Good bye 2010, hello 2011!

I was hoping to make some profound statement about the end of the year, etc. but so many have already done this and I can really only echo their sentiments.  Hard to believe I've been blogging for 1 year and 1 day!  It's been a lot of fun, a neat learning experience, and a great way for me to share my artful journey with you.  Your comments have made my day(s) and I look forward to gaining more followers and visiting with all of you in the new year.  I hope 2010 hasn't been too awful and that 2011 will be awesome.  I feel lots of wonderful things will be in store for us...new stamps, new products, new tools.  What more could we ask for except more time to enjoy them all? 

Oops...just got issued another tornado watch...60 and looking nasty outside.  What a way to end the year...not quite the noisy outcome I was anticipating!  And way too early for noisemakers! 

Happy New Year!

1882 - yesteryear

The latest theme from Simon Says Stamp & Show blog is 'yesteryear'.  I'm guessing that April 1882 will qualify.  I took a picture of my great-grandmother at age 16 (1866-1939) and enlarged it.  I didn't like the black mat so I painted it with gesso then added plenty of Bundled Sage, Brushed Corduroy and Forest Moss distress inks.  The original photo is now grayish-green on a pinkish-orange chipboard background.  I looked at the colors on the color wheel and decided that a sage green and grayish lavender would work nicely with the photo.

Wendy Vecchi's script background stamp (Live & Make Art) was stamped in Olive archival all over the mat and dots (Seriously Art) was stamped on part of the left side of the mat in in Sepia archival ink.  In the four corners I stamped the corner flourish from Tim's French Market in Sepia archival ink.

Wendy's 'Be Happy...Make Art' provided the image for the grungepaper flower (Bundled Sage, Forest Moss, Milled Lavender).  I stamped two images then layered them, cutting apart the flowers for more layering with grungepaper scraps in between the layers.  On vellum I stamped Wendy's German text in Black archival, distressed with several brown distress inks then wadded up for even more dimension.  My great-grandmother was born in Germany and only spoke German so this was perfect.  I added a Maya Road Bingo piece (16) sanding it before gluing it down on the vellum piece.

Tim's flourish and ticket dies were cut from a sample tag of Scribble Stain Distress (Tim's technique from his latest book).  The flowers (smallest die from 'Tattered Florals') were cut from sage green grosgrain ribbon then tapped onto a brown distress ink.  They frayed without any help from me.  Tim's brads form the flower centers. 

I don't know the font that was used on the ticket die but I really love it.  There is no info on the bag as to the manufacturer or any other info.  The numbers are separate stamps but the months are spelled out...no separate letters, darn it.  I stamped 'April' in Wild Honey distress ink and '1882' in Coffee archival.

We have only a few pictures of Regina, as an older woman, so I'm ecstatic to have found this one from her youth.  It does pay to look through older collections...you just never know who you'll find in a photograph.

Merry Christmas!

Here's a simple holiday card decked out via Tim and Wendy!  Santa's suit has one of Wendy's backgrounds stamped in Coffee Archival Ink.  The belt has Black Soot Distress Crackle Paint with the White Paint Dabber run over it then a brown distress ink.  The gold belt buckle has Tarnished Brass Crackle Paint and a brown distress ink over it to bring out the cracks.  Tim's alpha die was used on a soda can for the numbers.  A bit of brown distress ink all around the card layers brings it all together.

From my creative space to yours...

Merry Christmas!

Dance in the rain

Okay, so today I'm dancing in some sunshine and tomorrow it will be snow.  That's life!  This week's Compendium of Curiosities challenge was to use the Scribble Stain Distress technique.  I don't know that I achieved the same effect that Tim did; when I attempted to activate the Distress re-inker nothing happened.  I made numerous tags and still didn't get anything to happen.  Sigh.  But, these attempts gave me more backgrounds for future use, including one for this tag (raindrops and umbrella man).

All stamps are Tim's with the exception of the dance pattern on the bottom of the tag.  That's Dawn Houser's design from Inkadinkado.  I can't remember what colors I used...green, blue and brown...sorry.  The raindrops were punched out of an extra tag then covered with Glossy Accents and adhered.  Umbrella man was stamped on the same tag but in Stormy Sky DI.  He got a brown distress edging as did the whole tag.  I had some Wraphia that was the perfect color combo.

This wasn't one of my favorite techniques but still fun to see what the results would be using all different color combinations.

Last of the tissues so no more issues

Last tissue box cover this year.  Had it in my head to do a real glitzy one.  I used a Cuttlebug snowflakes embossing folder and plenty of Stickles on all the embossed areas...maybe Diamond?  My hand really got some nasty cramps.  The camera angle didn't pick up the glitter effect but it is pretty when light shines on it.  I edged the pieces with the silver paint dabber.  A friend may be bringing me some lemons and kumquats from her yard in southern Alabama so I wanted to have a little something to say 'thank you'. 

Another tissue box cover

This one has something different on each side as well as the top.  The base is kraft cardstock and the layers and embellishments are from a Sizzix pad of 6"x6".  I used Tim Holtz Texture Fades and dies and a Tartan plaid embossing folder by Provocraft.  Ranger Distress Inks and regular and Distress Stickles are all over the place.  I did use a Brilliance Platinum pigment ink on the blue snowflakes.  It's hard to see all the stickles I used on the snowman, tree, ornament, deer and cover top but they are there.  My neighbor was quite tickled to get this as she was drooling all over the ones from the other day.  She also was happy with her Santa tin and puzzle (from an earlier blog entry).  I think I need to work on some holiday food preparations now and stay out of my art room for a bit.  :)


Brick wall with ornament





Frosty and friends




Frosty and his snow-laden tree




Reindeer in the forest



Tartan topper

Here's the link for those who missed it the first time.

http://www.splitcoaststampers.com/resources/tutorials/tissueboxcover/

Achoo! Gesundheit!

Made more tissue box covers yesterday.  My siblings and I don't exchange holiday gifts but I do try to make something for them to take home after our holiday gathering.  You saw the black snow one several blog entries back. 



Cuttlebug folders:  Victoria, Floral Fantasy
Cardstock:  Bazzill
Leaves, flourish:  Spellbinders
Flower layers:  Tim Holtz
On the edge die:  Bracket
Inks:  Distress by Ranger

Cuttlebug folder:  Clockworks
Texture Fade Retro Circles: Tim Holtz
Cardstock:  Bazzill
Gears:  Tim Holtz
On the edge: Postage
Inks:  Distress by Ranger

Cuttlebug folder:  Birds & Swirls
Cardstock:  Bazzill
Bird, cage:  Tim Holtz
On the edge die:  Scallop
Inks:  Distress by Ranger

Cuttlebug folder:  Stylized Flowers
Cardstock:  Bazzill
Leaves, flower:  Tim Holtz
On the edge die:  Scallop
Inks:  Distress by Ranger













These do work up quickly and can be as simple or complex as you care to make them.  Any theme will work, any color scheme will work.  Let your mind wander and don't worry if it goes off the beaten path!