DragonsWeb

Welcome to my blog. Please take a look around and enjoy yourself. I hope my work will give you pleasure and inspiration, but please be kind and don't use any of it as your own.

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Then pop over to DragonsDream Tag It On and DragonsDarkerSide

Friday 15 May 2009

Guan Yin - my special goddess

I made this card for the friend who is opening her new shop tomorrow. It is just to wish her well, so I hope she likes it. It is a shop about spiritual things, incense, crystals, healing arts etc. So, I thought Guan Yin might help her get off to a good start.

The central image , and the first layer backing paper, are from Joanna Sheen's Oriental Dreams CD - an all-time fav for me!! For the other backing piece, I started with a sheet of semi-gloss paper and printed the Hobby Arts circular best wishes with versamark. I embossed with clear ep then began adding colour. I used dried marigold, old paper, shabby shutters and brushed corduroy, onto my heat sheet, spritzed with water and swooshed the paper through the inks. The overprinting was done using the same colours. Some white peel-offs and a Chinese coin, from my stash, complete the piece. Thanks for looking...

Wednesday 13 May 2009

Bubble Challenge Chez Lilibulle - Inchies

Front
Back
I enjoyed this different format. It is a piece made for the challenge by Lilibulle, Bulle d'artiste Ateiler. They do a bubble challenge and this week it is to use inchies. Those eagle-eyed amongst you will recognise some of the ones I made for the InchyByInchy challenge, when I was the guest hostess.
I stamped the leaves and such, and embossed with clear ep. Then I over-printed with some shimmers and glimmers on to the circle, using a piece of bubble wrap. I had masked off the honesty with some dimensional glue, to keep it the right colour. On the back, I used distress inks in peeled paint and shabby shutters in the direct to paper technique, then over stamped with the various images, such as agapanthus by Stampendous, and some pieces from an Elusive Images plate. I thoroughly enjoyed the different shape, and it's contraints. Lilibulle invited me to have a go, so I hope she likes it!! Thanks for looking.

TIO #3 Challenge - Rhubarb Crumble & Custard

Here is my entry for the TIO challenge this week over on DragonsDream, set by my friend AliMayes - Rhubarb Crumble & Custard . I really enjoyed doing this one as it was such a different concept!! Anyway, I created the background with Lava Red Cosmic Shimmer and then put it through my swiss dots Cuttlebug folder, dots inverted. The stamp is a part of a larger collage from Stamp Addicts, Life is in Bloom, printed in onyx versafine embossed with clear ep. I used butterscotch alcohol ink for the vase and flower, then cut them and stuck them to another stamping of the image. I added pink dots to the vase and yellow souffle pen to the daisy. Two yellow flowers and a pink brad complete the front.

I am selling my tags now, so I do the backs too... I had a great serendipity moment as I swiped the back with alcohol inks, and the colour flooded through the little indents on the front... even more texture, Ali!!

Below is my second embellishment (oh she is so extravagant that Ali - her stash is SO big, she can put 2 extras on!!!). I went on a bead making course on Sunday morning, and these are the very ones I made... needless to say I bought tons of clay and will be doing beads a lot more ... I was SO excited by the diferent colours etc. They will fasten on to the beaded chain of my tag, but did not want to be on there in the scanner!! - Well, if Ali can have 2 images on the challenge, so can I!!! Thanks for looking.


UPDATE
I have now got out the camera in order to photograph the way the beads sit on the tag. This is the shot below. However, the colour of the scanned picture, above, is actually more like real life. I will also do a tutorial on making the beads, as a few people have asked me about them. I will try to get some photos as I make them.


WOO HOO - I sold this one folks!!!

Monday 11 May 2009

Booklet Front Cover and Frames for RL

I have created this piece for a friend, who is about to open a new shop. She will be selling things such as crystals, incense, my cards, postcards and tags!! and providing complementary services such as Reiki and Indian head massage... Her open day is next Saturday, and this piece is for the cover of her booklet. I hope she likes it!!

I want to enter it into Rainbow Lady's challenge, too, which is frames, this week. I discovered the way to make the narrow frames (could be broader if I wanted) on my printer, this evening, that was a great find... I began by stamping the Butterfly Kisses stamp, then adding the cloudy moon image, from A Stamp in the hand. My fav swirl corner from UMount, was next, the butterfly from Elusive Images and then the agapanthus from Stampendous.

Most of the inks were versafine in onyx, smokey grey and vintage sepia, and the black ones were embossed with clear ep. I masked the head image and the moon, swirled distress inks mustard seed, worn lipstick, dried marigold and old paper on my heat mat and spritzed with water. I dibbled the shiny card about to get the colours where I wanted them, just blending a little with my fingers etc. My hands are FILTHY now, but I LOVE the piece. It will be a shame to give it away. Thanks for looking.

Sunday 10 May 2009

Ad-awww-able Girlie Gothic Arch!!

This darling piece was made for the challenge at Gothic Arches this week, which is little girls, chosen by Sandy. I don't do cute, but I adore Mabel Lucy Attwell images, as I had all her annuals for Christmas when I was a child. So they always make me smile.

I made the background with glimmer mists and Starburst Stains in shades of pink and gold. I overprinted with a Dimension Fourth swirl, one from UMount and floral scroll from Hobby Art. The flowers are from my stash. There is nothing terribly difficult or arty about this one, but it is SO pink and sweet, and really pretty in real life. Thanks for looking.

Alice In Wonderland on Postcard

This piece was made for Sunday Postcard Art, where the challenge is to make a work about Alice in Wonderland. I printed a scene on to acetate via my printer, and embossed with clear ep. I created a background, on shiny card, with distress inks, having a care to put some colours in special places, so they would show through the acetate e.g. the dress and the large toadstool. I printed various images on to the background, and then stamped a full set of toadstools for the front, colouring them with the distress inks. 4 yellow brads attach the acetate to the card and a couple of flowers, from my stash, finish off the piece. Thanks for looking.