merry Christmas!

hello and

happy halloween eve!

I know...it's been a while...

yikes!

we took off for a 10 day get-away

 to celebrate our anniversary...

we had fun...

and before that it was finalizing 

NEW STAMPS & stuff for CHA January...

S U P E R  F U N!

so, that's where I've been...

normal blogging

 is now on the schedule...

before moving on to the little art, 

I need to update my schedule...

I started getting questions about attending the OOAK stamping convention, 

at the Alliant Energy Center,

 in Madison, Wisconsin...

I replied to at least 10 people & said it was not on my schedule...

but...

change of plans...

now it is!

so I'll be there November 20, 21 & 22nd demoing and 

doing a make & take 

for the event on Friday evening...

I hope you can plan to come see us!

ok...

I know it's halloween eve...

but Christmas is really my favorite holiday, 

so...

here's a fun little holiday art for you today...

instead of sending a card, I thought it would be fun to make little "arts" that can sit on a shelf...

or they could be hung on the tree 

with a hinge clip...

 magic mat board is a nice sturdy, 

lightweight surface to work on & 

it likes paints, embossing powders & 

both distress and archival inks, very well...

you get a 6 x 12 inch sheet of white and 

a 6 x 12 sheet of black in the package...

for a REALLY great price...

here's the steps...

cut a piece of white magic mat board

 to 3 x 4 inches...

cut a piece of black magic mat board 

to 3 ¼ x 4 ¼ inches...

swipe the cornflower blue archival pad onto the craft sheet, add rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol and mix the ink into the alcohol with a palette knife...

place the white mat board 

into the inky solution & dry...

lightly ink the script stamp with 

tree branch archival and

 stamp over the base...

use the happy holidays stencil 

to stencil the large tree 3 times, 

using fern green archival...

make sure to vary the heights of the tree...

ink the spatter stamp 

(it comes in the faux graniteware starter set)

with glacier white pigment ink & stamp over the base & dry...

ink the large black mat mini pine tree with 

fern green archival, then sprinkle with 

fern green embossing powder & 

heat to melt the powder...

ink the spatter stamp with glacier white 

and stamp over the tree, then dry...

use jet black archival to stencil

merry christmas at the top...

it's easy to add a snow bank to the bottom, 

using white embossing paste...

sprinkle with rock candy distress glitter, 

while the paste is still wet...

glue the mat mini pine tree to the base and add

 a mirrored star to the tree top...

to create the little bird...

use the custom brick embossing powder...

here's the recipe...

mix one scoop of red geranium embossing powder with one scoop of orange blossom embossing powder and add 1/2 scoop of watering can embossing powder and then mix in 2 scoops of frosted crystal embossing powder...

ink a manila scrap with

red geranium archival ink & 

sprinkle with the brick powder, 

while the ink is wet...

heat to melt the powder, 

then use tim's bird punch 

to create a custom little bird...

this is a great way to use those scraps & create custom perfectly coordinated embellishments...

add the bird to the left side of the snow bank...

add a black glaze pen dot to create his eye...

then mount the white base onto

 the black magic mat board base,

 to act as a frame...

you can write your greeting on the back with a metallic or white pen...

or use one of the metallic distress paints to 

stamp a sentiment...

or you could stamp or stencil it,

 using glacier white...

it shows up very well on dark surfaces...

here's the finished piece...

take a closer look at

 the different textures on this piece...

you can see that the 

custom brick embossing powder 

creates a 

 very textured surface on the bird...

and it's much more matte than the embossing powder on the pine tree...

that's because of the 

frosted crystal embossing powder...

it's a jar of magic, because it doubles your embossing powder options...

 it can be mixed with any of 

the colored embossing powders 

to change them from shiny to more matte, 

and it adds texture too...

just mix equal parts of colored powder with the frosted crystal...

I store the "frosted" powders

 in these little jars...

the faux graniteware tree has a smooth shiny surface...

and the embossing paste sprinkled with 

the rock candy glitter

 makes the best authentic snow!

it's a bonus that the glitter sticks to the paste very well & stays put...

so...think about it...

instead of sending a card...

you might want to try this...

I hope YOU have fun and...

make art!

wendy

ps...I thought about saying...

GO BEARS...

but I think it's a hopeless situation again this year...

I like options...

if I can use a product more than one way...

I'm HAPPY...

here's the new large hosta on the right & the original is on the left...

it's stamped on newsprint that is adhered to clearly for art, using Glue N Seal...

it's inked with leaf green & the 

new vintage text stamp was stamped over the leaves with watering can archival...

options to think about...

all these flowers were stamped on newsprint/CFA and they will all work with the leaves...

plus there are lots more that fit...

decisions...

marigold?

pansy?

ruffled flower?

I cut a piece of my white magic mat board to 5 inches square, and pressed it into this inky fluid...

it's potting soil, forget-me-not and rubbing alcohol mixed in with the palette knife...

after drying it looks like this...

gorgeous starting point for a background...

another option...

tim recently released a beautiful sizzix die that creates a cool dimensional house...

you'll see lots of samples using it as intended...

but what other options are available?

I cut this side portion of the house from white magic mat board...

I inked the embossing folder with watering can archival & ran it thru the vagabond to look like siding...

the ink gets pressed into the recesses...

after embossing, I lightly inked over the house with tree branch, cut the window 3 times from back cardstock & glued them together...

I was going to cut a roof, but I saw that 

my art parts residence roof was a good fit...

I cut the door from a scrap of black magic mat board & embossed it with the dots embossing folder...

the mini heart is a black magic mat board scrap, covered with silver metallic embossing paste...

I used a black magic mat board scrap to create a chimney...

I used the layered tree stencil  toward the far left side of my base...

the trunk is inked with tree branch & the leaves are inked with orange blossom & red geranium archival...

I used tree branch to stamp the old wood floor background over the base & then used the new splatter brush with faded jeans distress stain to add the mini ink dots...

just dispense some stain onto the craft sheet, load the brush & then spread the bristles over the base & dry...

my lace border was stamped at the bottom using jet black and above that is a strip of tim's self adhesive corrugated material...I swiped the fern green pad over the raised spots...

I decided to layer 2 of the same flower...

it's inked with forget-me-not & overstepped with the 4 leaf clover background stamp, using tree branch archival...

and here's the piece all assembled...

TRUE, forever & Fig 7 are remnant rubs...

LOVE is a tim/sizzix die & it's cut from black cardstock that has Ranger's adhesive sheet on the back...it makes a sticker & it perfect for thin die cuts...

LOVE LOVE LOVE the dimension...

it's STURDY...but light as air!

super fun little art...

it can be displayed on an easel or popped into a frame...

or I might add a larger black magic mat board base???

that's it!

I hope YOU are inspired to look at the options...

then...

make art!

wendy

oh DEER...

it's fall...

the title will make sense 
when you see the project!

I L O V E to experiment...

it's one of my most favorite things to do...

I like to figure out how to use products in a new way or how to combine them with other products to make something new...

this is a great way to get more use from the products you probably already have...

sometimes what I make goes in the trash...

sometimes the idea works...

this one worked!

today I'm sharing a new discovery called...

glittered embossing powder...

this is PERFECT for fall and 
winter holiday projects...

oh...and I'll be using it for 
Valentine's Day too...

grab your colored embossing powders,

some rock candy distress glitter,

some black magic mat board & 

your big pumpkin tim/sizzix die...

and this most ADORABLE mini
tea time movers & shapers die...

then, pop over to the Ranger blog & follow along to make your own fall art...

unfortunately...
bad BLOGGER 
is acting up again & 
will not allow me to add photos...
yesterday was fine...
today, no cooperation...

but you'll find the scoop on 
the Ranger blog...
I hope you'll grab your supplies and...

make art!
wendy
ps...there's even a mini video there!

update...
YIPPEE!!! 
I got the photo ISSUE fixed...

here's the jars of "glitter embossing powder"...
it's a really a cool result with these guys...

and here's my project...

I blogged...don't faint!

phew...

long time no blog...

so sorry about being AWOL...

the first week after my last post, 

fall fever struck here BIG TIME...

this means that I H A D

 to rearrange everything in the house...

I LOVE this...

it makes everything look new again...

so everything gets piled up and moved to another room or another little display...

one of the things we collect is alarm clocks...

it's fun to set the times to significant dates...

it works since there are 12 months & 12 hours...

here's our birthdays & our anniversary...

opps   better fix this to exactly 21...

this is a recent find...

and then it happened...

we got S I C K...

I almost never get sick...

we were thinking & the closest we can come is maybe 10 years ago?

so it went like this...

Rick got sick...

2 days later, I got sick...

I remember my mother telling me that "kissing" is nice, but it can lead to BIG trouble...

now I know what she was talking about!

she was right...

kissing can make you sick!

so, that bug lasted 2 full weeks...

normally Rick gives great gifts,

but this time not so much...

to put things in perspective

 I didn't even have the energy to lift a blending tool or order from onlineshoes.com...

YES...that S I C K...

which also put me terribly behind with kits and new stamp designs...

luckily we got the kits done & this past weekend I was at Craft Fancy in Arlington Heights, Illinois...

it's a FABULOUS store and we had so much fun...

Carol & Brian are awesome hosts & we had THE BEST students!

THANKS SO MUCH to everyone!

FINALLY...

3 weeks later...

art!

yesterday I worked on a new project that will be posted on the Ranger blog tomorrow...

I'll be sharing a fun new technique

 and a fun fall art...

here's a little peek...

so, I'll see you tomorrow!

remember to listen to your mother...

she's probably right...

and then...

make art!

wendy