Look what I won!!

Look what I won!!  I'm so excited!  Especially since I won two things in about a week!  I won the ABAlteredBooks Monthly Challenge, with my ATC "Music Makes the Heart Light".  I run that list, but I've never won the challenge before, so that was exciting!!  Then, I won this give-away over at Courtney Walsh's blog!  I just left a comment.  There were about 250 comments left that week and mine was chosen!  At random, mind you....but, how cool is that?  I love Webster's Pages and this kit looks way cool!  I just received it yesterday.  It will be put to good use.  Oh, there are several other things I won, along with that...but, they've not been sent, yet.  They are:



Autographed copy of Carla Stewart's novel Broken Wings

3 Disk set of Harry Connick Jr. CDs

Handmade cuff from Farmgirl Paints

Where Women Create/Where Women Cook (3 publications in all)

Autographed copy of Scrapbooking Your Faith

The things I'm the most excited about are the inspiring publications from Stampington & Co.:  Where Women Create and Where Women Cook!  (Mostly, Where Women Create, because I identify more with being creative, in an artsy kind of way, than being creative in the kitchen....but, I do love to drool over beautiful kitchens!)  And, the "cuff" from Farmgirl Paints.  Cuff??  Farmgirl Paints??  I'm intrigued, for sure!!  Thank you, Courtney!!

Anyway, Courtney's blog is called "Telling Stories - prose, paper, paint, print".  There's all sorts of things there....I can't even tell you how I ended up on it!  :)  Perhaps something that was "pinned" on Pinterest??

Here's the ATC that won the challenge:

There's always great art-work entered in these challenges, so I am definitely honored to have won!  And, thanks to Mandy Collins over at Pearl Maple for the goodie-prize!!  All the way from Australia!  A lovely little care package for someone who loves to do altered art.

So, are you ready for the new year??  I still have some Christmas gifts to finish up....which I was really hoping to have done before the new year, but I don't think that will happen now.  :(  I really wanted to be done with Christmas; totally, thoroughly, completely done before the new year hit.  Otherwise, I feel like there's old business hanging on from the last year.  Of course, there's always "old business", but you know what I mean.  Business that needs tending to before you can move on to other things.  So, okay, I need to get off of here and get working on that stuff!  Hopefully, by the time I do the next post, all of that will be done and in the mail...or wherever it's going.... and I can breathe a sigh of relief.  Wish me luck.  :)

Happy New Year!! 

~  Teri

Christmas freebies, as promised!

So, here are the images that I promised.  Click on them and they'll show up in their original size.  Right-click on that image and click on "Save as".  Make sure you put the images in a place that makes sense or you'll never find them on your computer again!!  You can make all sorts of fun and beautiful things with these types of images.  Like the little plaque that I made, that was in my last post.  You could even make Christmas cards out of them.  Whatever you do with them, have fun!   

 Happy Creating!

           ~ Teri                                                                                                            

Christmas birds plaque

Thanks for stopping by!!  Here's my newest piece that I just did for a family member, for Christmas.  I'm so-o-o-o-o far behind with Christmas!  I say that every year, but this time, I mean it!!  I always try to make something for my immediate family....something that I can make for each of them.  Last year it was jammy bottoms.  This year?  Well, that's not happening.  I don't know why I wait so long to get started!  I'll never understand people complaining about stores gearing up for Christmas before Thanksgiving.  No, I don't want to see Christmas decorations around town before Thanksgiving.. I like to enjoy the fall colors, etc.... and Thanksgiving marks the end of all that.  But, seeing some Christmas stuff around makes me start thinking about what I could be doing/making for Christmas gifts.  How it is that we think we can do all of this, especially those of us that like to make things for gifts, between Thanksgiving and Christmas, basically four weeks, is beyond me!!  That's not nearly enough time!  I really love all the stuff that goes on at Christmas-time.  Some people complain about this or that; the crowds, etc... well, my advice is start early!!  Have it all *done* by the first part of December and then you can bake cookies and candy to give away.  You can enjoy your tree and the beauty that all the gifts underneath lend it.  You can avoid the crowds!  You can have time to get all your packages mailed, if you have friends/family in other parts of the country/world.  You can go to carolling parties (or host them!) that you've been invited to; you can go out and carol around town or in a nursing home/assisted living place.  It's not the store's fault that we wait so long to start!  You can have time to sit down with your family and some Gingerbread cookies and watch It's a Wonderful Life.  That's what Christmas is all about to me..... what can I be doing for other people?  What gifts will my children and husband just love?  What would bring a smile to someone's face?  None of that can happen if we don't allow time for it.  I'm not pointing the finger at anyone but myself, here!  I'm terrible about it!  And, every year I vow to do better next year!  It's not because the stores tell me I should..... it's because that's what Christmas is all about.  The stores aren't going to get any more of my money whether I shop in Sept. or if I shop in Dec.  But, I'll feel better.  Someone, please remind me to read this post next July!!  So, anyway, here's my little piece of artwork.  I'm going to upload some images that you're welcome to use and this image will be included.  I hope you're all having better luck with your Christmas preparations than I am!  That is, if you celebrate Christmas.  Have a wonderful night!

       ~ Teri

 

   

A Creative Imaginations ATC Raffle

Well, before I talk about this artwork, I'd like to say "Happy Thanksgiving!" to those of you who live in the States.  Be thankful for what you have.  I know, sometimes it's difficult to not think of the things that aren't "right", when you're trying to think of the things that are.  But, it's so important to focus on the things that you love about your life!!  What you focus on g-r-o-w-s!!  So, whatever you want more of... focus on that!  Do you want more chaos, sadness and grief in your life?  Then, by all means, focus on that!  Because that's what that will get you.  If you don't want any of that, don't focus on it.  Don't talk about it; don't blog, incessantly, about it.  Give your attention to the positive things!  And, be grateful, each and every day!  Some time in your day - in the morning, which would be a great way to start your day - or, in the evening, which would be a wonderful way to go to sleep - write down five things that you're grateful for.  Think of those things during your day.  Dwell on those things... not all the not-so-good things that are going on in your life!

OK... stepping off my soapbox now.  :)

So, I've had a wonderful Thanksgiving Day with my family.  All four of our kids were with us, which is a rarity these days!  The oldest was there, with her boyfriend - they've been together for three years, but he'd never had Thanksgiving Dinner with us before.  So, that was nice.  Our older son's girlfriend was there, too - that was also nice.  We had a wonderful dinner, played a couple of games and had a nice visit.  I have much to be thankful for, that's for sure!!

OK... so, about these ATC's.  Creative Imaginations is hosting an ATC Raffle.  They have a line called Luminarte  - various kinds of paints, in bottles with dauber-tops, sprays, little pots of shimmering watercolors, called "Twinkling H2O's".  All great products!  If you go to the Creative Imaginations website, they'll tell you all about the raffle.  Your ATC is your raffle ticket, which could win you Luminarte paints and "Luminarte Friendly" products.  So, I put the background down on this "sun and moon" one first.  But, I actually finished the "autumn greetings" one, first.  For the sun and moon, I put down, with the dauber-top Radiant Rain Color Concentrate (which is a watercolor/acrylic paint blend), some Hot Cinnamon and Mallard.  This was done on glossy paper, cut to the size of the ATC.  (always 2.5 x 3.5")  I wasn't sure I liked what it looked like.... so, I sprayed on some of the Shimmering Mist (Radiant Rain Shimmering Mist) in the Ginger Peach color.  I started liking it at that point.  :)  Then, I saw that I had some of the color, in puddles, on my craft-mat, so I took a pre-made ATC, made for acrylics, and put that, face-down, swirling it all around the puddles of color.  That's how I got the background for the "autumn" one.  I continued with the autumn one and got it finished.  I just now came back to the "sun and moon" one to finish it up.  I stamped the sun and moon stamp, with Jet Black Staz-On ink.  Then, I used an acrylic flourish stamp, with some VersaMark watermark (clear) on it and stamped over at the left....kind of around the black stamped image.  Then, I used True Blue Pearl-Ex pigment powder, by Jacquard) (I LOVE pearl powders!!) over that flourish.  I heat-set that, by misting it with water in a mini-mister (a Ranger product by Tim Holtz) and dried it with my heat gun.  I then took a couple of pieces of Tim Holtz' tissue tape (I'm pretty sure mine is the Nostalgic set, but I'm not sure - I threw away the packaging!) and laid those cross-wise, how you see them.  Photos just don't do these kinds of things justice... you kind of lose some of the shimmer.... or brilliance... of the whole thing.  Oh, well. 

Oh, the other cool thing about entering that ATC raffle is that your work could be included in their travelling exhibit!  How cool would that be??  I'm only making two, but I'm doing it because I've been in ATC-making mode, anyway, and it's good practice.  It also makes you do things that you might not get around to doing when you have a dead-line!  :)

Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Creating!

       ~ Teri

Playing with alochol inks

Here's a little piece I just spent the last hour and a half on.  What fun!  This was my first time of really playing with alochol inks.  I layed down the inks (from Tim Holtz' Ranger line) and then started doodling over them with a few gel pens.  Those inks are *so* cool!!  I can't say enough good things about Tim Holtz' products!!  My first love, of his products, was the Distress Inks...these are the second.  I did this on a glossy, 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper.  I layed some ink down and then used the Alcohol Blending Solution - putting it onto the same piece of felt that had the inks on it - and patted it around a little more.  Fun, fun!!  I'm looking forward to getting some clear, plastic or

acetate pieces and playing around with the inks on those.  I'll let you know how it goes!  For now, it's bed-time!!

Ciao!

   ~  Teri

I'm not sure how I missed this little guy... I made him two years ago, and, somehow, he never made it to my blog!  His name is Ollie.  That was a friend's idea... I'm not sure why.  But, it's a cute name, so I stuck with it.  :)  The pattern came out of Martha Stewart's Living magazine.  I know, it's a little early for Christmas stuff... well, not if you're making things, but for general decoration.  I like to enjoy the beautiful colors of Fall before we jump into Christmas.  We already have some Christmas lights up downtown!  They're beautiful, don't get me wrong... but, already???  Really??

Wow....it's shaping up to be a gorgeous, sunny day!!  Cool, but sunny!  Yay!!

I hope it's a beautiful day where you are!

       ~  Teri

Surrender to What Sets Your Heart Free - latest mixed-media art

Hi!

Just a quick "Hello!" and post, to show you my latest piece of mixed-media art.  It's for a friend... I'm pretty sure she doesn't look at my blog much, so I'm hoping she won't see it before I give it to her!  :)

It was fun to do, although I always come to a point where I'm like a deer in the headlights!  I need to do some art-exercises, to get over that.  Choose a time where I won't get interrupted; I can't allow myself to stop... just go, go, go..until it's finished!  Otherwise, I get too "in my head" about it... and our muses can't work through us if we're doing that.

There's an exercise in the book, Kaleidoscope, by Suzanne Simanaitis, (who runs artitudezine.com) where you get all of the supplies out that they tell you you'll need and for each step ~ you set a timer; when that timer goes off, you move on!  You don't really *have* time to think too much!  You're also not allowed to read ahead, before you begin the project.  :)  I haven't done it, yet, but it's one that's definitely on my "Art-To-Do-Soon" list!

I had the background of this piece done fairly quickly....then, I put it away and had to think about it for a while.... for, oh, about two months!!  I was afraid to go on for fear of messing up my background that I loved so much.  (That's the part that I need to get over!) 

(Any tips or suggestions for working past the deer-in-the-headlights thing would be greatly appreciated!)

Thanks for looking and, please, oh, please, if you stop by, please leave a quick comment!  :)

Thanks!!

     ~ Teri