Our New Year Sale is still on but finishes on Saturday 15th January! Lots of bargains to be had but 

there have been lots of sell outs too!

Well, I do think the title of this piece is very apt for the weather over the last few weeks and hope that by combining with flowers it will remind us that spring is not so very far away. This piece is a version of the shadow box that I  created for my first shows on The Craft Store with some additions and a slightly different floral arrangement. I hope that the two pieces will show you how easy it is to change up a project just by raiding your stash for embellishments that would not necessarily come from a craft store.

I have used a set of shadow boxes for the base of my piece (if you might make the project I am doing next week as well as this or just love the idea of the set then you would do well to consider buying the set of two that is also available on the website). Firstly I constructed my large outer and the larger of the two extra boxes using multi purpose glue. I added a layer of stencilling using Abstract Chevrons stencil and Fine Texture Paste. Once the paste had dried I painted both of the boxes with a mixture of Teal and Lime paint which was then followed by a layer of dry brushed white gesso. 

To create the background paper I used smooth white cardstock and spritzed it with Bluebell and Grass Green Flat Matte Sprays adding in some Gold Lustre Spray before throwing some rock salt over the paper and letting it dry completely. The rock salt absorbs the liquid pulling the colour as it does so giving a beautifully textured background once the salt has been rubbed off. The paper was then cut to size and adhered inside the larger shadow box.

 

To create the flowers I filled a baking tray with really cheap shaving foam and then dropped in splashes of matte sprays in Saffron, Tomato, Rose and a really small amount of Bluebell then swirled them using a cocktail stick before pulling prints onto smooth card stock. Push the card stock onto the surface of the shaving foam then make sure it has all been in contact before lifting off and wiping off with the edge of a ruler the excess foam to reveal the print. You will be able to make lots of prints from one lot of shaving foam adding in my colour as you want to so it is worth making a batch of these for your stash. 

Once the paper was dry I wiped it over with an anti-static pad before stamping lots of elements from Melina's Florals Set 1 using Versafine Clair Nocturne ink. Once the ink was dry I added green colour in a mix of shades to the leaves and then fussy cut everything out. I also stamped the sentiment from Melinas Florals Set 2 onto a scrap of the card I created for the background, cut it out close to the sentiment and edges with black ink to give it more definition.

I placed the sentiment as shown adding in sisal and faux greenery around the smaller shadow box which is deliberately set with the flat side facing outwards rather than as a shadow box itself. I then shaped with my hands and a ball tool the fussy cut leaves and floral elements before adhering them in place. 

Finally I added lots of berries from my stash for another textural element.

My original piece has the sentiment split into pieces and some stamping added to the background papers and onto the shadow box using the dandelion from Melinas's Florals Set 2. It also lacks both the faux greenery and the berries and so gives an alternative option if you do not have these pieces available to hand. Though I have to say I rather like the addition of the extra greenery and berries in the second piece I created the addition of the stamping to the first one helps to fill out the box and adds the extra layer of detail the piece needs.

 Hello

Wisdom - as the end of the year is rapidly approaching it got me to thinking about what, if anything, is learnt in the 12 months of a calendar year.  Does each year bring new wisdom that we build upon or is wisdom ephemeral, that feeling of gaining wisdom only for it to suddenly disappear from our grasp. This was in my thought as I set about working on this project.

Katzelkraft Unmounted Rubber Stamp Set Herbes Folles KTZ272
That's Crafty! Clear Stamp Set The Language of Trees Set 1
Dina Wakley Media Collage Tissue Elements 
That's Crafty! Surfaces Craftyboard Circles
That's Crafty! Surfaces MDF 
That's Crafty! Pearl Inks Black, Tree Bark
That's Crafty! Medium Walnut Ink Powder
That's Crafty! Multi-Purpose Craft Adhesive 
That's Crafty! Stencil A4 Circles TC40002
Archival Ink Pad Jet Black 
Watercolour Paper 

Although I used a MDF panel as the surface, this would work as a journal page which is an idea I might work on into the New Year.

After cutting/tearing watercolour paper to size of substrate, it was misted with water, just lightly at this stage before applying walnut ink followed by the Pearl Inks, leaving flat to air dry. Once dry, Black Pearl Ink was splattered. This was then adhered to the MDF surface.

For the focal, a piece of painted, scrap cardstock was layered to a Craftyboard circle and to this, adhering one of the Dina Wakley Elements circles.  

Selecting a stamp from the Katzelkraft set, it was first stamped onto the Craftyboard circle element and then again onto scrap piece of found paper.

Taking the found piece of paper with the stamped image, the top end layering scrap piece of fabric with a piece from the Tissue Paper.  At the other end, the word Wisdom this time stamped onto scrap of painted cardstock and layered to the found paper.  

Just before adhering the Craftyboard circle to the panel, the word Wisdom was repeatedly stamped a few times then to this, tearing some of the small marks from another sheet from the Elements Tissue Paper, adding a sprinkle of them.  

Finally, a small circle was cut using the That's Crafty! A4 Circles Stencil - it was a piece of deli paper used as underpaper, catching Pearl Inks. 

I just added a scrap of this and that with a primitive cross-stitch to bring detail to the upper corner and throughout, a black watersoluble pencil was used to create depth and definition.

For those who celebrate Christmas, I wish you the happiest of times and just to pause to thank you for your visits to the posts and for your support for my stamp designs. Also a shout-out to Laura and Graham, to all the D.T. at That's Crafty and Jo Channon.

Festive Wishes

Lynne