Bloom Where You're Planted

Remember the sweet poppy altered domino that I said I was turning into a magnet?  Well, I did just that and in addition I made a birthday card to coordinate with it.  I think the two together will make a nice little gift for someone. 

The seed packet stamp is from Artistic Outpost, but the poppy is a separate stamp from Oxford Impressions.  It is one of my all-time favorite images.

Have a great day!

Supplies:
Black cardstock by Bazzill; very vanilla and soft suede cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned papers by K & Company and Crafty Secrets; poppy image from Oxford Impressions; seed packet and sentiment from Artistic Outpost; splatter pattern stamp by All Night Media; Ranger Archival black ink; gathered twigs distress ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; oval and scalloped oval punches from Stampin' Up; Glossy Accents; pop-dots.

Estate Sale Find!

My mom and I spent yesterday together running around town, exploring some new (to us) places and shopping for items related to the bathroom remodel.  Now that spring is finally here, we're itching to get out and do things!  One of the stores we visited is an estate liquidation store, where I found a Victorian photo album.  It is literally falling apart at the seams and missing half of its clasp, so I got it for a good price.  And it still has a few photos and other vintage ephemera in it.  While I show you some photos, try to guess how much I paid for it.

The cover is a dark red velvet with an embossed design in the fabric and the word Album (which may be Bakelite?) in an ivory script.

Here are some of the photos inside.  I love the dog photo!  He must have been one special pooch.

I was able to slip out this wedding invitation and discovered that it is from 1898.

The last half of the album looks as if it was never used, 

and the pages are in pretty good shape.

And here are some of the loose items I found in the album: some itty-bitty photos, a party invitation, a Happy New Year calling card from 1897-98, and a beautiful embossed Christmas card.

The album itself is shot, but I envision using the pages to create some vintage collages that could be stand-alone pieces or be rebound in some way.  So...how much would you pay for this treasure?  I paid a mere $5 and think I got a great deal.

Thanks for popping in!

Genuine Blue Butterfly and Sweet Poppy - Altered Dominoes

Quite a while ago I bought a cheap box of dominoes at a discount store.  I decided this was the week to try altering a few.  (I've altered some vintage wooden ones, which you can see here and here; but never any of the newer plastic ones.)  I have a few rubber stamps sized specifically for dominoes, so I started there but didn't like the results I was getting when I tried to color the images.  So I just covered up my experiments with collages.

The butterfly is a rub-on over vintage sheet music.  I added a stamped postal mark and word sticker and painted the sides with gold acrylic paint before sealing everything with glossy spray sealant.  The final step was to coat the entire top with Glossy Accents.

The poppy was stamped on cardstock, colored with pencils, and trimmed closely before being adhered over vintage Czech text that had been colored with distress inks.  I used a Krylon gold leaf pen to paint the sides, then sealed everything with glossy spray sealant.  To give the poppy added dimension, I gave just the flower and the word sticker a coat of Glossy Accents.

I think both of these dominoes will become magnets.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great weekend.

Supplies:
Plastic dominoes; Golden soft gel medium (gloss); vintage sheet music and book text; white acrylic paint; picked preserves and vintage photo distress ink; butterfly rub-on from Seven Gypsies; poppy stamp from Oxford Impressions; whisper white cardstock from Stampin' Up; postal cancellation stamp by Hero Arts; Ranger Archival black ink; word stickers by Tim Holtz; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; Adirondack gold acrylic paint dabber; Krylon gold leaf pen; peat charcoal pencil; glossy acrylic spray sealant; Glossy Accents.

Happy Birthday!

This birthday card features some lovely patterned papers by My Mind's Eye, die-cut with the Spellbinders peony set.  The sentiment is from Stampin' Up.

TGIF!  Thanks for dropping by.

Supplies:
Blue cardstock by Bazzill; naturals white cardstock and sentiment from Stampin' Up; Ranger archival black ink; peony, foliage, and banner die cuts by Spellbinders; Martha Stewart border punch; dew drops; corner rounder punch.

School Memories Get Well Card

I've worked in education for all of my adult life.  So when I found some school-themed papers with a vintage vibe (the School Memories Collection by Prima Marketing) while on vacation in January, I just had to buy them.  And finally I'm getting around to using them: on this get well card for a colleague who recently had surgery.  This card didn't involve any stamping (except for the inside sentiment), although I did ink up all the edges and distress the report card to make it look genuinely old.

To accompany the card I created another moo-sized magnet.  I just love making these!  I even went and bought more magnets today because I was running low.  I won't say I'm obsessed, but I know I will be making more moo magnets in the near future.

Welcome to my new followers and thank you all for stopping in for a peek at my blog. Have a fabulous day.

Supplies:
Card:  Black cardstock by Bazzill; naturals white and gray cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned papers by Prima Marketing; pumice stone and vintage photo distress inks; pen nibs by Tim Holtz; pop-dots.
Moo Magnet:  140 lb watercolor paper; patterned paper by Prima Marketing; vintage Czech book text; white acrylic paint; focal image by Artistic Outpost; Ranger Archival black ink; very vanilla cardstock by Stampin' Up; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; dream sticker by Tim Holtz; peat charcoal pencil; Adirondack gold and espresso acrylic paint dabber; Plaid gloss acrylic spray sealer.

Endless Despair of the Soul - ATC

So this is what happens when I force something:  I end up with a piece that's messy, a little off composition-wise, and in a word, disappointing.  I've been wanting to make an ATC for trade or for a RAK (random act of kindness), and yesterday was the day.  However, once I sat down I just wasn't feeling it.  Still, I kept plugging away and although I really liked the background and the combination of colors, an impending electrical storm caused me to rush some decisions on the placement of the text.  And then mucked up fingers (from gel medium) caused a "boo boo" that I tried to fix.  So I will keep this one for myself, and perhaps use it on a journal page about patience!

(Can you tell where the boo boo happened?)

On the bright side, the thunderstorm that blew through did not contain the quarter-sized hail they were predicting, and the much-needed rain will activate the lawn fertilizer we applied earlier in the day.  Not to mention a bad day of arting still beats a good day of working.

Thanks for stopping by!   Have a great weekend.

Supplies:
Strathmore Bristol Smooth ATC blank; vintage Czech book text; Tattered Angels Glimmer Screens fanciful stencils; Dylusions vibrant turquoise ink spray; vintage Flinch card; vintage postage stamps; 7 Gypsies rub-on butterfly; vintage book text; white acrylic paint; punchinella (sequin waste); peat charcoal pencil; Adirondack espresso and vintage photo acrylic paint dabber.

Be Silly - Moo Magnets

Here are two more moo cards that I plan to make into magnets and send as RAKs (random acts of kindness).  The moo size is so much fun and it's a great way to use up all the small scraps of paper I have.

Have a fabulous day!

Supplies:
140 lb watercolor paper; patterned paper, vintage sheet music, and cardstock scraps; very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; Ranger Archival black ink; focal image and sentiment by Artistic Outpost; antique crackle background stamp by Stampin' Up; saddle brown Stazon ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; white acrylic paint; picked raspberry distress ink; Adirondack espresso acrylic paint dabber; peat charcoal pencil; Plaid matte acrylic spray sealant.

Heroes and She-roes: Moo Magnets

I liked this pair of moos so much that I decided to make another set for my brother.  He has been interested in World War II for many years so I know he will like the subject matter.  I added a very strong magnet to the back of each one so he can display them on his fridge.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a fabulous day.

Supplies:
140 lb watercolor paper; patterned paper scraps; vintage book text; white acrylic paint; crackle background stamp from Stampin' Up; Stazon saddle brown ink; focal images from Artistic Outpost; Stazon black ink; very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; peat charcoal pencil; Adirondack espresso acrylic paint dabber; gloss acrylic sealer.