Here I go again :)

I have a bunch of antique cook books that I have spent many hours reading. Not only can the recipes be hilarious but also the ad’s they have. I have been wanting to start a new altered book and I decided to use one of my cookbooks for it… (I picked a pretty plain one that had a burnt spot on the cover) … anyway I thought I would scan some of my favorite ads and recipes to use in my “Altered” cook book so I could have the best of all of them in my altered cookbook. I am going to call it “A taste of life” so it is not going to be just recipes :)) This is from one of my favorite cook books called Cupids Book. It was given to the bride when the happy couple purchased a marriage license. It has some hysterical ads that are directed to the little woman by the local merchants :)) This is one of my favorites and I just had to share it!

ATC workshop ... Lesson 10, 11 & 12

Your not going to believe this one but I think I am caught up with the rest of the class! Lesson 10, 11 & 12 only had one card each :) Lesson 10 was metal tape. You just drizzle some alcohol ink onto metal tape, sprits it with the blender fluid and let that dry. Then you tear it into pieces and stick it all over the card. Once that part is finished just emboss some of the tape and layer it on. I call mine porn star … lol. Lesson 11 was a Mica card. Once you have a couple of layers cut to the size of an ATC it is done the same way with alcohol inks. When they are dry you layer a transparency between the layers of colored mica and connect the layers with eyelets. Lesson 12 was friendly plastic. I cut mine into strips and wove them together and then melted them onto the cardstock. Then I added a circle of red in the top corner and stamped a moon face into it while it was still hot. Then I pressed in the brass dragon fly and a vintage die cut on the bottom.

Notable

I mentioned in my last post that I had been inspired by Mary Schweitzer (Green Woman Creating) piece “Noteworthy”. I had contacted her to make sure she did not mind if I made a doppelganger of her piece and she was very encouraging. I love artists that have a desire to inspirer art. There are so many artists that are so worried that someone might use their idea that they can’t see past their own nose. I have always felt that to emulate someone’s work is a complement to them and it is refreshing to meet other artists that feel the same way :)

So meet “Notable” my version of “Noteworthy” I soldered an antique canning jar lifter to a candleholder to form most of the body, then added a vintage look hanger to that. The candle holder part now holds paperclips. I then attached the head by positioning it over the top of the jar lifter and pressing air dry clay around the top loop of the jar lifter and into the bottom of the head. This created a little bottom in the head too… forming a little cup for the pencil hair. An antique dance card pencil hangs from the clipboard that was made from a piece a rusted metal. The back of the calendar was also made from rusted metal then hung on jump rings on the canning jar body. I printed the calendar on my computer then I carefully spread some foil leafing adhesive on the top edges to create that gummy edge you see on tablets. When that was dry I used a little talc on it so the top edge was no longer sticky. Now the pages will pull off like a tablet as the months change.

My junky day out!

I have been talking to Mary Schweitzer about doing a doppelganger of her “Noteworthy” piece. I just loved it and wanted one for my office desk. So I headed into town to once again try and find an open doll head and some little junk for other assemblage pieces … I still don’t know my way around Boise too well so after trudging through several antiques shops and only finding niceties, I was about to give up. Then as I was headed down a street that had a bunch construction going on, I saw a sidewalk sign that said “Dusty Trunk” …Wow that sounded like what I was looking for. Sure enough it was a shop just packed full of vintage and antique junk! I found the perfect doll head, and take note of the canning jar holder next to the head in the picture … doll body???? hmmmmm :)) I also found lots of stuff for other projects too! There were tiny bottles and plastic gumball toys, keys, keys and more keys! an old box lock and wow too much to list! I am in junk heaven now so expect some pieces posted soon!

Lookie Lookie down under art!

While I was waiting in line at the post office I started thumbing through my mail and Wozer there was an envelope from Jen Crossley! I can’t tell you how honored I felt to be receiving something from her. I have been a fan of her work from the first moment I saw her blog. In fact it is her work truly changed the direction of my own. I was just fascinated by her style. I immediately had to order myself a soldering iron and start collecting junk for some assemblage pieces. I have played around with the soldering iron on a few charms but have not yet really put together a piece like I hope to yet… I did find some awesome junk yesterday so stay tuned for the next post :)) … back to my story! So I was standing there opening it and the guy in front of me was standing sideways watching me. I guess he saw my face when I pulled it out of the bubble wrap because he exclaimed ‘how cool” I of course agreed! I was soon showing it off to all my friends too! I could not have loved it more and I can't believe I actually own one of her pieces! :) Click on the picture for a closer view!

ATC workshop ... Lesson 9

I know I am wayyyyy behind but I refuse to give up :D

The first one is Hand Stitching and I actually did this one last week but with flitting off to retreat and all the preparation that took I did not get to the second one until today. The first one was done by making a little pillow complete with a touch of stuffing the same size as an ATC. Then you hand stitch around the edges. I used silk ribbon for my edges. Then I used just a regular thread and quilted it a little. Not much of that shows though because the next step was to do an image transfer and sew that on. Then I just added my little heart shaped button and a brass plaque.

The second one is machine stitching and I really like this one the best. First I sewed some beige muslin to a white ATC card with navy blue thread. Then I wet the whole thing down with alcohol and drizzled some alcohol ink on it. While that was drying, I stamped some more muslin with my newsprint stamp. Then I used a little of that to make the mountain that the little Adam and Eve are sitting on. Then I stamped newsprint on the backside of muslin that had already been stamped. I cut it in strips and sewed several down the center. I clipped both sides to the stitching and twisted it forming the newsprint fringe for across the top. Once I stamped my background it was back to the sewing machine for a little white stitching. Then I just added my little flowers and the brass plaque.

Fabric hanger :P

 

Little fabric hanger ornament given away as blog candy :) 

Star Book from retreat

 

Home from retreat! and I had a wonderfully fun time! Five of us stayed in the most posh 3 bedroom suite. We stamped until the wee hours of the morning every night. It was a wonderful time of sharing and learning from some of the best artists I know! I would love to show you pictures of everything I made but I never show art when I have used other companies stamps. There are some companies that have complained even when I posted to a personal album. Some people forget that we are artist and that not everything is about sales : / It is one of the drawbacks of being an artist and having a company. That being said, on the project taught by Caroline Summers, I did stick to all my images so I would have something for my blog :) If you click on the thumb you can see a view of all the pages!

This little shrine of mine :)

I got my junk on! and created this altered light bulb shrine the other day. I am not sure if hubby is gonna like it much because I used the dies from his sausage grinder for the base but he has not made sausage in years! And they had become rusty anyway :)) I have it hid away in my studio so he has not noticed it yet .. and I am not pointing it out to him :D

I have had so many emails asking how I did that I put together a little online workshop My inspiration was the steampunk look. Inside the bulb is rusty chicken wire, the image is one of my front/back transparencys (instructions for front/back images are on my website). The top is a old perfume funnel and the spiral is a watch spring. I should have put the mini fairy lights inside and I might just take it apart and do that :)