You've Got Mail

Welcome back to Laurart!

    I couldn't resist making something even though over the next couple of weeks I am busy - but yesterday was a depressing sort of day and I was struggling with the work I am doing so to give myself a bit of space and a breather I decided to do some craft work of my own. This is inspired by the wonderfully, amazingly talented Sue who is guest designing for PaperArtsy at the moment. I LOVE the things Sue makes - If you haven't seen her work before (where have you been?!!!) I do suggest that you take a look, you won't be disappointed!

     I haven't copied it exactly - I don't have all the materials! But I did manage to put together something that will fit into a challenge I wanted to enter - Fashionable Stamping Challenges latest challenge is 'Mail time' so I used some my brand new postcard PaperArtsy stamps!

      I had a canvas and scribbled some Distress Stains over it. The only bright Distress Stain I own is Broken China...Sue used lots of bright colours so I used this and Tarnished Brass and Antique Linen. I love Brown and Blue combos so I was happy with this selection....I felt my collection of vintage shades DS were going to be a bit too pale here.

     I covered the canvas with them and then spritzed with water and tilted the board so the colours could run. I dried it with the heat gun and then mixed some texture paste with Bora Bora Fresco paint. I applied this through the Harlequin mask at opposite corners.

I patted the texture paste with the palette knife before the mask was removed to add texture. In the other corners I stencilled the chicken wire stencil with Cheesecake Fresco paint and I randomly stamped text, postmarks and alphabet and number stamps.

    I then used Mocha Mousse fresco paint and dry brushed it around the edges of the canvas.

   I applied a panel of burlap and took two pages from an old book, tore around the edges and inked them with Vintage Photo DI.

    I tore and rolled the edges and applied them to the burlap. A Gibson Girl stamp was used with Coffee archival ink and stuck the pages with a piece of wood underneath so it wasn't flat against the background.

 I stamped several letter, postmark and postcard stamps, blended Vintage Photo DI around the edges  and arranged these on the board.

    Flower and leaf diecuts were covered with Broken China and Tarnished Brass DS and centred with brass or copper brads. I stamped a flower image onto a book page and painted it with Broken China DS and tucked it behind one of the book pages. I selected several buttons, with the same blue or brown colours and tied some up with twine and stuck them to the board.

I found a metal clip and looped some twine through it and attached it to the board...I wanted it to look like parcel string tying all the elements together.

I applied some Treasure Gold in White Fire over the edges of the board which really highlights the texture on the texture paste and the canvas.

     It's not my most favourite creation - but I did love making it and it certainly got me out of the down mood I was in...and it has shown me that I need more Distress Stains - I LOVE how they work on canvas!! I never really got into Distress Stains before but I see that I could use them now!

           Thanks for stopping by and seeing what I have made - Hope you liked it!

            

I would like to enter this in the following challenges -

Fashionable Stamping Challenges - Mail Time
Simon Says - Anything Goes
PaperArtsy
Artistic Stamper - Ladies Day