VACATION

I am on vacation on Vancouver Island. Some dear friends of ours have just moved to Coombs, BC. Hopefully I will have a few pics to post but I will not be able to post any artwork until next week. We have some great friends from Vernon, BC, joining us and it will be laughter therapy all weekend! Thanks to those who follow. Cheers!

Theme Thursday - 4x4

The challenge today on Theme Thursday is create a piece of work 4x4". This is a page from a book that my friend Donna and I are making; the theme of the book is Women and Wings. Yes, I will finish my book Donna, promise! TFL. Cheers!

Tag It On - Time Flies

The Tag It On theme yesterday on Frankie's blog, DragonsDream, was "Time Flies." Frankie's tag is very beautiful and her inspiration came from a beautiful song by Il Divo. My muse could not take me away from a whimsical 'Harry Potterish' interpretation of Time Flies! How many times have we thought where did the day, month, year, past twenty years go? Have a great day - make a memory. Cheers!

Wednesday Stamper - Take a Ride

The theme on Wednesday Stamper is "Take a Ride." This is a strange day, I used a picture of my Mother for my previous post and this image of the child in the plane is my Father! Must be family day. He said that photographers would come around to neighbourhoods with their props to see if you would pay to have your child's pictue taken. This must have been a challenge towing this plane around the streets of Vancouver. I love the name of the plane - The Spirit of Childhood! TFL. Cheers!

Three Muses - Inspirational People

Inspirational People is the theme on Three Muses today; someone who has made a difference in your life. There was no doubt in my mind when I read this that it would be my Mom. Such a beautiful spirit, selfless and loving; she is part of everything that is good in my life. I miss her a lot.

Tag Tuesday - Metallics

The challenge on Tag Tuesday is to use metallics in some way on your tag. I have copper embossed the truck and used distress inks on the rest. Thanks for looking. Cheers!

Created Byhand - Asian

The theme on Created Byhand today is Asian. TFL. Cheers!

Crazy Amigos - free

The theme on Crazy Amigos today is "free", so this is my post for that challenge. This is a favourite expression of my friend, Kevin, and he always says it in a cowboy twang. He is having a birthday in a few days so thought I would start his birthday card with this ATC.

Think Monday - Think ATC

The theme on TMTA is "King and Queen", choose a king or a queen and portray them on an ATC. Baby Marie-Antoinette was being groomed for accessorizing at an early age! Have a great day, thanks for looking. Cheers!

Soartful Saturday

This great owl on a different background was provided at Soartful Saturday to use as an inspiration. I put him on a lighter background and added the Hallowe'en accessories; he just looked like a Hallowe'en type owl to me. Check out some of the great works on the Soartful blog. Cheers!

Saturday Surprise - Pets

The theme on Saturday Surprise is Pets. I liked the image of this little girl with her kitten, they look like best buddies. Have a great day and thanks for looking. Cheers!

Lots to Do - Acetate

The challenge on Lots To Do this week is Acetate, you should incorporate acetate onto your artwork. I think I have a bit too much stamped underneath the acetate for the stamping on the acetate layer to stand out. However, it makes for a bit of a mysterious mood to this piece. Thanks for looking. Cheers!

Sunday Postcard Art - Fashion

The challenge on Sunday Postcard Art is Fashion. This is an old sewing pattern, probably from the time women started wearing pants as a fashion statement. Looks rather Kate Hepburn doesn't it? Enjoy your day. Cheers!

Tag It On Wednesday - Spots, Swirls & Pink

The theme this week for Tag It On is to make a tag using spots, swirls and pink. The theme was chosen by Frankie to commemorate the first landing on the moon, the longest eclipse of the century and I'd say she likes pink! The background piece I made is very strong so I needed to use dark inks for the top layer. There are dots on the background, they are not as prominent as the swirls. I'm sure the astronauts felt like they were dreaming when they were landing on the moon. It was quite a special moment for us earthlings. Hope your dreams are out of this world. Cheers!

Crazy Amigo - Ladies

The challenge on Crazy Amigos on Tuesday, (I'm a little behind in my challenges!) was Ladies. This image is from Quietfire Design; she looks so quiet and intense I thought this quote worked for her. Thanks for looking. Cheers!

Tag Tuesday - Magazine Inspiration

The challenge on Tag Tuesday this week was Magazine Inspiration. I had a hard time with this, my first two attempts were botched by a smudge and a tear and then I saw these fabulous vases in a magazine. I loved these and would love to have them in my collection so decided to put them on a bright background that I had created, add a couple of swirls and this little goddess. Voila! Thanks for looking. Cheers!

TGIF - Words

The challenge on Thank God It's Friday is using Words - use your favourite word or words that inspire you. Dream is one of my favourite words; when we dream the possibilities are endless and our imagination can take us anywhere. I have often been accused of being a dreamer, in a negative way; I have come to a place in my life that I embrace being a dreamer and couldn't imagine a better thing to be. Sweet dreams!

Theme Thursday - ATC

The challenge this week on Theme Thursday is ATC; make anything you wish as long as it is 2 1/2 inches by 3 1/2 inches. The image of the little girl is from Rein on Plezier met Papier, she has a challenge to use one of her great backgrounds or freebie images, check it out. Thanks for looking, hope your day brings you a miracle! Cheers.

TMTA - The Moon

The challenge today on Think Monday - Think ATC is The Moon, in honour of the 40th anniversary of the first man walking on the moon. As we all know, women can walk on the moon too! I love this image from Collage Visions, it sets a great mood. Thanks for looking. Cheers!

Sunday Postcard Art - Vintage Children

The challenge today on Sunday Postcard Art is Vintage Children. Gayle provided a wonderful example, this is a fun challenge. Hope you have a great day and that you have memories of fish tickling your feet! Cheers!

Three Muses - Word Salad

The challenge yesterday on Three Muses is Word Salad. The entry needs a word or words expressed any way. This image took me back to my teens. I used this beautiful background by Rein at Stamping Rika (plezier met papier) to create this Flower Child ATC. Rein is having a give away on her blog; you have to use one of her Monday Morning freebies in your work to enter. The word Love is from Quietfire Designs. Thanks for looking, I hope your day is filled with love! Peace.

Wednesday Stamper - Dreams

The theme on Wednesday Stamper is Dreams. This piece seems a bit dark or haunting, but sometimes dreams are like that. Hope you are having a bright day! Thanks for looking. Cheers!

Created Byhand Challenge - Fairies

The challenge on Created Byhand this week is Fairies. I love this stamp from Quietfire Designs so the inspiration went from there. This happy little guy made a perfect fairy to be dancing in the garden. Hope your garden is full of happy surprises. Cheers!

Tag Tuesday - Stamps & Inks

The challenge over on Kard Krazy, Tag Tuesday is to make a tag using only inks and stamps; no embellishments or papers. Yesterday some new Ranger distress inks arrived in the mail and today my friend Donna hung a bag on my back door and it was this Tim Holtz stamp set, so a tag was in order. Thank you Donna! Have fun and thanks for looking. Cheers!

Crazy Amigo - Bingo

The Crazy Amigo challenge this week is Bingo, a great theme. Thanks for looking and have a great day. Cheers!

Mixed Media Monday - Play

The challenge today on Mixed Media Monday is "Play." This little girl looked like she was having a great time playing. Hope you get some time to play. Cheers!

TMTA - Fly

The challenge on Think Monday - Think ATC is "Fly." I love dragonflies, they have such a unique way of flying and they are so beautiful. Have a great day, thanks for looking. Cheers!

Saturday's Work Out - Circles

The challenge today on Saturday's Work Out is Circles. This is a card I made for a very good friend of mine, Donna. It was a special birthday that I felt gave her goddess status! I think at a certain age we all reach that status. She loves dragonflies so I had to include a few of them. The bottom pic is the outside of the card, then as you turn the ribbon clockwise you reveal the card underneath. Thanks for looking. Cheers!

Saturday Surprise - Family

The challenge on Saturday Surprise is Family. This is a picture of my sisters and me when we were about 3, 6 and 9 years old. I remember the photographer came to our house and we were sitting on the coffee table and how shocked I was that my Mom agreed to that. My baby sister, Lori, got to hold one of my Mom's china ornaments that we were never allowed to touch. The whole experience was quite out of the box for my family. I am the one in the middle, the oldest sister, and Cheryl is on the right, the middle sister. I made this as a birthday card for my Mom on her 80th birthday, the last before she passed last year. Love you Mom!

Art Creations Friday

The challenge on Art Creations Friday is to use this gorgeous background. I think this gargoyle was dreaming of being more when he was cast in stone. Cheers!

TGIF - Red Flowers

The challenge today at TGIF is Red Flowers. I'm sure the bee is happy but not sure about the flower! Have a great day and "Don't worry...be happy!"

Theme Thursday - Pink & Brown Paris ATC

The challenge today on Theme Thursday is a colour challenge; pink and brown should be the main colours in your creation. Voila!

Tag It On - Passion, The Heart Song

Passion - the heart song is the theme at Tag It On. This tag speaks about my relationship with my husband, Randy; from the heart. We will be celebrating our 15th anniversary in a couple of weeks; we are often called R&R by our friends. Thanks for looking. Cheers!

Surreal - Three Muses

The challenge on Three Muses today is Surreal. I thought this headless floating umbrella man was kind of surreal! Thanks for looking. Cheers!

Tag Tuesday - Songbirds

The Tag Tuesday challenge is emboss. I embossed the weeds at the bottom of the tag and then sponged some ink over them. The expression is from Quietfire Designs. I love embossing, I use it all the time. Thanks for looking; hope you are having a great day. Cheers!

Beautiful in My Garden

Today on Think Monday - Think ATC the theme is In My Garden. The background is a photo of a flowering currant bush in my front garden. I made one rudimentary photoshop adjustment to it; the first time I have even looked at the programme.

I love this bush, it is one of the first flowers to come out and the hummingbirds just love it. Above it, there is a birdhouse that Randy made some years ago and this year we have nesting chickadees again. I hope you are enjoying your garden, flowers feed the soul. Cheers!

Sunday Postcard Art - Nests

The challenge on SAP today is "Nests", a great theme. The clipart is from Quietfire Designs. Thnaks for looking. Cheers!

Small World of Inchies & Twinchies - By the Sea

By the Sea was the challenge at Small World of Inchies and Twinchies yesterday. This is my seaside Twinchie - Belle in her Shell. Thanks for looking. Cheers!

TGIF - Pear

The challenge yesterday on TGIF was Apples, Pears and Peaches; create something using these fruits. I was rummaging in my odd bits box again and came up with this decoupaged pear from a dinner napkin. The writing around the edge is this nursery rhyme -

I had a little nut tree, and nothing it would bear
But a silver nutmeg and a golden pear.
The King of Spain's daughter came to visit me,
And all for the sake of my little nut tree.
I skipped over water, I danced over sea
And all the birds up in the air couldn't catch me.

I think I was getting it mixed up with Peter, Peter, Pumpkin eater; oh well!

Thanks for looking, have a great day! Cheers.

Saturday Workout - Aluminum foil backgrounds

This was a fun challenge at Saturday Workout, use tinfoil in your background. I ran a piece of tinfoil through the Big Shot in a Cuttlebug folder for the background, I am surprised how well the scan turned out. I put some StazOn ink onto a piece of it to make the accents. The expression is "Dream with your eyes wide open" from Quietfire Designs, it didn't show up too well on the scan. I used acetate for the wings. Hope you are having some creative fun today. Cheers!

Art Creations Friday - Beware

The challenge this week on Art Creations Friday was to use the picture of this beautiful lady and create a piece of art. When I saw the piece by Yvonne at Arctic Blonde Creations I was suddenly on a Hallowe'en theme. Thanks Yvonne for the inspiration, I loved your piece. Have a great day, thanks for looking. Cheers!

Theme Thursday - Red and Black

The challenge on Theme Thursday this week is Red & Black! I saw Godelieve's tutorial on Spllitcoast Stampers for waxed paper resist using Cuttlebug folders and thought I would try it out. I first ran a piece of waxed paper inside a cuttlebug folder through the Big Shot. Then I took a piece of photo paper folded in half and put the embossed waxed paper between the two halves. I ironed the back of the photo paper to transfer the wax onto both sides. Then I rubbed fired brick distress ink over it and the embossed pattern comes through. I will teach this card at my card club on Saturday, our theme is non-gender specific birthday cards. Enjoy your day, thanks for looking!

Up, Up and Away - Three Muses

The challenge on Three Muses is "Up, Up and Away." I couldn't help thinking about the song by the 5th Dimension. Cheers!

Say It With Flowers - Tag It On Wednesday

The challenge today on Dragon's Dream Tag It On is to "Say it with Flowers." Lovely theme. This sentiment from Quietfire Designs fit the theme exactly. This project however turned out to one of those efforts that keep getting worse as you go along but determination makes you keep trying to fix it; each time I added one last thing I ended up making it worse! Oh well, sometimes the important part is just to finish and let it go.

Hope you are having a happy and creative day. Happy Canada Day to all my Canadian blogger friends. I am off for a walk on the seawall to blow away some cobwebs. Cheers!

Created Byhand Challenge - Summer

The theme this week on Created Byhand Challenge is Summer. Hope you are having a great summer. Cheers!