Artist Trading Card and the Flying Unicorn

Here’s another ATC to add to my already growing collection of my inspirational readings and quotes I've collected over the years. I would keep notes of my readings, notes on quotes that had resonnated with me, words that meant something to me at the time, and would write some poetry in this little black book. This little black book went everywhere with me. When I got into scrapping the last year, I decided to dust off that notebook and create a pretty backdrop to document these meaningful passages. These are turning out to look like little jewels and I can’t stop making them...shhh...it's my new secret addiction The creative team at Flying Unicorn has been hosting many fabulous tutorials and challenges during the month of December. I was inspired to make this little gem by the Glimmer Glam challenge hosted by the infamous Maggi.

Stop by the Flying Unicorm for some inspiration, humor, or just to say hello. See you there in the Forums...

Once Upon a Sketch -- "Every Woman Should/Have"...

Hello everyone. This forthnights challenge at Once Upon a Sketch was to create a page and journal what it's like to be a woman, or about a woman. This theme instantly reminded of that poem, "Every Woman Should/Have", written by Pamela Redmond Satran. This poem resonated with me over the years, and periodically I'd run across it in my keepsake box and would think that I should do something to preserve it so that I don't forget it and more importanly share it with women in my family, and friends...so here is my creation paraphrasing the poem. I attached the poem in its entirety on the back of the layout. The poem in its entirety is written below in case you're interested in reading it and passing it down to women you cherish. I'm sure it will resonate with you too.

A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE
....Enough money within her control to move out...And rent a place of her own
even if she never wants to or needs to...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ....Something perfect to wear if the employer or date of
her dreams wants to See Her in an hour...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ...A youth she's content to leave behind....
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ....A past juicy enough that she's looking forward to
retelling it in her Old Age....
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE .A set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill, and a black lace
bra...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ....One friend who always makes her laugh...And one Who
lets her cry...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ....A good piece of furniture not previously owned by
anyone else in her Family...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ....Eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems, And a
recipe for a meal that will make her guests feel Honored...
A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ....A feeling of control over her destiny...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...How to fall in love without losing herself..
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...HOW TO QUIT A JOB, BREAK UP WITH A LOVER, AND
CONFRONT A FRIEND WITHOUT RUINING THE FRIENDSHIP...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...When to try harder...And WHEN TO WALK AWAY...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW... That she can't change the length of her calves, The
width of her hips, or the nature of her parents..
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...That her childhood may not have been perfect...But
it's over...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...What she would and wouldn't do for love or more...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...How to live alone...Even if she doesn't like it...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...Whom she can trust, Whom she can't, And why she
shouldn't take it personally...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...Where to go...Be it to her best friend's kitchen
table...Or a charming inn in the woods...When her soul needs soothing...
EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW...What she can and can't accomplish in a day...A
month...And a year...

1980's - Artist Trading Card

Do you remember the 80's? Big Hair, lace, pearls, shoulder pads, belts, Dynasty, Who shot J.R.?, and Madonna. Flying Unicorn is hosting an 80's challenge. Drop by the Flying Unicorn for some inspiration and preserve a little of your history with paper, lace, pearls, glue and scissors. Hope to see you there.

Spanish Eyes

Gabbi has graciously shared her first sketch with us that she made for a Bo Bunny challenge. Isn’t it a beauty? She has incorporated many layers and suggested embellishments to ensure our end results would be richly layered and beautifully adorned. Thank you Gabbi!

This is a pic of my niece who has said to me on many occasions that I’m obsessed with her because I have taken many pictures of her and have scrapped them also. For those of you who don’t know me, I’m the eldest in my family, and I have four brothers who then went on to produce even more boys. So, when one of them finally got it right and produced this girl child, of course, I was going to take pictures of her and want to scrap them too. She’ll appreciate it when she’s older…I hope.

I’ve used the following products to create Spanish Eyes:

Bo Bunny Papers:
1. Gabrielle Cameo
2. Gabrielle Dot
3. Island Mist Double Dot

4. Elegance

Bo Bunny Gabrielle Brads:
Two of the aqua colored brads are in two of the flowers

Bo Bunny Timepiece Trinkets:
Time Piece keyhole trinket was painted with several colors, and inked a little on the filigree edges to blend in with my color scheme.

Dusty Attic Chipboard
1. Dusty Attic Baroque Frame was cut in half, painted with white crackle paint, shaded with watercolor pencils, Tide Pool and Espresso Bean Glimmer Glam, Martha Stewart glitter, dimensional paint, liquid pearls and pearls (some pearls were colored with alcohol mists)
2. Dusty Attic Vintage Key was treated with Gesso, stamped in aqua, added Martha Stewart glitter, and liquid pearls.

Handmade the larger flower and a few of the small flowers out of Bo Bunny Papers.

Hand sewed some of the edges of the papers with embroidery thread and added beads. I’m a lazy sewer and refuse to thread the sewing machine with different colored threads every time I scrap so I’ve enlisted the help of my mini craft sewing machine. The thread on these little mini craft sewing machines continuously break so I don’t thread it at all anymore. I primarily use it to perforate my paper, then I hand sew with embroidery threads because I love the pretty sheen that materializes. And, since I’m hand sewing, it’s easy to add beads, and that helps me to use up the beads I’ve accumulated from an old beading hobby.

Check out Gabbi's blog to see the beauty she created.

http://gabriellepollacco.blogspot.com/

Thanks for stopping by for a visit.

875 Watts (Featured at Once Upon A Page)

This period at Once Upon a Sketch challenged us to journal something about an embarrassing, and/or uncomfortable moment. I journaled about my first hair dryer that was a gift to me by a high school teacher for my high school graduation. Hair dryers were a new thing back then and all my friends had one but me so I was terribly excited to have one also. Upon reading the instructions on how to operate the hair dryer, I immediately noticed that there was something wrong with the instructions on how to use the device. You see, it was labeled “875 Watts” in a large bold font on the first page of the instructions and that meant something of significance to me. One day, my boyfriend came over to my house and noticed that my hair was damp, and asked why I had not used my new hair dryer. I told him that the hair dryer was only good for 875 Watts, and because the instructions were not clear on how to keep track of the used watts, I could not figure out how many watts I had used, or what my watt balance was, so I thought it was best to just use it on special occasions. An incredulous look of disbelief appeared on his face, and I interpreted that look to mean that he was being sympathetic to my dilemma, but then uproarious laughter followed. After he calmed down and caught his breath, he explained to me what watts meant. I was embarrassed by my ignorance, but the feeling of embarrassment was short lived when I realized that I could use my hair dryer anytime I wanted.

Here's my take on the sketch. I had to turn the sketch a little to accommodate my size picture, and if you pull the journal section up and out, the remaining part of journal appears.

Stop by Once Upon A Sketch to see what the other members created at http://onceuponasketchblog.blogspot.com/

Home Alone II

This is the inspiration picture for the Let's Get Shabby's #28 Challenge. I adore the frosting like colors in this picture, the worn aged wood, and the elegance of the chandelier with the draped strings of crystals. This picture inspired me to go through my boxes and books looking for the perfect picture to work with, and rummage through my scrapbooking stash to see what I had to create with too. I found a picture of me wearing a dress my mom made for me for my college sorority Presents. I call this Home Alone II because during my late teens and early 20's if I were home alone with a loaded 35mm camera, I'd dress up and pose in front of my camera to kill time (I've noticed 20 years olds still do this too). I was almost always the one behind the camera taking pictures of friends and family during this period so there are few pictures of me during that time. I'm happy that I did take these pictures because no one would know that I was once young and thin. LOL. I have several of those photo shoots and have already created a Home Alone I, and have added this one to the series. I used an embossing folder and added pink glimmer paint and Ingvild Bolme's lovely fluid brown chalk ink on the large semi-circle; I painted the Dusty Attic large leaf with white crackle paint and stamped it with a script scamp and inked and applied pink liquid pearls on the boarder. And, of course, I can't do anything without adding beads, so I embellished the Dusty Attic key and added a key chain made out of hemp cord and strung some pearls and beads. Here's my take on the challenge, and thanks for stopping by.

Stop by Let's Get Shabby at http://letsgetshabby.blogspot.com to see what the other members have been working on.

Watching The World Go By (Featured at The Color Room)

Created this for The Color Room, Palette #79. Primarily used one color mist and two color ink pads. Lots of misting, masking, stamping and ink embossing here. Embellished the Dusty Attic key with a stamp, glitter, dimensional paint, and added some hemp cord and strung some beads on it as well. Used pages from an old law pamphlet book and made the large flower. The pages are like rice paper and are so yummy to create with. Thanks for stopping by.

Who Hoo! I just learned that this layout won Featured Layout of the Week at The Color Room.
I'm doing the happy dance. :)

Tom Sawyer for The Color Room

This weeks color palette at The Color Room inspired me to create this boy layout. I used the DA chicken wire as a mask for the background, and an embossing folder for the pipe, and inked it up a little.

She Loves

Got the inspiration to create this from The Color Room, palette #77. I didn't have much in the way of paper to use, but I was able to dig into my stash and used a mask, molding paste, embossing powder, fusible webbing, embroidery thread, beads, a stamp and three inks. Even tore up some paper from an old law pamphlet as it has a rice paper like quality (can't throw that pamphlet out when it has scrap value). Picture is of my mom who is a very passionate person and has many loves such as giving unsolicited advice, anything Italian, teenagers (as long as they are not hers) and quantum physics. Thanks for stopping by.

She's All That

Got the inspiration to create this layout from a Swirlydoos Resist This Challenge. Started out with white card stock, applied the stamp using clear embossing powder, applied the heat gun to the powder, and rubbed in some Distress Ink on top of the stamp. The second layer was created using a Prima Mask and applying light molding paste over the mask, and carefully added ink to the raised areas after the molding paste dried. The chandeliers are rub-on's from Kaisercraft. Made the chandelier baubles using the flip side of a pair of scalloped pattern scissors, hand wrote the traits I love about my niece, then applied four coats of UTEE to give the baubles a glassy appearance. Applied ink, glimmer mist and 3-d paint to the wrought iron trim from Dusty Attic. Thanks for stopping by for a peak.

Artist Trading Cards

Many years ago, I'd carry a little black spiral book in my purse and whenever I'd read a book, article, or write a poem in my head, I'd jot some passages that resonated with me in that book.  I filled that little book up with many notes and poems I'd written, and put it away and forgot about it.  An Artist Trading Card challenge was hosted at Swirlydoos and through that challenge I found a way to create something pretty to document those important phrases and poems that meant so much to me at one time.  The above are an example of a few I created.

Summer Suits (Once Upon A Sketch Challenge)

 

What I love about Once Upon a Sketch ("OUAS"), is that their sketches provide for many layers which makes creating a layout fun and challenging.  This challenge was to use a year in your title, post a picture of significance from this period and journal its importance.  In 1938, Grandma Ruth worked in a Sewing Room for the WPA during the Great Depression.  She learned a skill by making clothing for men, women and children.  Her sons in the picture are wearing summer suits she made for them.  The papers I chose to work with are from My Mind's Eye, the Lost & Found collection ("Buddies" paper).  They added some elegance to blend in with the theme of the summer suits, and the vintage photo with the decorative design around the border of the original pictured.  I made the butterfly pebble charms placed on top of the cogs.  Do you see the juxtaposition in this picture?  I found it kind of strange that the boys are wearing summer suits, barefoot with their toy rifle in their hands just purchased for them by their Uncle Bill (pictured).  Grandma always tried to add some elegance in her humble life.   Thanks for looking, and please stop by OUAS at http://onceuponasketchblog.blogspot.com for some inspiration by their talented Design Team and their members.

Dance Card (Let's Get Shabby Challenge)

I’m so excited to have found some time be able to enter a layout in a Let’s Get Shabby challenge for the first time. The challenge was to use a picture from TallulahBelles Etsy Shop (http://www.etsy.com/shop/TallulahBelles)  for your inspiration to create a layout.  My inspiration came from the whites, creams, charcoal, purple/orchid colors used to make the delicate and elegant doilies  (see photo below).   I didn’t have any charcoal ink or embossing powders so I combined silver and black embossing powders and heat embossed a chandelier stamp.  I liked the end result of the combination of the two colors because it wasn’t too stark looking against the white paper.  I took apart some Dusty Attic scroll chipboard and applied watercolor pencils, my favorite Martha Stewart glitter in the small tubes (these tube colors are named after precious gemstones and they actually resemble the gemstone colors which makes them very appealing to me), liquid pearls and pearls to bling-up the scrolls. To add some more interest I hand sewed the border of the layout with silver embroidery thread and wove in some beads. I also didn’t have the right color purple/orchid ink pads, so I used some acrylic paint to stamp the doilies around the border of the layout. The white doily next to the picture, underneath the Dance Card embellishment was cut from a Prima flower package (some manufacturers are so clever to design packaging that we can use as scraps).  I normally make my own flowers, but I’ve been coveting these store bought flowers for sometime waiting for the perfect opportunity to present itself.

My inspiration picture below from TallulahBelles was labeled "reserved for the lovely Krystyna"

Here's my take on the inspiration picture:

The picture is of me and my first boyfriend at his high school Prom held on the ship of the Queen Mary in Long Beach, California.  I also found the Prom Dance Card and decided to enhance the dance portion of it and create an embellishment.  Do you remember these cards? Do they still have them at Proms?

I appreciate you stopping by for a peek.

Please stop by Let's Get Shappy and view some other layouts by our members.  http://letsgetshabby.blogspot.com/2011/08/challenge-27.html

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Neptune's Catch ("Swirlydoo Challenge")

I found a new product to experiment with...fusible web.  It turns out that this product is very much like the sewing product we use to make collars on blouses/shirts. In this case, I used it to create the mermaid's body and sprinkled two different colors of embossing powders on the fusible web and applied the heat gun to it and watched the magic produced by the embossing crystals. I also used it on the large circle and applied beads, embossing powder and glitter.  But, the best part was making her tail out of a Maya Road chipboard wing and embossing powders.  The sea shell chipboards are from Dusty Attic, and I thoroughly enjoyed embellishing these with glimmer mist, glitter and embossing powders.  The inspiration of this layout came from two Swirlydoo members in which I followed in a Round Robin challenge.

Paradise ("Once Upon a Sketch Challenge")

I've been stalking Once Upon a Sketch for sometime now wanting to play but time constraints would get in the way...until recently. When I saw this months bi-monthly sketch and the possibilities that such a sketch could render, I decided to make time to play.  This sketch challenge required a journal of a song.  Like you, there are too many songs that I like, so I narrowed the choice down by the year this picture was taken and chose, "I've Never Been to Me", by Charlene.  The lyrics read, "...please lady, please lady don't just walk away, cause I have this need to tell you why I'm all alone today.  I can see so much of me still living in your eyes won't you share a part of a weary heart that has lived a million lies."  I finally got to use that Iron Orchid design paper by Creative Imaginations, and my newly purchased Prima brick stamp and Kaisercraft's lamp post chipboard.  Thanks for stopping by.

Check out Once Upon a Sketch's blog at: http://onceuponasketchblog.blogspot.com