If Music Be The Food Of Love

When I saw that one

of the challenges at Bird is the Word was to use the word "MUSIC", the verse from Shakespeare's Twelfth Night came to mind. So I made this...

I adhered a piece 

of Imaginisce DP from their fall collection of last year to my page with gel medium... then some torn scraps of music sheet tissue paper. I rubbed on a little Yellow Ochre acrylic paint with my finger and covered it all with Clear Rock Candy crackle paint.  A random layer of molding paste using the Mini Tile Texture stencil from Crafter's Workshop went on next. When it was dry, I applied a bit of Red Ochre acrylic here and there.

I cut a heart with

my Spellbinder's die and stamped it using my Love Set from Rubber Stamp Tapestry and Jet Black Archival ink. I stamped the center of the O with a rose peg stamp, then the leaves. I went over all with a crackled effect stamp, then scrunched up the heart in my hand for some wrinkles... applied it to the page with gel medium and rubbed on some of the Red Ochre and some more of that crackled stamping. The shadowing is done with a black soft charcoal pencil. I rubbed some Jet Black Archival ink on the horn charm and added it using Glossy Accents.

I printed the verse

on my Mac, added Wild Honey and Rusty Hinge Distress Ink, applied the words to my page with gel medium and finally did more shadowing with the black soft charcoal.

More of the Jet Black

ink went around the edges of the page... then I called it quits! A very enjoyable project.

I'm linking my page at:

Anything But A Card Challenge - Incorporate Black into Your Project
Balzer Designs - Art Journal Every Day

Bird is the Word - Music

Thanks for stopping by today!

Hugs!

Linda

Inside And Out

Talk about under the

gun. I created this card to enter in The Kraft Journal's Inside and Out challenge, and just discovered it ends in the next two hours. Last minute or what?

I started out with

my favorite Kraft cardstock... Lunch Bag Kraft. From there I built layers with The Timeless Type 8x8 paper stack from DCWV. Lots of edge distressing with my Tonic paper distresser, Vintage Photo Distress Ink and Distress Stain.

The chipboard pieces are

from Prima's Londonerry collection, the flowers are I Am Roses, May Arts black burlap string and ribbon from my stash.

From Idea-ology:

ChitChat Stickers, Long Fasteners, Mini Paper Clips, Mini Gears and Label Pulls.

The inside.

I really want to

show you this today... time crunch or not. The Penmaker did this one last night and I thought it was soooo gorgeous... just had to post this.

There are tiny birds

and flowers imbedded in the acrylic... wish these photos did it justice.

Now to enter that challenge.

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs!

Linda

In Thy Presence

I haven't done any

art journaling for a couple weeks. It's something I really need to stay up with... like stretches and exercises. It's vital!

This page started out

with a piece of primitive star tissue adhered with gel medium... some dry brushing with Yellow Ochre and Red Ochre acrylic paint. Shadowing on the stars with soft charcoal then a bit of stamping using Archival Jet Black ink and Stampers Anonymous Curious Possibility set. Grabbing my Crafter's Workshop Mini Punchinella stencil, I randomly laid down some Coffee Archival. Now a little finger painting with Titanium White acrylic for some highlights.

The text was stamped 

onto a book page that I glued to cardstock for reinforcement. It, too, was applied with gel medium... then outlined with my White Gelly Roll pen and shadowed with charcoal. I finished with Black Soot Distress Ink rubbed around the edges of my page. Quick and easy! 

I'm linking my page at:

Balzer Designs - Art Journal Every Day
Word Art Wednesday - Anything Goes

Be sure to visit Julie's

blog here and check out what's coming for December!

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs!

Linda

My First Christmas Card Of The Year And Something To Go With It

The new Jingles Belles

prompt is a Creature Feature. Do you think this will qualify?...

I have been saying

all year that I had to get started on my Christmas cards, and here it is the end of October and I'm finally getting to it. The purchase of this Artistic Outpost Midwinter stamp set from Linda at The Funkie Junkie Boutique is what finally motivated me to get creating...

As you can see,

I used the cabin scene with the teeny, tiny deer. I also made a tag using the Yuletide Greeting, but couldn't fit it onto my card.

The papers are from

7 Gypsies Lille 8x8 pad, plus red cardstock and a scrap of red gingham. The inks are Archival Jet Black and Vintage Photo Distress. The flowers and skeleton leaves are I Am Roses that were misted with Lindy's Stamp Gang Scintillating Silver Glitz Spritz. The die used for the foliage are Alterations Mini Pine Tree & Holly Set and Spellbinder's Foliage. 

I cut my stamped image

out with Spellbinder's Labels One. Also included is a star button and paper doily from my stash, corner pieces from Momenta, May Arts red burlap string and gingham elastic ruffled ribbon, and natural woven jute ribbon also from Linda's boutique.

Stop over at the Jingle

Belles blog and check out Lauren's and Stephanie's cards as well as all the other entries.... some great inspiration!

I'm entering these challenges:
Fab' n' Funky Challenges - Animals
Fussy and Fancy - Anything Goes
Jingle Belles - Creature Feature
The Crafty Pad Designs - Use An Animal

It's been some time

since I posted some of the Penmaker's work. This one was just too pretty to by pass...

He made it from a

piece of antler and I thought it went beautifully with my deer image... this should sell as a package deal. Hummm... an ideal forming!

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs!

Linda

A City Crafter Make Over

Hostess Kirsty's

challenge at City Crafter's Challenge Blog for Week 132 is to do a Make Over.

I have a box full of

cards I made when I first started out that I don't particularly like, so this challenge provided some inspiration for me to try an upgrade on one of them.   Here is my before...

and my after...

I tore off that top mat

and put it on a new card base... new size, new color... French Roast by Core'dinations. Added a mat from Tim Coffey's K & Company Fall 12x12 pad.

Two new trims

and skeleton leaves and flowers from I Am Roses misted with Lindy's Stamp Gang Scintillating Silver Glitz Spritz.

A new organza bow

of Michael's ribbon topped with another misted I Am Roses flower.

What are your thoughts?

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs!

Linda

Comfort From The Pioneer Woman

Tomorrow I will have 

completed two weeks of life with shingles covering the right side of my face. Will this ever end? I can't remember ever having spent so much time curled up on my rocker with a hot drink watching old movies and HGTV. Last night I stumbled across The Pioneer Woman and spent several hours watching her cook her way through birthday parties, sleep overs and camp outs. Oh man... I loved watching that girl create in the kitchen!

Today, I just had to 

make another visit to her blog to read recipes, and the first to pop up was this one for Corn Dog Muffins...

Don't these look fabulous?

Now if you follow my

blog you are probably wondering why all the talk about food. The truth is... I'm starving! Not really... but with these blisters in my mouth and pain in my teeth I can't eat anything cold or of substance... only foods similar to what babies eat... ugh!!! Thus my fixation on food! 

I'll be happy when I 

can pull out some paper, a rubber stamp and Distress Ink again... but in the mean time... Food Network, here I come!

Thanks for the visit!

Hugs!

Linda

A Win, A Haul And Shingles

When my children

were small, I would get an old Bing Crosby recond album from the library to play for them called "An Axe, An Apple and a Buckskin Jacket"... which really has nothing to do with this post, other than while I was typing my title the similarity of three words connected with and, brought it to my mind.

A WIN...

for this card at City Crafters...

A HAUL...

from The Funkie Junkie Boutique...

and SHINGLES.

No photo of this.

I have it, of all places, on my face and for awhile, the doctor was concerned about my eye. I've completed the second exam today with an eye specialist, and thankfully it's doing fine. I thank my dear Lord God for that.

As soon as I can see

clearly again, I'll be back with some new projects. Can't wait to use these Artistic Outpost stamps!

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs!

Linda

What Do You Do On A Rainy Day

I am really loving

paper pads! I find when I have them on hand, I don't have to search for long to find what I want to put together. As with this ...

I pulled out these...

and created a card.

I did a little

machine stitching and distressing - Black Soot Distress Ink. From my stash, I added a paper doily and some teeny tiny buttons, along with May Arts Red Burlap String. Next came the fun stuff... a couple of blossoms from I Am Roses that I sprayed with Lindy's Stamp Gang Scintillating Silver Glitz Spritz.

The Prima bloom

is an old one... it got a mist of SS Glitz Spritz as well, and was teamed with an I Am Roses skeleton leaf and two pearl stick pins left over from my son's wedding.

Pretty simple... huh?

The verse on the Graphic 45 paper reads:

What do you do on a Rainy day,

Out in the pouring wet?

If your umbrella you have brought,

Laughing beneath you get!

Laugh, then, whether it's wet or fine,

It is your laughter gay

Makes the bright sun seem to shine,

Though 'tis a rainy day!

I thought of several occasion I can use this card for, and when the time comes, I will most likely add an additional sentiment at the bottom of the card.

I am entering my card in these challenges:

City Crafters Challenge - Be Inspired

Word Art Wednesday - Be Ye Kind

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs!

Linda

Tic Tac Toe

They're playing

Tic Tac Toe at Shopping Our Stash this week. The challenge is for you to use any row... horizontally, diagonally or vertically... on your project. 

 

Actually, I have all 

but the brad and kraft on mine, and didn't realize it till I went back and looked at the game board again. I was going for the embossing, flower and yellow...

I had made a card

from some of these pieces last year, but didn't use it and decided to rip it apart. Glad I didn't throw it all away, because I like what I made this time so much better.

I used Cuttlebug's

Swiss Dots embossing folder, Black Soot and Vintage Photo Distress Ink, and May Arts Ivory Burlap String. The rhinestones are Teresa Collins Haunted Hallows.

This bronze acorn

and the corner piece are both from Momenta.

The flowers and

skeleton leaves are I Am Roses, the wheat sprays are from an Etsy shop and the Bo Bunny Rust Dot paper leaves were cut with Spellbinder's Foliage die set. The two rose buds at the top were originally white and I sprayed them with Sunset Orange and Butterscotch Color Wash by Ranger.

Remind me not 

to throw away a card I don't like... it just might be worth re-making!

Weekend's a coming... have a fabulous Friday.

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs!

Linda

Kaisercraft Timeless

Today was grey and

rainy... a perfect day to spend in my craft room. I made this...

from this...

Such a fabulous

collection of patterns... it was hard to choose which ones I wanted to use.

I teamed them with

Bazzzill Cream Puff and Recollections Kraft cardstock. All the leaves and flowers are from I Am Roses. 

I used Spellbinders

Large Scalloped Circles and Lacy Circles dies. The little rose layered sticker is My Mind's Eye Follow Your Heart and the metal corner piece is by Momenta. Vintage Photo Distress Ink was sponged on the paper edges and Worn Lipstick was applied to the dress with a Ranger Craft Nib.

I had a fun time

putting this one together. Right now Distress Inks are my number one favorite crafting product. What are you working with that you enjoy above all?

Thanks for the visit today!

Hugs!

Linda

A Bit Different

This is the card 

I made for my son's thirty-first birthday...

I know, I know...

not your typical birthday card... but believe me... it suites him well.

I used My Mind's Eye

Mischievous collection from last year. Wish I would have stocked up on these... love the grungy look they have.

The leaves were cut

with Sizzix Alterations Tattered Leaves die. Also used their Mini Bat & Skull and Mini Tickets Sets.

I cut the banner

with Spellbinder's Ribbon Banners. The image was purchased last year from an Etsy shop.

The flowers are

I Am Roses and the Recollections orange glittered leaves are a close-out item from Michaels I got last year. It's a good thing I was looking ahead in 2011, because I haven't found much for fall lately that I like aside from Tim Coffey's 12x12 Fall pad.

Seth and Adrienne at our 

favorite Mexican restaurant where we had his birthday dinner. Good times!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Hugs!

Linda

A Sign of Fall

I bought the Alterations

Hanging Sign die last year and this is only the second time I have used it. Seriously, I need to weigh out my purchases more thoroughly before I jump in and buy just for the sake of having something that's new. So, here is the second project made with the sign die...

The papers are from

the K & Company Tim Coffey Fall 12x12 pad I got at Michaels for 50% off. The flowers are I Am Roses and the orange glittered leaves are Recollections. The chain is Idea-ology and the seam binding was a free sample from an Etsy store. The Distressed Ink I used is Black Soot.

I embossed the sign

with Cuttlebug's Distress Stripes embossing folder... the closest one I had to resemble wood.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Hugs!

Linda

Bo Bunny's Apple Cider

Autumn means time

to buy new fall themed paper packs, and Bo Bunny's Apple Cider is my 6x6 paper pad of choice.

I teamed it with

Core'dination's kraft textured cardstock to make this card...

The metal corner is

by Idea-ology and the five different buttons and paper doily are from my stash.

This squirrel image was 

free from The Graphics Fairy... be sure to check out Karen's fabulous blog here.

I stamped this image

using Unity's Donna Downey Insightful Meadows set and Coffee Archival ink onto a piece of the Apple Cider... then did some fussy cutting. Inked the edges with Gathered Twigs Distress Ink and put it onto my card with 3-D foam squares. I distressed my seam binding bow with GT and topped it with a vintage button.

It's a beauty of a

day here in Ohio, but it's gotten a bit chillier. Our leaves are gorgeous, and we seem to spend as much time out of doors as we possibly can just trying to take it all in.

Have a wonderful fall weekend!

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs!

Linda