Monday 27 July 2015

Summer breeze and feeling groovy

Oh how the Isley brothers' "Summer breeze" song epitomizes  the summers of the 1970s for me...if you get the time have a
listen to it here
 Another song by the Turtles is a summer 1960s song I I love.

Now you may be wondering where on earth I am going with his post...let me explain...........

My Guest Design package arrived from Tracy over at Noor UK last week and among the goodies were these fun Dutch Doobadoo stencils and Paperart words and images. Notice the words Flower power, music love etc.
When I saw the fun mask silhouette  below on the left, wearing flares I was transported back to the late 1960s and early part of the 1970s
I was at primary school for Flower Power but by a teenager you would have found me in platforms and wide flares like those above which had cover your shoes!
The tune Summer Breeze and So Happy Together came into my mind and that was it I knew I had to create something funkie, zany and hippy!

So down to my studio I went to grab the most clashing bright distress inks to make a 60s/70s inspired background for my silhouette.

Yes I did say bright didn't I. Some flicks of water added some more interest.

 Recently I found a fun tin in Tiger...do you remember Spirographs from the 60s and 70s...well you can get this tin for the fab price of just £2. As this was going to be a "Groovy" piece I got it out and played away...such fun.


I had a little practice first , I was transported back to my childhood. 

and then started adding some retro patterns.

Next it was the turn of the new Dutch Doobadoo stencils and masks. I pushed some archival inks through with a piece of foam
until I was happy with a really happy flower power background. I also added some PaperArt words and images.
So now it was time to cut out my girl...who I decided to call Biba as my dearest friend Karen and I spent many a fun day up in London in this cult shop when it was open...just trying everything on!
Now this was to be my finished piece but the minute that I named her Biba I knew one thing...........Biba needed some clothes. I also remember childhood times where we bought those books where you cut out and dressed paper girls with all sorts of fashions..so here we go.
I found the brightest floral paper scraps in my scraps box and drew around the silhouette and added little tabs so that Biba could be "dressed"
Funkie tops.....with long sleeves
or sleeveless
If you have young crafty kids bored over the summer hols you could host a "best dressed Biba" competition....you could add beads, real fabric, anything really. You could even just stick clothes and accessories directly on to the silhouettes if you cut several out.

These are her finished outfits ready for Biba to strut her stuff in...and no sewing was involved!

So here is my finished piece...Biba with her funkie 60s background scene and also with some spare outfits for the festival which I am sure she must be going to ;0)


It was fun making this but I did spend a lot of time on it and a couple of evenings I think my Hb
wondered why we were eating soooo late...LOL. M you are so tolerant of my crafting. I rarely make whimsical pieces so this was a first. Perhaps Daisy might like it when she is a bit older?

I hope my rather "off the wall post" today made you smile on a Monday morning and if you are of a certain age, like me, I hope I stirred some memories of those long, summer days of love days back in the 60s and 70s. Fun times and as I was so young, they were such very carefree times.

Please pop over to see me at Noor UK and perhaps leave some groovy kind of love...yes I know all those songs keep popping in to my head.

I would like to enter my Biba project  into the following fun challenges.

Our Creative Corner mexico moods I was so inspired by the bright clashing colours of the mood board and the round pots and flower in the bottom photo.

Bunny Zoe summer breeze

Mixed Media stencils 

That's Crafty stencils and masks

That Craft Place words

Anything but a card anything goes

We love to create anything goes mixed media



It was my 5th bloggerversary yesterday and I'm having a giveaway of my handmade jewellery..the link to that post is here. Do join the fun, it's open to everyone.


Thanks so much for visiting today and putting up with my mad mind! Inspiration really is everywhere.

Back soon,

Bye for now,

Jane x

All the products are available for sale in Tracy's shop, just click on the link


16 comments:

  1. Fantastic project Jane! love those sponged background colours, and your Biba is groovy baby!!

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  2. Ah what a great post Jane!!! You are definitely speaking my language, platforms, flares, paper fashion dolls, Spirograph and that music, I'm going to be humming it all day! Just what I needed this morning on our second day in a row of damp drizzly grimness! Brilliant work, I love it. :)
    Have a great week my friend, 'speak' soon, unless I run away to the south of France and don't come back ever again!!!
    V x

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  3. Wow, such a gorgeous evocation of flower power and those magical times!! Love the songs too! Your paper doll clothes idea is amazing....Happy new week....and hope the sun comes back soon!
    Helen xox

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  4. Wow Jane, you really rocked the entire theme, this is just so much fun! Every little detail takes me back in time, the colours, the patterns and those super fun clothes with the little tabs, oh how I used to love those!! Just amazing! hugs :)

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  5. super groovy Jane - I love it! Love the dress up clothes too - what a fun idea!!!! Just popped over to enter your blogavesary candy - thankyou for the opportunity! Hugs rachel xx

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  6. So many things spoke to me in this post! First, I was a full-blown hippie in the late 60's and wore bell-bottom jeans and flower power tops. AND.. I was really into paper dolls as a child.. I just love what you made! ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

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  7. Awesome project. Love the stencils! thanks for playing anything but a card

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  8. Hi Dear Jane, I'm with all the other ladies who commented, I loved this post and am right into all this "grooviness"! I wore bell bottoms and thought I was awesome, played with paper dolls, and loved spirograph! (in fact I would love to play with that now hahaha) Clever card and so beautifully done.
    xoRobin

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  9. Hi Jane!
    Flower Power indeed!
    Your project is so well done!
    Thanks for sharing your creative process as well
    xx

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  10. I just love this Jane and your idea with Spirograph is the perfect embellishment for it.
    Julie x

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  11. Oh my word, I just commented on your other post and then I saw this and I just had to come back and say I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE this. Everything about it is just groovy. Love it, absolutely love it. Candice

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  12. Fabulously Groovy, Jane!! My goodness, talk about Fun & Flashy & Psychedelic and just plain ole FAAARRRR OUT!! :) :) Even though I was born in 1969, I grew up listening to my Mom's fav songs and The Turtles is one of my all time oldie but goodie favs!! They're on my iPod--I kid you not!! :) :) OMG--I even had a spirograph as a little girl (that my brothers lost all of the pieces to!) and I loved my paper doll books!! (until I discovered Barbie!) LOL :) :) But I digress-- :) :)
    Thank You soooo much for coming over to Our Creative Corner and joining in our 2 month Summer Challenge! I can see the influences our Mexico Mood board had on your design--lots of bright colors and flowers! There's a fiesta going on here, for sure!! Thanks again, Jane! It's always a delight to see you at our monthly challenges!! XOXO-Shari

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  13. Oh so groovy! I LOVED my spirograph that I got on Christmas in the 70's, it gave me many hours of fun, but I nearly always slipped the pen near the end of a near perfect 'flower', I think I rarely got one to work all the way through. I see you have had an anniversary (haven't read about it yet, as I'm way behind as usual and reading from front to back today) but hope you had a lovely day out at Scotney Castle. (I've been frequenting Igtham Mote, Hever, Chartwell, Emmets Garden, Groombridge and more as I'm introducing a friend of mine to Kent as she's just moved to Sevenoaks with her family, it's so nice making the most of my National Trust card). I hope you are very well and are enjoying some sunny days with the lovely Daisy and the rest of your family. Bethxx

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  14. Oh no....now I need a Spirograph again after all these years! Very funky creation indeed
    Thanks for joining us at MMW and good luck ;)
    Hugs
    Donna DT xx

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  15. Fantastic page thanks for playing along at MMW, hugs Debs xx

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  16. Amazing page with powerful colors. Very good design. I like it much.
    Greetings
    Sabine

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Jane x