Hitting the Deck

I had been avoiding joining most swaps for the past several months because I just could not commit to a deadline. I still can't, but have jumped into a couple. The Christian Paper Artist's third playing card deck is one I could not pass up. My design is very minimal. I was going for a simple, graphic approach-- that and I had to mail art today or tomorrow if I was going to make the Oct. 31 deadline at all! Decks will be selling for $7 each if you contact Linda by Nov. 3 with your order. She also has examples of the cards from other years on her blog, so stop by and see her.

Happy Birthday Rebecca!

Yesterday was Rebecca's 4th birthday which meant a picture appointment with the Thinking Chair. She is as precocious as she looks! There was a lack of cooperation on her part and a lot of begging and negotiating on my part. She kept wanting to lounge on the chair and I, of course, wanted her to sit up and smile pretty. At least she did the smile pretty part. :)For earlier photos to compare her growth, see my sidebar. I will be adding these photos to the collection.

Bedtime Tag

I sat down at my desk as I waited for the kids to finish fiddling around and get into bed (they suddenly remember 15 things to do right at bedtime- can you say ,"stall"?)

Sitting at my desk is a dangerous thing. I find things that suddenly relate and beg to be glued together. Doesn't matter that it is past the kids' bedtime. The untidy mess on my desk beckons.

I scanned the mess of clippings and scraps and rubber stamps that didn't quite get put away. I picked up an old newspaper scrap from my desktop, pulled out a scrap of scrapbooking paper (from a box) for color and glued them both down to a manilla tag. I stamped a diva (dug out of one of the 4-5 boxes of rubber stamps I own), found she was obliterated by the newspaper type, so restamped her onto a piece of yellowed paper, tore out just her face and placed it over the original stamped image. I found the manuscript words in my handy dandy mystery novel, decided they described "Beauty" so stamped that word above, but not before I had run across a butterfly postage stamp (in a drawer while looking for something else) and glued it down (almost any design can use a butterfly!) The diva I chose is not smiling, but she does look introspective and wise. I added some fibers and DONE- in about 20 minutes. My washy watercolor scan background is curtesy of soon to be 4 years old, Rebecca. It was another piece of clutter on my desk. Not everything on my desk is dumped there by me. :)

Sunday Afternoon Art Tag

*Take one manilla tag that's been taking up room on your desk for a month.

*Glue down some antique newspaper scrap.

*Add some antique wallpaper scrap.

*Rubber stamp some manuscript to fill in some of the blank area on the wallpaper.

*Rubber stamp a diva on the wallpaper.

*Rubber stamp her shoes on the bottom of the tag.

*Flip through an old murder mystery book for words.

*Glue down your "found" phrase, adding some rubber stamped words to complete the sentence.

*Finally, punch hole, add fibers and ta-DA!

Now go make a tag for yourself. :)

This Space Intentionally Left Blank

Nothing new to report, but I wanted to say SOMETHING, so those of you who stop by fairly regularly will know I am still alive.

"Thinking of you".

An Invitation...

...To the class I teach on altering books. For free. Just because I want to educate kids and adults about the possibilities for an old book and ignite my passion in others. These are a couple of postcards I made to remind regulars that the once a month meeting is coming up. I alter old (ugly) postcards and (ugly) greeting cards with scrap and stickers. If you are in the neighborhood, stop by. The class is free. We are here. You can't miss the library on the main street into town. It's next door to the Corder Bank. Hope to see you there!

Super Inchie Card

Yes, I KNOW I should use my scanner, because my camera makes dark, blue cast photos, but the camera is quicker when I want to share something fast! I get so excited to show and tell!

While looking for some ATC blanks, I ran across an envelope from a long ago swap that contained these super inchies (over one inch square). These done by Laura Halnan, are abstracts done with scraps of paper glued down on squares and then stamped/ embossed silver (or maybe embossed first and then stuck down). They were perfect stuck to a non-profit greeting card, the geometric shapes seeming to echo the clouds, mountains and water in the photo greeting. As with many of my spontaneous cards, this one got mailed to a family friend who crafts but doesn't have a computer at home (nor email address). We exchange hand made cards and goodies through the US mail. Have you played with your inchies and made something super to share today?