New stash - time to play!

I had a great day today at the Stamperama show in Stevenage - not such a lovely train journey there (unexpected engineering works en route caused a delay of about 40 minutes - luckily by the time I came home it was ok and I was home in 90 minutes - the trip there took 3 hours all told!)

Anyhow, once there I made a beeline for the Paperartsy stand where Lin and Leandra were doing a great double act of demoing fantastic Paperartsy products - thanks for the tags, ladies I love them!

So, here is my stash haul (twitters have already caught sight of this!)

Some of it was even on the list of things I wanted to buy!!!

And this is my first go at the "bumping" or shadowing technique that the ladies were demoing so beautifully....

I think actually I prefer the tag before I added the cut out flower - may try and unstick it and do something else....

However it was my first play - maybe I'll just make another one!

And these are the fab tags from Lin   .......

....and Leandra - this is a whopper tag!   Just love all that stencilling

I had arranged to meet a couple of twitter/blog friends at the show - the lovely Gabrielle (and her gorgeous daugher) and Jo Myhill who both produce fabulous art and seem to have the same taste in "must have" shopping as I do, lol!! It was really great to put faces to your names, girls! 

Right, I think I need to put my feet up - it's Sunday night so it's nearly time for Call theMidwife! But the joy of playing in my living room (even on the floor) is I can watch at the same time.... hope I don't fall asleep.

Tag it On - Time

Hello, and welcome to another Dragons Dream Tag It On. This week, it is my turn for the theme and I have chosen the title of a book I loved so much when I read it when it came out a couple of years ago- The Time Traveller's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. An amazing love story about a man who time travels involuntarily. When I was writing this post I found this review which tells it much better than I can!  Long gone are the days when I thought I would write novels!  It's since been made into a film, which I've not seen - I never think my favourite books convert well, I prefer to remember the story!  (EDIT. since writing this I have seen it as it was on TV at the weekend - and I think they did it quite well!)

Anyhow, I loved the book, and the theme for my tag this week, is "time" Here is my tag...

I covered a tag with paper from Tim Holtz Lost and Found paper stack, covered it with white gesso to tone it back, added some texture (viva Terra paste) painted white.   Embellishments are idea-ology pieces and a small watch face from a bag of bits bought at a show sometime.

Time flies stamp by Paperartsy.

WOYWW 140 ? a book to alter

Happy Wednesday to you all - happy What's on your Workdesk Wednesday, even! Don't know what that is? (What planet are you from?) check out Julia's for all the info

Thank you for your comments and visits last week - nothing looks very different here today so there's no wide angle or airial views this time!

I am really hoping to take part in Elizabeth's Altered Book free, online course that she's running - Elizabeth is a keen and regular WOYWWer and I have wanted to do an altered book for - just YONKS!

So I needed to look out a suitable book - I have thousands of books, but most of them are rubbishy paperbacks and so no good.  However, I think I've found something that will do.  So that's step one sorted - can't wait for the next step!  If you fancy having a go, Elizabeth would love to see you join in - click the link above for the details.

So that's me today - short and sweet (for a change) but next week - unless we get another load of snow - I should have some new stash to share with you as I'm hoping to go to the Stamperama at Stevenage, run by Stamp Addicts.  I love this show as it's busy but quite small - and I am meeting up with some blog buddies to put faces to names!  It's on Sunday and the details are here

Come back around 2pm (UK time) for the latest DragonsDream TIO challenge!

Sunday Stampers - Hearts

Hels' has us all getting in a Valentines mood today with her "hearts" theme for Sunday Stampers.  I actually started this page yesterday which is quite spooky!! Means I had something ready to enter without really trying too hard - just needed some finishing touches.

 Painted the pages white for the ink to grip to better - used the Magenta archival ink pad again (see yesterday). I wanted a patchy slightly uneven ink coverage.

The heart stamp is the giveaway from last month's Craft Stamper magazine and I have been dying to use it.  Stamped it in clear ink and used perfect pearls powder on it for some lovely lilac shimmer.  It stamps beautifully and is a lovely image.

Then today I hand wrote some of the lyrics from Love Is All Around randomly over the pages.  Can't get the song out of my head now!!! I love it.

This was the view from my (first floor) living room window today... just hope it goes soon!
I don't mind snow if I don't need to get anywhere -
like work - so it will be a wellies morning tomorrow so I stay on my feet!
I had a bad fall a couple of years ago that really shook me up even though I was only bruised; and I don't take any chances now, no matter how daft I look on the bus!

Alter It - Stampotique Designers Challenge 47

It has been far too long since I managed to enter the Stampotique Designers Challenge  - I don't have many Stampotique stamps, which I intend to rectify this year, funds willing!   However, I bought a new one the other day and it arrived on Wednesday.

Today is the first time I've had a chance to play with it - Daniels Hearts...

I decided to alter this beer mat I picked up before Christmas and whilst I'm not totally happy with how it turned out, it's ok(ish)!!

I had trouble photographing it, the sun from this morning has gone now - the skies are clouding over and I guess that means the snow we've been forecast will soon arrive in Surrey!

Anyhow, I started by painting the beer mat white, then applied some tissue tape (don't have the tissue wrap yet!) and sealed it with Paperartsy Fresco's Satin Glaze. Then I added some portfolio pastels but didn't totally like the way they looked, (my fault not the pastels!) so painted over that white again to blend them in more and stamped the hearts.  (archival ink, magenta - it's such a great colour, I forgot how much I like it!)

Anyhow, I stamped Maisie on some white card and cut her out, adding magenta ink to her .  Used a stencil to write her name (I don't have any of the Stampotique text stamps).  The heart at the top is UTEE and fell off something I was given at a show (sorry, Jennie!) but I've been saving it and the colours are just right for this.

Off to link up now at SDC - there is a voucher prize for one lucky winner and the challenge runs a few more days.
(this one is without flash)

Inspired by Donna

A highlight of my Wednesdays - apart from WOYWW of course - is Donna Downey's Inspiration Wednesday video/art journal.

This week it really "spoke" to me and I started this straight after I watched the video.  I realised whilst watching it, that I had a Hero Arts jumbo cling stamp, solid and outline version that I could use...

 It took me a while to finish it off, as I was struggling for some text/words to go on the page, but yesterday I settled for these by Wendy Vecchi.

I used dusty concord distress stain on the stamp before overstamping black archival.

the background is Paperartsy Limelight paint (lightly diluted) and the leaves 7 the border stamps are by Dyan Reaveley. Used portfolio pastels inside the leaves, whichI outlined with a new item that arrived yesterday - my white pen that actually shows up white. 

 Starting point, with some partially stamped images too.

The flash has caused over-exposure but the limelight paint looks more realistic here!   I've been tweaking for days  - tonight I used a circle stencil and the black portfolio pastel to add some dots!!

Now, I must away and play with something else new - my 7 Dots fab fab papers (from the Stamp Attic) oh and yes, Daniel's Hearts (Stampotique) blame Hels...!!

Thanks for looking.

WOYWW 139

Pinch, Punch, first of the month - February already by Jove!!   So, Wednesday again finds us congregating chez Julia's for the desk marathon that is WOYWW. 

Last week saw me prevaricating about decanting my Tim Holtz idea-ology into these boxes (left, in front of my stamp drawers)... so has she? has she??




Well.... I tried....


 

but no. it is still in here... I took some out of one packet - into a drawer - and back again. Will have to work up to it!
Maybe next time!  Trouble is, there's too much to go in this 3 drawer chest - and I think probably too much for the 16 boxes anyhow...

I am treating you to an arial shot today (no chairs were harmed in the taking of this photo!) to show the true extent of the mess around me on the floor that I work at - but no work in progress today!  The cushion is the one I sit on at my computer....

writing my blog posts!  Amazingly I got back in place before the self timer went off - and didn't fall over all the crap stash on the floor on the way!   This is me in my cozy slob out at home gear!    When I get back to my de-clutter, maybe I'll tackle this space too... (won't be throwing anything away though, just moving it around!) The de-clutter is still stalled.

Well, you'll probably never come back now you know what it's really like here - so I'll leave you to the rest of the workdesks!! Have a good week.