What a joy to be in the Designer Spotlight for the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge this month.  Thank you to the whole team for having me.  I had a glorious time with all the challenge themes, but I think this last one may have ended up being my favourite of the lot... see what you think! 

Some paint, a Pumice Stone Distress Crayon and Walnut Stain Distress Oxide all add to the distressed look of the bricks.   (I recently did a whole YouTube video on creating similar kinds of brick and stone backgrounds, so if you're interested in more details, take a look at that Few Minutes of Fun episode here.)

Sometimes, I have to be patient, because I do like to find ones which have a similar font and page colour to go across a pair of tags.  But in the end, so far, it has always worked out.

So I hope you like these tags as much as I do.  I think there are newer followers of mine over on Instagram and YouTube who didn't believe me when I told them my colour palette would be changing in the autumn... I know you long-time blog followers know better, but if you ever doubted it, I think these tags are pretty definite proof!  It's autumn!!

Do head over to the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge for all the details of how to join in with this week's Stencil It! challenge, as well as to see the amazing projects from the Design Team.  I know you're going to love them.

I seem to be spending a lot of time in front of the camera at the moment.  This post is to let you know about three separate sessions where you can come and join me at the craft desk... and there's another (very exciting) one still to come on Tuesday 27th.  February really is going out with a bang  - the photographic sort... "flash, bang, wallop, what a picture!" - moving pictures, in my case!  (I'd completely forgotten there's a Shakespearean verse in Tommy Steele's ditty!)

First up, you can join me for some Friday Fun, which was originally live on the PaperArtsy People Facebook Group on (guess when!) Friday.  It was a really special Friday Fun - some sneak peek playtime with a product which is not even launched yet... but I couldn't wait to share some of the fun I've been having with it.  (You may think you recognise this blossom branch, but it's not what you think it is!)

Then there's the second episode of my new weekly YouTube series, A Few Minutes of Fun.  This will come out on Fridays or Saturdays, and this week it obviously had to be Saturday so as not to clash with the Friday Fun.  (It's not live, but there's only so many videos I can cope with publishing at one time!) And I think I might stick to Saturdays from now on in any case.  After last week's gypsophila gel printing, this time I'm having a few minutes of fun flipping stencils, using some Distress Spray Stains.  Nothing complicated, just genuinely a few minutes of fun...

And then there's the third episode of my monthly YouTube series, Sunday Swatching.  This time I'm sort of swatching, but mostly colour mixing in a small grid of three paints, and then having a little watercolour playtime with doodles and a sketch.  If you enjoy it, it would be lovely if you subscribed to the channel, and comments and likes all help me to build a following there.

So take your pick... or join me for all three.  You don't have to listen to me talk, of course - turn the volume down and put on some of your favourite music instead, and just enjoy the meditative processes of combining pigment, paper and water.

I hope you'll enjoy joining me at the craft desk for a bit of playtime.  Hopefully, you'll be inspired to go and play yourselves.  And watch out for Tuesday's big news... Thanks so much for stopping by, and happy crafting all!

For me, the camera is a sketch book, an instrument of intuition and spontaneity.
Henri Cartier-Bresson

A film is never really good unless the camera is an eye in the head of a poet.
Orson Welles

Hello all!  I'm just dropping in with a few tags that have been on the go lately... many of them as a result of Tim Holtz's brilliant nudge to make use of any unused or part-finished backgrounds we have lying around (you can see just some of my hoarded backgrounds here if you have access to Instagram).

I also wanted to add a reminder that the Free Fodder Challenge starts on Monday.  More than 12,500 artists from around the world have already signed up to join in... why not join them?  You'll get 12 free online mixed media art classes, one with each of the 12 teachers contributing to Fodder School 3 (starting in October)... and yes, one of them is me!  The classes will arrive daily from 10th - 21st July, and you can create along with the videos, share your creations on social media, or just watch for inspiration if you prefer.  All the details and registration can be found here... it would be great to see you there.  Here's another sneak peek of the project I'll be sharing...

Hello all!  I'm so sorry not to have been around.  I've been swallowed whole by the Royal Shakespeare Company again... I'm over in the UK for three months of work with them, and as a result there's been almost no crafting and almost no social media time.  I am, of course, travelling with some craft supplies (couple of snaps of my travelling craft stash at the end) but there really hasn't been much chance to use them!

One good thing about being here at this time of year is that it meant I could get my hands on the new Tim Holtz Idea-ology goodies much more quickly than I can when I'm tucked away in my little village in the Czech Republic.  So last Sunday I seized the chance to do a bit of quick collaging over some Lost Shadow ink splotch tags made last month (yes, I got my hands on the new Distress colour too!), and here they are...

When I do get some crafting time, I'm mostly working on top secret stuff behind the scenes (watch this space) but it was lovely to just play for half an hour.

Here are the tag backgrounds before the layering.  I played with all the Distress greys - so that was Hickory Smoke, Pumice Stone (both as inks) and the new Lost Shadow in ink and oxide formulations.  

The Mosaic stencil looks like cobblestones to me, so that seemed perfect for the grey tones.  And I used one of the text stamps from my own PaperArtsy Botanicals sets for some detail stamping.

I've always been a huge fan of the Photobooth snapshots in the Idea-ology line, so these new slightly larger Photomatic snapshots were a must-have.  

And these Quote Chip Labels are really great as another way to add words to my pictures.  The collection contains words in rectangles and ovals (some of those coming soon).

There are some lovely new ephemera pieces but I started out gently by just pulling out some of the leafy stems from the pack to keep these tags looking organic and natural.

And of course I couldn't resist adding some of my favourite tiny Snippets labels (an essential part of the travelling stash).

Here, as promised, are a couple of photos of my temporary crafting arrangements.  We were rehearsing in London for six weeks, so this is my set-up from that period.  

Not all of this was in my suitcase... I have a couple of boxes of supplies stored in Cestina's little bolthole where I was staying (just outside London).

And this is my wonderful riverside view at my digs in Stratford upon Avon where I am now (two weeks down, four weeks to go). 

So all this did come in a suitcase, and my new purchases are going to have to be crammed in too for the journey back.  I also brought some of the few tags I have managed to squeeze in time for.  I'll try to share a few more of those here soon.

Much bigger windows, and I'll confess it's easy to get distracted by the beauty right in front of me.  I feel very lucky, even though I hardly get to spend any time here - we're working long theatre hours, six days a week.

However, there is some very exciting news to share in a couple of weeks' time, so I'll definitely be here for that!  Happy crafting, all.

I read; I travel; I become.