Even More Cards

Okay, I'm back to the card posting again! As you can see, here are a couple more cards using the same printed ephemera papers as the previous cards - these are lasting a long time and making quite a few cards! When I was organizing my papers recently, I decided that I had held on to this book of printed ephemera papers for too long, and that I should make use of them in some projects. What did I get myself into, and when will it all end? (Just kidding! I actually enjoy making cards, when I don't have other projects that NEED to be done, like now!) I've been thinking that when I'm through with this set of cards, I may add some words on the fronts of some of them, the ones that look a little plainer. I have an assortment of vellum words/quotes for many occasions that I could use. That's it for now, I need to get going on another project!

New Book!

I received this book yesterday (for my birthday). I picked it out myself, I've been wanting it for a while. The title is Mixed Media Explorations, authored by Beryl Taylor. It's a wonderful book. The author combines fabrics, papers, paints, inks, stamping, embroidery and much more in her projects. I probably won't make any projects exactly like hers, but I think that the book will inspire me and encourage me to try different media combinations in my work. If you enjoy using mixed media, or you use fabrics and/or papers in your art, or you like to browse art books for inspiration, then this book is for you! You can see the book here at Amazon.

Yard Sale Junk

I enjoy haunting yard sales, looking for what I call "good junk". Today I found a "new" used office chair for sitting at my computer or work table. I also purchased four pairs of plastic doll arms. My favorite finds of the day were four needlework/craft booklets, shown here. I love the old photos and illustrations, even the old-fashioned ads!

Challenge To My Creativity

The weather has been HOT! Good news, though: it might be a little cooler the next few days. We also might get some rain, which we definitely need around here!

Here are two more collage cards, still using the printed papers from the ephemera book. On these two, even the person images are from the ephemera book. Ususally when I make cards, I'm used to adding a little bit of this and that from here and there, but with these, I've been challenging myself to use just the printed stuff, and occasionally some of those leftover transferred images. Sometimes it's harder for me to limit the materials used. Somehow it seems easier to allow myself to use any supplies I have available. I think that it's good not to do art/craft projects in the same way or with the same materials all the time. Change is good; it makes life interesting, also stretches our imaginations!

More Collage Cards

These are a couple more of the cards I made recently. The backgrounds are still printed ephemera and the persons are transfers made from clip art images. The transfers were leftover from another project, and some of them are far from perfect, but sometimes that gives them a special charm, right? If you get a close look at the lady on the right, she has some mottling on her nose and neck. Gives her that "old photo" look, I hope! What with art room organizing, making cards and being tired, I haven't worked on any journal pages for a while. If you know Lia (Art Junk Girl), don't rat me out (this means you, Nance!)

Garage Sale Find

This weekend, I found a couple good books at a garage sale. One is a book all about buttons (I'm keeping that one intact until I decide what to do with it), the other is an old-fashioned decorating book (which I took apart).

The decorating book had pages in a binder. I removed those, and I'm going to use them for collage and journal pages. The pages have pictures of sofas, curtains, etc. - these are medium-to-large areas of color, which will be nice for cutting shapes out of to use on collages. Sorry, I didn't scan the books this time!

You'll notice two more of my cards above, the person images are transfers, the rest is printed paper ephemera.

Cardmaking Frenzy

One of my current favorite crafts is cardmaking. I went on a cardmaking rampage and created a bunch of cards today. I had a book of ephemera that I wanted to use on the cards. The book has copies of vintage items for use in creative projects. For these two collage-style cards, I used some inkjet transfers made from clip art people images over some copies of vintage items from the book.

No Worries, Be Happy!

The best thing about participating in art/craft projects is that it can make a person feel better. I don't mean that arts/crafts can cure illnesses or anything like that, but they can help people forget about their pain or illness for a little while.

Likewise, creating art can help people temporarily forget about their troubles and concerns. Sometimes crafting can clear a troubled mind, almost like meditation. Making art can have a calming effect, allowing the artist to focus on creating rather than focusing on problems.

Participating in arts/crafts can also be a great way to relax and ease out of a stressful day. Make art, relax, feel better - you will be very glad that you did!

Cool Molds

I have sculpted small clay items from scratch, I can do it if I'm highly motivated. Other times, I'm in a hurry, I need a bunch of pieces exactly the same, or I don't think I can do the subject justice. In those instances, it's good to have a mold to use.

The best molds I've found are from Sweetbrier Studio. These flexible art molds are made of silicone rubber, and are very easy to use. With proper use, molding materials are easily removed from the molds. Polymer clay, air-dry clays, silver metal clay, soap, plaster of paris, hot glue and UTEE may all be used in Sweetbrier Studios molds. (Release clays from molds promptly, do not allow to cure in molds. Release agents may be needed.)

The faces above were all shaped in Sweetbrier Studio molds, using various air-dry clays. Sweetbrier Studios has many other molds to choose from: birds, bears, flowers leaves, Christmas, dolphins, hearts, angels, with new ones created regularly. The standard size molds are 3 1/4" x 4", and the mini molds are3 1/4" x 2 1/4". Sweetbrier Studios website has ordering info., tips, techniques, projects and more.

Information Sites

The kind of websites and blogs I enjoy looking at the most are - you guessed it - arts and crafts related! This time, I have some information sites to share.



Craft Critique is website devoted to craft product reviews and product usage tips, provided by artists/crafters like you and me. The site is uncluttered, easy-to-read and find information.



Art and Craft Questions and Answers is a blog for Etsy shop owners, a place to discuss, ask questions and get answers, share ideas and techniques. You can sign up by join their Yahoo group, and you will receive an invitation to the blog.



Craftster is community where people share how they make things; they even have a "craftopedia", an encyclopedia of basic craft definitions and techniques.



CRAFT and MAKE magazines have a website which includes projects, a blog, a forum and preview of the current issue on the newsstands.

Whipup.net is written blogstyle, with the most recent entires at the top. For ease in finding topics, all the art and craft categories are listed along the right side.