July Calendar Mockup

I am doing a 2011 Calendar swap for the group Art For The Create Mind.  I wanted to share with you a mockup of one of my designs for my July pages. I should have waited for the sand to dry better on the page.  Feels like I just came in from a day at the beach and I have sand all over!  Isn't Tilda cute with her colorful surfboard?  Time to have some Fun In The Sun! Elle  (I hate the shadows that my scanner casts on my pictures!]

What I have been doing Today

I thought that I would share with you what I have been up to today.  For the very first time I canned some Mixed Berry Jam.  Generations and generations of woman before me have been doing what I just did.  I felt such a connection to those women.  I am off to play in my art studio but first I wanted to share a couple of pictures.  The recipe I used is from Ball (as in the canning jars) and is sugar-free. ELLE

CONTEST!

I thought I would have a contest on my blog!  While driving home, my dh Charlie and I spotted this on the side of the road.  I am looking for the most creative use of it for my art studio and/or my home.  How to decorate, display, storage uses, fun and funky ideas.  It is heavy wood and I will have to start with a good cleaning. The measurements are 19-1/2 x 24 x 12 with the cubbies measuring 6 x 4-1/2 x 12" deep. The winning idea will receive a prize from me!  The prize is a secret hehehe.  In order to win you have to do the following:
1.  Become a follower of my blog
2.  Leave a comment
3.  Inspire me with your creative minds
The winner will be announced a week from Saturday.  Here is a picture from our "junking" adventure!  Elle

Black/Brown/Cream Card

Here was the assignment if I choose to accept it:  Make a card using the colors Black, brown, and cream.  Could I do it?  Should I accept the assignment?  Why the heck not!  Art for The Creative Mind has a swap with just that assignment that I have joined-you have to check them out-it's a group on Yahoo that is one of the best there is!  I had bought a piece of cardstock that had various images that you could cut out from it.  I love the vintage feel.  So romantic......I chose the engagement photo and the wedding girl.  I also used the backside of the paper for the other piece on the front of the card.  I needed to add brown so I pulled out my Cuttlebug and my Papertrey,Inc. eyelet die and cut a piece for the side of the card.  While I had my Cuttlebug out, I used the DieNamics spiral flower die to cut my flower out using black felt.  I then shaped the flower into a spiral and glued it to my brown polka dot sheer ribbon bow that I made with my BowEasy.  I had a piece of striped twill tape that I pinned and pleated, sewing it together on my sewing machine.  I also machine stitched some of the elements to the front of the card.

Here is the inside of the card using a cream with black print background and edged with brown cardstock.  I wanted to showcase the bride!  I was looking again at the front of the card and thought it was missing something so I added some white pearls - I think it was just the touch it needed!  Elle

Busy Canning

I have dwelved into the world of canning and perserving!  Yesterday I made Shelly's Sassy Salsa.  YUM!  You should see the mess I made!  When filling my 1/2 pint jars I poured too much and had it all over the countertop, the cabinet fronts, the floor!  WHEW, what a mess!  I recovered, cleaned up, and ended up with 5 1/2 jars of sauce.  I will be working on labels later on today but will post pics as soon as the labels are adhered to the jars.  Next it will be mixed berry jam-I can't wait!  I have to buy some more berries and another case of jelly jars first.  I am busy running to dr. appointments and tests to see if I have to have more neck surgery from the car accident I was in last August 19th (has it been a year already?  Time sure flies when your not having fun!)  I have had two surgeries already and hope like a dickens that I don't have to have another one.  I am busy also working on more calendar pages and will post pics as soon as my July mock-up pages are done.  Enjoy your week!  Elle

August Calendar Page Design

Picture Lazy August Summer Breezes.  Relaxing on a quilt, looking up at the clouds with butterflies flittering about.  This is what I had in mind when I designed my August 2011 calendar pages for a swap with the group, Art For The Create Mind.  I signed up for two group calendar swaps where you make 12 pages of the same month and send 11 of them out to your partners.  I have the months of August for this one, and July for the other group.  I wanted to share August first.  I am currently working on a two part design for my July calendar pages for the other goup.  (groups 1, 2, and 3)  I will be sharing those designs (6 pages of each design) when I am finished.  I have until December to send these out but was so excited to get started that I am way ahead of the game.  I just love when the creative excitement comes back! 

I apologize for the shadows, my scanner is acting up AGAIN!  I chose a Tilda design holding a rose as well as my favorite butterfly stamp first done as a watermark background for the calendar sheet, then stamped in Versamark using white owl embossing powder then watercolored with the green and blue inks.  I attached gold wire antenna's to add a touch of elegance. I also die cut some pink swirls using one of my Sizzix dies to bring your eye around the pinks on my page.  Of course I had to add another embellishment with the gold butterfly charm tied using some of the crinkle ribbon I died shown in an earlier post.  I love the way these turned out-especially when you see them in person.  Elle

Switching style once again

Here I go switching styles again!  I did the "Games People Play" swap card again for the group Art For the Creative Mind.  I used a stamp from REDLEAD for the base of the card and stamped it with StazOn ink on watercolor paper.  Then I went to town with my Glimmer Mist sprays.  I had some old bingo playing pieces that I attached and some vintage crochet trim on the side.  I had bought a new Cuttlebug Embossing folder that I have been dying to use so I embossed the background paper.  I thought it needed something a little extra so I took a ticket (purchased from Mish Wooderson of Mish Mash) and wrote the words Games People Play.  I like they way this one turned out.  Well, I am off to RED LEAD in Webster Groves, MO to purchase some charms,  check out their online store THE REDLEAD STORE - if you like vintage, altered art, and collage as well as charms of all kinds then this is the store for you.  Love their stamps!  Elle

My Stampin' Up cards for August

Last night I attended my monthly Stampin'Up card class where we made 5 adorable cards.  Each one is as different as the other!  My favorite one is the blue card, which is yours?  Elle

Maggie Birthday card from Kathleen Gerace

I just had to share a pic of the birthday card I received from Kathleen Gerace -Magnolicious group-It is so beautiful!  A great group to belong to and a wonderful card to brighten my day.  Enjoy!  Elle

Using leftovers

After making yesterday's card I thought I would use up some of the leftover paper.  I have a container of images that I have colored with Copic markers to get some practice so I pulled out this little girl holding the flower-isn't she cute?  The rest is leftover from before except for the buttons added at the top.  I made a promise to myself that I would start using what I already have.  Does this stop me from buying more?  Heck no!  Are you nuts?! lol  Elle

Using your embellishments

When I am feeling crafty and I just have a little bit of time I often make embellishments.  This evening I wanted to play around with my new dies from Papertrey Inc.  I had bought one of the mat dies and just got the rick-rack border and the eyelet border dies in the mail yesterday.  I just love this paper I found.  When pulling the elements together I added a Oval Nestability die in the center using Vintage cream paper (also from Papertrey Inc.) and a Lockhart company Angel stamp that I had colored with my Copics and assembled a couple of months ago.  Of course I had to add some buttons and ribbon to my card-you know me!  I hope you like what I came up with!  Elle

Artist Trading Card

One of the things that I like about living in St. Louis, MO is that there are a lot of stores that occasionally have free Make It and Take It's.  I stopped at Archiever's this past weekend to use my coupon for free paper and made this Artist Trading Card.  They were using Distress Inks, paint dabbers and rubber stamps to achieve this effect.  Enjoy!  Elle

Pink Polka Dot Challenge Card

Over at 7 Kids Collage Fund they have a challenge to use Pink and Polka Dots in a card.  Here is my card.  I used some double sided cardstock, twine, button, and a shape that I printed out online for my elements. 

I embossed the patterened paper with a swiss dot embossing folder and my Cuttlebug.  I then punched out the center using a scalloped circle punch.  Add a button tied with twine as well as the twine bow and I was done.  Easy piesy!  Elle

Just a quickie

Just a quickie post to say "howdy"!  I am in the mist of working on a Calendar swap.  I have the months of July and August.  (12 each).  It is for the group Art For The Creative Mind.  I will post pics as soon as I get my prototype finished.  My design for August is complete and I am waiting for some supplies to arrive in the mail for the July pages.  I just love that group!  A great way to stretch yourself artistically.  That is also why you will be seeing more and more blog Challenge entries posted on my blog.  Keeps me in the mode of creating.  Hope all is well with you!  Till later, Elle

Color Challenge

I have been wanting to participate in the Color Challenges on the Color Challenge blog for the longest time!  Finally!  For this challenge I used Papertrey, Inc.'s Everyday Button set.  I just adore this set-so versitile!  The paper and buttons are from my every growing 'stash' of scraps and collections of mason jars full of buttons.  Enjoy!  Elle

Vintage Tilda

I wanted to practice my Copic Skills, this time concentrating on skin and hair coloring.  I love this Tilda image but wanted it to be more Vintage than cutesy.  First let me show you how I start with my cardmaking.  Gathering materials:

Choosing which Copic colors that I want to use:

Assembling elements:

Coloring my image, cutting out the shapes and sewing the card front:

Which results in my finished Vintage Tilda card:

I love the softer feel of this card.  Hope all is well in your little corner of the world!  Elle