One World One Heart 2010

 ****THIS POST WILL REMAIN ON THE TOP OF MY BLOG FOR THE DURATION OF OWOH, SO TO SEE NEW POSTS, SCROLL DOWN.****

***** I've noticed that many people who have been nice enough to leave comments have not left any contact information.  Remember, If I can't contact you, I can't send you a prize!*****

I am thrilled to be participating once again in One World One Heart, a wonderful concept in blogland.  Beginning today, bloggers all over the world will announce their participation, and reveal the prizes they will be giving away.  The purpose is to encourage people, bloggers and non-bloggers alike, to visit and make connections.  Anyone with this year's OWOH logo on their blog is a participant.  If you'd like more information (it is not too late for you to join in), just click on the logo above.

To win one of my prizes you must leave a comment ON THIS POST ONLY by February 15th, the date that Lisa Swifka, founder of the event, has chosen as the closing date.  For most bloggers, February 16th will be the day for announcing prize winners.

I will be out of the country on the 16th, so please note that I will most likely be announcing my winners when I return on the 20th.  If I can get online while I'm away, I will, but I'm assuming for now that I won't.   And should I be lucky enough to win something  I won't be able to claim my prize until the 20th, so I hope you'll hold it for me!  Please!

AND THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT!  In your comment you must leave your email address so I can contact my winners.  I spent a lot of time last year trying to track down people who did not do so, so this year I won't include in my drawing any posts without an email address.  Also, only one comment per person.  Duplicates will be deleted.  Some people limit this event to active bloggers only.  I have too many good friends who don't have blogs, so my giveaway is open to everyone.

As for my giveaways,  so far I have three planned.  I may add to that if I see I'm getting lots of comments.

First prize, a nice sized box full of brand new supplies.  There will be (at least), several full sized Tim Holtz masks, two Distress Ink pads, three bottles of Stickles, three pots of Perfect Pearls, ribbon, and three containers of Maya Road trinket pins.

My next prizes are two of my Art Goddess pins.  I make them from real old and rusted keys, grungepaper and grungeboard, and Tim Holtz idea-ology hardware.  They both have tie tack style pin backs, and would look great on the lapel of any Art Goddess out there.

 

When you click on the OWOH logo, you will be taken to the site that explains everything and lists all participating blogs.  Visit and leave comments on as many as you can.  Check back often, as new blogs will be added as their authors sign up.

I myself can't wait to start visiting new blogs,  making new friends, and finding new inspiration in the blogosphere.  I did last year, and I have a feeling this year's event will be even bigger and greater.  I hope you will join in this experience either as a blogging participant or visitor, or better yet, both.

Weekend Getaway in Connecticut

Back home again after a great weekend at that beautiful B&B in Connecticut that I mentioned in my last post.  Even nicer in person.  Great rooms, wonderful hosts, and TO-DIE-FOR food.  Oh, and our projects weren't too shabby either!  We had tremendous work space, spread out all over the dining room.  Since we were the only guests taking meals there we didn't even have to put things away over night.  Very convenient place for any sort of crafting group to visit.  In fact, they were expecting a quilting group later in the week.

The fun began before we even got there.  Lots of laughs on Amtrak (helped along by the wine-in-a-can that Kahena brought, and the jug of cosmos I contributed).

 

  

We even managed to involve a conductor.

We finally arrived in Old Saybrook, and were met at the station by our Inn host Jim.

The rest of our group got to the Inn later that evening and early the next day.  Here are some shots from the weekend.

  

  

  

  

  

  

 Helen and Jim, our hosts (and chefs) for the weekend.  Every meal was a gourmet's delight, and they did everything possible to make us feel at home.

  

My gorgeous room:

  

  

Now, I've seen the top sheet of toilet paper folded over before....on cruise ships and in some hotels.  But this is the first time I've seen it with a little sticker attached:

And yes, in between laughing and eating, we did manage to do a LOT of crafting.  We each brought one or more projects to share, and spent all day Saturday working on them.  Here is my display of all my finished ones (click on the photo for a closer look):

On the styrofoam block are paper beads drying (thanks Kahena!) On the white paper is a fabulous "wonder woman" bracelet, cut from vinyl using the SU lattice cut die, and Tim Holtz hitch fasteners as closures. That was Heather's great project.  On the left under the styrofoam are two fabric brooches we did with Heidi. Next to them are two cards that Pat showed us how to do.  Next to those are three background papers we did with Amalia....fusing decorative napkins to cardstock using plastic wrap as the glue.  On the bottom row, a clever little bookmark made from a hair clip, decorated with punched out papers. Also a Heather project.  Next to that, my project sample, a mini composition book covered with the faux metal technique.   Next to the notebook are several beautiful flowers I made with the watercolor technique that Laurel demonstrated.  And finally, two gorgeous pendants we did with Corris.  I made mini collages using the varied papers Corris brought, and sandwiching them between two pieces of glass that fit into the frames.

Here are some closer looks at some of these:

  

  

  

  

  

  

Every meal was served on a beautifully set table.

This is what the FIRST course of one breakfast looked like.....toasted cornbread with cranberries, and warm pears covered with brown sugar and pecans. This was followed by an incredible quiche.  Everything at every meal, including all breads were made from scratch.

As if we didn't have enough, we ended the weekend with a trip down the road to a lovely scrapbook store,where we hung out for a while, watched a scrapping retreat in progress, and bought one or two (LOL) items.

  

  

We're already talking about where our next weekend getaway should be.  I've been to retreats and workshops with well known artists, which I've loved, and taking nothing away from those experiences, a retreat with good friends.....priceless!

Leavin' Town

This is where I'm headed today.....The Captain Stannard House Country Inn in Westbrook, Connecticut.  A full weekend away with some of my Gotham City Stampers teammates, hanging out, having our meals prepared for us, and best of all.....sharing art projects. 
We've taken over the inn, so we don't even have to be on our best behavior in front of strangers.  The plan is to craft all day Saturday, and never even get out of our PJs.
If you're a regular at my blog then you obviously understand how this fills me with joy.
I'll be sure to come back with plenty of photos.
Have a great weekend, and to borrow Wendy's favorite phrase......MAKE ART!

Chunky ATCs

So, what is a chunky ATC?  Well, for one thing, it is made out of a solid piece of wood, and most importantly, it is THICK!  The faces are regulation ATC size, 2 1/2" X 3 1/2", but they are a whopping 1 1/2" thick.  Obviously, they are not meant to go in an album, but rather, to be displayed on a shelf.
The intriguing thing about them is that you have not one, but five surfaces to decorate: front, back, sides and top. The bottom can be made pretty, but has to be flat so the piece can stand.
Gloria, one of the list moms at ATT is hosting a 3/3 swap of these beauties, and I really wanted to participate.  But being an apartment dweller, getting wood cut to size is not something I can just do on a whim.  But Gloria very kindly sent me a box of pre-cut pieces, so I could join in.

The photos are a little dark, but if you click on them, you'll get a much better view.

 

These are the fronts.  I covered them with metal from Ten Seconds Studio, which I embossed and sanded.  The vintage typewriters are from a Graphic 45 paper.  They were distressed a bit, mounted on cardboard, metal corners were added, and they were attached with foam so they're very dimensional.

The backs are also covered with embossed and sanded metal...different color.   I added some of Tim's ornate frames with text inside.

 

One side has another Graphic 45 paper of vintage pens, and I added an actual pen nib.  On the bottom is a faux typewriter key.  Hey, I think I have a theme going on here.

On the other side, atop the same Graphic 45 paper is a Tim stamp, done on grungepaper, inked and distressed.  Don't know how well you can see, but attached to the GP with one of Tim's mini pins are a spinner and a bird charm.

The tops are embellished with some numbers and black scrabble-like letters.

I also did a fourth for me to keep, and look forward to receiving three new ones when the swap is over.  I think they will look great on display, and have a spot in mind.

Mad About Metal

Not talking about AC/DC (although......), but metal for embossing, metal in scrumptious colors, metal I've had in my possession for MONTHS and done nothing with.  Metal from Ten Seconds Studio.

First of all, did you know that you could make those roses we usually make from grungepaper out of metal? 

Not great photography, but very cool roses.  I cut them using a sizzix die, then embossed them with a cuttlebug folder, then put them together pretty much the same way, except....used no glue!  The metal is soft enough that I could  stack the layers and kind of twist them together on the bottom.

I also did another of my altered mini notebooks using the metal.  This one is for the February Jackpot at PID.  The theme is "The Colors of Mardi Gras - purple, green, and gold," and here are the front and back of my notebook:

 

  

After attaching the embossed metal to the book, I lightly sanded the raised areas with a sanding block, then swiped over the sanded parts with gold alcohol ink mixative.

The Marie Antoinette image is from PID, and I added some bling to the image.  Well, it is Marie, after all.

Yep, definitely mad about metal!

Gifts.....Given and Received

I was the host for a special gift exchange for the Gotham City Stampers, and this past Friday at our quarterly meeting, we exchanged gifts.
If you remember the inspiration board I made in Wendy Vecchi's class on the cruise, that was MY inspiration in making my gift.  I was very happy when I drew JennyB's name, as I knew for sure she'd appreciate it.
Here it is, with some (fuzzy....sorry!) closeups:

 

  

  

  

  

Heidi altered a journal and lucky me!  She picked my name.  Here I am holding up that beauty:

Background Techniques

Every Tuesday I post a background technique on the Paper Imagery Designs blog.  I don't think I've ever mentioned that before, so I'm telling you now.  Take a trip over there and check it out.  On the sidebar you'll see a list under the word "Labels."  If you click on "Technique Tuesday,"  you'll see all of them.