Summer is dwindling to a close and it's time to start coming indoors:
The garden is giving it's last, the canning is almost done (though is it ever done-done?), my four boys are back-to-school, the chill in the air is reducing time spent outside since these old bones get achy fast...
All of which means I have TIME now, not a lot, but still *some* and it's MINE.
Though I was sick with the 1st Back-To-School-Brought-Home-Bug the idea of wasting my *ME* time was NOT happening, so I settled down to get my cards completed for
The 4th Inspirational Altered Card Deck Swap: http://www.carddeckswap.com
Heard about this 3 years ago and was too shy in my abilities to go for it that year...
Last year I registered but had health issues for almost the entire summer so my limited energy was spent elsewhere...
This year:
I got it done!!!
HUZZAH!!!
*******************************
The topic this year is 'Favorite Song Lyrics'... not as easy as it sounds.
Eventually narrowed it down to:
"See The Art in Me"
From: Art in Me by Jars of Clay
Seemed very appropriate for this AND one of my all time favorite songs!
Made Mixed Media backgrounds on 14" X 17" Strathmore Bristol.
Base layers are some of the fug-ly pattern papers I keep around for Mixed Media, printed images from my Collage collection and a few die-cut items all attached with Gloss Gel Medium.
Top layers are Paint, Spray and Stencils.
Once they dried a few hours, LOTS of Yummy layers...
I cut the backgrounds down to 2 1/2" X 3 1/2" 'cards'
92 cards in total from 4 background sheets.
I made a template of a Face Silhouette with a printed image glued to some heavily waxed cardboard, a backing from a stencils package... waste-not, want-not!
Traced the stencil on each card with Broad Black Permanent Marker and colored around to make a 'Face Full of Art' on each card.
Each one is ~completely~ unique, each it's own piece of ART.
Then added the Lyrics on the front and my name, email, song choice on the back.
Voila!
90 Finished Cards
*Only ruined 2 with my shaky hands when tracing, not bad!*
Sending the 52 required cards (plus a few extra in case she needs them...)
AND I have some left to swap or send out in my own Happy Mail!
**************************
9 stacks of 10 cards:
Some of the individual cards:
14" X 17" Mixed Media Background #1:
14" X 17" Mixed Media Background #2:
14" X 17" Mixed Media Background #3:
14" X 17" Mixed Media Background #4:
Finished 14" X 17" Mixed Media Backgrounds drying:
erm... yes... it was QUITE messy!
***BONUS!!!***
Smeared the leftover paints in 2 of my personal Art Journals for some pretty cool backgrounds (or starts of ones...) Waste-Not, Want-Not! *grin*
The Entire mess...
Including a page done in a Travelling Art Journal at the same time.
Cut 'Cards':
Adding the 'Face'...
Done on the left, Stencil over a card on the right:
Adding the Lyrics:
All Done! 30 cards seen.
Batch #1:
All Done! 30 cards seen.
Batch #2:
All Done! 30 cards seen.
Batch #3:
***Reader BONUS***
For making it aaaaaall the way to the bottom...
A Bunny Bottom!!!
Our House Bunny: Hope, was busy digging around under our Pantry Cupboards while I was gluing the Lyrics and Info on... TOO cute to not stop and take a picture of.
That is one HUGE Dust Bunny!
