Love H - D-lish Scraps DT

After using so many different flowers on my canvas earlier this month, I decided I wanted to create a project without any flowers. Luckily, D-lish Scraps still has a huge range of other embellishments available to create with.

Don't you just love it when you find a photo that matches perfectly with a paper range? This beautiful photo of my little boy by Rachel Wilson Photography just goes so well with the Baby Mine range by Paper Bella.

My title cluster features a lot of D-lish Scraps products. I've used the Love chipboard from the Pretty in Pink JAP kit, blue Bitty Bow, resin glitter dots, punchinella, and the orange muslin is from my stash but doesn't seem to be stocked any more. The only missing D-lish product is the washi tape, which I've taken from a retired JAP kit.

Chipboard circle is by Scrapmatts, of course.

From the Heart - D-lish Scraps DT

D-lish Scraps runs monthly cybercrops from mid-month to mid-month over on Facebook at The Scrap Suite and I was lucky enough to create one of the challenge samples for this month! My theme is 'Frame It' - use at least one frame on your layout. There are so many interesting designs using frames at the moment, I'd love to see what you create if you enter.

I have used a whole range of different flowers from D-lish Scraps, as well as the leaves, polaroid frame, sequins, flair and arrow paperclip. Chipboard flourish is from Scrapmatts. The beautiful paper range is from Blue Fern Studios. 

Dream Big Canvas - D-lish Scraps DT

I'm so excited to be part of the new D-lish Scraps design team for the next six months. I simply couldn't go past all the beautiful flowers in stock without grabbing a variety to include in a canvas display piece as my first project.

I whipped up a quick little tutorial as to how I created the canvas, just in case anyone else wanted to try to create some thing similar. If you do, send me a link in the comments, I'd love to check it out!

1/ Spray mists onto your craft mat/Teflon sheet. I used three different colours (purple, green and light blue) and made sure they were close enough to run together. Press the canvas upside-down onto the mat, making sure to press firmly in the middle. Once dry, apply Versamark watermark ink through a stencil randomly and emboss with clear UTEE.

2/ I found the background too bold for my taste, so I painted the whole canvas with gesso, then used a baby wipe to clean off the embossed areas. I also used the wipe to lift off some of the gesso until I was happy with the amount of colour showing through.

3/ Apply texture paste through a stencil randomly over the canvas. The texture paste will only stay white if applied thickly, in thinner applications the background colour will show through once the paste dries. You can see the dry effect in the 4th photo. If you want it to stay white, use structure paste/gesso/acrylic paint instead.

4/ Colour the edges of the canvas with a thick layer of Gelatos. Apply water with a paintbrush to create drips. Add extra Gelato if you want extra colour intensity. I did the purple at the top and let it dry before doing the same thing with blue from the bottom.

From this point on is really where we just start covering up that beautiful background.

5/ Apply washi tape. I used a blue/white diagonal stripe from the retired JAP kit, Beachside Bliss. You need to think about where your flowers will be placed and ensure the washing pokes out the edges of the cluster.

6/ Adhere muslin over the washi tape. I used three different pieces that I had teased out the get rough edges and applied with spray adhesive. Paint your chipboard white (I use one coat of acrylic paint then spray with chalkboard Glimmermist). Cut the flourish to suit your design then glue down.

7/ Place your flowers, starting with the larger ones first then working towards the smaller ones at the edges and in the gaps. The heather sprays and spiral stamens are great for breaking up the circular design pattern.

8/ Add in the little extra embellishments like clear glass cabochons and sequins. I have also added some more diamond shapes using the smaller stencil and gesso in the top and bottom right corners.

9/ Apply the finishing chipboard pieces, in this case a Scrapmatts frame I've cut in half to use in two places and a title from another retired JAP kit, Aztec Dreams.

Close up shot to show some of the fantastic variety of flowers available from D-lish Scraps: Green Tara Tutu Blooms, Fantasy Blooms, Bitty Blooms, Magnolias, Heather Springs, Spiral Stamens, Petite Resin Roses and Wild Roses.  

Aqua and Purple Cards - Scrapmatts DT

My second Scrapmatts DT project for April is a set of two cards. I've used a sheet of scrap paper to mop up some left over ink spray I had from another project, which I've then used as the backgrounds for both cards. I love these sentiment chipboard pieces, they make whipping up cards so quick and easy.

Each card has some texture paste stars in the background too, using a Scrapmatts stencil. The chipboard sentiments come in the black, all other pieces I've just coloured using mini ink pads. I think it's a great idea of have a stash of cards you use at short notice because you don't always know when you're going to need a card, like when your husband asks the night before he plans to give a present to his workmate!

Scrapmatts chipboard: CB1241 Scrap Words 27,CB1020 Card Borders 03, CB1007 Butterflies 07 and CB1158 Butterflies 20. Stencil: ST5002.

Cooking with Grandma - Scrapmatts DT

Scrapmatts sponsored CSI: Color, Stories, Inspiration for the month of March and they invited our whole design team to guest for their challenges. I shared my layout for their main challenge as part of my March reveal, but the second challenge came out after my Scrapmatts reveal day, so I've saved it for April.

I love these photos of Harrison cooking with his Grandma. I've hidden some journaling behind the right photo which records how Ben learnt to cook with his mum Helen and I'm so happy that Harrison is getting to have the same experience with her. I don't remember ordering these cooking chipboard pieces but they ended up being perfect for the theme. I've painted them with white acrylic paint, added red pen details and silver embossing for the metallic areas.

Scrapmatts used: CB1020 Card Borders 03; CB1199 Scrap Words 07; CB1139 Kitchenware 03; CB2026 Picket Fences 09.

Relax - Kraft Plus Guest DT

Kraft+ is a fun challenge blog I follow and play along with when I get a chance. You have to use kraft-coloured paper as the star of your background, plus one extra element which changes each month. The challenge is run by the lovely Sandra and she comes up with some quite creative ideas.

At the start of March, Sandra sent me a message to ask if I was interested in being the guest design team member for April. I was beyond exited by this, as I have never previously been invited to guest anywhere! Sandra's challenge was intriguing and also a theme I had thought about doing in the past, so of course I said yes.

After creating a couple of fussy/messy layouts I wanted to go with a cleaner look for this one. I stuck with a single photo of myself and my friend taken whilst we were enjoying sunset cocktails by the beach in Hawaii and kept the embellishments simple.

I wanted the title to reflect the ocean pattern in the background paper. I achieved this by drawing some blue Gelato onto my craft matt and activating this with a couple of different blue mists. The title was then pressed into the pool of ink, which has created that variegated effect. I love the end result.

My flower cluster is very simple, just some chipboard ferns from Scrapmatts and some flowers from D-Lish Scraps. The photo matt is two pieces of burlap, with some offcut paint swatches top and bottom of the photo. I also used a couple of different paint swatches to create the ombre effect for the hearts, which have all been hand punched and then stitched down to create the background.