byhand Newsletter 7th Anniversary Contest

The Featured Quietfire Product for this project is Distress Embossing Powder!

This is one segment of a scavenger hunt for a $30 gift
certificate from Quietfire Design, celebrating the 7th Anniversary of the
byhand Newsletter compiled and designed by me.

Read the details of this hunt here!

Good luck!

I also used Flourishes, one of the Mini Images, Walnut Ink and a collage image from Suzanne's Favourites.

Walnut Ink Background Variation

This is my contribution to the byhandartists Background Swap! I've just discovered the special effect of Distress Embossing Powder! Combine it with Walnut ink and what is there to lose? Add some of the incredibly brilliant Tro-Col copper and you get the glitz with the texture. Wow!








Here's what you need:

• Spritzer Bottle
• Walnut Ink
• Brush
• 140 lb Arches Cold Watercolour paper
• Distress Embossing Powder
• Tea Dye
• Fired Brick
• Schminke Tro-Col- Gouache - Copper
• Little Bitty Scoop
• Heat Gun

Instructions:

1. Mix up the strongest batch of Walnut ink you possibly can. Make
   sure all the crystals are dissolved.
2. Spritz a piece of watercolour paper with water.
3. Begin brushing the Walnut Ink over the paper.
4. Before the Walnut ink dries, begin randomly sprinkling Distress
   Embossing Powder on the surface.
5. Sprinkle Tro-Col Copper onto the surface. If the surface has begun
   to dry, spritz it again as you don't want everything to blow off
   when you begin heat setting.
6. Heat set a small area at a time, working your way over the entire
   surface of the paper.
7. You will have wonderful texture! Don't worry if some of the Distress
   Embossing Powder flakes off. It's meant to do that!
8. Have fun!!!

7th Anniversary of the byhand Newsletter

Well, I've been putting out the byhand Newsletter for 7 years. Way back then, I really wondered if I'd be able to scrape together enough to say to keep it going. But with lots of help from many very talented artists who've submitted their wonder creations, here we are today! How time flies.

It takes me about 3 days of work to put together a newsletter and I love doing it. Only rarely do I feel like I've gone through labour and delivery and those are usually newsletter that require a huge amount of photo-editing.

The next newsletter is almost ready to go.

!!!Check it out - we're having an Anniversary Party!!!!!

I'm giving away $100 worth of gift certificates in 3 separate "contests". Stay tuned for contest details in the newsletter!

To subscribe to the byhand Newsletter, visit the News Department in the right hand column of the Quietfire Design.ca homepage!

To see back-issues of the newsletter, click here!

Good luck! Suzanne

The House Book

I've been planning to do the Home Sweet Home Journal for over a year and it's finally to my satisfaction so I can write it up as a workshop! Yay!

I just love these architectural miniatures! They are just so classy. That was probably the biggest hold up, but I have them now! I was so excited when they arrived.

I had a hard time deciding which door to use. The book isn't large

enough to use a door and a window on the cover, so the window went on the back cover. You can see more photos of the journal in the February byhand Newsletter.

The front cover is done on Arches Text wove starting with a very concentrated solution of Walnut ink. The surface was blotted and spritzed and Schmincke Gold Tro-Col as sprinkled in as well as Distress Embossing powder. It was gorgeous!

When the paper was dry, I began lettering with water, sucking out the Walnut ink and dabbing in Perfect Pearls in whatever colour took my fancy - I think they were mostly from the Patina kit. It was so much fun! Except for some of the lettering parts. Lettering over the spots that had Distress Embossing Powder on them was really tough!

I was pretty pleased with how it turned out.