Studio Open House - A Touch of Paris!

It's a Spotlighting Technique!

Do you want to "shine a spotlight" on part of your stamped image? 

Spotlighting Technique is a fun way to use detailed stamps, color part of the image, punch out a portion of the image, and highlight it with glitter. It adds depth to your card or scrapbook page, and it's pretty easy to do. The results are fabulous!


I learned this technique on the weekend from my new Stampin'Up friends Nicole and Jenna.

 

Step #1 - Stamp your image twice (use black ink).

Step #2 - I coloured in the ears of the dog, nose of both dog and cat, and the ears of the cat on both images. Then I chose two colours (red and green). On the one image I coloured the dog's hat stripes,  and the cat's sweater stripes in red. On the second image I coloured the same areas with green.

Step #3 - With 2-Way glue, add glue to the areas you just coloured on both images, and sprinkle them with glitter. I used Glitzy Glitter by Stampendous (Diamond).

 

Step #4 - Choose one image you want to punch out a part(s) of, this will be used to highlight the other image. I used a Martha Stewart Snowflake punch.

    

 

Step #5 - Line up the layered punch out(s) over the main image that wasn't punch, and glue it down.

Step #6 - Finish your card. 

The base of this card is 5 1/2" x 4 1/4". I then added a piece of snowflake embossed paper where the snowflakes in view have been glittered. The image was double matted first with green and then red/white scrolls and then I added dimensions for some 3D affect.

Happy Card Making! ~ Sharka

The Wheels on the Bus...

As we all know "The Wheels on the Bus" is a popular children's song. It is popular on journeys to keep children amused because it has a very repetitive rhythm. 

It may seem that summer just arrived, but it will be gone as quickly as it came. I can't believe how short ours was. Labour Day is just around the corner and that means the kids are back to school. 

I had all my school photos tucked away in their report card envelopes and created this elementary school years mini album to remember them. This is the perfect time of year to start one yourself. I am showing all the pages I created - all from leftover scraps. Hope this gives you some inspiration!

                                                                                                                            

Make the most of the remaining weeks of sunshine! ~ Sharka

Martha's Got Nothing on Me!

New Studio!!!... more ROOM!  It's been only about a month, but when I open the door (I now have a door that locks with a key) the new place still feels too good to be true! 

I am loving the space - it's quite a bit bigger, actually double the size of the last one. There is enough room to paint BIG canvases (yay!), and teach classes. It still faces west so there's great natural light during the day, light walls to better display my paintings, and laminate floors which were bought on craigslist. (recycling is good) I had some great help installing the floor - click'n'lock isn't as easy as you think!

The studio is in a great location, only a few walking blocks away from home!  Enough talk, here are some photos:

And I would like say Thank You to my father in-law (you know who you are) for taking and sharing the photos! ~ Sharka

Prosperity

I just finished this painting yesterday and today gave it the name Prosperity! I came up with the name after being told earlier that Peony meant Peace in Chinese. When I got home I went to the computer and searched Peony flower symbolism and this is what I found... "Peony symbolizes bashfulness and compassion. It symbolizes a happy life, happy marriage, good health and prosperity."

Did you know? The Chinese call Peonies the King of Flowers or the Flower Fairy.

The painting is 24"x24", acrylic on canvas. ~ Sharka

2011 Harmony Arts Festival

I can't believe the Harmony Arts Festival is but a few days away. I will be participating in two events this year; three paintings for sale under the "white tent" as a member with the North Shore Artists' Guild, and in the Studio Tours.

The Studio Tours are a unique opportunity to meet North Shore artists where they work. It gives you the chance to explore the natural landscape of the North Shore while visiting us at your own pace. Many artists from 195 Studios will also take part in this year's festival.

Please come check out my brand new and expanded studio! ~ Sharka

New 160sqft Digs

First, I want to wish everyone a HAPPY CANADA DAY!!! 

Today I thought I could post the latest exciting news... my new studio will be ready in a couple of weeks and I am looking forward to moving in! The walls are up with one coat of primer, door is in place, old carpet has been taken away and windows were going in this morning.

As I sat in my "old" studio painting, I could watch the entire process. When I left yesterday, I was so hoping it was finished so I could go in and paint the walls and get it set up this long weekend.

The construction of the new space has created a bit of "musical studios" - Red Door Studios downstairs will be moving next to me upstairs, an artist just a hallway away on the other side will be moving into my "old" space -  this making room for two new artists to join 195 Studios. I am excited to have this new space and I will show you all the new and exciting things I have planned, so stay tuned! ~ Sharka