A Safe and Happy Memorial Day to Everyone

Well we enjoyed Alex's graduation party in Moline.

Visited the grave sites and placed flowers.

We worked in 3 soccer games for Erin at the Morton Soccer Tournament and I, for one, am ready to leave this horrible heat wave behind us!!!

It's only MAY for Pete's Sakes!!!

Anyway, I started these Journal pages awhile back, and received my shipment of new pens...thank you very much Ms. Kaz for the info...and proceeded to have some fun in the AC.

This is one of the end resulting pages.

I saw where Dylan was challenging people to make a page that said "I Am an Artist" and so the bubbles became a place for the letters.

This is the beginning with all the Dylusions Ink Sprays and backwashes plus a couple of stencil runs with Distress Inks.

Different day...a bit different lighting....

Then I added some Stencil work with the white acrylic paint.

And a stamp from Doodle Parts is the only stamp on these 2 pages...hmmm.

The same area now has some white pen marks....somewhere along the line I turned the Journal upside down..........I DON'T have the foggiest idea why....I just did.

And eventually, the ARTIST letters.

This was the other side, now turned around and the flowers apparently needed to be UNDER the border trimming.  But it needed more....

So I added another flower for balance and a bunch more in the way of doodles.

This was the first thing that really started the doodling on the page....my contribution to May Flowers with the Inspiration Emporium DT group.

I've cut over 500 pieces of paper, painted dozens of wooden stars, embossed and cut metal, die-cut and sprayed tons of hearts, and hand-cut way too many pieces of Chipboard. I'm taking a few days off to have FUN with Bill!

Be well and be good to each other!!!

Linda

Products Used:

Dylusions Ink Sprays - Vibrant Turquoise, London Blue, Bubblegum Pink ,Melted Chocolate, Squeezed Orange, Fresh Lime, Crushed Grape, Lemon Zest, and Black Marble    

Dylusions Stencils - Chequered Dots - 5x8 

Dylusions Stamps - Doodle Parts

Distress Ink Pads - Chipped Sapphire, Black Soot

New Dylusions Stamps in the House

I just got some new stamps last week...the Doodle Parts set from Dylusions.

This is my twist on the set with the Ink Sprays from Dylan as the starting point.

Bright, yes, they're always bright. If you own them, you know that's a fact!

LOVE THEM!

The lower left corner is the Bubblegum Pink and the center is Vibrant Turquoise. Fresh Lime, Squeezed Orange and Lemon Zest make it fun. Everything else is a mixture of sprays, splotches, and runs.

The next step was using Jet Black Archival ink to stamp the new set around the tag.

I find the "Sea Creature" doodle just too much fun. That's my name for it, I'm sure Dylan has a better one picked out.

Then I got out the Distress Markers and the white Sharpie Pen.

I still wanted more definition, so I used the Black Glaze pen on some of the outlines and dots.

The Distress Markers add more color and shadows that make the contrast a bit more stark.

The tag is dark, so the white pen and the gold lame' bow on top made it brighten up and sparkle.

Love the Pens, the Stamps, the Inks and the Markers.

Take out a tag and just start playing.

Now the weekend pictures of family....I've GOT to share.

Remember the ALEX card I led you through....well here is THE ALEX.

One of 2 kids chosen to give a speech at the graduation ceremony for Moline HS class 2012 of 480 students, and he ROCKED it!

"He's Confident, he's funny and he's good-looking!"

And we are so proud of him!

Then remember the NO BAR CODE card for beloved granddaughter Brittany?

Well she liked it. Isn't she gorgeous???

And the necklace I gave her she has on is a Tim Holtz Bat charm I added 2 holes to it, and a chain.

The little ghoul (girl) loved it!

Be Well and Be Blessed...I am.

Linda

Products used:

Dylusions Ink Sprays - Vibrant Turquiose,  Bubblegum Pink,

                                            Squeezed Orange,  Fresh Lime, 

                                            Lemon Zest  

Dylusion Stamps - Doodle Parts

Distress Markers - various colors

Sakura Glaze Pen - Black

Archival #0 Pad - Jet Black

Inkssentials Surfaces - Manila Craft Tags - #8

Sharpie Poster Paint Fine Tip Pen - White

UPDATE-A Few Upgrades Around the Studio-Mesh Organizer No.

Bill and I work well together.

 I wanted to move all my wooden stamps from around my desks to a "behind the door" unit.

So yesterday we went looking for lumber. We were going to build it out of Oak, but having checked the location for studs...always in the wrong place....

we opted for a lighter wood, Pine.

I tell him what I'd like, he designs, WE build.

I make a good assistant......I don't ask many questions, and I always know where the pencil it!

It's in my shirt pocket!

I never imagined a 60"x30" unit would fill up so fast. We were going to make it 72", but I thought..."nah, 60's big enough."

Live and learn. I've given away or stored a lot of my wood mount stamps, so these are my favorites.

Some have sentimental memories...the little girl top middle was on my 1st Row House Class.

Then I set out to drag all the paints, and glitters, sprays, and embossing powders out into the daylight.

This is where I used to keep the wood mounts, now all my products are right in front of me!!!

Three different areas to work, 3 different craft sheets to keep the place clean.

 

This is what started it all...my cling mount stamps were out of wack. NEEDED some better way to hold them.

Went to Staples and got a great wire rack ($21) that's strong enough to hold up my Tim and Dylan stamps.

I've got several other sets in binders, but I wanted them ON MY WORK STATION!

And now they ARE!

 

UPDATE

And I didn't know how popular this mesh organizer would be...so here's a better picture and the item number from Staples for you. 39459. It's wide and heavy enough to hold these stamps!

 

My other little collection of goodies...many thanks to Ranger for the products I've accumulated from various Designers Challenges and such.

New stickers on the Vagabond came the other day with the new Keys to keep us out of trouble.

Good idea there, I need all the help I can get.

Have a great weekend......2 graduations for us here, Ann with her Masters and Alex breaking out of High School and on to Augustana!

So proud of everyone, it's a team effort!!!

Linda

Creepy Card & Full Disclosure-No Bar Code Here

If you find desecrating vintage cabinet cards bad, as I usually do, then you'll not want to look at this post.

So proceed at your own risk with warning!

I think most pictures, especially with children are too wonderful to actually paint on the original.

But here, this guy wasn't going to enhance anything of mine anytime soon, and I figured my dear Granddaughter, Brittany the Ghost Hunter, would like to see him "enhanced" for her 21st Birthday Card.

I was advised that a card with a BAR CODE would be unacceptable for this birthday!

Brit likes creepy things. She's been to New Orleans for conferences and had seen spirits since she was very young.

She's a Ghost Hunter, as a hobby, with friends.

So with that being said, she's not a ghoul, but she could be!

This is the end product....kinda looks like a Witch Doctor from New Orleans....

I got my inspiration from the vintage photos of Circus performers. Creepy...really hated the circus as a kid. Some were really ghouly looking in all their makeup.

This is a photo copy of the original. Nice enough looking guy, right?

Strange that his beard is so much longer on the right....I don't know.

The studio is Mosher in Chicago since 1875.

I painted on some acrylic paints and let them run here and there.

Black markers and a Dylusion Stamp at the bottom were used to highlight.

A few Birds from Tim around the person of interest, and a bit of a Headdress with a Charm adorn the gentleman's pate.

A Charm Clip is used for an Earring.

I painted a frame with acrylic paint, and washed over it with a black glaze.

The Skull and Crossbones had some Pitch Black  Alcohol Ink added and Silver Metallic Mixative makes the eyes shine.

A few upholstery tacks in the corners help round out the frame.

Fun times....you don't turn 21 every day, ya know. It's got to be somewhat special!

Big Hugs Brit...so proud of you and all you've accomplished!

The world is your oyster!

Nana

New Distress Inks From Tim-Can You Keep a Secret?

I recently got my new Spring Seasonal Distress pads from Inspiration Emporium!

Now I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the Peacock Feathers....it's right up my ally....but I wasn't so sure about the other 2  colors....until I put them on a tag.

And YES, they are SUPER!!!! The Squeezed Lemonade is wonderful for that spot of "light" that you need to give contrast to your other colors.

And the Shaded Lilac, well it just speaks for itself....SEE BELOW....

Here's the "Can You Keep a Secret" part of the post.

This is going on my Grandson Alex's Graduation card.....and he, I'm sure, doesn't read my blog, so I'm pretty sure he won't see it.

And I'm positive he wouldn't care anyway!

So here's a little tutorial on the process...

Now, I started with the 3 new colors all around the tag.

As you can see, a single swipe shows the lightness of the 2 on the left, and the intense color of the Peacock Feathers on the right.

Also see how the overlap of the 2 on the right make a FABULOUS color.

I NEVER use just one color, or one layer of color. It's always several colors to create the intensity that I want.

Then I started adding more colors here in the sample to show how the colors mix.

 Last I show you how Seedless Preserves and Ripe Persimmon from the Autumn Collection pads effect the other colors.

 Here is the end result of my tag. Dark in some areas and rather translucent in others.

To lighten it up, I laid my Dylusions Number Jumble stencil over it and sprayed with water.

Then blotted it and hit with the Heat-it Tool.

You can see the difference and the outline of the stencil.

Then the Dusty Concord came out with  Julie Fei-Fan Balzer's The Crafter's Workshop-Mini Gears and the magic begins.

This stencil is TOO COOL!

I stamped the Chicken Wire stamp from Tim's Mixed Media set with Jet Black Archival Ink, and began using a black permanent pen to outline some parts of the stencil elements.

I heat set all the Distress Inks before I get out the white pen. Here the Sharpie Poster Pen.

Let your mind go to the ARTISTIC side of your brain and just have fun.

Squint...see where the piece "needs" something...color, white, a stamp....?

"Enjoy the Journey" and have fun.

The letters are cut from Grungeboard and Metal Foil Tape (thank you Mario) and the new Sizzix Bigz XL Alphabet Die - Word Play from Tim.

VERY fun! Then they're embossed with the Gridlock Texture Fade folder.

I layered up the tag onto 2 pieces of cardstock...I almost could not cover up the gears....

But, it needed to be for Alex, so on went the letters.

You can add some jute and a Locket Key to the top to balance out the space, and it's done.

I photographed it here on one of my favorite sheets of Tim's paper from the Kraft Resist pad that I've colored with Distress Markers.

So...give it a go.

Get your ink pads ordered and make some fun cards for all those

"grads to be" out there.

Now for Brittany's 21st Birthday card..

She literally threw herself on the ground and cried when I sent her a card that had "a BAR CODE on it, for Pete's sake!"  That was several years ago, but the picture is still in my head. They have their way, don't they?

Yes, she's an actress with several productions in her life, but she made her point.

And so, I'm off to make something for her as well.

Cause that's what Grandma's do!

And one last note....if you have not read this post by Lisa M. Pace, you should. She said it all, and she said it brilliantly. I personally spend at least 3-4 hours on a post...from start to finish. And the comments you leave us is what makes it all worthwhile...and not much more.

PLEASE read it here..... http://lisapace.com/2012/05/today/

Linda

Products Used:
Tim Holtz Distress Inks - Seasonal Spring Pad set, Seasonal Autumn Pad set, Dusty Concord
Tim Holtz Alterations - Sizzix Bigz XL Alphabet Die - Word Play, Texture Fade- Gridlock
Tim Holtz Stamps - Mixed Media
Dylusions Stencils - Number Jumble 5x8
The Crafter's Workshop-Julie Fei-Fan Balzer Stencils - Mini Gears
Tim Holtz - Grungeboard - Basics, Kraft Resist Paper Stash
Ranger - Metal Foil Tape, #8 Manila Tag, Jet Black Archival Ink
Tim Holtz - Distress Markers
Tim Holtz Idea-ology - Locket Keys
Sharpie-White Poster Pen-Fine Point (discontinued and hard to find...I'm just sayin')

Specialty Stamping Paper and Distress Markers....Hmmmm!

If you haven't tried the new Specialty Stamping Paper from Ranger....well you're really missing out on a fantastic Stamping Experience.

I'd had mine for about a week. Didn't think I'd be hopping for joy.

I was wrong...there's nothing like this stuff. I was REALLY impressed, and it takes a lot to impress me.

Here I stamped it with the Jet Black Archival Ink, dried it with the Heat It Tool, and colored it in with the Distress Markers.

It's like an engraved image. I kid you not.

VERY, VERY COOL STUFF!

Then I had started a Journal page using the Dylusions Spray Inks on an earlier post in my large Sketchbook Journal.

Here is the left side after lots of white ink, Distress Markers, and a few more bits and pieces.

This is the right hand side of the journal.

This stamp from Remnants is absolutely the most fun to stamp over several sprayed colors.

Then keep expanding outward with more pen marks and colors to make the bright colors even brighter.

I love how the Foamie stamp at the top and bottom look with the white pen around it.

It had gotten a bit dark, so the stamped and cutout wings added enough light to brighten up that side again.

LOVE the colors coming through the letters here, don't you?????

I saw a video lately where she glued 2 pages together in a composition book for more stability.

So that's what made my Journal work better, less wrinkles, and so now I'm happy working in it again.

I wish I could tell you who said this on the video, but I've been through so many, I can't honestly remember where I saw it. Just know it wasn't my idea.

Make it your own idea and give it a shot. An old trick from Altered Book days is to put a piece of paper in between the next set of pages so your glue doesn't make them all stick together.

Funny how all things seem to come back and work together at the end of the day.

And now, just a few pictures of what's been going on in my world...

Fantastic ATCs from Lori Hassler, Donna Lewis, Candy Colwell, Sarah Engels-Greer!!!

(Lori made the top left and bottom right ones!)

Love them!

Erin and the girls getting ready for MJHS Jazz Band in the Street...her 1st solo, and she ROCKED it!

She's a 5th grader, but made the Jr. High band.

Little Sister Emma climbed a tree to watch her sis.

We gave soccer feet a pedicure today...and drew flowers and dots on lime-green toe nails.

Fun times!

And their daddy's Symphonic Band playing at Super-State at the Uof I.

Congrats to all for their hard work.

 And tonight we had HUGE blasts of lightning and thunder in the NE sky....while the Super Moon minus 1 day was shining away in the Southern sky!

Looks like an egg!

Amazing phenomena!

Have a great week everyone.

Linda