Crazy Colors Bookmarks !!

I couldn't resist playing with some of my flower photos yesterday, creating crazy color bookmarks!  The above bookmark is the Rocky Mountain Townsend Daisy, which I shot back in June during the Sandia Mountain wildflower walk.  Amazing the fun stuff one can do with PhotoShop!

And, this bookmark is a crazy colored gladiola bookmark, from a photo of the gladiolas that are growing in my pots both in front and back of the house!  Now, I just need to print these out on some good cardstock and get them protected.  Haven't decided yet whether to use gel medium and varnish or laminate them.  Oh, well, I'll figure it out!

Enjoy!

Altered Playing Cards - Flowers

This ATC swap had the theme and requirement of being an altered playing card, altered using flowers and something that flies.  For the card above, I chose a napkin that I applied to the card itself, and then punched out some butterflies to apply on top of the napkin.  I chose to keep it sort of monochromatic because the roses on the napkin just seemed sort of soft and gentle.

For the above card, I also used a napkin, with a large peony-type bloom,  It, too created a softer feel, but not as soft as the roses, so I chose to include a purple dragonfly to satisfy the "something that flies" requirement, and add a little zip.  However, I only put one into the piece, so the flower could still be the focus.

This last piece is just pure fun and reminds me of summer!  As with the other 2, I used a napkin, this time with bright boldly colored blooms and leaves.  I added a couple of dragonflies and a butterfly to finish it off.  This is just such a light, fun piece, looking at it just makes me smile!

Enjoy!

Abstract Torn Paper ATCs

This was an interesting swap to participate in. The theme was to create abstract ATCs using only torn paper - no cut edges, no pens, inks, images not included on the torn paper, etc. Sounds easy, and it is.......

....except that old habits die hard!! I kept wanting to add something not "allowed" to these! But, what fun I had creating them. I decided that since it was to be abstract, I'd really "go" with that idea and took a large sheet of watercolor paper. I then made what I call serendipity paper. Serendipity paper is when you just put items (paint, stamps, images, paper, etc.) on a large sheet of paper in a quick fashion, no thinking allowed! In this case, the serendipity paper was made only using paper that had all edges torn. I used whatever papers were in my "stash" of leftover papers from previous projects. There were handmade papers, Jeff's old aviation maps, regular maps, book pages, music pages, napkins (one of my favorite things!), tissue, old dress pattern paper, etc! After I filled the watercolor paper.....

.....I let it dry. I then turned the watercolor paper upside down, and cut out ATCs in the appropriate size (2 1/2" x 3 1/2") - I just cut as many as the watercolor paper sheet allowed. I then turned each over to see what the "abstract" turned out to be. I found I was very pleasantly surprised by the results. I then looked thru my old book pages and tore out words or phrases that appealed to me and added them to the ATCs for the finishing touch! What fun!!

Enjoy!

Peeling Paint Technique ATCs

This was a fun project! It makes paint appear to be peeling off the card foundation. I decided to use various printed papers - music, book pages, phone book, etc. - as the foundation. I then applied Vaseline to the areas that I wanted to show thru after I applied paint. Then, came the paint. After it dries, I took a paper towel and wiped off the paint from the Vaselined areas. I then rubber stamped on top of all that.

I then used some old photos that I had that kind of spoke to me in a fun way. Don't you love the "girls" in the first photo - bathing beauties on vacation! The little guy, above, looks like a little speed racer in his toy car! After I adhered the photos, I again applied the Vaseline technique with a second paint color. I just wanted the effect of many different layers!

The last application was a rubber stamp that gives it a marble-like effect that also accentuates the peeling paint effect. The photo is of a young man with a sailing boat in the background. I like to think of the boat as being his "dream". A bit different than the rather formal, dressed up image.....exactly what you'd sort of expect his dream to be like!

Enjoy!

One-Word Series

Here's a new series that I worked on a week or so ago. I wanted to do something very simple, and sort of hit on this approach. I'm not certain that I really like it, altho it does kind of have a good "feel" to it.

The photos are mine. I altered them a bit, and I do like the look of them. The one word aspect of it feeds into the simplicity that I was looking for and speaks to the photo image on the piece.

The foundation of all the pieces are wood plaques that Jeff cut for me. I think I may do another series like this, but try something a bit different. Of course, there's always the chance that this will grow on me!!

Enjoy!

Sheet Music ATCs

These ATCs have the requirement that somewhere in the piece must be some sheet music. The above ATC has the sheet music as the background for the piece, with some really soft, pastel like tissue paper over it, and a flower stamp (colored in with blue, just to stay with the theme) and some blue handmade paper as the border around the "picture" of the flower. I just love the feel of this one.

Now, this ATC has some very dramatic, bold red as the background and just a snippet of sheet music in it. I loved the soft contrast the lace seemed to lend to the piece, and the little do-dad laid over the handmade paper in the lower right of the piece reminded me of the treble clef in music.

And, this final piece just seems like such a happy piece and absolutely reminds me of spring! Again, the sheet music is the background with tissue and handmade paper laid over it. The yellow tulips just sing of spring to me, and I couldn't resist adding the trim piece that seems to be little white daisy type flowers, also a very happy flower!

Enjoy!

Brown Bag ATCs

The theme for this ATC collection is to use a brown bag (yes, the kind you may still be able to get at a grocery store) as the background for the ATC. I really like the above ATC. It's just so simple and gentle. I call it "Balance" because that was the first thought that came into my head when I finished it.

This one is a throw-back to my train commuting days in Chicago! There's some handmade paper in there, but the focus on on a Metra train one-ride ticket. Ah, those were the days - and I can't really say that I miss the 2-hour one way commute I had back then!

Isn't this a whimsical little piece? The pastel colors over the paper bag are colored baby wipes. I use them to either apply paint to surfaces or wipe paint off my hands, and if the colors are appealing, I just keep the baby wipes for use in future projects. The "line" is some very cool sort of string that I found in an antique shop in Washington state when we were there over the Thanksgiving holiday. The sequins just add the right amount of sparkle, don't you think?

Enjoy!!

Altered House

Here are some photos that I took of a mixed media piece I created a while ago. I was just too lazy (or busy??) to take photos of it and get it posted!

A dear friend sent me a wood block shaped like a house. I painted the wood block, but left the wood rather rough. I really wanted to keep the rough exterior, just like a real house. I then thought about what home meant and what home and family was, and this quote summed it up quite perfectly. The family is the building block, the key to an ordered society. I love it.









Here's the back of the house. The roof is corrugated cardboard that I brushed color on, so that the undercolor still shows through. Handmade paper was placed over the top part of the house with a transparency I made placed over the back of the house. The transparency is a colorful background with the image of a bare tree on it. I took that photo a while back, and it's a great photo for a number of different reasons. I added a metal leaf that I believe I inherited from a friend (she gave me a bunch!). It just felt right to have a couple of lone leaves on the piece, to sort of symbolize the autumn, when having a warm, loving home is especially wonderful.

And, this is the front of the house. You can see the quote in the lower left hand corner of the house. Also on the front of the house is an old ruler (remembering measuring how much you grew every so often??), an old photo of a family gathered around their car, and more autumn leaves. The house is adhered to a wooden base that I also covered with the corrugated cardboard that I used on the roof. I used it for the "front stoop" as well because I really liked the texture of it.

I do hope you enjoy my creative efforts!

Antarctica and Sonoma/Napa

Here are two more ATCs that I created for the "Where in the World?" swap. The ATC above is a reminder of the beauty of the Sonoma Valley, which is right next to Napa. The barn and grape vines are a photo that I took when we visited there last September. We actually like Sonoma better than Napa - equally great wines and vineyards nestled on wonderful winding country roads.

This ATC celebrates the mascot of Antarctica (in my mind) - the adorable penguin! This little guy came right up to me when we visited there in February, 2008. Such a sweet little face just looking up at you asking you to visit him (or her??)! A fabulous once in a lifetime trip! Enjoy!

Marikate's Dream Box

Check out the Dream altered cigar box that I just finished for my niece, Marikate. I really like the way this came out - reminds me of her! The above image is of the top of the box. Her favorite color is silver, so that was the main color used on the box.

Here's a photo of the front and side of the box. I made up some quotes that I think are true about dreams on each side of the box. The front clasp opening is accentuated by some jewelry wire with a few beads. The feet of the box are wooden drawer knobs that I painted.

On the sides and top of the box, I adhered some cool buttons that I've inherited from a friend of mine, Vicki, to use in my creative endeavors. I think they are perfect for this box! As you can see, I did feel the need to add some color, and I found some very nice handmade lilac paper that worked well with the silver. The flowers on the top of the box are spiderwort that used to grow in my garden when I lived back in Illinois! The color just seemed to work well with the paper and this box. Enjoy!!

Altered Frame!

Here's a wooden craft frame that I altered to be a frame for Parker, whose picture is in the frame, and who is the 2nd grandson of a friend of mine. I loved the idea of altered frame, and was really pleased with how this, my first attempt, turned out. The foundation is paint, followed by handmade papers, stamps, found printed quotes, dictionary pages, and more glaze. Oh, and scrabble tiles! Hope my friend likes it! Enjoy!

Birthday Art

This piece is something I did on a pressed wood board. Jeff had a big piece that he wasn't using, so I asked him to cut it into several different sized pieces. This is a birthday gift (or will be) for a friend of mine who is in the middle of doing some reflection and thinking about what the next chapter in her life will be. This piece has handmade papers as it's foundation with an inspirational quote that I found which I thought would be perfect for her. I added in some fun other papers, either serendipity or other handmade papers, some cool thoughts, a favorite vintage image of a woman with a suitcase just getting ready to start on an adventure, and my little muse who I hope will help her, with the first words of advice - have fun! I added in some stars on the top, just for some whimsy, with the obvious advice to "let the stars be your guide". Overall a fun piece, and I hope she really enjoys it and finds some inspiration from it! Enjoy!

Beautiful Babies ATCs!

Isn't little Sunny Sue adorable? These ATCs were made for an ATC swap on www.atcsforall.com. I don't know who Sue is (or if that's even her real name!), but I think she may be a distant relative of mine. I think I found her photo in a bunch of old family photos.

This little girl is actually my Mom, Stella, when she was only a couple of years old or so. Don't you just love the little duck at her feet?

I call these two Lucy & Bubba. Again, I don't know who they are, but they may be my relatives! I love little Bubba's scrunched up face, don't you?

And, this little imp is me! I just love this image of me - I think I was about 2 years old, and clearly up for anything that was associated with fun! This image is my own muse - just looking at her reminds me of times when I didn't have any sort of inner critic and was just able to be and enjoy everything and helps me mentally get to that place again!

The background of these ATCs consists of layers of paint, paper & rubber stamps. I laid down the images and then decided on their names and used type transfers to put their names on the ATCs. What fun to do! Enjoy!

Warm Weather ATCs

Aren't these fun ATCs? I created them for the Warm Weather ATC swap at www.atcsforall.com.

I started with paint as background, and used small bubble wrap to create the polka dots as sort of a funky, lighthearted sky effect.......

Then, I added some very textured hand made paper, and used gel medium to sort of blend it into the "sky". I then brushed a golden color over the texture to just make it seem like sand, and added the 3 little seashells to keep with the beach and pool sort of feel.....

Finally, I found this great paper that had bunches of these sort of vintage bathing suit sort of ads. I cut them out, named the ladies in each of the scenes, and there you have it!! Hope you enjoy a bit of summer in the midst of winter! Enjoy!

New Art!

Here's some art that I created yesterday and today. I read about a postcard swap sponsored by the magazine "Cloth, Paper, Scissors" with the theme of inspiring art, and it just reminded me of all the times I'm in a creative slump and just aspire to do any art. So, I started playing around, and these are a couple of the postcards that I came up with. Neither of these is the one I'm going to be submitting for the swap! I'll be posting that to the CPS web site in February, so you can see it then and there.

For those of you interested in such things, here's technical how-to info. I decided that I wanted bold, primary colors to be used, with red for the letters I used bright yellow tissue to get started (on watercolor paper), and then added acrylic paints of green and blue. I also used some dictionary pages that I had colored for another project, but hadn't used, and cut up some pieces of a map, just for some other interest. Now, once this was done, I decided that the colors were a bit too disjointed and bright and needed to be toned down a bit and somehow brought more together in terms of melding, if you will. I then took some sewing pattern tissue, and laid that down over the entire postcard. Some of the print on the pattern tissue added some graphic elements that I liked as well. I then added the rather stern young man because he reminded me of the inner critic we all have that tells us we can never do what we intend to do or want to do, and the little girl as our inner muse, who is just full of spunk and spirit, and, at least for me, is always telling me to have fun!! I stamped on some exclaimation marks over the critic's head, and the instructions of my muse to have fun, and then added some inspirational instruction. The quote that inspired Start Now is from Marie Beyron Ray, and is"Begin doing what you want to do now." And, isn't that true? We frequently find ourselves planning to do something after we do something else, and suddenly, we're in a non-creative rut! The quote that inspired Try Something came from a quote from FDR - "Above all, try something." Now, I don't think he was talking about creative endeavors, but good advice is good advice. When you're stuck, just try something. If it doesn't work, try something else, until you land on something great. Oh, and of course, along the way, have fun! (By the way, the little girl who is my muse, is really me at about 2-3 years old or so! She still lives on, tho, deep inside of me!)

Enjoy! Nadine

Zelda

Good morning! I just visited my friend and fellow artist's blog - penandpaints.blogspot.com - and was inspired by her background for her Alphabetica piece to use the photo I took of my finished Alphabetica piece & use that for today's entry! Our group actually first did the Alphabetica theme a year or so ago, which is why my piece is already done while she was still working on hers.

Given that my last name begins with a Z, it was seredipity when I blindly chose the letter Z from among several for my inspiration letter. It took me a while to land on the theme of the piece. I remembered the old sort of song that we used to sing when I was a kid that involved our ABC's - A, my name is Alice, and I come from Alabama with a basket full of Apples, etc.. I decided to do a variation of that for Zelda. My little Zelda (and old photo that I came across some time ago, and scanned so I could use her over and over - I love her spitir!)came from Zuni (a pueblo in New Mexico) and is depicted in the piece by a torn piece of map with Zuni circled on it. She has a suitcase instead of a basket and it has zucchini in it (the transparency of the photo allows the definition of the word zucchini to show thru right under her suitcase!), along with some zinnias ( a fabulous flower beginning with a Z). She also has brought a zebra with her!

The background of the piece was various torn pages of an old dictionary at the Z page, a telephone book (also a Z page) and some zip codes! I did a wash of a sort of sienna color over the background, and then added the fun items. I also included some fun tags, crests and even a stylized postage stamp all with the Z theme! I did end up using a handmade paper strip, so that Zelda's transparency would show her off in a good fashion.

Thanks to Marge for reminding me of this fun piece! Enjoy!

Social Butterflies

Howdy! I came across this fun ATC that I created a while back, and it just seemed like a good theme for today. I'm heading out to lunch today with my friend, Jeanne, so I'll be a bit of a social butterfly. I also need to do more moving prep stuff today. I've got a couple of boxes that I want to pack today to get closer to being totally done. Jeff will be off on his pre-retirement vacation this week, and he plans to really get down to business in terms of packing more stuff, including his stuff. Our move is really getting close now. Three weeks from today, we'll be almost all the way to New Mexico & the beginning of our new life together there.

Mom's Day was really nice yesterday. The weather cooperated, and we were able to sit outside on the patio and enjoy the day and our cook-out meal! Very nice. I will miss this next year...sigh....perhaps I can get Mom out to New Mexico for Mom's Day next year, tho!

Well, on with the day! Have a really great one - enjoy!

For Jeanne

This collage is one that was inspired by my friend, Jeanne. She has hard a rough time of it over the past several years, and has endured some great sorrows. However, she is one of the most resilient and positive people I know. She is truly brave and courageous in light of what life has thrown at her. This piece is inteneded to reflect the sorrows in her life (the upside down heart shaped tears) that serve as nourishment for her new life with her children and friends who care so much for her (flowers). And, the basis for life, as I see it, is the ability to dream and envision better days.

I believe that dreams feed what will become reality. Another friend recently told me how proud and happy he was for the new chapter in my life that I'm beginning. As he put it, he saw that I once had a dream of what I'd like my life to be like, and it became a vision and a goal, that I worked to turn into a reality. I hadn't really thought of it that way, but I suppose that deep down inside, that's really what happens to most of us, whether we recognize it or not. That is, unless we're one of those poor souls who are, what I call, victims of their own lives. That, to me, is truly the saddest thing because it says to me they've given up and are just going thru the motions.

Here's to dreams - don't just go thru the motions!! And, thanks Jeanne, for being in my life!

Little Princess

Here's a fun little collage (ATC) I created a while ago. This little sweetie was an image that I used from a scanned cabinet card. She looked like such a little princess, I couldn't resist the crown! To me, she looks like she's just thinking that someday she will be Queen, so that's the text that I added. I'm really missing not being able to create via collage! I had to pack up my studio back in Jan because we were gone on a trip almost the complete month of February, and effective with the beginning of March, the house was on the market to be sold. Altho I thought my studio area looked pretty neat and organized, and it was in the realm of a creative space, to "normal" folks, I'm sure it looked anything but neat and organized!!! So, my creative things were put away. I keep thinking about how much fun it will be to rediscover them when I'm unpacking them in about a month or so. Our move date is now set for the end of May, so it really will be only a week or so after that, and I'll be able to at least start unpacking and creating in New Mexico! Yipee!! Enjoy!