Scribbly Butterflies Art Journal

Hello crafters! Today I have a fun art journal page to share, but you can also turn it into a card instead. 

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.

I love butterflies and the lemon butterflies are always the first ones to be seen in spring, so this page is inspired by them. There is something so joyful about butterflies and I also really like the design of these Simon Says Stamp Artsy Butterflies. The page was done in my Stamperia Happiness Mix Media Journal 4x8.5 in.

Start by stamping the butterflies on the page. If the stamping isn't perfect, which might happen since the pages are textured and there are also other pages behind which makes the surface uneven, fill in with a black pen.

Mix watercolor paint and paint the butterflies. Let some of the paint flow outside the lines and then quickly paint the blue, so that the colors will blend on the paper. I dropped in three darker spots of blue at the end. I used Daniel Smith: Phthalo Blue (Red Shade), Quinacridone Coral and Hansa Yellow. 

Paint Winsor & Newton Permanent White Gouache in some of the areas of the butterflies.

White emboss dots on the background, using Tim Holtz Grunged.

Next, I decided that I wanted some glitter and applied Star Dust Stickles to some areas of the butterflies.

I stamped only part of a sentiment from Tim Holtz Tiny Text in this wing. 

I was particularly pleased with the three darker spots of blue in the background.

The title was die cut with Tim Holtz Handwritten Journey from Simon Says Stamp Pawsitively Perfect Velvet paper and Sapphire Blue Glitter cardstock. 'Moments' was stamped with Archival Ink Prize Ribbon using Tim Holtz Simple Sayings.

Don't worry if the gouache and glitter isn't perfect, it just adds to the playful look.

I stamped more sentiments with Tim Holtz Tiny Text.

When watercolor blends on the paper, you get nice and sometimes unpredictable results. 

Sometimes I leave a blank page here and there in my journals, but in this Happiness Mixed Media journal, I have decided to fill each page. 

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.

Daydreams card

Hi stampers! I hope you are well and had a good weekend! It was a little chilly here, but spring is definitely here.

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 4 Legged Friends theme at the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog. I hope you will join us! Don't miss the last project by our April guest designer  Thom Santilla. 

I looked through some stamps and became very nostalgic when I saw this piggy bank stamp. It comes from Tim Holtz Childhood Blueprints. It was colored with watercolored, adding some splatters for texture.

Die cut a square from watercolor paper using Simon Says Stamp Basic Shapes Squares. Stamp the piggy bank with Archival Ink.

Watercolor the pig, making it darker in the shadow areas.

Watercolor the background with Daniel Smith Raw Umber and Lunar Black. Add shading under the pig. 

Add more Lunar Black at the top and then splatter some on the background. Coat the coins, label and eyes with Glossy Accents. 

Die cut squares from Simon Says Stamp Apricot Cardstock and from kraft cardstock.

Distress the edges. Pierce holes and then stitch with embroidery floss.

The coins were colored with metallic Prismacolor pencils. 

I also added some pretty sequins from Simon Says Stamp Opal Rainbow.

Add some scribbles with a black pen in the shadow areas.

The sentiment comes from Simon Says Stamp Beautiful and Curious.

Join us this week in our 4 Legged Friends 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.

Crocus Card Tutorial

Hello crafters! Spring is in full bloom and one of my favorite spring flower is the crocus. Today, I am sharing a card with a row of crocus flowers in different colors.

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.

I used photos I took last spring as inspiration for the colors. My favorite crocus color is the white one with purple lines. It is so delicate. The yellow ones give a nice contrast to the purple. For the background, I made a soft, textured background with resist stamping.

Start by die cutting the petals of the Simon Says Stamp Fresh Crocus Duo from watercolor paper. 

Test shades of watercolor paint on scrap paper first and then paint the flowers. Leave some white showing for highlights. 

Paint watercolor paper with three shades of green and when dry, die cut the leaves and stems.

Use Tim Holtz Shaping Kit to add shape to the flowers. Make one concave and one convex shape for each flower.

Shape the leaves too and assemble the crocus flowers.

White emboss Simon Says Stamp Friendship Background on watercolor paper.

Apply Distress Ink to a non-stick craft sheet, mist with water and press the paper into the ink. Let dry and repeat until you are happy with the look. 

As a final layer, use Distress Oxide Ink. I made two backgrounds at once and will use the second one for another project.

The sentiments come from Simon Says Stamp Loving Thoughts and were stamped with Frayed Burlap Archival Ink.

Text and script stamps are some of my favorite stamps and I tend to use them a lot. This one has a friendship theme, which fit extra well here.

Glue the flowers to the background. I used Simon Says Stamp Pawsitively Perfect Foam Tape for some of them.

You can also add a piece of foam tape inside the flowers, to make them more dimensional.

At the bottom o the card I stapled two pieces of trim. I also tucked in extra green leaves here and there, until I had used all the leaves that I die cut.

The trim tides up the card and hides the places where the leaves might not have gone all the way down.

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.