A Little Imagination and a Pile of Junk

unbelievable purchases in 24 hours.

I've been itching, itching I tell ya, to do some sewing. I spent at least 3 hours online last night looking for the perfect fabric for a tote bag swap I was asked to be a part of. Besides finding the perfect fabrics for the tote bag--I narrowed it down to 4--I found several other beauties just for me. Then, as if that wasn't enough goodness, today I found a stack of decorator fabrics super cheap. 11 yards total for about $35. I could just faint from the thrill of it all. I topped the whole thing off with some new patterns, a couple of sweet girly (seersucker!) fabrics for $2/yd, and a few journaling supplies. Then home to iron the freshly washed vintage fabrics a sweet friend sent me.

 

Oh, the washclothes will be monogramed a la mollycoddle. Molly has the greatest ideas. I plan on making Maisey some summer clothes with the girly fabrics. Usually I would rather make my own patterns because others just confuse me and make me want to throw the sewing machine out the window. But these look pretty straight forward and should save me some time having to trace it all out--I hope. I'd like to make some shorts for my son but do you know how hard it is to find fabrics for boys that my husband wouldn't forbid our son to wear?? I mean, that's besides fabric with comic book characters.

The next step will be to turn this small studio space overflowing with paper into a sewing room.

John will be working late tonight so I'll have plenty of time to get started on a few things. That is, if I don't decide to sit on the couch and play spider solitaire all night. With my bag of goodies by my side, of course.

temperance twinge

Nope. Definitely not feeling it today. It never ceases to amaze me how I can go along as if I were a normal human being then wake up the next morning desperate to climb into a hole and never come out again. I haven't been able to bring myself to work on any art today, despite the lovely HUGE sheets of vintage wallpaper that came from in from Mary Ann. I am keeping them by my side and fingering them every once in a while just in case. Sooo...here are a few fairly recent journal pages I did for a round robin. There was a child theme and a music theme. I don't do as well with themes, and these seem so completely random to me.

Hopefully, I'll be back tomorrow with a little more enthusiasm. I have lots of stuff to show & tell.

stencil ideas

Recently, I've been asked where in the world we find all these great stencils?? Just in case there was anyone else wondering the same thing, I decided to just do a post about it. First, let me assure you of one thing. You could not possibly live in an area with less cool stuff available than I do. So those of us who do not have excellent supplies available to us or can't spend the money or don't want to: we have to use our imaginations. Imagine that!

Here is a list of great sources for finding/making stencils.

1. In my humble opinion, the best stencils are the ones you make yourself. Thankfully, there are lots of ways to do this including what I described in my recent post which is basically how to make a stencil out of a photograph.
2. Clipart - The million-and-one clipart collections are great and many of them have copyright free images or images you can use in your art as long as you don't mass produce them. If you don't have one of these collections, there is tons of clipart online. So, search for flowers, birds, trees, or whatever and chose images which might make good stencils. Bold images with fewer details are best. Remember you are only concerned with the contour of the image. It doesn't matter what the image itself looks like because you are just using the form of it. Once you've done a few of these you'll know exactly what to look for. Next, save the image, size it to fit your project, and print it out on cardstock, a cut down file folder or even a transparency. Use a fine exacto knife with a new blade to cut along the outline of the image. After printing the image, you can also transfer the image to your chosen surface to cut out if you don't want to run it through your printer. Remember you can use both the positive and negative images as stencils so don't throw anything away!
3. Rubber and foam stamps - Simply stamp your image onto your cardstock and cut it out with an exacto knife. You don't have to cut out every detail. If the image is too small, scan it, resize it in Photoshop, then print and cut out. Foam stamps work perfectly. Note: many rubber stamp companies that have angel policies for use of their images in work for sale do not include mechanical or digital manipulation of the image. You will need to check with the individual stamp vendor before using these in art for sale.
4. Patterned paper - I used to cut out individual designs from patterned paper a lot when I scrapbooked and I always kept the paper with the negative image to use as a stencil later. I keep a bag full of these.
5. Making a repeated pattern - I haven't done this myself, so I can't tell you how to do it, but I know that you can take a clipart or stamped image and make it into a repeating pattern in Photoshop, so instead of one bird, you have a page of birds. If anyone knows how to do it, I'd love to know!
6. Home decorating stores - Stenciling is popular in home decor and you can find larger and more ornate stencils at home decorating stores, some paint stores, and even the home department in a general store like Walmart or Target.
7. Look around you - Things you might already have that make great stencils: paper doilies, sequin waste, lace, plastic mesh bags that fruit sometimes comes in, leaves & dried flowers, punched shapes, filmstrip, anything that has holes in it--keep your eyes open!
8. Online - Google "free stencils" and you will find sites with printable stencils for you to download. There are artists who make stencils and post them for you to enjoy although how you can use them in your own work varies so check the Read Me file for details.
9. Heidi Swapp masks - For some silly reason, this feels like giving away my big juicy secret, but Heidi Swapp masks are some of my favorite stencils. Actually, a mask is just the opposite of a stencil as it covers the positive instead of negative space. She has some wonderful floral designs, etc. Whenever the new scrapbooking products come out after the first of the year, I Google "Heidi Swapp masks" to find an online store that has all of them in stock and then I buy them up. Sometimes it is hard to find them all in one place, but keep looking. This last line she released had a wonderful branch and bird image that I love. Some of the early line was cheesy but there are great ones too. As long as you are looking up Heidi Swapp products, check out the Ghost shapes, frames, and alphabets. They also work great as stencils and give you lots of flexibility in their placement.
10. Everywhere else - sometimes you can find great stencils at boring old craft stores. Just keep checking around and keep an open mind.

These should get you started or maybe even keep you busy for a long time. And Michelle Ward had even more cool ideas here.

And since I can't have a post without a picture. I'll leave you with my 6 year old's latest artwork. This morning he woke up needing paper cups, plates, napkins to make weapons. I guess inspiration hit in the middle of the night. Anyway, this is what he came up with. Isn't it fabulous?? The cup thing is a pirate hook. The plate fits on his hand like a puppet but he hasn't decided on a name for it yet.

 

but let us say this: it rocked

Today, I thanked the Lord for mailart. And you will too when you see this.

 

It came in yesterday from Patty and made my day. It was so perfectly wrapped in a clear plastic wrapper that I knew I was going to destroy something by opening it. But I didn't and now I'm thinking I need to build a shelf in my studio to display all of my gorgeous mailart. Tucking them in here and there just doesn't seem to do them justice.

Thanks so much for the kind words about my tutorial. It was my first one for the blog, and I have this habit of giving way too much information when I am explaining anything. (Never would have guessed, huh?) At least once a week I see the eyes of my six year old glazing over as I take off on another tangent like the really cool symbolism woven throughout the Bible when all he wanted to know was whether Moses or Spiderman were real. Here, at least I can edit myself.

Speaking of mailart, mine finally made it all the way to the left coast into the spray paint stained hands of Mary Ann.

You can see more pictures on her fantastic blog over here. Did I mention that mailart is my new favorite thing??

I'll leave you with some new journal pages as my caffeine buzz wears off and the words begin to blur on the screen. I must go to wrestle the laptop out of my honey's hands so I can play my obligatory 3 games of spider solitaire in bed before the lights in my head go out for good. Oh, the beautiful and lifelike flower on the second page was a gift from my sweet Soren. One of his many talents.

tutorial: self-portrait stencil

I am soooo excited about this one. Please do try it, especially you journal artists. It is a lot more fun than you'd think to manipulate images of yourself. Although I make stencils a lot, it had never occurred to me to do a self-portrait until I read Randi Feuerhelm-Watts' brilliant book, Wide Open. If you don't have her book, go get it today. So many inspiring ideas! Okay, let's get to it.

Materials you need:

• Clear photograph of yourself, preferably a self-portrait
• Photoshop, PE (Photoshop Elements), or other photo editing software.
• Exacto knife with new sharp blades (this is essential if you don't want to be cursing yourself through this project.)
• A self-healing mat is nice and makes cutting much easier (you don't have to have a huge one). I've also heard of using a piece of glass to cut on, but I'd cut my finger off for sure. Note: rotary cutting mats are not self-healing. They work okay, but not as nicely as the self-healing mats.
• Cardstock  or other material for your template. Cardstock is easy, but a file folder, inkjet transparency (assuming you have an inkjet printer), thin plastic used to make stencils (you can find them with the stencils at craft stores), and really thin chipboard all work well, too. Plain copy paper will work but it won't last as long. You need something thick enough to hold cut details well, but thin enough to run through your printer. I suppose photo paper or smooth watercolor paper would work, too.  Note: you can run just about anything that is flat, can be cut down to 8.5 x 11 or smaller, and isn't sticky through your printer, including fabric--trust me, I've tried it all and never had a problem.
• Dye ink pad and cosmetic sponge or acrylic paint with sponge brush.
• Plain paper to test on.

Making the Stencil

1. The first thing you need to do is to select a good photograph. Not necessarily "good" as in flattering, but "good" as in the image makes a good stencil. Finding the perfect one takes some time. Be patient and have fun. You may have to digitally manipulate several photos before deciding which one would make the best stencil. You're looking for clear definition and not too many details.
2. Once you find the right photograph, you need to simplify and turn it into b&w in Photoshop or PE. Although another program might work, I can only show you how on these. I'm sorry, but I have no pictures for this part. I can't find my original picture. Somehow I must have deleted it or something.)
3. Scan or pull up the digital photo in Photoshop. Disclaimer: I am no expert here, I just know what has worked for me not necessarily the only/best way to do it. Everything I know, I've figured out myself.
4. Apply the "Note Paper" filter to your photo: Filter/Sketch/Note Paper.  Then reduce the Relief by sliding the slider bar to the left all the way to zero. Click Okay.



5. Next, change your image to black & white and simplify it a bit: Image/Adjustments/Threshold. (For PE: Filter/Adjustments/Threshold.) This will turn your photo completely white. In the pop up box, slide the bar to the right until you begin to see your image reemerge. Move the slider back and forth until you get a clear image with as few details as possible while still being recognizable.



6. Remember: Everything that is Black you will be cutting away. Don't worry about the background b/c we aren't interested in it. And you also don't need to include every detail (clothes, hair, etc.) when you actually cut your stencil.
7. Once your image looks kinda like what could be a stencil, and you like it, click Okay.
8. At this point, you can use the Eraser Tool to remove some of the background or any details that are distracting to you if you'd like. The simpler for cutting the better.



9. Finally, Save your document immediately! And put your cardstock in the printer now.
10. Decide approximately how large you want your stencil to be. Too small will be more difficult to cut but it doesn't have to be huge. What about 4x6? 6x8? or 8x10? Fill the whole page?
11. Print your stencil: File/Print With Preview. Adjust Height and/or Width. Click Print then Okay.

Cutting the Stencil

1. This is the easy and not so easy part. Before making any cuts, look over your image and tell yourself out loud (multiple times if necessary): Everything Black will be cut away. Cut away all of the Black parts only. (You will be cutting away the positive space, but if knowing that just confuses you, forget it now.)
2. As you cut, go slow and pay attention to important details like eyes, nose, etc. You want to cut out the basic image not every single detail. It does not have to be perfect to make a great stencil. Go along the basic contour of the image as you cut.



3. Once all the black is cut away, you'll need to try out your stencil.  On some scrap paper, hold the stencil firmly in place (or use a very low tack--sticky--tape to keep it in place and sponge ink through the openings of the stencil. At this point, make sure all the corners, etc. are filled with ink so you get the most accurate impression. (Later, try out how few areas you need to stencil to get an interesting image.) If you need to make adjustments to the stencil, do it now and then make another print until you get an image you like.

 

4. Ta-da! You did it. Is that not super cool or what?? Next you will want to hunt down photos of all your family members, and your dog, and maybe that cool sign or building you photographed last week....
5. Try out all the cool things you can do with your stencils.

Of course, you can make any kind of stencil you want. You can use clipart designs, hand drawn images, or any object to make a stencil, but the purpose of this exercise is to use a picture of yourself. If you don't already use self-portraits in your artwork or journaling, do it, regardless of how you feel about the way you look. Purposefully try out unflattering pictures to show yourself it is okay not to be perfect. How can you be truly real in your journals if you aren't real, or just don't want to document, this?? For more encouragement, read Randi's book (link above). But the thing she wrote that stuck with me the most about self-portraits was this: Don't be afraid of what you see, that is what everyone else sees every day. So, what the heck? Just do it. Seeing pictures of yourself more often will get you used to it and maybe one day, you'll love what you see. (I'm preaching to myself here, too.)

I really hope you try this out, but as a gift of appreciation for all my time and effort (just joking) you have to send me a picture of your stencil or how you used your stenciled image. I would also appreciate feedback on the tutorial itself. Is it clear or confusing? Too much information or too little? Inaccurate? Otherwise helpful or unhelpful? And if you have any questions, just email me or leave it in the comments.

And check back, because I'm also putting together a tutorial on how I paint/stamp my papers, envelopes & file folders. See pictures here and here.

Thanks. This has  been fun. ;-)

my new favorite thing

I love good mail days. Good mail is the best, but mailart is the bestest! The very talented Mary Ann sent this beauty to me. (Are you jealous?) I had so much fun putting hers together. I have done lots of swaps but this is the first time I've made real "mailart." I can't believe how much fun it is. It's definitely my new favorite thing. Mary Anne's gifty will go out in tomorrow's mail, but here's a sneak peek. (MA--Don't scroll down yet! You can only look with one eye. Cover one, squint the seeing eye, and then you can look. But that's it!!)

But enough of that, let's take a better look at Mary Ann's gorgeous artwork.

 

Not only is MA an incredibly talented artist, but she totally cracks me up--I mean falling out of the chair funny. Her blog has been my new favorite thing for a while now.

Speaking of new favorite things, I discovered a must-have product for journaling junkies...are you ready?

(Pink!) stencils in a wah-fer thin tin that is perfect for throwing into your journaling-on-the-go bag. You know, the one you can't close completely and that gives you a headache for two days from carrying the thing--that one--or is that just me? Either way, I promise, you'll never notice adding these light as a feather stencils. I got the alphabet but they have other designs, too. And $5 at Hobby Lobby. You can't beat that with a stick.

I don't have any new journal pages completed, but here are some more papers, envelopes and file folders. I swear, painting envelopes and file folders is my new favorite thing. I could do it all day.

There is one more thing I want to show you but it deserves its own post. Remember yesterday when I mentioned a self-portrait stencil? Well, it came out so good that I decided to do an actual tutorial for you. You have to make some of these. You will love them. They're my new favorite things. Well, off to bed. I've been staying up to 1 or 2 a.m. for the past few nights. What am I thinking? There are just so many great ways to spend your day and I want to do it all every day.

obnoxious furry

Please believe me, I tried so hard to have some great pictures to post today, but only 2 in about 65 were even recognizable. It's my fault, I keep thinking I can hold the camera still enough not to have to use a flash inside. If I just take enough of them, surely one will come out clear. We have huge windows everywhere! Glaring light at times. And blurry pictures.

So today we have: dress up with the dog.

This was actually one of the more becoming outfits.

And some works in progress.

It is going to have to be just a teaser for now. And I won't be able to show it all until it reaches its new home on the other end of the continent. Tomorrow, though, lots more work in progress. And my new favorite must-have thing for your journaling-on-the-go bag. And maybe a self-portrait stencil. But no more cross dressing dogs. I'm going to set up the tripod right now.

unconscious campsite bobsled

It feels so good to be back online again. Bet you didn't even know I was off. On Wednesday, a neighbor had a new sprinkler system put in and the workers ended up cutting our phone line. I actually enjoyed not having a phone for a few days, but going without DSL was painful. It wasn't quite as bad as I imagined, and I thought I would just have super productive days without the Internet. Unfortunately, I didn't. I got a little more done, but actually ended up still spending quite a bit of time on the computer doing some Photoshop-ing. It is funny how you can be "away" for a few days and feel like you missed out on so much.

I did get to do a lot of artwork, and even had my 4 year old "helping" me paint.

Some ATCs for a MMCA swap. They came from this painted paper using a new-to-me technique using stencils and Ranger spray on Colorwash (similar effect as spray paint but without the fumes.)

Here it is again souped up in Photoshop. (I *heart* Photoshop.)

And there were journal pages.

Not my favorites, but at this point in my life, I'm doing it and that's enough. While I was without DSL I kept thinking of all this stuff I could share, but now...not so much. Maybe I'm tired. We have some good movies to chose from tonight. I'll let you know how it goes.

drug addict epileptic

I've been busy. Working on some new papers, mailart, and a few packages that needed to be sent out yesterday. If you are waiting on something for me, please don't give up hope! I don't know what it is with me and why everything takes me so much longer to do than it would any normal person. I am a perfectionist to be sure, but even I know when to say it's done--I think. I started scanning these papers to post literally 5 hours ago. Is that normal??? I know my way around a computer so it's not that. No wonder I'm exhausted.

But I said all of that to say in my oh-so-charmingly-witty and abundantly-wordy-way, to those of you waiting on me, I am really working on it! I'll admit that I do obsess over the smallest things. You won't believe it , but it takes me at least an hour to package, print label, and ship everything I sell on Etsy. And that's if the universe is cooperative. No savvy businesswoman here. She whines: But I like to make things special! I'll just say, It's a good thing I enjoy what I do. And I guess the up side is that if you receive something in the mail from me, you can rest assured, it was significantly obsessed over and fiddled with and whatever else it is I do to drain away a perfectly useful day. Oh, look. I've given myself a headache.

Is that complaining??