Sewing Complete!

That was a job and a half, but I have finally finished sewing the squares together on my throw!  Next step is to crochet around the edge a few times.  I'll be happy to get back to some actual crochet!

Art of Crochet Advanced Techniques Throw

I can't believe I've held radio silence on this throw for so long!

If you're a regular reader, you'll remember that I used to post a photo of every square I made when I was working on the Art of Crochet Beginners Throw.  I haven't posted anything about the second throw until now.

I have completed all the squares for the throw and I am now putting it together.  It's more complicated to assemble than the first one because the squares are in three different sizes.  It is challenging but not so much so that I don't look forward to doing it.  I can't believe it went so quickly!

There are so many different stitches and patterns in this throw.  I can't wait to show you the finished product!

Arty Dollhouse Makeover!

My little girl has a dollhouse that has been passed down to her.  It had been written on with felt tips long ago and it needs a facelift.  I decided this would be a great opportunity to try out some chalk paint, so I went to The Vintage Dove in Elm Court, Gillingham and bought a couple of tester pots in Pebble and Swedish Blue.  I used this dollhouse as a testing ground for the paint and I'm very happy with the finish.  But we're not done yet!!!

Plans for this house are in constant flux.  At the moment, I am planning trellises, leaves, vines, flowers and lots of fun decoration around the windows and doors.

I will revisit this project as progress is made, so stay tuned!

Cupcake-Themed Birthday

My little girl likes to have a hand in the design of her birthday invitations and party bags.  This year, I chose a pack of patterned paper for her.  That was as far as my input went!  She chose all the elements you see on these little invitations.  They are 3.5 x 2.5 inches-- ATC Sized-- with an inky-edged background panel, a cupcake hand-cut and coloured with ProMarkers and a distressed vintage tag made with Stampin' Up products and distressed with Ranger Distress Stain.

Here she is, lending a hand in stamping her goodie bags, using the envelope trick as always. :)  She stamped three cupcakes in blue on both sides and I folded the top over and made toppers to match the invitations.

That's another family birthday in the bag for this year!  I wonder what next year will bring.

Fancy making your own occasional stationery?  I am brimming with ideas.  If you're in the Medway, Kent area or willing to travel there, keep an eye on Happy Accident Studios for classes, my Folksy shop and more!

Messing About on Canvas.

I love to use acrylic paint on my wooden mirrors and other useful items for around the house, but I haven't until recently started painting on canvas.

I live in a rented house at the moment and there are lots of nails on the walls that have been left behind and painted over.  I have been slowly using them up over the ten-or-so months I've been there.   It's starting to look a bit like a museum now!

These two canvases were made during half-term holiday when my friend Crafty Frank  (not her real name) came to stay.  We enjoy having our child-free time to create.

The one on the right was made using Crafters Workshop stencils and the plastic netting that fruit and vegetables sometimes come in.  I love the variety of colours and textures in this piece.  I'm not quite ready to let go of it.   Besides,  it matches my curtains perfectly!

The one on the left was inspired by a piece I saw on Pinterest.  By the time I had finished it, however, it had  taken on a life of its own and barely resembles my inspiration piece.  I showed a friend at my regular Wednesday Crafty Cafe.  She was impressed with it and said, "Are you going to sell it?"  I jokingly put a price out there and she said, "We have a deal!"  Totally blindsided me.  Okay, so... I'm selling now!

Pebble Crackle Mirror

Another day, another Ikea mirror.  This time, I have used a fantastic paint by Viva Decor called Croco.  It is a one-step crackle paint with quite a heavy body.  It's also a bit pearlescent.  Each of these pictures will show a slightly different colour because I have varied the angle.

I have applied the Viva Decor Croco paint generously through a Crafters Workshop stencil called Mini Pebbles.  I used a palette knife and skimmed the paint thickly over the top, carefully lifting the stencil straight up to reveal quite thick shapes.  I worked in sections and came back to it after days, if not weeks.  I used a mix of Azure and Turqoise for this mirror.

The great thing about Croco is that the thicker you apply it, the more pronounced the crackle effect will be.

This lovely specimen is not yet finished.  Once it is, if you're in love with it, you may purchase it on my Folksy Shop.  I will be putting all of my mirrors on there eventually.  Just look for the tag "Arty Farty" for the rest of them.

(As I blog this, Folksy is down for maintenance and I can't get the direct link on here.  I think it may be http://www.folksy.com/shops/HapAxStudios  -- but don't quote me on that.)

Playing with Dylusions!

 Ok, seriously.  This.  Is.  Amazing.  Look at this!!

I was squealing with delight over what happened in this book.  I used only two colours of Dylusions spray inks by Ranger and out comes this fantastic landscape, complete with alien tree trunks ripe for doodling!

I used Bubblegum Pink and Lime Green Dylusions on a pair of art journal pages prepped with a spray of plain water.  The colours wicked into each other and separated into a rainbow of colours reminiscent of a sunset over a green field.  It's much brighter than it came out here in the photos, but you get the idea.  I put the ink on one page, let it do its magic and closed another page over it.  I opened it again and used some scrap to blot off the excess liquid.

I love these summery colours.  I'm not quite sure yet what I'll use the scraps for, but believe me,  they will be used!

Further experimentation has seen the colours come up quite well on kraft paper as well, shown here next to the giant number six.

It's so much fun to play with new supplies.  I need to start using them on actual projects though.  At the moment I feel like a bit of a mad scientist!  Mwah-hah-hah!!!!

Two Scrapbook Pages

I haven't done a lot of scrapbooking this year.  I fear I may be spreading myself too thinly craft-wise.  Nevertheless, here are two more that I made months ago and forgot to blog.

This one was made entirely with scraps, stickers and a single sheet of basic grey.  I believe the collection is called Wisteria, but I have a touch of crafty amnesia.  The title is hand-drawn.

My son played the violin for a couple of years and then quit.  Here he is playing in the Olympiad of Sweet Sounds in 2011.  Violinists will notice that he is holding the instrument wrong!

First Day of  School.  Self-explanatory really.  This was the first time that my babies were in the same school.  I made three of these pages: one for my son, one for my daughter and one for me. By the end of their school career they will have albums to take away with them when they fly the nest.

This page was made with Basic Grey Wisteria too.  It's such a lovely collection. The larger words of the title were cut in a font called Elephants in Cherry Trees.

I've been looking enviously at my friends' blogs, loving their work and at the same time wanting-- no,  needing-- to do the same.  Perhaps it is time to dust off my scrapping stash!