Colouring Petals and Mixing with Metals by Monique

Hi everyone, welcome to our Scrap Matrix Blog!
Monique here sharing my latest layout - created for the Scrap Matrix "Metals and Petals" challenge.

I had loads of fun with this layout - using some beautiful Stamperia Paper and colouring flowers with some Prima Paints.....

This is what I created:

This is how I created my background:

First, I mixed some Paper Artsy Fresco Finish Paints in Green Patina with some texture paste, and applied it to my layout using one of my favourite 13 Arts Stencils. 

Next, I mixed some more Paper Artsy Fresco Finish Paint, this time in Mudsplat, with some more texture paste, and applied it using my Carabelle Studio A4 Stencil called Calligraphic Composition.

Can I just say I loved the way the Paper Artsy Fresco Finish Paint mixed with my texture paste?  Wow - such solid colour!

Next, I broke out one of my new Paper Artsy stamps and stamped on some more yummy texture using a dark brown archival ink.

There we have the background!

Next, I simply cut out some tags, and a photo mat from the gorgeous Stamperia "Clockworks" paper, and layered them under my photo.  I added some string to some tags for extra texture, and also cut out some clock images from another piece of paper in the range to add to the paper layers.  Stamperia paper is so good for this - it has such beautiful images and is so beautifully layered with images that you can have so much fun fussy cutting out divine embellishments.

I wanted to add a few flowers - no, I really don't have much of a problem adding flowers to my boy layouts, especially ones with a steampunk feel!  Anyway, I got out some Petaloo Mini Paintables  and my Prima Metallic Accents Watercolour set and painted them in a lovely teal colour to pick up the colours in my background.

I then started to put everything together.  I picked out some chipboard cogs from the Blue Fern Studios Cogs and Gears set, and painted them in Paper Artsy Fresco Finish Paint in Mudsplat and gathered together my metals - including some Prima Mechanicals Rustic Washers and Steam Punk Gears.  

When I was putting everything together, I was having trouble deciding where to place my flowers, so I took photos of what I was trying to make my mind up about, and compered them side by side.

I quickly decided I preferred the bottom photo.  The main reason for this is the pop of teal/mint forms a visual triangle around the photo, which then draws the eye to the photo - the main focus of my page.  In the top photo, the visual triangle draws the eye down into white space, and the eye is left floundering, wondering what to look at.  This is a very useful technique when you are deciding on your placement of embellishments.

Again, here is my layout once I was satisfied with the placement of all my embellishments:

Here is a full list of the products available in the Scrap Matrix Shop

Carabelle Studio A4 Stencil - Calligraphic Composition

Paper Artsy Fresco Finish Paint

Prima Mechanicals Steam Punk Gears

Prima Mechanicals Rustic Washers

Petaloo Mini Paintables - White

Prima Metallic Accents Semi-Watercolour Set

Well that's all from me today, I hope I have given you some inspiration.  You still have plenty of time to enter the "Petals and Metals" challenge.  When you are finished, simply upload a picture of your creation to the "Petals and Metals" folder on our Scrap Matrix Shares page.  I  must say I am absolutely loving all the gorgeous creations I am seeing so far - so keep them coming in Scrap Matrix fans!

'Amazing' by Elisa Ablett

Hi Everyone,

Elisa here from the design team with my latest inspiration for the month of August.

We have a wonderful challenge on this month and there is still time to enter, here is the link to the facebook group - Scrap Matrix Shares where you can enter. This month is all about showcasing the amazing stamps and stencils from Aall and Create that are available from the Scrap Matrix Shop.

My layout features the awesome stamps of a couple of homegrown Aussie designers Fiona Paltridge and Louise Nelson and of course stencils and other stamps as well from Aall and Create.

I have also included a step by step tutorial on how I created this layout .... 

follow on and leave some love!

Products used from Scrap Matrix:

http://scrapmatrix.com/prima-metallic-accents-semi-watercolor-paint-set/

http://scrapmatrix.com/shop-by-category/stamps/aall-create/

http://scrapmatrix.com/brands/13-Arts.html

http://scrapmatrix.com/distress-ink-mini/

TUTORIAL TIME!

Step 1 - draw a faint line with a pencil about 10cm in from the left hand side all the way down, then from the bottom of the page across your page 15cm up, this will give you the intersection point where your photo will sit. Drawing the line makes it easier to concentrate your background work in the area where you want to work whilst keeping the white space 

Step 2 - Using your desired ink, ( I used Sky Blue Ayeeda Water Ink  ) , spritz your page with water first along the lines that you have drawn. Add a large patch at the intersection point by spraying more water and adding large amounts of ink as per below photo.. dry with a heat gun or out in the sun!

Step 3 - Using a Cracked Pistachio distress ink pad and your craft mat, add patches of colour to your page. To achieve this you swipe your inkpad onto your craft mat and then spritz the colour with water. Tip your page upside down and pat the page onto the liquid making sure you keep to the areas along your drawn lines. Dry with a heat gun.

Step 4 - Using one of the Aall and Create stencils and a distress dauber or ink blending pad and applicator, blend the Cracked Pistachio ink through your stencil along the horizontal line 

Step 5 - Using the same technique as in step 4, blend black archival ink through various Aall and Create Stencils onto your page, following the lines you have drawn. 

Step 6 - Add a few spritzes of the Pastel Turquoise Ayeeda Chalk Mist at the intersection point where your photo will sit. 

Step 7 - Stamping time! I used Landscape Lines by Louise Nelson along the drawn lines, vertically and horizontally.

Step 8 - Using Fiona Paltridges gorgeous bloom set #42 Aall and Create  stamp over the lines as shown in the below photo. Add your title by blending ink through Stencil #2 Aall and Create, just over the words, amazing, love etc.

Step 9 - In the above photo, I also added touches of scribbled writing using the black and white Pico Embellishers which are available at Scrap Matrix.

Step 10 - Almost there! this is the fun part.... using a paint brush and Prima Metallic Accent watercolour set. Add metallic shimmery awesome accents to your blooms.

Step 11 - using the water colours and a butterfly stamp from #47 Aall and Create stamp set, stamp and colour your butterflies in, dry and then fussy cut them out and using 3D foam dots add them to your page. I didn't want to add to much more to my page as i wanted the stamp sets to take centre stage along with the cute photo of my great niece. 

Here are some close ups!!

Finished layout !! woohoo! If you try these techniques and/or the layout please post your creations in the Scrap Matrix Shares page.

That's it from me this week, thanks for stopping by the blog.

Hugs 

Elisa xx

PS.. If you want to see more of my work, here are a few links 

http://2crazycrafters.blogspot.com/

https://instagram.com/elisa_ablett/