This background turned out a little busy so I wanted to use a little boldness to bring the focus back to the sentiment.

I stamped the sentiment on a white punched circle from the scrap pile. Then I used distress ink to color the edges to match the background. a fne line marker was used to draw in some faux stitching. I had some die-cut swirls o hand so I tucked them around the circle and glued them down.

I fiinished off each of the swirls with a teal rhinestone and added one more to dot the I.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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With this background I colored with a blue distress ink first. Since I had the house out from yesterday I used it again, stamping three times across the page. I used a fine line Sharpie to draw in architectural and siding details. I used distress markers to color in the houses and Staz-on ink to add the sentiment.

Black bordering over violet card base brings the color in to match the center house.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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The background for this was so angular that I wanted to reinforce that look. So I used the house stamp and colored it in with markers. I stamped sentiments foloring the angles of the roof and wrapped around the bottom corner. The large word has some oen area graphics embedded so I colored them with marker as well.

A black border over a bright orange folded card base frames it out.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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I had two more of the woodgrain waxed paper backgrounds made up so worked them up with the same general technique for two cards today. I had the set of skeleton leaves out for yesterday's card so I stamped three different ones as borders around the card. I used Staz-On ink for this so it would not smear when coloring. Each leaf type was colored with a different distress marker.

These panels were trimmed and bordered with black over a raspberry card base.

In each case I stamped a sentiment on green, rounded the corners, bordered in black.

In both cases the sentiment block is raised on foam tape.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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Back with more of the waxed paper backgrounds. This time I had woodgrain that I colored with distress ink in brown over all. Then I stamped a stand of trees at the bottom edge. They weren't wuite dense enough so I overstamped them with a skeleton leaf. Not noticable in detail but increases the density.

I used golden marker to color over the tree shapes, green over the ground, yellow over the knothole to turn it into a moon, and blue over the rest of the sky.

Hmmm, that photo is a little dark.

Anyway, I bordered with black over a lemon yellow card base and added a strip of yellow card with a stamped greeting.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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My latest quilt is 41 x 48 made from two coordinating daisy fabrics that were donated to me. I used a double pinwheel pattern from Eleanor Burns for the blocks but did my own layout as I did not have enough fabric for all the blocks her layout called for. I ended up with 14 of each block style so I used 12 of one for the center and 12 of the other for the border, separated by a white sashing. Two more blocks were split on the diagonal to make corner pieces and the rest of them will be used to make some potholders.

I used a golden yellow thread to quilt using free-motion daisies in the center of each pinwheel, both large and small. On corners and edges I made just half or quarter flowers as needed.

You actually see the quilting better on the back as I used the same thread over a dark green dot.

I think daisies are such a cheerful flower, don't you?

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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I enjoyed (past tense) so much the banana chips and dried apples that I made so decided to make more. I also wondered how it would be to have some dried mushrooms on hand so I first made a batch of those

The second day I dried banana chips:

The third and fourth days I dried batches of apples. Here is the last batch in the racks ready for the dehydrator:

What delicious, healthy snacks!

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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Just walking along the sidewalk outside the library and my eye is caught by a little 'manhole' cover. It is probably 10 inches across and has these two holes side by side. There is a little dimple right in the center and by some strange chance a seed pod off a tree has settled across the bottom. That one random thing has instantly turned it into a little face!

It made me smile. Do I have a camera? No. Is there anyone around I can show it to? No. But it is so cute.... Oh, yeah, my phone takes pictures.

So I got out my flip phone and took a shot of it and hit the SAVE so I could show it when I got home. I even thought I might be able to get it off to my computer. Turns out I have the perfect combination of 'dumb phone, dumb plan' and I can't transfer, email, post, anything. I can JUST make calls.

So I ponder my little picture and there is a button for OPTIONS. One of them is to make the picture the wallpaper. Tah Dah! Now I see this cute little face every time I look at my phone screen (all 1.25 inches square of it) and every time - it makes me smile.

So how did I get this to show you? I had to use my regular camera to take a picture of the screen of my phone! Lame technology.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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In order to clean up the look in my quilt studio I decided to make curtains to cover the closet opening. While I was at it I made a matching valance for the window.

I found this wonderful fabric in the discount room at the fabric store and bought the end of the bolt. As you can see, it has sewing supplies printed all over it thread, buttons, scissors, pin cushions, and thimbles.

Because there were two separate pieces at the end of the bolt it pre-determined the amount of fabric I had for the window (just one yard.) I cut it into two pieces of 18 inches, joined them at the center and created a pocket for the rod. Hemmed all around. If I were to do this again I would make the valance shorter and fuller by making three sections of 12 inches.

The rest of the fabric was cut into three panels, rod pockets sewn and the ends hemmed. I did not join the sides of these as I wanted to be able to go in and out of the closet at more than just the ends. The pre-determined length leaves them a little short at the bottom but it will allow for some air flow so things don't get stale in there.

Both of the curtains are installed on extension rods. The closet curtains were a bit heavy causing some bowing of the rod so I put in some U-brackets at the intervals between the panels.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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I tried using two blues and two greens to make the diamonds look dimensionsl on this background. It left too much space between the blocks so I filled the spaces with Mustard distress pen and it blended everything into a multi-toned green.

That was pretty boring so I got out a large floral stamp and covered the surface with the bloom. A green cardstock was selected for the text block and backed with black. Three strands of green twine were added and secured with a knot.

I bordered the floral panel with black and popped the sentiment block up on foam tape.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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I got out the heart waxed paper background and colored it up in three vibrant pinks/reds. I stamped a sentiment on pink and backed it with red, creating a flag end.

Some dark pink twine was looped around the front twice and knotted.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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The argyle pattern of this waxed paper background turned out well in mustard yellow and gathered twig distress inks. They blended to a nice butterscotch. I wanted to see lots of the background so I banded a sentiment in brown and mounted it low on the card front.

I had some diecut swirls in a butterscotch cardstock so added them around the sentiment. I went in with a fine line brown marker and added some detail work around the ends of the swirls making them look paisley.

A brown rhinestone was added to each paisley end.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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Sice I had the waxed paper backgrounds out for the last few projects I decided to just keep playing with it.

I combined yellow and blue inks on this background whick blended up to a nice green. I used a dark green card base and stamped the greeting directly on the background using Staz-On.

I attached three paper flowers with glue dots and placed a black rhinestone in the center of each.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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Another new stencil for me is of birch trees. Love these.

I chose a waxed paper background with a crackled appearance and taped the stencil down. By blocking off the trunks I was able to ink in the sky background and the snowbanks. Then I removed the blackout paper and carefully inked just the tree trunks with brown.

After removing the stencil there was not enough definition of the trees aso I used a fine line brown pen to line along the left of them all.

I mounted on dark blue-gray and stamped a sentiment on light blue-gray. The latter got a flag end and three brown rhinestones.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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I picked up a new stencil that has solid and patterned areas for a cityscape. Not as successful using it as I would have liked but I'm willing to show what I got.

I started with some waxed paper background and used distress ink to color a big moon Then I laid on the stencil with the open pattern exposed and used more of the yellow ink. So where is it? Um, I'll tell you later.

I used Starry Sky distress ink to carefully color the sky without coloring over the buildings. Then I got the bright idea to use black distress marker to color in the patterned stencil over the buildings. WAY to juicy and the ink leaked under the stencil leaving a big mess. Rescue? Use a rag to swipe the ink straight down, coloring the buildings black. Then I wnt back in with a black Copic marker and freehanded in some building details. I stamped the Hello in the moon with Staz-On black ink and mounted the trimed artwork to a bright yellow card base.

Interlude where I scrub the stencil clean of all the ink....

So, I started over with the moon, sky and yellow building blocks on two more waxed paper backgrounds. The first time I didn't get the stencil lined up very well for the details (which are now being inked with 'black soot' dicstress) but the last one worked better. It did get more smearing of the building details so I need to learn to be more patient for the drying before buffing. I mounted one to bright yellow and one to light yellow.

With the buildings and the pattern in the sky I think these have a very industrial look.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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I used another scenic stamp for today's cards, With cocoa brown Memento ink. This is a vertically alligned stamp so I did four of the cards in that orientation.

The lighting is terrible for these as the lavender fades right into the white background. I used green patterned strips for backing and bordered the image panel with brown. I stamped the sentiment directly on to the green strip and used a few brown rhinestones for accent.

For the next set I changed the greeting on one and changed the rhinestones to nail head stickers for the other.

On the last one I went back to the landscape orientation and used a wider strip of green paper. I also used a violet backing card for better contrast.

I stamped the sentiment directly on the card base and finished off with a strip of brown rhinestones.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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While I had the scenic stamps holder out I decided to use another couple of them to make cards. The first I chose is a fenced pasture with trees and mountains background. I used the same colors of alcohol markers on all four of these.

Two of them were bordered with brown, backed with a purple strip and mounted on light green card bases. Text was stamped directly on the card base and the sentiment enhanced with tiny green rhinestones as a leader.

The second set got the same basic treatment with dark green card bases. The background was too dark to stamp the sentiment so I stamped it on a scrap of paper that matches the dirt road, cut a flag end and adhered it to the card front. I kept the leading green rhinestones.

All of these have the image panel mounteed on foam tape.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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I had some of the images I stamped yesterday left over but they had been stamped on plain cardstock (not glossy). For the most part they took the alcohol markers OK but that purple was WAY too dark on these. I used the alcohol blender to color over the top to lighten the tone so it fits with the rest of the colors better.

I pulled out some green backing cardstock and a couple of purples in card bases. Each of the images and the green blocks were backed with black. The images are all popped up on foam tape.

I pulled out some little animal charms and tied their loops with a variety of twine colors. These are popped up on foam tape as well.

Not sure if those are zebra, wildebeast or some animal that doesn't exist except in the imagination. But they lend a cheery gleam to the design.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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These projects started out when I ran across a leafy branch die cut I got a while back. I had not used it yet. I went looking for a stamp that I could use as a feature that would be complemented by the die cuts.

I selected this mountain scene from a set of scenic stamps that I have in green unmounted rubber. I stamped on glossy cardstock with Cocoa Memento Ink and colored using alcohol markers. The purples I had were too dark in relation to the other colors so I touched the tip to a blender pen and used that to color in the mountain.

I stamped the bold script greeting over the image and trimmed it out to mount on the black dotted paper. Leaves were cut from a variety of green patterned papers which were glued to overlap the image panel.

Two were designed in landscape and use violet card bases. 

Here is the third one - closer to show details.

Simple but pretty.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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A few days ago hubby looked out the back window and spied a coyote out at the end of the yard. He has seen them at night going through the yard but always on the move. I've never seen one in the 24 years we've lived here.

Imagine our surprise that this one just wandered around a bit, looked around at the scenery and even watched us looking with binoculars for a while. It suddenly occured to us to grab the camera and see if it would hang around while we took photos.

We only got two shots before it moseyed off into the scrub brush and vanished.

I suppose this means I will be saying adios to a few bunnies, mice and other little critters that inhabit this space. But it was neat to see this awesome doggie.

Ddd

Posted by studio3d@ccgmail.net at 12:01 AM PDT

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