longing for the Spring to see the flowers in bloom.(mmm enchanted)..

thought I would share a drawing I did today with pastels, pencils and white posca marker. The other day I drew a purple haired muse but today I thought I would draw a muse who is looking forward to Spring and nicer weather as she fed up feeling ill, exhausted and wants some sunshine...I think she looks very enchanted and ethereal looking so goes with this week mmm enchanted challenge

Art for Arts sake...(scrollswork no 2 challenge)

I have got a little collection of Inka stamps which have now been relaunched as Scrollswork stamps. I decided to make a wacky zetti type of card for their no 2 challenge. It features most of the old Inka stamps that I own made into a little artsy image...so we have some wings behind her stamped writing flower head, a shell for her body and some legs off another girl image!! I quite liked this challenge working with just a few stamps to come up with this mad creation..all in the name of art. I bet your all singing the words to that 10cc song now..art for arts sake money for money sake..or something like that ..well it was back in the 70s!!!! To visit the scrollswork site just click on the coloured link above....

if you go down to the woods today your sure to spot Alice (wed stamper alice & so artful challenge)

What do you do when you are totally fed up? Well besides eating chocolate I tend to just mess round with paints and texture. I wanted to create a curious book of ruins that you might come across walking in the woods...you know the type of book that you sometimes find that is burnt and weathered around a long ago forgotten fire. I have covered thick card with distress crackle paints, plasterboard tape, molding paste, more paints and bits of copper embossing powder. The Alice stamps are originally from Inka (who have been taken over by Scrollswork ) and I have covered them with distress inks, utee and bleach. I have added old broken twigs and rusty washers and old wire to the front. The inside pages were soaked in my morning coffee to give them a weathered look. I had fun playing round with this as it was really an exercise in paint and layering and I like the idea of it probably disintegrating rather than lasting....go and have fun with paint if your feeling fed up with a head cold...I have entered this into the

so artful challenge too

bird birthday card (gingersnap birthday challenge)

Over at Gingersnap Creations the challenge this week is birthday. As part of the Artistic Stamper Design team who have been sponsoring this months event I have made this cute spring birthday card. It uses the stamps from the Stitchels range by Hels Sheridan. Hels makes me laugh with her Cor!! comments on my various blog posts...check out her blog its full of excellent art.

when I am 80 I hope I am still wearing purple....

Passing the post office today I spotted an elderly lady dressed top to toe in purple ..from purple hat, purple scarf, bag, shoes the lot...I love purple so hopefully when I am her age I will still be wearing it! Instead of feeling sorry for myself with this awful cold I thought I would draw a purple haired muse in my sketchbook. I have used pastels again combined with some torn bits of a magazine for her dress..the writing reads "mistakes are the stepping stones to the future." which I like as if we make a mistake we can always rip the page out and start again! I have also discovered a white posca marker which I really like as it works like paint if you use it quickly then wipe it away...used this at the top of the page. Just found a great site with poems about growing old disgracefully featuring the one about the old lady wearing purple...

playing around with lutradur (fibre arts mixed media feb challenge)

Decided to make another fabric postcard today...this time playing around with black and white lutradur. I painted the lutradur with various shades of turquoise, blue, green and purple paints then stitched on it freely and carved into it with a heat tool. The original pattern to the background was like a log quilt pattern around the seed head images in the centre. I decided to cut out some more painted lutradur and fuse it on to the front so it looks autumnal and breaks up the lines...really like the texture of lutradur after it has burnt away...To buy lutradur just click on the purple lutradur link

nice and bright cards for a change..(lots to do machine challenge)

I have a horrible head cold at the moment so decided to make some nice and bright cards to cheer me up. I finished some scrapbooks at the weekend so all my bright scrapbook paper was out to inspire me. I wanted to use some of these botanical stamped images contrasting with the modern scrapbook paper designs. I bought a selection of punches from my friend Linda so have used a little envelope punch to hold the little happy birthday card with a fancy punched edge and the odd punched heart here and there. I have also used my cuttlebug to diecut the circles..so have used some machines to make these cards..hence it fits the challenge over at lots to do...

Possibilities (three muses nature challenge)

I am really enjoying using these portfolio pastels I got off my friend Lisa so thought I would have another go at drawing with them. Today I combined them with some pictures torn out of a magazine. I have also added some gesso and markers. I found my old calligraphy fountain pen today and I think it makes my writing a lot more arty looking..the words read .."see possibilities, they are always there although sometimes hiding.."..can you see the little blackbird hiding?

Vintage card (gingersnap colours challenge)

Over at Gingersnap Creations the theme is colours (they are looking for new members for their design team at the moment). As part of the Artistic Stamper Design team I have designed this blue brown card for the challenge. I quite like using white paint combined with distress inks to get a weathered vintage look and have stamped in the paint and the hearts with a floral stamp. Have added a little lady from the romantic roaring 20s with her elegant hat..and to go with it the little tag reads..roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet and so are you. I think this would make a nice mothers day card which will be with us soon in the UK.

learning...(mixed media monday mardi gras)

I have used portfolio oil pastels which are water soluble on this drawing and am really pleased with them as they really blend well and when water is added act like paints. Her head dress with all the flowers and hearts reminded me of what someone would wear in a carnival so fitting for this weeks mmm challenge. I am learning a lot of things at the moment hence the quote..if you think you have learned all there is to learn, then you havent even started...

At last I have learned how to do granny squares!!!

It has taken me ages to learn how to crochet granny squares but at last I think I have cracked it!!! So many have tried to teach me but I just seemed to have a block getting myself into knots!!! I was watching my friend Pat at the weekend and I thought I would have another go before giving up!! I found a superb video tutorial on you tube which is excellent as the man who crochets called Mikeyssmail goes really slowly and makes the square in stages so you can follow what he does. Here are 3 squares that I am at last happy with..so the moral of this post is dont give up!!! You can see that they are on top of my notebook with all the instructions to myself..my mantra now is 3,2,3 .... My sons are on half term this week so not much time for crafting as taking them to a lot of free sports sessions this week at the local leisure centre but having a bit of time of a night to make these...

One World One Heart "Love Bird Fabric Postcard" WINNER

The One World One Heart international blog giveaway is here yet again.

(please click on the blue words for all the info to take part)

In the spirit of this event I am giving away this love fabric postcard. It is made with various painted and printed fabrics with freestyle machine embroidery added to it. Please leave a comment linking me to your blog with a way of contacting you should you win. The event ends on February 15th so I will select a winner then...good luck and be sure to check the hundreds of other blogs taking part..it may take you all week!!

COMMENTS NOW CLOSED

A big thanks very much to everyone who has visited my blog recently and left great comments especially those who have decided to become followers. I have just picked a winner using the Random.org..and the winner is:

True Random Number Service
List Randomizer
There were 178 items in your list. Here they are in random order:

would love a chance to win. Please enter me.

Thanks so much

Anji
anji.gallanos@gmail.com
http://anjigallanos.blogspot.com

2 February 2010 06:52

Congratulations Anji will be in touch soon

beginnings of a landscape and a gorgeous tin..

nearly finished..think I will add some sheep ,birds and rocks next..

beginning of the landscape

Today I had a great day at a felting/textile group and I started on a landscape that I have been meaning to try for a long time. I boughtI so much wool roving at the Woolfest last Spring and still havent used it so I thought I must make something before I attend the next show at the end of June. Here are 2 photos showing the beginnings ....I think I will add some sheep at the front and more rocks near the lake but am quite pleased with it so far. I just worked from memory remembering the beautiful Welsh countryside that we hope to see again soon in the summer when we go camping again

When I got back home I was delighted to find a parcel for me from Heather in Canada. It contained the most fantastic little tin . I just love all the work she has put into this and think it is superb so go check out her blog and see more of her great art...hope she likes what is on the way to her!!

Love oxo or Bisto?? (Green Pepper Press oxox letter challenge)

Over at the Green Pepper Press the monthly challenge is love letters (!) using the letters oxox. Whenever I see these letters it always reminds me of oxo which is a stock gravy cube sold here in the UK..I prefer Bisto (another gravy mix). This page is part of a little book that I am doing using all my crafty individuals and paper artsy stamps. The background uses some of the bleached and painted papers I did the other day. I bought some punches whilst I was at Lindas yesterday so have used the heart punch at the bottom

Love card (gingersnap creations lace challenge)

As part of the Artistic Stamper design team I have designed this card for the Gingersnap Creations Lace challenge. It features various stamped backgrounds and 2 red painted and stamped hearts. Have added a bit of sexy lace to the layers too. I like Valentines Day but I value the little romantic things in life that my husband does...like keeping the last rolo (chocolates) for me.....what romantic things does your partner do?

Bleach backgrounds (lots to do) and a twitter bird...

Decided to have a play with a bleach pen that my US friend Lisa sent me I havent found these pens in the UK yet) . I tested it on various painted and inked backgrounds and so far it seems to work best on distress ink backgrounds. It works well with foam stamps rather than detailed rubber stamps (with both stamps you have to clean them really well so its best to use unmounted). With the bleach pen it is quite easy to do writing and doodles so have played around with some painted journal pages. I quite like the effect and will probably try bleach on fabric next. The challenge this week at Lots to do is backgrounds so my experiments with bleach fit.

I am on Twitter (loveofcollage) and recieved this lovely painted card and twitter bird from Alyice all the way from Sioux Falls in the US (you can see its on my atlas where my sons had fun finding South Dakota).

Romantic Roses (sunday stamper & mixed media monday)

Decided to make a little ATC for a change..this one features stamped roses and various painted background images. The challenge over at Sunday Stampers is roses and the Mixed Media Monday is romance..to think this ATC fits both with its romantic feel

Things I love fabric postcard challenge

The theme for this months fabric postcard challenge is Things we Love. I have used some of my favourite fabric postcards to make some fabric art journals ..check out my Etsy. I have used some hand dyed fabric with stitching for the journal and used a variety of my painted and printed fabric to make a collage on the front.

bird journal cover and playing with pastels (3 muses challenge)

I made a little fabric notebook cover today with the dyed fabric I did last week..the front is covered in painted and printed fabric with lots of free motion stitching on it..have added it to my Etsy store as I have sold most of my items! Planning on making some more fabric journal covers soon so keep checking my Etsy ..you will find it just to the right!

Had a play with the pastels I recently recieved and decided to do some really colourful pages as everyone needs lots of colour in their lives..quite like the effect of scratching away the layered pastels to reveal the page underneath. The pages were inspired by a song I was listening to while running in the gym the other day.."its a new dawn, its a new day and I'm feeling good...." dont you just love that song and the meaning behind it...

Romance Gingersnap Creations Challenge

Here is a card I have made for the Gingersnap Creations challenge as part of the Artistic Stamper Design Team. It features various painted papers and I have stamped the 1920s lady on to a painted book page. Have added sewing to add texture and to link the hearts...I haveused my favourite sequin stamp again on these hearts...all stamps from Artistic Stamper.

Today I was very pleased as my friend Lisa sent me a parcel containing portfolio pastels (which I have found impossible to get in the UK), clorox bleach pen, kool aid for dyeing and cray pas pastels..so looking forward to having a play in my journal with these later. Lisa has just opened a shop so check it out as it has some lovely products in it.

Love hearts (Sunday Stamper)

I really like doing washed out pale painted cards at the moment. Here is one layered with various painted papers, wallpaper fragments, lace, pastels, charcoal and sewing..dont think I will ever do flat cards!! I quite like the heart on this one as it uses a new stamp range which saves me using scraggy bits of bubble wrap. I have added a lady with an elegant hat possibly looking at her mum's portrait and the word Love. Over at Sunday Stampers the theme is hearts so think this fits in nicely.