Nature's Little Helper by Emma

Hello everyone!

It's already time for me to share my second post of the month and I decided to make a little hanging plaque to celebrate Spring arriving, using one of the gorgeous Mabel Lucie Attwell stamps as my focus point.

Here's how I made it ~

To begin with I stamped the Mabel Lucie Attwell image, Nature's Little Helper onto watercolour paper and coloured it using Distress Marker Pens (which incidentally are just the best pens I have ever owned ~ I love them!!). I scribbled some colour from the pens onto my craft mat and then hand painted the image using a waterbrush. Next, using Tim Holtz's Cabinet Die from Sizzix, I die cut a piece of chipboard and adhered my finished artwork onto this.

I then took a piece of corrugated cardboard from an old box and once again, used the Cabinet Die, together with the Movers and Shapers Mini Cabinet Die inside, I die cut the cardboard to make a frame. I used the Gold Metallic Paint Dabber over the frame, brushed some Vintage Photo DI over the edges for an aged look and then covered it with Rock Candy Crackle Paint. Once it was dry, I added the frame to my artwork. 

Next, I stamped six of the smallest of the flower shapes from the Flower Power Stamp Plate onto Grungepaper, blended Seedless Preserves DI over them and then shaped the petals into two 3D flower blooms. 

I used the Mini Tattered Leaves die to die cut leaves from a sheet of clear Clearly For Art and blended lettuce Alcohol Ink over the top, before moulding them into shape. I then added the finished elements to my frame, together with a decorative pin.

With the Movers and Shapers, Mini Butterflies die, I cut two butterflies from some more of the Grungepaper, blended Ripe Persimmon and Seedless Preserves DI over the shapes and adhered them to my frame. I inked up the "Creative" stamp with black Archival ink, stamped it onto a piece of card, blended Antique Linen DI over the top and cut it into a banner shape before adding this to the finished artwork.

Finally, I punched a hole in the top of the frame and added some twine, tied into a loop so it will hang.

So, that's about it from me for today...I hope you feel inspired to get inky and start creating. Don't forget that we would love to see your creations in our TRAVEL challenge ~ you have until the end of March to submit your entries.

See you again very soon!

Bye for now.

Emma x