Journey Mixed Media Canvas with Gelli® Prints

After going through some struggles over the last year, something profound touched my heart. You know, we all have our own journeys- joys, sadness, sorrows, or jubilation. My journey has been because of changes in health. I remember lying in bed back in the early spring, wondering what my new health issues were going to mean for me long-term.
Several people had said things that were very discouraging. Being someone who strives to encourage people, that hit hard. Why would they tell me that the test I'm going to have done is terrible (which it wasn't, by the way)? Why would they imply that I won't be able to recover from this? Why wouldn't they tell me that I'm going to beat this, and that life will still be enjoyable, and that I'll be able to find joy in the little things?
Needless to say, I stayed away from those people until I was strong enough to stand up to their remarks.
However, it caused me to think about my journey. The fact that I can write my own story. That I don't have to freak out about a potentially scary test. That I can still press on and receive peace from Jesus that passes all understanding.
Which led me to make this canvas. I made up this saying for my daughter years ago when her friends were telling her how horrible it was to have braces put on. I told her to write her own story.
So, that's what I'm doing, Folks.

I love creating canvases with meaning. This canvas is chocked full of elements and techniques, from hand painted gouache vintage papers...

...to metal keys and hand-dyed crinkle ribbon...

...to metal medallions...

...to vintage sweater clasps...

...to Gelli printed papers with crackle paint and distress inking...

...to paper vines...

...to a vintage lace butterfly...

...to tissue pattern paper and adorned sides.

And, if you really like this, it's available in my Etsy shop. Thanks again for checking out my blog. I truly appreciate it. 

Fondly, Tami

Arrows in the Form of Vinyl

Hey, Peeps. Here's just a quick post today about my vinyl. I have been wanting to put something rather dramatic in my living room, so I cut one of my big arrow designs in vinyl and put it up today. I absolutely love it. It makes a statement (perhaps that I'm bold enough to put something this big on my wall), but when I'm tired of it, I can take it down or replace it with something else. I LOVE it when that happens!

And here's one of my staged photos for my Etsy shop. This is in my dining room, and I might actually leave them up. After all, it IS my home. ;)

Thanks again for stopping in! Fondly, Tami

Christmas Tablescape

Yes, Peeps. I'm thinking about Christmas again. It seems that once Thanksgiving comes and goes, I'm in a rush to decorate and I always have SO many ideas, but I run out of time. Some years, I've decorated right up until Christmas Day, and I've been known to keep the trees up until almost Valentine's Day. I just can't seem to de-decorate. I LOVE Christmas!

So, here's something I did last year, and I'm thinking about repeating it (keep in mind that I hardly ever do the same thing from year to year). 

I decided to do a silver, blue, and white tablescape. I was pretty tickled with it. 

Not that I'm a tablescape expert, but I think the trick is to use a variety of textures and a color theme, but I also like lots of light and sparkle.

The tall glasses were champagne glasses that I purchased at my local thrift shop- 8 for $2. Woot, woot! They're used more for decoration than champagne, but I reserve the right to fill them up with bubbly whenever I want! There are also Waterford brandy snifters, which again, have hardly ever had brandy in them. 

I have two gorgeous Waterford decanters that also needed to be used, so I put blue food coloring in them with some water, and instant color!

Jingle bells from a Christmas clearance sale, paper poinsettias that I cut out, a white table cloth bunched up in the center.

Little droplets.

German status.

Silver teapots and creamers.

Glass glittered stars.

And little white ball ornaments. Seriously, Folks, just use what you have!

And, here's another view of my garland. My neighbor cracked me up when she saw it. She said, "You put all of these on by hand?", as if we had a machine that did it. Boy, now THAT would be a cool thing to have!

Again, just using a lot of what we had. The white flowers were a clearance item from Pottery Barn, which were really just a bag of potpourri, the white "starburst" thingy is a dried allium from our garden that I sprayed white, and the pink flower is a dried peony. 

And, this is one of my favorite ornaments, of which I have many. You can also see one of my beaded snowflakes in the lower left. There's a very cool story behind them, which I'll save for a later date. 

Thanks again for taking the time to look! Fondly, Tami

And, I'm linking to:
Jennifer Rizzo
Elizabeth and Co.
The Style Sisters

Mixed Media Page

I've had lots of fun lately, and one of my projects was for a friend. 

I started out with a homemade paint spray of a mustardy yellow.

I sprayed over my all-time favorite key stencil. I have to say that I love this, all modesty aside.

I really like making my own paint sprays for a variety of reasons. The first is that I can custom make my own colors. The second is that they're permanent, which is SO convenient and often necessary when doing a mixed media technique. 

Mixed media is often about layering. Here is some stamping...

...and some painted bubble wrap over dress pattern paper...

...and vintage paper with gouache, India ink, versamark stamp with Perfect Pearls...

...and rubons...

...and vintage lace...

...and a shrink art key with gesso...

...and a custom color of crinkle ribbon...

...and a vintage flash card...

...and some more vintage lace...

...and some vintage buttons...

...and making some transparent pearls...

And, sorry for the teaser Peeps, but I can't show the rest until I give this to my friend. Thanks for checking in!

Fondly, Tami

More Stencil Designs

Hey, Peeps. I've been getting a lot of great feedback about my stencils. Some customers have said that they didn't expect them to be so nice. Of course, I have a wonderful machine (Black Cat Cougar) that cuts clean, crisp edges. It's amazing, and I'm so grateful that HubbyDoc encouraged me to buy it.
I've been having so much fun designing. Here are some of my latest designs.

Three Wonky Trees

This stencil has a lot of versatile uses, and I include the tree cutouts as well, that are great for using as a mask.

Flower Medallion

This is a whimsical design that can be used in part, or in its entirety. Just use the flower parts, or the circles, or the center section for a card. 

Wired Trees

This is one of my favorites, since the tree section can be used as a tree, or a Santa hat, or you can turn it upside down and use it for a cornucopia for autumn or Thanksgiving. 

Arrows

These are my new favorite masks. I like them almost as much as my keys.

So, feel free to check out my Etsy shop, and when you buy my stencils, you won't be disappointed. And as always, I ask my customers to send me pictures of their creations so that I can blog...and tweet...and Pin....

Fondly, Tami

More Fun Baby Pics

Hey, Peeps. Do you remember these pics my daughter and I took about a year ago? They aren't all original ideas (although some of them were). We had so much fun making these little scenes. 

 Hanging around.

 Saving the day.

 Flying can be scary at times.

 Wondering where to go.

Checking the stars for navigation purposes.

Well, when we found out this little guy was having a little sister, we had to conspire yet again. 

Meet Lily.

Lily Poppins 

 Lily Peep

 Princess Lily, who wasn't happy with the pea.

And, our very special Lily flower. 

People have been commenting that these pictures are so adorable and clever. That, they are, but we pilfered ideas from what we saw on the internet. We did come up with a few original ideas or themes, but they're all really very simple. Most of the scenes are made with blankets, sheets, scarves, socks, napkins, flowers, decorative balls, etc. You get the idea. So, the next time you have a chance to take some fun newborn pics, look around your house for fun props, put them together, and have a shoot! A photo shoot, that is. Have fun!

Fondly, Tami