Happy Halloween

Hope you all enjoy Halloween - watch out for the little guys trick-or-treating.

I was Art Journaling Friday and Sunday, then at a Recruit Event for Emerson College (my daughter's school). So, I will be finishing some pages and will be posting later this week. Until then, here's a bit of "Nightmare before Christmas" love...

Tuesday's Tip

I love using a wide variety of ink pad colors. Heaven knows I have more than a few different brands and a wide variety of colors. Sometimes, the color I stamped with is just a little too light to get good details of an image or single word. I will usually start over - but if you are near completion it can be a major pain. So, recently, I stamped an image in Cloud Blue Adirondak that was a bit too light. The edges seemed to fade into the card stock. I still liked the look, but felt it needed definition. I did not want to over stamp with a darker color because it would change the design. So, I tried outlining with a thin lined marker in a similar color - just a little darker. I did use a light touch - and it looked great! No re-stamping necessary. If you have a problem with too light a color, try outlining with a shade darker!

Done!

A couple of weeks ago, I completed some projects that were laying around awaiting the finishing touches. (I posted the Shadow box a couple of days ago.) Back at the end of July, I took a couple of Tim Holtz's classes when he was teaching in the San Jose area. Well, the largest of the projects has finally been completed. The great thing about this class and project was the variety of techniques it showcased. We used tapes, paints, alcohol inks, stains, embossing, chipboard, and metals. Most of the techniques were not new, but the class was a great reminder of using your materials!

We even added a cute (or so my friends think "creepy") little porcelain doll, and some fun gears and watch parts. If you have a chance to take this class, I highly recommend it!

Shadow Box

Several months ago, there was much discussion on one of the on-line boards I subscribe to regarding Configurations boxes, Design team samples, etc. At that time, I had mentioned that you could probably make your own with chip board. Well, the above photo is of a box I crated using chipboard that I cut myself. it was a bit of a pain, but I wanted to see how it would all turn out. After painting it white, I set i aside for quite a few months. A couple of weeks ago, I was determined to complete that which i had started oh,so long ago!.

I used a couple of photos from a trip to Paris in 2009 (Moulon Rouge and 1920's art deco Metro sign). The rest of the backgrounds came from my stash of vintage french ephemera. The large Fleur de Lis was purchased at Les Puces flea market outside of Paris. A few stickers, cut-outs, and German Scrap completed the shadow box. I used a lot pop up dimensionals in the shadow box - unfortunately, there is no way to adequately photograph. So, my experiment worked - although it was no fun cutting the chipboard. So, you can "do it yourself" if you do not want to spend the money on a pre-made shadow box!

Tuesday's Tip...?

With all the travel, I have indeed missed Tuesday's Tip. So..this week in will be Thursday's Tip!

Banners have been very popular of late. Several companies make die cut dies, punches and stamp sets to tickle your fancy. And, yes, I have several products myself. Remember, banners can have a variety of hangers. I have seen mostly paper and ribbon, but keep in mind Baker's twine (store bought or home made), waxed linen thread, hemp twine (for a rustic look), wires of various colors and widths, and chains can all add a distinctive look to your banner. The width of the material will depend upon the type/size of your banner.

October has been a crazy and busy month these past 2 years. In addition to Parent's Weekend at my daughter's school, I have been attending Club Scrap's Retreat. This year was no different!

Overall, it was a fun time - especially the time spent with friends that I do not have the opportunity to see in person unless at this Retreat! Also made a few very fun new friends! I must say that the projects were only so-so   - my opinion. Thankfully, that meant my credit card remained warm and dry inside my wallet. There is usually a technique class at the Retreats (at least these 2 I attended). Since I have been stamping over 20 years, the techniques shown were not new. Unfortunately, I am not at liberty to share any specifics until sometime next week. When my projects arrive in the mail, I will post them and you can see for yourself.
For me, the joy is in seeing and spending time with the friends who live outside California. Plus, although I would not make additional projects, it is always good to try something new!

A New Journal

I have entered into a journal exchange with someone I met at a Kelly Kilmer class. Kate and I were chatting about exchanges - she had some bad luck in swap recently. It had been awhile since I participated in an art journal exchange, so I suggested we give it a try. Our first pages were to tell a bit about ourselves.  I am not a writer. I do not diary/journal like that. I do use visual imagery. Sometimes, I add words or quotes. That is the closest I get to writing. So, of course, I went the visual route with my exchange page. The first page:

This page represents how most people probably see me. My family is a big part of my life - particularly since I retired from my profession when we began relocating with my husband's company. The page opens to:

This is my inner little devil - the one who loves the quirky, the odd, the dark....

Canvas Class

During Scramp Camp, we were lucky to have Maryjo McGraw teach a couple of classes. The canvas class ended up being a big hit with all those who took part. I decided to make something more mainstream (if you have seen some of my art journaling, you know I am not really a mainstream type of person!)  This graphic design was really tough for me. But, I am happy with the way it turned out! The images are from Helga Strauss of Art Chix , and the gate stamp from Club Scrap.

I mixed a couple of colors as a base coat of red. Then mixed a couple of different greys, adding a little green to the darker bottom color. The images were added next. I ended up keeping them linear. I finished by embellishing with gold pearl string, gold rhinestones, and a little sponging of gold paint!

Under the Sea

The last of the houses...The background paper has a variety of iridescent images that cannot be seen in the photo. I used bead gel along the bottom. Once it was dry, I colored/tinted it to look like sand.

This is the back side - inked up some raffia to look like seaweed!

Tuesday's Tip

I am a little late in posting - too busy getting ready to fly out to Wisconsin for Club Scrap's Retreat! I did finish up some projects - mostly finishing touches. This had me thinking of color use. To get colors to pop on your card, collage, journal page, etc, use a little of your main color's complement. Some great color combinations are yellow and purple and blue and orange. Do not mix the colors together - just a dabs as finishing touches. (blending will make mud!)

Once Upon a Time

One of the Scramp Camp attendees is a Snow White fan. A rather simple cottage for the dwarfs...

Speaking of dwarfs, here they are! The photo below is of the roof. I glued straw colored raffia to cardboard. Once dry, I sprayed the raffia with a couple of yellow tones of Glimmer Mists.

Fun House

Posing a couple more of the houses I made for friends at Scramp Camp.

The above photo is of the fronts...

and the backs.

Tuesday's Tip

I am a little later than usual with Tuesday's Tip. I have been a bit out of sorts for a variety of reasons - and it is definitely hampering my creative side. Know what I mean? What do you do to get back in the groove?

I am finding that scheduling creative time - specifically on the calendar - helps get me going. With all the traveling I had been doing (with most of October being the same), I like to break up my reading with magazines. Looking for inspiration, ideas, and techniques to get me back to creating. I do think getting back into my normal (now disrupted) routine will be huge. Any thoughts?