Back From Oz

What a whirlwind of a trip! Izzy and I just spent two weeks back home in Australia.. Had an absolute blast with the family. We hadn't been back home since 2006 so it had been four years since we saw most of the family. Most of our time was spent just spending good quality time with the family at the beach and parks. I'm pretty sure Izzy's favorite day was at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary. Lone Pine is by far my favorite place to visit when back home. Its a small wildlife park, unlike the huge, over priced, commercial zoos that you can go to in Australia. It only has Aussie animals and is basically the real deal. The best part is being able to hold a koala and hand feed the Kangaroos. Thought i would share a couple of my favorite pics. I'm happy to be home and looking forward to doing some crafting - its been way too long!

Took A Break From The Blog I Never Really Started

Its been quite a busy few months to say the least. I'm feeling so extremely disappointed in myself that i still haven't really pushed myself to blog more often. A number of things happened that have consumed all my energy and time... But I'm seeing a light at the end of the tunnel and I'm going to put a stop to it and get back on track. I really want to start making more of an effort to just enjoy the moment. Just like my Izzy is enjoying herself in this pic. Sigh.

Finally - I'm a Cover Artist!!

Making the cover of a Somerset publication has been a goal of mine for such a long time. I've submitted to many of our publications and have been fortunate enough to have my artwork published in a number of various Somerset publications. At work I always enjoy see the "cover samples" every time I head over to the art department and was just waiting for the day that I saw a cover with my artwork as a cover option. So you imagine my excitement the day I saw my little French ATC hanging on the board as a cover option for Take Ten - and it was chosen!

Its been a tad crazy busy recently so I'm hoping to get busy and start blogging more soon!

Creative Idea for Wall Picture Display

Wire Wall Picture Display

I recently found this idea in a magazine (cannot find the magazine so sorry i cant tell you which one!) This is a really inexpensive way to decorate an empty wall. The supplies cost about $10.00 (not including printing the pictures).. All you need is:

• Turnbuckles (these are the wire connector/stretching screw)
• Hook screws
• Strong Wire
• Pictures
• Gator Clips by 7gypsies
  

I had my husband help out, I think its best if you have two people so you can make sure everything is level, even etc. Drill the holes for the hook screws (we used really small wall anchors just to make sure its extra secure) then put the hook screws in. Connect each end of the wire to the turnbuckles tightly making sure (if you are doing two rows) that they are the same length. Then hook the turnbuckles on the hook screws and tighten the wire. It’s really easy but you just need to make sure the wire is the right length. Easy!

I found the turnbuckles at Home Depot in many sizes but I suggest using the smallest size. If you are doing two rows then all you need is 4 hook screws and 4 turnbuckles plus the wire and clips. Then you just hang pictures of whatever it is that you are displaying using Gator Clips.

I'm a little disappointed with how my pictures turned out but it was not easy to photograph the area since its a narrow hallway and the lighting wasn't the best. Also just a quick tip - if you are printing black and white pictures I suggest you have them printed at the same place so you don't end up with photos with different shades/tones as I did. Some of mine ended up looking slightly purple instead of a true black and white..

Week 2 - The Artistic Mother Challenge

Poetry Journal

Better late than never! Here is my poetry journal that I altered. I used one of my favorite childhood pictures and part of a nursery rhyme that I love. I thought the "home" theme for the journal was appropriate with the shape of the journal. I hope to fill the book with many poems and journals entries!


I altered the book by painting it first then adding some art paper that I created in the week 1 challenge. I also added some fabric leftover from an old project and faux stitching rub ons. As usual I used Collage Pauge to adhere everything to my project - I love that stuff! I used a grubby tag for my childhood quote.

Not sure how the Week 3 challenge will go because i have a broken sewing machine! Uggh. Maybe I can alter a bag instead?? I'm sure i will figure it out - looking forward to it!

Week 1 - The Artistic Mother Challenge

Creating my Backgrounds and Action Lists

The various papers I used included regular printer paper, colored card stock, junk mail, lined paper and pages pulled out from crossword books. I primarily used the paint blending technique Shona suggests in The Artistic Mother. I did a few papers using the other techniques but i found the painting blending to be my personal favorite. As i was painting the papers i used paper towels underneath to avoid getting my counter top messy. I saved all the paper towels with the paint splattered backgrounds - I'm really excited about these paper towels and will save them for a future project! After all the papers had dried i used various stamps to stamp randomly on the papers. I didn't stamp every single sheet as i thought in the future i may want some without stamping for whatever reason. I picked my favorite paper for my "Action List" and in Word created the list, printed it on my background paper, scanned it and then printed out 12 copies. Week one is done - YAY!

Backgrounds Before:

Backgrounds After:

Artistic Mother Challenge

Trudy Callan is hosting an "Artistic Art Challenge" inspired by Shona Cole's new book The Artistic Mother. You can read all the info regarding the challenge on Trudy's blog here. I'm going to do my VERY best to be a part of this challenge and add my projects weekly. Can't wait to get started!!