Why a Bird Sings

This is the first Sisterhood of the Blogging Stampers Blog swap entry. The theme for February was "Red"

Using the cube pattern that I enlarged I used a red decorative paper that I stamped with a music score and covered that with pearl ex on top of that I stamped the bird and glued some words.

The stamped bird is highlighted with seed beads, glitter and diamond glaze. The sides that have the words also have red German scrap. On top I have perched a red bird (I think it's head is on backwards but they were all like that at the store so I guess it is more my head that is on backwards) I added some shimmery paint and some glitter to the bird and she is perched on a bead of red glitter.

To finish the cube off I threaded some fishing wire with seed beads as a hanger and added some red yarn to the bottom that I frayed a bit.

I hope whoever wins my Why a Bird sings loves it!

Adoption Prayers

Last Summer a friend of mine adopted a little boy and asked me to take this poem and make a wall hanging for her...Well, another friend of mine's sister is adopting a little boy and a little girl and she remembered the piece I did and asked me to make some. She wanted them to be different. I hope she likes what i have made and that the kids will like them for a very long time. It is really hard to think about all the stages of life that this could be on the wall.

On the Left is the "girl" version. The background paper is clouds that I stamped various shimmery circles all over. On top of that I added some swirls all along the edges and to finish it off affixed two dragonflies to the top and bottom of the poem. The poem is held on with sewed "X's" in each corner.

To the Right is the "boy" Version. This one was harder for me to design. I do have a very girly hand sometimes. The background paper is made of the Twinkling H2O's that alas are no longer being made. I then over stamped with stars. The poem is held on with brushed silver brads and it is surrounded by two moons, the color on them is glitter. The only part I am worried about on this one is the moons, they may be a little juvenile when the boy starts to grow up.

Tag Journal

For the Month of February I got to work on Monica's Tag Journal for the COF round robbin Journal project.

We could do whatever we wanted as long as there was a tag. I don't make that many tags, in fact I don't think that i have ever made a tag just because so this journal stumped me for a minute or two.

So, I turned to my trusty Collage Images book and started flipping. I came across one of Paula's Kit Club images and decided that it would be fun to do a Circus theme, not something that I think has been done in our group.

The journal pages are black so I added a swirl pattern and covered it with pearl ex powders in red, gold and blue. There is no stamping on these pages but the background and on the tag. However I think everything works well together and made for an over all fun page.

I tried something new for me on the tag pictured here, without the ribbons, I embossed the ring master images and then I spritzed the tag with Glimmer Mist in red and gold. Once that was dry I filled in some of the lighter sections with a midnight blue ink. And lastly stamped some stars. My tag is very simple and my least favorite part of my journal contribution...but as I have already said, I think it all works well together.

oh and the coolest part is that I have the tag stuck into a genuine Roasted Peanuts bag from the circus!

I hope Monica likes my tag contribution...

Sharing Art

A few day's ago in the Alpha Stamps Yahoo Group one of the members shared her opinion's with us...

While reading Zeborah's Blog Post I was struck by how much I agreed with it and that just like Zeb I have experienced something similar in just the past week.

I recently attended an Art show and took a few classes. The first class I took I was shocked to find that the artist/instructor was very offended when I put my spin on her techniques.

A different class I took was extremely refreshing the instructor demonstrated her techniques, explained the supplies and let us loose...

After experiencing the complete differences in these classes I came to the conclusion that there are two types of artists, those that want people to do what they do exactly the way they do it and those that want to "Share" their art with others.

Please visit Zeborah's Blog to read her point of view on "Sharing Art" and if you agree make sure to try and "Share your art" in the same manner.

Masquerade (Blue Bloods, Bk 2)

Masquerade is the second book in the Blue Bloods Series. I did a little research and it looks like there will be a minimum of six books in this series.

I enjoyed the first book and I read this one even faster but Masquerade was predictable in the story that she chose to wrap up and left more questions than the first novel. I really want to go out and purchase book 3 right now but it won’t do me any good, De La Cruz’s MO seems to be “leave em hanging” which is good for book sales but aggravating as all get out for readers.

At the end of this book she has included a Family Tree with some of the “other” names the vampires have used throughout history. In each book she has various letters written by the vampires and or news clippings. I swapped out my first book and now I want to go back and look at the letters written by the Plymouth Bluff Vampires and see who they are in the present time. I wish she included the family tree in the first book.

I am anxious to read Book 3, Revelations, but I am going to wait since the fourth book, The Van Allen Legacy does not come out until September 2009. Seems to me adult and maybe even a majority of teen readers may want to read these straight through

Queen Sweet Heart

There going out in the mail today! What are they you may ask? Well, these are my first "With One Stamp ATC's" for the swap I am hosting for Alpha Stamps.

Every other month, or so, I will be hosting a swap through Alpha Stamps that features one of their marvelous stamps. This past month the stamp was the Queen Sweet Heart. This is a 3 for 3 ATC swap and the ATC's from everyone that joined are fabulous and can be seen HERE

If you are interested in joining these Fabulously fun swaps all you have to do is join the Alpha Stamps Yahoo Group...yea yea I know what you are thinking...I'm already a member of too many groups...this one is different! All swaps hosted through the group allow you to purchase the stamps at a huge discount. And the chatting is marvelous (and there is not too much) So go HERE to join.

The next stamp has already been selected it is O is for Olive and it can be viewed on THIS page, just scroll down a little. Not your thing...like I said, we do these a lot so maybe next time you will really love the stamp. I am really looking forward to playing with this stamp I have a ton of idea's!

Okay onto what I have done with the Queen Sweet Heart Stamp. The above ATC is my dream deck of cards Queen of Hearts...of course if I had this deck of cards I would want it to come with all the sweets.

To the left I have used the stamp in the background. The Collage image is also from Alpha Stamps, it comes in sepia, black and white or a blue and white. I colored and cut out the part I wanted and then created a window like frame behind her with some glitter highlights.

This is the First ATC that I made and to me it encompasses everything that this stamp is about, royalty, yummy decadent foods, and hearts. I know it may seem busy but to me it works.

I hope that the swap participants had as much fun as I did...and that they enjoy the pieces they get in return as much as I am enjoying mine.

A Quick Bite

I was told A Quick Bite would be a quick read and I guess it was it just could have been quicker...

Sands has a tendency to repeat herself. Making me feel that she views her readers incapable of remembering/recalling important details. In other words, that her readers are not that smart...um...yea right...I got really really annoyed with this especially when the same thing would be repeated on the very same page! And at the end when her momentum was going pretty well she ruined it once again by beating me over the head with details she had already gone over.

I do like her take on where the vampires came from. But there seem to be many holes in her plot line. Then again this is the first in a rather large series so she could clear some things up later.

Her sex scenes were a bit much for me...don't get me wrong I am all for a hot steamy love scene I guess I just find it better when every detail is not described...after all I do have an imagination.

I do plan on reading the next book. I was really not that into this read until about 2/3 of the way through but I was warned that her first book is more set up than anything else...she could have avoided that by not repeating herself over and over...

All in all it was an okay read...

National Foof Day

What is National Foof Day? Well, it is in celebration of a word that came about on Zuzu's Petal and Buds forum, kinda to replace tut...but it grew in its uses...

So, in honor of the wonderfully fun word a swap was proposed and had more participation than any other swap I have been in so far.

What was the swap? Create a piece of art that represents the word Foof to you. So, without further ado, here is my foof.

At first I was going to do a play on words and make a "Fooftastic recipe box" but I got as far as prepping the box...then it sat there waiting for me to finish but it just wasn't quite right.

So, one night I woke up with this idea...

I wanted something a bit cheeky but yet still feminine so i decided on this design...and it took every bit of my paper crafting and sewing skills to pull it off...


The First thing I did was to make the doll...I stamped and colored the face and then attached all the body parts (everything was stamped and or cut out of white cardstock) I attached them using some lovely pearl brads (very feminine) I am not an artist, well, at least not one with painting and drawing...so eluding to the "parts" a woman would have was difficult but I am pleased with the "hidden assets" I gave my doll...

To add some interest to the doll I gave her some stockings made out of a shimmery twaul (I have no idea how to spell that word) and for the garters I used thin ribbon and some fabric flowers.

The last touch on the "inside" of my Foof was to create a mirror for her to hold. I went back and forth as to weather to actually include this part or not...in the end I included it and slipped it in her hands.

The Doll was then glued to the floral background paper which is spritzed with gold Glimmer Mist.

To make the curtains I stamped a decorative background stamp using gold shimmery fabric paint on a green cotton. I sewed the edges under and threaded some pipe cleaners through he top and bottom. I then hand sewed them down... To hide a few of the messier sewing holes and pipe cleaner I added some gold glitter at the top and bottom.

The doors of her dressing room are attached with pink brads and the last touch was pink eyelets with ribbon strung through to keep the doors closed. The inside of the doors are lined with a pink shimmery cardstock.


I finished the piece off with some Gold German scrap along the top and a shear gold ribbon to hand her from.

I hope my Foof recipient enjoys my Foof...I had a lot of fun making her...

Vintage Love

This week over at Make a Moo or Two: It’s takes a while before it’s Valentine but to get in the “mood” this week’s theme is “Vintage love”. Anne made this gorgeous and inspiring example moo.

I am so in love with the new "True Romance" images by Altered by Design exclusively sold by Alpha Stamps. That of course I had to use one...but I did a bad bad thing...I photocopied the image I wanted to use because I also want to use it for an upcoming swap and I don't have the money right now to buy another sheet. So I am very very sorry...at least go look at the real thing...it is so much prettier than my washed out illegal image...

When I formulated my plan of this moo I had all these fabulous plans...rhinestones, lace, diamond glaze, a vintage cameo...and then I got to the stage you see above and I thought it looked perfect...despite the washed out illegal image, which serves me right.

So, all I did was add some pearl ex bronze powder to some decorative paper, affix my image and emboss the word Love and all around the edges...I hope you enjoy!

The Princess Bride

Okay so lets be honest, I read this book because I love the movie.

I must admit that I do not like the book as much as the movie. However there are a number of very interesting things in the book.

First, the bad, I found the sections that were not related to the story, you know where the grandfather is reading in the movie, very slow. The screenplay also changed the narrator in the movie. However, the thing I am most disappointed with, is that Buttercup is totally unbearable on paper...even more sappy than in the movie. I literally wanted to throw the book against the wall when she spoke, which is not often. For a book about her, there is very little with her in it.

Okay onto the fun stuff...the narrator in the book is William Goldman, the author, screenplay writer. It is a running dialog of his thoughts related to the book he is compressing. You get a little bit about his family (not sure if this is true) and a little bit about his job (I looked this up and it was confirmed, so when he talks about Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid, well, it is because he wrote it!)

I liked the back story on Fezzik and Inigo, they are after all in my opinion, what makes the story so good.

Here is what I am not sure about...my particular copy of this book has an additional chapter (maybe) called Buttercup's Baby. I really liked the story, could not stand his constant breaking in because it made the last 40 pages much longer than they needed to be...but it gives you a bit of insight into what does happen after "happily ever after"

All in all it was a fun read, I would not call it quick but if you love the movie you will definitely get some more depth from reading the book.