Bee brave journal page

Now that I have stopped doing faces for a little while I thought I would go back to my journalling and other arty stuff so that I could get messy and inky and just let myself go.  I just luuuuuuurve colour... the brighter the better... it makes me happy and a page full of it is just divine. 

 My op was successful and although I have a mouth full of stitches and look a bit like a chipmunk lol... I am glad it is all over and I am recovering quickly.  Thank you for all of your well wishes xxx

This page was made with dylusions spray inks, oil pastels, some magazine cut outs and lots of doodling... Heaven!  I missed the messiness.

hugs
Chris xx

Why do it today...

When I can do it tomorrow.... is the mood I've been finding myself in.  I start something and then don't finish it.  Have done a gazillion backgrounds in my journal it seems but then sit and stare at them for ages waiting for inspiration to strike...or not!!  So the answer...... forget them and doodle....just because it looks pretty and doesn't need anything else.  Food for the soul... lots of grown up colouring in lol.

So here are the results.... loving florals...

and crazy shapes....

and a hiding pig...can you see him above.

Loving colour and letting it flow...

 then I can just stop and enjoy cos they make me happy as they are and I don't need the pages to do anything else but look pretty and maybe inspire me to do something else when I'm feeling stuck.

hugs
Chris xx

Revamped stool

Sometimes I find inspiration strikes from an unlikely source and when I doodled this page i had no idea where it would lead...

a while ago my pal Chriss gave me this stool for my DG's bedroom and the intention was to just paint it plain blue to fit in with the rooms decor....

but when I was looking through my doodle journal I had a lightbulb moment and decided to use part of the design from my doodle page to create a unique design on his stool for him.

I changed the colours to more masculine ones...pinks wouldn't have cut it I don't think lol

It took a while to do all the painting but I consider it a job well done and a funky bit of furniture beats a plain old stool any day in my book.

Thanks for looking.

See you soon

Hugs Chris xx

Party on down

Another journal page to share today... and if you feel like partying then I think this little fella from Stampotique is looking for a partner.  Doesn't he look dapper in his bow tie and pink trousers.  Bet you would run a mile if he asked you to dance but hey only real men dare wear pink ( or so I've heard...lol)

Lots of fun with Dylusions ink sprays again and some doodling with me favourite white pen... I was born to doodle... I just know I was cos I loves it !!

Have a great day

hugs

Chris xx

It's been a funny old week...

...this week and I'm still not sure whgere the time has gone.  Not on much creating though that's for sure!!

I've done some spring cleaning... lots of it... had a  two day visit from my bestest crafty pal Chriss and shared some time with my gorgeous Grandson.  I've tried unsuccessfully to get my laptop going only for it to crash yet again (definitely need a new hard drive now) and managed to get my hoover to give up the ghost too....I think bad gremlins have moved in to all my electrical stuff!!

I had a bit of a soppy moment yesterday when I saw DD all dressed up in her first suit (she doesn't do formal wear normally) and I'm not ashamed to say that I had a huge lump in my throat and though I don't often talk about her on my blog I feel like I want to say how proud I am to be able to say she is mine.  She has grown up into a beautiful young lady and she makes my heart sing.

Okay I'm yabbering so I am going to leave you with my latest dylusions journal page and I hope to get chance to visit you all this week.

hugs

Chris xx

oooh pretty colours...

still coming out to play and these are Dylusions ink sprays.  So yummy yummy you could eat them!! I did some spraying through and over stencils for the background. I  dipped the lid into a puddle of ink on my craft mat to create the green circles and used the edge of a credit card dipped in ink for the lines on the top left. I used a white pen to add the lettering and doodling.

Found the dog image in a mag which I covered with Gesso and then used a paintbrush with the pink ink to re-colour it. The head and hat images are from Dyan's downloads... cute eh. 

hugs

Chris xx

Delightful Dylusions

I finally managed to get my hands on some Dylusions spray inks and had a play with some in my journal.  Love... love... love the vibrant colours and they are so easy to use.  I used them directly on the page and through a hand cut paper flower stencil and then on some text paper....totally cool and my new toy of the moment.

I added a painting I did that wasn't quite right as a whole but looked cool cut down the middle and put at opposite ends of the double page.

I love the ink splatters from the sprays and they look fab between my stars.

I had to add some sketching... it's a must have for me on my pages.  Even when it's just a box or some doodles.  When I got my inks I also got a Posca white pen and oooooooh it is just THE BEST white pen I have ever used.  It covers everything and makes for great doodling!!

Have a great day

hugs

Chris xx

zendoodled zebras

Well you know I love doodling so Day 2  of Milliande's journalling challenge (see link on the right if you'd like to join in)... was a dream for me... I just loved doing it.  The background was created with coloured pencil cos I do like easy...lol

Supplies used... coloured pencil and fineliner black pen.
hugs
Chris xx

Doodling again...

cos stamping and stuff just isn't doin' it for me right now.  I feel lost without a pen, pencil or paintbrush in my hand!!  It's just sooooo relaxing having a sketchpad in front of me and just going with the flow.  When I drew this ice skate it brought back memories of all the times I tried to learn and all the times I landed on my backside while trying ha ha ha

I love to watch people whizzing around on the ice and I have to admit they make me a little bit envious too.... but as I don't really like the cold,  it's not something I am desperate to be good at.  Give me HEAT any day of the week... sunshine or central heating... I don't mind which... as long as I am warm :D
hugs
Chris xx

Top Hat Zentangle doodle

When I get my teeth into something I just can't let go... so carried on and did another doodle yesterday (so much for doing some stamping...lol).  I do forget how much I like to draw until I get started but then I get so involved in it that I can't get anything else done.  So I am knocking myself on the head today and demanding that I put the pen down and get something done in the house and then maybe some 'proper' papercrafting :D

I went for a gentlemanly theme with this one just because I started a squiggle on paper and it looked a bit like a top hat... so electric light moment happened and I decided to have a go at a proper shape.  It was soooo much fun!!

Hope to visit you all today now that I have put my pen down...so see you soon :D
Hugs
Chris xx

Zentangled doodling....

is my latest obsession... it's a bit like painting with shapes.  Totally absorbing once you get started and can be as easy or as intricate as you wish to make it.   It's easy to put aside and go back to so I think I am going to have a few on the go at once till my interest fades (fickle as I am...lol)

I love to doodle within shapes and I think it looks lovely in circles so did two... but as always I got a bit carried away and moved on to do....

a fantasy girl :D   All the shapes are still there but formed around her face with a few additional flowers.

The photo I took wasn't good  and I was too lazy to scan this one yet so I added some colour in Photoshop to jazz  the photo up a bit... but I promise you the original WAS hand drawn...lol

hugs

Chris xx

Sunday Stamper-week 100

Well I had a fab time with Chriss but back to normal now... not the same having anyone to play crafty with :(  Still guess I can't be greedy... we had a fab few days (Thanks Chriss) and had lots of fun. 

I decided to have another entry into  Hels Sunday Stamper challenge... cos she has some fab prizes up for grabs.  You only have 'till tomorrow if you want to take part :D

The background for this Stampotique fairy was created with Tim Holtz distress inks and I doodled with white pen... before and after stamping.  I love doodling it's sooooo relaxing but sometimes I get carried away and forget to stop..lol

Have a great weekend all.

hugs

Chris xx

Art journal page

I wasn't quite as happy with this page due to the fact that I used oil pastels to create the background center and I found the colours a bit bland and they smudged a bit too much for my liking but hey ho 'tis a learning curve and an experiment that I probably won't repeat. I like bright better!!
Still I was quite taken with the bottom part of the page and I will still be happy to look back on it in my journal.
Have a fab day
hugs
Chris xx

Artist Trading Club- February challenge.... Cookies

Donna (Cookie Sunshine) is this month's guest designer at the Artist Trading Club and she has named her ATC's 'Cookies' after the blog she previously ran. Her Cookies are made up of art she has previously made including doodling, paintings and images etc, digitally collaged and then other pieces added after printing out.
Well I just knew I was going to love this!! So I painted and doodled my backgrounds...
scanned them... added my own digital image stamp

printed them out on canvas paper....

added some rub-on words and extra doodling...

and also some bling... lol

Cor I just loved it...it was so much fun.

Have a fab day all and thanks for looking :D

hugs

Chris xx

A huge belated Happy New Year....

to all of you my lovely blogging buddies. Hope 2010 is a fabulously creative year for all of you. My mojo has been out in the snow throwing snowballs over the last few weeks I think... because it hasn't been beside me as I've sat on the sofa toasting me toes. I love the snow as long as I don't have to venture out in it and/or dig out the car...sigh!! How can something that looks so beautiful be such a pain in the rear :D

I've found myself still been searching for something creative that leaves me feeling content in what I'm doing.... lately I've seemed to be flitting and unable to concentrate on any one thing... it takes me an age to get started and then I struggle to be happy with what I've created...hmmmm need to set myself some goals I think.

After wanting to have a play and try something new I decided that it was time that the inspiration I have gained from the fabulous Teesha Moore was ready to be unleashed and I have begun an art journal. Sorry the photos are pants.... couldn't scan the pages because they are in a spiral bound book. Think you'll get the idea though. It took me hours and hours to do these two pages... mostly because as you know I am guilty of forgetting when to stop once I get a pen in my hand, so I went a bit mad with the doodling. I think I should have taken some step by step pics cos the background is totally unrecognizable from how it started out :D
Teesha Moore usually paints her backgrounds first but I was too impatient to wait for paint to dry ( when I wanna do something... I need to do it now...lol) so after adding my magazine cuttings to my pages ...I filled in the gaps in the background with coloured pencil and I'm glad to say I ended up really happy with the result.
Teesha's style is so vibrant and colourful and doing these pages filled me with excitement ( now that's a novelty for me ). I really was absorbed in what I was doing and I've even begun another 3 pages... so for a little while at least I guess this is my new thing lol
Thanks for looking...see you again soon.
hugs
Chris xx

Doodling or Decorating?

The felt tip pens are getting some hammer right now... so relaxing this doodling lark and all I need is my pens and a sketch pad.... just as well cos I still can't find things. I've a million (ok teensy weensy bit of exaggeration there lol) boxes still to unpack before normality resumes.
It's sooooo nice for all the painting to be done though.... hopefully soon I can do a creative sort of painting instead of the necessary kind. So more pics of the refurb so you can see what I've been up to... my bedroom this time.

Wanted a white bedhead so had to paint it... enamel paint is ace!!

Lots of stripping a preparing to do but this room wasn't as major a job as some of the others...

and as red is my favourite colour of all time I had to use it here although it's more of a deep cherry red so it's not so in your face.

I painted the wardrobes with enamel paint too because previously they were teak effect. The pictures are just framed wallpaper :D Gotta be frugal sometimes and besides I had no time to make any so they will probably be updated when I do.

Had to use another huge paper lantern in this room too cos I loves them.

The curtains were a 'steal' two pair made from a £6.99 quilt cover and there was fabric left over for two cushions on the bed :D

I hate cupboard doors in a room so I painted the door the same colour as the wall so that it would look part of the wall... so need the storage though so glad the cupboard is there.

and now you can see where I'm sitting as I type up this post...lol I have got a chair to sit on only it weren't there when I took the pic.

Finally on my bedside table are these little darlings... I seem to have developed a passion for them :D
Have a great day

hugs

Chris xx

Halloween fun

I love to doodle and I was in need of some fun me time... so for the first time in ages I've had a play, I scanned a doodle and used photoshop to colour it and with the help of the new Halloween images from Lisa's altered art I had me a hoot. How cool are these babies...lol I did me a couple of atc's too using sections of the doodle

and these little cuties just blow me away. Can just imagine the mischief they could get up too eh :D

Thought you might like a play too so if you like you can grab the doodle sheet below... click to enlarge then right click and save and then you can print it out on an A4 sheet. Each piece is 5"x7" so can be cut into four for atc's or left the size you see. Have fun :D

hugs Chris xx

d.d.d.d.d.d.d.DOODLING and d.d.d.d.d.d.d.DUST

Well two things I've learned this week are that having a new bathroom fitted... no matter how nice it looks... means lots of DUST (honestly how far does it spread... the only place it seems to have missed is me knicker drawer..lol) and it also means lots of stress...I HATE upheaval... moving things and feeling like this isn't really YOUR home you're living in..bah!! It also means lots of Decorating...uuuurgh more work and less crafting :( Still it'll be all worth it when it's finished I guess :)

To keep me sane while all the banging and rattling was going on I had to find something that was quite tidy to do... couldn't be done with more mess!! and I rediscovered DOODLING (happy sigh) OMG I'd forgotten how much fun it could be. Armed with a sketch pad and a pack of felt pens (did I tell you I LOVE Tesco cheapo felties...did I...did I.... did I.... well I do....lol) I just played and scribbled and coloured and ended up in seventh Heaven...ooooooh I love colour. I did lots and lots of pages and I have decided this will be my new lose myself addiction... it's great cos you can leave it and come back to it for a minute or an hour or two...total bliss!!
I decided to scan some of my doodling so I could play with it further and use it in some of my hybrid/digi creations and as the Something Completely Different challenge this week is tags(hearts) I cropped out parts of a couple of doodled pages and added digi images to them whoohooo... love the effect and I think they look totally cool. The Owl Cluster and Mary Mary images are freebies which can be found at Cens loft... the Owl Cluster is a free image on it's own but the Mary Mary image is from a free kit :D Pop over here and grab yourself some gorgeous goodies that you can use in your digi and hybrid creations... you won't be disappointed. June has some fab stuff to share and her storytelling is quite unique too... often leaving me howling with laughter ...what a lady :D Now another fabulous lady... June from ArtyRetreat is another star and shares lots of AWESOME images to use in your creating. Pop over to her blogs at ArtyRetreat to see her lovely work and to her Art freebies blog to see her wonderful vintage images which she shares every day... Brilliant!!

June has tagged me with the 6th challenge:-

Go tho the 6th folder in your Pictures folder.

Find 6th Picture and tell a story about it.

List 6 bloggers you'd like to participate (no obligation)

I've done this tag before but as I've had a recent reshuffle of my folders I'm lucky enough to be able to share something different.

I've so many photos and pictures on my ''puter that often I forget just what is actually there and I spent ages engrossed in looking at pics I'd forgotten about which is why I'm posting today instead of yesterday. Reminiscing was the name of the game :D

Anyway here is my 6th folder photo. I visited Preston Hall Museum over a year ago and had forgotten how many pics I had taken... lots from Butterfly world which is fabulous and apart from the obvious family pics I just had to take some shots of some of the beautiful colourful plants they have on show. I believe that this one is called Bleeding Hearts... but don't quote me on that... I'm definitely not that up on plant names... I just know I love the pretty ones.

Ok I'd like to see what these ladies have in their photo folders :-

Chriss

Gez

Karen

Pearl

Terrie

Dawn

I also wanted to share this photo with you... cos I found this on my scouring through my folders and I love how it turned out. It's a photo of my Angel lamp love...love... love my lamp. Not every ones cup of tea but as soon as I saw it about 8 yrs ago I just knew I had to have it. She looks so gorgeous lit up on a dark dreary night :D Well congrats if you made it to the end of this post...lol... feast or famine is the name of my game eh. Hope you are having some fabby crafting time and hope to pop by and visit as many of you as I can this week.

Until then...stay happy

hugs

Chris xx