Inspiration Everwhere - Art Journal {Dedication}

Loved Jessica Sprague 's Inspiration Everywhere class so much that though I wasn't able to keep pace during the two weeks of class last month, I am still happily working on the class assignments and today I'm sharing the Dedication Page.

Jessica prepared a fun pdf to use for this page, but my mojo was sparked with the combo of her class & Tim Holtz's 12 Tags of Christmas and I had to continue diving in, hands on & enjoy the full tactile experience of creating (just as I did for the art journal's cover).

When I saw the pocket Jessica used on her Dedication Page to insert her journaling, I immediately knew what I would use.  I have a pile o' old Levi's & other jeans (all sizes, from the kidlets on up to ours) & went running to see what size tush back pocket would work on my page.

I also grabbed this uber cute paper that I've been hoarding for wee girl's scrapbook album (I still have a sheet & a half left, so I didn't de-hoard it all ;>).  Isn't it darling?

A bit more patterned paper for the journaling, some acrylic paint, rub-ons, and ink to complete the page.  Oh yeah, did I mention the smiles, fun & even a few giggles (courtesy of wee girl working on her own collage beside me)?  Because there were!

The journaling for my Dedication Page reads:

Explore.

Seek.

Search.
Find.

Inspiration.

It is everywhere.

Outside. Inside.

Above. Below.

Friends. Family.

In Print. Online.

Color. Shape.

Texture. Line.

Words. Spoken.

Written. Sights.

Sounds. Smells.

Emotions. Sensations.

Inspiration.

It.

Is.

Everywhere.

Where do you find your inspiration?

Supplies:

Paper:  Foofala;  K&Company

Ink:  Tattered Rose - Tim Holtz Distress Inks for Ranger

Paint:  Acrylic Paint - Making Memories

Rub-Ons:  Making Memories;  My Mind's Eye

Other:  Fabri-Tac;  Levi's jeans

Linking up:
Tattertots and Jello:  Weekend Wrap Up Party

My Time Sketch Challenge.....a la Ribbon!

Sitting down to work on Lauren Meader's My Time To Create Sketch Challenge, I thought I would be able to make quick work of it.............well, I did, but only once I figured out how to make it work for me!

As someone who has been paper crafting for quite awhile now, you would think that it would be simple enough to sit down and put some cardstock and/or patterned paper (either pre-made or created) to a card and make the sketch work, right?! I don't know what was up with me, but I could Not make cardstock or paper work for me, not at all. I was getting grumpy, gloomy, and even a bit sullen. There was a lot of sighing. A lot of me putting my head in my hands. A lot of the kidlets asking Mama what was wrong. And even my hubby demanding, "What's wrong?!", like I must have had a broken limb or the mother of all migraines for my face to be contorted into a disgruntled squished up grimace like it was.


Coming to my senses, I realized that I needed to stop trying to force something that just was not working for me. So, I pulled out three different ribbon spools in Pure Poppy. I still followed the sketch, but used ribbon where I would have usually used cardstock/paper. Wanting more than flat ribbon, I decided to loop each piece and leave the ends unadhered, so they could have a fun little raised loop at the top and bottom.

For the horizontal strip, I used the backside of some swiss dot satin ribbon. I layered two pieces together so the polkas would not show through the front. It would be a shame to waste such wonderful polkas though, so I trimmed the left ends in an inverted 'v', folded it over to reveal the happy little dots, and tied it off with some twine. Staying away from paper entirely (other than the card base), I used flowers for the focal piece. I layered some Petaloo white velvet flowers, cut out the glued in green beads that were originally there for the flower center and added a pretty little red silk flower that I received in a flower swap I participated in about a year ago (thanks, Elise!). I glued all four layers together with Fabri-Tac. Remembering rub-ons (twice in the same month....holey camole macarole!) again, I cut out a 'for you' from the sheet and rubbed it on (you have to press pretty hard on the ribbon) to my ribbons. And two little white half pearls completed my ribbon card.

Considering the self imposed torment that I endured at the beginning of this process, I was amazed at how quickly the whole card came together as soon as I switched materials! I suppose that's true in life as well.........when we get stuck, sometimes its good to change things up a bit! Hope you are having a fantastic week and that Life brings you some happy little surprises along the way!

Supplies:
Cardstock: Kraft - PTI
Ribbon: Pure Poppy Satin, Swiss Dot Satin, Saddle Stitch - PTI; Natural Hemp Twine - SU!
Flowers: White - Petaloo; Red - Stash
Rub-Ons: Love & Happiness - SU!
Embellishments: Pearls - Kaiserscrapbook

Moxie Fab World Citrus Color Challenge

As I began pulling colors for the Moxie Fab color challenge, I saw just how many different directions we can go! I realize its more Moxie FAB to use current and new products, but I ended up with a couple of retired SU In Colors, River Rock (which I never liked, until now...yes, Elise, you can thump me now!) and Wild Wasabi, in combination with a current color from Papertrey Ink, Lemon Tart. There are several other combinations that could be made from current SU colors or using Lemon Tart, Spring Moss, and Ripe Avocado (or New Leaf) from PTI, and a huge number of combinations from Bazzill or any number of great companies out there with great springtime launching into summer colors!

Planning in my head what I wanted to do, I grabbed a one inch circle punch and started punching out Lemon Tart and Wild Wasabi circles. I started arranging them on the River Rock card base to match that picture in my head and no matter how hard I tried to put them in a larger circle, they kept inching back into a line......acting like the caterpillar that they looked like sitting there on my card. So, I decided, why fight it?! A caterpillar it is. Running the circles through a Xyron, made it easy to attach them to each other and the card. A little TIP: If you take a stylus and trace around the outside (and the inside, if it has any cutouts) before you remove the top liner/cover, you will not have any of those annoying little Xyron webs that used to drive me batty!

Looking for antennae options, I pulled out my Love & Happiness rub-ons that were an SU sellabration goodie a couple years ago. I'm embarrassed to admit, I had not used them yet, not a one!! Actually, I'm really horrible about remembering to use rub-ons!! Oh the horror!! I have them. I love them when I see them. I admire them on other people's projects. But, I forget to use them!! Consequently, it may be a very simple card, but I'm proud that I did indeed remember to check out my rub-on stash!!! I cut out one flower stem (in Old Olive, I believe), that I cut into two pieces and used that for that for the antennae stems and two little dots for the antennae bulbs. I then cut the same two dots from the Chocolate Chip sheet and used them for the eyes. And voila, a little rub-on personality for my caterpillar!

"Thank You so much" is a sentiment from Dawn McVey's fabulous set, Damask Designs and was stamped in Wild Wasabi. The edges were all inked with more of that great color (too bad it is no longer). After I completed inking the card, the sentiment was beginning to get lost, so I took a Spica Glitter Pen in Melon and traced over the top popping the sentiment back out and giving it just a little bling!

Time to get one kidlet down for a nap and convince the other that the sun really will eventually come out today.....it is 2:30pm on June 1st, afterall! Oh well, I took advantage of it being cooler as well as all the gardening inspiration that I'm finding on so many blogs this week by pruning and weeding out back this morning. We transplanted a graphed apple tree that will have six different kinds of apples.....once it starts producing fruit. Its a happy little guy and I love looking at him out my kitchen window. Even though its getting late, I want to at least get my herb garden going and hopefully, get back to growing some veggies. I SO do not have a green thumb, but I get points for trying, right? What are you all growing in your gardens, this summer? (Or, if you are on the south side of the equator....hi Sarah!....what do you like to plant during your growing season?)

Supplies:
Cardstock: River Rock, Wild Wasabi - SU!; Lemon Tart - PTI
Ink: Wild Wasabi Classic dye ink - SU!
Stamps: Damask Designs - PTI

Embellishments: Love & Happiness Rub-ons - SU!; Melon glitter pen - Spica by Copic

Other: 1" circle punch - EK Success