Murphy's Law

Stamping at the Lake

2011-08-17T09:23:00.014-04:00

I had a few friends over for a day/weekend stamping at the Lake. I kicked my poor dad out for the night since I needed his bed and then a few of the ladies couldn't come and no one slept in his bed anyways! At least he had a nice breakfast out with my sister and her family. We all worked on projects that we each brought and then on Sunday with only 3 of us left, we certainly went to town on creating with whatever we had brought with us.... I came home with 11 cards of varying folds and techniques. Thank you ladies for making this such a fun weekend!

My contribution was an ATC (Artist Trading Card - same size as a baseball trading card) and a telescoping card. Both were basically copied from other artists whose blogs I follow from a Yahoo group called All Things Tim (as in Tim Holtz!). The ATC was basically copied from the blog Creative Expressions. Carol provided step by step instructions that even I could follow! I tried to use grungepaper as she suggested but did not get a very good impression from the embossing folder so I used a very heavy weight card stock instead. The second project that I brought had the ladies blessing me right and left! It was a telescoping card that I basically copied from Shelly Hickox and her blog Stamptramp. This is one of my favorite blogs to follow!

closed...opened...I used a variety of Tim Holtz products as well as coordinating stuff from other companies such as the friend stamp from Paperbag Studios and the gear die from Spellbinders called Sprightly Sprockets. The Tim Holtz products included acrylic paint daubers, stamps, and the big Weathered Clock die.

A different style of a telescoping card can be found on Holly McMillen's blog Toy's Haven - another example for me to try to re-create!

Cards for Dad

2011-07-05T11:16:00.008-04:00

These are the cards that I gave my dad for Father's Day and for his birthday this year. Usually he gets a 2 for 1 deal since his birthday is a few days after Father's Day but since I had the second one already made, I thought he would enjoy it too. The stamps are by PaperArtsy, Stampin' Up and Hero Arts. The filmstrip and mini staples are Tim Holtz products. I used double sided tape to adhere the film strip but it didn't stick! I'll have to try using glue dots next time. The sentiment and advert are popped up with 3d dots and the gentleman who looks like Derek Jeter is embossed in black.

The filmstrip is also a Tim Holtz product made by Sizzix. The photos are from my friends and family (I used my grandfather and cousin on an earlier ATC) and the gears is an embossing folder for the Cuttlebug. This second card I created for a shoebox project at the May 2011 CNY gathering in Syracuse. I am thinking of using a variation of the first card for my shoebox at the next stamping day in August!

2011-06-30T14:44:00.005-04:00

Here are some ATC's that I have created for swaps at different stamping events...

These are my first attempts at Steampunk - think Victorian age merges with the mechanical age - almost science fiction! The stamps I used came from Viva Las Vegas Stamps and PaperArtsy and the gears are punched using Stampin' Up's Cog punch.

This one I was inspired by a blog post by Tim Holtz of a display of cards having the most vibrant colors on them! The ATC in real life is much more vibrant than this scan shows. The heart on her bag and the clock face are covered with Aeleen's Paper Glaze to give them some shine and dimension. The stamps I used are from Stampotique, Viva Las Vegas, and Stampers Anonymous. I would like to do more cards using this inspiration - fun!

Funerary Art

2011-04-19T16:28:00.014-04:00

I have no idea why I have such a fascination for funerary art but when I am on vacation, one of my must stops is to a cemetary! I have been to cemetaries in Austin Texas, Lewes Delaware, Boston, Philadelphia and throughout Ireland, England and Scotland.

This is Melrose Abbey located south of Edinburgh, Scotland. Robert the Bruce's heart is supposedly buried here.

These stones are located behind a Templar Church.

My favorite cemetary to visit was in Edinburgh. Greyfriars Kirkyard is the most haunted place in Edinburgh but I did not get to witness that first hand - maybe the drizzle kept the spirits inside!

How would like to have these monuments built right up against your house?!!

2011-04-14T12:48:00.017-04:00

So much for updating my blog on a timely basis! Betty is really into knitting and aquired quite a lot of hand spun yarn. This is Shilasdair, the Skye Yarn Company on the Isle of Skye - what a remote but beautiful setting! We drove there via this one lane road where it widened periodically so you could pull over to let the oncoming car through.

We continued on to Dunvegan Castle to see the Fairy Flag and the lovely gardens. Dunvegan Castle is the oldest continuously inhabited castle in Scotland and the Fairy Flag is rumoured to protect the Clan MacLeod in times of war. Clansmen who had a photo of the flag in their wallets in both world wars all came home safely. The exterior of the castle was under extensive renovation so my photos did not do it justice but I did great shots of the gardens!

We stopped at Talisker's to taste some whiskey.....too nasty for me. On our way out, we had to stop in the middle of the road because there was a bunch of sheep crossing the road. Betty got out to help herd them by not letting them go up the road. What fun!

We tried to take the ferry across to the mainland but we didn't have reservations (didn't know we needed them!) so we had to backtrack and therefore we missed seeing the west coast of Scotland. We drove past beautiful lochs though that we would have missed so it all worked out. This is Loch Garry, then we stopped again while driving through Glen Coe. Actually, we could have stopped every 10 minutes since there were so many photo opportunities!

We continued on through the Rannoch Moor, past Loch Lomand and ended up in Helensburgh for our last 2 nights. We stopped at Hill House designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh who is all about Arts and Crafts style of art, architecture and furniture. We flew out of Glasgow and eventually made our way home. There is still quite a bit of the country I haven't seen so some day I would like to go back!

2nd week of Scotland vacation

2011-02-23T14:26:00.012-05:00

Betty and I rented a car for our second week in Scotland - we wanted to drive around the highlands and be able to stop whenever we saw a photo opportunity (which was quite a few times!). I drove and Betty navigated - what a team! She carefully watched traffic and signs as I had to go clock-wise around the traffic circles. Most of the roads were quite narrow and did not have shoulders. Try driving in these conditions on the wrong side of the road, on the wrong side of the car, and shifting with your left! I had a blast! We started out by driving to Sterling Castle (home to some of the Kings and Queens of Scotland) and then on to Doune Castle where Monty Python and the Holy Grail was filmed. We then motored on to Scone Palace where the Kings of Scotland were crowned. We stayed overnight at Corriechoille B&B located at the end of very narrow road that looked more like a cart path - but what a view when we finally arrived! This photo was taken out the reading room window of their 'back yard'. Those 2 cottages can be rented also.
The next morning we drove to Loch Ness where we took a boat tour to try to find Nessie - no luck! We then headed across the width of Scotland to the West coast and stopped at Eilean Donan Castle of Highlander fame.
We then drove on to the Isle of Skye and stayed at The Gables B&B in Portree. We had to call ahead to reserve our room and most of the places had no vacancies. I finally just asked if the person knew of any other B&B not in the guide book - we really lucked out at this place. Their back yard bordered the bay so had beautiful views!

I'll post the rest of the trip tomorrow - really!

It's been a while....

2011-02-07T13:15:00.006-05:00

Yes, it has been quite a while since I last posted. While I was away on vacation, my mom was in the hospital for a few days but was home when I got back. How was that for a welcome back?! The entire family enjoyed a great party for the Mighty Quinn's christening a week later and then a few days after that my mom had a massive stroke. She passed away on September 18th. It's taken me this long just to post this and it is still difficult but I want everyone to know how special she was to me and every one else in the family (immediate and extended!).

England and Scotland

2010-08-19T14:28:00.013-04:00

I just got back from a two week vacation in the UK traveling with my cousin, Betty, going from England to Scotland. I am still recovering! We started in London and went to Westminster Abbey, St. Paul's Cathedral, Tower of London, Harrod's and had dinner with our UK's cousin, Eileen. Betty didn't get to see the Crown Jewels as the line was a mile long - bummer! We did get to ride on the London Eye - I took this photo of Big Ben at dusk from across the river.

We then took the train up to York where we were met at the station by new friends Anne and Pat. What sweethearts! Anne invited us to stay overnight at her house and we hadn't even met in person until then! They took us around York to see York Minster (cathedral), the Shambles (a funny, narrow little road that inspired Diagon Alley), York Castle Museum and then a drive through the Yorkshire Dales the next day. Thank you Anne and Robert!

Later that evening, we took the train up to Edinburgh where we stayed in a dorm at the University of Edinburgh - 2 twin with a private bath and breakfast included...not bad! The first day there, we took a bus tour with Rabbie's Bus Tours to Melrose Abbey and Roslyn Chapel. Roland, our bus driver was absolutely hysterical and he stopped at 2 extra places not on the itinerary - Abbotsford House (Sir Walter Scott) and the small village of Temple (Templar ruin). The rest of the time in Edinburgh, we enjoyed the Fringe Festival, the National Gallery of Scotland, the National Musuem of Scotland, Edinburgh Castle and the Military Tattoo.

The second week I'll post tomorrow!

On a roll.....!

2010-06-24T16:07:00.008-04:00

Wow - it's been a busy week for posting! I just received my Ransom Note ATC swaps in the mail and luckily, I got one of my own back. Usually I make a few extra to trade and one to keep for myself. This is a one-off set but at least I scanned them before mailing.

I was supposed to use individual letters but I decided to go with the words because the phrases were so long. These are the lyrics from Evanescence's "Bring Me to Life" and I thought the 'Classic Captions" stamp set from Stampin' Up would work perfectly together! The background papers are ones I created using the Salt technique where you dab inks on the cardstock so it is very wet and then you sprinkle salt over it, heat set it to dry. You get a wonderful mottled effect - it is different if you use table salt vs. coarse salt like sea salt. I used watercolor pencils to color in the images but did not blend them.

Baby shower card

2010-06-23T11:27:00.004-04:00

My dilemma for this baby shower card was how I could incorporate my style instead of "cutsie". I started by running a piece of Stampin' Up Mellow Moss card stock through the Cuttlebug and embossing with the Diamonds in the Rough folder inked with Mellow Moss. I then swiped the tops of the diamonds with So Saffron ink. Also from Stampin' Up are the ribbon and saying (Happy Harmony set). The Suzys Zoo duck was watercolored, cut out and popped up with 3d dots. The 2 flowers are a Tim Holtz die run through the Cuttlebug and painted with Radiant Peals paint.

Sticking with the baby theme...

2010-06-22T15:48:00.007-04:00

I created this card for the Western New York stamp gathering in Buffalo this past May. I know for a fact that my table mates were swearing a blue streak at me trying to get the baby stamps glued in behind the "film strip"! Many of them use a tape runner, while I use gel glue and of course I didn't think of that when I set out my project or I would have included gel glue for their use! I think they all loved the card anyways (at least I did!).

I started with Stampin' Up Rich Razzleberry card stock and stamped it with the French Script background in white ink. The "film strip" is black card stock that I punched using a square punch and SU's spiral punch. The babies are stamped on glossy white card stock in Archival Sepia ink using the Stampsmith's unmounted set "Ooh Baby". The clock stamp is by Tim Holtz and is stamped in black ink on white textured card stock. I sponged the edges with the Sepia ink. I glued a soda tab on the back, popped the whole thing up with 3d dots and add the ribbon as a watch fob.

I gave this one to my brother for his 50th birthday!

2010-06-18T10:35:00.009-04:00

This is what happens when you post from work....you get too busy!

I must have a bit of a scrapbooker in me since I love to use old family photos on my cards. Here are 2 artist trading cards that I created for swaps; one in Buffalo and the second in Syracuse.

I wanted the baby image to look like it was a slide so I used to different size square punches to create the slide mount. I jazzed it up a bit with a stamped overlay of "French Script" by Stampin' Up. The baby image is from The Stampsmith's "Ooh Baby" unmounted sheet and it was stamped on glossy white cardstock with Archival Sepia ink. The clock is also from Stampin' Up's "Artifacts" set and the film strip from Tim Holtz's "Mini Muse" set. I cut out the centers of the film strip and glued photocopies of my cousin on a pony, my uncle as a baby and my grandfather in his WWI army uniform. I then modpodged over the film strip to make it shiney like it was real. This turned out to be one of my favorite ATC’s!

I wanted to break out of my neutral color zone so I added the turquoise cardstock to the back. This is another family photo of my Uncle Wally over 80 years ago! The "Dream/Discover" stamp in from Stamper's Anonymous and I embossed in black the used bleach to lighten. Sponging the edges and around the photo gave it a grunge look. This is another favorite of mine!

It's been a while.....

2010-06-16T08:08:00.006-04:00

It has been quite a while since I last posted and I have a few ATC's and cards to share!

I created this for a swap at the CNY Feb. 20th stamping day in Maine, NY. My inspiration is a trip I took to Washington, D.C. and a visit to the International Spy Museum. Wow! What a cool place! You have to get there early or expect to stand in line to get in. My souvenir from the museum is a refrigerator magnet that has a big thumbprint on it and the phrase "You were never here". I found this unmounted fingerprint stamp at Viva Las Vegas Stamps and the You Are Not Here slide mount stamp is from (I have to go home and look it up!). The coffee cup stains stamp is from Stampers Anonymous Mini Muse unmounted set - I tried to glue on brown micro beads to simulate coffee grounds but the glue is not holding too well!

I'll post again tomorrow - I promise!

February CNY ATC group make 'n take

2010-02-19T16:26:00.004-05:00

Here is my group make 'n take ATC for February's CNY stamping gathering in Maine, NY. I had to prepare 27 of these and there are 10 pieces of card stock for each - I was a cuttin' machine! I stole this idea from Judy K who gave me a larger version for my birthday a few years ago....she is soooo creative! People think I am creative but I am just a good copier!

2009-12-01T12:51:00.003-05:00

This is funny - I favor the "Fly" ATC over the "Murder" one yet I received more requests to trade for the crows! I am trying to find a polite way to tell people that I don't particularly care for any of their ATC's available to trade.....any suggestions? A friend told me to ignore the request but then it sits behind my ear and nags at me. In the past, I told the person that I liked a card that had already been traded and would they create another similar one for me. I will probable try that one again on the request that I have been ignoring so far!

Arrgh!

2009-11-06T16:08:00.001-05:00

ok - frustration is setting in.... I can't get my stinkin' email subscription to work! This post is just a test to see if my home email will get the new post.

More ATC's for the Central NY stamp day in October

2009-11-05T12:52:00.006-05:00

I created this first ATC for a swap for the Central NY stamp day in October. The figure is from Lost Coast Designs and is a part of a set called 3 Flying Flower Girls. I cut out the figure, masked off the face and button, then sponged with Stampin' Up orange ink. I cut up an old (the price was 50 cents) murder mystery paperback...after reading it of course.... then used Timework masks from Tim Holtz and sponged with Stampin' Up Eggplant Envy ink. The flourish is Autumn Leaves Clear Stamps By Rhonna Farrer: Flourishes V.2 that I bought at A.C. Moore. I used a white gel pen to highlight. The work 'FLY' was stamped with a movable type stamp.

This next ATC was a group Make 'n Take. Boy, were they blessing me when they saw that they had to cut out the crows! The stamped image is also from Lost Coast Design, called a Murder of Crows. I thought this was very appropriate to do right before Halloween! I did the same masking technique as above and popped up the top crow with some 3d dots.

Email subscription service - finally!

2009-11-03T15:28:00.004-05:00

I think I am higher than average when it comes to being computer savy but boy, did I have a long process trying to get an email subscription service for this blog! (and I still don't know if it is right!) I tried to use the basic one that Blogspot offers but it does not have an email option - doh! I ended up at FeedBurner and had to do a lot of clicking around that site to get activation and the html text...then back to Blogspot to edit my page. What a pain!

So do me a favor and subscribe just so I can justify the time spent on this!

Really cool stamps!

2009-10-28T10:40:00.008-04:00

Check out this line of stamps from Stampotique Originals!

ATC Nautical swap

2009-09-22T13:20:00.007-04:00

I created this ATC for a nautical themed swap at SplitCoastStampers. What an effort just to mail to Canada - you have to fill out a customs sticker even though you are only sending bits of cardstock!

The sailboat stamp is from Stampin' Up Winds of Grace stamp set and the compass rose is from Class Act. The compass rose was first stamped off then stamped here for a lighter look. I popped up the sail using 3D dots and glued on twine and ribbon. The rest of the sailboat was color washed with slate grey ink (same ink for compass rose). The wave is just a curl of paper with white gel ink applied.

CNY May ATC swap

2009-06-10T16:33:00.009-04:00

Wow am I a slacker! I had visions of publishing to this blog at least twice a month, maybe more, but I only want to post stuff that I am especially proud of. That still isn't much of an excuse since this ATC is from May! Let's see if I can't catch up...

Here is an ATC I created for the May stamping gathering held in Syracuse, NY. I used grey card stock for the background and all of the images were stamped with Palette Hybrid Noir Black ink. The line of fractions is from Paper Bag Studio s. I added this for more visual interest on the left side of the umbrella man. He is stamped on Tim Holtz's Grunge Paper (go to link then click on "Grungeboard" on left) , cut out, sponged edges, and popped up with a 3D dot. The Grunge Paper works great when you have to cut so close because it is very hard to tear. Umbrella man and the rest of the stamps are an unmounted set called Mini Muse that you can find at Stampers Anonymous by clicking on "Cling Mount Sets #61-65" on the left and then scroll down to the second line. How cool are these?! and perfect size for ATC's!

CNY February 2009 shoebox

2009-03-31T13:40:00.005-04:00

This is my "shoebox" project for the CNY stamping day in Maine, NY. All the materials are from Stampin' Up except the yarn (which I got at the dollar store - gotta love that!).

I started by cutting 3 sets of tags, the off white a bit smaller than the black. I stamped the tree image from "Lovely as a Tree" set with Handsome Hunter ink.

The background is Really Rust card stock that I stamped with the Print Pattern background stamp dipped in bleach. I then stamped with French Script using Chocolate Chip ink. I cut the background into 2 different size strips and glued them onto Chocolate Chip card stock.

Assemble the tags and glue down as pictured and you are done! This makes a really nice masculine card for any occasion.

A tip on bleaching - make sure you rinse your rubber stamp off as soon as you are done stamping so as not to damage the rubber. Also, a well ventilated stamping area is probably a good idea too!

Aquarius ATC

2009-03-26T10:56:00.005-04:00

I created this ATC for a signs of the Zodiac swap. Naturally I picked my own sign as I was born at the end of January - right in the middle of Aquarius. This is the text I put on the back of the card…

The Water Bearer
January 21 to February 19

Air Element
Astrological symbol is waves
Gem is amethyst or aquamarine -
I was born in January so there is
a garnet bead attached instead!
Friendly, humanitarian, honest,
loyal, original, inventive, independent,
intellectual
On the dark side....Intractable, contrary, perverse,
unpredictable, unemotional, detached

kmk24 Endicott, NY 3/31/09

I embossed the pot using verdigris embossing powder on black card stock then popped it up with 3d dots. The ‘water’ is a dryer sheet that I coated with ModPodge tinted with blue ink. The background is Kraft card stocked stamped with Stampin’ Up’s Linen background stamp and Close to Cocoa ink. The base cardstock is a metallic bronze paper from CutCardStock.com. I added a garnet bead knotted on twine – the gem for Aquarius is either amethyst or aquamarine but since I am a January baby and I love garnets….! I can’t wait to see what the rest of the Zodiac cards will look like since I have to wait more than a week to check my mailbox!

Zetti ATC

2008-12-03T12:33:00.008-05:00

I participated in a Zetti ATC swap which really gave me fits. I now know that I am not as spontaneously creative as I thought I was or could be! Check out this link for what zetti's typically look like. This is what I came up with ...

I spent a lot of time just going through my notebook of images of all my stamps trying to compose the card in my head - no can do!
I just grabbed some possibilities and kept working at it and I am still not 100% satisfied with it! So much for spontaneity! I do really like the quirkyness of this style so I am sure I will be trying this again in the near future.

CNY November 2008 shoebox swap

2008-11-10T13:23:00.018-05:00

This is the card that I created for the SplitCoastStampers CNY November 2008 shoebox swap. My Stampin' Up demo, Joanne Tofte, demonstrated this template to us at an SU party. You can see another version on her blog. The card stands up like a teepee when open and folds flat to fit in a standard envelope.

Supplies:
2 4" square white card stock
1 4" square green card stock
1/2 3.75" square green card stock (cut on diagonal)
2"x3" white card stock
green ink
white ink
Versa Mark ink
Stampin' Up label punch
Stampin' Up Snow Swirled stamp set
2 silver brads
silver glitter embossing powder
Stamp-a-ma-jig

1. Stamp the two white 4" square card stock with snowflake stamps in green ink and stamp the 4" green square card stock with snowflake stamps in white ink.

2. Fold each 4" square card stock in half on the diagonal.

3. Glue the left half of the green square on top to the right half of the white square.

4. Glue the left half of the other white square on top to the right half of the green square.

5. Using the Stamp-a-ma-jig to line up the image with the long side of the card stock to the right, stamp the Christmas tree with VersaMark ink and emboss with silver glitter embossing powder.

6. Glue the green triangle to the front of the 2nd 4" square white card stock.

7. Stamp the word 'Joy' to the 2"x3" white card stock in green ink and punch out with SU label punch. Sponge green ink on edges and place silver brads on each end. Glue to front under tree.

8. Slit the back of the 1st 4" square white card stock to receive the right point of the 2nd 4" square white card stock so card will stand up like a teepee.

Aidan's birthday card

2008-07-30T12:36:00.007-04:00

This is the birthday card that I created for my nephew, Aidan, for his 14th birthday. He was very disappointed when I told him that the ticket was only a decoration! He liked the card so much that he said he wanted to keep it!

The stamps are from Cornish Heritage Farms, Purple Onion Designs, TooMuchFun Rubberstamps, and Stampin' Up.

ATC swap

2008-07-23T12:17:00.002-04:00

I made this card for an ATC swap called "Make Me Laugh". I am never sure if my work is up to par but I received a few comments that mine made people laugh the most. Excellent!

My cards tend to have some kind of movement and this one is no exception. The pumpkin head is hinged so that when you lift it up to the side, you see a photo of me! (I think that is why everyone laughed - so true!)

The pumpkinhead stamp is by Starving Artistamps and the saying by TooMuchFun Rubberstamps. For cardstock I used Stampin' Up basic black, whisper white and the designer paper is from Old World Stack. I also used Stampin' Up's spiral punch and added some fibers to a homemade tag.

I received some really funny ones in return and I thank everyone who participated with a special thanks to Diane for coordinating this swap!

Walking on campus

2008-06-30T13:22:00.003-04:00

Betty sent me to a cool web site that maps out walking routes. Here is mine that I created on campus...

Now the trick is to actually walk this loop daily and keep track using the workout tools provided at MapMyWalk!

I'll have to take some photos of the route along the way - Cornell's campus is very pretty!

Faux Pocket Challenge

2008-06-03T09:02:00.010-04:00

Here is the Faux Pocket Challenge card that I created from last Saturday's day of stamping fun! I brought 4 packets that included the precut cardstock and string that everyone had to use though they could use whatever else was handy in Diane's amazing stamping stash to finish their card. We all have such different tastes and of course we were all drooling over what the other's came up with! Here is the links to everyone's cards...
Diane
Jenn
Judy

This is the inside - as you can see, it is a Sweet 16 card that I will be giving to my Goddaughter (hopefully she won't see this before tomorrow!). She will cringe at the "Sweet" part so I tried to grunge it up a bit.

I used Stampin' Up cardstock (Chocolate Chip, Bliss Blue and Whisper White), Filigree background stamp, ink (Chocolate Chip and Brocade Blue), spiral and tab punches; Flourishes clear stamps, numbers stamps from Purple Onion Designs and two different size square punches.

Stamping fun at Diane's!

2008-06-02T16:40:00.004-04:00

Judy, Jenn and I spent the day stamping with Diane at her house on Saturday - what fun! We each brought a project for the others to stamp then Judy had an extra project for us to do that she had left over from the last SplitCoast Central New York gathering in Syracuse. I also brought along a "challenge" packet where you had to use everything in the packet but could raid Diane's mega stash of stuff. We are all going to post that challenge tomorrow so you can compare them! Diane wanted to play with her new Cuttlebug 3x3 Combo Rose Frame so we made a very elegant card that I will save for someone's wedding or anniversary - very classy. Last but not least, we created four cards (one for each of us of course!) by Round Robin. Jenn started then passed the cards on to me, then on to Judy, then Diane and around again to create this....

We used Stampin' Up card stock (Gable Green, Only Orange, Tempting Turquoise, and White), punches and stamps. The saying is Tim Holtz's from Stampers Anonymous. The stem is corrugated and the center of the petals is a Prima flower. Cuuute!

Alcolhol Inks

2008-05-12T15:10:00.012-04:00

I have been playing with alcohol inks that I bought at the 50% off sale at store location of GingerScraps. They are closing the store but keeping their web site.

These examples were created using: Bottle and Lettuce; Mushroom and Raisin; Ginger, Terra Cotta and Pesto; Denim, Latte and Mushroom; Currant and Caramel; Stonewashed, Red Pepper and Denim; Caramel, Ginger and Butterscotch

All examples used the Extender and I applied inks with cottonballs.

Where have I been?

2008-05-07T09:50:00.017-04:00

Oops! I see I haven't posted in a while! I am finally healthy (knocking on wood) and am keeping busy. I was a judge for Odyssey of the Mind both in my region and for the New York State finals. They are always looking for more judges if you want to join me!

My friend Judy held a tutorial at her house for 3 of us to create a Jacob's Ladder out of 4"x4" coasters. I only put the background paper on it so far - eventually, I'll put some photos and whatnot on to finish it! (Judy - you need to post your example!)

I went to another stained glass class and used my microscope slides to create a pendant. Naturally, I have no idea where I put it so you can't see a picture of it! One of the other girls created a panel that was just gorgeous! She used shades of green glass and then put a patina on the solder to turn it black. I may have to make one for myself!

On April 26th, my friend Diane and I drove to Ransomville (north of Buffalo) to attend the first Western New York stamping day. Here is my ATC that I created for this gathering and for a Grunge swap through SplitCoast...

This is the shoebox project that I created for my table to put together...

I used a microscope slide for the base and I used background papers I created with alcohol inks for the punched out flowers. The third flower is just punched from Basic Grey patterned card stock. The background and Happy Birthday stamps are from Stampin' Up. I used Stickles and silver beads for the center of the flowers.

Unmounted stamps

2008-02-15T10:55:00.005-05:00

What do you do when you are stuck at home on the couch with Bronchitis? (Yes, this is the second time this winter I got it!) You pull out all of your unmounted stamps, cut them out of their rubber sheets, and then paint the backs with Aileen's Tack It Over and Over. I counted over 190 stamps that I prepared this way - some only 1/4" tall!

These stamps came from Paper Artsy, Ma Vinci's Reliquary, Cornish Heritage Farms, Cherry Pie, Another Stamp Company, and Purple Onion Designs. I am waiting on an order from Viva Las Vegastamps - they had a Superbowl XLII special in February, 42% off.

Since unmounted stamps are half the price of mounted and they take up far less room, this is the way to go! I store them on plastic sheets in manila folders and have the stamped image of these sheets on top for reference. Some day I will have to count how many unmounted stamps I have in relation to the mounted ones and then compare the space each take up - no contest!!

What's in a name?

2008-02-12T12:30:00.000-05:00

What Karen Means

You are a seeker of knowledge, and you have learned many things in your life.
You are also a keeper of knowledge - meaning you don't spill secrets or spread gossip.

You are usually the best at everything ... you strive for perfection.
You are confident, authoritative, and aggressive.
You have the classic "Type A" personality.

You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone.
You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together.

You are prone to a little paranoia and jealousy. You sometimes go overboard in interpreting signals.

What's Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

CNY #7 6x6 Scrap pages swap

2008-01-29T11:53:00.001-05:00

This is my first attempt at 6x6 scrap pages to swap for the CNY #7 gathering in Elmira, NY. There are 22 people in this swap and we will end up with the months of the year, holidays and special occasions! I need to buy an kewl album to showcase these!

The calendar is printed on a transparency and you can leave it as is, put a picture under it, or just take it off. The stamp set I used is Autumn Harvest from Stampin' Up. I stamped the images with brown Stazon ink and then watercolored them. The card stock is also from Stampin' Up - Kraft, Chocolate Chip, Close to Cocoa, Always Artichoke, Pumpkin Pie and Shimmery Vanilla.

I destest making bows so I ended up with knots instead....66 of them!

ATC swap for CNY #7

2008-01-28T08:41:00.000-05:00

This is the ATC (Artist Trading Card) that I created for a swap for the day of stamping of the Central New York Splitcoast stampers. We are gathering at the Arnot Mall in Elmira, NY February 2nd and I am by no means close to being ready!

I was signed up for another swap on ATCards.com where you had to use book pages somewhere on your ATC. I had a old english English dictionary that I found in the dorm room when I went to Oxford University's summer school with the National Trust for Historic Preservation way back in 1983. I stamped the pear image from Art Impressions on a dictionary page with black Stazon ink. Next, I cut out the image using a deckle sissors and then washed it with acrylic paints and Modpodged it. I glued the pear to an antiqued gold metallic paper, wrapped it with metallic fiber and adhered to final layer of SU mellow moss cardstock. I created enough to use for both swaps and a few extras for one to one trading.

This is my favorite ATC so far!

Christmas break

2008-01-25T09:34:00.000-05:00

The university that I work at shuts down over Christmas (yeah for me!) so I get a week to visit with friends and family if the weather is not too bad. In the past, I have gone to Arlington, Texas to see my Godchildren and to Rochester, NY to visit friends and just hang out. This time I spent a few "girly days" with my cousins down in PA near Lake Wallenpaupak. Betty and I drove down to meet up with Rosemary and Donna and with drinks in hand, this is the project that I completed!

Since I used bits of mirror, mine is not a suncatcher and with that in mind, I picked out glass that really shows well when not seen through a window.

Betty also completed a beautiful piece that you can see in her blog. Her photo does not do the piece justice! (hmmmm, you would think to take a picture with it in the window....it's a suncatcher, no?!!!) As Rosemary would say..."Betty, what were you thinking?!"

Rosemary has a business of creating stained glass pieces. Her celtic crosses are gorgeous and check out this celestial lampshade!

I finally posted my stained glass panel because a friend of Betty's saw her suncatcher and wants to do one also. This reminded me that I had something else to brag about beside paper crafts! So it looks like another "girly weekend" is in my future for more stained glass crafting!

Manila File Folder Album

2008-01-04T09:43:00.002-05:00

This "album" is actually a birthday card I made for my friend, Judy, from a folded manila file folder. I really enjoy making interactive cards and that really poses a challenge when I make ATC's that are only 2.5"x3.5"! This card is oversized and is quite easy to make - just follow along with the instructions from TayloredExpressions.

The tags slide out and Judy can add her favorite photos to each one. I changed this from an accordian album to a "book" album by using double sided tape on the back fold. I love the vintage feel to this which seems to be my current trend - distress everything!

I used 6"x6" Basic Grey papers, 12"x12" Old World Paper Stack, and Stampin' Up Chocolate Chip 8.5"x11" cardstock. Go to the A.C. Moore web site to print out their current coupon and then go buy some of these amazing papers!! I used Stampin' Up Chocolate Chip ink with stamps from Paperbag Studios, Autumn Leaves Clear Stamps and Stampin' Up.

Gaack!

2007-11-28T13:51:00.000-05:00

Ok, I have been dealing with bronchitis for 4 weeks now - enough already! I cough, I don't sleep, I'm tired, I'm a slug! I have to clean up my work room before I get started on my Christmas cards since I noticed this morning (as I was frantically recreating an ATC that someone wanted to trade for) that I only had about an 8" square space to work with!

I did have an enjoyable Thanksgiving with my family - first with my parents on Thursday and then again with them and my sister's family on Friday. I am probably the only one in the history of this foodfest weekend to actually lose weight!

Dragonflies

2007-11-07T13:02:00.000-05:00

I created this card for my shoebox for the February gathering of Central New York stampers. I used Stampin' Up stamps Measure of a Life, Print Pattern, French Script, and Warmest Regards. The dragonfly was colored with watercolor pencils and then blended with water.

This is the Artist Trading Card that I created for the ATC swap. I used the same stamp but cut it closer and used Twinkling H2O's for a much richer color palette. This is my favorite ATC so far!

Best Blossoms

2007-11-02T10:32:00.000-04:00

This is my shoebox project for the May gathering of CNY stampers. I used Stampin' Up's Best Blossoms set and colors that are not normal for me! The two large flowers were inked using the Rock and Roll technique to give them more color. One of these flowers is popped up with a 3d foam dot to give it more definition/dimension. I always create a "how to" direction sheet and get a kick out of watching other stampers ignore the directions and go their own way. Some turn out fantastic and others I just shrug and point at the direction sheet - doh! My friend, Judy, gets exasperated at me when I forget to look at the directions for her shoebox - I eventually get there in the end!

Judy's mom taught us how to Tole paint which uses outlines to follow.....needless to say no two projects ended up the same! They always reflected our own personalities though and isn't that what it is all about anyways?!

Spinner Card

2007-11-01T08:40:00.001-04:00

Recently, I got together with 39 other stamping fanatics at the sixth Central New York stamping gathering in Syracuse. We all have to prepare a shoebox that included all of the components for everyone at your table to make your card. I brought along a Spinner Card. I embossed the white background with a Cuttlebug and then used a brayer to add Versamark to the raised floral design. I used to chalks to give the design its color. The butterfly image is a retired stamp from Stampin' Up and I painted it with Twinkling H2O's to give it some shimmer when it spins!

Welcome! (and Happy Halloween!)

2007-10-31T14:24:00.001-04:00

Welcome to my little corner of the world that is ruled by Murphy's Law! I am so enamored with this concept that I named my cat Murphy. I lost him after 17 years - he was the best!

I love to take pictures of family and landscapes so you will find plenty of that here along with my other hobby of stamping.