It's steampunk time

It's 'time' for a little steampunk project! A hot air balloon is a staple in any steampunk imagery. Add a little gold paint & gilding to dress it up a bit!

Supplies:

Blank Page Muse: Hot Air Balloon with Clock Face Art Rubber Stamp
Blank Page Muse:  Diamond Repeating Pattern Background Stamp
Black archival ink
Red and gold wax
Gilding glue
Gilding flakes
Inkssentials Rub-It Scrub-It Pad
Metallic paint
Canvas panel

1.  Start by stamping your balloon image onto your panel.

2.  Stamp and cut out another balloon to use as a mask; put it on top of your stamped balloon.  Dab your gilding glue onto your diamond background & lay the stamp over the whole canvas. Then rub in your gilding flakes with the pad - clean off your stamp immediately so it doesnt get gunked up! Don't worry if the background isn't perfect -it adds a vintage, used look to it.

3.  Rub your waxes around the edges and apply some black ink as well.

4. Go over different parts of the balloon with your metallic paint to finish up.

Easy peasy little project - how cool it would look on a black background with a gilded balloon!  

Blank Page Muse Stamps provides the perfect backdrop for your projects, from steampunk to grunge to romantic!

Why not come join us at The Blank Page Muse Stamps Fan Group and show us your planned - or totally unexpected - Blank Page Muse creations!

Time is a Healer

Hello everyone, Monique here with a new mixed media project for Sin City Art Stamps

Supply list:

Sin city rubber stamp set Wing it

Chalk Paints in  Blue, Red, grey-green and white.

Metallic paint in gold

Matte varnish

Crackle medium

Antiquing cream in black

Gesso

Burlap

Cardboard 

Waterproof stamp ink in black

Colored pencils

Dies (swirl and scroll-work)

Die-cutting machine

Assorted embellishments 

twine

Alphabet stickers or stamps 

White cardstock

Distress inks in green and brown

HOW TO:

Step 1: stamp the image onto white cardstock and color it using pencils

Step 2: Take a piece of a cardboard box and remove parts of the top layer

 Step 3: Remove some threads from a piece of burlap to create frays on the edges. Add a layer of gesso on the burlap like in the picture

 Step 4: Paint the cardboard blue and add a little white using an almost dry paint brush.

Step 5 : Add some red paint

 Step 6: Die cut the swirl and the scrollwork, then paint them with the grayish green with gold.
To give it an aged look, remove some of the paint with a babywipe or wet cloth.

 Step 7: Add 3 layers of matte varnish, letting it dry in between layers.
This is to seal the image before using the crackle medium.

Step 8: Apply a layer of crackle medium. As the medium dries, it will create an effect as if it is an old painting complete with aged cracks.  Rub some black antiquing cream to further age the image by rubbing it into the cracks.

Step 9: Add water to some black paint and use this to help age the burlap.

Step 10: Assemble the piece with strong adhesive and add some finishing gold details around the edges and on your added embellishments.


Here some close up pictures, the crackle doesn't show very well in the photos but it's there!

Thanks for visiting.

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A sparkly farewell

Sad to say that this will be my last post with Sin City, I had so much fun designing for them and I just love all their products! Today as a farewell I used the stamp from the Anime Fairies Art Rubber stamps and Plate of Rubber Time stamps to create my mischievous sparkly sprite card.

I knew I was going to use my ColourArte Twinkling H20's to color the wings in so first I dampened a scrap piece of watercolor paper and then spread the H20's out with a paint brush. Then I squirted some water onto the paper to really allow them to blend together. Before the paper dried and I splattered the colors on top letting them blossom and create a delicious tie-dye look.

Once the paper dries, you can really see the sparkle!

Then I stamped the wings and cut them out. I did leave off all the fanciful swirls the wings had, but there was no way was I even going to try and cut them out. I also stamped 2 sets of each wing so I could double them up.

Next I stamped the clock and the fairy leaving off parts so that I could create the look of her draping herself over the clock and again, used the same colors to embellish the images and added the Radiant Gel for her hair. Adding a small rhinestone in the center of the clocks face to complete the sparkle theme.

Then it was just a matter a layering everything and gluing it down.

I look forward to keeping in touch with the Sin City Design Team members and all their fabulous creations!

Embossing Resist Techniques with Sin City Stamps

Hello everyone.  I hope you all have had a wonderful week and are ready for a fabulous weekend.  Today, I want to share a couple of embossing resist techniques that are more of those oldies but goodies.  I made a similar card using part of this metal foil sheet, and on my desk was the section I had cut off.  I did not want to throw it away, so I made this card in a similar fashion.  Nothing goes to waste, especially if it is metal.

Supplies Used:

Sin City Stamps:  Mannequin Tags 2 :  Dream

                            Art Journaling with Terri Sproul:  diamond border, solid bubble, notebook page

                            Time: Time clock face

Kaisercraft Check In 6-1/2"x6-1/2" paper pad

Off white textured card stock (cut to 10" x 7", folded in half to make 5" x 7" card)

Glossy White Cardstock

Wax paper

Ink Pads:  StazOn Midi:  Jet Black, Gothic Purple; Versamark; Evergreen Bough, Frayed Burlap

Versamark ink pad

Tim Holtz Fragments acrylic charms

Tim Holtz Compass embossing folder

Tim Holtz mirrored sheets

Sizzix Super Crescent Tag die

Glossy Accents

Seam binding ribbon

Pop Dots



Directions:



This is the metal foil sheet I embossed for another project, and cut off the portion you see on my card.  I used StazOn Orange Zest and Hawaii Blue to patina it.

I had just this small piece left.

Since I really wanted the compass for my card, too, I took a piece of white glossy card stock and wax paper, embossing together with the compass embossing folder.  I had already added color to the card stock using Evergreen Bough.

I used a hot iron to melt the wax from the wax paper onto the card, removed the wax paper, and added Frayed Burlap over the card.  The wax caused a resist, giving it this shabby look.  I really like it.

I began layering my papers, as shown.  First was a print from the Kaisercraft paper pad (4-1/2" x 6-1/2"), the embossed glossy card, and the scrap piece of metal, aligning it with the card stock.

Now to make my focal image.  I die cut another piece of glossy card stock into a tag shape.  Using Versamark ink, I stamped and then heat embossed the solid bubble image a few times.  Next, I sponged Gothic Purple StazOn over the entire tag.

I removed the ink from the embossed areas and wiped the whole tag with a baby wipe.  It actually blended the ink a bit more on the tag, too.

Stamp note paper with Gothic Purple onto scrap card stock.  Distress and ink edges with Frayed Burlap.  Adhere to tag.

Use black StazOn to stamp Time clock face onto mirrored card, cut out and adhere to tag.  Stamp diamond border along bottom edge of notebook paper.

Use black StazOn to stamp "Dream" onto Kaisercraft print paper.  Adhere clear acrylic charm with Glossy Accents.  When dry, cut out with craft knife.

Adhere seam binding ribbon to tag, then attach Dream charm to ribbon with vintage pin.

Close up of Time clock face stamped onto mirrored card, without my reflection showing in the mirror.

Lastly, adhere tag to card with foam dots and the cut out portion of a travel file label from one of the Kaisercraft printed papers, as shown.  Adhere to right side of tag.



I hope you have enjoyed my project today.  I hope you will visit often for more inspiration from the rest of the team.  And stop on over to see all the newest stamps and product releases in the online shop.



Have a wonderful, creative weekend!!!



Barbara

Fabric Cuff with Sin City Stamps

I am so happy to be here as a Guest Designer for Sin City Stamps!

You can make the perfect fabric panel for your sewing projects by stamping on fabric! For this Steampunk Chic Fabric Cuff, I used the largest image from Sin City Stamps' Time set.

I stamped the image with ColorBox Chalk Ink in Warm Violet onto tea dyed muslin.  Tightly woven fabric gives the clearest image. I like Chalk Ink, but India ink works well, too.  I heat set the ink with a hot iron.  For more tips on stamping on fabric, read this post.

You can see that the image didn't come out clearly all the way around.  Sometimes you can get a clearer image by putting a piece of craft foam under the fabric, but this result was perfect for this project because I wanted a soft look.

I gathered a few tea dyed doilies to consider as possibilities for the base of my cuff.  I wanted to make an extravagant cuff, so I chose large, lacey one.

I folded the doily in half, then pulled the top layer back a little bit to reveal both layers.
I planned the length of my focal section to make sure I could stitch it to the fuller portion of the doily.  If you stitch your panel to a weak part of the doily, the whole piece will be weak.

I wanted the panel to have finished edges, so I added a seam allowance when I cut it out.  I cut out a piece of plain muslin the same size.  I decided to add a little ruffle with a piece of silk sari ribbon.  I pinned the ribbon to the right side of the printed panel.  I didn't measure the pleats for the ruffle.  I just marked the halfway point and then folded the ribbon over to make the pleats.

Then I pinned the plain piece of muslin to the top of that and stitched all the way around it with my sewing machine.  You can leave an opening for turning, but I like this method when it’s okay for the back to have a slit.  After stitching all around, make a small slit in the piece that will be the back, and turn the piece through that.  You can stitch it closed, or leave it as is if the back won’t show.
I added the gears to the panel.

These were raw brass gears that I treated to add a little patina.  I learned this method from Brenda Sue Lansdowne of B'Sue Boutiques.  I adapted it a little to use the items I had on hand.  I washed the pieces with warm water and soap to remove residual machine oil from the manufacturing process.  Then I soaked the pieces in a combination of water, white vinegar and table salt for an hour.  Then I removed them from the mixture and put them in the oven at 450 degrees for an hour.  When they were cool, I rinsed them off.  You can add colorants at this point, and seal the pieces, but I left these the way they were.

Each gear has a hole in the center, so I sewed them to the panel the same way you would sew on a sequin.  Bring your thread up from the bottom, go through the hole of the gear, go through an anchor bead (mine are brass), sew down through the hole of the gear.  I did that twice for each one and then knotted the thread on the back.

Next, I pinned the panel to the doily and stitched them together.

There are many different closures you can use for a fabric cuff.  For this one, I chose a large snap because it was simple and I did not want to overlap the ends of the cuff.  I put one side of the snap on each side of the doily, and when you snap it together, the edges of the doily drape down.

I hope you will make your own fabric cuff.  Please let me know if you have any questions.