Altered Coffee Tin for Stamps and Stencils

Hi everyone. It is an honour today to be Guest Designer over at Stamps and Stencils. I have a step by step over on their wonderful blog today.

Nikki

Industrial patchwork framed heart for A Vintage Journey

Hi everyone. It is time for our June challenge at A Vintage Journey; this month our host is Astrid and we have a favourite theme: Stencil It.

I recently took another Andy Skinner class and we were using his various paint techniques to alter an MDF box - you can see my post here if you missed it.

I also used this style on an altered coffee tin last year:

As you can probably tell - I do like this style and although it is quite time consuming it is effective!!

So for our Stencil It challenge I challenged myself to use a stencil on each of my patchwork elements within the frame.

The base board (blue) is a combination of PaperArtsy grunge paste and Deco Art crackle paint - although I may have painted over most of the crackles!

My heart is MDF and is altered with a texture medium and then painted with red and brown colours.

The frame and cogs have been given the rust effect treatment with Deco Art paints - Quinacridone Gold, Transparent Yellow Iron Oxide and Paynes Grey.

Thanks for stopping by. Do head on over to A Vintage Journey for more stencilling inspiration!

Nikki

PaperArtsy project - Vintage Neutral with Seth Apter stamps

Hi everyone. Today I am over on the PaperArtsy blog with details for this altered frame. The theme for this fortnight is Vintage Neutrals taking me away from my more normal colour palette to something a more toned down. Do pop over for details of the techniques and lots more photos!

 Nikki x

Scrap Metal Book Box with Andy Skinner

A couple of weeks ago I attended an Andy Skinner workshop - Scrap Metal Book Box. Great day with Andy as usual - packed with paint techniques and a little humour!

For Andy Skinner followers you can probably spot many of his techniques on here, many he has shown on Hochanda - so while I would love to share the details, they are not mine to share!!! Although there is a bit of Nikki thrown in too!

So lots of pics of the finished project....

I am back on Saturday with a project for PaperArtsy. Have a lovely week.

Nikki

xxx

Spring Floral Canvas

My second post of the day... if you missed my Spring shadow box for A Vintage Journey you can find it here.
Ah April...I love spring, hopefully full of bright days and the emergence of colour as summer approaches. Our April challenge at Country View Crafts is Spring. I have created this canvas for my first project of the month.

Now I must firstly say - this is a remake of a project from one of Brenda Brown's Country View Crafts workshops from last year. You can see what we all made on her blog and Brenda's original project design on the CVC blog - here.

This canvas is a little smaller and a little greener than the one we did at the workshop. I have made this for a friend who asked for a piece of Nikki artwork - no pressure then! I don't have any process photos but here are some close ups:

Do check out the Country View Crafts challenge blog today for more ideas ideas and spring creations from the team.

Nikki

xxx

Bird Silhouette

 

I love the Bird Silhouette Bigz die but have hardly used it! I had a little play time over the Christmas break and came up with this - not what I first intended... my background started far less grungy but I just can't help myself adding layers until I have gone too far! 

I randomly collaged some scraps of paper onto card and die cut the bird before adding some ink and paint. I also cut the two little birds.

I would like to enter:

Mixed Media Monthly Challenge - Time Flies

The Artistic Stamper - Anything Goes
We Love to Create - Anything Goes (Mixed Medium)

See you soon

Nikki

xxx

Here and Now

 

Hi everyone... a quick post from me today. I spent the weekend with friends crafting so I got some proper craft playtime - hurray. Here is one of my makes from the weekend, a card combining the latticework die from Tim Holtz Mixed Media framelits with the latticework stencil. For the latter I used texture paste followed by distress sprays, scraped gesso and then some distress paint.

My background was a combination of distress sprays, then ink, then some spritzing and a little picket fence distress paint.

I would like to enter the following challenges:

Mixed Media World - Gorgeous Texture

Mixed Media Card challenge - Butterflies

FanTastic Tuesday - Anything goes with a butterfly

Try it on a Tuesday - Stencils

Nikki

xxx

Mixed Media 'Frameworks' Canvass

 

Hello everyone. Well I finally got back to the craft room after my little break to have a sort out. Apologies there are a lot of photos today - the weather is bright so I went a bit mad.

I made this with a couple of challenges in mind:

Compendium of Curiosities - the theme is Frameworks from Tim's latest book. (P64 volume 3). It is the turn of Inspiration Emporium as this challenge's wonderful sponsor.

The Mirror Crack'd - to produce and use a masterboard

Simon Says Stamp - 'A' is for.... for me it is an arch.
 and fortuitously - That's Crafty - Grunge, Grunge, Grunge

I started by creating 2 masterboards. Both commenced with acrylic paints, brown and white.

The first then had a crackle medium applied and when dry black acrylic was added. Once dry I rubbed the surface to produce the effect of peeled paint.

The second was covered in a matt medium, tissue wrap added and then it was splattered with white acrylic.

I chopped them up to commence my project:

The tissue wrapped base had texture paste, embossing powder and distress ink sprays added.

The canvass frame was also treated with texture paste through a stencil and painted.

My frameworks were cut from the peeled paint masterboard, but colour was added. The inserts for the frame were a mixture of foil with alcohol inks, foil embossed and acrylic and alcolol ink added and finally the masterboard pieces with either crackle paint or glossy accents added.

(photo in sunlight)

(photo indoors)

The arch was cut several times to provide depth and glued together. The base of the arch was from the peeled paint masterboard with a little colour added.

(photo in sunlight)

(photo indoors)

Finally I added some additional frameworks to the canvass edge.

Sorry for such a long post today. Have a great day.

Nikki

xxx

Butterflies and flowers

I hope you are enjoying your Easter weekend. Last weekend I went on a craft retreat and had a whole weekend to play! Unfortunately I seem to have lost my mojo a bit at the moment and really wasn't that productive - but I had a lovely time with friends. I am giving myself a little crafting break to recover some ideas (hopefully) and in the meantime I am trying to have a good ruthless sort out in my study / craft area. 

I have a few projects to post from the weekend though and here is the first. When short of ideas I look to others for inspiration and I am a big fan of Pamellia's work. I had this in mind when I started:

You can see the influence without it being a complete copy I hope! 

I have gesso, texture paste, stencilling, embossing powder, inks, stamping and even some glitter on this. 

I would like to enter the following challenges:

Frilly and Funkie - Add ribbon

Stamps and Stencils - Anything Goes

Mixed Media Card challenge - Flowers

Pan Pastel - Spring Colours

A Sprinkle of Imagination - Anything goes

That Craft Place - Spring

Thanks for looking.

Nikki

xxx

Summer Garden

Hi everyone and apologies again for not being around much, Craft and blog time been limited but have finally managed to finish this. A 6x6 panel of mountboard with various layers of textures and paint and ink. Flowers added with texture paste and some shadow stamping.

I would like to enter:

Frilly and Funkie - Summer Garden

The Mirror Crack'd - Anything Goes ( a fab new mixed media challenge - check it out!)

Hopefully be back soon.

Nikki