"Wedding Flowers" Mixed Media Layout for Helmar and Leaky Shed Studio

I've been a crafter since I was a young girl. So although I had not done much with flower arranging, I was game when Elizabeth asked me to create the bouquets for her and her bridesmaids. The wedding photographer captured them so beautifully.

I've used some of my favorite products to create this layout from the Leaky Shed Studio Chipboard and Helmar Adhesives to the gorgeous 7 Dots Studio Nature Walk paper collection.

"Wedding Flowers"

Tips and Techniques

Stop by the Helmar Blog to check out the details on how I use Zap Dots to raise my photos so that I can tuck flowers, chipboard, and other elements under and around my photos.

I've added texture to the Leaky Shed Studio Fern Flourish by dabbing with extra heavy gesso, then painting. 

The dragonfly wings are painted with metallic paint, then dusted with Donna Salazar's Clearsnap Twinkle Dust Glitter in Mixed Berries. The body was covered with Helmar 450 and sprinkled with silver microbeads. I've used Helmar 450 Quick Dry Adhesive to adhere these gorgeous chipboard pieces to the layout.

The flowers, chicken wire and metal leaves are adhered to the mixed media background with Helmar 450 Quick Dry Adhesive. 

As you can see here the flowers are positioned on different levels and layers. To place them properly I've used Liquid Scrap Dots to lift and arrange them where needed.

Here's a shot of the smaller cluster. The purple on the background was created with Pan Pastels and spritzed with Helmar Crystal Kote Fixative spray. I've also stamped randomly with Mix'd Media Inx.

Helmar Products

Zapdots ~ 1/2" Square, white

450 Quick Dry Adheseve

Premium Craft Glue

Liquid Scrap Dots

Crystal Kote Fixative spray
Paint/Glue Spreader

Leaky Shed Studio Products
Fern Flourish
Spring Dragonfly

Other Products
7 Dots Studio Nature Walk - Cotton, Musical Blooms
MME ~ Lost and Found - Record It Antique Alpha and Word Stickers
Metal Leaves ~ Etsy
Chicken Wire - white
Lace - stash
Petaloo ~ Canterbury Collection Rose Blossoms - white
Prima ~ Troika - white
Prima ~ Parisa Mayfair Mix
Prima ~ Wildflowers Pillar Pack - white
Wild Orchid Crafts ~ Sweetheart Blossoms - white
Wild Orchid Crafts ~ Cottage Roses 25mm, mixed purple/lilac
Wild Orchid Crafts ~ Cherry Blossoms - white
Clearsnap by Donna Salazar ~ Mix'd Media Inx - Sparrow, Midnight
Ranger ~ Distress Ink - Dusty Concord
Pan Pastels
Liquitex ~ Extra Thick Gesso
Liquitex ~ Gesso
Golden ~ Soft Gel, Matte
Golden ~ Light Molding Paste
Clearsnap by Donna Salazar ~ Twinkle Dust Glitter, Mixed Berries
Beadies ~ Microbeads, silver
Art Gone Wild by Donna Salazar ~ Vine
Close to My Heart ~ Distressed Backgrounds
Glitz ~ Distressing
Stampers Anonymous ~ Seamless Experience
TCW ~ 6 x 6" Mini Art Is ... Stencil

Thanks for stopping by! I treasure your comments.

~ Blessings ~

"Treasured Friend" Mixed Media Card for Helmar

One of my latests purchases is a set of Pan Pastels. This is my first project using them, and the colors and blending are fabulous. However, to keep the colors in place a fixative is suggested. Helmar's Crystal Kote Fixative spray worked perfectly with this medium. It's a workable fixative, so I could continue to work with the colors while avoiding unwanted smudges.

A birthday card for a very dear friend.

Tips and Techniques

I started with a card size piece of mixed media paper. I rubbed on and blended Pan Pastel color. Once I achieved the color I wanted, I misted the paper with Helmar Crystal Kote Fixative before moving on to the next step of stenciling with molding paste. Once the molding paste was dry, I applied more color then another misting of fixative.

The colored and stenciled paper was then adhered to a card base with Helmar Premium Craft Glue. I love that I this glue does not warp my papers, and that it gives me a few moments to adjust the placement before setting.

I also added color to my flowers with the Pan Pastels, and then misted them with Helmar Crystal Kote Fixative. I spread them out over a scrap piece of paper and misted them all at once. 

This retired Leaky Shed Studio border was heat embossed with Frantage Embossing Enamel.

The enameled chipboard and flowers were arranged, then adhered with Helmar 450 Quick Dry Adhesive. A couple of the flowers were raised and positioned with Helmar Liquid Scrap Dots.

Helmar 450 Quick Dry Adhesive adheres well to mixed media backgrounds like this. 

Helmar Products

Crystal Kote Fixative spray

450 Quick Dry Adhesive

Premium Craft Glue

Liquid Scrap Dots

More information on Helmar Product can be found here.

Other Products

White Cardstock

Mixed Media Paper

Petaloo ~ Color Me Crazy Trumpet Vine Spray, white

Petaloo ~ Penny Lane Forget Me Nots, mint

Wild Orchid Craft ~ 20mm Open Rose Ivory/Pale Pink

Jolee's Botique ~ Parisian Flowers

Leaky Shed Studio ~ Chipboard - circle border

Prima ~ Stencil - Flourish

Inkadinkado ~ Friend Stamp

Frantage ~ Embossing Enamel

Clearsnap - Donna Salazar Mixed Media Inx

Clearsnap ~ Embossing Powder

Pan Pastels

Golden ~ Light Molding Paste

Thanks for stopping by! I treasure your comments.

~ Blessings ~

"Bride" Mixed Media Layout for Donna Salazar with Open Lace Rose Flower Tutorial

It is always such a delight to work with Donna Salazar's amazing products. I'm blessed indeed to be part of her team of designers. Today, I'd like to share a wedding page of our daughter, Elizabeth. I've used some fun mixed media techniques which I describe in my Tips and Techniques section. I've also created these new "Open Lace Rose" flowers, and you'll find the tutorial towards the bottom of this post.

I've used the February Girlie Grunge Sketch-n-Color Challenge for inspiration. Pink is the color of love and so perfect for this wedding layout.

"Bride"

February Girlie Grunge Sketch-n-Color Challenge
(I turned the sketch as shown)

Details for our February challenge can be found here.

Tips and Techniques

Here's a close-up of my Open Lace Roses. You can locate the tutorial by scrolling down.

It's easy to create splatter with Donna's inks. I rubbed the ink pad on a craft sheet then added a couple drops of Acrylic Matte Medium and several spritzes of water. This makes a nice mixture that creates wonderful splatter. I used all three colors shown in the February Girlie Grunge Sketch-n-Color Challenge.

I colored white seam binding with Donna's Inks, then splattered with the ink mixtures. 

I spread pearl pen medium on these Want2Scrap Chipboard flourishes and title. 

Another view of the bow and chipboard. 

For my mixed media background, I used Donna's small Heart Stencil with molding paste, then applied Mix'd Media Inx Chiffon Embossing Powder while the molding paste was wet and heat set. The molding paste bubbles and creates gorgeous texture while melting the embossing powder.

The pink was a little brighter than I wanted, so I brushed it lightly with gesso. I splattered with all three colors. When dry, I brushed over the hearts and surrounding area with Soft Gel (Matte) mixed with the punch waste from the border punched edges. If you look carefully you can see the little dots of paper mixed in. Finally, I splattered again with all three colors. 

A close-up of the bottom cluster. You can see I inked and splattered the flowers as well.

I've tucked some Bitty Blossoms in amongst the Open Lace Roses. The tutorial for my Bitty Blossoms Flowers can be located here. 

Open Lace Rose Flower Tutorial

Supplies

• Donna Salazar Designs ~ Spellbinders Grand Peony Dies
• Donna Salazar Designs ~ Spellbinders Rose Creations Dies
• Printed cardstock weight paper. **Note - I've used different papers here than for the flowers on this layout. Both are from Donna's Natural Beauty Collection.
• Lace Scraps (Either lace wide enough to die cut or a lace panel.)
• Paper Scraps
• Decorative brad or button
• Liquid glue such as Helmar 450 Quick Dry Adhesive
• Spellbinders Artisan X-plorer
• Large stylus or pen with rounded cap.
• Round Nose Pliers (Or round object like an artist paint brush)

For the purpose of this tutorial, I have numbered the dies in each set from smallest to largest with 1 being assigned to the the smallest die. (Please note, the Grand Peony dies are much larger than Rose Creations, seeming out of proportion. For instance, the #3 Grand Peony die is nearly the same size as the #5 Rose Creations die.)

I've illustrated the process for the largest size flower, you can alter the die sizes in a number of different ways to create a variety of flower sizes to fit your project.

Step 1. Cut 2 each of paper petal layers from Grand Peony dies #3 and #5. (Photo following step 2.)

Step 2. Cut 1 each of lace layers from Rose Creation dies #3 and #5

***Hint*** For lace to cut somewhat cleanly, it helps to layer as follows: place die on cutting surface face up, then lace, then paper scrap. If you try to cut without the paper layer, in my experience it will barely cut. Even with the paper layer, you may still need to do some minor trimming.

Step 3. Lay paper petal layer face down on a foam pad. Use a large stylus or pen with a rounded cap to press and roll each petal to cup.

Another shot to show how the petals curve.

Step 4. Turn petal over and with right side up, roll stylus around the center which will depress the center and push the petals upward. 

Step 5. Curl back the petal edges using round nose pliers or around a small diameter rod like an artist paint brush. 

Step 6. Using round nose pliers or the end of a round rod like an artist brush, give a twist to the center of each petal to crimp.

Step 7. Glue layers together offsetting the petals as you go. Secure the center with a decorative brad.

***Hint ~ For additional color and distressing, you can mist, paint, splatter, gesso, glitter . . . Any girlie grunge technique works beautifully.

I hope you've been inspired to create a project for Donna's

February Girlie Grunge Sketch-n-Color Challenge.

Details for the challenge can be found here. 

Donna Salazar Products

GCD Studio ~ Natural Beauty Collection

Clearsnap ~ Mix'd Media Inx - Pomegranate; Berries; Chiffon; Stormy; Truffle

Clearsnap ~ Mix'd Media Inx - Chiffon

Spellbinders ~ Grand Peony

Spellbinders ~ Rose Creations

Spellbinders ~ Bitty Blossoms

Want2Scrap ~ Heart Stencil (small)

Other Products

Want2Scrap ~ Chipboard - Style D - Martha; Style C - Kathie; Bride

Want2Scrap ~ Bling - Say It with Pearls - Frilly Flourish Swirl - White Pearls

The Paper Studio Spare Parts ~ Bling Brads; Gemstone Flower Brads

Seam Binding - White (Really Reasonable Ribbon)

Spellbinders ~ Fantastic Flourish Two

Martha Stewart - Lace Heart Edge Punch

DecoArt Americana ~ Jacobean Floral Stencil

Golden ~ Soft Gel (Matte), Light Molding Paste

Viva ~ Pearl Pen, Cream

Blick Artists ~ Acrylic Matte Medium

Helmar ~ Craft and Hobby PVA Glue, 450 Quick Dry Adhesive, Fabric Glue

Thanks for stopping by! I treasure your comments.

~ Blessings ~