Some of you may know I have a little parakeet named Billie the Bird. I thought of Billie when making this tag. She always likes to peck at things in her "home", i.e., her bird cage. She likes to "arrange" things her way, and she squawks if you come too close too abruptly to her cage. She likes seeds and shiny hardware. She can ring her little bell forever, and we have a clip at the top of the cage (to hang things from) that she constantly moves back and forth. I wanted this tag to suggest Billie's home--the little hanging framed embellishment, the fibers and threads she likes to shred, the seeds she enjoys. I also wanted to draw a stark contrast between the soft, natural materials and the hardware of her metal cage. Whatever comprises her nest, it is home to her.

Tagalicious Tuesday

This card is about what we have way too much of here in South Texas--Sunshine! I couldn't resist these cute flipflops and flowers from Hero Arts. The flower brad at top is covered in Raspberry alcohol ink from Ranger, and the bright yellow, green, and magenta inks are from Clearsnap. The background uses a Fluid Chalk ink resist technique.

This tag idea is "borrowed" from the Ranger blog--see www.rangerink.com and click on "blog". I used a smaller tag that would fit on a card and smaller flower stamps from Hero Arts. This tag uses a clear resist technique with Tim Holtz Distress Inks and Ranger Resist pad. I finished out the card with some Tim Holtz Kraft Resist paper and extended the use of the Fiskar's threading water punch.

Happy Easter! I spent a lovely afternoon with my family at my mother's house--we had great food and conversation. I made a few dishes myself, including the hot cross buns pictured. I love Easter traditions and cooking traditional foods. As I am preparing, I am thinking of Easters past and loved ones that have celebrated the traditions through the years. I hope you had a happy Easter and were able to celebrate with special people.

35 flower pins! That's how many flower pins I made for this last week's Hero Art's club meeting. I used the flower stamp "Many Petals" and stamped the image using Versacraft or Versafine onto printed fabric, heat setting the stamping with an iron. I then laid the stamping onto a backing of craft felt and stitched around the perimeter of the flower. I cut out the flower, leaving a little around the edge and then cut a hole in the center, stuffed the petals, and then stitched up the hole, embellishing with other flowers and buttons. Each one was different! I then made each flower into a pin by hot glueing a pin back to each. Thank you, Sally Traidman, for the directions for these flowers, on the Hero blog. I think everyone really liked the flowers. I know they were tons of fun to make, and I will make a few more for those who did not get one.

Tagalicious Tuesday: Fiesta Tags!

It's fiesta time here in San Antonio and we are celebrating tomorrow at Stamp Antonio by making a couple of Fiesta themed tags, both very colorful and sparkly. This first one has a Holly Berry House butterfly stamped on a colorful background and colored with gel pens. I then added a separate butterfly colored with the new colors of glitter glue from Ranger. To make the tag card, I stamped a Hero Arts flower border onto iridescent cardstock with Colorbox Archival Plum dye ink. The paper tape border has plum Ranger alcohol ink on it.

This tag is colored with Lumiere paint and then some handmade paper added to the left side. I stamped a Hero Arts flower on the right side of the painted tag (Brilliance ink will stamp on acrylic paint.) I then addded a tissue tape flower, colored with Purple Twilight alcohol ink from Ranger and embellished with glitter glue from Ranger and sparklies.

Tagalicious Tuesday

I really don't know why my pictures are so fuzzy, unless it's the glimmer sprays I have been using. This tag uses the new Distess Stains coupled with some Perfect Pearls mists. I originally envisioned a beautiful lady or child coming out of the flower, but I didn't really have an image I wanted to use. The dragonfly (Mostly Animals) didn't look right coming out of the flower, so I put him on the flower. He is really beautiful in person, with turquoise Perfect Pearls Mist peeking out of the Weather Vane embossing powder. I also used the Mists to color the butterflies (Hero Arts) on the side of the card. I just spritzed onto my craft mat and then applied the mist with a paintbrush. The tag itself is cut from the new Kraft Resist paper from Tim Holtz.