WOYWW #199

Happy WOYWW!  Whats WOYWW? Click on the link and go find out!  It has been another busy week that has just flown by!  I want to apologize if I didn't make it to your blog last week I promise to do better this week.  Last week so much was going on that I just was swamped!  To see what was going on check out the past weeks posts.

This is my desk this week.  I was cleaning it off getting ready to get down and do some awesome crafting when I got side tracked!  I have been having a lot of concentration and memory issues this past week and I haven't the foggiest...pun intended as to what is going the fogginess. 

I am trying to work through a list of things I need to get mailed out and I don't seem to have what it takes to get it completed!  Oh well maybe tomorrow!

Hope everyone has a great week and a Happy Easter!..

It was a fun and crafty weekend!

Yes, yes it was.  I am actually glad to be at home and not out and about running around cause I am really a home body at heart and this has been a busy week running Heather to her surgery and follow up on Tuesday and Wednesday and then doing something that was craft related for hours and hours each day the rest of the week.








It started on Thursday for me when I taught a tag making class making Easter tags with a group of women at Scrap That in Norman!  I taught 3 tags using Tim Holtz style techniques, stamps, and threw in a few 'extras' that made sure we had some fun.  Everyone seemed happy with their tags and said that they would book again next month for the 'group therapy!'

I think this purplish pink tag is a favorite!  I love the colored Easter egg popped up and given a 3d effect!

You can see the 3rd tag in this post...it was the furry one that my friend dubbed as creepy and since she took the class I had to cut her a paper rabbit out of a Starbucks corrugated cup cozy!






Friday was the painting class with Heather and the rest of the class mates at Scrap That!  I posted on that class in a previous post but I am so proud of my painting I am reposting it here!

Don't you love those yellow flowers!

Saturday was an all day crop at Scrap That! where 28 women got together to visit and share fun time doing what they like to do best...craft and gossip!   We all had projects going that were different so when you needed to exercise a bit we would wander around and check out what the next tables were doing. 

Heather was checking her text messages here but spent the day painting some canvases for her painting classes next month.  If you are interested contact Scrap That! at 310-3400 to sign up. 

I was busy trying to get some stuff done for classes next month too.  I was having brain issues though and seemed to throw more stuff in the trash then I got accomplished!  I hate it when I do that so I spent a bit more time wandering around trying to get motivated to create then I did actually making anything.   I did manage to finish another month in the Graphic 45 calendar pages! 

Anyway it was a good weekend but I am glad it is Sunday evening and a day of rest!

Painting!

My daughter held her second ever class teaching basic techniques to a bunch of us non-artist types on Friday night at Scrap That in Norman.  OMG!  I was so happy with how many people showed up this time and the awesome pictures that we made!  Here is a group photo she took of all of us.  Unfortunately one of the participants, Usha, husband came and took her away before the photo op! 

This was a landscape that was suppose to show the flower fields with bigger flowers in the fore ground...well mine had a little bigger flowers....Want to see a bigger picture?

)My daughter took this picture and she says the saying on the wall is not indicative of what she thinks of my art!!)  I am looking pretty frumpy in this picture me thinks!  I have lost a few more pounds and the camera has picked up how baggy my clothes are getting.  Not that I am complaining!

Heathers next classes are on April 13th and 27th.  I think I am going to bring a margarita, tortilla chips, and salsa for the one on the 27th...I might share but if you want to make sure you get one you should BYOB!!!

April 13th 1-4 pm 

April 27th 6-9 pm

Fun class and it was a lot of fun meeting new people and swapping stories and laughing and having fun!  If you would like to join us for one of the classes call Scrap That! and book your seat cause classes are limited to the first 15 students that call in!  Call 310-3400

Graphic 45 Design Team 2013 Audition

At some urging from family and friends I have decided to submit and "audition" for the Graphic 45 Design Team call this year and I would like to share a few projects I have created using Graphic 45 and other products over the past year.  Click on the link under the picture to take you to the original blog post for further information.

A canvas made using the Once Upon a Springtime Papers

 I created this canvas for the guest designer spot for Ten Second Studios last year using their Verday Paints and metals to make the flowers and butterflies!
 Don't you love the look of the papers with the lace and the watch?  Awesome feel to it!

Christmas Canvas

Cards!

Graphic 45 SteamPunk and Old Curiosity Shoppe Collections. 

A box easel card created with two of my favorites Graphic 45 papers combined into a box card for another Ten Second Studios project.

A Once Upon a Springtime card!

A fun 'girly' card

A few ATC's

Happy Haunting

Happy Haunting

Tags:

A couple chip board books using Graphic 45 papers.

I loved the Magic of Oz book that I saw on another You Tube video when the papers came out and I think the creator was a Graphic 45 designer...Here is my take on that book!

Magic of Oz book. 

 This book was a lot of fun but also a lot of work with all the different page styles and mats that were made.  I love working with tags and the book fit in with the love!


 To see the finished book in its entirety go to the web post shown here.

 I really love the idea of recycling things and when I watched a couple You Tube video's about recycling the left over cardboard tube on toilet paper rolls I fell in love with recycling all over again!

Nutcracker Sweet!  To see the entire book click here!

Nutcracker pages

back of book!

Tropical Travelogue Valise Chipboard book

 Recycled chunk of 2"x4" made into a Chunky ATC!
 

Tropical Travelogue Chunky ATC

Repurposed and Recycled Stuff!

This is an "unrecycled" rat trap!  It was a lot of fun to make and I plan on making a few more!

This canister is made using the new Graphic 45 French Market papers that I love and a whisky packaging canister!  Loads of fun to be had with this paper pack so I bought 3 sets...

French Market 

I can't end this post without sharing my calendar pages I have made so far this year!  Enjoy!

I really enjoy creating with Graphic 45 and would enjoy a chance to play with more of their beautiful products!

WOYWW #198

Another busy week come and gone!  I am feeling much better this week and feel like I am returned to the land of the living and not going to die!  OMG!  I hate being sick and I am such a whiner when I don't feel well!  This sinusitus, cough, achiness etc is for the dogs!!  No I wouldn't even wish this stuff on a dog...maybe a rattlesnake would deserve it...nasty creatures such as they are!

This is my desk this week.  Not much going on.  I did get some crafty stuff done over the week end...a couple journal pages, a canister made from a whisky can and Graphic 45 paper, and a couple tags I will share as the week progresses!

Not a big change over other weeks! :-)  I have fallen in love with those little Petaloo petals flowers in the back ground.  They are just the right size and add just the right colors to my projects.  I need to learn how to make them!

I would like to share a tag I made for Easter this past weekend.  A friend tells me it creeps her out cause the rabbit is made from a piece of felt that is obviously fur!  I thought it was cute and not creepy at all!  This is loosely based on a tag I saw somewhere on the internet this past month (the window part) but when I went looking I couldn't find who to give credit to!  Anyway it was a fun make.  I am submitting this tag to the Tim Holtz tag of the month challenge.

All this talk about desks and crafty stuff makes me thirsty so I am off to get a cup of tea to drink and then I am off to Julia's WOYWW and I will be busy for a few minutes nosing into others desks.  Come join in the fun. 

an inspiration

Have you ever had a thought or feeling that has hung on for such a long time that you can't remember exactly what caused this feeling or thought to reach a point in your life that it was consuming way too much time and you were giving it more weight then it should have?  Well I have and I think it has been affecting my interaction with everyone and everything in my life.  It was something I wanted to let go but...I just didn't know how.

All this week...well since last Thursday anyway I have been trying to do what I read and I am proud to say it seems to be working!   I read an article by Jennifer Hancock, a Humanist, an author, public speaker, and educator and decided to try and put the principle into my life.    

What was this wondrous thing?   I think you should go read it yourself!
Feeling Compassion for People you Hate by Jennifer Hancock

  What does Jennifer teach...well to copy some of her profile... Jennifer helps transform people lives through Humanism by teaching them to be the best most ethical people they can be. Her work focuses on 3 main areas. 1) how to make better decisions thru critical thinking 2) how to improve interpersonal relationships thru compassion 3) how to infuse your life with meaning and purpose thru applied ethics.

  

What did I learn...well I learned that even if I don't like someone or their practices I don't have to suffer and toil with their issues any longer.  They have the right to their opinion and I don't have to like it.   I am not going to change their stand but I can feel compassion for them.  I learned that I have the ability and even a responsibility to confront what is causing my problems and to try and make it better for myself and others.  I need to stop and look at the other side of the situation and even if I disagree they are human and I respect that.

It is a short article but WARNING I got caught up in reading through her blog and lost track of time...several hours passed and I think I came away a different person!

I think I will share this on Inspire Me Monday #63 – Week Of March 17, 2013

Graphic 45 French Market

I really like to reuse and repurpose all sorts of things in my art journey and my dear husband helps in out in all sorts of ways to fulfill this need of mine.  One of Chucks favorites is a single malt scotch whisky he buys that comes in these nice chipboard packing containers... Chuck gets the whisky and I get the cardboard tube packing! 

I decide to use the container today and the Graphic 45 papers in the French Market set to make a gift container or a storage container for my craft room.   I wrapped the container in one of the print papers and then decorated it with bits and pieces from other papers in the set.  Here is the finished container and a couple detailed shots!

It was difficult photographing this can because of the shape so I just took a picture face on to the can.  I used border pieces from the sticker sheet at the top and bottom of the can rim.   

I fussy cut the sunflowers from a second piece of paper and played with them to get them to lay under the label the way I want them to!  It is more difficult to decorate a round surface then I thought it was going to be.  I see some of my foam sticky bits that I need to figure out how to hide!

I used some chipboard pieces at the top right of the label to accent the piece then cut out the stamps to balance the label.

I have a couple other things I would like to make with this paper pack so stay tuned!  Isn't it a gorgeous paper!

TGIF!

I am finally starting to feel better but tend to tire really easily!  I taught a class at Scrap that on Thursday making recipe cards for our recipe book and it was all I could do to go to dinner afterwards!  My daughter and friend was actually concerned I was too tired to drive myself home.  I got home and immediately took a nap on the sofa!

The recipe cards turned out really well...unfortunately I didn't take any pictures of them...I will rectify that tomorrow! 

Tonight I went back to the store and had a fun time cropping with some friends.  I worked on the art journal pages for a class on the 28 March.

This class we will be learning some more about using a texture paste and stencil to get and interesting look, more on fussy cutting, collage and stamping.  I had fun making it and I hope my students will too...  None of us had any journaling...or much journaling before we started a couple months ago and we are all learning a lot. 

I am trying to teach basic techniques before going into some more difficult stuff and would appreciate any input regarding what you do and what would be fun to learn!  Any ideas?