and so it goes.....

A lot of ripping and tearing was involved in this page. Except for the scrap of tissue with the numbers, there were no rubber stamps used. Just paper, glue and some ink. A collage made of nothing in particular, mostly scraps, yet it tells a story. I like it when that happens.

All My Children Books

Someone recently asked me in my comments if all my work was in the same book. Actually, I have several altered books. When I started my first altered book about six years ago, I only worked in one book until it was full--stuffed actually:

I learned better.

Simple Journeys: the book that started it all.

When I started the second book that would

become Random Expressions, I worked on it almost

exclusively, but before it was finished, I started another.

Since then I have kept two or three books going at the same time.

I keep working in them until they are full. What constitutes full, you ask? I stop altering pages while the book still closes. (See pic #1) I leave several unaltered pages between the layouts then later remove most of them to make more room. I like to glue the back sides of all the altered pages together, which makes the book much nicer to flip through It is at this point the book is ready for a title and altered cover.

Here are several books filled or almost filled and waiting for a title and cover. This is the most challenging part for me--the title and cover is the book's identity, for goodness sake!

None of my altered books so far have a theme, (except for a seasons book and this little cutie) which perhaps is what muddles the moniker process.

There are a couple of titles bouncing around in my head. When a cover idea collides with them, I will let you know.

Yesterday's summer

I have to admit being very pleased with this one.

Ten bonus points to anybody who can tell me (without looking it up or from others' comments) the song and its artists quoted on this page.

I must be blue........

I just noticed the last two pages I did in my altered book were very monochromatically blue.



Technically, this one is not truly monochromatic......but let's not get too technical, m'kay?

Tag You're It! - Tic Toc

Clocks are one of my favorite elements to use in my artwork, so when I saw this week's theme at Tag You're It was Tic Toc, I had to play along.

I used torn pages from a book, a dictionary and some music for the background, then covered it in an acrylic wash and chalks. Next came the clock stamp and antiquing on the edges. The clock image is from junk mail and the chain is from an old necklace.

Thanks for stopping by!

A Song of Love for my Beloved
The young man is standing below the window of his beloved, serenading her on his guitar with a bouquet of roses at his feet.

My entry for the November challange at Mind Wide Open.

There are some outstanding entries, as always.

Hop over there and have a look.

If you like mine, by all means vote.

If you like somebody else's.....you can vote for them....

I won't be (very) mad.

Behold! What lovely pennants!

Eight of us arty blogging gals recently got together to do a pennant swap. The theme for this one was "fragrance names". Here is a sample of the incredible pennants created. If you were in this swap and have posted your completed banner, leave a link to your post in the comments.

Thanks Ariane, Amy, Barbara, Cindy, Linda, Lisa M. and Ruby Mae. You ladies are what made this a great swap!!

Jingle all the way!

My blogger friend Barbara asked me if I have my jingle on. Well Barbara, as a matter of fact, I do! I got my jingle on a couple of weeks ago while shopping at a mega craft store and was pulled inexplicibly toward the Christmas aisles. Oh, the glimmer, glitter, glitz and jingle! Oh, the shimmer, shine, sparkle and jingle! I couldn't resist a few bright baubles.

And a jaunty stamp or three........

Last Christmas passed in a going-through-the-motions blur as we waited for my grandson's liver transplant. His state of declining health overshadowed the festivities. He received his gift of life on Dec 30 and we have much to celebrate. I have a feeling my jingle, along with the garlands and the lights and the trees, will be all over the house, inside and out, before Thanksgiving.

Now of course there are some rules to follow in order to keep this search for early signs of emerging Christmas spirit going. Barbara instructed me to ask this question of three of my fellow bloggers, who must in turn ask the question of three of their friends. And as these things go, everyone you ask gets mentioned in a post and linked-to. So tell me, Amy, Tammy and Cindy: Do you all have your jingles on? I really want to know!

glitter-graphics.com

Altered diapers?

In a bit of a departure from my usual altered art, Amy and I created this ladybug diaper cake for a baby shower this weekend. And technically, I suppose it could still be called altered art since we certainly altered the appearance and function of the diapers. We were pleased with the outcome and more importantly, so was the mother-to-be.

When I saw the artwork above at one of Alan's clinic visits, I was very intrugued and made a mental note of it. Okay, I made a couple of written notes, too. Mainly so I wouldn't not ever think of it again, ya' know? A few days later, when I rummaged across the scrap of paper in my purse, I conjured up the mental notes and created my version of the piece:

The next time we were at clinic, I snapped a photo of my inspiration piece. Not surprisingly, I discovered I had not remembered a lot of details. (The old mental notebook is now a loose leaf binder.) Side by side, mine looks rather ........sparse...... unfinished...... Now that I have a photo I've refreshed my memory, I'm thinking about adding some finishing touches to my cat version. Some of their wacky original elements like maybe a door and some leaves........... Would that be cheating?