Artist Trading Cards & Altered Art by Lottie

Newsprint Japanese Arch

2008-07-12T12:46:00.000-07:00

I decided to have a go at the Wednesday Stamper Challenge this week.

The challenge is to use newspaper in your art work, but also include some stamping.

The page I used came from a 2003 Japanese newspaper that was used for packing - which Haruko my daughter in law saved for me.

I covered the whole arch with a sheet of newspaper - then painted Guesso over it then painted it with distressed green ink.

Next I pasted on torn sheets of newspaper and stamped the bottom left hand corner and added another coat of distressed green ink, adding shades to emphasise the torn scraps.

I stamped a bit of calligraphy to tie it all in, and embossed the left hand side strip.

Next I added an image, and painted it with inks, watercolours and acrylics. I painted long hair, and her face white, with the pink flannel with white make up on it. I wanted her to look like a worn out Geisha, cleaning her white Geisha make up off.

The white is slightly textured with Gesso as is the white makeup on her face.

Across the bottom and the right hand side I used several layers of texture paste.

On the first layer I used Pine Needles - alcohol ink to make a dark base colour. The next layer of texture paste was bubbled up on top and I added some embossing gold and bronze.

When that was dry I added a little bit more paste here and there, and rubbed some metallic pink acrylic paint on it - then bubbled it all up again with a heat gun, including the clear embossed edge.

I finished it off with an Oriental colour co-ordinated bead threaded with gold wire to make a loop to hang it up by.

I hope they like it!

My first attempt at 'Twinches'

2008-07-09T05:38:00.000-07:00

This is my first attempt at 'Twinches' and I thought I would try them out for a swap on Zuzu's forum.

Lots of texture are you can see - got to keep practising that!

At two inches by 2 inches they were rather fiddly to do! But I am pleased that I had a go.

As Zuzu reminded me - If I don't have a stamp to fit the subject/topic - I can collage - so I took her advice.

I bought a digital collage sheet (I know - but I took some of her advice and the sheet had lots of different portraits!)

I printed them out on best quality photo paper, then cut them out, backed them with card - and then just played around. Some I have used alcohol inks on the 'No Nails' paste, others I have used paints, and on all of them I used embossing powders.

Boy do you need to do this in a well ventilated room!

Circus

2008-07-09T02:39:00.000-07:00

There is a new site called One Powerful Hour which challenges you to make a piece of art in an hour.

The title of this weeks challenge is Circus - and here is my entry

Zuzu and Ginger from Zuzu's forum I belong to - paid me an afternoon visit last week and showed my how to do textured work. (I haven't quite finished the Mermaid I did on that day - just need to get some beads to finish it off)

In the meantime I was raring to go to made the above circus arch.

I used a vintage circus poster from a CD collection of images I had, then with a pallet knife I spread on No Nails (an alternative to Texture Paste until I can get to the city to buy the real stuff)

I used alcohol inks and on top of the blender for the colouring and heat dried it until it bubbled. I then added lot so bright colours and glitter and sequins to get the feel of the circus.

I coloured the white clown and the lady acrobat with watercolour pencils, added clear embossing powder to highlight for example her legs and shoes (it looks white in the photo but isn't in natural light) more sequins, gold embossing, red liquid pearls to make the clown juggling balls, - and everything else I can think of!

It is hard to see in the photo - but with the naked eye it really glitters and shines which ever way you look at it.

Thank you my 'Mentors' giving me a wonderful afternoon - and kick starting me to try new techniques

Monthly tag swap July - Letter E

2008-07-01T14:26:00.000-07:00

Blue tag - with a stamped image which has been embossed with distressed black embossing powder.

Outside the image the area has been aged with dark chalk and the edges have been embossed with distressed black embossing powder.

The letter E has been painted with gold.

Monthly tag swap this month is E

2008-07-01T14:22:00.000-07:00

E is for Eyes.

Tag on dark green painted card - with lots of textured golds and greens bubbled up with a heat gun

Saki box

2008-06-27T02:04:00.001-07:00

My children are really good at saving bits and pieces that they think might come in hand for my 'recycling' sort of life.

The above is made out of thick ribbed card - which came from a Japanese Saki box. They drank the contents - but I got the best bit I think as I don't drink!

The card started off cream with just the big black calligraphy printed on the bottom and the little red block with little calligraphy next to it.

I stained the board with coloured inks, stamped on the top half - the Geisha head and flowers and Japanese calligraphy, then 'tied' it all together by linking it all with gold embossing from top to bottom - giving the allusion of the 'head' now wearing a Kimono.

With the naked eye - you can see lots of gold embossing - on the hair pins, the calligraphy, the flowers, the edging, and between the colours - almost like a gold version of a stained glass window. It looks lovely and golden and bright and the ridges on the box make it look like slatted strips of wood.

Just a bit of fun and experimentation

Vintage bathing beauty gothic arch

2008-06-25T09:35:00.000-07:00

I am struggling to make craft work - but I really wanted to join in some swaps this month.

This is my effort for Mandy's swap on Zuzu's forum

I painted some white card with wishy washy inks and gave it several coats - adding layers and shading as each coat dried.

I cut out the bathing beauties, and added more shading for the lady under the parasol

I stamped the seals, masking the ladies first - the seals make me laugh they look like they are smiling.

I stamped the life-saving ring for the lady to hold - that see looks a bit choppy so she might need it - and stamped the others last. Then to finish it off, I threaded a seashell onto some golden cord, to finish it all off

Mixed Media Monday

2008-06-21T15:27:00.001-07:00

The challenge this week is to try something new - so I have.

A 'house' shape, painted with shades of yellow (I don't usually use yellow) and maroon shimmer spray.

Acetate printed image, over the background and torn dictionary page (inked) with wording relating to beauty. Painted and embossed gold swirl with a mirror image cut out. Gold Krylon edging and gold embossed through scrap plastic. It looks a whole lot better in real life.

My first Mixed Media entry - I am just getting back into crafting, so need the practice!

Zutter - my new toy. My first project

2008-06-20T13:20:00.000-07:00

I treated myself to a toy - a Zutter - a little binding machine

Here are the binding wires. And together with some papers I cut out, I made simple little book for my 7 year old granddaughter's birthday.

This is not meant to be 'arty' but just a little book for a little girl to draw in, write in, stick photos, in - just a bit of fun.

The front and rear pages I cut using thick card and stamped and embossed and inserted a favourite photo of her. The pages all line up but as I was taking photos - in a rush - some will look a bit askew.

I cut a 4" x 4" piece of plastic to protect the front cover as it has the photo on it.

For the internal pages I cut quite a number of plain card - coloured one side only, so that my little granddaughter can write or draw on them.

This is a photo of her chicken Lucy who lives with me. She can write or draw on the plain page opposite telling a bit about her chicken.

Interspersed between the plain pages I have insert a few decorated ones - just as a surprise, and flowery sheets.

Little touches to make it look a bit pretty, but still with room for her pictures.

More pages

Some printed pages to mount things on or to leave as they are.

I made a page with a little pocket - this has some tags inside which can be used, then other little 'treasures' can be put in there.

Pages in between - then a fancy little page at the end.

The rear page of the book. The inside cover of which has been embossed with a little message from me.

Once I had cut, decorated and assembled the pages, I put them in the Zutter machine to punch out the holes, then inserted a length of the binding wire which I had previously cut to size. inserted it through the pages in one go, then put them in the machine to squeeze it together.

I finished it off with lots of fluffy wools and ribbons in her favourite colours which I fluffed up after taking the photos - to hide the wires

Asian Gothic Arch - Japanese

2008-06-16T10:03:00.000-07:00

This backing paper came from a bit of Japanese shopping wrapping paper which my daughter in law saved from me.

Asian Arch

2008-06-16T09:50:00.001-07:00

At last I am back crafting again.

There is an Asian Arch swap on Zuzu's forum which I am going to join in.

The backing for the above arch is genuine Indian material - I bought a very old skirt from a Charity Shop with a view to using the material - sometime!

I am fascinated with the different patterns you can get for henna hands. You can now buy patterns in 'prints' to go on your hand - not that I would of course.

The edging of the material had a faded gold pattern which I painted over with gold paint to bring it back to life.

I then painted the flowers on the backing material to mirror the flowers featured on the hands - and I painted the pattern at the point on the backing material to mirror the one on the arm, and the pattern of squiggles underneath

The little hanging glass squares came from a broken ballroom glitter ball, these I painted with alcohol ink and added the gold patterns - little mirrors are used a lot in Asian art.

It looks much brighter in real life and the gold glistens which is quite nice.

Texture, texture, texture ATC

2008-05-05T15:07:00.000-07:00

How I wish you could feel all these textures - they just do not show up with a photo or scan.

The backing paper came from MADJAK Designs from Linda at blumoth1971@hotmail.com

But - I 'made it my own original' but adding lots of dots, shading, and drew in more black swirls to marry it up to the stamped image on acrylic strip along the left hand edge. I also shaded some of the stamped acrylic and added a swirl.

I edged the border in black.

I was rather pleased with the end result of this one - I think for once I will keep this for myself

MADJAK DESIGNS

2008-05-05T14:39:00.000-07:00

I used MADJAK stamps from Linda at blumoth1971@hotmail.com for all these Artist Trading cards - using different mediums for different effects.

The Wedding - stamped on music score paper, embossed matt black, and burnt border. This is darker in reality - and the border is dark burnt brown - achieved by using lemon juice and a heat gun.

Water coloured camouflaged type backing paper with silver outlines. Stamp reversed on acetate and edged with silver embossing

Little Boy Blue
Background paper blue shades rainbow, image stamped with a complementing blue ink and heavily embossed - so has a shiny dimpled texture.

Distressed ink background, stamped embossed face, border distressed red embossing.

Unfortunately the scans do not show up all the textures of the embossing - these are very touch feely ATCs.

Tribal Tags

2008-05-05T14:29:00.000-07:00

Painted and stippled background. Printed image - coloured and enhanced with gold Krylon pen

Stamped embossed background. Stamped tribal warrior painted.

Tribal Theme

2008-04-16T14:28:00.000-07:00

There was a challenge by Lazy Kay to make a tag with the theme Tribal.

Well I made them yesterday - took me a while as I am a bit out of practice - can't show them yet though until they are swapped.

But I also made the arch too.

I stamped the flowery image onto white card and then painted the whole card around it matt black. I added the image of the lady, and with liquid pearls did the dots - I was thinking at the time of the wonderful dotted hand patterns the ladies have when they get married.

As usual it looks better in real life as the pearl drops are all raised and I added a pearl to her forehead

ATCs Sheet Music Swap

2008-04-08T14:38:00.000-07:00

The challenge for a swap on ATCs for all forum was to make three ATCs using a piece of sheet music.

I used a couple of old pieces of sheet music from a little French book I found in a charity shop.

This and the following one is made using the music to Marseillaise - hence the colouring.

I used a MADJAK stamp from (Linda) at blumoth1971@hotmail.com for the face. The colours are inked and there is a lot of texture and embossing which does not show up sadly.

This is another section of the above sheet, inked colours, embossed edging,and the red roses have swirls of embossing, again which does not show up in the photo.

The last two are on very aged French music scores, the top has a mask and hat which is painted and embossed - and edged with 18ct Krylon pen which looks lovely in daylight - and mirrors the aged gold embossing on the mask. I saw the mask and hat in a book I was reading about the French Revolution so decided to draw and paint both for this.

The last one is a stamped image of a vintage lady, aged to look as though it is on a piece of reclaimed paper from that era.

The border is really textured like an old wooden picture frame, which I created using 'No Nails' mixed with acyclic paint until I got the colour I wanted.

These have now been received in USA so I can at last post them on here.

'Same but different swap'

2008-03-24T13:46:00.000-07:00

I recently took part in a 'Same but different' swap organized by 'Lazy K'

She sent us each the same materials and we had to use all the things and could add some of our own.

I stained the white card brown with ink and left it to dry a day. I cut up the different papers (the dark brown is velvet) to give layered effect.

I mounted the image onto a piece of my own flowery paper.

The image was printed on acetate - so I decided to colour the background with alcohol inks to give it lovely shades to compliment the backing papers and card.

I enhanced the ladies top with alcohol inks too and painted in the rose.

The 'pendant' I made utilising the seed beads LK had sent and the curtain ring. (I threaded the beads onto wire first.) Then I painted in another rose, and mounted that on the reverse of the curtain ring and then onto the wired beads to give a pendant effect.

I finished it off by dyeing the white lace to match.

It is photographed on cream material by the way - that is not the card.

Thank you LK are a great swap idea.

Tryptych ATCs - Romantic

2008-02-28T10:17:00.001-08:00

These are my first efforts of making a tryptych ATC. I used a patterned card for the outer cover, which I sprayed with a shimmery colour mist to enhance the different shades and to give it a shimmer.

I also outlined the edges with old gold paint, mounted two cardboard cut outs and painted those old gold - to make it look like opening doors to reveal....

Glossy photo paper which I painted with alcohol inks and marbled it with metallic silver, and painted the edges in the silver too.

I used the same technique as above for the outside.

The inside was collaged onto bright red paper, on which I stamped and embossed in thick gold.

Be one of the first to get your hands on these stamps

2008-02-21T14:51:00.001-08:00

Soon these wonderful stamps will be winging their way to me from Australia - and I will be busy creating lots of art with them.

Here is a sneak preview for any of you arty crafty folks.

If you too want to get your hands on these first edition plates of unmounted rubber stamps from a brand new artist - you can contact her directly

(Linda) at blumoth1971@hotmail.com - to place your pre-orders or any enquiries.

Four individual ATC sized stamps to a plate - great for not only making ATCs but for inches, skinny pages, arches, books, in fact all you altered art!

I can't wait to get started using them.

Gloriously Gold - last one

2008-02-02T13:07:00.000-08:00

This really is gloriously golden - but the scan makes it look dull. I have painted the vintage bath and textured it, and painted the rose, and the tap is very very shiny 18ct gold!

She looks a classy lady so I thought she deserved an 18ct gold bangle that too looks glitteringly gold

The vintage photo is also edged in gold and mounted on a background ATC which I painted and textured too - to look as though it is wet!

A new challenge Gloriously Gold

2008-02-02T03:45:00.000-08:00

Well this was harder than I imagined it to be - the challenge sounded easy - but in practice to get something gloriously gold and looking interesting is another thing. Photos and scans do not show up the bright shiny effect of the gold - and especially the 22ct gold pen I used on this - it is so gloriously bright in daylight - but here it looks dark and dull. And 'Lily' is pale pink too - I used blusher for that.
The ATC is on the blue paper just for scanning purposes.
The collaged area is just the Japanese red and gold paper.

Now this one was very experimental. The backing paper is inked and tiny gold flecks have been added. The ATC has been stamped and embossed quite a few times to build up the texture - and a stamped Japanese calligraphy meaning Happiness - was stamped into the embossing.

The swirl is cardboard and painted and then heated to create more texture. 22ct gold used again on here in places. I painted a Kimono and inked in the facial features of the Geisha.

This last one is a vintage photo which I have enhanced with 22ct gold penwork - I love this image. The backing board is textured which I have painted over three or four times to make it look like a solid frame

Show me your money swap on ATCards

2008-01-30T12:24:00.000-08:00

I saw this swap on the ATCards site and thought it rather original so I decided to join in. All these ATC cards will be heading off to America.

This is much brighter in real life. I decided to use pennies - so made use of a stamp that I have not used before - so it will fit in nicely with another challenge.
The new penny is on a really dark chocolate background onto which I stamped the wording, the swirls and an embossed those with bright copper which in daylight matches exactly the bright new copper penny. I then smudged ink along the edges and embossed that. It looks rich and textured to the naked eye and the chocolate background really makes the embossing shine out.

A totally different effect for this ATC. Grunge! I wanted it to look old to match the old penny I had - so it looks like something excavated from an old building. The backing card I have inked with browns, black, and a yellow. I used a face stamp, then the wording - thickly embossed and scratched when dry to give it a 'distressed' look - and to make it appear as though the wording is the body. Inked, embossed and scraped the edge embossing, and finally added the old coin - but using sandpaper to just clean up the raised surfaces of the coin so they match the embossed copper.

Another variation with the same words and techniques, but this time I stamped script on the right hand side, over stamped and embossed with copper, then coloured the left hand side with chalks to tie it in with the colour of the script.

This last one is totally different. A mustard backing with brown ink smudged on it randomly, and red and greens randomly slashed across the bottom.

The stamped face of a little girl with a pensive expression - thinking of course - which I clear embossed for texture and contrast.

The wording stamped in brown then embossed. Patina added to the coin them wiped off to create a brown coloured penny - which takes the place of the O.

4x4 Friday

2008-01-27T07:14:00.001-08:00

I have made this for the 4x4 Friday challenge this week

I backing is hessian glued onto card - then heated with a heat gun - when dry I painted it with old gold acyclic.

Postage Stamp ATC - Signing of the Magna Carta

2008-01-25T12:58:00.001-08:00

Water coloured background, stamped and embossed Latin script, embossed postage stamp, gold nib distressed

Postage Stamp ATC

2008-01-25T12:55:00.000-08:00

Water coloured painted background, stamped image with postage stamp, watercoloured stamped feather.