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i'm celebrating today!

i've been invited by the Art to the 5th gals to be Featured Artist 

over at Documented Life Project unPlanner!  woo hoo!

 { ♥ sending big thanks and big love to you sweet DLP ladies! ♥ }

our monthly theme is

"a look through my eyes, gaining new perspective"

and this week's challenge for our Personal Art Card (PAC)

is to use a rubber stamp.

so i decided to use a combination of hand-carved banner stamps…..

along with a few little acrylic stamps….

and "gained a whole new perspective" on how to use them!

 here's a video showing my inspiration {thank you, sweet sandi keene!},

as well as my entire process from start-to-finish!

{you can watch this video in large format here!}

hello, sunshine!

 i'm so happy to celebrate the fun-in-the-sun of this summer

with my new stamp set over at Technique Tuesday!!

there are lots of great designs to help you
send some sunshine to someone special…...

and tell them how much they brighten your day!!

and p.s. …. thank you SO much for brightening my little spot in cyberspace
every time you stop by my blog!!  sending you lots of these:  xoxoxox!!


{for more information about this "hello sunshine" stamp set,
and other new sets including Christmas stamps,  please click here!}  

goin' green

this week, our DLP challenge is to use some of those juicy bits of paper 

that catch all of our creative messes while we're working.

so, i did a nose dive into my trash can and rescued some paper towels that 

had been used to wipe my watercolor palette clean.

then i tore a couple of pieces into circles,

and folded and pleated each one to give it a bit of character.

then i stacked the two circles on top of each other

and sewed some french knots to make sure they stayed together…..

and then i added it to a stem…..

which sits next to a little wooden sign.

and after a bit of reusing and recycling, 

i have a little garden that's goin' green and growin' happy!

:))

{supplies:  moleskine planner, fabriano artistico 140 lb. paper,

paper towels, yellow thread, derwent inktense pencils, 

5B graphite pencil, washi tape, pitt pens, glue dot,

stamp from my "grow happy" set at Technique Tuesday}

{click here for more information about the DLP challenge!}

inspiration monday

the calendar says that spring is officially here later this week, so let's celebrate by making a little card using some rubber stamps and my favorite "faux watercolor" technique!  all you need are a few distress ink pads, a black stamp pad, a small piece of watercolor paper, some springtime rubber stamps, a waterbrush or paintbrush, and a black marker.
{i'm using fabriano artistico 140 lb CP paper and my new "grow happy" stamp set!}

first, divide the watercolor paper into three sections on the long side, 

and mark the edge with a pencil.

{my paper is about 8"x4", so i marked at 2-5/8" from each end}

now stamp your images using a water based ink pad.

{i used distress inks by ranger}  

touch a wet paintbrush to the ink to "paint" your image.  

the water will activate the ink and you can move it around to create a watercolor effect.  

if the image starts to disappear, you can fix it once everything is dry by dabbing your paintbrush directly onto the stamp pad, and then painting the details back in.

now stamp a cheerful sentiment using black ink….. 

and add a border, if you like!

place a ruler on the pencil marks, and use a bone folder 

to score from edge to edge across the front.

now fold the paper along the scored lines into three sections…..

and write your own happy springtime message!

now just tuck your sweet greeting inside an envelope and share it with someone special!
celebrate those warm, sunny, springtime days ahead!!  woo hoo!

{i found these little polka-dot glassine bags at michael's and the card fits inside perfectly….i just love it when that happens, don't you?!} 



{i used these supplies to make my card:  
fabriano artistico 140 lb CP watercolor paper,  "grow happy" stamp set, distress ink pads, black archival ink pad, waterbrush, micron pen, ruler, bone folder, pencil}

inspiration monday

there's something about playing with rubber stamps that always inspires me.
but this time instead of using them to create a card, i thought i'd use them in my small moleskine journal , and i started the fun by stamping this large stamp.

then i decided to stamp some of the smaller hearts and paint in those blank spaces.

once they were painted, they still looked a little bare, so i jazzed them up a bit with some doodles.

but when you're having fun with hearts, it's hard to stop at painting just one…..

so now i have a journal page filled with some doodly-heart-goodness,
all inspired by some rubber stamps…..and my little dutch sweetie!


{supplies:  moleskine journal, Technique Tuesday rubber stamps, watercolor pencils,
pitt artist pens, 2B and 6B graphite pencils}

inspiration monday

as a collector of quotes, this magazine ad quickly made its way
 into my inspiration file as soon as i saw it!
but the other day, it caught my eye again…..
this time, not for the quotes, but for those fabulous talk bubbles!

so i decided to have some bubbly fun with one of my new stamps….

and then i took a nosedive into my vast collection of alphabet stickers.

 after a little punching….

and some stamping, and gluing…..

i had created this fun little bubbly card!
which just goes to show that what inspires us one day,
can easily inspire us another day…...for a completely new reason!


{supplies:  white card stock, hugs & kisses stamp, alphabet stickers, scrapbook paper, 
foam tape, tombow tape runner, micron pen, charcoal stamp pad}

{you can see my rubber stamp designs here}

keep calm and be challenged

i was playing with one of my new rubber stamps the other day,
and i decided to challenge myself to finish a journal page
without using my pitt or micron pens.

at first, i thought it wouldn't really be that hard to give up just one supply….
but as i got further along, i realized how much impact those black pens provide!

once i was finished, i decided it was a lot of fun doing something completely different, and i really like the way it turned out!  well, except that the stamp image isn't centered…..but that's an entirely different
trying-not-to-be-so-obsessive challenge that i'll deal with another day.  :))


{this was created in my moleskine journal using derwent watercolor pencils,
 "believe in miracles" stamp, and pigment stamp pad}

boo-fun

i was looking at the calendar yesterday.....it's almost october already!!
eeeek!  and when i think of october, i think of stuff that goes "boo",
in a fun, whimsical sort of way.....and nothing's more fun that some boo-play!

so i got out some boo-supplies, and turned this.....

into this!

and this.....

into this....

and this!!

i hope your weekend is filled with lots of boo-fun-and-whimsy!!  :))


{these projects were created using my new stamp sets from technique tuesday....woo hoo....along with card stock, patterned paper, stamp pads, embossing powder, twine, and paper punches}



in other fun stuff......
there's still time to put your name in the hat for the online class giveaway at creative workshops!  just click here.....giveaway ends on sunday evening!

and....my dear, precious friend martha is sharing some great news about her entrepreneurial son, zach!!  he has started his own company and has won some great awards here in jacksonville already!  if you'd like more information about some awesome upscale guitar accessories, please click here (we're talkin' fabulous guitar straps made in peru and lots of other terrific items!)

inspiration monday.....and a giveaway!

of all the artwork i've done,  my little chickadees are definitely on my list of favorites.....
and seeing them in the form of rubber stamps as part of the summer release over at Technique Tuesday has made me about as giddy-as-a-schoolgirl!!

they look really cute stamped in black and white.....

and they're really cute stamped with color, too!

for me, the only thing more fun than playing with these little stamps....

is having the opportunity to share them with you....my sweet bloggy friends!!  woo hoo!
you are the absolute best-in-blogland, and i truly adore you for taking the time to stop by my little blog!  your heartfelt comments are so supportive and encouraging, and i am so grateful that our paths have crossed!  thank you!  xox

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

i have two chickadee stamp sets that i'd love to giveaway!
these little birdies are eager to inspire you, and they're looking for a creative home!
to enter, all you have to do is leave a comment here on this post 
(just one per person, please!) by 10:00 p.m. EST on wednesday,  august 28th. 
two names will be chosen using the random integer, 
and i'll announce them on thursday, august 29th. 
please make sure that your comment either links back to 

your blog, or you leave your e-mail so i can contact you if your name is chosen!

(this giveaway is open to all bloggy sweeties who are 18 years of age or older.)

for more information about the chickadee stamp set, click here!

{this chickadee card was created using white card stock, assorted scrapbook papers,
chickadee stamp set,  koi watercolor, pigment stamp pads, foam mounting tape, natural jute twine, needle} 

{edited:  the comments are now closed....thank you SO much for participating!}