Coffee Filter Collaboration

Now and again, I join a group of friends to do a collaboration. Sometimes we do a theme. Other times we have a pile of common supplies. This go around, we decided to use coffee filters, or a tea bag. The sky was the limit, no holds barred. I decided to make a canvas to hang in my kitchen because coffee is life.

I took my coffee stained filter, and whilst I sipped the delicious brew that passed through it, I added even more color with my Distress Inks. I set that aside and grunged up my canvas with more Distress Ink and some stamps. Setting that to one side, I stamped this awesome coffee treat stamp Stay Strong, by Unity Stamp Co. I cut the word from coffee related digi paper by Gracielle Designs. I seriously love this paper pack. I found this cute lil wood veneer to go cup and dark "gems" and finally added a piece of flair from A Flair For Buttons, Hello Coffee. It pretty much sums up have I feel about coffee.

Thanks for having a look and I'll see you next time!

Artists Collaboration: Inspired By Iceland

I joined another of Tina Walker's Artist Collaborations a couple of months ago. She's always wanted to go to Iceland and thought it would be fun to create art that's inspired by this beautiful country. My mom runs an adventure photography company and they've done a handful of trips to Iceland and the photos are just amazing. You can see their gallery here. I love that they have warmth as well as cold in their images. I decided to go with the colors of the auroras, with a touch of warmth, and make my Christmas cards.

I started by stamping my Unity stamp on watercolor paper, then went to town with my stay inks and water bottle. My fingers were green for over a week. The warmth and light was achieved by using an ink color with gold shimmer in it. Then I pulled the pink of this amazing light show in by watercoloring some of the bits of the stamp. My final addition was some chunky Stickles. I love the way it gives that golden ice shimmer, like the photos of my mom and step dad's.

An InLinkz Link-up

Artist's Collaboration: Starting From The Same Place

I got to take part in another fun collaboration with art friends from all over the world! We were each sent identical (or nearly) packages to use to create whatever inspires us. We were to try to use at least part of everything in the packet.

Here is where I started out.

I picked up the pewter clock at a thrift store some time ago, intending to make a distressed frame. Life happened and that project got put on the back burner. When I received the packet, I pulled the clock back out and put on my thinking cap. As you can see, there is quite an eclectic assortment there!

I got out my gesso, pastes, patina, paints, and gel and set out to work. I first coated everything that I wanted to distress with black gesso, then set out with my rusting paste set to give it that really corroded, old look. I dab of blue or orange patina adds to the corrosion. I pulled the clock apart, even gutted the innards of the clock movements (so cool inside), setting aside the glass front and most of the innards. I cut down the clock face so it would fit into the back of the casing, then distressed it too. I added a silver past to the clock hands and glued them to the face, on top of one of my kit gears and a metal gear from my stash. I just kept distressing pieces and seeing where they best land and it just sort of fell together, topping it off with a photo of my hubby and I.  It was so much fun and really stretched me!

The finished piece! I seriously love it.

Here is a link to see the other projects and there are so many awesome ones!

An InLinkz Link-up