Mixed media tags and more

Hi Everybody!

Today we are beginning a new challenge at 

More Mixed Media

and the theme is anything goes, with optional green.

You have 4 weeks to link your mixed media creations, so

hope to see you there. For my DT piece I made a pair of

8" tags. The background was painted with Vivadecor metallic

paints in olive and blue. Then I collage them with some scraps and

one of the paper napkins Sandy sent recently. The diamonds were

stenciled with bronze structure paste and then embossed with Frantage.

I added some scraps of gold leafing, and 2 figures cut from a recycled

calendar. And I love this Dylusions quote, 'If the young only knew, if the old only could' - too true! Some ribbon and paper and glass beads

were used as embellishments.

I am also linking to destination inspiration, anything goes

For Yvonne's lovely challenge 'Out and About'

at Art Journal Journey I made a hybrid piece, mixing some

digital embellishments (Daisytrail) with some old family photos and 

a photo taken in an old village street near here. Bernie bear

is not riding carefully, I hope he doesn't hit those geese:

Saturday morning got off to a fine start:

The restaurants, shops and houses are all decorated

ready for spring:

The gulls are probably looking for spring:

Have a great day, take care,

and thanks a lot for coming by!

Weekend this and that again

Hi Everybody!

This has been a busy week for me, with lots of new

therapies, but it was enjoyable. On the way there and back 

I was able to take photos of  spring flowers -

although it has been cold, nature is doing her job!

For Paint Party Friday I have a collage I made this week,

using pieces cut from an old National Geographic, placed on a background

of torn and cut book paper, painted over with gesso and

a bit of metallic rusty paint.

I am also linking to Simon Monday challenge, based on a book

For Go Tag Thursday I have a butterfly tag. The background was cut from DP, over which I did a lot of random stamping and scribbling. The small butterflies (LaBlanche) were stamped and Stickled, and the large butterfly, also from LaBlanche, was stamped onto acetate using Stazon, and also Stickled on

the reverse:

 The morning sky:

Spring flowers:

This is moss, growing on a parapet, and about half an inch high!

Have a great day you all, take care,

and thanks a lot for coming by!

Second on the Second

Hi Everybody!

For the next couple of months I will be undergoing a course of treatment

at the Diakonie, the local hospital, where I will be

spending a lot of time, so may not always

be able to keep up blogging every day.

Thursday is Elizabeth's 2nd on the 2nd, where we can link things

already shown at some time in the past.

I showed this woven piece 2 years back.

I cut a frame in A4 size from the back of an old paper pad, made

holes with my cropadile, and threaded it with linen yarn. I wove

strips of old linen, fibres, ribbon, burlap etc through the threads.

When it was done I mounted it on a piece of chipboard, 

which had been painted and embossed, and added

the beads at the bottom.
I am also linking to Paint Party Friday

I wrote the quote on the back:

For Yvonne's lovely theme of 'out and about' at Art Journal

Journey, I have a hybrid piece, using a water-colour background 

painted in 1991. It shows The Kloster (convent) at Sießen near Saulgau.

Bertha Hummel, who created all the Hummel figures, was a nun there.

She did some very fine drawings, which I like better than

the porcelain figures, and they can all be seen in the

museum there.

The pictures were taken at the weekend, some with sun, and some 

without,  where the water looks cold and grey: 

Have a great day, take care,

and thank a lot for coming by!

The blue flower

Hi Everybody!

It's been another cold and dismal day here, but it's not

stopping the spring flowers blooming, so 

that's good.

For Simon Monday challenge, based on a book, I have

a mixed media tag. The first layer was made with scraps of 

old book pages and letters, and a strip of corrugated

card. I gave it a coat of diluted gesso before going on to the next

layer,  for which I used pieces of paper napkins.

The butterfly was also cut from a napkin, 

pasted on card and fussy cut. I added stardust

Stickles to the wings, and antennas

made from gold wire and tiny, blue glass beads.

I added some glass leaves as embellishment.

The blue flowers always remind me of a poem

by  Josef von Eichendorff, a German writer

of the 19th Century, who wrote

'Die blaue Blume' - the blue flower:

Ich suche die blaue Blume,

Ich suche und finde sie nie,

Mir träumt, dass in der Blume

Mein gutes Glück mir blüh.

Ich wandre mit meiner Harfe

Durch Länder, Städt und Au'n,

Ob nirgends in der Runde

Die blaue Blume zu schaun.

Ich wandre schon seit lange,

Hab lang gehofft, vertraut,

Doch ach, noch nirgends hab ich

Die blaue Blum geschaut

 Roughly translated it means:

I search for the blue flower,

I search and cannot find it,

I dreamed that my luck

Will bloom with the flower.

I wander with my harp

Through countries, towns and meadows,

Always hoping to glimpse 

The blue flower.

I've been wandering  a long time,

And have hoped and believed,

But alas, I was not able

To see the flower anywhere.

My sister Cynthia brought me a card with this poem 

when I was a little girl, and it was the

first German I learned.

Today I am sharing some of the presents I received in the past

weeks, and would like to say 'thanks' again to all of

the senders.

The book came from Sandra, who is a talented and proficient 

author, and is really good, it's well worth a read!

(As are her other books, too)

The purse is also from Sandra:

These bottles are tiny, about 1" high, and were part of a huge

parcel of goodies sent by Gill, and all made with so

much loving care. I have shown some of the other pieces, and will

be showing more as I use them. She also sent a CD with digital images,

as she is a designer at Daisy Trail:

The gorgeous card is also from Gill.

These 2 cards were from Sandy, and accompanied a huge

pile of gorgeous paper napkins which I have been

using lately, and some water-colour cards:

Thanks Ladies!

Have a great day you all, take care,

and thanks a lot for coming by.