A New Torso

Here we are, mid week already! I have been working on giveaways & torsos. My friend, Minnie at http://www.herminnie.blogspot.com/ is doing a show this weekend in Carlsbad, California. She asked me to make up some torsos for her to display her jewelry on. I made her a 16" torso a while back & now I've done a couple smaller ones. These are 10 inches. I love this process so much because it is so forgiving. If you don't like it...put on another layer of something else. I am posting the one that I though was the prettiest of the two. I will make a couple of larger ones next week. We are off to San Francisco for the weekend (leaving tomorrow) so I will resume artwork when I return. I am going to try & hit the Alameda swap meet which I've heard so much about & another trip to Urban Ore in Berkely. The only problem...they are predicting rain......in California...can you believe it!!!

Sister Gail's artwork today

Now I have my sister decoupaging with me! I wanted to post this great turtle she completed a couple of days ago. He turned out fabulous, didn't he? I love all the green on the bottom (some of it is napkins)& also the papers she used for the shell.
So colorful & really wonderful, Gail! I love this cute little guy but he's not really that little. Happy Friday everyone & have a fun loving weekend!

New Decoupage

I guess I am on a roll with this decoupaging. First off, you will see my little apple. The top lifts off of this. The next one is my little piggy. She came out pretty cute. I did both of these pieces yesterday afternoon.
I also took a collage class on Saturday that was rather interesting. It involved some gold leafing in the composition. The picture looked hideous when I left the class but I also worked on that yesterday to try & salvage it. It's a bit larger
than I normally do. Anyway.....I am not sure if I will post that one or not. I like it a lot better than I did but I'm still not too sure.
Happy Monday Everyone!

Today's 2ND Posting

Brave People Make Things so get excited and make things….

The first five (5) people to respond to this post will get something made by me.

This offer does have some restrictions and limitations so please read carefully:
1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make. Whatcha get is whatcha get.
2. What I create will be just for you, with love.
3. It’ll be done this year (2009).
4. I will not give you any clue what it’s going to be. It will be something made in the real world and not something cyber. It may be weird or beautiful. Or it may be monstrous and annoying. Heck, I might bake something for you and mail it to you. Who knows? Not you, that’s for sure!
5. I reserve the right to do something strange.
6. In return, all you need to do is post this text on your blog and make 5 things for the first 5 to respond to your blog post.
7. Send your mailing address - after I contact you.

IMPORTANT: This offer is null and void if I do not see you post your own blog to pay this forward. This text was used from http://putalittlemagicinyourlife.blogspot.com/

Honored with an award

I am very lucky to know so many great blogging friends....I just received this Breeze award from Diana Evans @ http://dianaevans.blogspot.com/ that was created by Peter Breese @ http://peterbreese.blogspot.com/
In his very own words: The coveted Breese Award is given to six inspirational individuals; since most blog awards cater to odd numbers, this particular award was designed for the more even keeled folk. These six should be a collection of bloggers that have helped you, either directly or indirectly, to stay creative.

I pass this award to the following people who have inspired me. Thanks to each & every one of you!

1) Tweedles & her moms @http://tweedles-georgie.blogspot.com/
2) Mary @ http://maryshunt.blogspot.com/
3) Gaby @ http://gaby-cajubrasil.blogspot.com/
4)Viola @http://saray-viola.blogspot.com/
5)Renate (I believe is her name)@ http://putalittlemagicinyourlife.blogspot.com/
6) Janny @ http://wwwtricolore.blogspot.com/

I Am Loving Bees Wax

This is one more piece done with bees wax. I had no idea when I watched Suze Weinberg's video that it was going to grab me the way it did. It just looked so easy I couldn't resist! If you're thinking about playing around with some wax, check out Suze's video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0P_4PzXr-38. This one is another little box with the front door that opens up. I guess these are designed to use in altered books, I am not completely sure...but they are certainly cute!
Hope you all had a wonderful Easter with family & friends.

More Bees Wax

I am loving bees wax! The first picture is one that was done by my sister, Gail. It is our Grandmother in a Thousand Oaks Ca. bowling alley with a tiger. Jungleland was a wild animal park here in Thousand Oaks. This was back in the mid to late 50's & our family actually got to know some of the animal trainers. This tiger was trained by a man named Mel Koontz. I think Gail did a fabulous job on this! It is 5x7 inches in size. This next canvas was a "mistake" that I did about 2 years ago. It did not turn out so I tried lifting off some of the paper to save the canvas. I decided to finally just toss it but my son talked me into saving it & trying to make something else out of it. Gail & I started playing around with it a bit & this is what we ended up with. My little Dexter that I photographed 6 or 8 months ago inside of a paper bag. Most of the canvas was done using the bees wax but not all of it. It is 11x14 in size. Dexter looks like he's jumping right through the canvas.
Happy Saturday & wishing all my dear blogging friend a very Happy Easter!

Experimenting With Bees Wax

I love the look of wax. I have wanted to do something with wax for a while but always thought it would be extremely messy & complicated. Boy was I wrong! I watched a Suze Weinberg Youtube video yesterday & that was all she wrote. I did my first piece which is actually a little book box. I decorated the top using paper & napkins. I dipped each piece in the melted wax & arranged it on my cover. I ran a credit card over the top to even it out a bit & then added some rub ons. I was quite happy with the results. Sister Gail is coming up today & we will play with it some more.
ALSO>>>>>I wanted to tell you about the new "email me" button on my blog. Susie Jefferson at http://1stfloorflat.blogspot.com/ came up with this little jewel. I thought it was a great idea to add it. So often people want to send a note but can't locate a separate email address. THANK YOU, SUSIE! Stop by & check out Susie's blog. You won't be disappointed. Happy Thursday!!

Spring cleaning..New blog background

I found another blog this morning offering FREE blog backgrounds as well as other freebies to add to your blog. Not only did I do a new background but also a new header & welcome sign. Check out *Itkupilli's* stuff at http://blo64rt.blogspot.com/

My New Giraffe

Well, this is my little giraffe. I finished her yesterday & I'm pretty pleased with the way she turned out. She is about 23 in high & I had a ball decorating her. Excuse the photo of her face. I wanted to get a close up in spite of the box in the background.
I hope you all have a wonderful week!

New Torso

I am back to ripping paper! My friend, Minnie at http://herminnie.blogspot.com/asked me to make a torso for her that she could display some of her jewelry pieces on. She wanted something with muted colors. This torso is about 22 inches tall & Minnie, I hope you like what I came up with. My next project.....a Giraffe!Can't wait to start that one! Happy Sunday Everyone!

Experimenting with backgrounds

I went to the book store a couple of days ago to pick up some new Somerset magazines. One that I grabbed was Somerset Apprentice. There's some wonderful projects in there with great instructions. I am intrigued with Gesso & I found a project by Michelle Ward ( http://michelleward.typepad.com/) called Gesso Resist. The procedure is to apply gesso to a rubberstamp & stamp on unprepped paper (I used watercolor.) You let the gesso dry for at least one hour. Apply acrylic paint over that & spritz with water while still wet. You need to move fairly fast. Once you've spritzed with water, buff away with an old cloth......and this is what you get. I even purchased some black Gesso to give that a whirl also. Have a great day everyone!

Book Page

I am posting another page today that I put together for my nameless little book. Can you tell I love vintage images? I was thinking back to some of the fun things I remembered in my childhood. Used to love playing jacks, hopscotch & the hula hoop. I also remember my little record player that played Elvis 45's constantly. Loved Elvis, Little Richard & Chuck Berry! I hope you see something in here that brings back some pleasant memories for you also.
HAPPY MONDAY!

Journal Page

Good Saturday Morning! It's a rather gloomy in Southern California today so I think I will use that as an excuse to play all day!
This is another page I did yesterday. I used a mixture of Glimmer Mists & Memories Mist to do the background. The rest is collaged.
I hope you all have a great weekend!

Happy Birthday Brother

Today is my brother's 48th birthday...Happy Birthday, Brother!!
He is celebrating today in Washington. I hope he has a wonderful day & I sure wish I was there! This is the card I made for him. I did an image transfer of him on the front at age 2 or 3. I did an image transfer of me (inside) at age 6 or so.
Happy Tuesday!

The Runway Girls

What a great Saturday yesterday. I attended the Carson Ca rubber stamp show with friends, Minnie & Yvonne. We had a great time & all walked out with a pretty big bag of goodies. I'm so anxious to try some of my new stuff.
I am posting one of the pages I did for my book which really has no theme. I seem to just wander aimlessly until I put something together that appeals to me. Animals definitely appeal to me! Sometimes I like to go from pretty to goofy! It's more fun that way. HAPPY SUNDAY!

A bit of art from the past

These are some mannequins that I decorated approximately 2 years ago. I had such fun doing this that I did one large one (32") & 3 smaller ones (12"). I guess I never posted these as it was before my blog days. Also....I did a few little goofy things on the big one...as you can see! They were sooo much fun to do. Just recently on one of my trips to the hospital I saw a small giraffe (around 5 ft tall) that was decorated in this same manner. I would love to get my hands on one of those little giraffes. It was absolutely adorable.
HAPPY FRIDAY EVERYONE!

Kreative Blogger Award

Lucky me....I received this Kreative Blogger award from Lisa at http://mudhoundprimitives.blogspot.com/. Thanks so much for this lovely award, Lisa! I am to list seven things that I love or that inspire me.


1) The green velvet hills of Northern California
2) Sunrises & sunsets
3) Blooming flowers
4) An old building
5) A kitten/puppy
6) Music
7) Strong women

Now I will pass the award on to:

1) http://elainebarrdesigns.blogspot.com/
2)http://gotmoretimethanmoney.blogspot.com/
3)http://lorianderson.blogspot.com/
4)http://ebogie.blogspot.com/ 5) http://quilting-mania.blogspot.com/


I understand that some bloggers would rather pass on the blogger awards & I totally understand that.

Easing my way back & accepting blog awards

Good morning everyone! I am going to try & get back in the swing of things now. My husband is home from the hospital & doing much better. He will see the cardiologist Thursday for a stress test so I am hoping all turns out well. Thank you for all your kind comments. I love my blogging friends & feel very fortunate that you've all touched my life.
One of my favorite blogs EVER is, http://tweedles-georgie.blogspot.com/. This blog brings me so much joy...I LOVE Tweedles! Tweedles has passed on the Honest Scrap Award.
The rules go like this:
When accepting this auspicious award, you must write a post bragging about it, including the name of the misguided soul who thinks you deserve such acclaim, and link back to said person so everyone knows he or she is real. Choose a minimum of 7 blogs that you find brilliant in content or design. Or improvise by including bloggers who have no idea who you are because you don’t have 7 friends. Show the 7 random victims’ names and links and leave a harassing comment informing them that they were prized with “Honest Weblog.” Well, there’s no prize, but they can keep the nifty icon. List at least ten honest things about yourself. Then, pass it on!"

1) I believe in equal rights for all, regardless of color, sexual preference, religion etc.
2) I love sunrises & sunsets.
3) I love love love animals.
4) Large bodies of water scare me
5) Rude smokers irritate me
6) Rude people in general irritate me.
7) I love the smell of fresh cut grass
8) Still enjoy metal jammin rock n roll.
9) The smell of my jasmine blooming is wonderful.
10) I love the early early morning with a cup of coffee & the newspaper.
There you have it!
I will pass this one on & I want to make it clear that the recipients do NOT need to post this if they prefer not to. I understand that some would prefer not to get caught up in awards & I totally understand & respect that. My choices are:

1) http://creativesolace.blogspot.com/
2) http://kvcreativedesigns.blogspot.com/
3) http://vickiorion.blogspot.com/ 4) http://kristychristopherson.blogspot.com/
5) http://sharon-artfromtheheart.blogspot.com/ 6) http://thevintagemoth.blogspot.com/ 7) http://www.backgroundfairy.com/

Congrats to all & thank you again, Tweedles

A Little Time Off

Good morning! It feels very weird that I haven't had time to post anything on my blog for a week. I came home from San Francisco to my husband in the intensive care unit of the hospital. He had a blood clot that traveled from his leg to his lung & they are attempting to dissolve it. I am back & forth to the hospital & needless to say, I have put the blog on the back burner for a moment. They did put him in a regular room last night so that's a plus.
I have been lucky enough to receive a couple of awards in my absence & I will post those very soon. I want to thank my dear little friend, Tweedles of http://tweedles-georgie.blogspot.com/ & Lisa at http://mudhoundprimitives.blogspot.com/ I thank you both so much!

Enjoyed Ellen & off to San Francisco

We had a lot of fun yesterday even though we did not make it to the regular audience. We were in the Riff Raff room. Denise Richards was not the guest, it was actually Mario Lopez. The show actually aires today. Since we didn't make the regular audience we were guaranteed regular seats on another date. We picked April 16th so hopefully she'll have someone good that day. It was still a blast! Lots of fun loving people.
I am off to San Francisco tomorrow morning until Monday. I will not be posting until next week.
*************************************************************************************I have posted a picture I did for my sister of my lovely niece & her daughter, Alexis. It is an image transfer (ofcourse!) done with Sheer Heaven. It is 12x12.
My sister's birthday is Saturday. She's actually a leap year baby but we celebrate on the 28th.
Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

My last OWOH gift received & I am going to see Ellen today!

I received my last giveaway yesterday and I was thrilled. I received this wonderful, painted/collage canvas from Jennifer Rogers-Daniels at http://artisticallydesigneddiversions.blogspot.com/. Isn't this just beautiful? I love it. Thank you so much, Jennifer!
Gail & I are off to the Ellen show today...the downside is...I do not care for her guest today. I am hoping to be put in the Riff Raff room so I can come back another day & see someone I like better than Denise Richards....that won't take much!
HAPPY Wednesday!

Recent Dolly Birth

Good Monday Morning! My sister, Gail & I spent Saturday at our friend, Minnie's house. Minnie at http://herminnie.blogspot.com/ Is one of the most generous people I know. She is always sharing new ideas, products, & her valuable time to teach Gail & I new art techniques. We LOVE you, Minnie & thank you so much! She taught us how to create these little dollies. We made the little molds & then poured in the resin. Minnie actually learned this procedure last year in a class with jewelry extraordinaire, Susan Lenart Kazmer in Seattle. There are so many possibilities with these. You can add colors, words etc. Thanks so much Minnie!

OWOH winnings rolling in

My winnings are coming in. I have received three of the four. The first one is some great little wooden good luck pieces from Birgit in Germany at http://swappinghowdies.blogspot.com/
The next one is a wonderful princess drawing from Karla at http://daydreamstudios.blogspot.com/
The third one is the gorgeous Queen of Hearts print from Abigail at http://rustedwingsstudio.blogspot.com/
I am thrilled with everything & can't thank you all enough for this wonderful experience!

New page done with transfers

Ok, it's back to the book again. Something smaller than 12x12 canvases.
This page was done with a paper background with image transfers done over that. I have around 6 pages done now so that's not too bad.
My sister & I had a fun day yesterday. We went to see the taping of Chelsea Lately.
Fortunately, it was a short 45 minute drive & we did have fun. I do have to complain about one thing though....(of course).....& that's people that are so ignorant that they light up their cigarettes while in a huge line of people. Don't people know to step away from the people to smoke? This is just sheer ignorance & a lack of caring about anyone but yourself!! Rude smokers, wake up!! I smoked for years too but I certainly had sense enough to step away from a crowd to do it. Ok, enough!
Chelsea was very funny, as always. I love all forms of comedy & it obviously doesn't have to be clean comedy either, for those of you familiar with Chelsea.
HAPPY THURSDAY EVERYONE!

New Blog Discovery

Good morning everyone! I found a link this morning through another blog that led me to http://steampunkrings.blogspot.com/. I found a BONANZA! It is Catherinette Rings. She not only has ring but other very unusual & beautiful pieces. My favorite is in her Etsy shop under this link http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=20951786 . Check out her jewelry. You'll be amazed.

Raining in California

Good morning! It's very early here, 6:00 A.M. & I can hear the rain POUNDING outside. It's suppose to be a nasty storm & I think that's right from the sounds of it.
This is another Sheer Heaven transfer using a Ziegfeld girl. I just love the side view, especially with the dog. The picture is 12x12.

Blog Makeover

Good morning everyone! I hit another jackpot this morning when I found a new site with FREE blog backgrounds. I'm amazed at some peoples generosity. There are people designing blog backgrounds for a fair amount of money. Now, I stumble across this person whose entire sites are devoted to freebies. She has a site for free clip art which is http://www.graphicsfairy.blogspot.com/ . She has another site devoted to blog backgrounds. That link is http://www.backgroundfairy.com/ Her site is http://www.backgroundfairy.com/.
Check out her sites, you won't be disappointed.

A million thanks to all OWOH participants.

Good morning everyone! I have to first thank Lisa Swifka at http://awhimsicalbohemian.typepad.com/a_whimsical_bohemian/ again for all her work in arranging this entire OWOH event. It was a wonderful, memorable experience. I can't wait for next year!
I was lucky enough to win 4 OWOH giveaways yesterday.I was so wrapped up in the giving end of it that I didn't even think about winning something myself. Anyway...I am very excited.
My first win came from Birgit in Germany@http://swappinghowdies.blogspot.com/ . I will receive 12 little wooden good luck symbols. Thank you, Birgit!
My second win came from Abigail at http://rustedwingsstudio.blogspot.com/. I will receive a beautiful print from Abigail. Thank you, Abigail!
My third win was from Karla at http://daydreamstudios.blogspot.com/ I will recveive a princess drawing from Karla. Thank you, Karla!
Last but certainly not least, comes from Jennifer at http://www.artisticallydesigneddiversions.blogspot.com/ I will recieve a painted collage canvas from Jennifer. Thank you, Jennifer!

AND THE OWOH WINNERS ARE.............

This is the day! The winners (#s 77 & 155) were picked this morning & they are:
Joy at http://joytotheblog.blogspot.com/

& Marilyn at http://marilynbutler.blogspot.com/

Congratulations to both of you! My thanks to eveyone that participated.
What a marvelous experience!

Last day to enter OWOH giveaway

This is it! The last day to enter the OWOH giveaway.The cut off for posting today will be 9:00 P.M. PST. I will post the winners tomorrow morning around 7:00 A.M PST.
I can't thank Lisa Swifka at A Whimsical Bohemian enough for everything she's done to organize this. I know she's spent an enormous amount of time & I'm so happy to see the wonderful response from everyone. This experience has been great for me...so great that I've decided to start doing more giveaways! Please stay tuned.....I have a lot of artwork to give away! GOOD LUCK EVERYONE & THANKS SO MUCH FOR PARTICIPATING!

New Transfers

Since I tend to do a lot of female pictures, I decided to throw in one of my favorite males. This is my son 40 years ago. I always loved this pic with our little dog, Brandy in the background. He will be 44 years old this November.
The second pic is a Ziegfeld girl.
I concentrate more on female pictures because of my backgrounds. I love large colorful flowers & a lot of things that don't seem to sit well with a male image.
These are both Sheer Heaven transfers.

TWO DAYS LEFT>>>>>>>>Don't forget to enter the OWOH giveaway. Tomorrow is the LAST day to enter. The winner will be drawn Thursday morning. Leave a comment under that particular post for a chance to win. You do not have to be a current blogger to enter. GOOD LUCK!!

Happy Tuesday everyone!

Good Sunny Sunday Morning

My sister & I spent the day together yesterday working on some art projects. Gail wanted to make a pencil holder & I finished up another Sheer Heaven transfer.
For the pencil holder, Gail bought a little wood container that she decorated with some of the GORGEOUS K & Co. paper & some rubber stamps. It turned out so cute!
My pic is done on a 9x12 canvas using Sheer Heaven. The image is from an art book cd on Alphonse Mucha
Have a great day!

Back to my Sheer Heaven Passion

I'm back doing what I think I love best...image transfers using Sheer Heaven.
This is some of the paper I purchased a couple of days ago by K & Co. I love this paper. The image is from an art book CD I purchased on Ebay a few months back.
The canvas is 9x12".
Hope you all have a wonderful weekend! I will be watching those Grammys on Sunday
as I LOVE my music!