Destash my Studio Giveaway Results

Okay, here are the people who won the Destash my Studio envelopes. *drumroll* Marilyn!*cheer* Erin! *applause* Ellia(greenbeanbaby)! *cheer* Susanne! *applause* and Pherenike! *cheer* I hope Erin and Susanne read this because I could not find their email addresses or a way to contact them through their blogs. So, please email me with your addresses so I can get these envelopes out to you as soon as possible.

And please give a round of applause and cheers to Nina and Nicole, who didn't want to be entered in the giveaway but just wanted to leave a comment because they're nice. *cheer* *applause* I *heart* you both.

So, I ended up with 5 envelopes (two of them are mostly chockfull with stickers!) and five people to send them to. My drawing method was very scientific: I put the names in a cup, held an envelope, and then drew a name for that envelope.

Keep your eye on my blog for the next contest!

Destash my "Studio"

So, I don't really have a "studio" and that is why all my craft stuff is on and around my kitchen table. I'm trying to get it cleaned up before May, so I also am looking to destash my stuff. Right now I have 3 envelopes full of "stuff," (papers, images, fibers, etc.). If you would like one, all you need to do is leave a comment to this post by Wednesday evening, April 23. I will draw a name for each of the envelopes and then send them out this weekend. That's all you have to do to get some more goodies for your own work. And, if you refer someone to my blog and they leave a comment on this post saying that you referred them, you'll get an extra entry into the drawing. Above are some pictures of what's in the three envelopes so far. The actual prize is subject to change, because I'll probably find more stuff to put in them. I'll probably have more envelopes, too, by next Wednesday. I hope you'll comment and take some of my stuff off my hands!

Why I am La Dama de Collage

Since this is the picture that I use for my profile, I thought I should probably explain what it is. This is La Dama de Elche (The Lady of Elche). I lived in Elche for five months, and even though I never got to see the real Dama (she's in a museum in Madrid), I've always felt kind of a connection to her. And that's why I gave this blog, and myself, the name La Dama de Collage.

"Begin" and "Alive" Art Journal Pages

Here are this week's art journal pages. They are both for the Flickr art journal challenge group. I'm trying to catch up on the previous words as well as creating for the new word. The first one is "begin..." and I've included the things I need to do like, "to dream," "to try again," "to change," and "to be happy." I used pink as a background because it seemed like a bright color, a color for a beginning. The letters are fabric stickers that I got for free when some scrapbook store around the corner from my school was closing and gave a bunch of their inventory to the school. It was like Christmas!
The second page is "Alive ABCs." This one includes the first transparency I made on my printer (I found a box of ink jet transparencies at the DI for $1.00. After pricing them at Office Max for $30, I decided I couldn't pass up on this brand new box.), butterfly stickers and black Sharpie(from the dollar store), cheepo acrylic paint (I never use the artist's acrylic paint; I just use the cheepo craft paint because I love the colors and the price), letter brads, glitter gel pens, and vintage text from an old elementary school vocabulary book that cost all of 50 cents.
The words for the ABCs are ache, breathe, cheer, dancing, earn, and fear. Here's what I've journaled along with the words: "To be truly alive...We must ache, so we know who to comfort others. We must breathe, so we can find our place of peace and calm. We must cheer our family and friends...and ourselves. We must dance, even if it is just a happy jig in our hearts. We must earn the peace and happiness we desire, so that we do not take them for granted. We must fear, and then we must conquer that fear."

I think the "Alive" page is going to be another one of those pages that I keep looking back on when I need a lift.

"Begin" and "Future" Art Journal Pages

Right now, sitting at the table and working on my "art," is very difficult My feet are starting to swell up even if I spend a minimum amount of time at the table. But I have accomplished these two.




I'm starting to drift off, so I'll complete this post tomorrow.

"Life is" Art Journal Page

This week's word for the Art Journal Challenge Flickr Group was "Life." I was thinking about that word as I was going through a magazine that I really needed to get rid of (I have to purge the stuff I've been saving before this baby comes or else he'll be sleeping in a box of magazines and craft supplies) when I saw the picture of a woman in a green dress. And I thought she was full of life and happiness. So, she was my inspiration for these pages. I then started thinking about all of the things that are my life, the things that make me happy to be alive and I wrote those things down as I thought of them.
I think this is my most positive art journal page yet. Everything else I've done has focused on being tired, and pregnant, and in pain, and tired. This, however, is going to be one of those pages that I'll keep turning to because it just makes me happy to see and read it!

Flower Fairy Collages

In honor of spring, I've been working on this little flower fairy collages for about two weeks. They've been so much fun to do, and I just wish I had more free time (not working and without the children) to work on more art-stuff. I think this is the longest I've worked on a little project like this. There are several layers involved here. I've described them below.

1. On a canvas board, glue on (I used gel medium) ripped up pieces of different texts. I think I used about 3 or 4 different texts on each board. 2. Paint with acrylic paints. 3. Spray with Java color Walnut Ink (I want to get some that is lighter next time. The Java is really dark.). 4. Stamp with gold pigment ink script stamp. 4. Flip watered down acrylic paint (the same color as the original layer) on the background. 5. Make a borderwith vintage music pages (mine came from an old clarinet book) that have been aged with chalk ink. 6. Glue on copy of vintage image from internet. 7. Stamp on vintage paper the word with gold pigment ink. Use Xyrex machine to make stickers of the stamps. 8. Use trims and flowers (I bought mine from Marilyn at Outside the Lines) to finish up the collage. 9. Use masking tape to adhere a ribbon to the back for easy hanging. 10. Select pretty scrapbook paper, cut it to fit the back of the canvas board, and adhere it to the back to of the collage.

I got a cool banner!

This nifty banner was free from Jack and Cat Curio. Isn't free stuff fabulous! Check out their Flickr Page as well.

My Cousins and I ROCK!!!

Watch me Dance!

Children's "Help" and "Is it summer yet?"

This is what happens when you don't have a place of your own to "create." You have to do everything on the kitchen table and then, while you are at work and your husband is sleeping in (again!), the children decide to help you with your art journal. Fortunately, it only got on the cover and a couple of pages that I just glued pictures to and not any of the real "art" or...well, I don't know what would have happened, but it wouldn't have been pretty.




The night before the disaster with the paint, I did the quick page below. I didn't paint it or do anything fancy this time. I just wanted to get my feelings about school right now out quickly.
I'm going to go eat mini-corn dogs right now. The baby is making me do it!