Sunday, January 7, 2018

I'm Here, 2018 !!!

 Hello Lovely Blogging Friends! Can you believe it is a new year already? I can't. But it is. I have a few art pieces to share, but first I wanted to share what our indoor decorations were for Christmas.
This is my little official Art Corner in our family room. I was so lazy this year that I opted for just stringing some red lights on my metal year-round tree and displaying a few pieces of my art.

Not one of my big trees made it out of storage. Aside from our stockings over the fireplace and a few little bowls of round ornaments on our shelves, this was it. And I loved it. Kept it on the whole season and it was so lovely to look at. I've decided I'm keeping these lights up through Valentines Day. And I'm going to buy some green lights, blue lights, white lights and orange lights, and just change them out as the year progresses. If I am lucky, I'll make some new art pieces to go with each holiday.

And, Bonus: Hubby loves it too. Since we are empty-nesters, we are the only ones I have to please. Score! After a lifetime of doing up the holiday decorations every which way imaginable, I am ready for simple.


My prayers were answered by Dani over at her Think Monday, Think ATC challenge. I really need to make Altered Rolodex Cards (ARC) for my ScriptureDex much more than I need to make ATCs. So I asked her if I could make ARCs. And she has very kindly changed the rules of the challenge so that we can! This week it's a Feathers theme (she likes to see us use stamps) and here is the front of my ARC. 


And the back of it, where I've put a verse that references feathers. You might can make out the large stamped feather I added on the verse text as background in a faint ink color. I also have my supplies gathered to make another one later for Psalms 98:4 (also feathers), but slow-poke me can only get one done on challenge time, lol. That's okay. More fun in store for me!


I began by applying some inks from my box of old inkpads that I really should just chuck. There's black, olive green, spring green and bordeaux red bands from bottom to top. The olive green is actually an old Nick Bantock Van Dyke BROWN - ha. Ink changes colors as it ages. ;-) I then rummaged through my rubber stamps and found some doves and a feather, and direct-stamped them.


I then stamped the doves again on white card stock and fussy cut them out and adhered on top of the stamped ones after shining them up with silver and gold gel pens. I also did that to the stamped feather. (TIP: Go back with a permanent black pen and re-draw your outlines on your stamped images after gel-penning. I later did do this, but only after seeing my photos and how sloppy it looks close up.) Finished up by printing out the text, outlining and adhering it, and running a mulberry ProMarker around my card.

I really hate sometimes how I have to mess up in order to learn. I may go back and reprint the verse and adhere to the back the other way, because when I put my card on my Rolodex wheel, I realized the verse will be easier to read that way. Live and Learn, but geez does it have to take up so much of my time?

Anyway, I am beyond excited to have this opportunity and motivation to make progress on my ScriptureDex. Thank you, Dani!!!



Here is my other share for today, an art journal spread with more song lyrics. This is in my Book of Wisdom quotations journal, and was done for Marit's Dutch Top 2000 song blog party between Christmas and New Years Day. Once again, this slow poke only got one spread done, but I improved greatly over last year because this one was on time and live this year. Plus, I have about 8 more started in various stages, so more to come! 


My spread began with stenciling the page with Artist Cellar's Arabian Nights Constellation stencil in silver over a dark blue background.


Then I die cut and laid out and glued down all of the words. The font is a ridiculously ancient QuicKutz called Sophisticate. And yes, I used my old blue Squeeze tool to cut them - HA! Okay, what next? I got a wild hair to draw a girl's face looking up in awe at the sky. LOL, of course, it was on the back of a piece of written on scrap paper, never on a nice clean piece. Sigh! 


No matter. I cut her out and adhered to the corner, then stamped a moon face on a sticky to see how that looked. Good so far.


Colored up the girl and went back over the lines with my awesome Platinum Carbon Desk Fountain Pen, and I don't mind saying, I am super proud of her! Even if she has a crease running down her face due to it being scratch note paper, haha. And I see now, no eyebrows! Ahem, those jumbo lashes are covering them up don'tcha know! ;-) 


For my "heavenly view" moon, I stamped her on a little scrap of shimmer pearl card stock and colored her. I then placed her where all those stars made a crown for her. I attempted a hazy glow around her with some white Wink of Stella, trying to capture it here in this progress shot. 


I finished up by surrounding the text with a coating of Posca Gold paint pen and also coloring as many stars as I had patience for, then outlining the page with a Blue Posca. This spread made me officially begin loving my Poscas and I promptly went to Dick Blick and ordered every color I do not have. The pens are da bomb! 

There were so many beautiful, gorgeous, thought-provoking participating journal pages and spreads this year. Please go look and enjoy! Mine is Coldplay, A Sky Full of Stars #263 on Day 6 of the party. 

Here are links to the entire 7 Days: 




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