2021 Topic 13: Tiny (News) Print with ZA {by Tracy Springer}

    2021 Topic 13: Tiny (News) Print

When we start with one idea, it often springboards to another one and Tracey began with the idea of a set of ATCs and ended up with.. well I won't spoil it! Check out her beautiful vintage typewriter and her clever idea for adding tiny text to painted stencilled panels.

Keren.

Hi everyone, Tracey Springer here with you today to share my version of Tiny ‘news’ Print. I knew right from the start that I wanted to do ATC’s with this topic so I rummaged (incredibly skilled at this, lol) through my stamps looking for what to use. I decided that there are a lot of little birds in these sets they may get overlooked for the bigger characters, so I challenged myself to use them. I picked out 2 sets of Elena’s stamps (Zinski Art) and 2 sets of Jo’s stamps (JOFY).

I already had quite a few off-cut gel-printed backgrounds that I could use up for these, but also had an idea to play with this little stencil and these really fresh Fresco colors. I have decided that I love to use my paints like I would inks, and they blend so beautifully!

I chose the cute little guy from JOFY15 to use on my first ATC. I coloured him with Copic markers and also a bit of the tree branch, leaves and little flowers. I die cut the clouds from an offcut background that had blues in it, and stamped a newsprint stamp on them. I used the ‘tweet tweet’ because I love really busy, collaged backgrounds. I stamped the newsprint stamp on the bird as well; I quite liked it, but was just too busy for the finished card – and that’s coming from me who loves crazy, over the top lol! I added a few flicks of pink ink and  I always finish with a double pen line around as a border and a thick surround of Gesso.

The next one I picked was one of the lovebirds from JOFY JM20, and I had an idea to stamp multiple of the same bird on the same colour background and then have one that stood out. I chose my fav Fresco colour Mustard Pickle (FF148) and sponged that on to a piece of book paper I had, and stamped multiple of the lovebird and cut them out. I coloured one quite boldly with my Copics and raised him up on foam tape (I once again tried stamping him with a newsprint stamp but changed my mind later on and covered him with a plain bird). I used my trusty typewriter (isn’t it gorgeous!) to type the wording, a pen border, some tied baker’s twine and gesso to finish.

 

 

The last 2 ATC’s were using the fabulous little birds from the Elena Zinski set’s ZA07 and ZA08. I had random strips of offcuts for the backgrounds, clouds, CUTE flowers, my go-to background script stamp of JOFY’s (JOFY89) and this very fitting quote stamp from Eclectica Emma Godfrey (EEG24) Everything got a heavy surround of Gesso to frame them.

And then….what are cute ATC’s if you don’t have anything to keep them in…I felt a little book coming on LOL!  A couple of pieces of craft board, another random little gelli print background, book page paper, this funky bird from Elena Zinski mini’s (ZN22) , an ATC stamp (MN21), typewriter quote and finally I had to use the ‘Handle with care’ stamp from the set by Eclectica Seth Apter (ESA19). I coated it all with Mod Podge which strengthens and protects the cover from wear and tear, and then added a whole pile of ribbons and tassels. I used the disc system to bind as it enables you to add and remove pages easily (I used cut down clear plastic sleeves to hold the cards).

 

This has been such a fun project to work on….I'm not sure if I met the topic entirely but the main thing is to have fun…zone out and de-stress! Thanks for coming on this journey with me! 

Tracey xx

Instagram: @tracey_springer

2021 Topic 5 Find Your Vibe with ZA {by Tracey Springer}

  2021 Topic 5: Find Your Vibe

If finding your vibe is this much fun, then we should all join in with Tracey! With possibly the most creative use of Infusions and Grunge Paste ever, Tracey has cooked up a very creative and unique way to send a greeting.
~ Keren

 

Hi everyone, its Tracey Springer with you today. This topic really suited me creatively as I could just run wild with my crazy! I started off by rummaging through my stamps with no general idea until I pulled out Elena's Zinski ZA13. The saying really spoke to me as well as the characters. As I sat and coloured my first stamped images I started to imagine the character with the spotty skirt being a crazy cake maker (I have no idea where that idea even came from lol! … but I ran with it). I found Zini 25 had a bakers hat which I used and really loved. 

I envisioned a card where I somehow used the ‘I don’t need therapy I need cake’ from ZA13, and I started creating a scene. I spent an afternoon using my Gel Plate and PA Fresco Finish Paints to play with some backgrounds – I made a lot of mess and had a lot of fun. My favourite colours were ‘Mouse Ears’, ‘Bougainvillea’ and ‘Weathered copper’. 

I decided in the end to use a background that used those colours but also had Azure and Banana in it. Once I cut it to size I added a stamp from my favourite Jofy set JOFY 89 over part of it. I coloured some houses from  Zinski ZA40 and started piecing the scene together. 

I really loved the versatility of the small flower strip in ZA13 as the grass came in handy to use separately as little tufts.

The chef's hat from ZN25 certainly topped off her outfit perfectly!

 

 

 

A heavy layer of gesso finished off the card front (I always border things this way as it seems to ground the images). 

 

Bizarrely I then had the idea to make it into an exploding box cake card (I have made quite a few and really enjoy the process). So then I brayered some more very basic backgrounds as possibilities for my ‘cake’.

 

 

 

I always wanted to use this really cool patterned Seth Apter Stamp EM55 and it lent itself to cake icing (I would be a very outrageous cake maker if I baked!). I brayered a light coat of Pixie Dust and Candyfloss and then used Cerise Fresco Finish and stamped a heavy coat of paint on the card – I loved the outcome. 

I repeated the process and used Banana.

I then built my cake structures by making two cylinders of different sizes and glued them together. I then got the idea to use a mixture of grunge paste + Magenta Infusions to pipe onto the cake. I was incredibly surprised by how easy it was! 

 

 

I used JOFY 34 the two smaller flowers and the two little butterflies from EEG24 which I heat embossed in copper as decorations on the cake. I made it look like the flowers were cascading down the side – it took a while and is a little fiddly but well worth the effort. I decided to use Tracy Scott’s TS024 scribble type flowers as very simple, but very effective, white embossed on black outsides for the box.

This then gave me the idea to do a similar thing on the inside of the box but just black stamped on white. It looked good but me being me I decided it needed more and decided to watercolour the inside flowers. I built up the colours with Pixie Dust and Bougainvillea with splatterings of Banana as well. 

I assembled the box lid so that the card front was secured to one side so it lifted off with the lid.

 

I really hope you enjoy my project as much as I did creating it! Run with your crazy ideas and have fun along the way!

Tracey.

Instagram: @tracey_springer