Huck Finn

Happy Monday and I hope you all had a wonderful weekend!  Over the weekend, I received my first ever order of Pan Pastels and could not wait to play!  Wish I had ordered some of the tools with handles, but that will happen next time!  Interesting how projects come together as I was looking at the "Quote and Quotables" sentiment and decided to make a somewhat stormy sky background with my new PP. 

Of course I knew that the ship in the "Huck Finn" collections would look awesome in the background, so I lined this up stamped with Black Archival, allowing some room for that adorable Huck!  The young lad was stamped and then colored with Distress Inks and fussy cut.  I decided Huck would go so solo this time, so cut around the pup!  Stamped and torn the words and added a compass.

This will be linked to:
Simon Says Stamp and Show: Passport to Fun
Pan Pastel: Dreams

Thank you for visiting me today and as always your comments are so appreciated!  Just a reminder that there is still a couple of days to join in the "April Referral Program" at Artistic Outpost!   Enjoy the week! 

Domino Book!

Hope everyone is having a great week and a big "HELLO" to my newest followers.  It is always such a pleasure to see some new faces in the mix!  Blogging is such an amazing adventure and leads to many friendships along the way!  Not to mention all the inspiration and challenges that follow.  Lately I have so enjoyed Brenda's domino books and decided I would take the plunge!  After all that is how we learn and flourish, right?   Photo heavy and oh so sorry!

Has it happens, several years back my daughter bought us "dominos" and I for one am not a person who plays games, so there were more items that would end up in my pile of "I can't get rid of it because it comes from family."  Isn't it great to recycle gifts? 

The dominos were inked with green, red, gold alcohol inks and then sealed.  I did cut separate panels from manila paper for each folded page.  Some background stencils were done with "recycled" produce netting, bubble wrap and mesh.  I look at so many throwaways differently these days! 

All images and mostly from Tim's new "Tiny" collection were stamped using Black Archival and color with Distress Inks and or Markers. 

I stamped and cut a second  dancer image on clear plastic packaging and adhered with Glossy Accents.  When I inked the mirror, I removed some of the ink from the center portion to clearly reflect the image.  The butterfly was masked off and stenciled.

Bits of masking and stamping going on here!

Again more masking and stenciling.

This was a bit time consuming, but such great fun!  I am taking my little Domino Book to visit the following challenges:

Bloggers Challenge - In Bloom
Country View Challenges - Butterflies
Frilly and Funkie - Upcycle for Earth Day
Inspiration Emporium - Marvelous Masks/Spectacular Stencils
Simon Says Stamp and Show - Color

Thank you so kindly for stopping by to visit and I wish you a fabulous weekend! 

Paperboy Delivers Birthday Tag!

Over at Fashionable Stamping Challenges we are getting all "Sentimental" and that can be a special time, place, event or sentiment!  Oh you should see what the design team has for you and we have another "Guest Designer," so stop on by FSC and have a visit!  There is always a prize! 

My tag is of a sentimental theme as it will soon be my G-son's birthday.  Hard to believe he is turning 22 and I really wonder where did the time go????  I decided to pull out my AO Paperboy to deliver the special birthday greeting.  Simon Says Stamp and Show is all about using "COLOR" and so we are having a visit there. 

If you would like all the details on how this tag came about, please stop by Artistic Outpost, as it is my turn to share on Wednesday and I decided this would be the project of choice!  

Thank you for stopping by and I can't wait to see your Sentiment project and FSC!

Stamps: Artistic Outpost, Paperboy, Quotes and Quotables
Inks:  Coffee Archival, Distress, Walnut Stain, Tattered Rose, Fired Brick, Faded Jeans
Stains:  Fired Brick, Faded Jeans

I Believe!

Welcome to April's Artistic Outpost Blog Hop!  It is all about Women and or Flowers and just in time for Mother's Day!  My lovely teammates have plenty of inspiration to share, so be sure to stop by and have a treat!  Gerrie, Lisa, Sue, Tracy, Linda, Alison, Terry (Me), Kate.

For my tribute to "woman," I decided to go with the Flapper Fashions and Quotes and Quotables as focal point.  Both were stamped using Black Archival and the lovely Flapper was colored with sponge applicators using Tattered Rose and Spun Sugar.  Don't you just love the power in Believing?

The backgrounds were created using a swirly floral from Birds of a Feather, first stamped with Tattered Rose to cover the entire white background and then in a random fashion using Spun Sugar.  For the sentiment, I decide to add splatters by thinning out Tattered Rose and Spun Sugar reinkers, using an old toothbrush.  I will be linking this up to Simon Says Stamp and Show - Background.

There is still plenty of time to join in the "Anything Goes" April Referral Program using those AO stamps.  Thank you for stopping by today's blog hop and I hope you have a wonderful day and remember to "Believe."

Stamps:  Artistic Outpost, Flapper Fashions, Quotes and Quotables, Birds of A Feather
Ink:  Archival Black, Distress Tattered Rose, Spun Sugar, Black
Reinkers Tattered Rose and Spun Sugar 

Chunky Scarecrow!

This is my first "chunky ATC" and I had quite a good time working on all the various sides.  More and more I am just loving working with Mixed Media and even add a little of my own ideas here and there.  I did once do decorative painting!!  So here it is and what do you think and you know I want to hear it "good or bad."  And a big "thank you" to Diane, who not only told me of a really great picture editing site, "picmonkey," but even told me how to add a watermark!  She is so cool, I tell you! 

All stamps are Artistic Outpost and for this I used the Oz Collage and Industrial Backgrounds.  For the background, after sealing, I applied white gesso and stamped my image to keep in mind where I did not want to apply embellishments or texture!  Next I added modeling paste, let it dry a bit and then pressed in my industrial gears on both sides.  I also ran the VersaMark over the top of the gears background and clear empbossed. Even though I was going to layer some metal gears, I wanted a little texture to show through.  This was all covered with gesso and then sprayed with Dylusions and paints.  After all dried, it was highlighted with gesso and sealed.  The scarecrow was stamped with Coffee Archival and then colored with DI

I knew what I was going to do with the front and back, but was having a bit of a dilemma with the sides.  The stamps I wanted to use were out and then when I visited Shelly's "My Creative Rumblings," I was reminded of a Technique Junkie "chalkboard" technique.  Thanks Shelly as I need that push!!!  The filmstrip was cut from brown card stock and then inked with black and embossed.  I also cut some thin packaging strips to cover the images, just like a real filmstrip!

The wings were crackled and then colored with Distress Stains.  I inked and embossed two gears for a front and back to add extra support.  A little grove was notched and hot glue used to keep it upright and I sure hope it remains like that! 

The back was embossed and inked.  The sentiments were all stamped using Archival and clear embossed on tissue paper, cut and then applied with Multi Medium Gel.  You won't even see the tissue edges, so I like that!  Don't like that my "YBR" decided to be slightly off, but once I noticed, it was too late.  This AO Chunky Scarecrow is off to the following challenges and if you have some of these fabby stamps, don't forget the "April Referral Program." 

Simon Says Stamp and Show:  Background
SanDee & Amelie's Steampunk Challenge: Fairytales into our Steampunk
Unruly PaperArts: Gears
Bloggers Challenge: Emboss Me
The Artistic Stamper - Texture

Thank you so much for stopping by today and I hope you have a very creative week! 

Stamps: Artistic Outpost, Oz collage, Industrial Backgrounds
Inks:  Archival Coffee, Distress Black Soot, Walnut Stain, Vintage Photo, Scattered Straw, Mustard Seed, Rusty Hinge, Tattered Rose, Peeled Paint
Dylusions Melted Chocolate, Cut Grass, Pure Sunshine

Paris in April

Today I would like to start off by saying "Hello" to all my followers and "Welcome" to my newest followers!  Where ever you are, I hope the weather is starting to feel more like Spring with Butterflies and Flowers!  As some of you know we had a really nasty wind/dust storm and that has passed, but it was something else and left quite the mess behind!  On to my tag!

The tag background was inked with DI, Squeezed Lemonade and Tattered Rose with a touch of Festive Berry and all shading was done with Vintage Photo.  The background was stamped using Archival Sepia.  The butterflies from Tim's Tissue Wrap, were colored on the reverse side using Sharpies to avoid any bleeding.  Cut them out and glued them down. 

The Eiffel Tower was cut, embossed and highlighted and then clear embossed.  I added a little DI to the flowers to give that Spring feel in Paris!

Will link this tag to the following challenges:

Frilly and Funkie:  April in Paris
Country View Crafts :  Butterflies
Simon Says Stamp and Show:  Fly

Hope to get a little more crafting down this week, but the Hubby is taking some time off and we usually end up goofing off or running errands!  I so appreciate your stopping by today and hope you are having a great week! 

Tim's April Tag!

Today it is very windy here and they have warnings about it!  We can get 80 MPH winds and those are dangerous as power poles and trees have been know to give was.   Why am I telling you this, I don't know, but could be because I just thought the door might blow open from a big burst of wind!  Now that I have gotten that out of my system, how about sharing Tim's April 2013 Tag, which will also go for a visit at Unruly PaperArts for "RAQ 2 Gears." 

Followed Tim's instructions as much as I could, but the IMPROVISING took place with the Distress paints as I only have two and none were Metallics.  Pulled out the Distress Stains and Metallic Stains to mix up as well.  I just played until I was somewhat happy!  Could not get the background effect, but can live with what I did!  This tag with be for my Grandson's #22 coming up at the end of April. 

Used Tim's Mini Blueprint and Tiny Things for my tag.  The world and compass was stamped on plastic packaging as again, I did not have the special product!  Added a piece of filmstrip over the postage airplane, which I wished later I had stamped in black as the sepia ink does not show up that well via camera! 

My number was a piece of grunge board that I played with paints and stains until I thought it was close to Tim's.  The metal embellishments were also treated with the paint and stain mix!  Fun tag and always a challenge to come up with the end project with a lack of product!!!! 

A little excitement to share!  I made TOP 3 at Simon Says stamp and show for this AO Canvas!

And TOP 3 at SanDee & Amelie's Steampunk Challenge for this Cuckoo Clock! 

I just was going to go and pick up the mail and I saw the entire air was brown!  It is so windy here and dirt is making visibility very bad!  No, I left the mail, but here is a picture of what would have been a blue sky day!  I took this out my craft room window!

Sorry, I was so photo heavy!  Hope you are having a great week and with a little less dirt blowing in the air.  I know at least one of my blogger friends is probably dealing with the same conditions!  Thank you for visiting today! 







Life Is Good!

We are "journaling" at Fashionable Stamping Challenges and this fun theme was chosen by Ellie!  Now I don't really journal, so run over and check out what inspiration my "journaling" DT Sisters have for you!  There will be a random draw for a prize of $20 from Flonzcraft.  Here is my attempt!  Oh and we have a very special guest designer, Kate Crane, so stop by and give a hello!

First I started with my background "YIKES."  It was sprayed and thinned with water, sponged here and there over a piece of mesh.  Pulled out a couple of stencils and played around, added paint through some leaves.  Sponges on some Distress ink!  Never quite knowing what I was doing, but when I thought I was happy and enough was enough, we went on to the little sweeties from Artistic Outpost and if you use their stamps, link your project up to the Monthly Referral Program.

The girls were stamped with Black Archival and colored using Dylusions Spray and a water brush.  For the skin tone, I used Tattered Rose! 

The mesh (not in the photo) is what gave some of the texture in the background and I just sprayed over that with the brown.  Not sure if I did this correctly, but I did it!  Hope to see you join in the "journaling" challenge at FSC! 

Linking this up to:
Bloggers Challenge:  Backgrounds
Simon Says Stamp and Show:  A Very Strict Challenge
Inspiration Journal:  Marvelous Masks & Spectacular Stencils

Thank you so much for stopping by and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Stamps:  Artistic Outpost, Birds of a Feather, Typography

Time For A Good Book!

Do you have a difficult time deciding on a post title?  I know at times I sure do and it can take up some valuable time!  My little studious young man from Rogue Redhead Designs, was asking to come out and get all inky, so how could I refuse this little darling?

The arched frame of Tim's was cut using layers of chipboard and corrugated cardboard and then glued together.  This was covered with some paints, crackle and stain.  The back panel is card stock layered on chipboard and I did first splatter some leftover coffee on this!  The young man was stamped in Coffee Archival and then colored with markers and applicators.  He was then masked off and the Almanac background stamped in Brushed Corduroy, inked and splattered with water.

The tag background was inked over a Dylusions letter stencil with a Versamark pad and then clear embossed.  Once colored with distress inks, the embossing was removed via an iron!  Again we had to splatter with water!  I just love that effect!

The sentiment was stamped using Coffee Archival and clear embossed, inked and mounted on corrugated cardboard and I used a Stampin Up paper punch, so neglected!  The key and metal corners were inked and embossed, even though it does not show up very well in the photos! 

This tag will be linked to the following challenges:
Rogue Redhead Designs:  Sentimental Focus
Unruly PaperArts:  RAQ 1 Hardware
Inspiration Journal:  Marvelous Masks/Spectacular Stencils
Simon Says Stamp and Show:  A Very Strict Challenge
Craft-Room Challenge:  In the Library

Hope you are having a very creative week.  This is the first time I have had a chance to play this week!  Taking advantage of working in the yard before it becomes too hot!  Sorry that may have been cruel to hear for some of my friends in the colder climates!  If it helps, I pay for this will bad allergies!!!  Thank you for visiting and whatever you are doing - ENJOY!

Stamps:  Rogue Redhead Designs, Reading Plate
Inks:  Archival Coffee, Distress, Squeezed Lemonade, Brushed Corduroy, Antique Linen, Scattered Straw, Vintage Photo, Walnut Stain
Vintage Photo Stain

AND THE WINNER IS???

While I start my forth year of blogging, I just want to say again, that I am so blessed to have the best blogging buddies out there!  The best part of blogging and being on design teams is also the connection you make in such a busy and large world and so cool when you get to actually meet a blog friend.  And even better when it is as if you have known each other for a long time!  Thank you so much for being a part of this incredible adventure and inspiring me every single day with art and life! 

THE WINNER OF

IS

Congratulations, Dot!  Not only is Dot a blogging friend and DT Sister, but she is one heck of artist as well.  If you don't know Dot, "Dot's Dabbles," stop on over and give her a visit and I know you will be inspired!  Dot just fire me an e-mail and I will send you the code to go shopping girlfriend! 

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend and Happy Easter!  Enjoy the week and as soon as my hubby gets back to work tomorrow, I will be in inky heaven!