Christmas Eve Around the Bird Feeder

Had this gorgeous female Cardinal at the feeder the other day that I found out to be a Leucistic Cardinal. She was beautiful in her coloring and we were all trying to  get a good picture of her.

This is a Pied Leucistic female because she has patches of white. It is not like Albinism where the complete lack of pigment is lacking in the feathers.

We enjoyed sneaking up to the windows in the sunporch after dinner and presents on Christmas Eve.

It's going to be very, very cold for several days here, so we stocked up on goodies today for the birds.

Stay warm and be well,

Linda

Altered Christmas Ornaments with Paper Clay

These 2 little clear plastic ornaments were really fun to decorate. I've had them on my worktable for a couple of weeks, but just found time last weekend to give them a new and improved look.

I got them at the dollar store. What a deal. The first thing I did was paint them with black gesso and make sure it dries. (do NOT try drying them with a heat tool...trust me, I know)  Then I added different Finnabair ArtAlchemy paints - opal magics and metalliques to them.

The Escucheons II mould from Iron Orchid Designs and Paper Clay is added to both of them with 3D Matte Gel.  Let it dry. 

Before the clay dries, I pushed the Snowman (from Hobby Lobby) and a Rustic Tim Dimensional Star into the clay and remove them to dry.

Next I painted the clay with Metallique Paints. The Art Alchemy Waxes and Mini Art Stones were added last with Soft Gloss Gel. 

The Chipboard Art Scrip Word Cut -  Joy is painted with Sparks just to shine it up a bit.

This bulb was a bit simpler with just gold and royal red paint. The gold wax was added last with your finger.

Glue the little snowman and the star with Heavy Body Gel. A ribbon or gold cord can be added to hang the ornament on your tree. 

The word cut-outs from Retro Cafe Art Gallery are fun to paint up to be put in a package for a gift. 

Hope you are inspired to play and make some memorable pieces for your holidays. Let me know what you think.

Your Friend in ART,

Linda

A Victorian Christmas Sleigh Decoration from Retro Cafe Art Gallery

This really has been a fun project. I worked on this for several days, I let it sit on my worktable and just wait for another idea to enter my brain on how to decorate  and display my

Large Victorian Christmas Sleigh kit.

I love how this centerpiece for our family room coffee table turned out. The sleigh comes in 5 easy pieces to paint and put together. I like to paint and decorate it first, and then glue. But you can do it any way you like.

First I painted it with ArtDeco Fluid Acrylic paints on the inside of the sleigh. Then I stamped images with black archival ink.

These are the INSIDES of the sleigh.

I added dimension with Modeling Paste and the Flourish Stencil for the OUTSIDES of the sleigh. 

Then I used paper clay to make moulds from Iron Orchid Designs. I cut some apart to get a layout that I liked and glued them on with 3D Gloss Gel. I used Baroque 1, Baroque 2, and Baroque 3 moulds. 

You can see them glued on over the stenciled areas on the outside. If you add them while wet, they easily glue and dry without warping. I used the DecoArt Fluid Acrylics Metallic Gold on the moulds.

A wash of black and brown acrylic paint is added over the gold on the moulds and stenciled areas. Vintage Gold Metallique Wax can be added to bring back more of the golden shine. I also used it to highlight the stenciled reliefs a tiny bit. 

I drilled 2 holes in the sleigh and added chain to hang the Mini Black Lanterns. They are easily colored with Fire Ruby Antique Brilliance Wax. 

I think they are adorable!!!

I'm always about highlighting the edges with black to make the colors stand out, so I used a permanent pen to go around several areas just to make the colors pop.

This is a shot of the emblem on the back. There's a smaller one on the inside as well, but it's hard to see with the packages.

The Mini Christmas Light Garland and Mini Gift Packages helped to fill the Sleigh, but it could also hold cards, or ornaments, or even Santa himself! Follow the links for products found at

Retro Cafe Art Gallery.

The sky is always the limit.

I hope you enjoyed this post and are inspired to create something magical of your own for the season.

Your Friend in ART,

Linda

Sharing the Love at Christmas Time

These little lovelies are going out to my Art Sister Team Members at 

Retro Cafe Art Gallery.

They are pretty easy and fun to put together for friends or your own holiday decorating. I'll share the steps and the links below.

When I glitter objects, I always base-paint with the same color as the glitter I will use. Here I used white and gold paint.

 I brush gloss gel on the wings, and then sprinkle 3 different colors of gold glitter to create a vintage and aged effect. The Snowflakes are created the same way except I use the white Art Sugar. It's a really fine grade of glitter that is gorgeous. A tiny bit goes a long, long way.

The collage picture is layered onto a piece of chipboard and cut out to fit the frame. Paint the frame red, add tiny gold dots around the edge, and glue to the pictures. Use the round spacers from the wings behind the snowflakes to layer up your pieces with 3D Matte Gel or Heavy Body Gel. Add the Christmas pics behind the snowflakes.

You can add gold twine or wire in the ornament hole to hang. 

The possibilities are endless. 

This just gets your ideas flowing with your own creativity. 

Hope you're inspired to play.

Your Friend in ART,

Linda

Retro Cafe Art Products:

Small Layered Snowflake Ornaments

Angel Wing Cut-Outs with Ornament Holes

Steampunk Wings Medium

Art Sugar-White

Soft Gloss Gel and 3D Matte Gel

Vintage Christmas Collage Sheets

Other Products Used:
Metallique Paint-Royal Red (Finnabair)
Heavy Body Gel (Finnabair)
Liquid Gold Opaque Paint Marker
Finnabair Glitter (mix of 3 colors)
Christmas picks
Gold Twine

My Garden Fairy Beauty Update

Hi everyone, it's been quite a long time between posts. I really didn't think anyone still read my blog much any more, but I had someone ask today if I'd posted this little Fairy redo here, so this is for a friend in Las Vegas.

This little statue has been my favorite for several years. She was painted with a kind of brown/taupe paint that had begun to peel, her wing broke off when an over-exuberant dog knocked her over, and her foot was gone. 

After scrubbing her up and gluing her wing back on with Heavy Body Gel, I decided to try to mold a new foot for her with paper clay. I had to wrap it more around her leg to prevent it from coming off again, but it's better than no foot at all. 

First I painted her with acrylic paint Italian Sage. Not for outdoors, but I liked the color. I'd worry about that later. Then I started to add the Blue and Green Patina Effects Pastes to various areas. I didn't cover her completely, but the base was pretty much all over color.

Then I added some of the Brown Rust Effects Paste to tone down the colors. A wash of brown also added some age.

Here you can see her new little foot and the shine of the Brass that is added last.

I didn't add the wash to the Fairy herself. Very little of the patinas were used on her skin. But her dress and cap had more color to create contrast. Check out the links for the Finnabair products from Prima.

I will seal her if she ever goes back in the garden in the Spring, but somehow I think she's found a home here in my Studio. 

She makes me smile and gives me a sense of peace.

Be well, and be good to each other,

Your Friend in ART,

Linda

Coral-Crowned Articulated Paintbrush Doll

This lady is absolutely one of my new all-time favorites from 

Retro Cafe Art Gallery
that is featured in the new Nov/Dec Somerset Studio magazine.

She is an Medium Paint Brush Articulated Doll Kit

 that has been painted and stamped,

with a paper clay head surrounded by twisted red wire curls.

Most of the items are available at Retro Cafe Art Gallery 

online store and I'll highlight the links as I go. The new
colors of Metalliques are just out.

I base coated the body of the doll and added stamped images 

from Lynne Perrella L028 at PaperArtsy.

Then I highlighted certain areas of the piece with Metallique Paints

from Finnabair's newest line.

I used Mermaid Teal, Crocus Fields, Soft Satin, and Coral Reef. The other 

older colors I used are Steampunk Copper and Brass Hardware. 

I painted the brush part with Coral Reef and the

Chipboard Clock Hands with Steampunk Copper. 

The Brass Angel Bust fit perfect on the torso. 

The Wings are painted with the Metalliques Paints in

a sporadic pattern.

A colored Rhinestone becomes her necklace.

The Paper Clay Art Doll Mould has 26 gauge red wire used for hair, and the 

Coral Chipboard Cut Out creates a crown. 

A few Black Micro Beads are used as filler on the brush that are added with
Soft Gloss Gel, and the Baroque Gold Dresden is wrapped around the top
of the brush. (silver is shown on the link)

Add the brads and she is ready to hang up on the wall. That's what's so
cool about these Dolls, they already have a hole in the top
of the brush that lets you easily hang them anywhere.

The magazine will be on the newstands Nov.1st. The Totem Pole doll post is found here.

http://cain81art.blogspot.com/2017/06/my-paintbrush-totem-pole-doll.html

That's it for me. Hope you're inspired to play.

See you back here soon.

Linda

Italian Sage Relief Art Box for Inkpads

This project resulted in my breaking down and finally buying more ink pads. This time it's the Distress Oxide ones from Tim Holtz.

I have waaaaayyyyy too much "happy crap" in my Studio, and I've been TRYING to declutter and get rid of lots of it.

I wish I could figure out what to do with all the "projects" sitting on all my shelves around the place...but that's for another day.

This was a simple drawer box I picked up while on vacation in Minnesota - the one rainy day we went shopping.

I used the wonderful Iron Orchid Designs moulds and paper clay to create some dimension, then glued them on with Soft Matte Gel when they're still wet. If you've never worked with these moulds, you've got to try them. So easy, and very addictive....you'll want to put them on everything. Nothing is safe!!!

 I painted the entire box with a paint I picked up that I just couldn't refuse. Like I need more paint, but this was a gorgeous Italian Sage color....need I say more.

Then I kind of got lost in the process of adding a wash of black acrylic paint and water, and using the Metallique paints to accent the edges and reliefs. The older paper clay created cracks that I really liked.

The whole reason to buy the box was to create a very minimal area on my desktop to store my new ink pads. I think it worked.

Listed below are some links to Retro Cafe Art for some of the products.

I love the contrast of the golds and the scruffy, vintage-looking background that started with a simple layer of paint.

What do you think?!?!

Your Friend in ART,

Linda

Products Used:

IOD Mould-Large Flourish

IOD Mould-Baroque 3

IOD Mould-Escucheons 1

Creative Paper Clay

Acryic Paints-Black and Italian Sage

Metallique Paints-Steampunk Copper, Brass Hardware, Rusty Red

Soft Matte Gel
Crafts Direct Unfinished Drawer Box

Cherish the Children and a Chance to Help

Short and Sweet today.

This is a tag that I created using the 

Distress Oxides Inks from Tim Holtz.

I found a few of these while on vacation in Minnesota and 

decided now was the time to try something new.

Why not? They were on sale. The background was so yummy

that I really had a hard time covering it up,

BUT it had to be done.

Here's a look at the results.

I watched a couple of videos, one especially great one is from 

Thicketworks with Heather Tracy on the Graphics Fairy.

Check it out. But I also used a few different techniques of my own

to get more contrast using different inks.

I hope you enjoy the results and find time to play this weekend.

We all need to just break away from the drama of reality

and playing in my Studio is even more important today

than ever.

Now I'm off to buy candles and batteries to send to Puerto Rico by

way of Milagros C. Rivera who is desperately trying to help

her people there after the hurricane.

Sandra Evertson's post in above link tells of their need for batteries, candles,

matches and other things. A USPS Flat-Rate Box is considered US shipping.

So pack one up and send it if you can.

You can send them directly using the USPS to:

Milagros C. Rivera

B5 Conquistador Ave.

Fajardo, PR 00738-3715

Be Well and Be Good to Each Other....
We're All We Have.

Linda

The Witchy Majestic Shrine

It's my turn to post for
Retro Cafe Art Gallery!

So I decided to create a piece showing where
Witches Make Their Stand.

This is really bright and colorful with the PaperArtsy Fresco Paints

painted on a Majestic Shrine. 

The Limelight pillars definitely catch your eye.

The oranges and purples are always what I associate with Halloween

and Witches. 

I used clear stamps and black Archival Ink on the Fresco Paints. 

They are absolutely my favorite paints to stamp on. 

Graphic45 Halloween papers from different collections are used on

different parts of the shrine.

This view shows the small clock stamp on the top of the shrine on 4 

parts, and the black Dresden colored with Copper 

Metallique Paint.

I added the Black Matboard Bats to the pillars for a bit of fun with

the fantastic vintage photo of the Witches.  Use a small wooden 

block painted black to hold the ladies in place.

I decided to change out the paper Happy Halloween paper sign for

a Flying Witch Cut-Out. 

I hope you enjoy this post and find some inspiration to create a 

fun shrine of your own. 

Let's hear what you do!

Check out the links before to shop.

Linda

 Find these products at Retro Cafe Art Gallery Store:

Majestic Altar Shrine

Bat Cut-Outs 

Mini Bat Cut-Outs

Mini Serrated German Dresden

Spooky Black Cat Cut-Outs

Witch Cut-Out

Mini Dried Pumpkins

Ancestors Paper Doll Cuts

Furry Spiders

Steampunk Copper Art Alchemy Paint

Extra-Fine White Sharpie Pen

Other Products Used:

Fresco Paints from PaperArtsy

Graphic45 Papers

Black Archival Ink

Various Clear Stamps

Patina and Stone Birdhouse Upgrade

Time again for a blog post from the 

Finnabair Ambassadors.

This time we're showcasing the Stone Effects Pastes.

A couple of years ago Anna moved into a Irish countryside home.
She took a walk around the neighborhood to photograph the
old buildings and farmland.

This is my rendition of the old buildings she photographed along the way.
They were covered with vines, moss and wonderful patinas.

 I love using the Stone Effects and Patina Pastes on a small wooden
 birdhouse that was totally transformed into a little ancient
 church-like building. 

 First I painted the birdhouse from a craft store with a light 

acrylic paint to seal it.

Then I added Concrete Stone Effect Paste with a stencil on the sides. 

 I used the palette knife to add it all around the base and chimney.

I spread Limestone paste on the roof in a splotchy pattern. 

Layers of Patina and Rust Pastes as well as some Metallique Paints

are used on all areas of the house until it looks old and patinaed. 

The Mechanicals are painted and sprayed with Mica Powder+Water sprays 

until you get the color you want.  The stars were painted a different blue

after this photo was taken to blend in better. :)

I used 3D Matte Gel to add the stars and other embellishments. 

The wonderful thing about the Metallique Paints is the way they shimmer and 

shine when you turn them in the light. 

This is a picture of  my little house while sitting on the sun porch

with the sunset coming in the windows all around us waiting for 

the paints to dry.

I hope you enjoy this. Remember....this is small....it is so much fun

and easier when you work on something that isn't so large that

it intimidates you....

And it's just a fun way to play with a simple little wooden house.

Check out the other Ambassador's projects on the blog 

at http://finnabair.blogspot.com/ later today,

You can do it...just play!

Your Friend in ART,

Linda

Timeless Beauty Vintage Photo Tag

This tag is everything I love.....

Vintage Photos

Metallic Paints

Embossing Folders

Large Tags

Script

Scroll Die Cuts

Gorgeous Paper

I made it just for me, using whatever I liked, and it was great to be

 using things that had been chucked away .

No deadlines....no product restrictions....nothing but

 whatever

 came

 into my head.

It was great.

Not that I'm not grateful for all of the above, but sometimes 

it's just wonderful to make whatever you want without any restraints.

This starts with a large manila tag that has been run through

 an embossing machine using the Nouveau folder from Vintaj.

 (sadly it has been discontinued)

Then I added Metallique Paints and Archival Inks in many layers.

This is one of the first layers. I found I needed a lighter background, 

so lighter colors were added with more inks,

but I loved the colors in this layer.

Flowers, Beads, Mechanicals, Mica Sprays, Vintage Trim, Die Cuts,

Canvas, and Vintage Images all took their places on the tag.

This is a shot in between layers. More flowers and beads were added.

And just a note. I was thrilled and honored to be invited to the 

"Friends Helping Friends" auction to raise money for the Hurricane Harvey 

Victims. Ten Artists donated pieces and Cat Kerr posted them for bid.

I was extremely pleased to have mine sell for $150. 

 Everyone else's sold for an amazing total of almost $2600.

 One of the buyer's husband agreed to match that total! 

What a great auction it turned out to be.

Thank you to everyone who helped make it happen. 

 Cat is now under the gun of  Hurricane Irma herself. 

Be safe, my friend.

Your Friend in ART,

Linda

Two Tombstones Done and on the Blog !!!

 The last of the Tombstones is complete. 

I wasn't sure if I'd be able to get 4 done this year, but 

they came together.

These are the highlights of the last 2 and all the links.

The Angel Wings have Antique Silver Art Sugar on them and they do

sparkle nicely. 

The small bat wings are painted, as are the rest of the pieces, with

Metallique Paints. 

The Bat Wands were a last resort to give the piece a bit 

more height. 

As much as I love the Graphic45 papers, I added Tombow markers

here for brighter colors and some shadows.

This is the base before everything was added.

Products Used:

Gothic Tombstones ATC Bases VI 2017

Gothic Tombstone ATC Stands

Witch Wands - Bats and Jacks

Pocket Watch Trinket Shrine

Halloween Word Scrolls-Mat Board

Extra Small Bat Wing Cut-Outs

Angel Wing Cut-Outs Style 3

Label Pull Style Frame Cut-Outs

Small Carved Stone Ivory Skull Beads

Heavy Black Gesso

Antique Silver Art Sugar

Sharpied Extra Fine Poster Paint Marker

Metallique Paints-Green Olive, Coral Reefs, Crocus Fields

Liquid Gold Opaque Paint Marker

Black Glaze Pen

Heavy Body Gel

Glossy Accents

Tombow Markers

I always have to do a Tombstone with a Vintage Skeleton Cut-Out.

They creeped me out at first, but I've grown to love them.

It is what it is.

I used a variety of paints on the masonite cut-outs to achieve the 

contrasting colors I wanted.

More Products Used Here:

Antique Skeleton Paper Cuts

Candelabra Cut-Outs

Engraved Pumpkin Cut-Outs

Sugar Skull Cut-Outs

Spider Web Corner Cut-Outs

Ornate Flourish Cut-Out

Mini Dried Pumpkins

Furry Spiders

Clear Rhinestones

Metalliques

Alcohol Inks

Black Pens

I hope you've enjoyed these 2 little ATC size creations. They always are 

fun to play with to get the creative juices flowing.

There's still time to join in the Tombstone Swap going on.

So order yours and get creating!

Linda

A Tombstone Patina Witch!

Tombstone #2 coming at ya!

This one was really fun because I used the
 Patina and Rust Pastes on this project.

I started with some Stone Effects Paste Concrete that I just

slathered on with a plastic knife.

Thinking I was going to add something in the middle, I left

a clear spot in the center.

(I added the Dia De Los Muertos Cat for fun here in the picture.)

After this dried, I added some Patina and Rust Pastes.

Note the high points have the Brass Patina lightly 

brushed on.

I cut a circle of chipboard to make the vintage photo more stable

on the piece, and glued it in place with a heavy body gel.

The Spooky Trees and Word Scrolls were painted with

 the Patinas and the Steampunk Gear with some Metalliques.

I outlined the Bats, Witch Hat, and Broken Fence with 

white Sharpie pen.

The Halloween Paper Cut Word is layered onto a piece of scrap 

black matboard.

Lots of things to check out here, and so many possibilities to create.

I hope you're inspired to play. Would love to hear

your questions or thoughts. 

So get going and check out the great links below to the

Retro Cafe Art Gallery! 

Your Friend in ART, 

Linda

Products Used from RCAG:

Gothic Tombstone ATC Bases VI

Patina Effect Paste

Rust Effect Paste

Rusty Red Metallique Paint

Spooky Tree Cut Outs

Halloween Word Scrolls

Broken Fence Cut Outs

 Bat Cut Outs

Witch Hat Cut Outs

Steampunk Gear

Halloween Newsprint Paper Cuts

Family Tree Collage Sheet

White Sharpie Pen

Dia De Los Muertos Cat Cut Outs
Mini Dried Pumpkins

Gothic Tombstone DOTD Fun!

Just a quick post to lead you through a really, really fun little project for

Retro Cafe Art Gallery.

If you follow them or me, you know we love to decorate Tombstones each 

year, and sometimes have a swap. 

Each year they're cut out just a little bit differently. So here's one from 

this years design 

Gothic Tombstone ATC Bases VI.

I started with some bright Metallique colors from Finnabair - Coral Reef, 

Crocus Fields, and Lime Peel - and a Worn Screen stencil. 

When the paint is dry, add some white pen marks.

The Spider and Glasses are painted with more Metalliques. 

The Bat Wings I used were out of Black Chipboard. 

The ones shown here are Masonite. 

It's your choice when ordering.

I used the Black and White Sugar Skull Cut Outs and added lots of

color with Tombow Markers.

The Dia De Los Muertos Cats are really stunning and can be ordered on

Masonite as well.

 The Halloween Word Scroll and Arrows are decorated with

 Metalliques and Pens.  

It's all layered up and glued in place with 3D Heavy Body Gel.

These are ATC size, that is a really fun and easy size to work with, and

can be traded, or put into a stand that lets you put them on a shelf.

So get ordering and get busy. Time is wasting!

Your Friend in ART,

Linda

Products Used:

Gothic Tombstone ATC Bases VI.

Worn Screen Stencil-small

Sugar Skull Paper Cuts-Black and White

Dia De Los Muertos Cats Paper Cuts

Bat Wing ATC Cut Outs-Black Chipboard 

Glasses and Monocles Cut Outs - Chipboard

Garden Insect Cut Outs - Masonite

Halloween Word Scrolls Cut Outs

Arrows Cut Outs - Masonite

Gothic Tombstone Stands

Metalliques - Lime Peel, Gold Rush, Rusty Red, Coral Reef, Crocus Fields

Sharpie Extra Fine Poster Paint Pen

Heavy Black Gesso

Tombow Markers

3D Matte Gel