PPF & more post received.

Hi everybody, it's Friday again, and that means it's time for Paint Party Friday, hosted by Eva and Kristin.
I didn't get around to painting that much this week, as I really needed to rest, but I did manage one mixed-media piece. The background has been stamped using archival black and various script, music and flourish stamps, and then painted with 2 coats of gesso - no, I didn't put it on my toast this time! Then I drew and painted the face before adding my *dream elements* - a picture of my Mum with my eldest sister, taken about 1940, and some vintage birds and flowers. Then I stamped the two birds at the bottom with archival black again, and clear embossed them, before giving them a bit of colour with water-colour pencils. My leopard is also walking through the picture again. The sentiment has been cut with a sizzix die, and the butterfly and dragonfly were from my stash. I am not sure that I like the picture as it is, I will think about for a few days and then see if I alter it or not.

And this is an altered canvas on which I have been working for some time on and off. It is for a friend's birthday, and she likes vintage and lace and flowers, so I threw them all onto it. And as their are angels on it, I am entering this into the *Angelic* challenge over at the *Three Muses*

And as this seems to be my super-duper post week, I got an envelope from Marie AKA *Dolly's Daydreams* filled with gorgeous tags. Marie used some of my fave themes - Halloween, autumn and Paris. I asked her yesterday if she was trying to tell me I am batty....No need, I know it! Thanks Marie for all these wonderful tags!

And that's still not everything! I got my second postcard from the *Liberate your Art* Postcard swap, a wonderful photo taken by Jess. You can see more of her work here. This blog has such wonderful photos it would be a shame not to visit it!

Thanks again for all the good wishes yesterday, I am trying to get more rest, and I went out today for a little walk through our little *town*, so did not spend the whole day sitting at the kitchen table crafting!

Have a nice day you all, and take care of yourselves. And thanks for stopping by!

Mini Book Day

First of all I would like to say a big thanks you to all who left me good wishes and sent me healing sparkles by mail yesterday, it evidently helped, because I do feel better today. But I am going to take things easier for a few days, and try to get a bit more sleep and fresh air!

On Monday I took my mail-art envelope to the post. The lady behind the counter smiled at me, said *Oh, how lovely! The lucky recipient! I'd better put lots of pretty stamps on to it!* Somebody must have cloned her!!

And I had to collect 2 parcels with mini-books from the customs - after they had been *keeping them warm* for weeks. Evidently they don't have enough employees. So why do they have to control mini-books?? Anyway, the lady there told me to open the parcels, and she couldn't believe her eyes! She spent 20 minutes going into rhapsodies over these beautiful little books. I kept telling her that there was a big queue waiting. She said *Let them wait*. Now I'm afraid they will be holding more of my parcels ransom so that they can look at my lovely things!
One of the little books was from Lisa Fulmer
I did a one to one swap with her 2 months ago, and she made me a beautiful bird book.
Here is the front cover, the other pictures are in the slide show at the bottom of the post.

The second parcel was from Lenna, who organises lots of lovely swaps. I joined in her *Little Book Swap*, fir which I made 4 books, and received 4 in return - from Laura Hummel, Juliet Sutton,
Corinne Marie and from my dear blogger friend Donna Parker. I have shown the first photo of each book here, the others are in the slide show. Donna's Album had an *extra* - it was wrapped in printed cheese-cloth, which she had pinned together with a pearl hat-needle.

And here is the slide show:




And while we are on the subject of mini-books, here is a little key-chain album I made at the weekend, and was intending to show yesterday. It is 2 1/4 x 3 1/2". I used a little metal frame for the front cover, and made the pages using scraps- left over from another project - from the *Fairy Tale Stack*.

Oh dear, this post has turned out to be a bit longer than I was intending! Have a good day you all, take care, and thanks for visiting!

Taking a rest!

Hi you all, I am taking a little rest today, as I do not feel so good. *See* you all again tomorrow. Take care and have a good day!

A big rarity -Sunny Monday

Good morning you all! Yesterday was warm and sunny - all day. Today should be the same. It's summer! But tomorrow everything should be back to normal - cold, rainy and windy. But now we can't say we haven't had any summer in this year!
At the moment I am just tired all the time, although I spent most of Sunday sleeping. When I am tired, I seem to make a lot of little mistakes - like drinking my orange-brown painting water instead of my glass of *Mezzo-Mix* (Cola-orange mixture). It didn't really taste much different, I only noticed it because it was neither cold nor fizzy....But the worst mistake I made Saturday evening. I wanted to make myself a slice of toast with cream cheese. Unfortunately, I had filled some of my large container of gesso into an empty cream-cheese tub as the big one is to heavy to handle easily....And so I put gesso on my toast. I never did much like the smell of gesso, and the taste is not to be recommended!
Anyway, I did manage to finish my journal for August and a mail-art envelope yesterday, without any big mistakes. I am not happy with my journal this month, it has not turned out as I wanted it too, but I don't have the energy just now to start again. So it will stay as it is, and I hope that the next month will be better. There is just enough space each day for a short few words, and enough room to write any quotes or sayings I come across in the course of the month.
I am linking my journal to *The Kathryn Wheel* Journal Challenge

And this is the mail art envelope which will be winging it's way to Greece this week, in the hope that the post out of Germany will be delivered a bit quicker than the post which is being sent here. I don't know what our post or customs is doing or not doing just now, but 2 months and more for an air-mail letter from the USA to Germany is really impossible.

Okay, moan over! Here's wishing you all a great day, take care and thanks for visiting!

Monday and Time for Summer of Color

Once again the time has flown, and it's Monday already! I spent quite a lot of time sleeping at the weekend, and must say, I feel better for it. It means less crafting time, but sometimes it is just important to rest, and this was one of those times.
Today it's *Summer of Color* hosted by Kristin. Our colour prompt this time was orange, so I needed to get used to the notion of painting with orange. I started on Thursday, when I painted 2 orange backgrounds, one of which I used on Friday for our PPF event. I was planning on doing something similar with the second one, and then when I sat down yesterday to work on it, it just turned out differently. I sprayed some more layers on it using a flourish template and some letters and numbers, and after drying it, I drew 2 faces on it, and then started with little scraps to make a collage. I used book-scraps, stamps from an old passport, scraps of printed paper and labels, as well as some random stamping using TH rusty hinge distress ink.

And while I was in an orange mood at the weekend, I altered a canvas which fits both *Summer of color* and GC110, *Gears, cogs and watch bits* over at Gingersnap Creations.I have painted the canvas with some orange structure paint, which has been bubbled and burnt, and then distressed with Stazon brown. I mounted the clock (1€ from the Euro shop) onto the centre, and added watches and watch and clock parts round about it. I had to give this one a name. I am sure you can guess it! Clockwork Orange!

And the clock in the middle really works! My journal for August is nearly finished too, but that will be shown tomorrow! Have a nice day you all, take care, and thanks for visiting!

Sunday, Sunday Sketches & More post received

Good morning everybody. Did I say that I thought yesterday might be a bit better weather wise? While I was wrong! I was so cold that I crawled under a blanket to warm up, and then woke up again just before 8p.m. The whole afternoon was just gone!
Which means I did not get too much done, except a few little things! But I had a wonderful sleep!
But first I want to show the lovely tag I got from Kat's Postcard swap. *Liberate your art*. We each sent in 5 postcards to Kat, with pictures of art we have made, and Kat distributed them and has now started to send them out. I got my first one yesterday from Lisa of *Wright Stuff*

She sent me a card with a picture of Flavia, and wrote on the back that I should not let myself be deceived by her coy looks, and that she has a lot of hidden latin fire! It is a beautiful picture, and will be given a place of honour in my arty kitchen! Thanks Lisa and thanks Kat, who had the enormous task of sorting, addressing and posting nearly 1000 postcards in all.

And I made a tag before I fell asleep for The Dragon's dream TIO. The dragon has been dreaming of embossing. This tag has been made of cardboard, which has been embossed with my small heart folder, and then distressed with Victorian velvet and ancient paper, and then heat embossed with clear embossing powder. The grunge board flourish has been inked with Tsuneki glue pad and then embossed with silver and perfect pearls in pink. I just added a fairy, a little lace and some dewdrops to finish it.

And I must not forget that it is Sunday Sketches over at Sophia's Blue Chair Diary I am sharing a picture I painted in 1995. I can't remember making it, and I discovered it folded into four and at the bottom of a drawer.
Perhaps you can think what it might be trying to say....

So, that was it for today. Have a lovely Sunday, take care and thanks for visiting! It is always much appreciated!

Saturday and more post....

Well, I don't want to say this too loudly, but it looks as though the weather might be a tad better today; I sure hope so. It's still grey, but NOT pouring and NOT freezing cold!

Yesterday the postman rang again, and brought me a little parcel from Petra. She had a giveaway of a beautiful lavender cushion on her blog a couple of weeks ago, and I was the lucky winner. She very kindly not only sent me my prize, but also a box full of little goodies which are going to be most useful as embellishments on my tags and mini books etc. Here are the pictures, showing the lavender cushion, a beautiful tag made by Petra, and all the goodies - different tissue papers, ribbons, bows, pearls and lots, lots more! Thank you, Petra!

This afternoon I finished off a piece that I started on yesterday, made from 4 matchboxes and 2 coasters. I embossed the coasters with a flourish folder, and then distressed them with brown corduroy ink, before painting over them with clear rock candy crackle. When it was dry, I rubbed Stazon brown into the cracks, and then added some Inca gold for a bit of metallic shine. The matchboxes have been painted with rock candy crackle in tarnished brass, and then distressed and lined with some paper scraps. I used some metal screw brads for knobs, and then sandwiched them between the two coasters to make a little *Four drawer unit*. I am going to fill it with brads and buttons etc and give it to a friend. I am entering this into the GC 112 challenge at Gingersnaps, which is about leather, brass and iron. And I am also linking to the challenges at *Simon says stamp and show* where *anything goes* this week, and to *Try it on Tuesdays*, who want to see something altered to make a gift.

And I made a tag using some fabric strips for *Just for fun*. I glued 2 strips of floral fabric to the tag, added a few bits and bobs and a vintage eagle image, and that was it!

So, here's wishing you all a good Saturday. Take care and thanks a lot for visiting!