Baseball-themed Sympathy Card

One of my dad's softball buddies, Bobby, passed away recently after suffering some serious illnesses.  I created this card to send to his family.

The background papers are from the Good Ol' Sport collection by Graphic 45.  The baseballs, sentiment and focal image are by Artistic Outpost.  I stamped them on vanilla cardstock and colored them with Prismacolor Premier pencils and distress inks.

My parents met Bobby and his wife through the softball team at the RV park in Arizona where they all spend the winter.  Bobby was the team's pitcher and my dad was the catcher, so they developed a pretty close relationship.  You'll never meet two guys who love playing softball as much as these two!  Here's a photograph of their team the year they took second place in their division.  Bobby is in the front row wearing the burgundy jacket; my dad is in the back row, fourth guy from the right.

Thanks for stopping by my blog.  Have a wonderful day!

Healing Hearts Valentines

For the past year or so, I've been attending a monthly art therapy group for cancer patients, caregivers, family and friends.  I learned about the group from the hospital where my dad received his cancer treatments.  The group is facilitated by a local artist and we've done everything from mixed media drawings to needle felting to watercolor painting.  At the last minute, I decided to make Valentines for everyone this month.

This special card was created for the facilitator.  To suit his style, I wanted to make the card more masculine and grungy than one might normally expect a Valentine to be.  I started with the large heart, which was die-cut from a piece of gray corrugated cardstock.  Using an old gift card, I roughly scraped on titanium white acrylic paint and while it was still wet, sprinkled on some chunky vintage gold glitter.  After the paint dried, I sponged vintage photo distress ink around the edges.  The red heart was also die-cut, scraped with white acrylic paint, and sponged with vintage photo distress ink.  After tying on a piece of jute twine, the red heart was adhered to the gray heart using pop-dots.  The vintage sheet music underneath the hearts received the same white paint and distress ink treatment.

For the other members of the group, I made these simple die-cut hearts using a variety of patterned papers and cardstock in my stash.  The hearts are tied together with a piece of baker's twine, and I simply hand-wrote my sentiment on the back.  I was feeling cheeky and gave two of the guys the hot pink ones, which gave everyone a good laugh. (One guy's wife quickly swapped her red one for his pink one, however.)

Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:
Solid cardstocks by Bazzill; corrugated cardstock by DCWV; patterned papers from various manufacturers; vintage sheet music from my stash; titanium white acrylic paint; rusty hinge and vintage photo distress ink; vintage gold chunky glitter by Recollections (Michaels); heart and scalloped heart Nestabilities by Spellbinders; baker's twine by We R Memory Keepers; jute twine from the hardware store; pop-dots.

Home Run Hitter

A friend of my parents was recently diagnosed with cancer and has begun treatments.  We just went through a similar ordeal with my dad, and I remember how grateful we were to have the support of our friends and extended family.  A fun piece of mail was also a welcome treat.

Since Al played softball with my dad in Arizona, I pulled out my Cracker Jack stamps from Artistic Outpost to make a card for him.  The color scheme was set by the vibrant piece of teal cardstock that I selected for the base.  The background was created by stamping the stadium names in watering can ink and then over-stamping the baseball in a ColorBox ink called sapphire silk.  My home run hitter was stamped in black and colored with Prismacolor pencils.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a grand slam day.

Supplies:
Teal and aqua cardstock by Bazzill; whisper white cardstock from Stampin' Up; Ranger black Archival Ink; Ranger watering can Archival Ink; ColorBox sapphire silk ink; Cracker Jack stamps from Artistic Outpost; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits.

Extra! Extra! Read All About It!

My dad's birthday is coming up and he gets to spend the day with his pals doing one of his favorite things:  playing softball.  It's tournament time for their senior league in Arizona and even though their team isn't in contention this year, I think the guys still enjoy themselves.

Dad's birthday card started with a background of patterned papers by BoBunny and a scrap of German book text.  I sponged frayed burlap distress ink on all the edges, roughed them up with the edge of my scissors, and added a splatter pattern using black ink.  The little boy, Extra!, and the text on the oval are stamps from the Paperboy set by Artistic Outpost.  They were all stamped on solid papers from the same BoBunny collection, and the boy was colored with Prismacolor Premier pencils before being cut out and adhered with pop-dots for dimension.

Thanks for dropping by.  Have a fabulous day!

Supplies:
Black cardstock by Bazzill; true thyme cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned paper by BoBunny; vintage German book text from my stash; Paperboy stamps from Artistic Outpost; Ranger Archival black ink; Adirondack watering can ink; frayed burlap distress ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; splatter background stamp by All Night Media; oval and scalloped oval Nestabilities by Spellbinders; pop-dots.

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.

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.

Pip Pip! Get Well Card

A good friend of my parents just had surgery, so I created this card to send him some cheer.

I'll tell you a little secret:  all of the papers (except the brown cardstock I used for the base) came from my stash of paper scraps.  I rummaged around until I found four pieces that kind of went together, and then sponged on distress inks to further integrate the various designs.  I stamped the Union Jack collage onto the rust-colored paper to start my background.  For the focal image, I stamped the London/Queen's Guard collage image onto a light-colored paper with black ink (all stamps are from Artistic Outpost, by the way), and used wild honey, barn door and walnut stain distress ink to tint it.  My dapper gent was stamped in black on the same light-colored paper, tinted with old paper distress ink, and fussy-cut.

The sentiment was stamped with rusty hinge distress ink and heat embossed on the same paper that the gent and the London collage were stamped on.  It was mounted on a scrap of the rust paper, distressed, and accented with two antique copper brads before being adhered with foam tape.  It's been a long time since I used a brad, but in the past they were practically a given on my cards, especially those made for guys.  That touch of metallic just reads masculine to me.

Have a great day!  Thanks for visiting my blog.

Supplies:
Brown cardstock by Bazzill; four various patterned papers; stamps from Artistic Outpost; Ranger Archival black ink; wild honey, old paper, rusty hinge, barn door and walnut stain distress inks; Ranger potting soil ink; clear embossing powder; border punch by EK Success; foam tape.

Cheerio!

I know that "Cheerio" generally means good-bye in Great Britain, but in my case I'm using it to say hello on this greeting card.

To create the background, I randomly stamped a collage image from Artistic Outpost's Loverly London set onto vanilla cardstock.  I blended scattered straw and gathered twigs distress ink around the edges and sponged on barn door distress ink through a piece of punchinella.  For the focal image, I stamped the Big Ben images onto the same vanilla cardstock and then die cut the oval.  My top hat guy was stamped separately and trimmed closely before being adhered.  The sentiment is from Artistic Outpost's London Underground set.

Thanks for stopping by.  Cheerio!

Supplies:
Blue cardstock by Bazzill; black and very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; images from Artistic Outpost; Ranger Archival black and watering can ink; barn door, scattered straw and gathered twigs distress inks; punchinella; oval and scalloped oval Nestabilities by Spellbinders; pop-dots.

You're a Star! Father's Day Card

Taking care of my mom after her knee surgery has meant that I haven't had a lot of time for leisure activities.  But she continues to improve each day which means she can do more things for herself, freeing me to get down and dirty at my art table.  And just in time, too, because I still had to make a father's day card for my dad.

When I don't have a specific idea for a card, I flip through my Artistic Outpost stamps and hope that one jumps out at me.  This handsome gent from the Gatsby set gave me a sly wink as I passed by, sealing his fate for the evening.  I started by stamping him twice on a patterned pattern by BoBunny.  The first image was diecut with a Spellbinders oval; from the second image I fussy-cut my gent and adhered him on top of the first for dimension.  (And I just noticed that I lopped off his left ear, poor fellow!)

For the background, I doctored up two other patterned papers from the same BoBunny collection.  That included dry-brushing white acrylic paint, applying molding paste through a stencil, rubber stamping, and sponging on various distress inks.  I can't describe how much joy this process gives me; I could play for hours this way.  After adding the sentiment and some tinted charcoal pencil for shading, I sprayed the entire collage with acrylic sealant.  My Father's Day greeting was added to the inside of the card after the front was dry and assembled.

I hope you're having a wonderful day!  Thanks for stopping by.

Supplies:
Brown cardstock by Bazzill; patterned papers by BoBunny; titanium white acrylic paint; Golden molding paste; Tim Holtz ruler stencil; fired brick, wild honey, gathered twigs, walnut stain and pine needles distress ink; Derwent forest pine and natural tinted charcoal pencil; rubber stamps from Artistic Outpost; star stamp by Tim Holtz; Ranger Archival black ink; oval and lacy oval Nestabilities by Spellbinders; border bunch by EK Success; pop-dots.

Honor Flight Mini Accordion Book

Hi there!  As promised yesterday, I am sharing with you the mini accordion book I made for my dad.  As I explained in my previous post, he will receive this book and its accompanying card during "mail call" on the way home from the Honor Flight to Washington, D.C., later this month. 

The basic instructions for the book can be found on Robin Messenheimer's website here (blogpost with link) or here (pdf document).  I modified my project a little by adding a spine to it.  This modification was not a complete success, I have to say, in that it caused the first and last pages to not open as I would like.  But I couldn't start over so as the saying goes, "it is what it is."   I am not a professional book maker and this book was made with love, if not to perfection.  When I have time, I'll fiddle around making another one and if I come up with a solution (or find someone else's), I'll share it with you.

I used papers from the Tim Holtz collection called Correspondence and, following Robin Messenheimer's instructions, made the basic folded album.  This is so simple, it took just a couple of minutes.  The most time-consuming aspect of this project was selecting the photographs (seven total) from my dad's army albums, scanning them into the computer, and figuring out what size to print them so they could be diecut to fit on the album pages.

I determined what order I wanted the photos to be in, then diecut them to size and matted each one.  I printed the captions on my computer and adhered them to each page along with some diecut stars.

For the covers, I again followed Robin's instructions.  I cut the covers out of an empty cracker box and covered them with Tim Holtz papers.  I then adhered the covers to each end of my accordion piece.  It looked fine, but because I wasn't planning to use anything for a closure, I didn't like the way it just kind of flopped around.  That's why I decided to add the spine, which took away some of the "accordion" aspect of it but made it a sturdy little book.

In spite of the snafu with the spine, I am super happy with how this project turned out.  I know that my dad will love it and that he will enjoy sharing the pictures with everyone and telling stories to go along with them.  For me, that's the most important thing.

Thanks for dropping by!  Have a great day.

Supplies:
Tim Holtz patterned papers; red, blue and white cardstock by Bazzill; frayed burlap distress ink; various Nestabilities by Spellbinders; chipboard; adhesive; computer-generated photos and captions.

America's Greatest Pastime

I was really rocking the card for my uncle the other night, so I decided to stick with the masculine theme and make a card for my buddy Ron.  He's been house-bound for quite a while due to a serious illness, and I send him a card or care package periodically to brighten his day.  Ron enjoys sports and since it's April, that means baseball.

I started with patterned papers from a Graphic 45 collection called Good Ol' Sport.  I chose the red papers initially as a nod to Nebraska (where Ron played football) and coincidentally that works for the Boston Red Sox, too.  I antiqued the papers with distress inks, stamping, stenciling and some acrylic paint applied with the end of an old plastic hair roller.  The Boston slugger from Artistic Outpost was stamped on a solid ivory paper from the same paper pack and masked before stamping on the stadium names (also from Artistic Outpost).  I used distress inks and a charcoal pencil to color around my slugger so he would stand out against the background.

Thanks so much for stopping by.  Have a sweet day!

Supplies:
Gray cardstock by Bazzill; naturals vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned papers by Graphic 45; stamps by Artistic Outpost; festive berries, gathered twigs and vintage photo distress ink; Ranger Adirondack jet black and watering can ink; splatter pattern stamp by All Night Media; bubble stencil by Tim Holtz; Adirondack espresso and old paper acrylic paint dabber; circle and scalloped circle Nestabilities by Spellbinders; small oval and scalloped oval punch from Stampin' Up; pop-dots.

In Time

Last night we learned that my mom's sole surviving uncle had a fall at home, broke his leg, and is rehabbing at a local care center.  We don't know how long he'll be there, so I made a card to go into the mail ASAP.

For this card, I used an image by Paperbag Studios that was one of the early stamps I bought when I started to make my own greeting cards.  I stamped it on a Daisy D patterned paper from my stash and set it aside until I chose my overall color scheme.

I used two patterned papers by DCWV for the bottom layer, but of course had to doctor them up a bit.  I stenciled distress ink through a piece of punchinella, then added coarse molding paste through a measuring tape stencil.  Once the paste dried, I tinted it with stormy sky distress ink.  I added more stenciling using just the ink.  Then I went back to my focal image and sponged on coordinating inks to tie everything together.

Making my own cards brings me such joy, and I don't know anyone that doesn't appreciate receiving a card or letter in the mail.  I think this is especially true of my generation and my elders, who grew up without email, texting or Facebook (or even cheap phone calls!  Remember how expensive it used to be to call long distance?).  For past generations, the mail was the method used to keep in contact with friends and family, both near and far.  It feels good to carry on that tradition.

Thank you for stopping by my blog.  Have a great day!

Supplies:
Dark gray cardstock by Bazzill; patterned papers by DCWV and Daisy D; In Time stamp by Paperbag Studios; splatter background stamp by All Night Media; Ranger Archival ink jet black; punchinella; Tim Holtz measuring tape stencil; Golden coarse molding paste; bundled sage, stormy sky, brushed corduroy distress ink; Ranger Archival ink watering can; oval and lacy oval Nestabilities by Spellbinders; EK Success border punch; pop-dots.

He Never Wrote - Altered Cabinet Card

I was catching up on my blog reading the other night and you know what a rabbit hole that can be (but in this case, in a good way).  After following a few links and going back in time, I stumbled upon some altered cabinet cards.  This is something I've been meaning to try, and seeing these particular samples was just the impetus I needed.

Since this was my first attempt at one of these, I chose a rather plain cabinet card that didn't have any advertising on it.  Usually the photography studio put its name and location on the bottom of the card, and some have quite ornate graphics on the back.  But this particular card had none of that and therefore it didn't feel as precious to me, giving me the courage to just jump in and go for it.

"Before" picture

The first thing I did was to make a copy of the card and cut out my gent to use as a mask while I worked on the background.  I sponged some distress ink around the edges, but because of the photograph's slick surface I knew it would not stay.  So I dry-brushed titanium white acrylic paint all around my gent to give everything else something to stick to.  Along the bottom I adhered a scrap of vintage text, a piece from an old atlas and a strip of washi tape before brushing on more white paint.  The border is also a washi tape.

Then I started to fill in the background.  I stamped a crackle background, splatters and some handwriting using various colors of permanent ink.  I sponged gathered twigs distress ink around the edges and through a Tim Holtz stencil.  I lightly colored around my gent with a tinted charcoal pencil and smudged it with my finger.  I had already found the "He never wrote or received a letter" in an old book and with a bit of irony, decided to add a couple of vintage postage stamps.

I don't know who this gentleman is.  I rescued him from a box of old photos at an antique store and in return, he helped me to get over my fear of "ruining" him.  When he sat for this photo a century or more ago, I'm sure he couldn't even imagine that one day someone would give him new life in this way.  Makes you think, doesn't it?

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great day. 

Supplies:
Vintage cabinet card; titanium white acrylic paint; peeled paint, antique linen, and gathered twigs distress ink; vintage book text; vintage atlas page; Tim Holtz washi tape; crackle background stamp from Stampin' Up; splatter background stamp by All Night Media; handwriting stamp by Hero Arts; postage cancellation stamps by Stampa Rosa and Deep Red; Ranger Archival watering can ink; Stazon saddle brown ink; Derwent forest pine charcoal pencil; Tim Holtz bubble stencil; vintage postage stamps.

Happy 80th Birthday!

Today is my dad's 80th birthday.  Considering the year he has had health-wise, we are super happy to be celebrating this milestone.

For the past 15 years, my parents have been fortunate enough to spend their winters in the warm and sunny climes of Arizona.  This has allowed my dad to wear shorts nearly year-round, something that brings him great joy.  And fortunately he has the legs for it!

I think my dad is much better looking than this "Golden Oldie" by Hampton Art stamps, but you can see why I bought these stamps with him in mind.  Even the little dog reminds me of our Honey, who used to sit up and beg like that whenever a bag of Cheetos appeared.

Thanks for popping in!  Have a great day.

Supplies:
Gray cardstock by Bazzill; patterned papers by My Mind's Eye; whisper white cardstock from Stampin' Up; stamps by Hampton Art; Ranger Archival black ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; gathered twigs distress ink; rectangle and scalloped rectangle Nestabilities by Spellbinders, border punch by Martha Stewart; pop-dots.

Smile! You're 70!

I have a lot of cousins on my dad's side of the family, and this month the eldest is celebrating his 70th birthday!  Good thing he's a big kid at heart and isn't bothered by this fact at all.  (I, however, feel the need to point out that I am *A LOT* younger than he is.)

My cousin collects toy cars and trucks, so I made him a card using this old truck from Oxford Impressions.  I also was able to use some patterned paper scraps from a previous card.  I heat embossed the truck in black then colored it with pencils and distress inks.  The fence was adhered with foam tape for dimension (and to hide an oops).

I hope you're having a fun day.  Thanks for stopping by.

Supplies:
Espresso cardstock by Bazzill; patterned papers by Cosmo Cricket; truck stamp from Oxford Impressions; Versamark ink; black embossing powder; Prismacolor Premier pencils; scattered straw and gathered twigs distress inks; Martha Stewart border punch; smile die cut by Little Yellow Bicycle; oval and scalloped oval Nestabilities by Spellbinders; foam tape.

Farm Boy Sympathy

I made this card to send to some childhood friends whose father recently passed.  Their dad farmed most of his life so I wanted to use these stamps from Oxford Impressions.

The tractor was stamped on a patterned paper by Cosmo Cricket before being die cut.  I stamped the little boy and the bucket on vanilla cardstock, colored them with Prismacolor Premier pencils and trimmed them closely.  The picket fence was cut from another piece of patterned paper and border punched.  The fence and the little boy were adhered with pop dots to make them stand out against the background.  The papers on this card are actually brighter than this picture would have you believe; I had a difficult time getting a decent photo due to lighting issues.

Thanks for dropping by!  Have a grand day.

Supplies:
Espresso cardstock by Bazzill; patterned papers by Cosmo Cricket; stamps from Oxford Impressions; Ranger Archival black ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; grand circle and scalloped circle Nestabilities by Spellbinders; gathered twigs distress ink; Martha Stewart border punch; pop-dots.

Still Young at Heart...

I created this birthday card for a friend of mine, and giggled the entire time.  I giggled as I colored the red stripe on the old guy's socks.  I giggled as I added the hair on his chest (and shoulders, and arms, and legs!).  I giggled as I thought about my friend's reaction when he opens it.

The old coot is part of a stamp set by Art Impressions called His and Hers Camper.  I originally bought these stamps thinking I'd use them on some cards for my parents, but (sad to say) my friends and I are getting old enough that we can appreciate them, also.  I stamped the old guy on white cardstock and colored him with Prismacolor Premier pencils.  His "hair" was dotted on using a brown Pigma Micron pen, size 01.  After cutting him out, I adhered him to the card front using pop-dots.

The sentiment comes from the same stamp set, but it wasn't working for me in its original size and shape.  So I printed a version on my computer that could be cut (or punched) how I wanted it.  You can find the easel card tutorial on Splitcoaststampers.

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope you find something to make you giggle today.

Supplies:
Black cardstock by Bazzill; whisper white cardstock from Stampin' Up; patterned paper by Graphic 45; stamps by Art Impressions (Hampton Art Stamps); Ranger Archival black ink; pumice stone distress ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; 01 brown Pigma Micro pen; small oval and scalloped oval punches from Stampin' Up; border punch by Martha Stewart; corner rounder punch; pop-dots.

Locomotive Inspection Report

I enjoy making masculine cards.  And since I have brothers and several male friends, I get to make quite a few cards for guys.  I created this one for a buddy of mine who is celebrating his birthday this week.

I purchased a stack of vintage Locomotive Inspection forms at an antique shop a while ago.  The forms had not been filled out, but someone had used the backs (and like in this case, the front) to calculate something akin to those awful word problems in math class: "If a train leaves Chicago at 5:00 a.m. heading west at 75 mph, and another train leaves Denver at 4:00 a.m. heading east at 62 mph, at what time will the trains meet at Grand Island, Nebraska?"  I suppose nowadays the engineers simply plug all this information into a computer, but back in the dark ages they had to figure out this information on their own.  And we poor pupils were tortured with figuring out the answer the old-fashioned way, even though the likelihood of us working for the railroad was pretty slim.

But I digress.  One portion of the inspection form became the background for my card.  Another portion was used for the ATC-sized focal image. The paper was fragile and had a nice patina, but it still needed something so I used distress inks and acrylic paint to grunge-it-up a little.  My dapper gent from Artistic Outpost was stamped on a piece of vanilla cardstock and colored with Prismacolor pencils before being adhered.  I used acrylic paints to add some age to the copper gear pieces before adhering them.

The old cancelled postage stamp (still clinging to a piece of envelope) was in my stash. I had so much fun making this card, and I know that Ron will enjoy inspecting all the interesting bits and pieces.

Thanks for stopping by.  Have a great day!

Supplies:
Espresso and dark green cardstocks by Bazzill; vintage railroad inspection form; very vanilla cardstock from Stampin' Up; stamps from Artistic Outpost; compass stamp by Stampabilities; splatter pattern background stamp by All Night Media; Ranger Archival black ink; forest moss, vintage photo, pumice stone and black soot distress ink; Prismacolor Premier pencils; odorless mineral spirits; titanium white acrylic paint; Ranger Adirondack acrylic paint dabber (espresso); Derwent charcoal pencil; Martha Stewart border punch; punchinella; metal gears unknown; vintage postage stamp from my stash.

Adventure - Vintage Map Envelope

Call me crazy, but just for kicks I joined IUOMA, International Union of Mail-Artists.  It didn't cost anything and I think it will be a good source of inspiration for mail art.  I created a basic profile and posted a few photos of items I've made, and within hours received three requests for mail art trades!  In less than a week, I received my first piece of mail from another member.  Time to get busy.

I've had this idea on my "to try" list for quite a while:  create an envelope out of a map.  Most of the maps I have are in old geography books and the paper is pretty fragile.  So after cutting out my envelope shape, I folded it around a piece of lightweight chipboard (a scrap of cereal box) and glued everything shut.  This is not an envelope that will be opened upon receipt.

This piece is going to a man so I used these two dudes from Artistic Outpost for my focal image.  They were stamped on some German book text.  The sentiment and the numbers were stamped on the leftover margin from around the map.  The paper had such a lovely patina that I couldn't let it go to waste.

For the address side, I used white gesso to paint a section large enough to write the address.  I did this using a calligraphy nib and black India ink.  I'm so pleased with how this envelope turned out.  I will probably have to start collecting more maps!

 Thanks for dropping in.  Have a great day.

Supplies:
Map from geography book; piece of chipboard; stamps by Artistic Outpost, Tim Holtz, Hampton Art Stamps and Red Lead Paperworks; Ranger Archival black ink; Wendy Vecchi watering can ink; Stazon red ink; old book text; washi tape; black Stabilo All Pencil; black India ink; calligraphy pen; Golden white gesso.

His Timeless Story

This collage was created on a 5x7 canvas panel for my partner in this month's altered envie exchange.  It wasn't long ago that she sent me a marvelous painted canvas panel in lieu of an envelope, so I'm glad to have the opportunity to reciprocate.

The panel started off routinely enough, by my adhering an old book page using gel medium.  However, when I adhered my photo, I "boogered it up."  It couldn't be saved so I set to removing it by rubbing it lightly with a damp sponge.  In the process a lot of the old book page also came up, but because I had used gel medium to adhere it, I ended up with a transfer of some of the text!  This was one time where a mistake resulted in something better.

In this closeup shot you can see the transferred text as well as some of the grungy texture that resulted from removing the original book page.  In spots where I rubbed harder with the sponge, you can see the canvas peeking through.

The strip of washi tape along the bottom set the color scheme for the rest of collage.  I added blue and red stenciling using distress inks in addition to an old French postage stamp and some rubber stamping in black.

On the address side, I adhered another book page, muted it with white acrylic paint, then added the same type of stenciling and stamping that I had done on the front.  I sprayed both sides with a matte acrylic sealant before adhering the postage stamps.  I chose stamps that coordinate with my artwork, including one of my coveted Inverted Jenny stamps.

Thanks for stopping by.  Have a great week!

Supplies:
5x7 watercolor canvas panel (Hobby Lobby); old book page; Golden soft matte gel medium; laser copy of old cabinet card; titanium white acrylic paint; Liquitex burnt sienna acrylic paint; vintage photo, black soot, chipped sapphire, pumice stone and barn door distress inks; vintage French postage stamp; punchinella; splatter pattern stamp by All Night Media; Tim Holtz washi tape, ruler stencil, star stamp and word stickers; dark charcoal pencil.