Happy 100th, Marjie!!

YAY for my friend Marjie!  She's already hit her 100th blog post...and to celebrate, she's giving YOU the chance to win a present!  An AWESOME prize package, really, that goes wwwwaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyy beyond a mere "present."


Check out her super creative artwork on her blog...leave a comment on her 100th post and you just might win!! (And even if you don't, we are all a little richer for her presence on the web!  So check out her blog and get inspired.)  On the other hand....maybe don't...betters my chance at winning, right??

Keep blogging & making art, my friend!

Tear it Up!! Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge

This week's challenge over at Simon Says Stamp & Show...Tear It Up! And get a little Distressed. Here's my pitiful attempt...

Simon Says Stamp & Show: Tear it Up!

Never have been very good with the whole "torn paper" thing, but I have to admit that I do LOVE the way the distress ink makes the edges pop. My card is simple enough...chocolate brown 4 x5 base with edges distressed in Tea Dye, Frayed Burlap and a wee bit of Faded Denim. I used a Stamper's Anonymous script background in CTMH Chocolate over that.

Cadet blue card was stamped in the bubbly background stamp from Wendy Vecchi's Studio 490 She Created Art set. First stamped in Faded Denim, then in Frayed Burlap. Misted with water and pounced. I let it dry, then used the watercolor stamping technique to stamp the dotty background from Wendy's Ticket to Art set in Tea Dye. Next, I tore the edges, then inked 'em up in Antique Linen and Frayed Burlap.

The saying is from Tim Holtz, stamped on dotted vellum in CTMH Chocolate. Roughed up all the untorn edges with a Tonic Distresser (on the brown base, too!).

Butterfly charm is from Industrial Chic and is hanging on a Tim memo pin. Waxy Flax from CTMH; bling flourish is from my stash.

The whole thing is a wee bit simple (and perhaps too boxy), but since I stink at tearing it up, I'm gonna call it a win. ;-) Check out the entries this week by clicking the link above. And...if you're up for more fun, a new challenge will post each Monday!! Now get out there and make some art!

Simon Says Stamp & Show: A Tag

This week, at Simon Says Stamp and Show, our mission was to create a tag.  Yup!  That's it...a tag.  Overwhelmed by the abundance of the mailman's offerings yesterday--4 new Wendy Vecchi Studio 490 stamp sets, courtesy of a fabulous sale at Jo-Ann's!--I puttered with this assignment for quite some time.  The final project uses not a single one of those new stamps, LOL.  But I like it anyway!  (And all the other puttering has lead so some elements for future challenges...so YAY!)

So here you go...

Simon Says Stamp & Show: TAG

All the paper is from the LUSH collection by My Mind's Eye.  I love the deep blues and textures of this line, but the ivory background seemed a little bright for me, so I used Faded Denim distress ink with just a touch of Broken China mixed in.  The base tag is stamped with a script Stamper's Anonymous stamps in Outdoor Denim from CTMH. Stamped the flowers (from my stash) with the same stamp.

The next layer is the LUSH Navy Dot paper, also distressed; I used CTMH Liquid Glass on all the dots to give 'em a little UUMPH.  Tried a bunch of different ways to use the flocked Fleur-di-Lis paper and ended up just cutting one of the elements from the paper.  Popped it up with some foam dots. 

DREAM is just a snippet from one of Tim Holtz's stamps: LIVE, LOVE, DREAM.  Couldn't resist a splash of hot pink...

Brads are also from the LUSH collection.  Ribbons, pearl flourishes, charm & flowers are all from my stash.  Upper right edge element is from CTMH.

Thanks for popping by!  Be sure to visit Simon Says Stamp & Show for more fun weekly challenges...then grab your gear and get a little inky!!

Making Art Challenge #15: BLING it ON!!

This week's challenge from the Yahoo! Group, Everything Wendy Vecchi is to model a card after Page 14 in Make Art,  Studio 490 Style II and use some BLING--oh and don't forget the ever crucial Studio 490 stamp!  Inspired by some funkadelic projects I've seen lately (and the coupon code provided by a fellow Wendy Vecchian!), I recently acquired a pad of Graphic 45's Steampunk Debutante paper.  Seemed just right for this challenge...so here you go:

Be Yourself:  EWV MAC #15

 The gal looked pretty kinda just like she was, so I cut that frame from a sheet of the Graphic 45 paper; she's distressed with a bit of Peeled Paint and Antique Linen. I inked the backside, too and turned the corner down, anchoring it with a brad and some layered flowers.  After painting her fleshy parts in Spun Sugar Distress Stain, I blinged the babe out with some clear crystals.  Here's a wee bit of a close-up of the corner:

I found the mirror charms at Michael's and had been looking for an excuse to use one with some girly thing.  I'm thinking if I were gonna get all dolled up and blinged out, I'd be lookin' for that mirror! 

Butterfly close up

The teal paper was already printed in an accounting style ledger, so I just added some distressing with Tea Dye and Antique Linen and then overstamped with another background, using Wendy's ledger script background stamp from her A Form of Art set.  Be Yourself is also from A Form of Art. I can't remember which butterflies I used, but to keep them teal, I stamped them on the backside, then cut 'em out.  The butterfly bodies are pearls by Amuse and match the smaller ones along the right side of the card. 

Layered flowers & Paper flower

To pull more of the roses from one of the background papers into the design, I stamped several small flowers from A Ticket to Art on a scrap...ended up only using one, but I like it as a small accent item. ;-)  

Hard to see in the larger photo, but I swiped a quote from a Johnny Diaz song to put on a journalling spot.  It's printed on regular paper in a black text box, then inked with Peeled Paint, mounted on coordinating Graphic 45 scrap and attached to the background paper with a Tim Holtz mini-clip.

Quote is from a Johnny Diaz song

 Other flowers are painted with Wild Honey, Vintage Photo and Antique Linen stains, then splashed with a bit of Tsunineko Frost. 

All the brads, bling & pearls are from my stash. 

So..............now, what're you waiting for?  Grab your gear, get some ink on your fingers and MAKE SOME ART!!  Click the link above for more inky inspiration and fun.

 Thanks for stopping by!

Simon Says Stamp & Show: Your Favorite Stamp

Life is too Short to Match Socks

FIRST...a quick shout out and THANK YOU to the Design Team over at Simon Says Stamp and Show...last week, my entry was chosen as one of the Top Three in the Challenge.  Little Ol' Me!  Check out my super cool blinkie on the sidebar! I'm so very flattered and honored...thanks folks!

Okay, so this week's challenge at Simon Says Stamp and Show assumes that I could even choose ONE.  Do they realize they are challenging a woman who picks 3 entrees from the menu and doesn't decide until the server asks??  I mean REALLY! Okay, venting done, the challenge was to use your favorite stamp.  Yup, easy peasy breezy, right?  WRONG!

Now, y'all might make the assumption that I'm going with a Wendy Vecchi Studio 490 stamp.  But I just couldn't choose ONE of them.  So I went a TOTALLY different direction...and took off from the goofy scrappy angle.

I found this stamp at Angela's Happy Stamper...it's by Unity Stamp Company.  Two pieces that say so much about my life.  Truly.  Been meaning to make a scrapbook page with it and this challenge just gave me the kick in the rear I needed!

The papers are from Close to My Heart, the Sweet Home collection.  Rick rack also from CTMH. I stamped the min-title with the sentiment; socks are stamped, embossed, colored with Pebbles colored pencils and then cut out. Photos are the actual feet of my family.  Yes, this was a weird photo shoot...you should have heard the beasties complaining.  Katie kept trying to primp, but I told her I was just interested in her feet, LOL.   Photo across the top are my kiddies feet.  And, of course, the Zoo Crew Sock Bucket...the true star of this layout!

Here are a couple of close-ups of the stamps:

Close up of Socks--both are one stamp, but I cut them out.

Unity Stamp Company: Mini-title of Page

 In case you've made it this far and want to continue...the journalling on the page reads:

With 7 people in our family, keeping up with the laundry is an ongoing challenge.  A continual reminder of that struggle is the dreaded sock bucket.  Yes…BUCKET!  Most people use buckets like this for toys, outdoor equipment, beverage coolers…but not the Zoo Crew.  Nope.  Our 14 feet worth of socks go in…and sometimes never come out. 

*sigh* 

Sorting the sock basket is not a happy task…sometimes used as a punishment, sometimes bribery works (a dime for each matched pair!), and sometimes a source of family fun (Sock it to ‘em, Daddy!). But rarely is that bucket empty.  *sigh*

How we look forward to summer days…Bring on the barefooting!!

Thank you for checking out my creation for this week's challenge!! Check out the fun and join in!