Tags I made for a swap.

I am a member of an internet group called Scraps of Color. There are swaps each month and one of the members (Helen) hosted a tag swap. The theme of the swap was to use Tim Holtz distress techniques to make your tags. I distressed with edges with the Making Memories distress tool and I layered my inks. I then overstamped with a grid stamp by Hero Arts and I used the new die cut of the Umbrella Man. I had some flowers that were in the grab bags I got from Donna Downey Studios, thought they added a nice touch. The was the first project I have done in a quite a while that I did not overanalyze. I just let my creative spirit flow, it has been absent for such a long time. I am so glad I am feeling it again.

Life's simple pleasures

This is a card I made today. I made a standard A-2 card, with a kraft base, shipping tag and a punch by EK Success, ribbon is from Hobby Lobby, it is really sparkly and has a lot texture, put does not show up in the photo. Stamps are by Hero Arts and Amuse rubber stamps. Flower by Prima, twine by Paper Trey ink, butterflies by Martha Stewart and ink used was Memento Cooca Brown. Rhinestones are from Hobby Lobby.

Photos from Copic Adventure

Gail and I met at Donna Downey Studios for our Copic Adventure, she and I got a chance to take photos with Donna. She was on her to Singapore and she indulged us by taking photos with us. We had a fun time at her shop and spent lots of money. Melissa, who is Donna's assistant was very helpful and nice, she was in the Copic class also. We all had lunch together at my favorite place, Panera Bread, (the bread part says it all). We met another student, Cindy, who gave us the lowdown on the stores in the area. Have to explore next time,weather was threatening so I went back to Greenville instead of hanging around to do more shopping. Also a stamping pal Kim from Greenville was in attendance as well. WE all had a great time together.

Some of my Donna Downey Loot

These are some of the goodies I got from Donna Downey Studios. Love it all. Just need to use it... I got her Unity Stamps sets and several stamps from Catslife Press rubber stamps(awesome company) and I finally got the bird on a wire border punch by Martha Stewart.

Copic Certification

I just returned from taking the Copic Certification initial course in Charlotte, NC. Colleen Schaan was the instructor, she was very thorough and I learned a lot about the illustrious Copic Markers. My friend Gail met me there and received certification also. This photo is myself and Colleen. BAD HAIR day for me (LOL)!!! Cloudy rainy days and my hair do not agree...

Our Daily Bread Designs

I recently went to a stamp show in Atlanta and I renewed my addiction to Our Daily Bread Designs. I had initially discoverd them on the internet and then saw the stamps when I went to Stampaway last year. They have wonderful religious verse sets. They also have a great design team, the card samples in the booth were beautiful. I made a card using the stamps I purchased. I used Van Dyke Brown ink but it looks green. I assume my ink has gotten old but I like the look of it. The tapestry background is by Hero Arts.

Inspired by Donna Downey

This is a small canvas that I did inspired by Donna Downey. I used Making Memories rub-ons and Golden Paints. It was quick and easy to make. I sprayed the canvas with water and then added the paint. Golden paints are joy to work with and cover well. After spraying the canvas I added the paint and blotted it to get the coverage I wanted. I used my heat gun to speed the drying. Once it was dry I added the rub-ons and then added a piece of patterned paper along the bottom of the canvas, added a sticker from 7 Gypsies and then stamped the flowers with Titanium white Golden paint. I also edged the canvas with Walnut Stain distress ink. My friend Gail was the recipient of the canvas. I always promise her I am going to send her items in the mail and it takes me forever to send it, so I had to make it up to her. She was needless to say surprised.