A colourful Stampotique Challenge!

Bold Birds by Maryse Carrier

Journey Collage by Amy Wilson Wellenstein

Tiny bee by Jo Capper-Sandon

All for Stampotique originals

The new challenge over on the Stampotique Designers Challenge blog this week is to create something with lots of colour. Woohoo! I LOVE colour. I made my background using Distress Inks including some of the new Spring colours, which are luvverly, and combined this which Perfect Pearls for a bit of shimmer. You can see the shimmer here:

If you feel like joining this fun challenge, dig out your Stampotique stamps, create something colourful and link it up to the Stampotique Designers Challenge blog here. You may even win a $30 gift certificate :-)

Byee for now....

A catch up!

What a great weekend I had! I taught a whole weekend of art journaling at Art from the Heart, to a really fab group of arty peeps and we made lots and lots of art! Here we all are proudly displaying our pages. Several people had travelled quite a long way for this class (including 5 all the way from the Netherlands!), so the pressure was on a little bit! The lovely Katie looked after us brilliantly all weekend - thanks Katie!

We made a few technique tags to get our creative juices flowing and then tried some painted backgrounds using Golden Fluid Acrylics, and inky backgrounds using Dylusions Ink Sprays:

We had a go all collaged pages, played with some Stampotique stamps, and even had a go at drawing which some found a bit scaaaaaareeeeey!!

Here's a few work-in-progress pics:

Mandy, Anne and Nellie

Playing with Stampotique stamps

Experimenting with some collage images

Ooo-eer, looking a little untidy ....

Here's Sue, reeeaaally concentrating!

Nellie and Anne all the way from the Netherlands

Joan, Hetty and Margo also from the Netherlands

Sue, Yvonne, Jen and Maralyn 

(I quickly identified this as the naught corner thanks to Yvonne and Jen's antics)

Now, just a few things I would like to share with you today. Just have a lookie at this beautiful collection of tags made for me, by the very talented Nellie and Anne. How lucky am I?!

And this lovely Dylusions tag, from Margo :-))) Gorgeous!

And finally, I want to show you this. An ATC made for me by the very talented Michelle. Can you see what it is? Oh yes, it's me haha! Armed and dangerous with a couple of ink sprays! Clever AND funny! Thanks so much Michelle :-))

Byee for now.....

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My Smash Journal

Once I knew I would be heading out to NYC and then Ranger U I immediately started thinking about how to capture every moment. I knew that space in my luggage would be extremely limited so taking a load of art journaling supplies was out of the question, and I didn't have time to prepare a load of journal backgrounds before I went away. I'm not really much of a scrapbooker (I'm far too messy LOL!) but then I stumbled upon Smash Journals. Not sure where I've been hiding these last few months but seems like these have been big for a while!

I love the concept of Smash ... not as arty or painterly as an art journal but not as neat as a scrapbook, and on this occasion it suited my needs completely. It reminded me very much of my first school trip to France when I was about 13 and we had to make a scrapbook ... I saved every receipt, every sweet wrapper .... not a lot has changed LOL!

"Now you have a place for the moments and musings that stick.

For all the things that matter and for all the things that don't.

For all the stuff that's too good to forget.

For any reason and FOR NO REASON AT ALL.

Because you like it and that's reason enough."

I got myself one of these to go with it ... it's a Fujifilm Instax camera - like an updated version of a Polaroid, which satisfied my need for immediacy in my journal.

So, without further ado, here's a few pages from my Smash book:

I drew rabbit boy on the plane as we were going through some turbulence so he's got a few wonky lines!! The paper I drew him on came from *here*

A while ago I made a couple of ATCs for a Stampotique challenge and offered them up for trade here. Thanks so much to everyone who offered to trade with me :-) I used Random.org to select two people to trade with and my ATCs will be heading off to Michelle@the hobby room, and Renee@Scissortail songs.

Byee for now ..............

America part II: Ranger U

Wow! Tim Holtz, Dyan Reavely, Claudine Hellmuth and a room full of Ranger goodies. 

What more could a girl ask for?!

By Friday May 4th Ranger U was in full swing. I worked seriously hard and played hard for 3 days, and had the most fun ever!

Here's the class in full swing with Tim Demoing at the front. Loved the TV screens, such a great idea.

(Can you see Mr Stampers Anonymous Ted on the right?!)

Kaz gazes in awe ......

Claudine showed us some awesome techniques with her Studio line and for the first time ever I managed to master image transfers.

Claudine is beautiful and petite, yet has the most amazing baritone voice!

A typical shot of the Ranger U classroom!

Gorgeous Adirondack colours. I learned new ways to use my Adirondack inkpads......

Colourwash ... I learned how to handle these better ....

.. and make some beautiful faux batik. Loved this!

We played with the meltpot and I picked up loads of new ideas. 

I seriously need to use my meltpot more often.

Before Dyan began her official Ranger U session she demoed the levitating malteser trick with Kaz.

But here she is in full swing with her gorgeous Dylusions range. 

Dyan brought her vibrancy and English eccentricity to Ranger U and we all LOVED it,

And we got super-inky too!!

Gorgeous colours ....

We love ya Dyan!!

Hmmmm, a typical Dylusions view!

Armed ...

... and dangerous .....

Dyan with the lovely Ellen and Jenny from Norway

(Thanks to Ellen for this pic)

By the final afternoon it was back to Tim and all things distress.....

Oooooh, loved it. Just how many different things can you do with one set of inkpads?

79 techniques mastered in all! Phew! 

Met some fabulous new friends along the way ... loved these funny, warm-hearted people!

I became an official Certified ranger Educator. Yeehaaaaaaaww!!

Tim is the most amazing instructor. Chilled out, very funny and oh so knowledgeable.

To coin my children's favourite catchphrase, he is a Know-Boy.

 A fabulous time was had by all, thanks to the amazing instructors and the absolutely wonderful organisation behind the scenes by Patti, Mario and others.

Talking of Mario ....

Couldn't do a blog post about Ranger without showing these pins now could I?!

Before we left Kaz and I couldn't resist posing for this shot when we realised that some of our art work is on display on the Dylusions board in the Ranger Education room. 

Wheeeeeeeee!!!!!!  Such a great honour :-)

But it was over all too soon .... all good things must come to an end ...

... and we weren't happy.

But still, it was good to be home.