Poinsettias of PEACE

Well FINALLY I got some time to PLAY...  it has been rather hectic around here for the past couple of months... but I think we are starting to get back to normal little by little... 

 

LOL...

 

(can anyone really tell me what

NORMAL is in all reality??? )

 

Okay... so I played and

the INSPIRATION

was Hels Sheridan's

Sunday Stamper... 
and also
Simon Monday Challenge 

 

I wanted to do a little Christmas thingy... 

and so I did... 

 

It has a very earthy theme to it though... 

 

The White stands for the angelic forces

around us at all times in our daily lives... 

 

The Green is for the love and energy that we live from....

the plants give us the oxygen we need to

breathe and live,

and also the good veggies

that we ingest...   The living earth mother ...

 

The Brown background is

multi colored browns and

also GOLD

for the richness of our soils

that give us the life we are living... 

 

The BLUE is the Sky connection... 

The heaven above us... 

 

PEACE is alive with the glitter to bring 

attention to the fact we are all one, 

and we need to start to live as one... 

loving each other in all ways.... 

 

A little intense???

Life is so beautiful in all ways,

and we need to give thanks all the time,

every day to the GLORY of it... 

So I wanted to share with you this feeling... 

 

I hope you are having a wonderful day

and that each day gets to be a little bit better... 

THINK LOVE. 

 

So here is my tag...

 

 

I am not sure that you can actually see the background...

but I did have fun making it...

and Hels, I was INKY plus...

finally I took some really wet gold

and splattered it all over the background... 

What fun it was...

Clean up was not fun...

but a necessary chore after having FUN...   

 

The centers of the poinsettias

I used Pink Blush liquid pearls,

and then poured some Glossy accents into the center,

after they dried... and then put some rock candy glitter...

Love the effect of it... 

 

 

 

I think I will put this onto a white bag for a gift bag...

I need to use some of my white bags up...

I bought way to many a few years ago... LOL..

if that a form of hoarding????  

Oh well... 

So be it... 

 

I hope you have a wonderful day....

create to your hearts content,

and even enjoy the clean up... 

Thanks so very much for stopping by for a visit.

Love, Light and Peace...Bonnie   

 

 

 

  

Frilly Hearts in Victorian Velvet

I should have been blogging today... but instead I played all day long... wow... I had a blast and made quite a few things... so many people ask how I get all the things done that I do.. well I dont' stop and share when I should... LOL... I hoard up the projects and then I take pictures of them all... edit the pictures, and then post them all...  wow...

Anyway... a different way... but what the heck... it's my way.. 

So here is a card... but first off I have to give CREDIT where CREDIT is due.. 

the other day I was reading this BLOG... and this technique really hit home... as it is always a problem with me... you use this great Texture paste... and then you have to wait for the stuff to dry... well I can't always do that... my mojo is not going to wait for any texture paste to dry...  well PAMELLIA JOHNSON did something really fun and neat... she embossed it when it was wet... LOL.. how simple and how fantastic is that...  so I tried it... and after I did it once I did it a few more times... it really gave the textured paste a HIGH look.. I love it Pamellia... and thanks so very much for this GREAT new speedy experience... we are on the same page girl... love this one...  in my techniques now... 

Okay... keeping that in mind I also made this card for a few challenges... 

Frilly and Funkie... I did a heart card all in RED... not really vintage or shabby chic... but I got the card done for my son's birthday... but this is the REAL Shabby Chic one...  It's all about hearts this fortnight over there... so get out the hearts and join in... 

Craft Hoarders Anonymous   Stop hoarding the flowers and use them on something...  anything... just use them up... NOW... okay... so I used some more...  made from Coffee filters that were sprayed with Distress Inks...  love it...  more flowers used... (You know thought that every time I use some from the drawer ... I have to make more...  policy in this studio... LOL) 

And a new challenge...  since I love dragonflies, I had to join this one...  CRAFTING WITH DRAGONFLIES...  The theme this time is Girly and Lacey...  so I think this card fits into all these challenges... 

 

Matching envelope on this one..  from wall paper sample book... thanks to my dear friend Sheila...  love these envelopes... they really as sturdy and lovely... 

 

the card is an easel card also... as you will see in a minute... 

 

 

 

 

 

I used a slight cream cardstock for this one... and used MS Deep cut border heart punch for the side... and then used the scalloped Spellbinder hearts and ran them thru a swiss dotted embossing folder... used Antique Linen distress stain on everything...  even the ribbons... 

 

See that lovely back ground... go on over to Pamellia's blog and she will give very good directions...  you will love it too.. If you are not familiar with her work... it is wonderfully stunning and so very loving... each piece is really pretty...  100%   

 

I wanted the flowers to be delicate... so I used some from my flower drawer that had been made from dyed coffee filters...  used ones too.. not new ones mind you... USED... 

 

 

 

 

 

I really needed 7 flowers... and could only find 6... but when I back to the magical drawer where all the flowers live until used... low and behold... another flower.... just perfect for the lower section of my easel card... 

 

The background on this section I used my gothic stencil and some Victorian Velvet on a foam pad... perfect for the look I wanted... muted and soft yet you can see it... 

 

 

 

Sweet flowers and a pretty bow made from seam binding... 

 

How sweet is this.. .I would love to receive this card from a friend... so I guess I will have to send it to one... 

 

 

Thanks for stopping by for a visit today...  and I really love it when you stop in for a tea and also leave a comment...  which by the way I cherish them all.. and if you leave a comment on a winning project... I copy them all and it stays with that item... as I really do cherish them all..  thank you so very much. 

 

Hope you have a wonderful day today...

And enjoy each and every second of it... 

 

Love, Light and Peace...Bonnie 

The BEAUTY of Fall

I  LOVE the fall season... the colors are all so vibrant in the trees and it is yummy plus... the smells of fall arrive prior to the colors all being gone...  the smell of wood smoke, to keep the chill off in the morning, the smell of leaves and brush being burned by the farmers, as the season is over... cover crops are going into the grown... and the fall veggies are ready to harvest... with winter ones being covered up...  a whole new season of growing.. and in the south it is the time of the year when so many more veggies do grow the best, as the HOT HUMID weather is over.... you wouldn't know that today... it was very humid 80% and the heat was over 93.... very hot and humid....  time to gather up the fan and put one by the worktable and the computer... LOL... truth...  Our home is totally Air conditioned... but I dont' like to use the electric nor do I enjoy the falseness of air on in the house...  like to hear the birds singing... the winds coming up with a summer shower... and like right now all the night time insects are singing to out do the next... love it... 

Okay... so Yes I have been having fun all day... 

Wow... the first of the month and also a MONDAY... yikes... so many wonderful challenges... which to do first...

Well I write them all down on 3x5 cards... and see if I can match any up, and then I start to see what I have on my list to work on this week...  so many things... cards for an up coming sale... birthday cards...  Which... HEY JULIA... it is your birthday in 4 days... on September 5th... Happy Birthday to YOU...  I know you are only 29 this year... but a Happy Birthday anyway... hope if is a very happy one... 

 

Okay... so now you know... this card is for the

 Mixed Media Challenge...  #3... 

and the theme is  AUTUMN COLORS with options of leaves and metal...  I did the leaves.. and also some paper beads...  and of course the Autumn colors... and here is my CARD...

 

I had made about 50 envelopes from a wall paper book... and this is one of them... I tried to match up the cards with them... this one is so great for a fall card... love it... 

 

My butterfly is made from a stencil from Tims butterfly and then I used textured paste for the butterfly... cut it out and then painted it... and then I added glossy accent over it...  just for the luster...  the leaves are made out of kraft glassine and then inks are of course played with on them... to get the effect I want... 

 

I also used a little white tulle and of course also used my distress inks to dye it... you have to let it dry over night... but it does work...  most likely alcohol inks would be better... but I love the colors of the distress inks... 

 

So that is my card for this challenge... and I am sure I will most likely do something with metal too...  you never know... in fact something just popped into my head... LOL...

 

Hope you have a fun time making things for all the up coming challenges this fall month... it should be a very colorful month...  YEAHHhhhhhh ...  love it all.. 

 

Thanks for stopping by for a visit... and see you in a little while.. .I have a lot more to post... 
Love, Light and Peace...Bonnie 

Our Farm

From time to time I have to go find myself... where I am... do I like what I am creating, can I do better, what direction do I need to take now...  etc.   I guess we all go thru that thought process one time or another... I do it pretty frequently these days...  not really sure where I really belong... 


So I decided to take a little break and regroup with myself and I pulled out a canvas  (12 x 16 inches)   and started to work.. 

I started to play with the Texture paste and some stencils that I had just received as a prize... they were all so inviting.. .but used the leaves... 

 

I started to add some textures.. .the brown shaded areas are ground Mica that I added to the Gesso...  what fun I was having...  just doing my thing... and nothing else.. 

 

I colored the canvas with Distress paints and also some Adirondack paints... as I only had a few of the distress ones at the time...

 

I added a few butterflies and also some 'stone' work... NC where I live has so very much stone work all around the place... love it all.. so I wanted to capture some of that...  but I was at a stopping point now... and didn't really know where I wanted to go next... 

 

BACK TO MY GOOD OLD PAPER .... 

 

I hope you can see this ...

(please click on pictures to get the fullest size of any pictures.....  )

 

I took a piece of white cardstock... and started to play with some more stencils...  one was of a gingko leaf... I love Gingko leaves...  they are so very wonderfully different to me... so I wanted to play with that one.. and the hexagon one I had made from one of Tim's Dies... LOL.. Love those dies... and then to get a stencil too.. .great guns... how fantastic is that...  Okay...  so then I started to lay on the textured paint... I did happen to dye it... that was something I wanted to try again.. I had done it once... but this time I went to town... embossing, and then texture paste off and on all over the paper...  what fun...

 

NOW WHAT??? 

 

Well one thing I have to confess now, is that I got so wrapped up in what I was doing... that I forgot to take pictures... LOL... so very sorry...  but when that happens, my husband even knows not to bother me... I am deep in fun, messiness and sheer play time...  music is off the walls, at times... and the room is bouncing with good energy... loving it all.. 

 

I decided to rip the paper up into small pieces and put it onto the canvas... could I really do that???  Well I did... 

 

At this stage I hope you can sort of see where I used each and every little bit of that 8.5 x 11 piece of paper... I loved it... and was amazed that I could tear it up... 

 

I also added some misc leaves I had made.. .using texture paste that was left over... I just made a bunch of leaves... sheets of them... 

 

As you can see I added tissue tape, and real live branches from the yard... and I also drew and cut out some garlic.. 

 

I added a piece of Mica that is in the lower left hand corner of this picture above... it was found on the farm...  lovely layered mica... clear and beautiful...   I still have about a 1/2 inch of it left...  love it... 

 

I used a crackle stamp and made it look old... and more tape... and painted the butterflies... 

I added a few leaves... as fall is coming... sooner than we expect it this year...  and these leaves are from kraft glassine paper from Tim's collection of goodies and stuff...  love it.. special occasions it is used.. this was one of them.. 

 

 

 

I also used a crow stamp and colored it with black and DEEP VIOLET... not sure if you can see it as well as I can...  it is perched on the real branch...  loving the whole thing... 

 

There are areas where I have tucked textured assorted papers under other pieces of textured papers... just because I felt like it... no other reason... just having that deep rooted feeling of fun and creativity.. 

 

Another crow... but this time he is made from textured paste and also a die cut that was turned into a stencil...  love him... in fact I made about 15 of them... 

(too much mixed paste... LOL.. but they will be used... no fear... have fun... make things... enjoy what you are doing...  ) 

 

A little heart...  a little sweet memory

 

 

I had bought these really neat letters from Tim's stash of stuff...  and had to use them... they were really special and so this was going to be their premier...  LOVE THEM... I didn't do anything to them other than to glue them onto the canvas... wow... LOVE IT... 

 

I dropped the A  as there is little glass corked bottle over it... not sure you can see it...

 

I had a very difficult time photographing this picture...  but I hope you can see it all..

 

 

 

A crow hiding it's face under the gingko leaf... LOL... 

 

 

Hope you have enjoyed this LONG posting... but I did want to share this with you all... I was waiting for the right moment... and I think that entering it into the Frilly and Funkie Challenge is the right moment... 

 

As the challenge this week is Summer Garden... and this is all about our farm... our gardens and our memories of this summer time here on our farm... 

 

I do hope that YOU have a wonderful day and that you enjoy everything about it...  Thanks so very much for stopping by for a visit and commenting on this part of my life, that I have shared with you... 

 

Love, Light and Peace...Bonnie 

Sweet and Frilly

I LOVE to make these fussy and Frilly cards... all white with a flash of color on the flowers...  anyway... it is a pleasure to make one of these fun cards... the first one I made was about 9 years ago now... and I guess I have made over 50 of these cards... I honestly lost count...  but I make them for weddings, for special occasions... and just because someone needs love...   a special card... as this takes quite a while to make one...  the size of the card is 8.5 inches tall and the width when closed is only 6 inches wide... and about an inch thick...  I generally send it in a box... as it is special enough to be put into a box...  at least I think it is... 

 

The front of the card is all white... 

and there is 4 layers of paper on this section.  

 

At the base there is paper lace and also cotton lace...  with a little white bow... 

 

The back layer is made with Martha Stewart Punches... and then a layer of Cuttlebug embossing folders...  and then the paper lace is made with a Spellbinder... 

 

When you start to open the card... this is what you see... 

 

The paper is scored for texture... and also the heart goes from the front of the card to the center of the card... 

 

These flowers are made with Tim Holtz's Tattered floral die... the mini one... and I used distress inks on the white paper...  the leaves are hand cut out by me... 

You can click on any picture to see a larger one...  

 

Peeking thru is the center of the card... 

 

When you continue to open the card...

you will see the first left side of the card... 

 

I have taken a few extra pictures... so that you can see the actual dies etc... but the paper I used is all WHITE cardstock...  nothing special... just ordinary WHITE CARDSTOCK... 

 

 

When the card is entirely open

this is what it looks like... 

 

 

 

5 layers of paper are underneath the Vellum  (which is embossed with another cuttlebug embossing folder... 

I love these folders.. and when I was on the Design team I use to use them all the time... they were some of my favorites... 

I have not seen many people use them... and they are really so very elegant to me...  you can also stencil with them... 

 

the saying...

 

DREAM

 

a garden of good wishes

 

Some more flowers...  just enough for color and variety to this card... 

 

 

 

I so hope that you have enjoyed this card... it is a really fun card to make and a little difficult... but to me, so very well worth it... I have made them in all colors... and had gals make some in colors I would never dream of using... and they are also very elegant in all ways... 

 

I am entering this in two Challenges today...

 

Frilly and Funkie... 

A Summer Garden... 

 

My summer garden is the food that we raise... it gives us love in nourishing our bodies and thus this cards symbolizes that...  Pink is a heart charka color for LOVE... 

and so is GREEN. 

 

The Shabby Tea Room 

 

Using this Photo as inspiration, and the feeling of CELEBATE

and  

   Debbie asks that you create a card or project inspired by the photo  with a 'celebration theme' using pink, flowers and a lace element

Thank You very much for stopping by for a visit today... and also for any comments you should leave behind... I love them all..  and cherish each one that you write...  I appreciate them all... 

 

hope you have a great day and can find time to create something that makes your heart happy, for you and others... 

 

Love, Light and Peace...Bonnie