Monday 1 June 2015

One for the boys...

Hello again.  Thanks to all of you who entered last months Clarity challenge on the theme of "clocks."  This has proved to be quite a tough theme:  maybe a reflection of what a struggle it is for many of us to find enough time for crafting.  This month, we are tackling another theme which can sometimes be difficult:  creating a piece of art for the men in our lives.


Ingredients
Black archival ink pad
Black micron pen
Clear embossing powder
Theuva card
Black card for matting and layering
Jazz man stamp, music stamp set and wordpress stamp set

As I kept it simple this month, I thought I would share with you a bit more of how I go about designing a project from the start.

First, I very often start by stamping out the design roughly onto copy paper.  I might do this several times, until I feel confident and happy with the layout.





Next, I cut Theuva card to size, and dusted with talc.  I then stamped jazz man and clear embossed him.



Of course, with a design so simple, there's no place to hide.  Here are some of the rejects...

Too timid when drawing in the lines.  Tried thicker lines, but didn't like them.





Tried drawing the lines before stamping jazzman.  I concentrated so hard on trying to put his feet in the right place, I cut off his cane.  Barbara:  0   Bin:  2





I drew the lines first again, and disaster!  Can you spot it? 




I realised I had to be brave and stamp jazz man first, and then draw in the lines.  Yay, success at last!  Then I stamped in "Happy Birthday" using both upper and lower case letters from the wordpress set randomly through the stave.





Next job was to add in the notes until I was happy with the balance of the design.





All that was left to do now was to mat onto a piece of black card and the card blank.





I hope you like the finished card.  I'm really looking forward to seeing the projects you come up with for the men in your life;  be it a husband father, son, grandson...  Its up to you.  I have another "boys, boys, boys" project that I've made for one of my grandsons, which I'll blog later in the month.  Don't forget, the winner of the £50 Claritystamp voucher is chosen completely at random, so what have you got to lose?  Go on, give it a go.  If you need more inspiration, pop over to: http://claritystampchallenge.blogspot.co.uk/
You'll find the links there to the blogs of all my talented design teamies.  Till next time.  Xxx

25 comments:

  1. Barbara I really like the clean lines of this card and I think you have got him dancing perfectly....Love all the musical notes dancing about too. Clever lady. Hugs xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. p.s. great to see your own wonderful artwork adorning your blog header....fabulous...must do one for mine now xxxxx

      Delete
    2. I thought that too Emma - I love the way Barbara embellished Madeleine. It's a great piece which is worthy of showcasing as part of Barbara's Blog page xxx

      Delete
    3. Thanks for the compliments Emma. After last months massive project, I wanted to do something simpler. Looking forward to seeing a wonderful pieces of art from you for your blog.

      Delete
    4. Thank you Carole. I'm so glad you like my new blog title artwork. She is now hanging on the wall, making me happy every time I gaze up at her. Xxx

      Delete
  2. What a clean and effective design Barbara. So effective. Hugs.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Naomi. I 'm glad you like this months less is more project. Xxx

      Delete
  3. Another lovely sample of your lovely art work. Xx

    ReplyDelete
  4. Beautiful card, Barbara, and your post alerted me to the fact that the new challenge is up and running. I enjoy doing the challenges because it really makes me think in a different way. Thank you for your visit this week and your lovely comments on last month's offering. Where is this year flying to? See you soon. xxx Maggie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for your support Maggie. I like the challenges too; its good to have to focus on a specific theme. For me, I love challenging myself to try and do something different and produce my best work. Xxx

      Delete
  5. fabby card Barbara, it might look clean and simple but far from it am glad I am not the only one whose bin wins the battle sometimes but never the war lol xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are so right Linda; and once I'd decided on the design I had to keep going. I shall think often about not letting the bin win the war now!! Xxx

      Delete
  6. A great example of perfect stamping, Barbara - and with the Jazz Man it is not easy to achieve an even colour. ;~}

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Shelagh. I find if I ink up and stamp a solid silhouette stamp like that a couple of times first I get a much better result. This was a great tip from Jo Rice, and I find it really does work. Xxx

      Delete
  7. A lovely card Barbara. The simplicity of the final look masks the amount of work involved. x

    ReplyDelete
  8. Do love black and white work makes it look so crisp love your theme xx

    ReplyDelete
  9. A stunning CAS card design Barbara, just perfect in every detail...these really are my all time favourite type of cards....hugs..xx

    ReplyDelete
  10. Great blog Barbara - I love the count Barbara versus Bin :-)
    The end result was well worth all the effort you put into getting it right. Love the clean crispness of your card. xxx

    ReplyDelete
  11. Love your clean, crisp design, Barbara. I bet we have all got bins next to our craft desks, I know I have. The random musical notes really finish off the card. x

    ReplyDelete
  12. lovely CAS card. great one for males xx

    ReplyDelete
  13. Barbara are the musical stamp notes claritystamps can't see them on her sight x

    ReplyDelete
  14. Thank you thought she had a set would not come up on site at all but put in search came up xx

    ReplyDelete