Wowzers!

Ok, so maybe "wowzers" isn't the best title for a blog post..but my other choice was "OMGOMGOMG!!"...lol

Everyone that knows me knows that I just love the technique by Mary Beth Shaw of Stencil Girl of dropping Tim Holtz® Alcohol Inks  through a Seth Apter stencil. Well, I just discovered last night, thanks to Sally Lynn McDonald that I can do this same technique on my Gel Press® plate by just using a little hand sanitizer! whoa!! Needless to say, I ran to the store to get some as fast as my little Jeep would legally allow me to do so!

I made a video to show you how I did it and how I made this ghost print too!

And did you know that we just added a new plate size? The 12x12" plate is perfect for scrapbooking!!

heinous: adjective

 hatefully or shockingly evil : abominable

 

 pronunciation

"Humans have contrasted love with hate and good with evil for eons, putting love and good on one side and hate and evil on the other. The etymology of "heinous" reflects the association of hate with that which is evil or horrible. During the 14th century, English borrowed "heinous" from the Middle French "haine," meaning "hate." Over time English speakers came to use the word to reflect the sense of horror evoked by intense hatred."
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Helmar April Challenge- "Days-of-the-week"

 

Now I admit, this challenge took a creative effort on my part because I don't do scrapbook pages, well, hardly ever anyway...plus what I create goes up for sale. I wish I could make projects for myself but I don't have the time, I must make things to go to the Art MoB, and trust me, I don't mind one bit that things sell so well that I have to keep up with the demand...nope, not a problem at all! lol

 

So I went looking for quote inspiration that I thought would correspond with the challenge,
 and found this:

The canvas is covered in Vintage Street's Tinted Tape so it's a very glossy surface, so I used Helmar's 450 to adhere the Prima flowers and the word strips to it.

 

I used Helmars Gemstone Adhesive to glue on the Kaiser Craft rhinestones onto the Queen & Co. orange felt scroll and used 450 onto the Really Reasonable Ribbon.

 

Now the most fun came from a problem.
 I wanted to add a leaf, but the leaf colors weren't matching the over all ambiance of the canvas...I know, I'm weird like that. So I made my own, and I LOVE how they came out, adhered them with the 450.

 

I got quite obsessed with making them..as you can see. They are cut from the wax paper/tissue that gets laid in the bottom of my spray box and which I have used from time to time as many of you know. After they are cut out I dipped them into my Tim Holtz melting pot that has all the UTEE in it that has turned amber brown.

OK, anyone else thinking butterfly wings?

 

Also entering this wall art in:

 

Little Scrap Pieces - Fun Friday May Flowers

indoctrinate: verb

to instruct especially in fundamentals or rudiments : teach

or

 

 to imbue with a usually partisan or sectarian opinion, point of view, or principle

pronunciation
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Springing Forward!!
Don't forget to move your clocks ahead an hour tonight
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How do you get your inspiration?
This is how I get mine.

First it began with a challenge...
which in this case is Helmar's March Challenge "Tag-You're-It".


For me, I have a slight obsession with mason jars, so I thought I'd make a tag by die cutting a jar using my Sizzix die and Big Shot Machine. So yes, my love for mason jars inspires me.

Now since I need a solid back for my tag, I took the die cut piece and traced the shape on a sheet of white card stock, I'll cut it out later.

Next, I picked out my color palette, which revolved around Maya Road's Fabric Tape, Country Rose. So the fabric tape inspires my colors.
 I picked out some of my new Ranger Distress Paints to match.
Antique Linen ( yes it was all messed up from shipping but Simon Says they are replacing it :), Spun Sugar, Seedless Preserves, Forest Moss, and Bundled Sage

My first step was to spread the Antique Linen onto the tag, wet my finger and spread it out. Let dry.

Using new products inspires me. It's fun exploring how they work. So here, I took 3 colors and dabbed them onto the Tim Holtz grunge board hearts, utilized a wet finger to spread the paint around a bit. Used my heat gun to dry them.

 Using an old favorite and well used stamp inspires me. This script stamp is made by Prima and I love it along with my stand by ink from Stazon. I'm embarrassed by how yellowed and yucky the stamp looks, but it's my testimony as to how well loved it is...or...that I don't clean my stamps very well, hmm.

Another inspiration for me is to combine challenges. Moxie Fab is having a Washi Tape challenge. Trends can be very inspiring!
I edged the fabric tape with the Stazon ink and put a small dollop of Helmar's 450 between each fold to hold it together. Snipped the ends for a banner shape.

Shopping for unusual products in home improvements stores is a fun inspiration for me. I discovered Flashing Tape years ago, and it comes in a humongous size roll which will last forever! Here I cut a section off and then into small strips which I folded over to make these flat strands which I shaped to the curve of the mason jar rim.
 ( and yes, I continually lay products out to see how everything looks as I go along to make sure I like how everything is working together )

I glued down the metal shaped strands to the jar rim with my Helmar's 450 and once dried, I used my embossing tools to draw lines into the rim. I also took my Ranger's Distress marker to outline the jar and my water pen to lighten those edges. You can also see, that by this point I have cut out the back to my tag and will adhere it using my Helmar's Acid Free white glue.

Next, was a fantastic moment of inspiration...using an old product in a new way. I wanted to silver leaf the top of the jar, and thought I would try my 450 to see how it works. So I spread with my fingertip a thin layer of 450 across the lid and let it set up.

Works like a charm, just wait for the 450 to dry until tacky and then press the silver leaf down. I then used a cue tip along with Ranger's Distress Stain to get into any creases and give it a rustic look.

Then, I took all my lovely pieces and begin assembling them together at last. I love this moment when they all come together. I use baby powder to rub on the backside of anything sticky ( like the ends of the fabric tape banner that is hanging over the edge of the jar and the inside of the bow )

I add little detail touches like the Blue Moon Beads dragon flies and the key...just because it speaks to me to do so. I think sometimes my pieces become inspired themselves along the way and they tell me what needs to be added. How copacetic!

The finished tag..ta da!

So great sketches, awesome product, and trendy challenges inspires me. What inspires you?
And don't forget to turn that clock ahead tonight, we are springing forward!
I am ready for flip flops, sunshine and shorts!

gambit: noun

a chess opening in which a player risks minor pieces to gain an advantage

or

 a remark intended to start a conversation

also

 a calculated move

 

pronunciation
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Hello WOYWW stalkers visitors!!
Welcome to my mess :)
Instead of my desk, I thought I'd show you the sordid floor picture. This is to the left of my desk and must be stepped OVER to get to my desk. The general mess can stay like this for weeks on end too...just shameful. On my basket of Really Reasonable Ribbon; I have my mixed media coasters almost ready to go for mailing, 2 Easter cards for the ART MoB that just need sentiments on the front before being packaged up, papers for my "local flavor" cards that I make for the Art Mob and my dish from breakfast....oh and upside down magnet that recently got knocked down and is forlornly laying there.

 

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I wanted to show this card on a WOYWW post as there are so many of you that really enjoy Tim Holtz and the Blueprint Stamps by Mario. I found this font and thought of your ladies.

You might need to click on the picture in order to see it better but it's called

Handwriting draft

 

Here is the card which is entered in:

 

Paper Playtime - Challenge #2 Use some brown

 

( this is what I referred to when I said "local flavor" cards ) 

 

Creative Imaginations - squirrel from paper

American Traditional Designs - Evergreen Forest paper

Faber Castell - PITT pens

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Mystery solved

 

Not that you knew I had a mysterious situation, but alas, I did.

I have a suet feeder that has had it's flimsy chain broken now twice this past week. Which meant that it has fallen and had to be retrieved and fixed each time. I have had to resort to a heavier clip and been blaming my squirrels although it didn't seem possible. I've seen their acrobatics out there, hanging from the arm to feed on the suet but didn't think it was possible for them to break the chain, because I've never seen their entire weight on the suet cage. They always hang using their hind feet to hold them up.

 

 Plus the arm of the feeder is always knocked askew which also seemed weird, which I thought was the raccoons trying to pull the suet over to the railing so they could get to it...until..I witnessed....
 

the attack of the big ass crow!

I wish I had gotten a better picture for you but this is one huge crow; that attacks the suet feeder with gusto. I think his weight alone is what broke the chain and after his tangle with the feeder the arm is pushed around almost back onto the porch!

A mystery solved!



festoon: noun

a decorative chain or strip hanging between two points

or

 a carved, molded, or painted ornament representing a decorative chain

"Festoon" traces back (by way of French and Italian) to Latin "festa," the plural of "festum," meaning "festival." "Festa" is also an ancestor of the English noun "feast."
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Being that this is a new year with fresh starts and all has given me the inspiration to do something different with the Timmy Tags of 2013. Instead of making tags, ( which by the way, and don't faint, but I packaged up the 2012 tags and put them in the Art Mob, let's see if they sell? ) I am going to try and make wall hangings instead from the tag challenges..and yes, they will also be put up in the Art Mob. What inspired me you ask to make the tags into wall hangings? So glad you asked, lol You see I went into the store on the 2nd to change out my Christmas stuff to Valentines Day stuff and discovered that I sold 6 wall hangings in December! Like wow, right...exciting but it also puts me into a slight panic mode to fill in those empty spaces!

So here is the first Tim Holtz 2013 tag wall hanging!

 

 

other products used:

Ranger - Distress Stain, Vintage Photo, Clear Rock Candy crackle paint

Tim Holtz Ide-ology Film Strip ribbon

clip art from the Internet - pointing hand, gears

clock hands, gold beads, clip - misc.

Eyelet Outlet - Gear brads ( removed brad parts )

Faber Castell - blue metallic gelato ( rubbed dry onto embossing plate ) and salmon gelota used on clock frame, and PITT Pen,black

Fiskars - bamboo embossing plate

Big Shot

Helmars - 450 and Liquid Scrapdots

Aleenee's Tacky Glue

background words from Helmars Challenge site ( printed in reverse on wax paper and pressed down on board, love this technique! )

Golden - gesso, and gel medium

Cricut - French Manor, p. 31 ( clock face 8" )

Really Reasonable Ribbon - hemp cord ( dyed with Vintage Photo )
ScorPal - tape

 

Also entering this in Helmar's January Challenge where I doubt I can win this month as I won last months December challenge..woo hoo me! lol ( side note, this is one of the signs that sold quickly as it wasn't even in the store for a whole month! I loooooove it when that happens )

This month they want you to use the colors blue and orange, the word LIFE, and a list. I was so inspired by the word art list that I used it on my background. I copied it from their site and put it into my print program, reversed the words, printed it off on wax paper and then laid it down on my board and pressed it down using my hands. Gently lift off the wax sheet, don't let it wiggle or it will smear and then let it dry.

 

 I hope you can see the words:

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OK, does anyone else have problems with the colors in Dylusions Melted Chocolate? For me it comes out beautifully until it dries, gets mixed or spritzed with anything. Here I began my board by gessoing it, let it dry and then I sprayed the Melted Chocolate onto it, added a little bit of Folk Art Turner's Yellow, and spritzed it with water. I took my fancy credit card tool and smoothed out the Melted Chocolate to discover this color reaction, can you see the green and pink? Do you see any brown? lol It's actually very pretty, just not what I was going for!

 

Methuselah: noun

 an ancestor of Noah held to have lived 969 years

 

( sometimes I get these interesting tid bits when I look up a word such as this one: "Methuselah is currently in the bottom 30% of lookups on Merriam-Webster.com"....well, I still use it, does that mean I'm almost as old as Methuselah? )....no snickering out there!

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This is the end of week 3 for Handmaking the Holidays, ::whew::...got everything made? Well, if you're like me, probably not then! lol So if you need some ideas...well, we have them! You can go to Chrissy's blog for all the links beginning at week 1 and for 12 Last Minute Gifts to Make! Relax and make yourself a cup of hot tea and browse through them and get motivated!

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Frosted Designs - On the 6th Day of Christmas

6 Washi Tapes Strips

( I used 6 strips of Tim Holtz idea-ology Tissue Tape, Symphony for my background )

 

 

Martha Stewart, die cut lace tags ( or a doily as us "common" people would say )

Autumn Leaves, Stampology- Talking in Circles stamp ( old as Methuselah but still good to go )

StazOn ink

DCWV, Shimmer Stack ( still my favorite stack )

Really Reasonable Ribbon  



evolution: noun

 a process of change in a certain direction

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Hi everyone!

 I am so excited to be a new Design Team member for Try it on Tuesday!!

All their challenges are considered a "anything goes" medium, which I LOVE that freedom to create anything I want!

 

This week we are sponsored by:

They are offering 4 digi stamps from their store so go and play along with us!

 

 

This challenge is called "Let's Get Inky"...couldn't be any better than that, huh? It did get me to thinking about my progressions with ink, In the beginning I used it for stamping only, then I began inking the edges to my mats, which lead to inking embellishments....and then somewhere along the way I began inking everything when I discovered sprays and stains!

Can you remember your ink evolution?

 

So, for this project, I took my Ranger  Distress Inks: Salty Ocean and Broken China and just went straight from the pad smooshing ( technical term ) them across the background. Then spritzed with water and used bubble wrap ( a highly developed tool ) to blend them together.

 

 While my ink back ground was drying I created my chocolate covered earth. ( I think the world would be a better place if it was covered in chocolate, don't you agree? ) The earth was clip art found on the computer, cut out and then painted over with Apple Barrel: Colbalt Blue and Delta Creamcoat: Forest Green acrylic paint. Then I free hand cut a piece of white paper for the chocolate glaze and sprayed it with Ranger Dylusions: Melted Chocolate spray ink. After it dried I covered it with Glossy Accents. ( the tiny bubbles REALLY show up in the close up picture. )

The heart is a Tim Holtz Idealogy grunge board piece that is covered with Distress Stain: Barn Door and I used a Pink Paislee rub on ( the white blotches ) adding with my Faber Castell Pitt Pen the word LOVE. To finish off my wall hanging I used the Distress Stain: Faded Jeans around the edges, doodled a little with the American Crafts Marvy marker in white. Wood beads and twine round off the piece so it can be hung.

So all in all I used 6 different colored inks on my 6 x 12" wall hanging. I can't wait to see what you make for this challenge, after all I know a lot of inky ladies out there ;)

So go join in for some inky fun, the prize for the month of December is from:

improvise: verb

to make or fabricate out of what is conveniently on hand

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Wishing all my WOYWW ladies a happy day filled with lots of crafty goodness!

Here is my desk area...I have my "light area" set up to take a picture of some product. I wish I had a light box, well, sometimes I do anyway. I really don't have the space for it if I owned one. I have 2 pieces of white board taped together, which I prop up to use for photographing cards and small items. It works pretty well, considering what it is! lol

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Rodaina from Egypt sent me this adorable card:

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Thank you to everyone who e-mailed me about concerns from Hurricane Sandy. We all did pretty well here in the mountains, strong winds did some damage and we lost power some, but all in all we are very lucky compared to the people who live up north of us on the coast. My thoughts and prayers go out to them.

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My tag for the Tim Holts 12 Tags of 2012. ( October )

I saved it for Halloween Day!

 

 

 I didn't have the tissue paper but I did have the Tim Holtz Tissue Tape - Symphony, so I used that, crumpled it up and spread some acrylic paint on it and did use a hand wipe to blend. Then sprayed it with my Tattered Angels glimmer mist. ( Now I did have the Ranger Perfect Pearls, but it hasn't been opened yet, I'm one to use up a product before opening a new one, and I still have some glimmer mist left...frugal...very frugal I am! )

I used the Cricut Craft Room to weld together the word BOO  ( from the CCR font ) and a spider web ( Happy Hauntings cartridge ) onto Tim Holtz's Grungepaper ( I really love this stuff!! ) I painted it black with Apple Barrel's acrylic, and then used my Ranger stickles , Black Diamond over it.

 I didn't like the spider that came with the web cut from Happy Hauntings ( it looked like a tick, not spider like at all, lol ) so I cut one from Cricut's Paper Trimmings, and repeated the same steps as the webbing. I also had to improvise for the ticket and used my Hero Arts - Calender stamp, to create the ticket and added a Reminisce word sticker. Last touch was the orange spider eyes...errrriiieeee...:)

Happy Halloween y'all!
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word art: noun





From cute sayings to inspirational quotes, word art is an art form that involves presenting words and phrases in an artistic fashion. Techniques typically associated with word art include manipulating letters into various shapes, coloring letters and adding shading and texture.

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Hi everyone! I have been a busy little bee these days, the Art MoB is selling my stuff almost faster than I can make it, lol There are actually lots of projects that I haven't had time to show you! Like wow, right? So, anyway...some of you will remember that I did a demo at the Art MoB last Saturday, and as usual it was a blast. Hendersonville had TONS of people down for the Art On Main Street, it was so much fun to stroll around with Jerri afterwards and peek at what other artists create! I am so amazed with the creative mind, I know I am dull in comparison and truly humbled that people want to buy anything of mine!!

So here is what I made for Mou Saha's challenge over at Faber Castell's blog. Her challenge was to create "word art". I took the challenge to heart and tried to create my words into art....I hope I succeeded.

 

A few highlights to what I did:

 

I first used a gel medium to adhere a flower print piece of tissue onto my board, making sure to cover it well with the medium. When it was thoroughly dried, I added my sticker letters to it.

 

I painted over the entire piece with various shades of green paint using a Keenex Splash n' Go wipe so that it would be well blended.

 

I covered the chipboard letters with text book paper, and then outlined then with my Pitt Pen and adhered them to the center.

 

Next, using my Fiskar's Finger Tip knife, I gently scored around the painted over letters and lifted the dried paint up and away, revealing the pattern tissue paper underneath. Then I had fun, doodling and drawing on the letters with my fabulous Pitt Pens.

 

Lastly, edged the piece with Tim Holtz idea-ology tissue tape, used a charcoal pencil to outline it, smudged it with my fingers and used Glass Frost spray paint to seal it.

 

Here's a short slide show of the creation, I haven't had a chance to upload any music yet to my computer ( would love a good site if someone has one ), so until then, hum along ;)

 

 



frill: noun

decorative paper cover

 

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Oh, do I really need to say anything? I couldn't help myself when going through the journaling boxes of Best Creations, when I saw this tag, my mind immediately jumped into the gutter! The hand cuffs don't open so I had to cut off the frill in order to slide the handcuff on and then used my Helmars Liquid Scrapdot, to lift the frill on the same level as the handcuff.

 There are times that moments like this can reinforce hoarding tendancies. I mean, I've had those little handcuffs for around 10 years, not knowing what I was going to do with them, but kept them all the same, and now look! I wish I had a ton of them, guess I'll have to go internet surfing and see if I can find any, I got these ( I have 2 ) from a party, kept mine and the one from the guy I was dating....he's long gone, but long live the charms! lol

 

Tim Holtz - Distress markers

Doodlecharms cartidge

 

Unique Crafters Challenge - Anything goes for September 

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Don't forget to link up your  

Project Pinterest

 

mojo: noun

 Self-confidence, Self-assuredness. As in basis for belief in ones self in a situation

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Hi everyone venturing in from the wonderful world of WOYWW!!

( If you don't know what WOYWW is:

don't be lazy, don't be shy,

 just click on the link

 and you'll find out why!

 ( oh I rhymed...yay me! lol )

 

My desk this week...

 

 



I'm actually learning ( like at my age, I just NOW figured this out!! ) to be a little neater, put things away and wash my desk top between projects since I am now making projects for the store. I have come to realize that organization really helps out Mr. Mojo ( who knew he was a neat freak? ) Well, he is either a neat freak or maybe he just gets so bored with cleaning and organizing that his mind frees up with creative thoughts to mess it back up with...either way it's a win win situation!
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If you don't follow my blog on a regular basis, you can catch up with this week's series of humorous Thanksgiving cards by going back to Monday and Tuesday's posts. :)

I know sometimes my family could have benefited from this:

 

Best Creations - paper

Tim Holtz - Distress markers

Doodlecharms cartridge

 

Frosted Designs: Fabulous Friday Challenge - Journal Cards 

paper, and journal card - Best Creations

turkey cut from Doodlecharms

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I would love for y'all to "like" both the studio where my stuff is displayed ( Art Mob Studios and Marketplace ) and my new personal business page ( Sandee's Artful Words ) on Face Book. You don't have to,
 but it is appreciated!!
:)
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Project Pinterest

restricted: adjective

Kept within certain limits

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I am enjoying the freedom to make cards with my sense of humor for the store. I never realized how restricted I felt before with the ones that I submit to the magazines!
 ( have to be sweet and conservative all the time )

So this week will be dedicated to my sense of humor, Thanksgiving style!!
What inspires you? Ramona over at Inspire Me Monday Week 37 asks that question, and it can be any answer; for me...it's humor this week, and I hope you come back everyday to see a new card
 and hopefully smile...even giggle ( that's always better!! )

Pause Dream Enjoy - Challenge #37 Yellow and Red
and the question of the week:

What does the word "SCHOOL" make you think of?
Yellow School Buses? Red Apples?

...no, makes me think of tests that I didn't study for!

I worked in my red and yellow colors on the quote box. I took some Ranger's Squeezed Lemonade Reinker and used my finger to spread it out, and then printed the sentiment out on a separate piece of paper and used my red ink pen to trace over it with the help of a light box.

( no, my handwriting isn't that neat on my own! )

 

Really Reasonable Ribbon - Autumn Colors with ribbon theme 

Sakura Glaze pen ( to color in the turkey's tail feathers )
Cricut - Stretch Your Imagination cartridge
Best Creations - paper
Tim Holtz - Distress markers
Really Reasonable Ribbon Brown Crochet Lace and Hemp Cord Pastel
( they must have sold out of the Pastel cording, but  wow, they got in a lot more different colors!)
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And a special note:

Jenn from Just Add Water Silly who is a contributing editor of Featuring, where there's a huge selection of interesting articles on Zentangling, photography, Twitter & henna art, with lots more to keep you reading has announced a giveaway.
Purchase your pre-order copy of Issue 2 before September 21st and be entered into a draw to win ONE of thirty inchies they are giving away.



Also,  FEATURING magazine wants YOUR art for their Theme Gallery and they ask readers to send in artwork to represent what that theme means to them. Their theme for Issue 3 is "Soundtrack Of My Life".

How cool does that sound?


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And if that's not enough goodness, remember that Project Pinterest for September is up and running, so bring on those creations, big or small!!