Tuesday 12 June 2018

Capture magic .. with Alz

Morning peeps!!!

I'm back with my second project for the current Scrap Matrix challenge "The Point Is". I've been scrapping my doogles so much lately I figured it was time to throw in a layout of my beautiful niece Mia ..

Capture magic

Of my many nieces and nephews, I'm probably closest to Mia. Maybe because she's as doogle crazy as I am? Anyways, this is Mia with Levy. If you're looking for Levy, just find Mia. You know how it goes .. if you're looking for Mia, just find Levy! Whilst I could wax poetic about Mia and Levy til the cows come home, I should probably give you a refresher of the current Scrap Matrix challenge ..


I had a lot of fun creating this page. A bit of work on a patterned paper background, some layering and embellishing and it was done and dusted. It only took about three weeks. Ha ha! Three weeks?!! I know right?! Life has been so extraordinarily hectic lately I've had to grab five minutes here and there to scrap. So frustrating. But for a greater purpose, so I no complain. The greater purpose? Hubby is retiring and the countdown to R Day is on. Don't worry, I know what you're thinking. For the record, I'm much, much younger than he is lol. But yeah who knew there would be so much to organise. Appointments, phone calls, meetings, paperwork, phone calls, more paperwork. Its all so very exciting though and in not too many weeks I'll have him home, home for good, and I can not wait!!!!! What's the point of sharing this I hear you say. No reason. Not really. Just chatting with you and digressing. A bit. As I do. Does there always have to be a point? Well I guess in this context maybe. So ..

My background is pretty much a recipe I follow when creating on a patterned paper background ..

start off with a piece of patterned paper (obviously duh!)

apply white gesso with a brayer to tone it down a wee bit

figure out around about where my pic will go
 bringing the TCW 12x12 Mums stencil into play because I love the pointy petals

and applying Paper Artsy Fresco Finish acrylic paint in Wisteria with a sponge
then outlining the pointy petals, somewhat messily, because I like messy, with a Fudeball Pen

sanding it back, all the better to absorb Lindy's Starburst Spray
in Tea Pot Purple

and finally adding some black texture paste through TCW stencil
(12x12 Sketch Grid)
and using a Jet Black Archival Ink Pad to stamp some pointy triangles
with an Aall and Create stamp (#10)

When I'm happy with my background, I usually build up some layers to go behind my photo. Not always. But usually. It depends really on whether I want my background to be an extension of my photo or to enhance it. I guess. What about you? When you create a mixed media background do you use layers behind your photos? Anyways, in this instance I felt the need, the need for layers.


FYI .. the lace isn't tattered! I deliberately cut into it to make it a bit frayed and grungy.  ;)

After fiddling with the layers a bit, it was time to actually stick the photo down, add some embellishments, a title and the journaling.

Here, I've broken down a large Curly Rose in Cream. I'm trying to create less bulky pages, but then I went and put a bulky-ish white rose from the Blue Fern Studios Heartland Roses and Blooms pack in the middle so that kinda defeated the purpose of pulling the large Curly Rose apart. Sigh. lol.


I've used various paints, including a Dina Wakley Media acrylic paint in Eggplant, for a bit of pop and contrast, on a couple of large Antique Silver Feathers. An Um Wow Studio Flair from the Teal Bloom pack almost finishes this embellishment cluster.

Except that I also added a Kinder Kreations chipboard feather which I painted with Violet 13 Arts Splash Glitter Ink. I was super inspired by Debbie Pulford's use of the Glitter Ink in her Guest Design Team post of 1st June 2018. Thanks for those tips Deb! Oh and I slotted in a couple of green wires I pulled off from the Curly Roses. In the past I used to throw them out but now I reckon they make great 'embellishment cluster fodder'. 


When I was ordering my supplies for this layout, I knew I'd want to cut out some shapes (most likely, triangles for arrow heads) but I didn't want to cut into a 12x12 sheet of patterned paper for, quite literally, some triangles. Instead, I ordered the 6x12 Die-Cut Elements from the same range as my patterned paper background (7 Dots Studio Northern Lights). The 12x12 Tags would have worked equally well, especially if you like tucking tags in here and there. 

Anyways, I'm probably showing my age with this next bit lol, but did you ever have a Math-O-Matt in school? I did. It was a bit of plastic with cut out geometric shapes, measurements and stuff. I never threw mine away. Heaven only knows why lol! These days I find it quite handy and in this instance, I used one of the triangles to outline which of the 6x12 Die-Cut Elements I was going to cut into.

pretty cool huh?

I sanded the edges of my triangles and added them to my layout in groups of three. You may have noticed that I sand pretty much every edge of pretty much everything. Its that 'one thing' I do. Do you have a 'one thing'?


Lastly, my title. Again, I've used the Tim Holtz Idea-Ology Chitchat Stickers Verbiage which I stuck with foam tape to one of the banners from the 6x12 Die-Cut Elements sheet. I also used foam tape to stick that onto my layout, just to give it a bit of definition. And that was that!


That's it for me today. You now only have a couple of days to get your entry done and uploaded to the appropriate album on the Scrap Matrix Shares Facebook page. Entries are due by midnight, 14th June. Please don't forget to let us know which of the products, available from Scrap Matrix, you've used. Its such a pleasure to be inspired by others' creations.

Wishing you happy scrappy days.

Cheers .. Alz   :)


Scrap Matrix products used:
7 Dots Studio Northern Lights - 6x12 Die-Cut Elements
TCW 12x12 Stencils - Mums and Sketch Grid
Lindy's Starburst Spray - Tea Pot Purple
Ranger Archival Ink - Jet Black
Embossed Paper Lace - French Lace Black
Vintage Coloured Lace - Gabrielle Lilac
SaveSaveSaveSave

Sunday 10 June 2018

What's the point? with Helen

Have you seen the fun Scrap Matrix Challenge for May?
It finishes on the 14th June, but you still have a few days to play along and get your point across.  Take inspiration from the mood board and use any or all of those pointy angles. 


I chose to scrap this photo of my Son and his Baby Girl.
It seems to capture the meaning of life, which for me, is to love and be loved.  The whole point of our existence.  Hmmmm, hope I'm not getting too soppy for you!   But what to do with the photo?


I had these pointy stamps and stencils and decided 
to work with them on some watercolour paper.


 I sprayed the paper with a water mister before smooshing the Periwinkle blue paint on with my fingers - such fun.


Adding  colour, Laidback Lilac, blending and spraying.


Then some Polished Jade and White linen.
I dried it off with a heat tool before the next step.


Using the White linen and a makeup sponge, 
I dabbed triangles across the whole piece.


I still wasn't sure how to use this and it looked too intense, 
so I decided to chop it up.


Having learnt the hard way to not just chop into the paper,
I randomly cut some triangle shapes and placed them 
on the watercolor paper as a guide. 


Then I arranged them on a white piece of 12"x12" card stock.
I maximised the wide part of the triangles by crossing 
them over in the middle and trimming off the excess.


The little triangle stamp made a great border for the photo.

I thought I'd finished, but have a habit of adding bits and pieces until I wreck the whole thing! The Zig Zag stamping, the chevron border, the ink splashes, the title and the word stickers all snuck in, when I wasn't paying attention! I think it's still O.K. Phewww!

I hope you find time to play along, just add your entry to the Scrap Matrix Shares page in the corresponding folder and don't forget to let us know what Scrap Matrix products you used and what inspired you.  You could be in the running for a $30.00 gift voucher and perhaps a Guest Design Team spot down the track.

Dylusions Shimmer Spray - Calypso Teal
Ranger Dylusions stamps - Inbetweenies DYR34575
Tim Holtz Ideology Stickers - Small talk

Wednesday 6 June 2018

"Believe In Yourself"

Hi everyone,

Monique back again today with my second layout for Scrap Matrix's "The Point Is" Challenge.
To refresh your memory - here is the moodboard for the challenge:


This is just such a cool mood board - and so much inspiration in one picture!!

This time, I used stars to "make my point,"  inspired by the gorgeous 7 Dots Northern Lights "Frayed Knot" paper.

Here is a quick step by step of how I created this layout:

1.  Select 3 pieces of coordinating paper.  Leave one paper whole, cut one sheet about 4"x12" and the second sheet 8"x12."  I used 7 Dots Studio Northern Lights papers - "Frosted" and "Frayed Knot."



2.  Use your 12"x 12" paper as your base and layer the other two papers on top - you can distress the edges to add more texture, if you want.  I used Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Iced Spruce.


3.  Stencil on some detail with a stencil and some ink.  I used 7 Dots Studio Cotton Candy Dreams "Stars" stencil and some Distress Ink in Iced Spruce.  Add some Gesso to a craft sheet, and water it down.  Use a credit card or paint scraper to lightly scrape the gesso on the layout just under where you will place your photo, once dry, add some colour by scraping on some watered down acrylic paint.  I used Dina Wakely Acrylic Paint in Marine.  I later added some gesso and paint the same way to the lower right hand corner.


4.  Start putting together your photo mat.  Cut a piece of paper to go under your photo (I used 7 Dots Studio "Northern Lights Board Games," distress the edges and ink.  I also popped a couple of tags from the 12" x 12" Northern Lights Tags sheet, which I also distressed and inked, under my photo.  I also used a darker piece of denim fabric under my papers - I just wanted something dark to "ground" the photo mat a bit.



5.  Add your photo to your photo mat, and then adhere to your layout.




6.  Next, use a die to cut some stars out of some coordinating paper (I used 7 Dots Studio Northern Lights Board Games.)  Paint some chipboard star shapes in acrylic paint.  I used Dina Wakley Acrylic Paint in Marine.  Arrange the stars across your layout, leading the eye to your photo.

7.  Layer some coordinating paper, stickers and tags to the lower right corner.  This is the space to do some journaling.


8.  Finally, add some word stickers (I used 7 Dots Studio Northern Lights Word Stickers 6 x 12,) and your title.  I used chipboard word from the 13 Arts Strength in Numbers chipboard sheet.   I flicked on some more paint and did a bit more doodling 

Here is a complete list of the products I used which are available in the Scrap Matrix shop.

7 Dots Studio"Northern Lights" papers "Frosted," "Frayed Knot" and "Board Games"
Kinder Kreations Chipboard Stars

Well that's it from me today folks - don't forget, you have until midnight on the 14 June to upload your entry.  Simply add it to the "What's the Point" album in  the Scrap Matrix Shares page on Facebook.


Monday 4 June 2018

Lynn's second project for this months challenge

Hi everyone, Lynn back again to share my second project for this months Challenge - "The Point is".

I have created an art journal page:



and here is the moodboard -


I have taken inspiration from the bottom right colourful triangles and the star.

I began by cutting up scrap paper into triangles and gluing them to my pages.


I filled in any gaps with a selection of washi tapes.  I have then cut out some triangles from scrap cardboard to use as a template and coloured all the areas around them using Gelatoes.  The white arrows were created using the Dylusion Arrow Stencil and Dina Wakely Paint in white.  The black circles have been created using a lid and black ink


The small triangles are an AALL and Create Stencil # 20 and black gesso.
Final touches included stamping the words using the Visible Image Stamp - Own It, and the title using a Faber Castell Pitt Pen and white sharpie for doodling.

Here are some close ups:




Thanks for stopping by and I hope you get a chance to create a project - scrapbooking layout, art journal page, tags, a card or tw, using the moodboard for this months challenge.  All you need to do is put a photo of your project into the relevant album on the scrap matrix shares facebook page detailing at least one product that you have used that is available at the Scrap Matrix Store.

Products Used


Til Next time - Happy Crafting











Saturday 2 June 2018

Tammy's back to get her POINT across!

Hi there Scrap Matrix creatives!

I'm back to share my second creation for our current 'What's the Point' Challenge.

My last creation was all about my girl, so I thought I'd create a boyish one this time.
All things pointy go so well with boys = Stars, Chevron, triangles, arrows......

 
So let's have a look at how this page came together....
 
I began with some black cardstock and a 7Dots Paper.
 
 
I then added some Dylusions Paint in my favourite colour 'Polished Jade'.
I simply swiped it over my page with an old store card.
I focused the paint towards the bottom of the layout....where I wanted my photos to be.
 
 
I then added some arrows using a Paper Artsy Stamp. LOVE IT!
On the patterned paper I used black ink and on the black cardstocks I used a thin layer of white paint.
 
 
I then used a Tim Holtz Stencil and a couple of pens to trace some Chevrons onto my paper.
I love the whimsical look of this.
 
Using a stencil is soooo  much easier than drawing freehand, and my lines are much straighter! Lol!
 
 
I then grabbed out some of the papers I created about a month ago using my NEWEST toy, my Gelli Plate
I love this so much!
 
From these I randomly tore off strips, made tags, punched stars and cut out triangles.
I added the strips and tags in layers behind my photos.
 
 
I gathered my various sized triangles and drew a border with pen.
I also added in some triangles cut from the Pinkfresh Escape the Ordinary paper.
 
I then layered these onto my layout.
 
 
You can see I also added some gauze, spritzed with Dylusions Ink Spray in Lemon Zest.
 
 
I love the different texture this gives, and how I LOVE the vibrant colour!
 
 
You can see I added Mixed Media Tape by Dina Wakley - I used the chevron and cut it into smaller sections.
 
I also punched some stars from the papers I had created using the Gelli Plate, plus I cut
out some chevron shapes from the Heidi Swapp Mixed Media pack and added these to my layout too.
 
 
Lots of dimension and layers.


The final step is always a few flicks of Dylusions paint, just to tie it altogether.


Oh wait! I forgot the title.
 
A fun sticker by Me and My Big Ideas.



So are you gonna have a go at our 'What's the Point' Challenge?
I sure hope so!
 
There's still plenty of time.....all you need to do is create something (a layout, a canvas, a few cards or tags, a journal page) and use triangles, stars, arrows, chevrons, diamonds. And/or you could make it about your "point" of view... or even your pointy nose, or the top of a mountain.
Use your creativity and imagination, along with the moodboard to make your point!
 
 
Just add it to the Scrap Matrix Shares page in the corresponding folder and don't forget to let us know what Scrap Matrix products you used, and what inspired you... to be in the running for a $30 gift voucher - and maybe a Guest DT spot in a couple of months!

Well that's it from me today.
I'll see you over on the Shares group, and look forward to checking out your creative projects!

 
Scrap Matrix Products used:
 
7Dots Paper 'Lost and Found'
Black Bazzill
Paper Artsy Tracy Scott Paints
White pen
Tim Holtz Stencil - Chevron
 Dina Wakley Mixed Media Tape
7Dots Tags -Paint Chips
Heidi Swapp Mixed Media Pack
Mambi Chips Sweet Memories Value Pack