WLS March #2 - Wildlife

Good Morning everyone

Time for some mid way inspiration for We Love Stamping with the theme this month

WILDLIFE

I have lots of stamps suitable for this theme but decided to go with an old pink ink one that hasn't been used in a while - this magnipheasant pheasant and stamped a feathery background for him too

8x8" card made from dark green cardstock and nesting dies.

I cut a smaller die from Ivory linen card and using my ombre ink pads stamped the feathers all over it, this i then die cut into frames using the same nesting dies - just because i can and it adds interest and breaks up the solid background.  The outside frame i adhered with 2mm foam tape, the next size down with 1mm foam tape and the middle section i adhered flat.  The green of the backing card peaks through which helps frame and draw the eye to the pheasant.

I then stamped the pheasant onto the same ivory linen cardstock.  Many of you know I dislike colouring in, so this time I decided to use the same ombre inkpads I used to stamp the feathers and small blending brushes and just picked up the colours on the brushes and blended onto the image....I was quite pleased with the outcome and was soooooo much quicker, of course in this case it helped with open areas and nothing too technical to pick out and the linen card adds texture! I added some white gel pen highlights and cut him out.

I stamped some larger feathers from an old SU set, cut out and added these behind him.  I adhered him into place with pinflair glue gel.

Stamped the greeting from the set with brown ink, cut out, matted onto some of the green card and added.

A close up on Mr Pheasant

As the nesting die set I used is round and I didn't want it rocking I cut a small sliver off the bottom of the back panel so it stands up straight.  This works well and then doesn't affect the aesthetic of the front

Just showing the ombre ink pads i used, ive had these for years and years, must be 8+ and they are so useful.  They have a lever that you click when you want to use them so they join together and then when you are finished before storing you unclick it and they separate so that the inks don't bleed together - very clever really.  Ive used them quite alot so they are now beginning to run out a bit and sadly I don't think you can get them any more.  A Co-incidence but i used the brown one of my first card for this months wildlife theme too.

Items Used:

Pink Ink designs

Stampin up 'fine feathers'

Creative Craft nesting dies 'stretched circles'

Kaleidacolor ink pads 'carribean sky, cappuccino delight & desert heat'

Unbranded nesting dies

CraftUk ltd ivory linen card

dark green card

White gel pen

We have lovely wildlife themed prize from aall&create this month

So hop over to We Love Stamping to join in, if wildlife isn't your thing we always have the anything goes option as long as you use stamping 

Thank you for stopping by once again.  Its scary how fast the weeks are passing at the moment. I hope you are having a good month of March. Emmax

Id love to enter the following:

https://craftrocketchallenges.blogspot.com/2026/03/challenge-134-no-design-paper.html

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https://paperfundaychallenges.blogspot.com/2026/03/march-2026-challenge-85-anything-goes.html - fur or feathers

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https://neglectedstuff.blogspot.com/2026/03/neglected-stuff-march-2026-challenge.html - pink ink pheasant stamp  & stampin up feather stamps not used in a few years

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https://movingalongwiththetimes.blogspot.com/2026/03/challenge-187-birds-andor-bees.html

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https://craftyanimals.blogspot.com/2026/03/challenge-103.html

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https://dd-tripleb.blogspot.com/2026/03/march-2026-tb-challenge.html

 

Easter egg cards

Good Morning everyone

Today im sharing a batch of Easter cards I made using these fab bird images again, I made a little shaped card with my oval dies for an egg like effect and dug out some lace and feathers. 

Card size approx 4x5"  I cut 2 large ovals from kraft card, on one i scored a line half an inch from the top and adhered that bit to the back of the 2nd oval, thus making my card base. 

I die cut a piece of white with gold foiled marbling into a fancy oval, added a little stencilling with chalky actylic paints in some teal & yellow and then added to the card front.  About a third of the way up i added some feathers - glued in place with pinflair glue gel and then added a strip of lace over the top which helped hold the feathers in place, hides any glue and gives somewhere for the birds to sit.

I then added the birds with glue gel and a stamped sentiment to finish.

Version 2

Version 3

Version 4

Version 5

Version 6 - I actually made 12 varieties, all slightly different colours and birds.  These digital birds come looking one way but I reversed them in my graphics program so that I could have them facing both ways. They were printed onto Craft Master digital card from Highlight crafts.

Items Used

Digital bird images from double helix digitals on etsy

Spellbinders grand plain ovals & grand fancy oval dies

Clearly besotted sentiment stamps 'seasonal sentiments'

Various patterned papers

CraftUk ltd kraft card

Feathers

Papermania lace

aall&create diamond stencil

Sunflower stencil

Plaid Folkart chalk acrylic paints

Thank you all for stopping by once again.  I hope you have a lovely weekend. Emma

Id love to enter card #1 into the following:

https://fabnfunkychallenges.blogspot.com/2025/04/challenge-614-think-spring.html

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https://daranddiane.blogspot.com/2025/04/double-d-easter-challenge.html - 2nd entry

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https://creativecraftinguncles.blogspot.com/2025/03/63-spring-and-or-easter.html

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https://dd-tripleb.blogspot.com/2025/04/april-2025-challenge.html - 2nd entry

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https://thesisterhoodofcrafters.blogspot.com/2025/04/4925-springtime-designer-paper.html

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https://theoutlawzchallenges-friday.blogspot.com/2025/04/festive-friday-challenge-4-april-2025.html - Easter & Birds themes

 

Eggs in the nest

Good Morning everyone

Today its time for a new challenge over at Creative artist mixed media where we celebrate all things mixed media

Ive decided to go seasonal again and make a lovely little birds next.  I used these digital bird images for my nieces birthday and had several left over cut out so thats what triggered my idea to build them a little nest. 

8x8" Mdf shadow box frame.  Pictures below show how I built up the background and texture.  Once that was done I made a little nest out of orange and copper soft craft wire which I adhered into the box with glue gel.  I lined the nest with feathers and added a few around outside the nest and added my little eggs into place.  

I then added 2 of the larger birds - yes i know technically they are 2 different birds and wouldn't be a pair but hey this is craft land and artistic license😁

I created a hanging from the same wires used for the nest and 3 matching beads on each side - got to use my beads up some how and this seemed a good way and adds a bit of bling and interest.

You can see into the nest better here - Ive had these feathers for about 10yrs so good to use some!  You can also makes out the gold dora paint better at this angle 

The hanging loop I made with craft wire and beads

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and onto the step by step background

After making up the mdf box i added die cut feathers (great way to use up scraps of cardstock) and then added a little texture paste through a net effect stencil which I felt would give a little tree bark like feel.  Once dry cover in white gesso

I randomly added yellow, orange, red and turquoise acrylic paints

Then a wash of van dyke brown - yep it looks a mess now but let it pool around the texture....if its too heavy in any area just dab with some tissue.  Once the first wash was dry i added a bit more in areas to make them even darker

Dry brush on antique white, pale blue & lemon chalk paint 

The top coat was Cadence dora paints which have amazing shimmer, you could use gilding waxes instead.  I personally get on better with the dora paint as can dry brush it on very lightly - a little goes a very long way. Difficult to take photos off - but when the light hits it, it really comes to life.

To finish I coated it all in gloss mod podge to seal and protect.

How I made my little birds eggs.  Took little foam eggs from poundland and coated in white gesso and then pastel blue matte acrylic paint and then splattered on darker watered down acrylics to give the speckles and finished with a coat of matt mod podge.  I found it easier to handle them by sticking on a cocktail stick in some polystyrene....this does of course leave a little hole in the bottom of the eggs but easily hid when adhering them to my project 

Items Used 

Mixed Media birds clipart from Double Helix Digitals on etsy

Feather die - joy crafts

Woodware stencil

Texture paste

mini foam eggs - poundland

Cadence dora paint - gold, orange

Folkart Acrylic paints 

1mm soft craft wire

beads from stash

Do hop over to creative artiste mixed media to join in, anything goes as long as you mix your medias, so cards, atc's, tags, art journal pages are just as welcome as 3d makes like mine

Thank you all for stopping by once again.  Next week is the school Easter holidays so I shall be getting some crafting in with my 5 nieces, hopefully the weather stays fine too as they can get out and play. Emmax

Id love to enter the following:

   

https://daranddiane.blogspot.com/2025/04/double-d-easter-challenge.html

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https://thefourseasonschallenge.blogspot.com/2025/04/spring-season-april-2025.html

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https://dd-tripleb.blogspot.com/2025/04/april-2025-challenge.html

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https://www.simplyellibelle.com/2025/03/i-spy-with-my-little-eyethe-dawn-of.html - dawn of spring

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https://2craftycrittercrazies.blogspot.com/2025/04/challenge-97-anything-goes-featured.html

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https://craftyanimals.blogspot.com/2025/04/challenge-93.html

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In the birds nest

Good Morning everyone

This is one of those projects that turned out nothing like what i had in my head😀 

 I don't use much double sided tape, but i do use red liner for my envelopes and have been keeping the plastic rings that come in the middle, as thought i could use them instead of adding to landfill as our council won't take them for recycling......so a birds nest seemed a good starting point.....then these rainbow birdies turned out to be real magpies adding everything in sight into their nest😂

Canvas size 6x6".   See below for step by step of my background and nest building.  Once that was finished I stamped and coloured tim holtz crazy bird stamps and cut them out. 

I found a nice dry twig which i cut in half and adhered either side of the nest to give the effect of it being on a tree branch and surrounded with paper flowers picking up on the colour of the birds rather than true spring blossom colours.  

Creative expressions chat stickers which i backed with black card and covered with glossy accents 'Be real not perfect' 'choose happy' 'be unique' & 'dream'

To finish I edges the canvas with black which frames the scene nicely.

To adhere the plastic ring to the canvas i first glued it with glue gel and once that was dry, I tore old tissue paper into small pieces and used mod podge to adhered it, adding plenty over the top and sides of the hoop, i added 3 layers so that i had a good surface for my mediums to stick too rather than the plastic (pics 1&2).

I then took texture paste and smoothed it over the ring with a palette knife, I put some slight grooves in it to give it a look more like twigs (pic3)  I then used the texture paste through a splat stencil on the rest of the canvas (pic 4)  

Once the texture paste was completely dry I dabbed on acrylic paint in the same colours I used to colour my birdies - yes at this stage it looks a right mess (pic 5)

I then dry brushed on white gesso on the canvas and back gesso on the nest area.  This softens the 'mess' but you do still get the colours coming through (pic 6)  Doing layers like this really does make a difference to the finished artwork, rather than just having flat colour.  

I then dry brushed white gesso over the nest to soften the black (pic 7)

I filled the nest with reindeer moss & twine and then feathers in the same colour as my birds.

Then i dry brushed cadence dora paint in 'diamond' & 'gold' over the top to give a lovely shimmer to the finish when the light catches it - these paints give a similar effect as gilding waxes but i personally find them easier to use and of course being an acrylic paint they are far more versatile than some waxes..

Now this was my finished nest for my eggs but once I added the birds It just wasn't working and after days and days of thinking & looking and adding more and more it ended up like the finished result - very eclectic😁

and how i made my bird eggs.  A pack of foam eggs from poundland to start with, so that they were easier to handle i stuck them onto cocktail sticks which i could stand upright in a piece of polystyrene... I first coated them with white gesso, then mixed up the shade of pale blue i wanted in acrylic paint and gave them 2 coats, once dry splattered with brown and blue paint to give the speckled effect............for a first attempt at anything like this I was very pleased with the outcome....as the bag of foam eggs was quite large I will have to make some more in the future.

This just shows the plastic centres from the red liner tape, they are different depths, for my birds nest i used the deepest one of 8mm

Items Used:

Tim Holtz crazy bird stamps

Woodware mini splat stencil

Golden texture paste

Candence Dora paints 'diamond' 'rich gold'

Derwent inktense pencils

Black & White gesso

Pebeo acrylic paints

Creative expressions wordies sheets 'CEW003'

At the bottom of this post is some bead suncatcher ive also made using the plastic hoops if you fancy a peek.   Thank you all for stopping by, I hope my eclectic birdies have brightened your day with a smile and wishing you all a great week.  Big Hugs Emmaxx

Id love to enter the following:

https://countryviewchallenges.blogspot.com/2023/04/april-2023-things-with-wings.html

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https://art-journal-journey.blogspot.com/2023/04/recycle-reuse-repurpose.html - i have repurposed the doublesided tape ring  & used tissue paper from a shoe box in the background

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https://dd-tripleb.blogspot.com/2023/04/april-challenge.html - Ive gone with birds and blooms

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https://daranddiane.blogspot.com/2023/04/things-that-fly.html

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https://www.welovestamping.co.uk/2023/04/april-challenge.html

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I also thought they would make great bases for some wire & bead suncatcher, i used the 4mm plastic inserts for these

This first one is a little garden scene with yellow, orange and red flowers, a little dragonfly is flying by too.  Approx 3" (8cm) in diameter 

I first wrapped them with 1mm craft wire, this one in 2 shades of green.  I often use metal base hoops for my suncatcher so the bonus of these plastic ones is they are so light to start with, so i definitely be keeping them all from now on.  Great to keep them out of landfill and make something pretty with them.  

 

Version 2 is the sun,using gold and orange wire and beads with a large crystal prism in the centre to give off rainbows when the direct sun hits it.

and version 3 is very blue, I found this butterfly broach in the charity shop and its the ideal centre, it is full of crystals that really shimmer in the light, i then used blue wire and beads to give the effect of a blue summer sky the butterfly is flying through.