My Solution?? for CSI Case File #128

Hello my lovely visitors and welcome to my blog.

Meg's Garden is one of the sponsors over at CSI for the month of June and a few of our DT girls are Guest Detectives.  As I don't Scrapbook, I could not take part, but I decided to use the Case File to create a project of my own. 

This is the current Case File ...

... to see the full details, find it HERE.

For this case I decided to create a double Art Journal page.

 I first laid down some scraps of  Meg's Garden 'Correspondence' papers and sprayed directly onto the page with 'Sugar Plum Fairy' Glimmer Mist.  

I will leave a list of Meg's Garden Products at the end of this post.

I then scrunched up a paper towel, sprayed it with 'Afraid of the Dark' Glimmer Mist and pounced it around the page.  I also used this technique with more of the 'Sugar Plum Fairy'.  I absolutely love the textured look you end up with from using this method to apply the colour.  It's so soft and pretty.  You get a better idea of what I mean in this photo.

 My bit of green is on this gorgeous image which is from the 'Vintage Ladies Microscope Art Sheet''.  I also brushed some 'Sugar Plum Fairy' around the edges of the paper strips and added some splats for a bit more definition although most of that got covered over.  Used some Kaisercraft Background and Border Stamps with Memento Tuxedo Black and also used the same ink to create some more splats around the page.  Added a little texture with TCW's Mini Tile Stencil and some home made texture paste.

 My bit of pale blue is on the 'Vintage Trinkets' which were firstly swiped with gesso and then brushed with some Lindy's Stamp Gang Starburst Spray in 'Whale Watch Blue'.  

 I love that heart stamp.  It was a freeby that came with a crafting magazine.  The clock and the clock hands were cut from the 'Old World  Time' Transparency Sheet.

 The background on this page was created exactly the same way.  Same papers, same colours, same stamps.  Here though I've added a butterfly cut from the 'More Butterflies' Transparency Sheet, and the Oval Trinket was brushed with a mix of gesso and Viva Precious Metal Colour in 'Olive'.

Here is a closie of the butterfly and you can see more detail of the background too.

 Another clock hand also cut from the 'Old World Time' Transparency sheets.  Meg does stock metal clock hands in the shop too but, unfortunately, I didn't have any on hand.   

 With these Case Files you have to use all the 'Colours', at least two items from the 'Evidence' and at least one item from the 'Testimony'.

 Well, I have used all the 'Colours' although perhaps not in the right shades but I totally got caught up in the moment when creating these pages that I completely forgot about the Evidence and the Testimony.    It is pure luck that I actually have metal and a flower on my pages which does cover the 'Evidence' but this was certainly not planned.  There is definitely no 'Testimony'. 

Just as well I wasn't in on the GD spot isn't it??  Totally went off the rails, but I so enjoyed creating this and I am so happy with the result.  Hope you like it too.

Products from Meg's Garden:

Correspondence Mini Paper Pack

Vintage Ladies Microscope Art Sheet

Vintage Brad - Blue

Vintage Trinkets - Filigree Flower,  Filigree Oval, Filigree Strip

Transparencies - Old World Time, More Butterflies

Why not go and take a look at all the yummy goodies Meg stocks in her shop.  You can find it HERE.

To take a look at the Meg's Garden Blog and the awesome creations from the other members of the Team please click HERE.

Thank you so much for visiting.  I do hope you enjoy the rest of your day,

Take care and God Bless

oxox Marg

A Blog Hop with a Difference!!

Hello my lovely visitors and welcome!!

Last week I was so thrilled and honoured to be asked by my sweet friend Heather Jacob to take part  in a Blog Hop with a Difference.  The difference with this Hop is that the posts  are not all done at the same time.  They are spread apart and as it progresses the tour spreads out to encompass more and more crafty blogs.  Each of us has to answer some questions about our creative life and then tag 3 more of our crafty friends to carry on the Tour the following week.   As you can imagine, this is going to become HUGE!!
To visit Heather's Blog CLICK HERE.  Believe me, you will be awed and inspired by her work.  She is an amazing artist and a beautiful soul as well.  I have come to know her on a personal level and feel so very blessed that I can call her my friend.

So, to the questions ...
What am I Working on at the Moment?
Right now I am working on some Design Team projects for Meg's Garden and 2Crafty Chipboard but, unfortunately, of course, I can't really show you those.  I can though, show you a couple of pages I am currently working on for my Positivity Journal.

These are coming together a little slowly but I only work on them when I'm in the mood and there is nothing else I need to do.

When and how did I start Paper Crafting?
For as long as I can remember (and that length of time changes from day to day,  LOL!) I've always been creative in one way or another.  I used to sketch, I've knitted and crocheted.  I've sewn and made clothes for myself and my children.   I've also done embroidery, ribbon embroidery and cross stitch.   Each of these crafts though fell by the wayside when I discovered paper craft.  The cross stitch and embroidery are the most recent but those I had to give up because of my eyesight.
This is the last cross stitch piece I was working on.

Every once in a while I'll do a little more,  but I can't do it for too long because my sight just goes fuzzy even with my glasses on.
Some years ago, my niece started sending us cards which she created digitally on her computer.  I loved them so much more than the store bought variety and thought "I could do that."   I think I printed only about 2 cards when I decided it wasn't enough, there must be more I can do with this, so I started searching on the net, found some blogs (Luckily for me Heather's was one of them), and that was the beginning of my paper crafting journey.   As you can imagine, my style has changed quite a bit over the last few years.
This is the first card I made for my youngest son in 2007 (I cringe a little when I look at these now) ...

 ... and here is the one I made for him last year.

A feminine card made in 2007 ,,,

... and one I made not long ago.

I think my makes are a little more 'grown up' now and I have to thank the paper crafting community on the net for that.  I have learned so much from visiting other people's blogs and seeing what they do and how they do it.  You guys out there are so generous with the way you share your processes and techniques, it is awesome!!  Thank you!!  Thank you!! Thank you!!  I hope that in my own little ways I have contributed to that too.  This sharing of ideas is also one of  the reasons why I will be doing this till the day I die or at least till I am not able to do it any more.  Before, when crafting, there really wasn't any way to share it with anyone except family and close friends.  But now, with Blogger and Facebook and Pinterest, we can share the things we create with the whole World.  We can ask questions when we have a problem with our crafting and we can share experiences with others who also love doing what we do.   We can get ideas  that we may never have thought of ourselves and we make friends with people who we may never meet but who become a part of our lives just the same.  I really, really loooveeee this Scrap Booking and Card Making Community!!!!  Mwah!!!  

What do I like to make and How does my Creative Process Work?
I have never really thought about my processes before and, I have to admit, I don't really think I have a specific process.  My main love is making cards and they are usually created for a specific person so that persons' likes and dislikes have a great influence on the type of card I make for them.  I might begin with the style of card, or the colour I want to use or even with a flower or particular embellishment.  It seems to change from piece to piece.   I have also, of course, made quite a number of cards for no specific person or reason but  simply because I was in the mood to create or because I wanted to try a particular style or technique.  Here is one such card.

I love the look of torn and curled paper and this is one of the cards I made whilst experimenting.
Now that I'm thinking of it though, my Art Journaling always starts with colour.  I might want to try a certain colour combination to see how it looks or I've seen one somewhere that I really like so I want to try that for myself.  So, I experiment and. if I like the background I've laid down, I'll keep it for future pages.  Sometimes my pages come together really quickly but other times it may take days or even weeks before I know what I want to do next.  I never glue anything down until all the embellishments and all the bits and bobs are assembled and placed just the way I want them.
Here is a background that's been patiently waiting to be finished for a while now.  Still not sure what I'm going to do with it ...

 ... and here is my favourite Art Journal page!

I love the colours and also just love how those butterflies turned out.
As well as cards and Art Journal pages I also make Mini Albums and have created and decorated a number of boxes and off the page projects.
As an example, this is my latest box ... a Caddy for my Art Journal and supplies.

How do I stay inspired?  Firstly, because I absolutely LOVE paper crafting.  It satisfies a need I have in my heart to be creative and it satisfies that need extremely well.  Secondly, I stay inspired through the Paper Crafting Community.  I think there are times when we all get a little disheartened.  When the juices just don't seem to want to flow.  I've seen a good number of posts where people have said they've lost their 'mojo' and don't know how to get it back.  I've lost my 'mojo' a few times too, but when that happens I visit some blogs and take a look at what everyone else is doing and usually there will be something out there that peaks my interest and gets the creative juices flowing again.  So, once more, I say thank you to all you wonderful paper crafters who share your gorgeous works!!!

Where do I do my Crafting?
I first started this hobby in 2007 and I would sit at the breakfast table and everything crafty that I owned at the time was kept in a large craft bag.  Now though, I would certainly need more than one craft bag to hold my stash so I am really lucky to have a dedicated crafty space with a bit of storage.  It's not huge and it's not fancy but it is just right for me.  When our sons left home we converted one of the spare bedrooms into an office.  My husband and I each have our own computers and our oldest son's ex-bedroom had a desk and bookcase which covered all of one wall, so this was the perfect place for us.  Now though, my craft space has taken over quite a bit of this room. My hubby complains that he is now only allowed one little corner but I just tell him he should be grateful I've left him that much and, at least, we are still in the same room together.  LOL!  Here's a few piccies.  I apologize because it looks a bit messy but I assure you it gets a lot worse than this.  A LOT worse!!!
I originally sat at the black desk to do my work but found I was standing up more than I was sitting down and kept getting terrible backaches. But now ...

 ... I have this awesome stand up work table that my hubby built for me.  He's not really happy with it but I love it!!   So much better for me now that I can stand up comfortably and I have the old desk top where I can have my sewing machine and cuttlebug set up permanently instead of having to drag them out of the cupboard each time I need them.

My puppies like my desk too because they sleep in their basket underneath when I'm there being creative.  If you look closely I think you can just barely make out there is a little dog in there.

So now I will pass the baton over to these lovely ladies who will be posting their contributions to this Hop on the 30th June.

Kerry-Jean Watson lives in Adelaide, South Australia and is a very talented young woman who has a vast range of interests.  She is on the Meg's Garden Design Team and has also done a Guest Design spot for Imaginarium Designs and for Australian Scrapbook for their on-line blog.  Her eye for colour and composition is amazing.  She creates  the most beautiful and elegant pieces and has also now turned her hand to designing stunning paper lines for Meg's Garden.  Find her blog HERE.

Adriana Bolzon also lives in Adelaide and is a wife and mother.  Another very talented woman who is on the Design Teams for Meg's Garden, Kaisercraft, Couture Creations and has been published in various crafting magazines.  Her Scrapbook pages and cards are full of colour and vibrancy and she also creates the most brilliant and unique Decor items.  Find her blog HERE.

Helen Tilbury lives in South Africa and is also a wife and mother.  She is on the Design Teams for 2Crafty Chipboard, 7 Dots Studio, Inkido and Scrap Magazine.  She has also been published and is the owner of the Scrap Around the World Challenge Blog.  This amazing artist has a gorgeous arty style and she uses lots of gesso and paints and inks in her work.  Her creations are rich in colour and detail and the most amazing textures.  Find her blog HERE.

Each of these gorgeous women are super talented and never fail to inspire me.  I do hope you will pop over to each of their blogs to have a look.  I am sure you will be fascinated and inspired.

Thank you so much for visiting.  I hope you have enjoyed reading about the creative side of my life and that you will continue the journey as this Blog Hop progresses.
Enjoy the rest of your day.  Take care and God Bless.
oxox Marg

'Correspondence' Mini Booklet

Hello everyone and welcome to my blog.
I'm back to share with you my current reveal for Meg's Garden.
This time I have made a Mini Booklet with the wonderful new 'Correspondence' Mini Paper  Pack and I've also used a few items from the 'Green Bundle' that Meg sells in the store.  This little booklet was made as a small  gift for my Granddaughter, she loves flowers and butterflies.  Usually she would want everything in pink but she tells me she's growing up (she's 11) and is getting too old for pink!!  LOL

 Here is the cover.  As stated before, the papers are from the Mini Paper Pack.  I've created a few layers here although they are not too easy to see.  The ribbon used to close the booklet is from the Bundle pack.  There are quite a lot of ribbons in the pack and it was difficult to chose as they are all so pretty but I think the green stripe suits this little booklet perfectly.  

 The heart diamante strip is also from the Bundle as is the gorgeous green heart gem.  As well as lots of ribbon, there are also lots of beautiful gems in this Bundle.  I loved going through it when it first arrived.  It was like getting a little Birthday present,  didn't know what was going to come out next.  If you'd like to see for yourself exactly what is in this Bundle of goodies HERE is the link.

Did some stencilling on the front with Crushed Olive  Distress Ink, although that ended up being mostly covered but here you can see some of the layers a bit more clearly.  Love the different scripts on these papers ... gorgeous!!

 The first double page which I also stenciled lightly with Crushed Olive Distress Ink.  The small green paper flower is also out of the Bundle packet.  See what I mean about the script??  Love it!!

 The second double page, again with more script.  I guess that's why this collection is called "Correspondence'.  LOL!  Some more stenciling, this time with Fired Brick Distress Ink.  These papers take the ink very well.

 These pages have a little bit of stamping and, of course, butterflies.  Looooove butterflies!!

 More stamping and some more ribbon  from the Bundle Pack ... 

... and more Butterflies!!!  

 These pages are coloured  with Distress Ink and stamped as well ...

 ... and more stenciling here.

 The back cover was stenciled as well, and I'd like to thank my Dragon babies for holding the pages open for me.  Great job guys!!

I do hope you liked my little booklet, I certainly had a great time creating it.  These papers are so lovely to work with and they take the stamping and inking very well. The items from the Temptations Bundle came in so handy and were perfect for this project, and I still have heaps of it left!!  Woo!! Hoo!!

Products from Meg's Garden

Correspondence Mini Paper Pack - S133
Temptations in Green - green bundle

Thank you so much for visiting and for any comments you may care to leave.
Hope you enjoy the rest of your day.  Take care and God Bless.

oxox Marg

2Crafty & Scrap Around the World

Hello everyone and welcome to my blog.

The 2Crafty Design Team girls are Guest Designers this month over at Scrap Around the World and the new  DT girls were also asked to participate if they were able.  This was such a fabulous opportunity, and the Moodboard is so gorgeous, that of course I wanted to jump in with both feet.  Now, as you know, I do not Scrapbook, but I was made aware that they will accept double Art Journal pages so that's what I created.

Here is the Mood board designed by Di Garling.

I love the colours of this board, so bright and bold and beautiful.

Here is my Journal page.

 My background was created with Distress Inks.  It seems to be the best thing that works for me.  I don't have much success using gesso on my pages and with these inks I don't need to.  The colours I used are Mustard Seed and Crushed Olive.  I also watered down some Viva Precious Metal in Olive and poured it into a sprayer but, instead of spraying it straight onto the page, I sprayed a paper towel and then dabbed it around the edges.  I'm really pleased with the result as it gives a more mottled look.

 Here you can see the effect of the dabbed ink a bit better.  Stamped the background with a mix of Prima and Kaisercraft stamps all in Memento's Tuxedo Black.
The gorgeous chippies on these pages are, of course, from 2Crafty.  They have the most amazing range of chipboard pieces.  If you wish to take a look HERE is the link.  The online store is only for Wholesale, but you will be able to see the sort of chippies they produce and, on the left hand side of the home page, there is a menu with a list of stockists.

 This beautiful and delicate frame is the 'Frances Frame'.  I sprayed this with Heidi Swap's Color Shine in Black Velvet which has a lovely iridescence that doesn't, unfortunately, show up very well in these photos.  I then marked the sides with a white gel pen to emulate the straws in the mood board.  The paper layers underneath the frame are from the Correspondence Collection from Meg's Garden.
The quote was found on the net.  I only used two of the lines as that was easier to fit on the page and I felt they were the most appropriate for the board..
  The full quote reads 'Live every moment.  Laugh every day.  Love beyond words.'

 Used Tim Holtz Schoolhouse Stencil with Crushed Olive and Black Soot D.I. and edged both pages with Gathered Twigs.

 As you've seen, the two pages are almost a mirror image of each other so I have used the same embellies on each side.  The small stars and hearts are the 'ATC Hearts & Stars' chippie.  The stars were painted with white acrylic paint and then just dipped into some clear glitter.

The second Frances Frame treated the same way as the first.

The tiny hearts were coloured with red acrylic paint.  I then used a white gel pen for the little bit of doodling and covered them with Distress Crackle Paint.  A bit of texture was added with TCW's Mini Tile Stencil and some homemade texture paste and I added some washi tape at the side as well.

I was actually quite pleased with how quickly this all came together.  Usually my journal pages take days, sometimes even weeks to complete because, although I know what colours I want to use, I don't always have a plan for what to do next.  Having never created from a Mood Board before I was a bit hesitant but this page just seemed to create itself.  The colours of course, came from the board and once I selected the chippies I wanted to use it just flowed together really quickly.

Hope you like my journal page and hope you will want to play along at the Scrap Around the World Challenge this month and maybe win one of the many amazing prizes.  There are so many awesome goodies up for grabs.  

HERE is the link to Scrap Around The World for all the details of the challenge.  HERE is the link to see the Guest Design Team projects.  HERE is the link to the 2Crafty Blog to see the awesome projects my Team mates create with their gorgeous chippies.

Thank you so much for visiting today and leaving me some feedback on my project.
Hope you enjoy the rest of your day.
Take care and God Bless.
oxox Marg

Meg's Garden - June Sponsor for CSI

Hello everyone and welcome to my blog.

June is a very special month for all of us in the Meg's Garden Design Team.  

Meg's Garden is sponsoring the CSI Color Challenge and some of our DT girls will be Guest Designers as well!!!

Unfortunately (or not) I do not Scrapbook so I won't be joining in on the Challenge but I have created a card using the COLOURS and some of the EVIDENCE.
Here is the Case File ...

... and here is my card.

The papers are from Meg's Garden's new Correspondence Collection and all the COLOURS are there. 

The PALE BLUE is the base paper which came from my stash but, as I had no teal or orange items, I had to mix some acrylic paints so I could colour my flowers.  I used blue and green for the TEAL and brushed it straight on the papers as well as colouring the small rose with it.  For the top layer it was watered down  to get the paler look.  Added a little texture with TCW's Mini Tile Stencil and some home made texture paste and applied small strips of adhesive pearls to create the CHEVRONS.

I mixed Vermilion and Yellow for the ORANGE to colour the large gardenia and made it fairly watery so it could be brushed straight onto the FLOWER.  Although I still have a lot of coloured flowers in my stash I find now that buying plain white ones and colouring them to suit my project is a much better option.  Meg's Garden has a great range of gorgeous flowers that can easily be coloured this way.  I did have some small YELLOW flowers so had no need to colour those.

Attached a little bit of gauze underneath the flower cluster and added some die cut LEAVES.

The Testimony is simply the die cut greeting which came from my stash.  I also added some pearl gem sprays at the bottom to create a balance for the chevrons.

Just a closie.

Simply added some border punched strips of the Correspondence Papers to decorate the inside ...

... and another view of the completed card.

Meg's Garden Products used -
Correspondence Mini Paper Pack - S133
Gardenia - gar wh
Small paper roses - 005wh

I do hope you will join us for this amazing Challenge, there are some fantastic Meg's Garden products to be won.
For all the details and to see the awesome projects from my Team mates HERE is the link to CSI and HERE is the link to Meg's Garden.


Thank you so much for visiting and for any comments you may care to leave.
Hope you enjoy the rest of your day.
Take care and God bless.
oxox Marg