it's NOT my fault!

I had time set aside to blog this week...

REALLY, I DID!...

but then Ranger sent a package of these beauties...

tim's...color washes!

they have an improved

TOTALLY AWESOME sprayer ...

(same as the new Perfect Pearls Mists)...

and there are 4 new colors added to the line...

which features 12 colors now...

sailboat blue, purple twilight, sunset orange & meadow are all new...

I'm not quite sure how I missed these in the past...

I really had NO clue how cool they were until now...

which explains my lack of blogging...

once I started misting...

I was HOOKED big time...

I spent 2 days in the studio working with them...

(OK...PLAYING, but don't tell the Ranger guys. I HOPE they think I work hard!)...

mum's the word...

it's OUR secret...

thanks!

I did simple tags/ATC's, just to see how they worked & how I could put my twist on them...

anyway...

once I started, the ideas were coming one right after another...

now backing up a bit...

I was recently playing with Claudine's gesso...

and then there's the fun new Perfect Pearls Mists...

hmmmmmmm...

what happens if you combine all of them on a 5x5 canvas?

here's what I got...

by using these color washes...

butterscotch, denim, meadow, espresso & lettuce, mixed with Sunflower Sparkle Perfect Pearls Mist...

all applied over Claudine's dried gesso ...

I LOVED this background...

I couldn't quit...

I was up @ 4AM...

I HAD to see what the end result would be...

other Ranger products I used...

jet black & coffee archival for stamping & coffee archival rubbed right on the canvas edges...

vintage photo distress ink & the blending tool...

Glossy accents...

heat-it craft tool...

it's THE BEST in the whole wide world...trust me!

and I ALWAYS work on my non stick craft sheet...

ALWAYS...

so I added lots of good stuff from tim like...

his brand new salvage stickers...

both the seasonal & lost & found...

LOVE THEM!

fragment charms...

these guys look just like real ornaments...

I sanded them with his sanding grip...

memo pins...

curio knob...

long fasteners...

rock candy distress stickles, just a bit on the large sticker...

from my products, I used...

art parts scallops, one large & one small...

the extra straight piece is a flower stem trimmed to fit...

3 grungepaper trees...

polka dot, text, this background, and this stamped lightly over the large sticker...

here's the finished piece...

it's simple to customize stickers with a little sanding, ink, stickles & an art parts scallop...

pop them up to add a bit more dimension...

I've said many times...

(ok lectured)...

to look @ the possibilities...

check out the 2 small fragments...

I needed small sticker images...

the real stickers were a bit too large...

so I just chopped them right off the cover of the sticker booklet...

you'll notice that the images on the cover are shrunk,

which = more possibilities...

and MORE images...

the moral of the story is to waste nothing!

this has been so much fun...

I had a COLORFUL blast!

I hope you're inspired to...

make art!

wendy

PS...color washes ship THIS WEEK!!!

off to see the queen!

we're headed to Chicago in a bit...

dinner with my sweetie when we arrive & a little rest before my early AM flight...

Maryland or bust!!

I'm excited to be visiting a new store...

Queen's Ink, Savage Md.

I've heard that it's FAB...

and speaking of SHOPPING...

this is hot off the press...

Ranger's PIGMENT re-inkers are now in stock...

WOW...

THANK YOU RANGER for the QUICK shipping...

here's my favorite...

butterscotch...

and...

denim...

and ...

lettuce...

and sailboat blue...

and

red pepper...

oh...

I really like stream too...

and...

for sure...

snowcap white...(to use with ALL of tim's distress ink colors)...

and don't forget Claudine's gesso...

here's a peek (it's NOT finished) of gesso over grungeboard (cut with tim's Sizzix alterations tattered florals die)...

and inked with pigment ink...

misted with the HOT OFF THE PRESS...

Perfect Pearls mist...

I used sunflower sparkle...

and stamped with coffee archival & this stamp & this one too...

I'll be showing how to create this next week...

hmmmmm...could that possibly be tim's new trimmings?

tinted with pigment ink?

I sure think so!

tim's tinted trimmings...

say that 3 times!

stay tuned...

I can't keep the queen waiting...

while I'm away...

PLEASE...

make art!

wendy

still playing with pigment inks...

but first things first...

stop the press!!

here's the answer to the dozen+++ emails about where to find

Ranger's Adirondack pigment ink re-inkers...

they have been ordered & will be in stock soon @ Simon Says Stamp.

I will update here as soon as I hear that they have entered the building.

See...

I TOLD you that you'd like these pigments...

trust me...

wait 'til you see what's coming later in this post...

and next week...

I had this little idea yesterday...

(I should have been writing instructions & making kits...BAD GIRL)...

but I HAD to try it...

I haven't had time to play with Claudine's gesso, so I have very little experience...

(ok...like NONE!)

now I didn't want to waste an art parts piece incase the idea didn't work...

God forbid...waste an art part!

so my base is a 4 x 4 canvas...

I painted the canvas with an uneven coat of Claudine's gesso...

(I'm newly in LOVE!!!)...

I wanted the canvas primed,

but I also wanted to add a bit of texture...

I intended to let it air dry & get then back to kitting...

but MS. NO PATIENCE...

that would be ME...

decided to blast it with the heat-it tool to speed up the process...

once dry, I swiped a big dose of butterscotch pigment ink on the left side of the canvas (right from the pad)

& a big dose of sailboat blue on the right side...

using the blending tool with foam, I swiped & blended the colors together...

much to my surprise, they dried almost immediately...

interesting indeed...

here's the result...

I thought I could quit there, since the idea worked...

but I was HOOKED big time...

so I added some vintage photo distress ink around the edges to age it...

isn't vintage photo PERFECT for EVERYTHING?

thank you T!M...

then stamped my new script background, using coffee archival...

remember this is a canvas with a wood frame, so only the edges got stamped...

just what I wanted...

to create a frame effect...

I'm LOVIN this...

those little sailboat blue lines were another fun thought...

just a small detail...

I tapped Ranger's craft scrapper onto the pigment pad & used it as a line stamp...

some days ideas are good...

some days...

NOT so much...

the colors looked like they needed a butterfly, so I stamped her on the back of grungeboard...

I only wanted the butterfly shape, not the polka dots...

and inked her with butterscotch pigment & the blending tool...

I used jet black archival to stamp the butterfly again on "clearly for art"...

heat set the ink & then shaped it...

it was looking like a botanical exhibit...

thus the mini grunge frame & the stamp...

tim's curio knob looked like a body to me...

and what butterfly doesn't need a mini grungeboard crown?

remember...

there are NO rules in art!

here's the finished piece...

this shows the curio knob & the "clearly for art" butterfly a little better...

I poked a hole in the canvas & just screwed the knob right thru the clear, the grunge & the canvas...

perfect...

this was sooooo much fun that I could hardly contain myself...

I am now a self proclaimed...

Claudine's GESSO ADDICT....

as a matter of fact...

I was up @ 4:30am today to prime some GRUNGEBOARD with gesso...

this WILL be fun...

I just put some denim pigment on it...

so far so good...

stay tuned...

until then...

make art...(& get yourself some gesso & pigments!)

wendy

ps...I'll be showing another pigment play day result next week...

yum!

like a 5 year old on...

Christmas eve...

That's how excited I am to be headed back to Ranger U tomorrow.

It's 3 full days of fun & inspiration...

3 full days of tim, Suze & Claudine...

3 full days of being with the Ranger family...

3 full days of visiting with our friend Mario...(the king of Twitter...)

I'm betting he'll post some photos...

click on his name to follow him on Twitter...

3 full days of seeing some friends & having the opportunity to meet some new ones too...

3 full days of being with people who "get this ink thing" (addiction)....

and speaking of ink...

that's one of my most favorite parts...the factory tour...

I've seen it before, but I can't wait to see it again...

It's awesome to see the process of the pads being handmade...

the huge volume of inks is so exciting...

if you LOVE inks, seeing a MILLION of them is really cool...

I think about that every time a box of inks magically appears on our doorstep...

hey...I've seen them make these guys!

then there's the

Stickles machine...

OMG!!

that is like the coolest machine...

I'm especially excited to FINALLY meet...

"the Linda Elbourne"...she's coming all the way from the UK...

We've corresponded for a long time...

thanks to Ranger, we get to meet in person...

YIPPEE!

So, that's where I'll be for the next few days...

getting inky & LOVING every minute of it.

I will post via the iPad, while I'm gone...

but my camera connection isn't arriving before I go, so I doubt there will be any photos...

It's now scheduled to arrive the day I come home...boohoo...

While I'm gone...

take care &...

remember to...

make art!

wendy

let the celebration begin!

THANKS SO VERY MUCH for all the sweet comments!
I appreciate each & EVERY ONE of YOU!!
You guys are....THE BEST!

OK...I have lots to include in this post, so let's get started with today's guest artist...

it's...SUSAN KESSELMAN...

I met Susan when I was teaching in Springfield, Illinois @ Prairie Art Stamps...she was in both of my workshops...

She sent me some photos of her art and I HAD to share!

Here's her Thanksgiving centerpiece...
and here's what she said...

Here's the floral arrangement I made for our Thanksgiving table using Wendy Vecchi's stamps. There are 11 (assorted colors and prints) roses, 3 pumpkins, 1 filmstrip flower, 5 antique buttons and 1 piece of wood. I had some brightly colored fall leaves tucked away that were the same colors as some of the flowers but I aged them with Walnut Distress Ink. Perfecto! The jar is the size of a small mayo jar. Inside the jar is black abaca paper so you don't see all the green stems. The ribbon border is also one of Wendy's stamps, ditto for the flowers (center is an old snap) and leaves on it. The arrangement is 3-D so all sides are a bit different. My fingers are super inky...maybe they'll be too disgusting to look at and I can get out of food prep on Thanksgiving?!?!!?!? LOL Enjoy! SusanK

Get ready to be amazed.....
TADA...


And since I LOVED that project...
she sent another...

This is thinking outside the box...
Susan made a wreathe with my leaves stamp...

AGAIN...TOTALLY COOL!!!
Click for a larger view...


THANKS very much for sharing your art & ideas with us Susan!

You're very lucky you live far away...
I'm tempted to drive over & swipe that centerpiece!

Ok...now we'll back up to Friday...
it was a nice sunny day & Rick suggested we "get out of here for a bit"...

which means "let's head to the antique mall".

Here's our find of the day...
Not only did we LOVE the colors & the awesome font...

keep in mind that Rick was born on Christmas day...
1951...



We both flipped when we saw it...

12/25/51...

This was meant for us & now has a new home in our hall...

Next subject...
I've said many times here that I am NOT patient...

but here's a very cute photo of the ultimate in patience...
I stole this from my friend's blog...
the AMAZING...Katie Watson...

Her girls dressed up their pet... this is NOT MY cat!

I think this is an award winning photo...

and a reminder for me to be more patient...

the look on her face says it all...
Does this skirt make my butt look big?
ARE WE DONE YET?



one quick public service announcment...
For you guys who ordered tags...

The tags are shipping this morning!!
You should all have them before the weekend.
HAVE FUN...get inky.

OK...as promised...a quickie holiday gift!

Supplies you'll need... to play along...

*Jet Black Archival ink

*Coffee Archival ink

*Heat-it craft tool

*unglazed tiles...4 x 4...found @ Home Depot (a set of 4 makes a great gift)

*this tree stamp

*Claudine's Multi Medium...I used the matte finish

*foam brush

*Fabri-Tac adhesive

*cork or felt to finish the bottom

And here's what we'll make...a set of coasters...

Here's the quick & simple steps...

*wipe off the tiles to remove any dust & dry

*using coffee archival, ink the edge of the tile directly with the pad...wipe off the excess & heat to dry

* using jet black archival, stamp the tree and the border

* heat & dry...the tiles get warm...be careful!

The archival ink is waterproof...
but I was worried about some ironstone mugs possibly scratching the surface, so...

*I applied 2 coats of multi medium as an added protection.

I used a foam brush and brushed one coat horizontally ...dried that then applied a second coat vertically.

You'll see the foam brush leaves tiny lines & give it a linen like matte surface.

It seemed to add a bit of texture, which looks good and added depth to the stamped image.

There's also a gloss multi medium, if you prefer a gloss finish.

So...on the left...the original...
the finished on the right...




* I found these green felt coasters (in the $1 section of Michael's)
and glued them on with the Fabri-Tac...


* I'll finished some with cork...



So...I now have one gift done...
YIPPEE!

and the best part...
15 minutes tops...

I'll tie them together with a cool ribbon...
toss them in a gift bag...

DONE...simple & FUN to make!


Other ideas...

Remember...you can choose any color tile to coordinate with a specific decor...

A larger tile done the same way makes a great trivet for hot dishes...

I'm going to do 4 x 4's again...
I'll stamp the entire tile with one of my background stamps (using coffee archival)
and then use tim's alphabet stamp to add the recipient's initial...
to the center of the tile...

Then I want to make another set...
I'll use tim's alphabets again & make one for each member of the family...
with their initial...

Check the Home Stores...
lots of times these guys are discontinued & REALLY a steal!

NOW...a DRUMROLL...

Today's prize is from RANGER...


in the package I see...inks, Rock Candy Crackle Paint, Rock candy stickles, LOTS of the new distress stickles colors and MORE...

I gotta keep some secrets...
I want the winner to be surprised!

So...leave a comment to be entered...

I'll draw the winner @ 7am tomorrow...

the winner has until 7am on Wednesday to contact me...

If the winner doesn't...
we'll add the Ranger goodies to the next drawing...

I hope you're inspired to ...

make (Christmas gift) art!
wendy
ps...you guys are hilarious...
I accidentally hit publish (not enough coffee) before the text was added & there are already 17 comments...
and you only saw the photos...

HMMMMMM...
you must really want those RANGER goodies!

one Q leads to more...

Now about those roses I showed yesterday...
let's start @ the beginning of the story...



Adhering patterned paper to grungepaper was NOT my original idea.
Tim did it...I can't remember his exact project...
Hey...I'm old...& forgetful...but it was his idea...

and keychain made paper covered giant roses, that she hand cut.

So...for those who sent emails...I am NOT the genius...they are!

I designed the rose stamp & used the mini Jenni Bowlin papers...
to make the roses shown above and the inked/stamped versions I've showed in previous posts.

That rose post lead to more questions...

OK....tell me how to get the paper on the flower so the paper fits the stamp. geez.

Here's what works for me...

I stamped the rose on grungepaper & roughly cut it out...see below. Then adhered it to the BACK of the Jenni mini papers, with my stamped image facing UP.

Now, when you cut, it's a perfect fit.

I did not put paper on the backs of the pieces, I just inked them ...

BUT... I did put paper scraps on the single petal & 2 petals that make the rose center. Since the petals are bent down, you really don't see much of the underside.

The original rose making post is here. It's got all the instructions and some step by step photos.

What glue do you use to glue paper to the grungepaper like you did for the roses using Jenni Bowlin's mini papers?

The 2 glues I use are Claudine Hellmuth's multi medium...the matte finish and I also like Art Glitter Glue.

NEXT...

I would like to see a TIPS section in your next book which would be answers to all our questions. What do you think?

I do have several pages with LOTS of tips, hints and my FAVORITE products listed in this book. If I think of more, you bet I'll include them.


I have a question...When ordering one of your stamp sets, do they come on the scalloped plastic page or do I need to order that separate?

The studio 490 stamps come on the scalloped storage sheet. You don't need to buy them individually.

My question is this: You mentioned that Ted brings your stamps to conventions. Will he be bringing your book as well? Next weekend I'll be attending the Stamp Scrap Art Tour in Rhinebeck, NY and I see that Stampers Anonymous will be attending.

LUCKY YOU...to have a convention close!

Yes...Ted will be there with a TON of stamps and my book too. He does GREAT demoes & is a very funny guy. You'll have a great time in the booth. Tell him I said "HI!" Ask him if he can make a GRUNGE flower!

That's it for today. As I told our "cruise group" this morning...

We got a BOATLOAD (get it?) to do. The cruise leaves a month from today...BUT...my "stuff" has to be completed & shipped to Tim by 2 weeks from today.

YIKES!

No time to...

make art!

wendy

ps...please take a moment today to remember the families affected by the tragedy of 9/11/2001.

a winner...and new Maya Road minis ...

WOW!
Over 170 entries...

THANK YOU ALL for taking the time to comment!!!
I'm thrilled~Thanks for being so very kind!

AND...

A MILLION THANK-YOU's to everyone who ordered my book...
The first dose should arrive today or tomorrow...and we'll get them in the mail ASAP!

I'm calling Ted to order more today...and hopefully those will arrive by Friday...

I'll keep you posted...

So...want to know who the book winner is?

Random.org chose # 83...

CONGRATS to...

Here's her comment...
Dianal said:
Can't wait until I get an opportunity to see the new book. Congratulations. I have been using your stamps sets since I took a class with you in Buffalo .. love your blog and all that you create ... keep making ART!!!!!!
August 28, 2009 11:18 PM

DianaL... please send me your address & I'll get your prize mailed off to you.


On to the art...

Some days I have NO WILLPOWER!
My Maya Road order arrived on Saturday...
with cool NEW product! YIPPEE!

I tried my best to stick to the tasks on the TO-DO list...kits, kits, kits & CRUISE stuff...
but I kept hearing them call me...
so I GAVE IN on Sunday.

I HAD to play with these mini houses.

I have no clue where the inspiration came from...
but this antique hinge seemed to be the perfect fit...
even though it weighs a ton...

The canvas is mini...just 2 x 4 inches...
but I loaded on the goods, as usual.

I covered the canvas with an old book page & adhered it with Claudine's multi medium...I like the matte best.

These mini houses are to die for awesome.
I think the smaller...the better....



Maya Road mini alphabets...perfect fit...
I almost used the mini trees...but the alphas won!

To make the scallop trim, I cut off a section of the rectangle scallop journaling coaster.

I LOVE tim's snaps for the grungepaper flower centers.

And the finishing touch...

a 1 inch square memory frame with memory capsule...made by Ranger.

Tim's mini fasteners fit the lock holes perfectly for a nice little detail.


So...that TO-DO list is still waiting for me...
But I sure enjoyed the playday!

THANKS AGAIN!!!
I appreciate EACH & EVERY one of YOU!

make art!
wendy

Ranger designer challenge in SOMERSET!

This made me yell...

YIPPEE!!

The September/October issue of Somerset arrived the other day & I quickly flipped thru after I ripped open the package.

I had completely forgotten about this...

Ranger challenged some designers to create a house for their CHA winter 09 booth display.

We were each given the same ingredients & we were asked to make the house in OUR style.

Our supplies were a 8 1/2 x 11 paper mache rectangle, a piece of chipboard and Claudine's sticky back canvas, multi medium and her cool studio paints.

The results were absolutely amazing & so different.

You'd never know that the basic ingredients were the same for each.

YIPPEE...it made Somerset!!

Here is tim's creation...totally awesome, just as you would expect!

And Claudine's is so whimsical...

that it just HAS to make you smile.

There are 5 other houses in the article...

they were done by Bernie Berlin ( a tribute to A PLACE TO BARK), Debbie Tlach...(hers is a LIT halloween haunted house, INCREDIBLE)

Jane Wynn, Amy Powers and Carla Sonheim.

Here's a photo of just a portion of the Ranger display.

I think there were about 25 or 30 houses??

The photography is great.

THANK YOU RANGER & SOMERSET!!

That was fun...

NOW...

Back to the questions...

I got this one twice yesterday...

Hi Wendy,
Love your grundgepaper flowers. I was wondering how you get the colors so vibrant. The grey seems to make mine very subdued. We need white grundgepaper!!

Reinking your distress pads is KEY. The other thing I do is I rub the blending tool into the pad instead of tapping it on the pad.

This puts more ink on the foam and makes it quicker & easier to ink the grunge.

You know me...I have NO patience...at all...

And there were 2 emails about not being able to find the replacement foam pads for blending tools.

I checked & found them here.

Thanks for your comments & emails about no facebooking & no twittering...

I'm happy to know I'm not alone...

That's it for today...

you know the drill...

make art! ...and have a GREAT weekend!

(GO BEARS!)

wendy

Ranger's designer challenge=total fun

I was asked to participate in Ranger's designer challenge for CHA. I'm a slow creator & this project took me forever...but I had a blast!

The focus of the challenge was Claudine's studio line of products. We were each given all of Claudine's paints, multimediums, gesso, sticky back canvas and this 7 x 10 paper mache base.

Here are the colors that I was immediately drawn to...


The instructions were to..."create a home". It could not be any longer/larger than 18 inches & it had to hang on the wall for display.

Here are the results...sorry for the terrible photo...but I hope you can get an idea of the diversity of the submissions. I'll check around & see if someone has a better photo.




Here's a better look @ mine. Sorry for the glare...there is a transparency behind the window.



The roof frame is a really cool vintage ruler that I picked up @ an antique store in Prescott, Az.

The base of the house, the roof & the door are all sticky back canvas, which I painted with Claudine's paints. Next, I stamped the pieces using studio 490 stamps and I also used 2 of my favorite tim stamps, also from Stampers Anonymous.

I knew I HAD to add flowers...and some other stamped grungeboard to add more dimension to the house. What's a project without flowers?

This challenge was great & it was very interesting to see that we each started with the same ingredients, but ended with very different results.

Now back to the FREE studio 490 STAMPS...

I heard from KAT...CONGRATS...but I'm still waiting for the grand prize winner to contact me.

If I don't hear from you...I'll choose another winner tomorrow morning. Details in the previous post...

It's another frigid day here in Illinois, but the studio is nice & warm, so I think I'll head that way &...

Make art!
wendy

stamps and shoes...another version...

I swear...it's NOT my fault...they find...ME!

While shopping in Prescott...these guys just jumped right out and waved for me to notice them...


And they were bargains too...$12 for the shoes...don't you wonder what the final shoe looked like? Obviously they were heels... I bet they were cool...
Hmmm...I wonder who wore them...

And that stamp...actually works... $5.00...another MUST have for the studio. At least I was a cheap date...THIS TIME!...
NOT SO on other days...what's a girl to do?

Now... on to some art...

On my "to-do" list for Ranger's booth @ CHA is a project using Claudine's sticky back canvas...and her paints...

I set these products out a few days ago...trying to decide which of the fun colors to use... I think this color combo looks like me...




So...I'll paint some on the canvas (it's cool stuff!) and then...

OOPS...can't say...MUM's The word for CHA stuff.



I can't wait to start...I did die cut some flowers from the canvas...TOTALLY FUN and sooo easy...since it's already sticky!!!
And...the canvas can be shaped for dimension & it magically stays in place...try it!

Maybe I can post a tiny peek later...maybe not... I certainly don't want the RANGER cops to come & take away my Ranger products...

Here's a link to claudine's color mixing chart...check it out...she makes it VERY easy to get great custom colors...

http://www.rangerink.com/pdf/chstudio_colormixing.pdf

And last...but NOT least...

Michelle left a message yesterday that my NEW STUDIO 490 STAMPS were shipped to me... YIPPEE!! Now if the weather cooperates..it's like a blizzard out there now. We have 4 more inches predicted..put that on top of about 2 inches of ice...NOT a pretty picture...
I have a vision of Rick on a ladder...cleaning the satellite dish...AGAIN!

NEW STAMPS!!! What a GREAT Christmas gift...Let the inking begin...
***EDITED*** MR UPS braved the elements to deliver them.
They arrived an hour ago & I have already made a very COOL...???


Ok...time to wrap. I love to shop...but hate to wrap...I think it's because I HATE to waste paper...Nuts...I know...oh well...

After that...it will be time to ...

MAKE ART!
and...ENJOY the holidays!
wendy

metallic play........

I'm totally addicted to the Distress crackle paint...I LOVE IT...

But I bet you already knew that...

So when tim said he was doing metallic crack...I was counting the days 'til I got my samples.

I couldn't stand it...yesterday I took a little break & played with them. Here's the brushed pewter...on a Maya Road chipboard flower. This is plain...with no extra color rubbed into the cracks.

Here's the yummy tarnished brass...

There's also antique bronze. Another cool color. Sorry...no photo.

Since "going green" is so popular these days....I wanted to repurpose/redo an older product that I was tired of.

*

So...

*

I had these huge brads...I had used them as is...I stamped on them before & now it was time for something different.

*

Take a look...from this to this...

The paint easily changed the finish of the brad. I knew that the paint needed a surface with a tooth in order to adhere & crack...

Hmmm...the brad was smooth... what could I do?

*

Enter Claudine's MULTI -MEDIUM.

*

I applied a coat on the brad (I used the matte)...then let it sit & dry. When it dried, I painted a medium coat of crackle paint on & waited to see if the magic would happen.

*

A successful experiment!!!!!!

*

The MULTI-MEDIUM is the PERFECT solution for adding tooth to a smooth surface.

I tried to pick the paint off...NOPE...

dropped it...NOPE...

rubbed it really hard...NOPE...it's on there rock solid.

Now I like these brads again.

*

I am quickly becoming addicted to the matte multi-medium. I find that it's great for adhering heavy metal pieces in a collage.

*

Now...what else could I do with the paint?? How about a dose on a manilla tag?

After it dried & cracked...I rubbed Black Soot distress ink into the cracks. Then I stamped on it with Ranger's pitch black pigment ink and made this...(stamp by Stampers Anonymous)

My other thought is to paint it on a manilla tag & then use punches or that wonderful Cuttlebug/Big Shot to make some fun metallic embellishments.

*

But like the infomercials...

*

WAIT...

*

There's even more...but I can't show that just yet. I sent a project to Ranger for their site. When it's up...I'll be sure to share! This technique adds another product to the mix and totally gives the paint another very cool look.

*

So here's the moral of the story today...

Take time to play &

MAKE ART!

wendy

It's official...

CERTIFIED RANGER EDUCATOR!!! Yippee!

What a fun fun weekend. I'm embarrassed to say that I took my camera, but failed to use it. My excuse??? TOO busy learning & laughing. My roomie ( Dyan Reaveley) was from the UK and she was an absolute riot. She had me laughing from 5am 'til midnight every day.

Special thanks to the Ranger FAMILY...Alain, Justin, t!m, Patti, Mario, Claudine and Suze for the wonderful experience. Ranger treated us like royalty and they are an extremely GENEROUS company, as evidenced by the fact that I was over the weight limit coming home. That suitcase was LOADED with Ranger goodies. We even got NEW UNRELEASED products...but my lips are SEALED! Check out the booth @ CHA next month. I'll give you a hint...AMAZING!!!!!!!!!! You'll LOVE them all...FOR SURE!

We even got a bottle of Stickles right off the production line. That is such a thrill. The factory tour is just SOOOOOOOOO COOL!

We learned melt art from Suze...got to use Claudine's new products & we had t!m teaching us for 2 full days. Life is GOOD!

I got to meet some new friends that I'll get to see soon @ CHA. Hi to Sharon, Kim, Keychain& Pearl. What sweethearts they are!

Ok...here's a little sneak peek of a Maya Road project for CHA.



I created an inchie! Shari Carrol was @ Ranger U too & asked some of us to do an inchie. I had NO CLUE what she was talking about. But...let me tell you...these things are REALLY fun. At first I thought it was way too small to do much with. But, I got 3 stamps on that baby. Check it out on the Hero Arts blog.

Time to work on getting my CHA LIST done.
Enjoy your day!
wendy