My beautiful baby boy

Larry Gene, you have my heart forever!

Born June 4, 2007. 7 lbs 13 oz, 19 3/4 inches.

Fairieland Postcard

This is my latest postcard for my Letterheads art group with a "fairieland" theme. I was aiming to not make your typical cutsie fairy images. And in Letterheads, there are always some words or phrases included.

What is the Question?

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My contribution to a Shakespeare-themed postcard swap.

Little Clipboard

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On the left is the front of a custom clipboard I made for another artist in a swap. I glued fancy paper to chipboard, distressed it in chalk and some inks and added words and images. I used Modge Podge to give it a final finish durabality.

Mona Lisa Altered

An irreverent postcard swap from my Letterheads art group. She was fun to make! I've received some really neat ones in return from the other players.

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The words along the side say:

"Lusciously embroidered with a creamy rococo floral pattern, thisgolden mule must-have had a devasting effect as it dangled fromthe foot of an eighteenth century coquette."

Art Quotes, an ATC swap

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Artist Trading Cards (ATCs)

Mark Twain postcard

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The postcard above was created for a Mark Twain postcard swap on one of my art groups. The rule was have at least one of Mark Twain's quotes included. Mine says:

"If you tell the truth,

You don't have to remember anything!"

The background was made using a replica of the Territorial Enterprise and Virginia City News, for which Mark Twain once wrote in the 1860s. The image of Twain on the left is a print over vellum, creating slight transparency effect. It's hard to read, but the tag at the bottom says "The Good Old Days."

Monte's Fairyland swap

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Monte's latest set of ATCs, completed tonight. The swap, from one of my art groups, is called "Fairyland."

The pictures just don't do justice to Monte's creative mind. Some of these gorgeous cards have fairies "hiding" underneath elements that can be lifted to see the complete picture, such as with the single blade of grass on the first card, and the autumn leaf on the fifth card.

Also, the mermaid fairy is "underneath" a sheer overlay transparency printed with a circle design in blue, giving the effect of depth and water.

The swap called for six cards, but as usual, I had to steal one for my collection! Can you guess which one I kept? :-) It was a tough decision!

Finally back at the drawing board!

After a long, wintry hiatus, I'm slowly getting back into creating art! It feels wonderful, and it's a nice change of pace to be doing this again instead of freshly mourning for the loss of our loved ones last year.

Plus, Baby Larry joins me now (still in my belly), and makes everything so much more special! (Soon, my next project will be decorating his room!)

This piece is a Winter Art Doll for one of my art groups. I will be sending her off to my partner very soon. Although this doll is supposed to have a winter theme, I couldn't seem to glue down anything but these colors! I love them. Perhaps a burst of winter florals?

It's the Monster Mash!!!

Click on the image above for full-size version.

One of my favorite sets to date! Monte's latest Artist Trading Cards offering is awesome 3D eye candy!

It might be difficult to see in these flat photos, but Monte recreated these 1950s favorite horror movie posters by taking the main image in the poster and overlaying it on chipboard before attaching it to the full poster underneath. He shadowed the edges first with black ink before gluing to the card.

The effect is a miniature movie poster with a tantalizing 3D feel to it. Too bad he's got to send these off! (But not before I snagged an extra "Creature" card!)

Put a little Zetti on!

Here is a Zetti doll I made for a swap. She's about 11 inches high and I used acrylic paints, paper and embellishments on mat board.

Trying new styles and techniques, really. I wanted to incorporate pen and ink (well, paints) a la Claudine Hellmuth. I'm also learning how to use my scanner better!








Words say: "All is well"


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Can't Stop a Good Artist!

Monte's third set of ATCs! He has really come to enjoy making these little art cards and we both enjoy working on our projects together. As soon as he finished this series, which is for a swap called "Cartoons," he was chomping at the bit to join another swap (which he did tonight)!

I think I've got him hooked...

Silver Dollar City preserved

Here are two ATCs from a batch of seven I made for a swap themed "Labels and Ticket Mania."

The rule was to use some sort of authentic ticket or label on the cards, and I decided to take our family's Silver Dollar City entry tickets and turn them into some art.

The background was cut from the retail sacks I saved from Silver Dollar City -- which I love because they have that old-time newspaper look -- and I punched the tickets into the shape of tags, which can be rotated on the brad so you can see the back.

Monte strikes again!

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That talented husband of mine! He just keeps getting more creative all of the time! Here's his latest batch of ATCs he made for an official swap in an art group (with a hostess other than myself). Can you guess the theme?

Pay close attention to these cards -- there's such detail in them! For example, Monte used miniature -- and I mean TINY -- buttons for the checkers pieces (ATCs are only 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 inches).

He used miniature Scrabble tiles we happened to find in a craft supply store. The Candyland game has copies of original game pieces glued to cardstock and raised above the card with foam.

Monte used several symbolic doodads and a variety of fun pieces to highlight the theme of the various games (finding the backgrounds alone was an interesting challenge!), and he finished each card with a clever sentiment.

Great job, Honey!

Ride 'em CowGirl!

Here is my latest art doll ... a cowgirl!

She was fun to make. Instead of papers, I used fabric on her, western themed with jeans, paisley and a gingham scarf. She has a leather belt (which I cut), embellished with a metal heart to resemble a large belt buckle. Her hair is cotton doll hair and her face is a large, flat bead which I painted. You can't tell from this picture, but she actually has LARGE BOOBIES underneath the shirt, made with buttons. A crafty coworker gave me the mini-cowboy hat and, with a few stamps, that completed her look!

I love making these art dolls, they're so fun. I already sent my first one off to my assigned swap partner, but I have yet to receive one. I can't wait!

Monte's first ATC - wow!

What a fabulous job!

My dear husband decided to try his hand at making a set of Artist Trading Cards for the swap I'm hosting called "Messages of Hope." He did such a marvelous job, it looks like he's been doing these for years!

This ATC is one of nine duplicate cards. He made each by hand.

Bravo, honey!

Messages of Hope

"I am with you always, until the end of time." ~ Matthew 28:20

(written on each card above)

Here is the complete set of my "Messages of Hope" ATCs for my first swap as hostess. These cards were made in honor of my mother, Bonnie, and her husband, Ric.

So far about a dozen people have signed up to participate in this swap. Sign-ups end July 31 and all artist trading cards are due to me by Aug. 15. I've already received two sets in the mail, and they are gorgeous!

Click on image above to view a larger picture where you can see the details more clearly.

Art sustains us

Sometimes art goes beyond mere enjoyment. Sometimes it's a diversion, an outlet, a lifesaver. Such is this week's art, the pleasant, familiar comfort of an Exacto knife or a glue stick or a pen in my hand, the completion of a project a satisfactory endeavor before I go back to my routine.

Most of you are familiar with Ric, my stepdad's, health. However, we're also dealing with the precarious health of my husband's father. We found out tonight that his specific kind of blood cancer (myeloma) is back, and he was fighting for his life... UPDATE July 21: Larry's health has been improving. Certain blood cell counts have increased back to better levels, his infections are getting under control and he's been moved from the acute care hospital to the rehabilitation hospital this week. While there are no guarantees how long his health will hold out, he seems to be on the upswing, and for that, we're all very grateful. Thank you for your prayers.

All of these situations are very sad. Those of us who will be left behind when our loved ones depart must stick together in love and family support. We must embrace the things that comfort us and bring us joy. The Bible, prayers, creating things, talking with our children, our relatives, our friends. Hugs, kisses, letters, e-mails ... it must all sustain us through these emotionally wrenching times.

Having lost my 7-year-old cat, Helen, a week ago Monday, the pain of everything else is amplified even more. However, I will say one thing that I keep hearing over and over. While the people who are sick feel bad they're leaving us in all this pain, they're also ready to end the physical suffering we feel here on earth, they're ready to go be with our Lord in heaven and experience the indescribable joy that is total peace and fulfillment. They feel no dread, no sorrow, no regret about leaving this earth -- only that they are leaving us behind, sad.

In all things that are beautiful and joyful -- your smile, a flower, the things we do, make and say for others -- there is a piece of our loved ones.

The above art is one of nine different ATCs (artist trading cards) I made for a swap called "Fabulous 50s." They're all made using reproductions of authentic 1950s ads. The remainder of the cards I will post to my Yahoo group.