"A Rose For Nan" - My first Pencil Artwork Complete

So how long has it been right!!! You were probably wondering where I have been, and while thoughts of being smooshed under the giant collapsed piles of washing as they avalanche in my house come to mind, really I have been distracted by life, my chronic illness, and my family, and getting my beautiful boy settled into more suitable schooling and all sorts of other things. But do not be saddened... I have managed to craft during that time... In fact I have been working on something special!!

Since (re)learning to colour and discovering pencils and copics and distressed inks I have had a desire to stretch my skills away from stamping and to challenge myself by creating pieces of my own artwork. I guess I was always second guessing my own confidence though in my ability to do so and so I didn't even try and just kept on plodding along. Then I was hospitalized last year in October and that month long stint gave me plenty of boring time to work on a piece of graphite artwork I called "Lady With Blue Hair" that when finished I ended up being really proud of! You can take a look at that blog post HERE if your interested. This piece started me realizing that "Hey!!, I might be able to do this!!!" So after another month of squirming I took the plunge and set out to do my very first Coloured Pencil artwork.

Of course I choose a really hard multi hued Rose as my first piece because "Go Hard or Go Home!!" right!!! BooYah!! :/ and off I went to my camping trip with all of my art gear, and my easel, and I spent nearly every day of that two week trip colouring away, being spurred on by the daily bystanders I had that would come by to check on my progress... It would have been perfect if not for the fact that my nasty illness flared up again and started me fainting and collapsing for no reason we could see and a week after coming home from camping with daily collapses and me not even able to walk to the toilet without falling I was hospitalized once again for another week putting my artwork on hold until I got better.

I wasn't able to pick it up again for quite a few months. I was just too unwell, and didn't have the motivation too. But once I got back to it, no one was stopping me. I was determined to finish it.

I'm proud to say That I completed my artwork naming it "A Rose For Nan" in memory of my Nan, an avid Rose Gardener who has passed 2 years ago now. I'm sure she would love it. I couldn't keep a weed alive, but at least this will not fade, nor die, and my memory of her will live on always in it.

So here it is completed!!!

For all of those interested, I took MANY photos during the process of making this piece, and I've collated them into a short YouTube video.

That was so many hours of work.... and it's such a small piece really, smaller than an A5 but anyhooo. 

Since completing this piece it has featured on the Anne Kullberg's Magazine for Coloured Pencil Artists Facebook Page as a June 2016 Featured Artist! which was such a pleasure.

I've also joined with "Fine Art America" and "Pixels" started selling prints and other items of my artwork. It's all so cool and exciting to see your own artwork printed and/or framed, as pillows and PHONECASES!!.

 

Of course it's all so very new so I have only the one artwork up at the moment, but I'm working on the next right now and hope it to be up soon! 

Well that's all the art news I have at the moment. I hope you enjoyed seeing what I have been working on and I better get back to my next artwork... 

If you want a hint.... HOOT HOOT!!! ;)

XXOO

Happy COLOURING!!!

MY ETSY STORE IS NOW OPEN!!!

So Excited!! After Months and Months and MONTHS!!!! of hinting and promising I have FINALLY gotten my Etsy store open and started..

While still early, I will be adding cards to the store daily until all of my current stock is online so you will have to bare with me... and just keep on having to check back on it for progress!! ;) 

So if you have ever looked at any of my cards and thought Hmmmm, I really like that, and would LOVE to own one of my creations, please pop on over and have a look. :) 

You will find in my store many hours of love delicately woven into each and every item. I have a variety of Cards, all of my own design and creation, in an array of colours, styles, sizes and prices to suit your particular needs.

I will have a range of cards available including my OOAK (One Of A Kind) cards, my Limited Quantity Cards (Individually Hand Coloured cards that are reproduced up to 5 -10 times) while others are Digitally Designed and then hand assembled. 

Using a variety of mediums including Inks, Copics Marker and Polychromo Pencils before being decorated in high quality embellishments and Scrapbooking Papers the cards I create are never truly identical to each other, even of the same design. That is the Joy of being Handmade!

I will hopefully be adding Mini Albums, Decorative Wall Hangings and Name Plaques to the store just to name a few things, along with my cards so there will be plenty of items for you to select from. 

So come have a look at my store and I hope you enjoy what you see!

https://www.etsy.com/au/shop/CherryRoseCottage#

Happy Crafting!!

Xo

Amanda

Cherry Rose Cottage Crafts

The Magical Restoritive Powers Of RESPITE! - And The Completion of My Wizard

So after some extremely stressful few weeks in my house I had the absolutely pleasure of going away for the first time on my OWN for the weekend, while some respite worker came in stayed at my house for two nights with my son... and boy did I not only need it, but it did me so much good... I have come back invigorated and refreshed and really understanding that this is what I need if I am to not only survive being a single mum with a child with multiple disabilities and behavioural challenges but to thrive... for his well being as well as my own, which is also challenging as my own health is also not good... but anyway... I had a marvelous weekend away at my parents on site caravan in the glorious bushland setting of Daylesford, in the middle of Winter and literally missed out on it snowing at my camp site by 5km!!! I was thoroughly ANNOYED!! I WANTED SNOW!!.. LOL

But anyhoo... 

You will ALL be probably happy to hear that in my time away I Got back on my pencils and managed to do a little colouring.. in between my eating of gorgeous local produce down at the Local Cider Mill, of course matching that with a bottle of their organically brewed cider, and getting my Tarot cards read... something I had never had done before, and was BLOW AWAY by how accurate this gentleman was...

but I diverge!!! ;) 

I got out my delightfully magical Wizard digital stamp called "Wiz" by Mo Manning, which you can purchase HERE, (oh, and enabler alert, Mo has a SUMMER SALE ON!!! 20% OFF ALL STAMPS)  I had started but not finished and decided he looked rather sad half coloured and that it was time I stopped procrastinating and coloured him up!!... So without further Ade!! my gorgeous Mr Wiz!!

The Digital Stamp is called "Wiz" and was created by Mo Manning

This image has been coloured by in Polychromo Pencils Only

No Blending solutions of any kind was used

No blending stumps were used

Just pencil on pencil blending

The paper is Arches 300gsm HotPressed Smooth Watercolour Paper

I'm Sorry but I cannot provide a list of colour for anyone as I did not keep track of them all... there were just tooooooooo many!

The sentiment is my own creation so please credit me after the sentiment (A. Jensen) if you use it in your own works, with a link back to my blog in your post if possible. I appreciate your honesty in this regard. :) 

Well that's all from me for this post... I might have something else tomorrow. I have been a busy little beaver!!!

Happy Crafting!!

And remember to check out that 20% off Summer Sale at Mo's Digital Pencil!!!

Xo

Back At It With A Work In Progress

Hi Guys!!! Well after two weeks break, I'm back on the Polyies colouring up a storm... Still taking it easy, so this is just a work in progress picture to let you know I'm still around and living!! :)

This is a gorgeous image by Mo Manning by "Wiz" which you can purchase HERE

This is the picture of him with his First Layer of pencil on his coat.. 

And this is with his second final layer on his coat... Isn't amazing how much difference that second layer makes.. really increase the depth and colour of the image.

Ironically, Now having created SO much contrast and shadowing in his coat, I'll have to go back over his Beard and Skin and darken them up to match... but I'll wait till I finish the piece before I muck around with those little edits. :)

Will I hope you enjoyed this little sneak peek. Hopefully the next post will be him all finished and framed. :)

Happy Crafting. 

Xo Amanda 

Jumping Lamb Card Featuring "Emmy With Lamb"

This week I've made ANOTHER baby card in preparation for a little baby girl who will be coming into the world in June. This card though features something quite special. it's interactive!! yep... The little lambs actually rotates giving the card an appearance of the lambs leaping!!!

I'm totally in love with it and so glad it turned out. 

I've used the sweet little "Emmy with Lamb" image that Mo Manning created earlier on in the year.  It was just right with her little lamb doll fitting perfectly with my theme. 

A match made in heaven. :) What do you think!!

 

 "Emmy" has been coloured primarily with Copics, and finished with Polychromo Pencils.  I thought she needed to be sitting in a field of grass.. Only fitting really!! :)

 This is the button handle on the inside of the card that you turn to make the Lambs turn. :) I thought it would make a cute handle. It's actually two buttons stacked on top of each other, to make it a bit easier to "handle".. Teehee.. I made a funny!!.

Card Ingredients:

"Emmy with Lamb" by Mo Manning

Coloured in Copics and finished with Polychromo Pencils

"FQB - In The Meadow" Digital Scrap booking Kit by NitWit Collections

3D foam Dimensional used through project. 

Stencil Plastic has been used to create the Jumping Lamb "Wheel"

Superglue

1 Medium and 1 Large Button. 

Silhouette Cameo to fussy cut the pieces

"Antique Linen" Tim Holtz Distress Ink used to distress all of the edges of the paper pieces. 

Well I hope you have enjoyed this weeks little card from me. 

I look forward to bringing you something new next week. 

Happy Crafting

Xo HUGS

This card has been entered into the following challenges:

Challenge #121 Anything Goes w/Optional Humorous Sentiment & FREEBIE

Little Red Wagon : Challenge # 287 - "B"elieve It!

Welcome Baby w/ "Swing Star Boy"

This week over at Mo's Clubhouse blog we are throwing our lovely DT member Francesca Franz a VIRTUAL BABY SHOWER to celebrate the birth of her precious little boy Filippo. In celebration everyone on the DT team has created a Baby Shower Card for Franz... This is mine!!

 I've used the cosmically cute "Swing Star Boy (s)" for my image by the fabulous Mo Manning. A sentiment (shown inside the card) is include when you purchase this digital image. 

A female version is also available HERE. 

Image has been coloured in Polychromo Pencils.

I have surrounded this little fellow with golden stars hung from strands of twine!! :) The background papers are from the NitWit Collections. 

Card Ingredients:

"Swing Star Boy (s)" Digital Image by Mo Manning

Coloured In Polychromo Pencils

Background Papers from "NitWit Collections" 

Stars hung with Twine

Star Paper from my stash.  

I hope you have enjoyed my little card this week for our Virtual Baby Shower. Don't forget we have a Baby Shower Contest running at the moment on Mo's Clubhouse Blog, so pick a Mo Manning baby image and enter a card to win a Mo Manning Rubber Stamp!!

Happy Crafting Xo

Amanda

"Baby Shower" For Someone Special

Someone very close and special to me is having her first baby... and so OF COURSE I was going to make her a card!!! I mean, what kind of a dodgy friend would I be if I didn't make her a personalised AMANDA card... with a Mo's image.. Of Course!!

Today I have used the simple but lovely "Baby Shower"... It's quite an obvious choice.. seeing it's a Baby Shower I'm attending... and this is a Baby holding an umbrella!! I love how this image is kinda gender neutral, so you can colour her/him up any way you want to make it a boy or a girl...

I've been inspired by another DT member, the Lovely Kim Bell, to get out my Distressed Inks and have a bit of a paint this week, but of course.. it wouldn't be me at the moment, unless I added Polychromo pencils SOMEWHERE!!LOL.. and because they both use the exact same paper type, my Arches 300gsm Hot press Smooth Water colour paper.... Phew.. what a mouth full... they worked EXTREMELY well together.. as you can see by the final picks.. The hair has been done in Polyies, as well as the green spots on the Umbrella and the background base grey's. :) So expect to see more combo distress ink and Polyies from me in the future... or Polyies and Copics... because I REALLY have to get some more practice in with them before I forget for to use them all over again!! LOL

So anyhoooo .... onto my card!!

Card Ingredients:

"Baby Shower" Digital Image By Mo Manning

Painted/Coloured in Tim Holtz Distress Reinkers and Polychromo Pencils

"FQB - Tickled Pink" Digital Scrapbooking Kit by Nitwit Collections

Elements Distressed in Tim Holtz "Vintage Photo" and "Tea Dye" Distressed Inks

All Elements cut out using my Silhouette Cameo... I LOVE MY CAMEO!!!

Card is a 15.5x15.5cm Pre-Brought Kraft Card

3D Dimensional Foam pads 

Well that's it for this week peeps. Hope to see you next week!!

Thanks For stopping by... Happy Crafting!!

Xo

Bip Bip Birthday Tag

Hello Everyone... Well this has been ONE EXHAUSTING WEEK!! I took my not so little boy (15yo) camping for the Easter weekend on my own, and because of my chronic illness, even though I'm doing well at the moment, it took a lot more out of me than I expected...so I've had a lot of sleepy days since, and barely enough energy to get out of bed let alone move off the couch! so I will apologise to you right off the bat for this really short blog post... and also for the super poor quality of my photo... I was not even sure I'd be able to finish a piece for the weekly inspiration, but I have managed!!! Unfortunately it's NIGHTTIME and so I had no natural light to take a photo light I normally do.. So if you just tolerate the cruddy photo for a half a day... I promise in the morning, bright and early I'll take some better photos and post them!!! :) As promised, I'm back and have upoloaded the new photos... but have left the old photo below as an illustration of POOR PHOTO SKILLS!! lol...

So without any more waffling! Here's my gorgeous tag, using "Bip Bip Birthday"... a Super cute little Robot by Mo Manning.. of course!!

Now This is the OLD NIGHT TIME PHOTO!! I've left it here to illustrate just how much a difference  your photograph of your piece can make. In the above pictures the image is clear and crisp, the colours stand out and are bright and actually reflect how the true colours I how I coloured this little cutie!! You can see the Bluish tinge I placed on much of his metal body.... As you can see in the below picture the image is dull, with an orange/brown cast that I could not get ris of with photo manipulation.. it was the overhead "warm lighting" from our lightbulbs... this interfers with the colours drowning out certain colours, and making others just look plain wrong... The photo itself is also grainy! and it's not that I am poor at taking photos, just there is not enough natural lighting, and you should never use flash photography were photographing your cards, because it bounces of the the weirdest places, like the sheen of your PENCILS!! or the alcohol in the your copics make the ink from the printer shiny, so it bounce off there... and thats without considering all of the BLING some people put on there pieces... So my advice... if you have the ability to, take your photos in a light filled room, not in direct sunlight, on a consistent background.
I use just a plain piece of white cardstock A1 size, folded in half sitting on a chair in my BATHROOM!!! because the light is filtered through the rippled glass in the window.
I take MANY SHOTS, from MANY different angles.
Then they all get uploaded into my computer where I use Picassa to weed out the cruddy shots, then I crop them to size and colour correct any that are too blue!... now this is also A MUST!! every camera, whether is be a mobile or an SLR fancy smancy camer will have flaws, and most photos will need colour correction. so have a play with the programs you have and see what you can achieve with your photos. Usually mine will require the blue tinit to be corrected to slightly more yellow, an issue particule to my mobile phone camera, slightly more shadowing, and then slightly more highlight. Then it resembles as close as I'm going to get it to what I ACTUALLY PAINTED in real life!!
Anyhooo.. This wasn't MEANT to be a photography lesson.. LOL.. I will do a tutorial on this at some stage!! :)

Card Details:

Image: "Bip Bip Birthday" by Mo Manning

Coloured in Polychromo Pencils

Digital Papers and Embellishments is a Digital Scrapbooking Kit "FBQ - Some Assembly Required" by Nitwits Collections

Tassel I made from some cross stitch thread I had laying around! :)

Thanks for Popping By

Happy Crafting

Xo

Mushroom Forest Pop up - Featuring Amanita in Polychromos

Hello... well it's Good Friday here in Australia, (Thursday everywhere else, Timezones are such whacky things!!) and so not being religious myself...I just wanted to wish everyone this coming weekend a Merry Easter Egg!! LOL... I hope you eat lots of chocolate and get to visit with lots of friends and family and have a merry old time.

Now lets get onto my card... This week I had SO MUCH FUN!!! I got playing with my PENCILS AGAIN!!! whooooo hooooooo!!! I LOVE MY POLYCHROMOS!!! so if anyone is one the fence about buying pencils, or are tossing up about which brand.. one.. GET OFF THE FENCE and get your beehind into the art store and go buy some.. they are soooo much fun.. and too, BUY POLYCHROMOS!! you will not regret it!! Anyhoooo.. a little off track. teehee... I do that.. sometimes.. :/

So I finally got to play with what I will now and forever more affectionately call my Polys on an image that was not an Animal!!, Yep I had to have more then just blending skills... LOL, and did I have a little gem to play with. I've had this image stashed away for quite some time, and I'm so glad I waited to use her... and I think you'll just LOVE what I did with her, cause I had some FUN!!!

I "GUESS" I'll maybe show you the card then shall I... *Great big cheeky smile*

I MADE A POP UP MUSHROOM FOREST!!!... oh crud.. I just realised the heading of the post kinda gave it away... Oh well... ITS STILL SUPER COOL!!!. 

Isn't "Amanita" the Toadstool Baby Fairy just the sweetest!!! You can purchase here from Mo's Digital Pencil... Just follow THIS LINK!!! Here.. I'll give you a closer look at her CUTENESS!!! 

I've coloured her completely in Polys (Polychromo Pencils) without any blending fluids of paint thinners... This is just pencil on pencil and LOTS OF LAYERS and BLENDING!!! and yes... my hand is all crampy and feels like an eighty year old with arthritis now.. apparently I need to develop "a pencils hand"... I think I just need to chop it off.. LOL

Anyhoo.. I better go back to the start... and show you the front cover, and then I'll let you have a look at some more picies and angles. 

Isn't is JUST ADORABLE!!!

Now for all the details, I'm sure you would like...

Digital image by Mo Manning called "Amanita" 

Polychromo Pencils used to colour image. *I have collected the list of pencils used, but will post in another blog, as I lost the bit of paper!! :(

Digital Scrap booking paper and paper embellishments from NitWit Collections called "FQB - Thicket Collection"

Pop up Card is an SVG file by Lori Whitlock called "a2 baby boy blocks pop up card" *I have altered this design to fit my purpose

3D dimensional Pop Dots used to add dimension to pieces

Tim Holtz Tea Dye Distressed Ink used on edges of paper. 

Silhouette Cameo used to fussy cut all of my pieces!! YAY FOR NOT MORE FUSSY CUTTING!!!

So I think that's it! 

Thank you for popping by. I hope you enjoyed looking at my card and that it inspires you to think outside the box with your own creations. 

Happy Crafting!!

HUGS Xo

Amanda

This Card has been entered into the following Challenges:

613 Avenue Create: Challenge #118 - Anything Goes

Easter Chickie Card!

Hi there... well this is my first post linked in with our new Mo's Clubhouse Blog... Isn't is Amazing!! I'm so excited.. Now remember we currently have a Mo's Spring Colouring Contest going on on the blog to celebrate it's opening, so make sure you pop a Spring inspired card onto the blog for your chance to win ONE OF FOUR!! that's right ONE OF FOUR Mo Manning Designed Rubber stamps from Penny Black or Stamping Bella. 

We are stilling running our Mo's Digital Pencil Challenge Blog as well!! yes.. Very busy little DT girls we are LOL... so remember that has now changed to MONTHLY challenges not fortnightly... and it's still ANYTHING GOES with OPTIONAL THEMES!!! SO make sure you pop a card in there for a chance to win a $5 store voucher to Mo's Digital Pencil online store!!

Now onto my card this week Mo released this absolutely GORGEOUS little "Easter Chickie" and I got to play with my new Polychromo pencils... So I have used this image to make into a card.. I went CAS, something I don't do very often, but I think the image just spoke for itself! 

So I'm not going to waffle on today LOL... so onto the piccies!! Cause thats what you REALLY are here for... Teehee.. 

Now seeing I've already listed all the colours for "Easter Chickie" in a previous blog post to this I won't post them again...But if you are after the Polychromo colours then you can find them HERE!

Thanks for popping by... and I'll see you next week without another DT make. 

Happy Crafting! HUGS

My "Easter Chickie" in Polychromo Pencil with Colour Details

Can I Just say WOW!! The response from everyone over my "Easter Chickie" has been phenomenal! I never expected such a response from one first real pencil image. so THANK YOU too everyone who has commented and given such lovely comments and encouragements. 

Now I have had quite a few people asking me to list details of what colours I used and what paper so I thought I'd do a Blog Post just on this. Please note that no blending fluids of any kind were used in this colouring, and I did not use a blending stump. This is just layering of pencils. :)

 

Digital Image "Easter Chickie" by Mo Manning 

Paper: Arches 300gsm Smooth Hotpress Watercolour paper

Pencils: Faber Castel Polychromo's

Chicks Body: 186, 187, 111, 109, 107, 106, 102, 103

Cheeks: 131, 189

Feet & Beak: 186, 187, 115

Basket:199, 280, 285, 179, 182, 183

Rabbit:274, 272, 101, 131, 189, 132

Grass:278, 174, 167, 260, 170

Well I hope that helps those who were asking what colours I used. :) 

Thanks for popping by.. and Thank you again for all the lovely feedback!!

Happy Crafting! Xo

Oh I Got Me Some PENCILS!!!

So I could not resist myself. After seeing all of these beautiful pencil projects over at Kit and Clowder over the last 3 months and with there release of there new "Perfecting Pencils" class... I just HAD to have me some pencils... So I saved me some money!! and bought myself the "Perfecting Pencils Class" which allowed me to research which pencils were going to be the best for what I wanted them for and TADDDDDAAAA.. I bought me some FANCY SHMANCY PENCILS!!!

lol...

I've ended up Polychromos because I read on the Internet and saw to many thing on YouTube about lead breakages and bad quality control on Prismacolour and figured I that I wasn't going to be spending $300 odd on a pencil set to sharpen them away just to be able to use it once!!

So here's what I ended up with...

I purchased this amazing set online from The Art Shop in Australia. They gave me a fantastic price that worked out $50 more then getting it just in the normal tin!!

Now for the funny first try pictures. I had a bit of an unsuccessful play with them on the second day of owning them. I following the colours of skin tones that came with my lesson... however applied them WAY TO FAR OUT!! So instead of it being a cast shadow, it made my little person appear MASSIVELY sun burnt... or just "Brown".. LOL But hey.. I was just having fun.. and learning how they work...

 One "Clowdie" (a fellow peer on the Kit and Clowder Facebook page" suggested I should turn it into a Mouse!! or a Bear!! Lol.. I followed through with her suggestions.. but I thought a MONKEY was more appropriate!!! Teehee

Now we should also probably note, that this was just one some scrap paper I had lying around... I had by this point realised that this paper was indeed CRUD!! and I would NOT be using it for future pencil work! LOL

So today when I woke up the lovely Mo Manning had posted a new digital image of an "Easter Chickie" which is on sale for $1 for the next 24hrs.. and after some giggles and fun over the position of the "eye's" on the image... and some alterations on Mo's part.. the digi was re-released!! and I just HAD to have him to practice my pencils on...

Unlike my previous "Monkey" LOL.. this one turned out splendidly well and I'm SUPER chuffed with it... I printed the image on Arches 300gsm Smooth Hotpress Watercolour paper using my Lazer printer. This image has ONLY been coloured in Pencils with no use of blending fluid or oils... just laying and blending with pencils. :)

 If you'd like to learn how to colour with Pencils I HIGHLY recommend The "Perfecting Pencils" class at Kit and Clowder. They go through lots of pencil theory and you get to complete three different projects using either Prismacolour, Spectrum Noir or Polychromos... It's a Wonderful Class. :) 

Anyhoo. Just wanted to share my first goes with my pencils, so I can come back here in a years time and see how far I have come.. We all have to start somewhere.. :)

and Remember if you want this DARLING little "Easter Chickie" for ONLY $1 then you better head over to Mo's Digital Pencil in the next 24hrs before it goes back to it's normal price!! 

Happy Crafting! Xo