Scrapbooking Techniques: September 2021

Friday, September 24, 2021

The moments spent with you...

Life is made up of moments. Some good. Some bad. Some are nonchalant. ...and then there are some moments that just take our breath away. They are imprinted into our memory and no matter how much time goes by it seems like only yesterday, and we remember, so clearly, every detail. Even as I type this post to share with you, the memories of the moments that inspired this art journal page dance through my mind. This special person has inspired some of my most favorite pieces. From journaling to the canvas I have hanging in my room. The few, but precious, moments I had with him will always be dear to my heart.

Using a variety of techniques and some of my favorite stamps from Blank Page Muse, I sat down and captured how these moments make me feel. Whimsical, like straight out of a fairytale. Handsome and strong like he is. Nature, because when I was with him, it was completely as natural and as beautiful. ...and the memories we made, though few, will be with me for a lifetime.

Look at all the goodies I used! Creating this art journal page was a lot of fun. I had the music on and just got lost in the creative process. No direction, just going where it took me.

I started with Inking the background up using the Gel Press and Distress Oxide & Distress Mica Stain.

Using Distress Rustic Wilderness, I inked all the edges.

Then using the Handwritten Note Art stamp and stamped the whole background.

Now... some magic!

Using the Medallions Ornate Patterns & Flowers I stamped all over the background and embossed using Distress Glaze. It turned out beautifully!

Now time to put everything together. One of the fun tricks I did was with the tree di-cuts - Sizzix, Tim Holtz Woodlands. After I cut them out, I ran them through my Xyron Creative Station. Before pulling them off, I inked them up. It made working with them so much easier. I do this little trick with lots of my di-cuts!

The rest just fell into place. A few more di-cuts, a frame, tag, and titling... and wa-la!

This little journal page turned out better than I could of imagined. ...I think because as I was creating, the love I have was pouring out onto the page as well as the ink, embossing, and embellishments.

I hope you have enjoyed learning about this Art Journal Page as much as I enjoyed creating it. Blank Page Muse has amazing quality stamps that will inspire your own beloved projects!

....and, just for you, jump on over to Blank Page Muse and do a little shopping, then use the code BPMChristine to get 15% off your order!

After that, check out the links below for more inspiration:

The Blank Page Muse- https://blankpagemuse.com/

FB Fan Page- https://www.facebook.com/groups/blankpagemuse/

Instagram Shop- https://www.instagram.com/blankpagemuse/

Instagram Blog- https://www.instagram.com/blankpagemuseblog/

Twitter- https://twitter.com/BlankPageMuse

Pintrest- https://www.pinterest.com/blankpagemuse/boards/

You can also follow me on Instagram at the_mad_inker

Until next time... HAPPY CREATING!

Friday, September 3, 2021

Don't Give Up... on your project or Life!

Happy Friday! Today I have a tag full of techniques... and to be perfectly honest, quite a few things went "wrong" on this tag. You know, when you have an idea and in your head it looks amazing, but once executed, not so great? Well, I kept going and this is what came to life...

I started with a plain manila tag and covered it with a book page. I use Matte Medium for things like this normally.. but when I was at Hobby Lobby a while back I came across Satin Gel and HAD to try it. I really like how it is not glossy, but still not completely matte.

Once the book page was dried, I inked it up with some Distress Inks and brushed some Gesso over part of the tag.

I then used the thinlet dies by Tim Holtz and cut out some of the background.

Now time for some stamping and embossing fun! I used the tree from the Starbright Gnome Wintery Tree Let your light shine stamp set by Pam Bray. I stamped in Versamark and used Black embossing powder. This is one thing I really liked at first, but then as the tag went on, it was too bold. I ended up using Picket Fence Distress Paint to dry brush over to make it not as in your face! I LOVE how it turned the tree to a whimsical element on my tag.

Now this... this just made me smile ear to ear at how beautiful it came out. Using the Flower Shape with Silhouettes & Music, I did a two toned stamp imaged. Just beautiful. If you look at the finished tag, you will see that I cut this out and sprayed it with Perfect Pearls Mist in Perfect Pearl. The shimmer, oh the shimmer!

I ran a scrap piece of Christmas Ribbon I had save through my Xyron Creative Station to add adhesive to be able to adhere it easily to my tag. I then inked up some Tim Holtz Glassine Paper and adhered it at the bottom of the tag over the top of the ribbon. Then I took some Dylusions Spray and tapped ink splatters all over the tag. Next I glued down my stamped Flower Shape with Silhouettes and Music and took a piece of scrap paper, hand cut to the size square I needed and inked it up and wrote my quote.

Sometimes we so easily throw out a project when it doesn't go as planned. I challenge you to have hope and keep trying. You never know what amazing project you will come up with!