SOLDERING ON AGAIN

I gave the soldering another go...this time over a "Memories" metal frame....and I still haven't got all things aligned!...the filigree top is a bit lopsided...more practice needed me thinks...vbg.

The birdy side is the front...silly Blog method still confuses me...ho-hum!

I used a background paper, a bird print-out,a tiny feather and a shred of music sheet on the front.The same paper was used for the back with a butterfly wing print-out and a scrap of sequin waste.

This time I used the wavey edged copper foil and am pleased with the look of it, altho' I still have a long way to go with my soldering technique.

I also discovered that if I soak the gold metal filigree embellishment in the flux to darken it BEFORE soldering it to the pendant,
it will NOT attach...there is always something to learn,eh?

Click on images to enlarge.

'TIS A SAD DAY!

I know it's a bit late to be talking about Christmas but I forgot to put this up at the time and my GD is busting to see herself on the computer....vbg.

Today, my 8 year old grand-daughter got to demolish the Gingerbread House that she and I assembled before Christmas,and then she ate Hansel and Gretal and the old witch!

I ate the peppermint flavoured M&Ms...very yummy!

The back was decorated with them as well so there were plenty to munch on.

The gingerbread itself was rock hard ...we probably could have kept the whole thing until next year...if I knew the ants wouldn't attack it...vbg.

I bought it as a kit from Aldi's and we only had to assemble it by mixing up some icing and decorating it with some of the supplied goodies .

We added the green M&Ms to the house and a gold star at the top of the tree.

It really looked great on our dinner table and she was as proud as punch!

SOLDERING ON

The day before Bevlea went home, I attempted my first effort at making a Soldered Microscope Glass pendant...and I really should be ashamed of myself as to the mess I made of it, as, about 15 years ago,I actually learned how to make the lead light windows which are beautifully gracing our front door entry!

I think it's the SIZE that throws me... I have NEVER been any good at miniature work.

Really,the technique is not hard. I think I used the wrong flux as it was very oily.

I peeled off my first attempt and used some flux I had in the shed from my lead-lighting learning days and the copper foil was much easier to apply.

I didn't get the words straight either but I will try harder with the next one...should there be a next one...vbg.

The face side is the front...click on images to enlarge.

PAPERARTS GROUP PROJECT

Every year our Yahoo group has a group project for the end of the year.
This is our 2008 one.

Originally there were 24 participants but some got lost along the way so 21 of us were in the final count....to replace the missing ones,we tweaked a few tiles and I made extra.

Everyone was given a shape to cut 24 of, and told to texturise but not heavily embellish it and they were then sent to me here so Bevlea and I could assemble the final piece whilst she was here on her annual visit.

We spent three days,drank 2 casks of chardy, ate two packets of crisps and 2 packets of Jatz crackers along with two containers of dips.... a mild one for her and a spicy one for me...drank numerous cups of coffee and green tea and lived off left-overs of left-overs whilst assembling the 21 of them!

Bevlea assembled the tiles onto the backing and I added the bling and rusty elements to the tiles and the distressed music sheet peaks and eggs to the top.

I distressed the music sheet with a wash of acrylic paint, then used Ranger Distress ink on the points and finally gave it a coat of shellac.

We were pleased with the resulting finished project and I am sure the recipients will be too.

My Finished Mosaic

This is my finished mosaic...I have it displayed on a black metal easel which sets it off well, but not shown here.


Because I am a rebel...but mainly because I have a lot of stash to try to use up before I go to the Big Studio in the sky, I added more bling and rusty elements and red German Scrap strips to the tiles and a double row of music peaks and black German Scrap to the base....I am thrilled with the finished project.

Thanx to all of the participants ..it looks terrific.

OUR CANVAS CREATIONS

Friday and Saturday was spent mostly creating an 8 X 10 canvas for each other, although it took me twice as long to do mine as it did Bevlea hers!

This top one is the first one of mine, which is the one I am keeping.
The second one is for Bevlea. I like the face on the second one better than the first.
We gessoed,painted,transferred music paper and text (not too successfully I am afraid...must have been the old paper and the canvas not liking each other)...making a heck of a mess in the kitchen, where I have a table directly under a huge sky-light which is the best place in the house to create a big project.

During the process, my hubby came out to make his Milo night-cap, only to compete with all our mess!....there was hardly enough space on the bench to fit his cup let alone the kilo tin of Milo!

I am truly blessed to have a very easy-going spouse. Nothing seems to phase him...he just fits in...where he can...LOL.

(Mind you, it took me THREE weddings to find him!...but that's another story...LOL)

So...more washes of paint, stenciling of sequin waste in two sizes and even more gessoing finally saw them ready to add the images.

I decided to use both paper and paints for mine while Bevlea used only paints.

Obviously I drew and painted her face and used printed images of birds and an egg, but I experimented with strips of papers for her skirt and I love the way it turned out.I will definitely do that again.

BEV'S TO ME

This is the canvas that Bevlea created for me...isn't it lovely?


Of course, she had both hers (one for her and one for me) done while I was still plodding along on my first one...talk about Speedy Gonzales!!...I reckon she would burn him off in no time!...vbg

MY LATEST ATC

This one was created for our Paper-Arts monthly swap, the theme being "Weird and Wacky Chairs".

Hand dyed back-ground, spattered with Moon Glow Mist. I found the image in a newspaper.

Rudolf has his red nose turned on so the birdies can see where to land and won't fall off his graciously supplied "chairs".

He has rusty metal cog "shades" on his eyes to protect them from the glare of his "shiny nose".

SHE'S HERE...SHE'S HERE!

The much awaited day finally arrived!
(BUT.... I didn't hear any bells!!!..she had left them at home!)

Bevlea is now here for her annual break away from home to stay at her "home away from home" in Wagga Wagga for a week or so.

After a pleasant, uneventful trip, she arrived in time for a left-over Christmas ham sandwich and a hot cuppa and then we settled in for a chat.

As is our usual, there was the annual Paper-Art's Christmas project swap to discuss and assemble. This year it is a mosaic wall hanger, where all participants had to colour and texturise 24 tiles of assorted shapes. So we got out the template of it and excitedly started arranging the shapes on it, only to find that there were three lots missing...one lot is apparently still in the Christmas post back-up, which will probably make it here in time but the other two sets we will make up ourselves as they will not arrive at all.

Anyway...it is looking really great...I can't wait to get them finished and sent off to the participants...I am sure they will love it. I will put up a pic of it when finished.

Since then, we have been on a stash buying spree, with another to come when we head into the Art Supplies store here tomorrow (Monday).

Today we have been updating our personal blogs and will soon be off to begin playing in "the studio"...(more commonly known as the "Spotlight room" by my family...vbg)

BEVLEA'S GIFT TO ME

Bevlea created this wonderful A4 sized art just for me!!!!...I am sooooo lucky!!!...I am going to get a frame for it so it will be preserved forever...just as our friendship is!

Bevlea arrived on New Year's Day along with her "baby" ,the "Princess" of their household!.She is such a sweet little thing...very timid...and hence very spoiled...vbg.

Her trip to the country IS educating the Princess tho'!

She had NEVER been on grass before and it was so funny watching her picking up her feet as she was discovering it on paws used to only concrete.Today, she actually went running on it, sniffing it then rolling in it...I think she likes it now! David...(Maggie's two legged daddles) will have to get her a grass mat for the backyard ...vbg.

She has also conquered the doggy door..it no longer is a challenge to be viewed with distrust...she ins and outs when she feels like it, and has apparently even made friends with a Magpie,a regular visitor to our yard.

WE GIRLS

Here's a nice close-up of Bevlea's lovely "girl-friends"...aren't they gorgeous?

Apparently I am the one on the right as the figure represents my culinary and domesticated skills by the clothes that I am wearing. Look closely and you may find a good recipe to follow...vbg.

As the cook book page Bevlea used is from 1940's, this is also a dig at my ever increasing age! Mind you, she is not all that far behind me!

THE PRINCESS

This is a paper doll I made for Bevlea for a gift, using an image of Maggie's head and paws.She is such a spoilt little pet that I reckon the name "Princess" will stick foreva!

Anyway, I think HRH's mum liked it...it IS a very good likeness of her!...LOL

Her dress is from a Paper Whimsy Collage sheet image, which I added the paper lace, diamantes and Silver KindyGlitz to.

She sports a pretty pink ribbon sash, with a diamante flower trim and a cute pink bow at her neck.

Her Crown has a fluffy pink feather trim and diamantes to adorn it.

All in all, I think she feels very pretty.

A GIFT FOR MY FRIEND

Here is a close up of Maggie's "Heart"...and the Princess that she is,she is never far away from her mum.

PLAYING WITH FRIENDS

Yesterday, I joined in by proxy with my dear friend Bevlea,Lucy, Glenda and Elizabeth..all at Bevlea's, to experiment with one of Kelly Rae Roberts projects from her book "Taking Flight" ( Wagga Wagga is 6 hours away from Bevlea's house...too far for a day trip...even for a crow..vbg)

I struck a disastrous hiccup though when I burnt my clay pieces, so I thought I was going to have to get some more clay today to re-do them.(TIP: never get engrossed in other things when cooking polymer clay!)

However, I saw them in a different light today and decided that I could resurrect them by painting them over.

I had planned on using a canvas board as the base and infact, had one ready to go, but I found a piece of old pine, almost the correct, size out amongst my "treasures" in the back shed, and decided to use it instead, as Kelly herself had used a piece of wood.

It's a little off square but I think that adds to it's character,and I like the way it stands without support.

I am not very good at "copying", so my finished project is well and truly tainted with my own style, altho' you should be able to see Kelly's ideas as the base of the work.

Four Calling Birds

I made this "bauble" for a "Twelve Days Of Christmas" swap run by my friend Linda B.
There were 12 of us in the swap, with only 3 of us being Aussies, the rest from the UK.
I used more of my CC technique paper,run thru' the Cuttlebug,gold embossed and then dotted it with Kindy Glitz.
Added a bird's head,German Scrap Wings and a piece of border as a crown.
Feathers,and a glass heart bead finish it off. The number 4, which I cut from a Cuttlebug die,is attached with a fishing swivel.It is embossed using craft glue as the adherent to give a chunky finish.
Gold paper covers the back, with images of 4 birds calling Santa on the phone.I added coiled red wire for the phone cord.

My Sanity

Mixed Media Wall Hanger

This is something else I made whilst in hospital recently.

I used a quarter of a fabric table napkin as the background, and added an image of Lina (again..vbg) that I printed onto Calico, stitching it in place by adding other forms of embellishments, which I have described in the close-up info under this.

I wandered out into the beautiful hospital grounds to search for, and found, the right twig to use as the hanger, which I anchored to another twig, hidden in a pocket at the top, with copper wire, and finished that off with wire coils,made by winding the wire around a darning needle.

I added feathers and three glass flower beads on coiled copper wires to the bottom of the hanger.

Click on images to enlarge.

This is a close-up that shows the embellishments I used. Grape vine tendrils from my last summer's vine. Little fabric flowers that were on a vintage bridal head garland,which I rusted,along with the old lace at the top.

I also used a piece of white paper doily,a strip of music sheet and a piece of paper that I made using the credit card technique. I stitched these on rustically with gold metallic thread.

Feathers,pearl spray,gold grape vine trim (on left,over pearl spray) and a paper image of a little bird finished her off.

Big Girl Panties !

Not only did I do the series of bird ATCs called "Freedom" whilst languishing in my "pent-house suite" for two weeks, I also made eleven other ATCs , just for fun...and because I could...vbg.

I pondered as to whether I should risk boring everyone (those of you who are reading this) by uploading all of them, but, as this is my "learning curve" period, I decided to take that risk in the attempt to learn more about blogging...so....please bear with me while I struggle thru' this stage...vbg.

My dear friend and tutor of all things cyber that I don't understand, has done her darndest to see that I "get it" so I am obligated to pass this test!

So dear "Mary"...I have my "big girl panties on" and here goes!!..vbg

SPYING EYE

Rusted paper,fabric paper and copper border sticker strips surround a square image of Lina on a hand dyed watercolour paper back-ground,with added rusted cog and dragonfly embellishments.

I love the rusty metal doo-dads...especially when used on sepia toned images.

It is easy to rust paper and metal doo-dads...all you need is one of the old "Willow" brand tin Swiss roll baking trays,which has seen better days and has already begun to rust.If it hasn't, just get stuck into it with a sharp instrument and give it a good going over! I suggest you rust the tray up first to get better results with the paper.
Mix 2 parts brown vinegar to 1 of water,lay the paper (or metal doo-dads) into the tray and just cover with the mixture. You can also add a little bleach and salt to hasten the procedure but it won't take long anyway.It also helps to add objects that are already rusty,like nails,screws,washers etc.
This MUST be done outdoors and be left out to rust.

Hang the papers to dry and either brush off excess rust powder or seal with a clear spray.