Another little house, this time made for a swap called "What can you make with #24?" for a group on swap-bot that focuses on recycling and reusing materials. This is the 24th swap in the series and this time the thing was a matchbox. I buy the long matches to light the fire, so I used a big matchbox for this house. It's decorated with coloured paper/card and ink, with a bit of polyfil for the smoke. The inside comes out. I had intended to do some furniture and maybe little people to go inside, but I ran out of steam and left it up to the recipient to choose something for the inside.
Matchbox front. I used pages from a discarded "House on Pooh Corner" to make this little treasure box and coordinating marble magnets. One Tiny Thing group swap.
Sorry it's been a while since I've blogged. I got a new job (YAY!!!) and have been pulling crazy hours. Despite the madness of work and the holidays, I have completed a fun swap on swap-bot. This was a swap for a naughty paperdoll for Santa. I'm sure that everyone made a gal in a Santa outfit, but I opted for an elf. The whole thing took me about a week. Each night (after a long day at work) I completed a different step: design, color, ink, laminating, packaging. First I found a cute cheesecake pinup figure that I liked and used her as a template. Then I played around with different ideas: a naughty sleigh-girl, skimpy ice-skater, slutty snow-bunny etc. I ended up designing a cute elf outfit with stockings, boots and a short dress and liked it best! Here is the clean pencil design after a few rough drafts: I debated about coloring her with marker or colored pencil, but decided to stick with my medium of choice: watercolor. After I painted her, I went over her with black ink to really make her stand out. I supported the back of the doll with some really cute red & green patchwork christmas cardstock paper from DCWV to give her some structure. Then I "laminated" her with some packing tape so that the watercolor wouldn't smudge or fade with moisture. I have to say that I LOVE the way this doll turned out. She is one of my better dolls as of late. I think using the watercolor and then inking in the outline gives it a crisp, air-brushed look. Here is the doll with her cute outfit (PLEASE click the picture to get a bigger view): Last, but not least, I packaged her up. I REALLY didn't want to make a trip to the post office so I figured out a cute way to fit her into an envelope. I was going to use some dark green cardstock to stiffen the envelope so it wouldn't bend and made it a tri-fold. I slipped the doll inside and it looked so darn cute that I sewed her (with her outfit on top) into place. I found a silver gel pen and wrote a quick note to my swap partner inside. I folded the whole thing up and put a holiday sticker on the front to seal it closed then put it into an envelope! Here's a pic of the inside: Before I end this post, I have to show you what was sent to me in return. I'm not really bagging on the sender, but this is an example of why I'm not doing many public swaps on swap bot anymore. It looked like someone printed out a template, glued it to some cardstock, did a bad job cutting it out, glued some embellishments on top, inked over some of the features and mailed it out to me. I understand not having a good quality printer, not having tracing paper or a light box, but there are SEVERAL ways to create art using practically nothing. I can't fault the doll, it's not her fault she was poorly made and she really does have a personality, but the artist should have taken more than 5 minutes to put her together. The saddest thing is that on the artist's flikr page, she has made some really cute stuff. I was really disappointed, but am not going to linger on it. The main reason I joined this swap was to create something pretty for someone else to enjoy. Oh, here is a picture of the doll I was given (click the image for a closer look): I can't wait for my partner (also the swap host) to get her paper doll! I hope she enjoys it and doesn't think the partial nudity is offensive. I doubt she will, but you never know.... Anyways....I hope all of you have a wonderful Christmas. I will try to find time to keep my blog updated more often. I've been taking pictures off all my recent crafting so I'll be sure to post everything soon!!!!
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Start of new junk oracle, inspired by lefthandedgoth of swap-bot and etsy. Hosting a group swap in Crafty Witches for a items to include in a junk oracle.
done for an upcoming 60's dotee doll swap on swap-bot. I just loved to sew on denim this time around, with felt, glass beads, and rainbow yarn for her hair, Her name: Janis!
Today, February 27th, is International Polar Bear Day. These beautiful creatures continue to face challenges associated with a warming Arctic and global warming, so do your part! Did you know that “heating and cooling account for roughly half the energy consumption in an average home, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)?” Participate in the Thermostat Challenge, and change your habits for the better.
Its no secret I love me some aliens, so over on swap bot (so much fun swapping stuff with folks, by the way) I hosted my first Dotee Doll swap and the theme? Out of This World. Want to see what I made? (insert spaceship flying noises here) Im just so pleased that my idea worked out (using…
Traded on Swap-bot. Made using old letter (dated 1937), photos from the antique store, mica, text from books found at recycle center, brads, and ink.
For a swap on swap-bot.com. The top left block is the only one in the picture that has been cut to the correct size required in the swap. Except for the top left block, these are 7"x7" and will be cut to 6 1/2" x 6 1/2".
You really can't go wrong with Ernie the Envie :) Graphics of Ernie from the Swap-bot Graphics & Stuff page by Rachel Johnson. Air mail stickers from Chelsey Barnes.
Peaches and Cream are ready to go meet their new mommies...I hope they find them as cute as I do!
I have few more fantastic Ernie the Envie (Swap-bot’s envelope logo mascot) craft creations to share…
Gypsy Dotee w/tarrot cards.
Since joining swap-bot I’ve discovered that I really like journaling! I find it to be fun, enlightening, and just something I can really lose myself in and express exactly how I feel. The …
