"Time in a Bottle" & Giveaway Reminder

"Time in a Bottle"
5"x7" Collage
(Click on a butterfly to enlarge!)

The Three Muses Challenge site has chosen the theme of "Time" for this week's creative challenge. Most of my creative ideas begin with clear thoughts of a particular image, and my starting point for this piece was the thought of time being captured in a bottle. Oh, wouldn't it be lovely!!!

How would one go about capturing such an illusive, gossamer thing, I asked myself. A beautiful fairy princess would have to be involved, I'm sure! The glow of her aura would gently appear somewhere between the magic of the nightingale's song at dusk and the lark's first notes of morning joy. Her silky satin gown would rustle with her quiet movements in the soft breeze, while she quietly captures stolen moments and memories and slips them into an enchanted crystal bottle for safekeeping. And, with the glimmer of the day's first light, she magically disappears!

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My Inspiration

For your art!

(From the public domain!)

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My Techniques

A piece of recycled chipboard was covered with a vintage page from a children's book, and distress ink was used to give it a vintage look. The image of the fairy was enlarged in a photo editing program, printed and then trimmed with scissors. The enchanted bottle holding the timepiece was created with the magic of a digital photo program, then printed and hand trimmed. (Special thanks to Flickr's ArtsyFartsyQueen for the image of the bottle! I added the clock.) Trim at the top and bottom of this piece was created from scrap paper and a paper punch.

All of the images, including the butterflies from Dover Publications, were further enhanced with watercolors (pencils and crayons), pan pastels, acrylic paints and Prismacolor pencils. A gray Prismacolor pencil was used for the shadows. The white swirls were stenciled after all of the overcoloring was complete. A gold marker was used for the background "dots", and edges the perimeter to add a finishing touch.

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A Giveway Reminder!

"Give Thanks"

8 1/2" x 11"
Journal Page
(Click to enlarge!)

Just a reminder that in the spirit of the season, and as a way of thanking you for all of your lovely visits and comments, I'm giving away a print of my journal page "Thanks Giving".

To enter the drawing you can leave a comment on this post or my previous post until midnight on Thursday, November 26th. The winner will be announced on Friday, November 27th. That's it - easey peasey! Just leave a comment and you're "in". If you've been lurking in the shadows, this is a great time to stop by with a comment. There are no strangers here, only friends we haven't met yet!

Hope you have a enchanted day!

Seasonal Reflections & A Giveaway

Time for Reflection

We're about to celebrate our Thanksgiving holiday here in the States. Families are gathering, and soon the beautiful colors of gold, amber and rust will be giving way to seasonal red, green, blue and silver. But since autumn is my favorite time of the year, I want to hold onto this time just a little longer.

I adore the colors of this season, the aroma of favorite foods baking in an oven, and the smell of burning leaves. I love the feel of donning a sweater when it's chilly and the weight of adding an extra blanket at night.

I love the crisp sound of biting into a fresh apple, the snap and crackle of a wood fire, the sound of leaves crunching underneath my footsteps, and a cool wind brushing my cheeks.

Whether or not you're celebrating Thanksgiving this week, I wish you a day filled with joy, gratitude and many blessings!

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A Giveaway!

"Thanks Giving"
8 1/2" x 11"
Journal Page

In the spirit of the season, and as a way of thanking you for all of your lovely visits and comments, I'd like to give away a print of my journal page "Thanks Giving".

To enter the drawing just leave a comment on this post or any of this week's future posts until midnight on Thursday, November 26th. The winner will be announced on Friday, November 27th. That's it - easey peasey! If you've been lucking in the shadows, this is a great time to stop by with a comment. There are no strangers here, only friends we haven't met yet!

Have an awesome day and remember to be thankful for the "little things"!


Note: I took these pictures at the Green Dragon Flea Market in Lancaster, PA this past summer.

"Beautiful"

"Beautiful"
4" x 6" Collage
(Click on a star to enlarge!)

Things have been a bit busy lately, so it's been quite a while since I've participated in the Sunday Postcard Art challenge. When I saw that this week's challenge was to create a postcard with a flourish, I remembered this postcard that I originally created and sent as a "thank you" to my friend, Cathy at Reflections of a Ramblin' Girl.

A few months ago, Cathy sent me the most beautiful piece of fabric art. It is so extraordinary, an ordinary "thank you" just didn't seem adequate. I tried to make a postcard that would reflect my joy, and also one that would celebrate her beautiful spirit and magnificent talent. (If you click here, it'll take you to Cathy's post where the piece is showcased!)

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Some of My Techniques

This piece began with a colorful piece of scrap wrapping paper that was glued to a piece of watercolor paper. The sweet image of the little girl was glued to the background before being enhanced with watercolor pencils and Prismacolor pencils.

The background was then stamped with faux writing in black StaZon ink, and flourshes in clear embossing ink. After embossing the flourishes with silver embossing powder, I punched out little stars from more scrap wrapping paper and glued them to the background. Finally the word, "Beautiful", was added along with some doodling for extra interest. A silver metallic marker was used to edge the entire piece.

May you have a beautiful day!


Credits: Thanks for SuzeeQue (Flickr) for the beautiful image of the little girl, and to Nancy Baumiller's Crowabout for the word, beautiful.