Zentangle Tag

This was one of those projects that started off as one thing, sat at the back of my desk for about a year, but then today I decided it was "do or ditch "day.  It turned out to be a "do" day, resulting in this finished tag.

My original idea was that it would go in my diet journal as a tracker tag, the whole diet thing is now a thing of the past, which was why the tag had been left unfinished.  If I remember correctly I used a coupld of shades of Distress Oxide Inks for the pink/coral colour and the green, I'd already drawn the pattern outline, so it was really just filling in the areas with various pens.  As I'm in Zentangle mode it seemed natural to use some of those designs to fill in the spaces.

52 Week Mini Art Card / Tag Challenge 2024 - Week 23

The Crafting Niche 52 Week Mini Art Card/Tag Challenge 2024:

This is a weekly challenge. I provide you with a prompt/theme each Sunday morning through out the year.  The challenge is very relaxed.  You can do as much or as little as you like.  You can create cards, tags, Artist Trading Cards (ATC's) or index cards, the choice is yours. You just go with what ever is in your head at the time.  You can stamp, get inky, use patterned papers, texture, embellish it is all down to you.

There is a dedicated private Facebook Group, with a lovely bunch of people who are already sharing their makes from previous challenges.  You can find the group by clicking this link.  I'd love you to join in.

The prompt for Week 23 is "Weddings"

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This is the tag that I have made for the Week 23, I started with a piece of white card, cut into a tag shape.

Using "Finger Dabbers" and three shades of Distress Oxide Inks:  Spun Sugar, Tumbled Glass and Shaded Lilac.  I added lots of dots across the surface of the white card.  Some over lapped, in places I left some white space.

I then cut a strip of Vellum, wider and longer than the tag by about an inch each way.  Along the bottom of the narrow edge, I used a punch to create a scalloped edge to the vellum.

Then, using a stamping platform, with Wow! Clear Embossing Ink, I stamped the image of the bride on to the vellum, using a Stampin' Up stamp set, called "Wonderful Moments".  I coated the stamped image with Wow! Opaque Bright White Embossing Powder and then heat set using a low heat setting in case the heat distorted the vellum.

I added a strip of double sided sticky tape to the top of the back of the tag and folded the top of the vellum from the front over to the back, so that the sticky tape held it into position.  I then mounted the tag on to a piece of lilac coloured card.

Next, I stamped the sentiment, using the same Wow! ink and embossing powder as I used earlier, with a Penny Black sentiment saying "Love is all around".  The sentiment is part of their set called "Only You 30-666", I then heat set the stamped sentiment.

Returning to the vellum, the decorative edge, kept lifting, so I added a touch of glue to keep it in place.  I then added a handful of sticky backed pearl gems across the surface of the tag.

Lavinia Stamps "Honeysuckle Cottage" Tag

 

Today, I've played with my Lavinia Stamps to create this tag.

I started by using "Sundance" and "Lime Punch" Elements inks randomly across the tag, I then used the same coloured inks through the Lavinia "Berry" Stencil to create the patterned background.

Next, I stamped the Lavinia "Vine Branch" as a tree using Versafine Clair "Portobello" ink for the trunk and "Verdant" and "Grass Green" for the leaves.

I then used Versafine Clair "Pinecone" dark brown ink to stamp the Lavinia "Moss Cap Cluster" stamp and the "Honeysuckle Cottage" stamp.

I moved on to colouring the image using Derwent Inktense pencils, a 2B pencil, a black fine liner pen and white and a gold Signo Uniball gel pens.

Clarity Stamps "Seedhead & Foliage Tiles" Stencil Card

Today, I've used Clarity stamps and stencils to make this clean and simple card.

Starting with a white 6x6" card blank.  I used the Clarity Stamps "Seedhead & Foliage Tile" stencil set. positioning the blank square in the middel of the card, securing with a piece of low tack tape.  I then used "Prickly Pear" Ranger Archival Ink to fill in the central square area.  

Over the top, I lay one of the other tile stencils form the same stencil set, again secured with a piece of low tack tape, applying "Leaf Green" Ranger Archival Ink through the stencil.

Lifting off the stencils, I then lay a square mask over the top of the stencilled area, then used "Forget me not" Ranger Archival Ink through the Clarity Stripes stencil in a vertical and a horizontal position to achieve the gingham look to the stencilling.

Next, I used Versafine Clair "Shady Lane" green ink to stamp the "Sending you love and hugs" sentiment, which is part of the Clarity "Happy Birthday Occasions Sentiment" stamp set.  Finally, I added touches of Signo Uniball gold gel pen around the stencilled area.

Lavinia Stamps "Forest Leaf" in Autumn Card

For this card, I used three shades of Elements Inks on a piece of white card for the background colour, using Sundance, Russet Orange and Paprika shades of ink.

I then used the "Russet Orange" again through the Lavinia "Floral Stencil" giving a very subtle pattern in the background.

Next, using Versafine Clair "Pinecone" dark brown ink, I stamped the Lavinia Stamps "Forest Leaf" stamp.  Around the edge of the stamped image, I used Versafine Clair "Portobello" a mid brown coloured ink to stamp the Lavinia "Mystic Swirl.  I then used Versafine Clair "Strawberry" red ink to multi stamp the Lavinia "Winter Spice" verse.  

I inked the edges of the card using Versafine Clair "Acorn" and "Pinecone".  Using the "Pinecone" ink again to stamp the Lavinia sentiment, which is part of the "Words from the heart" stamp set.

I added some white paint splatters to the surface and then added extra colour to the leaves of the "Floral Leaf" stamped image using Derwent Inktense pencils.  Finally, I used a 2B pencil to add some depth to the underside of the leaves and added some touches of gold gel pen to the background and the leaves.

My Zentangle Habit

About few weeks ago, I decided to try my hand at the art of "Zentangle", it's a type of doodle.  I bought a little square book with blank pages from Amazon and had a go.  These are some of my recent makes.

For the background colour, I have used the Creative Expressions, Cosmic Shimmer Iridescent water colour paints, which do indeed have a wonderful shimmer to them.

So far, I have completed about twenty five pages in my book of about ninety pages.

I do quite a bit of my Zentangle doodling while at the caravan.  It keeps my hands busy and I only need to take a small bag with my book, pencil case and paints in it, so it doesn't take up a lot of space.

Stash Busting Collage #2

 

Today I have continued to use my off-cuts from previous projects to create another collage.

For this collage, I have used off-cuts of papers from Funky Fossil Designs paper stacks.  The white and blue edged fussy cut flower was part of a Funky Fossil stamp set called "Funky Florals".

In my box of bits and bobs, I found a bit of a honeycomb die cut and some sort of foliage, both in white.  I finished the collage by adding a Tim Holtz Idea-ology word sticker from the "Small Talk" set, which says "look on the bright side" which I thought was apt as the papers were so bright.