Some backgrounds

Remember these? Picked them up for a dollar each at the Save The Children Fund op shop about 2 or 3 weeks ago. I've started doing some backgrounds on them in readiness for journalling.

This one I've stamped all over it with a very small stamp pad with four contrasting colours in it. It was in pack of alphabet stamps I bought at Big W a while ago. Then I used one of my very favourite new Tim Holtz stamps just around the edges.

This is another Tim Holtz stamp, I coloured in the cirlces with oil pastel then sloshed Radiant Rain 'Teal Zircon' over it. The sponge applicators on those bottles just don't seem to want to work, so I now use a paint brush to apply it.

Here I've used Technique Tuesday's paisley alphabet stamps. I love this particular design, they're about 2" square but I hate the stamps. They're acrylic and so sticky that they almost rip the paper up when I take the stamp off the page. Not a fan of acrylic stamps, much prefer the red rubber ones. I did get a tip from Megan which helps. Dust the stamp with an embossing chalk pillow before applying the ink and it doesn't seem to stick so much.

With all the Tim Holtz stamps I've bought lately I think I helped pay for his trip to Paris and all the fantastic goodies he bought at the flea markets there.

Well I'm off to cook pasta.

Alcohol Ink Tips and Ticks

Our teacher and good friend Kelsey who teaches us at Scraptivate gave us a very handy tip a few weeks ago and I asked if she would mind if I put it up on my blog for all to see. She couldn't very well say no could she, because I would have stamped my foot and threatened not to come class anymore (although thinking about that now, maybe she would be happy if we didn't come to class, Carmen and I are the disruptive ones, well Carmen more than me!) Sometimes it would be helpful to have another type of applicator for the inks, something a bit smaller for getting into tight spots. Here's the normal Tim Holtz one.

Sometimes you would like to ink up some German Scrap so instead of using the big applicator find a small stamp that you might not use anymore or you have tranferred the stamp onto Ezi Mount and you're left with the wooden block.

Grab some self adhesive velcro and stick it to the block, cut a piece of felt the same size and presto, you have a couple of different size applicators.

Very handy.

Thanks Kelsey.

Freaky Fauna

For the last probably two months we have been watching this spider in our backyard. It's quite a large spider, but the amazing thing is it's web. It's the biggest spider web I've ever seen, the photos don't do it justice. I've been trying for ages to get decent photos of it but there's only so much you can achieve with a digital point and shoot. The kipper did some research on google and we found out it's called a Golden Orb Weaver and they are one of the biggest spiders in Australia.The web is strung between our fig tree, a climbing rose, two standard rose bushes and a frangipani tree and it would be about 2.5 metres across and probably the same from top to bottom. It's done a stirling job of keeping some of the fruit fly away from the figs. I could sit and watch it for ages. Everytime something flew into it's huge web it would scuttle across, wrap the bug up quickly, then scuttle back to the middle of the web and proceed to devour said bug.

We've watched it get bigger and bigger over the weeks but this morning when I went out to say good morning it was gone. I was a bit sad really because it had been a fascinating slice of nature happening in our back yard. But the next time I went out, about an hour later I saw her very gingerly making her way back across the web from the direction of the fig tree. She was half the size and her huge stomach was all shrunken and wrinkly (sound familiar?). So I'm guessing there are hundreds of tiny orbettes swarming over the fig tree.

This is her after 'labour' and I know just how she feels!

I've just located my hips........

.........here they are living in the 70's. I was over at Creative Junkie's blog and she has some amazing digital scrapbook pages there and I got all nostalgic and decided to pull out my scrapbooks (I haven't scapped for about 2 years) and have a browse through and came across this. This was taken in July 1976, we hadn't been going out for that long so the relationship was all new and exciting (that doesn't last long!). The bike belonged to a friend so on we hopped and someone took this photo. Lord I can't believe I was that thin and my hair was still brown and I had hip bones that protruded. What happened? I'll tell you what happened....LIFE....life is what happened. Marriage, 2 children, work and a mortgage. So get your motors running and head out on the highway (the information highway, that is)

and go and take a look at Creative Junkies blog because she has a fantastic giveaway going on. Then again, don't bother because I've got dibs on it.

Altered Coaster

Remember these? Bought them the other day and said I would do something with them. Well just to show that I really do use some of the op shop stuff I buy, here is one of the coasters I altered.

This is after I've sanded it to rough if up a bit so the paint would stick.

Here I've given it a coat of Pale Beige gesso. It's not really pale beige, more along the lines of 'baby poo yellow'.

Now I was going to photograph each step that I did, but I got carried away and kept forgetting to pick up my camera in between steps. After the 'baby poo yellow' coat was dry I gave it a coat of Antique Brass Glimmer Mist, but instead of spraying it on I painted it on. It's not very obvious but it gives it a nice sheen. Next step was Folk Art Metallic Peach Pearl and because I'm lazy and can't be bothered washing paint brushes all the time I just poured a small blob in the middle and then smeared it around with a baby wipe. Waited for that to dry and then stamped with some of my new Tim Holtz stamps (damn those girls at Scraptivate, they could sell ice to eskimos). The image is from a collage sheet of Japanese ladies but I can't remember from where.The metal piece in the top right hand corner was part of an earing that I've put about 4 coats of different coloured Rub & Buff on to. Quote is a mish mash of several different sentences from an Anne Tyler book that I cobbled together. They made me think of a Geisha performing a Tea Ceromony.

Suzzane was the only one who could tell me what Persillees Potatoes are. Can you believe they are just common old boiled spuds with melted butter and chopped parsley. They sounded so french and gourmet-ish. So when she sends me her details this altered coaster is hers.

More op shop shopping

Lord save me from myself. I can't resist going into op shops and poking around, it's amazing what you find although not as good as you would find in the States of Europe, but none the less you occasionally come across some good stuff.
The two photos below I actually bought in an antiques store. Don't ask me how much because they were a little more than I would normally pay, but I couldn't resist. The lady is so pretty in her fur coat and the childrens breakfast menus intrigued me. The lady in the hand coloured photo looks like a bit of a saucy miss. And being an Adelaide girl, well I just had to get that postcard. The one underneath says "Mixed Bathing" what a hoot.

These are from my favourite "Save the Children Fund" op shop. The coasters will get some kind of makeover and the numbered files 1-31 will become some sort of journal. I think I might try to do a page a day for a month. Too late to start this month, April only has 30 days as do May and June, so I could plan on July which will give me enough time to think about it. Maybe?

So getting back to the childrens menu cards, I don't know if you can see it that well but they are from the S.S. Strathaird and dated 4th April 1952 I might see if I can dig up some information on it. I'm assuming it's a ship and if anyone can tell me what Persillees Potatoes are, you win a prize.

Blogs and Koalas

I forgot to include a link to my friend Kerin's blog, she's having a giveaway and it all relates to the terrible bushfires in Victoria. If you love koalas, you'll love this so head on over and leave a comment on her blog for the chance to win. Also my sister Annette has started a blog, she had lots of nice things to say about me (well, why wouldn't she, after all I am nice) but if you want to have laugh and leave a comment she has posted a photo of the two of us taken in 1972 (ouch!) in a photo booth at Luna Park in Melbourne. I remember that trip. We drove from Adelaide to Melbourne in her Toyota Corolla with the only music being a cassette tape of Rod Stewart. Over and over again we listened until we were both heartily sick of 'Maggie May'. Ah!.......good times.