Scrap Matrix Blog: You are loved .. with Alz

Morning peeps!

I'm back today to share another project for the Scrap Matrix Aall and Create challenge. I was going to count how many sets of Aall and Create stamps and how many Aall and Create Stencils I have but then thought 'maybe not'. Lol.

You are loved

Do you remember the baby I featured on my layout "Cherish" last month for our Love Is Sweet challenge? This is her! It was a big day for Selina and her sister .. Selina's sister started school which left Selina at home, alone for the first time. Her mum took her to one of our local beaches and this photo reached out to me .. I think Selina looks so lost without her big sister for company.

I loved creating this layout. As you know, I'm a big fan of creating my backgrounds on patterned paper. This is a Riddersholm Design paper, a brand I've not worked with before. It didn't disappoint. A great weight to handle any mixed media I threw at it, and a white core which, although I didn't do it on this page, is great for distressing. Plus the designs are great and being double-sided if you don't like one side, just flip it over as you're sure to love the other! Oh and this peach colour featured in the Huntington Garden collection is sublime!!

To start with I applied white acrylic paint on my background with a small brayer, and then applied Opaque Matte Ranger Texture Paste to which I added Finnabair Art Ingredients Opal Iridescent Mica Powder in Peach. This was my first time playing with the Mica Powder and my results were a bit hit and miss, I think. You can clearly see the colour of the texture paste has changed, and in my close ups below you can see the shimmer, but I suspect this might be one of the colours which shows up better on black. I'll have to test it and see, unless of course you know in which case I'd love it if you filled me in! Anyways I've used Aall and Create stencil #7 here.

Once my texture paste was dry I used Aall and Create Stencil #10 and a Walnut Stain Distress Ink to sponge circles to each side of my page.

Whilst I had the Walnut Stain Distress Ink out, I watered some down and generously flicked it around my page with a paintbrush. I love the effect of the different tones as it dries on the various surfaces.

Right about now this page is coming together quicker than I can blink, or at least it seems! I stamped circles from Aall and Create stamp set #3 with Archival Ink - Monarch Orange onto Riddersholm Design Huntington Garden Daydream patterned paper. I also cut a couple of tags from the patterned paper to adhere behind my photo. After cutting out my circles, I sanded their edges to help provide a little definition when they were stuck to my background.

Using the Walnut Stain Distress Ink and some recycled tissue paper I stamped a border, of sorts, with Aall and Create stamp set #3.

I trimmed the straight side and then wet the tissue paper, roughly following the really messy side of the stamping, and tore the excess tissue paper away.

Tissue paper is super malleable so rather than adhering it to my layout flat, I smeared the back of it with a glue stick and kind of 'ruffled it up' a bit in two different strips as I stuck it onto my page. I painted a chipboard Zen Leaf from Kinder Kreations white, added a feather from my stash, and a stamped bird from Aall and Create stamp set #6. I used an orange pencil from the Spring and Fall Prima Watercolour Pencils set to colour in the numbers on my bird.

To finish off my layout I .. randomly adhered my circles with and without foam tape, added my title from a pack of Dina Wakley Media Collage Words. I tucked in a stick pin I made and scattered around some Crystal 'Pebbles'. These are actually made from resin and as such, are ever so cool, light weight, and easily adhered with a drop of Glossy Accents.

Some close ups ..

That's it for me today. I hope you're going to join us as we celebrate aall (ha ha .. get it?!) things Aall and Create at Scrap Matrix this month. Don't forget to share your project on the Scrap Matrix Shares Facebook page and to tell us which products you've used from Scrap Matrix. I can't wait to see what you create!

Oh and just quickly before I sign off, all (yes all!) the Riddersholm Design patterned papers are on sale for only $1.00 (bargain!!). Trust me peeps, you want to grab some while you can .. you won't regret it. You can find them all here!!!

Cheers .. Alz :)