Help! I've Fallen and I Can't Get Up!

Blog material can come from many different sources! One of the boys had soccer practice last night, and the others played on the equipment while we waited. I love people watching. That is exactly what I did while I was there. I am extremely thankful that I am not a teenager in this day and age. There were a handful of teens playing and hanging out at the park. These particular teens were apparently babysitting some siblings. There were two boys and two girls plus some little ones. They were playing football, or at least catch. I was watching one of the boys trying to run in his jeans. It looked like he was trying to run with wet jeans on and has a distant relative that might be part penguin. They were the kind that are super tight around the bottom two-thirds of the legs and the top part doesn't quite reach the waist. It almost looks like he can't pull them up because they are too tight around the calves. Of course, there are boxers hangin' out. Then the girl that missed the ball and was trying to pick it up was equally as curious to watch. You know the kind that has to keep a completely straight back, bent knees, and hand over top of jeans to block some of the "peep" show from the lowest of low cut jeans. Seriously, why would someone torture themselves like that!?! I know back in the day we had tight pants, but they were stretch pants! There wasn't a move that couldn't be performed in them and never a worry about showing skin, crack, or boxers! OK, I know you didn't come here to listen about my opinion on the latest fashions.I started this frame an embarrassingly long time ago! It is mostly finished. The ribbon isn't really attached because I want to make sure the recipient wants it that way. The frame has designer paper modge podged on it. I sanded the edges a bit to make the paper more fitted. The other night I finally painted the plane. I added the stars to it to make it a little more fancy. I am happy with how it turned out and I hope my nephew likes it as well.

I also painted these over the weekend. They are not put together yet because I can't decide what I want to do with them. I am thinking about attaching the bat with some wire to make him kind of springy. I may use him for a different project altogether. A couple side stories: I had the ghost painted and shaded but hadn't painted his face yet. My youngest couldn't wait, and while I was doing something he drew two eyes and a mouth. He must get his patience from me. Then I had just finished the bat and was up washing my brush. He couldn't help himself and stuck his fingers in the eyes and smeared the paint across the bat. UGGHH!!! Thankfully, I was able to wipe most of it off and repaint his face. Painting makes me very happy...even when I have extra help! Who am I trying to fool...crafting makes me very happy!

Some new card designs will be making their debut very soon! I updated my Stampin' Up! site with additional classes here. Let me know if you would like to attend any of them. Also, let me know if you have any questions.

Thanks for listening to all my chatter today! Have a crafty day!
Sheri

One Down, Countless To Go!

This frame was started some time ago. I recently had a friend mention that she needed to finish some projects before starting any more. She got me to thinking about all the projects I have sitting around here that I need to finish up. So, yesterday I worked on a few. This is one that I completed. As some of you know, my first love (in the crafting world) is painting. However, it lacks the instant gratification that paper crafting offers. What I mean by that is that it takes much longer to complete a painted project than a card.

This project combined two of my loves, painting and paper crafting. I painted the frame black and the ghost white (he is made of wood). I modge podged a patterned paper on the frame. After it dried I lightly sanded the edges. Several months later I added details to the ghost. The "boo" and stars are made from card stock. I used some fun wire to connect them to the ghost. Then I super glued the ghost onto the frame. I am very excited how this project turned out. I am thinking I will make some Christmas frames using the same method.

I have a few more projects that I are almost complete. That means I should have more than 2 posts next week!

Have a fun filled weekend!
Sheri

Somebody Stop Me!

Actually, please don't stop me. I have been on a creative spree and I am hoping to get every idea created before they run out! Although I make/paint a lot things I don't usually keep them. I either give them away or sell them. This is my latest creation and I am very excited about how it turned out. I don't think the pictures do this creation justice, but I am a little biased. I can't wait for my hubby to get home and hang them. This is the whole collection that is supposed to act as one. I have taken individual pictures of them all. Some of them don't photograph well, but you can always click on them and make them bigger.

This one uses a stamped image from Stampin' Up!'s Dare to be Fabulous. I first painted the canvas green. Then I stamped it in white craft ink and embossed with white embossing powder. Last, I lightly dry brushed brown on it until I got the look I was going for. On all the ones that I embossed I wiped off the images with a damp paper towel. If you wait too long it won't come off.

I painted this red and then stamped it with Stampin' Up!'s Pick a Petal in craft white ink. After it dried I dry brushed brown on the edges. The ink did smear a little so I should have embossed this one as well. I shaped some silver crafting wire to outline the petals. Last, I added the giant button.

Here is a side view to give you a closer look. This one might be my favorite one.

I painted this yellow. Then I dry brushed brown on the top and bottom. Then I used Stampin' Up!'s Upsy Daisy set with basic brown ink. It is very hard to stamp on canvas and get a crisp image. I still like this one though.

This is actually the first one I made. I painted it brown. Then I clear embossed the Dare to be Fabulous flower. I dry brushed the yellow on top. I went back over some of the yellow with brown until I got the streaking the way I wanted it. This looks really cool in real life.

This one didn't photograph well at all! I painted it orange, clear embossed the Dare to be Fabulous flower, then dry brushed with brown.

I used the Stampin' Up! Sizzix leaves die to mask the canvas. I painted the canvas orange. Next, I used the two way glue pen to make a temporary adhesive on the leaves (let the glue dry from blue to clear to make it temporary). I dry brushed with brown. Then I added some random buttons.

This one is painted green then stamped with a leaf using basic brown ink. I used Stampin' Up!'s Best Blossoms set. Then I dry brushed brown around the edges and randomly in the middle. Last, I added the random buttons.

This one is painted green and dry brushed brown. I simply added these three wooden buttons. I tried to use elements that would tie it all together. For example, I used buttons on four of the canvases, I used the same flower on three of them, and clearly the color scheme pulls it all together.

This one is painted red then stamped using yellow paint. Then I came back with the brown dry brushing in a crosshatching kind of pattern. I think it is hard to be precise when using paint to stamp. I like the kind of worn look it has though.

I hope you enjoy my art. If you have any questions feel free to ask!

Sheri

Life Is Like A Yo-Yo!

There are so many ups and downs in life. I guess that is what keeps it interesting. Over the weekend our beloved dog ran away. It was dramatic and traumatic for the boys, especially. We finally tracked him down to a neighbors house 2 doors down. We were excited to get him back, but the family that found him were not excited to give him back. They, too, have four children and one of the boys cried when we took him home. We are going to make a thank you card and cookies to take to them. I wish I had it done so I could show you, but life is crazy busy with VBS. So I am going to show you some canvases I painted 2 years ago for VBS. These hung in the church like they were windows. Afterwards, we auctioned them off to help raise money for the next year. I think the igloo one is my favorite. What's yours? Have a great day!

Sheri