Saturday, 5 December 2015

Guest Designer | Natalie May

#artdecocreations #couturecreationsaus


 Hi there

Natalie May here and I am absolutely delighted to sharing some of my projects with you this month!

Before I start .... a little about me ....
I am a mum to a gorgeous 12 year old daughter, Jessica {otherwise known as Happydaks} and a wife to a very awesome & supportive hubby. We live in sunny Adelaide in South Australia. 

I’m lucky enough to be a full time paper crafter, working in Adelaide's  Seriously Scrapbooking alongside some of Australia’s most recognised scrappers. 

I teach around 15 classes a month to adults and children and design chipboard for Imaginarium Designs as well as being the DT Coordinator.
I’m also a 2016 Scrapbooking Memories Master, an Intermediate Certified Copic Designer, Educator for Lindy's Stamp Gang and love everything inky & colour based. 

Life is busy to say the least. 

I don’t have a particular style – versatility is my biggest asset … from grungy, simple, sketches and shabby through to mixed media, canvas art and cardmaking – I like to dabble in it all! I love this industry … the opportunity to teach a new technique…. Meeting so many amazing people…..and to be able to CREATE everyday is quite a blessing.

You can view more of my work at …www.happydaks.blogspot.com and find me on Instagram under happydaks and also on Facebook.



OK ... enough with the waffle .....
Back in October, I did a little teaching tour of Queensland! I was lucky enough to be asked to teach at some local stores - whom all stock an amazing range of Couture Creations products!

Over the next couple of weeks, I'll be sharing with you the projects that I taught!

I created a lovely set of cards using the Hearts Ease 6x6 paper pad
and combined them with a couple of gorgeous dies!

These cards are introducing some simple Mixed Media techniques ..... I love that adding a few inky and stampy elements, the cards can be taken to a new and more interesting level.

Here are a few tips on how I created each card ...

Swipe a little gesso with a palette knife over the paper then once dry, dab on some color! I used purple spray and applied it with a paint brush!

Use a stencil and apply some thick Gel Medium to the background then once dry again add color with a brush - the gel medium creates a resist! The flowers have been painted with mist as well!

I hand cut a couple of tags... swiped on some gesso... added some random stamps and added my flowers. How great is that label die? I love the layering and the little bee!

And lastly, I again used a stencil and some thick gel medium then once dry, dabbed on some color. Those FABULOUS doilies are just the perfect size for cards and I die cut 3 butterflies and layered them to add some dimension.

 These cards are easier than they look and a lot of fun too!

Thanks for stopping by!

Natalie