Heart and Soul Tag for TIO #44

Heart and Soul

I made this tag as part of my "honeymoon" week...It was inspired by  our visit to Bolsover Castle today, where Freddie pushed me around in a wheelchair cos I can't walk far at the moment, and we wanted to see the beautiful ruins.... heart and soul in this relationship then!!??

I started with a piece of the paper I made for our invitations and tore it to add to a distress-inked postcard piece. The original paper was made with alcohol inks then scanned and printed in A4. I used one of Tracey's stamps from The StampMan plate. I also used it on our invitations - 2 hearts theme. Then just did my usual collage thing with several different stamps and cubes from Judikins, UMount etc. The hearts were covered in glossy accents and are actually quite red, but one is on the paper and the other on the glossy finish so the end result was different and scanned oddly!! Really enjoyed this one.

Thanks for looking

Frankie

xx

(Freddie sends his regards xx)

TIO #41 - Steampunk Influences!!

Here is my piece for the TIO challenge this week.

I have gone all industrial and cogs this week, inspired by the stamps I won a couple of weeks ago from Home Impressions!!! I NEVER win anything, but I DID get these and they are fab... it's a great site to visit, so why not have a look??!!

So, I used these 4 cogs and some metal embellies from TH... I also stamped a piece of collage from UMount and a couple of images from A Stamp in the Hand Avante Guarde#2. There are stamps from Hero Arts and Judikins. The distress inks are my usual dark colours, soot and sapphire, embossed with clear melt dust... The whole edge was embossed in TH vintage photo distress powder. As a "tag" it is large at about 15cms square.

Also, please wish me luck for my knee operation on Saturday next, 5thJune!!!

Thanks for looking

Hugs

Frankie

xx

"Openings" - Guest Hostess @ GOTHIC ARCHES

What an honour!!

This piece was made as a guest hostess challenge for Gothic Arches, no less!!! I never expected to get the opportunity to do this, so I am thrilled. PLUS, I am on my second night of very little sleep because of this dratted knee. I think the injection is wearing off, so I just can't get comfortable!! Seeing my work over on the GA site cheered me up no end and the date of the operation has been brought forward to Saturday next  - 5th June, so the end is in site I hope...

Well, what did I use?? Many yumminess stamps like Darkroom door and Crafty Individuals as well as Tim Holtz and a Judikins cube from Stamp Addicts, for the large lock at the top. I used Archival black and distress inks, worked on with the TH tool and colour duster brushes. I LOVE the quote as I loved the group, and I thoroughly enjoyed making the piece with lots of layers and subtleties... Thanks everso for looking and please do go and join in to support me this week at Gothic Arches, it's always a great challenge. I have also entered the piece for a super challenge over at Collage Obsessions...

Frankie

xx

My Entry for TIO #38 - Along the River

Here is my entry for this week's TIO #38 challenge Along the Rver. It has been set by Janet from Rednoss Ramblings. She has a lovely blog, so do visit her. I shall also enter it at Tellens Place, where the theme is simply tag you're it... well that's just made for me, so I MUST enter eh???

I decided it would be a simple and soft tag, but could not think what stamps to use. Then I remembered my Kodomo set, bamboo lake - ok it's not a river but it fits!! I made this one over a few days, because my back is really bad from walking so oddly with my knee!!!! So I printed the lake stamp and embossed in clear ep. Victorian velvet and stormy sky were scribbled on the heat sheet and sprtized... I embellished with some chipped sapphire and dried marigold, but basically kept it simple... the spikey stamp is a judikins and the crane is another Kodomo set - many of you will know it is a great favourite of mine...  used it because the original image seemed a bit feeble!!! The strong stamp brought the foliage and mistiness together, I think!!

Thanks for looking

Frankie

xx

TIO #17 A Circle Embraces, a line divides

This is my tag piece for the DragonsDream TIO #17 challenge this week, a circle embraces, a line divides. It was inspired by the lovely ring Freddie gave me for our engagement / betrothal on Monday, this week!!! This is it below... it is rose and yellow gold and the flower centre has a diamond set into it... so very pretty. Well, I think so, but then I would I suppose!!! Woo... the picture does not do it justice, as I could not capture the lovely pinky tones of the rose gold. Still, you get the idea...

I started with a piece of soft gold, pearlised card and printed the UMount swirls and flower in gold and rose gold, respectively. The face and keys are from a Judikins cube called treasure. I masked the face and overprinted with my Aspects of Design net, and stamped the UMount sentiment . I used distress inks and my inky tool to blot colour on to various areas, then covered it all with clear ep, to give a dreamy look. The lips and flower centre are highlighted with pearlydoodles, in red.

Thanks so much for looking, and following mine and Freddie's story... there will be more to come next June, but not necessarily what you are thinking!!... the Dragon has dreamed something quite different...

Bubble Challenge Chez Lilibulle - Coins

Well... I am obviously in a mood for blue and oriental!! This piece is for the bubble challenge at the blog of lilibulle - coins. You have to create a bubble with altered coins on it. So here is mine.

I stuck white tissue to the circle of card, for great texture, and then used my starburst stains to colour it... It is actually very shiny in places but not showing here. I printed in blue ink on the dry piece, with a bamboo and tree stamp from Stamp Addicts, by Judikins.The lady has stains on her too. The coins and flowers are from my stash, the coins being special ancient Chinese ones - so pretty. Thanks so much for looking...

Simply a Lotus Blossom

This is simply created for the challenge over at Crazy Amigo, simplicity - use as little as possible to make a beautiful card. Well, this lotus blossom by Judikins, is very beautiful, simply stamped in Brilliance peacock, on to plain white card. The background is made from Glimmer mists, overlaid with bubble wrap until dry. And that, as they say, is that!!

It also fits the challenge at Wednesday Stamper, which is green.

(PS made this whilst our lovely Cynthia, Rainbow Lady, had her well-earned nap, after her flght down to my house!!)

Dans Ma Maison il y a - a woman, writing...

Loved planning this one. Very simple house for Dans ma maison il y a une femme - a woman. I am definitely in an oriental phase, so she had to be an oriental lady. She is from a Non Sequitur plate that I have had for a long time... I coloured her in with Sakura pens. The papers making up the house are from the postcard Far East stack and the display sheet is from the 8"x8" stack - yummy.... The lantern is from a cube by Judikins, from Stamp Addicts, and I outlined the house with a gold peeloff. I wonder what she is thinking?

Looking at the Lantern in the Blossom Garden

Oh I do love doing oriental pieces, and this one was for the One Stop Craft Challenge, oriental. I will use it to make a card, eventually. I used some Judikins stamps, from Stamp Addicts again, plum branch and Michiko, printed on to shiny paper. I also stamped 2 facets of the Japanese fabric cube 1. The lantern is a stamp that Pete bought me one birthday, and I love using it. We brought 3 lanterns home from China, after our memorable holiday, and we always loved putting them up in the garden. You might catch them occasionally, as my garden slideshow goes round, on the sidebar.

I coloured the images with inktense pencils, which are rapidly becoming great favourites. I find them so useful when I want to brayer, as here, because they don't run, once they are dry. I masked the lady, and used the good old gumdrop Big n juicy inkpad, which always makes such an ethereal, evocative background. The piece is mounted on to a piece of silk mirri board, and the display sheet is my beloved DCWV Far East 8"x8" stack. Bao zhong - take care of yourself.

From Me to You - "Posted" with Love

This postal piece was made in response to a challenge at Go Make Something - Make it Monday, postage stamps. I found all the postal images I have, to stamp the background. I used black stazon and red distress inks. There are some oriental chops in there too...

The 3 main images are printed using a Judikins postage frame, masked and re-stamped with a central image - from the top, the artifacts cube and small Carol's butterfly, from Judikins (Stamp Addicts) and oriental lady from Inkadinkado. They were all coloured with inktense pencils then brayered with gumdrop, Big n Juicy. I cut the crimpy edges with my cropodile - every one separately!! The display sheet is from a set I have had for ages, and is covered in postcards and postage stamps - funny that!!!

Walking in the Evening Garden

A Lady for Rainbow Lady!! her challenge this week is to create a scene, and this is my entry. I have used lots of stamps again... Kodomo set Fanning Lady, my fav bamboo from a plate I have had too long to remember (NS?) and winter trees by Judikins. There is also a Japanese fabric cube from Judikins, and the grass border from Kodomo Butterflies set.

I stamped the lady in black stazon, masked her using Eclipse tape, and over printed with the trees, leaves and foliage. I brayered a background using gumdrop Big n Juicy, and then coloured the image with inktense pencils and a waterbrush. I am really enjoying these, and love the way they blend. Thanks for looking...