Tuesday, July 31, 2018

Paint Brush Transformation With Products By Finnabair

Hello there!
Welcome to INSPIRE.

Whew...what a busy summer I have had. Busiest one I can recall in a very long time.
Have been enjoying time spent with family, running here and there for household, cleaning a (new to me) classic Land Rover that my hubby traded his classic Harley Sportster for, nursing an injured hip, and preparing for fall home improvements, helping my future sis-in-law plan her & my baby Bub's fall wedding............
Think I need a vacation lol πŸ˜‰

My Land Rover πŸ’–πŸ’πŸ’—

She needs a new bumper, and ignition (on it's way) but other than that, she is perfect! And she is an automatic, which will not irritate my hip as my standard Jeep Compass has πŸ˜’

I have always loved this particular design. And thanks to my generous & loving hubby, I now have one πŸ’“

But lately I have been able to get in some crafting, of the non-committal variety. I FINALLY got to use my Finnabair Art Alchemy products my hubby blessed me with for our anniversary, in February.

First project, converting a very used and once loved paint brush into a little piece of art.


I absolutely LOVE these metallic paints & wax! The colors are so vibrant and rich, and very, very concentrated.
Literally, a little dab will do.

And I love the end result. Next will be doing a mixed media canvas to mount the brush on. Will share those pics when it is done!

Anyways.....I certainly hope all of you are enjoying your summer or winter depending on geography.

Until next time......Be Blessed!

Wednesday, July 25, 2018

How To Add Transfer Foil To A Creative Project

Hey there!
Welcome to INSPIRE!

Today I wanted to share the link to 
my latest canvas canvas project, created using the innovative products of ScraPerfect.

Head on over to the ScraPerfect blog
for full details following this link:

https://scraperfect.blogspot.com/2018/07/boho-inspired-foiled-feather-canvas-how.html

I also wanted to share some fun I have had these last couple of weeks, spending time with a couple of my nieces, and share the art they created, using many tips (and auntie's supplies) that I had taught them.

These girls AMAZED me!! So dedicated to the projects, seeing them through to the finish.
They did this auntie proud!




We also took an afternoon to visit an art district in a local community, unfortunately there wasn't a whole lot going on that day, the gallery was even closed 😞, but I did find a new art store for many of the art supplies I use, at more reasonable prices πŸ˜ƒ so it wasn't a complete wasted day.
Played on some of the local artisan metal sculptures too.





Made one of the nieces smile big, finding a book that has been selling out fast since it's recent release, as an early birthday present for this August baby.


While in the art district area, we also visited a boutique, "Made To Love" featuring hand crafted art, jewelry & apparel, to aid in giving children of Haiti, an opportunity to go to school.
Statement from their website:

WE BUY HAITIAN MAKE ITEMS FROM LOCAL ARTISANS MARKETS AND CO-OPS. THIS CREATES LONG-TERM, WELL PAYING AND SUSTAINABLE EMPLOYMENT. WE THEN SELL THOSE ITEMS IN OUR STORE LOCATED IN DOWNTOWN HAMILTON (LINK TO THE CONTACT US/GEO MAP PAGE). AND, THE PROFITS GENERATED IS USED TO CREATE EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR HAITIAN CHILDREN.

IT’S A FULL CIRCLE CREATING TRUE GENERATIONAL CHANGE THAT WILL LIFT THESE FAMILIES OUT OF POVERTY AND BUILD HOPE WITHIN COMMUNITIES.


The art & merchandise is sensational, the stories, truly inspiring. Check them out at:

https://www.made-to-love.org

And to finish the week, we gathered my "mamma", and went to see "Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again", being that I have been a fan of ABBA & of the first movie, couldn't miss out on this!

If only we had danced in the aisles......

Thanks so much for stopping by today, an letting me share with you my busy couple of weeks.

Hope to see you again real soon!

Until next time....... Be a "Dancing Queen"!


Monday, July 16, 2018

Featured Today Over At The Creative Studio

Hey y'all!

I wanted to invite you to visit 
The Creative Studio (blog for Canvas Corp Brands)
where today, one of my latest projects is featured
using a variety of paints, mist & washes from Tattered Angels.


For full details on how I created
this farmhouse style wall decor,
visit The Creative Studio at:


Thanks for stopping by!

See ya again soon!

Sunday, July 1, 2018

An Exciting New Release Blog Hop With Rita Barakat!

Hey y'all!
I am so excited to be with you today!

Today is the 
new product release of Rita Barakat's latest
stamp designs for Technique Junkies!


And I have been asked to be a guest designer for the new release blog hop hosted by the 
Rita Barakat Design Team.
What an honor it is to take part in this exciting event!

The hardest part, was choosing which design to use.
Rita is an incredible artist, and I just fell in love
with her Floral Mermaid & Jellyfish stamps!

I love the ocean as well, the beauty and mystery that lies within, well it can certainly spark the imagination
of any blessed to witness it.

So I decided to make a 6x6 card, featuring my favorite in this collection, the Floral Mermaid & Jellyfish. (okay, so I love them all these are the ones I chose to use πŸ˜‰).



I used a selection of colored & watercolor pencils to color my mermaid. I love the turquoise & emerald shades together, so I chose these for the mermaid tail, adding dashes of pink & purple closer to her torso.


I also decided to use this same color combination to  color her hair, doing the whole "ombre" blending color to color in layers.

For the jellyfish, I decided I wanted a bit more transparency of color, so I used Faber-Castell Gelato's slightly diluted with water and applied with a small brush.

My final touches to the Mermaid and Jellyfish, was using a variety of glitters throughout the stamped images, because naturally mermaids and jellyfish shimmer, using a thin layer of 
Best Glue Ever by ScraPerfect applied with a brush.


Using my Cricut, I designed a layered cardstock seashell to serve as the background for the Mermaid. 
I added each layer of the shell using double sided tape & dimensional squares.


I also decided to use the word "Imagine" as the greeting, cut out from cardstock.

In finishing, I added my Mermaid, Jellyfish & word, along with adding a flat back pearl in her hand, as her treasure.


I also used a few Dew Drops from The Robin's Nest to add a bubble look to the corners of the card & to the Jellyfish tentacles.


A simple card, with loads of cheerful color, and delightful stamp designs!


Thanks so much for stopping by, please leave a comment below letting me know you visited, and for your chance to win a prize!

And don't forget to visit the 
FABULOUS Rita Barakat Design Teams blogs
and do the same with their new release project post's too!

Rita Barakat https://wp.me/p47OIs-HA
Betz Golden https://scrappycafe.blogspot.com/…/princess-mermaid-shadow-
Jenn DuBellhttps://yvonnebijouxcrafts.blogspot.com/ technique-junkies…
Karen Jiles- https://stampinakapalace.blogspot.com/…/technique-junkies-r…
Yolie Burkehttp://www.justyolie.com/…/technique-junkies-rita-barakat-h…
Stephanie Eaton - http://inkedartist.com/?p=1971

Details can be found at  https://wp.me/p47OIs-HA and will be announced on Friday the 6th on the blog at RitaBarakat.com

And don't forget to visit the Technique Junkies to see their July New Releases as well!
Just follow this link:




For the Rita Barakat Stamps I used in this project
visit these links:

http://techniquejunkies.com/jellyfish/




http://techniquejunkies.com/floral-mermaid/

Until next time.....
Get Crafty!