Snap, Crackle, Crackle! at Frilly and Funkie

Hi everyone and welcome. I'm back with my contribution to the Funkie DT samples for the latest Frilly and Funkie challenge 'Snap, Crackle, Crackle!' Pamellia is our host for this one and here's how she introduces the latest theme;"Let's see some cracks on your creations! You can use crackle paint, crackle paste, crackle glaze, crackle accents, an old cracked image, a piece of cracked UTEE, a cracked pattern from a stencil or stamp, you can even doodle on your crackle design! Anything goes, as long as is cracks me up!!"

So, you know when you get a creative idea in your head (usually at the most inopportune moment!) about how you want something to look, but you're not sure how to accomplish it, finish it, or even whether it will work. Well that was definitely the case with this journal spread...

(click on the images for a closer look)

You won't believe what this started with - a covering of Aged Mahogany and Tarnished Brass Distress Paints smooshed around with a baby wipe! After that came a coat of white gesso to tone it all down and give a look of worn plaster. Before adding any paste I stamped 'Becca' to make sure her position on the page was clear, then out came the Crackle Paste and Crackle layering stencil. Once completely dry I added a thick layer of plain paste over 'Becca', let it partially dry, then pressed the stamp back into the paste. Now it was time to add a little colour...

I love how the Lindy's Stamp Gang Magicals and Starbursts develop a wonderful shimmer to them and are fixed when dry. The colours used over the gesso and paste come from the Industrial Chic set and enhance that aged plaster look that you get in old frescos. You can spritz them, paint with them and splatter them (all of which were done here). Time to own up now - I restamped into Becca using Black Archival Ink but it didn't come out as cleanly as I'd hoped (the more paste you use the less easy it is to restamp your image). So I stamped her onto a single ply of tissue with Archival Ink and adhered this over the stamped paste area to fix it. Job done - it worked!

With most of the design in place I needed to add some contrast colour. Using a mix of the green shades from the Industrials sets to colour a strip of paper, I then stamped on it using one of the images from the Tim Holtz Classics #3. The image worked so well I stamped it over the crackled paste areas on the rest of the spread. Having stuck these strips into place they were emphasised with a Distress Marker. You'll also spot copper filigree metal embellishments (with alcohol ink altered pearls) a wonderful Dream key, the stamped sentiment from Tim Holtz Life Quotes set and a couple of Idea-Ology rub ons. A final splattering of Picket Fence Distress Paint brought everything together.

It feels good to get this design out of my head and down on paper (making room for other stuff!) and I'm really pleased with how the crackle element worked. It's been really exciting to take a peak at what my Funkie team mates have come up with for this theme too, and I urge you to head on over to the Frilly and Funkie challenge blog to see for yourselves.

Thank you so much for dropping by today. I hope you feel inspired to join in with the 'Snap, Crackle, Crackle!' fun and even give journalling a go if you've been tempted but not yet tried it.
Whatever you're up to today, take care of yourselves, Jenny xxx