May 4th Weekly Post

 Happy Sunday, a little early!

I'm hosting this next week at Sunday Postcard Art and the theme I chose is Literary.

I used The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain as my literary sample.

I've made a one-layer stamped collage with Artistic Outpost's Huck Finn stamp set plus a handful of word stamps (mostly by Leave Memories), Distress and Versafine Clair inks, Promarkers, colored pencils and various pens.

Aside from having never inked up this A/O set before, I had other A/O sets I could have used like Jane Austin and Great Gatsby, but I chose Huck for sentimental reasons: to also remember/homage the late great actor Val Kilmer and his Doc Holliday character in the movie Tombstone.

You may recall Kilmer/Holliday's phrase used twice to Johnny Ringo: "I'm your Huckleberry." 

The real Holliday actually used that phrase in interviews. He and Twain both used a Southern/Western American idiom (phrase) that was common in the 19th century. It meant I'm the man for the job, but it also meant I'm your worst nightmare (both meanings explain why Doc said it to Ringo, killing him after the second time). And both well describe the character Huck Finn.

Twain first introduced readers to Huck in his children's book Tom Sawyer, but Huckleberry Finn's book was meant for adults, as a parable of sorts about basic human dignity and race relations for post-Civil War American readers. The surname Finn means white or fair-haired, which Huck was. Twain had a bit of etymological fun there. (his pen name of Mark Twain was also a play on words, lol.)

So, to honor Huck, Twain and Val, I present this art piece!

😊

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For Splitcoaststampers' April Christmas Card Challenge, the theme was Dogs. This was my first entry.

I used a printed-out Gecko Galz digital image, Fancy Pants designer papers on a Recollections card base, a Papertrey Ink sentiment stamped with Bluebell Versafine Clair ink on a Sizzix star die cut out of white card along with a die cut bow. I edged the image with a white acrylic paint marker and deco-scissor the top of the flowered paper per the sketch I used, which is here.

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My second dog card has a Kraft card base, a white card layer dry-embossed with a PinkFresh press plate, red Wausau paper mats and Fancy Pants designer papers. The HOTP sentiments were stamped using Nocturne Versafine ink and cut using a Stampin' Up word window punch. The Gerda Steiner dogs and musical notes were stamped with the VF Clair and cut with the corresponding dies, then colored with Promarkers before adding to the card. 

And the sketch I followed.

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This is all from me today. Both Honey and I have not been feeling well for several days now, and I have gotten miserably behind on answering my emails and blog commenting. So please know that I will catch up asap. 

I hope everyone has a great week ahead and thanks so much for the visit!

Until next Sunday...😍

XOX