Easter Bliss

Friday 4 October 2024

Creative Artiste #109 October 2024

  ....Welcome to a new challenge at

Creative Artiste is a monthly challenge blog for everyone who likes to mix their media. So, as long as you like to use various mediums on your creations, we'd love to see you enter the challenge.
A big Thank You to everyone who entered the challenge last month. Your projects were all wonderful and our winners have been announced on the blog.
Our theme is always
"Anything Mixed Media Goes"
We have opportunities to be a Guest Designer for all our winners.



Whilst having a clear out recently I came across this wooden unicorn head. One side of it had been decorated with inks by the little princess. I decided to commandeer the unicorn so I could paint and embellish the other side.


1. I started by painting the head with white gesso and sticking down some resin cogs and domes with Prima's Heavy Body Gel. The cogs are mostly from Prima's Machine Parts mould.
2. I gave the cogs a coat of white gesso and then added watered down DecoArt Prussian Blue Hue fluid acrylic to the wood with a brush. I sprayed more water to spread and lighten the colour in some areas. I added the paint to the sides of the head. Then I dried the paint to fix it.
3. I next added watered down DecoArt Cobalt Turquoise Hue fluid acrylic. I sprayed with more water and allowed it to run down the sides. I used the brush to help to blend it in and dried it to fix the colour.
4. I dry brushed the cogs with white acrylic paint to lighten them and make them look more uniform. I painted the unicorn's eye with black acrylic paint.


I dabbed a sticky glue onto random areas of the cogs and sprinkled them with IndigoBlu Royal Peacock gilding flakes and brushed off the excess. I also did the unicorn's horn.

I gave the flakes a good buffing to make it all shine.

Now it's your turn to have fun and create your mixed media projects. You can enter our challenge as many times as you like. A full list of the rules is on the challenge blog. For more inspiration please visit the Creative Artiste Challenge Blog to see the fabulous mixed media projects created by our multi talented team.
Remember to have fun crafting and enter your "Anything Mixed Media Goes" creations in our 
October challenge. 

I have entered this project in the following challenges:

Tuesday 1 October 2024

Crafts Galore Encore October 2024

Welcome to Autumn!

There is definitely a change in the weather this past week, it's wetter and colder. Brrr! Time to dig out the coats, sweaters and fleecy pyjamas. 

Meanwhile .....

.... there is a new challenge starting today at

Thank you to everyone who joined in with last month's challenge. The winners have been announced on the challenge blog. This is a month long challenge and you can enter up to three times. There is a full list of rules on the challenge blog.

Our theme every month is the popular
"Anything Goes"
and our sponsor this month is:


One of the things the children enjoy at this time of year is pumpkin growing and picking, so, I have made a card to celebrate that rather than just Halloween.


The card is 8"x 8" (20 x 20cms). I started by covering the card base with a green card from Papermania and layering it with an orange card and finally, a purple one. The other paper elements are included in the Halloween Spirit image set from our sponsor. I cut the circles and green panel out and arranged them on my card.


You also get the Halloween Spirit digi image in both JPEG and PNG formats, and a pre-coloured version too. I chose to use the PNG image and coloured it with my Copics. I mounted the image onto orange card and tucked it under the other paper elements.



I created the sentiment on the computer and finished the card with some paper flowers and purple gems.

Now please visit the  Crafts Galore Encore challenge blog where you can see the wonderful projects and cards created by our talented team using The Paper Shelter images.
Grab some inspiration while you're there and enter your "Anything Goes" creations in this month's challenge.

I have entered this card in the following challenges:

Friday 6 September 2024

Creative Artiste #108 September 2024

  ....Welcome to a new challenge at

Creative Artiste is a monthly challenge blog for everyone who likes to mix their media. So, as long as you like to use various mediums on your creations, we'd love to see you enter the challenge.
A big Thank You to everyone who entered the challenge last month. Your projects were all wonderful and our winners have been announced on the blog.
Our theme is always
"Anything Mixed Media Goes"
We have opportunities to be a Guest Designer for all our winners.


I've made an 8"x 8" (20 x 20cm) canvas.
I started by gessoing the canvas in white. I used an old Tim Holtz flourish stencil from Set 10 for the canvas and the wooden hearts.


I made some some texture paste with a pink acrylic paint this time and passed it through the stencil onto the canvas. I left it to dry.


I then spattered some watered down Salvaged Patina DOX and Mermaid Lagoon Distress Ink refill across the canvas.


While that dried I painted two wooden hearts with Pebeo matt Fairy Pink acrylic paint, dried them and used Picked Raspberry DOX with the stencil over the hearts.


I glued some lengths of ribbon across the canvas before gluing the hearts in place with Prima Heavy Body Gel and adding the pretty paper roses from Prima.

Now it's your turn to have fun and create your mixed media projects. You can enter our challenge as many times as you like. A full list of the rules is on the challenge blog. For more inspiration please visit the Creative Artiste Challenge Blog to see the fabulous mixed media projects created by our multi talented team.
Remember to have fun crafting and enter your "Anything Mixed Media Goes" creations in our 
September challenge. 

I have entered this project in the following challenges:

Sunday 1 September 2024

Crafts Galore Encore September 2024

After celebrating our little princess's birthday last week it is now only days until she heads out to "big" school. She is both excited and nervous. But, most of all, she's looking forward to catching up with all her friends and making new ones.

Meanwhile .....

.... there is a new challenge starting today at

Thank you to everyone who joined in with last month's challenge. The winners have been announced on the challenge blog. This is a month long challenge and you can enter up to three times. There is a full list of rules on the challenge blog.

Our theme every month is the popular
"Anything Goes"
and our sponsor this month is:

who are offering a prize of three digi images for our lucky winner.


I made an 8"x 8" (20 x 20cm) birthday card for my daughter's puppy who celebrated his first birthday last month.


The papers are from an 8" paper pad Paradise Crush by First Edition. The matting layers are white card with the edges coloured with an orange Copic pen.


This delightful image from our sponsor is called My Good Boy. The set comes with a coloured version of the image as well as the outline drawing, both in jpeg and png formats. It also has a digital backing paper and the coloured image mounted on the backing paper. Everything can be sized to suit in a computer program.
I used my Copics to colour the outline png image.


I cut out the tag shape from the digital paper and used it as a layer behind the image. 


The sentiment, bones and paw prints are all stamps from a set that was free in a magazine years ago.

Now please visit the  Crafts Galore Encore challenge blog where you can see the wonderful projects and cards created by our talented team using The Paper Shelter's images.
Grab some inspiration while you're there and enter your "Anything Goes" creations in this month's challenge.

I have entered this in the following challenges:

Friday 2 August 2024

Creative Artiste #107 August 2024

  ....Welcome to a new challenge at

Creative Artiste is a monthly challenge blog for everyone who likes to mix their media. So, as long as you like to use various mediums on your creations, we'd love to see you enter the challenge.
A big Thank You to everyone who entered the challenge last month. Your projects were all wonderful and our winners have been announced on the blog.
Our theme is always
"Anything Mixed Media Goes"
We have opportunities to be a Guest Designer for all our winners.


One of my beautiful daughters loves vintage roses so I made her this hexagon canvas. It measures 11.5" (30 cms) from point to opposite point.

All the ephemera is from a very old set by Kaisercraft, apart from a die cut heart and the Cheery Lynn die cut leaf flourishes.


I started by using texture paste through a DecoArt Americana Decor text stencil randomly over the canvas.
I then tore up up some old book pages and coloured them with watered powders from Lindy's Magicals Nantucket Pearls set.
Once stuck down with Soft Matt Gel, and dried, I gave the canvas a coat of white gesso.
Next, I used the Magicals to colour areas of the canvas and gave another coat of white gesso.


I used the texture paste on the some of the sides of the canvas and extended the book pages around the sides too.


I assembled the floral elements by layering some of them up on blocks of differing heights that I made from acetate. To do this, I cut the acetate into strips and scored it to fold it into 5 equal squares. I then folded each one into a cube and glued it into place under a flower with Heavy Body Gel.
I die cut the leaf flourishes and coloured them with green Copics. I glued several layers together for stability. I chopped the flourishes up and tucked the pieces in between the roses.


I die cut a small heart and coloured it with the Salt Water Taffy Magical. I added the frame, the birds, a little butterfly and the word Adore. I finished the canvas with some clear glass flat backed beads.

Now it's your turn to have fun and create your mixed media projects. You can enter our challenge as many times as you like. A full list of the rules is on the challenge blog. For more inspiration please visit the Creative Artiste Challenge Blog to see the fabulous mixed media projects created by our multi talented team.
Remember to have fun crafting and enter your "Anything Mixed Media Goes" creations in our 
August challenge. 

I have entered this project in the following challenges: