Sweet Pea Stamps Facebook Progressive Challenge

Hi all! It's time for Part 2 of Sweet Pea Stamps Facebook Progressive Challenge and this time we are featuring this adorable fairy from Karen Middleton called Shiny Stuff Fairie. Those who played along with Part 1, will have received her as this part's free image. If you didn't get a chance to play along, you can still purchase her at Sweet Pea Stamps until it closes November 25.

I coloured her with a mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils, adding a generous helping of Diamond Stickles to her wings, the mist from the can, and highlight dots on the bells and her wand. She was then fussy cut leaving a narrow white border, matted in black, and trimmed out again. Foam tape was added to the back of the image for dimension and to create a shadow.

The background, a 6 x 8 inch rectangle of mixed media paper, was colourized withScattered Straw, Spiced Maramalade, and Worn Lipstick Distress inks. Pattern was added with orange Blossom Archival ink and an Andy Skinner Steampunk stamp, with Red Geranium Archival and Stampendous' Mish Mesh stamp, and also with Coffee Archival ink and a TH text stamp. Jet Black Archival was applied through Memory Box's Rings and Puddles stencil. To add more dimension and texture, white embossing paste was scraped through Memory Box's Starry Nights stencil.

The wording was computer generated and printed onto white cardstock, cut apart and matted with black cardstock. Foam tape was used to adhered the segments. Silver star sequins were scatted around and two pieces of cheesecloth were added behind the image before she was adhered. A die cut black arrow gave her a place to stand. To complete the piece, black Big Brush pen was used to edge the background before it was matted with black.

Thanks for joining Shiny Stuff Fairie and me today. We are delighted that you did. To see more fabulous creations with this adorable image, be sure to pop by the Sweet Pea Friends and Fans Facebook group. We would love to see what you create with her!

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Thankful People ~ One Sweet Challenge November theme

Well, I'm sure you have heard by now that Sweet Pea Stamps is closing its doors at the end of November so this will be our last month to run One Sweet Challenge. Our theme for this month is Thanksgiving or Thanks. Canadian Thanksgiving has already passed since we have ours in early October unlike the American one which is later this month. Since I have been consciously working on maintaining thoughts of gratitude, I decided to make that my focus for this mixed media project.

I chose to feature Ronne P. Barton's The Gold Fairy on my page. I coloured her with a mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils, adding some Icicle Stickles to her wings and the highlights on the bubbles for a little shimmer and magic. The image including the individual bubbles were fussy cut leaving a narrow white border, and matted with black cardstock. Once they were trimmed out again, the larger image was popped up on foam tape and the small bubbles were adhered flat to the background.

The 6 x 8 inch mixed media rectangle was spritzed with water and then Purple and Turquoise Brusho crystals were sprinkled into the water. More water was added to help the paint move and blend while still leaving white space.Three sizes of butterflies were punched from yellow scraps of Lindy's Starburst sprayed paper and tiny star sequins were added for the bodies. Three flags of washi tape mounted to white cardstock were hand cut and adhered in two places. The word Grateful, a TH Big Chat sticker, was added to the top of the upper strips.

The computer generated sentiment was printed on white cardstock and matted with black. It was popped up on foam to create dimension and shadow. Two black one inch circles were punched and then split in half to form the scallops around the sentiment. White paint pen dots embellished them. Black pen was used to doodle the border repeating the circles from the image. Black big brush pen was used to edge the background before it was double matted with blue patterned and plain black cardstock.

Thanks so much for joining The Gold Fairy and me today. When you get a minute, pop over to the One Sweet Challenge blog to see the other wonderful projects from my talented teamies. We would love to see you join us this time around. Check out the Sweet Pea Stamps site, too, to snap up those wonderful images before they are gone.

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

One Sweet Challenge reminder Post ~ Autumn Colours

Hi everyone! It's time for the One Sweet Challenge Mid-October reminder post. Our themes this month are either All Souls' Day or Autumn Colours which is the one I chose to feature. Autumn is my favourite season and I love how it's a feast for the senses, including the eyes. The trees here are absolutely breath-taking right now.

I chose to feature Holly Durr's image called Longing which can be found at Sweet Pea Stamps. I coloured the image with a mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils. It was then fussy cut leaving a narrow white border, matted in black, and trimmed out again. Foam tape was added to the back to create dimension and shadow.

The 6 x 8 inch mixed media paper rectangle was colourized with Scattered Straw, Spiced Marmalade, and orn Lipstick Distress inks applied with blending tools. Jet Black Archival ink was sponged through Colorbox's Rounded stencil to create the circles. Joggles Faux Latin text stamp was applied to the background with Coffee Archival ink and Stampendous Mish Mesh stamp was added with Orange Blossom Archival ink. White gesso bottle lid rings and black specks were added to the mix. A length of burlap was adhered across the background and a wide and glittery pumpkin themed ribbon was added over that.

Once the image was adhered, a segment of black punched border was added to the bottom left corner. Three black triangles balanced out the other corners. The letters for the word Autumn are Thickers. Nature's Grand Finale was computer generated, trimmed out, and popped up on foam. The other part of the scalloped border was tucked underneath it to give it more visual weight and emphasis. To complete the piece, Orange Big Brush pen was used around the outside edges of the background and a black cardstock mat was used to frame it.

Thanks for stopping by today. To see the other fabulous inspiration pieces by my talented teamies, be sure to pop by the One Sweet Challenge blog. We would love to have you play along with us before the end of the challenge. Plan a stop by Sweet Pea Stamps...you are sure to be inspired by the huge variety of images Lynette has available there.

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Sweet Pea Stamps Facebook Progressive Challenge Part 2

Hi there!Part 2 of the Sweet Pea Stamps Progressive Challenge  has begun on Sweet Pea Stamps Friends & Fans Facebook group. If you played along with Part 1, you will already have received the adorable image we are using called A Clown For You by Katerina Koukiotis. If you didn't play along before, you can still purchase this sweetie at Sweet Pea Stamps. I think it would be so fun on a birthday invitation.

I coloured him with a mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils and fussy cut him leaving a narrow white border. He was then matted with black cardstock before being trimmed out and popped up on foam tape. I love him in bright colours but think he would be sweet in pastels or vintage tones as well.

The 6 x 8 inch mixed media paper background had Cut Grass and Fresh Lime Dylusions paint scraped onto it with a palette knife. It was allowed to dry  before Jet Black Archival ink was sponged through Dylusions Letter Jumble stencil. White paint pen was used to transfer the circular patterns from Americana's Kaleidoscope Border stencil and black pen was doodled around the design. Black and white rings were created with Dylusions paint and bottle lids. White embossing paste was scraped through Dina Wakley's Plastic Canvas stencil. To create a platform for the wee guy, lengths of blue starry washi tape were adhered to white cardstock and stacked overlapping slightly. A black mat was added to the stand.

Yellow fishtail flags were hand cut from stencilled and sprayed scraps. These were outlined and faux stitched before being glued down. Small punched photo corners were added to opposite corners. The computer generated sentiment was printed on white cardstock, timmed out, and matted with black. Foam tape was added to the back of these words to create dimension and shadow. To finish off the page, black Big Brush pen was used to edge the background before it was matted with black cardstock.

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope this wee guy gave you a smile. Pop by the Sweet Pea Friends & Fans Facebook page to see what others on the DT and many of our friends do with this adorable image. We can't wait to see what you do!

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Fall Colours or All Souls' Day ~ One Sweet Challenge October theme

Hi everyone! It's the first Monday of the month and that means that a brand new challenge is beginning for One Sweet Challenge. Our October theme is Fall Colours or All Souls Day. Autumn is my favourite season so that's what I went with for my mixed media page. I love the fabulous colours of the trees and bushes, especially the maples and sumacs.

I chose to feature Molly Harrison's Star and Moon Fairy from Sweet Pea Stamps colouring her with my Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils. I used gel pens to colour the tiny dots on her skirt, hair, and on the moon. Star Fairy was cut out leaving a narrow white border and was then matted with brown cardstock. It was then trimmed out again and popped up on foam tape.

The background started as a 6 x 8 inch rectangle of mixed media paper. Yellow Rose of Texas and Marigold Yellow Orange Lindy's Starburst sprays were spritzed on the background. Hag's Wart orange was sprayed through Dylusions Blocks stencil and then it was flipped and cleaned off on another area. Drips were encouraged by tilting the background. Using my mop-up atcs and a maple leaf punch, I cut fall coloured leaves which shimmer because of the mica in the sprays. These were adhered to the background and popped up on foam to overlap the base of Star Fairy's skirt.

The word Autumn was created with Idea-ology AlphaTiles and "the sweetest thing" with an Idea-ology rub-on. A brown Micron pen was used to create a scribbly border and the entire piece was matted with brown cardstock to frame it and add strength to the background.

Thanks for joining Star Fairy and me today. We appreciate your fine company. To see the other amazing projects created by my talented DT teamies, please pop over to the One Sweet Challenge  blog. We would love to have you join us  for our Fall Colours or All Souls' Day Challenge during the month of October.

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

One Sweet Challenge mid September reminder post

Hi everyone. It's time for the mid-month reminder post for One Sweet Challenge. The theme this month is either Halloween OR Use Purple, Green, Orange and Black on your project. Once again, I chose to follow both themes with this little beauty by Molly Harrison called Little Halloween Witch with 2 Cats. I think she is adorable.

I coloured Little Witch and her friends with a mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils. She was then fussy cut leaving a narrow white border for better contrast with the dark background.

The background began as a 6 x 8 inch rectangle of kraft designer paper which was printed with a white Halloween design. White embossing paste was scraped through TCW's Tiny Circles stencil to add texture and dimension. Once dry a rectangle of spider web designer paper was layered over the kraft paper. The red spider on the bottom left was part of the original design although I added coloured pencil shading and black pen doodling as well as tho flat black pearl eyes to jazz it up a little. Once Little Witch and her friends were adhered to this, rhinestones were added to the intersections of some of the web lines. A punched border of washi tape applied to white cardstock was added to the lower right corner.

Two half doilies were added to either side of the web paper and black spider stickers with larger gems on their bodies were adhered over each doily. Tiny black dotted lines show their web string. A black border was also doodled around the outside of the kraft layer before the entire piece was matted with black cardstock. To complete the page, the sentiment, The Witching Hour" was fussy cut from yet another piece of Halloween Designer paper and popped up on foam tape before being added to the top left corner.

Thanks for stopping by today. We all appreciate that...even the spiders mentioned how nice of you that was! When you get a chance, pop over to the One Sweet Challenge blog to see the wonderful creations by the rest of our talented team. We would love it if you played along with our September challenge: Halloween OR Use Purple, Green, Orange and Black.

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Sweet Pea Stamps Facebook Progressive Challenge Part 2

Hi there. It's time for Part 2 of the Sweet Pea Stamps Facebook Progressive Challenge and the image which we are playing with this time is called How Do I Look Now by Gabriella Szabo. She has gorgeous whimsical images and is one of the many talented artists at Sweet Pea Stamps. If you played along with Part 1, you will have received this image for free  for part 2. If not, you can still purchase it and join us this time.

I coloured Bluebell (she told me her name) and her wee friend with a mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils. Cinnamon Stickles was added to the flower centers and wing dots. Turquoise Stickles was also added to the wing dots. Glossy Accents was added to the dew drops and the bunny's eye. The image was fussy cut leaving a narrow white border. It was then matted with black cardstock and trimmed out again. Foam tape was added to the back for added dimension.

The background began as a 6 x 8 inch rectangle of turquoise tone on tone chevron patterned cardstock. -Me-Not Archival ink was used to add additional pattern with Joggles Latin Text and Open Circles background stamps. White embossing paste was scraped through TCW Mini Netting stencil. Bottle lid rings were made with Dylusions Black Marble paint. Idea-ology rub-ons were applied in three places. Hearts were die cut from vintage sheet music in 3 different sizes and adhered in a triangle. Doodling was added to the hearts as well as the border and Inktense pencil activated with water was used to shade around the hearts. A black Scribbles die cut heart was adhered over the top heart.

Bluebell and bunny were adhered to the background with foam tape and a scrap of cheesecloth was layered under her to ground her and add texture. Tiny punched flowers with Stickles centers were adhered beneath her to bring the flowers from the top of the image to the background below it. To bring the orange colour to the top right and balance out the composition, three faceted gems were added to the corner. The sentiment was computer generated and printed onto white cardstock. Once the segments were trimmed, they were matted with black cardstock and adhered with foam tape. The outside edges of the background were inked with a black Big Brush pen and a black mat was added to the back to frame the piece.

Thanks for joining Bluebell, Bunny, and me today. We love that! When you get a chance, take a peek at the Sweet Pea Friends and Fans Facebook page where you will begin seeing how other DT members and our wonderfully talented members create with this sweet image. We would love to have you join us.  One of my favourite things is to see how many people interpret and play with the same image...so inspiring.

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Bewitched ~ September Challenge at One Sweet Pea

Happy Labour Day! Today is the first Monday of the month and that means there is a new challenge at One Sweet Challenge. This month you have a choice. You can either enter with a Halloween project or you can enter with a project using the colours Purple, Green, Orange, and Black. I decided that was too big of a decision so I did both! I chose to play with two of Molly Harrison's cute witch images which can be found at Sweet Pea Stamps. The one on the left is called Little Witch and the one on the right is Witch Standing with Pumpkin and Cat.

I coloured both witches with a mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils. Standing Witch and her cat were given tiny black half pearl eyes. Both were fussy cut leaving a narrow white border so that they would stand out against the dark background. Foam tape was added to the back of both images.

The background began as two tone on tone 4.5 x 6.5 inch squares of patterned Halloween paper with  a flag design across the top. They were joined together and brads were placed to "hang the bunting". Three sizes of bats were stamped with Versamark and then clear embossed to add more interest to the background. Yellow Rose of Texas Starburst spray was spritzed onto mixed media paper and once dry, California Poppy Gold was sprayed through a stencil over top. A 4 inch moon was die cut from this paper and Dried Marigold Distress ink was used to deepen the outside edge before it was adhered behind the two little witches.

A border was cut from another Halloween paper and placed on the background so The had a place to stand. The embossed Happy Halloween was part of the paper. The bat border was sliced from a separate paper and layered over top as well as added to the right hand side. Small shimmery bats which change colour in the light were added in three places to pop a little colour into the night sky.

Striped washi tape was adhered to white cardstock so that it would frame the background once they were layered together. That's my lazy way of adding the checkerboard pattern without having to colour it all in:) To finish off the page, sparkly white stickers were added to spell the word Bewtitched. I know I find these two cuties bewitching, for sure.

Thanks for joining us today. To see the fabulous makes by the rest of our talented DT, be sure to pop over to the One Sweet Challenge blog. We would love to have you join us this month for our Halloween/Purple, green, orange & black challenge. Hope to see you there!

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Sweet Little Vampire ~ Sweet Pea Stamps

This adorable vampire from Sweet Pea Stamps artist Charmaine Flannery just seemed to call my name until I coloured her. Her name is Age of Vampires and she was delightful to colour. The detail as well as her beauty made me smile the whole time.

I coloured her with a mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils. She was then fussy cut leaving a narrow white border, matted with black cardstock, and trimmed out again. This adds strength to the image so that it can easily be popped up on foam tape. It also provides contrast with the busy background as well as visual weight.

The background began as a 6 x 8 inch rectangle of mixed media paper. The paper was spritzed with water and yellow, orange, and red Brusho crystals were sprinkled into the puddles and spritzes. The paper was tipped this way and that to get blending of the colours. Black Brusho crystals were also added in a couple of places but the black ended up more diluted than I wanted. Once it was dry, I added black ink over the same areas and allowed it to run horizontally and vertically to create a cool graphic look.

Two drippy borders were die cut: one from red cardstock and one from black. They were cut on an angle so the drips got closer to her head as the border went from left to right. They were adhered slightly offset so that the black created a shadow for the red. The sentiment was computer generated and made me laugh. It was printed on white cardstock, die cut, and  matted with black. It was then faux stitched.and popped up on foam tape for dimension. To finish the page, Black Big Brush pen was used to edge the background before it was matted with black.

Thanks so much for stopping by today. To see more of Charmaine Flannery's gorgeous images as well as an absolute ton from other equally amazing artists, please visit Sweet Pea Stamps. You are sure to be inspired!

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

Gear Up ~ One Sweet Challenge Mid Month Reminder

Hi all. It's time for the mid-month reminder of our August challenge at One Sweet Challenge. This month our theme is Back to School...not in the traditional sense but as in trying out a new technique or medium. I love this as there were a couple of things I wanted to try and this gave me the little push I needed. This time it was using alcohol inks (not new) on Yupo paper (new to me). It's awesome!

The Sweet Pea Stamps image I chose to feature for this project is Holly Durr's All Aboard. I am such a fan of her images and always enjoy creating anything steampunk. I coloured her with a mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils. A little Glossy Accents was added to the charm hanging from her tunic. She was then fussy cut leaving a narrow white border and matted with black cardstock. Foam tape was added to the back of the image to add dimension.

The background began with a 6 x 9 inch rectangle of Yupo paper which I have never used before. I had seen it on a YouTube video on Joggles' channel and was able to purchase a pad of Yupo at an art store. It looked like too much fun not to try it! Yupo is a coated paper which causes alcohol ink to react in cool and somewhat unpredictable ways. A drop spreads like crazy and gets a halo of another colour around the edges. When dropped close together, you get organic shapes where one pushes into the other. If dropped on top of each other, you get the coolest rings. So fun! I let it dry thoroughly and then stamped some gears over top using black VersaFine ink. The only thing you have to watch is how slippery it is when you set the stamp down. It was also slow to dry so I sprayed a fixative over the stamping before moving on.

Black cardstock was embossed witha TH folder and Treasure Gold, Silver, and Copper were rubbed over the raised pattern to highlight it and create an industrial feel. This was torn into three scraps and adhered onto the background. Metal and cardstock gears, a metal clock face, propeller, and key were all adhered to the background with Glossy Accents. The wording was added with Idea-ology Alpha Tiles. To complete the page, black cardstock was used to mat and frame the piece.

Thanks for stopping by today. To see the other fabulous creations by my teamies, pop over to One Sweet Challenge blog. It's worth the click! You still have two weeks until this challenge ends. We sure would love to have you join us!

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

To the Moon ~ Sweet Pea Stamps Progressive Challenge Part 2

Hi everyone. It's time for Part 2 of the Progressive Challenge on Sweet Pea Stamps Friends &Fans  Facebook group. If you played along with Part 1, you will have received this awesome image by Courtney McAnsh called To the Moon and Back which I adore. That is the image we are all playing with this time. If you didn't get a chance to play along with the first part, you can still join us this time as the image is available for purchase at Sweet Pea Stamps.

I coloured Mr. Moon with a mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils. He was then fussy cut leaving a wider than usual white border to accommodate the writing. An extra wide black mat was added to the image for contrast and to give him a little more visual weight.

The background began with a 6 x 8 inch rectangle of mixed media paper which was sprayed with Afternoon Delight Denim and Delphinium Turquoise Lindy's Stamp Gang Starburst sprays. Love the mica shine from these. Once dry, pattern was added with Forget-Me-Not Archival ink and Joggles Latin text stamp. Platinum brilliance ink was used with Joggles Sparks background stamp to randomly create more texture and glimmer. Stars were punched from old book text paper and adhered and outlined. Slight yellow colour was added with an Inktense pencil and a water brush.

Bottle lid rings were created with Dylusions Black Marble paint and black die cut arrows with gel pen writing brought movement and attention to the focal image. A border was doodled around the page before black Big Brush pen and cardstock mat were added. Blue and white washi tape was added in two places and topped with orange sprayed paper scraps. A heart was cut from the same scrap and added to the intersection of the two rings...like a Venn diagram showing that Love is what the two parts have in common. It also completes the orange visual triangle. Black gems were added to the ends of the arrows to indicate more movement and Mr. Moon was adhered with foam tape.

Thanks for stopping by today. Mr. Moon and I appreciate that. be sure to pop over to Sweet Pea Stamps Facebook group to see how others have featured this awesome image. We would love to have you play along, too.

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie

It's the Little Things ~ One Sweet Challenge post

Wow! seriously, is it August already? I feel like Rip Van Winkle...I keep losing days and weeks. If I'm sleeping them away, why am I still so tired? LOL Anyway, since today is the first Monday of the new month, we have a new challenge theme at One Sweet Challenge. Our theme for this month is Back to School but not in the traditional sense. This time we are going back to school by learning and experimenting with a technique or medium that is new to us. I love having that little push to try something new! My something new is Brusho Crystals which aren't new to  the world but are to me. I bought them a while ago but never experimented and just played with them until now. They are tiny crystals of colour which when activated with water give the most glorious rich hues. Yum!

I wanted to colour this gorgeous image from Sweet Pea Stamps called Blueberry Fairy by Holly Durr. Holly Durr creates these gorgeous faces,delightful hair, and wings. I cannot resist her images. I coloured BB (blueberry) with a mix of Prismacolor and Polychromos pencils. The photos don't show it very well but her wings are a blend of turquoises and green. There are actually four colours on each feather. BB was then fussy cut leaving a narrow white border, matted in black cardstock, and fussy cut again. She was then popped up on foam dots to give her dimension and create a shadow around her.

The background began with a 6 x 8 inch rectangle of mixed media paper. This was the first time I tried using only one colour of Brushos (Purple) and varying the intensity with the amount of water I added. I tipped the paper to get bigger runs and then used the TH Spritzer tool to get the tiny drips. White embossing paste was scraped through TCW's Mini Netting stencil. I love how it picked up some of the Brusho purple from the background...cool effect. Stencilling was also applied using Forget-Me-Not Ranger Archival ink and Memory Box's Alpha Crumble template. Black rings were added with Black Marble Dylusions paint and a bottle lid.

Two different patterns of washi tape were added in three spots and faceted jewels layered on top of the left side flags. The sentiment was computer generated, printed on white cardstock, and matted with black. Foam tape on the back of each segment gave them a little dimension. Black Big Brush pen was used to edge the background which was then framed with a black mat.

Thanks for joining BB and me today. That might seem like a little thing to you but to us it's huge. When you get a minute, pop over to One Sweet Challenge blog to see what the rest of my talented teamies created and what they chose to experiment with for our Back To School theme. Remember to stop by Sweet Pea Stamps as well. There are always new images and I always come away from a browse with inspiration galore...not to mention new images too :)

Life is good; so is art.
Bonnie