Victorian Christmas Ornament

Hello everyone!  Thank you so much for joining me today.  I wanted to share with you a new ornament I made this weekend.  Everyone who knows me knows that I've made ornaments for years.  Our tree is a trip down memory lane for me.  I remember making each ornament and I love all of them.  They are also a creative history of my life and a remembrance of dear friends who gifted us ornaments.  Putting up the tree is a highlight of my decorating each year.  So, every year I try to add some new ones to the mix.  This year my first one is this.

 

 

I just got the Baroque and mini Baroque dies from The Funkie Junkie Boutique.   I decided to use them to make an ornament.  I glued Authentique paper in a holly pattern to the front of  a piece of chip board and a solid green to  the back. I  cut out the larger piece, then I used manila cardstock to cut the mini mover and shaper piece.  I used Festive Berries distress stain on the smaller piece and then embossed a holly branch with clear embossing powder.  I then swiped Picket Fence DS over it.  The embossed design resists the Picket Fence and you get a white washed look to the background.  This is a technique that Tammy Tutterow demos on her blog.  I love the look of it.  To cover the edges of the larger shape I ran Glossy Accents over it and used Pumice Stone Distress Glitter to edge it.  You can just see a little of the glitter running along the edge.  I then punched holes in the top and used a vintage green velvet ribbon as a hanger. 

 

To put it all together I attached the smaller shape to the larger with foam tape and used dimensional holly stickers top and bottom. The berries on the stickers have just a hint of glitter on them.   The strip with the greeting is a Graphic45 cut apart from last year. 

 

I was so pleased with how this turned out.  I love the shape of these dies and I think the whole effect is very "Victorian Christmas"!  Here's a detail.

 



 

With Thanksgiving not even a week away,  I'm getting into the holiday mood and really gearing up for Christmas.  Of course, I'm behind, so I'm really happy to have finished this ornament.  I'm entering it in the

Frilly and Funkie challenge which is Christmas Preparations. 

 

I hope you are having a great weekend.  I'm sure everyone is preparing for the fast approaching holidays and I really appreciate you taking the time to stop by.  I'll be back soon with more Christmas projects!



Tag Number 5

Hi everyone!  Thank you for stopping by today.  I'm caught up with the 12 Tags of Christmas Funkie Junkie style which is exciting!  Today I have number 5 to show you.  I'm sure you know by now that Linda from the Funkie Junkie blog is hosting this challenge which is sponsored by The Funkie Junkie Boutique.  I've been having so much fun making these tags.  Here is my version of tag 5.

 

 

You can see Linda's tag here.   You'll see that my inspiration was the framed Santa.  I just loved that and I have just gotten TH ornate frame die.   I really wanted to use it and some of the new Antique Linen Distress Glitter and this tag was the perfect opportunity.  I used Mowed Lawn and Peeled Paint for the background and then stamped some holly with Mowed Lawn.  I cut the frame out of card stock and inked it with the Antique Linen DI.  Then used Glossy Accents and applied the glitter.  I love this glitter.  It looks very vintage.  I then used the center oval of the frame as a template for the watercolor of Santa.  I cut it out of watercolor paper and stamped the Santa image.  It's a Tim Holtz stamp but I don't remember which one.  I then used a water pen and ink pads to watercolor the image.  I love that technique.  I glued the oval down and the frame  around it. 

 

Using water color paper again, I stamped the Happy Holidays greeting using Vermillion Archival Ink.  I had the vintage looking candy canes in my stash and I  attached those with Glossy Accents and made a ribbon bow to glue in the middle. 

 

I really like this tag.  It's very cheery and I love the red and green with the Santa watercolor.  Here are some close ups.

 

 

 

 



 

There you have it!  I hope you have a wonderful day.  Thanks again for stopping by. 





Therese's Birthday Blog Hop

Hi everyone, welcome.  I'm so glad you could visit today because it's a special day.  Today is my  friend, Therese's, birthday.  And for the second year she has decided to celebrate by sending some of us a gift rather than us sending her a gift!  She's a wonderfully generous person and this is how she chooses to celebrate her birthday.  I'm really grateful that she considers me one of the people she gifts on her birthday.  So, happy birthday to a wonderful friend!  I feel so fortunate to have met you, Therese. 

Last year she sent us a set of beads and a matching cabochon.  This year she went one better and made the cabochon that she sent us!!  Yes, she MADE it.  As in, she has learned how to fuse dichroic glass and made fantastic cabs and decided to send them to all the people she asked to participate.    She's amazing and her work is fantastic whether it's beading, or now fusing glass.  Since I love dichroic glass, I was so excited when the package arrived that I forgot to take a picture of the cab.  And, it is gorgeous!!  But, here is what I did with it.

 

 

 

See I told you it was gorgeous.  You have to remember that she just learned how to do this!!  I knew immediately what I was going to do with it.  I've had the instructions for Lisa Niven Kelly's wire wrapped cabochon for a while and I've wanted to use it for something special.  Well, as soon as I opened the package I knew I had found the something special.  I've done some wire "scribbling" (my name for it) before.  I used it to edge my first copper cuff and I used it on the edge of a pendant.  But, I had never done the actual bezel.  So, here was my chance. 

 

 

I'm not going into detail about the process of doing this technique because the pattern is available on the internet.  But, it's a fun weaving process that results in a bezel that can be tailored to a cab of any shape.  I randomly added some 3mm crystals and fire polished beads along with some coils of wire and some small silver round beads as I wove the wire.  The bail is made with the ends of the wires. I thought all it needed was a chain to finish it off. 

 

Here are some details.

 

 

 

 

I think these pictures show the beauty of the fused glass pendant.  The color is so rich and vibrant. 

 

 

Therese, I hope you have a wonderful day!  You're a wonderful friend and I'm so pleased to know you!

 

Here are the other participants in Therese's big day.

 

 

Alicia

Amy

Bobbie

Christine

Cynthia

Kristen

Lola

Marla

Maryanne (you're here!)

Shirley

Therese and Crystie

 



 





The 12 Tags of Christmas Funkie Junkie Style 4

Hi everyone!  Thanks for dropping in for a visit.  I'm back with my 4th tag for Linda's 12 Tags of Christmas Funkie Junkie style.  You can find all the details about the challenge on the sidebar of her blog.   Here is my tag, inspired by Linda's.

 

 

 

I really loved Linda's use of the burlap squares running along the side of the tag and that was my inspiration for this version.  I started with a size 10 tag and used Distress Stain in Bundled Sage and Forest Moss for the background.  I then cut a piece of holiday scrapbook kraft paper to go over the tag.  I found a coil of paper ribbon that I've had for ages and put that down along the right edge.  The burlap squares went over that.  The letters are corrugated foil letters that I had left over from a Santa tag banner I made last year.  They didn't photograph well because the are so shiny but they really are a fun bright holiday red.  I used the TH tattered poinsettia die and the corresponding embossing folder to cut and emboss the poinsettias.  The foliage and pinecone come from the holiday foliage die.  I used an Authentique sticker for the message. 

 

This was a fun tag to create.  I knew immediately that I was going to use Linda's idea of the burlap squares.  I really love the homespun look of this.  Here are some details.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, that's tag number 4!  Check out Linda's gorgeous creations on her blog and be sure to stop by her shop which is the sponsor of this great challenge! 

 

 

Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing my adventures in art making!  I hope you have a wonderful week.

 

 





Fall is for pumpkins!

Hi everyone!  Thanks so much for stopping by today.  I do appreciate it. 

My favorite paper arts store, The Queen's Ink, in Savage Mill, Maryland had a challenge for fall.  We had to create a project that had a pumpkin in it, or be a pumpkin.  Patti, the owner and a good friend, has had these challenges before at Christmas time.  They are really fun and people come up with some great ideas.  She's working on a new challenge for this Christmas and I can't wait to see what she decides on.  Anyway, here is my entry.

 

 

I had a paper mache pumpkin that I wanted to decorate and when Patti sent out the word about this challenge I was ready!  I inked, distressed, stamped and crumpled manila card stock and ran it through the die cut machine with the Tim Holtz tattered leaves die.  I used a punch to cut little daisy flowers out of the left overs from cutting the leaves, and I gathered some paper and velvet leaves from the stash.  I cut a few small flourishes with an old Sizzix die and found a card with a cute little squirrel that just had to be added to the mix.  The squirrel was my husband's idea because he always calls our daughter the little red squirrel because of her red hair. 

 

Once I had gathered all my leaves and other embellishments, I went to work on the pumpkin.  I used a coat of Ginger Peach Silks to cover the pumpkin and the added color with Spiced Pumpkin and Nutmeg.  Once it was all dry I highlighted it with Gold Gilders Paste.  I wrapped the stem in a crinkled tissue paper that I've had for years.  It's copper color and I added some green gold metallic wax paste to highlight it.  When everything was dry I started gluing on the leaves and embellishments.  I had some sticky backed rhinestone flourishes that I scattered around the pumpkin and glued the leaves and paper flourishes over them.  I used some sparkle sticker dots from Kaiser Craft and some other stickers to add dimension to the leaves.  I was really pleased with the way this turned out.  I had envisioned this for a while so I was happy that I was able to recreate what I was thinking. 

 

 

Here are a few details which are self-explanatory.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, that's my pumpkin with its garland of leaves!  It wasn't the winner, but the winner was a fantastic Steampunk pumpkin!  And, Patti, who is a very generous friend to all her customers, gave everyone who entered 10 Queen Bucks to spend in the store!  They were presented in the most fabulous envelopes that Patti made out of Authentique Halloween papers.  I love the envelope as much as the Queen Bucks!!  Unfortunately, I haven't taken a picture of the envelope!  I must do that!

 

Thanks again for visiting.  I hope you have a great weekend.  

 



 

 





The Third Christmas Tag Funkie Junkie Style

Hi everyone!  I'm back with my 3rd tag for Linda's 12 Tags of Christmas Funkie Junkie Style.  Even though I'm thoroughly taken up by Fall, I've been having fun getting a head start on Christmas.  The idea that I will have 12 tags made makes me giddy with happiness :)! 

Here is my tag for week 3.

 

 

 

Just as a reminder, the idea behind the challenge is to be inspired by something from Linda's tag for that week.  Well, my inspiration for this tag was the stenciling and the die cut NOEL.  That is one of  my favorite Christmas dies.  I love the vintage font and I love  covering it in glitter!  It's so Victorian looking!  I cut one and made it into an ornament for our tree the year it came out.  I covered it in red glitter and attached a ribbon to the top and hung it on the tree.  I had red glitter EVERYWHERE!!!!  But, I digress.  The details on what I did.  I used a size 10 tag and inked it with Antique Linen, Gathered Twigs and Frayed Burlap DI.  I spritzed it with Perfect Pearls Antique Gold spray.  I then used a music stamp to randomly stamp the background.  I used a

 Michelle Ward stencil and some Ferro Special Effects Paste to add the mini diamonds to the top and bottom of the tag.  I had never used the Special Effects Paste and I found that I really like it.  It's gritty and very stiff so there isn't a lot of running under the stencil.  It's a fun product to use.  When that was dry I stamped the word peace in black archival ink.  I then embossed the edges of the tag with Stampendous  Aged Ivory embossing enamel.  Another new to me product.  I found it at

The Queen's Ink a few weeks ago and thought it would look good on the edges of this tag.  Its an ivory embossing powder with flecks of antique gold in it.  The little flecks you see along the edge are the gold. 

 

I cut the Noel out of chip board and inked it with some gold ink.  I then used Ranger's Ancient Gold embossing powder on it.  I heated it a little longer than necessary to give it an antiqued look and then I inked the edges in walnut stain DI.   The picture doesn't really show the vintage look of the actual die cut.   I glued it to the middle and added a die cut leaf from an old Sizzix die.  The berries come from a little package decoration from the stash.

 

Here are a couple of close ups.

 

 

You can see some of the flecks of gold in the embossing paste around the edges of the tag.

 

The grittiness of the Special Effects Paste show up here.

 

Well, that's my 3rd tag.  I should have mentioned that I've also been inspired by Linda's use of sepia tones in some of her tags.  I love the sepia tones with gold for the holidays so this is my nod to that color combination.   Stop by Linda's blog and please visit her shop, The Funkie Junkie Boutique, who is sponsoring this challenge.

 

Thank you so much for joining me today.  I love having you visit and I want to welcome all the new friends who have come over to see what's going on here. 

 

I hope you have a wonderful week and get to make some art!



 





The Vintage Wooden Spool Rolling Blog Hop

Hello everyone!  I'm so happy you stopped by today.  I hope everyone who celebrates Halloween had a great day yesterday. 

One of the nicest things about blogging is the people you meet and become friends with.  The blog hop I'm sharing today came about because I found a blog friend named Christine.  Christine makes wonderful jewelry and is a very generous caring person.  A few months ago she contacted some of us and told us she was sending us a package.  In it we would find some vintage things she had found at an antiques store and some beads.  We could do whatever we wanted with the beads but we had to use at least one of the vintage items in the package.  It would be  a rolling blog hop so we wouldn't feel pressured to finish a project on a specific date.  We had the option of participating or not.  See, I told you she is a very caring person.  She, like the rest of us, has too many things to do and she didn't want us to feel pressured.  When the package arrived we found that the vintage items were thread spools.  I knew immediately that I wanted to use at least one of them on a canvas with a sewing/thread theme.  Here is what I made for the challenge.

It's called "The Fabric of Life".  I found that phrase on a piece of scrapbook paper in my stash and I knew that was my direction.  The friends we make become a part of the fabric of out lives and I thought this was the perfect project to use it for.   I made this canvas in a class my daughter and I took last month.  The class was taught by Michelle Ward.  Michelle has become another friend because of our blogs.  So another thread in the fabric of my life.  Michelle is not only a great artist but also a great teacher.  This class was called Recess and I knew that this was my project for this hop.  I would spotlight the vintage spool on this canvas.

After covering the canvas with gesso we took an empty match box and positioned it where we wanted it on our canvas.  Then we cut around it with a craft knife.  The match box was inserted into the hole and glued in place.  After applying more gesso we dry brushed the canvas with paint adding layers of paint and wiping some off.  I chose the green paint because the printing on the top of the spool is the same shade of green.  Unfortunately you can't see that in the pictures.  Before I started painting I tore my paper and glued it down.  To make it part of the canvas, and not the focal point, on Michelle's advice I sanded the edges.  I wanted it to be very subtle so that the spool was the focal point of the canvas.  I used a stencil with heavy body gel to add some dimension and lined the matchbox with some old pattern paper from a child's vest pattern I used for my daughter when she was a little girl.  More threads.  Finally, I glued the spool into it's little recess.  When I got home from the class I added the scissors above it.  The scissors was a gift I found in an order from Linda Coughlin, The Funkie Junkie.  Another kind person I met on the blog. 

So, that's the story of my vintage spool gift.  There were more spools in the package and I'll be using them all eventually.  I'll share what I do with them.  For now, here are some details which will speak for themselves.

Thank you all for visiting with me today. You all  are part of the fabric of my life and it has become a very rich fabric indeed!    I hope you have a wonderful day.