I Been Thinkin'... 'Bout Inkin'

DENIED!!

2012-01-27T12:20:00.000-06:00

Over at the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! Group, the current challenge is to make some HUMOROUS ART. You know, funny stuff. Gut splitting. Laugh till milk comes out your nose. That kind of funny. Using at least one of Wendy's stamps. Now, her recent releases have some pretty funny sayings on them, I think!

Being a number cruncher myself, in real life, an idea popped into my head, and here's the result:

LOL! I had a great time making this.

Meet George, a stuffy IRS agent. He's saying my art is not tax deductible! WTH?? Can you imagine the audacity?

I had meant to grab some used adding machine tape from work, but of course, forgot as I was rushing out the door in my attempt to leave work as quickly as possible. So, I just cut some copy paper, and remembered Wendy has a background stamp that is all numbers, and, voila! an adding machine tape.

All the stamps are Studio 490 of course.

The "DENIED" is from my awesome P-Touch labeler. I freehanded the convo bubble.

You might not find this a gut splitter, but come on, admit it, you at least chuckled a bit.

Thanks for stopping by, if you have any questions on how I did something, just email me or ask in a comment, and I'll get back to you..

Have a great weekend!

Fun with Stamp and Die Cut!

2012-01-22T19:50:00.000-06:00

I needed to make a card.
Er, wasn't that the whole point of this paper, ink, and stamp thing to begin with? I vaguely remember that. I was going to save money by making my own cards. Yeah, that's it.

I had purchased this....

a while ago, and said to myself, "that's it, I'm getting this out of the package, TODAY, dag nab it." I'm not sure if those were my exact words. The only one around to witness it was Rocky, and he's not talkin'.
Anyhoo, I started fiddling around with this, one thing led to another, you know how it goes, and I ended up making a few more cards than the original ONE I was intending to make. I'm no Jennifer McGuire or Shari Carroll, but I think they turned out pretty good. Let's just say that any future recipients will probably like them. I left an area on some of them blank so I can make the greeting fit the occasion at any given moment. Now, I know I'm not supposed to critique my work, but I've listed some of my OBSERVATIONS about each card under the picture. You can agree or disagree with me, I really don't care, but I'm filing these in some small part of my memory that might be left, for future reference.

Placement - ok. Colors - good. Should have left color off of edge.

I really like this embossed background. Placement - so so, not the best. Colors - good

LOVE the paisley background. Placement-really good. The middle of the big flowers are dimensional, you just can't tell. I think this might be my fave.

Note-do not use the swirl embossing with these die cuts. Too much swirly crap going on. Placement - good, colors - love.

The inks I used were distress inks, of course. Quite frankly, I don't know why I have any other ink pads, I use these almost exclusively anymore. Although I still like the Adirondack Earthtones. Need to use them more. So, there you have it, it was nice just to get stuff out and play around. Note to self - do more of that. lol. Hope you had a good weekend, and I'll catch you later!
Thanks for stopping by!

So sorry....

2012-01-11T19:55:00.000-06:00

..that I haven't been around. I can't really explain it nor excuse it. I just haven't been into making anything or checking cyber world for anything new. Burn out, perhaps. I think I just needed a little break. At any rate, that doesn't mean I wasn't thinking of you all, I really was. I just couldn't make myself get online once I was home from work. Well, enough of that.

So, we're back into challenges on the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo Group....I just listed the first one of this year today, and I actually made something for it ahead of time. gasp! I decided I still wanted to try some of the techniques Tim had featured during the 12 tags of Christmas, only Wendified, so the challenge for the next two weeks is from Tag #2.... kraft resist, picket fence stain, and some sticky back canvas. Here's what I came up with:

Another one, I just used different stamps in the background:

I don't normally have kraft paper around (I know, I'm behind the times. I'm trying not to buy more paper.... much) but I did break down and buy Tim's kraft resist pad when it was half price somewhere. And, not wanting to use Tim's design for a Wendy card, I just took a page and used the plain back side. Yes, clever wasn't it? snort

Then I just chose some Wendy stamps and stamped in black archival. Dried thoroughly, and stamped two stamps and clear embossed them, hence, the resist part.

I used sticky back canvas to stamp and cut out the flower, the scroll design is also SBC, I just used a Sizzix die. Colored the SBC with distress stains, dried thoroughly. Some enamel accents, for, ah, accents. Ta da!

Actually, this was my second attempt at this... the first went into the garbage. Here's a tip... don't overdo the background stamping, or the resist stamping. Trust me. Just pick a couple and go with it. Bolder stamps work better with the resist part, too.

So, there you have it! It is a fun technique to try, I love what shade Pine Needles distress ink turns over the Picket Fence distress stain...a really cool shade of blue green. Love it.

Thanks for stopping by today!

THANKFUL for ART PARTS!

2011-11-24T19:28:00.000-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

The challenge at the EWV Yahoo Group is using ART PARTS in an autumn/Thanksgiving theme.

I was in charge of desserts for the meal today, so after they were done, I had a little time to start the project, and just finished it, oh, about a half hour ago after we got home....

My picture taking abilities seem to be getting worse instead of better. Here's another angle...

So, details you say...

I used an art part base, residence, rectangle frame and leaf stem (the one on the left).

The base is covered with the recipe paper from Tim's seasonal paper stack, which I then stamped and sprayed with sunflower perfect pearls.

All the leaves were treated with Gold paint dabber, I pounced it on for texture, then swiped it with coffee archival to tone it down a bit.

All the stamping was done with Studio 490 stamps...OF course.

The roses...well, I decided to go with glassine paper, and used the alcohol ink tech on them that Wendy featured in a video on her blog...HERE....I used Gold and Copper AI mixative, Currant and Terra Cotta AI's. After I had inked the paper, I crumpled it up, flattened it out and swiped some Walnut Stain Distress Ink all over it, then cut out my flowers.

The Art Parts take Distress Stain like a dream.....that's what I used on the house.

And, I went a little nuts with my Brown Viva Pearl Pen, but it's so fun, I couldn't stop. LOL!

Oh yes, in the window of the house, a SEASONAL SALVAGE STICKER from the Timinator, as is the AUTUMN on the bottom.

I haven't decided if I'm going to hang it, or frame it....hence, the unfinished look.

Hope you had a great holiday, always good to get together with friends and family!

Thanks for stopping by!

Making Art! Challenge #31!

2011-11-15T20:38:00.000-06:00

Helllllloooooooooo....

Over at the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! Group....(EWV for short)... the theme is TIME. It had a two week deadline, and here I am, squeaking in under the wire. Well, I had it done and posted to the group on Monday, but I'm finally getting around to posting it here.
I chose the theme based on the fact that we just had to adjust our clocks backwards an hour. I hate that. It takes me at least a couple of weeks to get adjusted. You wouldn't think an hour makes that big of a difference, but it does. Not to mention the fact that you get up when it's dark, and you get home from work when it's dark. Makes you feel like you're a vampire, minus the thirst for blood. lol. Alright, enough pissing and moaning about that.

I decided to go with a JUMBO tag for this, you know, they're about 4 x 8 inches. Sometimes a number 8 tag just won't do. Here we go....

Ahhh....all the stamps are Studio 490. I'm sure you recognize the Weathered Clock die as the Timinator's. As is the Regal Crest which the sentiment is stamped on. I used black Crackle paint on the clock, then swiped some Viva Inka Gold over it.
The little charms hanging from the fibers at the top are Studio 490 stamps stamped on chipboard, inked and covered with about 2-3 layers of clear embossing powder. Makes them look like little glass pieces, although it's hard to tell from the photo.
As for the background ink colors, I think I used Scattered Straw, Crushed Olive and Shabby Shutters. Yep, I'm pretty sure that's what I used. Then I did the old "spray some water in your hand and drop it all over then blot it with a towel" technique, to give it that "I mistakenly left it out in the rain" look.

So, there you have it! Thanks for stopping by, I know it's been a while!
Go Be Creative!

I was amazed..

2011-10-12T19:26:00.000-05:00

...to find out that my blog was still here...lol....

Hey all, how are you? I've been a little busy...BUT...

I made a little time to put together a couple of things.

First, I was playing around for a few minutes before work one day, and .... two days later, (yes, I went to work, lol) I kind of finished this tag...

I love using embossed resist for a background, really striking. The flower is muslin dyed with distress stains, there's a grungepaper flower in between the base layer and the first muslin flower to give it some lift. Yep, still have to add some stuff to it, but that will probably be another three days.. at least. lol.

Then, on to the Making Art! Challenge for the EWV group... which is to use a sewing theme, and it's open for another week. Wow, I'm early.
I had some chipboard stickers by Melody Ross that I had received with an order, and being the sarcastic individual that I am....came up with this...

I MAKE STUFF........DEAL WITH IT!

All the stamps I used are Studio 490 (Wendy). I thought they complimented the stickers quite nicely. he he. Don't worry, I have quite a few of those stickers left on that sheet, and a lot of sarcasm left too, so you'll probably be seeing more of this. Well, I can't disappoint you, now, can I? lol.
Thanks for stopping by and checkin' it out, as you can see, I'm still alive and well....ok, don't know about the well part...but...
Go Be Creative!

Sunday Stampers and Making Art Challenge...

2011-09-27T20:18:00.000-05:00

Wow...two things to post tonight...I'm really impressing myself...lol...

First, I saw Hels challenge for the Sunday Stampers...to use a resist technique. I had an idea immediately come to mind, which almost never happens, so I went with it. I'd been wanting to try the new Studio 490 background stamp from Sentimental Art that looks like fabric...hang on, I'll get a pic for you....

See why I love it?? lol!
So, I used it with Snowcap pigment ink, and it kinda turned out light, but you can see it....

Bundled Sage is the color of ink I chose to blend over the image. All the stamps are Studio 490. The flower is grungeboard, inked and Perfectly Pearled (yep, a valid art term) with Blue Smoke. A little bauble and bling at the top...

For the Making Art! Challenge on the EWV group last week, the challenge was to use one a small stamp repeatedly on the background. I'm keeping with the idea to make 6 x 6 pages for a book...so....

I said to myself..."self, let's see how good these distress ink colors go together". So, I just grabbed and pulled three out, Pine Needles, Aged Mahogany, and Mustard Seed. You wouldn't think that combo would look good together, would you? But hey, I thought it looks AWESOME! They really do go with each other! lol!
Then I decided that my favorite Studio 490 dude should be riding the bird..because...well... being normal is quite tiring... as the sentiment says.... lol....see how time almost got away from him? Oh, I crack myself up...
Any hoo....let's hope I can keep the momentum rolling here...can't make any guarantees....
Thanks so much for stopping by..I truly appreciate it and your comments!

Making Art! Challenge #26! and...remember this?

2011-09-18T19:36:00.000-05:00

Hey, long time no post! lol!

Alrighty then, we're up to Challenge #26 over at the EWV Yahoo Group....some polka dots and a face (or eyes). It is loosely based on a project in Wendy's "Making Art Studio 490 Style" Book Two, page 27. Book Five has just been released..so...get 'em while they're hot. Step by step projects, well written and explained, I know you'll love it. Or, you can check out Wendy's blog HERE. She had an exciting announcement today that I think you should check out!
On with the art, then....

I've decided that I'm going to make some of these challenges 6 x 6 chipboard pages, so I can make myself a chunky book when I'm done. Don't ask me why I didn't think of this before.
So, details, you say.....
Well, first of all, I can tell you that all stamps are Studio 490.
The face is an Art Part, stamped, inked, and the crown is heavily sprayed with Turquoise Perfect Pearl mist. Love it. I decided this chick needed some lip gloss, so I used glossy accents on them, as well as the eye.
The die cut behind the face is Tim's Ornamental die, inked with Bundled Sage, stamped with the polka dot stamp, embossed with Blue Glass embossing powder, and also heavily sprayed with Perfect Pearl Mist, this time - Kiwi. Love that as well.
It just so happens that the sentiment fit perfectly on the sign die cut from Regal Crest. Love it when that happens. (How many times have I used the word "love" today? lol!)
The rest is pretty easy to see. Grungeboard and grungepaper for leaves, flowers, belt, and key. The key was treated with a mix of distress embossing powders.
The base was embossed with a couple of Cuttlebug folders since it is 6 x 6, I had to think a little bit about placement.
On to the remember this bit....
Remember this hot mess?

Insert audible shudder here.
Loved the idea, but the execution was crap. lol.
So, I really like the UTEE squares, and decided to give them a redo for a swap on the EWV group, making 3 x 3 chipboard squares...

I think they look much better. I used some Ferra texture paint in two corners, after I colored the backgrounds with wild honey and stamped with the script stamp. Made a little pocket watch from a Sizzix die and Wendy's clock stamp, used Crackle accents in the clock face, stamped a little "ART" in the corner, added some dots...DONE. Hope folks enjoyed them. I received mine the other day, just haven't gotten around to taking pics yet. Obviously. This photo was taken before I mailed mine out. lol.
Well, we'll see what else gets done this week, hope you had a great weekend..thanks for stopping by today!

Some Remembrance and Some History....

2011-09-11T08:37:00.000-05:00

While we remember the fallen and the heroes from that tragic day 10 years ago...

I thought I would share what I did this past Labor Day Holiday. It kind of falls along the same lines, and I think it's important to remember our history.
We had an opportunity to go visit and tour the LST 325, that was docked at Henry, Illinois on the Illinois River. LST stands for LANDING SHIP TANK. It was a ship built during WWII, used to transport tanks.
When it's not touring the rivers of America, it is docked at Evansville, Indiana.
It was saved from a scrap yard in Greece in 2000 by a group of 50 Navy Veterans. Yes, the Greeks had bought it for a while. You will see some evidence of that in the pictures.
It is manned by volunteers, mostly Veterans. It operates with donations.
It was well worth the meager $10 donation they asked for before boarding.

She's pretty beat up, but she's been to hell and back...what do you expect? They've done an EXCELLENT job of restoring it, based on what they had to work with.

This sign kind of gave me the chills...I have seen the movie.."Saving Private Ryan"...if you have, you know what I'm talking about. The very graphic scene of the boats landing at Normandy...

Can you imagine the GUTS and COURAGE it took to get in those boats, knowing full well that when that door dropped, you had little chance of getting out alive????

Some uniforms of the day...and this is the mess hall where they had meals....about 13 feet by 16 feet.

Nope, no Tempur-Pedic beds here.

So, let's reflect a little bit on what some have given so that we might remain free.

While some of us may not agree with the government's decisions regarding war...we MUST support those who have made the decision to fight for us. They believe in our country, and what it represents. They believe they are doing the right thing, and have acted on that belief. You can't argue with personal belief. They have made and are making the ultimate sacrifice.
I, for one, am glad they chose to follow their belief, and I will support them till my dying day. God bless the members of our military, past, present and future. Words can not express our gratitude.

Making Art! Challenge #25!

2011-09-10T08:12:00.000-05:00

So here we are at Challenge #25 for the EWV group...
I wanted to keep this one simple, maybe encourage some of the lurking members to participate, so I decided the challenge would be to make a tag, but limit yourself to using only two Studio 490 stamp sets. As I was pawing thru my sets, I kind of forgot what I was doing, and almost grabbed a third and fourth set....lol.....so then I had to backtrack a little and rethink what I was doing. Here's the tag...

Insert brief pause here while I check the names of the sets I used.....

Ok, they were two of the new ones...For the Arts and Believe in Art. I also used the new Vermillion Archival ink on the background....love it!
A little boo boo on the round BLACKOLA label hanging from the fabric...I had stamped it on chipboard, and covered with Rock Candy Crackle. After it had dried, I thought, hey, I'll just dab some Vintage Photo distress stain on here, it will go right into the cracks. Well, apparently I squeezed a little too hard, it got in the cracks all right...and ended up making it real dark. Moral of the story, a little stain goes a long way. lol. And, I just didn't have time to make another. The key is Tim's new mover and shaper key die, cut from grunge, and embossed with gold, verdigris and rust embossing powder, then swiped with the coffee archival pad. I thought it looked pretty cool.
The little "make art" on the dude's newspaper is a Cat's Life Press stamp.
Off to enjoy my weekend....hope you enjoy yours! Thanks for stopping!

Making Art! Challenge #24!

2011-09-02T19:06:00.000-05:00

Yep, here we are up to challenge #24 on the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! Group...
this week's challenge....a flower pot with flowers. :) Based on page 16 from Book #2.

I took the flower pot definition loosely, and used the boot from the Steampunk stamp set.
Here we go:

I pleated some tissue tape underneath the scallop circle and the 6 x 6 base. All stamps are Studio 490. For the scissors and thimble, I painted some manila card with silver paint dabber, let dry, stamped the image with black archival, dried, and covered with glossy accents to make it look like shiny metal. Not bad. The little chipboard needle is Maya Road. Added some vintage buttons in the corner, and ta da, DONE!
Well, who knows if I'll have any time this holiday weekend to be in cyberland, must make hay while the sun shines! (not literally, but you know what I mean, lol). Have a great weekend, I'll be back later!

Raising a Little Cain......

2011-08-31T10:03:00.000-05:00

Me! Never! My sister, maybe, but certainly not me. lol (kidding Sis!)

So, as you might have been aware..I took two classes with the amazingly talented Linda Cain this past weekend at a "local" store. "Local" for me means at least an hour away. lol. You can check out her blog to see some more pictures, I find it rather annoying to be carrying around a camera. So sue me.

Here's the first class, embossed metal on canvas...too cool!

And the second class...a chunky ATC..

A wonderful time was had by all...I sat at a table with Charlotte, Jennifer and Chris...Hi guys! We had a great time and discovered that we're all class junkies. lol.

And of course, Linda was as charming and helpful as always! She demoed in between classes with the melting pot and UTEE on Vintaj metal and metal numerals, very cool stuff!

Till next time.....Go Be Creative!

Fred B Tidy Drinks Orange Pekoe tea....

2011-08-28T20:52:00.000-05:00

...lol!

Well, at least I got your attention.

For the latest challenge over at the EWV Yahoo! Group, the theme is a bottle or bottles. I've been wanting to ink up some of the new Studio 490 stamps.....so I did. lol.

The STANO card (old Stanley Home Products) is from SusiCreates , who had sent it to me, oh, a couple of years ago. I'm finally getting around to using it....I have a hard time covering stuff up. I haven't glued the piece to the card, I might move it up to the middle of the card...let me know what you think.

Any HOO....all stamps are Studio 490, of course. The guy image didn't come with a hat..I had some chipboard hats, and as luck would have it, a bowtie shape, my friend Deb had given me...so I went with a top hat covered with Distress Stickles...I think he looks pretty dapper. lol.

Thanks to a reminder demo by the lovely Ms. Linda yesterday at class...I covered the metal numeral with UTEE...gold, platinum and bronze. Thanks Linda, for reminding me of this awesome technique!

Art Parts Circle is the base, as is the Ink Bottle with coordinating stamp. The little Orange Pekoe Tea label is 7 Gypsies Mini labels...love those!

The ink nib is from my friend Michael....(found it! lol!) I dipped it in Pitch Black alcohol ink to make it look ...well....inky. lol.

Ok, now on to a new product find from Stampaway. It was at Darcie Heater's booth...Darcie's Country Folk... and it makes the base of the LIFE IS ART...above... Introducing....

Cast and Paint. Accompanying molds...

Makes a plaster like surface...as you can see from my example, you can ink, paint, stamp, do pretty much what you want to it. Adds some nice dimension for sentiments and so forth. Bucket of powder costs $6.00. Molds were about $4 a piece. Low initial start up cost. lol. You can use rub-ons, probably transfers...lots of possibilities. Like plaster, it will have a tendency to chip around the edges if you're not careful, but other than that, I'll enjoy seeing what I can do with it! And, I'm not sure if it's sold in stores..but they do have a website. You can check it out HERE.

Hope this finds my Eastern friends doing ok after Irene....will be thinking of you!

Thanks for stopping by...as always...Go Be Creative!

Remember these?

2011-08-24T20:45:00.000-05:00

How about a tour down memory lane?

I decided to take some of my projects that are lying around, and entered them in the local county fair. Why not? May not mean much, but I'm happy to report I got blue ribbons for all four pieces. Whoohoo! It does kinda give a person a boost of confidence. (between you and me, though, I didn't notice a lot of entries in my categories, so, you know, take that for what it's worth, lol).

The top piece was entered in Collage/Assemblage, the second was in the Altered Art (using scrapbooking materials), the third was a scrapbook page about my family, and the last piece was entered in Mixed Media (altered Ikea frame with metal).

It was also kind of nice to get out some of my favorite pieces and look at them again. I kind of forget what I've made, you know?
Any hoo... thanks for stopping by...greatly appreciated!

Frugality strikes again....

2011-08-21T21:17:00.000-05:00

Take a $1.00 plastic bin from Wal Mart.......it's small...about 8 x 9 and approx. 6 inches tall...I think it's supposed to be for DVD's or CD's.....

Cut from top, where the handle is, down each side to the bottom....fold.....secure with zip ties underneath, and, VIOLA!

A 36 count holder for stickles, mini glossy accents, mini studio medium, etc.....

The holes are a perfect fit.

They also hold Tim's stamp sets upright...perfectly (in their uncut state, lol).....as well as Wendy's small stamp sets....I'm just sayin'. Go forth and be frugal.

Monthly Post

2011-08-14T20:19:00.000-05:00

...wow, I hope not! lol! I know, it's been forever ... but, well, what can I say...life happens.

Let's see...where to start. How about my latest creations for the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo Group Making Art! Challenges? That's a mouthful and a half, isn't it? I forgot to post the last one, and here it is already time for the next one that's due Tuesday.

Here was challenge #21...using the Snow Cap Pigment Ink resist technique...

The stamps are Studio 490, of course, the flower is metal, embossed with some free hand squiggles, then swiped over with black archival. And, I'm sure you recognize the butterfly as Tim's. :)

On to the current challenge, which is to use a scallop edge and two different border strips. Here we go:

The colors are Peeled Paint and Wild Honey, which I kind of like together.

The flower is glassine paper cut with the Tattered Florals die, embossed with a folder, and swiped with some Inka Gold by Viva, which you can't see here very well, but it looks pretty cool in real life.

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to go to Stampaway in Cincinnati with my friend Nancy. We met up with Michael (ok, I've tried all available resources in the last fifteen minutes, and I can't find his blog, sorry Michael!), who graciously drove us around. I didn't take pics around Cincy, but Nancy and Michael did. lol. He took us to an antique mall, where we all bought something, of course. I found an old jar that was labeled "jar of old stuff". HA! Got it for $5. I also got some brass corners, brass doorplate and some other brass hardware that I believe was originally for a plate rail on the top of a cupboard. Any hoo... here's the goods:

Everything's full of dirt, so I think it was on the floor of a barn or old building or something, and they just scooped it up and put it in a jar. lol. That's ok...that's what old toothbrushes are for. What I thought might be a frozen charlotte head turned out to be a little white pitcher, see it there next to the doorplate? The handle is busted off, but it will still look great as part of an assemblage.

Nancy and I were in the same classes, except I took one that she didn't.

The first one we took was Haunted Little Houses, where we soldered some vintage glass pieces together with a picture sandwiched in between, here's my rookie attempt:

Ok, that's a weird angle, but at least you can see the sides. I do plan on hanging something from the bottom, just haven't gotten to it yet.

The other classes were with Sandy Obertin, where we basically made some jewelry pieces using glass tiles and fantastic film (fusible film).

Yep, wire wrapped by moi. The top is really iridescent, it's just hard to photograph. Or, it could be the camera operator.

I took another class with Sandy, once again using glass tiles, only this time we used decals, colored pencils and diamond glaze....

There was another class...but it isn't quite finished yet...lol....

A good time was had by all, and a lot of money spent. lol. We'll get into that later. Thanks for stopping by, hope you had a chance to make some art this weekend!

Another Swaparooski...

2011-08-02T21:05:00.000-05:00

...I had the good fortune to be asked to swap 6 x 6 pages with a very talented group of gals a while back. Everyone has received their pages now, so I get to show YOU! The theme was "Art is.." or "Art ....".

And, here we go!

Lynn's page, check out that awesome background!


Sarah also had an awesome embossed background, and a little ATC in the envie!


Pam - the paper is just gorgeous, and the stamping is too!


Louise - check out the little mirror, brilliant way to emphasize the sentiment!

Mine - I chose to go Steampunk again...

Are they awesome or what? I thought mine was kinda funny, 'cause it looks like "David" is checking out the chick with wings. lol. Perhaps I'm the only one that thinks that....Her wings are friendly plastic and a mold. The gears are covered with a mix of embossing powder to get a rusty effect. The sentiment and the chick's body are Studio 490 stamps.
Now, to just make a cover for these beauties and get them bound! Thanks for stopping by!

Studio 490 - UTEE-fied

2011-07-31T20:02:00.000-05:00

...how's that thing working out.....where I was going to post the new Making Art! Challenges from the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! Group on my blog every week????? as you can see...not very well.

Here we are at Challenge #20 (which ends Tuesday, yikes) - Use four different squares together for a background.

I chose to try something a little different....as usual... and stamped into hot UTEE on chipboard squares. After it had cooled, I rubbed some black paint over it and wiped off the excess. All stamps are Studio 490 of course...

I decided to pounce some gold paint dabber in a rough square shape for the background. Not sure if it looks rough or just plain messy. lol. For the sentiment, I just melted a puddle of UTEE (oh, it was platinum and bronze UTEE) on my craft sheet, lubed up a stamp with perfect medium and pressed it into the puddle while hot. I'm not sure sentiments work the best, as it's kind of hard to read, but at this point I had already tried it two times. The dots are bronze Viva Pearl Pen.

Last week's challenge was to use a bird, so I made an easel card for my nephew's birthday.

I cut the bird from black chip and ran it thru the gears Cuttlebug folder, and rubbed Inka Gold and silver paint dabber over it. I may have used too many metal colors on this, the bird doesn't stand out from the background very well, which is the star stamp embossed with Platinum UTEE. The crown is Friendly Plastic and a mold. My nephew liked it, so I guess that's all that matters! Or was it the money with the card he liked...hmmm...
Well, there you have it, another installment of "art in the country"... ha. Thanks for stopping by and checking out the latest, always appreciated!

Live a Little!

2011-07-27T20:15:00.000-05:00

..woohooo! I'm finally getting something in the Grungy Monday challenge! (never mind the fact that this tag was started, oh, about two weeks ago for something else, which never got done)

Yes, actually, this started out to be an entry for the rusted enamel technique from a couple of weeks ago. So, that's what the background is. Love the way that tech turns out. I then added some texture paint to the corners, and dabbed some copper and gold paint dabber over it. Guess you better see the tag so you know what I'm talkin' about. lol

By the way, the challenge on Grungy Monday is to include Rock Candy Stickles or Crackle Paint in your project. Check out the video by the Timinator:

Tim Holtz: Get Ready to Rock!

I included both products. The stickles are on the rose, the paint is on the leaves. Here's PROOF, if you don't believe me:

The head is a Hampton Arts stamp from Graphic 45, or, Graphic 45 stamp by Hampton Arts, take your pick. The dress form is Studio 490.

The wings - Friendly Plastic and a mold

Butterfly - plastic packaging stamped with Hero Arts Antique Engravings butterfly, heated slightly to curl.

Some watch parts in her "hair".

An Idea-ology word stick - "Live".

That's about it!

Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate it!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-07-24T23:01:00.001-05:00

...ANYTHING GOES!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

Since this is my last project as a member of the Simon Says Stamp and Show Design Team, I chose to stick with what I love to create with most...Studio 490 stamps and Art Parts! I used stamps from Visions of Art, and Art is Therapeutic, and the leaf vine from the Art Parts - Leaves, to alter this 4 x 4 canvas. I also used Peeled Paint and Fired Brick Distress Stains, along with Peeled Paint Crackle Paint. And how about some Turquoise Perfectly Pearled pine cones to complete the nature theme?

I started by coating the canvas with Terra texture paint from Viva, then sprayed it with Perfect Pearl mist in Turquoise and Kiwi. I then swiped some Stream paint dabber over the corners and a little over the texture in some areas.
The face stamp I used from the Visions of Art set is one that I don't use a lot, but I wanted to challenge myself to use it, so there you have it. My intent was to have her "peeking thru the forest", looks like she needs to watch out for falling pine cones, though. lol. The cones do look pretty cool though, with the Perfect Pearl mist on them. Hard to see here.
And, as you all can see, this is my last project for the design team. Time constraints from working full time, among other reasons, is the main reason I felt I should step down. I was very honored and flattered to have worked with such a great group of talent for a year, though! I always feel that I should put 110% into my projects, and haven't felt that I've accomplished that recently, so, I thought it would be best this way. I'm hoping that I'll have some time to enter challenges here and there, though, so, don't stop visiting me completely! lol! And, I do sincerely appreciate your comments and support!

Once again, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-07-17T23:01:00.006-05:00

....some EMBOSSING!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

I chose to go a little steampunk this week! I incorporated stamps from Steampunk, using clear embossing powder to create a resist from the images. Now, I have to admit, I had seen this on someone else's blog...thought it was the coolest thing to do with these images, but for the life of me, I can't remember who it was. So, if anyone remembers, please let me know. I want to give credit where it's due!
Some gears created using the mini mover and shaper gadget gears add to the industrial feel, as do the Idea-ology sprockets and gears, and 7 Gypsies Steampunk rubbings!

On the left side of the tag, I did the rusted enamel technique, which I love. You can find it in Tim's Compendium book, or it was part of last week's Grungy Monday challenge.
If you're wondering what the contraption is at the top of the tag, that's one of my little inventions...lol... an Idea-ology foliage flower, trinket pins (bent the petals around the pins), and a gear. I did use some multi medium at the base of the trinket pins to help hold it in the flower.

Once again, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Making Art! Challenge #18!

2011-07-12T07:09:00.000-05:00

Well, it's only a week after I posted the challenge here on the blog, and now I finally have it done...lol!

Look, I just need to think about these things for a while, ok?

Went with a little hanging piece, using the Ornamental die as a background. The paper is the OLD My Mind's Eye Bohemia line, yes, I still have some. Well, actually lots of it. Surprisingly, it hadn't disintegrated into a pile of dust on the shelf. All stamps are Studio 490, OF course.

Ooo, and those little mover and shaper gadget gear dies, how cute are those???? Perfect size for little stuff. Love them.

Remember, the challenge was to use striped paper and a rectangle frame....

Inks used were...Peeled Paint, Broken China, Brushed Corduroy. My all time faves.

I used paint dabbers on the gears...gold and copper, then swiped some coffee archival over them.

Thanks for stopping by today, always enjoy reading your comments, GO BE CREATIVE!!!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-07-10T23:01:00.001-05:00

....some STITCHING....faux or otherwise!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

Well, I went with some ATC's this week....haven't made any in a while, so I thought...why not?
I attempted to make one in a Holtz style, and one in a Studio 490 style. Both have backgrounds made from muslin colored with Ranger Colorwash or Distress Stains.
The "Love" ATC has a grungeboard heart cut using the mini gadget hearts die. A little filmstrip ribbon with some itty bitty pics from the Lost and Found paper stack, a LOVE adage ticket, some stick pins, buttons and a pen nib finish it off.
For the Studio 490 ATC, I stitched some vintage lace on the flower ATC, and the flower was stamped using the Art in Bloom set. The center of the flower is covered with Rock Candy crackle paint. And some itty bitty buttons in the corner for a little something extra.

Once again, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Making Art! Challenge #18!

2011-07-06T07:42:00.000-05:00

...Good Morning folks!

No pics today, just a little informational blurb.

Well, really, a blatant plug for the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! Group...

I saw that .... quit rolling your eyes....

I've had a comment or two about posting the challenges here as well as on the Group... for those that don't necessarily want to become a group member ( I really don't know why, but, whatever, but I will say that quite a few times, I draw random entries from the challenges to win something..but that's just for the group), but are fans of Studio 490 stamps and now, Art Parts and Clearly for Art.

Any HOO...I just posted the challenge to the group, so I'm posting it here as well. If you want to make something, you can leave a link in your comment on my little ole blog on this post.

The challenge this week is based on a project on Page 20 from Wendy's first book, Make Art, Studio 490 Style. There may be some retailers that still have this available. BUT, you don't need the book to play along.

The challenge -

Use some striped paper and a rectangle frame.

Starts today and runs thru midnight, central US time, July 19. A two weeker.

The original project was a hanging, but you can make whatever you want... ATC, alter a wheelbarrow.. whatever.

The only RULES are:

You need to use AT LEAST ONE Studio 490 stamp, and the challenge theme.

So, there you have it. My piece is started, but as you can see...not completed. lol. If you have questions, you can click on the cute mutt on my sidebar to email me.

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-07-03T23:01:00.000-05:00

...A FLOURISH!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

I chose to go with a card this week, and it uses paper and elements from the Parisian Anthology line by Pink Paislee, which I have had in my stash for quite a while. It already has a pattern embossed on it, so I just simply inked over the paper to bring out the embossing. I used the Elegant Flourish die to make a flourish for the background, and the Tattered Florals die to create the flowers from muslin and crinoline. The flowers were colored using Antique Linen and Vintage Photo Distress Stains, and I added some Kaiser craft pearls for the centers. A butterfly stamped on plastic using a stamp from Antique Engravings adds another little detail.

Once again, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

MAC #17....

2011-06-30T06:57:00.000-05:00

Over at the Everything Wendy Vecchi Group, the current Making Art! Challenge is red, white and blue. Pretty original given that the American 4th of July is this weekend. Did I mention that I'm the one who thinks up these challenges? lol....

Seriously, I love patriotic themes. I think we tend to forget about what a great country we live in, and the choices and freedoms that we have.

So, I attempted with this tag to combine Studio 490 and some Stampin' Up stamps. Not sure if I succeeded, it's fairly simple, but, as some of you close to me know, I have layer issues. (I find it difficult to add layers and layers). If anyone knows of a therapist that can help, let me know.

I think I've finally accepted the fact that it's just how I create, and if it looks good to me, what does the rest matter? Right? (ok, I'm looking for affirmation here people).

Here we go:

The stars and the stripes are Studio 490 (wow, that wording worked out well, didn't even think of that prior), I white embossed both for a resist effect. Faded Jeans and Barn Door are the colors of ink, the red buckle is 7 Gypsies, Statue of Liberty, Eagle and sentiment are Stampin' Up, and I added a Maya Road danglie, 'cause it seemed a little bare. :)

Any HOO, enjoy your weekend, be safe, and let's remember.....

FREEDOM really isn't FREE.

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-06-26T23:01:00.001-05:00

....A WORD!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

HOPE.....'cause without it....we got nothin'!

I used the Mover and Shaper Mini Baroque and Hope die to make the sentiment.

Gotta love the Art Parts Flower and Stem ! I layered it up with some grungepaper flowers, and of course, I should mention that all the stamps I used are Studio 490...it's just wrong not to use the stamps when using Art Parts...lol.

And hey, lookee there, I decided to go bright this week, how 'bout it? I used my fave Paint Dabber colors in Pool, Lettuce and Red Pepper, and a Maya Road Vintage Button for the flower center..those buttons are AWESOME...you must buy some. Now.

If you have any other questions on how I did something or what I used, please ask!
Oh, the little wood bird house was a garage sale find, got a whole box for, like, a dollar, so I covered it in tissue tape, with a little Clearly for Art birdie.

Once again, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-06-19T23:01:00.001-05:00

.... some METAL!!!!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

I haven't worked with my metal for a while, so this week's challenge was a perfect excuse to get it out! I use Ten Seconds Studio metal most of the time. On this project I used Golden Nugget metal, cut with the Tattered Florals die and embossed with Ten Seconds Studio tools to create the flowers. The centers are Maya Road Bingo numbers. Black metal ran through the Bingo Texture Fade makes for an interesting background in keeping with the Bingo theme.

The flourish is chipboard cut with a Sizzix die, covered with Gold Paint Dabber. Black Enamel Accent dots were added to it.

Once again, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Ric Rak, Ball Chain, and a Circle on a Square...

2011-06-15T19:46:00.000-05:00

...that's the theme I chose for the latest Making Art! Challenge over on the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! Group...based on a project from Wendy's Book One, Page 34. I thought with the three different elements, it would prove a little more challenging for the group, but, alas, I failed to make it too difficult, and some (who shall remain nameless, but you know who you are), whipped something wonderful up in about a day. :) I, on the other hand, had to take a little more time to think of something.

So...Father's Day is Sunday. Dewbird doesn't have kids, and neither do I, but we do include Rocky in that category...so I made a chipboard thingie for Father's Day for the Dewbird from Rocky (I'll throw the cats in on it, too, shouldn't exclude them, lest they develop an inferior complex, but somehow, I don't think cats are capable of that). Here we go:

The deets:

Square - about 5 x 5, chip covered with pieces from Lost and Found paper stack, inked with Brushed Cord and edged with tissue tape

Big *ss Circle on Square - chip covered with old ledger paper, stamped with tire tread stamp in one direction, then alternated to make diamond type pattern, and Wendy's itty bitty number stamp randomly in black. Black Ric Rak glued under edge of circle, then ball chain glued to the rim of the circle on the ric rak.

Motorcycle stamp - unknown - Ebay find.

The guy stamp is Wendy's, stamped a couple of times, and paper pieced together to make him "sit" on the bike. The scale is darn near perfect to the bike, isn't it? Awesome.

Salvage stickers form the words

There's those stars again, this time covered with some Platinum and Black Diamond Stickles.

Overall, I like it. I'm really stoked that the guy fits the bike so well. I'm sure I'll be using that combo again.

While I was making this, I tried a couple of different positions of the guy and the bike, and I took some shots for your entertainment.....here he is.... back from Vegas....

FREESTYLIN' FRANKIE (he performs his own stunts)

Mid air seat stand:

Mid air back seat grab:

Mid air take a nap pose:

LOL!

Thanks for stopping by!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-06-12T23:01:00.004-05:00

...DISTRESSED EDGES!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

When I saw Tim's post about using the new glassine paper and Perfect Pearls, I had to give it a try! The technique really added some shimmer to the glassine paper. I chose to adhere them to a "standing card", using the new Alterations Easel die. (I think I'll be using that a lot!) I used Tim's "burnt edge" technique to distress the edges, and an acrylic charm from Darcie Heater adds some color with a romantic flair.

Once again, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-06-05T23:01:00.001-05:00

...a TAG!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

I decided to go with one of her favorite themes for this tag.... travel! So, I started with stamps from Air Travel, Ticket to Art, and Destination Art, the new Mover and Shapers Word Die Journey, and white and clear Shrink Plastic to add some charming details to the tag! (Get it, CHARMING details....charms, shrink plastic, oh, never mind). By the way, this is one of those JUMBO tags, not the regular #8 size, just a little FYI.

I'm not sure what made me add the stars, but some are painted with Gold Paint Dabber, and some are covered with tissue tape. I thought they added a little interest. There I go with the "interest" thing again...

Oh, and I thought the car straight across the bottom looked rather dull, so I put an angle to it, made it look like it's doing a wheelie. tee hee.
AND, the rosette is made from the license plate paper from the Lost and Found stack, in keeping with the "car, travel theme". lol.

Once again, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-05-29T23:01:00.001-05:00

...YOUR FAVORITE STAMP!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

What can I say.... most of my favorite stamps are Studio 490. I know most of you are shocked to hear this.

So, I decided to go with a card.

My current favorite background stamp is from the Art Colors Life stamp set.

I also decided to stick with Adirondack pigment inks for this card. I used the "wrinkle free pigment" technique, lol, using Purple Twilight, Sailboat Blue and Clover. I stamped the background stamp with Denim pigment ink. The flowers are from the same stamp set, as is the "Simplify". The flowers are colored with Watermelon Adirondack pigment ink and overstamped with the text stamp from Love to Make Art.

It's hard to see in the picture, but there are two layers to the flowers, separated by a little dot of grungeboard.

And, I decided to add a star with some vintage glass glitter in the upper left corner, just for a little something.

Once again, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Grungy Monday!

2011-05-25T21:36:00.000-05:00

Here we are at another Grungy Monday! Can you believe May is almost gone??? Yikes! Where DOES the time go?

You can check out the details of the challenge over at Linda's blog HERE.

The challenge for this week is from Tim's September '08 Technique Challenge, which is, using the watercolor technique with dye inks.

I like this technique, and I also like using actual watercolor paper. I've done it on other cardstock, but I really like the result with watercolor paper.

I used one of my fave Tim stamp sets, Fairytale Frenzy. I used Lettuce, Pool, Butterscotch and Terra Cotta Adirondack dye inks. I did add some script in a light gray color just for interest around the edge, but I'm not sure how interesting it is. lol.

I could have added some embellishments, I guess, but quite frankly, I don't think this technique needs much embellishing. That's just me, though. Maybe I'm just stuck in one of my "simple" ruts. Dunno.

Thanks for stopping by...and many thanks to Linda for hosting this challenge, it's been great to revisit some tried and true techniques! Be sure to go check out the other awesome entries!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-05-22T23:01:00.001-05:00

...a STUDIO 490 STYLE!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

Oooo, this was a tough one for me..... NOT! lol!

I think it's pretty common knowledge that I love the Studio 490 style, (no, really?) especially the flowers! And.. the motivational sentiments. So, I chose to use both to make a home decor piece! Some of the stamps I used are from Live and Make Art, She Created Art, Mail Art, and It's Face Art. And, you'll notice the black flower in the upper left corner is made from the new Clearly for Art Blackout.

The butterfly is a Maya Road mini butterfly, covered with some distress stickles. The background paper is some OLD ledger paper covered with beautiful, old ink script, that I received from my friend Nancy. I really hated to cover it up!

Once again, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Grungy Monday and a Big MAC....

2011-05-20T07:02:00.000-05:00

...ok, here we are at Grungy Monday on a Friday...hey, at least it's not Sunday yet....

Check out the details over at Linda's blog-r-uski HERE. This week it's taken from a demo video of Tim showing the color block technique. And, you can check out Tim's blog HERE.

I've done this technique before, but used darker distress inks, and it's kind of hard to stamp with that dark of a background, although.... now that I think about it... I could have used white embossing powder... oh, yeah, good idea....note to self...

where was I...

oh, yes, my tag for this Grungy Monday... went with lighter colors this time... and used one of my all time fave Tim stamps, Nature's Wonder (don't quote me on that, but I'm too lazy to look it up).....

No big embellishments this time, just simple stamping. I used a black Sakura glaze pen to lightly sketch around the butterflies, makes them stand out a little more...

And, for the Making Art! Challenge ( there's the Big MAC, get it?) over at the Everything Wendy Vecchi group, I wanted everyone to try the brushless water color technique. We didn't even have to submit a finished project, I just wanted everyone to pull out a piece of paper, ink up a stamp with different colors, spritz it, then stamp. Take a pic and upload. Easy peasy super squeezy cheesy. I chose to use water color paper, I like the texture, and it's fabulous for this technique if you don't like a lot of "bleeding".

All stamps are Wendy's. Love the script stamp. I stamped that in a permanent gray ink first. The rest are the watercolor technique. It will make it's way to a card, I'm thinkin'.

Thanks for stopping by....hope you have a creative weekend...I urge you to take 10 minutes and try both techniques, seriously, they both should take no more than 10 minutes.... just sayin'....

All Wendy, All the Time!

2011-05-17T19:31:00.000-05:00

...well, if you really like her stamps, that's the way you feel...I'm just sayin'.

What I really mean, is, I was fortunate enough to be able to take one of her classes this past Saturday with some fellow Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! group members (and also friends, but I need to put the plug in for the group, you know..). The class was at The Scrapbooking Studio in Moline, Illinois.

The class wasn't project based this time, but technique based using the line of Ranger inks.. distress, pigment, and alcohol. A great review of the uses for the different inks, plus a nifty little ring of tags with each technique, to refer to. So, I took a few shots, yep, actually remembered to: 1) take the camera and... 2) use it.

Nice, big new classroom!


Gather round for the next technique!


Art made by Wendy herself! Most of these have been on her blog.


Wendy's "demo" table


Demo table, part two.


Colorwash table, HEY, you gonna use that newspaper???


Looking from BACK of store to the FRONT. HUGE!!


Stamps and art parts, OH MY!

Susan's wondering where her "list" is....lol..


EWV group pic, from left, Deb P, Sandi, Me, Wendy and Susan


Sue and I sending a message to you know who!

What a fun day! Totally loved meeting the other gals and gettin' all inky!

And last, but not least, my piece for the challenge on the EWV group this week, which was to do some stamping on patterned paper AND use a bookplate with a saying. Here we go, a card for a family member's upcoming birthday....

Thanks for stopping by, and as always, I appreciate your comments! Go Be Creative!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me....

2011-05-15T23:01:00.000-05:00

....an OLD WIVES TALE!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

So.......ok......had to think about this one. And what I came up with is "break a mirror and get seven years bad luck". Hmmmm........really not sure if that's an old wives' tale or a superstition, but for challenge purposes, as far as I'm concerned, I'm calling it an old wives' tale. So there. lol..

Decided to go with one of my "stubbies", aka - a leftover scrap of 2 x 4. This one happens to be pretty much square at 3 1/2 x 3 1/2 inches. I covered it with paper from the Lost and Found paper stack, and some tissue tape around the edges. Dewbird happened to have a broken mirror from his semi, which I pieced together inside a Sizzix die cut frame, cut about four times and stacked together to match the thickness of the mirror. I added a clock from the salvage stickers, and a grungeboard number 7.

The piece on the top is an old electric insulator, one of several I have found whilst digging in the flower beds. I have found a lot of interesting things out there. lol. Well, come on, after all, there was an old barnyard that surrounded the house. I keep hoping for a jar full of money, but haven't seen anything yet. lol.

Ok, I know the black cat is superstition, but I thought it was rather cool looking for this....

This week, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

I Love My New Hips!

2011-05-11T19:47:00.000-05:00

The theme over at Grungy Monday this week is a technique from....

12 Tags of Christmas, 2007, Day 8!

So, I went with some different colors, and a little bit of a different theme..

....brace yourselves.....

...ok, maybe it's what you'd expect from me....

Well, I thought it was funny! lol!

Of course, you recognize most of the stamps, I'm sure....The skeleton is Tim's, as is the witch face, and the dress form is Wendy's. Actually, I think it kind of looks Alice in Wonderland Johnny Depp-ish.

I used Red Pepper paint and Brushed Corduroy distress ink for the background. I then stamped over it with Wendy's bubble-ish background stamp, which I now realize doesn't show up well here.

Go over to Linda's blog and check out the other great entries for Grungy Monday!

Thanks for stopping by!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-05-08T23:01:00.001-05:00

...ANYTHING GOES!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

I needed to make an 8th grade graduation card for a nephew, so.... I turned to alcohol inks to make a bold and bright statement. (I'm hoping it appeals to teenagers, lol) I also used the DREAM mover and shaper die, the Rock Star stamp set, and the I-Rock heat setting tool to add some "stars" to the city skyline!

I had originally planned to do the alcohol monoprint technique found in the Compendium of Curiosities book, but apparently it takes some practice. (this was a hard one, as I always want it to come out right the first time)...I wasted about three sheets of glossy cardstock....... I got closer with this one, though:

I left a sentiment off for the time being, so I can use it for any given occasion, just stamping it before I need it! EDIT: I used it for my Mother's Day card...Mom likes the nature stuff almost as much as I do. lol.

This week, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Grungy Monday!

2011-05-03T18:35:00.000-05:00

...holy crap, can you believe it? I'm posting in the middle of the week....

I know, me neither.

So, I can't even remember what Grungy Monday we're on, to be honest. I guess if you came from there, you will know. If not, click HERE to go there. Ok, I did in order to do the link, and it's number 5. lol.

The challenge...a new dimension, is taken from a technique challenge on Tim's blog HERE.

It also happens that the Everything Wendy Vecchi Making Art! Challenge #11 is to use a ticket, and as luck would have it, my brain cooperated in order that I might combine the two. That's becoming more of a rarity these days. Trust me. Please don't tell me it gets worse, I don't want to hear it.

I decided to go with a travel theme, one of my favorite themes to work with...'cause.....I like to travel. And I don't do it much right now. lol

So, I used an old map for the background...duh......the key and the little state of Illinois came from my friend Nancy, who has the coolest stuff to use for assemblage and collage. And a fellow thrift store junkie. lol.

The big ticket is one of my favorite Wendy stamps, as is the car, which is on one of the NEW Art Parts, woohoo... and the belt and the sentiment in the upper right.

And I'm sure you recognize the compass as being a salvage sticker, mounted on grungeboard.

My niches were a little messy, guess I need a sharper craft knife. Thankfully the paper covered up most of it.

So, now that I have this done, I'm wondering what to do with it. It's about 5 x 7, so I guess I could put it in a frame. Dunno.

Ok, so then...I forgot to post my Making Art! Challenge piece from the previous week. The theme was stitching around the edges AND use a butterfly from PATTERNED PAPER. So, I used some Webster's Pages paper, which had a beautiful butterfly on it. A little sentiment and some lace, and ...ta da......

Guess that's all I have for right now. Thanks for sticking with me, even though I haven't been around much. I'll have to try harder, that's all!

Now....let's GO BE CREATIVE!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-05-01T23:01:00.001-05:00

..some HANDS!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

When I heard the challenge was HANDS, I immediately thought of the hands with the pointing fingers (no, not the finger you're thinking of) from the Studio 490 Mail Art stamp set! The sign was cut from chipboard using the Hanging Sign die. I cut several of the sign bracket, and glued them altogether to make a much more raised piece. The sign only has one layer underneath it. I should also mention that both the sign and bracket were cut from Creative Imaginations Real Wood paper. Which is somewhat hard to find now, they may have discontinued it. Why does that always happen when you find something you really like? It takes the new distress stains like a DREAM.
The background and the sentiment on the sign are from the Studio 490 Art Colors Life stamp set. A resist technique was used with the background with white embossing powder, which was swiped with a paint dabber in Pool. The big flower and leaves were also created with Studio 490 stamps, from Be Inspired Make Art, She Created Art, Let Your Art Have Wings, and Rose Art Part 2.

This week, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-04-24T23:01:00.001-05:00

..some BUTTONS!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

I have a gazillion buttons. A million from one Gram, another million from the other Gram, several hundred thousand from Mom, and never mind the ones that have been saved from numerous shirts and sweaters, just IN CASE you might need one. So, when I saw the challenge was buttons, ding ding ding, opportunity to use some of them up. I decided to go with a layer of buttons for the "roof" of my bird house.

The birdhouse is sitting on a base made using the Art Parts Spool, covered with Paddington Paper by 7 Gypsies. A LOT of flowers were cut from grungepaper and regular cardstock using the Tattered Florals die. I decided I needed a bird for the bird house, (what did you think I would put on there? Ok, I know, with me, you never know...lol), so I cut a bird from grungeboard using the Caged Bird die .

I added a red grungepaper rose for a splash of color!

I cut a grungeboard bird, also covered with Paddington paper, and adhered him to the perch, but he's hard to see against the busy paper background here in the pic, he's a little more visible in real life. You'll have to trust me on that one. lol.

Back view. The flourishes are cut from black cardstock using a Sizzix die.

This week, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-04-17T23:01:00.001-05:00

...a Tim Holtz Technique!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

I decided to go with one of the basic techniques, embossed grungeboard, using the Rays Texture Fade. Some Studio 490 stamps from Gentleman's Art, Tools for Art, and Rose Art Part 2; Idea-ology Sprockets and Gears and the Sizzix Gadget Gears die helped complete this "taste of Steampunk" hanging!

This week, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Grungy Monday #3 and Making Art!

2011-04-16T20:50:00.000-05:00

Couple of challenges today, one being down to the wire....yep, talkin' about Grungy Monday! Well, ok, I still had a day left, but it's late for me...

The theme this week is (was) exploring colorwash..Adirondack, to be brand specific. And you can see more info about colorwash on Ranger's site or Tim's website.

I needed to make a few Easter cards, so I used Stream and Lettuce colorwash on a background stamped and embossed with white powder, to create a resist. I then used paper from the Seasonal paper stack, and some vintage trim and buttons.

And on to the next challenge, which is over at the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! Group...use three buttons and a dimensional grungepaper/grungeboard object. I decided to keep it small and made a thick ATC. By thick, I mean, out of a piece of masonite board, for lack of a better term. I have a ton of the stuff left from some flooring packaging. Makes a great substrate. Any who...here it is...

No surprise there....that I chose a flower for my "dimensional object". At least I don't disappoint. Much. All the stamps are Wendy's, of course. Now, when you read that sentiment, doesn't that song just pop in your head? lol!
Ok, on to the bonehead move of the day.... I was attempting to cut the edge of some cardstock in one of my new Fiskars border punches. Well, here's a little tip...don't try to do two layers of cardstock at once. Heavy cardstock. Yeah, it gave a little resistance, but I thought, well, the paper IS a little thick....so I put all my weight behind it, or should I say, on the top of the handle... and.... BOOM....blue plastic shattered everywhere, yep, the handle busted. Darn near put holes in nearby bottles of stickles and glue with the flying shards of plastic. So, there's another piece for the trash. Apparently they're only made for ONE piece of LIGHTWEIGHT paper. And you wonder why I buy steel rule dies?? Snort.
Hey, I wonder if the Sizzix dies will cut that thick flooring packaging I was talking about earlier??? Hmmm.....I'll let you know if I need a new Big Shot....lol...have a great weekend, thanks for stopping by!

Vintage Humor ATC Swap...RESULTS! And a few extra things...

2011-04-12T20:23:00.000-05:00

...so, a while back, I had asked if anyone would be interested in a Vintage Humor ATC Swap, three for three. I was fortunate enough to have several responses to my call, and I'm going to show you the wonderful art... with humor....that the gals sent to swap. Now, there will be a little glare on some, as I was feeling more lazy than usual when taking the photos, and didn't remove the ATC's from their plastic sleeves. Hey, nobody's perfect.

Err, just realized the top middle one is sideways...any who... upper row by Pam, bottom row by Rhonda

Upper row by Elaine, bottom row by Eileen. How I so thoughtfully put the E's together is beyond me.

Left by Wanda, right by Electra

Mine you had already seen in previous posts. Are these not hysterical? I could seriously look at these five times a day or more, and still get a good laugh each and every time. Thanks for participating ladies, it was a lot of fun! If anyone else would like to enter this swap again sometime in the future, just click on Rocky in my sidebar to the right and email me!
I had also whipped up a quick card for a friend, using the alcohol ink splatter tech and some Wendy stamps:

Simple, but I like it. And yes, the AI's are a little over done. Quite frankly, I was going to throw it in the trash, but after I stamped it with the images and sentiment, I rather liked it, and I think the recipient will too.
I apologize for being somewhat MIA these past few weeks, but a lot has been going on. This week, after being unemployed for a bit, I started a new job. So, this working thing is really cutting into my art and blog time....lol... gee, I hate it when that happens. I'm kidding.
I'm very thankful for the job. Seriously.

And, just last week, I returned from a little vaca, where I got to spend some quality time with some art friends (ok, all around friends, but I thought I should mention that we all have that in common, lol), whom I met on the 2009 Timinator Mexico cruise..... Louise, Sarah and Pam. We had loads of fun, made a little art, did a little sightseeing and shopping, and ate a lot of food...and M & M's.

Many thanks to Pam for putting us up for a week, or I should say, putting up with us for a week. lol. Pam has some good pics up on her blog, including a very nice shot of an empty Captain Morgan bottle....argh!
So, I'll share some pics too, mostly taken by Louise, as I am usually one to forget my camera. We had some great southern seafood at Waddell's in Hartselle, Alabama. Oh man, I've never had FRESH shrimp before. Wow. Oh, and we got to try some crawfish, aka Mudbugs or Louisiana Lobster. Actually they were pretty tasty.

Here's a couple that got out of control:

A great pic of all of us, and there's that crawfish, still out of control and running wild, taking a break on my shoulder, lol:

Louise felt it necessary to play with her food, (although she did have a little prodding), and make a stick man from sweet potatoe fries and fried pickles:

Eek, these guys are trying to escape:

It was a fantastic trip, and I enjoyed getting to know these gals better. And, thanks for sharing your pics, Pam and Louise!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-04-10T23:01:00.001-05:00

...some DISTRESSING!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

I chose to make some Easter home decor in the shape of a chunky ATC, using the Tim Holtz Seasonal Paper Stack and Stickers, which I distressed using the Tonic Paper Distresser. I also used the Spring Sprung stamp set, and some Art Institute Vintage Glass Glitter Art Institute Dries Clear Adhesive adhered with .

Machine stitching round the edge, some glitter, and a pretty ribbon from my teamie, Linda C!

Added some stitching around the edge, some paper roses, and some glitter

Stamps from Spring Sprung in Coffee Archival, dotted here and there with Vintage Glass Glitter, and grungepaper butterfly colored with Scattered Straw

Salvage stickers, the stamp behind is from Spring Sprung in Coffee Archival

Top, crepe paper colored with Weathered Wood Distress Stain, sprinkled with vintage glass glitter, and a small paper rose adhered to the center

This week, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Grungy Monday #2!

2011-04-08T14:31:00.000-05:00

Here we are at week #2 for Grungy Monday!

This week, the challenge is taken from RangerInk.com, and is shown as a video clip, Distress Ink with Studio Multi Medium.

Ok, perhaps I shouldn't have done the dots and dashes inside the wish.
I cut the Mover and Shaper WISH from craft foam, using it as my stamp. The paper is from the Vintage Shabby stack, and you can barely see the pattern on the paper, probably should have used a more predominant patterned paper, the WISH looks like white paint, but it is "the product" we were supposed to use.
I then used the Fairytale Frenzy stamp set for the rest. I stamped the floral in Archival black, hoping (wishing? lol) it would look like a hanger for an ornament (the WISH). I also sprayed the tag with Kiwi Perfect Pearl Mist prior to stamping. Can't see it here.
Pretty simple, but some days you have that!
Thanks for stopping by, Go Be Creative!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-04-03T23:01:00.001-05:00

...ANYTHING BUT A CARD!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

Again, not a hard theme for me... lol

I chose to make a jewelry piece using Darcie's Acrylic House Charm , 7 Gypsies Conservatory paper, and Cosmo Cricket Tiny Type. When it's not serving as a pendant or brooch, it can be attached to a small framed piece with some jump rings and a hitch fastener!

Another shot:

Err, the charm does stand out from the frame in real life, it kind of blends into the background in the picture here...
Obviously, this is just a matter of cutting paper and gluing with glossy accents. The bird's nest, well, that's my first attempt at a wire bird nest. I just kept circling the wire and smashing it as I went. All very scientific.
The frame is a Sizzix die, covered with more of the Conservatory paper, and I gave it a spritz with some Heirloom Gold Perfect Pearls. There is some Peeled Paint distress ink under there, too, and some Brushed Corduroy in the center.
I love these little charms. They come with the plastic liner on both sides, so when gluing, you can keep the liner on one side so you don't get glue all over. When you're done, just peel off the top liner! It's a little bit thinner acrylic, too, they come with a hole in the top, but if you want one in the bottom, just use a Crop a Dile, cuts like butter and doesn't crack. Awesome!

This week, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Making Art! Challenge #8

2011-03-31T22:18:00.000-05:00

Mornin', Afternoon, or Evenin', depending on where you are and what time it is when you read this....lol...

First of all, I wanted to thank everyone that commented on "private eye girl", that was featured on Wendy's blog this past Wednesday! I was overwhelmed by the positive response, as I know some of my work can be a little "quirky". lol. But, hey, if you know me by now, that's just the way I roll...and expect to see more of it in the future. I was over the top thrilled when Wendy emailed me asking if I would mind if she featured me on her blog, I'm like....heck yes! Thank you Wendy! And also as a result, I see I gained some more followers, which I appreciate very much! Alrighty, that's about as much gushing as you'll see from me in one post, so....

The theme over at the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! Group this week...
a LOT of flowers (more than three) and a Perfectly Pearled grungepaper object. (Is that vague enough for you?)

Well, you know how I love my Wendy flowers, so this challenge wasn't too terribly difficult for me....

Thought I would try something a little different for the background, and cut up some corrugated cardboard, and slapped on several colors of paint and some Viva Inka Gold. Then adhered some Graphic 45 paper to chipboard, ran thru the Ornamental die, and there's my next background. That vine/flourish is a Sizzix die, cut from grungeboard, inked with Peeled Paint and Pine Needles, overstamped with a Wendy background in Olive Archival.
Although you can't see the Perfect Pearls, my "perfectly pearled grungepaper objects", are the butterflies. I sprayed them quite heavily with Sunflower PP/water mix. Very sparkly in real life, I'm just a poor photographer...
The flowers are all grungepaper, inked with distress STAINS and inks. Those stains sure do save a lot of time....love them! I'm hoping that the rest of the color family will be released this year, surely that's in the works, isn't it?????
Oh, and some Maya Road trinket jewel flowers, and miscellaneous bling for the flower centers...
.
Thanks for stopping by today...Go Be Creative!

Grungy Monday #1!

2011-03-29T10:53:00.000-05:00

Woohoo! Linda L. is continuing the awesome Tim inspired challenges on her blog! With some fab guest artists! Check it out HERE.

And the first theme is taken from Tim's Tags of Christmas 2008, Day 10!

Here's my tag, using Tim's new Air Travel stamps.

There's so much stamping on the background, it's hard to see the masking part. But I used the Heidi Swapp World Mask and Tim's Compass mask. You can kinda see South America's outline under the airplane. lol. All the background stamping was done with the Air Travel set, in either Coffee or Black Archival.

And good old salvage stickers to the rescue for the word at the bottom and the little compass on the top of the tag. I think I'll end up using this on a scrapbook page..... at some point..... hopefully before I kick the bucket.... lol... providing I can find it when I need it, of course.

Alrighty, there you have it...thanks for stopping by today....now it's your turn to Go Be Creative!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-03-27T23:01:00.001-05:00

...a HAT!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

So, I went with the silver and black theme again. And I chose to make an "art girl", although as I was making her, I thought she kind of looked like a private eye. lol. I was wishing I could make a little trench coat, but that didn't happen. Help me think of a good name for her, would you? Private eye, remember.

I used Studio 490 stamps from It's Face Art and A Form of Art, grungeboard wings cut with the Heart and Wings die, a Silver paint dabber and Black Enamel Accents to give her some "attitude"!

The wings were run thru a CB folder - Victoria. The paper on the little grungepaper flowers is Paddington-7 Gypsies. The Vine is black chipboard and a Sizzix die, stamped with silver dabber and Wendy's background stamp. The scroll thingy at the top of the hanging is also a Sizzix die.

This week, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Making Art! Challenge #7!

2011-03-24T19:21:00.000-05:00

Wow! Number seven already over at the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! Group!

The challenge this week... use a scallop frame and a small grungepaper flower.
Hmmm...I thought I had more sizes of chipboard scallop frames than I did. Although, really, it doesn't have to be chipboard, you could draw a frame, stamp it, whatever. But I took the easy way out.
Of course, I used all Studio 490 (Wendy) stamps.

Background - bundled sage with brushed corduroy, overstamped with olive archival
Flower - broken china
Leaves - bundled sage
Sentiment is black archival, that actually came out too light, so I went over it with the black Sakura glaze pen.
Dots around the frame are black enamel accents. The stitching inside is the Sakura pen again.
Stem is an Idea-ology spinner, of course, with a "discontinued carefully rationed" snap. lol.
Oh, and the little blingy flower center is a Maya Road jewel flower with a dot of black enamel accent.
Well, sad to say, that's all for this post. I've been busy preparing for some upcoming events, so blog postings may be a little scant the next couple of weeks. I will for sure be posting at midnight, eastern US time on Monday. :)
Thanks for stopping by, hope you are able to make time to be creative!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-03-20T23:01:00.001-05:00

...a WORD!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

I chose the word "CROWN", for this humorous layout of some pictures from the Tim Holtz cruise 2010. The Fabulous Flourish stamp adds some detail to the background using Coffee Archival Ink. The sentiments are stamps from the Studio 490 stamp set entitled Regal Art, and are embossed with Black Soot Distress Embossing Powder. And, Tim's "crown" is one of his own stamps, from Mini Ornates! How cool is that? And how about some rosettes using the Rosette and Mini Rosette dies?

I have to say, once I got rolling on this, I was laughing constantly. You really should enlarge the picture to read the words, then look at the pictures again. For some reason, the wording came out a little too dark in the picture.
When I looked at Wendy's stamp with that crown verbage, I knew Tim would have to have a crown (you know, to fit in with the princesses and the queens), and from there it was a matter of changing the word "her" on the stamp to "him". And the warning stamp under my pic, well, if you know me, it is so..........me.
The background paper, you ask? Yes, well, it started as one of the pink colored sheets from Vintage Shabby paper stack, and being as how Tim was to be in the pic, I needed to change that, so I slapped on some white and brown paint. I also sprayed it with Heirloom Gold Perfect Pearl Mist. Then stamped randomly with the Fab Flourish stamp and the itty bitty crown stamp from Wendy's Regal Art set.
The clock face on the rosette is set for 4 o'clock, because that's what time "Tim Time" was for our group on the cruise. You'll notice the Tim Time on the upper rosette next to Tim's pic.
And many thanks to my friends Eileen and Pat for allowing me to use their picture! We made quite the royal court....
This week, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Making Art! Challenge #5 and #6???

2011-03-17T18:45:00.000-05:00

Yep, a little behind. Thought I would have a few more projects to post, but with the warmer weather (a big yeehaw there!) I've been busy outside (well, that and getting the vroom vroom going).
So, let's backtrack to last week's challenge on the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! Group..which was to use a scroll and some chipboard letters. I guess I've been following Wendy long enough that I know what scroll means in Wendy terms, but some folks don't. Basically, it's a flourish. The end looks like a rolled up "scroll" of paper, though. You'll see what I mean.
I used one of her new stamp sets, Tools for Art. Here we go:

See the scroll behind the ink bottle and by the brush? That's what Wendy's scrolls look like. And, since I was going for the exploding ink bottle (I was hoping the scrolls looked like ink coming from the bottle...no?) I decided there needed to be an "ink spill" under the brush, using black embossing powder, so it's shiny...like...spilled ink. lol. This would also explain the "oops!" stamped by the brush....also one of Wendy's stamps.....
as for the chipboard letter portion of the challenge...well....it's the word "art", in case you don't have a discerning eye for that sort of thing...lol...

Alrighty, and on to this week's challenge, already at #6! The theme this week is to make a TAG USING ONLY ONE STAMP SET OF WENDY'S. Yep, you heard me. Use only ONE stamp set. In reality, this is a little harder than you might think. I chose to use her new Steampunk Art set. Now, this set doesn't have a background stamp, a lot of the others do. BUT, it does have the phrase "steampunk art". So, I started by applying Weathered Wood and Vintage Photo distress stains to the tag, sprayed them with water and let them bleed into each other, then pounced over the whole thing with Gold Alcohol Ink and Blending Solution. I keep forgetting that alcohol ink isn't just for glossy paper....wanted to keep the metallic theme going. I then stamped all over the tag with the phrase "steampunk art" in Encore copper and gold. Kinda hard to see, but it does add another layer. And here it is:

Notice how the glossy accents isn't quite dry on the boot....I wanted a black patent leather boot. And then there's the stinkin' glare on the light bulb, which is made from Clearly for Art modeling film, and filled with watch parts, which are being poured from the boot, get it? And a light bulb above his head for a bright idea? lol! Here's a side shot, you can see where I hooked a watch spring from the gear in his hand up to under the boot. THAT was fun to glue down. Thank goodness for clamps.

I'll see what other things I might be able to come up with for this week.
And by the way....I suppose technically you don't have to be part of the Yahoo! group to enter these challenges, but the pictures are posted to an album in the group. It just takes you out of the running for a possible random prize draw. The only hard and fast rule about these challenges is you need to use at least ONE Studio 490 stamp (Wendy, lol) in your project. After all, it is the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! Group.
Thanks for stopping by today, any questions, please ask!
Go Be Creative!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-03-13T23:01:00.000-05:00

...STARS!

For other details, to see other wonderful creations, AND to enter your own, check out the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

I decided to go with one of Tim's signature stamps, Umbrella Man, from the Life's Possibilities clear stamp sets, in a rectangle Art Part frame and backing for this week's project. The sentiment that goes along perfectly with this image is from Tim's Good Thoughts stamp set. I added some stars embossed with silver embossing powder being poured from an "inspiration" bottle made with Clearly for Art and a Studio 490 stamp from the Art Inspiration set.

I used some hinge clips, ball chain, and a little Idea-ology for the hanging bit. It's hard to see, but I sprayed the frame with Blue Smoke Perfect Pearls Mist.

This week, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away another $50 voucher! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR

Thanks for stopping by!

Challenge Me.....

2011-03-10T20:04:00.000-06:00

...I like challenges. Why, you ask? Because at least you have a starting point for an idea...

So, I will try to keep the words brief, because I have three challenges to show you.

First, the final CCC. What can I say, it's been a great ride! Lovely Linda has put so much time and effort into this event, I can't thank her enough!
I ended up taking bits and pieces of stuff I had left over from other projects and put them together. The stitching thing with wire, was, well, frustrating. I poked way too many holes. Finally, I just ended up using the tiny attacher, and realized half way thru that I couldn't reach the one side with it. Hence the mish mash of staples and wire. lol. Oh, and the heart is metal, puffed out, which you can't tell here...

Over at the Order of the Opus Gluei, the theme is "show us a NEW TRICK". This could be taken several ways, lol, but according to the orders bestowed upon us by the Poobahs, it involves showing a new technique. Using something from the paper craft world. Not what some of you might be thinking...yes, it's a rowdy crowd I run with....
My new trick is using metal tape sheets on Clearly for Art, which is a plastic modeling film that you can mold when heated. It doesn't shrink either. The lovely Wendy is the genius behind this product and I so willingly admit, the technique itself...it can be found on the butterfly on this tag, which is also the tag that was empty a couple of days ago, except for the "perfect stamping" background....

All stamps are Studio 490, the banner is from Tim's Regal Crest die, I folded it at the ends so it really stands out from the tag, but you can't tell that by this photo. On the metal on the butterfly, I used alcohol inks in yellow, orange and watermelon.

And finally, Hels Sunday Stamper this week is "NATURE". Well, I had this tag leftover from a previous project, it is collaged paper from 7 Gypsies Conservatory, with a coat of beeswax over it, and I added a little banner with sentiment (Studio 490), the butterfly, which is a rub on, and my little UTEE bluebird. I haven't decided what might be a good topper for it yet...lol...suggestions are welcome. I might just put it on a card or something.

Wow, I'm exhausted. Perhaps a piece of chocolate might give me a burst of energy...
Hope you all are having a good week, thanks for stopping by...
Go Be Creative!

Making Art! Challenge #4! and some UTEE...

2011-03-08T18:57:00.000-06:00

Today I have a tag to share that I made for the Making Art! Challenge 4 over at the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! Group. Wow, that was a mouthful. The challenge was to use Wendy's "perfect stamping" technique. You can find it in a couple of posts on her blog, HERE and HERE.

See how the green and blue are kinda blotchy? I used the new Distress Stains, used Broken China first, just on a portion of the tag, then ran Peeled Paint round some of the edges where the Broken China wasn't, then spritzed with a little water where the two met. I like it! I also tried the technique on the flower that Wendy showed on her blog HERE, where you attach metal tape sheets to Clearly Art, then run thru an embossing folder and color with Alcohol Inks. I used Currant, Stream and Rust AI's. With the glare, it's hard to see, but it is really luscious in real life...lol...the bottom of the tag is one of Wendy's new stamps embossed with Queen's Gold EP. Oh, and the little birdie is the same material as the flower, I just didn't run him thru the embossing folder.... thought it might hurt....

The Perfect Stamping tech came out a little too light, here's a closeup, see the faint lines running from top to bottom?:

And here's the background I should have used, more on that later:

Also took some time to play with molds and UTEE.

Yep, made some molds from Tim's buttons, and wanted to try molds from facets, it worked pretty good. The facets took a little fiddling around, I was trying to get a nice smooth surface. Notice how the blue one made from the facet mold has a bumpy surface. It had air bubbles, and when I went over it with my heat gun, the bubbles started popping and left a bumpy background, which I think is rather cool. Also notice how the clear UTEE pieces are a little different in color if you let the UTEE sit in the pot for a bit. I rather like it though, looks a little more vintage. And of course, I can change the color with Alcohol Inks if I want. :) . I got the blue color by adding To Dye For in blue, to clear UTEE. I added a little too much though. lol. But I rather like the deep color. Speaking of To Dye For....I have several packs of the Primary colors (Blue, Red, Yellow) that need a good home. So, if you KNOW you are going to use it and DON'T have any..send me an email. First three emails.....

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-03-06T23:01:00.000-06:00

.....METAL!

To check out other details and enter the challenge, go to the Simon Says Stamp and Show Blog!

Oooo, can't tell you how I was looking forward to using some Ten Seconds Studio stash...lol..
I combined Ten Seconds Studio Rock Star Black Metal, Clearly for Art modeling film, Ten Seconds Studio Kabuka mold Girly and Studio 490 stamp sets It's Face Art and Just Sew Artsy to dress up a "stubbie", yep, that's what I call chunks of 2 x 4 lumber...and black and silver are my "theme" colors this week....lol...

I used clear Clearly for Art, and painted the back with Black paint dabber. Silver paint dabber to stamp dots and other patterns on the flowers. Her "neck" is a memo pin, tucked behind the dress form. The dots are my new Chrome Silver Viva Pearl Pen.

Studio 490 stamps in silver pigment ink from Just Sew Artsy.

This week, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away a $50 voucher! Just think of all the great stuff you can order with THAT! lol! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry
Candy
Sarah

Linda E - the DIRECTOR
Thanks for stopping by!

Dimensionally Collaged Retro Postcards..

2011-03-03T08:07:00.000-06:00

Over at the Order of the Opus Gluei this week, the theme is POSTCARD. I took them literally on this one, and made a couple of postcards using Tim's Retro Grunge paper and the Artful Artifacts stamp set.

I kinda like how the rays on the paper on the left are shootin' out of his head, and how the circle on the paper on the right just hits him right at the cheekbone. Totally unplanned. I masked the face and the stars before stamping the city skyline. And I have to tell you, this is the FIRST time I've used that face stamp (I think it's called David). I never knew what to do with it. lol. So I avoided it.

The sentiments are Tim's too, (I know, contain your surprise), mounted in my new favorite bookplate from the tag and bookplate die. I just cut off the little holder tabs on the sides.

The dots are Viva Pearl Pen in Chrome Silver. Can you believe it.. a color called CHROME Silver. Had to have it, if just for the name. LOVE these Pearl Pens. So easy, and they don't clog.

Ok, and over at the second to last CCC, the theme is Dimensional Collage Fragment. Here's one that I'm not real happy with, but, some days you have that.

I wasn't real keen on the way the collaged fragment came out, so I put some rub-ons on the top. I guess it's ok. I used the question mark from the stencil letters, figured I wouldn't be using it anywhere else..lol... the flourishes are painted with Pewter Crackle paint. The flowers were just white, so I treated them with Blue Smoke Perfect Pearls spray.

Alrighty then, another two challenges down, and a couple more to do this week.... hopefully before the weekend....guess I better Go Be Creative! Oh, and a reminder, you can still email me if you want to participate in my "vintage humor" ATC swap, read about it HERE. Come on, it's only 3 ATC's!
Thanks for stopping by!

My Eyes, My Eyes!

2011-03-01T12:31:00.000-06:00

...good grief. The reason my title is that is because...I saw something very strange in the sky yesterday, and now today!

It's a brilliant orb of light that radiates heat, I think in some civilizations they call it "sun".

I haven't seen it for ages around these parts. Now my pupils are dilating trying to keep up.

Ok, let's see, where was I? lol.

The theme for Hels Sunday Stamper is Paris....ooooo....it just so happens that I still had some G45 Transatlantique paper laying around from the SSS project, which is filled with reference to Paris, France, etc. Imagine---paper laying around.....so I came up with this tag, which also gave me an opportunity to use my Sizzix Eiffel Tower die, and the Tag and Bookplate die, love the shape of those bookplates! Here we go:

Crackle Accents in the bookplate...Fab Flourish stamp used on background!

Added my fave French saying---actually it's about the only one I remember from French class in high school. The bird and the Fleur de Lis are.... get this.... Friendly plastic I pushed into a mold of Tim's adornments. Looks almost like the real thing, doesn't it? Thanks to my blog friend Alison, for turning me onto that little tidbit of useful info. Friendly plastic can be found at most of the "big box stores". Not Walmart usually...lol...

And on to Tag Tuesday, of which is a two week challenge this round, so I'm actually a little early... lol... the theme is postcard...so here it is...I'm not especially thrilled with it...not sure why, maybe you can tell me...

I had this tag actually left from the cruise, I don't have the embossing folder, although sometimes I wish I did...lol.... so.... I used some Wild Honey Distress Stain, and let me tell you, talk about fast coverage, these babies can do it! I was impressed! Then I used some Walnut Stain (ink pad this time) over the embossed areas and the edges of the tag.
Made a rosette out of some Lost and Found paper, and since the theme was postcard, brilliantly chose to use a postage mark for the center. lol.
Then, I know this is a stretch, but since the theme was Postcard, I thought of travel, which leads to the Gypsy Girl advert there, 'cause, you know, gypsies travel around. lol.
Dunno, I think it's too blah. Maybe more embellishments. I just hated covering up the embossing. That's usually my biggest problem, covering up the base. I'm sure you've noticed that.
And now, a little digression....I was given another award! This time from my newfound blog friend, Candy, over at Creativity is Contagious! Thank you so much Candy! She does simply spectacular art, you should really check it out! It's the Leibster award...and no... I don't know what it means, other than I need to pass it along to at least three other bloggers who inspire me, so I guess that's what it means, people who inspire you.

There are a LOT of blogs/artists that inspire me, I mean, if I miss one day on my Google Reader, I will have about 100 new entries the next day! And other than what I call the "big three", Tim, Wendy and Suze, I really have to think who to bestow this on, because it's so hard to narrow it down...
Hels would be one that really inspires me, especially where using Tim and Wendy stuff is concerned! lol!
My SSS team member Linda C, does some of the most amazing cards I've ever seen....
And Shelly's blog is great for tutorials and trying new things... If it has the word "faux" in it, she's done it! And of course she does wonderful art!
So...I probably named some that have already received the award..if so I apologize, but there you have it!

Don't forget too, about the vintage humor ATC swap I'm hosting, read about it HERE.

Thanks for stopping by today...Go Be Creative!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-02-27T23:01:00.002-06:00

...EPHEMERA!

You can check out the details of the challenge, and see more wonderful entries over at the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge Blog!

You can't get more ephemera-ish than 7 Gypsies Mini Ephemera packs and Graphic 45 Transatlantique! That's what I chose to use on this weeks project to make a five page chipboard book, along with a few of Tim's On The Edge dies!

Basically, there's a lot of cutting and gluing here, so I don't think I need to bore you with details, so I'll just include pictures of the pages.....

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry

Linda E - the DIRECTOR
Thanks for stopping by!

Anyone Up for a Swap?

2011-02-26T09:58:00.000-06:00

I thought it would be fun to do a three for three ATC swap....anyone interested? I thought a "vintage humor" swap would be fun. Here's how it will work:

1) If interested, click on Rocky (the dog!) on my sidebar to email me.
2) Three for three swap, send me three, get three back. You will need to enclose a self-addressed, stamped envelope for return to you, international players, we'll figure something out.
3) Sign up by March 5, due date for ATC's TO ME BY MARCH 31.
4) I'll swap them out within two to three days of the deadline.
5) Since it's "vintage humor", I thought using vintage people images would be cool, but you don't have to..as long as it's humorous...and vintage...lol.

Here's a couple more that I have done using Val's images from Sum of All Crafts....

Honestly?! Designer diapers?

Hey! This isn't Tickle Me Elmo! (yeah, you can barely see the stuffed animal there for the glare, doh!)

Okey dokey?
Email me!

A One-ah and a Two-ah...

2011-02-23T06:00:00.001-06:00

..wondering where I'm going with this, eh?
Two challenges and one award! Oops, I mean...one award and two challenges! lol! First, let me expound on the award portion of our program...
I was bestowed the Stylish Blogger Award from not one of my blog friend, but TWO! First from my friend Helen (StampingbyH), and then from Stephen, (My Thoughts, My Life)! WOW! Thank you so much, you two! Really made my week!

Then, I'm supposed to tell you 8 things about myself...hmmm.....what don't you already know? lol!
1) Let's see...well, for those that haven't seen me in person, I'm tall, (5'10"),and along with that, big boned. Yes, I'm calling that a body type. It worked to my advantage in high school, I was never picked on. It also works well when you're in a crowd. Not so much when you're young, and the crowd consists of single girls vying for the bridal bouquet. Somehow, they had some sort of missile guidance system and headed right for me. No matter how much I ducked and weaved, it found me. After while, I just stayed in the bathroom till it was all over.
2) I change the oil in my pickup every 3,000 miles. No, I mean I change my oil. Same with the motorcycles.
3) I have one sibling, a younger sister. Hi Sis! lol!
4) I like to read, just don't have a lot of time to do it. I like a good who dun it, trashy historical romances set in the "pioneer" period, and surprisingly, the Twilight series.
5) Back in college, I refuse to divulge the year, I competed in powerlifting. Just on a state and local level. I was actually too tall, the less height you have in that sport, the better you do. It's all leverage. But I did fairly well for what I had to work with. lol.
6) I have a bad back and bad knees, see #5. Not so much that I can't get around, but the older I get, the more I'm feelin' it.
7) My favorite color is brown. (ok, and Broken China)
8) I love music. Quite a wide variety, really. Usually, current pop is on my radio.
Ok! The other part of this award is to pass it on to 8 other bloggers. Well, I find this part rather daunting, there are so many wonderful blog friends out there. So, rather than narrowing it down, I prefer to leave it open for any of my blog friends that wish to grab it, you're all wonderful, and I thank you for your support! And thanks to Helen and Stephen for choosing my blog!
Alrighty then, on to some art...
The CCC this week is Altered Metal Alcohol Inks, and the details can be found on Linda's blog HERE.
I decided to cover a frame I had made a while ago that was covered with inchies. I put some grungeboard shapes and letters on the inchies, then covered everything with metal tape. Then liberally applied alcohol inks, and swiped a little black paint on the shapes and letters. I also added a stamped image (Tim's) on manila cardstock.

Nope, haven't decided on a picture yet. It looks better in real life, the picture is kind of crappy.

And, at the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! Group, the challenge is ... a heart and some junk jewelry. So, using all Wendy stamps of course, I made this little hanging....

As far as the junk jewelry is concerned, I used an old earring for the flower center, and the hangy heart on the bottom is another old earring. These weren't my earrings by the way. lol. And no, I didn't grab them off unsuspecting people as they passed by, these were garage sale finds.
Whew! If you've read all the way to the bottom, thank you!
Now, Go Be Creative!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me .....

2011-02-20T23:01:00.008-06:00

...Stripes!

Apparently, a lot of us on the team over at the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge Blog went with Graphic 45 paper for our stripes, but we each came up with something completely different! I chose to use the Renaissance Fair paper, and covered this HUMUNGO wooden box I've had laying around. (14" across!)
Actually, I saved it from the trash at an office I used to work at, (big surprise there, but I actually snagged it BEFORE it actually went in the trash), it came as a cheese and sausage gift box. I knew as soon as I started it, it was going to take FOREVER, (it did), but I like the end result; and once I started it, I was committed to the end!
I used the Tattered Florals die for the roses, some clear Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel and a Melting Pot to cover them, and Studio Multi Medium Matte to adhere all the pieces together!

My teamie, Linda C, had a great tutorial on her blog about using the UTEE on flowers, you can check it out HERE. I've seen it on other blogs as well, everyone has their own method for covering the flowers with UTEE. It's a little time consuming, especially when you decide to do, like five flowers and five leaves, but worth it in the end.

The paper has a sheet of just faces and images of women, so I featured those on triangular pieces of chipboard (Maya Road Triangle Banner). Hence, I'm calling this piece.... the faces of Renaissance... brilliant, eh? lol....

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry

Linda E - the DIRECTOR
Thanks for stopping by!

Stamping, Inking, Masking...Oh My!

2011-02-16T20:31:00.000-06:00

..yep, corny. Well, if you didn't laugh, if anything, maybe I made you shake your head and roll your eyes. lol.
Ok, the CCC this week is Inking and Stamping Masks...you can check the details on Linda's blog HERE.

I went with a card this week, who doesn't need those?

I'm not sure about this, but I tried some different colors....I'm thinking Brolley Man is Irish.

Classic Tim stamps. I used Olive Archival for the sentiment and umbrella dude. The background is the wrinkle free distress using Crushed Olive and Pine Needles. I kinda like that combo. I think the rest is self explanatory.

And the theme over at Order of the Opus Gluei is actually...a sketch. You can see the sketch, the details and other wonderful entries HERE. Again, I went with a card. And it is probably not going to fit in a flat envelope.

There is a slight pattern on the background paper, it's just hard to see. I looked at the back of the paper for a name or something, didn't find that, but I found the year....2001. Yes, it's true. But I still like it. I overstamped it with Wendy's script stamp in Tea Dye. The sentiment is Wendy's too. I had a flower I had made using old book paper, sprayed with Maya Mist Brown, then a chipboard button ran thru the embossing folder for the center of the flower, with some baker's twine tied thru it. I added some Prima Say It In Pearls with two others next to the flower, all mounted on a piece of brown velvet with ecru lace at top and bottom.
So, there you have it! Couple of challenges done, let's see how the rest of the week plays out! Thanks for stopping by, hope you are having an arty week!

Simon Says Stamp and Show Me...

2011-02-13T23:01:00.002-06:00

...a TAG!
I don't think I've ever done one of these before...ROFL....
Click the link and you will be zoomed away to the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge Blog for more details, and..
Be sure to visit the Simon Says Stamp super store, too! They'll have lots of the newest products from CHA coming in!

It just didn't feel right to put a meager little ribbon thru the hole on the top of the tag, so I went with a roof and a bird....lol...but trust me, it's a standard #8 tag under the roof. Here's some details:
1) Covered the tag with a collage of paper from the 7 Gypsies Conservatory paper.
2) I melted some beeswax in my melting pot, and proceeded to apply that with a brush over the collage.
3) Brushed some Perfect Pearls over that. (I used the Cafe collection, which is difficult to find, but any Perfect Pearls will work!)
4) Fussy cut some of the botanical elements from the paper, brushed a coat of beeswax on them, and glued them down around the sentiment, which is an unknown rub on word
5) The flowers and leaves in the lower right corner are BEESWAX brushed with PERFECT PEARLS. Yep. Made from an old mold I had lying around. Or, you could make your own with MOLD N POUR.
6) Added a little bling with an old button, from which hangs some Maya Road Chandelier pieces and a pearl bauble.
7) Roof is chipboard cut with Tim's On the Edge Scallop die, ran thru a Cuttlebug Victoria embossing folder, and treated with various paints, sanding and inks. Check out Shelly's tutorial for faux copper verdigris to see how that was done. The bird is beeswax again, rubbed with Espresso Perfect Pearls.

This week, our wonderful sponsors at Simon Says Stamp are giving away a $50 voucher! Just think of all the great stuff you can order with THAT! lol! So, be sure to create something and enter it for a chance to win!

Here's a list of the other design team members blogs, be sure to check out their wonderful creations!

Lynne

Nancy W

Nancy C

Linda C

Dan

Kim

Terry

Linda E - the DIRECTOR
Thanks for stopping by!

Making Art! Challenge #2!

2011-02-11T21:00:00.001-06:00

Ok! Here we are again! I posted the new Making Art! Challenge on Wednesday for the Everything Wendy Vecchi Yahoo! group, and the theme this week is...use a chipboard flower with the pigment ink resist technique. The technique can be found at Wendy's blog post of 4-30-2009, where she did it on manila cardstock, same technique applies for chipboard though. She has other posts related to the same technique, I just didn't have time to go thru all of them, and the blogger search wasn't working the way I had hoped.
Now, I must tell you, I've had "issues" in the past with this technique, as I think most have. It seems that the white pigment ink wants to "disappear", unless you make sure your ink pad is nice and juicy before you use it. AND, that the ink is DRY before applying distress inks. Like..."let it sit on a radiator overnight" dry. Kidding about that part. (I hereby absolve myself from any fires that may result from that last comment.) I'm just sayin'...it's gotta be good and DRY. Ok, point made.

I've had some of these chipboard pieces for AGES. Everything but the flower itself is Maya Road. Best chipboard I've ever used. So...I thought it was high time I start using it and doing a little "stash bustin'".

All stamps are Studio 490, of course. (When I refer to Studio 490 or Wendy, they're the same thing) The colors of distress inks I used were: Brushed Cord, Broken China, Peeled Paint, Spiced Marm. A little pen stitching with the trust Sakura black glaze pen.
Now, here's the good part...the button on the flower, you may think, oh, that's one of Tim's buttons. Well...it is and it isn't. lol! I made a mold of his button with mold 'n pour, and used Pearl UTEE. Close enough for me! I also made the little pearl drops on the brackets, by just dropping some UTEE on my craft sheet.
So, there you have it! Thanks for checking me out (my blog, I mean), now...you...
Go Be Creative!

Tag Tuesday...

2011-02-10T20:35:00.001-06:00

The theme for this week's Tag Tuesday is .... tag on a tag!

I chose to keep it pretty simple this time, but sometimes simple is good. I really like this set of stamps from Tim, so I don't like to cover it up much. And, I made two versions, see what you think. Minor differences, mainly the ribbon at the top of the tag and I added a fiber around the small tag.

The colors I used for the background are Spiced Marmalade and Broken China. I scammed this combo from Craftytrog, who used this on a card, and I thought it was just a great combo. Then I dropped some water droplets on it, and blotted with a paper towel. A little bit of Walnut Stain around the edges before stamping the images with black Archival.
My second "tag", of course, is the little round metal edged tag with "make art" stamped on it. That's a Catslife Press stamp. The ribbon slide is Maya Road.
See...simple.
Thanks for stopping by today, and don't forget about the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge, there's still time to enter!

Time for the CCC!

2011-02-09T10:15:00.000-06:00

..you'll see what that means in a minute... (ooo, pun..time..minute...totally unintentional)
The theme for the CCC this week is Rusted Enamel...one of my FAVORITE Tim techs.

Although, I must say, I'm not sure if the way I did it on this card is my fave...lol. I tried a different color combo for both ingredients necessary, and you can barely see it on the background, but it's there!

I embossed the Fab Flourish stamp with black embossing powder after I had done the technique on the background. I also embossed the sentiment with black ep, too.
Yep, the metal strip at the top is the leftover piece that I posted Monday, from my SSS DT piece. Just happened to still be laying on the desk, so why not? lol..
Ok, the pocket watch is my favorite piece, simply because I found some dies and stamps that work GREAT for this. The pocket watch itself is an older original Sizzix die. The watch stamp is Studio 490 (Wendy). Fits beautifully. Then, I found that on the original Sizzix die, Circle and Frames Combo, the one circle frame fit over the top of the stamp and pocket watch PERFECTLY. And the frame was treated with Shelly's faux tarnished silver tech, which you can read about HERE. I then filled the watch with Crackle Accents and let dry, then rubbed some Black Soot ink over it to enchance the cracks.
As long as I was on the time kick, I made another card to enter in Hels Sunday Stamper, of which the theme is....time!

Here's another older original Sizzix die, the grandfather clock. Beauty part - one of Tim's watch Salvage Stickers fit's PERFECTLY in the round part, which you do have to cut out. I used the tarnished silver treatment on this one too, and filled the watch with Crackle Accents. And hey, it's five o'clock somewhere... lol... the word "time" at the bottom is 7 Gypsies.
Background paper is Paddington paper, also from 7 Gypsies, of which I applied a mist of Black Soot and Brushed Pewter Perfect Pearl mix, LOVE this combo:

Can't see the sparkle from the PP of course, but it's there. (Hmmm...it seems you'll have to trust me a lot on these projects...lol)
I also used some Gadget Gear dies cut from black cardstock, with a swipe of Silver paint dabber across them.
The bookplate is from Tim's Tag and Bookplate die, same tarnished silver treatment, and the sentiment is Wendy's, which fit PERFECTLY inside the bookplate. (How many times did I use the word PERFECTLY today? Is that even a word?) Ok, my choice on the sentiment was for this reason... Time is short, so Create a Memory TODAY...
Thanks for stopping by today, and remember what I just said! lol!