book update & this inspired this...

Book update...

I visited with Ted yesterday...make art, studio 490 style is @ the printers & is due to ship out on MONDAY!

So...if the PO guys hurry, I may have them here @ the end of next week.

YIPPEE!

Where will you find them??

They'll be available here on the blog...
if you want them signed/personalized...

or...
at eclecticPaperie

or...
at your LSS, if they ordered them...

or...
Ted will have them for sale @ the conventions...

or...
you can order them right from the Stampers Anonymous site.
Click on books/DVD's...

Rest assured...as soon as I have them in my hot little hands,
you'll be the first to know...

I'm thinking there will be a giveaway to celebrate!
Matter of fact...I KNOW there will be!
SOON!

And yes, book #2 is in the works & will be ready for CHA in January.

We're totally thrilled with the response we got...
Ted said yesterday that stores are reordering & they don't even have the first order in!

AWESOME!!!
THANKS soooooo much for your support!

Now...on to some art...

***WARNING***...coming up...

STREAM AND SPICED MARMALADE???
ME?

You read it right...I'm getting wild in my old age!

This paper is from Pink Paislee & I was in LOVE the minute it arrived.

I LOVE the dots and I LOVE the color combo.
I've been staring @ it and drooling...

& knew I HAD to make something...

So...this...yummy paper


inspired this...

the flower is a new design...
it had been on my mind for some time & I finally took some time to play...I was in such a hurry to see if it would work, that I didn't even use a background stamp over the flower...

NEXT TIME!

I really like the result...
the rock candy stickles are to die for awesome...

I painted the wood frame edges with the stream dabber & it's a perfect match to the paper.

I adhered the paper to the frame with Claudine's multi medium...
LOVE IT!


You've heard it before...

versatile...

but I'll say it again...

that's what I think about when I design my stamps...

So...here's the same flower...
with another look...



and a reminder...
alcohol inks can alter LOTS of things...

These pearls started out as white...
but after some alcohol ink, they're nice & vintage looking.

I used brushed corduroy distress ink over the fabric flower trim...to age that too.



The grid is stamped over the picket fence crackle paint with my fav coffee archival ink...

It's so easy to run the gold paint dabber around the edge, for just a hint of gold. I do that on cards & tags too. SIMPLE!

tim's corner is peeking out @ the top right.

So, the moral of the story?

Inspiration is EVERYWHERE...
just open your eyes..

Have a great Tuesday and...
may you be inspired to...

make art!
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

5 photos on Friday...

Thanks again to all those who sent photos. I appreciate it a LOT!

Ann sent this shot showing a portion of the Stampers Anonymous booth. Tim now has 50 sets of stamps. How cool is that! I'm wayyyyyyyyy behind with only 7 sets! But...the next series is on the drawing board! YIPPEE!



Here's a demoing photo from Sharon. That's Patti Behan (second from the left). She works for Ranger. On the far right is Cecile, my friend.




Another demo shot...Linda ( Scrapbook Friend'z) is straight ahead in the blue.

YIKES!! When did I get soooooooo old?? Wouldn't you think SOMEONE would "photoshop" out the wrinkles?? Nice friends, I have...NOT!



Now on to the art...

This was fun. I was wondering how I could combine Ranger's new Snow Cap white pigment ink with other products.


The stamping was done with Snow Cap white & then I used Ranger's distress inks over it. I like the look of the pastels.

The flower is worn lipstick, the petals are peeled paint & the background is faded jeans.

And the stamps you ask??? studio 490, of course! "Journey" is tim's, the background, flowers & leaves are studio 490.

And I almost forgot this. I got several emails telling me that the links on the left @ the Stampers Anonymous site all lead back to page 12. I forwarded this info to Jackie. Give her a bit to get this fixed.

Until then, just use the arrows on the bottom of each page. they are working just fine.

And for the questions about the acrylic covers for studio490 stamp storage...I've asked Ted & Michelle to let me know the prices & when they will be available on the site. I'll update here when I hear back from them.

Here's one of the demo tags I made using Perfect Pearls and Ranger's new Picket Fence (white) crackle paint.

The flowers is by Maya Road.

The flower center is tim's Idea-ology philosophy tag & the stem is a studio490 stamp.


I rubbed frayed burlap distress ink over the flower to accentuate the cracks. It's hard to see, but I used the Perfect Medium pad on the petal edges & added some Perfect Pearls. Magically, the pearls only stick to the Perfect Medium, so you have total control of the shimmer. FUN stuff!

Perfect Pearls were mixed in a mini mister with some faded jeans reinker & water to make the background. I'll show you how in a blog posting soon.

That's it for today!
Have a GREAT ARTY weekend!
wendy

4 flower photos for you...

OK...back to the "my collections" book. I HAD to have a spread dedicated to...FLOWERS! These tiny butterflies are Maya Road stamps, that I stamped on a plain sheet of grungeboard, cut them out & formed them to make them dimensional. I like the look because they are so small...

On to page 2........


Here's a closeup of the large flower. It has a rough texture due to the distress embossing powder. A little grungeboard & a ribbon slide finished it off. Once again...that ribbon slide looked like a flower center to me.



And here are the others with a little crackle paint and some Stickles ( cinnamon) added to the trinkets blossoms.


Michelle will be back home today...we'll see what she thinks about sneak peeks of studio 490 stamps...Anyone interested in seeing them??
Talk to me...or...BEG Michelle! ha!!
wendy

A GOOD report and a CHA project peek...

We just got back from the eye surgeon & Rick is released back to NORMAL life! YIPPEE. There's only one small issue...the pressure is still a little high in his eye, so we'll get that rechecked again in a month. He is like a kid @ Christmas, just wanting his horses back home. I'm happy that he can resume his hubby duties & help me again with the wife stuff too, since these next few weeks are VERY busy here.

So...if you ever have major eye problems, we highly recommend DR. PETE LAGOUROS, from the Illinois Eye Institute, in Peoria, Illinois. I told him I'd give him a plug on my blog. GREAT guy, who did an excellent job for Rick!

Back to the business of art...

Here's what the whole large layer book looks like. This is one of my assignments for Maya Road, for display in their CHA booth. This is my favorite project...so far.



And here's a look @ the cover. I used Ranger's black crackle paint on Maya Road's chipboard letters & numbers. Then after it was dry & cracked, I inserted tim's tonic pick into the crackle & pried some off down to the chipboard. Then I added a big dose of vintage photo distress ink to make it look like old rusty metal.
FUN STUFF!


Ok...break is over. Time for some arting.
Have a GREAT weekend!
wendy

Some Maya Road DT assignments....

On Friday, I posted a peek. Today...here's the whole enchilada!


This was one of my assignments for the New York Stationary show, for Maya Road. It's the treasure box loaded with fragment fun. The lid has a recessed area with a sheer insert, so I played with the fragments until I found a pleasing pattern that fit the recess.
***

All the rub-ons are by Maya Road and what is REALLY fun is using such small bits of them. If you enlarge the photo, you'll see small sections from the Cubical sheet. The paper is by Basic Grey. It's their Archaic line. LOVE it!
***

I'm sure you recognize my fav Stampers Anonymous stamp, by now. It seems to fit with any project or style. Just a few MR trinkets metal blossoms ( bent) and some glaze pen dots and the box was complete. This will be added to the classes that I currently offer. It's great for using those scraps & left overs, instead of tossing them in the trash.
***



Since this is a stationary show, we were also asked to design some cards for display. Here's my favorite, using 2 pages of Maya Road's square banner book as the base. It's embellished with their crushed velvet ribbon, button and the trinkets metal flower...again.

I adore this paper by Heidi Swapp. It's perfect for guy cards or vintage projects. The large image stamp is from Paper Bag Studios. The "defined" is from Maya Road. It's in the DEFINED set. Hmmm...that seems appropriate for the title!

Here's a closeup of the crackle paint on a MR corner scroll. When these paints were first introduced, I didn't think I'd NEED the black. I didn't think that the cracks would show up very well...WRONG.!!! It's actually one of my favorites now. It adds great texture & dimension.

***

And a look @ the inside...

If you enlarge this photo, you'll see that the trinkets metal flowers are fun to cut in half, for a new look.

*****

For more ideas & inspiration...make sure you sign up for the consumer newsletter from Maya Road. Caroline is working on it now & it will be sent later this week. The DT got a sneak peek over the weekend & I know you'll LOVE it! AND...the price is great...It's FREE! Sign up here.

***

The sun is out & yes...the furnace is STILL on.

Come back tomorrow..there's more!!

wendy

Phew.....what a weekend!

ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING is the perfect name for this store...
It has...absolutely everything!!! I shopped & came home with some VERY fun finds. Stamps, books, papers & WAYYY cool ephemera. I can't wait to take some time to play.

I did 4 classes in 2 days & met lots of fun new arty friends. Kate even took the time to show me how to solder. YIPPEE...that was really a treat!

I took my camera & actually USED it this time. Here's a photo of some of the gals in the fragments class. Each brought their own paper scraps to use and each created a unique masterpiece! At the end of the class we had "show & tell" just to give everyone more inspiration. This class is PURE fun.




Here's shy KATE (and a few friends in the background). She's the store mom! She has THE CUTEST and sweetest dog in the whole world and a GREAT store too.



And, as per TRADITION...I made wall art for Kate's classroom. I wanted my art to stay with my style...and this is my creation. LOTS of grungy stuff, Maya Road chipboard letters & numbers, crackle paint, distress inks and dots. This was fun. The photo is NOT the best...the flowers are broken china...I hope you can get the idea...

Luckily, Robin saved me the perfect spot right next to her.



That's the short version of the story... This old art chick is TIRED!

THANKS KATE & staff for a wonderful weekend. Thanks to ALL who attended my classes. You guys are sooooooooo fun, sweet & talented. Once again...THANKS so much!

Hmmmm......I got invited to teach again in November. Tell me what kind of classes you'd like. I aim to please.

I'll be back tomorrow & we'll draw the winner we talked about last week. Leave a comment here & we'll add your name to the hat.

AND..make sure you come back....we'll have more guest artists this week. Now that email is working (for the moment) I got some scans from the gals who won the Stampers Anonymous drawing & Shari's Layers book.

You'll like what you see.............that's a promise!
wendy

All packed up & ready to roll!!!!!

Ranger apron...check

Ranger Distress Embossing powders...check

Distress inks...check

Distress crackle paint...check

Mini Misters...check

Dove CHOCOLATE...check...WHAT??? Hey...girls have to have energy to create!!

Have a GREAT Saturday...I plan to & I'll do my best to make sure that the gals in both classes learn lots & have fun.

Wendy

ps...second class is really fun too. It combines Ranger & Maya Road...MY FAVORITES!!

OOPS...no links today...gotta run!!

So...the moral of the story is...

I better stick to ART! Geez...I got 3 emails yesterday and another today, inviting me to visit some alpaca farms!! The power of the net... As much as I'd LOVE to...we still haven't won the LOTTO!
But believe me...we're trying!

Here are some sample tags for my January 5th class. This is a new type class for me. It's all techniques. We'll use the Ranger U format & I'll share lots of the cool stuff I learned there. This first class will focus on the Distress Inks, with a sample or 2 of the fun Distress Crackle Paint. Each student will leave with samples and instructions for the techniques they learn. It's really very convenient to have the sample tags with the instructions on a ring, for quick reference on your next play day. I stole that wonderful idea from Tim & Robin.

The second class that day will be a wooden box project, using Maya Road's Birds of a Feather, blossoms and scrolls chipboard and the Distress Crackle paint. No photo yet...but I will share once it's done.

And...once again, Rick's card ( see the post below from December 24th) gets a comment from tim! Rick is REALLY letting this get to his head. Now he makes suggestions to me. I think I've created a monster! HA!

Now this is funny. You'll have to come back tomorrow to see the card my brother made for me for Christmas. He doesn't stamp...but this is just too funny to miss.

Tomorrow...be there or be square!! It's worth a laugh!

Do something creative TODAY!!
Wendy

Like the song says...These are a few of my FAVORITE things..

Actually...these are ALL of my favorite things combined on one project...Distress crackle paint in vintage photo, grungeboard wings with black soot crackle paint & a sprinkle of vintage photo distress embossing powder, the phrenology and wings stamps, and a microchip (over the eye) from Maya Road.
This photo shows the wings a little better. The base is a 5 x 5 canvas, which is perfect for the crackle paint. The headgear is just a wood trim piece. OOPS, I almost forgot another favorite stamp that gets tons of use...the houndstooth border stamp. I used it on the microchip and as a border for the hanging piece (foundations chipboard).

And to answer the emails I got about yesterdays posting...I have no clue why the image is not clickable to enlarge it. SORRY! Besides being a bad photographer, I'm almost computer illiterate.

I got my Maya Road DT assignments for CHA last night, so I'll be really busy making lots of projects for the booth. No showing of the new products or projects is allowed...so........SUFFER!!! HA!
I will tell you, there are some REALLY cool new things coming, but MUM'S the word here! I'm sworn to secrecy!

It's December 1st........LET THE SHOPPING BEGIN!!!!!
Have a very fun weekend.
Wendy
EDITED...GRRRRRRR...these aren't clickable either. I have no clue what's different here. I'll TRY my best to get this changed. SORRY again!!

On the menu today we have...

STAMPED CRACK!! Same corner stamp as yesterday, just used with a different color and different base product. I painted the distress crackle paint on a 4 x 4 cheapo canvas & LOVED how it turned out. Not sure if it's finished yet...but I wanted to share.
Here's a close-up of the crack...LOVE it!!


Have a GREAT day!
MAKE ART! Or...maybe SHOP! That's FUN too!!
Wendy

Finally...a REAL FULL photo or even 3 !!

This is up on our DT BLOG now, so it's safe for me to post the whole photo. This was a sneak peek from a few days ago, if you remember one of the famous CRACK posts.
This started out as a plain wooden tote that I initially painted white. I added the yummy Daisy D's paper first & then the fun started. The chipboard letters and snowflake were painted with fired brick Distress Crackle paint.


To make the scalloped border, I cut the foundations chipboard circles in half, covered them with paper & stamped each one with our clear acrylic scroll stamp and accented each with a tiny dot of Stickles. If you live in cold weather, you understand the chipboard arrow and the words "SURVIVAL KIT", which are done with Maya Road Noah rub-ons. Winter in Illinois is NOT fun!


This photo shows the inside bottom of the tote. The frame is from our chipboard foundations set and is colored with fired brick distress ink. I stamped the scroll again, accented it with Stickles & added the adorable microchip heart and a little pen stitching. These micros are just soooo cute.
Filled with some goodies for that special someone, this makes a fun gift!

Like the photo says...
STAY WARM....
Have a great artful weekend!!
Wendy

EDITED @ 7:45pm...to answer the emails...yes, there are matching chipboard snowflakes on each side & there is one on the back too. Thanks for asking!!

Addicted to crack...and a few random things..

I know..I deserve the BAD BLOGGER award! SORRY, but my excuse is..... I'm addicted to crack. This paint is absolutely foolproof. The bird and branch are from Maya Road. The bird got a dose of faded jeans distress crackle paint & the branch is done with shabby shutters. The background paper is from the Periphery collection, Basic Grey. LOVE IT!! Can't show you the whole project, but take my word for it... SHEER fun!



And more rub-on talk...I got a call yesterday from Karan, who owns Magic Mesh. She found my blog & offered this little tip, which amazed me. Rub-ons can be applied OVER Magic Mesh, for a cool effect. I tried it & it's fun. I had no clue that it can also be embossed & painted over. Interesting play. I think it's great for all the sheer products and acrylic products that seem to be so popular these days. The reason...NO adhesive is needed & it looks great on both sides!



I've heard from all 3 who won prizes on the blog. All of the packages arrived @ their destination. However, I still haven't heard from E. So...I still have this adorable chipboard train album (and a few other trinkets) waiting for a new home. Interested??? Tell me why you NEED it & I'll see if Rick can be talked into another drawing...very soon!!!

That's all I can think of for now.

Have FUN...Make ART.

Wendy

Remember the OLD saying...

"that's about as much fun as waiting for paint to dry"? Well...times have changed. It IS fun to wait for the Distress Crackle Paint to dry. This stuff is AMAZING. Just paint some on some chipboard and wait for the magic to happen. Perfect results every time! The color above is fired brick.

Paper peek is from Daisy D. I LOVE IT!

And for those of you who complain about the peeks...SUFFER!! A little photo is better than NO PHOTO!

That's my story & I'm stickin' to it!
Wendy

And the winners are...DRUMROLL......

but before we get to that...

THANKS to ALL who visited the blog & left comments. I really appreciate all the sweet notes & I'll pass the "FAVORITES" info on to Caroline & Deb. You guys are GREAT!!

We had 127 comments posted here, and 41 emails sent with comments, plus there were the posting on the 2peas sites. That's WONDERFUL!! So...let's give 3 goodie packages to...

Grand prize...iluvf14 (journal package)

First prize...e (Maya Road Train chipboard book & some Maya Road surprises)

Second prize...sunniemommie (Maya Road goodie package)

CONGRATS girls!!! Please send me your address & I'll get these in the mail ASAP!!

I've really enjoyed this and I WILL do it again. Stay tuned...sneak peek coming, as soon as the Distress crackle paint...cracks!!

Wendy

Trick or treat!!!

Short, sweet & right to the point today. Got LOTS to do!!!
1. LOVE the Ranger Distress Crackle Paint!!
2. It's perfect with Maya Road chipboard.
3. 3 sleeps @ home. One in the hotel...then the inky fun begins!!!
4. Photo above...a little kitchen art.

Happy Monday!! Enjoy it!
Wendy