graduation cards, and a little bloggy sabbatical

It's definitely that time of year--the graduations and weddings 

are happening at a record pace around here.  We were

supposed to go to four graduation parties today alone, 

but honestly, I completely forgot about one of them!

So there are only three cards.  Don't tell, okay?  I'll

make the other one soon . . .

Perfect Pearl Misty background, and Greco-Roman stamps

The sentiment is from my go-to set for all card emergencies: Verses, Full Sheet

And you know Party Cat, that's another fun, versatile set.

You may already know I'm still dwelling in Wedding World, and won't be
around much until after June 15th--will be back to blog posting and
snooping, ahem, visiting, then.  Have a wonderful rest-of-spring!  :)

make-your-own stamped, fabric roses

Well, I'm back--did you miss me?  ;)  Won't be around much, as we're winding
up for Wedding Number Two in a month . . .

In that vein, here are some wedding inspired, kinda shabby-chic, fabric rose
embellishments that are incredibly easy to make.  It's essentially the same as
my Super Simple Paper Roses tutorial (in the latest issue of the Unruly Paper
Arts blogozine), but with a fabric twist:

First, select a fabric--here I used some gauzy something, very lightweight.  Muslin
would be good to stamp on, as well, and I've done this with seam binding, too.  Then
I gave it a spritz of Angel Pink Fireworks:

nice little shimmer, and that shabby pink, too!

 

stamp from the Greco-Roman, Full Sheet at Blockheads

Let it dry, then stamped with a background stamp--it won't show much in the
finished roses, but I think it gives the flowers so much more character, some
added dimension.

Then I tore the fabric into approximately 1 inch strips, and added a little--what
else? Tattered Rose Distress Ink! 

After that, the instructions are essentially the same as for the Super Simple Paper
Roses, without the need for dipping in water or crumpling. This works great for
heavier weights of fabric.

So that was fun, right?  And I have to tell you, I'm pretty pleased with how my
latest article for Altered Arts Magazine came out.  It's another how-to, all about
how you can use what you have to make your own paper.  Here's a little peek at an
atc made with some of the paper made for that tutorial:

Thank you, Altered Arts Magazine!

Have a great Sunday, everyone! 

:)

What's on Your Workdesk? Wednesday, #204 (wedding!)

Well this is what's been on my workdesk for a while now--I didn't take

one single picture, but swiped this one from a facebook post.  

Still recovering.  Working on the next wedding, it's in June.  

So what's on YOUR workdesk??

spring bingo bird

It's finally spring here--the flowers are blooming, the birds

are singing, and it's generally a little warmer.  Ready for some

spring challenges?????

Altered Pages:  birds

crafts 4 eternity:  April showers bring spring flowers

Simply Create Too:  Use your stash (lol, all of it came from my stash, the only slightly new thing is the doily!)

Crafting for all Seasons:  No stamps allowed

Crafty Creations:  No Patterned Paper

Have a great weekend, everyone!  :)

What's on Your Workdesk? Wednesday, #202--a new Rogue and wedding stuff

What's on my workdesk this Wednesday?

A brand spankin' new stamp.  These sweet little spring birds

upcoming Rogue Redhead set, "This N' That,"

Oh yes, you are correct--the background is a monoprint!

 And glassware, getting ready to put together centerpieces

for the oldest son's wedding.  It's next Saturday!

The bride REALLY likes the forsythia, but sorry to say, 

it will probably be all bloomed out by next weekend.

Okay, now I'm off for a little woywwing . . . see you there!  

it seemed like a good idea at the time . . .

So I'm making these atcs for a swap, yes?  

For some reason, it seemed particularly amusing

(at the time, anyway) to juxtapose the cheerful stamped

sentiments with the serious expressions on the photo faces.

You can kind of see the shine on this one.

It reminds me of the old saying, "You can't judge a book by its cover."

Yep, Gelli plate print backgrounds . . .
 

Lots of layers of colors . . .

Like I said, it seemed like a good idea at the time . . .

Anyway, in addition to a little spring-ish post for

Altered Arts Magazine (the spring issue is fixin' to come out!),

these are going away for an atc swap.  (Wait, I already said that!) 
But the point is, I liked the challenge of giving them the appearance of dimension,
without adding bulky, hard-to-mail embellishments. 

Well, yes, painting and coloring are flat out fun, 

that might have played into it, too . . . ;)

Oh, yes, thank you--I do feel like a challenge or two!
Simon Says Stamp Challenge--April showers or Spring flowers
Creative Inspirations Paint--Spring Colors
Scrappy Frogs--Think Spring
Fab 'n' Funky Challenges--Spring Colours
Word Art Wednesday--always anything goes, with an inspirational sentiment or quote

a sping pendant with grungeboard base

It's finally spring!  Time to break out the butterfly stamps--this one

is from the Nature Medallion set from Blockheads, but the outer
edge of the medallion is cut away to show the texture of the Grungeboard
base.  With lots of layers of colors, the Grungeboard makes a great
foundation, as it keeps its shape and doesn't fall apart. The pendant is
edged with some micro beads in medium pink, which gives it another
bit of texture.  Add a grommet, jump ring, and cord, and voila!

 A fun springtime pendant!  (Oh, and the butterfly is stamped on a
bit of Gelli Plate monoprint background.)

It's a fine day for some challenges, yes?
My Time to Craft--Up in the Sky 
So Arftul--spring colors (green, pink ,blue)
Sweet Stampin'--Pastels
Crafts4Eternity Recipe Challenge--Wonderful Wings

Have a fabulous weekend, everyone!
:)trisha

What's on Your Workdesk? Wendesday, #201--hand carved stamp

So last night, I wanted a stamp of ocean waves.  And I made one!
It's been a long time since I carved a stamp, and it was very satisfying.

Well, that's it, in the interest of brevity, as well as me getting into the shower and
out the door.  If you leave a comment or follow, I will do my best to hunt you down
and return the favor--see you later, WOYWWers!  (click HERE if you want to be
a woywwer, too!)

atc size book with "leather" hinges

I can't believe it's already April--the daffodils here are blooming like crazy, and it

finally feels like spring!  For my first Altered Arts Magazine project this month, 

how about a little spring-inspired book?

Okay, seriously, don't those binding tabs look like leather???  But they're not--it's
Grungeboard!

It even feels like leather, all inked up with Pink Grapefruit VersaMagic.

The image is from the Blockheads Grunge Collages set, stamped in VersaFine.

What?  You use Grungeboard all the time?  Well this is my first go--I'm very slow to

try anything new--remember me?  I still use good ol' crayons on EVERYTHING!

REALLY, it looks like leather in real life, too!!!!

P.S. Just in case there is anyone else who is unfamiliar with grungeboard, it's kind
of like chipboard, only very flexible, inkable, and paintable--it doesn't come apart
in layers if you get it all inky, it doesn't break, and, as you can see from those
"leather" hinges, it doesn't crease, either.  Fun stuff!

P.P.S.  Nope, haven't filled the last book with atcs yet, but will share with you
when it happens!

atc sized handbound book

Been working on a new tiny book for the current travel theme at
Blockheads Paper Arts, and it seems like the perfect thing to show
for my latest Altered Arts Magazine share.  This atc sized book is
made from monoprinted papers, with an origami wallet fold.  The
cover is stitched on--okay, not gonna lie, I'm having a LOT of fun
with this one, so get ready for an onslaught of photos . . .

Ready?  Here we go:

front cover, but you can see it's on it's side--using the Stargazer set.

here is the back of the cover, still more Stargazer stamps

inside front cover, with a layer of vellum stitched in

I like how you can see the reverse image when the page is turned

center layout--you can see the stitching and pockets

You can probably tell these are monoprinted papers--some were made

using a Gelli Plate, and some were made using the simple monoprinting

technique from my article in the fall issue of Altered Arts.  There is also
a nice sheen to the papers, resulting from a misting of Fireworks.

Now here is a extra fun thing about this particular book form--it has a
couple of "secret" pockets on the sides, which can either be utilized, or,
if they don't suit your purpose, sealed up.

super secret side pockets

 Well that was fun--for me, anyway--I hope you enjoyed it, too!
I'll be working on those atcs to fill the pockets, and share them
with you next week, okay?