Wednesday 24 September 2014

The Dragons' Dream - Lace and Wonder

Hello and welcome to Magpieheaven. Today I'm dreaming with the Dragons again and this time the very talented Helen has chosen our theme. Please do take a look at the amazing collection of tags the Dragon design team, including our lovely GD, Deborah, have created  here! I was really excited and eager to play when I saw Helen's challenge this fortnight and her interpretation of it is gorgeous! She would like us to use lace on our tags; the letter 'W' and - of course - at least one stamped image. Here is my take on 'Lace and W'.
I started with a jumbo manila tag, painted with PaperArtsy Fresco in Chalk and a little Haystack. I then swiped three different colours of distress ink over my craft mat: Broken China, Peacock Feathers and Evergreen Bough - and spritzed with water. Normally I would have dragged my tag through the misted colours, but I decided to try a little something new that I had seen somewhere in Blogland. I like to credit my inspiration, but this time I can't remember where I saw this technique, so if it was you, please put up your hand! And forgive me for not acknowledging your technique! I pressed a Prima flourish stencil into the inks and then transferred to my tag. This is the background it gave me.
I loved the marbled effect so whoever you are Thank You, Thank You, Thank You! You can probably see that I distressed the edges using a Prima tool and some Walnut Stain Distress Ink. Now it was time to add more layers - Script from PaperArtsy LPC028 in Wendy Vecchi Cornflower Blue Archival and some gold embossing.
Crafty Individuals have a lovely plate of different lace designs, which is great for backgrounds. I stamped this onto the tag, using Wendy Vecchi's Potting Shed Archival to give a vintage look. As I created the tag, I began to think about my chosen word, 'Wonder', and how childhood is a time of wonder at the smallest everyday things.
I stamped the little girl from Artistic Outpost's Think and Wonder plate onto spritzed and lightly stamped and stencilled card. I had also stamped the back and coloured it for interest when the corners were curled. After painting the tiny Prima wooden scissors I added a miniature pearl as a faux hinge.
 I wanted to give the impression of stamped lace becoming real so I added some scraps of lace stiffened with Heavy Gel Medium. Is that a butterfly or a lace bow in the little girl's hair? Tickets to shows, the cinema and the panto were so much a part of childhood wonder and excitement! I die-cut these with a Spell-binder metal die and used Inky Pool and Chalk Frescos with a little Florentine Treasure Gold stencilling over the top. They are fastened with an eyelet and ribbon.
A happy childhood memory for me is being curled up small under my Grandma's chair, listening to the steady clatter of the treadle of her ancient Singer sewing machine. She made bridal dresses and I loved to play with the scraps of lace and silk and tiny covered buttons, and wonder at the intricate metal work on the treadle. Above my head was the dangerous part of the machine, which I must never play with. My mum had hurt her finger on the needle when she was a little girl so BE CAREFUL! Somehow this long ago accident mingled in my imagination with the story of Sleeping Beautiful, a fairy tale that I found both enchanting and very, very scary!
Our thoughts in childhood are so often woven with wonder and - however difficult, however happy - that is what makes a childhood magical. Thank you for dropping by Magpieheaven today. I hope that in the coming days you will find something wondrous in the world around you and that you will want to make a tag including lace and a letter W and link it up HERE.

15 comments:

  1. SQUAWK !!!! Miss Julie Ann you are the Wonder, this is soooooo Brilliantly Creative, starting with the gorgeous background and will defiantly try this, then all the beautiful lace stamped everywhere, that beautiful image with the curled golden edges, loooooove the lace tuck in behind her, then the Lacey butterfly in her hair, then the tickets, like an arm coming out, that was darn Brilliant, all the details are AMAZINGGGG, okay I have found a wondrous thing in my world that would be your creations, THANK YOU for being such a wonderful inspiration to me and others, Hope you have a wonderful week, I can't wait to dream again with the Dragons Team. ((( BIG HUGS))). Love I'm the first to comment :O)...

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  2. Lots of wonderful layers and things to look at as always with your beautiful work! Your tag looks fabulous!

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  3. I love your tag - as always you take a challenge and run with it - fabulous interpretation. Thanks for being so kind about my window, lol!

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  4. Lovely narrative to draw us into your gorgeous tag Julie Ann. 'Wonder'ful attention to details and beautiful imagery. I so enjoyed my visit again, thank you!

    Hugs
    Lesley Xx

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  5. That's amazing, such a great tag with wonderful details.

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  6. Julie Anne, I absolutely adore this, your vintage style is perfection to me. I love the lace stamp, your background......just everything. So so beautiful. Ok think you have the picture lol.
    Julie x

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  7. Beautiful tag Julie Ann and a lovely little enchanting story too :)

    Hugs
    Donna xxx

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  8. It is touching that as you created this tag your thoughts turned towards your own childhood, bringing back comforting memories for you.
    There is a dreamy feeling to this tag, almost as though we are stepping into the mists of the past. I had this sense of this girl now in her twilight years and she sits, almost in a trance as her memory takes her back to her childhood, fond memories of a special outing to the theatre, etc, memories of the dress she wore that day which was trimmed with the prettiest of lace.
    Julie Ann, you have such a beautiful way with your art and your stories.
    Wishes
    Lynne

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  9. Wonderfully beautiful JulieAnn! Just like you! xoxo

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  10. This is gorgeous, julie Ann. I love the background effect and the way you have coloured the little girl,

    Lucy x

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  11. Gorgeous and love the stamped lace, looks real xx

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  12. Amazing tag and gorgeous details xx

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  13. Gorgeous tag, Love all the yummy layers & fantastic inky background...the image is so beautiful....Hugs May x x

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  14. Oh wow another fantastic tag, I really love the background and the way you have told the story of your grandma. I can picture my grandma who I only met once, she used to sew. My mum tells me alot about both my grandmas as my dad died when I was 5, his mother died when I was 2, my grandad when I was 6, my grandma on my mums side I never met as she died before I was born and so did my grandad. I truly wish I had met them. Kezzy :-) xxx

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