Fairy ATC

I joined an ATC swap where you can use any medium as long as it has a fairy in it.  I already have a fairy stamp, which I love so, I decided to use that.  The stamped image looks like the fairy is about to leap into flight so, I had the idea of putting her in a patch of mushrooms and having it look like she is leaping from one to the other.

The mushrooms are made by penciling out the basic shape, then I went back in with a black art pen and drew in the final lines and accent shading.  From there I colored it in with various shades of Copic markers ranging from a yellow/brown hue to a dark brown hue in the shadows.  I experimented with using a little pearl water paint on top of that to make it slightly shine.  The picture does not pick up the shine though.

As always, I feel like I'm learning how to use different paints with everything I do.  On the backround I used watercolors.  I tried various shades and I think I like the one that has the darkest blue backround the best.

Here are the results:

Mixed Media ATC using digital stamps

If you have not used digital stamps before be sure to check them out.  There are lots of free ones offered on multiple sites or, if you purchase them, they are very reasonably priced.  I recently found this site which offers both free and some for sale:

http://www.tiddlyinks.com/digital-stamps/

I got there row house stamp and made some ATC's out of them.

 The backrounds are layered with various paints and the house stamp is from the link above.  The other stamps, such as the sun and dragon flies are out of my stash.  The nice thing about digital stamps is that you can instantly download them and when you use them, you can size them to the measurements you like before printing them.  Sometimes there is an issue with ink smearing depending on your printer but a neat trick is to take a kneaded eraser and rub it over the ink once it's dried off the printer.  This picks up any residual ink.  I still have occasional issues with smearing though so, I try not to overwork the printed areas.  I also heard a hint that laser printers will not smear so, you could take them down to a place that charges you a small fee for printing and do it that way.  I have not tried that yet myself.

Salt and Water

I wanted to show you a picture of my art journal.  I've only just started this page but, I wanted to do the technique of using salt on watercolor.  In this case, I use dylusions inks in multiple colors and then sprayed it with a little water to make it very wet.  While wet I heavily sprinkled it with Kosher salt.  Once it was dry, the salt brushes right off.  I like the effect as it makes a visually interesting backround.  I've seen this technique used a lot for snowy backrounds or used for a sky.  I certainly is fun!

Inspirational Quote

I joined a swap for 2015 and the theme is to do a ATC with an inspirational quote.  I like this one:

"When the past calls, let it go to voicemail, believe me, it has nothing new to say." By author unknown

I thought it was a little humorous but also gives you something to think about.  Since you can't change the past, try not to fret over it and move on.  Here is the card I came up with.  For this swap, you make 3 cards plus an extra one for the host

I was experimenting with using a lot of texture in the back round so, I started with tearing up small sheets of patterned papers and gluing them down then, I did a layer of gesso over those.  When it was dried, I colored it with gelato colors by Faber Castell.  I used 4 different colors and loosely blended them.  I did stamped images over that with brown Stazon Solvent Ink.  The quote was printed and mounted then, I added the phone by drawing a pattern and then used the pattern on gray paper to cut the shape.  It is highlighted with Copic markers and an ink pen.  The cords is just loops drawn with a Copic marker.

Snowman ATC

I was working on a Snowman ATC for a Winter swap so, I hand drew it and painted it with Copic Markers.  I then cut it out.  Instead of the backround being paper or painted, I decided to try fabric.  I had some dark blue fabric with tiny stars on it.  I glued that to cardboard then sprayed it slightly with diamond glitter.  Once the backround was dried, I glued the snowman on then decorated it a little more with some holly leaves and berries.  The holly leaves are a punch and the berries are made with a Perlen Pen by Viva.

ATC's collage

Today I worked on mostly collage type cards.  The nice thing about trading cards is that often people send me little tidbits out of their stash and I often find a home for them in one of my cards.

Vintage book page sent by a swap partner

On this one I stamped the doll on white paper and then reduced her to ATC size.  I used one of the back rounds I made the other day when I painted a whole sheet of paper and cut it up to ATC size

Mostly stamped images colored with Copic Markers

Old book page, drawing and stamping

The backround is a cool tissue paper I got from another swapper.  It was full of pretty colors and seemed to pair well with the other bits I wanted to add.  I tear the tissue into pieces and glue them onto the backround first

Black and White Silhouette ATC cards

I decided to make a series of cards in black and white.  My favorite part is making the back round.  I used acrylic paints in gray, white and black and applied them with a brayer.  I wanted to get somewhat of a swirled marble effect.  After the paint was dry, I used a rubber stamp in a fleur design and stamped it all over the page with embossing ink.  I sprinkled it with white embossing powder and heat set it.  I them cut the whole page up into ATC size cards and did the rest of the individual designs.  Most of the shapes are cut from various cartridge on the cricut.

ATC's

I have not posted in a little while because I have not been sewing or working on dolls.  I am totally obsessed with Artist Trading cards.  I have posted a few times about this but, I have been devoting my free time to that lately vs other crafts.  I enjoy working with different mediums and learning more and more about Art.  I find myself gravitating toward Mixed media plus my old love of charcoal.  Here are some of my mixed media works

Vintage advertising of Blush makeup - Mixed Media

The back round is blended Gelato and the foreground is a flower stamp with watercolor pencils

The backround is a mixture of acrylic paints and the foreground is a stamp with paint and some additional hand drawn flowers

Same back round as above with various media for the picture

Watercolor and Ink

Charcoal drawings

I have not been doing any sewing lately but have been having fun working with charcoal.  Today I made this dog picture:

I actually find animals easier to draw than the human face.  So far though, I've only done short hair dogs.  I may tackle a long hair one next!

Old wooden thread spool ornaments

I have picked up and saved old wooden thread spools and finally am able to use some of them up.  I've seen something similar to this on Pinterest so, that inspried me to make my own.  All you need is a wooden spool, paint, decorative paper, ribbon and beads.  They make the cutest ornaments for anyone that loves to sew.

To make, paint the wooden spool with a base coat using a color that matches your decorative paper.  Let that dry and cut your paper to size for the middle section of the spool and glue in place.  Thread together decorative beads.  The top bead (closest to the spool) should be about the size of the opening or a little bigger.  Glue the bead in place by placing the hot glue in the spool hole and putting the bead in place to cover it.  For the top part, put ribbon into the holes of a button and glue the button to the top.  Your done!

You could probably use plastic spools also just make sure your paint will stick to them.

Catnip Toys

Here is what I came up with for some catnip toys.  I'm using small bits of cotton fabric, different ribbons and batting.  I tried an oval shape first which worked fine but, I preferred working with rectangles so, I just cut some out that were about 3 1/2 inches by 4 1/2 inches.  I also played around with some about 1 inch smaller than that.  To help interest the cats, I tried brighter fabrics with lots of ribbons.  In the end, I thought they looked a little like a bug which I think a cat would like.

This summer I grew catnip in a container on the back porch.  It did great!  I would trim it every 2-3 weeks and dry the trimmings.  It would all grow right back and kept growing until it got cold this fall.  Once the catnip was dried, I gave it a medium grinding.  I have a coffee bean grinder that I use only for grinding up herbs.  I like it because it's small and can store easily.  If you don't have catnip on hand, I believe most of the pet stores carry it.

For the cat toy, I put catnip in the middle by sprinkling some out on cotton batting.  I then rolled up the batting and placed it in the toy.  I used regular stuffing to fill it up as needed.  Here are some pictures and the final toys.

Different sized rectangles, you need 2 for each toy

Cotton batting sprinkled with catnip

Catnip rolled up inside

Sewn right sides together catching the tip of the ribbon as I go (3 on each side)

The toy has been sewn, turned and stuffed and now I'm closing up the stuffing opening.  I put 2 ribbons in this area as I sew

Final toys, some have different fabrics on the top and bottom

Christmas Stocking

I finished the Christmas stocking.  I made a couple of changes from the pattern.  I embroidered the name to the top, added the heel and toe appliques and changed up the pattern slightly.  I had exactly 1/2 yard of the Santa material so, in order for that to work, I adjusted the ratio between the top cuff and the stocking itself.  I try to avoid buying more material when I can use what I already have previously purchased.  It's a nice size stocking so, there will be lots of room for Santa to put Christmas goodies.

Next project:  A catnip toy
I grew and dried catnip this summer so, I want to make a toy where you can remove the catnip and replace it with fresh nip every once in awhile.  I'm think of just making something with bits of ribbon on it to add color and interest similar to what you see on those cat fishing toys.  That should be my next posting

I put up the sewing machine for about a week but now I'm ready for my next project.  I'll be starting on a stocking for Christmas.  I'll probably start on that tomorrow and begin with embroidering in the name at the top.  I'll post some pictures of it as I progress.

These last few days, I've gone back to one of my favorite things to do and that is drawing with charcoal pencils.  I made a few ATC cards for trade and plan on doing some more.  When I work with charcoal, I've generally been doing faces so, I thought I would branch out a little.  I'm starting on a dog one now.

Here are my completed ones so far:

Face in the shadows

Hand with red nails

I also worked a little bit on the Santa doll.  When I last blogged about it, I mentioned that I felt I was missing something so, I had my daughter look at it.  She noticed the problem right away.  He needed white trim around the bottom of his shirt.  I also added a traditional black belt in place of the gold cord I had previously.  That did the trick and now he looks like the Santa I was trying to achieve.  It's amazing how small trim pieces can make such a difference in a project.

Happy Crafting - see you soon!

Christmas Gift Tags

I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving.  I had a wonderful one with family and lots of yummy food.  I'm now ready to gear up for Christmas!  I've already bought a few presents so, I'm making some gift tags today.  They are not to fancy since they usually just get tossed out with the wrapping but, I think they do show the little extra effort you made to make the package pretty.  On these, I simply stamped and colored the front of gift tags.  I bought the tags in a pack at the craft store.  The back side is also stamped with a holiday wish.  So, pull out your stamps and have some fun!!

Stamped and colored gift tags

Quilted Gift Tag (Continued)

I finished up the quilted gift tags.  These will be used as decorations/bows for Christmas presents.  In my last posting, I showed how I cut one inch strips and sewed them together.  Since that posting, I made a template of a Christmas tree.  I put together 3 layers of fabric (sewn strip pieces, red flannel and solid green on the back.  I traced the template onto the fabric, sewed the Christmas tree shape then trimmed it with pinking shears.  I used a needle with a large eye and put a hanger through it.

I played around with a couple of ideas to make it fancier.  In one, I layered  a sheer fabric on top (tulle) and put beads in the middle similar to a shaker box.  In another one, I sewed in some seed beads for ornaments.  You could also easily sew in pretty ribbons or use the decorative stitching feature of your machine for a crazy quilt effect.

I hope you give this a try.  I bet you may have some fabric in your stash to start anytime!

Happy Quilting

Tree template

3 layers of fabric

Side view of the fabric "sandwich"

Trace template onto fabric with a water soluble pen or quilters chalk

Finished tags

Santa Doll Complete (Well maybe)

I have the Santa doll done but I keep thinking something else is needed so, if I can figure out what that is, I will add it.  One the clothes, I used the basic elf pattern however, I increased the length of the top by 1 inch and the length of the pants by 4 inches.  I used decorative feather trim around the hat, the sleeves and the bottom of the pants.  I added glasses, a jingle bell on the hat and various layers of decorative trims down the front.  For the boot, I used a boot shape side and a bottom sole.

Santa hat (wrong sides together)

Santa shirt before sleeves added

Now, I'm already onto the next project.  I'm making some decorative quilted gift tags.  These will be in the shape of a tree.  To start with, I picked out 3 different kinds of green flannel.  I cut them into 1 inch strips (about 10 inches long).  I'm sewing together the strips using a 1/4 inch seam allowance.  I ironed the piece after all the strips were sewn together.  The next step will be to make a simple tree template.  My vision is to decorate the fabric up like a crazy quilt then sew together a front and back with a hanger.  More to come on that!

3 different green flannels

1 inch strips

Picture with about 2/3 of the strips sewn on

Twelve Days of Christmas Artist Trading Cards

I'm having an early Christmas.  I got the set of Rubber Stamps from TJDesigns by TweetyJill.  I have a set of her Halloween stamps and they make wonderful images so, I'm excited to start playing with these.

I also have a couple of their books and if you are interested in Rubber Stamping on Artist Trading cards, this is a must have item.  It is full of wonderful ideas that you can use with your existing stamp collection.  It's on Amazon.com for sale.

I'll post some once I get creating!

Here is a link to her website too:
www.tweetyjill.com

Santa Body completed!

Here is where I am on the Santa doll.  The body is completed and so is the head. so,  You may have noticed that when I was originally cutting out the pattern, his hands were from a black velvet material.  That did not work well at all.  I could not get the fingers to turn on that thicker material so, I switched to a cotton.  His fingers have wire in them so, each one can be placed however you want it.  I found this to be very handy when I did the elf because when I set him in the sleigh, his fingers wrap nicely around the reins.

I am concerned that he looks very "Elf like" still but, I'm hoping once the beard is on, it will all work.  More to come!!

Santa Doll Update and ATC Swap

I've made a little progress on the doll.  The body pieces are sewn and stuffed and now, I'm closing the stuffing openings.  I hope to have the body complete by today and the facial features at least started, if not complete.  I got side tracked a little this weekend with drawing.  I enjoy it and find that the more I do, I get a little better.  One of the groups I'm in is hosting a Victorian Circus Artist Trading card swap.  I like Victorian things so, after some thought and I pulled together ideas from various inspirations and came up with this:

In this swap, you have to make a minimum of 3 cards so, I'm working on the others.  It's actually a little easier working on the second and third cards because the idea part is already completed.  It can get boring though too.  Hopefully whoever ends up with my cards in the swap will like it.

Santa body sewing

I started sewing together the body for the Santa Doll.  Except for the modifications on the head and ears, I followed all the pattern directions.  I do have 3 tips for working with soft dolls like this

1)  Use a short sewing stitch.  I used 2.0 except for the hands which I dropped down even further to 1.5

2)  Use fray check on all head, hand and feet seams.  It's worth the extra time and expense

3)  When making tight turns such as around each finger or around the nose and mouth, it sometimes can be hard to see where you need to turn depending on what your sewing foot looks like.  When I got to the hands, I switched to the darning foot. This really helped me see better for accurate sewing.

Sewn pieces ready for fray check.  The fray check can be watery so, I put something under it that I toss out once everything is dried.

Regular foot on the right and the darning foot I used for the hands on the left

I did find some pictures of the elf that I made last year so, I put them here.  This is the pattern I'm using for the Santa.

Santa doll head

I started tracing the body pattern onto the fabric today.  I'm using the Elf pattern from the book I posted about yesterday.  I made slight modification to the face and ears.  I rounded off the top of the ear and removed the "elf" point.  On the face, I wanted his nose to look more list a cute pug nose so, I made that much smaller.  Other than that, the rest of the pattern is the same for the body.

The pattern with my pencil lines drawn in to shown what changes I made to it.  I also shortened the chin a little


By the way, I have made the elf pattern before without any changes and I love him.  When I pull out my Christmas stuff from storage, I'll get a picture of him for you.

That's about all I did on the doll today.   I'll be pretty busy tomorrow with other things so my plan is to get the head done over the weekend.  I did play around with some strip quilted ATC's.  I did the back rounds in yellow strips and then did a rustic applique flower on top.  I'm  going to be offering those for trade on the trading sites.  The pink ones I posted a week or so ago are all traded except for one.