The things we do for our art. Specifically, emptying, washing and drying used teabags. Ever since I came across Ruby Silvious and her tea bag art, I've wanted to have a play. Now, you can buy unused tea bag paper, but it's hard to find in non-industrial quantities. I did find one art place that… Continue reading Tea bag art cards
Another art journal page — I could get used to making these! It's nice to have a single starting point, a few ideas, and no finished image in mind and then just see where the page takes you. This one started with a bit of spare gesso left over from prepping another experiment: I didn't… Continue reading Inspire
Another art journal page. This one was inspired by the June challenge over at That's Crafty; this month's theme is "a summer's day" and so I got out the bright tropical colours and butterflies. The base layer for this page was made from torn pieces of patterned paper. That was followed by some stencilling: lines… Continue reading Bright
I've been thinking about alternative uses for my colouring – I enjoy making cards but I do have rather a large stash and if I'm not careful it will spill over into a second box. So I've been thinking about making things to be framed instead. My main concern with doing this is that Copic… Continue reading Rainbow fish
My other half took one look at this and named it "floralarm" — "because it's a floral alarm clock thingy"... The project was driven by a desire to try altering something other than a jar and to use more than a couple of the flowers I've apparently been hoarding from my Craft Box subscription. Tim… Continue reading Floralarm
This is a coming together of many different experiments, all in lovely lovely purple (and gold). People often say that you don't get good at anything by just watching other people do it and, obviously, you do have to stop and actually try it yourself at some point. But I have absorbed so many tips… Continue reading Make a wish in purple
Another "let's try out a product" project. The product in question being the Viva Venezio stone effect kit. And I have to say, I'm really rather happy with how it turned out, especially for a first try. I gave the jar a coat of white gesso to give the paste something to stick to and… Continue reading Shell jar
My first art journal page. I've always avoided art journalling, much the same way I tend to avoid written journalling, but if I view it as a space for play and not for "baring your soul" then it could be an interesting experiment. This was inspired by a YouTube video that, of course, I cannot… Continue reading Now is the time
I'm trying to use some of the supplies that have been sitting unloved in my stash. I've pretty much given up on ever catching up with all the stamps, dies and stencils, but I do hold out hope that I can make a large dent in the backlog of paints, embossing powders and other colouring… Continue reading Butterfly colour drips
Another challenge from That's Crafty; this time the requirement is to add stitching — either real or faux — to a project. I decided almost immediately that I wanted my stitching to be real and I even contemplated getting my sewing machine out. Machine stitching is on my list of things to play with, but… Continue reading Pink, fabric and floss
This box was made with a particular person in mind, the same person I made the Harry Potter wedding card for. She is one of the few people who would appreciate the time turner that has been lurking in my stash. I die-cut a heart from thick card and prepped that and the box with… Continue reading Time turner heart box
I've decided that art cards are the perfect size for testing out ideas and techniques — small ones anyway... This was inspired by seeing a large abstract artwork with a big drippy glittery motif across the centre of it; that got me thinking of ways to make glitter drips without ending up with glitter everywhere.… Continue reading Birds together
Maybe I was influenced by the "spring" weather when I put this little jar together. Growing up in Lincolnshire I was quite used to seeing snow — there were even times when we had deep snow drifts on my birthday at the end of March — but it's not often that snow settles and lingers… Continue reading Tiny snowflake jar
You can learn a lot from just watching YouTube videos, but sometimes it’s handy to actually walk through the techniques with the same supplies, just to get a feel for how what you’re seeing translates into actually doing. So I picked up this workshop kit to have a play. I am really bad (or good… Continue reading Wings of Time panel
Another "throwback Thursday" post for another panel that I made and photographed last year (hence the 2017 watermark that I cannot be bothered to redo: I don't need any more excuses to not get around to blogging this creation). This panel was made in response to a challenge to use a clipboard in a mixed… Continue reading Follow your dreams
Crafty Rat 