Special Delivery

a postcard I created using one of my favorite Paper Whimsy girls

she is playing Valentine Fairy

I made some skinnies with her last Valentine’s Day

Freut mich

Altering a canvas is the challenge at Awfully Big Art Adventure this week.    I used a 3 x 5 inch canvas along with a thicker 2 x 4 inch canvas on top.  The image is from Gail Russakov.

“Freut mich” popped out of a German text book

translated it means “pleases me“

Many thanks to Judy of Mangaroa Made for presenting me with the One Lovely Blog Award, that’s so very nice!

Pretty Paper Hearts #18 and UHU

Patricia has another lovely challenge theme this week for her Pretty Paper Hearts challenge blog….~Green Valentine~.  She chose this theme in celebration of Art and says:   “I feel art gives one such endless freedom to create – even green valentines.”

I must put in a plug for my favorite glue stick, and I have tried others, but only my UHU will do!  You’ll notice in the upper right hand corner under the green lace you can see a little purple….that’s my favorite glue…If I had not been so excited to get this heart posted, I could have shown you a picture of my heart with no purple showing…….BECAUSE, like magic you put on the glue and you can see where you’re putting  it because it’s purple.  When it dries, it’s invisible and holds forever!

My background was using Shiva Oil Stiks rubbed over a grid.  The lovely netting behind my heart is my sweet friend Carol’s First Communion veil.  She gave it to me when she moved and I have not been brave enough……yet……to use any of it.  It has sweet little lily of the valley flower sprigs on it and the veil is hemmed beautifully.    So for now, I decided to use it to create an interesting backdrop for my La Rosa heart.

Not only is Patricia’s challenge blog packed with inspiration, she also offers lots of lovely free images.

WS: (Hand)bags

For this week’s Wednesday Stamper challenge I altered a little doll’s purse (sized for an 18 ” doll) adding a dragonfly brad, a scrap of fabric and the stamped word “Journey” to the outside.

I created a tiny book  to tuck inside the purse that measures approximately 1 x 2.75 inches when open.  For the covers I used a piece of patterned 7 Gypsies Gaffer tape.

I made a stamped shrink plastic charm for one tie and used a wooden hand charm that I have had for years for the other tie.

It amazed me just how long I fiddled with the tiny postage stamp size pages.

Even more amazing is what the talented and patient Belinda has taught me in Photoshop Elements!  I seemed to be able to get my little book pages lined up and sized to match here.  On the WS Lace Sampler I met a few challenges in sizing.    As with learning most new things……practice……practice……practice is what I need.    Many many thanks to Belinda and Hermine for welcoming me into WS and for being so patient and helpful.  oxoxo

“A woman’s mind is as complex as the contents of her handbag; even when you get to the bottom of it, there is ALWAYS something at the bottom to surprise you!” ~Bill Connelly

Dance in the Light

Using the piece I created for Kelly’s Theme Thursday 2×4 challenge, I made a card for a friend.  I don’t really make all that many greeting cards anymore….I miss that.  I do think alot of the challenge pieces could be turned into cards though.

Here is a quote  for our first snowfall of the season here in Northern Virginia.

“No snowflake ever falls in the wrong place.” ~Zen proverb

A special thank you to Rosie, or Gypsy Rosilee as I fondly call her, for presenting me with the lovely, Kindred Spirit Award.  As a lot of you may already know, I do not pass awards along even though I really appreciate being thought of.  My blog roll to the right is packed with wonderful blog blog blogs and Rosie’s is definitely included!

Travel Around the World #7 Prague

Here is my postcard for Katrin’s travel swap.   It will be making its way to Sabine in Germany very soon.  You too can join in the fun…..next stop is Rio de Janeiro!

L*o*v*e

Another 5×7 inch fabric valentine, inspired by the Paper Whimsy swap.  I stitched the PW girl under some shimmery netting  onto some lavender corduroy, purple silk with gold threads along with some green lace  and velvet rickrack that I Love.  There are a couple of pieces of shimmery metallic fiber paper too.   The twenty cent LOVE stamp is a copy of the stamp we used to mail our wedding invitations back in April 1981.

“I ne’er was struck before that hour With Love so sudden and so sweet,   Her face it bloomed like a sweet flower And stole my heart away complete.”

~John Clare, from his poem “First Love”

The Paper Girls

The monthly challenge for January over at The Paper Girls is altering a photograph.  The month is quickly getting away from me, but I did not want to miss the fun.

I began with a 1995 photograph of a dried flower wreath that I made which is long gone.   I used peonies, roses, celosia, hydrangea, yarrow, green moss and some Paulownia tree pods.   This was before digital photography for me.

*before*        To alter the photograph, I made a copy, cut out the center of the wreath with an exacto knife, added a sweet Paper Whimsy girl, a piece of knotted gold flecked rickrack and added gold paper around the edges that I highlighted with my white Sakura gel pen.    My wreath lives on!

*after*  Be sure and visit The Paper Girls, you too can play along.  There is even a generous prize for the winner (chosen by random).

“Change is the only constant.” ~ Proverb

tea time and thanks

sweet time spent with a friend at a favorite tea spot….

we had a fun sunshiny day, didn’t we Lennie!

So many thoughtful people have been awarding me with lovely awards!  Many thanks to Wil……. June…….and Alison for presenting me with the Kreativ Award.

AND Thanks also to Barbara for the One Lovely Blog Award.

Be sure and visit each of these talented ladies, their blogs are a feast for the eyes and full of inspiration!

Theme Thursday : 2×4

The  new 2 x 4 theme at Theme Thursday makes me think of lumber and construction and how a piece of 2×4 inch wood does not really measure 2 inches by 4 inches…..but that’s another topic altogether.

I needed a distraction from a mysterious water leak situation going on here (ack!), so I went upstairs to play, knocked over a small box of cut out bits like wings and such.  This lady and the fan were two of the things I decided to use on my text background.  I painted it with pearlescent acyrlics and stamped along the border.  Viola = my first 2×4….now if we can just locate the leak and bring some order around here.

*Be sure and stop by my One World One Heart Giveaway, if you haven’t had a chance already!*

America’s Song

If you have a few moments, this is a beautiful and uplifting video.  Thank you Oprah!  For the first time in a long time, I feel true pride in my country   I’ve not really been much of a flag waver, but change is in the air…..

“Hope – Hope in the face of difficulty. Hope in the face of uncertainty. The audacity of hope! In the end, that is God’s greatest gift to us, the bedrock of this nation. A belief in things not seen. A belief that there are better days ahead.” ~Barack Obama

WS: Lace

Here is my chunky wooden ATC (2.5 x 3.5 x .75) for this weeks Wednesday Stamper challenge.  I used real lace at the top stiffening it by brushing on matte gel medium and coloring it lightly.

It’s fun to see what is revealed in pieces after they are completed, often there can be a surprise or two.   Just above the ladies head on the front side is an interesting word….hmmm wonder what book that text came from     A favorite stamp, Figure 27, by Stamp in the Hand is what I used to highlight the front and sides a bit.

The pics along the bottom on the back view are old photo booth snapshots.

Here you can see the width of the chunky, just right for sitting on a shelf.

The background paper for these pics was back splash paper from coloring cotton doilies with spray glimmer mists.

Come and join the fun at Wednesday Stamper there is so much creativity and inspiration there.

“Seek not outside yourself, heaven is within” ~Mary Lou Cook

*Be sure and stop by my One World -One Heart giveway*

Yes We Did

This amazing piece of art was created by Shepard Fairey.

***Congratulations Mr. President***

My One World One Heart Giveaway

***Comments are now closed

you can

visit here to see who winners are***

Welcome……It’s that magical time of year again; be sure and visit One World One Heart (OWOH) for the list of this years participants and join in the fun.

*I am #122 on the OWOH list of participants*

This year I am offering two prizes.  One is a piece of altered cutlery.  A teaspoon that could be worn as a pendant or used as a decoration to hang.

My second giveaway is  one of my 2.5  x 3.5 x .75 inch thick Artist Trading Cards (ATC).  It is a chunky wooden altered ATC that is decorated on all sides.  Both of my giveaways just happen to have Paper Whimsy images.

*front*

*back*

*side*

Here is how the giveaway works.

Anyone, with or without a blog is welcome, near or far.  To get your name in the drawing simply leave one comment for this post. ( if you do not see the comment spot right away, you can access it by clicking on the subject line above and the comment box will appear at the bottom of your page)

*Comments will close at midnight EST on 11 February*

Two winners will be chosen randomly,  one for the altered spoon and one for the chunky ATC.   Winners will be announced on Thursday, 12 February.

Many thanks again this year to the amazing gypsy queen, Lisa Swifka (A Whimsical Bohemian), for once again giving everyone a chance to travel the globe, visit far off lands and meet new people!

Thank you for visiting my Magpie’s Nest and good luck in your travels with One World One Heart!

*there are  911 participants,  twice as many as last year*

Heart of Gold

Gold is the challenge at Dans ma maison il y a… du doré this week.   The Neil Young song, Heart of Gold,  is the first thing that came to mind.  It’s a favorite and still speaks to me after all these years.    Music really does inspire me and has a huge impact on my every day life.  House is the challenge at TGIF this week also.

I covered a wooden heart with candy foil and painted it, adding texture with two kinds of mesh.  The wings are German scrap and I used a golden flimmersterne for the burst.

L’amour est bleu

I’ve always Loved this song.  In my late teens I took guitar lessons hoping to learn how to play that song…..that was about as far as I got with my guitar playing … plink … plunk …

This blue fabric with the little birdies was perfect for another valentine I thought, thinking about it last night almost kept me awake ….. some black German scrap, black card stock, book page, old netting from a lace piece and another sweet Paper Whimsy girl.

Theresa Martin certainly got me going with the PW Valentine “A Little Romance” swap!