Auld Lang Syne - Gift Set

My last project for 2016 is a gift set consisting of a greeting card and a pair of earrings in a matchbook holder.  I made them for my friend Mary, who has invited me over for New Year's Day.  We and the dogs are going to "power lounge" all afternoon in our casual clothes (aka yoga pants), noshing on snacks, imbibing in semi-hard beverages, and gabbing away.  I am really looking forward to it!

Of course I can't show up without a hostess gift, so I decided to make Mary a pair of earrings.  I still have a lot of supplies from when I was making jewelry (pre-rubber stamping days).  I selected some square red coral beads and paired them with silver seashells and findings.  Then I created this matchbook to hold the earrings.

I followed the basic instructions in this Youtube video to make the matchbook, although I had to alter the dimensions a little so that the earrings would fit inside.  I decorated the front of the matchbook with a patterned paper scrap, a small piece of torn sheet music and a vintage postage stamp.  The earrings are attached to a matching piece of gray cardstock and simply tuck inside.

To complete the set, I made this greeting card using images from Artistic Outpost's Auld Lang Syne plate.  I heat embossed the background image on a patterned paper that had come out of a Stampington magazine.  I heat embossed the baby image on a separate piece of cardstock, cut it out and mounted it on pop-dots for dimension.

It feels good to be ending the year on a creative high note.  Thanks for coming along this journey with me!

Supplies:
Earrings: dyed red coral square beads; round seashell silver beads; silver-plated brass beads; sterling silver head pins and French wires.
Matchbook: gray cardstock by Bazzill; patterned paper by the Paper Studio; vintage sheet music; vintage postage stamp; pumice stone distress ink.
Card:  gray and red cardstock by Bazzill; patterned paper from Stampington and Company; stamps from Artistic Outpost; Ranger watering can ink; clear embossing powder; pumice stone distress ink; pop-dots; corner rounder punch.

Happy Birthday - Shaker Card

A friend of mine who is also a rubber stamper sent me an envelope of transparencies and issued a challenge: I am to make her a shaker card, and she will do the same for me.  As long as I've been stamping, I have never made a shaker card!  So I watched a few tutorials and as practice, made this shaker card for my mom's birthday card.

I didn't feel like stamping, so I selected this sweet girl from a pack of Tim Holtz instant ancestors.  Then I shopped my stash for a vintage-style patterned paper and found this collage print by Basic Grey which was just perfect.  It was a little more difficult to figure out what to put in the shaker.  Seems like most people are using sequins or shaped confetti, of which I have none.  But I have several colors of microbeads and they are ideal.  Not only are they small enough, they make a wonderful sound when you shake the card.  I added some freshwater pearl beads that I originally bought for jewelry making but wasn't able to use the way I wanted because the holes are too small.

The lace along the bottom was in a small package of miscellaneous laces I purchased at an antique shop.  The final touch was the green scalloped oval frame that I made using two Spellbinders dies.

This shaker card turned out pretty cute considering it was a spur of the moment decision to make it and I didn't buy any new supplies.  I think my mom will like it, too.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a grand day.

Supplies:
Green and ivory cardstock by Bazzill; patterned paper by Basic Grey; Tim Holtz found relative; copper microbeads; freshwater pearls; foam adhesive strips from Stampin' Up!; Scotch foam tape; transparency; scalloped oval Nestabilities by Spellbinders; vintage lace; brushed corduroy distress ink.

Merry Christmas!

May your holiday season be filled with love and laughter.

My First Hand-Carved Stamp!

The hospital where my dad had his cancer treatments sent us a flyer recently with a list of support activities for patients, their families, or caregivers.  One activity that caught my eye was an art therapy group meeting at a local arts academy.  I called to get more information and although the person I spoke with did not know what type of activity the group would be doing, I was encouraged when I learned that Russ Fagle was the facilitator.  He's a local artist who I've actually met through a friend of mine.  So I decided to give it a try and boy, am I glad I did because the activity was carving our own stamps!

Carving my own stamps has been on my art bucket list for a while now, and especially after I obtained an instruction booklet and linoleum cutter that had been my grandmother's.  She had passed it on to my cousin Lisa years ago, but Lisa decided it wasn't something she wanted to try so she passed the items to me about two years ago.

Linoleum cutter and block printing brochure (copyrighted 1949).

At Thursday night's get-together, we were given several small erasers from a dollar store, a cutting tool, sketch paper and pencils. After some brief instructions from Russ, we were set loose to design and cut our stamps.  Because the erasers were pretty small (only about 3/4 of an inch by 1 inch), a simple design was in order. I settled on a tulip, my signature flower for years.  I sketched my tulip on the paper using a 3B Staedtler pencil, which allowed me to transfer the image to the eraser simply by pressing the eraser against my drawing.  I used the smallest blade available to cut out the tulip and voilà!

My first hand-carved stamp!  I couldn't have been more thrilled.  Here is what it looked like once I got home and stamped it on smooth cardstock using black ink.  I love the extra marks along the bottom and how the flower is out of proportion; it gives the image a vintage folk art feel.

While I was at it I stamped several more tulips, colored them with Prismas, and created these simple note cards to add to my stash.  Then I was ready to carve a couple more of my own stamps, using the extra erasers I brought home from class.

But alas, carving more stamps will have to wait. I'll give you a clue as to why.

Notice anything?  Yep, there are NO BLADES!  Either I didn't notice this when I first received the cutter, or I had forgotten this fact.  So, no more hand-carved stamps until my order arrives from Dick Blick.

In the meantime, my mind is full of ideas for images I'd like to carve to use in my artwork.  Tell me, what would you carve?  (Annie, you don't have to answer that!)

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great day.

Man's Best Friend

My big brother's birthday is this week and although I'm not certain he really appreciates a handmade card, that is the only type I send (if I send one at all).  In this case, I'm using one of my earliest Tim Holtz stamps which features a little boy and his dog.  It's pheasant season right now and my brother has been spending a lot of time with his dog, so I think he'll like this image.

As part of my effort to use supplies that I have, I pulled out some Bo Bunny papers that I've had for at least three years and have used only once (to make this Mother's Day card in 2013).  I like the rich hues in this collection (called Serenade) and the fact that the patterns are appropriately sized for smaller projects even though the papers are 12x12.  The focal image and the sentiment were stamped on one of the solid papers in the collection and die-cut.  I sponged scattered straw and vintage photo distress ink around the edges to age the papers a little.  The square brad is another old item from my stash.  Its main purpose is to finish off that awkward, straight end of the banner.

Winter has arrived with its old pals Snow, Cold and Wind, so I'm happy to stay inside and be creative.  Thanks for stopping by to share this day with me!

Supplies:
Black cardstock by Bazzill; patterned papers by Bo Bunny; focal image by Tim Holtz; sentiment from Stampin' Up; Ranger Archival black ink; scattered straw and vintage photo distress inks; oval, scalloped oval, and banner dies from Spellbinders; border punch by Martha Steward; fancy brad (unknown); pop-dots.

Fun For All Ages

I created this thank you card for a friend who recently surprised me with a gift of art supplies.  She understands my love for old-timey dudes with big mustaches, so I bet she will laugh when she opens this card.

My "fun guy" is a found relative from Tim Holtz.  His name is Lester and I paired him with some circus-themed papers by the Paper Studio and added the 5 cent thingamajig as kind of a wink wink.  I know that folks back in the 1800s must have had SOME fun, but they sure don't look like it based on their portraits!

Have a fabulous day!

Supplies:
Gray cardstock by Bazzill; naturals ivory cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned papers by the Paper Studio; found relative by Tim Holtz; custom fastener by Tim Holtz; vintage photo distress ink; pop-dots.

Love Everlasting

My mom's good friends Donna and Mel are celebrating their 65th wedding anniversary this week.  Isn't that amazing?  What's even more wonderful is that this couple is still active and fun and enjoying life together.  I think that deserves some recognition!

My card was inspired by this one on Pinterest.  I changed the design somewhat because I didn't want to make a shaker card, and the heart dies that I have do not nest in the same way.  Because of that, I wasn't able to achieve the double-mat effect that I wanted (although I tried, believe me).  But I do like the simple elegance of the embossing and the tone-on-tone white layers.  Another change I made was adding the die-cut word.  I saved my happy anniversary sentiment for the inside of the card.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great day.

Supplies:
Charcoal and red cardstocks by Bazzill; naturals white cardstock from Stampin' Up; Anna Griffin embossing folder (thistle bouquet); heart die-cut by Spellbinders; love die-cut by Little Yellow Bicycle.

Aunt Dee is Unsupervised - AGAIN!

That crazy Aunt Dee!  She just can't resist shouting to the world how happy she is to be on the loose.  And since she loves to travel, she doesn't mind at all that I'm sending her to visit friends.  This time she's off to see Stella, who happens to be the person who gifted me this sassy Dyan Reaveley sentiment.

I used ripe persimmon, peacock feathers, and scattered straw distress inks on bristol vellum paper to create the background.  Aunt Dee was stamped separately on white cardstock and colored with markers before being adhered.  Similar to this postcard, I embossed a plain piece of bristol vellum with a postcard folder by Sizzix and adhered it to the back, then finished off the edges with a washi tape. 

TGIF!  Go grab some unsupervised time for yourself. 

Supplies: 
Strathmore bristol vellum paper; ripe persimmon, scattered straw, and peacock feathers distress inks; spray bottle of water; Aunt Dee image (unknown manufacturer); Dylusions sentiment by Dyan Reaveley; Ranger Archival black ink; Staedtler pigment ink pen; Tim Holtz stencil (Bubbles); white jelly pen; washi tape; postcard frame embossing folder by Sizzix.

Art E. Choke - Altered Envelope

Here it is the middle of November already.  Thanksgiving is only a week away.  Where does the time go?!  Honestly, it seems like just last week I was mailing my October partner's altered envie, and here it is time to mail November's.

I painted this watercolor artichoke when I went to an artist hangout.  I didn't have any plans for it and in fact it was still taped to my painting board.  Since I had used a large piece of watercolor paper, I had enough leeway to turn it into an envelope.  After I cut and scored my envelope shape, I added the checkerboard border using watercolors and the lettering using a Tim Holtz stencil.

The artichoke and the checkerboard both wrap around to the back of the envelope.  I outlined the entire envelope with a silverleaf pen to finish it off.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a fabulous day.

Supplies:
Strathmore 140 lb watercolor paper; Grumbacher Transparent watercolors; Tim Holtz stencil; Staedtler pigment ink pen; authentic mail art stamp from Red Lead Paperworks.

Aunt Dee is Unsupervised!

And she's on her way to join my friend Sandy, who recently retired.  I can just imagine the shenanigans those two have in mind.  Knowing them, the bathtub is already filled with ice and beer, and rubber cockroaches are ready to get slipped onto some unsuspecting person's dinner plate.  I feel like I should warn the locals.

I selected these vibrant papers by Bazzill to coordinate with Aunt Dee's lime green eyeglasses.  The sentiment is a Dylusions (Dyan Reaveley) stamp.

 TGIF!  Make it a great one!

Supplies:
Black and yellow cardstock by Bazzill; whisper white cardstock from Stampin' Up: patterned papers by Bazzill; Aunt Dee (unknown manufacturer); sentiment by Dylusions; Ranger Archival black ink; various markers.

Aunt Dee Says - I Am Exhausted

It's been a trying week.  What with the election and the trauma of catching a burglar trying to break into our house, Aunt Dee and I are both pretty exhausted!  A little irreverent art therapy is just what the doctor ordered.

A friend of mine recently gifted me a set of Dylusions (Dyan Reaveley) stamps with snarky comments, and they pair perfectly with good ol' Aunt Dee.  I decided to make a couple of postcards to send to friends who are similarly exhausted this week.  I used picked raspberry, spiced marmalade and mustard seed distress inks to create my background on a piece of bristol vellum paper.  Aunt Dee and the sentiment were stamped separately on white cardstock and cut out.

For the address side of the postcard, I cut another piece of bristol vellum the same size and embossed it with the postcard frame folder by Sizzix.  (The embossing did not show up well in the scan, so I darkened it a little for you.)  I glued the front and back together, and sealed the edges with a polka dot washi tape.  This was a fun little project that lifted my spirits and will no doubt do the same for the recipients.

Have a fabulous day!

Supplies:
Strathmore bristol vellum paper; picked raspberry, spiced marmalade and mustard seed distress inks; spray bottle of water; Aunt Dee image (unknown manufacturer); Dylusions sentiment by Dyan Reaveley; Ranger Archival black ink; Staedtler pigment ink pen; washi tape; postcard frame embossing folder by Sizzix.

Mixed Media Art Leaves

I couldn't resist my friend Nanner's Art Leaf Swap.  After all, what signifies autumn better than colorful leaves floating through the air?  For the swap, we were to create art of our choice on leaf-shaped substrates (not on an actual leaf, as eventually they disintegrate).

"Muž"

I decided to use a ginkgo leaf shape for my pieces.  I've been enamored with ginkgo leaves ever since I painted one in a watercolor class a couple of years ago.  A classmate had a real ginkgo leaf that I coveted, and I've been on the search for one of my own.  Fast forward to this summer when a friend and I were downtown on a public art scavenger hunt of sorts and BOOM!  We stumbled upon a ginkgo tree!  I came home with a handful of leaves that have been drying and pressing in my old dictionary the last couple of months.

"Dévče"

I scanned one of the ginkgo leaves and printed a copy in a larger size to use as a template.  I also scanned a bingo card and printed several copies on cardstock to use as my background.  I gave each bingo card a wash of white acrylic paint, traced the outline of the ginkgo leaf, and then cut out each leaf (taking some artistic license with the final shape).

"Señor"

My focal images are all from Artistic Outpost.  They were stamped on smooth cardstock, colored with Prismacolor Premier pencils, and cut out.  Before they were adhered, I added random scraps of sheet music, book text, stenciling, stamping and grungy rub-ons to the background.  Two of the leaves have vintage postage stamps on them.

"Fräulein"

To help blend my people into the collage and to reinforce the stems, I added torn scraps of patterned papers along the bottom of each leaf. The final steps involved covering the back with a patterned paper, dabbing metallic acrylic paint around the edges, and spraying each leaf with an acrylic sealant.

"Mademoiselle"

Once everything was dry, I popped each leaf into its own cellophane envelope and sent them on their way.  I can't wait to see the leaves I receive in return

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great day.

Treat Me Like the Queen

Here's a birthday card I made recently for a friend of mine.  It looks fairly simple but that didn't come easily.  I actually went around and around with this one for quite a while, trying different things that just weren't floating my boat, before finally scaling it back to this.  Sometimes less is more, especially when you need to get something into the mail sooner rather than later.

I used one of my favorite color palettes for this card: black, red and off white.  The patterned papers are by My Minds Eye.  The focal image is from the Loverly London set by Artistic Outpost.  In my imagination she's an Eliza Doolittle type a la My Fair Lady.  I stamped her on vanilla cardstock and colored her with Prismacolor Premier pencils.  She ended up getting die-cut a couple of times to reach this final size.  To jazz up the red background, I embossed the paper with a Cuttlebug embossing folder called geometric rings; the pattern reminds me of an old tin ceiling tile.  The sentiment is also from Artistic Outpost.  Say it out loud in your best Cockney accent.

TGIF!  Make it a great one!

Supplies:
Charcoal gray/black cardstock by Bazzill; patterned papers by My Minds Eye; very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; Ranger Archival black ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; old paper and gathered twigs distress ink; EK Success border punch; oval and lacy oval Nestabilities by Spellbinders; geometric rings embossing folder by Cricut Cuttlebug; pop-dots.

Mysterious Eyes - Altered Canvas

Once or twice a year, the altered envelope group I participate in has a "Weirdy Mail" option.  By weirdy mail, we mean an artsy bit other than an envelope or postcard, preferably sent through the mail "naked" (without packaging).  It's always fun to see what people manage to send through the mail with only a label and postage adhered to it.

I'll admit, I'm a little leery about sending naked weirdy mail, especially when I've spent so much time making something special for my partner.  I was doubly concerned this time, because my mail had to go to Canada (and Canada Post has been threatening to strike in recent months).  So I settled on a basic 8x8 wrapped canvas that could potentially go naked, but decided to wait until I was done with it to make a final decision.

Based on my partner's profile, I chose a Halloween theme and got to work creating a 4x4 collage for the hole in the back of the wrapped canvas.  The base of my collage was an old bingo card cut to size, and the focal point would be this lovely bat image from Oxford Impressions.  I stamped the bat on white cardstock and colored it with Prismacolor Premier pencils, then trimmed it closely.  I tinted the bingo card with distress inks and acrylic paint and added some rub-ons (the black grungy stuff) before adhering the bat.  The text was cut from an old novel.

Once I had my collage largely done, I turned my attention to the canvas itself.  First I gave the entire thing a coat of black gesso, then I painted the canvas with a mixture of black, purple and white acrylic paint.  Next I adhered a vintage-looking scrapbook paper to the wooden frame portion.  That paper was tinted with paint and ink to match the bingo card, and also received a few spots of the grungy rub-on.  At this point it was looking pretty good, but I still felt it was lacking something; it needed texture.  Molding paste to the rescue!  I applied molding paste through a stencil to the entire frame as well as to the central collage.  This turned out way better than I could have hoped, and it pulled the entire piece together.  Once the molding paste was dry, I tinted it with distress paints.

I adhered the central collage and outlined it with antique bronze Stickles.  I spattered white acrylic paint onto the entire thing (again, to integrate the collage with the frame) and then sealed everything with an acrylic spray.

I suppose you want to know whether my canvas got to travel naked or not.  Well, it did not.  I chickened out.  I didn't want it to get damaged or, God forbid, stolen by some crazed fan of winged mammals.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great day.

A Lady Never Reveals...No. 2

I had so much fun with this envelope that I decided to make a similar one as a greeting card for another friend celebrating a birthday.  Since I had a duplicate sheet of the red patterned paper, I was able to make a matching envelope as well.

These patterned papers from Stampington will make a 4.25 x 5.5 inch envelope, so my black cardstock base was a quarter-inch smaller than that, or 4 x 5.25 inches.  I cut the patterned paper to fit the front of the base and adhered my lovely lady (also from Stampington).  I added some squiggles to the background using a white gel pen and a black PITT pen.  The words were computer generated.

So, what won't YOU reveal?  Inquiring minds want to know!  Have a fabulous day.

Happy Birthday, Baby!

I created this card for a friend who is turning the big 4-0.  We had a great time celebrating the occasion and I'm happy to say that she can still party like a rock star.

Since she's the baby of the family I decided to make her a sweet card using one of my favorite Tim Holtz images.  I combined it with pretty papers by My Mind's Eye and used four different Nestabilities to create some lovely layers.   The large ribbon flower from Michaels was jazzed up with a little glitter glue.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a grand day.

Supplies:
Dark pink and light pink cardstock; whisper white cardstock from Stampin' Up; focal image by Tim Holtz; Ranger Archival jet black ink; oval and lacy oval Nestabilities by Spellbinders; banner die-cut by Spellbinders; birthday sentiment from Stampin' Up; pumice stone distress ink; flower from Michaels; Stickles glitter glue.

Collage Owl - Altered Envelope

I was digging through my clip-art file this week in search of inspiration, and discovered this fabulous owl image that was perfect for my October Envie Addicts exchange.

I created the envelope using a piece of patterned paper from one of my Stampington magazines.  (I have a huge stack of these papers, and I've decided that this is a good use for them since many have designs or colors I might not like at first glance.)  The patterned paper is glossy, so I used an old credit card to swipe it with titanium white acrylic paint; the paint gives the next layers something to cling to.  Along the bottom of the envelope I adhered some old book text, then stenciled the trees using dusty concord distress ink and stamped on the spatters using Ranger Archival Ink in a color called watering can.  After adhering the owl, I tinted it lightly with markers.

I added some shading around the owl using a black Stabilo All Pencil and smudged some gray Gelatos around the edges of the envelope.  A suspenseful sentence cut from my favorite old novel finished off this collage.

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:
Patterned paper and clipart owl from Stampington and Company; We R Memory Makers envelope board; titanium white acrylic paint; tree stencil by The Crafters Workshop; bubbles stencil by Tim Holtz; splatter background stamp by All Night Media; Ranger watering can Archival Ink; dusty concord distress ink; Derwent forest green tinted charcoal pencil; black Stabilo All Pencil; water pen; book text; Faber-Castell PITT artist pen; Gelatos.

A Lady Never Reveals...Altered Envelope

Years ago, we were at my grandparents' house for something and it just happened to be my great aunt's birthday.  Someone asked her how old she was and her reply was, "A lady never reveals her age."  I had to kind of laugh at that.  I mean, we all knew she was 80-something.  Did it really matter whether she was 82 or 83, or even 87?  I would think she would be proud of having lived a good, long life.  But in generations past, it was not considered good form or even prudent to reveal a woman's age.  Women who were not married by "a certain age" were labeled spinsters and looked down upon, even pitied.  Married women whose children had left home, or young widows, were disparaged if they were youthful and vibrant or tried to have a life of their own.  Even today, age discrimination still exists for women far more than for men.

But enough serious discussion.  I only brought it up because it relates to this altered envelope I created as a birthday RAK.  I found the paper and this clip-art image in my stash (both were freebies in a Stampington magazine), and wanted to come up with a snarky caption related to birthdays.  And for some odd reason I remembered my great aunt Emily telling me, "A lady never reveals her age."  But what else might she not reveal?  Hmmm, how about the amount she spends on art supplies?!

I used a We R Memory Keepers envelope board to turn the patterned paper into an envelope, inserting a lightweight index card inside before gluing it shut (for added sturdiness).  I adhered my lovely lady and printed my snarky statement on the computer.  I added the white dots, black zigzags and mini stars using a black PITT artist pen and white gelly roll pen.  A birthday greeting and the recipient's address went on the other side of the envelope. 

Have a great day!  Thanks for stopping by. 

Supplies: 
Patterned paper and clip-art photo from Stampington and Company; We R Memory Keepers envelope board; computer generated sentiment; Sakura white gelly roll pen; Faber-Castell PITT artist pen.

Icelandic Poppy No. 4 - Altered Envelope

Inspiration can come from just about anywhere.  In this case, it came from a forgotten monoprint that I found in my stash.  I made the print into a 6 x 4.75 inch envelope using my envelope punch board, then sat and studied it until I finally decided what my next step would be.

Since my partner likes poppies, I decided I would try to paint one on the envelope.  I did a practice sketch on a piece of scratch paper first.  Once I was happy with the size and shape of my design, I transferred it onto the envelope and outlined it with black Stabilo All Pencil.  I then painted inside all of the pencil lines with white acrylic paint.  Some of the Stabilo pencil smeared a little when it got wet, but that actually worked well with my design.

I continued to add color and details to the poppy by painting on lemon zest Dylusions ink spray, peeled paint and antiqued bronze distress paint, more white acrylic paint, and more black and white Stabilo pencil.  This was such a fun process that I never wanted it to end.

I added the No. 4 with a stencil to signify that this month is the Envie Addicts' fourth birthday.  I stamped a flourish border but left the back fairly plain, mainly to prevent any confusion at the post office.

I just love participating in this altered envelope exchange every month.  It's a fun and talented group and I have received many beautiful pieces of art through the mail.  I've also learned a lot and have been motivated to try new things.  For example, my first inclination was to add some stamped images to this envelope.  Instead, I drew my own poppy and am quite pleased with how it turned out.  I hope my partner likes it!

Have a wonderful day.  Thanks for dropping by.

Supplies:
Homemade monoprint using white cardstock, Liquitex acrylic paints and Gelli Plate; We R Memory Keepers envelope punch board; black and white Stabilo All Pencil; titanium white acrylic paint; Dylusions lemon zest ink spray; peeled paint and antiqued bronze distress paint; Tim Holtz stencil; black Staedtler pigment liner; flourish stamp from Cornish Heritage Farms; Ranger Archival watering can ink; squid ink Gelatos.

Hello

An art friend of mine has had a pretty miserable summer: she's been doctoring a couple of different ailments that started with a fall over Memorial Day weekend.  It has been a while since I sent her something (one of these Love Bird cards back in July), so last night's mission was to make a card that can get popped into the mail quickly.

This card started with Authentique patterned papers from my scrap bin.  Luckily I still had some uncut sheets from the original 6x6 bundle to complete the card.  I stamped the young girl from Artistic Outpost onto a gray paper from the collection and lightly tinted her with Prismacolor pencils.  The "hello" wasn't showing up against the background, so I layered a die-cut banner underneath it.  The Kaisercraft paper flowers are also from my stash.

I must say I'm having a lot of fun using my scraps.  I can't bear to throw them away when I know I can make something pretty with them.  Thanks for dropping by.  Have a beautiful day!

Supplies:
Espresso cardstock by Bazzill; patterned papers by Authentique; focal image by Artistic Outpost; die-cut sentiment by Little Yellow Bicycle; Ranger Archival black ink; pumice stone distress ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; Martha Stewart border punch; oval, lacy oval and banner die-cuts by Spellbinders; paper flowers by Kaisercraft; antique gold brad.

May I Smoke? ATC

It has been ages since I made an ATC.  And then, while looking for something else, I stumbled across this sultry photo of Marlene Dietrich that I had printed ages ago.  And in the same pile of leftovers was this one-sentence book text scrap that seemed perfect for the photo.  I don't remember if I originally planned to use these two items together, but my muse was telling me to do so now.

I started by adhering two patterned papers to a cardstock ATC base and dry-brushing on white acrylic paint.  I then stenciled on the flourish pattern using molding paste.  After the paste dried, I tinted the flourish with wild honey distress ink and outlined each section with a very fine pigment pen.  I used a charcoal pencil to add a shadow around the photo, and stamped a splatter pattern before adhering the book text.

Thanks for popping by!  Have a fab day.

Supplies:
Strathmore blank ATC base; The Paper Studio patterned paper ATCs; titanium white acrylic paint; Tim Holtz stencil; Golden molding paste; wild honey distress ink; splatter pattern stamp by All Night Media; Adirondack watering can ink; Staedtler black pigment liner; Derwent charcoal pencil; photo of Marlene Dietrich; found book text.

Boats Against the Current

Hello and Happy Labor Day to you U.S. folks!  I hope you are enjoying a relaxing day.  We often grill out on Labor Day, but it's supposed to rain and my brother is here from California so we're having a big family dinner.  Turkey and mashed potatoes will make the meal look a little like Thanksgiving, but fresh tomatoes and cucumbers from the garden will be screaming summer.  Personally, I think it's going to be a yummy combination!

I found a little time this weekend to play with my papers and inks.  One of the items I completed was this card for my friend Doug.  We had a great time together when he came to Iowa recently for our high school class reunion.  We also hit the open road for two quick day-trips.  One trip was to southeast Minnesota, to visit his uncle who is in hospice care.  On the way back, we drove down the Wisconsin side of the Mississippi River and took in some gorgeous scenery (which reminds me, I should write a blog post about that and share my photos!).  The next day, we headed to southern Iowa on a genealogy mission.  You can read about that day here.

Doug's visit, which kind of had a theme of the past, made me think of this F. Scott Fitzgerald image by Artistic Outpost.  To jump-start my creativity, I chose Sketch Challenge SC597 on Splitcoaststampers.  I modified the sketch a little by using an oval rather than a circle, simply because the circle was not the best choice for this focal image.  All of the papers were from my stash or scrap bin.  I aged them by dry-brushing on white acrylic paint and sponging on gathered twigs distress ink.

Normally I wouldn't put a flower on a card for a guy, but I think old F. Scott (and Doug) can handle it.  I aged the flower and the leaves by dry-brushing on white acrylic paint and then sponging on distress inks (gathered twigs on the flower, peeled paint on the leaves).  I added a piece of Tim Holtz film strip ribbon to complete the look.

Thanks for popping in!  Enjoy your day.

Supplies:
Black and Kraft cardstock by Bazzill; various patterned papers from my stash; Great Gatsby stamp from Artistic Outpost; Ranger Archival jet black ink; titanium white acrylic paint; gathered twigs and peeled paint distress ink; Tim Holtz film strip ribbon; flower from Prima Marketing; leaves from Recollections (Michaels); oval and scalloped oval Nestabilities by Spellbinders; foam tape.

Sisters Wall Hanging

One of my cousins asked me to create a wall hanging using pictures of her mom (my dad's sister) and our five other aunts.  I had never made anything like this before so I was excited, but also a little scared.  After some thought, I accepted the challenge and we met to discuss what she had in mind.  She brought the photos she wanted me to use (high school graduation portraits, for the most part) and we discussed a color scheme.  Other than that, I was free to do whatever I wanted.

I decided to use a 12x12 cradled wood panel as my substrate.  The first step was to scan and print the photos to size.  This took a loooooong time.  The original photos were different sizes and quality, and needed careful editing so they would look good once they were all together on the board.  One major issue was that five of the six were looking to the left.  This caused the composition to look a little lopsided, and it also drew the eye (meaning the eye of a viewer), off the left side of the panel.  Finally I decided that one of the photos just had to be flipped.  Once I had the photos the way I wanted them, I printed them on cardstock using a laser copier.

I covered the front and sides of the board with a patterned paper and scraps of sheet music.  I then dry-brushed titanium white acrylic paint over the entire surface and sponged on faded jeans distress ink, a light green acrylic paint, and faded jeans distress paint.  Next I added some stenciling using molding paste.  Once the molding paste was dry, I colored it with Gelatos.  I used several different colors of blue, green, silver and gray Gelatos before achieving the look I wanted.  I lightly stamped on some cursive writing using permanent black ink and spattered titanium white paint over the entire background.

I trimmed the photos and adhered them to the board.  And this is where I got kinda stuck.  My aunts looked like a bunch of floating heads!  I had to figure out a way to finish off the bottoms of the photos and integrate them into the background, but since I had already glued them down I was limited as to what I could do.  My eventual solution was to swirl on some modeling paste to simulate a row of flowers.  This is the only part of the project that I wasn't 100% happy with, but at that point I couldn't change it.  And I couldn't start over.  My cousin had been waiting patiently for quite a while and frankly, I was ready to be done with it.

Since the emphasis really was on the sisters' photos, my cousin was pleased with the final result.  And for the most part I was, too.  I learned a lot through the process and if there is a "next time," I know which things I would do differently and which things I would do the same.  But I don't think I'm ready to do another one quite yet!

Have a wonderful day!