Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Cover................

Happy New Year folks, may it be a goodun for us all.

Whoop whoop I managed to finish my cover at last, but sadly due to waiting for things to dry I just missed the linky thing which closed last night - hey ho at least I can say its all done tee hee.

Here you go........

Lol I couldn't face sanding my cover or applying a zillion coats of gesso so I covered my book in napkins and pva to create a key and some texture. The edges were tidied up with some tissue tape.

A base coat of electric blue acrylic was applied, no need for gesso as this is a good opaque colour!!! I then brayered on some turquoise acrylic to catch the texture. The edges were treated with some viva decor inca gold and I decided to do this across the whole cover too to further highlight the texture. Once dry this was buffed to a shine.

The title was created using some Tim Holtz grungeboard shapes - painted, stamped with archival ink using a stampers anonymous classic set, and edged with inca gold again. The 2 in the middle was embossed twice with gold. 

Tee hee, big sister to the rescue with some book corners too, thank-you sweetie.

Many thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, your time and thoughts mean so very much.

Huge hugs

Dawn x x x 

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letters X, I, and a very late S................

Evening all,

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas? Much joy and laughter in my household as you can imagine with my 2 tiddlies tee hee. The only stress came when I was cooking Christmas lunch for my Mum and Step-Dad - lol no pressure!!!!! Ha ha ha I have already told them that if they want to come again next year that it will be a turkey stew or a roll of brisket in the slow-cooker!!!!!!!!!

Anyhoo, in-between the madness I did manage to get my Alpha entries finished, albeit the S being very late. Whoop whoop, all finished now apart from the cover. Fingers crossed I will get that done too over the next few days!!!

I would like to say a huge thank-you to Izzy, Karen and Gio (as well as the rest of the design team who contributed when they could) for providing the challenge and the wonderful inspiration every fortnight - YOU LADIES ROCK x x x x.

Ha ha ha ha bring on the 2014 challenge now, I can't wait to find out more!!!!!!!!!!

If you fancy a peek at the rest of the final entries in this fab challenge please pop on over HERE.

I for ICARUS

X for XANTHUS

and

S for SATURN

All images are from Google and are of ancient carvings, illustrations and paintings.

Stencils used are from Tando Creative, TCW and Tim Holtz.

Various acrylic paints, distress inks and gel pens used too.

Many Thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, your time and thoughts mean the world.

Huge hugs 

Dawn x x x x  

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter Q

Evening all,

a very quick post today lol i'm engrossed in Dr Who (recorded so I could watch in peace)!!!!!!!!

If you fancy a peek at what its all about please pop on over HERE.

Ha ha ha what a challenge Q has been!! Still sticking to my theme I have had to apply artistic licence as my chosen word was not in my dictionary. I have added my own definition for this one.........

Q for QUIRINUS........

Materials used - That Special Touch mask, Ranger paint dabber, coin image from google.

Many thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, your time and thoughts mean a lot.

Huge hugs

Dawn x

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter N

Afternoon all,

lol another quick post tee hee hee!!!!!!

Goodness me, I can't believe this challenge is now drawing to an end!! If you fancy a peek at what I'm on about and reference the rules of the game please pop on over HERE and if you fancy a nose at the other N entries please pop on over HERE.

Sticking to my mythological theme I chose NEPTUNE........

Ha ha ha ha ha this was a bit of a disaster from start to finish really, my printer is nearly out of ink, my masking ripped off my definition, I centered the wrong letter when I was stamping Neptune..............................

Hey ho, worse things happen at sea!! Roll on tomorrow for a new letter lmao!!

Stamp credits go to Lost Coast Designs and See-Dees.

All statue images are courtesy of Google Images.

Many thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, your time and thoughts mean an awful lot.

Huge hugs 

Dawn x 

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter L

Evening all,

cor blimey it's wet and windy tonight so it feels very warm and cosy tucked up with my girlie watching Strictly as I type!!

Loving this challenge still so if you fancy a peek at what its all about please pop on over here (never too late to start playing you know!!) and if you fancy a peek at all the other L entries please pop on over here.

Tee hee, there was a twist this week too, we had to incorporate a window somewhere on our entry, what fun.

Anyhoo, here you go, L for LYCAN........

A very simple collage page incorporating some of my favourite movie werewolves, starting from top left - Professor Lupin from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, David from An American Werewolf in London, Benecio Del Toro in Wolfman, Jacob from the Twilight saga, Tyler from The Vampire Diaries, Jack Nicholson in Wolf, lol trying to do this from memory I think this is Lon Chaney (I have no idea what the film was called)?????, and the eyes are courtesy of Oz from Buffy and Angel.  

The wolf eyes are in my attempt at a window, framed with some washi tape.

All images were found on google.

Many thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, your time and thoughts are very precious.

Huge hugs

Dawn x 

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter J

Evening all,

brrrrrr, chilly wind today!!! Ha ha ha I'm still resisting the temptation to turn the heating on though!!!!!!!!

I can't believe how full and colourful my book is looking now, this is such a fun challenge and I will be sooooooooo sad when it draws to a close.  I got brave again but couldn't find anything in my trusty drawing instruction book so I resorted to flicking through a magazine to find a photo to work from, lots of artistic licence applied of course!!!!!!!!
If you fancy a peek at what this challenge is all about please pop on over HERE, and if you would like a nose at the other J entries please pop on over HERE.

Anyhoo, my chosen word for the letter J is JUNO - Roman Queen of the Gods, wife (and also sister lol) of Jupiter........

Tee hee, a very modern day interpretation maybe but I think she looks regal enough!!!!!!!!

Lol, I never thought about putting a crown on her until it was too late, sigh!!!! Luckily I managed to find a suitable stamp which was embossed in gold and added to balance the page a bit more.

Stamp credits - Alphabet set by see-d's and the crown is from a My Minds Eye set.

Many thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, your time and thoughts mean so very much.

Huge hugs

Dawn x

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter G

Evening all,

ha ha ha ha ha I thought I would surprise you all and get my entry in early this time LOL!!!!!!!!!

If you fancy seeing what the fun is all about please pop on over HERE and if you fancy a peek at all the other G entries please pop on over HERE.

Anyhoo, I dusted off the big girl pants again!!!!!!!!!! I love drawing but have to admit that it doesn't come easily so I always refer to others for help, usually this involves pulling 'The Complete Guide to Drawing & Illustration' by Peter Gray off my bookshelf, it is a fab book in my opinion and breaks things down into easily followed steps - lol I think I would be lost without it!!!!!!!!

My chosen word, sticking to my theme, is GRACES, the Greek Goddesses of charm, beauty, nature, creativity and fertility........

Apologies for the poor photo, the light was fading rapidly!! I have edited it a little to try to improve it but hey ho ha ha ha!!!!! The scans are a little better I think........

Quite rough around the edges but I'm so pleased I didn't chicken out again and go for a collage option tee hee!!!!!!!!
Lol I must have been thinking about a film I love (The Bone Collector) while I was sketching as I think Thalia looks very much like Angie in the film!!!!!! Ha ha ha I WAS watching Tomb Raider again the other night, that's probably what sparked it!!

Products used - Tando Creative, TCW and Tim Holtz stencils, Decoart and Ranger acrylics, promarkers, stabilo marks all pencil and various alpha stamps from my stash.

Many Thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, your time and thoughts are always much appreciated.

Huge hugs

Dawn x

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter Z

Evening all,

oooh didn't realise it has been a fortnight since I last blogged!!!!! Ha ha ha ha not much going on creatively at the moment anyhoo (other than flinging paint willy nilly in my various journals when I get a chance tee hee), I have been busy getting my tiddlies back into the school routine. Max, bless him being that bit older now, took a few days to get used to big sister not being here during the day again and was constantly saying 'I miss my Millie', sweet or what!!!

I did manage, eventually!!, to get my Z entry done. After TWO attempts at a more muted, darker palette I admitted defeat and covered the lot up with some brighter ish paint.

If you fancy seeing what the challenge is all about please pop on over here, and for a peek at all the other Z entries please pop on over here.

Ha ha ha ha, I bet any of you following my theme thought I would do Zeus!!!!!!!!????????

My chosen Z for this entry is ZEPHYR........

Ha ha ha ha he was VERY NAUGHTY!!!!!!!!

The picture comes from google images and is from Botticelli's Venus painting.

Many thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, your time and thoughts mean a lot.

Huge hugs

Dawn x

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter O

Evening all,

hope you are all well?? Definitely an autumnal chill creeping into the air in the mornings and evenings now don't you think!! Thank goodness it's still lovely and sunny, just my kind of weather to be honest tee hee.

If you fancy joining in with this challenge please pop on over here for all the details. If you would like a peek at all the other O entries please pop on over here.

Anyhoo, the only O I fancied playing with, in line with my mythological theme, was ORACLE.  Ha ha ha being a major Matrix fan it was the first thing that sprang to mind anyways and also being a major Angel fan my word choice was sealed.  
In Greek mythology an oracle was a human being who channeled the words/voice/messages of the Gods for the masses to hear.  Many other mythologies have similar characters too with many different names!!
Modern interpretations generally see an Oracle as a person who imparts great knowledge and wisdom and also as a person who can predict the future maybe!!
Oracle cards are also very common - a fortune telling tool akin to Tarot cards. Some of the artwork on these card sets is stunning, many sets depicting angels, goddesses and fairies.  I have a fairy set purely because I fell in love with the artwork, Brian Froud (link to some examples of his art) designed them and they are sooooooooo beautiful.  

Here you go........

A bright painty stenciled background with pockets to house my Oracle cards.  The image is of the Oracle at Adelphi, courtesy of Google Images.

Products used - Decoart Americana acrylics, Tando and TCW stencils, Distress inks, flourish stamp from a free set with Simply Homemade magazine, clear embossing powder.

Ha ha ha ha ha I have to admit that the backs of my Oracle cards are not finished yet!! I had planned on finishing them this afternoon but I had some family turn up at short notice so sadly I ran out of time.  I have images from The Matrix trilogy, Angel and various Oracle card sets to collage on when I can find the time!! 

Many thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, as always your time and thoughts are greatly appreciated.

Hugs 

Dawn x  

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter D

Evening all,

lol what a miserable day we have had in North Cornwall (UK), very wet and gloomy but thankfully not cold!!  Ha ha ha, my photos are not too good because of the poor light today sadly but the scans should give you a better image!!

I'm soooooo enjoying this challenge still and if you fancy a peek at what it's all about please pop on over here, if you would like a nose at all the other entries for D please pop on over here.

Anyhoo, still sticking to my mythological theme, my entry for the letter D is Davy Jones........

Tee hee, my usual painty background (God I LOVE paint!!), smooshed on with my fingers to try and achieve a more fluid, watery effect. I used Decoart Americana, Adirondack paint dabbers and Pebeo Fluorescent acrylic.
The fantastic Bill Nighy as Davy Jones came courtesy of Google images, with a little washi tape to frame him. The 'treasure chest/Davy Jones Locker' was made using a manila tag sponged lightly with an espresso paint dabber to try to achieve a wood-grain effect, this was then stamped with a magazine freebie flourish using brilliance ink. The key is by Tando Creative and also coloured using Brilliance ink. I grounded the chest to the page with a little more washi tape. The chest is held closed using velcro dots.

Ha ha ha ha ha, any of you curious as to the contents of the chest????????

I decided to grant Davy Jones' wish of claiming Captain Jack Sparrow (a la Pirates of The Caribbean!!!!), I knew I would find a way of getting Johnny Depp in here somehow LMAO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Image again found on Google. 

YUMMY!!!!!!!!

Many thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, your time and thoughts are always much appreciated.

Huge hugs

Dawn x

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter T

Evening all,

wow what a thunderstorm we had last night - very loud and loads of flashes of lightening!! I love them and luckily for me my tiddlies don't bat an eyelid either. My eldest sat with me waiting for the lightening to flash and my youngest went straight off to sleep at bedtime and slept right through the loudest claps of thunder bless him!

I'm thoroughly enjoying this challenge still, even though I'm notoriously late to submit most of the time!! If you fancy a peek to see what it's all about and all of the other beautiful T entries please pop on over HERE.

Anyhoo, my chosen word for T is Tantalus, the journaling on the spread explains all........

I inked my pages with Barn Door and Walnut Stain DI's before splatting it all with drops of water from the tips of my fingers. Not too effective on this surface as the pages are very absorbent!! Ha ha ha I wasn't expecting the 2 DI's used to create a purple tinge but they did, you can just about see it in the pictures - all I can think is that the Walnut Stain may have some blue pigmentation to it??
Next came some stamping, with one of Tim Holtz's classic sets by Stampers Anonymous, to create a border.
I then added the picture (sourced from google) which had been colour-washed with inktense pencils.

The journaling explains the mythology - I hope you can read it ok??

Many thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, your time and thoughts are always greatly appreciated.

Huge hugs

Dawn x

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter Y

Evening all,

thank goodness for a fab cool breeze today, bonus in that it was blowing in the right direction to flow right through my house, YIPPEE!!

Anyhoo, short and sweet from me tonight!! My ABOMINABLE (and I'm not joking!!) effort for Y is YETI........

Very quick and simple as time was muchly lacking lol, but still better than nothing!!

If you fancy a peek at the fab challenge and all the other entries please pop on over to the Craft Barn's dedicated challenge pages HERE

Many thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, your time and thoughts mean a lot.

Huge hugs

Dawn x

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter B

Afternoon all,

hope the sun is shining for you all??

If you fancy playing along with this fab challenge and having a peek at the other entries for the letter B please pop on over HERE.

Here is my effort - B for BACCHUS........

Ha ha ha, I had much fun doing a painty splatty background - can you tell!!!??? Lol I got a bit carried away and almost obliterated the definitions with paint but realised just in the nick of time - ish!!!!!!!!

The bottles of wine on the border are courtesy of Crafty Individuals and were stamped on to DI'd card before being clear embossed and cut out.

The images were found on Google.

Tee hee, not being averse to a chilled glass of Rose, B could only have been Bacchus as far as my theme went - HIC!!

Many thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, your time and thoughts are always much appreciated.

Huge huggles

Dawn x 

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter U.......

Afternoon all,

lol hope some of you are having better weather than Cornwall!!?? It is grey and wet here and yesterdays 'longest day' was a total wash-out!!!!!!! Ha ha ha I'm hoping that this means we will have some decent weather for the long school summer holidays!!??

Anyhoo - I bet any of you that have been following The Craft Barn's fab alpha challenge will be able to guess what I have done for the letter U!! It was a bit of a 'no-brainer' for me but it meant me getting those 'pants' on again tee hee, here you go, please meet my UNICORN........

My apologies for the poor pics!! I tried to get a shot with the camera but the light is terrible today so I admit to giving up on that and resorting to the scanner ha ha.

I started by doing a pencil sketch, adjusting until I was happy. This was outlined with a black fine-liner and shaded slightly using a stabilo all black pencil which is easily smudgable and not quite as messy as regular charcoal (says she whose fingers were decidedly black!!). I then added some highlights with white and gold gel pens. A very wise lady (thanx Mrs G x) suggested adding some colour for a little more impact so I went around the unicorn with blue and green inktense pencils, using the side of the pencil to try and avoid harsh lines. The colours were then activated by washing over the whole background with a water-brush.

Many Thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, always very much appreciated.

Huge hugs to you all

Dawn x  

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter F

Evening all,

lol my apologies before I even start!! I really wasn't feeling the love with this one as I could not find a word within the challenge remit that inspired me much but I stuck to my theme and plodded through as I am determined to complete the challenge - hey ho, such is life sometimes!!

If you fancy joining in with the challenge please pop on over here for all the details and if you fancy a peek at the other amazing entries please pop on over here.

Anyhoo, my chosen word within the FE - FR twist this week is FLAMEN........

The image is from royalty free stock on Wikipedia and depicts the priests, the FLAMENS.

The flourish stamp is from a BoBunny set.

Many thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like too. Ha ha ha after this feeble effort I wouldn't blame you if you don't.

Huge hugs

Dawn x

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter K

Evening all,

ha ha ha I was in a 'nothing serious' mood today when I tackled this one!!

My entry for the current letter over at the Craft Barn's fab alpha challenge is KRAKEN, tee hee still managing to stick to my mythological theme!!

If you fancy having a go too please pop on over HERE for details on how to play and if you fancy a peek at all the K entries so far please pop on over HERE.

Here you go.....

Materials used - Black fine-liner (0.5), pentel hybrid white gel pen, sakura glaze pen (green), promarkers, paperartsy fresco paint (lime zest?), boat image from google images, white pigment ink, bubble border rubber stamp from Lost Coast Designs.

Many thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, your time and thoughts mean a lot.

Huge huggles

Dawn x 

Craft Barn Alpha Challenge - Letter A

Evening all,

I hope everyone is enjoying the much needed sunshine? Glorious or what!!

Here is my entry for the fab Alpha Challenge over at The Craft Barn, if you fancy having a go please pop on over HERE for all the details, and please pop on over HERE for a peek at all the A entries so far.

I got my 'big girl knickers' on again and drew this one!!  The only A in my dictionary that fit my theme (Mythology) and inspired me was AMAZON - nothing like a strong woman hey!!

I'll fess up!! I totally chickened out of doing a full body picture!! I stuck with a portrait style (comfort zone ish lol) with lots of leonine inspired hair.  Here you go........

I started by sketching her with a mechanical pencil (only way I have found to maintain a decent soft point to work with!) and outlined her with a permanent marker.  I coloured her with pro-markers and finished off with a gold gel pen - seemples. 

Many thanks for popping by and leaving a comment if you feel you would like to, your time and input really does mean a lot to me.

Huge hugs 

Dawn x