Do this. Do that. Do something!

I joined my second Artist Trading Card swap. It's due on November 19th but I had the whole day off and Destin worked all night. This doesn't happen often lately, as I'm at work also or we're home together, playing Resident Evil or watching King of the Hill. I figured without any distractions, I should just knock them out. After a few hours, a stiff neck, and sticky fingers, I've finished. The theme for the swap is Zetti. I was intrigued once I hopped over to the link for inspiration:  http://www.flickr.com/groups/zettiology/pool/ ^ This one says: "A broken heart seemed a simple price to pay." (That's from a book by Alice Hoffman that I stole a bunch of quotes from and wrote them in a notebook to be used for my own future benefit back in junior high. Sometimes other people can say it better.) I spent an hour or so trying to digest the busy images. I tried to get a firm grasp on the elements that were present in most of them. All in all, I...

I bought this spectacular book the other day at a thrift store. I enjoy buying cheap books especially when the insides are creative enough to think about using for crafting. The look of a book page on a craft is appealing, and timeless, I think. Problem is, I feel a creeping guilt set in when I think about cutting up a book. A magazine, no big deal, lemme at it. But a book? For some reason their pages feel too sacred. I've resorted to using the extremely handy scanner/printer I have. That way, I get to have my cake and eat it too. Plus the copy an go on colored paper, or a notebook sheet, or on glossy photo paper, or on clear plastic self adhesive sheets!!!! WHAT?!? Oh yeah, that's right. Craaazy crafting! Check out the 1970s SNL, it's delightful!

If I were a white-lighter, (from "Charmed") I would consider this soon to come baby, my third charge. The third little thing that I can persuade to my way of thinking; if I play my cards right and her mom doesn't get smart. (As one of my four followers, and older sister, I hope she won't notice!)  Anyway, this little addition to the family will be named, Lillian Avery. Cute, right?    On my last trip to Hobby Lobby to spend some gift cards, I decided to buy three letters. One for each of my charges. Remy, Amelie, and Lillian. The other two are already out of the womb, so I made Lillian's first. I'm full of good sense. Since I don't know what she's going to be like, I pulled from her Mommy's personality. Likely Lillian's will be similar, at least until she reaches adolescence and she starts rebelling. Maybe then I'll make her a gothic I-pod cover or something hi-tech with solar panels. I put my favorite phrase on the side. Ho...

This is what it looks like when I make paper. In a few years I hope to have my own serious workshop space. A dreamy land filled with woodworking tools, a welding station, and plenty of drying racks. I want to be able to build the frames for the paper making.    What you see in the photos is an Arnold Grummer's kit I bought on Amazon for like $30 and the pages are only 8 x 5.5. In my future I'll be able to make poster sized sheets and I'll have a sink and a mixer big enough for all that pulp.   I guess I forgot to take pictures of the sponge and couch sheet parts. You have to press all the water out, naturally. I typically do 3-4 pages a day before I get tired of pressing when the counter top is almost taller than I am. But the other day I felt the urge of a dedicated factory worker and made 10! Record setting, I know. I'm crazy about paper, always have been. It's pretty cool to find out you never have to waste another sheet just because you wrot...

I was going to write a mopey post about why I've been so unmotivated, but then "Daylight" by Matt and Kim came on and I decided not to be such a whiny baby. I put on Young the Giant's Pandora station and get Izzy in a tizzie while I dance wildly. Now I'm going to show you pictures of half-done projects so I can make-believe I'm accomplishing more! Anyway, like I said, they aren't finished. So no judging...yet! Have a happy Tuesday! And if you have completion vibes please send them my way :)

"You never know until you try, (Allegra's window!!)." Tonight I got un-dumb and learned me how ta stamp new things. Like the inside of bottlecaps! I started with a test on wine corks...but I think my punches need to be bigger. That or cork is too airy. Why didn't I take physics in high school? Is that physics? Anyway, buy a stamp/punch set and have fun! I find it works best on soft, pliable material.

I'm overwhelmed with project ideas and things I could/should be making. So while I'm figuring out how to bind my latest creation, I made something I've done before: a teeny book. The end result is so amusing because I'm small; therefore, I thouroughly enjoy all small things. I could stick it in my pocket, my purse, or in between my knees while I sleep so they don't bruise each other! Really, the possibilities are limitless... Happy hump day!

It seems whenever I'm at odds with what to say, I say "poop." It's a flaw I've learned to apologize for. Just ask my older sister about her wedding photo when yours truly came up to sign. I was awfully perverse that day. See: Poop. Unicorns? I'm having trouble focusing on my next project so I'm taking the time to write about nothing instead. I almost died trying to travel with balloons in the backseat yesterday. The window was rolled down and one little balloon bastard sneaks up behind me and escapes out the window. I catch the line with my teeth so as not to lose the whole bunch in one fell swoop. I'm trying to bat the other two out of my face while trying to roll up the window and continue driving. Needless to say, travel with balloons in the trunk. Don't be an idiot.

I was feeling a twilight itch to make something. Thus grew the starry sky and the lightning fast spacecraft! (My fantasy football team name is White Lightning, so I feel this is fitting.) I finally put the orange bag for oranges to good use, it's more festive than drawing the fire. The bottlecap is from Oberon, one of my favorite cap designs because its not so much of an advertisement. Though I did just endorse it... My favorite part is the song title "Higher Ground" on the inside cover. It really ties the theme together. And the back cover says "How Firm a Foundation." So hopefully, once you've reached the end you've figured yourself out completely. Here's to writing out your problems so the world doesn't  know you're  crazy until you're dead! Have a super Friday!

I "stumbledupon" a tutorial to make tiny books late last night and couldn't come up with a reason not to try it this afternoon. I used a hamburger helper box and a bunch of scrapbook paper I had on hand. I didn't want to waste anything till I knew I could make it look ok. After the first attempt I think I'll use modge podge instead of hot glue...the hot glue beads make it look lumpy in spots. Probably my bad for going so quickly. I craft with reckless abandon!! I'm definitely going to try it again.

Exciting news! I stumbled upon super grab bags of crafty junk for cheap on recent thrift store runs. It has me wanting to never step foot in JoAnn's again. Ugh. But I digress. I got this camel tin in one bag and decided to dress it up. Once the background paper was in I fiddled around with a few additions. As soon as I laid out the Newcastle bottle caps it looked like a robot. I ran with it, having just been laugh-attacked by Bender from hours of Futurama. She looks raggedy-annesque, but that's thanks to another bagged item: fuzzy yarn! The bow is from a pair of shoes Izzy chewed because she hates when I leave the house. And I love her for that. We call her "Busy" when she's like that.

Destin and I were coming back from my nephews third birthday party when I spotted the Grand Opening of a thrift store! My lucky day! They had these grab bags that you couldn't entirely see through and they were super cheap. I found one with crafty looking materials and scored a few stitching frames among tons of other treasures. I was pleased :) It also came with that lovely paper you see, it's a rich paper and the darker parts are a raised soft texture. I knew I wanted to use the two together for a quick project. What really inspired me to bring it all together was a random "I want to stamp some leather" moment. I chose the quote mainly because it was short and sweet. With another random whim I brushed the top with some cherry red India ink. After that was done a light bulb went off! "That will go perfect with my new, red, fancy paper!" I hot glued some beads from and old, broken necklace I scored from my sister, added a few brads to the corne...

I went to my first Artist Trading Card, or ATC site and started working on the "Critters with Big Eyes" project. I wanted to get them all done before I entered the swap, just because I know how I can get when I make a commitment to something. My word puts too much pressure on me, and I tend not to follow through.  It's terrible, but I'm working on it. Anyway, I picked this swap because it sounded like a good beginner one. How hard are critters? The host wanted it to be two dimensional, which made it simple. No embellishments to worry about, just draw a cute, tiny picture. I put them all on some of my homemade paper (that comes from the old menus at work) and colored the background with India inks, and sharpies. I like the way they turned out. The dog is my favorite because it's a cartoon of my dog, Izzy. The cat and frog are shapes I got off of my Cricut Sweethearts cartridge, I just added faces and color. I guess I can only turn out two images ...

I have recently plunged into the online craft world. Looking at blogs, perusing contests, and buying a bunch of crafting materials on Amazon! I am filled with anticipation, it's a lot to take in. With the inspiration of one blog in particular, "Oops I Craft My Pants," which I will credit when I find the best way to go about doing so, I have started making my own journals. I'm proud of the work I have done so far, but I'm also excited to do much, much more. This notebook fits into the parameters of the August challenge at the Unique Crafters Challenge Blog. It's all about using sparkle. I made this notebook in a few days and it was going to have peacock feathers all over the front. I changed it because I didn't want to waste that many feathers on one project, hah! I like to do as much as I can by hand, or by found or recycled items. The front and back covers, for instance are from a box that held something electronic of my boyfriend, Destin...