Just going with the flow...

Hello creative friends, 

How fab are these large stamp images from Prima, 

when I saw this one half the price during the

 Christmas Sales I just had to have it. 

Who doesn't like playing with new crafty stash..?

but after stamping her onto a journal page I realised the paper 

just wasn't adequate enough to hold lots of water and mixed media. 

It warped and tore in random areas, so frustrating...

whether it was my poor preparation of the page or a faithful product 

having a bad day, we all have them.  There was a time I would have 

started that background again but I just wanted to play... 

Unrestricted creative time is very precious.

So I just went with it, embracing those imperfections. 

Even the bubbles around her which i'd have once seen out of 

context with the composition I left in. Maybe they can be 

little air pockets created as she swam at double speed to 

greet the beautiful glow of the sun as it rose..??

Unsure about using the words that came with her, 

I didn't want to change the ambience of the page

so decided against it and just let her breathe...

There's a calming feel to this spread and possibly a message 

telling me there's a much wider ocean out there to explore..

It's so liberating to just go with the flow... 

Wishing you all a super weekend, 

full of everything you love. 

Creative wishes 

Tracey xx 

Happy to be sharing with: 

Paint Party Friday ~ Wk 48 Yr9

Rains Thursday ART Date ~ Theme GLOW

and 

Art Journal Journey ~ Jo's January Theme Something NEW

All things Grunge Girl..

It's time for another challenge over on the That's Crafty Challenge Blog 

for residents in the UK and Northern Ireland. 

For the next two weeks the Theme will be *All Things Grunge* 

I hope you find time to share your 

Grungy creations with us and join in with the challenge over HERE. 

There's a £20 voucher to spend in the That's Crafty Store for the winning entry.

Here in words and pictures is my take on *All things Grunge*

I painted an MDF GiganTAG with two coats of White Gesso this gave me the surface tooth needed to create my Grunge Girl. Using the Dinky Eye Stencil I traced the outline with a pencil adding detail to the iris and giving the eye a pupil.

I then filled the GiganTag space by drawing a face, adding shadow, shade
and colour using caran d'Ache neocolor pastels and coloured pencils.

A Black Posca Marker has helped define the outer eye with shimmer paints

 dripped down the eye in a sequence of light to dark, pink, purple and Charcoal.

After the final detail has been added to the eyes the stencil has been laid back on top 

and 3D Gloss Gel pushed through it. The Gel although it appears white at first 

does dry completely clear giving a glossy raised effect over it.

I repeated the process giving more dimension and when dry I used the black Posca Marker to trace over the dry gel defining the darker areas of the eye and adding lashes.

Antique silver Shimmer paint has added a glimmer of light to the hair and glossy accents a shiny look to the lips. Sari Silk Ribbon with Tyvek Beads and pearls have added interest to my *GiganTAG Grunge Girl*

There's so many directions you can take with this challenge and I hope you like my take on *Anything Grunge* Thank you for sharing your time with me again and I look forward to seeing what route you take over the next fortnights Challenge.

Take care and Stay Safe..
Creative Hugs
Tracey xx

That's Crafty ~ White Gesso
That's Crafty Surfaces ~ MDF GiganTAG
That's Crafty Dinky ~ Stencil Eye TC089
That's Crafty Shimmer Paints Pink Purple Charcoal Antique Silver
Posca Marker Pens
Prima Art Basics 3D Gloss Gel Transparent
Ranger Inkessentials ~ Glossy Accents
Caran d'Ache ~ Neocolour pastels/pencils
Tyvek ~ Lots of How To Video's showing how to make Tyvek Beads online.