3 Things - The Mandala Girl {by Amanda Pink}

Hi everyone, it's Amanda from p1nkart with you today for a 'With 3 Things' challenge post. 

This feature on the PaperArtsy Blog is where 3 identical items are sent to 3 members of the PaperArtsy Blogging team. Typically we will receive a stamp, a stencil and a colour product but this time instead of the stencil we received a mini stamp. 

We have no clue what PaperArtsy HQ is going to send, the whole idea of this challenge is to do something crafty in our personal style with these 3 items. 

We can incorporate other PA products into the mix if we feel it is necessary.

So let's take a look at what I received from PA HQ ...

As you can see a lovely trio of goodies! Tracy Scott's A5 stamp set 055 (TS055), her mini stamp 19 (TSM19) and one of Tracy's Fresco Chalk Acrylic colours too, Ochre (FF195). 

In the main, my creative style generally errs to the grungy but I also have a soft spot for bold, bright colours (like Ochre) especially when set against / accented with black. I love an intricate mandala too and a strong focal so I've brought all these together to create an art panel/ journal page that I'm sharing today! 

Lets take a closer look at what I made ....

I stamped the mandala from TS055 several times in VersaFine Clair (Nocturne) on panels of PaperArtsy Smoothy (SCA4).

I wanted to stamp all the mandalas in one session before colouring them. I knew that would mean removing each of them from the stamping platform in order to stamp the next but was mindful I may need to restamp the mandalas after painting. So to enable me to achieve perfect alignment and precision if restamping was required I ensured each of the smoothy panels were positioned flush against the top left corner of the platform, drew a arrow on the panels to indicate their orientation and left the mandala stamp in situ on the platform lid.

Next I moved on to some grunge paste stamping. I applied PaperArtsy Grunge Paste (GP190) to some off cuts of PaperArtsy Heavy Smoothy (SCA4H) and stamped into it several times with the small circle/flower stamp, being sure to clean the stamp thoroughly after each stamping.  I was really happy with the grungy impressions and knew once coloured they would make great embellishments for my project. 

I've shared some info/ hints and tips about stamping into/ with PaperArtsy Grunge Paste on  previous posts here and here. It's also worth doing a search on the blog as a lot of the PaperArtsy bloggers/ designers have shared too. We all have a lot of love for Grunge Paste :). 

NB: Always clean your stamps immediately after using them with PaperArtsy Grunge Paste or Fresco Finish Acrylics. 

Using VersaFine Clair ink (Nocturne) with Tracy's mini TSM19, I stamped the young girl numerous times as I wanted to experiment with different colour combinations during painting. 

Let's take a closer look at what I did ....

I began by painting the mandalas with the colour PA HQ had sent- Fresco Chalk Acrylic, Ochre (FF195), I was really impressed with how striking the Ochre looked against the white card and black stamping and was very tempted to leave it just like that.....but I didn't.

I paired it up with Tracy's Fresco Chalk Acrylic, Deep Sea (FF198), which just happens to be a colour palette high on my list of faves! A bit of research on the PaperArtsy blog also tells me both these colours were 2 of the 4 colours Tracy released back in January 2020. 

The outer edges of the mandala leaves and petals were painted with one of Tracy's most recently released Fresco Chalk Acrylics, Zinc (FF235).

When I'd finished painting the mandalas there were a few places that did need re-inking and as I'd prepped for this earlier, I was able to pop the panels back on the stamping platform and restamp with precision.

A few white pen highlights here and there and the mandala's were ready to be fussy cut!

I also knew my finished design required slicing the mandalas in half. Ouch!

I moved on to colouring the grungy stamped circles. I cut them free of the larger grunge paste panel before painting each with Fresco Chalk Acrylic, Little Black Dress (FF19).

I wanted to catch the raised texture on the circles with Fresco Chalk Acrylic, Ochre (FF195) but because it's a translucent colour I knew it wouldn't show up well on the black background without an opaque or metallic base coat first. So I opted for Fresco Chalk Acrylic, Gold (FF20) then caught the Gold with Ochre (FF195).

I couldn't resist some touches of Fresco Finish Acrylic, Deep Sea (FF198) either for a 'patina' kind of vibe.  Love how they turned out ! 

Now to colour our lovely young girls.

I kept to the 3-colour palette used so far varying the colour combinations of their tops and hair beads. For a delicate skin tone I opted for Tracy's Fresco Chalk Acrylic, Vintage Lace (FF18). Using the paints with water allowed me to control the shading, keeping it light and soft in places, slightly richer and darker in others.

I also rustled up a quick backdrop for whichever young girl I decided to use. This was simply a piece cut from an old dictionary page dipped into Fresco Chalk Acrylic, Ochre (FF195) spritzed with water, knocked back with a gentle braying of Fresco Chalk Acrylic Snowflake (FF15).

After time spent faffing with various orientations I settled on this one for the finished design.

The young girl sits behind a black wooden plinth within a black frame. 

Black and white pen work highlight and add detail to her features and accessories.

Each corner of the frame is embellished with one of the grungy circles.

Manipulating the mandalas before positioning them added depth and dimension to the overall design.  

I hope you have enjoyed seeing/reading about my 'with 3 things' creativity and maybe something I've shared has offered you some inspiration, perhaps even tempted you to have some fun creating in your own style 'with 3 things' .....and maybe just a few more too! ;) 

Thanks for taking the time to stop by today/ tonight.  

Creative wishes

Amanda

x

Blog: ink-a-pink

Facebook: Amanda Pink

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Nov 2025 - With 3 Things - A Trio of Baubles {by Sarah Downes}

Hello friends, 

My name is Sarah Downes. I’m very excited (if a little apprehensive) to share my very first blog post with you. I was invited to take part in the ‘with 3 things’ challenge by the PaperArtsy team.

For this feature on the PaperArtsy Blog 3 identical items are sent to 3 members of the PaperArtsy Blogging team. Typically we will receive a stamp, a stencil and a couple of Fresco Paints.

We have no clue what PaperArtsy HQ is going to send, the whole idea of this challenge is to do something crafty in our personal style with these 3 items. We can incorporate other PA products into the mix if we feel it is necessary.

When the parcel arrived it was wrapped in beautiful PaperArtsy tissue paper which I will be able to use for another project. Inside I was thrilled to find a beautiful Eclectica Kay Carley stamp set, EKC11 and PaperArtsy Stencil PS162 along with 2 Fresco Finish paints in Verdigris and Zinc. 

I have quite a few Kay Carley stamps and stencils but most of mine are of beautiful spring and summer flowers. I didn’t have any winter or Christmas ones so this would be a new departure for me. With my mystery package, I made a series of large decorative baubles!

While I was more than happy with the chosen colours, I soon realised that these stamps were not going to need a lot of colouring in or painting like flowers do, so it was clear, this project was not going to be in my usual style. Eek!

To warm up and get to know the products a little better I decided to stamp out the images and have a play with the paints and the stencil to hopefully get some ideas flowing!

I felt I wanted to introduce a further paint into the mix so I could vary the shade of the green and grey paints. I decided on Fresco Finish Chalk as I thought this colour was less stark than a pure white and a little closer to the rustic vibe I was now feeling this project needed.

Having had a play (and calmed down a bit) I was thinking about going in the direction of making Christmas decorations. I remembered that I had some mdf bauble shapes stashed away so I got these out and felt these would make a great substrate once prepped with gesso. It was then I thought I might need a red involved (as it’s Christmas!) so I chose Cherry Red from Tracy Scott's Fresco Finish line.

1st Big Bauble

I was looking to achieve a rustic style of Christmas decoration so I decided to apply the paint with a small brayer, first with Zinc…

Then with Chalk. This gave me the textured and slight grungy finish I was hoping for.

My next idea was to use the lovely holly design in stencil PS162 to frame the edge of the bauble. I used a sponge dauber to apply the Verdigris Fresco Finish paint through the stencil around the edges and especially across the top. I also used the sponge to apply paint directly to the edge the bauble to give it a bit of a frame.

The triangle on the stencil suggested bunting to me. I used a plate to draw a curved pencil line to help me position the triangles to look like hanging bunting.  I wanted to decorate the bunting with the stars/snowflakes so I needed the background colours to be light. I used Zinc and Chalk and mixed Chalk and Cherry Red to make a pretty pink. I then sponged the 3 colours though the triangles on the stencil to make the bunting.

I also used the Cherry Red paint with a tiny ball tool to add some berries in amongst the holly.

I used some permanent inks (Archival by Ranger and Versafine Claire by Tsukineko) to stamp the little stars from EKC11 onto the bunting and a permanent marker pen to draw around the triangles and over the pencil line. On reflection, I probably should have used a slightly narrower pen nib. I then worked out where to stamp the pots ready for the Christmas trees and stamped them using a stamp platform so I could stamp over them again once I had painted them pink.

Next came stamping the trees. I chose the 2 larger trees from EKC11 and a permanent ink. I masked off the pots with a scrap of paper and used my stamp platform.

A few ribbons and silver berries found in my stash completed this side of the first bauble.

Now for the back of the bauble. I used the Holly Stencil PS162 too but this time I stencilled again and again from the middle of the bauble like clock hands in both Verdigris and Chalk.

And it was at this point I decided to stencil a heart at the centre of the bauble, to cover all the ends of the holly branches. I think it looks more finished now. 

I like to put the year on Christmas decorations I make. I used some die cut numbers and the verdigris paint for this.

Small Bauble

I chose to sponge both Verdigris and Zinc Fresco Finish paints over the front surface. 

I wanted to introduce more texture for this decoration. Time to get the Grunge Paste out! I used a palette knife to apply it through stencil PS162 at the bottom of the bauble. I also used the grunge paste through the hearts and let them dry. I loved how cleanly it went through the stencil. I left  it to dry thoroughly. I think I did a better job of this than sponging the paint on the first decoration.

Crackle Glaze was then spread over the hearts because I wanted to add to the rustic vibe. Next I painted Verdigris over the hearts and waited for the crackles to appear! I painted the berries green to keep to a simple colour palette.  

As focal elements, I stamped the small tree from EKC11 in a dark green permanent ink and the sentiment in black and added a smattering of tiny stars with a touch of glitter glue.

Now for the back. I decided to use the Crackle Glaze again between a layer of Zinc and Chalk Fresco Finish paints. I was pleased with the rustic look. 

I mixed Grunge Paste with the Verdigris paint. Then I used the mixture through the holly stencil. I was amazed how the colour of the paint was barely altered by mixing it with grunge paste, even when dry. I shall definitely do more of this!

To finish this bauble, I didn’t have any more matching ribbon so I used the Verdigris paint to change the colour of some ribbon and attached it to the bauble adding a little charm from my stash which I painted with Zinc paint. 

2nd Big Bauble

I wanted to make a 3rd and final bauble because I had noticed that the trees from EKC11 were like the branches of a snowflake so I definitely wanted to make a large snowflake with them. Also I wanted to use the trees as branches to make a bigger Christmas tree. Another large bauble was in order for these 2 ideas! 

I sponged Verdigris Fresco Finish across the whole surface. Then I  drew a pencil line down the centre of the bauble to help me line up the pot and the tree stamps and stamped and painted in the pot on the stamp platform. Then stamped the pot again to replace the detail.

Starting at the bottom with the largest tree stamp from stamp set EKC11, I began to create a Christmas tree, changing to the smaller tree stamps as I got higher up the tree. I used a light and a dark green permanent ink to give the tree some depth.

To anchor my tree, I usied torn paper to mask off an area under the pot and used the Chalk paint to create a snowy base.

To finish off I embossed a gold snowflake star at the top of the tree and white snowflakes around the tree. I dug out some sparkly embellishments to decorate the branches.

I also added some sparkle too along the branches and on the snow with glitter glue.

Now for the reverse side. This time I really went for it with the Crackle Glaze and used it across the whole surface over a layer of Verdigris and under an application of Chalk. The grungy, crackle finish was really pleasing. I also sponged around the edge with the verdigris paint to frame the design. 

Having made a paper template using my quilting ruler to mark out the 60 degree angles for a six pointed snowflake, I then transferred the markings to the bauble.

I used the largest stamp from stamp set EKC11 to form the snowflake in grey permanent ink and then rubbed out the pencil guides. 

I was really pleased with how this worked out. I added 2025 again at the neck of the bauble.

On reflection I think I prefer the back of the baubles I made to the fronts! I like the simplicity of the designs and the colours. There’s a lesson for me there! Sometimes simpler is better!

Thank you if you made it this far, I hope it wasn’t too rambling. 

I have loved being a part of this challenge and can’t wait to see what the other 2 participants have made. I’m sure I will say ‘why didn’t I think of that!’ when I see their ideas! 

Facebook: Sarah Downes