ArtiphyTheHeart

Alice In Wonderland. . .

 

The Make a Moo or Two theme for the week is "Alice In Wonderland", and I truly must thank Mandy, who is this week's guest hostess, for solving a Christmas present dilemma!  My DD LOVES all things Alice, and the two moos that I made for this week's challenge are sitting back to back, encased in glass slides and a brass frame, with a long black silk ribbon tie, ready to be wrapped for her and put under the tree! 

I make so many thing for other people, that when it comes to my family, it must be something truly special.  I think this is it!!  Now, I'll need to keep Amy from reading my blog for a couple of days, so Shhhhhhhhhh.....don't tell!

Both images were scanned, cropped, cut, colored and collaged onto black linen cardstock.  The "r-e-a-c-h" is computer generated and the "Tea" was done with a Sakura gelly roll pen.

And on another subject, you will all want to take a look at Lani's blog...she's offering some very special blog candy!  The person who wins the draw will get a space in two of her online art courses!  A fabulous prize, that I really hope to win!!!  Good luck to you, too, but I am SO keeping my fingers crossed for me......

......Have a great day, Everyone!

Brown & Aqua. . .

 

This week the Weekend Taggers theme is "brown and aqua", a very pleasant change from the plethora of holiday colors that I love, but that we are necessarily bombarded with at this time of the year!

I couldn't resist the season however, so mine is a "joy" tag.  The tag was stamped with Hero Arts "manuscript background" in tea dye distress ink, then mounted onto a cut piece of 7Gypsies paper, which was then mounted onto a piece of aqua Bazzill cardstock, then cut to shape.  The tag is topped with an off-cut of brown Bazzill, a large aqua flower from Making Memories, a circle of brown cardboard, a couple of buttons, and some aqua silk ribbon.  The j-o-y letters are Making Memories pre-glittered shimmer jigsaw chipboard.

Have a great day, Everyone!

On The Ninth Day Of Christmas. . .

. . . Shelly gave to me. . .

 

. . .This adorable snowman package, filled with a gorgeous treat! 

You all know that I usually just cut to the chase!  No packages first, I go right for the gift!  But in this case, I thought you needed to see the snowman bag first.  There is something really special about him, aside from the fact that he's adorable.  If you pull the ring at top, the package opens magically, without disturbing the bow, and the gift is in your hand!  I didn't go so far as to take a video of this process, so you'll have to take my word for it!  It is a touch of magic.  Opening this gift definitely restored a sense of child-like wonder in the process!  Way to go, Shelly!  This is fantastic!

But as good as that is, it's nothing compared with what was inside....

 

. . . An artful altered domino collage on a waxed-string necklace!  I am gob-smacked!  Isn't this the greatest combination of beauty and fun??  What a conversation piece this will be!  I can't wait to wear Edward!  Such a handsome lad in his old-school cap, don't you think?  And the card that he's attached to is a wonderful little work of art, too!  But to get the proper effect and see Edward in his full glory, you need to see him off the card....

 

...here, on top of this piece of Christmas sheet music for good contrast!  Isn't he wonderful!  I can't thank you enough, Shelly!!  I have fallen in love with this little guy! 

You can see more of Shelly's beautiful artwork on her blog by clicking HERE.  There are also some wonderful tutorials on her blog, too!   And If you'd like to see all of my posts on the Twelve Days of Christmas swap, you can find them all in one place and in order, by clicking HERE.

Now....on to day 10!

Have a great day, Everyone!

On The Eighth Day Of Christmas. . .

. . .Jeri gave to me. . .

 

. . .This adorable pincushion nested in a beautiful antique cup and saucer!  The perfect marriage of beauty and usefulness!  Jeri Aaron is our hostess for this swap, and also the bearer of today's gift.  You can see more of Jeri's wonderful artwork on her blog:  An Artful Gathering. 

This was the perfect gift!  Not only do I keep several pincushions going at once and can never have too many, I also have a small collection of KLM porcelain from Germany, and the cup and saucer are a perfect addition!  Needless to say, I am thrilled with this gift!  Thank you so much, Jeri!  Not only for the gift, but for hosting the swap of swaps!  I can't tell you how much fun this is.  All of us in the swap get together every evening to discuss our gifts and whatever else we have to share with each other.  We have all had so much fun with this that none of us are looking forward to the end of this swap, so we've made a pact to stick together.....get ready everyone....we'll be celebrating the 14 days of Valentines!! 

Another thing you need to see is the fabulous box this gift came in!  The box could be a gift in itself, and mine has been put away in a safe place....you know about "safe places", don't you?.....they are the little nooks and crannies where very special things are kept....the places that are so truly safe that they remain a secret....even to yourself!  Have you guessed it?  Jeri's gorgeous Christmas box is in one of the "safe places" in my home, and one of these days...sooner, rather than later, I hope....I'll remember which "safe place" I put it in!  In the meantime, I didn't want to hold-up posting about Jeri's wonderful creation while I continued to search for the box that it came in, so here's a link to our swap-mate, Shelly's blog, where you can see her pic of the box: The Art And Musings Of Shelly Rae Wood.  Once you've seen the pic, you'll want to take a tour of the other wonderful things on Shelly's blog!  It's a real treat!  And if you'd like to see all of my posts on the Twelve Days of Christmas swap, all in one place and in order, you can do so by clicking HERE.

Now on to day 9 (am I getting away with this??  It's really day 11, you know, and I'm running fast to catch up...)!

Have a wonderful day, Everyone!

This Thursday It's All About . . .

 

This Thursday It's All About..."Naughty or Nice"!    Our sponsor this week is Cosmo Cricket, and I can't say enough wonderful things about the fabulous Christmas pack the they sent my DT mates and me to play with!   

But, if you join-in on this week's challenge and win the draw, what you'll get is even better!  The prize this week at This Thursday is Cosmo's Chemistry paper pack (perfect for Valentine's day), and a packet of Cosmo's "buck naked buttons and more"!   So be sure you pop on over to the TT blog and add your artwork to the challenge so you'll have an entry in this week's draw.  The winner will be announced next week as usual, but after this week's challenge, all of us at This Thursday are taking a little holiday break and we'll see you back again on January 15th!  ArtiphyTheHeart will go strong through the holidays, so be sure to stop by often and see what I'm creating and concocting!   I feel some journal pages coming on........

In the meantime, take a look at the snowman (above) and my two cards (below), all created from the Cosmo studio papers in the Joy kit!   

You know me, I'm really not usually a "kit' type of person, but I have to tell you that Cosmo just may have converted me!  I have discovered that every single item in these kits are fabulous as-is, or, even better, can be customized a gazillion ways!!  I'm still playing with the papers and die cuts in this package, but here are my first three samples for this post.

  

For the snowman at top, I used Cosmo's punch-out die cuts, adding a lot of my own embellies, like the red, flocked pom pom on top of his hat, the black metal eyelet eyes, and the faux pieces of coal for his smile.  I modified the snowman himself with a light brush-over of peeled paint distress ink, and added the adorable photo--a freebie from my friend Willy.  The Christmas tree die cut is a Cosmo cut-out included in the kit.  I added the red gros-grain ribbon and backed the ornament with the second (yes, you get two!) snowman in Cosmo's "Joy" kit.  Now, the question is, has this young man been "naughty", or "nice"?  I think he's far too adorable to be naughty, but there might just be a hint of mischief there....

The next two cards are definitely "nice".  My Joy card uses no fewer than 5 of the papers from Cosmo's Joy kit!  If you look closely, and possibly enlarge the card by clicking on it, you can see that the background paper design is the same as the large star.  The ribbon strip at the bottom of the card is cut from another Cosmo paper, and the two smaller stars, while they are die cuts punched from the kit, are the styles of two other full sheets also included in the kit.  I cut black cardstock to match the stars and mounted them just off-center behind the patterned paper.  I used red metal eyelets in the centers of the smaller stars and threaded a length of green silk ribbon through the larger one.  The letters in the J-O-Y on the card are chipboard from Making Memories, covered with lush red suede paper that is so soft and fuzzy to the touch I wish you could feel it in person!   You'll have to use your imagination here...if you think of each of the letters as being as light in color as the lightest part in the photo, then you'll get the idea.  All of the darker areas are the shadows from the closely clipped pile of the suede fibers.  I edged each letter with a Krylon gold leafing pen, and dotted them, as well.

My Christmas music card uses three different and coordinating papers from Cosmo's joy kit.  I cut four flowers, two from Cosmo paper and two from black cardstock, using a Sizzix die.  I set four red metal eyelets in each of the two patterned paper flowers, threaded cuts of khaki silk ribbon through two of the eyelets and tied them off, leaving short tails, then mounted the patterned paper flowers onto the black cardstock flowers, just off-center.  The circles on the left side of the card are off-cuts from the flower centers.  Both the "Merry Christmas" and the snippet of The First Noel, are downloads from Artella.  The rest of the card was just placing and gluing, although there is some shabby shutters distress ink edging the music and behind the sentiment.

Absolutely much more fun than I expected to have, and I'm definitely wanting more, more, more, from Cosmo Cricket!!  Don't forget to stop by This Thursday,  check out the fab prizes, and enter the draw by participating in the challenge!!

Have a great day, Everyone!

On The Seventh Day Of Christmas. . .

. . .Gwynn gave to me. . .

 

. . .This elegantly feminine gown of crystals and snowflakes!  What a beauty!  The light travels through the gossamer skirt catching the snowflakes and crystals and making them glisten!  The top part of the skirt which connects to the bodice is a beautifully embroidered linen hankie. 

There is a spot on the lower half of our Christmas tree, just where the branches begin to full, that is perfect for this lovely gown, and it looks stunning there!  Thank you so very much, Gwynn!  After Christmas the gown will hang elsewhere -- in plain view -- because it is much too beautiful to be hidden away and not be seen! 

And now, on to day eight!  If you'd like to see all of the posts for the Twelve Days of Christmas swap in order and in one place, click HERE.

Have a great day, Everyone!

On The Sixth Day Of Christmas. . .

. . .Gloria gave to me. . .

 

. . .An altered silver spoon!  How gorgeous is this!  Right this minute, this lovely little piece is hanging from my Christmas tree, and it catches the light and sparkles like diamonds!  What looks like glitter around the bowl of the spoon is actually a lot of tiny silver beads dusted with silver glitter!  It's fabulous!  The photograph doesn't do it justice! 

And take a look at how it was wrapped!  Isn't this the greatest?  The package is lovely enough to be a gift in its own right!  That's a cotton fabric print with a Christmas music design!   And the tags and bells are adorable!  Thank you so much, Gloria!

You'll want to visit Gloria's blog, Art From the Heart of Hanes and see her beautiful work!  And if you're interested in taking a look at all of the Twelve Days of Christmas artwork in one place, click HERE.

Now I'm off to catch up on days seven through nine!

Have a great day, Everyone!

Happy St. Nicholas Day!

Whatever you call him...

 

. . .Agios Nikolas, SinterKlaas, Santa Claus, St. Nick, or any of the other names he goes by, December 6th is the day he is celebrated, world-wide!  Read more about Jolly St. Nick, who he was, how he is depicted, the history of this man who truly lived, and the legends and customs that surround him and the celebration of his day by clicking HERE.  

Happy name day to everyone named Nicholas, Nick, Nicole, Nicolette, Nikki, Nikita, Nicolai, Kolya, ...! 

Have a great day, Everyone!

On The Fifth Day Of Christmas. . .

Diann gave to me. . .

 

. . .This gorgeous set of  crystal and silver drop earrings!  I wore them all day long and got compliments galore!  I wanted you to be sure and see how they sparkle and shine!  The crystals are so beautiful that I just had to hang them from the lace curtain in front of a bedroom window with the sun shining through so you could get the full effect!  Thank you so much, Diann!  I'll be wearing these to all the holiday parties and all throughout the year!

You can visit Diann's beautiful blog by clicking HERE!  You will definitely want to do this!  Diann's artwork is gorgeous and she also shares plenty of other pics as well!  You need to see the gorgeous tree in her November 23rd post!!

To see all of my posts on the Twelve Days of Christmas swap all in one place, click HERE.

And on another note, well......it's almost.....St.Nicholas Day......SinterKlass.......December 6th!   Read more about Santa Claus day and how it's celebrated all over the world, HERE! 

Have a great day, Everyone!

On The Fourth Day Of Christmas. . .

. . . Cris gave to me. . .

 

. . . The most wonderful, fragrant little gift!   In the photo above, I'm standing in front of the Christmas tree, holding it in the palm of my hand!  Oh, If you could only get a beautiful whiff of the fabulous scent!  How could anything so lovely and tiny have such a full and gorgeous aroma!  I'm wishing my blog had a scratch 'n sniff widget so you could experience the gorgeous, seasonal fragrance!  Very delicate, yet very powerful!  I LOVE it, Cris!!   The lovely, tiny, pine cone and berry wreath with a sprig of pine make the perfect topper! 

Cris has the most wonderful seasonal blog, An Enchanted Christmas!  Please do yourself a big favor and stop by!  You are certain to be uplifted and refreshed by the sheer beauty of it all!   You'll want to bookmark that link and stop by daily throughout the season, as Cris adds to the loveliness on a continuing basis!

Thank you Cris, for *artiphying my heart* with this wonderful gift!!

You can see all of my 12 Days Of Christmas posts in one place, and enjoy seeing and reading about each gift and the artist who made it by clicking HERE.

Have a great day, Everyone!

Mistletoe and Wine

 

This Thursday It's All About. . .Mistletoe and Wine!

Now that all the holiday movies are starting to make their way into the theaters and each one is vying for its share of the box office profits, when I ran across some old movie posters, I just had to spice them up for the holidays!  Bette Davis and Paul Muni's characters from "Borderline" (above) make up what is probably one of the more unlikely couples to be found under the mistletoe, but with the right attitude, and a little bit of wine.....who knows?  LOL! 

   

Bogie and Bacall are a little more believable for a holiday romance! 

I digitally altered both posters, removing all of the words except the titles, and re-arranging the colors a bit.  The mistletoe is a .png file from a collection of mine, and I'm not quite sure of the source.  Both are printed onto matte photo paper, cut and arranged on the cards.  The wine bottle and glasses are cut from a holiday catalog,  and everything is mounted onto cream colored card, and tied up for Christmas with red satin ribbon and gold lame.  The black dots were punched from cardstock scrap and glued into place.

The Christmas Pig was found in the same catalog as the wine and the glasses.  I carefully clipped him out, placed him onto the card and accented him with some green dots.  I couldn't resist that expression on his face, and with the addition of a little mistletoe, he really looks to me as if he's on his way to present his lady with a nice Cabernet...that wistful, hopeful look in his eye makes me think he's hoping for an evening of amore!  There's just something about him, even with the beret and the necktie, that makes him seem more Italian than French, so the red, white, and green are more than just the colors of the season, they are also the colors of Italy.

The background is done with several layers of acrylic paint.  All of the elements for the tag, with the exception of Signore de Maiale (Mr. Pig), are off-cuts and leftovers from other projects.  Even the tag itself is a recycled price tag that was on a sweater I purchased a year or so ago, so truly this tag is "green" in more ways than one!  Therefore, it will go into the Arty Girlz Recycling Challenge, as well!

The mistletoe is another print of the same clipart I used above, this time carefully cut and glued into place instead of digitally layered and blended.

There's a wonderful prize at the This Thursday blog that you won't want to miss out on, so hurry on over and take a peek!   Susie has donated a great collection of clear stamps, so be sure to get in on the draw, and good luck!!

Have a great day, Everyone!

On The Third Day Of Christmas. . .

Connie gave to me. . .

 

. . .a FABULOUS angel! . . .with a beautiful tag and package topper, and take a look at the background...those gorgeous, shimmery snowflakes are actually the fabric that this beautiful gift was wrapped in!  Thank you so much, Connie!  I LOVE it!

You can see more of Connie's fabulous artwork on her blog, Altered Route, and you can see all of my posts on this swap by clicking HERE.

Have a great day, Everyone!

Reindeer Tag. . .

   

The Crazy Amigo theme for the week is "gift tags". 

The reindeer on my tag is a Sizzix die cut, embellished with black seed beads and a red zoomz from Berrie Pie.  The background is made of fired brick and peeled paint distress inks, with Art Journey's Christmas words stamped in black VersaFine.  The flower embellishments are from Prima.

Have a great day, Everyone!