Catching up! Lots of ATCs

This first ATC is for a swap called, "Use Your Crap" It has all sorts of goodies on it, the minimum requirement was ten items. I have that and then some. :)

This next one is possibly not finished, but since I haven't really figured out what else to do to it, I am posting it here for now.  If I was to pick a scripture to describe my thoughts while making this it would be James 1:2-4.  The idea is that adversity often reveals beauty.

Next up is a swap called, "Put a Bike On It".  I started with Braille paper, then I spritzed two colors of Tattered Angels Glimmer mist over a stencil, then used a smaller circle stencil and my stippling brush with some Mustard Seed Distress Ink.  I used Peeled Paint distress ink around the perimeter.  The bike is stamped onto a piece of transparency film, then I used clear embossing powder to heat emboss it.  I cut it out and mounted it over the mesh on the bottom.  In the bottom corner is a tiny piece of map.  The title is Uphill Ride.

The next one is for a swap called Book page with a Flower.  The book page is from a Russian/English dictionary.  I used twinks on it, then while it was still fairly wet, I put a piece of bubble wrap on it to give it the little circles.  The colors don't seem to be very vivid on my computer, but perhaps they will show up better for you.

This ATC is another group swap called Sheet Music with a Heart on it.  The music is Russian (I think) and came in a packet of foreign ephemera in a swap I did with a missionary in the Ukraine.

And finally we have the next Washi Critter:  Meet Blue Lips the Washi Fish.  :)  He has 15 patterns of Washi Tape and 12 different colors of stickles.  I am going to see if I can figure out a way to attach a hook for the hanger to look like a fish hook. :)

So, that's what I have been up to.  The last four of these I made today, actually.  I have been hard at it since 6:30 this morning. Next up, I need to make a head piece for Elizabeth's Steampunk Halloween costume. Just a couple more days till the Christmas gift projects start taking all my creative time.

Paper Weaving: Not for wusses

Over the last two days I have spent hours weaving paper.  Three hours is probably the exact number but who is counting... Well, I might be.  Anyway, here are the two ATCs that were so time consuming.  I sure hated to cover any of the weaving up!

This first one is for an Instagram friend who lives in Edinburgh, Scotland.  (She doesn't like shimmer or glitter!  Can you imagine?!?)  The color is off, but I can't do anything about that now since it is already gone.  Anyway, the weaving is done with a book page which I grunged up a bit with some distress ink and stencils, and two other papers, a yellow grid, and a teal/blue colored weathered wood looking piece.  I used a piece of a dress pattern for the arrow.  It also has my now-signature piece of washi tape on it. :)

This is the next one after I finished weaving, before I added anything.  I thought it deserved its own spotlight. The papers I used to weave this were sheet music, hand-made metallic, and a piece of watercolor paper on which I had painted several shades of browns and golds. It is my best weaving yet, and I really hated to cover it up!!

So I compromised and just covered a couple corners (had to have a spot for that washi tape!) and added a wire sculpture of a tree.  All that copper is simply stunning in real life, and the photo doesn't begin to do it justice.  This one is going to an Instagram friend in Wales (I think--still waiting on her address). 

I have another swap to make for another IG friend, but she is in the US. She likes weaving, too.  Well, I like it, just starting to wonder about the time factor.  Seriously!!  Each of these backgrounds took 90 minutes.  That is a lot of time for a little 2.5X3.5 piece of art!  Larger strips are less time consuming, but they aren't nearly as pretty.  Looser weave, same thing--less time, not as stunning, although they are still pretty.  I am sure I am not finished with this style. And you can bet your sweet bippy I'll be adding more wire to my art. :)

Woven Sheet Music and Butterflies

This ATC is for a swapbot swap called Sheet Music ATC with a Butterfly. This is the second of the series I have participated in, and I hesitated to join because it is not a group swap, but a public swap, and I was not terribly impressed with the one I got in return the last time. But I like the theme, and since I am making a second ATC for myself of each of the ones I like, I decided to join it.

It is one of my favorites, and I love the way the paper looks woven so the notes and words go different directions.  In all, I was pleased with the outcome.