And finally 'Friends' (posted by Judith)

Well, here I am posting my wooden box project based on Isa Norris' idea in the August edition of Craft Stamper magazine. Last month was so hectic for me, I went to Barcelona, and had another two trips away. My box was painted, but unfinished for a few weeks before I could finally get around to completing it this week.

I decided very early on that I wanted a colour scheme of creams and heather colours. I used Eco-friendly Acylic paint, which comes in a variety of colours, and is very reasonably priced. I used clam shell as my cream option, adding just a bit of white. I then mixed Periwinkle, Pomegranate and White to get my heather colour. I painted the box in heather first, using the Vaseline technique on page 9 of the November Craft Stamper to get an aged effect, I then added the cream colour. I stamped the Crafty Individuals crackle stamp onto tissue paper, and added this to the frame onto some of the cream areas, using matte multi-medium by Claudine Hellmuth.

I lined my box compartments with a mixture of Crafty Individuals papers, and handmade backgrounds, in toning colours. My box is a larger option than the other girls have gone for, because I wanted to incorporate a lot of stamps into my project. I have used a photo tray, similar to a printer's tray, but about the same size. I have used lots of Crafty Individuals stamps, a few Katzelcraft stamps, and one or two by ISC. I have chosen a theme of 'Friends' to carry through the project, and Crafty Individuals have lots of lovely stamps to portray this. I have also stamped out four ladies to resemble myself and my three lovely blog friends, although whether we are that graceful, I'm not sure!

I have included lots of little bits and pieces that have been gifts from my friends. When we meet up, they come bearing little packages of craft gifts , and some of these appear in this project; the lovely cream metal butterfly, (it used to be bronze), the pearls on stems, the printed tape, which should have gone in our circle journals, but I felt it belonged on here.

I thought of my friends as I worked on this piece, and I hope that it shows in the final result.

Now, onto our next project! As I've been so tardy in posting this one, I need to let you know what our next project is going to be. Lesley has chosen Joanne Wardle's 'Sunset Silhouette' on page 74 of the October Craft Stamper magazine. Hopefully, you won't have to wait too long to see some items from the others, as I know that they have already been preparing for this challenge. Thanks for stopping by, Judith xx

The Sewing Box (posted by Elaine)

Well here is project three from this month's selection of a little decorated box, inspired by Isa Norris. I was really looking forward to making this project as I love working on miniature projects. I have been a bit naughty as I wanted to work with two boxes. I decided to mount the boxes onto a little wooden triptych screen that I had been itching to use for some time, so I have been working in and out of the box like Jo. 

I decided to make a project with a sewing theme when I saw a set of needlework themed stamps made by Mirkwood Designs on E Bay! It took three attempts by my OH  staying up until the early hours to successfully bid for this set from a seller in the US!  I have wanted to make a needlework themed project for ages since I saw the gorgeous Grandma's Sewing Book project by Helen Chilton in the August 2008 issue of Craft Stamper. So this project was actually inspired by two designers. 

I painted my boxes and screen various shades of mushroom, pale yellow and finally cream until I was happy with the colour. The intial idea was to cover the screen with dressmakers' pattern tissue, which I did, but the tissue didn't really go transparent to show the colour through and looked a muddy colour, so I sanded it back and repainted it again!!

I used some twill measuring tape to edge the boxes that I bought some time ago from The Stamp Connection stand at Alexandra Palace. The little boxes are lined with Life's Journey paper by K & Co. The Time's is a Dressmaker stamp on the left hand panel is from Paper Artsy, as is the squiggle I used as the stand for the dummy. Originally I planned to use the words to top the project, but they were too big, but then I got the idea to use the dummy from this card on Suzanne Czosek's blog that I was browsing on the other day. I didn't realise at the time that Suzz is a blogging pal of Lesley. Thanks for the inspiration Suzz! If you haven't visited Suzz's blog, it is full of inspiration! I got the template for the dummy on the Stampington website, reduced it to the right size on the photocopier and cut it out of Webster's Pages paper and coloured the edge with Frayed Burlap Distress Ink. I stamped the stamp onto tissue paper and stuck it on with gel medium. The large scissors on the right hand panel are from the Mirkwood plate, the needle packet and the cotton label on the top are from a pack of rub ons.

I decorated inside the compartments with cream cotton lace, various stamps from the Mirkwood set, The ruler and some of the buttons are Lost Coast stamps from Happy Daze. The little cotton reel is another purchase from the Stamp Connection, with gold coloured embroidery thread added. I also used the button and zig zag stitched design are narrow Cuttlebug folders from the Just my Type set. I added some real needles, a safety pin and some eyes.

I wanted to include a little pin cushion, so I stamped onto some calico fabric and gathered it into a little pin cushion, adding some tiny lace making pins. I added some more stamping, a little thimble that I coloured with Butterscotch alchol ink, which I used on all the slivery metal elements to make them golden coloured to match the rest of the colour scheme. I finally added some little wooden scrabble tiles and some vintage buttons that I think may have come from my grandmother's sewing box.

I really enjoyed making this project, I want to thank Isa for the original inspiration and for her generosity in sharing her skills and knowledge with us crafters and thanks to Judith for choosing this project for us to tackle.

Elaine x

My Little Feathered Friends.

Well, I have to admit I really struggled with this project.  I have come to realise that I don't do miniature very well at all and that only increases my admiration for people who can, like Isabelle Norris whose project was the inspiration for our efforts this month and Jean Hardy of Crafty Individuals whose products feature in Isa's lovely little creation.  Unlike my lovely pal Jo, I never thought to 'think outside the box' and I was so stunned by her wonderful project that I almost chickened out on posting mine.  However,  I thought our wonderful visitors deserved to see the not so good side of the coin as well as the lovely stuff so here goes.

I have had a bit of a 'bird thing' going on in several of my efforts this summer and so I based this project on 'My Little Feathered Friends' also.

 
I painted my box with StudioTraditional Tan semi gloss paint but then decided to cover it with some Precious Metal Paints.  I mixed two colours (and I can't remember what they were now, Doh!) to get the minky shade for the outside.  The inside was dabbed with a stiffish brush and another Precious Metal colour.  I used a Cuttlebug embossing folder to emboss the grass and bird onto a piece of pearl Ten Seconds Studio metal, lightly sanded it and then rubbed it with black and some deep golden yellow acrylic paint.  Finally I used a Ranger Metallic Gold Dabber on certain areas of the metal before sprinkling Gold EP and heat embossing.  This metal was then used to fill two of the sections.
  
                                                
I used a selection of images from a new Crafty Individuals set which I bought from their stand at the Artisan Show at the beginning of October, a few Elusive Images stamps and a Clarity stamp for the other two sections and the small amount of stamping on the outside of the box and after sticking these in place, I dabbed Ranger Rock Candy on the inside bottom 'ledge' of each section.  I made a little bird's nest from a button with fibre and coarse twine stuck to it and then made some little eggs from Friendly Plastic to put in the nest.  I covered a little bird (again from Crafty Individuals) with Viva Ferro (again, two colours mixed together) and then stamped into it with one of the CI folliage stamps.  I left it to dry overnight and then touched the raised surface with a little Precious Metal Paint to show up the texture more and attached it to the top edge of the box.  Finally, I added the strip of lace.

I have to be honest and say that this wasn't my favourite project to do simply because I found it so difficult working with the restrictions of such a small area but it was a very good test for me.  I'm looking forward to seeing what our other two quartet members come up with now.

Thanks as always for your visit and especially if you find time to leave a comment.

Hugs
Lesley  Xx

Echoes of summer (by Jo)

When Judith chose our project this month I knew straight away that my piece would feature trees. The tree pictures in the Crafty Individuals Nature’s Beauty book are some of my favourites and I had used winter trees in the piece I made in Jean Hardy’s class at the Graphicus retreat last month. I thought an autumn theme would be good and prepared my collection of bare trees for this box. But my mind was still on another jaunt from the end of the summer and some of you will spot that straight away. That is how my box became a little ‘cottage’. Crafty Individuals also make chipboard trees, houses and fences but these were a bit too small for what I wanted so I made my own larger tree and fence in the style of the CI ones.

I covered them in papers I received as part of my Graphicus Guild membership. These might possibly be on the latest Essence of Nature CD but I can’t be sure as I don’t have that one yet. At this point the bare tree images were cast aside as this tree is most definitely not a autumn one. I replaced the pictures with another echo of my summer - the bluebells.

 It took a very long time to choose a colour for my box. I toyed with the idea of making it lilac as there is purple in the tree. But I wanted something that looked like part of the woodland. It started out beige but I didn’t like that so I repainted it in sage green.

I dressed my cottage with some pieces of ribbon edged with tiny leaves. I bought this ribbon with Elaine in mind really and it comes in several colours. I had expected to be using the autumn coloured one but here it is in glorious summer green!

You have to look very hard to spot the stamping on my cottage. But it is there. It’s a beautiful leaf stamp from the Elusive Images Fantasy Floral plate. I have used a tiny version of the same stamp in the background of the text (computer generated) and it also ties in with the leaves on the tree.

In her original, Isabelle Norris used Cuttlebug embossing on some of her backgrounds. I love my Cuttlebug and didn’t wanted to miss the chance to use it here so I used the script folder to make a background for the bluebells and also for my roof tiles. Like Isa’s these are made with Pearl TSS metal which has been aged with Terracotta and Gold alcohol inks. The metal was too delicate (and probably too sharp) to use on its own for the roof so each piece is backed with corrugated card which I left exposed at the edges as I think it makes it look more rustic. The eaves are made with bronze pearl card cut with a Fiskars embossing border punch (Punched Lace, I think). I was worried that with all the extra weight of the roof, the cottage wouldn’t stand up on its own as I’d originally intended so I was delighted it still works as a free-standing piece.

The fence was made in two pieces. I coloured it with Antique Linen DI and overstamped with the CI crackle stamp (CI – 116) in Vintage Photo DI. I couldn’t resist adding a butterfly. This is another CI image from the Nature’s Beauty Book. I deliberately chose one with quite neutral colours. The punched fern leaves at the base of the fence came about just because I thought they helped make the words look more at home on the fence.

The summer was not at all sad for me this year but I felt compelled to include the word as that is how I feel looking back at the summer in autumn time. I have come to a point in my crafting where the things I make evoke memories of places, people or events. I have high hopes of getting some journalling off the ground but in the meantime, this cottage on my mantelpiece will hold my memories of summer places.

Onto our next Project (written by Judith)

The Summer is coming to an end, and the Autumn is starting to make its presence felt with the reds and browns appearing on the trees. We get a spell of lovely warm weather, and then the blustery winds appear, making us want to wrap up inside, and keep warm. This is ideal crafting weather, don't you think?
We have had a very busy few weeks, what with holidays, and other commitments, and although we have still managed to fit some crafting time in here and there, we have not been able to keep up with our deadlines on here unfortunately. Our next project is from August's Craft Stamper magazine, based on Isabelle Norris' project 'Seaside Memories' on page 26. This was my choice, as I love the idea of combining stamping, pictures and pieces of memorabilia all in one piece. Isabelle's design is lovely in washed blues, but where we all head? Who knows, with our track record! Will we stay small, or go large? You will have to wait and see. Some of us are well on the way with these projects, and some of us are not so well advanced... hopefully, we'll show you some sneak peeks as per usual, and keep you posted with our progress.
We'll be skipping past September's Craft Stamper magazine in an attempt to get caught up, and next month, we'll choose from October's projects, to bring ourselves back up to date.
Keep popping back for those little snippets, and we'll see you soon, Judith xx

Courtesy of Morticia's Wardrobe? (posted by Jo)

This project was a long time coming for a number of reasons. I haven't been around much over the summer to do any crafting and when I have, it seemed I didn't have all the materials I wanted for my canvas. My plan changed several times and I only knew what colours I was going to use when I finally had a brush in my hand.

The canvas itself was coloured with Aqua and Cool Peri Adirondack Dabbers. I applied the first layer with a baby wipe and then added extra texture and depth of colour with a natural sponge. Over the top I used a Tim Holtz Cobweb mask, sponged through with Dusty Concord Distress ink.

The Grungepaper squares gave me some problems. I was in two minds as to whether to go for a lighter or darker contrast with the canvas. But the first of my elements looked lost on the lighter colour background so I went with Dusty Concord. I was disappointed at first with the colour and considered using a white card with the ink or embossing a ready coloured card. But I did like the velvet texture of the Grungepaper and wanted to keep the textile feel to the squares. In the nick of time I remembered inking Grungepaper roses at Linda Elbourne's workshop at LB Crafts. She told us we needed to really work the ink into the surface and we certainly hammered the Cut n Dry foam getting our flowers coloured that day. So I tried again with the Dusty Concord on my squares and got a much more vivid colour. I embossed with a Jamara Cuttlebug folder but the embossing didn't show too well so I went back and picked out the raised surface with Black Soot and got an effect I was really pleased with. The word 'goth' wasn't in my head until I read the comments on my sneak peek but the black and purple velvet/flock effect is straight out of Morticia's wardrobe.

To colour the tag on which the images were stamped, I used Tumbled Glass, Dusty Concord and a little Faded Jeans. I dabbed these onto my craft mat, spritzed with water and dipped in the tag. Over this background I used a Tattered Angels Ironworks masks. It is a fantastic iron gate. I picked out the shape in more Dusty Concord then stamped over the top. The stamps I used are mostly Inkadinkado but the 'Trick or Treat' and 'Shadows' text is from a new Halloween plate by Elusive Images.  

I didn't have the Tim Holtz Fragments that Linda used on her tag in the original project but I got by using three Creative Acrylics pieces and a few round and square acrylic 'pebbles' which I've had for a while.

I added into the mix a variety of Grungeboard minis which were painted with a Silver Dabber and immediately embossed with silver embossing powder. This gave the paint a lovely bubbled effect and even the tiny pieces look quite gnarly. I also used a couple of pieces painted with Aqua Dabber. I tried quite hard to repeat motifs across the canvas to pull everything together. A chipboard arrow echoes the spikes on Crow Gate and a tiny star flourish in a square pebble (sorry, lost in the glare on the main photo below) echoes the silver chipboard stars. Can you spot the others?

Sadly, I wasn't able to make the word 'Boo' with the type charms because there is only one 'o' in a set. So I computer generated my own letters.

I really enjoyed this project once I finally got to grips with it. I love the way I was able to use so many different elements and techniques. I know it is very different from Linda's canvas in the magazine but I feel I have put my own twist on the piece and was glad I was able to use what I had learned from her to get Grungepaper squares I was happy with. Thanks, Linda, for continuing to inspire us!

PS Sorry for the picture quality. I waited for daylight but it has been murky again today so no chance to improve on the photos I took in artificial light last night.

Don't give up on me just yet! (posted by Jo)

You might be forgiven for thinking I was a figment of your imagination and that this was really Craft Stamping Trio! But I am still here. I've just spent a lot of time gadding about over the summer and consequently I have got behind with our projects here. But after seeing the girls produce such gorgeous tag canvases I thought it was time I started getting mine together. I've made some headway today and hope to have my piece finished in time for a dash to the deadline with Judith's choice of project from the next issue.

 Here is a little taster of things to come.