"Lovely" LO

Hi everyone!

Myry again! A few days ago I shared a LO in the Facebook group that I'd made with some Gypsy chipboards and I thought make another one and show you how to make a LO like that!

Choose two 20x20cm (7 7⁄8") scrap papers and decide which one goes on the top. In my case I'm going to use this flowered paper with an oval opening. Next we're going to age its inner edges

Glue the paper on top of the other but without putting glue on the aged edges. Then glue it to the cardboard to give more strength to our LO.

This step is optional: give a touch to the edges of the LO with acrylic paint (silver or the one that goes best with the colors of your papers). 

Use some small pieces of scrap paper, age their edges and glue them to the edges of our main paper.

Choose 3 pieces of scrap paper somewhat larger than yout photo (I'm going to use a 6x8cm/2 23⁄64"x3 5⁄32" photo). You can age the edges of the papers now or after gluing them to the photo.

Now I'm going to show you how to give volume to a photo and create small "spaces" to decorate later.

Glue a piece of chipboard behind the photo, then glue one of the papers behind the photo like this:

Glue another piece of chipboard behind the paper and glue the next paper so that there is this little "space" between both.

Do the same with the last piece of paper but this time glue a piece of chipboard in front and another behind.

Easy peasy!

Now we are going to work with Gypsy chipboards: Frame Lavinia and Leafy Swirls and Buds (I'd chosen another one but in the end I only used these two sets).

Paint them with the acrylic paint after cleaning the edges.

Place some elements among the small spaces that we made in a harmonious way with the papers.

Flip the frame until you're satisfied with its position on top of the photo.

Put the leaf-shaped chipboards between the die cuts and the flowers and use more chipboard if necessary to add volume to the diecuts.

Place all the decorative elements (die cuts, flowers, thread...) until you like the result. 

Once ready it's time to glue everything in place! I recommend using a good hot silicone or sturdy glue.

To finish, distribute the glitter and other small elements, and give the last touches with white acrylic paint.

And that's it! What do you think?

I hope you like it!

Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts items used:

Frame Lavinia

Leafy Swirls and Buds

Other items used:

20x20cm (77⁄8") cardboard and scrap papers

Bruch/sponge and silver and white acrylic paint

Scissors, glue/hot silicone and chipboard pieces

Die cuts, flowers, lace, wool threads and glitter

Graham's first Jack-o-Lanterns...layout by Lynne

Hey there crafty friends! I have a shocking confession to make....unlike what seems like pretty much all of my fellow crafters, I am NOT a huge fan of Halloween! GASP! I do however love the trappings of fall: pumpkins, acorns, squirrels and pretty leaves! That's why I decided to create a fall layout this week using a photo I just love of my son when he was about 2-1/2 with his very first Halloween pumpkins (ten guesses what he loved to watch on TV!) I love how the frame allowed me to add the fussy-cut image of my son-in the original photo he had been standing near the pumpkins but there was a lot of background clutter!

Th chipboard pieces were all painted with gold acrylic paint then rubbed with Hero Arts shadow ink in Orange. 

The pumpkins were run through my Cuttlebug in a Darice embossing folder. The orange ink emphasized the lovely embossed leaf pattern.

I randomly punched around the border of the paper with vine edge punches, then tore the paper in between even with the punchwork. I then inked all the edges with the same orange ink that was used on the chipboard. I stencilled with homemade texture paste and misted with Tattered Angels glimmer mist. The flowers and pumpkins were fussy cut from some pretty Prima paper.

I love layering different elements to create interest with a variety of materials and textures.

That little boy in the photo is now 26 years old, so this page brings back a lot of happy memories-thanks so much for stopping by and letting me share them with you, and have a wonderful week! xoxo

GYPSY SOUL ITEMS USED

Layered Frame Victoria Round
Fall Shape Set
Halloween Word Set-coming soon

OTHER ITEMS USED

Prima flowers and paper
Inkido paper
Tattered Angels glimmer mist
Prima and Tim Holt stencils
Hero Arts Shadow Ink

I do believe in Fairies!! Layout by Lynne

I absolutely love the wire fairy sculptures by Fantasywire, and have used several of them on layouts; I loved how magical this fairy image looks in the gorgeous frame from Gypsy Soul!

I used the Flourished Open Circle frames and Prima Royal Menagerie papers, fussy-cutting elements from the papers and adding layers and handstitching for interest and dimension. When I handstitch on a project, I usually draw my lines in pencil then poke the holes with a good-sized needle or pin, working with a mouse pad under the project as I pierce it. It is much, MUCH easier to stitch when the holes have been premade like this, and a lot easier on the paper too! I usually use 2 or 3 strands of embroidery floss, depending on the thickness I want.

This butterfly was painter with acrylic paint then heat embossed in clear; I allowed the melted embossing powder to swirl around a bit and make the colours flow.

This butterfly was also painted with acrylic paint and then inked a bit with coordinating colours, but the layer of clear embossing powder was thinner and just meant to give it a bit of a sheen.

The frames and word pieces were all primed in white, then heat embossed with Donna Salazar embossing powder in Jasmine, which created a lovely smooth and shiny surface. I then sponged them with dusty rose pigment ink to echo the colours in the papers.

I popped up the fussy cut bits with some foam tape and added some of my beloved stenciling, and some acrylic dots which echo the touch of warm colour in the photo. I hope you liked my page and wish you a magical day!

GYPSY SOUL ITEMS USED

Flourished Open Circle Frames Medium

Butterflies & Dragonflies

Word Elements 1-small

OTHER ITEMS USED

Prima stencil
Fiskars border punch foam adhesive
acrylic dot stickers
Donna Salazar embossing powder-Jasmine
Versamark Ink
clear embossing powder
Colorbox pigment ink-Dusty Plum
embroidery floss and needle

Gymnastics layout with Alicia Barry

My daughter started gymnastics a little over a year ago, and she has already been moved up to the competition team. I'm excited about that of course, but I can see me spending a lot of money on the sport in the future. This Gymnastics Shape Set from Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts is perfect for a gymnastics themed layout, and there are still heaps of pieces left over for more layouts in the future.

I started by layering some pretty papers along with the Flourished Frame Lisa. I covered it in metallic glittery paint to mirror the glittered elements in my papers. 

For my title block, I used some metallic paint again, but without the glitter and in a neutral tone. This allowed me to maintain the silhouette style of the piece, while creating a cohesive effect with my background papers.  I used this same paint on my Leafy Swirl piece

The Layered Border Victoria, beneath my title is a combination of the two paints one used on the other piece, with the copper colour grounding the more vibrant layer above it.

I used foam dots on all the chipboard pieces to create a shadow effect.

Supplies used:

Gymnastics Shape Set

Leafy Swirl

Flourished Frame Lisa

Layered Border Victoria- small

"Art" mixed media layout by Lynne

Hello friends-as a lover of all things artsy, this quote spoke to my gypsy soul, and I hope it does to  yours as well! Sometimes I enjoy using a meaningful quote on a page (I usually find them on Facebook) rather than a photo just for a change of pace.

I have had this fabulous Colorbox  "Teen Angst" paper for ages and still love the funky, eclectic feel of it; the Mixed Media Fragments complemented the paper perfectly and the Palette and Brushes was just right for the theme of the quote.

I started off by painting each piece with acrylic paint; the palette piece was then run through this embossing folder to create the textured surface:

After rubbing the surface of the palette with a pearlized ink, I punched 1" circles of various colours from my papers, then added paint drips with coordinating acrylic paints. I lightly inked the edges of the palette for dimension.

The paintbrush handles and palette knife were heat-embossed with UTEE for a glossy look. Because the papers are so vibrant, I wanted my embellishments to stand out sufficiently.

This Fragment was painted black, then heat-embossed with UTEE also-I love the glossy finish!

This Fragment from the Retro set was stamped with Versamark ink with this Prima stamp, then heat-embossed with Lindy's Stamp Gang Midnight Gold embossing powder.

I added some stenciling with homemade texture paste, a few metal embellishments and a little fussy-cutting, then finished the page off with a few sprays of orange and yellow mists.

I hope you enjoyed seeing my project, and I'd love to see something you create that incorporates a quote....that is your challenge, should you choose to accept it!! Have a super week, and thanks so much for stopping by.

GYPSY SOUL ITEMS USED

Palette and Brushes
Mixed Media Fragments Retro
Mixed Media Fragments 1

OTHER ITEMS USED

craft concepts embossing folder
Prima stamp
Versamark Ink
Lindys embossing powder
Colorbox papers
UTEE

Explore-A Beijing layout by Lynne

Hello there! As some of you know, my son is away at university in China and  occasionally sends me photos which I'm always thrilled to scrap. This one was taken in the fall in Beijing when some friends went down there from Hong Kong to visit him.

I have gotten so many layouts out of the wonderful Oriental Shape Set, and of course the Bamboo is a perfect addition, especially since this photo contains a lot of greenery.

For the bamboo, I ran it through this embossing folder:

I then painted it a light sage green and dry-brushed a light taupe brown over that.

I then use this stamp to add Versamark ink and heat-embossed with clear embossing powder:

The pagoda was run through the same embossing folder as the bamboo; the surface is larger so more of the floral pattern showed up. I painted it a light taupe, then
added layers of embossing powder by stamping with Versamark; I used Artful Stamper black glossy, Donna Salazar's Mix'd Media in Jasmine, and Ranger Embossing Antiquities in California Stucco, in that order.

The paper had a subtle harlequin pattern which I echoed with the stencilling and with the diamonds cut from coordinating paper and hand-stitched with embroidery floss.

I love that chipboard pieces like these can be altered and adapted in so many ways. Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a wonderful and creative week!

GYPSY SOUL ITEMS USED
Bamboo Shape Set
Oriental Shape Set

OTHER ITEMS USED

Prima and FabScraps papers
Ranger, Donna Salazar and Artful Stamper embossing powders
Versamark ink
Prima clear stamp
Darice Embossing folder
Embroidery floss and large needle
Crafter's Workshop stencil
homemade texture paste