Starting a New Project

I've always looked at doing more than cards and using more mixed media arty crafty ideas.   Love texture, blending and getting my hands into it all.   But I do still like comparatively smaller formats.   The Range carries all sorts of picture frames or photo frames that take several pictures.  Well it could be pictures of the cats or small pieces of experimental art.

Size 6" x 4" Caramel coloured uncoated card stock.  The first mark made with Ranger resist ink and a new to me Tim Holtz flower stamp.   The resist ink is intended to be used with glossy coated card and the old big and juicy ink pads.    I was interested to see how it would work with this card,  stamped the image and then blasted the card with heat gun.  Next up those fabulous inkylicious ink dusters, do not know how I would get on now without them, and bright Distress Inks.

The flower head did get a little lost under all the inks so to bring it back out picked the detail out with a water brush.   Water repels distress ink lightening the areas of the petals.   To my eye this was now fabulous but could not leave it like that for the project in mind.

Ferreted out an old Create and Craft butterfly stamp, inked with Versamark and Stampendous fine gold ep.   Although some time had passed since the original stamp was used it was a surprise that the petals near the top large butterfly also grabbed some of the ep.   Now very reluctant to add much more and settled on some Stampendous rust ep.  Did not quite follow the directions, which are to just sprinkle the product on the card surface and then heat from below no need to use ink.  Instead I applied Versamark and Sakura glue pen to selected areas and then heated it above and below to get an effect I like.

All that heating caused the previously applied fine detail gold ep to sink into the card so the outlines still have the reflective quality but are completely smooth to the touch.   Not being sure how well the butterflies would stand out the water brush was used again to pick out detail on 3 of them.

I got some really interesting results on this card, thinking it might be the start of a floral, butterfly and underwater theme for the complete frame.   I'll share the rest as and when they are made.

In the mean time I'd like to share this with.
Butterfly challenge - Must always have a Butterfly, with O for Olive or Oval I've used Olive Green
The Crafty Addicts - Anything goes/Summertime  If my little project does not say summertime I don't know what does!
HLS Mixed Media - Texture
ABC Challenge - Just as you like

So many ideas spilling out of my head at the moment, the hardest task is selecting one and then holding onto it long enough to actually see it through.  could be a while before I get back to this 'photo frame' which has 5 more spaces to fill.