The World is My Inspiration Gatefold Shrine

Hello everyone, Lora here with Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts and this month we are cross promoting with Canvas Corp with a fun 'Small Worlds' theme.
Here is my offering, inspired by the fun Architectures Parchment Rub-Ons, Live and

the images from the bits and pieces of the Mixed Media Junque Pack-Wanderlust Collection. Looking at the image of the camels and the caravan in the background of this picture, I thought of 'Out of Africa' and off I went.

I used the tags from the collection as pockets and filled them with the kind of memorabilia one gathers on a long journey. Tags and ticket stubs, bits of postcards and a picture or two.
Travel by camel or plane, however you do it, just go out and see the world! It will surprise you by how large it feels and how small it becomes when you see how much we all have in common.
I began with the Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts Square Shrine Gatefold.

I painted what will be the front of two smaller pieces brown and what will be the back of the center piece brown.

Then the center piece (edges only) the same brown on the other side.
I used the 7Gypsies American Vintage Collection Paper 'Across USA' as my background for the inside of all three pieces of the Gatefold.
When I cut the paper for the large center piece, I made sure to leave about a 1/8 inch of brown reveal around the edges.
I cut out the postcards from the Wish You Were Here scrapbook paper from the American Vintage Paper Collection and used one of these as the opening on the front of the Gatefold, by cutting it in half and trimming it a bit to show some of the brown paint as a reveal on the top and bottom of the front flaps.

I also used one of the postcards as a base for the rub-on of the cute boy in the biplane.

I used Copic markers to brighten up the image, trimmed the post card so it would fit inside the center at an angle, inked it up and glued it down.
So cute!
I also used the bicycle and suitcases rub-on for the front cover. I think they add a bit of whimsy and dimension.

I found the quote 'The World Is My Inspiration' on the back of the packaging for the Architectures Parchment Rub-Ons, Live! It's nice that Canvas Corp has packaging that's nice enough to craft with!

SUPPLIES:
From
Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts
Square Shrine Gatefold.

From
Canvas Corp Brands
Architectures Parchment Rub-Ons, Live
American Vintage Collection Paper 'Across USA'
American Vintage Paper Collection 'Wish You Were Here
Mixed Media Junque Pack-Wanderlust Collection

Thank you for flying by!

Make-and-Take class Halloween Triptych

For all my Make-and-Take ladies....what we are doing Friday, September 29th!
We'll have lots of fun collage sheets, trims, and ephemera as well as the scattering of skellies, moons and antikamnia skeletons pictured below.
There are only 13 spaces in the class, so let's fill it up and have some fun!

Remember, we meet at the Creative Arts Center the last Friday of every month from noon until three pm.  And you must call the Reynolds Homestead and reserve a space.
Hope I see you there!

Studio Progress

An quick update on what's been happening. We've gone from this...

to this....

then this...

and here we are today!

Of course, this doesn't show all the hours and hours of work involved in getting this far, but hey, that's the magic of progress shots! Next step is painting, which is my favorite. Stay tuned.
Thank you for stopping in, I love y'all!

The Strange Kidlets Halloween Fold-out Book

I cannot get enough of Halloween. I have been having fun with these little fold-out books and here's another one...this time it's strangely gifted children. Or maybe gifted kidlets who are strange. Whatever. They are all a bit peculiar in one way or another and that makes them interesting.

This little girl, let's call her Wilhelmina, shall we? Some children have lemonade stands or sell cookies. Little Willa looks like she could whip you up a good old repel spell or a homework charm faster than you can cackle.

And this kidlet, James-Luce has got himself a rather interesting sidekick. Both styling with their green top hats. I wonder which one of them is reading that stack of books?

James-Luce has informed me that Hodge (the cat) is currently reading "Anthropology and Mythical Creatures, a Study of Synchronistic World Tales" aloud at tea time. So there we have it.

And these two, Tyburn and Thalia have scarpered off to a large pumpkin patch where they have release the flying pumpkins and plan on joining them for a wild flight across the river and on to the local pub for some fish and chips and a fizzy lemonade. They look a bit guilty, but I don't think anyone has noticed that the flying pumpkins have gone missing again.

So yes, they are all a bit strange, but I certainly will not be pointing any fingers. Heh.

And  now, a quick little tutorial on how I did the letters on the back of the book.
Since I had already painted the backs of the book pages, I decided to attach the letters to some card stock for contrast and easier reading.

After edging the card stock with ink, I glued the letters down and let them dry. I glued them down to the page backs and gave them a coat of matte medium to take the shine off of them.

Once everything was dry, I used a fine tip Sharpie Paint Marker to outline the letters, and then filled them in with a broader tipped marker. Then added a couple of dots to each page for a little extra detail. Super easy and very effective!

Here you can see, using a larger marker, I filled in the letters to give them a bit more punch.

 If you would like to see a tutorial on how the book was constructed, click this LINK.

For a complete list of supplies from the wonderful Alpha Stamps click HERE.
Supplies:
Arch Top House Silhouette
Dresden Trim:
Black Zig Zag Dresden Borders
Tiny Dot Dresden Borders
Little Sweeties Collage Sheet
Halloween Dress Up Collage Sheet
I've been Mooned Collage Sheet (the peeking eyes at the bottom of the far right house)
Creepy Tree-8 Inch
Stickles: Lime and Black Diamond
various scrap bits from both G45 Olde Curiosity Shoppe and And Eerie Tale from the 8x8 paper pad.

Black acrylic paint
White acrylic paint 

Thank you for stopping by!

The Witching Hour is Time for Tea

Hello all! Lora Mahaffey here in full Halloween mode. My favorite holiday. I know, I have never said that before.
I'm enjoying playing with all the wonderfully rich fall colors. I am looking forward to rustling leaves, sweater weather and all things pumpkin (pumpkin muffins!). And tea on the porch wrapped up against the early morning chill.
The ladies have been doing late night recon.....flying about, checking on the night birds and woodland creatures, making sure the forest is healthy, celebrating the night, the stars and the beautiful moon. All is well, so they've given their brooms a needed rest and it's time for tea!

I began with the Display Tray Dome (which is coming soon!).

I painted the front frame work black and papered the back with a becoming shade of gray.

Using the front frame work as a template I lightly drew around it, defining the spaces and allowing me to work within them without the frame being in the way. You can kind of see the pencil marks. Sorry for the not very clear picture, I think you can see what I mean.

I then began composing and then gluing the main images into the frames I liked them in. Trying to be mindful of balance and visual weight. You can see the pencil marka bit better here.

After all the main players were glued down, I glued the face frame in place. It makes a big difference!

Now it's time to play! I didn't have a plan for this. I just played with various things I cut out that caught my eye until they looked right and the ladies started to take on more personality. I also played with my favorite tool of the moment...a Sharpie Poster Paint Pen (I like the acrylic one NOT the oil based one) and added some dots and swirls.

I think this lady really likes her candy corn. And she has pretty fab hair.

And why not a little masked dancing with your favorite bats after tea?

SUPPLIES:
Display Tray Dome (coming soon)

Acrylic Paint (black and white)
Sharpie Fine Poster Paint Marker (white)
Stickles in Lime Green, Black Diamond, Sunflower and Orange Peel
 Various Collage Images from Sandy Gordon's ART TEA LIFE

Thank you for stopping by!