2021 Topic 10: My Favourite Colour with JOFY {by Jo Firth-Young}

  2021 Topic 10: My Favourite Colour

We do love a JOFY mini book, and even better when it's a pink-black-gold combo! Jo goes through her back catalogue to show just how perfectly all her stamps can work well together in the background and of course she also manages to find the perfect focal points to adorn each page beautifully.
~ Leandra

Hi everyone, it's Jo Firth-Young (www.jofy.co.uk) here with you today, and I'm here to share with you a small concertina book I made using my 'favourite' colour - I say my 'favourite' colour but it really is so hard to pick just one colour isn't it?!!

I chose PINKS, - including HOT pink - the gorgeous Cerise. Hot pink seems slightly rebellious - it says 'look at me!'  It makes a statement doesn't it. I've teamed it with Sherbet, Gold and black to quieten it down a little... but not too much. lol

The mini book I created (final size 8x8cm) came together quite easily - I didn't start with any expectations of what it was going to be... but I took inspiration from an even smaller book I have on my desk (I do love tiny 'junk'/art journals!). 

It features lots of the small designs that are on my stamp plates and I've been wanting to make a slighter larger project using phrases. 

So I gathered up Smoothy card and paints and just started playing - I used lots of bits of 'this and that' - I had FUN making it, no pressure.  I used many of my favourite techniques - and all that HOT PINK colour!! 

The finished book just makes me smile- it has a really positive feel to it - I chose to feature lots of the little phrases & words that are dotted among my JOFY collection - I wanted to give them their '5 minutes of fame'. lol

I started by creating a master-board on a 13x6in panel of Heavy Smoothy. I painted it with diluted Sherbet Fresco Finish paint, used stencil PS250 to add small spots in Cerise and larger spots in Kitsch Flamingo Distress Oxide.  

Then, I added letters (JOFY101) in Gold Fresco Finish to break up the pink and add a touch of shine to contrast the matte pink paints. I intentionally left 'open' spaces.

Once all the painted layers had dried I added more details: I stamped blocks of small dots (EM57), and drew around the large dots with Stabilo All pencils in white and black diluting the lines with water.

I folded the panel into 4 x 3in strips, cutting off the remaining 1in strip.

 

I realised that 4 rectangle panels didn't give me enough space to work on - not enough pages, and I thought rectangles might be slightly restrictive so I cut the rectangles into 8 7x7cm squares - much more versatile and more pages! win win!

Now to decide what colour card to mount the squares onto for the concertina structure.  I often try out several backgrounds colours before making a decision - its definitely worth looking at different options - some might surprise you!  I tested white, black and my firm favourite: kraft. The different background colours definitely create a different look - the white is fresh, the black is very dramatic and the kraft gives a softer look. I decided on black for my book- a change from the white or kraft that I might normally reach for.

I measured and cut a strip of black card to mount the squares onto allowing for a border to frame each piece.

.... and when all the background details were finished I sewed each panel in place.

 

Here are pairs of page with the details of stamps used... details on the panels are die cuts, stamping, stenciling - created from pieces cut/created for this piece and from project 'left-overs' - repurposing bits and pieces. I really like adding all these little details to these small pages.

'Life is good.... ' is from JOFY46.  The numbers on the right hand page are from JOFY88 - this was a 'scrap' piece saved from a previous project (its always worth hanging on to interesting bits and pieces). These numbers were part of the planner sets I designed but it great to see them being used for something else.

The left hand page features bud stems from JOFY26 and 'Grow' from JOFY97 is part of a phrase but works just as well on its own.
I heat embossed most of the images stamped in black - the gloss of the embossing is a nice contrast to the matte Fresco paints.
The flower on the right hand page is JOFY61, and this page features one of the background stamps I added for more detail on some pages - the white embossing really makes it pop.

 

 

'Be a rebel' (great phrase) comes from JOFY50 - the ombre painted word uses Cerise and Sherbet. The flowers on the right hand page are from JOFY26 (shown above) - I stamped the flowers directly onto the background and added an additional one for added interest.

Here are the final two pages featuring JOFY72 (I like how the word 'you!' is accentuated by embossing it in gold), and JOFY102. 

Black and pink is such a great colour combination isn't it! and with those pops of gold and white!! Fabulous! 

I hope this encourages you, inspires you, to take another look through your stamps sets - look for the smaller stamps that are tucked in around the bigger images - bring them out, play with them and make them the feature of your pages - there are lots of little treasures in those sets - I'd love to see what you create!  

Take care

Jo

Website: www.jofy.co.uk

Pinterest: @jofyjo

Facebook: JoFY Jamboree! group

Twitter: @jofyjo

Instagram: @jofyjo

Teaching dates - ONLINE workshops
28.08.21  Loobi Crafts, www.loobicrafts.co.uk ...Wonderfully Wintery

Every Friday until December:  Festive Friday, 18.00 (UK time), in my Jamboree group: Free demo/Card making class 

2018 #18 Stamp Platforms: Stamping-a-round with JOFY {by Jo Firth-Young]

 2018 Topic 18: Stamp Platform Techniques

Well talk about kick of the topic with a spin! It's Jo sharing a great way to get your head and stamps literally spinning in tune with your stamp platform!! This is going to be fun fun fun!!!! ~ Leandra

Hi everyone, it's Jo (www.jofirthyoung.blogspot.com) with you today, and I'd like to share with you a ROUND project I made with my Stamping Platform... oh yes, you read that correctly - a round project.

I think the stamping platform is a great addition to the toolbox of any stamper, and after I'd been using mine for a while I started to wonder if it couldn't be used for more than just squares and rectangles... that would be too restrictive for such a good piece of kit!  It had to be able to do more, sureIy!

The idea of working on a circular design came to me while I was stamping an image and rotating the page to stamp on all sides.... rotating... like a wheel... wheels are round... ROUND!!! A round/circle is simply a square with the corners cut off (if you see what I mean!) - so a circle would fit into the Stamping Platform in the same way as a square - touching the top and side edges equally....I couldn't find a compass fast enough to draw a circle to test out the theory! lol

I needed to draw a circle that was big enough to allow for lots of images but small enough to fit into my stamping platform (I have the 'Crafts Too' platform) and as my compass didn't stretch far enough I had to search out something to draw round - I went into the kitchen and found a side plate which was an ideal size (8.5in/21.5cm).

I made a rough draft of the proposed plan by drawing around the plate.  I then cut the circle out, folded it in half and measured 30 degree intervals around the edge with a protractor.

I drew around the plate again - this time onto a sheet of 12x12 Smoothy and transferred the measurements adding a small line at the edge in pencil. I also marked the centre as that will be needed later.

Here is the circle in the stamping platform - you can see how it sits against the top and side.  Each time I stamp I'll  rotate the circle round to another marker.  Stamp, rotate, repeat.

Here are the inks and paints I chose to work with... Peach Nectar, Zucchini, Sherbet and Lake Wanaka Frescos, Peeled Paint and Tumbled Glass Distress Oxide, Leaf Green and Jet Black Archival ink.

I always start with the biggest image so that everything else can fit around it, and in this case over the top of the image so it sits in the background.  I created a simple mask to protect the centre and opposite side of what is going to become a 'wreath' style design.  I stamped this image at every-other  30 degree mark (stamping it at every one would've been too busy, cluttered).

This is the seedhead from JOFY38.

I stamped 2 more rotations of images (seed-head silhouette JOFY63, tall stem JOFY61), with leaf masked off each time.

I decided that, instead of masking off the centre each time, it would be easier if I cut the centre out.  I did this by using the mark I'd made earlier and  drawing a suitable sized circle with the compass. I cut out with a scalpel - much neater than scissors.

I stamped more images all around the circle - laying them in place to see how they would fit. I thought it would be good if one of the images flowed over the edge of the circle - to stop the circle seeming too rigid.

I did this in two stages - stamped the stem (centre of plate JOFY54) and then added the flower head ( lower left from plate JOFY53).

There is open space in the corners of the Stamping Platform and this is where I positioned the flower head (the stem shown below was removed before I stamped the flower head).

To add a bit more 'greenery' I stamped the tall solid swirly stem from JOFY53, and then began to think about adding all the finishing details and colour.

I stamped the flowerhead again onto book text & scrapbook papers so they could be cut out and paper-pieced onto the matching images on the wreath.

I painted leaves and flower buds with Fresco Finish paints...

I shaded& softened the edges of the ring with Distress Oxides inks...

When I'd finished colouring everything, and added seed-head die cuts, it still looked 'unfinished' - it needed to be mounted.... back into the kitchen to see what I could find to draw round...

Sometimes you have to think outside the box (and the craft room) to find a solution...

Yes, that is a small (clean!) frying pan - perfect size!!

Here is a close up of the elements on  ring.  I added the word 'summer' because the wreath is quite summery and the band looked 'bare' without 'something'... its from JM15...

Now I've made a 'summer' wreath I wonder if I should make 3 more - one for each season! That would be lovely wouldn't it - especially a winter version full of snowflakes!

This was such nice project to make - and so good to know that you can use the stamping platform for shapes other that squares and rectangles - HEXAGONS!! you could use it for those too!

Limitless!

I hope this has inspired you to work with your stamping platforms - they really a brilliant piece of kit!.

Take care

Jo

Blog: jofirthyoung.blogspot.co.uk
Facebook:  www.facebook.com/JoFY.JoFirthYoung/
Twitter: @jofyjo
Instagram: @jofyjo
Pinterest: @jofyjo

If you teach: add venue, dates, booking info with links here for the next 2 months 

To join our challenge and win a £50 PaperArtsy gift voucher:

Simply make something arty relevant to the topic, and link your creation from any social URL (eg. Instagram, Pinterest, Blog Post etc) sharing your original make to this challenge page.

The current topic link Topic 18: Stamp Platform Techniques will close 17:00 (London Time) Sunday, 28th October 2018, and the winner will be announced 2 hours later at 19:00.

Please make sure we can contact you as a prize winner - it helps if you share your contact info from the platform you opt to use.

Good Luck! If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask!