30 Days of Gratitude Days 4-7

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Another November gratitude post.  It is amazing to think of the things that make me happy, and a really good exercise because I usually struggle in November emotionally.

Simple thing- My fuzzy slippers.  In the evenings and on the weekends, I live in these slippers.  I adore them. They are just the Costco knockoffs, but I adore them so much.

Silly thing- My youngest and her tippy toes.  She is forever on tippy toe and I wanted to capture that sweet moment, because it always makes me giggle.

Sweet thing- My husband.  There is so much I could say here, we've been through so much together, so many good things, so many bad. Right now, I am at a point where I feel like we are reconnecting and realizing how much things have changed, all for the better.  Every day I feel luckier to have him in my life.

I couldn't think of another "s" thing- Wine.  In the fall and winter I love a glass of wine. 

 

Valentine Canvas

I am loving making altered canvases.  This one was made for my husband on Valentine's day.  There is something fun about mixing media, and I adore how this turned out.

Supplies:
Paper- Authentique Journey
Paint- Daniel Smith Acrylic
Ribbon: May Arts

Spring

I have wanted to do a canvas for a while, and I got the inspiration to honor my favorite part of spring, the cherry blossom.

I collaged the background and the branch, and punched the blossoms.

Paper:
Authentique
Free bird
Uncommon
Gathering

5 Things inspiring me

I thought I'd share a few things inspiring me recently.

www.manuelahorn.com or dreams.zinzanni.org/stpattys

1. Manuela Horn
Look at the Awesome Sauce that is Manuela.  This lovely lady is 6'2'  before heels.  As you may have seen in a previous post, she was the swing girl at Northwest Oktoberfest, and she is a featured performer at Teatro Zin Zanni.  She is freaking gorgeous in person, and a truly sweet person.  When she read my previous post, she tweeted it, and accepted my apology. I was floored that she was so gracious.  I was a fan before, but now, I am totally inspired by this woman. Look at those costumes, the mix of colors and the fun use of pattern.  I love the sense of whimsy surrounding her stage persona.  But, that's not all, Manuela is wicked talented and hilarious.  She sings, she yodels, and she is a comedienne.  I suggest you check out her "America's Got Talent" appearance, and her dominatrix cooking show.  How can you not love a yodeling dominatrix? You have no soul.  That's how.  Manuela Horn is worth a few minutes (or more) of your time.  Thanks for all you do, Manuela, keep up the inspiration.

http://thevintagetraveler.wordpress.com/2011/01/05/using-color-in-dating-vintage-clothing/

2.  1920's Color Pallate
The vintage traveler shared this 1920's color pallate on their blog, and look at the flow and the feel of this.  I love the Coralish reds, and the muted blues.  This whole pallate is calming, but I can still picture a thoroughly modern flapper sporting these colors on the way to a speakeasy.

3. Cherry Blooms
Maybe I am anxious for the start of spring, and the regrowth of green.  Or maybe I just miss the giant cherry tree that used to be in the backyard of my first house.  In any case, the contrast of dark to light, and the range of white to pink is just beautiful, and honestly, there is nothing more magical than a wind blowing the petals around you like a blizzard on a warm spring day.

4. Art and Design of India

I love the vibrant colors, the mix of gold, silver, and gemstones, and the unapologetic beauty that is in Indian art and design. 

http://www.pentel.com/store/pentel-arts/pens/stylo-sketch-pen

5. Pentel Stylo Sketch Pen
My new sketch pen.  This has a flexible nib that allows both a fine and a bold line.  I suppose one is either a pen person, or is not, and I fall fully on the pen junkie side.  My life is going to change due to this pen.  I just know it.

Kissing ball redux

Some projects turn out so pretty that it's fun to explore changing them up. I did a second kissing ball for a friend who requested a neutral color scheme with robin egg blue.

I just love how this one turned out too.

Ribbon- May Arts
Paper- Authentique foundation. Journey and Gathering.

Kissing Ball

The intern in the office loves to decorate her cubicle for holidays. I thought this would be a sweet gift that fits her personality.

Coasters

My dearest friend Heather and I craft while our hubbys watch football and our kids play. Yesterday, she decided to make some amazing coasters and asked if I'd play along. I'm always in for a project with Heather. The funny thing about Heather and I is that we are very much inside each other's head. I had been meaning to make coasters for about 6 months.

Of course the project started with a trip to buy tiles. While the tiles were needed, the trip was needed more. We each have spent the last full week stranded in our homes with our wonderful husbands and children, who turned out to be less wonderful in a large dose with no escape. It snowed, then iced, then snowed. On my street each day began with neighbors digging out their cars only to get stuck, spin out, and eventually giving up to return home. Except for the one set of neighbors we helped dig out three times because they had to work. The weather brought a stout dose of cabin fever, so the supply run was a welcome escape.

When we returned, we sat down and began the task of making the coasters, about halfway through, T, Heather's hubby, walked through and surveyed the scene.
"What are you making?"
"Coasters"
"You know that's paper, right?"
"Yes"
"It's gonna get wet"
"Yes"
"It's paper" (at this point he calls Greg in to survey the situation.)
"Greg, they're making coasters"
"Cool" (Greg has learned not to question our awesomeness.)
"It's gonna get wet, so are you gonna seal that or something?"
Heather quickly answers "We're sealing it"
"But you need spray or something"
"You mean this spray?" Heather points to the spray can on the table.
Meanwhile, the game does something interesting, and the boys wander back to the TV.

After we have a laugh at the boys, we continued on. The coasters turned out beautifully. Each set turned out to really represent our style. Heather's in the muted pink and and grey paper, and mine in the vibrant hot pink.

ATCs Again

I am loving making Artist Trading Cards (ATCs). I enjoy the limitation the size brings. It's a fun challenge to explore an idea or theme on a mini canvas.

For this round, I wanted to touch on an Asian theme. I mixed Kaiser Kraft and Crate Paper patterned papers with some black and white cardstock elements.

I like keeping a hand designed element on my cards, so I used a white Signo pen to draw designs on the seals.

To design my ATCs, I sketched out some ideas to get an idea for proportion and layout. I had decided to make these cards limited to stash items, and the Kaiser paper was one I loved, and it fit perfectly with the theme. The Crate Paper was left over from a layout, and was literally lying there when I was trying to put things together, which was a happy mess. I used my sketch to finalize the idea and made a prototype. Once it was fleshed out the rest of the series were created assembly style.

Artist trading cards (ATCs)

I made these for a swap. Each heart is hand drawn, and the cards are collages with a plain Kraft paper, and two text pattern papers, the darker is 7 gypsies.

I am excited to see what the other artists created. The challenge in making ATCs is adapting a technique to a 2.5x 3.5 in size. Many patterned papers are too large for the format, creating a unique way to share talent in a compact size.

Have you tried ATCs?