More Gelli-licious-ness!

A friend got a Gelli plate for Christmas, so we spent a happy day covering everything in paint!

Gone to lunch!  So time to take the occasional Craftroom Work in Progress Snapshot (CWIPS) .....

You can see the wood block stamps, (bottom left) which I tried using, but they were not really successful.

But rubber stamps work really well - used a large corner stamp here.

Stamps remove the paint from the plate, so I needed to think about at what point to use a stamp during making a print.

Also, I had those reverse text stamps by Tim Holtz (Stampers Anonymous), which were still unused in their packaging (they seemed like a good idea at the time).

They work well with the Gelli plate, this print is not finished, but you can see the text is the right way round!

Using black card is fabulous.

This one is on black glossy card using Pebeo Studio Acrylics Iridescent paint, with a quite intricate stencil.  The glossy card holds onto the paint when taking the stencil off, creating a good textured effect.  Pity photos can't show the iridescent shimmer!

Black matt card, using the same paints.

Using the iridescent paints on white card.






















All this Gelli-ing creates a conundrum. I'm sure I'm not alone in this - I'm creating a lot (and I mean a lot!) of prints!  Yes, I'm using them on cards, and I have an idea to use them on canvas (die-cut), and they make great journal backgrounds, but the rate of use is still not going to keep up with production!

Perhaps we should form Gelli Anonymous - to find ways to use these prints, otherwise they are going to take over the world!

Escape the machine!

Time for another creative get-together!

Here is the occasionally featured Craftroom Work in Progress Snapshot (CWIPS)  - quite tidy really - and the first mince pies of the season!


















A couple of weeks ago I used up an opened pack of paper clay and made quite a few faces, so decided to use some of those.  I also had a need to be a little bit steampunk!

Started with a few die-cut cogs and paste through stencils.  There is also a couple of pieces from a paper doily - quite subtle so doesn't really show here.

I forgot to take a photo before applying any paint, so the canvas has had the first coat of paint here.

A few faces, beads, and metal charms.

After more layers of paint and some gilding wax ..... a close-up.

You can see the edge of the doily.

Escape the Machine!

Steampunk urge satisfied!

A couple of friends, a little alcohol .... and no hangover!

Had a brilliant day yesterday with a couple of friends, when we revisited alcohol inks.  I know mine haven't seen the light of day for quite a while!

We were inspired by an article in the current Craft Stamper Magazine, so we did this version.  First, drop the ink straight from the bottle onto glossy cardstock, when dry, cut a circle and emboss it, and use as a backdrop to a stamped image.

Quite a retro look.

We then tried using the inks with laminating pouches.  Stamp up a piece of card with  silhouettes, put to one side.  Next, take a laminating pouch, and drop, dab, (the ink) and spritz (blending solution) inside the pouch; leave the ink to dry. If the stamped card is placed underneath the pouch you can gauge where to put the ink, but remember the image will be reversed when laminated inside the pouch.   Finally, laminate with the stamped card inside.  Love this, and will certainly do it again.

Recently I had seen an image on Pinterest (that used melted crayons) which I thought may translate to alcohol inks. Dribble some AI down a piece of non-coated card (it spreads too much on glossy card) and apply the same colours on a piece of glossy card in the normal way. Stamp and cut out a butterfly.  This certainly needs more work - too boring!

Finally, here is the CWIPS (Craftroom Work In Progress Snapshot) from yesterday.  I never said it would always be my craftroom!

I'm cracking up .....

I recently bought some Kroma Crackle, but not had an opportunity to use it, so thought I would do a small canvas in a wood frame, with the crackle on both.  I painted the canvas, and included some impressionistic grasses.

Then spread some crackle round the edge with a palette knife, but I didn't put enough on, and the result was an apology of a crackle - more like a whisper!

So, as this stuff comes in a tube, I decided to run a line of the gel around the edge of both the canvas, and the frame, and did not touch it with a palette knife, just left it.  It took a few days to dry, but fascinatingly it cracked in a regular pattern.

 It was really unstable, probably because I did not push it down onto the surface, so I gave it a couple of coats of matt medium before I went further.

I then got my Pebeo Fantasy paints out and did some small butterflies.  Here is a peak at my desk mid-project.

This is my version of WOYWW! (What's on your workdesk Wednesday)

Think I'll call it CWIPS - craftroom work in progress snapshot!  This may be an occasional thing I include, and it may not necessarily be my desk, as sometimes I have stuff spread all over the floor!


Anyway, I digress; I used some Treasure Gold wax on the cracked bits of the frame and canvas - a deep indigo colour, and added a couple of butterflies.  This doesn't look like normal crackle, but I love the texture it has created.

Hope you noticed I've just discovered I can place photos to one side of the text  - it takes me a while, but I get there in the end!