Assortments of sorts...

Just thought a little fantasy of cooler weather might help us sweat less, so here's my contribution...Think Falling Leaves and Cool Nights...Ahhhh. Okay. Worked a few seconds....

Anyway, it is what we call 2-a-day weather right now - school football, band and drill practices are startin' up and you might think that's what that means, but actually I'm referring to how many showers a day are taken this time of year. Cuz one is not enough. And if ya can't get that second shower in, there'd better be a swimming pool involved. Or at the very least, a washcloth and alcohol spit bath. And there isn't a moment for me when I'm not wearing my bra -- even when I'm sleeping -- because if I don't, the sweat causes heat rash within minutes. Big droopy boobs are a true curse, lemme tellya. Never had this problem when I was younger and they were a lot perkier...

I am working on several projects that I'm super excited about but unfortunately I cannot share right now. I'm honored to be doing a newsletter guest designer gig, and I'm also creating the next class I'm teaching locally.

So, I only have one new piece of art to share and a couple of ideas. First, the new art:

It's a stamped atc called "Fairy Tale", for the monthly themed mingle in my yahoo stamping group. All I had to stamp with were mermaids and this little water sprite stamp from Third Coast Rubber Stamps. I read up on sprites and Wikipedia says that sprites are fairies, so that cinched it. Ya learn something new every day! I had fun playing with my brayering, my rainbow ink pads and my dye inks and gel pens. Lots of glitter that the scan above doesn't really show, so here's an actual photo that shows the glitter (but the glare and the angle make it impossible to read the title sentiment):

Anyway, you can see a little better all of the shiny parts to it. Back to sprites...I'm not sure about this at all since I've never really been into fantasy (wood nymphs, gnomes, unicorns, avatars, half-goat people, wizards, and on and on), but from what I can tell, it seems to me that water sprites are mermaid fairies...or fairy mermaids. This particular sprite has little pointed Spock ears in addition to a mermaid's tail and Tinkerbell wings. So, you got me. I'm pretty clueless in this realm, although I must admit I'm beginning to develop an interest in collecting some gnome stamps and images. I suspect it was that Travelocitiy gnome on the TV ads who is to blame. He is just too cute. You may see a gnome or two as well as a mushroom house (maybe - I think they are neat too.)

The idea I wanted to show is one that I played around with a few months and took a few photos in case I ever wanted to share. All of us have those CD envelopes in our stashes, right? The square ones with the round see-thru windows? Well, have you ever thought about coloring them with inks or stamping them?

Here I used my Ancient Page dye ink wedges on one and my Tim ink tool on another. The one on the right with the yellows and pinks was done by using the wedges directly on the paper, gently dragging the pads from the center out to the edges.

How did I get that thin white rim around the window? I measured and cut out a circle just a hair larger than the window and applied it as a mask over the window while I inked the envelope. Using the Tim ink tool around the mask edge allowed me to create a feathered edge, as on the one on the left.

Oh, and don't forget the backs of the envies!

Just commit to a pattern and create it!

I've haven't yet used one of these as a mailing envelope, but I have used them to house deco art (4x4's) like a protective sleeve. I also think that stamping would work beautifully on these, even drawing, zentangling, collage, whatever. And they are usually free discards and make a great recycling project.

Well, that's all for now. Have a great week and stay cool and hydrated!