - whose coughing? Shhhh! Quick leave the room...

It's Ok, he is still smiling!

Phew

This little monster is from the My Cute Stamp Kit Eeek! A Monster! Available over at Make The Day Special.

The tag is one of my collage backgrounds (tutorial coming soon!) and I coloured him with ZIG Kurecolor Inks which can be used like alcohol ink. 

The fibres and screw top brads are also from Kuretake.

Ok, so I'm going to sneak off quietly now...

Catch you later!

Shhh!

Love Cards For You

Erm anyone seen where this week has gone? Good grief, how come it is Friday already?

I'm showing the love again today. Hearts are my thing so February is great for my creative muse!

Doesn't have to be a Valentine's card but a card to show you love someone, or are thinking of someone, for you today.

This little love card was made by using the heart shapes punched with a Kurepunch Medium Heart as a mask on a one inch square block stamp. I then added colour with the ZIG Art and Graphic Twin pens and spritzed with water before stamping. It almost gives a tie-dye effect doesn't it?

Right off to make the most of Friday before the week disappears completely!

Have fun.

Kim

Love Shrine Baby!

Some of my fellow DT members from when I was working for The Altered Element run a fabulous Altering Challenge blog called Alter It Monthly and I thought that I would join in with this months challenge which is Shrines, Nichos, Altars and Dream boxes.

I've made a little modern day mixed media Shrine for the month of LOVE

Made from paints, Kuretake products, tissues, tape and paper and a bit of old food packaging.

The main heart is embossed with ZIG Emboss Rich Red powder and stamped into. The little embossed cherubs where made with the Kurepunch medium Angel and the little hearts were punched with the Kurepunch small Funky Heart. 

All the gold colours you see where added with the ZIG Calligraphy Metallic markers and I added some extra sparkle on the little hearts with the ZIG Wink Of Stella. 

The tag was coloured using the ZIG Art and Graphic Twin pens and the little hearts and the tag are all floating as if by magic (ok - it's 'invisible' thread) in the Magic Love Shrine.

Enjoy the month of Love!

Catch you later.

Kim

Twinkle On A Tuesday

Lots of twinkle in my Make The Day Special makes today, they are Twinchies made from card and fabric and decorated with stamps from the {Ippity} Moon Beam and Heart String and the Unity Wishes and Kisses. I've called them 'Creative Hearts and Stars'.

The background was made by layering small pieces of calico fabric onto a piece of card with Sparkle Mod Podge. Once the glue had dried the card was split in half and painted with acrylic paint. 

I stamped out the background hearts and stars then highlighted the stamp work with ZIG Wink Of Stella pens from Kuretake for even more sparkle.

There you have it a nice sparkly, textured background!

Have a Twinkly Twinchies Tuesday

Kim

Mixed Media Tags

If you dropped by for WOYWW last Wednesday you would have seen my painting studio, otherwise known as 'The Kitchen' (no really, it is our kitchen). I showed you a couple of works in progress one of which was this collection of mixed media tags for Make The Day Special.

Please notice the close-up on the packet of choccie and caramel biccies (top right corner), which is an integral part of the creative process.

Moving on and away from the biscuits, here is the final design process for the tags...

The tags are for a swap which had the theme 'New', so I kinda went with a 'Live your life and grow your wings' interpretation about making new creative beginnings.

I used some of my favourite stamps available at Make The Day Special. The ladies you might recognise as the Suzi Blu 'You Are Loved' and 'Love Yourself', the butterfly is from the Unity kit 'Life Becoming' (which is on sale at the moment!). The 'Life' sentiment is from the {Ippity} Kit What Matters Most and the 'Live, Laugh, Love' sentiment is from the {Ippity} Simply Home Kit.

The stamped images have been coloured with Prismacolor pencils for the skin and hair tones and ZIG Art and Graphic twin pens from Kuretake for the dresses and wings etc. As you saw the backgrounds were coloured with acrylic paints so very mixed media tags!

With Love At Christmas

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Wishing you all a completely wonderful day.

ps. if you wanted to see how to make this little tag it is up on the Kuretuke website!

Edit: This tutorial is now on my blog.

Christmas Wishes To You All

Some of you might have noticed a couple of mentions on my blog over the last couple of weeks for the ZIG pens from Kuretake? Just the odd hint here and there? I've been really lucky to have been able to give these pens a really good crafty workout and I'm hoping to share my thoughts and more projects with you in the very near future...

In the meantime here is a quick peak at my Christmas make for the Kuretake Countdown To Christmas, there is a new project everyday with lots of fun ideas like fabulous Christmas decorations and I love the decorated bag on 13 Days To Go! 

You will find little old me on the 12 Days To Go page and if you go take a look you can see a quick step by step for this project. 

I've used the ZIG Calligraphy pens to colour the holly, ZIG Calligraphy Metallic pen for the sentiment; ZIG Millennium Pen for doodling the holly and berries, ZIG Writer pens to colour the berries and the ZIG embossing pens to add the snow effect. 

So you can see how versatile these pens are but more on this later, right now I thought I would just tease you with a look-see!

Christmas Wishes to you all!

Kimx