Playing Around in the Studio

I spent a little time playing around in my studio this evening, making some card bases and flinging a little paint onto my current canvas.

First I did a little experimenting with Ken Oliver Color Bursts on watercolor paper, wetting the paper first and puffing the powder on and also spraying the powder after it was on the paper to make it spread and run.  I like these, although the results are kind of unpredictable.

 This last pair is actually done with some Distress Inks in the background, and then some of the Color Bursts on top.

I'll let all these dry overnight, and then cut or tear them up to make bases for cards.

I also painted a bit on my current canvas.  Right now this painting is kinda blah; I'll have to think about what to do to it to enliven it a bit.  Maybe some stencilling?

Then, as usual, I used up my leftover paint in my art journal.

I actually really like the way these color are working together.  Maybe I'll try another face on this spread.

Then I played a bit with some pattern paper, a little tissue paper, and this funny rooster stamp by Mary Vogel Lozinak. 

These are destined to be cards, but the gel medium I used to apply the tissue paper and the stamped roosters has to dry overnight.

So, for now, everything is quietly drying and I am almost ready to head for bed.  Happy Wednesday, everyone!

Card Making

I've been spending some time making cards recently.  I usually go ahead and make two of the same card, since that is just as easy and quick as making only one.

Here are some of my recent makes.

I'm pretty pleased with the way all of these turned out, but I think my favorite are the top two with the pears.  I just love that loose, watercolor-y background.

And I also worked on an art journal spread this evening, adding some paint to the face and gesso-ing over some of the rest of the page.

I like this pretty well, too, although I noticed that her eyes aren't level when I took these pictures!  Oh, well....

A Finished Quilt

I put the binding on my quilt last night and finished hand-sewing it down this afternoon.  Yay!  A finished quilt!  I think I'm going to hang onto this one and keep it for napping under.

Here's the back.

And a close-up of the quilting pattern I used.

I also made a couple of cards the other night.

These were made with Distress Inks and a stamp from Unity Stamp Co.  I only had enough gold ribbon for one of the cards, so the other one got embellished with a white ribbon, which I don't think works quite as well.  Oh, well!  Sometimes you have to make do with what ya got!

A Happy Evening in the Studio

I spent a happy evening in my studio this evening, doing a little painting, making a couple of cards, and working in my art journals.

I added another layer of paint to these two paintings, again using an old gift card to apply the paint.  I really like the way these are shaping up.  I'll have to think about what to do next.  I may do a little sanding on the top one, since it is on board.

I really like the way the orange and yellow layers I added tonight are transparent on this one.

 I added some of the same paint colors to this art journal spread--you can see that this is where I use up my paint!

Then I made a couple of cards, using some tag bases I had made several months ago and adding some stamps by Stampin' Up.  These came out rather Christmas-y, which I had not really intended, but I like the effect of these two cards.

Oh, and I trimmed the edges of the quilt I've been working on; I finished quilting it last night.  Now to get a binding on--I have to think about what sort of binding would look good.  Maybe just a scrappy binding, since it is a scrappy quilt.  I'm still not sure whether or not I'm keeping this quilt for myself, or am going to send it to my son.  I'll have to see whether it's really long enough for him, since he is 6'2".

Christmas Body Stockings

Today is the seventh day of Smeared Ink's December-long blog hop, the 12 Days of Creepmas 2015!  I'm excited to be here, along with all the other great artists you can find in the blog roll in the right-hand sidebar.  My apologies for being AWOL this week; the holiday season is kinda taking its toll this year.   Start at the top with Fiona or just jump right in anywhere; if you've arrived here from Val's blog, welcome!  Do hop on over to Kat once you're finished here.

Welcome to the holiday season, everyone!  We guarantee to give you an alternative view of the holidays!

My card today features a really odd vintage image--I just knew I had to use it this year somehow!  Don't you wonder what sort of club these two are visiting?!

The details:

1.  People in stockings digi stamp from Old-Fashioned Christmas Illustrations CD-ROM and book, by Dover Publications, printed on Neenah  and colored with Tsukineko Memento markers

2.  Background collaged with papers from my stash and tissue paper

3.  Sentiment computer-generated, printed on Neenah, and sprayed with Color Bloom Spray Mist in Tea Stain

4.  IndigoBlu "Vintage Flourish" rubber stamp

5.  ColorBox Chalk Ink Edger in Chestnut Roan

Thanks for stopping by my blog today, and I'll see you back on Tuesday, everyone!

Santa's Toy Horse

Today is the fourth day of Smeared Ink's December-long blog hop, the 12 Days of Creepmas 2015!  I'm excited to be here, along with all the other great artists you can find in the blog roll in the right-hand sidebar.   Start at the top with Fiona or just jump right in anywhere; if you've arrived here from Val's blog, welcome!  Do hop on over to Kat once you're finished here.

Welcome to the holiday season, everyone!  We guarantee to give you an alternative view of the holidays!

My card today features another untraditional Santa.  Hey, even Santa needs a little something for himself now and then!

The details:
1.  Santa digi stamp from Create with TLC, printed on Neenah, and colored with Stabilo CarbOthello pastel pencils
2.  Background collaged from papers from my stash and tissue paper
3.  Sentiment computer-generated, printed on Neenah, and sprayed with Color Bloom Spray Mist in Gold Foil
4.  Prima Marketing Chalk Ink Edger in Dark Bark

Hope everyone is having a delightful holiday season so far!  See you on Wednesday!

Santa, Years Later

Today is the third day of Smeared Ink's December-long blog hop, the 12 Days of Creepmas 2015!  I'm excited to be here, along with all the other great artists you can find in the blog roll in the right-hand sidebar.   Start at the top with Fiona or just jump right in anywhere; if you've arrived here from Val's blog, welcome!  Do hop on over to Kat once you're finished here.

Welcome to the holiday season, everyone!  We guarantee to give you an alternative view of the holidays!

I've entitled my card today "Santa, Years Later."  Even Santa can become embittered--it's all those years of dealing with those damn elves.

The details:

1.  Santa digi stamp from Create with TLC, printed on Neenah and colored with Tsukineko Memento markers

2.  Papers from my stash

3.  Corner stamps by JustRite clear stamps from the "Ornate Corners" set

4.  ColorBox Chalk Ink Edger in Dark Brown

5.   Sentiment computer-generated, printed on Neenah

Have a great weekend, everyone!  See you again on Monday!

Madge and Frank

Today is the second day of Smeared Ink's December-long blog hop, the 12 Days of Creepmas 2015!  I'm excited to be here, along with all the other great artists you can find in the blog roll in the right-hand sidebar.   Start at the top with Fiona or just jump right in anywhere; if you've arrived here from Val's blog, welcome!  Do hop on over to Kat once you're finished here.

Welcome to the holiday season, everyone!  We guarantee to give you an alternative view of the holidays!

My card today is entitled "Madge and Frank."  Madge is going to give her adored hubby a big, fragrant surprise for the holidays!

The details:
1.  Woman decorating Christmas tree digi stamp from Create with TLC, printed on Neenah and colored with Tsukineko Memento markers
2.  Background papers from DCWV "The Floral Fair" stack and K & Company "Best of K & Company" paper pad
3.  Retro shapes rubber stamps (in background) by Inkadinkado, stamped with ColorBox pigment ink in Cranberry and VersaFine Black pigment ink
4.  Distress Ink in Black Soot
5.  Sentiment computer-generated, printed on Neenah, sprayed with Color Bloom Spray Mist in Tea Stain and cut out
6.  ColorBox Chalk Ink Edger in Charcoal

That's it for me today!  See you back on Saturday!

Santa Likes Good Little Boys and Girls

Today is the first day of Smeared Ink's December-long blog hop, the 12 Days of Creepmas 2015!  I'm excited to be here, along with all the other great artists you can find in the blog roll in the right-hand sidebar.   Start at the top with Fiona or just jump right in anywhere; if you've arrived here from Val's blog, welcome!  Do hop on over to Kat once you're finished here.

Welcome to the holiday season, everyone!  We guarantee to give you an alternative view of the holidays!

To start off the month I have a card featuring an extremely creepy Santa Claus.

My stepdaughters were appropriately horrified by this creation.

You can get a glimpse of my messy house in the background here!

The details:

1.  Santa with children digi stamp from Create with TLC

2.  Darice embossing folder Snowflake Border

3.  DCWV white core green cardstock

4.  Alphabet rubber stamp sets by Studio G and Hero Arts

5.  Tsukineko irRESISTible Pico Embellisher

6.  Distress Inks

7.  Washi tape

See you back on Thursday for some more creepy Christmas fun!

A Visit and a Thank-You Card

I went to St. Louis over this past weekend to visit my son, Harvey, who is almost 20 and the proud possessor of his own apartment and full-time job.

(He doesn't like me to take pictures of him, but I do it anyway since I am his mother!)

While there I stayed with Harvey's aunt and uncle, (his dad's brother and his wife), who were kind and gracious enough to let me stay with them, even though Harvey's dad and I are divorced.  

Here's Harvey avoiding another picture in the sculpture garden of the St. Louis Art Museum.

I took the Amtrak from Kansas City to St. Louis and back, which I highly recommend.  You can sit back and relax, read, knit, or nap, and generally just enjoy the view without having to focus on driving.

This evening I got back into my studio and did some organizing and general cleaning up--putting away new stamps, throwing away trash, filing stuff.  And then I made this thank-you card, which I'm intending to send to Harvey's aunt and uncle, thanking them for their kindness in allowing me to stay with them over the weekend.

The details:

1.  Flower stamp--"Fiona" by Woodware Craft Collection

2.  "Thanks" sentiment from Thank You Words set by Inkadinkado

3.  Stampendous embossing powder in Midnight Black

4.  Bubbles stamp (in background) from Grunge set by Stampendous

5.  Prima Color Bloom spray mists

6.  The Crafter's Workshop "Mini Harlequin" stencil

Skull and Book

Today is Day 31, the very last day, of Smeared Ink's October-long blog hop, the 31 Days of Halloween!  Happy Halloween, everyone!

My last project for the month is a card featuring a stamp by La Blanche.

The details:
1.  Skull and Book stamp by La Blanche
2.  The Crafter's Workshop "Mini Harlequin" stencil
3.  Prima Color Bloom spray mists
4.  Cuttlebug "Tiny Bubbles" embossing folder
5.  Distress Ink

Thanks so much for hanging in there with me this month and for all your kind and thoughtful comments.  To follow the entire hop, you can find the whole blog roll in the right-hand sidebar.

Moon Bats

Today is Day 30, the penultimate day, of Smeared Ink's wonderful month-long blog hop, the 31 Days of Halloween!  Only one more day to go!

Today I have a card that I have entitled "Moon Bats."

The details:

1.  "Woodland Wonder" stamp by Penny Black

2.  Bats from Smeared Ink's real rubber set "A Little Bit Batty"

3.  Lindy's Stamp Gang Magical powder in Bling-y Blonde

4.  Background stenciled and sprayed with Prima Color Bloom spray mists

Thanks for stopping by today!  See you again tomorrow for the last day of the hop!  As always, you can find the entire blog roll in the right-hand sidebar.

Halloween Kitty

Welcome back for Day 28 of Smeared Ink's October-long blog hop, the 31 Days of Halloween!

My piece today is another card--I seem to be stuck in a card-making rut these days--I can't seem to think outside that box!

The details:

1.  Kitty on pumpkin stamp and spider stamp from Hampton Art Halloween set, colored with Memento markers

2.  "Happy Halloween" sentiment stamp from Hampton Art Halloween set, embossed with white embossing powder

3.  Distress Inks

4.  Background layered and stamped with Colorbox Mix'd Media ink pads

5.  Glitter ribbon from Michael's

Thanks for stopping by my blog today!  Hope to see you again tomorrow!  To follow the entire hop, you can find the blog roll in the right-hand sidebar.

Pumpkin and Jack-O-Lantern

Today is Day 27 of Smeared Ink's month-long blog hop extravaganza, the 31 Days of Halloween!  We are in the home stretch, folks!

I have a card today, featuring another image from Create with TLC, which is owned and operated by Paulette.  Every month I sign up for her email club and receive great vintage images like this one (as well as sentiments and her own original digi collages) in my inbox every day.  I think it's a good deal--for about twelve bucks you get literally hundreds of images and sentiments!  Anyway, this pumpkins image was one I received last month in her Halloween club

The details:

1.  Pumpkin and jack-o-lantern digi stamp from Create with TLC, printed on Neenah and colored with Lyra Aquacolor crayons

2.  Distress Inks

3.  Background paper from K & Company "Best of K & Company" paper pad

4.  Ribbon by Berwick

Thanks for stopping by my blog today!  As always, if you are following the entire hop, you can find the blog roll in the right-hand sidebar.

Halloween is Here

Today is Day 26 of Smeared Ink's month-long festival of all things Halloween, the 31 Days of Halloween!

Today I have a simple card and a postcard using the same stamp from Penny Black.  I love this stamp, and have been exploring ways to use it; these were my first two attempts.  I purposely kept these very simple to really let the stamp shine.

  

The details:

1.  Pumpkin Patch cling stamp by Penny Black

2.  Memento markers

3.  Lyra Aquacolor crayons

4.  Sentiment digi stamp from Create with TLC

5.  Distress Inks

6.  Prima Marketing Chalk Ink Edger

Thanks for stopping by my blog today!  You can find the blog roll in the right-hand sidebar, if you are following the entire hop.

Witch and Famous

We have reached Day 25 of Smeared Ink's month-long blog hop, the 31 Days of Halloween!  Only six more days until Halloween!

I have another card today featuring an image and sentiment from Create with TLC.

The details:

1.  Dolly Dingle and sentiment digi stamps from Create with TLC, printed on Neenah

2.  Distress Inks

3.  Black glitter tape from Recollections, distributed by Michael's

That's it for me today!  Thanks for stopping by my blog!  To follow the whole hop, you can find the blog roll in the right-hand sidebar.

Every Good Witch Knows

Today is Day 24 of Smeared Ink's wonderful month-long festival of all things Halloween, the 31 Days of Halloween!

I have a card for you today, entitled "Every Good Witch Knows."

It's a little hard to see in these pics, but there is red glitter on her shoes.

The details:

1.  Little witch and cat digi stamp from Create with TLC, printed on Neenah and colored with alcohol markers

2.  Sentiment from Create with TLC

3.  Darice Embossing Essentials "Nesting Squares" dies

4.  Background paper from K & Company "Best of K & Company Designer Paper Pad"

5.  Glitter (on shoes) from Papermart

6.  Glitter tape from my stash

Thanks for stopping by today, and, as always, thank you so much for your comments!  See you again tomorrow!  You can find the entire blog roll in the right-hand sidebar if you're following the whole hop.

A Witch and Her Cat

Today is Day 22 of Smeared Ink's month-long blog hop and extravaganza, the 31 Days of Halloween! I can't believe there's only about a week left of the hop!

Today I have a card featuring an image that I got last year from Create with TLC.  I just love this image, and am glad I found a way to use it this year.  I feel like this quite often with my kitties--like I'm admonishing them and they're studiously ignoring me!

The details:

1.  Witch and cat on broom digi stamp from Create with TLC, printed on Neenah and colored with Stabilo CarbOthello pastel pencils

2.  DCWV Neutrals cardstock, embossed with Crackle embossing folder by Darice

3.  Distress Inks in Mowed Lawn and Vintage Photo

4.  Ribbon by Berwick

5.  Alphabet set by Studio G

Thanks for stopping by my blog today!  To follow the rest of the hop, please see the entire blog roll in the right-hand sidebar.

Batty Cat

Today is Day 19 of Smeared Ink's annual October-long blog hop, the 31 Days of Halloween!  If you're following the hop from day to day, welcome back to my blog!

Today I have two cards to show you; they feature the same image by Molly Harrison.  I wasn't entirely happy with my coloring on the first one, so I gave it another go with a different medium.

The first card is colored with watercolor pencils, the second with alcohol markers.

The details:

1.  "Batty Cat" image by Molly Harrison, printed on Neenah and colored with watercolor pencils and alcohol markers (I use three different brands and find that they all play quite nicely together.)

2.  DCWV Neutrals cardstock, embossed with a Darice embossing folder and sanded

3.  Craftsmart ribbon

4.  Alphabet rubber stamp set Serendipity by Hero Arts

That's it for me today!  Thanks for stopping by!  If you're following the entire hop, you can find the blog roll in the right-hand sidebar.

A Set of Skull Cards

Today is the 17th day of Smeared Ink's amazing October-long blog hop, the 31 Days of Halloween!  I hope everyone is having a great time hopping and looking at all the amazing pieces being created this month.

I have another set of simple cards today; again, I made these (along with the pumpkin ones from a couple days ago) in response to a video by Lindsay Weirich, The Frugal Crafter.

I used the same three design papers in these three, and I think you can definitely see the family resemblance to the previous set.

The details:

1. Skulls stamp from my stash, stamped on Neenah with Lyra Aquacolor water soluble wax crayons (grey) and Clearsnap ColorBox fluid Chalk Ink pad in Dark Brown

2.  Papers from:  BoBunny Heritage Collection, Tim Holtz idea-ology Crowded Attic, The Paper Studio Etc. Paper Pack

3.  Ribbon by CraftSmart

4.  AC Cardstock

Thanks for stopping by today, and enjoy the rest of the hop!  You can find the entire blog roll in the right-hand sidebar.  See you again tomorrow!