Blackcurrant Jam art journal

Hi friends! I hope you had a fun weekend! School has started. It is starting to get chillier and darker in the evenings.

Please note: this post has affiliate links, for which I receive a small percentage of sales generated by the link, at no extra cost to you.

At the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog we have an Lots of Layers theme this week. I love adding layers to my projects, layers in all forms. Don't miss the stunning project by our August guest designer Cassie Lynch!

If I can get hold of blackcurrants, I always try to make blackcurrant jam and enjoy it with my breakfast cereal. It is a bit of summer that lasts into autumn and maybe even winter. This year I picked lots of blackcurrants and have more jam than most years. The page was done in my Small Creative Journal.

The background is from my recent gel printing session. Here I used papers embossed in Simon Says Stamp Stitching Sampler and Star Lattice. I liked the warm feeling of both the patterns, the colors and the distressing and thought it fit well with the theme.

Stamp the berries from Paper Artsy Fodder Berry Edition. I masked out the name of the plant when inking since these aren't really blackcurrants. They had to do as blackcurrants for this project.

Color with pencils. I used Prismacolors. 

Add white highlights with a gel pen.

Sponge Salvaged Patina through Simon Says Stamp Bubbles stencil.

Next add som marks with Walnut Stain and Tim Holtz Speckles.

For a little shimmer, mist Distress Spritz Antique Linen through Tim Holtz Sparkle Fade.

I thought the berries were too blue and added more of a currant shade to them. 

Stamp Tim Holtz School Desk alphabet here and there.

Stamp Tim Holtz Flower Jar on Simon Says Stamp Acetate with Stazon ink.

Color on the back with alcohol ink. Later, I added more currant.

The colors of the berries and the way they hang from the branches aren't quite correct, but that doesn't matter. I didn't want to make them as dark as they are in real life since I wanted to use several colors and shades.

This sentiment comes from Simon Says Stamp Be Your Beautiful Self.

I dotted the jars with a Q-tip and blending solution to get the dotted look.

The title was die cut from Simon Says Stamp black cardstock using Tim Holtz Vault World Travel.

I like that the jar comes in two sizes. Here you can also see the shimmer from the Distress Spritz layer.

Summer was stamped with Simon Says Stamp Chill Vibes. 

Pencils work well on background gel printed with acrylic paint.

Join us this week in our Lots of Layers challenge! You have a chance to win a $25 gift voucher to do some fun shopping at Simon Says Stamp. You have until Monday 8am Ohio time. 1pm UK time, 2 pm CET to join in.

Do you use Instagram? If so please add #sssmchallenge so we can see your entries there too.

Thank you so much for visiting today! 

Happy crafting!

Anna-Karin

Supplies:

* Please note: the links are affiliate links, for which I receive a small percentage of sales generated by the link, at no extra cost to you.

Seahorse tag

Hello crafters! I hope all is well! School starts again this week, but we still hope for a bit more of summer.

Please note: this post has affiliate links, for which I receive a small percentage of sales generated by the link, at no extra cost to you.

At the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog we have an On/Under the Sea theme this week. Fun! Don't miss the project by our August guest designer Cassie Lynch!

I went with Under the Sea and created a shiny and shimmery shaker tag using a stencil, texture paste, Stickles, acetate, alcohol ink, stamping, sequins and gems. The focal image is a Tim Holtz Nautical Blueprint image.

Start by cutting a tag from Simon Says Stamp acetate and stamp the Tim Holtz Nautical Blueprint seahorse with Stazon ink. I wanted the right-hand line to be closer to the edge of the tag and didn't stamp the entire image.

Turn the acetate around and color the seahorse with Valencia and Butterscotch alcohol ink. 

Color the background with alcohol ink too. I used Limeade, Pool and Turquoise. To create bubbles, use Alcohol Blending Solution on felt and dot on the background.

Turn the tag around and stamp sentiments with Stazon ink. I also stamped dots with Tim Holtz Psychedelic Grunge.

Coat a tag with gesso and let dry. Apply texture paste through Simon Says Stamp Bubbles stencil, from the new Every Happiness release. Paint the edges with watered-down Pumice Stone.

Apply Unicorn Stickles all over the tag. Let dry.

I placed a strip of paper at the bottom of the tag since the sentiment on the acetate didn't read well otherwise. Sprinkle Simon Says Stamp Mist and Cottontail embellishments in the center of the tag.

Stitch around the edges with a sewing machine.

I glued Simon Says Stamp Pawsitively Dazzling Mandarin Gems in three places, to add more orange.

The texture paste dots are visible through the acetate, as is the glitter.

This saying is a favorite of mine, from Tim Holtz Nature's Wonder.

The orange seahorse contrasts nicely with the blue and green shades. You can also see the glitter in the background.

Here you can see how the paper strip in the background helps the sentiment be more readable. The sentiment is from Tim Holtz Tiny Text.

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and tag!

Join us this week in our On/Under the Sea challenge! You have a chance to win a $25 gift voucher to do some fun shopping at Simon Says Stamp. You have until Monday 8am Ohio time. 1pm UK time, 2 pm CET to join in.

Do you use Instagram? If so please add #sssmchallenge so we can see your entries there too.

Thank you so much for visiting today! 

Happy crafting!

Anna-Karin

Supplies:

* Please note: the links are affiliate links, for which I receive a small percentage of sales generated by the link, at no extra cost to you.

Be Original Bird Tag

Hello crafters! I hope your weekend was good and that you got some crafty time. I am happy to be back at my desk after a short break.

Please note: this post has affiliate links, for which I receive a small percentage of sales generated by the link, at no extra cost to you.

This week we have a Funny/Punny theme at the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog! And don't miss the project by our August guest designer Cassie Lynch.

I had fun making this tag using Tim Holtz Bird Crazy and Mini Bird Crazy and Things sets. It has been a while since these stamps were inked up. The birds were watercolored with Distress Ink and the background is also a Distress Ink background, with some heat embossing.

Start by stamping the larger bird from Bird Crazy and the smaller bird from Mini Bird Crazy and Things on watercolor paper. I really like that the two sizes face different ways.

Smear Distress Ink on a non-stick craft sheet, mist with water and pick up with a paint brush.

I added Glossy Accents to the eyes.

The background was done with Distress Ink in several layers, using the ink smooshing technique. Stamp the background here and there with Simon Says Stamp Pepita Background and white emboss.

The main sentiment comes from Simon Says Stamp Paper Cut Word Mix 1, from the new Every Happiness release. I die cut the word from watercolor paper and painted with the same inks as the birds. The matte was die cut from vellum.

I decided to die cut the word one more time from plain watercolor paper and off-set slightly. Glue to the background. The two smaller sentiments come from Tim Holtz Crazy Talk.

I added cheese cloth behind the birds and adhered them with Simon Says Stamp Pawsitively Perfect White Foam Tape.

I added two ribbons underneath the birds and Simon Says Stamp Pawsitively Dazzling Prism Gems.

Join us this week in our Funny/Punny challenge! You have a chance to win a $25 gift voucher to do some fun shopping at Simon Says Stamp. You have until Monday 8am Ohio time. 1pm UK time, 2 pm CET to join in.

Do you use Instagram? If so please add #sssmchallenge so we can see your entries there too.

Thank you so much for visiting today! 

Happy crafting!

Anna-Karin

Supplies:

* Please note: the links are affiliate links, for which I receive a small percentage of sales generated by the link, at no extra cost to you.