Monday 15 November 2010

If it makes you happy...

(Of course now I have that darned Sheryl Crow song stuck in my head, lol)

Over on the Simon Says Stamp & Show Challenge blog today the new theme is "whatever makes you happy". I had to give this one a bit of thought - I guess I need to spend more time thinking about what makes me happy, I didn't have a clue at first! LOL I decided in the end that what makes me happy in a crafting way is have a good old messy play, and trying things for the first time.

There were a couple of things that I'd had at the back of my mind to try but hadn't gotten around to, and I decided to try them out with this piece. The first was using distress ink directly onto wood, which I did on the frame. I stamped on the frame and then applied distress inks with a foam applicator. It worked really well, but I felt it was a little too bold for the effect I wanted and distracted from the main piece, so I knocked it back by sponging some white paint on top of it.

The other thing I tried out was using dried-out, ink-stained baby wipes that I had used on earlier projects. I stamped onto it in a couple of places used it as a sheer layer to mask some stamping in another area. A word of warning - if you try this, be very careful if you dry it with your heat gun, the material shrivels up at the slightest overheating!

The background was inked, spritzed, dried, water-stamped, stamped and just generally beat up a bit :) As ever, click on the image to see a larger view. All comments appreciated! :)

Our ever-generous sponsor Simon Says Stamp is offering a $25 gift voucher again this week! The winner will be chosen at random from those who enter the challenge, so why not give it a try?


12 comments :

misteejay said...

It is lovely Dan - the soft shading is beautiful.

Toni :o)

Sue Jones said...

I Love trying out new things ( craft wise too) but usually wait for a class..really need to be braver!
Love your piece.

Cynthia Schelzig said...

Wonderful piece...really like it!!

Jules said...

Gorgeous Dan, I especially love the background :D

Lori said...

Love it, Dan! Always love seeing your creations for the challenges! Yep, DI's on wood are definitely cool, and gives a completely different feel, and usually much easier than paint! lol!

Craphty said...

Dreamy love the subtle colours will have a go at using my copious amounts of used baby wipes!

email: Steph@SimonSaysStamp.com said...

Hi Dan,

That is A GOOD song! :) I love the blending,,,it looks like a beautiful sunset!

*mwah*
Steph
Simon Says Stamp

Sandi M said...

Dan this is very cool how it all turned out. I really like the piece with this frame you've done.

Oh, and that silly song was the first that came to my mind too :)

Anonymous said...

Gorgeous piece, Dan! Love it!

D Q said...

Very nice work. Love the shading.

Lynne Forsythe said...

hhmmmmm....what great trials...that all came out FAB!! AWESOME piece!!

Lisa said...

great project!

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