Stamping on Muslin

I never would have imagined that a detailed rubber stamp like this would produce such a crisp image on cloth.
I was inspired to give it a try when I received this in my mailbox.  I used Stazon Timber ink to stamp these Club Scrap images. I probably should have used a little darker ink, but I loved the softness of this color.

The background was made using alcohol inks and an embossing folder, giving it a nice vintage feel and a little color.
I will definitely be stamping on muslin again.

Simplicity

Eye candy for me is often found in simplicity. Lots of white space and just one or two colors and one layer. For those of us that revel in complex design and a lot of color this can be difficult to achieve.
 
I recent rediscovered this stamp by Purple Onion and decided I would give this a try. The stamp has actually been kissed with a text stamp (Club Scrap), although it is difficult to see.

What I realized when I was finished, is that I don't own a heavy weight, smooth cardstock in white. If you can recommend one, I would appreciate it.

Sparkle with Sugar Dust

You've probably never purchased a product, put it in a drawer and never looked at it again. By the time I pulled this product out of the drawer, I couldn't even remember how to use it.
Sugar Dust by Stamp La Jolla, purchased at a convention sometime several years ago. I must have seen it demonstrated, and thought I had to have it.

It is similar to micro beads only finer. After this image from Northwoods was stamped and colored, I cut a piece of clear contact paper to fit over the image. Peeled the backing off the contact paper and covered the adhesive area with the Sugar Dust.

Here's a close-up of the effect. Quite pretty and fitting for Easter, which is not too far away. If you own this product, you might want to dig it out and give it a try.

Friends

There is a weekly tag challenge at Kard Krazy, and I thought I would join in. The theme this week is  Friend, I chose to interpret it as Friends. Red and yellow, two colors I rarely use, but how much fun.
And because I am a card maker, and always seem to need a usefulness for my projects,  I decided to make pocket card. The inside reads 'Don't Get Us Started'. It will be in the mail tomorrow to a good friend.
May we all have wonderful friends! Have a great week.

Distress Ink & Glossy Paper

It never occured to me to use Distress inks on glossy paper. Normally water based inks won't dry on glossy stock without embossing. Anyway, they create a beautiful background on the glossy.

I made several cards out of the piece of background paper I created. I picked these flower stamps up years ago at a small stamp store when I was traveling. I know the artist's name is Stacy, but they aren't labeled. 
 The fold on this card is a little different. I folded a 4x6 piece of paper in half and layered it up on the background, so only a 3x4 window opens for the greeting.
 If you've never tried Distress Inks on glossy, you definitely need to give it a try.

Club Scrap Blog Hop

I've been a member of Club Scrap since 2006, and we're sharing the love today with a very special blog hop. If you're looking for amazing stamping, book making and scrapbooking products, you might want to check them out. One of the Club Scrap members suggested that we share the love, by having a blog hop showcasing amazing projects that were made using Club Scrap materials.
As it's Valentine's Day, I thought it might be fun to highlight different Valentine cards I've made the past few years, using Club Scrap products. These were all made using Club Scrap stamps and papers. If you scroll through my blog a bit, you will see many more items made with CS products. 

Happy Valentine's Day and thanks for stopping by!

Your next stop in the hop will be to visit Deb's blog to see her amazing work. If you get lost along the way, I've provided a list of all the participants below.

Valentine From a Friend

I received this wonderful Valentine from an online friend. Just had to show it here, it's so beautiful. The puffy heart is made of muslin. Beautiful piece, don't you think? I plan on framing and hanging it in my craft room. Thanks Christy! Don't you love getting arty mail? I know I do.

Happy Valentine's day blogland.

Journey - (Mixed Media Tutorial)

Life is full of changes and challenges, and 2011 is going to include both for me. Inspired by Kelly Rae Roberts, this piece was created to denote my journey through the upcoming year.
I was able to get photographs as I made this piece and thought I would share a tutorial. Normally you would do a piece like this on a canvas, but alas, I have none. This was created on a piece of 8.5" square cardboard that was heavily gessoed on both sides to give it a little strength.

Using basic scrapbooks papers, I cut various sized squares and just glued them down randomly using mat gel medium.
Then it was given another coat of mat gel medium. Let it dry completely. I made a basic sketch with charcoal to use as a guideline. This could be anything you want to sketch.
I used 2 colors of acrylic paint, blue and green. The paint was puddled side by side on a piece of wax paper and then I used my small brayer and picked up the blue on one end of the roller, and the green on the other. I rolled this all over the piece, outside of my sketch area.
Next, I took a damp paper towel and wiped away some of the paint until I was satisfied. In some areas I added a bit more paint, and then wiped away the excess again.
The next step was to paint a rusty red in the bodice, this time using a paintbrush, then again, wiping some away.  A rich brown was used in the dress, using the same technique. I took a bit of both of these colors and dabbed them on to the background, helping to integrate them into the overall piece, making it more cohesive.
Gesso was used to paint in the wing area, again wiping the excess away. The head and neck were painted completely with gesso to prep it for the face.  The face and neck were then painted with a pale beige.
Now comes the more difficult part for me, sketching the face. I had actually considered leaving her faceless...no guts no glory, or so the saying goes. I used a charcoal pencil to sketch the face and painted it with acrylics. To get different skin tones, paints were watered down quite thin.

The whole piece was then outlined with black paint. I used charcoal to create shadows along the body and in the wings. The words were stamped with black ink. The whole piece was sprayed with fixative. 
When finished, I was pleased. I have a long way to go with sketching, but it is a beginning.

Here's to new beginnings and to all of our journeys in 2011!

Bird Watching

I live in the country and really enjoy all of the wild life I see here. I've always been a bird lover, as was my mother. In the dead of winter, it is often the only sound I hear. It is estimated that approximately 300 birds a day visit my feeders, and I am able to view them from my kitchen or dining room table.
Getting a photograph through the window isn't ideal, but this is one of my cardinals that visits regularly.

Thought I would share a little ATC (Artist Trading Card) of what I call 'Winter Bird'. At the end of the day, just before the sun sets, the last of the birds will arrive to feed in the twilight.

Compendium of Tulips

I never tire of using these tulip stamps from Club Scrap. I had started a project that looked totally different from these, but this is where it ended up. 

COMPENDIUM:  1)a collection, 2) a list of a number of things, 3) a compilation


This first piece is a wall hanging for a PIF (pay it forward) swap. I used Tombow Markers to color the images and Distress Inks were brayered on the backgrounds.


The remainder of the 'compendium' are cards.  I can't wait to see my 200+ tulips this spring. They're there, waiting...just under the snow.


When the sun warms the ground, they'll rise their heads to the warmth of spring....and bloom.

  

I can't wait for the bloomin' spring! Hope you have a great week.

Art Doll #2

I missed my previous doll 'Dreamona' so much, that I had to create a new one for me. She's a little different, a little sad, don't you think? I almost put a tear drop on her cheek, but decided against it. This doll has a home, all glittery and sparkly...which is exactly what she needs to keep her from being melancholy. Maybe she's suffering from the winter doldrums.


Here's a close up of her 'happy house'. The whole piece is 6.5" wide x 12" high.  This was very difficult to photograph. I could use suggestions on how to photograph such bright items.
But she really needs a name..ideas? Thanks for stopping by to take a look.