Wednesday 9 October 2013

Inspired by Alison - Alice and George!

This week on the Paper Artsy blog, the inspiring Alison Bomber aka 'Butterfly' of Words and Pictures has created some absolutely amazing projects - her dolly street just has to be seen to be believed: inventive, playful and original - a tour de force! I would love to have made something inspired by this... but I had to make cards! Now, like a lot of crafters, my crafting journey began with a few handmade cards and I so loved being creative I wanted to branch out. Now cards just don't seem to provide the challenge they did and I have to confess to putting off making them sometimes; but people do ask for a handmade card from time to time and I want to make them special, if I can, for that person. This month it's my dear Auntie Rene's eighty-sixth birthday and as well as wanting to make her a card from me, my mum asked if I would make one from her too! I set myself the challenge of exploring some new techniques courtesy of Alison and creating two cards that would be just right for Rene! And thanks to Alison's wonderful ideas and a desire to create special cards for a special auntie I really enjoyed myself!
A while back while sorting out my mum's house I came across two lovely old photos of a couple who turned out to be my Great-Great Grandparents. Auntie Rene, thanks to her interest in family research, has been able to put names to this couple and provide me with information about them. I needed to make 2 cards - that suggested a matching pair!
 I wanted each card to tell a little story. Oh, yes and the parrot feather in the middle! My hubby found this in the street the other day! It just had to feature, as my Great Grandfather, Percy, the son of this couple, had a beloved parrot. He was often to be seen walking around Peckham with Polly on his shoulder! All my mother's family including Aunty Rene have loved gardens and wild life! I wondered if they inherited this from my Great Great Grandfather, George Allen Payne whose card I began to create first.
For the backgrounds of both cards, I used an Ink and the Dog stamp from the Letters plate. I stamped this in Wendy Vecchi Archival ink, Cornflower Blue on a background sponged with Mermaid, Ice Blue and Lake Wanaka Frescos. George came from a little village near Abingdon called Milton. He loved music and he was a good student at the village school. He played the violin, but his great love was the church organ and when he was old enough to leave school, he was apprenticed to an organ builder in Lambeth by the name of Hunter. I tried to create the countryside origins of my Great Grandfather and his love of music by using the Hot Picks stamp with a dragon fly, the little birds in the grasses, musical notes and then a butterfly just landed above the photo, snipped from an Ink and the Dog Wings plate. For this I used Alison's technique of blending two different colours of ink in the stamping - in this case Potting Soil and Cornflower Blue - both by Wendy Vecchi - and clear embossing. I used a Tim Holtz stamp on a blended Cinnamon Fresco and Snowflake wash with some Lake Wanaka and a little Cornflower Blue for the background: it just seemed to fit with this studio photo of George that I transferred onto yellow cotton. Another technique I lifted from Alison's 'Wings' canvas is the button covered with stamped tissue and glazed with Metallic Glaze.
This is Alice, George's wife. All Rene could tell me about her was that she was the sister of Mr Hunter, George's employer. The Hunters would have been quite well-to-do yet Alice and George, the simple country lad, married.  I don't know if it was Alison's use of those lovely Paper Artsy feathers on her canvas - I now so want this stamp - but I knew I wanted to use the Paper Artsy Mini feather on her card and as I worked a Natural History theme seemed to form itself. I  would like to have used all Ink and the Dog stamps as Alison did, but I didn't have enough of these so I used Tim Holtz and Artistic Outpost stamps and a collaged bird's egg.  I would so love to own more 'Ink and the Dog' stamps - maybe Christmas? As I explained on my WOYWW a little story about this couple suggested itself. I imagined the Lambeth lady captivated by this simple country boy with his tales of finding nests of speckled eggs, hearing music in birdsong and watching the flight of dragon flies and butterflies. 
 Alison had used text as a background for her canvas. I took just a small torn piece of text from Alice in Wonderland with a wash of Cinnamon. For dimension I curled the edges of my torn pages and accented them with different Treasure Golds. You can just see the words, 'Said Alice' under the Hot Picks flowers stamped in Cornflower and accented with a pearl at the centre.

Although my projects are nothing like Alison's journal, canvas or street, I feel that her ideas have helped my imagination take flight and inspired me to create something that I hope will appeal to my much loved Auntie. Thank you, Alison and Paper Artsy for some great inspiration this week!





20 comments:

  1. wow, those are two beautifully made cards and what a lovely story to go with it. I hope your Great Aunt likes them - I am sure she can't fail to..

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  2. These cards are beautiful Julie Ann along with a wonderful story. Stunning colours and love you tried the fabric image technique, might try this too:-) x

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  3. Those are beyond cards, they are wonderfully special and personal works of art. I'm sure she will love them!

    Thank you for stopping by my blog earlier and for the kind comments.

    Happy Woyww,

    Sandy #23

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  4. I think you have made some beautiful cards with these lovely old photos and I am sure they will be treasured. I love how you have created the aged look with the cards so stunning
    Happy WOYWW and wishing you a great week
    Ria #50

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  5. Absolutely enchanting cards, Julie Ann - the photographs themselves are just wonderful, and it was great to hear about George and Alice. I love how you've taken inspiration from some of my bits and pieces and let your imagination fly - the cards you've created will be treasured by Rene, I'm sure. So much thought has gone into every detail and they are beautiful too. I think they're amazing. Thanks so much for joining in with the fun this week.
    Alison xx

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  6. Oh my gosh, they are stunning cards, I love that they are full of meaning too. Your aunt is going to love them & I have no doubt they will become family treasures in years to come.

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  7. Absolutely gorgeous cards, Julie Ann, and love the story behind them,

    Lucy x

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  8. OH what gorgeous creations full of meaning and certainly with lovely stories to tell!
    That feather is oh so special in so many ways (what a guy!)
    oxo

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  9. failed to say just how much I adore your color choices too!

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  10. I don't know whether to laugh or cry, I know my heart is bursting with pride and amazement, your story telling is spellbinding this card your creating is OUTSTANDING, it's fabulous to see art created out of love, it creates the best art work... The feathers, the egg, the stunning backgrounds, those gorgeous buttons those images on material,, I'm speechless, just kidding :). Miss Julie Ann we in the parliament are standing, cheering, standing ovation here, thanks so much for sharing it all, You should be very PROUD of yourself.. (((( BIG HUGS )))))
    PS, I'm so happy to see Miss Patty our other Magpie is visiting :O)..

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  11. What a wonderful idea to make a pair. And that feather just appeared? Both cards are beautifully made and definitely have your heart and soul poured into these two cards made especially for your Aunt Rene's birthday!! Alison is a real talent but so are you. I have marveled at your works on many occasions. You are a joy to follow Julie Ann.
    Sandy

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  12. Beautiful cards with a wonderful story, Those two card are fab idea, technique and heart. So gorgeous creations.

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  13. Hi Julie Ann I am sure aunty Rene will love these two cards, I loved reading how you got your inspiration from Alison and the history behind the photos. That little parrot feather was obviously meant to be part of this project it fits in perfectly with the colours. There is so much thought gone into every detail, each element has been carefully chosen, just lovely. Hugs Mo x

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  14. what a wonderful way to bring together modern techniques and such lovely old photos. Your Auntie is a very lucky lady ! x

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  15. Both your cards and your story are really wonderful!

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  16. Amazing cards, full of details and personal history. Can't fail to please your aunt !

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  17. Wow wow wow absolutely stunning gorgeous amazing cards, I love all the stamping, and the backgrounds are gorgeous. I love how you have brought in their stories as well, your work Julie Ann is out of this world :-) hugs Kezzy xxxxxx

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  18. Oh what a lovely blog post and how lovely to have found such old family photos and somebody to tell you all about who they were!! Great cards Julie Ann I am sure your aunt will love them x

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  19. These look stunning Julie Anne with a fantastic story to them too. The techniques and colours are just wonderful. How serendipitous for the feather to float by. Beautfiul work here! Nicola x

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