Take Pride in Your Spelling - ATC

Here's an artist trading card featuring a little tyke from Red Lead Paperworks, a variety of leftover scraps of paper, a stamped flourish, distress inks, and copper acrylic paint stenciled on using punchinella (sequin waste).

The text is from a 1935 spelling book.  Back in the days when people used handwritten letters of introduction to apply for jobs, correct spelling and grammar could make the difference between being hired and standing in the bread line (it was the height of the Great Depression, after all).  It's probably a good thing the authors of this book aren't alive to see the atrocious spelling and grammar being used in today's text messages and tweets.

Have a great day!

Supplies:
Strathmore cardstock ATC blank; miscellaneous scraps of torn book pages and game cards; white gesso; soft gel medium; flourish stamp by Inque Boutique; Stazon black ink; Adirondack white and copper acrylic paint dabber; wild honey, dusty concord, and stormy sky distress inks; clipart from Red Lead Paperworks.

One Dozen - 4x4

Over the weekend I tore into some new vintage ephemera (meaning new to me) to create this 4x4 collage.  I started with a page from a 1942 math book for elementary school children that has adorable and colorful graphics.  I got the book for a mere $1.50 at an antique shop.  It was labeled "as is," but the book is actually in great condition for its age so I snatched it up.

I started with a section from the math book about how to write numbers and how many items are in a dozen.  I added a list of words from a 1935 spelling book; next to the words someone had made check marks in blue ink.  The piccalili recipe is from a 1942 cookbook purchased at the same antique shop.  I love the tiny yet crisp font.

I then started digging through a box of old postage stamps that I bought last week, trying different colored stamps until I found two that I liked (the blue postage stamp matches the blue in the dozen eggs graphic, and the blue of the check marks, almost perfectly).  It wasn't until after I had them adhered that I realized the stamps added up to 12 cents!  What serendipity, since I was planning to call this collage One Dozen.  With the theme now firmly set, I went back to the math book and found additional text relating to the number twelve or the word dozen.  I outlined the text and the postage stamps with charcoal pencil and rubbed on some distress inks to integrate all of the pieces together.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great day.

Supplies:
Chipboard coaster; vintage text: 1935 spelling book, 1942 cookbook, 1942 math book; vintage sheet music; red polka dot scrapbooking paper (unknown vendor); vintage postage stamps; medium charcoal pencil; antique linen and frayed burlap distress ink; a blue distress ink (stormy sky maybe?).

Memorial Day

Today we pay tribute to the members of our military, past and present, who answered the call to serve.  We admire you for your bravery and are grateful for your sacrifices.

Iris-Inspired Sympathy Cards

While driving around this past week we saw the prettiest bearded irises in bloom.  The petals were pale lavender and a deep, rich purple.  I decided to use those colors, with plenty of warm white, to make some sympathy cards.

I used Marvy Markers to stamp the flowers, stamping off once without reinking in order to get the lighter flower.  I also used a paler shade of green on the stem, to make it look like it's behind the two darker flowers.


Thanks for dropping by.

Supplies:
White (orange peel) and purple cardstock by Bazzill; whisper white cardstock from Stampin' Up; rubber stamps from Stampin' Up; black Stazon ink; Marvy markers; Sizzix (Tim Holtz) embossing folder; square Nestabilities; corner rounder punch; pop-dots.

Speak with Comfort - ATC

I may have gone a little overboard with this collage, but I was having so much fun piling on the various layers that I didn't want to stop!  I could just dabble, dabble, dabble all day long (if I didn't have to work, sleep, and eat, that is).

This card is truly mixed media.  I used patterned paper, gesso, distress ink, Stazon ink, black and silver acrylic paint, a grunge-style rub-on, part of a Flinch game card, butterfly clip art, book text, sepia Pitt artist pen, and some fine orange mesh.  Oh, and a postage stamp!

For techniques (besides collaging), I did some stenciling and stamping.  The black circles were stamped by dabbing black acrylic paint on the end of an old-fashioned plastic hair roller.  My mom had a bag of them leftover from the days when one "set" your hair in rollers, let it dry, then combed and/or teased it out into the style you wanted.  Can you believe no one bought those rollers at our garage sale?!  So before she threw them away, I snagged about four of them in various sizes.

TGIF!  Thanks for stopping by and have a great day.

Supplies:
Strathmore ATC blank; Authentique patterned paper; white gesso, tumbled glass distress ink; saddle brown Stazon ink; Adirondack black and silver acrylic paint dabber; Heidi Swapp stencil; sequin waste (as a stencil); 7 Gypsies rubber stamp; My Mind's Eye distressed effects rub-on; part of a Flinch game card; butterfly clip art; book text; sepia Pitt artist pen;  fine orange mesh; vintage postage stamp; gel medium.

A Day Bright With Sunshine

A friend asked some of us card makers whether we would be willing to send a card to a friend's daughter who was recently diagnosed with leukemia.  I said of course!  (Even though I find it hard to make cards for kids).  But this girl is 13 and many teenagers are pretty sophisticated these days, so I didn't feel the need to make a card for a child.

I made an easel card using these pretty papers by Authentique and the Spellbinders peony Nestabilities.  I made an indentation in the center of the flower petals to give them dimension.  Because I don't know the girl's prognosis, the inside sentiment simply says "Wishing you a day bright with sunshine."

After hitting 94 degrees yesterday (a record high), today we're back down to the 70s.  With a slight breeze and abundant sun, it's a glorious day in May.  I hope you're having the same.  Thanks for dropping by!

Supplies:
Black and white cardstock by Bazzill; patterned papers by Authentique; wish sentiment from Stampin' Up; Stazon black ink; peony Nestabilities by Spellbinders; Martha Stewart border punches; small oval and scalloped oval punches from Stampin' Up; rhinestone brad (unknown).

Shadow Man - ATC

Remember these graphic backgrounds I prepared a couple of weeks ago?  Well, I used one of them last night to create this mixed media ATC.  It's interesting how different the card looks from its original state; you can't even tell that some of the background papers were a deep red.

I started by painting on white gesso and wiping most of it off.  Next I stamped a crackle background using black ink and added more white gesso using sequin waste as a stencil.  I adhered a scrap of paper with the number 04 on it; it fell out of a recent purchase so I think it refers to the inspector who approved my item.  After sealing these layers with gel medium and letting it dry, I added my shadow man (a laser copy of an old cabinet card) using the gel medium transfer method.  The final step was to grunge it up further using black, silver, and pearl acrylic paint stenciled through more sequin waste, some star-shaped, some round.

It was just serendipity that the man's one eye is clearly visible.  I think it gives this card an eerie quality.

Have a great day!

Supplies:
Strathmore white ATC blank; miscellaneous scrapbook papers; white gesso; antique crackle background stamp (Stampin' Up, I think); black Stazon ink; punchinella (sequin waste); soft gel medium; laser copy of old photo; Adirondack black, silver, and pearl acrylic paint dabbers.

Puttin' on the Ritz for Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day!  My mom and I spent all of Thursday together doing a "ladies who lunch and shop" day, and then yesterday, with my brother and sister-in-law, we took my mom and dad out for dinner at Chili's.  (I had the Santa Fe Chicken salad which is super delicious and has lots of zip.)  So today is just a normal day around the house for us:  a little laundry, a little cleaning, and meatloaf and mashed potatoes for dinner.

I love making easel cards but I don't think I've ever made one for my mom, so that's what I decided to do for her mother's day card.  The central image from Artistic Outpost was colored with Prismacolor pencils to coordinate with the rich Bo Bunny papers.

I hope you're having a wonderful day!  Thanks for dropping by my blog.

Supplies:
 Black cardstock by Bazzill; very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; image and sentiment by Artistic Outpost; black Stazon ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; patterned paper by Bo Bunny; oval and lacy oval Nestabilities by Spellbinders; Martha Stewart border punch; oval and scalloped oval punches from Stampin' Up; pumice stone distress ink; brass embellishments by K and Company; pop-dots.

Leonardo's Horse of a Different Color - ATC

I decided to just play around a little last night (when I should have been making a mother's day card!), and ended up making this ATC using a new rubber stamp and distress stains I picked up this week when my mom and I did a little shopping together.

I rubbed two distress stains on my nonstick craft sheet, spritzed a little water, and then dragged my ATC blank threw it several times, drying with a heat gun between layers.  Once I liked the background, I stamped the horse, colored it with pencils, added some dots with a gold metallic pen, and then coated the entire horse with a layer of Crackle Accents.  I finished the  card edges with a dabbing of black acrylic paint and gold leafing pen.  Try as I might, I could not get the scan to match the colors of the original card.  The background isn't quite as bright a yellow as it may appear here. 

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great weekend.

Supplies: 
Strathmore white ATC blank; wild honey and vintage photo distress stains; black Stazon ink; Da Vinci horse image by Stampendous; Da Vinci signature stamp by Just for Fun; Prismacolor Premier Pencils; Recollections gold metallic pen; Adirondack gold acrylic paint dabber; Krylon gold leafing pen; Crackle Accents.

You're the Bee's Knees

I created this card to send to a dear friend for her birthday.  The central image by Artistic Outpost was colored with Prismacolor pencils.  Do any of you recognize the Dew Drops that were all the rage a few years ago?  I bought just two little bottles of the things, and I swear they multiply when I'm not looking because the level on the bottle doesn't seem to have gone down any.

Have a fabulous day!

Supplies:
Black and white cardstock by Bazzill; patterned papers by Authentique; stamp from Artistic Outpost; black Stazon ink; round and lacy round Nestabilities by Spellbinders; pumice stone distress ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; aqua Dew Drops; mini black buttons from Michaels; Martha Stewart border punch; corner rounder punch; white flowers unknown (maybe Prima); mini black brads.

2013 Art Calendar Challenge - May

Like most of my attempts to keep a diary or journal, my attempt in 2012 fizzled out after less than three months.  But you know the old saying:  If at first you don't succeed, try, try again!  So when I came across the Strathmore Visual Journal in which I had started my 2012 art calendars and found a background all ready to go, I decided to give it another try.

The background was painted with watercolors.  In honor of the flower seeds we sowed today, I used a round scalloped punch for the days of the week, adding the numbers and some doodling with markers to make each punch look like a flower.  The bright colors are making me happy.

To see other art calendars a la Kate Crane, please hop over to The Kathryn Wheel. 

Have a great day and thanks for dropping by my blog.

Congratulations, Graduate

Our neighbor's daughter is graduating from high school, and we've been invited to a party in the park next weekend.  I just hope the weather has improved by then!  We've had more rain than we need (and we were in a drought).

This card features the graduate's school colors of navy blue and silver and some glittery chipboard embellishments by Reminisce.  I used my Cuttlebug star folder to emboss the white background.

For the inside of the card, I computer-generated "Reach for the stars" and chose Kunstler Script for the font. 

Thanks for popping in!  Have a great day.

Supplies:
Navy blue cardstock by Bazzill; shimmery white cardstock by Stampin' Up; silver stationery paper from Target; sentiment stamp by Stampabilities; black Stazon ink; mortar board and diploma chipboard embellishments by Reminisce; Cuttlebug star embossing folder; oval and scalloped oval Nestabilities by Spellbinders; corner rounder punch. 

A Wisp - Moo

I created this moo using bits and pieces from my scrap basket.  The beautiful woman is from an early 1900s penny postcard. 

After I was 3/4 done, I noticed that my base (a piece of watercolor paper), was wonky; that is, not quite cut straight.  C'est la vie!

Happy weekend!

Left Behind - Inchie

Some days a girl's just gotta create, even if it's only an inchie!  I'm still in the process of sorting through and organizing my craft supplies in the aftermath of the wet basement.  Last night, I worked on a plastic bin that had a variety of paper scraps in it.  While separating vintage sheet music and vintage book pages from newer patterned papers, I found some pre-cut inchies and a picture of a World War I soldier named Albert.

I colored the background with distress inks, adhered Albert, added some words cut from a book, and lined the edges with a gold leaf pen.  Easy peasy and I got my artistic fix for the day!



Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great Friday.

Supplies:
Patterned paper; wild honey and crushed corduroy distress inks; Micron sepia artist pen; charcoal pencil; vintage book text; photocopy of vintage photo (reduced); gold leaf pen.