A Grayt And Deelightful Paper Solution.
Hi there.
Thanks for popping in!
Finally we get to the last stage of the Groovi Card.
The Groovi part – the design and the outline were a cinch
using the Would You like to swing on a Star pair of plates designed by our Mel.
using the Would You like to swing on a Star pair of plates designed by our Mel.
The white work took a couple of hours, but spread over a couple of days. That’s fine – I had plenty of other things to do in between!
But this is the point in the proceeding
where I usually end up spending as much time again
looking for a suitable background to make the artwork come to life!
So my dear friend Dee Paramour and I got together
and came up with a solution:
Introducing the first set of 4 background paper packs.
They are printed of course, but each design is a handmade paper.
Not clip art, not borrowed.
Proper inky, hand cut and layered.
Dee spent hours and hours creating these papers….
There’s nothing like a handmade original ….
Even the prints look handmade.
And that’s the reason why these paper pads are so awesome.
All 4 of the pads include perfect Parchment backgrounds;
the Northern Lights pad from the Natural Wonders Collection
is especially Groovi.
I looked EVERYWHERE for a solution.
Wasted many hours looking for a background for the Groovi work.
In the end, I created my own. This is my baby.
Here you see the back and front of one leaf.
See? Dark but bright and interesting.
There are 12 double-sided designs in each pad,
4 of each.
The only danger here is that they are all so ideal for Groovi,
instead of scouring my paper stash for one solution,
I shall now probably waste hours deciding which one !!
And the pads are 8”x8” so you can spend another age deciding which area of the paper works best!!
Oh boy oh boy!
Today, I decided to go with this particularly lovely celestial one…
You will notice that I haven’t added any colour to the parchment yet.
This is because I think it is better to pick a background
and then tone the artwork in with the paper.
Now I know exactly which colours to use…
Weathered Wood Distress Pen.
Spun Sugar Distress Pen.
Add a few highlights with the Groovi grids
Trim the edges with a craft knife.
Now you can see how the background works!
And look at those white stars!
You could lift them off the page.
(no dropshadow trickery here)
I used the Crafter Companion Glue Pen around the edge and behind the odd blue square in the centre too.
It’s brilliant – You cannot see it, because the background is busy enough to hide it too.
Trim the paper a little
(and let’s start a little bag of designer paper bits
for a project down the road…)
Mount on a white 8”x 8” card.
Peace and Love for 2017.
That’s what it says ….
Can you buy these paper pads yet?
Not quite.
They’re all stacked high at Clarity Towers though,
in readiness for the New Year.
I shall be showcasing them on Sunday 8th January on HOCHANDA 2pm – 4pm.
Was this the big reveal? The game changer?
The thing that I couldn’t wait to tell you about?
No no no.
The papers are a must have, I know that.
Dee and I have been squealing and chattering about them
since they rolled off the press.
But no. They are not it.
A lot of you are guessing….
Is it an outlet?
Is it a wedding?
Is it a magazine?
All good guesses, and all on the agenda – on the journey.
But not yet.
One thing at a time….
Love & Peace,
Barb
xxxx
89 thoughts on “A Grayt And Deelightful Paper Solution.”
Oh Barbara Great card…those new papers are to superb! Well done Dee!
AND you are such a tease Barbara! Love and hugs xx
Would have guessed that one but good idea saves lot of the big questions hate making choices enjoy your day speak later love Joy xx
I love these paper pads, just what we need. It can be so time consuming looking for the right background. Mind you, I'm not sure these are going to speed things up, haha.
So, we are still waiting for the big news. Sighhhhhh, when???
Ooooooo….can't wait. You are officially the first entry in my 2017 diary!
See you then.
Love
Maggie (Yorkite)
Love the card and the papers are a great idea! xx
Wow. Fantastic paper pads; the best size too. I much prefer 8"x8" pads as they are far more versatile. Can't wait to hear the other news!!!
Awwww Barbara Gray you tease, although the papers are super, was thinking how much they would give inspiration to make backgrounds of our own also. My poor bank card will be crying again i confess lol. Hugs Ali xxxx
Love the papers. I have a paper obsession I think, and 8 x8 is my favourite size as it is big enough to cover a card for a background, and is good to use for scrap booking too. I love to die cut matching mat and layers too! Brilliant card too!
Good morning Barbara,
a great card and fantastic background papers…
Rolf xxx
Dee these are fantastic can't wait to get them. You are really teasing us Barbara. Lots of interesting news in the New Year to look forward to x
Wow! These papers are amazing! The finished card is very beautiful and has the perfect sentiment too! Thank you Barbara! Enjoy the rest of your day with the family! Hugs Gilly xxx
Oh my word how fabulous are these pads??? They are definitely on my shopping list. Love the card too – so atmospheric. I will have to record the shows as I am spending the day with the lovely Maria, so please make sure you have stock held back at Clarity for me to order when I get home. 😉😉 And there is even more news to come?? Why Barbara Gray with these Clarity products, you are spoiling us!! (Did you see what I did there? Lol) xxxxx
I will be with Dawn and Maria and the lovely Shrewsbury crew too, so I hope there will be plenty left for us when we get home. Mind you, I need to replace my DVD recorder as I cannot currently record Hochanda. See you soon, Dawn. xxx Maggie
Ooh Barbara von tease, you are a one!! Lurve the papers, I'm sure these are not only for groovi,these could be used with stamps as well. Well, we will have to be patient a little longer for any other news on the horizon. Ooh…… exciting!! X
These look amazing love love them. I have a large paper stash but you can never have too much can you? Just when the debit card thought it was very safe in my purse. No chance. I am so curious about your secret I suspect you might have won another load of awards, wiped the board probably nothing beats Clarity. xx
Absolutely stunning. Really enjoyed watching this piece evolve. Yummy papers!!
Barbara Gray, you are such a tease. I reckon if there was a degree in teasing, you would get top marks. How long do we have to wait now, I wonder. Joking apart, those paper pads look awesome. They will definitely go on my NEED list, but they will have to wait for a while until my bank account has recovered from the shock of four new tyres for my motor, so I hope there will be selecting then. I love the one you chose today, and it chimes perfectly with the Horizon programme I am watching, all about solar storms. Beautiful backgrounds there if you could capture them. Hope you are enjoying your time off from work. xxx Maggie
The papers look beautiful sadly I am spent out for a good while as we had to get a new freezer 2 days before Christmas or risk losing lots of food!
You are full of useful hints – why didn't I think of choosing the background before I added the colour!!
Enjoy spending time with Mark and his girlfriend xx
I hope everyone is well. Very cold but sunny today. I'm venturing out to jervaulx a ruined abbey the boys love to visit. I'm taking a rug so I can sit on a bench and watch. We are off to the ice cream parlour after on the farm where the ice cream is made from their own cows. Xx
Enjoy Chris jervaulx is beautiful along with the ice cream and cafe It's a long time when we went but lovely memories hugs xxx
Hi Chris.
I love Jervaulx Abbey. Haven't been for years but it's so peaceful. Hope you had a lovely day. Love and hugs Alison xxx
Stunning I love it and I think it's a wedding !!!!!!!
Love June horrocks xxx
Well I was right about that bit, something to help us put our work together ! I love your stars and how white you got them. The papers are beautiful – well done to Dee and yourself for putting them together ! We will wait for the big reveal – hopefully not toooooooo long though ! X x
Hugs Jackie xxx
Fantastic card and those papers are soo very lush. What a great job by yourself and Dee x
Stunning card, papers look fabulous, well done Dee for the designs, something else to add to the wish list. Enjoy the rest of the day with your family. xx
Fantastic! Love these papers and can't wait to get my mitts on these. Your card is gorgeous too. Congratulations to Dee to for these wonderful designs.
Love and hugs
Linda xxx
love the card you made the background works so well. Most of my time is spent working with backing papers and so pleased you let your work rest between embossing its so different than completing a card in one go .cant compare it .
cant wait to hear your good exciting news.
All I can say about this artwork is 'Awesome'! Super cool papers too! xxx
Beautiful art work and papers. YOu are a tease…. xxx
Hugs pen xxx
He Pen,
Sending love and hugs, Alison xx
These papers look amazing. Hoping you will ship them to Canada for us Canadian fans. Your card is just lovely. Your tutorials are always so informative and easy to follow, I know it must take a lot of time to prepare your posts but it is greatly appreciated.
Sure do!!!
Immediately I saw the papers I was up out of my chair with my voucher to ring through my order. Something made me stop and finish reading the blog when I realised they weren't available yet. How disappointed was I!
Still something to look forward to. I hope you don't sell out. Your card is amazing. The white work, the colours, everything about it. The stars look as if you could lift them right of the picture. Enjoy your time with Mark and his girlfriend during your week off before they have to go back. The weather looks just right for long walks.xx
Still teasing us I see Barbara, tut tut…lol. Anyway your artwork looks terrific backed with one of these new papers and love that they are all hand made original designs. Dee is so clever, and you too of course, a wonderful team. x
Oh Barbara and Dee you ve done it again! These are really fabulous and will just add that special touch that only Clarity delivers. Beautiful, can t wait for them to come out, your card is stunning and those stars really sparkle. Love LOVE LOVE ❤️ x
Fabulous papers I'm in love 😍❤️😍❤️ I have stacks of backgrounds but never in the right colour🤔 For my Groovy project so these will be definitely be coming to live with me🤗. Barbara you a such a tease….''tis not fair………..''tis not proper………' to make us wait……..go on tell us …..now!
Ops sorry well done Dee 😊
Fab card Barbara. Dee's beautiful papers finish it off perfectly. I started my samples yesterday and really enjoyed using them. Dee is very talented and so good with colour. I'm sure they will be a big hit. x
Stunning art work wow dee your so amazing designing the papers looking forward to the launch xxxx
Hello dear blog friends sending heartfelt hugs to you all don't think I can craft today but plenty more days to come xxx
Hi Sheila, thank you for your comment yesterday. Tomorrow is another day, so hope you feel up to crafting soon. Love and hugs, Pam xxx
Hello Sheila. I hope you feel better tomorrow. Jervaulx was lovely, I'm whacked now though xx
Hi Sheila,
Hope you feel better tomorrow and up to crafting again. Sending love and hugs, Alison xxx
Absolutely stunning card Barbara and Dee's paper looks just awesome too, so beautiful and definitely one for the wish list.
Fliss x
Beautiful parchment creation Barbara, you haven't got much further to go to become one of those fully fledged parching princesses that you spoke about recently. And as for those background papers that Dee has put together, -absolutely amazing! So much drama in some of the ones I can spot in the blog photos. They are guaranteed to be another Clarity hit I'm certain!
I was disappointed that we didn't get to hear about a Christmas surprise wedding. With all the family together, I was thinking what a wonderful opportunity it would have been to tie that Clarity knot. Never mind, you obviously have better plans in the making. As a lifelong Clarity fan stretching back to those early exhibitions in the Commonwealth Institute in London (remembering those demos with the brayer and the 10pence moon mask that were so innovative at the time), I think that this coming year may just be the most exciting ever! Can't wait for the 'reveals' eeeeek!
That paper is fabulous. Dee is so clever. I make a resolution every year to use up my supplies and not buy any more patterned papers. I am addicted to them , so it looks as if I will be breaking my resolution sooner than usual. X Chris
Wow, stunning. You are such a tease 😂
Barb' the new papers are Deelicious and already added to my wishlist! Card has turned out fab (didn't doubt for a second that it would!) Been on the phone and renewed my Diamond NDC membership for next year but sad that Anne and I won't make it to the retreats next year but we'll be at Leyburn!!!!! Looing forward to seeing you on Hochanda, recorder will be set well in advance of the shows! Xxx
Hi Sue. You just reminded me about renewing my membership. Must do as soon as all the family have gone as I don't want to miss a month. Going to start saving for Leyburn in January xx
Hi Sue,
I need to do mine too, love and hugs Alison.
I'm saving for Leyburn too! X
Ohh what's stunning piece of artwork
And Mrs G. You are the biggest tease!
Magical and I love the papers. Have to start saving my pennies.
The card is beautiful Barbara. Love the papers that Dee has designed too. Make deciding what to back our cards with so much easier. Do like to make some of my own papers but never seem to have the right colours at the right time. Think you are a proper tease Barbara, if I could give a guess as to what your secret is I'd say it's a trip to the Palace for a New Years Honour's Award, as I think you deserve to have one. Love Pam xxx
Hugs Pam xx
Hi Pam,
That was my idea too! Love and hugs Alison xxx
Hi Chris, Alison and all my bloggy friends, hope you've had a lovely day, didn't get round to this earlier as my son-in-law put a lovely chilldrens film on 'Miracle on 34th Street' and we were all transfixed. Love and hugs to you all. Xxx
Just a thought where is our Diane, hope you are ok xxx
Diane's ok Pam, she told us the other day she has internet connection issues just now. Hope you're managing to cope with your back pain xx
That's beautiful Barbara, thank you for sharing. Dee's backgrounds look great too, well done Dee. When I saw them I thought what good inspiration to make my own papers too, and being handmade, not computer generated, it's very doable to create along the same lines, getting a unique version every time. Trying to talk myself out of 'needing' these!!! Got a large stash of scrapbook papers barely touched, and CD ROM's with many more pages to print off too. And a thing about scrapbook papers, although not as bad as my fabric one!!! How long do you think I can resist?!!!!
How did you get your whitework so white, and in such a short space of time? I go over and over and over mine, days and days, letting it rest overnight or longer, using the largest ball tool for the area, then going down a couple of sizes of ball tool over that time. I never get it pure white.
Hope you have a lovely family evening
Love Brenda xx
Well, if everyone's trying to guess your game changer secret, and it's Clarity business, rather than personal related, what about you've got someone good going to come on board working for you, and you can't tell us yet because they need to work their notice first. Aye I know, way off the mark, but it's different!!!!
That sounds like a good guess to me, Brenda. Now, I wonder who it might be. Hope you had a calm and comfortable Christmas. xxx Maggie
Thanks Maggie. Hope your Christmas was as ok as it could be too xx
Beautiful papers Barbara. Live the idea that they are handmade designs by Dee and you. Look forward to seeing them xx
Absolutely beautiful design and I love the paper!!!!! Should have read the whole message before I started looking for them. This makes me want to take up a new craft – like I don't have enough already.
Are there any stores in the USA that handle your products? Today's post has really captured my interest.
Ooooo beautiful! These are a must have, well done Dee. Love your Groovi creation Barbara. Just been to see 'Collateral Beauty' at the cinema, brilliant film would reccomend it. Xx
Hi bloggy friends, hope everyone is well. No crafting yet today ASD I went out with my sister. May start something later. Xx
Hi Donna,
Sending hugs Alison xxx
Hi Donna, glad you enjoyed the film. Be back to my crafting tomorrow later in the day I hope. Hope you had a great Christmas. Love and hugs Pam xx
Another triumph, Barbara! The trick will be to choose the background BEFORE colouring the parchment piece, not one of my strengths however with my new full set of Polychromos (thank you, Mike) there's no excuse. ;~}
Hi Barbara, Stunning and beautiful, a brilliant 'pairing' of backing paper and groovi creation. Stunning !!
Lots of love from Patricia xx
Hi Barb,
What a brilliant idea. Well done Dee too. I'm sure these will be a quick sellout on the shows! Your finished artwork is beautiful and the whitework on the stars is stunning – mine never goes like that! Love and hugs Alison xxx
Hi bloggy friends,
Hope today has been as good as possible for you. Been swimming today which I actually quite enjoyed. Did a few more lengths than last time and felt more at ease ( nearly as confident as I was 30 years ago!) Not many in pool either which was good. Haven't plucked up courage to go in the gym yet though!! Love and hugs to you all, Alison xxxx
Oh, I want the Northern Lights. Wonderful idea. I personally hope the coming big reveal is a store in the US that carries all your product without waiting weeks and weeks to get something–in other words a Clarity Towers here! Please, please, please etc etc!
Wozer!!! Now that is a work of art , a masterpiece , ,a galley specimen to be sure . Joy now jan
Oh my beautiful groovi work Barbara and cant wait to see all these beautiful paper pads well done Dee for all your hard work just love looking at photos or art work of the northern lights so I think that pad will be on my list its a long Clarity list my one but one day I will tick all the boxes.
Well that's one idea out the window from my [what can Barbara's news be list]
nae wedding bells yet..glad though its still on the agenda but still got two more good ones to go you wee teasy bird bet your enjoying this.
Take care Love Dot..xx
Evening bloggy friends hugs to you all hope you have all recovered from Santa and chilling just like me…Love Dot..xx
Hi Dot, hope you had a good family Christmas, yes chilling now like you. Love and hugs Pam xx
Love,love,love the papers! Can't wait to purchase them.. will we get the other big reveal on Hochanda Jan8-9?
Hi Barbara
Yeah internet working at last! Sorry I've been AWOL high winds and dodgy internet don't mix. Love how this artwork has progressed over the week, what a treat. The background papers are really fab and those stars just fly off the page. Brilliant. Thank you for sharing.
Love Diane xxx
Hello lovely blog friends sorry I've been missing, hope everyone is ok. Sending hugs all round. Xxxx
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Hello Barb, these papers are just fantastic, the few examples you have shown are mind blowing gorgeousness. And if that is not the big reveal, then you have us all waiting, holding our breath. Love the finished artwork. Take care all. have a great day. Bx
Wow, I WANT those papers! Beautiful card, though I still worry about those angels, to me, they are hard to see, I think it's that their heads are so small.
Now I have to try and buy those papers. I live in Ireland, and its virtually impossible.
WOW Barbara, these papers are FANTASTIC!!!
I'm struggling to wait for the big reveal now that you've told us what it isn't! lol
June x
The angel artwork is stunning and so are the background papers. I did a background paper not unlike the Northern Lights one you have shown and made a fairy scene with the fairies stringing a 2 from some trees. I used distress inks and twinkling H2Os and cling film. Now I have to add the angels and the paper pads to my wish list. As to your other secret I would love to think there might be some work shops down here in the wild west!! But I can't imagine it's that
Glad you had such a lovely family Christmas, it gives you a lovely warm glow when you are all together.
May I wish you all a happy and peaceful New Year xx
Wow – just amazing! This is so cool! I loved seeing this! Thank you for the inspiration!