altered book round robin (start)

For an altered book round robin--my theme is
Serendipitous Definitions, but haven't titled
the actual book yet.


cover


cover page


flyleaf


sign in page


accordion book with stitched vellum pockets and library
cards for each artist to alter and sign in--it folds out
with nine pockets.

I'm kind of stymied as to what to write on the sign in
page, but will definitely mess with it more when the
book finally makes its way home.

And still debating on how to do the title.

Hmmmm.

this is a little disturbing.

Disturbing, but funny. Arts and Craftistas
everywhere, view at your own risk!!



And Happy New Year!!
:)

merry Christmas?

Did you have one? Ours was lovely, and snowy, too!

Now we're mattress shopping. Egads, people this is worse
than car shopping!! If you have any suggestions, please,
PLEASE feel free to chime in. Ugh. Again, I say UGH.

Here's a fun thing--the day after Christmas, look what
arrived in the mail:



After Christmas Christmas!

How gorgeous is this bracelet???! It's from Willow Creek
Jewelry, and Wendy supplied me with some details:

"The large focal stone is jasper. The coin bead is tiger iron
and the other stones are a combination of jasper, moukaite,
tiger eye, Baltic amber and copper. The chains are oxidized
copper and the hook is hand forged oxidized copper."

(I appreciated her description. I'm the person who always
wants to know, "What's this? What did you use here?" etc.

Believe me, this bracelet is just as gorgeous in person as it
is in the picture. Plus, Willow Creek pays close attention
to detail when wrapping their items--coordinating tissue,
labels, attractive gift box, and ribbon. Very nice, very
nice indeed. Thank you, Willow Creek, for sponsoring such a
wonderful giveaway. You truly have distinctive handcrafted
artisan jewelry.

Christmas cookies!

Today, decorating the sugar cookies:

Me, to DS3: Less eating, more decorating.

DD: These are the ugliest cookies ever.

DS2: And the majority of them have my saliva on them.

Me: I shoulda taken a picture before we stowed the first lot.

DD: Oh well now!

Me: Why isn't there any coffee yet?

DD: Why don't I have a pony yet?

Never a dull moment!

We always turn on Christmas movies while we decorate and bake;
just watched my favorite scene from A Miracle on 34th St.
It's where the little Dutch girl comes and sits on Santa's
lap, and they sing the Christmas song--it makes me tear up
just thinking about it!

My favorite Christmas movie is Scrooge, the old version of
A Christmas Carol, starring Alastair Sim.

Here he is on Christmas morning, all happy.

What's your favorite Christmas movie? Oh, come on, you
HAVE to have a favorite Christmas movie!
:)

definitely NOT Christmas cards.

The shop computer that is all geared up with the
scanner/printer = virus very yes, so here I am
today at HOME scanning some NOT Christmas cards.

These are from one of my favorite sets. Can you
guess the year? Well, okay, probably not the exact
year, but I'll bet you can guess the decade from
the design and colors.

Actually, these are the full sized cards (2 1/2 by 3 1/2),
but my favorite is the mini set from that year--they look
the same, but are only a little over 2 by a little over 3
inches.

Are you prepared for Christmas? Not me! Still have
shopping to do, goodies to make, and now, come to
find out, a Christmas dinner menu to plan. But
everything has been decorated since Thanksgiving
(that's standard for us), so it gives the illusion
that we're all ready.

We did bake about 12 zillion sugar cookies yesterday,
so there's that. Tonight is the DD's and DS3's choir
and handchime concert, tomorrow a Christmas party--
it's definitely December!

What do you have left to do for Christmas? Or are
you all ready for the big day, sitting by the fire
with a hot cuppa something yummy, with a little smirky
on your face for those of us who aren't???

;)

(The baseball cards are from 1975, by the way--did
anyone guess the 70's?)

21 years ago

My aunt took this picture of us as we were walking down
the aisle--my granny had it enlarged.

What were you doing 21 years ago?

Right, I know, some of you weren't even born. Don't
blink--before you know it, it's 20 years later . . .

good morning!

Not what I wanted to hear first thing this morning:

(big crashing sound)

"Don't worry. I'm pretty sure that was already broken."

etsy is amazing.

These little gems are from Vivi Reborn. I love how they upcycle unique bits that may otherwise be lost.
Very pretty. Both of these are Vivi's current giveaway promotions.


This steampunk style necklace is from Mystic Pieces.
There are some really intriguing pieces in this etsy shop.

This particular pendant can also be found at Our Designed Life,
who is kindly hosting a giveaway, as well.

I don't know about you, but Cyber Monday is
actually Cyber Saturday . . .

i watched way too much tv as a child . . .

reruns!


And when my mom wasn't paying attention . . .


What was your favorite show?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, everyone--
don't forget to actually give some thanks!

what did you do last night?

Son #2 has Praise Team practice on Tuesday nights, but
no car. You know what that means--the mommy chauffeur
service! It's fine by me, however, for two reasons:
first, he's using those couple years of guitar lessons,
not to mention the bass we gave him for Christmas last
year! And second, it gives me an excuse to sit and read
or make something.

This is what I did last night:


Okay, sure, probably everyone has made matchbox ornaments
except me, but they are so much fun--I kind of want to make
enough to number, hang on the tree, and use as an advent
calendar.

Not much will fit inside, but that's part of the challenge, yes?

These kind of look like little satchels.

They could maybe use some more beads or a tassle
at the bottom. Hmmmm. Anyway, it's almost
Thanksgiving, and that's when Santa (aka as DH)
puts up the tree!

What did YOU do last night?

latest round of projects

Made these two altered art fan books for an Art 42
swap hosted by Lisa Vollrath. She has a great
tutorial for making these types of fans on her
Ten Two Studios site.

Both of these were made using images from Altered Pages:

the flower fairy fan,





and the Edgar Allen Poe fan:

today i am thankful for

super swappers who sent me these surprises:


very pretty fabric covered altered comp book (lucky Lisa
got to attend the Houston quilt to-do, and made this in
a class. Lucky ME got it in my mailbox shortly thereafter!)

this bag (WITH the key fob--i have a thing for key fobs,
by the way, initiated by bumblebeebags) made me think of
beautiful bittersweet vines. It came from Samantha
at Samantha's Essentials:


(not sure why the bittersweet is so tiny . . .
do you have it growing where you live?)


from Chrissy B, a sweet cross stitched Christmas ornament;
how cute is this?


and finally, from Lisa the Pottery Lady, look at all these
lovely pieces, in some of my favorite colors, no less:


I don't think Lisa realized it, but I collect handmade pottery!
That big flower piece is waiting for me to make it into a pendant . . .

Thank you to all these awesome swappers!
:)

time . . .

. . . is NOT on my side. Does anyone else feel
as if the days are flying by??? Slow down this
crazy ride!

HELP!!!

I'm eating Halloween candy, and can't stop!!!

Do you think eating 32 "fun size" candy bars in
any way negates the "fun?"

Halloween twinchies

quiltie collage/beaded pendant

This is a two by two inch (not counting the trim)
quilted collage pendant with beading, made for
the Quality Crafters group tag swap.

project bag

Here is a project bag made for the Quality Crafters
"I Made This!" group swap. My swap buddy is a knitter,
and listed tote bags on her wish list, so a nice
project bag seemed appropriate (along with some yarn,
of course!)

what do you do

when you think you're getting sick?

ugh.

Christmas Alphabetica

Here is (part of) my latest project--an alphabet
tag kit for Altered Pages. You know, I didn't
think I'd be able to come up with 26 different
Christmas words, but the collage pages were so
much fun to work with, it didn't take any time
at all to come up with a word list and matching
images!

look at my new earrings!

Aren't they pretty? I didn't make these--
Roberta did, and she has some other lovely
things in her Dawanda shop, Time Creations.
It's definitely worth a visit.

bird atc

The Theme Thursday challenge for this week is to
make a bird atc. This has a serendipity style
background with a stamped bird image, highlighted
with some clear embossing. The "believe" is a rub
on, with some clear glaze pen over the text.
There is also a little jewel in the corner, but those
never scan well, do they? There are some green glaze
pen dots and distress ink, as well.

Evel Knievel riding a Dala horse.

That's one of what's on my dresser. Actually, it was just
Evel Knievel holding his little buddy, and the Dala horse
was somewhere around there, but the girl child likes to
rearrange things and see if we notice. Not sure where all
these things came from--probably spontaneously erupted from
all the other stuff. ("Stuff" sounds slightly kinder than
"junk.") Evel used to hang out by the computer,
but at some point he migrated to the bedroom. Not sure how
that happened, either. I'd get rid of him, but the little
pink alien is oddly intimidating.

Do other people have stuff hanging around that arrived from
parts unknown, or is it just me?

Son #2 just wagered I'd not find another pic anywhere of Evel
Knievel riding a Dala horse. We'll just have to see about that!

***update***
Just in case you're looking at this post, wondering to
yourself "Why am I looking at this post?", you may feel
better knowing that you are apparently in good company.
According to the stats, close to a bajillion people have
also stopped by to see Evel and the Dala . . .

soap winner and stuff

Khaski is the happy recipient of the aforeposted soap.

(I'm actually assuming the happy part. You never know.)
And that's not soap in the picture above; it's tofu.
Oh don't ask why, just keep reading!

Here are some random family quotes from the
last few day:

(At the Plaza Art Fair)"Someone watched Toy Story
one too many times."

"If Dad brings home tofu, I'm NOT letting him in!"

"Wanna go see the dead cow cave?"

Oh, please, don't act like we wouldn't all think your
family is a little on the odd side, too, if we overheard
a phrase or two . . . go ahead, you know you want to tell!
;)

well, whaddya know?

See that piece on the cover?

Guess who made it.

Can you guess?



(it was me!!)

:)

You can see more HERE.

another giveaway!

So here's my sad tale of woe with an ever-so-happy
ending:

I got flaked on in a pretty big swap. You know what
that means, yes? As in, my person sent me nothing.
(Calm down, dry your eyes, the story gets better.)

It happens that I'm in a Quality Crafters group on
swap-bot, where you are supposed to be, well, a
Quality Crafter. Not sure who decided it was okay
for ME to join, but there you have it. Anyway, there
is a rousing game of swap tag going on, and I tagged
Michele's soap.

Let me tell you, her package more than made my day!



First, it came in a used-again mailer, a habit I
highly advocate. Second, it was tied in a lovely
doily. Third, the soap is BEAUTIFUL--look at the
dragonfly! Fourth, it smells wonderful; a light,
clean scent, not fruity or heavy (which is good,
as this is a facial bar). Listen to the description:

Apple of My Eye Soap--Goat milk soap base, poppy
seeds (for exfoliating), ginseng, ginger, apple scent.

It's nice and sudsy, but very soft and gentle--I
love it. Which isn't surprising, as she contacted me
and asked my preferences, and made this soap for
me. That's right, she takes requests, so if you don't
see what you want, just ask. ( Michele will also
personalize some of the other items in her shop,
which is always great for Christmas.)

Here's the REALLY happy ending: YOU have a chance
at the other bar! Here's how:
wait! please leave your e-mail address in your
comments, so I can find you if you're selected!

1. (This is the mandatory one) Visit Michele's
Craft My Day etsy store and come back here with
a link to something that caught your eye. She
has a variety of items, not just soaps. Which,
in case you didn't catch, I highly recommend.

Extra Entries!
2. While you're at Craft My Day, add it to your
etsy favorites, and leave an extra comment telling
me you did. Be sure to include your etsy id in
the comment (yep, I'll check!)

3. Follow my blog and comment, or comment, letting
me know you already follow.

4. For TEN extra entries, purchase something from
Craft My Day before the giveaway ends.

Well, that's about all the excitement I can stand
for the moment. We'll close this out Tuesday,
September 29th, and announce a winner on Wednesday.
This one is open to US residents only.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go wash my face.
:)

stuff i'd get if i had a buncha money.

Today, for various reasons, I am in the presence of
fast internet, and "shopping" on Etsy and Artfire.
Pretty amazing places, as you all probably already know.
Not sure of the polite way to hijack someone's picture--
probably to ask nicely beforehand?



This piece of gorgeous is from the beaded lily.

This got added to the "favorites" list real fast, don't
you know?



This is so me. It's from The Black Spot, but you can visit
olive bites for a chance to win it.

Don't think, "Oh, I never win anything!"

Look what Rebecca (of Rebecca's Soap Delicatessen fame)
so kindly sent me:


Pretty, yes? It's Strawberry Champagne soap, and it
smells as delightful as it looks. Thank you for
sponsoring a giveaway, Rebecca!

and the winner is . . .

The random number elf has designated Bombastic Belle the
lucky recipient of the Halloween goodies--thank you to
everyone who left a comment, that was fun!

Julie, are you SURE you don't want me to mail you a box
of art supplies? Really really sure?

;)

I've been making bunches of stuff for swaps and such
(bumblebee and Lola, I'm sending a little handbag off
tomorrow--see, I can sew, just not as awesomely as
you two!), but mainly working on the whole homeschool
thing. Ask me about the War of 1812, or basic economics,
or Golgi apparatus . . .

On second thought, just Google it!

*sigh*

feeling shareful . . .

These last few weeks of summer have been great
for me. Participated in a few swaps, played
along in some challenges, cleaned up the art room
a little, and realized I have enough art stuff to
supply a small arty army. Thus, the Halloween Giveaway!

Some fibers, ribbons, papers, collage images, a black
paint pen, a pastel, assorted flowers, Scrabble tile,
tags, some vintage bits, atc blanks, even some teeny
tiny black sea shells! Just think of what you could
make with all this. Feeling inspired?

Two ways to enter:
1. Leave a comment telling me something you would make
with all these goodies. Please make sure there is
some way for me to contact you via e-mail, either
through a blog link, or just leave your e-mail in
the comment.

2. If you would like one additional entry, follow my
blog, and leave an extra comment telling me you
did so.

That's it! How easy is that? Everyone is welcome to
enter. This will be a quick one--we'll close out comments
Tuesday, September 15, and announce a winner Wednesday.

Good luck, everybody!
:)

Halloween atc.

Yes, yes, it IS a pretty silly joke. If you don't
know the answer, it's in the comment section. And
the back of the atc. The Theme Thursday challenge
was for a Halloween atc.

Well, thanks, Theme Thursday, for the
inspiration--she's now in a Halloween
silly kit at Altered Pages.

Vintage Image Group atc swap

Polished stone, collage, and distress ink background,
Altered Pages image, vintage trim, "gold" stars.

polished stone atc

Have you ever tried the polished stone technique?
Wow, you can get some gorgeous backgrounds
with that method--the paper really has the illusion
of depth. I learned from Rhonda, as in, at her house.
You could also see how HERE.

The atc (well, it's more calling card size) is for
the quote challenge at Theme Thursday, and the flower
is from my dear husband, who showed up tonight with a dozen,
just because he's as sweet as he is handsome!

Theme Thursday season challenge

For the Theme Thursday season challenge, combined
with a swap, this represents spring. The background
is a watercolor wash, overlaid with stamped words,
and the main image/text is stamped in StazOn.

The jewel in the corner is sparkly and appealing in
person, but not so much via the intraweb . . .

handmade bookmarks for swap

Here are two bookmarks made for a swap:





Both use the serendipity mixed media collage background
style made in the tutorial shown HERE.

They also have a nice coating of Mod Podge on them,
to make them more durable.

This seemed like a good swap for me to join. I'm NOT a
page-corner-turner-downer (GASP!!!), but I am a random,
whatever-is-handy-grab-it bookmark kind of person. A
couple of "real" bookmarks will be nice to have--I'm
kind of excited to see what shows up in the mail!
:)

watercolor resist background tutorial for atcs, inchies, twinchies, handmade postcards . . .

Here are a few simple and fun background technique
tutorials for making atcs, inchies, twinchies, tags,
handmade postcards--whatever it is you like to make!

The bonus is, they're not only simple, these backgrounds
are made with inexpensive art supplies that everyone
(probably) already has lying about . . .

Watercolor Resist Technique


First, randomly mark all over a heavy weight piece of
cardstock with crayons. (Yes, you can use lighter weight
paper, but heavier is better, watercolor paper is best.)



Next, get your watercolors nice and juicy with water, and then


brush paint all over paper. Allow it to dry,


and you have some wonderful background paper!