Moxie Inspiration

   The current Moxie Fab World Tuesday Trigger started a whole two days of fun and relaxing painting for me!  Cath's  color trend post caught my eye as well since I've been loving the coral/yellow combination I see so many places lately!

  I'm usually interested to know how people get their ideas, so here's my contribution to creativity for the day:


--the first thing I tried was my trusty purple plastic stencil and I experimented with watercolor brushing in traditional stencil style [bottom right dummy sheet]  I liked how I could use totally different colors or just one or two and by varying brush sizes and water amounts I could create some interesting textures;


--next, having been inspired further by my daughter's latest library book on Central Asian fabric patterns--my thoughts went to Ikat-like applications as seen in the bottom left sample [I also immediately thought of using my Hero Arts Zig Zag background stamp as a perfect layer for the designs...don't ask--it's just the way my brain works...]


--and putting it all together I did a panel using two sizes of solid butterfly design stamps kissed on my inked Zig Zag background and stamped on water color paper; used a brush to paint contrasting coral and sunshine colors then misted; it's dimension-mounted on an embossed Zig-Zag card base:

This is for my daughter...I think I'll enjoy making a whole set of different designs/colors for her birthday!

--the second technique is using the pps [plastic purple stencil!] to cut out a symmetrical butterfly [i.e. to be able to control the placement of the zig zags] I was trying to figure out on what to mount the butterfly, playing with some scraps and came up with a unique birthday card [I've been wanting to do something with that embossed panel in the scrap box for almost two years now!]  

   Bottom line:  FUN!  And it kept me out of trouble for a while!  [you know...weeding, yardwork, housework, laundry, trim painting...trouble!]  Thanks Moxie Fab World for my get-away!

Special Time

Hero Arts blog monthly challenge HERE!

   This is a little shape card I made this afternoon.  The original idea was to make the top of a grandfather clock, but I determined that would be a bit too fussy to pull off and so I went for the mantel model.  My Nana used to have one of those copper cast Western horse ones at her place and it's a wonderful memory for me.  I love this Hero Arts set with the old-fashioned clocks and the beautiful sayings in this font!  Looking forward to getting a haul soon filled with the just-released Basic Grey/Hero Arts stamps!   

   In case you were wondering about the details above, I used some old patterned paper [I find it sits on my shelf so I can admire it more than use it...] glued it onto a plain card; made my own template and cut out the shape.  I embossed the clock face and used a large punch to cut the circle, and I used a circle cutter to make the copper paper frame.  [which I am only now realizing I could have just layered--talk about getting into the realism of the clock!  I kept thinking the "cover" needed to open!]  

   

   

B Happy!

   It's been a while since I've posted...been busy just b-ing happy and doing lots of fun things with the 'fam.'  We recently celebrated Patriot's Day and went to a re-enactment over at the Battle Road near Lexington and Concord Massachusetts.  It was a beautiful day, and it was awe-inspiring to re-live a bit of our heritage...stay tuned for tomorrow's post with photos of the action!
   Today has been a lonely one for me since my kids were with their dad at Take Your Son/Daughter to Work Day!  They had fun and I got a few chores done as well as cleaned off my stamping desk to make this for our piano teacher.  He has a shirt with these fun stripes and colors and I couldn't help myself turning it into a card.  Sometimes I just have to give in to the urge when I think, "That would make a fun card...!"  Do you?

Spring?

   I am cautiously optimistic that it might...actually...finally...be spring here in the northeast U.S.!  Of course, there are still occasional weather forecasts for snow showers, but the bulbs in the yard are undeterred!  I went out last week to pick some daffodils, and floated some magnolia blossoms in a dish [at least it smells like spring!] and the grass--which has barely turned brown since last fall--is greening up.  The apple blossoms here at Apple Vale are imminent and the sky is blue.  Works for me!
   Here is a little sample of our flower harvest...I love the daffodil photo my son took--I think he has a great eye and I am always discovering a new view through him!  

   Too bad there's no 'smell-a-vision' gadget for blogger...the whole house was infused with the smell of...dare I say it even now?   Spring.