Tick Tock ...

I joined a swap through Artsy Mama's blog called "Sweet and Sinister". The object was to choose a selection of gifts for your partner, some "sweet" and some "sinister" - just in time for Halloween. Everything had to be in black and shades of white, with a touch of orange here and there. It was so much fun finding things with this color scheme. I wish I had taken a photo of the whole package before I shipped it off. You'll have to settle for the "handmade" item, which I sent to my partner, Andrea. You can see the box she sent to me on her blog ... it should arrive early next week and it looks awesome ... what a tease!

Anyway - this isn't very Halloween-ish, but I have been wanting to use my bottlecaps as clock numbers. I found this great quote in an ad for beachfront property and it was just perfect. Since Andrea received it today - I can finally share it here. I think I will make another for me!

Be sure to check out the great stuff on Andrea's blog! Great stuff!

Second Attempt & More Pieces ...

Here 's an updated look at the blue piece from the previous post ... I have to say that the colors in the previous post are more accurate (the orange and red wavy lines are pretty bright), but you get the idea. I think it looks better ... more interesting, although it is also a lot busier. It's done. I think. I hope.
Here are a few more pieces I've finished ... this first one (below) is 8x10. I like how it turned out.
This one if 5x7 and done similar to the "Graffiti" piece from last month (which is SOLD!). It kind of reminds me of a map of the world. Sorry about the blurry photo!I joined an online Halloween swap called "Sweet & Sinister" - the idea was to send your partner something "sweet", something "sinister", and a few other things, but to stay within a black/white/orange color scheme. I can't post a pic of what I sent because she hasn't received it yet, but here is the card that I made for her. The face was a tag off one of the items I purchased for the swap. I thought it would be funny to put a bow on his "sinister" face and call him "sweet". Hey - at least I can still amuse myself, right???

Dryer Sheet Art

Below are 5 pieces of dryer sheet art that I've finished in the last couple of days. I've got a couple more in the works as well. I'm running low on "good" colors of dryer sheets, so I think it's time to paint some more! Good thing my kids keep me knee deep in laundry. All pieces are 5x7 unless noted otherwise.

My personal favorite

Bad photo - sorry!

This one is small ... about the size of a playing card. I loved how the painted dryer sheet turned out, though. I added a few beads, but they don't show up well in this photo.

This piece needs help - and I'm open to suggestions. I wish I hadn't added the zigzag stitching, but I've got to live with it. Any ideas?

Paper Towels

The background of this piece is made from torn pieces of a paper towel that I used to mop up the splatters of dye while I was dyeing fabrics. I really love how all the colors just meld together. I tore some pieces of painted dryer sheets, and added them in for good measure (the pink shows up the best, if you are looking for it!). I also tore some gold netting and added the two leaf skeletons that I had - and of course, beads. I will likely do more pieces with the paper towel backgrounds. I've got a bunch of dryer sheet art to post - hopefully in the next day or so - so come back and visit again soon!

Finally, another piece done!

I finally have something to share. I finished this piece yesterday. It is framed behind glass and was terribly difficult to photograph, so this will have to do. I used a hand painted, recycled dryer sheet, recycled Tyvek from an envelope that was sent to me, and some silk fall leaves, which I painted black. The word is printed onto a transparency (which you can see if you get up close ... I'll have to figure out how to fix that!). I added some black beads and called it done. I like the colors - bold and fun.

Dotee Dolls

There is an artist in Australia named Dot. She has created these adorable little dolls and she calls them Dotee Dolls. My Textile Challenges group is doing a trade with these dolls, and here are the 3 I created. As they came together, they each took on their own personalities, and so, I'd like to introduce them to you... from left to right ...

Dot Calm ~ aka Little Miss Mellow. She likes to take it E-Z! She is often heard saying, "I wasn't sleeping, I was just resting my eyes!".

Dippin' Dot - This beach bum will take a dippin' your pool or a dippin' the ocean. As long as there's warm sun, cool water, and a fruity drink, she's happy. She is often heard saying, "I may be a beach bum, but I'm not barnacle brain!"

Polka Dotee - She's a glamour girl who's a bit over the top. Often heard saying, "If it's got shine, it's MINE!".

Tissue Paper Study Finished!

My 6 inch tissue paper pieces are finally finished. Yay! I wanted to try some different things with tissue paper, so I joined an exchange with some of the ladies in the Surface Design group. The first two were posted previously and these are the last four. These little art pieces will be going to live in Australia, Canada, New Hampshire, Nevada, and right here in North Carolina - how great is that?

This piece is the oddball of the bunch - at least in that I used a different technique than with the others. The background, and the strip on the left are "paper fabric" - in other words, pieces of tissue and other papers glued to a muslin base. This allows for cutting and stitching. The flower is, of course, toilet tissue. The saying reads, "The sun does not shine for a few trees and flowers, but for the wide world's joy." -Henry Ward Beecher.

This piece is similar to the previous ones and I'll bet you can recognize the flower from the tutorial! The background has the word "flower" written in several languages.

This is another piece with a "paper fabric" background - so I guess the other one wasn't an oddball after all. I used the same stamp as in "la cancion", just painted different colors.

And finally another fish ... made because I will probably keep the original fish piece for myself.

I heard a great quote last night - "Sometimes I live in my own little world, but that's ok because everybody likes me here!" - I love it!!!