Truth Teller

  

A book I'm reading inspired this tag collaged with a fussy-cut vintage image and scraps of Tim Holtz paper.

I'm linking to Simon's Monday challenge, this week's theme is "Let's be on Time."

As always, I hope this post finds you well and happy and I appreciate your visit.

Until next time, take care.

Hello

 

Not sure what to make of this greeting card--I like it but I know it's not for everyone (it's not very conventional).

I used a newly purchased stamp by Ellen Hutson called Mondo Succulent Pot. I've had my eye on it ever since it was released (2019) and after using it the first time, I know it will be quite versatile. I'm glad I got it and expect to use it a lot.

It was watercolored but I didn't like the blue background (too plain) so I stamped over it with polka dots (Tim Holtz). I framed it with a layer of paper then that little voice inside my head said use some Stickles and now it has yellow-green and black dots of bling.

If you're new to watercolor, a large stamp like this is ideal. I'm not a fan of "no-line" techniques and with a hand-drawn stamp like this one, the lines are what make it so charming.

One criticism about the stamped text: The set comes with the word "Hello" but honestly, the way it was made/written it looks more like "Hells" (here's a link to the vendor if you are curious). So I scratched out the center of the letter "o" because I thought it would help. Maybe I'll find a better remedy when I use it again. Maybe it's just me?

As always, I hope this post finds you well and happy and I appreciate your visit.

Until next time, take care.

Inaugurata

 

Here's a tag collaged with fussy-cut scraps of Tim Holtz paper stash and also some of his stamps along with a vintage photo to commemorate the day.

WAR IS PEACE

FREEDOM IS SLAVERY

IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH

-- George Orwell, 1984

Beautiful to Me

 

Simon says, "make a shaker card." What?! Never done that before but sure, why not? I had to find some how-to videos to get an idea of where to begin and, in the end, I have a new appreciation for this engineering feat.

Mine was made using a piece of craft foam as the dam behind a thin piece of acetate. I used a black Sharpie to disguise the foam edges, filled it with vintage glitter (circa 1920-30), covered it with a die-cut page from an old book (Simon Says Stamp Devonshire) and made some paper punch lace (Martha Stewart).

I re-cut the butterfly out of black paper and placed it over the acetate and heat embossed text (Simon Says Stamp Delicate Flowers) using black ink and clear powder.

The background page is from Prima Epiphany and it was mounted on black card stock. I always line the insides of my black cards with a piece of light paper so you can write on it with a regular pen. A little Distress Ink and some white paint splatters completed the look.

I had no idea how much glitter to use and may have used too much and the hardest part? Figuring out how to line up and paste the shaker on the front of the card while working with it upside down so the glitter wouldn't fall out. If I make any more, I should probably watch a few more videos ☺.

As always, I hope this post finds you well and happy and I appreciate your visit.

Until next time, take care.

 

Merry and Bright

 

 

• Unless we make Christmas an occasion to share our blessings, all the snow in Alaska won't make it white. -Bing Crosby
• Remember this December, that love weighs more than gold! -Josephine Dodge Daskam Bacon
  
• There's nothing sadder in this world than to awake Christmas morning and not be a child. -Erma Bombeck
  
• Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before! What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store. What if Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more! -Dr. Seuss
• Christmas is doing a little something extra for someone. -Charles M. Schultz
• When we recall Christmas past, we usually find that the simplest things--not the great occasions--give off the greatest glow of happiness. -Bob Hope
• Never worry about the size of your Christmas tree. In the eyes of children, they are all 30 feet tall. -Larry Wilde

Wherever you are, whatever you are facing, whatever your challenges or opportunities may be…may your days of Christmas be merry and bright.

Praying for Time

  

 

I've used a favorite Found Relative for this tag, I can't explain why this image appeals to me like it does and I only use it for special pieces. 

This Christmas tag has a melancholy side as I made it to commemorate a singer songwriter who passed away four years ago on Christmas day. His name was George Michael and he wrote a song called "Praying for Time." The words to this ballad are especially poignant during the holiday season and speak volumes about this tumultuous year.

The techniques I used include fussy-cutting, distressing, stamping (hand-carved), and placement of ephemera on some Paper Stash. 

I think it's worth noting that whenever possible, I peel the backs off photos, ephemera, etc., and rub away as much of the paper as I can to make these elements nice and thin. They naturally become more fragile but I encase them with medium (applied to both sides) so they hold up well when pasted down or painted over.

As always, I hope this post finds you well and happy and I appreciate your visit.

Until next time, take care.

Happy Holidays

 

A greeting card to share today representing a milestone for me as it's my first creation since relocating my crafting space. Abandoning my old studio after almost 15 years was traumatic and because I had to downsize, I cleaned up and donated a lot of extra material. My new space is doable but I'm struggling to remember where I put stuff--I guess the easiest fix for that is to just starting making again!

For this card, I distressed the edges of printed papers and used some hand-stitching and Stickles on the border. The stamp is from Ellen Hutson (Mondo Holly by Julie Ebersole) which was altered quite a bit.

First I heat embossed it, then tinted it with Distress inks, ironed off the embossing, redrew the lines with a fine line marker, fussy-cut it and added Distress Rock Candy Stickles to the berries.

I plan to continue blogging about my creations (even though many bloggers have left the pack) because it serves as a kind of diary and good reference tool. Now that my numerous family projects/obligations are winding down, I have more time to create and will be able to post more regularly again. I also post snapshots of my blog entries on Instagram @123beulahbee for those who like to click-and-run ☺.

As always, I hope this post finds you well and happy and I appreciate your visit.

Until next time, take care.

Heritage

 

It is said that as a figure is sculpted by the hand of the Artist, so is a man molded by those who preceded him on Earth. We have a heritage of which to be proud and much to learn and impart to those who follow us.

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Hello after one very-long absence from the crafty-blogger world! Historically, I've been pretty good about posting on a regular basis and participating in challenges but it's been almost two months since you've heard from me.

The reason for my absence is I somewhat accidentally stumbled upon a new hobby and got so thoroughly involved with it that everything else took a back seat. And I mean everything!

What, pray tell, could have been so compelling? It was genealogy research and putting together my family tree. An opportunity presented itself and once I started I couldn't stop. Mind you, it's probably not for everyone but for me, it was a fantastic escape into a past rich with history and heartfelt stories that kept me wanting more.

It took longer than expected because I didn't realize both my parents had descendents that traced back to the earliest colonial settlers. The process involves matching up husbands, wives and children (and my oh my, they had lots of children!) using places and dates to connect them. But the real treasure was inadvertently learning about things like Civil War pensions, government land grants, typhoid outbreaks, the Married Women's Property Acts, etc., etc..

To gather up names like Ithiel "Telly" Tellofare, Bushrod Ashburn, Rufus Benedict, Miles Omega, and Euphony Ann, some of the eleven children born to John and Mary from North Carolina who married in 1803, just made my heart sing!

I'm certain this experience will influence my art in the future. My love for vintage has taken on new meaning as a result of this experience. I plan to dust off the paints soon, I'm ready to begin again filled with the new found knowledge of many lifetimes lived. So proud, so brave, our Americans!

As always, I hope this post finds you well and happy and I appreciate your visit.

Until next time, take care.

Update 10/19/2020: My plans of crafting and blogging again have been put on hold due to an unplanned relocation of my studio. Finding a new space has forced a major decluttering event which only seems to grow the more I pursue it! Other responsibilities are also taxing my time--there just doesn't seem to be enough of it no matter how hard I work. There will surely be a silver-lining in all of this and I'll definitely be grateful when time permits me to craft again, I miss it so much!

Live Out Loud

Altering vintage photos seems to be my thing these days and each one I work on is a lesson in techniques--some that work and some that don't.

I used Photoshop to print this photo on manila cardstock after cropping it to a 6.25" x 3.125" format (the size of a #8 tag).

Then I used watered-down gesso to cover almost everything in the photo. This provides a surface that water-based inks or paints (I used watercolors) can adhere to. So, unless the tint is staining, it's easy to remove/change colors with water and tissue to erase it.

To stamp the background, I used masks cut from deli paper which is see-thru and easy to trace and cut.

I've mentioned before that I use the tip of an Xacto knife to scratch away shadows or other dark areas to make some areas read better. You can see an example of this where the woman's hair blends into the dark areas of the umbrella.

I used a Remnant Rub for the text and embellished the black line borders with dots from an orange Soufflě gel pen. I'm linking up with Simon's Monday challenge for A Day at the Beach.

As always, I hope this post finds you well and happy and I appreciate your visit.

Until next time, take care.

Grace Notes

"Early Bird" was Simon's Monday challenge this week but I'm no early bird as I only managed to get this done just before the deadline!

I used a bird stamp (Penny Black Just Looking) that I've had for quite a while but always had trouble using. A search turned up a technique (thanks, Mimi) that helped me figure this one out and then I assembled it with various papers to make a card.

Ingredients include Collage Paper, Clipping Stickers, vintage sheet music, paper scraps and a ribbon. I machine-stitched the borders and used Distress ink to age the papers.

As always, I hope this post finds you well and happy and I appreciate your visit.

Until next time, take care.

Good Bye Old Paint

I thought I'd dig out my watercolors and paint a card or tag for Simon's Play with Paint prompt this week. I didn't know I would end up making a color mixing chart instead!

One look at my badly neglected palette (bought years ago by way of a recommendation when I was just a beginner) and I knew it was time to take care of it. The paint was dry and cracked, some of the wells needed to be refilled, etc. It has served me fairly well but truth be told, it is way too big for my needs today and I decided to replace it.

I found a smaller, air tight pallete at Amazon and set about transferring paint from the old one to the new one. It was a tedious undertaking but my paint is expensive (Maimeri Blu from Italy)--I didn't want to waste it and two of my favorite shades are no longer available.

No, I'm not about to tell you how I scraped and reconstituted paints ☺--I just have a few more photos of the palettes then I'll share some links for two really useful websites to learn about watercolor paint properties and how to make color charts that I think you'll appreciate.

If you are a beginner to watercolors (or even if your not), here's a link to excellent, step-by-step instructions for why and how to make color charts (which I used to make mine):

Watercolor Affair - How to Make Mixing Charts Step-by-Step

Making the chart was so useful and such a good way to learn about paint properties, to practice control of mixing, and to learn how to get just the right color.

Mine was made large enough to reflect the 18 colors I used in my new palette and it will be an excellent reference going forward. I discovered some new combinations that I can't wait to try!

And finally, I'll share this link for a really good explanation on watercolor paint properties which I frequently use as a reference:

Keene Wilson - Knowing Watercolor Pigments

For the most part, watercolor is easy (with good supplies) but what held me back the most was not appreciating that some paints stain, some are opaque, some get muddy and you can't figure out why, etc. This website provides a good explanation and doesn't bog you down with too many details. I highly recommend it.

As always, I hope this post finds you well and happy and I appreciate your visit.

Until next time, take care.

Happy Heart

"Take Me for a Ride" is the challenge at Simon Says Stamp this week so I altered this photo by creating an image transfer on a manila tag.

Then I used watered-down gesso to cover most areas with a small paint brush, applied a mask cut from deli paper and used a background stamp on the car's surface.

I used inks to tint the photo, applied some stamped tissue paper on the right-hand side, placed some vintage postage stamps in the lower corner and the text is a Remnant Rub. 

This tag reminds me of one I made last year (Maurice Crooks) which is a favorite of mine.

As always, I hope this post finds you well and happy and I appreciate your visit.

Until next time, take care.

Girlfriend

I would say my greeting cards look a lot like the tags I make, or a journal page, for that matter. Here I have assembled one using a hand-cut botanical print, a Found Relative and some Collage Paper (Tim Holtz) onto a book page stamped with a French postage mark. I machine-stitched a border and embellished it with 3D paint (Liquid Pearls).

Everything was tinted with Distress inks and I used a watered-down layer of off-white paint over the girls dresses to change their appearance.

I think a key element in this composition is the addition of dark shading behind the girls which gives it some dimension. And it was mounted onto a kraft paper card base which reinforces the vintage vibe.

As always, I hope this post finds you well and happy and I appreciate your visit.

Until next time, take care.