She has butterflies in her stomach

Hi Guys,
I am up on the Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts blog today.

I recently got this cool Art Doll Nicho(coming to the store soon) from GSL and immediately thought I needed to put butterflies in it.


The doll comes in three pieces. I started by cutting a dress out of a bright bold patterned paper and glued it to the main body piece. Then I was stumped.  I realized I don't do bright often.  So I tore that dress off and went with a more neutral paper (read grungy).  Once I did that she really started to come together.  The paper was splattered with Black Soot Distress Paint.  The edges were inked up using Distress Ink in Pumice Stone.  The gold is Dina Wakley Gilt(this is quickly becoming my go to gold color).

 The large butterflies on her dress are from the Tim Holtz French Flight stamp and die set.   I cut them using mop up paper I had on my desk.  The tiny key centers are from Ideaology.

  The large wings were die cut using the Fanciful Flight Die using the same mop up paper I used to cut the small butterflies.

Her arms are from the Santos Doll.  They are painted with Dina Wakley Gilt.  Then stamped using the Blank Page Muse Correspondence Script stamp in Black Soot Archival ink.   I used craft thread to make the joints and attached them to the body using a strong glue.

The second piece of the doll is the head.  It's really just a circle that you can use to support the head of your choice.  I had this art doll sheet from Art Chix Studios and used one of them.  I gave her a halo using the Medallion Impresslit.  Some teeny butterflies finish her halo.  I wanted to give her a little necklace since the doll head has a long neck.  I used some chain from the Tim Holtz Assemblage line to make her necklace and the pearl dangle. The butterfly is a another one from the French Flight set.

  The last piece is the little belly box that needs to be folded up.  The box is tiny.  Use a good strong glue to keep it together.  I painted the inside using Peeled Paint Distress Paint and added a flowery paper to the back.  The butterflies were cut using the Tim Holtz Butterfly Frenzy die.  I spritzed several colors of Distress Oxide ink on my gel press and used a piece of vintage book paper to pull my print.  Once the paper was dry I ran it through the Vagabond.  The butterflies were glued down to fill the cavity.  There are a couple teeny butterfly brads in her belly too.

The legs are vintage ceramic doll legs.  I poked holes into the belly box and ran craft thread though to keep them on the box.  They are tied on so they can dangle and move.

I hope you like her! 

Jess

The Social Butterfly

Hi Everyone,
Earlier this year I made the decision to step down from most of my design teams and not to apply to any new ones.  Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy being on teams and I have been on some amazing ones, but I missed making just to make.  I wanted more time to play with my stuff.  Today I pulled out a bunch of my new toys and just made.  I wanted to try a couple experiments, some worked and some didn't but I had the time to do it.  I think play makes you a better artist.  You learn how to use your tools in new and creative ways. 
So, here is the result of today's session.

I used one of the mini etcetera tags from Stampers Anonymous as my base.  I covered it with paper and then coated the whole thing with collage medium.  I sprayed on Worn Lipstick, Cracked Pistachio, and Vintage Photo Oxide sprays.  I dried it with the heat gun and then wiped it down.  I then added grit paste through a stencil and dried it.  Once it was dry I painted the flowers(Distress Paint in Victorian Velvet, Peeled Paint, Twisted Citron; and  Dina Wakley Paint in Blushing) and then spritzed them with my glitter duster.  Using a dry brush I added paint to the background(PaperArtsy Paint in Green Patina and Distress Paint in Tarnished Brass) and then splattered on Black Soot Distress Paint.

I pulled bits from my vintage ephemera drawers and picked pieces that matched the color scheme of the base.  The vintage fortune gave me the idea to create the social butterfly. 
I picked the Found Relative out of the new pack and started to alter her.  I took two pairs of the new acetate wings from Tim Holtz and coated the back of one with collage medium.  I smooshed Oxide ink in Victorian Velvet, Worn Lipstick, and Spun Sugar on my craft mat.  I ran the wings through and dried them.  I added a couple more layers like this.  Once I had the pink the way I liked it I sprayed the wings with Distress Spray Stain in Tea Dye and used an old Perfect Pearls mister to get the hint of sparkle. I coated a second pair of wings and then smoosh the two together.

I cut slits into the photo and slipped them in.  I glued them to the back of the photo.  I took some teeny vintage flowers and gave her a large bundle right where she had some flowers on in the photo.  I colored the background using a Distress Marker in Tumbled Glass.  I added a double layer of foam tape to the back of the photo so she is raised off the base.  

I embossed a Gypsy Soul Frame with gold embossing powder and slipped it behind the photo so you can just see the flourish.  

There ya go! The social butterfly is ready to go to her supper(did you see that on the vintage ticket) and mingle.  

Have a great weekend,

Jess

Simon Says Stamp Feminine/ Girly Challenge

Try it on Tuesdays Inspired by a word challenge(the word I was inspired by was social)

  

The Joy of Christmas

Hi Everyone,

I hope you all had a lovely Christmas.  I wanted to show you one of the Christmas cards I created this year.  Although Christmas is over, you can use this technique year round.
You don't need a ton of stamps to create a beautiful card.  This lovely  card uses just one stamp.
Start by trimming your card to the size you want it to be or use a pre-cut card.
Mount your Holly and Branches Stamp to your stamp platform.  Color the stamp using various markers Distress Markers.

Don't be afraid to layer your colors.  The leaves will all turn out just a tad different and add a more realistic feel to your card.  If the marker dries as you are coloring just breathe on the stamp and it will rehydrate the ink.

Cover the entire piece of the card.  Once the holly is all stamped cover the entire card with a bit of Pumice Stone Distress Ink to age it.  

Mount the base to the card.  Add a bit of ribbon.  

Punch a circle out and color it using a bit of Pumice Stone Distress Ink.  Use the outer ring of the Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts Doily and emboss it using Charred Gold.  Attach the doily to the circle.  Attach the circle to the card. 

Use the Tim Holtz Script to die cut the word "joy" and adhere it to the center of the circle.

Using the funky festive dies cut out some holly and pop it on the corner.  Your card is now complete.

I hope you are having a wonderful holiday season.  Have a happy and safe New Year!
Jess

Good tidings ATC journal

Hi Everyone,
I have a really fun project to share with you that I created for Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts.

This ATC ticket journal is the cutest thing ever.  

I made one of these a few months back.  You can check out that post here.  When I was creating my spring themed journal all I could think about was how cute this would look done up for Christmas.

The basic steps are the same as the Spring journal.  Prep the journal by painting it.  Using collage medium, add Tim Holtz Christmas Collage paper randomly to each page.  

Once all of your collage paper is down add stamps using a permanent ink. I mostly used the Tim Holtz Holiday Postmark Set(but if you look closely you will spy stamps from about 5 other sets).  You can also use paint on your rubber stamps, just make sure you clean them off right away.  Once it's dried it will be on there forever.  The funky green branches you see here are stamped.  Stamp in a green paint and then add red berries with the end of a paint brush.  

 These are all of the inside pages.  I put a photo on every other page and the opposite sides are just fun piles of ephemera.

Most of the photos got a little something to dress them up for the holidays.  

These little anter brads just crack me up.  I used some of the Tim Holtz holiday snippets, a photobooth photo, and a chit chat sticker here too. 

This guy's hat and scarf are from the Christmas Shape Set.  Both pieces were embossed using Emerald Creek powders.  The hat is Mercury Rising and the scarf is the Spiced Candy and then there is a layer of Vintage Beeswax.    

Her wintery broach is from the Snowflake shape set and covered with Distress Glitter.  

Here are the rest of the pages.  This one has a little 3d stag sticker. 

Her santa hat is a brad.

The peppermints are made out of perler beads. 

I love the vintage Christmas seal on this page.  

The tree is from the Christmas Shape Set.  It was heat embossed using Charred Gold from Emerald Creek.    

I did my cover last.  The ribbon is glued under the frame and it has an eyelet in it.  The buckle is attached with a brad that you can see on the backside of the page.  The chip quote is embossed with Charred Gold on the edges 

The center of the poinsettia is the brad that is holding on the buckle.    

The buckle was a great way to hold this guy together since it's pretty chunky.  

I hope you enjoy this little book.  I had a blast making it.  Have a very Merry Christmas! I hope there is no coal in your stocking.

Jess

Mini Album Makers Challenge

Simple Christmas

Hi Everyone,
I don't do simple a lot, but when you need to bust out a bunch of Christmas cards I find simple is best!  Today I have two cards that use the same base, but I have changed them up just a tiny bit and the feel is very different on both. 

  The Star Medallions from Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts come in a set of three.  For these two cards I used the small and medium medallions.  Paint both of the medallions using Dina Wakley paint in Gilt.  The small medallion got some pearl dots added to the points and a gumdrop colored with mushroom alcohol ink in the center.

For the background on this card use navy blue paper and emboss it using the Sizzix 3d Winter Snowflakes Embossing folder.  Cut out your sentiment using the Tim Holtz Holiday Words Script die. It's hard to tell here, but there is a tiny line of gold paper layered underneath the embossed paper.  

Mount your background on to  a white card.  

Add your bling and you're done! 

The pink card follows the same idea, but the center is made using the tiny tattered floral die and the festive foliage die from Tim Holtz.  

That's it! You could bust out all of your Christmas cards in an afternoon making them like this!

Jess

Does the bell still ring for you?

Hi Everyone,
I have officially started my Christmas crafting!
One of my favorite Christmas stories is The Polar Express.  Today's project is a little nod to the book.

When I started this project I didn't think I wanted a tag as long as the Extra Large Tag (it's 8 inches long and 4 inches wide), so I cut off a big chunk.  Thankfully I saved the piece I cut off because as my project evolved I knew I needed it!
Start by painting the entire tag white and then stamping a line of music notes (from the special Tim Holtz Stamptember Set from Simon Says Stamp) all over the back using Distress Oxide ink in Hickory Smoke.  Then seal the ink using Distress Micro Glaze.  Once the micro glaze is on add Vintage Distress Collage Medium to the entire piece.  The thicker the glaze, the darker the color.

Next paint a piece of  Christmas Distress Collage tissue. The collage tissue is black and white, but it can be colored.  Pick the area you want to show and on the backside apply your paint.  The paint doesn't have to be perfect, but it shouldn't go too far outside the lines(unless that's the look you're going for).   I used Forest Moss, Peeled Paint, Victorian Velvet, and Vintage Photo Distress Paints to color my tissue.  

Once the paint is dry adhere it to the bottom of the tag.  The tissue blends in so well it looks like it was part of the background all along.  

Add a bit of Charred Gold embossing powder from Emerald Creek around the edge of the entire piece.  

Paint the Frame in Tarnished Brass Distress Paint.  Once it is dry add Deco Art's Crackle Glaze.  The glaze makes teeny cracks, like you see on old china.  When the glase is dry rub Distress Crayon in the cracks to make them pop.  Glue the frame to the tag. Using a bit of foam tape, add a piece of patterned paper inside the frame.  Color your paper doll and adhere her to the patterned paper(she's popped up with a bit of foam tape too). Add a tiny bell to her hand.    

The paper doll had a little paper tassel on her hat, but mine ripped off.  So to give her hat a makeover.  Color a baubble using Spun Sugar Distress Paint.  Once the paint is dry add a bit of mushroom alcohol ink to age it a bit.  You can see the tiny cracks in the frame a bit better here too.  

Using the Tim Holtz festive foliage die make a bunch of flowers to adhere to the corner of the frame. 

Now here is the part when I decided I wanted to add more to my tag.  My sentiment wasn't working the way I thought it would and it just needed more.  I took the part I had cut off earlier and glued it to the base creating a little shelf.  Color the fringe using spray ink and alcohol ink and glue it to the base.  

Paint a salvaged santa using Distress Paint and Alcohol inks.  Once the paint is dry rub Hickory Smoke Distress Crayon to pick up the nooks and crannies. Paint the deer using gold alcohol ink.  Glue them all to the base.

One the opposite side glue a bottle brush tree decorated with vintage mercury glass. 

I added the quote token to the top of the tag to finish it off.  

I hope the bell always rings for you. 

Have you started your Christmas crafting?

Jess

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge- Make your own background