September Catch up

I have been so busy working on holiday gifts...things that I can't post, it would give away the surprise that I forgot to post some of the fun swaps and Repeat Impressions pieces that I finished in September. So here is a quick recap.

For starters this Gothic Arch covers a slew of challenges from this past week starting with the open Theme Gothic Arches let us play with.

Theme Thursday challenged us with: This week’s theme is “road trip”! Use images that make you think of a “road trip” in your creation this week!

One Powerful Hour wanted us to focus on: This weeks theme is fun and flirty, or down and dirty, it's shoes!
I love a pretty pair of dainty high heals, and I love the comfort of an old ratty tennis shoe. Create a piece of art using any style shoe. They can be the focal point or in the background, maybe the shape of your card, the possibilities are endless.

I think this arch does an okay job with all those things. Not so sure that Theme Thursday will consider a walk around Paris as a road trip...but it would be a big one for me...considering I live an ocean away!

The background paper is an old map of Paris. I then poked random holes at some fun looking locations and strung shimmery DMC Floss from one hole to the next. I stamped a high heal shoe using Versa Mark ink and covered that with Pearl Ex Powder, after sealing that I attached the sight seeing woman and then all around the edge I added sequins filling the center with pink seed beads.


These Fabulous Pennants are for a swap with Alpha Stamps. The requirements were that we must use the Pennant shape and holiday themed collage sheets and or rubber stamps by Alpha Stamps.

I Selected New collage sheet called Old Fashioned Christmas. I attached it to the Pennant and then used Tim Holtz Crackle paints in weathered wood and old paper to cover the rest of the pennant. When that had dried I added the snowflakes which are stamped and glittered.



My finishing touches are the Dresden around the edges and a fabulous silver snowflake that I attached at the bottom.

You can see a lot of the crackle detail and the shimmery effect of the glittered snow flake in the close up picture.









































Last but certainly not least is this piece that I did for Repeat Impressions. A Haunted Mansion belonging to who else by Count Dracula himself.

The background is made using orange acrylic paint. I let it dry and then smeared on in lines petroleum jelly, over that I painted very carefully, a cream acrylic. When the cream paint was dry enough not to smear I wiped the paint off, it removed the clear over the petroleum jelly leaving the fabulous random streaked effect. I thought it was a little to bright and happy so I stippled black and grey ink over the entire house.

All Stamps are from Repeat Impressions, I used the Bats, Haunted Tree, Dracula, Spiders Web, swirls, and Legacy Alphabet.

The swirls are purple pearl ex powder, when I took the photo they showed up blue. Dracula is painted with Twinkeling H2O's and so is the Haunted Tree. The Spiders web and the words are covered in glitter.

As a finishing touch I added the cat and pumpkin trim boarder...

Hope you enjoy!

What makes a Gentleman

For those of you that do not know, The Challenge Site Gothic Arches has moved. Please click the link in my side bar to go to the new location and to sign up. It now requires membership. I am so glad that the site did not close entirely I love the shape of the Arches and the caliber work uploaded every week is just amazing.

So, this week:

Our hostess this week is Dawn Bryson who created this beautiful arch selecting the theme "Time" for this weeks challenge. You may see more of Dawn's beautiful art on her blog thechattystamper.blogspot.com

I had been working on an altered playing card for this past weeks Theme Thursday. I did not like what I had come up with so I set it aside. The card had the clocks already stamped on. When I saw the theme at Gothic Arches I cut the card to the right side and my problems seemed solved. I think the overly large size of the playing card is what was throwing me off.

So I glued my men on and computer generated the phrase. As A final touch I added some Dresden on the sides and some clock hand stickers.

Sometimes you just need to set something aside before turning it into what it was meant to be.
Hope you enjoy!

Join my Seance

This week at Theme Thursday the theme is: Halloween

Use this theme in your creation this week! Use collage images, photos, rubber stamps, fancy paper , embellishments or any other art supply to give your creation a “Halloween” look.

I have had this fabulous ghost ribbon for almost a year and just had to use it.

I headed over to This Thursday, it's all about...and they had Black as the challenge.

Mixing the two challenges together I came up with this, what I consider, fabulous card. My only issue with it is I am not pleased with the silver rays around her head. I was trying to obtain a ghostly halo...didn't quite work.

Never the less I think the overall impression is very nice and hopefully it gives a new feel to the theme of Halloween...

Thanks for looking and please check out One Powerful Hour...this week the theme is Gold

Love Nest

Theme Thursday's Challenge today is:


This week’s theme is “hearts”! Use this theme in your creation this week! Use collage images, photos, rubber stamps, fancy paper , embellishments or any other art supply to give your creation a ”heart” look. Add your art to your blog, then post a direct link under the comments! Please include a link to Theme Thursday on your blog! Have fun and make art!

I have these absolutely fabulous old post cards featuring different birds and their nests. So i decided to make a "Love Nest"

The post card is mounted on light green paper that I stamped script all over. The Heart is embossed onto a mixed color background paper and then i wrapped it with some fibber that reminds me of the texture of a birds nest. The word Love is embossed in the same powder as the heart. The small hearts in the upper and lower corner are meant to make the postcard look like a playing card.

I hope you enjoy and please stop by One Powerful Hour...the theme this week is Fashion.

A tight rope walkers Secret

Today over at Theme Thursday they challenged us to...

This week’s theme is “winged people”! Use a person with wings in your creation this week! Use collage images, photos, rubber stamps, fancy paper , embellishments or any other art supply to give your creation a ”winged person” look. Add your art to your blog, then post a direct link under the comments! Please include a link to Theme Thursday on your blog! Have fun and make art!

There theme gave me a perfect idea for One Powerful Hour's theme of something having to do with the Circus.

When I made the original challenge piece I busted my time allowance. This time I made it with time to spare!

Some of the things that did not show up on the scan. The red swirls are all glitter and the wings are painted with sparkeling H2O's I wanted to kinda make them look invisible...guess you just have to imagine that part.

I hope you enjoy my "Tight Rope Walkers Secret"
Rubber Hugs
Caro

A Tootsie Roll Halloween

Today over at Theme Thursday the challenge is....

This week’s theme is “favorite holiday”! Use your favorite holiday theme in your creation this week! Use collage images, photos, rubber stamps, fancy paper , embellishments or any other art supply to give your creation a ”favorite holiday” look. Add your art to your blog, then post a direct link under the comments! Please include a link to Theme Thursday on your blog! Have fun and make art!

Here is how I created this collage...

Tape Tootsie Roll wrappers into a long strand, cut off edges. Weave together with orange paper to form background.

Stamp Women (Rubber Baby Buggy Bumpers) on white paper with black ink color with colored pencils. Embellish one woman with pink glitter, dove grey flocking and white ribbon. For second woman cut out a black felt piece as the dress, embellish with red ribbon and red jewels attach devils tail using a black pipe cleaner. Emboss wings (Stampers Anonymous) with kaleidoscope powder on white paper. Paint using Silver Bells Radiant Pearls, embellish with Dove grey flocking, trim closely and attach to woman.

Emboss Decorative Leaves (Hero Arts) with various autumn shades and paint with watercolors in similar hues, trim closely.

Paint fencing with white acrylic paint and dust with browns and green inks.

Attach Tootsie Roll background to black card. Mount Women, Decorative Leaves and fence to card. Cut circle out of yellow paper, using slightly darker shade of yellow stamp Sleepy Moon (Rubber Stampede). Mount in corner. Attach Words using a combination of stickers, tin letters and mini blank circles dusted with inks and stamped with letters (A B Seas).

Hope you enjoy! And as always I am open to any and all types of comments.
Rubber Hugs
Caro

A Royal Form and A Stitch in Time

Today at Theme Thursday the theme is…

This week’s theme is “torso - mannequin”! Use collage images, rubber stamps, paints, fancy paper , embellishments or any other art supply to make your creation in a torso - mannequin theme. Make an ATC, 4 x 4, card, inchie, altered tag, inchie, skinny or whatever you fancy! There are tons of cool torso stamps, torso collage images and a wonderful torso template can be found here (although you do not need to use it for the challenge): ttp://www.ruthannzaroff.com/mirkwooddesigns/mannequin.htm Add your art to your blog, then post a direct link under the comments! Please include a link to Theme Thursday on your blog! Have fun and make art!

I have submitted to this Stampers Sampler Challenge. Since I have not heard from them I am assuming that my pieces did not make it. So, they are perfect for this.

The first one is called “A Royal Form” I made these last year and looking at it now I can see how much I have grown. I absolutely can not stand the hard edge of the collage sheet on the right hand side. I still like the overall concept though.

I aged book pages using Tim Holtz distressing ink and covered the form randomly. Then I attached the Collage sheet image from Alpha Stamps. Masking the collage images I stamped the swirls with versa mark and covered it with powdered glue, that heats up like embossing powder, then sprinkled it with gold glitter. To finish it off I added a gold crown.

Sorry this one is blurry…the crown is very 3D making the scan not clean in some places.

The Second piece is called “A Stitch in Time” I used a decorative background paper and stamped the clock randomly. I then hand stitched around the edge with a mixture of bronze and a deep/brick red DMC floss. The belt is made from a dressmakers ruler and the clock parts are sticking through it. To finish it off I added a mini pair of scissors.

I hope you enjoy
Caro

Pari

Today’s theme at Theme Thursday is…

This week’s theme is “Paris”! Use collage images, rubber stamps, paints, fancy paper , embellishments or any other art supply to make your creation in a Paris theme. Make an ATC, 4 x 4, card, inchie, altered tag, inchie, skinny or whatever you fancy! Add your art to your blog, then post a direct link under the comments! Please include a link to Theme Thursday on your blog! Have fun and make art

I decided to go all out…really push my collage abilities. I spent a few minutes thinking of everything Paris that I could, I came up with of course the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dam, the French Revolution and Haute Couture. Amazingly I had a way to represent every single one of these aspects.

To start I painted the canvas brick red and then stamped French script all over. Using collage images from Paula’s Kit Club I painted the dress with sparkling H2O’s and then cut it out, along with the multitude of heads, and legs I have on the piece. I glued all those elements on and then using a tan acrylic paint I stippled/smeared the ruff lines.

The church window is from Stampington & Co. I stamped, colored and then printed that out on transparency. The Eiffel tower, from Stamp Land Chicago, is stamped in balck behind the transparency which I attached using brass brads.

“Haute Couture” is stamped on fabric that I hand stitched onto the canvas. “Off with her Head” is stamped on scrap paper and then torn and attached. The letters are from Stampington & Co. The vintage shoe is black embossed across the bottom and finaly “Pari” is gold embossed.

With all that said and done I covered the entire piece with Egyptian Gold Sparkeling H2O…so the entire piece shimmers.

I hope you enjoy…as always I am open to all types of evaluation.
Caro

Dearly Loved

Today’s Theme Thursday is… This week’s theme is “letters of the alphabet”! Use one or more letters of the alphabet on your creation this week! Use them on their own or use letters to make up a word!

When I was up in Boston visiting Janice from the Circle of Friends I bought a pack of rub on letters, my first rub on’s ever! I just loved them.

So of course I had to use them today. But starting with a letter is the easy part. It was where to go from there that proved a little daunting. I’ve mentioned before that I purchased a slew of collage sheets from Altered Pages so I flipped through them until I found this image of a mother and child. It seemed perfect for the “Dearly Beloved” letter.

Keeping with the theme of alphabet I stamped script all over a sepia card and aged an old book page using Tim Holtz Distressing ink. The heart, which I am disappointed with, is embossed using Desert Sand embossing powder. I stamped and embossed it right on the cardstock and then using my craft knife to cut along the top of the heart allowing me to slide the collage image behind.

Rubbed the marvelous letter on and added the lace as a finishing touch.

I am not pleased with this piece at all. I don’t know if it is the colors I selected (not my usual and I was trying something new out) or if my composition is off. Any suggestions would be welcome.

Caro

Beach Baby

The theme at Theme Thursday was perfect for me it is….

“warm colors”! Use one or more warm colors in your creation this week! Warm colors - red, yellow and orange! You may use other colors as well, but have one of these “warm colors” as one of your main colors in your art!

Since Mixed media Monday’s theme of texture I have been working on a few pieces that feature Kudzu. Something has been off about all of them…that was until I decided to go with the “Warm tones” instead of the cool tones I was using. I would like a bit more texture in this piece but I don’t really know how to add it and be able to stamp. Any suggestions???

So here is what I did. I found a picture of Kudzu that I just love love love. Cut a mat board and dabbed on acrylic paint. Once that dried I stamped the sea shells from Paula’s Kit Club. To add shimmer (which I can’t do without) I added gold pearl ex powder, which I sealed so it would not wipe off over time. Next I embossed the swirl using Tim Holtz distressing embossing powder. Added some actual sand around the mat board opening pulled some tulle across the upper left hand corner and then added a few splash stickers and warm toned tacks.

This one is suppose to be for my Grandmother, Kudzu’s Great Grandmother but I’m not sure I can part with it now.

Enoy!
Caro

Mermaid by the Sea

This week’s theme at Theme Thursday is…

“by the sea”! Think beaches, sand, shells, mermaids, fish, bathing beauties…. anything that relates to the sea! Use collage images, rubber stamps, fancy paper , embellishments or any other art supply to give your art a “by the sea” look. Make an ATC, 4 x 4, card, inchie, altered tag, skinny or whatever you fancy!

As many of you know this is one of my all time favorite themes; be it because many of my childhood’s best memories were of me with family on the Beach, because I love the sound of the oceans crashing, or just because I am a fish out of water.

I created this peace a few months ago for an Alpha Stamp monthly contest. Alas, it did not win, the woman’s who did win sooooooooooo deserved it! But I love this creation. I was trying to capture the elements of the sea in my studio which is far from any body of water…sigh…I keep it within sight and imagine that my large window overlooks the ocean and not the house across the street.

I glued pop sickle sticks together and then stained them with alcohol inks. I painted over that with cream acrylic that I sanded off to let some of the alcohol ink show through. Oh, I had some gold shinny powder mixed in with the acrylic so the entire area has a shimmery effect, like the sun glistening off water. I then stamped the sea shells from Paula’s Kit Club randomly all over. The image of the mermaid is from Alpha Stamp.

I hope you enjoy!