studio 490 style...

I love the faces that Dina draws & 

I thought I'd use one of her stamps...

studio 490 style...

here's what I did...

I hadn't created a page for my 

mat mini fat little book in a bit, 

so I started with a page...

I misted the page with my archival spray inks...

(make them with archival reinkers in a mister with rubbing alcohol)...

you'll find the original post about them here...

spray archival inks...

I used sky blue and a tiny bit 

of orange blossom...

I stenciled the 

new cable knit stencil 

with sky blue on the left side...

I stamped the face with black soot archival...

(use the reinker with the DIY pad 

to create the pad...)

and embellished HER with 

some new mat mini flowers, 

tiny butterfly and star...

the flower colors are

garden patina & orange blossom...

the mat mini flowers  

were pressed onto this inked stamp...

using just the center,

it totally changes the look of the mat minis...

the mat mini leaves got stamped with 

the ticking background, 

using watering can...

the new ferns were stenciled with fern green...

the red berries are from this stencil...

always use old with new!

the white dots on the berries & on her eye

are the Dy paint pen...

the lots of dots stencil got used 

with red geranium along the right side...

her face and lips were tinted with 

tea rose archival...

the sentiment fit perfectly on the side...

there's a bit of text on her cheek from 

the new les roses background...

I stamped the tiny butterfly with 

this tiny text stamp

(it's GREAT for all the tiny mat minis)

for some reason I decided to keep it white-ish...

hmmm???

I painted the tiny star with buttercup mica spray, using the detailer water brush...

GORGEOUS bling!

those circles on the left were made with the tip I removed from an empty 

mini multi medium bottle...

I tapped it into dina's white paint & then after it dried, again onto the watering can pad...

and her she is again...

with a little scribbling on the frame...

and a closer look...

this was 

30 minutes of pure fun for me...

I had no plan...

no plans for a blog post...

so no step out photos...

just a play time for me...

I really love the art process...

I hope you can PLAY and

make art!

wendy

a large art journal page...

it started like this...

I cut a large page 

 from

 specialty stamping paper...

and sized it to fit the 

large art journal cover...

about 8 ½ x 6 inches...

I misted on some leaf green archival spray & some sky blue archival spray & dried the page...

(archival reinkers mixed with 

rubbing alcohol into misters)

I stamped the violet bouquet with 

glacier white pigment ink 

and used white embossing powder...

to "watercolor" with archival inks...

swipe the pad onto the craft sheet,

adding just a small amount of ink 

it takes very little ink...

add a few drops of rubbing alcohol off to the side...

this will dilute the color as needed & allow it to be painted in layers...

I like the detailer water brush...

I use it empty & just moisten it in the alcohol...

now just paint away & dry between layers...

the embossing helps control the ink, making it easy to paint...

once I had the bouquet painted, I touched the water moistened detailer water brush into water & then touched it to the tip of

 the hickory smoke distress crayon ...

this made a good shadow color...

the embossing makes it super easy to go along the outline...

since the page base is archival ink (waterproof) & 

the crayons are water reactive distress, 

they work very well together...

the archival doesn't smear & the distress crayon color stays true...

 I got this far & ran out of time & ideas...

initially,

I had no clue where this was going...

sometimes you just have to START...

but sometimes an image guides the process...

 here's the finished page...

I started with the borders stencil...

did you see that I used all 3 stencil sections?

it's a good versatile stencil...

the diamonds are stenciled vertical...

the scallop was made thinner by masking part of it off with painters tape...

and...

the sky blue diagonal border

is a little technique twist...

stencil it once, then flip it over & stencil again to create a lattice pattern...

I used sky blue for both, but you could use 2 coordinating colors...

the cut out sentiments are all from 

the new "just say it" background stamp...

there are 21 sentiments on this guy!

the violets are here...

and the large sentiment is here...

I customized a mat mini button 

with leaf green archival...

it's lightly inked, then over stamped with 

the ticking background, 

using fern green...

stamp once...

reink...

turn the stamp 90 degrees & 

stamp again to create the cute mini plaid...

I stamped random vintage text in the background, using watering can archival...

I like to use stamps unmounted,

 to add in text wherever it is needed...

this makes it easier to control & add just small sections...

a few stenciled dots, using sky blue...

a few black glaze pen dots...

a few waterproof lines...

I rounded the 2 right corners...

why 2? not all 4? 

 no clue...

I opened the drawer & saw the corner rounder...

I like it...

I think I'll do that more often!

LOVE the black mat mini heart to tie in with the jet black stenciled scallop border...

the violet, leaf green & sky blue inks look fresh & spring-ish...

like sandal weather...

and the sentiments are good reminders...

HAPPY MONDAY!

I hope you can

make art!

wendy

ps...just a reminder...

when using specialty stamping paper, make sure to dry it between each addition of ink...

the magic coating slows down the drying time & EVERYTHING need to be dried, 

specialty stamping paper is

 GREAT STUFF &

 it helps to make awesome pages!

best of all...

nothing seeps thru to the back,

 so the back page can have a fresh start!

back from FABULOUS Carson!

well...

things didn't go quite as planned, 
but all is good...
very good...

I had big plans to post lots of demo photos on Instagram...

and maybe even to test drive Periscope...

B U T...

we were B U S Y!

REALLY...
SUPER B U S Y...

holy cow! these ladies had fun &
SHOPPED!

and some of them sat &
 watched me demo for hours...

I had a blast...

here's a little sample that I shared there...

this is a page from my new
mat mini "fat little book"...

it uses both the distress crayons 
(over collage medium)
 and my yummy archival reinkers as sprays...

the collage medium is perfect with both the crayons & the archival inks...

when you get the crayons...

make sure to get a collage medium too...

it makes the crayons blend easier & it extends their blending time...
it's magic stuff...

best of all, you can remove the crayons easily, if they are added over collage medium...
all 3 collage mediums 
work exactly the same...

the collage mediums work 
with the archival inks really well too...

you'll see that below...

I used my alphabets stencil 
with a moist (alcohol) mini blending tool 
 to remove the archival inks...

here's the steps I used 
to create this page...
1...paint a thin layer of collage medium onto the mat mini book page & add the doily...then immediately another layer
 of collage medium & make sure it's dry...

2...mist over the page with the archival sprays & dry...
(archival reinkers mixed with rubbing alcohol)
you can read that post here...
I used orange blossom &
cornflower blue for this example...

3...scribble the distress crayon over the doily, putting most of the crayon into the recessed pattern on the doily...just rub with your finger...

4...use a moist (water) paper towel to lighten the top part of the doily...leaving the crayon darker in the recesses...

5...stencil the leaves with fern green & dry...

6...moisten a mini blending tool with rubbing alcohol & use it with the alphabets stencil to remove the archival sprays...
I did this in 3 background 
areas outside the doily...

7...lightly ink the vintage text background stamp with watering can archival & use the unmounted stamp to randomly add text to the background...

8...use a black stabilo pencil to define the doily center & outline & smudge with your finger...

9......stamp the flower onto a scrap of
 clearly for art that is covered
 with newsprint paper... 
ink the flower with red geranium and tea rose archival inks, cut out, add foam adhesive to the back and add over the leaves...

10...stamp the sentiment, using jet black archival & dry...

11...ink the mat mini heart with red geranium ink & sprinkle with the custom brick embossing powder 
(1 scoop red geranium powder, 
one scoop orange blossom,
 2 scoops frosted crystal &
 ½ scoop watering can ) then heat to melt...

12...use the distress crayons to add color to any spaces that need more color...I swipe my finger on the crayon to pick up the color for good control & color placement...

13...use the tarnished brass distress paint dabber to edge the page & pen stitching is the final touch...
oh & a black glaze pen dot at the end of the leaves & to accent the flower center...

here's my page...

just a reminder...
use WATER to remove the distress crayons 
and 
use RUBBING ALCOHOL 
to remove/lighten the archival inks...

here's something I learned...

 all paper doilies are not created equal...
who knew?

my mat mini book is 4 ½ inches square, so I bought the 4 inch paper doilies, from the baking section of hobby lobby or michael's...

they are perfect...

I spotted another package that said
 "grease resistant"...

they looked thicker & my expectation was that they would add even more dimension...

not so...

they reacted with the collage medium & got really wrinkled & made a mess...
they ended up in the trash...
very weird!
it must be something about the grease resistant component...

so...

the cheapest paper doily worked perfectly!
you can see it looks almost embedded into the page...
there are no wrinkles...
it's really cool...

so, in this instance...

cheapo paper doilies are better!

cool!

in the photo below, you can see how I rubbed 
the crayon into the recesses of the doily & wiped away some of the crayons from the surface of the doily...

I hope I've inspired you to grab your supplies and...

make art!
wendy
ps..I scored some GIVEAWAYS from Ted, 
so be watching 
FACEBOOK & INSTAGRAM...
I LOVE flash giveaways!

I'll have one here next week!

read all about it...

or maybe the title should be...

read all about me!

yikes...

I'm honored to be interviewed today,
 by Susan from 

irreversibly Moi...

I answered some fun questions and I also shared some of my MOST favorite art journal pages...

for this large 
specialty stamping paper 
art journal page,
 I used lots of my stencils and stamps...
and...
I used my white embossing paste 
to add texture with 
the add a stencil, in 3 areas...

did you know we released a LARGE jar of my white embossing paste?
it's a HUGE 8 ounce jar for just $14.95!
double the quantity to
 double your fun...

you asked...
we listened!

now we have enough white paste to use reinkers to create custom colors of embossing paste...
just mix a drop or 2 of your chosen reinker color into the paste, mix right in the jar & it's ready to go...

 the mix & store jars...
are AWESOME...

mix right in the jar...
no waste...
no cleanup...

these jars were chosen because they will keep the custom paste fresh & soft for at least a year!

ok...back to the interview...

you can read about my modern day
"fairytale"
 and how this 
wonderful "art adventure"
 all began for me...

I hope you have time to click the link &

pop over & visit...

thanks so much for the invite Susan! 

THANKS too, my friends, for stopping by!

as always...

I hope you can 
take some time and...

make art!
wendy

March studio 490 make art challenge...

Kim, our hostess,

 has set the challenge for March...

I like that she kept it wide open...

she simply said...

use a studio 490 stencil...

our sponsor this month 

is Heidi from Simon Says Stamp...

she's offering a $25.00 gift certificate 

to her store...

Kim will choose a random winner 

from one of our

 challenge participants...

THANKS HEIDI!

I decided to treat myself to some play time & join the challenge...

so I have an art journal page to share...

I started with the archival ink/rubbing alcohol technique to create a background on a manila art journal page...

I used tea rose & sky blue...

here's the starting point, after I dried the inks...

I gave myself a time limit, 

because there's LOTS on my TO*DO list...

and without a limit, I could play with one page all day...

seriously!

I set the timer at just 45 minutes!

 I had to extend it to an hour because

I decided to add embossing paste, so that needed the extra 15 minutes to dry...

I used 5 stencils...

can you spot them?

to create the green embossing paste, I put some white embossing paste into the Mix & Store jar & added 2 drops of

the fern green archival reinker & mixed it up with a palette knife to create a green paste...

you can make the color as dark or as light as you'd like, depending on the amount of reinker you add...

then it was simple to spread the green paste thru the wreath stencil...

the Mix & Store jars are great 

because there is NO clean up, NO wasted paste and it stays fresh & ready to go...

like the name says...

just mix & store right in the jar!

it's super convenient to have colored paste ready & I LOVE that we can make the paste any color we choose...

the embossing paste adds very little bulk to the page, but creates just the right amount of dimension & interest...

and FYI...

incase you were wondering...

the paste won't crack or pop off if the page is flexed...

here's a hint on the first stencil I used...

the new spotlight shrine...

this set of stencils & masks is so useful...

I laid the mask (the solid shape) in position on my page, then pressed the new tiles background stamp right over the mask, onto the page...

the mask protects the background and allows the stamping to be all around the outside of the mask...

when it was time to add the stripes, I used the stencil (open area) to protect the area OUTSIDE  the shrine...

so the stripes are only INSIDE the shrine...

I SERIOUSLY LOVE this 

set of 4 stencils/4 masks all in one set...

they work to easily create spotlights on cards, art journal pages and are fun for scrapbooks/mini books too...

I hope you're inspired to pull out

a stencil or 2 and

 join the challenge...

you'll find it here...

now it's time to

make art!

wendy

ps...

WAIT...

did you spot 5 stencils?

name all 5 stencils that I used...

just leave your entry in 

the comment section of this post...

and I'll send a little something to a random entry that has the 5 correct stencils listed...

good luck!

# 5 is a little tricky...

but I KNOW you can do it!