This Artist's View

Theresa Cifali and This Artist's View Make a Move!

2011-04-29T20:53:00.000-04:00

Dear Friends,

I am so very excited to announce that

has moved to a new platform!

While the diggs are new...the content is still just as stellar as always. Please come visit and bookmark the new spot. I'll be looking for you!

Artfully yours...Theresa

Making Your Own Background Paper Part 1: Using Rubber Stamps

2011-04-21T11:50:00.000-04:00

Have you ever driven yourself near mad just trying to find the absolute right piece of patterned paper to go with your scrapbook layouts or handmade cards? Let me share a secret with you....I am having a love affair with paper...especially patterned paper and handmade paper. Believe me, I have A LOT of it! However, from time to time I just can't find exactly what it is that I want in my stash nor do I have the time to run out and look for something at my local store. So, out of the love of craftiness, I have started making my own papers to coordinate with whatever I am working on. (yes, I have a HUGE stamp pad collection, too!)

The sample above is a piece of background paper I made using a few simple supplies. You will need:

White or a fairly light colored piece of card stock or scrapbook paper
Permanent Ink (I like to use StazOn by Tsukineko)
Dye based ink (I like to use Tim Holtz's Distress Inks)
Stipple brushes
An assortment of rubber stamps

The first thing you will want to do is take your largest images and begin to stamp those randomly onto your solid colored piece of paper. To make it interesting, stamp some of the images off the page.

**Something important to note....when using this technique, you want to make sure you are using PERMANENT ink. If you try to use dye inks to stamp your background, they will smudge when you go to colorize it later.

Start with your largest stamps.

Next, stamp your medium and smaller stamps to fill in some of the white space. Again, use a random pattern and stamp some of the images so they are "hanging" off the page. Also, overlap your stamps. It looks really cool!

Add your medium, then small stamps.

Next, use a filler stamp, like the checkered patterned stamp I used below, to fill in some of the wider areas of white space. Overlapping images looks really cool, so don't be afraid of it. Once you've done that, it should look something like this:

The checkered image here fills in some of the white space.

I think that looks pretty good, but there is still too much stark white space. To deal with that, I used this textured stamp and stamped it all over the areas where there were white gaps. This creates texture and makes the over all look much softer.

Create texture by randomly stamping this type of image over stark white areas of your paper.

If you don't have a textured stamp in your arsenal, that is just fine! You can create texture in other ways. You can "stamp" with the following:

a stipple brush and tap the bristles onto the paper
a crumpled piece of wax paper or even tin foil
a piece of steel wool
the scrubby side of a sponge
a sea sponge (which will be right by the sea shells in your local craft store)

Once you have added the texture, your paper will look like this.

I think this is really pretty. In some circumstances I would leave it just like this, however, this paper was going to be used in a vintage style layout, so I added some color using Tim Holtz's Distressed Inks.

Using my stipple brushes (ya know I can't help myself!), I stippled the lightest color first using a sweeping motion. Then I highlighted specific areas with the middle color. Finally, I used the darkest color just at the edges of the paper for some contrast.

When I was done, it looked just like this:

I hope you are inspired to make some of your own background paper. I have been doing this a lot lately and have more ideas to share. So check back for part 2 very soon!

Just a heads up to you...soon I will be moving this blog to another space along with a new URL. I will keep you posted. I hope you will join me there. I'm very excited about it.

Artfully yours....

Theresa

Eggspecially Eastery Layout

2011-04-14T06:45:00.001-04:00

Happy Easter everyone! Sorry to keep this short today, but I wanted to make sure that I had my post up for the Designer Crafts Connection Blog Hop! Yep...that's right, we are hopping today. Make sure you check out Julie McGuffe's blog for the details regarding the giveaway this month!

Before I get completely into this post....I want to say thank you to all of those who keep coming back and checking with us. We are a new group here at Designer Crafts and are working out some of our posting glitches and such. One item of business that we have worked out is when we are posting. Keep in mind, that you can hop through all our blogs any day you choose. Our official hop days (the days an event will be going on) will be on the first Monday of each month. Make sure you come back on those days...watch for reminders....as those will also be our giveaway days! I'm so excited.

My project today is a very simple Easter layout. My favorite parts of this layout are the Easter egg paper and the Jolee stickers. They aren't from the same manufacturer, but they coordinate so well. Ah, kismet....I love when that happens!

Don't forget..today is hop day...so hop forward or backwards! Enjoy!!

Artfully yours,
Theresa

Digital Sign in Book

2011-03-13T11:16:00.001-04:00

Welcome to Designer Crafts Blog Connection hop day! Today we are all going to be showcasing Wedding themed projects! We will also be announcing the winner of the Cricut Expression.

My project for today is a Digital Sign In Book that I made a while back using a program called Heritage Makers. Did you ever go to a wedding and see those giant poster size pictures of the bride and groom where you can sign the frame matting it? I often wonder how many of those actually make it into a frame and onto the wall of a new couple's home. Probably not that many. My solution is to make Digital Sign In Books using pictures of the happy couple. Using this program I can completely customize the pages and manipulate the photos. I can add text to the pages if I choose....for example, one couple gave me lyric quotes from some of their favorite songs. The point is to leave lots of "white space". Once I have the pages laid out just right, I can have them printed in a 21-page, hard covered book. The couple then can send it around to all the tables at the wedding for their guests to sign. It makes a wonderful keepsake and it is a bit more manageable than those giant posters.

Here are a few samples of pages from inside the book. Enjoy! Oh...and don't forget...our next hope date is 4/4!

Artfully yours,

Theresa

Recycled Floral Decor

2011-03-08T09:11:00.000-05:00

For as long as I can remember I have been very attracted to tins that are unusual sizes and shapes. I have hoarded and stockpiled them always with the intention of doing something "really cool" with them. So, during the holidays when I was out at the liquor store buying what I like to call "happy gifts", this tin of Jameson Irish Whisky caught my attention. I just had to have it....and I don't even drink whisky! So, I gifted the bottle and kept the tin just for me! Is that wrong? lol

Ok...yes, it's March. I just wasn't quite sure what it was that I was going to make this into at first...but finally, when I saw the new Graphic45 papers at CHA Winter, I knew that this bottle and those papers were going to make a beautiful couple. The long, narrow, cylindrical shape of this tin, I thought, would make a lovely holder for a dried floral arrangement.

This is a very quick and easy project that anyone can create rather simply. I didn't even use glue! (sometimes I have no patience for having to wait for glue to dry) Here are the supplies I used to create this project:

Jameson tin (but you use whatever you have!)
ATG tape gun - I find the thin adhesive to be strong enough, but a strong adhesive like Mod Podge will work also
Graphic45 Curtin Call paper (any scrapbook paper will do)
Mini Scrabble tiles
Paper trimmer
Scissors

The first thing I did was decide which papers from the Graphic45 Curtain Call collection I was going to use. I happen to love the vintage feel of all their papers, but I particularly like this line because I am also a musician.

Once I figured that out, I set right to work covering the outside of the tin with a full sheet of 12x12 paper. As you can see, the tin is a little bit longer than the paper...

I dealt with that by choosing the coordinating paper that has these ticket stubs.

It was really unnecessary to measure this, so I just cut off 2 lines of tickets, like this...

Next, I adhered that strip to the top rim of the tin...

Graphic45 not only sells their papers individually, but they also have these really cool paper packs. Inside the pack are 2 sheets of each paper design and then in the back there are these press outs that are dual sided. I used these....

Actually, the one that has the musical notes had a piano keyboard on the underside. I ultimately went with that. I trimmed those with scissors and began to layer them vertically onto the tin.

This image came right from the scrapbook paper itself. I cut that out, mounted it onto another coordinating sheet to make this panel...

...which I then layered onto the tin.

That was all it took! Pretty simple so far, right? Finally, I added these mini Scrabble tiles to spell out the words "music" and "jazz". Those made a nice finishing touch and still allowed the paper to be the star!

I added some dried flowers that complimented the paper. It now proudly sits in my studio. I think it makes a great addition!

I hope this project has inspired you to go out and alter something of your own! Let me know what you did....send a link back to your blog so I can see!

Artfully yours,

Theresa

CHA Revisited

2011-03-03T08:00:00.006-05:00

Hello my wonderful friends! Welcome to the official kick-off of the Designer Crafts Blog Connection. As I have mentioned previously, this fantastic group has been born from the Sizzix Blog Hop that was held this past fall. Many of the designers from that group...along with a few new faces...expressed a desire to remain linked together. So here we are!

Today is particularly exciting for two reasons. First, it is the first coordinated effort of the group to provide you all with some really great content! Second, for this blog hop we have a giveaway! That giveaway is a Cricut Expression!!! To enter to win is simple. Nine (9) blogs contain the Cricut Logo somewhere on their blog. All you need to do is post the names of all 9 blogs into the comment section of Julie McGuffe's blog and you will be entered to win. The name of the lucky winner will be announced on March 13th...which happens to be our next coordinated Hop date.

So, back to our Blog Hop topic! When you hop along the circle today, you will see all sorts of information about CHA. There will be lots of pictures. Everyone will be posting about all the cool stuff they did and saw and heard at CHA Winter show. I have already done quite a bit of blogging about the show, so I am approaching it from a little bit of a unique angle.

What I especially noticed at CHA Winter wasn't so much all the great product. It was something that I was especially in tune with this show...

...and that was Designer presence! Practically everywhere I turned, you were reminded of the strong Designer section presence at the show. It was amazing to see! Of course, Designers have always been active participants at CHA, but in my 4 short years here, I have seen that grow by leaps and bounds. It makes me very proud to be a member of such an important and influential group.

Here are some ways I enjoyed seeing the Designer Section make their mark on CHA Winter:

During the Welcome Event of the first day of show, a group of CHA Designers (me included) had their art canvases displayed. These canvases went into a silent auction for the Kids in Need Foundation.

Me and Marisa Pawelko....Marisa generously coordinated the designers and projects donated to the auction.

This is the Designer's Craft Studio. Here, designers created and displayed projects using certain craft projects in new and innovative ways. Then, each designer had a demonstration time.

Designer Craft Studio had 24 participants. This diplay had their pictures and demo times on 3 sides!

Display case at Craft Studio.

Another group of designers donated projects for auction to another very worthy cause. These projects were displayed in the main hall...

Of course, everywhere I went, Designers were working! They were working in booths, demoing, interviewing, doing make and takes, doing book signings, taping shows! It was quite a site! Way to go Designer Section!

Even I was busy doing demos!

Sue Kelsey was at Makin's Clay.

Rebekah Meiers was at Simplicity.

Laura Bray was doing Make and Takes for When Creativity Knocks at Craftwell.

Ken Oliver was working at Unibind.

Laura Bray and Cindi Bisson were doing Make and Takes for When Creativity Knocks at Elmer's.

Of course, our celebrity designers were working just as hard...

Suede was at Simplicity to promote his new, awesome line of dress patterns. He was signing them for the masses. He also made an appearance at Craftwell.

Mark Montano was signing copies of his new book, Pulp Fiction, at several booths at the show. I caught up with him at Design Originals.

The Designer Section Members are more than just creative...we are also business savvy! We are a very organized and coordinated bunch. Here we are conducting our Designer Section Meeting.

Ann Butler, Lorine Mason, Svetlana Kunina....and I got part of Tiffany Windsor, too!

A big part of the show is the Designer Showcase, which is open to editors, publishers and manufacturers. Forty-nine designers participated in this event! CHA promoted us through the show catalog and signage like this one...

Here I am with my display. I set up in the weeeeee hours of the morning because I was so busy working.

Carla Schauer and Jen Goode not only participated in the Designer Showcase, but they had a booth in the License and Design Section as well.

When all the work was done and we cleaned up our art supplies....it was really just great to see my colleagues, many of whom I am proud to call friends!

Cindi Bisson

Suzann Sladcik Wilson

Roxi Phillips, Beth Watson, Suzann Sladcik Wilson, Vicki O'Dell and Laura Bray.

Hope you enjoyed seeing how the Designers spend time at the show and this little revisit of CHA Winter.

Now hop forward....and don't forget to look for those Cricut logos! There are 9.

Artfully yours,
Theresa

REMINDER: Designer Crafts Blog Connection and Giveaway!

2011-03-01T14:42:00.000-05:00

Thursday, March 3rd, is the official kick off of the Designer Crafts Blog Connection! Finally!! While we have been linked to each other for a couple of weeks already, Thursday is the first coordinated post. We have a theme (but you have to wait til Thursday!) and a fantastic giveaway!

We are very excited to have this Cricut Expression to give to one lucky winner. All the details will be post on Julie McGuffe's blog, Life in the Craft Lane. Check there for all the details on how you can win this fantastic personal electronic cutter.

Good luck...don't forget...Thursday, March 3rd! See you then!

Theresa

Daily Window Challenge: You Can Win, Too!

2011-02-21T10:59:00.000-05:00

Hello crafty ones! This past January, I participated in a challenge for Daily Window. They are a really neat company that makes personalized bags. Each bag has a "window" in it where you can display your personal artwork, pictures, etc. I strongly suggest you at least take a look. The bags are beautiful and so are the people who work there!!

Each month, they have a challenge. They put the call out with directions of what they are looking for...then you create and submit your image. One winner and two runner ups are selected. The winner receives $100 and a bag of your choice.

This was the winning image for the January challenge. It happens to be mine! Last week I received my prizes. It was a really nice surprise to win. I was very happy and I just love the bag.

Please go to the Daily Window website and check out the current challenge. There is still time to submit for February. The deadline is March 10th.

Good luck! Let me know if you submit.

Artfully yours,

Theresa

Designer Crafts: A New, Ongoing Hop!

2011-02-14T14:58:00.000-05:00

Hello my crafty friends! I have great news!!! If you haven't already noticed the new logo in my sidebar, allow me to point it out to you....go ahead, take a peek, I'll wait right here....

For those of you who followed the Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop, I mentioned a few times that many of the designers involved were looking for a way to stay linked together. Well, this goal has finally come to fruition! So, I would like to introduce you to Designer Crafts Blog Connection. I want to thank all the designers who have chosen to stay linked together. I especially would like to thank Niki Meiners, Jen Goode and Julie McGuffe for coordinating, writing code, hosting...and several other jobs that go along with this responsibility.

Please feel free at anytime (even now) to hop from blog to blog. You will certainly see some valuable content. We will be having specific challenges that the group of designers will participating in...there will be announcements when those are coming!

Stay tuned...

Theresa

FABULOUS CHA PHOTOS!

2011-02-13T19:28:00.000-05:00

As I walked the show floor, I often wished that there were two of me so that I could look AND get pictures of everything on the show floor. Well...while I was able to get some, it just isn't enough.

So, I asked my good friend and colleague, Julie McGuffe if I could link to her sight so that you could see all her amazing photos. Honestly, it is like a candy store of the most amazing pics from CHA. Thank you, Jules!! You totally rock.

Check these links out, so you can see for yourself.....

Life in the Craft Lane - CHA Part 1
Life in the Craft Lane - CHA Part 2

My Monday at CHA

2011-02-11T12:39:00.001-05:00

Hello crafty ones!

Just when you thought it was all over....there's more! There is just way too much to share!

Monday began with more time spent doing make and takes with When Creativity Knocks! I even guest appeared on one episode with Ana. That was a nice surprise! I'm always amazed at what Ana Araujo creates with foam board. Sometimes I wish I could spend a couple of hours in her head so that I can wrap my head around it!! Just amazingly incredible! All the videos of these awesome cards will be up on the WCK website soon.

At the show, Ana and Megan interviewed some of CHA's top crafters. The segments are titled Great Crafter's Viewpoints and you can see segments from some of the industry greats like Brenda Pinnick, Suede, Mark Montano and Drew Emborsky, "The Crochet Dude"...just to name a few. Plus, Laura Bray taped at fantastic segment called Valentine Votives at Art Glitter. You don't want to miss that!!

Ana Araujo and Cindi Bisson...two of my favorite designers whom I am proud to call friends!

This smiley fella is Scott Pfeiffer, the Producer of When Creativity Knocks. He is always behind the cameras and I think he needed to get his props!! Thank you, Scott!

Next, it was time to stop at Charity Wings, formerly known as Scrapbook Royalty...where I got to speak a little bit with, always gracious, Elena Etcheverry. They are a very generous organization. They had the warmest, most inviting booth with all this great, new signage. Just beautiful. Plus, they were streaming live during the entire show.

After my visit and short walk of the show floor, it was time to head down to Craft Studio for my demo. Here is the display case of projects from all the designers who contributed to this event.

Designers were asked to choose between four different material: yarn, paper, wire and canvas. We were challenged to do something innovative with those materials. We were allowed to incorporate other medium into our projects but the focus had to be on the material we chose. I chose yarn. Since I don't crochet or knit, I thought it would be challenging and fun. It really was too! Once I figured out what I was going to do with cream colored, acrylic yarn! I used yarn, ribbon, Sizzix die cuts and Ranger's Color Wash to create my piece. I thought it was pretty innovative!

That's it for today. There's more to come.....

Sunday at CHA...Part Two

2011-02-04T10:38:00.000-05:00

So, here it is, still Sunday at CHA. That was a particularly crazy day. We had two make and takes at Elmer's and one at Craftwell. I had a demo at ScraPerfect an then the Designer Showcase...which was awesome!

As I mentioned yesterday, we had a special visitor come by to say hi...it was Vanna White from Wheel of Fortune! What a lovely woman! She is spokesperson for Lion Brand Yarn, which was across from the Elmer's booth. Her daughter, Giovanna, and Christine, from Lion, were at the Elmer's booth that morning making cards for the Troops with When Creativity Knocks. Later that afternoon, when we returned to Elmer's, Christine brought her over to say hi to us. She signed a card.

And stayed for a couple of pictures!

And even though she was going back and forth to say hello to everyone and pose for pictures, she decided that she wanted to make a card as well! That is her daughter, Giovanna, on the right.

I only had about an hour to walk the show floor on Sunday, but I did catch up with Mark Montano of While You Were Out. I got to speak with him for a little bit. He is such a doll! Dean, from Design Originals, gave me a copy of his new book, Pulp Fiction, which Mark signed.

Finally finished with all my show floor obligations, it was time for the meet and greet at the Designer Showcase. Because I had such a busy day, I had to set up in the wee hours of the morning. This picture was taken before the room was completely set up.

This was the showcase from later that night when everything was set up and the room was all a buzz. I think I did pretty well for my first showcase! Here is Jen Goode and Carla Schauer...really talented designers and overall great peeps!

Sunday was my most productive...and exhausting day by far. I only wish I'd had more time to walk to floor. I am sure I missed a lot!

Artfully yours,

Theresa

Sunday at CHA...Part One

2011-02-03T09:43:00.001-05:00

Hi all! I have finally made it back east. What a trip!! I left a day early to beat the snow and then got stuck out in LA. Honestly, I wasn't complaining either...I'd rather be stranded in a warm, sunny place than in the middle of a blizzard. The weather effected many of my designer friends, too! While we all wanted to get home, we were all kinda happy that we were able to spend a little more time together.

Now that I am somewhat settled (and awake this morning, as my body is still on Pacific time), I have lots more to share with you. It'll be coming in dribs and drabs over the next couple of weeks. I also have a surprise coming....so keep look out!

CHA Winter was a wonderful show for me. I participated in a lot and was also working part of the show. As I mentioned before, I was working for Ana Araujo from When Creativity Knocks. Ana and her team taped four episodes at Elmer's and two at Craftwell. After each episode at Craftwell, we did make and takes. At Elmer's, we did make and gives!

Elmer's and When Creativity Knocks came up with the concept of Cards for Our Troops. We made 4 different, interactive cards with show attendees and then Elmer's is shipping them off to our Troops overseas. Blumenthal Lansing, Clear Bags, TaDa and Elmer's all donated product for the cards. The generosity of these manufacturers is amazing!

This is one of the cards that is being sent to our Troops. We also made a Magic Card that is based on the Magic Wallet, a Checker Board card that comes with buttons so that you can play and another that has a door that opens. I guest appeared in an episode where Ana shows you how to make a game card with foam board and photos...you can slide the pieces around and mix them up and then try to put the picture back together again. It's ridiculous!!!! I want to spend just one day in Ana's head so I can understand how she comes up with all these concepts. It's truly astounding to me.

People seemed to be having a great time making these cards. They really got into it and some even wrote personal messages. We met a lot of really great people.

Even Megan, Ana's daughter and the host of WCK made some cards to send.

My colleagues and friends....Laura Bray and Cindi Bisson....kept me entertained. Ana gave each of us a new Mimi bag at the show. Laura was so excited as I was showing her all the really neat compartments I was finding. ;)

The time flew right by on Sunday. We even had a very special visitor...but that'll have to wait until next post!

Artfully yours,

Theresa

More from the CHA Show Floor

2011-01-30T09:00:00.022-05:00

Here are some pictures from the show floor at CHA. I think they pretty much speak for themselves...so I will forego the chitter chatter and let you see for yourselves. Enjoy!!!

The bride to the right isn't there for her reception! Many of the manufacturers had some type of clothing at the show made from all sorts of products. Laura Bray and I were trying to figure out which booth she was representing.

May Arts

I forgot which yarn company this was! Yikes...but the display was very cool.

Graphic 75....I love their products. It's so delicious.

Me & My Big Ideas

Xyron

View down one of the show aisles.

Provo Craft

Hands on demos at Provo Craft.

EK Success

Plaid

Plaid had this gentleman painting right there on the show floor.

Plaid was also streaming their Craft TV.

iLovetoCreate has tons of make & takes going on.

Sizzix

CHA....The Show Floor Opens

2011-01-30T01:32:00.000-05:00

Hey all!

I got an extra early start this morning...beginning with a Keynote address at 8:30am given by Nick Bilton, the lead technology writer at the New York Times. The address was all about how Social Media will impact retail in the future. It was a very interesting and informative speech.

The floor officially opened at 10am and I went right to work. My day began at the Elmer's booth with Ana & Megan Araujo of When Creativity Knocks. Not only did Elmer's donate all the product for the project and for a great raffle, but they are taking care of getting all the cards to our troops. This was my first opportunity to work up close with the Elmer's staff...what a lovely group of people.

Before we got started, Ana and Megan taped an episode that features how to make the cards. They are a riot, those two...lemme tell ya!

When I finished up at Elmers, it was time to head off to ScraPerfect for my demo. You can see my project on the right of me there...

This was the project I made for the Completing the Puzzle Event. I really enjoyed working with all the participating manufacturer's products.

Then it was time to head to the Craftwell booth to meet back up with the crew of When Creativity Knocks. The theme was The Big Top and we made these adorable, but giant "circus pops". There's Laura Bray, instructing a retailer with her project. We had a really busy hour.

Here I am with Ana. She is one of the most creative women I know. If I ever need someone to brainstorm with...she's my girl!

After I was done there, it was time to walk the show floor and check in on some of my favorite manufacturers. I even got to see some of my colleagues in action!

Here's Sue Kelsey at Makin's Clay!

And I found Rebekah Meier at Simplicity.

You know who else I found at Simplicity signing copies of his new patterns for everyone? Yep....my buddy Suede! We now know the new hair color.......

I like the blue on him! I did get scolded for not coordinating my hair color with his so we could match again like last show. He had actual samples of his new line at the booth...and as always....was very gracious signing patterns and answering everyone's questions. He's a real living doll!

More pictures from the show floor will post in the morning....and I'm sure that there will be more to tell tomorrow. The Designer Showcase is tomorrow. I'm both nervous and excited. Wish me luck!

Artfully yours,
Theresa

CHA kicks off in Los Angeles, CA

2011-01-29T09:40:00.000-05:00

Hi all....The time is really flying by here in LA. Thursday morning I took a little walking tour of the surrounding area here. I found FIDM, Wilshire Boulevard, tons of restaurants and markets and the Contemporary Art Museum. Very cool indeed.

On my way back to the hotel, I stumbled across this crew below! Some of my very favorite colleagues were getting out of their cab. I spent the rest of the day with them, which was very nice. We got them checked into the hotel and headed out for lunch.

Barbara, Roni, Roxi and Candice.

After lunch we took a run down to the Convention Center so that they could register. I was lucky that Candice was with me. She is running the Craft Studio and she got me my display ribbon, which got me onto the show floor before it even opened. Watching set up is always amazing. You would not believe how fast everything gets set up. It goes from looking like one hot mess to a fully set up and organized show floor in what seems like a flash. I swear it's magic!

Then Thursday evening I went to dinner with 9 other designers. That was a lot of fun! It was also probably the last good meal I will have while I'm here! lol

Friday was a very exciting day. It was the official kick off of festivities at the show. I spent the day in seminars, organizing the Press Room and dropping projects off to display cases at the show. My face is all over the place...on all sorts of signage for events I am participating in. It is fantastic exposure.

One of those events was the Designer Round Table Discussions. There I moderated a table on Confidentiality Agreements. The event went well (and really fast) and was very well attended. After that it was off to the Welcome Reception in South Hall. I caught up with even more friends and was really pleased to see that, indeed, the canvas that I donated to the silent auction was prominently on display.

Here are some of the canvases and the story behind them.

There were about 16 of us who participated in this round robin, but only 10 of us who decided to donate our canvases.

Here is the signage that is being displayed with our canvases. It explains them and each of our pictures are on it.

Even though I added an element to each canvas, this one I started. I love how it came out and I may very well bid on it!

Here I am with Marisa Pawelko. She was gracious enough to organize getting these pieces into the auction as well as all the publicity.

I also got to hang out with a few of the designers, some of whom I was meeting for the first time and others who I look forward to seeing twice a year!

Me and Laura Bray.

Here I am with Suzann Sladick Wilson.

Roxi Phillips, Beth Watson, Suzann Sladick Wilson, Vicki O'Dell and Laura Bray.

I joined the crew this time!

Once they took away the food, it was off to our designer section meeting. It is a formal meeting to go over all the official happenings in our section. I believe it is important to step up and volunteer, so I always try to help the council out when I can.

Of course, I ran into a few of my favorite friends there. Here I am with Cindi Bisson. She is a dear friend. We have worked together for years. As a matter of fact, she and I will be working together most of the weekend with When Creativity Knocks where she is Associate Producer.

We will be doing make and takes at Elmers and Craftwell. Make and takes are always fun to do because you meet so many people.

Of course, I have to introduce you to Keri Cunningham....she is our rock over at CHA. Keri is nothing short of amazing and is our direct contact at CHA. She helps out with organizing events for designers like Craft Studio and the Designer Showcase. I know she has been a great help to me personally as she is always there to answer a question.
Plus whenever I see her, she has a smile on her face.

Which leads me to today! Today is Saturday...and the show floor officially opens. I'm getting myself together shortly for what will surely be an exciting and long day. I will be able to get some pictures and walk around the show floor somewhat this afternoon. My first stop, however, will be to the Keynote address where Nick Bilton, lead technology writer at the New York Times, will be speaking. Then....the show floor opens.....

Artfully yours,

Theresa

Oh, No Snow Will Stop Me!

2011-01-27T03:57:00.000-05:00

Whew! In spite of the weather...and with a little help from above....I was able to get out of New York on Wednesday morning. I'm grateful because the word at home is they are getting another foot of snow. OUCH!! Sigh...at least I won't have to shovel it. Is that bad?

The flight was actually very pleasant. Surprisingly it wasn't full, so I was able to move my seat and have no one next to me. We even landed about 40 minutes early. How cool is that??

I immediately felt the sense of calm the minute the wheels of the plane left the ground. Now it is just a steady hum of excitement, which was heightened the minute the HOLLYWOOD sign came into view! It is absolutely gorgeous here....it was 75 and sunny today. Who would want to be inside? So after I unpacked, I took a walk over to the convention center to check in and took a walk around to see what's here. Here are some pictures I took along the way.

This is the view up S. Figueroa Street. My hotel is up on the left.

My hotel is right around the corner from the Staples Center.

The Staples Center has display windows with all these vintage games. Anyone who knows me well, knows I have a thing for vintage. It is so awesome to see...

I am also right around the corner from LA Live. Lots of cool restaurants and shops.

The Los Angeles Convention Center is right on S. Figueroa just a couple of blocks up from my hotel. The convention center is HUGE!

This is the other side of the Staples Center. From this view, the Convention Center is to the left and behind it.

I just can't ever get enough palm tree pics. LOL

The outside of the South Hall of the LA Convention Center. What a nice welcome!!

The main entrance hall inside the Convention Center.

Yes.....Thank You to our show sponsors!

The main lobby of the Convention Center...the calm before the storm!

How cool is this? Right outside the main convention hall is this sign for the Designer Showcase! I'm really excited about showcasing this year.

Here is the signage to the lower convention hall. I had heard that the show was going to be huge this winter...and it sure seems it. We are spread across two separate halls!

I had dinner outside at Wolfgang Puck's. Delish!!

That's it for now! I'm going to go count some sheep. It's 1 am here, which means I've been up for 24 hours! LOL

Artfully yours,
Theresa

Yeah...I'm all that and roll of blue painter's tape!

2011-01-23T14:34:00.001-05:00

I can't think of a better definition to describe me!

The pre-show jitters are reaching a low hum, people! Why am I not completely freaking out? Well, that would be because I actually (and for a change) am ahead of schedule!! This past Tuesday, I packed up my entire Designer Showcase display and then on Wednesday I shipped it all out! WOW! I went through a lot of bubble wrap and blue painters tape!

The picture above is a small piece of my Designer Showcase centerpiece. What is the Designer Showcase? During the summer and winter trade shows, the Designers have the opportunity to showcase their work for one day. It's a long day with set up, a viewing period for Editors, Manufacturers and Publishers (EMPs), then a Meet and Greet with EMP where they can meet the designers...and finally tear down! The purpose of the showcase is to show who you are as a designer and hopefully it will garnish you with some work, great connections or a book deal.

I have been a Designer Section member since 2006 and every year I have talked myself out of participating in this event. It's quite nerve wracking actually...what will my concept be? How do I present that through my work? Who am I as an artist and a designer? In truth...I have already gained far more from this experience than I ever could have hoped to expect! It was quite in introspective really. I learned a lot about my creative self and have exceeded my own expectations. I'm pleased that I kept this promise to myself.

Artfully yours,
Theresa

CHA is on the way...

2011-01-22T14:33:00.001-05:00

IMP Participating Manufacturers

Hello crafty peeps! We are officially 7 days out to the official start of the Craft and Hobby Association's Winter Trade Show! It has been very busy here preparing for show and all it's events. I am involved in quite a lot...and I will be sharing everything!!

As part of a designer's prep, Victor Domine of CHA, led a teleconference with us to talk about Press Kits and Press Releases. He gave us some valuable insights as to what should be included in these items as well as what the difference is between the two. I always place a press kit in the Press Room at Conventions, but never believed that I had any press release worthy news! I found out that I was indeed wrong...so I will have a press release ready to go for show (i'm still tweaking!).

During this call, Victor informed us that this will CHA's 70th anniversary for trade shows. That speaks a lot to this organization and shows the growth of this industry. I am always humbled to be a part of CHA. They do such amazing things and everyone is very supportive of each other.

One of the events I am taking part in this show is really exciting. Independent Manufacturing Partners...affectionately called IMP is sponsoring Completing the Puzzle...a wonderful event where show attendees can see demonstrations of each Manufacturer's products and then collect a puzzle piece to complete their puzzle. The participants then have the opportunity to win $900.00 in product to place in their stores for retail. My challenge was to use as many of these manufacturer's products in a project as possible. It was quite a feat...lemme tell you! I received oodles of product from 7 manufacturers. The real challenge for me was incorporating something from each in a way that didn't make the project look too busy. I was really pleased with the outcome. During the show I will be demonstrating twice. My demo primarily focuses on how I used products from Magenta, The Crafter's Workshop and Earth Safe Finishes.

I will be blogging every night from the show and for at least two weeks after show....the amount of pictures I come home with on my camera are obscene! I can't wait for you all to see! Keep checking back....there will be more pre-show posts!

Artfully yours,

Theresa

...and Last Summer

2011-01-17T20:12:00.000-05:00

Ok ok....so I know what some of you are thinking..."What's with the giant bird?" Isn't he cute? And huge? lol

This fantastically, feathery fellow is from the Flora Craft booth at the Craft and Hobby Industry's summer show...

I wonder how long it took to put that bad boy together. Anyway, you see all sorts of cool and interesting things at a trade show.

Anyway, I mentioned in my last post that I was gearing up for the Craft and Hobby Association's (hereafter and lovingly known as CHA) Winter trade show. I've spent the better part of two months getting ready for this spectacular event. There will be more about that in later posts....and plenty to share with you during the show.

Just to give you a little taste as to what's what with a trade show, I am sharing some pictures from CHA's summer show, which was in Chicago.

Bazzill...where they have my favorite solid colored scarpbook papers!

When at a trade show, I do a LOT of walking. There is so much to see and usually not enough time to really see it all, so I always make a plan...usually starting with seeing what's new with my favorite manufacturers.....

Tattered Angels has partnered with Heidi Swapp...what better combo can ya get????

There's always a lot of goodies to see at Die Cuts With a View!

May Arts is a ribbon and fiber lover's (yes, me!) dream!

EK Success had a HUGE display for their line of American Girl scrapbook products.

I always check out what's going on at Ranger and you can usually catch Suze Weinberg, Tim Holtz and Claudine Helmuth, too!

So, once I've seen what's new at my fav places, I usually just walk to floor to see what else may catch my eye. I have always liked the booth set up at Little Yellow Bicycle...but this show they were actually raffling off a yellow bicycle! I'm not kidding....see for yourself.....

See! I wasn't kidding!

I hope the person who won that lived close enough to ride it home.

What is this? This is the GIGANTIC hanging display that was above the Making Memories booth. I noticed it right off when I walked onto the show floor. It made me take a detour from my regular route because I just had to see who's booth that was from! When I got there you could see all these butterflies dangling and twirling...all shimmery and glittery. They cut a gagillion butterflies with the Slice...their electronic cutter. It was really beautiful.

Of course, no show is complete without getting to spend a little bit of time...and sometimes just a pass by as we are on our way to demo's, make and takes, showcases, etc., ...with fellow designers. We have quite a group at CHA. We are organized, supportive and just generally fabulous!

This particular group above participated in the very first installment of the Triple Play Blog Hop. I didn't participate in the first one...but Julianna Hudgins, who was the spokesperson and designer liaison for Sizzix at the time, invited me along to their thank you dinner. It was very sweet to invite me...and they even gave me a gift, which started me on the path of being completely obsessed with Sizzix dies!

Designers do all sorts of things at a show. We won't get all into that now, but here is my designer friend, Ann Butler who is demoing for Makin's Clay!

One of the highlights (literally...you'll see) was running into Suede from Project Runway. I first ran into him at a charity event. He was pretty surrounded, but I noticed right away that we both had purple highlights. I mean...we were hair twins!

So, the next day, when I passed by the Craftwell booth, I realized why he was at the show. He used Craftwell's electronic cutter to create these stunning dresses.

I'm looking forward to seeing him at CHA Winter. He will be there with Simplicity. I wonder what color his hair will be.........

Keep checking back for pre-show peeks!

Artfully yours,

Theresa

Beeswax Shadowbox

2011-01-15T18:03:00.000-05:00

Hello there blogospherians!

For those of you I haven't had the pleasure to "see" yet, HAPPY NEW YEAR! Things were extra crazy here over the holidays...and then they kicked into high gear! For those of you who do not know, I am a member of the designer section of the Craft and Hobby Association (known as CHA). It is a fantastic organization...which is a post for another day...but the long and short of this story is that I have been very busy getting ready for our GINORMOUS winter trade show. This winter we will be in LA. I am looking forward to getting away from the outrageous winter weather to some that will be (at least to us north easterners) be warm!

So....I have been very busy preparing for all the show happenings...which is why I haven't been "here". Over the next several weeks, you will be seeing and hearing a lot about my prep for the show as well as some really exclusive photos and such during the show. So tune in! There will be a lot to share....

Oh boy...I digressed very early in this post! Now back to that Beeswax Shadowbox! This past September, I had the extreme pleasure to assist Ana Araujo of When Creativity Knocks at Maker Faire in Queens, NY. It was jam packed full of activity and very well attended.

During that weekend, I had the great pleasure to tape my second episode for When Creativity Knocks and I guest appeared on a second episode. If you are not familiar with WCK, I highly suggest you check it out. Ana, her daughter and host, Megan and the WCK team go all over filming some of the most creative people around. They have a very full taping schedule at CHA's winter show....so some really exciting things will be coming up!!

Theresa and Ana taping at Maker Faire, NY

I have taped for WCK before....way back in July of 2008. You can find that episode as well as many countless others in WCK's archive. Ana and Megan don't discriminate when it comes to crafting...so whether your thing is painting, fabric crafts, scrapbooking, etc.....you'll find something!

I keep my beeswax in a crock pot that I turn on when I need it!

One of the best things about taping outside is that you don't really feel like you're "in the spotlight"...even though you literally are!

Ana is so easy to work with and makes everything more fun and exciting. Scott, WCK's producer, is amazing behind the camera. I'm really excited to see then all again in LA at the end of the month.

Some new news I can share with you now....
Once CHA is over, I will be contributing a monthly column to WCK's Creative Journal called The Designer Connection. We are working out the details and I'm doing some diligent research in between making crafty messes! More about that to come!

Keep checking back....the count down to CHA has officially begun!

Artfully yours,
Theresa

Tips, Tools and Techniques Tuesday!

2010-12-21T23:59:00.001-05:00

Merry Christmas everyone! It's hard to believe that the holidays are here already AND in a little over a week this whole year will be over. This has been a wonderful year for me professionally and I am very grateful.

This week I am going to show you a fun and easy staining technique with Tim Holtz's Adirondack Color Wash. It is a great method for making background papers.

There are a lot of fun uses for the Color Wash inks. Today I am just going to show you one of those. You will need a few things to do this process yourself. Those supplies are:

Tim Holtz's Adirondack Color Wash
Water color paper
Freezer paper or another non porous work surface
Paper Towels
Windex

Tim Holtz's Adriondack Color Wash

Since this technique involves introducing a lot of moisture to paper you are going to want to choose a paper that can stand up to that. I like to use watercolor paper. I used these small post card size that I will later stamp on and layer onto the front of a card.

Before I get started, I cover my work surface with freezer paper, which you can find right in the grocery store. You'll want to make sure that you have the shiny side up as that will be your palette. It is the perfect palette because when you are done with your first set of color, you can just wipe it right up and start all over.

After you've covered your surface, choose between 2 and 3 colors to create your design. Spray them right onto the freezer paper.

I tried this technique with water and it will work. However, I discovered that the colors really pop if you spray some Windex onto it. Then it looks like this...

Then you take your paper and press it down into the mixture. Tap the paper to make sure that the whole surface gets covered. Don't worry...the curling that occurs is normal. It will straighten out some as it dries and then pressing it under some heavy books will take it the rest of the way.

Pull it up and lay it into a clean area of your palette. It is going to drip, so be careful.

Take some paper towel and blot! Don't rub, just blot it to get the excess water off.

You can get some really pretty marbling using this technique. And, come on, messy is fun!

I am going to try to post one more time before the weekend...but if not. Have a happy and healthy holiday!!

Artfully yours,
Theresa

My Favorites Friday: Snowmen & Penguin Ornaments!!

2010-12-17T09:00:00.001-05:00

Happy Holidays everyone!! Here in the great white north...where we've gotten a touch of snow...I am in full gear for the holidays. I'm done with my shopping and have even started to wrap! I'm proud of myself...this is unheard of to be honest. I'm not too proud to admit that there have been years where I've been wrapping gifts on Christmas Eve! Not this year. I'm head of the curve on this one.

Since I'm in the holiday spirit, I wanted to share with you my love of snowmen and penguins. I have loved snowmen for years and have them all around my house now. The penguin fetish is quite new actually. It's all good...there's always room for more.

Every year, I make some kind of ornament to give as gifts to family and friends. It's become a tradition. This year, I wanted to make snowmen and penguin ornaments to make everyone's tree happy...mine included! I am really pressed for time this year because I have so many things going on professionally (that's a post for another time).
I wanted to do something that wasn't too labor intensive...but I still had to give myself enough time so that they could completely dry.

I was thinking to myself today that these are my favorite ornaments. So, I wanted to share this great project with you early enough so that you can make some too! There's still plenty of time.

This is what I started with....clear glass balls...

But before you get started, you'll want to grab a couple of other supplies:

Black and white acrylic paint (make sure it is fluid acrylic...tube paints won't work unless you mix them with a fluid medium)
Deco Paint Pens
Pretty Ribbon

That's it! I promise...

The first thing you want to do is take the hanger out of the top of the ornament. These pull right out. If for some reason, one is being stubborn...just give it a twist like you would a soda bottle. When it loosens, you can then pull it out. Like this....

Then you want to squeeze some paint inside and start swirling the paint around until the entire inside of the ball is coated. Then you want to drain them. To do that, you'll need to put then upside down. I take the tray that comes with the ornaments and cut a hole in the bottom of each section. Then I place that over the empty box so that there is enough space for the paint to drain out.

I usually leave them upside down over night. Then the next day I turn them over and leave them for a couple of days to dry out. It's important that they are completely dry inside otherwise they will leak if they get turned upside down. That's just icky!

This may sound like a lot of work, but it really isn't. I like to work on several things at once, so while these dry...I'm working on other projects.

When the inside is dry, I put the hangers back in and started to decorate!

Using white, black and orange Deco paint pens, I began to draw faces on my ornaments. I started with the penguin faces first because I wanted to make sure that adorable white face was dry before adding black eyes and an orange beak. The snowmen took a few minutes. Just be careful not to smudge any wet paint while you are working.

I actually left the penguin ornaments dry overnight before adding the other details. When I was done, they came out like this...

Aren't they cute????? I'm going to attach some thin, black organza ribbon to the hangars in a loop to hang them from instead of using metal hooks. I think it'll make them pretty.

I would love to see what you all are making for the holidays. Send a picture of your favorite home made ornament and why you love it...I'd like to post a blog of what everyone is doing.

Artfully yours...as always,
Theresa

SIZZIX TRIPLE PLAY BLOG HOP WEEK 7: MOLLY'S TRAVEL BAG

2010-12-16T09:01:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the 7th and, sadly, the LAST installment of Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop. Well, at least for now. This has been a wonderful and fulfilling experience for me personally. I looked forward to the challenge every week, it stretched me as an artist and I had the great fortune to be linked to many of the talented designers in our industry. I want to take a minute here to personally thank Sizzix, Eileen Hull, Brenda Pinnick and Karen Burniston for allowing me to be a part of this Hop! Considering the size of this blog hop...it took a lot of behind the scene prep and also cost! So, thank you times ten!

Out of this experience is born some other great experiences. I can't get into all of it right now, but keep checking back. When it happens you will know!!

Now onto this week's project...

This week's project features Eileen Hull's Treat Bag Toppers die. Several elements came in my kit. The die itself features 3 separate toppers, but one in particular stood out to me because it looked like a purse handle. Then the size of it made me think that'd it be perfect for a doll...which made me think "American Girl"! So, I chose to make a travel bag for Molly from Americal Girl.

Here is what you need from Sizzix:
Sizzix Scoreboards XL Die #656774 - Treat Bag Toppers
Sizzix Big Shot
Sizzix Accessory - Cutting Pad, Extended 1 Pair
Sizzix Little Sizzles - 6" x 13" Mat Board Pack, 6 White Sheets

And you will also need:
Fabric of your choice
Batting
Needle and Thread
Steam-a-Seam 2 fusible web
Iron
Scissors
Ranger Adirondack Colorwash, Espresso
Ranger Adirondack Dye Ink Pads, Espresso & Ginger
Stipple Brushes
Mod Podge - Glossy AND Fabric
Foam Brushes
Paper Towel

If you click the link above for the Treat Bag Toppers die, to the left of the picture you will see a link that says "line". When you click that link, you'll see how all the elements are laid out on the die...which is very cooly btw! You will see there are 3 toppers and several other elements for embellishing. Out of all of those, as I was saying earlier, I was inspired by the one that looked like a purse handle...almost kind of like a carpet bag. I also had some fabric that I liked.

I am not much of a sewer...and I am still just learning how to use my machine....whiiiiiiiich.......I left in the box for this project. Since the purse is doll size, I figured by time I make a bobbin and thread my machine, I could just hand sew it. I sewed it inside out and just up the sides. It looks like a kid did it, but I tried my hardest. :)

And at least it looks a lot better once you turn it right side out! Whew! I then filled the purse with some batting to puff it out so it would look full. I cheated and used fusible web to seat the top.

The fun part of any art project for me is always the MESS! Making sure to put the fabric purse part away. Otherwise I inevitably get it dirty. I wanted to make the topper look like wood and after playing with a few techniques on the mat board, I decided to go with Adirondack Colorwash in Espresso.

At the moment, the drafting table in my studio is covered in freezer paper...glossy side up. It happens to make a nice palette and was convenient for what I did. The Colorwash comes in a spray bottle, so I just spritzed some onto the freezer paper. I dampened a foam brush and just picked up the Colorwash from the paper and brushed it onto the mat topper. I made several passes at this wiping with paper towel after each application until I had a shade I liked. Here is a closer look at the result:

I let that dry for a couple of hours. Then I brushed a thick coat of Glossy Mod Podge over the entire element and let it dry thoroughly. After separating the hearts, I brushed on Ginger dye ink on the outside heart and Espresso dye ink on the inside heart. I then put them back together and also brushed those with Glossy Mod Podge.

Once the handle was good and dry, I used Fabric Mod Podge to adhere it to the bottom part of the bag.

Next, I glued the heart elements to the front plate of the bag handle.

And now Molly has a new travel bag!

While I'm sad that the Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop has come to and end...for now...I'm still looking forward to bringing you some really great projects that you can try at home. It has been my sincere pleasure to showcase some of the fantastic dies that Sizzix has to offer.

Artfully yours,
Theresa

Tips, Tools and Techniques Tuesday!

2010-12-14T11:18:00.001-05:00

Happy Tuesday to you all! This weeks post is going to be short and sweet. It's the holidays and who has the time to read my long banter!? :)

This week's tip is very simple...it's about scissors! I don't care if they are your everyday average scissors, pinking shears or rotary cutters...those things are expensive. As with all crafting supplies, to get the most bang for your buck, you have to take care of them properly.

If you are like me, you have about a hundred pairs of scissors. Also, if you are like me, there is nothing more frustrating than a dull pair of scissors! I remember when I was a little girl, there was a man that came around in a truck (just like the ice cream man!) and would sharpen scissors and knives for the locals. Sadly, that doesn't exist anymore. :( I can't say I'm surprised in this day and age...I mean, who wants people coming out them with sharp objects!!

A few years back I received this piece of advice. I'd like to pass it on to you. It won't sharpen your tools, but it will help you get the most life out of them. The advice is simple....DESIGNATE YOUR SCISSORS! Simply put, scissors for paper should be used for paper only, metal for metal...fabric for fabric, etc.! Don't interchange them. Paper dulls scissors and if you try to use those scissors on fabric after a while, you'll find that they just don't cut crisply anymore. OH...before I forget....please, please...if you designate only one pair of scissors, make sure you designate one pair for cutting things that are sticky like foam tape. It doesn't matter how much Goo Gone I use on a pair of scissors that I was cutting sticky stuff with, they are just never the same.

I just want to remind everyone that this Thursday is going to be the LAST week of Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop. It just went so fast. So, don't miss it this week. It will be a very special day.

Artfully yours,
Theresa

My Favorites Friday: Beeswax

2010-12-10T09:34:00.001-05:00

Happy Friday everyone! Today we're going to just get right into it. Beeswax! It is truly one of my favorite things. I really like everything about it...it's warm, it's messy, it makes my studio smell fantastic and it's flexible!! What do I mean by flexible? Ah, that is just the beauty of beeswax. We'll get to that in a minute.

Let's start with the wax itself. Believe it or not, beeswax comes in two varieties...the natural kind and synthetic. Synthetic beeswax isn't really beeswax even though you will find it listed that way. It is a human made substance. Probably the coolest thing about it, is that it comes in colors. However, there are drawbacks to synthetic waxes. First of all, they are not as pliable as natural beeswax. Secondly, there has been an ongoing debate as to how safe they are to use. When the word "toxic" gets thrown around, I tend to steer clear. Personally, I prefer natural beeswax and I stay away from synthetics.

You can find natural beeswax in a variety of states...like in a jar and the wax is in small little chips. That's cute and all...and part of what you'll be paying for is the nice packaging...which you can always save and alter later! I just run over to my local art supply or craft store (of course, you can buy online!) and I buy a gigantic hunk of it that comes in a plastic baggie.

Don't drive yourself nuts by trying to cut a small piece of beeswax! You'll only strain your muscles and get frustrated. The easiest thing to do is keep that block of wax in it's bag and chuck it in the freezer for about a half hour to an hour. Here comes the fun part.....when you take it out, whack that puppy with a hammer and the wax will break apart easily. Then you'll have smaller chunks.

Melting wax....there are several little melting pots out there. They work wonderfully and are really great to have if you use them for other things besides wax. Usually the trays that come with those are removable and you would, again, stick the tray in the freezer and the old wax will pop out once it's frozen. The drawback of using those with beeswax is that they don't hold much wax. I tend to work on large canvases when I'm using wax and I don't want to constantly have to add wax that I then have to wait to melt. I use a small crock pot that I leave the wax in at all times. It has a lid so my wax doesn't get dusty. When I want to work with it, I simply take it out, plug it in and turn it on. Then I gather the rest of my supplies while the wax melts.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Once you use a household item (like a crock pot or a toaster oven) for craft or art materials (like clay or wax) you NEVER EVER want to use that appliance again for food!

Getting back to what makes beeswax so flexible...in my collages, the beeswax acts as the adhesive. This means that if I have placed an element somewhere and I change my mind about it's placement, I can simply reheat that area and lift the element out.

There are a few tools you'll need besides a vehicle to melt your wax.:

some kind of brush that you will dedicate to wax only. I use that same brush each time I work with wax. Once you put it in the hot wax, the bristles will loosen right up. If you go the crock pot route for your wax, I suggest a long handled brush.
a heat tool! wax sets quickly, so you'll want to have that tool handy. it's also helpful for heating areas that you want to remove an element from, creating drips with crayons or blowing those crayon drips to make neat textural elements
a mini iron. you'll need this to smooth areas out. "But I don't wanna!", you may say....that's totally cool to leave a rustic, rough surface. However, if you are going to put any photo images you'll want a smooth surface underneath it.

This is the basics of wax. I really like using it so much better than glues sometimes, just because I have the ability to change things up if I don't like something. There are several techniques for working with wax AND it will really hold just about anything.

Below are a couple of beeswax collages. I hope you enjoy them. Let me know if you give beeswax a try. I would love to hear about it and see what you've made!

This collage incorporates dress pattern, a photo (which is printed

on copy paper), buttons and ribbon. It also has crayon drips

and smudges.

This collage incorporates an image transfer right onto

the wax. It is super simple!

Artfully yours....

Theresa

SIZZIX TRIPLE PLAY BLOG HOP WEEK 6: VERTICAL WALL HANGING

2010-12-09T11:30:00.001-05:00

Here we are again! It's Week 6 of the Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop!! I am sure you all share in my amazement that 6 weeks has flittered by so quickly. This week features a pretty spectacular die by Brenda Pinnick. Brenda, ever so generous sent over a whole mess of pieces for this project cut from paper, HER fabric, felt and this really awesome material that is really similar to burlap but with a cooler texture. I LOVE TEXTURE! I chose to stick with the material and save the paper til later. Here's what I got in my goody bag...

What was really interesting was that if you go to the Sizzix site you will see that this is intended to be an album. However, since Brenda send the positives and negatives for this die and there was so much of it, I decided to do some layering and make a cool wall hanging for my studio.

The products you will need from Sizzix to use Brenda's die are:

Sizzix Bigz XL Die #656053 - Album, Brackets

Sizzix Big Shot Pro

Sizzix Accessory - Cutting Pad, Extended, 1 Pair

Paper, Mat Board or Fabric of your choosing

I have to share something right now. I think if there was going to be a secondary title for this Blog Post it would be....Confessions of a Sizzaholic! Yes, folks, I am officially hooked on these products and I've gone and bought the farm!

In creating this project, I chose to incorporate some other Sizzix dies to create the wall hanging. Now I know there are just some squares, but it was so much easier to cut them with the Sizzix dies...and, of course, the gigantic Westminster Edition of the Big Shot Pro. This is one sick machine, I tell ya! Isn't it a beauty?!?

Here are the other supplies used in this project:

Sizzix Big Shot Pro Shape Cutting Machine

Sizzix Bigz XL 25" Die #656684 - 5" Squares

Sizzix Bigs XL 25" Die #656683 - 3 1/2" Squares

Sizzix Bigz Die #655969 - Flower, Build a Flower #3

Fabric

Pellon 911FF - Featherweight Fusible Web (1 sided)

Steam-a-Seam 2 - 1/2" two sided fusible web

Cord

Assorted Ribbon

Assorted Bazzill paper in coordinating colors

Low Temperature Glue Gun

Glue

Glitter

Japanese Screw Punch

Before I ran my fabric through the Big Shot Pro, I ironed on the Pellon fusible web. It is a pretty good stabilizer and makes it easier to cut the fabric. These machines are so great, I was able to run multiple layers of fabric and paper through them. What a time saver!

Once the stabilizer was attached, I ran the fabric through the machine and made my squares. Like this:

Next, I layered my fabric squares along with the pieces from Brenda's kit. I wanted each square to be different and just played until I found something that I liked. Like this:

Once I had 5 squared laid out the way I wanted them. I used the Steam-a-seam 2 between the layers and ironed them together so that they were adhered together.

Next, I laid the assembled squares out in an order that I liked.

One hole is already punched for you with this die, but I needed some extra holes to run my cord through. I punched an extra hole at the top and another at the bottom with my Japanese Screw Punch.

I ran my cord through, running it so that is mostly ran across the back of the square. I am not much for measuring (is that bad?). I am more of an "eye-baller", which is what I did to space these out appropriately.

I tied some little bows and with my hot glue gun, I glued them so that they sat just at the top of the square just covering the bottom hole. This served a couple of purposes. First, it kind of hid the hole. Second, because the glue covered part of the cord, it helped keep the square in place. For good measure, I flipped the squares over and ran a line of hot glue under the cording in the back as well.

I tied a knot in both ends of the cord so that it wouldn't unravel and a simple loop in the top. While I loved the color scheme and the texture of the fabrics, it needed a little something more, so I took some card stock in shades that complimented the colors I was already using and began to cut some flowers with my Big Shot. I cut so many flowers, I'm set for spring!

I then took half my stash and glued and glittered them up just because...honestly...who couldn't use a little sparkle? I assembled the flowers with double stick adhesive, but I glued the bottom layer to the fabric squares with hot glue.

Here are close ups of the squares. I really hope you enjoy!

That's it for this week. It's almost sad...because this means that there is only ONE week left to this blog hop. I am really grateful for this opportunity. It's been a blast!

Gotta hop.....

Theresa

Tips, Tools and Techniques Tuesday!

2010-12-08T10:00:00.001-05:00

Today, I am going to introduce to you another really great product! It is called a blender pen. A blender pen is a special pen that is filled with a clear blending solution. There are several brands out there, but my personal favorite is the Dove Blender. There is just something about the blending solution in this particular pen that I prefer.

If you go right to the Dove Blender site, you will see that you can not only get the pens, but replacement nibs as well as extra solution. As with any tool, in order to get the most success out of it, you need to make sure that you take proper care. If you just want to give it a try, you can get a starter kit with comes with a pen, a small bottle of blending fluid as well as 3 new nibs. Believe me, you'll love this product. Would I steer you wrong??

Since you now know where to get one, it's probably a good idea that I give you some of the whys and hows. Here is a list of reasons why I personally enjoy using a blender pen:

Blender pens allow me to use products that I already have in new and unique ways...such as watercolor pencils, water based ink pads and markers
I am able to achieve a watercolor look (as you can see in the image above) without using water. (What's the big deal about water?? Well, for one, depending on how much is introduced to the paper you are using it can cause it to curl or peel. Then there are papers that don't lend themselves to traditional watercolor at all, such as gloss coated cardstock.)
Blender pens work on several surfaces and it takes the guess work out of paper type. They work on cardnstock, watercolor paper, copy paper, vellum, wood...and more!
I have more control when it comes to using dark color markers.

Those are just a few of the reasons! Another cool thing about a blender pen is that you really only need one pen! When you are finished with a color, just make little x marks or roll the tip across a scrap piece of paper and the original color will come right out. Keep in mind that certain pigments (such as purples and reds) will stain the tip but the fluid will still come out clear. Then, when that tip gets all icky and gross, pull it out and toss in a new one.

Now here are some ways that I use my blender pen:

Watercolor pencils: starting with your lightest color working to your darkest , color in your image without going all the way to the edges. use the blender pen to blend the colors together and move the color out to the edges
Watercolor pencils: as shown below, use the pencil to trace over all the detail lines, then pull the color out to the rest of the image

With the following techniques, you want to pay close attention to how dark or light you want your color to be. You can always make the color darker, but you cannot take the color away once it's there.

Water based stamp pads: lightly brush the tip of the blender pen onto the pad and then color your image by starting where you want the color to be more concentrated...then work from that point out every time you add color to your pen. As you pull the color out from your starting point, it will get lighter.
Water based markers: use the same technique as above, except touch pen tip to pen tip. You can also use a palette if you want. I either use the information side of an old CD (believe it or not, I have a bunch of the old AOL CDs that they used to send in the mail!) or a glossy ceramic tile. Just draw onto the palette with your marker and pick the color up on your blender pen from there. When you're done, you can just wipe the palette clean with a damp paper towel and save for reuse!

Do you use blender pens? I am sure everyone would like to know how you use yours! I'd love to hear your comments about blender pen techniques!

Don't forget...Thursday is week 6 of the Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop. Check back in...I wouldn't want you to miss it!

Artfully yours,

Theresa

SIZZIX TRIPLE PLAY BLOG HOP WEEK 5: SUNFLOWER SURPRISE

2010-12-02T09:00:00.000-05:00

We've hit it! Week 5 of the Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop! Can you believe that 5 weeks has gone by already? I sure can't. What's really got me is that there is only 2 weeks left to the blog hop. I have looked forward to each project every week...so I have no idea what I'm going to do after...'cept maybe BEG Eileen, Karen and Brenda to just send me things at random. What do you say ladies? Help a crafty sista out? LOL

So, this week we are featuring another incredible die designed by Karen Burniston. I was particularly excited about this week's project because I am a huge of fan of pop-ups. Yes, that's right people...Karen's die is a pop up! As usual, I couldn't decide on a concept. I only knew that I was definitely using this die as it was intended! No worries...there are pics of that pop up coming up. But first...in case you wanna make one just like this...here is your weekly supply list:

Sizzix products:

Sizzix Bigz XL Die #656740 - Gift Card Holder w/Phrase For You 3-D (Pop up)

Sizzix Big Shot Machine

Sizzix Accessory - Cutting Pad, Extended, 1 Pair

Sizzix Accessory - Premium Crease Pad, Extended

Other supplies:

Blank greeting card (no smaller than A-2 size)

Neutral colored cardstock

Yellow cardstocks by Bazzill

Vellum

Stickles in a coordinating color

Distressed Ink by Tim Holtz

Stipple Brushes

Red liner tape

Mod Podge

Foam brush

Xacto knife & cutting mat

I am from the northeast. I love it here...and the change of seasons (although I've been known to whine...cough...about it being too hot or cold at times). The one thing, however, I can absolutely do without is Daylight Savings! Boy, do I hate it when it gets dark at 4:30 in the afternoon. Plus, the weather has been miserable to boot! This is exactly why I was particularly drawn to the bright sunflower pictures that my best friend's daughter (who's 13) took. Plus, sunflowers are my very fav flower!! It really helped cheer me up! Who wouldn't want a blast of warm cheeriness during these winter days with a Dunkin Donuts gift card to pick up a nice hot coffee! I know I'd love to get one of these babies in the mail! (feel free to email me for my snail mail ... he he)

Oh my, it seems I have digressed yet again. My apologies.

Soooooo....I started with a blank, white greeting card. Of course, the first thing I did was grab some ink and my stipple brushes. Yes, I have a thing with those. I just swept some color across those bare white edges...on the front of the card...and on the inside as well. Because I was using these gorgeous, bold yellow sunflowers, I went with Shabby Shutters and Peeled Paint as my Distress Ink accent colors.

I mentioned last week how I love to print photos on vellum because I like the effect. I did the same this week. This particular sunflower I cut out with my Xacto knife. Please be sure that you remember to use a cutting mat. :)

I layered two pieces of yellow card stock, the lighter of the two on top. I lightly brushed some Mod Podge onto the back of the vellum sunflower and layered it down. While that was drying, I went back to my computer and found part of a sunflower poem that I liked a lot, drafted up a saying for the inside of my card and printed those up onto another piece of vellum. I'm fond of vellum, too! I tore around my sayings and brushed on some Distress Ink in Brushed Corduroy. I glued the poem to the front of the card and set the inside saying aside for later.

In the kit that Karen sent, there was a frame type piece that was cut out in white. I glued another one of my sunflower pictures (printed in vellum, naturally) to the front and cut the excess off. This piece inserted perfectly into the pop up. Wait...you'll see!

Next, I was ready to assemble the pop up! Following the directions carefully, I used red liner tape to secure the pop up inside the card. It was very simple and the directions were very well written! Once that was attached, I used double stick tape to attach the extra sunflower framed piece. I only taped across the top of the frame. It is important to note this because if you tape across the bottom, it will stick to the card and prevent the card from opening all the way! That, my friends, would be bad!

I used some Stickles on the "FOR YOU" just to make the letters stand out a little bit more...and, honestly, who doesn't love a little sparkle?

When it was assembled, it looked like this:

Just to finish the card off, I added the light yellow cardstock and glued my vellum saying over that.

Then I added my gift card like this:

This is really just such a special die. You can use it anytime, for any occasion. It is like getting two gifts in one! Can you imagine how special you will make someone feel handing them a gift card in a completely customized card? It's perfect for a teacher's gift for Christmas or end of year...and would make a spectacular vehicle for a personalized birthday present! Sure beats the socks off those cardboard holders that come with the gift card, I say!

I hope my Sunflower Surprise gift card holder has brightened your late fall days! Can't wait to get a start on next week's project which will feature another versatile die from Brenda Pinnick. Time to hop forward....

Artfully yours,

Theresa

Tips, Tools and Techniques Tuesday!

2010-11-30T12:27:00.005-05:00

Hi everyone! Welcome to a brand new week. I hope you have all recovered from your Turkey induced comas and that you are basking in the glory of your leftovers! Come on now...I know it's Tuesday, but you till have leftover turkey...I know it!

As I promised, I am back to work this week and back on my blog. I'm glad to get back in the swing of things too!

This week I have another really great tool to share with you. These are stipple brushes. A stipple brush is an artistic tool used to add texture or shading. I use them constantly. As a matter of fact, if you have been following the Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop and seen any of my posts from that, I have used my stipple brushes on the last two projects:

Stipple brushes can be used for a myriad of things. I can add texture by pouncing my brush straight up and down or I can sweep it from the edge of the paper towards the inside to give a project depth. I have made really great back grounds for beach pages and I have used them to antique handmade books and other projects. I have used them with stencils...getting both the positive and negative images.

Mostly, I use my stipple brushes with stamp pads or reinkers. I like the effects I can get. I keep a brush for each color family. You can also use stipple brushes with paints, but you will want to make sure that you wash your brushes thoroughly and let them dry completely after.

If you don't have any, you should really get a couple and play with 'em. It is a lot of fun.

Artfully yours,

Theresa

SIZZIX TRIPLE PLAY BLOG HOP WEEK 4: SCHOOL DAYS

2010-11-25T08:56:00.014-05:00

Happy Turkey Day everyone! Welcome to Week 4 of Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop. Can you believe we are smack dab in the middle already? Time sure does fly when you're having fun. This week we are using Eileen Hull's Frame and Frame Back with Stand. Let me tell you, there are a lot of elements with this die! There are really so many possibilities. I was really inspired most of all...you're gonna think I'm weird...by the flat back piece. I don't know what screamed out "chalk board!", but it did. I don't pretend to understand these things, I just go with it.

Let's start of with our supplies this week:

Sizzix Scoreboard Pro Die #656835-Frame and Frame Back w/Stand by Eileen Hull

Sizzix Big Shot Pro

Sizzix Little Sizzles-12x12 Mat Board Pack, 3 White Sheets

Other supplies I used

Preserve it Frames 15x15 Black Frame Kit

Raven Black Paper by Bazzill

White Paper

Vellum

Polka Dot Paper by Time Flies

B&W Alphabet Paper by Rusty Pickle

Vintage Chalk by Rusty Pickle

Black Soot Distress Ink by Tim Holtz

Crayola Chalk

1/8" stripped ribbon

Mod Podge

Black Chalk Paint by Plaid

Brown Acrylic Paint

Foam Brushes

Sakura Gelly Roll Glitter Pen

Ultra Fine Point Black Sharpie

White Paint Pen

Foam Tape

Double Stick Tape

Sand Paper

Xacto Knife & Mat

Stipple Brush

Flat Wood Strips

Textural Wood Image

You can see for yourself, this die comes with a lot of elements! You can choose to put them together OR you can use them separately as I did. I have saved the elements that I didn't use for another day. Now...as I mentioned...there was just something about that back piece that make me want to make it into a chalkboard...so I did. Who am I to argue with my inner voice?! To be honest, I think I have just been dying to play with Plaid's Chalk Paint for so long and this really lends itself perfectly.

I painted the back piece according to the directions on the Chalk Paint. You really want to do this first because it needs a couple of coats and then needs to cure for 24 hours. Then you can work on other elements. Then I took thin flat wooden strips that I got from Michaels. I used my Xacto to cut them to the desired size, then gave them one light coat of paint. **Just a note - the chalk paint is going to make the mat board curl. Don't worry about it. It will flatten out some on it's own AND if need be you can always straighten it out later.**

In between coats of paint and drying time, I set to work on my layout.

I took a piece of Raven Black Paper by Bazzill and rubbed a piece of white chalk over half of it. I like this effect because the the Bazzill paper has a texture to it. I tore the polka dot paper and with a stipple brush gently brushed Black Soot ink across the edges. I repeated this process with the chalk paper. Finally, I adhered them to each other in this order....

Doesn't that chalk paper look cool!!!! I didn't get a good pic of it, but once I was at this stage, I took a pice of sand paper to the edges of the chalk and polka dot papers.

I took the scalloped edge frame and and taped the B&W Alphabet paper to the front of the frame. With my Xacto I trimmed away the excess paper. The next frame layer that I put underneath, I used my stipple brush again just at the edges.

Now, in between the two frames I sandwiched a photo that I printed on vellum paper and then layered over white. WHY?? I just happen to like the effect. It comes out softer than when printed on photo paper. Oh, I also went into Photoshop and converted my pics to black and white to stay consistent with my theme.

Again, I took some sandpaper to the front frame to distress it some. I assembled all the layers and added the ribbon and the heart (which is one of the elements in Eileen's die!). I stippled some Black Soot on the edges of the heart, used a Black Glitter Sakura Pen to make the stitch marks and a fine tipped Sharpie.

I took the smallest frame and again stippled the edges, but I also took a textured stamp and stamped it all over the front of the frame in the Black Soot. Then I layered the vellum and white paper underneath it. I tied a simple ribbon and used Mod Podge to fix it to the frame.

Now remember that back piece that I painted with the Chalk Paint? Yanno, that stuff really works great?! I was very impressed with how well it works. Anyway, I just used double stick tape to frame the "chalkboard". I drew on the hearts with a white paint pen....but I used CHALK to write "first day of school".

I tied ribbon around one piece of chalk and added a couple more pieces of chalk which I adhered with Mod Podge. I attached all the elements to my page and then set it aside as I waited for the chalk to dry.

I really like how the this page turned out. I wanted to do something special with it, especially because it is so dimensional, so I decided to frame it with a Preserve it Frame kit I had. The plexiglass is actually a cube with a 1/4" inch lip around the perimeter and it us UV coated so that my papers and photos are protected. It enables me to put dimensional pages underneath without having to use such a deep shadow box.

I hope you enjoyed this week's project. I know that I sure enjoyed creating it. Again, Happy Thanksgiving....time to hop!

Artfully yours,

Theresa

A Slight Detour...

2010-11-23T12:03:00.003-05:00

Hello everyone...and a very Happy Thanksgiving to you all! Today is indeed Tuesday which means it is time for my weekly installment of Tips, Tools and Techniques. However, this week with the holiday, I am going to take a small hiatus. (insert, obligatory "awwww" here!)

With all the holiday goings on, coupled with some pre-holiday deadlines I am under the gun...so to speak. So instead of authoring a post without my whole heart in it, I have decided to take the opportunity to say....HAPPY TURKEY DAY!!...a little early.

Now don't fret too much....because I will still be posting my weekly Sizzix Blog Hop project. Week 4 will post on Thursday...featuring one of Eileen Hull's very cool dies! As always, I'm just excited to get hopping! Then next week will be back to "normal"!

Enjoy your Thanksgiving feasts...whether you are cooking them or not! I am cooking this year...and I'm grateful for that. I really enjoy cooking! YUM....

Artfully yours,

Theresa

My Favorites Friday: ATCs

2010-11-22T08:37:00.002-05:00

Happy Friday! I hope this post finds everyone well and gearing up for a fun and exciting weekend. The weekends always seem to fly by so fast. This week I want to share with you one of my favorite art forms...Artist Trading Cards or more affectionately known as ATCs.

What is an ATC? An Artist Trading Card is similar to Baseball Cards. ATCs are miniature works of art. There is really only one strict rule to creating an ATC...size! All ATCs measure 2.5" x 3.5" in size. After that, you are only limited to your imagination.

The ATC above was created using scrap book paper, dye ink, rubber stamps and a miniature tag. It is a mini collage that incorporates several elements. It has many layers which gives it a texture. You can be as simple or elaborate as you wish.

You can purchase blank ATCs just about anywhere. Dick Blick is a very popular site for purchasing such materials. However, you can use simple playing cards or you can cut your own. I like to use card stock or old post cards...as is used in the sample above. I have even created them out of fabric, but I usually use some type of one sided fusible interfacing to give them a little more stability.

On this ATC I punched the image into the top layer of paper. I used gold pigment ink around the edges and image to make them stand out.

This ATC incorporates a decorative brad and a slide. I don't generally worry about things sticking off the edge of the card. I trim them later by turning the card over and trimming off the excess with an Xacto knife.

What do you do with an ATC? That's simple! You trade them, of course!! There are all sorts of swap groups out there. As a matter of fact, if you belong to any of the groups that are out there you should check to see if there are any for Artist Trading Cards. I bet they do! There is a really cool site called ATCsforAll that has been around for quite a while. They are constantly running swaps. You should really check out all the swaps they ran so far this year! These guys are obviously passionate about ATCs!!

If your interest is piqued...here is another fantastic site with some outstanding eye candy: Art-e-zine Trading Card Swap. This takes place in the UK...which just goes to show you...ATCs are global!

I hope you enjoyed this little preview on Artist Trading Cards. Whether you create these precious gems already or are going to give it a try...feel free to share! I'd love to see what you are creating. Plus, if I get enough feedback, I'd love to post some pictures of other artists' cards.

Artfully yours,

Theresa

SIZZIX TRIPLE PLAY BLOG HOP WEEK 3: MY VINTAGE GARDEN

2010-11-17T23:44:00.019-05:00

Welcome back! We are now on Week 3 of Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop. I had so much fun this week playing with the featured die...which was designed by Brenda Pinnick. So go grab a cup of java and settle in...I have lots of pictures this week!

Let's start with a list of supplies:

Sizzix Original Die #655455 - Flower, Beauty Bloom by Brenda Pinnick
Big Shot cutting machine
Felt from National Non Woven
Fabric - Couluer Vie by Brenda Pinnick for Henry Glass & Co.
Off White cardstock

Other Supplies:

12x24 stretched cotton canvas
Sizzix Sizzlets Die Set # 656539 3PK - Flower Layers #3
Tim Holtz Distress Ink: antique linen, tea dye, vintage photo, walnut stain
Stipple brushes
Make-up sponges
Small brads: pale yellow, bright yellow, antique brown
Mod Podge: paper and fabric
Paper piercing tool
Folk Art High Definition Visual Texture by Plaid: sunflower, yellow ochre, forest moss, hauser green medium, thicket
Textured stamp
Vellum
Bazzill papers

I started with a blank canvas. It matters not what size you choose. I selected 12 x 24 because I wanted to have a lot of surface on which to add texture. I did not treat the canvas with Gesso or anything else. I left a completely bare surface.

Then using Tim Holtz's Distress Ink in my fav colors, some makeup sponges and stipple brushes I start to distress the surface of the canvas. I stippled and I sponged...and I even went direct to canvas with my pad. If you are not familiar with the process, you simply rub the surface of the ink pad directly onto the surface where you want the color. **IMPORTANT NOTE: Canvas is a textured surface...so be aware that the stamp pad surface can get a little bit chewed up. I have doubles of all my pads, so I have a set just for this purpose.**

When I distress anything I start with the lightest color and work to my darkest. I also start at the edges and work my way in towards the middle. I use my darkest colors towards the edges.

Brenda was very generous with the amount of blooms she supplied and so I took one of the paper bloom and used it as a stencil. I placed the bloom onto the canvas surface and then stippled some tea dye and vintage photo around the edges of the bloom. It created this effect:

Next, I printed out a poem that I really liked onto vellum. Now I realize the poem refers to daffodils...but I am taking artistic license here! I tore the edges and then I stippled on the BACK side of the vellum one of my lighter color inks, again working from the outside to inside. If you can see in the photo below...I didn't stipple the color over the entire piece of vellum. When you do this technique, the color should be darkest at the edge and gradually lightens as you work towards the middle. Then, I flipped the vellum back to the front and with the next shade darker ink...I stippled just the very edge of the vellum.

Using a very thin coat of Fabric Mod Podge, I adhered the vellum to the canvas. Now don't worry if the vellum resists sticking. What I did is put a book under the canvas, then I placed a piece of wax paper over the vellum and put a couple of heavy books on top of that. I left it for a a while. Once that adhesive is dry, it's on there! **NOTE: always put wax paper or butcher paper between layers that are still wet from glue so that they don't bleed on each other or stick together!

I really love using vellum. Because it is translucent, you can still see the stenciled blooms behind it.

Next, I began to layer the pieces of the blooms together. Brenda sent such a variety that no bloom looks the same! I did stipple some ink onto the paper pieces and some onto the fabrics and felt to mute down the color to go with my vintage theme. Isn't that beautiful!

I cut a few extra blooms with another Sizzix die I had so that I could cover more of my surface and compliment the Brenda's big flower blooms. I altered some of the blooms with the ink and a textured stamp. I assembled the flower layers and pierced the centers with a paper piercer so that I easily slide in the brads.

I used Mod Podge for fabric and for paper to adhere the blooms to the canvas...then I let it dry completely.

Once everything was dry, I started to add some details by doodling some vines and leaves onto the canvas with the Visual Texture by Plaid. I just love that stuff! It adds a lot of dimension. I also added some extra details right onto the flowers!

I was really pleased with how my project came out this week. It is very me! I can't wait to see what everyone else has done...I am sure you feel the same. So, go ahead.....hop forward!

Artfully yours,

Theresa

Tips, Tools and Techniques Tuesday!

2010-11-14T17:33:00.006-05:00

Happy Tuesday everyone! Welcome to this week's installment of Tips, Tools and Techniques. This week I am going to share with you one of my very favorite and one of my most cool tools!

If you're wondering what in the heck that thing is pictured above...allow me to introduce you! This is a Japanese Push Drill (sometimes referred to as a Screw Punch) and it's purpose is to punch holes. If you don't have one, I cannot recommend it strongly enough. If you are someone who uses a lot of eyelets and brads, this is a must have tool! Now you might be saying to yourself...I already have hole punches, I don't need anymore. Well this, my crafty friends, is different.

With your average hole punches, you are limited. You can only punch a hole as far into the paper as your tool will let you, which isn't very far! Yes, there are long reach punches, but most of them won't reach into the center of a 12x12 piece of card stock. There are those really great eyelet setter kits that you have to use with a hammer, but they are noisy and everything around you shakes while you're banging the tool with your hammer! Which means a few things... first, it really isn't convenient at 2 am (you know you do it!) and second, if you are at a crop, you're table mates will get irritated quickly.

There are several benefits to adding a Japanese Push Drill to your arsenal of tools. A Japanese Push drill:

will punch holes anywhere
has assorted bits in a variety of hole sizes
is easy to use
doesn't hurt your hand
eliminates the need to own several punches
is quiet and not intrusive
will punch through a variety of surfaces INCLUDING (but not limited to) paper, fabric and mat board (which really comes in handy if you like to make your own books)

Allow me to give you a really quick demo:

Please....Please....be sure that you have a self healing cutting mat when using this tool. Just as you would use one with an Xacto knife, you need to protect your work surface.

Look carefully at the picture above. Down near the tip of the punch, you'll see that there is a piece that has those sort of ridges. That piece unscrews and loosens so that you can put the bits in and take them out. Once you've put a bit in and tighten it up, you're good to go.

You want to make sure that you place the punch perfectly straight up and down. The punch should be at a 90 degree angle to your work surface. You don't want the punch to be at an angle or what will happen is you will only punch one side of the hole.

Then you want to push straight down. This is all you have to do most of the time. However, if you are punching through thick card stock, mat board or multiple pieces of paper give the punch a twist while it is fully collapsed. This ensures that the punch goes all the way through.

Release the punch and it will fully extend. When you remove it from the paper or whatever you're punching, you will have a nice clean hole.

Japanese Push Drills are not difficult to find in this age of the internet. You can do a Google search or hit eBay. I recommend, however, Talas. Talas is a great resource if you are a book maker or paper artist of any kind.

Artfully yours!

Theresa

My Favorites Friday: Technology

2010-11-12T16:07:00.004-05:00

Welcome to this week's installment of My Favorite Things! Now sometimes I will be blogging about some of my very favorite projects whether they be mine or a colleagues (with their expressed permission of course!!). Other times, like today, I will share with you some of my very favorite tools or ideas. As you may be able to surmise from today's segment title, we are going to talk about one of my most very favorite things....TECHNOLOGY!! So here we go...

Let me start by saying...I am absolutely NOT a hater! Of PCs, that is. Quite to the contrary...I am a lover of Apples. More specifically, my Mac Book Pro. Now I have always been a technojunkie, so to speak. I've been using computers since it was not fashionable to do so. Interestingly enough, my very first home computer was given to me by an old friend of mine who was upgrading...and it was, in fact, an Apple computer. When it was time to replace that computer, I switched to a PC. I really didn't know a lot about computers back then and everyone I knew was saying how I HAD to have a PC with Windows.

I will spare you the gory details except to say that I found myself replacing my computer every two years and I absolutely despised the "customer service" I received. My final straw came when I decided to circumvent the first level technicians by asking for a supervisor only to be told (after 45 minutes on hold) that there weren't any supervisors in! In a very seething tone I said to this poor man, "Don't tell me they left you peons there alone!" It was then that I knew if was for everyone's safety that I make the switch.

So, within the week, I had my new Mac Book Pro. That was back in March of 2007 and I haven't looked back. As a matter of fact, everyone in my household is a Mac user. I'm not saying that it was an easy transition. As a matter of fact, it took me quite a while to stop over thinking how to accomplish things. Once I got over it, I was in my glory. I find that all the programs are phenomenal and I haven't been happier.

Some of the perks of a Mac for me are:

No viruses
Simplicity of use
One to One sessions available (you won't find better education anywhere)
iWeb which comes standard and enables me to create and maintain my websites
Time Machine - Apple's back up system
it enables me to save time as I don't have to restart and it is more user friendly
it enables me to save money as I can create my own marketing materials right in Pages and Keynote

Anyway, I feel it necessary to say that I am not receiving any type of endorsements from Apple!

LOL I just really believe in the product. If you are a creative crafty business owner or not...I highly recommend this product.

Artfully yours,

Theresa

SIZZIX TRIPLE PLAY BLOG HOP WEEK 2: B is for BABY

2010-11-10T09:35:00.011-05:00

Hello again! Welcome to Week 2 of the Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop! This week features Karen Burniston's Twist Cube Die. Lemme tell ya...it is a really fun die to play with because it is interactive. When using the die as originally instructed, it twists and pops up. Very cool effect. I, however, decided to do a little something different with it. Hope you like!

The materials you will first need to get started are:

#656739 Sizzix Bigz XL Die - Cube, Twist, 3-D by Karen Burniston

Sizzix Big Shot cutting machine

Sizzix Accessory - cutting pad, extended

Sizzix Accessory - premium crease pad, extended

Die Cuts With a View cardstock

Here are some other materials that I used:

ATG Tape Runner

Paper Trimmer

Xacto knife and mat

Family Treasure's Scalloped edged scissors

1/16th" hole punch

PPA

Golden's Fluid Matte Medium

Baby Feet paper, Stemma

Pastel colored card stock, Bazzill

Pale green satin ribbon - 1/8"

Yellow organza ribbon - 3/4"

Plaid's Folk Art Paint in light blue, jamaican sea, lemonade and baby pink

Doodlebug Design Sugar Coating lily white glitter

Stickles

Tissue paper

Candy

Karen and the lovely staff at Sizzix were kind enough to send me a nice neutral color...black. The first thing I did was assemble the box. I am going to be very honest here! I had no idea what I was going to do with it after I'd assembled it. I only knew that I wasn't going to make it pop up. Don't take that the wrong way though. It wasn't that I couldn't think of what to use it for...quite to the contrary! Did I want to make a photo box? Or an ornament? Maybe a bat...because that is what those top pieces remind me of? Get the idea?

As I was looking at it I thought, "that would make a great alphabet block!" However, having only one to play around with....and of course, I'd gone and assembled it already...it occurred to me how cute it would be as a baby block that one could use for a baby shower favor!

So, I worked a little bit backwards. If I hadn't put the cube together first, I probably would have covered the individual pieces with paper first. Since I didn't do that, I had to work a little bit backwards. Now a note to all....if you are going to use your diecut as a pop up, will want to do your assembly with really super strong glue! As I knew my box would be stationary, I used my ATG tape runner to put the actual box together.

I covered the top tabs first. I used PPA to apply the paper to the cube. I have found that once the glue dries, it adds a little stability.

Then I covered the sides also using PPA. I didn't cover the bottom, but of course, if you'd like to on yours that's just fine! I also chose to cut away the part of the tab that looks like a wing.

Next, I used 1/8" pale green ribbon to finish off the top edges of the box. It hid any black sticking out and gave it a cleaner look.

I used my pastel colored solid papers to adhere to the sides of the cube. The first layer I cut 3"x3" and taped them to the sides of the box. I cut another set the same size and trimmed the edges with my Scalloped edged scissor. How did I get that so straight? You can take a look at the technique I used at this past Tuesday's Tips, Tools & Techniques post. I layered the scalloped pieces on top of each square. Plus I made sure to have a different color combination on each side.

I love Stickles! It is glittery and sparkly without the mess. Not that I mind mess, of course, but it is fun and easy and quick to use. Here I applied a little dot of Stickles in the center of each scallop.

Don't those Stickle dots look great? Now my favorite part of the cube is the letters. I used chip board letters that spelled out B A B Y. I painted each letter a different color with acrylic paint and let them dry really well. Then I applied a thin coat of Golden's Fluid Matte Medium to the front of the letters and then dipped those into that Lily White Glitter. It is a super fine glitter and the paint color shows right through it. Love it! Then I glued one letter to the center of each paper panel.

Finally, I punched two tiny holes using my 1/16th" hole punch into the tip of the triangular side tabs. I threaded the organza ribbon through each side and tied a simple knot. The hole is so tiny that the big knot I made will not go through it. Plus the layers of paper, glue and the ribbon lining should keep anything from ripping. I mean, I wouldn't load this thing up with change...but for it's intended purpose here, it is perfect.

I threw in some tissue paper in baby colors to bring it all together. Then I filled my baby favor up with candy. Hmmm...I think I am detecting a theme. I dunno, maybe I'm always hungry when I'm working on these types of projects!

I hope you enjoyed this week's project. I really think it looks so sweet.

Artfully yours,

Theresa

Tips, Tools and Techniques Tuesday!

2010-11-03T13:58:00.011-04:00

Welcome to the first of my new weekly segments! If you remember from my post last week, I mentioned that I would have at least two weekly segments going. I also complained about the graphic I made! So, I fixed that...I like this one better. Anyway, my goal here is to not only be consistent, but also to perhaps help you have a more enjoyable crafting experience. I know! Can we stand any more fun!! (yes yes!!)

Over the years, I have learned a lot of interesting tips. Sometimes those tips come from others. Other times they are born from a need to adapt due to the fact that my nails are REALLY long (you'll see in the pics) and I have no desire to cut them. Then there is just those times when I need to find a more efficient way of doing something. I'll be sharing some of those tips with you.

I am also a tool lover! Any kind of tool...from a simple skewer to power tools! (much to my dad's delight!) I'll be showing some of those here as well...in addition to how I use them.

Of course, with just about everything one uses, there is some sort of technique. Which brings me to today's post. It's a kind of three for one....it is a tool...that I will give you some tips for...and a technique that I use. Let's get to it, shall we?

Today I am featuring............

TA DA!!!!!! Decorative scissors! Ok, so some of you are thinking....."wha?!!? All of this build up for this? I was expecting something more exciting!" Lemme just say...yes, they may not be glamourous...but I bet you have several pairs tucked away in a crafting drawer or box somewhere. I'm right, aren't I? Come on....you can admit it.

I have found that many beginner crafters have bought a few of these decorative edge scissors, quickly became disillusioned and then put them away...never to be seen again... (cue creepy music). So let's start with what is so frustrating about them. Here are a few issues. First, some of them are just plain hard to use. Second...lining the scissors up properly so that when you move the scissor, the pattern continues. Finally, if you can't cut a straight edge to save your life...well it can be down right scary to attempt with scissors that create a pattern.

No worries my pretty lil crafters. Here are some of my suggestions and thoughts regarding these issues. Maybe they will entice you to go and find those scissors! They are really worth using.

Not all decorative edge scissors are created equal. There are some that are just plain not worth a buck. My favorites are Fiskars and Family Treasures. These come in a wide variety of patterns (which will will discuss in a minute) and they are easy to manipulate. Believe me, if you have a pair that are just hard to pull open and closed, don't keep frustrating yourself.

Now for patterns. The more intricate the edge of that scissor, the harder it will be to keep the pattern repeating. One of my favorite patterns is the scalloped edge because it is bold and easy to line up. My other favorite is the deckled edge because there it doesn't matter at all if I line up my edge properly! One word of advice when cutting...don't close your scissor all the way while you are cutting. When the tip closes, it could tear the paper.

To address the issue of being able to cut in a straight line, I like to use a ruler and pencil. I make a light line on the REVERSE side of the paper.

Then, when I begin to cut, I follow that line. This helps out a lot as I can not only line my scissor up with the pattern itself, but I can with the line as well.

See how great that scallop just lines up?

If you just take your time and use these simple techniques, you can get a really fantastic looking edge on photos and mats. Whether you are looking to make your project look fun, flirty or sophisticated you can find a decorative edge to meet your needs.

Artfully yours,

Theresa

SIZZIX TRIPLE PLAY BLOG HOP WEEK 1: GINGERBREAD HOUSE

2010-11-03T10:11:00.005-04:00

Hello and welcome to Week 1 of the Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop. This is so exciting and I have been having way too much fun playing at the studio here. This is a long post, so I'm going to get right down to it....but just remember to click "Hop Forward" (or back) on the Sizzix icon in the sidebar to see what everyone else has done with this fantastic house die, which was designed, btw, by our own talented Eileen Hull.

So, with no further adieu, away we go....

Sizzix supplies:

#656836; Sizzix Scoreboards Pro Die - House, 3D, by Eileen Hull

Sizzix 12x12 matboard, white

Sizzix Big Shot Pro die cutting machine

Other supplies:

Plaid's Folk Art Acrylic Paint, Bark Brown

Plaid's Fold Art, High Definition Visual Texture, Wicker White

Golden's Gel Medium, Regular Gel (Matte)

Foam Brushes

Paper Plates

Scissors or Xacto knife

Pencil

Ruler

Plastic Baggie (1 gallon size)

Styrofoam disc, 6" diameter

Styrofoam balls, 1.5" round

Canvas board, 9x12

Buffalo snow

Glitter

Candy: Twizzlers (pull 'n peel), M&M minis, Jolly Rancher Pops, Mike & Ikes

Shredded Coconut

After the die was cut and pulled apart, I used Plaid's Bark Brown acrylic paint to paint the board. Depending on the look you're going for will determine how many coats. I wanted a dense look, so I used 3 coats. Above shows what the paint looked like after one coat.

Once the paint dried, I made a lattice pattern on both sections of roof. I did use a ruler and pencil to mark where I wanted the lines. I then traced the lines freehand with Plaid's High Definition Visual Texture. It really works well for this effect as the bottle has a pointed applicator and it holds the dimension so you have that raised effect.

Make sure everything is dry before you start assembling the house. I used Golden's Gel Medium to glue my house together. I like the consistency of it. Plus it is really strong. Resist the temptation to touch the roof before the glue has time to set. After it is mostly dry (yes, I'm very impatient lol), I started to add the M&M Minis. They are the perfect size for this. I adhered them with the Gel Medium. I kind tilted the house on it's side, added the candy and let that set up before starting the other side. Doing this will ensure that none of the M&Ms fall off.

Just to make it a lil sweeter, I outlined the door and the underside of the roof with the Pull 'n Peel Twizzlers. I glued on the smaller roof, then, using that High Definition Visual Texture again, I made a scallop design all over the front, sides and back of the house. I also added some little details like piled snow on the fence, around the windows and around the door.

This is what it looked like...

Now just to backtrack a little bit, I don't want you to think that there is a lot of sitting around eating Snickers while waiting for glue and texture paint to dry. NO WAY! See, I was having such a good time that I went a little crazy. I decided to make this into a display piece. So here is what I was doing in between working on the house...

The base is simply a 9x12 piece of canvas board. I keep it around my studio all the time. The styrofoam disc I glued to the canvas board with Gel Medium. I sketched out a pathway so I would have an idea as to where I wanted those styrofoam balls to go. There are 6 in the picture above, but I ultimately went with 5. Those are also glued down with Gel Medium, but before gluing them down, I wanted to flatten the bottom a bit. To do that, just rub two of the balls together and they sort of just file each other down. Doing that before you glue helps make them more stable.

Next, I used a foam brush and put a light coating of Gel Medium all over the board and styrofoam. I covered the whole thing with Buffalo Snow. I pulled the snow very thin. I then glued Mike & Ikes to construct the path that leads from the house.

Set the house onto the display, so the door lines up with the path. To simulate trees, I pushed Jolly Rancher lollypops into the styrofoam balls.

Coconut!! Now, it's messy...but a cool effect. Take some shredded coconut and put it in a ziplock bag. Add glitter to it! Close the bag. (yep, I said it...cause someone will forget. I guarantee it lol) Give it a good shake. The coconut is moist, so the glitter will stick to it. Then sprinkle that mixture all over. I added a little extra glitter just for good measure.

That's all there is to it! This was an amazingly fun project. I sure hope you will try it out at home. Be sure to let me know how it turned out.

Artfully yours,

Theresa

Success!

2010-10-25T14:54:00.014-04:00

This past weekend, I hosted my first Open House at Altered Canvas Studios. It was so much fun! I had a great time planning and during the event. I was really pleased with the turn out too. I got to see friends...some of whom I haven't seen in quite some time...and met some new friends as well. I hope that everyone who attended had a great time!

Before I tell you all the details I have to give out some props! First, I'd like to thank Erica LoFaso and Joanne Marfoglio...their beautiful faces pictured above. Erica spent some time with me down at my studio labeling tag sale items. Everything she does is with a smile and she's great company to boot! Both she and Jo were present for the big event. I couldn't have made it through the day without them. Jo did a fantastic job helping out with Make and Takes and she was a big help afterwards.

I'd also like to take the opportunity to thank Ana Araujo, creator and Executive Producer of When Creativity Knocks. Ana was a source of great encouragement. In addition to her wise words, she generously sent giveaways for the event as well as provided the raffle prize that everyone was drooling over.

If you haven't had heard about WCK, it is a fabulous platform. Ana and her daughter, Megan, who hosts the show, go all over taping craft episodes fit for television. I have personally taped two episodes for them. They are a blast to work with! Every Friday, a new episode airs. Every aired episode goes into an archive that viewers can check out as well. Every type of craft you can imagine is there...from scrap booking to childrens' crafts to fabric crafts. So, you should really go check it out! When Creativity Knocks

So here are a few pictures of what things looked like on the big day! Here we have our tag sale.

Being the Italian princess that I am, I would not have felt right inviting people over without feeding them! I can't help it. It's just the right thing to do, don't cha think? Of course, it's not a party without the wine!

This was our Grand Prize! It is a GINORMOUS assortment of Plaid Products just screaming for a set of crafty hands. Congratulations to Samantha M., the young lady who found me and won the raffle!!

For Make & Takes we made these fun necklaces using Blumenthal Lansing Button Coordinates and some beads, wire and leather lace. Everyone seemed to enjoy making them.

Here is the next generation of crafters! They became the expert of our Make & Takes!

She is a happy and proud crafty girl.

We even had a puppy come and visit! This is Romeo. He didn't make a necklace, but he surely had a great time as he was getting majorly cuddled.

So, that was about it. Workshops begin in November. I am happy to announce that I even got a few sign ups. Needless to say, I'm a busy bee. Buzz buzz buzz...

Artfully yours,

Theresa

Ahem...may I have your attention please?

2010-10-25T14:14:00.013-04:00

Now for those of you who don't know me personally, I am...if I may borrow from Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman...a "fly by the seat of your pants kinda gal". It really is with every fiber of my being that I resist a schedule of any kind. I must say, however, that there are times when I have found it beneficial to have some kind of structure. For example, the open house I just recently hosted....I had a very strict time table for that and as a result I wasn't up til all hours of the wee morning trying to get last minute things done. I would go so far as to say that it was even ... relaxing!

It may surprise you to know that I don't find blogging easy. It is always most difficult to get started. So, on the advice of Diane Gilleland of Crafty Pod, I have done some things to help me organize. I've made a list of topics, but now I am going to take that even a bit further. In the effort to be more consistent I have decided to do two special segments a week that I hope will be of value to you all. Of course this doesn't mean that I won't be blogging about other things. There is always something to show and share. AND let us not forget that beginning Thursday, November 4th is Sizzix's TriplePlay Blog Hop! That will be going on for seven glorious weeks.

Now to the nitty gritty...

Here is the first segment indicator above. Don't get too attached to that pic up there...I'm already not loving it which means.....there will be a new one coming. For now, though, you get the idea. On Tuesdays, I will share with you some sort of crafting tip, technique or a useful tool. I like tools! Anyway...my hope is to offer something that will make your crafting experiences easier or more exciting.

Then...

On Fridays....I'll be selfish and share my favorite things with you. Whether old or new, I always have favorite things that I use in my artwork.

I really do hope to get dialogue going with everyone. People...this is not all about me! At least not today. I'd love for you to share your tips and favorites as well. I'm really interested to know what's out there that I haven't found yet.

Just as an aside...please keep in mind that if you comment on my blog from Creating the Hive, those comments do not show up here on blogger. However, I will be checking both places so that I don't miss an opportunity to chat!

Artfully yours,

Theresa

A Meaningful Quote...

2010-10-17T22:03:00.003-04:00

Hi and welcome back!

Years ago, I came across a quote on a rubber stamp. That quote read: "What would you attempt to do if you knew you would not fail?" It really had a profound effect on me both personally and professionally. Back then, I was just starting to define who I am as an artist and designer. I thought, back then, I knew the direction in which I wanted to head. Along the way, I got lots of advice...both good and bad, as well as a lot of encouragement and discouragement! It left me, shall we say, very tentative at best.

As many of us creatives do...I talked myself into and out of things during my journey. As I "grew up" and did some serious self discovery, I began to trust my own instincts and decisions. I was able to get a better grasp on what it meant for me to be successful in all aspects of my life. I found it easier to take a negative and make it into a positive...which brings me back to that stamp!

Now, as I have mentioned, there was just something about the quote on that stamp that had a grip on me. Once in a while, I would pull it out of it's home in my studio and leave it out on my work table and wonder what...though I loved it...bothered me so. I mean, if you read it, it seems like such a positive message! Yet, in all the years I had it, I believe I only used it ONE time!

Jump forward a couple of years, here I am in my new studio! One of the best things about having to move all my supplies out of my studio was that I got to go through everything I owned...and I found things that I'd forgotten I'd had...or thought I'd lost! LOL One of those things was that darn stamp again! During the move, I saw that stamp and I copied that quote at the top of my massive "to do" list. Every time I opened my notebook to that list, I would read that quote and something about it just felt wrong.

It wasn't until I'd been in my studio a couple of months that it hit me. I remember thinking I was brave in my decision to move into an independent place. I remember being proud of having set goals that were realistic and attainable. I remember thinking that I was not afraid of the hard work it would take to achieve those goals...one of which was to start teaching classes at my studio. And there I was, looking at that quote again..."What would you attempt to do if you knew you would not fail?"...thinking, wasn't I attempting something BIG!? I wasn't letting fear control my choices! So what was the problem with those few words?

It took a little more time before I could hear the answer clearly. It was in the middle of the night...as is typical with me. I woke myself up and grabbed the book I'd been making notes in and rewrote the quote to say..."What would you attempt to do if you knew you would succeed?"...and went back to sleep. The next morning when I reread what I'd written, it made sense. It was the word "fail". What a negative word. It sure didn't fit into my place of positivity! I knew that this newly worded quote would become my mantra as I build my empire...however large or small I decide it to be. Soon after, I began creating this textured collage which now hangs proudly in my studio...so I don't forget. EVER!

This weekend, I am holding my first Open House at my studio. I am introducing my roster of classes, doing make & takes, giving gifts and holding a raffle of really terrific Plaid products...basically just having a grand celebration to let the community know I'm here! In the spirit of Field of Dreams...."if you build it, they will come"...I am here to share my love of art with anyone who cares to join me in this journey. I'm just beginning....again!

Artfully yours always....

Theresa

Sizzix Blog Hop is Coming!!

2010-10-15T11:21:00.002-04:00

Hey all...I am very pleased to announce that a new Sizzix Blog Hop will begin in early November! I'm thoroughly excited because I am actually taking part in this blog hop which features projects created with Sizzix dies.

This should be particularly exciting because there are over 60 professional designers taking part in this fantastic event! Each of us will design 7 different projects...which means that each week you will see over 60 different design concepts all using the same die. Do you realize how incredible that is? I don't know about you all...but I am very excited to see what my colleagues come up with...the talent that has gathered for this blog hop is outstanding!

Very shortly (like later today lol), there will be a link on my side bar which will enable you to view all the projects contained each week in the blog hop. Of course, you will see mine here along with directions and a materials list. I have to admit, I am a little nervous as this is my very first blog hop, but in general I am excited because there is nothing I am more passionate about than art!

Keep your eyes peeled...I'm looking forward to reading your comments on all the blogs.

Here we go.......

Theresa

Introducing...

2010-04-20T16:32:00.011-04:00

Welcome to my new space! This is Altered Canvas Studios. My new home base, haven, sanctuary. All I know is I FEEL amazing here...not that my anxiety doesn't sometimes reach the outer rings of Saturn, mind you. Let me show you around so that you know what my new surroundings look like.

The best thing EVER about my physical space is the WINDOWS! I have two of them. All of you artists out there know there is nothing better than natural light. Not that I won't be breaking out my OTT Lite from time and again, but at least while I am there during the day I can open my windows, get some fresh air, and SEE all the colors in their natural glory.

The second best thing? I have TWO, yes, really, TWO rooms! So now I don't have all my office things crammed in amongst the art supplies (which are extensive, lemme tell ya). This kind of allows me to pay attention to whichever aspect of my business I need to concentrate on. OK, I'll cop to it...the "business" side was suffering. Can you really blame me? With all those art supplies looming and calling my name who wants to update Quickbooks??

So here we are....

I have two rooms as I mentioned. Suites 5 and 8 respectively. For my mailing address I use 8...because it's my birthday! Well, that and it is the door with the mail slot. Sometimes I make decisions that uses a bit of sense.

When you walk in the door, you enter the studio side:

See? There is one of the windows I was talking about. Then if you look to the right....

You should get a sense as to what kind of business resides here. Either that, or you are a little slow. I have had a few visitors to the studio...mostly other tenants. This section of my studio generates a lot of questions. I'm happy to answer too...because I have physical stuff to back me up!

Now, if you look left....

Holy batman! Did I mention I have TWO rooms now? We haven't even gotten to the office yet. I have to tell you a secret. Not to sound like I am bragging or anything, but I am not only gifted artistically and vocally, but I also am amazing (toot toot) with spacial things. Like fitting the most amount of stuff into a small space. AND...a sometimes useful talent...I can find the center of anything usually within less than 1/16 of an inch. Who needs a tape measure to hang things? Puh-lease! I think I just got busted...I AM BRAGGING! Sometimes I amaze even myself. Can you believe that I managed to fit two rooms full of stuff into 100 square feet of space in my house?

Oh boy....serves me right. Apparently I am not all that gifted with Blogger yet as I see I have downloaded the same picture twice and cannot figure out how to delete it without restarting this whole blog. Now I could have been sneaky and said...."wow...I just had to get another shot of that paper rack in", but I will own up. :)

Now here is my office...

You can see the open doorway between here and the studio. Very convenient. While I am paying bills and sorting though email, Facebook and Twitter I can still clearly hear my paints, stamps, paper and other ephemera clearly calling me, but yet I can act like I don't because it is time for the left side of my brain to get some action. Clever, right?

There are only three things that are in my current space that are new. The two storage cabinets are new. I needed somewhere to store things that were in the closet in my home studio. I'm very pleased with how they are working so far.

The third thing is the desk...

...and there is that second window! Gotta love the light. My internet is all set up and I like that desk a lot. A friend of mine has the same exact one and now we have cute matching desks! Plus, if a screw falls out or something and I can't find it, I can always conveniently snatch a replacement off of theirs! Shhh...don't tell. The mind is always going over here...

Finally, you can see I have a couple of little things that still need to find a home. I'll figure it out. Me and making a space work are tight! The final things I need are a mini fridge and a coffee maker. All in good time...I'm in no rush.

I hope you enjoyed a sneak peak. I really wanted to make sure you all got to see it now as it will most likely be the last time that it is uncluttered! LOL I don't clean while I work. Nothing more satisfying than an artful mess.

So, what do you think? I'm both excited and nervous. I keep thinking that I need to treat my business more like a business, so..."if you build it, they will come". Wish me luck. Hope to hear from you.

Artfully yours....

Theresa

Altered Canvas Studios

2010-04-04T22:16:00.003-04:00

Hi All!

Sorry I haven't posted more recently. This past week, I have moved my office and studio out of my home and into a new space. I have been very busy getting everything moved in and reorganized in my new place. It is so exciting and very exhausting. Please keep checking back...I will not forsake you! I promise!

Soon I will be posting pictures of my studio and I plan on hosting an open house so that those who are close by can come and see and play in my new space. This is a new adventure and I am looking forward to the new challenges and the new energy it will all bring. I can tell you already that I have some very cool new neighbors.

Keep watching...there will be lots more to come....

Artfully yours,

Theresa

About those canvases I mentioned earlier....

2010-03-26T14:01:00.011-04:00

What you are looking at is a piece of 9x12 canvas board with some Gel Mediums (we'll get to those later) smeared on it. What is canvas board? Simply put, it is canvas that is attached to a stiff board as opposed to canvas that is stretched out over a frame.

So let's talk really briefly about what it is I am doing. I mentioned a round robin. In this case, we have 10 artists (including myself) and 10 canvases. Each artist starts with a blank canvas. The artist will add some type of element to their canvas, then they will pass their piece onto the next person on the list. That person will add their own touch. It could be anything really. When they are finished they pass to the person below them on the list and so forth and so on until your original piece comes back to you. It is really exciting as there are so many talented women with such diverse disciplines that I cannot wait to see what my canvas comes back like.

I want to take this opportunity to thank Linda Chilcott of El Paso, TX for coming up with the idea. She has done a lot to coordinate this effort. I can tell you how refreshing it is just to work on something for fun! Almost all my creating these days is work related, so to be able to just play is a joy. Plus I am getting to be a part of something along with my colleagues. Just to give a shout out, here are the other artists in the group along with Linda: Ava Green-Savierville, TN; Cyndi Hansen-Little Rock, AR; Karen Wiant-Eugene, OR; Marisa Pawelko-Winfield, IL; Pat Bell-Poughkeepsie, NY; Sue Kelsey-Ypsilanti, MI; Veronica Goff-Jackson, TN and Jenn Goode-Castle Rock, CO. As you can see, my canvas will be making quite a trip as well as be touched my some might amazing hands.

Above is a picture of Golden's Gel Mediums. Gel Mediums are acrylic dispersion substances who's function is to change the consistence of acrylic paint. It comes in a variety of thickness and textures. These Mediums can be mixed with acrylic paints and well as be used in the application above where I smeared them around. I happen to love texture in my collages. Though I am primarily a paper artist, I love to play around with paint. I can't say I have been blessed with the ability to actually paint an image but I love color and mixing and changing and just seeing what happens. That's the fun of it...every time you do it, it's different. That happens to be great for a girl like me who loves variety and surprises.

So, back to texture....

When you are working with paper and other ephemera, it is easy to achieve texture in your collages. When you are working with paint, the best way to achieve texture is with Mediums. In the collage above, the Gel Mediums I have use specifically are Moulding Paste, Clear Tar Gel and Course Pumice Gel (which is one of my favorites!). I applied them using palette knives then let them dry completely over night.

These are Golden's Acrylic Paints. If you are using Gel Mediums you need to use acrylic paints because the Mediums are acrylic based. For this collage, I went with blue and turquoise hues that I mixed together or mixed with some Titanium White.

Next, I took a flat brush and just went to town. When painting over the Mediums you have to take care. The Course Pumice Gel dries to the consistency of concrete, so you really have to use your flat brush to stipple to color into the crevices.

This is the final product. At least on my my end. I sent it off to Ronnie Goff this week. I wonder what this is going to look like when it comes back. Everyone will be taking lots of pictures which will then have to be organized at the end. The plan is to display these at CHA Summer Show. I'll be keeping you all posted.

Artfully yours....

Theresa

Spring!!

2010-03-21T12:15:00.004-04:00

It's finally here! I have been waiting all Winter long for it.

It was a very long winter here in the North East with heavy snows and damaging winds. Just last weekend it was a mess around here. Mother Nature was pretty ticked off. I just hope I didn't do it! However, this past week we were rewarded with warm, sunny weather just in time to usher in Spring.

What I love the most about Spring is color! I mean, I often get asked what my favorite color is to which I reply, "I'm an artist...I love all of them!" It really is true. I couldn't pick a favorite if my life depended on it. However, I will say that the time of year effects the color palette to which I am most drawn. Right now I am attracted to bright, effervescent hews.

I think I am most motivated this time of year. The sun is brighter, it gets dark later...even the smells of spring can get me pumped up. I still, however, just hate getting up in the morning! Once a night owl, always a night owl? LOL

So, right now I am in the process of participating in a kind of round robin with some of the other designers from CHA. For those of you who do not know what that is, CHA stands for the Craft and Hobby Association. I am really proud to be a part of the Designer Member Section there. Never will you find such a supportive group of professionals. AH... but I digress. (you will find that I do that a lot!)

I am in the process of putting the finishing touches on my canvas. So I think what I will do is explain all of that in my next post...I'll be sure to include pictures so that you can see the process.

Be back soon....

Here I am...

2010-03-13T13:39:00.003-05:00

Sorry I was so late!

For those of you who don't know me yet, my name is Theresa Cifali. I am an artist and designer for the craft and hobby industry, as well as an entrepreneur and business owner. The most exhausting question I get asked is, "what do you do?" Suffice it to say, "a designer for the craft and hobby industry" is not an acceptable answer for most. It's usually followed by an onslaught of other questions that are sometimes difficult to answer. I mean, honestly, I'm a visual artist! While I am pretty good with words...let me SHOW you is so much better.

Anyway, I will spare you long details explaining what I do and hope that you come back and watch me unfold here on this blog. I have to tell you, I fought tooth and nail desperately trying not to join the blogging world. I really believe that blogging is a very powerful, constructive tool especially when coupled with other social media venues...but I think up til now I never felt that I really had much to say or share. Of course, those who know me best will laugh at that and tell you that I can be quite opinionated! You will have to decide for yourself.

Artfully yours,
Theresa