More Than Words January Main Challenge, Celebrate & Bling

Hi everyone! Melissa here with a page for the January More Than Words Challenge.  I chose these two photos of my son, because they celebrate the joy of having fun! They were taken years ago  in front of my husband's childhood home, in beautiful Northport, New York. It's always exciting to go there in the summer because we can see family, enjoy the beauty of the area, and escape the Houston heat.

For the bling I've used mica flakes, gold mica powder, micro beads,copper wire,and a couple druzy style beads. I also used a Tim Holtz clock face,ornate plate,key, and some Ranger clear crackle. The green watercolor paint is Shimmers by Tattered Angels. The Prima flower in the middle has some chunky clear glitter on it, although it's hard to see in the photo.

The background paper is My Mind's Eye, Lost and Found, Market Street. Almost all the cut up pieces are tags from a sheet of baseball Paper House paper. Along with soccer, Nick played baseball for several years. There's also some ppr. with distressed edges from Bo Bunny. The flowers are Prima, from Engraver, and Coventry Roses,the leaves are also Prima.

I extended some of the tree branches with a bark color Inktense watercolor pencil, I also used it for all the shading on the page, I softened the pencil lines by brushing on some water.

I used Prima heavy Gesso to form a base so paint wouldn't soak into the paper, and also to tone down some of the detail and color of the page.

I used a lot of gold mica powder.

Thank you so much for looking! I hope you have a wonderful year, filled with all the things you love.

This page is for the following challenge:

January 2017 Main Challenge, Celebrate and Bling

Peace on Earth

Hi everyone! Melissa here with a 12 x 12 mixed media page. I have used some beautiful Christmas papers to surround an old photo of my husband and niece. She's hitting him over the head with a foam bat. He's pretending to be in pain, hahaha!  You can see my father-in-law in the background.

Supplies Used:

• Home for Christmas Tags 12" Double Sided Scrapbook Paper
• Peace Love Home 12"Double Sided Scrapbook Paper
• Peace on Earth 12" Double Sided Scrapbook Paper

To make this page I put the photo on white cardstock, layers of Paper House paper,and finally a piece of foam core board. I sponged on gesso, stenciled on texture paste, and poured on crackle paint.  I let the crackle dry overnight.  

I added gauze and gesso around the photo, then layered on glass glitter and mica flakes. I coated it all with more gesso, then started painting. I used a few shades of green and brown watercolors, and mists. 

I put on some flowers, a few die cut leaves I painted, metal, bling, green micro beads, and pearls. I made the dark edges on the layers under the photos with a watercolor pencil.

You can see I used gold mica powder underneath the photo.  Whenever I used paint or heat to dry things, I protected the photo with a piece of paper.

Thanks so much for looking, and have a great week!

Christmastime

Hi everyone, Melissa here with a Christmas page for Paper House. The papers,the amazing and fun Snow Globe 3D Shimmer, and stickers I've used meshed together wonderfully here. This is a photo of my son taken a long time ago, it brings back a lot of memories!

Supplies Used:

• Deck the Halls 12" Double Sided Scrapbook Paper
• Christmas Cheer Tags 12" Double Sided Scrapbook Paper
• Merry and Bright Sculpted Sticker
• Gingerbread Puffy Sticker

To make this page I put foam core board underneath the photo and also the watercolor paper, to give some dimension. I placed the Snow Globe.  I put cheesecloth on with some heavy gesso, dried it , and painted with different colors of mists. I rubbed gold mica powder on the surface.

 I created extra texture with flowers, leaves, metal pieces, moss, feathers, and other things. 

The sparkly fibers are twinkle holographic trim, and the gold mesh stuff is the wrapping from some flowers I got, a long time ago. I kept meaning to throw it out, but being the little hoarder I am, kept it.

This was a really fun page to make! Thanks for looking, and have a great week.

Flipbook Photo Album

Hi everyone, Melissa here with an Old World flipbook album by Paper House.  This was a lot of fun to do, it brought back the most wonderful memories of our trip of a lifetime. My husband, son, and I, my brother in law, my nephew, and my in laws went to England. It was wonderful seeing so many thrilling sites!

Supplies Used:

• Old World Flipbook
• London Tags 12"Double Sided Scrapbook Paper
• London 3D sticker
• Discover Tags 12"Double Sided Scrapbook Paper
• Washington DC Shaker
• Discover England Cardstock Stickers
• England Paper Crafting Kit
• Beach Shaker
• Impressions Paper Pad

To make this album I started by painting on gauze and watercolor paper, then including them in the album with photos and stickers. These albums are one of my favorite kind of off the page items to make. I love to embellish them with a variety of things:the tags with ribbons  through eyelets, the chipboard, metal pieces, and of course the photos, that bring back those days so wonderfully.

Here are some of the little mixed media items I added, they remind me of the ocean,which I thought fit well with a lot of the photos in the album:

I started with heavy gesso, then gauze, more gesso,texture paste, micro beads,gesso, then watercolors. I used a heat gun after before and after the paint layers.

Thanks for looking,and have a great day!

Fright Night

Hello Paper House fans! Are you enjoying the Fall/Halloween Blog Hop so far? Today is the third day of the blog hop at Paper House Productions.

 I had so much fun working with the cool,spooky, and beautiful products from Paper House, it really was a pleasure to make this. It bought me back to being a kid and all the kinds of  fun,scary stuff that October 31st means. I have lots of Halloween decor in my house, and this page will be part of it. How about the colors of the season? I love them! Do you?

Supplies Used:

• All Hallows Moon 12"Double Sided Scrapbook Paper
• Cemetery 3D Sticker
• Spooktacular 3D Sticker
• Scary Sculpted Sticker
• Halloween Hauntings Cardstock Sticker

To make this page I first placed the incredibly detailed and creepy/ beautiful Cemetary 3D sticker on, and sponged gesso around the edges of it. I painted it with yellow and green water soluble oil pastels.  I put texture paste on the left side of the page using a spider web chipboard piece as a stencil. I did a little stamping, including some using an iridescent green ink pad.

I fussy cut the skeleton from embossed paper

I added bling,flowers,tulle, dry embossing powder, metal glitter,mica flakes, and some dollar store pieces of a skeleton. I mixed  Prima violet green alchemy paint and purple mica powder, to make the powder look brighter. The photos are from Tim Holtz Found Relatives - Occasions. I painted part of the flowers with gesso, then mica powders. I made the Tim Holtz butterfly wings some time ago. 

 Don't forget to comment on my blog and then be sure to check out  Sue Eldred's blog  to see what she created and comment there and then go to the Paper House Productions blog

Here is what you need to do to be entered to win the entire Fright Night Collection and two Shimmers Lighted Embellishments:

 Now it's time to head on over to the talented Sue Eldred's blog for more inspiration. Have a great day!

Peacock

Do you love color? I do, and here's a page that I think shows it. I used the beautiful Door to Atlantis Colorways paper from Paper House as my background for this project. I love how the paper creates a soft and peaceful mood . I found it hard to put anything on the gorgeous detail of these doors, but I plan on using the other piece I have for the cover of an art journal. 

Supplies Used:

• Atlantis Door to Atlantis 12" Colorways Scrapbook Paper
• Gatsby Mini Trim Cards 12" Colorways Scrapbook Paper
• Gatsby Accent Pack
• Sapphire Accent Pack

To make this layout I sponged on gesso to prepare the background for the paint and textures I planned to use. I put the photo on watercolor paper with some foam core board in between to add dimension. I applied texture paste with a stencil, brushed on a layer of watercolors, then randomly dabbed on gold mica powder with my finger. I added more paint, and penciled in some areas with watercolor pencils. I glued on micro beads with glossy accents, and dabbed on another layer of mica.

I drew out some of the colors and details of the photo onto the paper behind it, and also used a blue butterfly to add visual interest.

I love the shimmery Gatsy Accent Pack pieces!

I used glass glitter, tulle,and a stamped peacock image, for more texture. Thanks for looking, and have a great day!

Just Breathe

Hi everyone! Melissa here with a card using a stunningly realistic photo of lavender by Paper House. Purple is one of my favorite colors, and lavender is just one type of bloom in that color that I've planted in my yard. I love both the fragrance ,and the appearance of it. 

Supplies Used:

• Orchid Mini Trim 12" Colorways Scrapbook Paper
• Orchid Floral 12" Colorways Scrapbook Paper
• Gatsby Mini Trim Cards 12" Colorways Scrapbook Paper
• Gatsby Accent Pack

                              To make this card I surrounded the flower image with a layer of gesso, the                                             glued on tulle, glitter, microbeads, pearls,rhinestones,glitter,sequins and some                                        small pieces of the Gatsby Accent Pack. I put some gesso on the texture in                                                  random areas. I brushed on metallic paint, a mix of mica powder and water,                          and oil pastels, on top of the gesso.                                                                 

        You can see how the background paper has the appearance of canvas.

  I put some ribbon on the back of the card to outline it.              

I like the contrast of the bling and the soft flowers.

Thanks for looking, and have a great week!

Peacock Feather

Happy Labor Day Paper House Fans! Melissa joining you today with an art journal page for you, using a stunning photo from the Emerald Colorways Collection. Check out the shimmering, iridescent colors of the peacock feather!. It inspired me to frame it with blues,greens, and lots of shine.

Supplies Used:

• Emerald Trim Cards 12" Colorways Scrapbook Paper
• Sapphire Accent Pack
• Birds 3D Sticker

To make this page I used a 9 x 12 watercolor paper art journal.  I started by applying texture paste through a stencil. I splattered on layers of teal, purple, and gold with a brush, drying after each layer. I repeated this two more times, then misted with water.  I sponged on gesso randomly because the page seemed too busy. I applied a lot of things to create more texture: microbeads, seed beads, glass glitter, glitter glue, rhinestones, pearls, thread, mica flakes, and sequins.

I dry brushed gesso over the top of all the elements, and then painted with a teal color.

I put on some adorable frog and butterfly rub ons to create more visual interest.

Thank you so much for looking, and have a great week!

The Wizard of Oz

Hi everyone! Melissa here with a page for Paper House, featuring the beautiful new Wizard of Oz line! The images and colors used on the paper are inspirational, and fun to work with! 

Supplies Used:

• Wizard of Oz Crystal Ball 12" Double Sided Scrapbook Paper
• Wizard of Oz Tags 12" Double Sided Scrapbook Paper
• Wizard of Oz 12" Cardstock Stickers

To make this page I put the image onto watercolor paper, and gave it some dimension on the page by putting a piece of foam core board underneath it. I put on some texture paste with a stencil. Using crackle medium I glued on a strip of gauze around the picture.  To make a surface  to paint on, I covered the gauze with gesso, and sprinkled on gold micro beads. 

 I applied blue watercolor, then blue water soluble oil pastel. I added different shades of mica flakes, blue pearls, rhinesones,tulle, and beads, to add more texture.

 In random areas I rubbed on gold and pearl colored mica powder, and clear crackle texture paste.  I drew around some of the texture paste with a black watercolor pencil, and softened the lines with water. I applied black water color all around the image to try and get the crackle lines and other textures more visible.

Thank you so much for taking a look, and have a great day!