Testing 1-2-3

I hope this works.  I have officially given up on Flickr, since they are no longer speaking to Mr. Blogger (as Jules calls him!)  Sooooo, this is a bit of a test for Picasa.

Happy Monday and I hope to be back to regular blogging soon!!  =D


~Cynthia

PS:  This is a shot of Tahquamenon Falls in Michigan!  Such a beautiful place!!

CASEing Celine

CASEing Celine, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

I saw these hot pink flowers sticking up in some waist-high fading grasses a few weeks ago along a path I hike often. I knew I wanted a funky page to go along with the photo so I took a 'lesson' from Celine Navarro. She has an amazing style!

I printed the photo out in a small size and kept the embellishments to a minimum.

And slathered paint all over the place.

Yep.


Thanks for stopping by!


~Cynthia

Simple Heart

Simple Heart, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

I'm back to scrapbooking today! =D

I found this sweet little heart-shaped leaf the other day and just HAD to photograph it. I also wanted to keep the page super simple, just like the leaf.

I rescued several pieces of paper from the snippet basket. I had used one for another project, punching stars out of a corner.

I added a page from an old book and a tiny Polaroid-type frame. For a bit of grounding, I slipped another snippet under the layers.

And that was it. No ink splats, no washi, no stamping.

Just one simple heart. :-)


~Cynthia

Plan C: I Win

Plan C: I Win, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

So.

After almost a WEEK of journal wrangling, I have mastered this dollar bin purchase.

I brushed off Plan A's failure and I sanded off Plan B's failure.

I was left with a very textured and scuffed up journal cover.

So I took a cue from Larimore2, who so kindly left a few suggestions for me on Tuesday's blog post.

I pulled out the dreaded Red Line Tape From You Know Where and liberally taped up the cover. Then I cut a piece of BoBunny Christmas paper that I have been hoarding for years. I carefully smoothed it on the cover.

It looked very nice. So I covered the back cover too with the other side of the BoBunny paper.

I added some silver glitter letters to spell 'Advent' and a piece of washi, then placed three silver nail heads on the washi. I also distressed the edges just a little with an emery board.

So.

This was NOT what I had in mind when I started.

But...it's starting to grow on me. ;-)


Happy weekend!!


~Cynthia

Plan B goes awry

Plan B goes awry, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

So.

My battle with the journal cover continues.

(You should totally say that out loud with a Darth Vader accent.)

Plan A was to cover the journal with gesso and then with Rock Candy Distress Crackle.

Chaos ensued.

I brushed the mutant junk from the cover, which took all of 30 seconds.

*sigh*

Plan B was to cover the journal with Distress Paint.

Unfortunately, I did not pay any attention to WHICH Picket Fence product I grabbed and proceeded to use Distress STAIN instead.

You see that picture up there???

THAT IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU USE DISTRESS STAIN.

After the first coat, I touched the dried Distress Stain and was immediately covered in tiny white paint/stain flakes.

*sigh*

But I will not be defeated by the Dark Side. I will see victory.

No, really. I will. I already have Plan C in the works.......


~Cynthia

Hey, here's a tip...

Hey, here's a tip..., a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

Never use Rock Candy Distress Crackle Paint on gesso.

Cuz this is what happens.

Oh my gosh, I almost cried when I saw this disaster!!

See, what happened was....

For years I've been making an Advent devotional journal--separate from the December Daily album.

I had a little flash yesterday and decided to make ONE journal that I could use for several years of Advent journaling. I rooted around and found this dollar journal from Michael's in my stash.

I coated it front and back with gesso to cover the image on front, which had nothing to do with Advent.

Then I thought...would it not be so cool to put CracklePaint on there and then smoosh silver Distress Paint or Stain into the crackles?

Yes, yes it would.

So I covered the front with the Crackle Paint and let it dry overnight.

And this is what happened.

So.
So.
Sad.

Now I have to figure out Plan B.

Ideas, anyone??? Maybe try it over paint instead of gesso? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?


~Cynthia

Tim's November Tag

Tim's November Tag, a photo by HikerCynthia on Flickr.

Sir Tim has done it again.

Gone and made a tag with supplies that I don't have.

You know, like always! ;-)

But, as always, I've gone all MacGyver on it and I think I have captured the spirit of his tag! HAHA!!

The instructions for Tim's tag are here, so you can compare outcomes.

I used a piece of chalkboard paper--so cool! Then I stamped the corn image using Versamark. (I stamped it once and cut it out and stamped it again on the tag piece.)

Then I cleaned the stamp.

This step is very important.

The amount of time it takes to clean the Versamark off the stamp is exactly the amount of time needed to allow the Versamark to dry.

No more. No less.

Believe me when I say this. It took many MANY tries to get the chalky look correct.

Then, gently rub a piece of chalk over the image. I used regular chalkboard chalk. Once the image is completely covered, dry it with a heat gun.

Then I gently brushed the tag with a two-inch wide paint brush to get the excess chalk off.

I *did* follow Tim's instructions on making the label. YAY ME.

I brushed Pumice Stone Distress Ink on a white piece of cardstock, then flicked water on it and dried it with a heat gun.

I stamped the sentiment (it says "Thankful"--much more clear in real life) in Archival Ink. It's also very important to use Archival Ink and not Distress Ink for a crisp image.

Yeah, ask me how I know *that* one.

Then to the tag...I used PopDots to adhere the fussy cut corn image and also the label over the top.

Finally I mooshed some Pumice Stone Distress Ink on a craft sheet and smooshed some ribbon in it, dried it and attached it.

Because I made my own tag, I used one of Tim's hole reinforcers to made it look like a purchased tag.

And...the end!


I really love the look! It's different from using embossing powder--a more chalky, hand-drawn look. And fun too!

Thanks for dropping by!


~Cynthia