An ATC Trade

This month Anne Lugherini from France (still no blog to my knowledge) and I traded ATCs again - Anne makes the most amazingly detailed cross stitch ATCs and this one below is no exception!

My ATC for Anne is at the top of the post and is another Twinkling H2O painted background. I've used a partial image of one of the Stampin'Up stamps I've recently invested in. plus some favourite background type stamps. I like the silhouette look for a change but I outlined it with white gel pen for a bit of "pop"!

Today I am working on my "flowers" ATCs for a small group exchange. I just love spring and flowers just keep springing to mind whenever I start working on something at the moment!

Some ATCs

For some reason I got the urge to play with water colour paints on the weekend and I especially enjoyed painting up a whole pile of ATC backgrounds on lovely textured watercolour paper. These simple ATCs are the end result of some of these backgrounds (using those magic little Twinkling H2O pots of paint and lots of water misting) plus some doodling, punched or cut paper shapes and a little bit of sewing. Sometimes simple is SO much fun. PS The cards have a lot more sparkle than shows on-screen!

The big flower one is for a trade with Jen but the other two are available if anyone wants to trade and I would love to make more!! (I have the backgrounds already painted.) Just leave a comment or email me...

And this totally gorgeous and very vibrant ATC is the result of my recent trade with my blogging friend Sephi. I think she inspired the colours in my ATC for Jen!! Have a look here for some detail photos.

ATCs

(My ATC for Meagan)

My new ATC trading partner, Meagan and I traded ATCs again this week and this time we set the theme as "asian". I used to do a lot of oriental themed paper arts and I can feel a revival coming on! It took me half an hour just to decide which of my asian themed stamps I would use on this one ATC. But it was fun going through my stamp "catalogue" (which desperately needs updating with all the stamps that I have purchased over the last few years - I used to be so disciplined about stamping new images and recording them by brand in my file but I have got very slack).

For this ATC I used some vintage text (lovely thin paper), a piece of beautiful yuzen paper , a bamboo printed ribbon and some thin red paper tape. I coloured the image with my Faber Castell Polychromos pencils, blending with odorless solvent and a stump. It made me realise just how rarely I do detailed colouring.

(Meagan's ATC for me)

And this is the gorgeous ATC Meagan made. I love the way she has layered papers on top of each other to get such a lovely effect. And I am applying lots of pressure about starting a blog!!

I have been away with work quite a bit lately and I am away again this week so blogging his taking a bit of back seat but I am working on a few things so I will post about them once they are finished.

Black & White + One

This month the "theme" for a small group exchange was set by Doreen and she decided on ATCs that were "black & white + one". A good choice! These were the results - clockwise from top left - Annie Laing, Carole Brungar, Ann Buskens, me and Doreen Grey. A lovely mixture of fabric, paper and nixed media.

PS I am travelling with work a fair bit lately and I have also damaged a finger on my right hand so I am a bit limited productivity-wise! Trying to finish the little quiltie from the previous post but it is a slow process without normal dexterity! Bear with me..I'll be back!

A Week in Reflection

I thought I would get to post here as soon as I got back from Perth but I was just too tired and now days have passed!! The wedding was terrific - perfect weather, gorgeous bride and groom, terrific company with fantastic food and wine as well!

Josh - Friday night

We made the most of the trip and squeezed in a lot - we bought an old wooden letter writing box (the double layered hinged sort!) at the antique shop in the little wheatbelt town of Kellerberrin on the way down to Perth on Friday, then had a great Indian dinner with our son Josh that night, followed up by a lovely relaxing morning on the Saturday with Jacob and Melanie and the two delightful grand-daughters.

Josh - Saturday afternoon (and hating the whole Mum wants ANOTHER photo thing!)

Evelina (now 7 weeks old) was available for cuddles and some awake time so it was just perfect! Really took me back to the wonders of little babies and even though it is only 18 years ago for me I had forgotten how heavy they get after a while!

Me and the gorgeous Evelina

Joseph (Grandad), Skye and Evelina

The wedding was Saturday afternoon and for anyone that doesn't know Perth (the state of Western Australia's capital city) it is a wonderfully scenic and very beautiful place with a fantastic park (King's Park) that is on much higher ground and overlooks the river and the city. You can sort-of see from these photos just how gorgeous the view was (from the the wedding ceremony).

The reception was in the Old Swan Brewery down on the river's edge and that was equally stunning. Sunday was spent driving back to Kalgoorlie - normally coming home seems quicker than going, but after a couple of full-on days, the seven hour drive seemed like a seven hour drive!! We were in bed early Sunday night as I had to go to work on Monday. Joseph was a lot luckier as he is on holidays.

Late afternoon view back over the Swan River from the Old Swan Brewery

I haven't down any art this week - I am back on my treadmill after work each day trying to get back in the pattern of regular exercise and it is feeling good! Last night at Annie's I really just talked and looked at lovely books etc other than finally finishing off my art journal from DJ's class at the retreat (I got around to beading the binding strings). This weekend, though, I have lots of arty intentions!

From Annie Laing

So to make this a bit more visual and arty, here are some terrific ATCs I have recently received. The first one is from my friend Annie (isn't it gorgeous - it is based on a terrific water soluble crayon technique) and the others are from the Surface Design Technique ATC Exchange.

From Jan Ziebol

From Aynsley McKay

From Britta Ankenbauer

A Few Recent Random ATCs For Trading

Stitched and beeswaxed paper and ephemera - traded

Fabric, lace and dimensional paint - traded

Stamped on silk with a paper tag and clockface charm - traded

Painted vliesofix on text printed fabric with felt flower trim, glitter paint and mini ric rac - traded

Vintage image printed on fabric and adhered with flower trim and star sequins to a playing card that has been coloured with alcohol inks - traded

If you are interested in trading just leave a comment - first in first served!
I am open to fabric and paper trades.

And now for something completely different!

Look what came in the mail yesterday - two very funky ATC trades from
the blogless Laurence Rocher in France!
Such fun!! Thanks Laurence.

PS Yes, I am in panic mode (it's official) - too much to do today and last night I did "something" to my knee so I am hobbling around the place, cursing myself for leaving so much to the last minute!

Tuesday

I have just received a wonderful needlefelted ATC trade from Ev Watts - it is so luxuriant and vibrant and gorgeous - I love it Ev!! And thank you Ev for the bag of wonderful tiny sequins as well, I thought I had some tiny ones but these ones make mine look small rather than tiny. The way Ev has incorporated beads and sequins on the ATC is amazing!


I also received my challenge "material" for the Unique Stitching Art Quilt challenge that is raising money for the NSW Cancer Foundation. It is the first time I have ever participated in something like this and I am really looking forward to it. The challenge will be to incorporate the mystery material (visibly) in a square quilt (between 10 and 12 inches) made on the theme of "Australian Autumn". It is not due until early February so I have plenty of time. I am thinking this will be a good project while we are away over Christmas/New Year.

Despite my excitement about getting something included in the next Somerset Studio I decided not to do anything for the latest theme of "heroes" - for some reason the theme just didn't inspire me and the only idea I had was to do a piece about my Dad, but I just couldn't get motivated to actually DO IT! I am trying to go with the flow a bit more these days so when I really have to force myself to do something I am interpreting it as something I can skip. Hope that isn't just a sign of a weak character!

So to finish off tonight, here are a couple of pages from a colour based journal exchange I participated in some time ago - fabric, paper, fibres and beading.


PS Check out Lisa Vollrath's site for her Christmas countdown with free (linkware) printable images.

Mixed Media Monday - Numbers (& Some ATCs)

I didn't end up doing a piece for last week's Mixed Media Monday challenge (crowns) so for this week's theme of "Numbers" I thought I would post a couple of pieces I made some time ago. They were both published in Somerset Studio for the Lingerie theme. I might still get a piece specially made before the theme changes next Monday but I am playing safe this week just in case.

The first piece is a large canvas board, painted and stamped with Oxford Impressions text images. The female shape is cut from paper. The whole board is covered with a spotty netting and the lingerie is of course lace. The large numbers are from those DIY clock sets.

This is a much smaller piece, again on a canvas board that has been painted with a pink glaze and partially stamped with a favourite checkerboard image. The tape measure is a cheap plastic one - I liked the red numbers.

And these two ATCs are the ones I have made as trades for Nadia. The Buddha one is decorator napkin glued to walnut ink-sprayed cream felt. The flowery one is purple felt that has been layered with synthetic organza fabrics, randomly stitched, burnt back, painted with Twinkling H20s and Starburst Stains and put through the embellisher a little. It is nice and textural.

Wednesday Stamper - Growing Old

"Growing Old" is the current challenge on the Wednesday Stamper site - I have been very stumped by this one! This ATC is coated in beeswax and there is a little bit of stamping - some numbers and symbols. I love the image of these two "aging" blokes. The background and words are from a 1918 directory that I found in an antique shop when I was in Adelaide for a stamping convention several years ago - it is a terrific source of old advertisements and details.

Some Reading Material...

Well I had a very fast trip to Perth for training in a new system we are going to be using at work and of course while I had access to a range of shops I had to drop in on a couple of bookshops before heading back to the airport this afternoon! My plane back tonight was a bit delayed too so I was extra glad of having something interesting to read.

I gave in and bought Linda and Laura Kemshalls' "The Painted Quilt" - I have been resisting it for a couple of months but I am already very glad I gave in!

I also dropped in at Borders and as that is the only place I have ever seen Belle Amoire, I had to buy the latest issue as it has fabric rusting on the cover!! It is only the second time I have ever bought this Stampington publication (one does have to set limits) and it is a lovely occasional indulgence. (Edit - Lisa Crofts has reminded me that of course the wonderful shop Artistic Journey stocks all of the Stampington magazines - my problem is that when I am in Perth for work I don't have a vehicle so I am only thinking of shops in the city centre that I can reach on foot! Thanks for the reminder though Lisa as I would far rather support Jo and Jackie's shop than a big chain!)

I also bought the Australian quarterly Textile Fibre Forum which I find to be an odd sort of magazine - I guess it is covering such a wide range of styles that it doesn't come across as having a distinctive style itself. I have been buying it for a while now and it is a great resource on Australian suppliers and events, even if the actual magazine content does not always appeal to me personally. I think this issue has been out for a while but I must have missed seeing it until now.
And waiting for me when I got home from the airport were my three return ATCs and a lovely thank you from Linda, Godelieve and Ilse from their Belgium Wall of ATCs exchange. Now to go work on some inchies!

100 Posts & Other Assorted Stuff!

My pages for Tina's Hexagon (Tag) Book

Well this is my 100th post - I love blogs - reading others and keeping my own. If I analyze why, I think it is because of the wonderful connections I have made as a result of having a blog - for example, connecting up with Kari, Jacqueline, Lynda, Barbara, Peggy, Sephi & Keron (all as a result of blogs!) plus I love the motivation and "accountability" blogging creates for me. It makes me much more aware of how I spend my time and whether I am using my time in a way that I will be happy with (later on).

While I was away I was nominated for a Rockin Girl Blogger Award (thanks Kelsey) and also for a Creative Blogger Award (thanks to Kari over there in Texas!). I am really chuffed on both counts and while I am not going to "pay it on" this time, I can recommend each and every one of my blog links as wonderful creative places to browse for a few hours! Actually I need to spend some time updating them as my list of favourites is much longer than my blog list.

Since I got back from Perth, I have been trying to reorganise my creative space (so I can fit in the new bits and pieces), making a few "Australian" ATCs for the "Wall of ATCs" in Belgium, doing my pages for a Hexagon (Tag) Book exchange, making background papers and trying to finish my sister Marrijane's very long overdue birthday "gift". Oh, and playing with the embellisher of course!! On a non-creative note, I am also trying to come to terms with yesterday's news that we need a new solar hot water system - man, those things are expensive!! Especially after a lovely extravagant week of holidays...

These are my three Australian ATCs for the "Travel the World - Wall of ATCs" -

Colours of Australia - Vineyards, Ochre & the Beach
(Paint chips with stamping, sequins and postage stamps)

These are some backgrounds I have been playing around with today (mostly water soluble oil pastels finished off by scraping Golden Satin Glazing Liquid over the top with a discarded credit card, but one is oil pastels with an overspray of Adirondack Color Wash Spray in Stream, and one is just the Stream Color Wash with Moon Shadow Mist in a gold shade).

And this is my piece of rusted fabric with patina as well. It has benefitted from being left for a full week without interference! I love this and will have to really think how to best use it to accentuate the markings which are a bit more vivid in real life.

Artwords - Grunge

This is my submission for this week's Artwords theme "Grunge". I think it would have been better with a bit more variety colour-wise but I enjoyed doing the grungy bits with Peeled Paint & Soot Distress Ink Pads (using the edge of an old credit card as well as "direct to paper") plus an Autumn Leaves Flourish stamp. The rest of the stamps are all from the Time to Stamp "Photo Booth" plate (a very versatile plate of small photo images and a few quotes).

I've been working on finishing my beeswax ATCs and a few other bits and pieces but I'll post those tomorrow - I'm bushed and looking forward to an early night so that I can make the most of the weekend!

A new day...

This morning's dawn - a reminder for me to see each new day as something to be lived abundantly! I woke up feeling out of sorts and headachy - wanting to stay home and to do some creating rather than going to work and struggling with my new role. I really like change (although not when it has no purpose or reason!) but I have problems letting myself grow and learn without wanting it all to happen very quickly so that I can feel confident and in control. Anyway I am of course off to work shortly but thought I would read a few blogs and entertain myself for a while first.

In terms of creative stuff this week - on Tuesday night I made good progress with my beeswax Roma ATCs and last night at Annie's I actually managed to make something! It is a piece for this week's Artwords theme of "Grunge" but it needs "something" so I won't be sharing it until tonight when I work out what that something is.

Last week Lynne L in Perth emailed me to let me know about a new online ATC Weekly Stamping Challenge and I meant to make something for it last week but forgot, so tonight I am planning on making an ATC on this week's theme of "faces". Should be easy as I have tons of face stamp images. I haven't been making many ATCs lately although last year it was a major passion. The photos today (sorry about the lousy crooked scans) are of a few of my favourites. Now I had better get moving and get to work.

The Monday that was...

Problem: Yesterday morning I decided that I hadn't got around to a whole pile of things (including several "life" type things as opposed to "creative" type things) on the weekend that really needed doing. Solution: Create a list. Downside: I can now clearly see how little I got done from the list in the last 24 hours! Upside: I feel more organised about what is not getting done.

So, while I should have been making travel bookings for my August trip to Perth, organising and filing paperwork, doing some of the gargantuan ironing pile etc etc, I had fun making some Adirondack Color Wash backgrounds for a beeswax ATC exchange that I need to get mailed in about a week. I love the way you can blend these colours! The theme is "Roma" so I have stamped one of my favourite Lazar Studiowerx collage stamps (Roman) on lemon tissue paper and I think the background will show through the tissue paper nicely once it has been adhered with the beeswax. I plan to do some more on these tonight.

I started this post this morning before rushing off to work and now it is lunch time. It is a very cold grey winter's day here so I have come home to check the mail and to make a nicely decadent toasted cheese and ham sandwich. I've got the heater on and a nice cup of tea as well so it is going to take a lot of will power to go back to work in a little while!

But the best part of coming home was that Lynda's stunning textural fabric postcard was sitting in the letterbox waiting for me - it is just beautiful and it is the first "naked" fabric postcard I have received. And it has travelled half way round the world and arrived in pristine condition! I add too many lumpy beads and things to risk it I think but it is much more postcardy this way!! Thanks so much Lynda - it will be on my inspiration wall tonight - I love it!