MMTPT376

This is my card for today’s Teapot Tuesday challenge onSplitcoaststampers.com.  This week, our cards are going out to Patty in Valencia, CA. Sadly, Patty recently lost her husband to cancer.

I was so busy last evening working on a Christmas project that I completely forgot about the Teapot challenge! So, I looked through my Pinterest boards before work this morning and decided to CASE this card:

It took about 30 minutes to make, including deciding on the designer paper. I cut two pieces of DSP  and one piece of cream to 1-3/4” x 3” then matted them with black cardstock that was cut to 2” x 3-1/4”  I stamped the sentiment and then popped that panel up using fun foam.  I also lined the inside with matching cream cardstock.  The finished size of the card is 5-1/2” by 4-1/4”

Recipe:
Stamps: Verve
Cardstock: Fun Stampers Journey cream and black,  unknown brand DSP
Ink: Archival Black
Accessories: Fun Foam

Art Studio “Spring” Clean and Reorganization

I am excited to report that the “spring” cleaning in my art studio is done and it has been reorganized!

It turns out that I will not be moving this year (and that makes me very happy).  The property manager will be doing an inspection of the condo this week before issuing a new lease and that prompted me to really dig in and clean my art studio.   Even after the packing that I had already done in anticipation of moving, I still spent at least 3 hours in there last Sunday.  I tossed a lot of scrap paper and other stuff that I know I will never use.

I had a small Iris cart in my bedroom closet that didn’t have much in it, so I emptied it & moved it to my art studio closet. It now holds my Stickles & reinkers. Two of the drawers are still empty, but that probably won’t last long! I’m sure I will find something to store in there.

I didn’t unpack everything that belongs in my studio. I figured those were things I don’t use often, so I put the boxes in the storage room.  If I need something, I can get it from the box, use it, & then decide if it needs to stay in the studio.

When I was finished, it was a relief as well as a huge sense of accomplishment!  Now, I don’t want to make anything because I don’t want to mess up my studio!  Last night, I just sat in there for a few minutes and enjoyed the cleanliness. Every time I walk past the door, I pause, look in the room, and smile.  J

Fun Stamper’s Journey Coach Challenge for September 2015

I am a Journey Coach (#382) for Fun Stamper’s Journey.  I am also the winner for my upline’s September coaches’ challenge.   My choices are to make a card with a stamp set that I have not used yet or to hold a party either online or in person.   Since I am in the process of finding a new place to live & move by the end of next month AND planning a 60^th anniversary party for my parents, it is easier for me to create a card (or two!) with a previously unused stamp set.

This is the first card that I created:

I used bits and pieces of cardstock and designer papers from several monthly kits to create this card. The oval die cut piece as well as both pieces of designer paper came from kits.  I stamped the image onto vellum paper using Black Licorice ink.  After it dried, I flipped the image over and colored on the backside by dipping a blender pen onto the ink pad to pick up the colors.

After the inks were dry, I glued the piece onto the backside of the die cut piece of Whipped Cream cardstock and glued that on top of the piece of designer paper.  The edges on the piece of orange striped designer paper was distressed and then the design element was glued on.  This entire assembly was glued to the A2 card base. The finished size of this card is 4-1/4” x 5-1/2”.

I used the following stamp sets:   

     
Here is the recipe for this card:

Stamp sets: Wish in a Bottle (sentiment) Spring Days (image)

Ink: Fun Stamper’s Journey Licorice Black and Pineapple, Cat’s Eye olive green and rust

Paper / Cardstock:  Whipped Cream (white), Vellum, various Fun Stampers Journey designer papers, vellum       

Here is the second card that I made for this challenge:

I recently received the snowman and matching die but haven’t had an opportunity to use it yet. He is a cheery fellow and using the die makes it quick and easy to cut him out!     

I used a pierced rectangle die and next smaller size to die cut the rectangle frame. I stamped the snowman in Black Licorice ink on Whipped Cream cardstock, the die cut him out. He is colored using a blender pen dipped in inks.  I just cut a scrap of white cardstock in a curvy fashion to create the hillside.

After gluing the hillside to the back of the frame, I glued it down onto the navy blue cardstock (unfortunately, not Fun Stamper’s Journey cardstock).  I used a Sakura clear glitter pen to make the stars and then glued the frame assembly on top, stamped the sentiment, then glued on the snowman.   This was then glued onto an A2 card base; the finished size of the card is 4-1/4” by 5-1/2”.

I used the following stamp set and dies:

Here is the recipe for this card:

Stamp sets: Frosty Fun (image), Wish in a Bottle (sentiment), pictured above
Ink: Fun Stamper’s Journey Black Licorice, Cat’s Eye red, green, orange
Cardstock: Whipped Cream, unknown brand navy

Still purging!

It is time to get really serious about purging my studio since I will be moving in a couple of months. I am tired of hauling all this stuff every time I move!

Last week, I filled a couple of good sized boxes with punches, 12x12 designer paper, a few wood mounted stamps, & a lot of ribbon and took them to an elementary school that is located in the southern part of the county. it felt good to know that these things went somewhere where they will be used.  I had some of the items for almost five years!  If I hadn't used them by now, it's obvious that I never would.

Next up for purge are stamps and stamp sets.

Woohoo!

Studio Purge Continues!

No pictures today, but rather some rambling thoughts!

I am still working (albeit slowly!) on purging my studio.  The other day, I went through all of my punches and pulled out quite a few that I know I will never use.  Some are brand new and/or having matching stamp sets.  Those stamp sets were pulled off the shelf and added to the pile.  A couple of the punches and matching sets have already been posted on the "Purge to Splurge" group on Facebook.   More will be added later to that group.

I keep putting off going through all of my patterned paper. There is way too much of it!  I know I will feel better getting rid of paper that I bought years ago and have never used.

Last night, I started a Christmas card using the July 2015 paper collection from Heartfelt Creations.  It will be a nice card once it's finished.  I like how Heartfelt Creations makes printed card fronts that you can cut out, embellish & stamp, then glue onto a card base.

Sympathy Card

I made this easel card for a co-worker whose husband passed away recently.

I had a die cut shape that I scanned into my Brother Scan N Cut and enlarged so that it would fit around Grand Calibur Labels One shape.  The flower is a Memory Box die and the diamond shape is a Spellbinders nestabilities die.  The sentiment comes from Papertrey Ink.

My studio purge is still a work in progress. I have sold several items and that feels good!  I sent two packages to a friend in Texas and I threw a lot of stuff in the trash.  There is still a lot more to go through and get rid of.

Slow Day (Yesterday) on the Homefront

Yesterday  (Sunday, 3/15/15) was a nice, slow day. Nothing on my agenda and no plans for the day. 

I decided to pass ongoing to the air show at the local airport so that My Man could spend some “quality guy time” with his (college-age) son. I’m glad I did because they had a great time together.

I purchased a Roku box a week ago so I figured yesterday was a good time to get it set up.  It was easy-peasy!  I had it set up in just a few minutes and started watching Downton Abby.  I have never seen the show, so, of course, I started from the beginning.

I didn’t feel like doing anything in my art studio, but I did feel a bit guilty sitting in front of the TV and not actually doing something. So, I dug out a couple of Spellbinders flower dies, some scraps of paper, and inks. I took those (along with my Big Shot) into the living room and made flowers.  I started out with a blue one but didn’t like it, so I tossed the pieces. I ended up with five light pink flowers (edge-sponged with Stampin Up pink pirouette ink).  I’ll take a picture of the flowers when I get home this afternoon and add it to this post.  (2015-03-17 - ETA picture of the flowers!)

After the air show was over, My Man, his son, and I went out for fajitas.  Yummy dinner! And I got to see the pics and videos they took at the air show.  When I got back home after dinner, of course I had to continue watching Downton Abby!  I am now up to Season 2, Episode 2.

Birthday Card

This card will be going to my Stamping Friend.  It is a loose "CASE" of a card we made this past weekend.  She taught me how to shape flowers quickly, so now I am more inclined to do that.  I've always liked the looks for shaped flowers over flat ones on a card, but I never wanted to go to all that work!  

I used the designer paper that is available for this year's SAtampin' Up! Sale-A-Bration. I sponged around the edges and into the paper so that you can see the embossed design.  The flowers were stamped and punched out, then shaped with a dry embossing tool & bone folder to curl the edges.  The leaves were punched with a Martha Stewart leaf punch; I used the embossing tool to put in the veins & sponged around the edges for dimension.

I used the dotted rectangle die that is available through Fun Stamper's Journey for the second layer.  The stickpin is one that I had made  a couple of years ago.

Purging

I promise, I have been making cards lately!   I made two cards on Sunday that I really like; I just haven't taken pictures of them yet. And I have been working on a Mother's Day card since Monday night.

I have been slowly going through my art studio and pulling stuff that needs to be purged.  I tried to sell a few things on EBay; after several times of listing, I managed to sell three items.  That experience was frustrating and disappointing so it will be a while before I try selling on EBay again.

I found a group on Facebook called Purge to Splurge and thought I'd give it a try. I listed four things last night and already sold two of them!  So, I would say that is a success~!  I am very happy to see some money in my PayPal account AND to send some tools to new homes where they will be used.  I am definitely going to be listing more things on Purge to Splurge in the next few days.

Brother's Birthday Card

This is the card that I sent to my older brother for his birthday.  It was a fairly quick card to make, even though I was designing it as I went.

I stamped the lighthouse image onto watercolor paper with archival black ink, colored it with watercolor pencils, and used my water pen to smooth out the colors. After it was dry (used my handy-dandy heat gun for that!), I used a circle punch to punch out the picture. I didn’t have the next larger sized punch, so I used my Brother Scan n Cut to cut a larger circle.

The sentiment is made up of two stamps. The frame is a Stampin’ Up stamp that coordinates with one of their framelits. The sentiment is from set made by a different company.  I used my Scan n Cut to cut a mat for the sentiment and added brads for accents.

Both the sentiment and the image are popped up.  The background is a piece of designer paper from my scrap bin; I sponged around the edges to distress it a bit. The card is 5” x 7”

Painted Birds

During my lunch break at work yesterday, I doodled a couple of birds on a piece of scrap paper.  They turned out pretty cute so I decided I was going to duplicate them.

This card started out with a piece of dampened water color and some blue distress paint splattered down.  The paint didn’t move enough for my liking, so I added some green gold paint, spread with my paintbrush and spritzed it with more water.  Sometimes I don’t know when to stop, and this was one of those times!  The colors started getting muddy, so I attempted to fix them by laying a wonky circle stencil on the wet paint and removing some paint with a baby wipe.  I didn’t get the effect I was looking for so I decided it was fine the way it was.

After the paint was dry (heat guns are wonderful tools to speed up the process!), I drew the birds with a #2 pencil. Once I was happy with the shapes, I primed them by painting inside the shapes with white paint. Then came the fun of playing with paint colors!  I used red craft paint for the darker areas of the bodies, and mixed the same red paint with flesh colored craft paint for the lighter areas. I used burnt umber acrylic paint mixed with some of the red craft paint for wings. 

The sentiment is a thinlit die from Stampin’ Up.  I cut that out of white cardstock & glued it down. I then traced around the sentiment and the birds with a black stabilo pencil. I used a clear glitter pen as the finishing touch on the sentiment.

The card size is A2  (5-1/2" x 4-1/4").  The size of the painted image is 4" x 5-1/4" and it is layered onto a piece of  black cardstock measuring 4-1/8" x 5-3/8"

Embrace Your Art, Prompt 19

Well, I missed all of the Embrace Your Art prompts between my last prompts posts and this one!

Prompt 19 is Bubbles.  I painted this page in my small art journal.

Embrace Your Art, Prompt 20

This mixed media card was a lot of fun to make! Prompt 20 is Diamonds and Pearls.

I cut a piece of watercolor paper 4-3/4” x 6-3/4” for the card front.   I spritzed the paper with water, then used a sponge dauber to add the different blue and green inks.  The blue spray blob in the top is from Limor Webber’s 2014 “steampunk” collection at Lindy’s Stamp Gang.

I used a foam stamp that has three diamonds on it with two colors of green inks. I stamped the lighter color first, then over-stamped with the darker color.   After that, I stamped the flower from Totally Tracy’s set, “Let It Go,” in Archival Black ink. I painted the petals and leaves with different colors of watered down inks. After the page was dry, I lightly smeared a charcoal pencil around the diamonds and used Liquid Pearls to create the textured flower center.

The card front was layered onto navy blue cardstock (4-7/8’ x 6-7/8”) and then glued to a 5 x 7 card base.

(Yes, I know!  I am a couple days behind on the prompts!  I haven’t even started Prompt 21, Ghost Writing.  )

Watercolor Masculine Card

The image for this card was supposed to be used on my brother's birthday card.  But when I watercolored it, I used a lot of water trying to smooth out the pencil lines. It took a long time to dry and I didn't want to wait.  So I created something different for my brother.  I'll post that card after his birthday next week; don't want to take a chance on him seeing it on my blog beforehand.  :-)

Anyway, the watercolored image was still sitting on my desk a few days later, all nice and dry!.  So I decided to use it to make a really quick card for my stash.  I'll add a sentiment when I send this card out.

I apologize, but I do not know the manufacturer or either the image stamp or the background cross-hatched stamp.  The cardstock is Stampin' Up! Chocolate Chip and Pear Pizzazz.  I used Stampin' Up!'s Old Olive ink for the background stamp.   The image was stamped in Archival ink on watercolor paper.

Rowdy to the Rescue!

Something that is “near and dear” to my heart is Senior Dogs, especially those who are in shelters for one reason or another.  Senior dogs do not have a good chance of being fostered or adopted and we all what that means.  L

Rowdy to the Rescue is a rescue group whose mission is to rescue and rehabilitate all senior dogs, not just senior pit bulls.  You can read a little about their history as well as their Mission Statement in this article.

Since the article was written, Chris Hughes and his lovely wife, Mariesa, started the Mr. Mo Project after one of their pack, Moses, went to the Rainbow Bridge in 2014.  He was such a sweet fellow and I enjoyed following his adventures on Facebook.  I never had the pleasure of meeting Moses or scratching his ears, but I fell in love with him over the internet and cried like a baby when he left us behind.  You, too, can follow the Mr. Mo Project as well as all the rest of the pack in the Dog House on Gremlin’s page on Facebook

The Mr. Mo Project covers all costs for senior dogs who are in their foster program. Not just the transportation costs to get the dogs from the shelters around the country to their foster homes, but also all veterinarian costs. Most times, the senior dogs need extensive medical care.   Please consider donating to Rowdy to the Rescue which is a 501(c)3 Non-Profit organization.  The article talks about levels of donations, but I’m sure Chris and Mariesa would welcome a donation in ANY amount.  If you would like to foster a Senior Dog, please email Chris Hughes at rowdy2therescue@gmail.com.

Embrace Your Art Daily

I have joined a (Facebook) challenge called Embrace Your Art Daily. This challenge  started on January 1st and runs for the entire year. Tiare Smith selects the prompts for the week on Mondays.

The first eleven prompts have been selected:

1. Pastels, Paints, Ink

I was staying at a friend's house over the Christmas and New Year's holidays and did not have a lot of art supplies with me.

I drew the tree trunk and flowers, then used watercolor pencils to color the image. That fulfilled the "pastels" and "ink" portion of the challenge. I used a sharpie pen to outline everything and to write the quote; that fulfilled the "ink" portion of the challenge.



2. Bloom

I found a tutorial on YouTube on drawing poppies.  They are easy!

Again, the flowers were colored with watercolor pencils and outlined with the sharpie pen.


3. Hand

I traced my hand with a #2 pencil, then colored the image and background with (you guessed it!) watercolor pencils.

I did have a couple of stamps with me; I used one of them to stamp the flower images. If I remember correctly, this is a Hero Arts image.

After everything was colored, I outlined my hand and the flowers with a sharpie pen.




4. Intuition
I did not create any art for that challenge. I spent the late morning packing up everything to come back home. My friend plays guitar and is part of a local band  (J.Q. and the Master Blasters). They had a gig on Sunday afternoon, so I went with him to that before driving home yesterday evening.

5. Numbers

This card fulfills the challenge for numbers AND it is also my Teapot Tuesday card for this week.  I do not have the link for the Teapot Tuesday challenge yet, but we were supposed to either make an ATC or a mixed media card.

I did both!  The section inside the black and pink butterfly tape is an ATC  (2-1/2" x 3-1/2") I matted the ATC and stamped the background of the card. The ATC is popped up to add dimension.

Go join the challenge group on Facebook!  Watch the videos to get the rest of this week's prompts.

I have been having a good time. I hope to be able to create something every day in 2015.