A fat book page that celebrates the joy of maple syrup so synonymous with spring!! With some internet research I discovered that maple syrup is only produced in a very small area of North America where the conditions are ideal - sugar and black maple trees growing in good, well drained soil that are exposed to warm daytime temperatures followed by cool nights which gets the sap flowing. Sap is collected for only about a month and half in the spring!!

I included a sugar maple leaf on the front of my page which is protected by a transparency. Colour printed the rest and then embellished with my stipple brush and some ink. I added information and photos to the tags which fit inside between the front and the back.

This is a monthly mingle on one of my lists and I really aprpeciate the wide scope of the themes we can use and how open the creative process in which I can engage!!

Thanks for checking out my blog and I wish you a creative day!!

Just get out your supplies and create something!!

Therese

Mixed Media Market
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mixedmediamarket/
My art blog:
http://www.tmalakart.blogspot.com/

The last of the bunch!!

X - pearl ex. I stamped with a clear ink from Perfect Pearls and then applied a variety of metallic powders to the words. It turned out very nice though scanning it was difficult. Have not really used this product before and was happy how this worked out!! Trimmed my X which was printed on a transparency and glued it with double sided tape under the black areas.

Y - yarn. It was a challenge to come up with words that related to papercrafting for each letter of the alphabet. I layered my trimmed letter onto decorative paper and then punched two holes on either side of the Y and tied on a pink piece of yarn. Layered that onto pink cardstock.

Z - zig zag. Layered my trimmed transparency with Z on it over the yellow cardstock and overlaid a black strip of CS onto which I glued yellow rick rack. I trimmed the bottom of the yellow with pinking shears to reinforce the theme!!

Done!!

Therese

U - UTEE. Punched a maple leaf and then added two layers of UTEE in Bronze. I stamped a similarly sized maple leaf into the molten UTEE. Created a cool little accent for this ATC!! Layered the U which was printed on vellum with two copper corners and used hot glue to attach the leaf element at the bottom.

V - vellum. Created decorative vellum with a daisy stamp and my Brilliance ink pad. Stamped both on the front and the back. The Brilliance dried nicely. If you were to use pigment ink would have to emboss the images to seal them. A great technique for creating just the perfect decroative vellum for your card or layout. I attached the trimmed vellum rectangle to the cardtock with clear corners.

W - wax resist. Take a piece of wax paper and create a pattern in it by folding or crumpling. Open it up and layer onto a glossy cardstock. Cover with newspaper and apply a hot iron to melt the wax onto the glossy. Then apply dye ink with a brayer!! Lots of very cool textured effects can be created with this technique!! This works on matte cardstock as well. Give it a try!! I stamped in the words with black memories.

Therese

R - resist. I used white glossy paper and embossed the coffee cup with clear EP to which I applied brown memories ink. After it was all dry I wiped the ink from the EP and layered it onto another piece of glossy with the EP side down. I applied a hot iron from the top which melted the EP onto the new piece of glossy. I actually ironed it again several times onto tissue paper as well before all the EP was melted off the original glossy. I trimmed my R which was printed on transparency and layered it onto the glossy and attached it with 4 copper brads. Then layered onto brown cardstock which had been stamped with my Harlequin stamp in Brilliance "white frost" ink. I stamped coffee with my magnetic alphabet set with the same Brilliance ink.

S - Sewing (really should have read stitching) The S is printed on vellum. I added "stitching" with a marker all the way around. I captured the vellum under two layers of cardstock which had been pricked on the scallop edge as well as at the top to create some faux stitching by drawing with a marker between the holes. Nice to have a few different ways of attaching vellum!!

T - tranfer. I printed images with my laser printer onto white paper and then applied packing tape to make a transfer. The tape needs to be burnished very well and then it is just soaked to soften the paper which can easily be rubbed off. The transfer can then be glued to a new surface. A quick and easy transfer technique which easily adds depth to your creations!! The T was trimmed and attached with double sided tape under the black parts of the letter.

Therese

More ATCs for my Alphabet ATC swap!! Have so enjoyed creating these!!

O - Oval. I created an oval tag with the two SU oval punches and stamped Create in the top one. Punched holes in either side and slid them onto a ribbon which I tucked under my decorative paper layer which I glued to cardstock. It needed something to I added the thin black line all the way around. The O is printed on transparency and trimmed then glued on with double sided tape under the black part of the letter.

P - polished stone. I printed the letter on a transparency. Once trimmed I used alcohol inks to create a polished stone effect on the back of it. I attached to white cardstock with pink eyelets (white ones which I coloured with my Sharpie markers) and then tied the bottom with pink fiber. All of this was layered onto decorative cardboard which I had cut from a tissue box.

Q- quilting. I layered blue handmade paper onto cardstock and sewed a few lines of stitching to keep thme in place. I stitched all the way around the Q which was printed on transparency incorporating a bit of bias tape ribbon on the side.

Therese

Created these with a set of cast off earrings!! As I removed the backings the inner piece of the earring popped out!! Excellent!! With that piece missing I was left with a wonderful little depression I could fill. I dug through my collage stash and found two images to use - one of an angel and the other of a teddy bear reading with his friends. I trimmed the images to fit and glued them in place then covered them with Dimensional Magic. This dried perfectly clear and created a wonderful accent piece for my ATCs. I created a background paper for each - on the left I used watercolour and overstamped with a floral decorative stamp and on the right I used my large definition stamp. I added a ribbon then glued on the accent and layered it onto cardstock. On the right hand one I also punched a hole in the layer and then glued a circle with friend stamped in it. Really happy with the way these worked out. I like filling little spaces with art. I sent one to the swap and the other to my friend, Linda!!

Therese

It has been a while since I posted so I will start with my April Art Lottery submission. I decided to treat the winner with some round tags this month so I created another one of these cards with the decorative paper using the colour blocking technique. The decorative paper is one that I created with direct to paper technique when I was repairing my Colourbox pads. I really like the vibrancy and the depth of colour of this piece!! The round tags were colour printed and then punched with the SU 1.25" punch and the layer was created with the 1 3/8" punch!! Quick and easy!!

Therese

Another simple card with a bit of a twist. I cut a rectangle off the front of this card and then applied decorative paper to the flap that was left. I stamped the image added a layer and glued it to the front. I added a small square on the inside of the card for writing my message!! I just love this image!! It was one of the images in the Hostess set I earned at my SU party.

I hope you enjoy these cards!! Make them your own!!

Have a creative day!!


Therese

Mixed Media Market
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mixedmediamarket/

This is a little folder card!! I added a little flap to a regular card and then added an element on the front that I could tuck the flap under. I added decorative paper to the front and then added an embossed image.

A very simple design!!

Therese

I loved this little design that I found several different places!! I just made a rectangular card and cut off a triangle off of each side. Several of the girls were going to add a little handle to their pink cards to make a cute little girl's card that looks like a purse!! This one could truly be embellished several different ways for so many different looks!! Consider creating an apron, coveralls, brick of gold, etc. with this design.

I colour printed the oval design and then punched it with my large oval punch from SU. I am really looking forward to exploring the possibilities of this punch!!

Enjoy!!

Therese

A triangular fold card!! I had downloaded an image of a similar card somewhere along the way and worked up my design from that image. Several of the girls at the class mentioned that Splitcoast had a tutorial posted to their site last week with all the instructions and samples. So if you are interested in more information you can check

www.splitcoaststampers.com

Check their tutorial section under Resources, I believe, and you should be able to find their tutorial. Another very different card that would easily hold a photo or a little something for someone special!! They require accurate scoring but are not difficult to put together. I use my clear quilting ruler for scoring!! The best tool for that purpose!!

Therese

For this month's cardmaking session I was exploring folds and shapes!! This card is a variation of the one we made at my SU party. It has a triangular base instead of a rectangular one!! In the process of designing this one I had to come up with a solution to keeping the pop up part of the card - popped up!! In the rectangular based one the paper on both sides of the slit grabs the pop up and keeps it from sliding back into the base. With the triangular base there is less pressure so I ended up adding a staple at the place I wanted the pop up to stay. The back catches the staple's little bumps and the front hides the front of the staple! It was so effective and the group enjoyed the different option for the base! I just love this Terrific Tulip set (retired) from SU. Made these cards in a lot of different colours. They are a great way to herald in the spring or to celebrate Easter!!

Therese

This faux leather technique has a few more steps than the others but is still very effective!! I would have added the last coat of sealer to the surface to get a bit of sheen and also to protect the surface of the paper. I chose a rather non - leather colour - bright blue - but the texture is wonderful and it surely makes very interesting and effective background paper. Both the cardstock layer and the tissue could be stamped before layering them to create yet more dimension. I would recommend making several sheets of any of these papers while you have your paints and tools out!!

Therese

Yet another faux leather technique!! This one is also very easy but a bit time consuming - it took me 10 minutes to apply the tape to this small piece of cardstock!! You simply rip ivory masking tape into small pieces and apply to cardstock overlapping slightly and leaving rough edges showing. Once your cardstock is covered apply ink to the surface in any colour you choose. I used Chestnut Memories for this one. Just rub in the ink with your finger or a small piece of paper and let dry. DONE!! Very effective and the favorite at the class!!

Therese

This is a very quick and easy faux leather technique. It requires a heat gun, a stamp, a dye ink pad and some fun foam. The fun foam softens very nicely when you heat it with a heat gun and will take the impression of a stamp. I used a feather stamp for this card and a black ink pad. It is not necessary to use ink on the stamp unless you really want to highlight the image. You could easily create a textured background instead of an accent for your card by using a large background stamp instead. Lots of possibilities with this technique! I highly recommend giving it a try. If you are not happy with the result simply reheat and redo.

Enjoy!

Therese

Faux Leather

Faux Leather!! This is a technique I have been doing for quite a while but just recently taught a class with it and several faux leather techniques. I use Plaid Glaze Vernis so on the weekend when I was into Michael's I inquired about the availability. They no longer carry them. I will have to find another source or consider developing my own glazes. I think that I could certainly use neutral glaze and add acrylic paint, tube watercolour, ink, etc to it to make up the colours I would need for my paper. I will have to do some research, see what my options are and do a little playing to see what works the best. I have developed this technique from an article in one of the Somerset Gallery issues. I really like the look of this paper and it works so well for covering books and frames. Here I have used it as a background paper - very similar to a card I made for my last cardmaking session.

Therese

A group of my friends and I are going to swap silk hydrangea flowers in April. I have posted these just to give everyone an idea of the colour options available in these cool little flowers. I have bought the purple ones in the top left hand corner. This bunch had a variety of colours from light lavendar to a darker more warm purple and even some with a greenish hue. The lower left hand corner is what Susan has bought to swap - a nice warm yellow with some orange ones mixed in. The purple, pink blue and green ones are those Catherine has for swapping. I am looking forward to swapping!! I really like the detail in these flowers and they are generally a good size for cards - less than 2". It will be fun to see what colours the others will have picked to swap. We are packaging them in small ziplocs and swapping 10 for 10. Michaels has a wide variety of colours, sizes and textures of hydrangea silk flowers and quite a few of them are on sale - 50% off this week until Friday!!

Celebrating spring!!

Therese

My friend has started a Bad Girl altered book and was looking for others to contribute layouts that she could tip in. I have been busy with other projects but tonight decided I would give it a try. I had collected several images off the internet a few days ago so I printed off a pageful and set off to my craft room/art studio. I decided to use two pages from an old book as a base and worked up a layout I was happy with. I sponged on some red ink and stamped a checker board pattern as well over both pages. Used my See D large typewriter alphabet to create the title. Mounted a couple of the images behind slidemounts for a bit of interest. Created the round element in Corel Draw, copying an image I found on the internet but made mine to reflect the theme. I mounted the slide mounts with foam tape so they would be dimensional on the page.

I'm happy with the results and I hope she will like it as well.

I thought it was interesting, as I searched the internet to find images, what showed up when I typed in "Bad Girls". Best not to judge!!

Have a creative day!!

Therese

Bought some chipboard letters yesterday and just had to try them!! I created this card for this month's Art Lottery. I used an old music sheet as decorative paper - stippled it a bit with chestnut Memories ink. I use a large kids paintbrush from the dollar store for stippling. I added a chocolate brown ribbon between the music sheet and the rest of the card though it is a bit hard to identify in the scan. I also distressed the rest of the card which is not showing up either.

I stamped O and U with my SeeD round alphabet in chestnut memories and punched them out. I stamped "Thinking of" with my MM rummage magnetic alphabet. I layered the strip onto the card and then glued the letters below it.

Very happy with the results!! I will include a couple of letters for the winner to play with as well.

I have chipboard letters and old sheet music on my MMM site! You can follow the link below my name!!

Have a creative day!!

Therese

Mixed Media Market
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mixedmediamarket/

Here is what the other side look like!!

Therese

This is a double sided page for an Art Idea Journal - a round robin on one of my groups!! I created different layouts in each journal using the same four subjects - handmade paper, faux leather paper, paste paper and serendipity. I included the paper and instructions in each layout so the person receiving it would have samples and information for making their own. It has be so much fun to come up with a different layout for each journal. This is the final journal in the round robin. It has taken two years instead of the anticipated 6 months to get this one finished but the journals have been fabulous and well worth waiting for. Mine is all home and now just needs to be bound!!

Here I created pockets with the specific paper and then printed off instuctions. I topped the instruction sheets with another paper , folded it up to fit and added it to the pocket. I also added a variety of samples of each technique to each pocket. That should supply some inspiration and some pieces to play with. I stamped each technique name with a round alphabet in a coordinating colour, punched them out with a 1" hole punch (michaels), added a hole at the top and strung them onto fiber. I made two holes at each end of the pockets and strung the little round tag titles between them and tied them taught. I used the same holes for the fiber on each side of the page.

Very happy with how this one has worked out!!

Enjoy!! Have a creative day!!

Therse

I am a papermaker and use recyclable paper to make handmade paper!! I made these sheets for a friend who gave me some petals the other day. They were from tulips, daffodils and a pink hyacinth!! Because the petals were somewhat large and I was making small sheets of paper I blended them a little before adding them to my vat. Used a light yellow pulp which set off the petals very nicely!! She was very happy with the sheets I gave her to use in her cardmaking!!

I would highly encourage all papercrafters to learn to make paper!! You can use any and all scraps of paper to make new sheets which reduces the waste from your crafting and gives you new paper to play with. It is a win-win.

If you really don't need to add another thing to your life then consider donating your scraps to someone who enjoys the papermaking process!

Thanks for checking out my blog and have a creative day!!

Therese

Mixed Media Market
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mixedmediamarket/

This & That Mingle page for March. We had a long list of themes we could us for this mingle. Last year we did holidays and this year we are expanding to include other events or days that are significant in each month. I chose Alexander Graham Bell and did a bit of research on the internet. What an interesting man!! He is famous for having invented the telephone but he was an inventor all of his life and was always thinking and creating. A wonderful inspiration! It was hard to choose which images to use. I downloaded them from the internet to a folder where I put images for my own use. I like to keep my copyright free images separate from anything else I acquire for my creations. The background is a scan of one of his journal pages.

The top left is the front of the fat book page, the top right is the back of the page and the bottom is the inside.

Therese

Two ATCs I made this morning for a trade!! I have a box in which I keep my ATC supplies - substrates, images, labels, etc. Whenever I get something I think would be good for ATCs I just put it in the box. When I feel like making ATCs I open the box and see what I have. It is a nice starting off point!! Sometimes I find everything I need!!

The first is a picture I laser printed (down load from the net I think) with some fiber and a little tag. I stamped the base with the SU swirl background in silver Encore!

On the second I layered junk mail onto a green backer. I save interesting junk mail for use in my art. This one is from a fitness brochure. I layered a handmade paper letter over this. I wrote by hand the words "Who" and "You?" at the top and bottom but I could not get the scan to show the words. On the back I layered a vellum with text to support that finding out who you are is the mission of your life and will reveal the best path for your life.

Therese

A new set of cards I created with my donated envelopes!! It was a challenge to use a different format. Two of the cards use stamped images (tulip and butterfly) but the others use images recycled from old greeting cards. One of the girls that came to my SU party likes to use old greeting cards to create her cards so I went through the bagful I received last fall and put together a package for her. While I was in the process, I decided to give it a try being as I had never recycled a card in that way before. It worked out well though it took some time to pick out images that would suit the rectangular format I was using for these cards.

I was careful not to pass on any cards that had personal information or writing from the ones that had been donated to me.

So another source of card creating fun - all the cards that others (who have not been converted to making their own) send you!!

Have a creative day!!

Therese

Thank you postcards for those who came to my SU party!! Chose a fairly simple design to make the process of getting them done easier. I dug into my scraps for the small strips (1' x 3"-4") and chose coordinating papers - scrapbook, handpainted, etc. I colour printed the greetings and layered all onto a coordinating postcard of cardstock which was stamped with an all over text stamp which I bought off the CST garage sale earlier this month. LOVE IT!! The order arrives today so I am headed over to help sort and bring home all the goodies!!!! Yeah!!

Therese

My Valentine's card for my husband. We celebrated late because he was out of town and we really wanted to enjoy our day. He had a few days off at the beginning of this week so we took a day for ourselves and celebrated!! He is gaining an interest in cooking so we planned a feast - Coquilles St. Jacques, lemon spaghetti, asparagus and ceasar salad with some Lindt chocolate with Early Grey tea after our meal!!! It was great!

I really like this card!! The heart is from a scrapbook paper sheet I bought a long time ago at the $1 store. I did some stippling on it with ochre to get it to be a more warm red. I added some gold embossing to three of the edges to balance the gold foil that was already on the right hand side. Gold embossed "Friend" and used my embossing marker to emboss "my". I sewed on the heart charm and then tied the key charm to it. I layered this onto a dark burgundy layer and then onto a warm red cardstock which I stamped the SU swirl heart background with a wine pigment ink and clear embossed. Just perfect for letting him know that he has the key to my heart!!

Therese

My SU party has been submitted and I thank all of my friends for coming!! Product should be here by the end of next week!! Yeah!! The spring mini has arrived and I am wondering what the new catalog schedule will be for this coming year!! Something to look forward to!

Just a hint I wanted to share with you that Catherine mentioned at Jayne's party. The stamp pads that have a little liner in them like the StazOn and the Brilliance can be modified so that the liner comes off with the cover - just add a large glue dot or some double sided foam tape to the inside of the lid and place on the pad. The next time you remove the cover, the liner will come with it. Works so well!!

A few new UMs arrived this week so I am off to play in my craft room and hopefully get a few cards made.

Have a creative day!!

Therese

The background on this card was created using the granite spray paint that was popular some years back. The can was destined for the garbage so I took it outside along with some large sheets of paper and a large piece of cardboard. I just sprayed until the can was empty. Made 5-6 large sheets of this wonderfully textured black, white and gray paper.
Really love the old world look of this image and thought it worked well with the background. Stamped in with black StazOn which gives a very strong black colour. Added some simple fiber and a "fossil". I made these fossils the other day with some recyclable plastic, my heat gun and some rubber stamps!! It was fun!! I have a whole bunch because it was so much fun trying different stamps to get different textures!! Will have to list them on my MMM site - http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mixedmediamarket/!!

Just love making "paste paper"!! You make paste (wall paper or cornstarch), add some colour (watercolour, ink, acyrlic paint, etc) and then spread it on your dampened paper. The paper needs to have a good wet strength for this project. In this case, I used white Kraft gift wrap I bought at Michaels. It worked very well. I usually make a day of it when get started making paste paper and just play as long as the paste lasts. I have created my own tools for working in the paste - mostly cut from plastic milk jugs. I like the flexibility of the plastic and the more organic lines they create.

I have now acquired the 1 3/8" SU punch so I can make double layered tags using it in combination with the 1 1/4" SU punch. Just love the ease of making these now. I added a punched shape to the tags - hearts, stars, dragonflies, leaves and daisies and made them in a variety of cardstock colours. Added a little fiber and had a quick and easy card!!

Created this polished stone background this summer when my sister was visiting and thought the colours would work well with this image. Stamped the image with black StazOn. The victorian corner punch worked well with it as well. I thought the card front needed a bit of ornamentation so I stamped it with a coordinating colour and the SU heart background (retired). Great card for the women in my life!!

This card features "faux leather" paper which I made yesterday. You apply acrylic paint and glazes (Glaze Vernis by Delta) in layers until you have full coverage and nice rich colour. Once dry it has the soft lustre of leather. I started with brown paper and made brown, green and burgundy.

The little bird image is a used postage stamp. I collect all of the interesting stamps that arrive on our mail and use them in my art when I can. I like the way this one turned out. Very simple and easy!!

Led a cardmaking class last night featuring handpainted backgrounds. I really like making these acrylic paint backgrounds - I just slosh on paint until I am happy with it. I usually start with leftover paint from my palette after a project and water it down to make a wash and apply it to a sheet of paper or several depending on how much paint I have. The next time I am painting I add more colour washes and repeat the process until I like the look of it. I designed and colour printed the round tag and punched it out. I really like the colour of this one.

I found this layout in a magazine - Joy of Cardmaking. Lots of really good card making ideas.

Catherine also demoed several other techniques in these two cards - using the template and paper piercing tool, making a marker using a blender pen and reinker, colouring with markers, using the distressing tool, aquapainter, crimper, etc!!

Pop UP Card

Hey! I had my SU party yesterday!! It was great fun to have some of my friends over and do a make and take. I have a fabulous demonstrator who is professional and personable all at the same time. We did this great little pop up card! So cute!! We will be closing the party by Wednesday to allow a few who were not able to finish up their orders on Sunday!! I got the dragonfly Level II hostess set I wanted so I am a happy camper!!

Have a creative day!
Therese

Mixed Media Market - http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mixedmediamarket/

These are for a card exchange I participate in monthly. I stretched myself and used bright colours. I started with a piece of checkered tissue paper that I received in a swap a long time ago. Was able to find cardstock that matched pretty close but found that the tissue paper looked better when layered on white so I added a white cardstock layer. I used my SU 1.25" punch to punch a hole in the lower right corner and punched some coordinating shapes to go inside. I stamped all around the card front before I layered on the tissue paper/CS piece. I cut hair elastics that were the right colours for the top and tied on a little plastic tag which I stamped with StazOn ink. Added a little fiber to give it just a little softness. Very happy with my little stretch!!

Be creative!!

Therese

My submission for an Art Lottery!! On this group, anyone can submit art for the lottery to the hostess and at the end of the month she puts all the names in a hat and picks one to receive all the fun items that have arrived!! She also picks a second name to receive the art submitted by the winner. I like the fact that there are no rules or themes and I can pick the format. I usually include a few goodies with my submission. This time I have included some slide mounts and transparencies so the person who receives it can play a little. I embossed the gold coloured lead (from a wine bottle) with my D'vine Swirl embossing folder. I just love that design!! Have managed to emboss cardstock with it by using my rolling pin. I have to spritz the cardstock before I put it in the folder but it does work pretty well. I laser printed the transparencies using images I have downloaded from the internet. Just did a bit of collage as a background. I cut the slide mounts from bristol vellum using a Sizzix machine. I have them for sale on my MMM site - follow the link below.
Mixed Media Market
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mixedmediamarket/
I have found this past year that I have been doing more mingles than swaps. I like spending more time on one piece of art and generally the cost of mailing them is less as well.
Therese

This is a fat book page I created today for a mingle. These are really fun. The mingle has been running monthly for a year so we have 12 pages for our book. The far left is the front of the page and the right is the back of the page. The tags in the middle fit into the envelope on the front and are strung together. The background paper is gift wrap I bought at Michaels. Very awesome!! I gave it a wash of burnt sienna and did the back of the page as well. The heart on the back is gold EP on alcohol ink background. The mingle is ongoing and we are expanding the theme to include more than holidays to give some variety.
Therese

This is an interactive birthday card!! It is a little accordion book that is held closed by an elastic. I put a little heart shaker on the front and on each of the pages I put a title about favorite things: food, friends, games, etc and made a little envelope to hold "important" things. I like to make kids cards that are a little more than just a card. Hopefully it will be written in, enjoyed and saved for a while. We all need to remember what our favorite things were when we were kids.
Therese

Three more cards to add to my stash!!Will be needing some masculine cards so worked up the one with the watch. There is a gold ribbon that matches the veining in the background paper that runs the length of the card but I was not able to get it to show up when I scanned it.
The roses are just tissue paper which I only glued at the top. Gave a very nice effect with the ribbon. I would have liked to have added a charm on the knot but did not find a rose one in my stash.
Just a quick and easy thank you card - nice to have a good supply of those on hand.
Therese

This is a group of over 30 handmade cards that I have refurbished in the last three days. They were given to me at my cardmaking class by someone who has been collecting greeting cards for a long while and did not want them to go to waste by just recycling them. Beautiful very detailed work - pergamano, tea bag folding, paper tole, original acrylics, etc. I will be donating these card to a local group that does outreach and is always in need of cards. This is what I do with all the handmade cards I receive through swaps and exchanges. There are so many places that would appreciate the donation of handmade cards - seniors homes, not for profit organizations, churches, etc. When I refurbish the cards I remove any writing or personal message - some times it means just replacing the insert other times I need to cut off the card front and remount it onto new cardstock. With a new envelope they are ready to go!!

Here is my contribution to another journal in the project!! I have created a folder which features a strip of each kind of paper and inside I stamped and watercoloured a scene that features the four seasons and used some of each kind of paper to create a "pocket" at the bottom of the folder. I have printed each technique's basic information and instructions on a tranparency and cut them apart and labeled them according to the season that paper is featured in. Lots of fun!! Only one more journal for me to work in and this project will be complete!!

Have been busy with some technique art journals this week. This is a round robin project started over a year ago. I have created layouts in all the journals that present four different techniques - handmade paper, serendipity, paste paper and faux leather!! It has been fun to come up with different ways to present these different papers! Here I stamped and gold embossed a gate on each kind of paper and added the description and basic instructions in a folded sort of booklet underneath. Added hearts and some inspirational quotes to finish off the layout!! I have truly enjoyed this project because of the diversity of art that has been presented in all the journals that went by and on all the pages of my journal!!

Created a few of these cards!! Was inspired by the ribbon which is sort of iridescent!! I used Iridescent Ice embossing powder (SU)on the words and the dragonfly wings. The background paper is "paste paper" which I created a while back - lots of fun. These fit in envelopes that were donated to me for use in my cardmaking.

These cards are the two I mentioned earlier that I made for my friend to include in her Christmas gifts for her family members. The first one has a harlequin background with a coordinating greeting. This harlequin paper is a roll of gift wrap I bought at Michaels before Christmas with a coupon. Nice rich colours and the roll will make LOTS of backgrounds!! The second is created with an image from a Page-a-day calendar!! I added a ribbon and a tag to embellish it! Both of these are good for creating quick and easy cards.