This and That

 Wow, August is almost over already...where has the summer been going? These next two weeks are going to fly by for me as most days I have some appointment to go to -just yearly appts. and check ups now that offices are open-and in addition I have several appointments to take my Mom to. So I may be a bit late getting to everyone over at T Stands For Tuesday tomorrow as the appointments begin ;)

 I posted this journal page over on IG but wanted to share it here too because I do love the way it turned out! I'll join in one last time this week at Try It On Tuesday for the theme of Words and Numbers:

Products:
Dina Wakley Media Journal, paints- Magenta, Tangerine, Elephant; stamps- Good Idea set, and Always Flowers set; Scribble Sticks- set 2; Darkroom Door stamp set- Number Medley, stencil-Circles; Jet Black Archival ink; Black Marabu Art Spray; Wendy Vecchi Brick Wall stencil; Black Fude Ball pen. Hexagon "stencil" is a cut out scrapbook cardstock I used as a stencil.

 For T Stands for Tuesday this week I will share our meals from our dinner out with friends the other week. The Limeport Inn is a lovely old restaurant with excellent food and service. We hope one day to be able to go and eat inside near the fireplace.

 Hubby and I shared a Caesar salad - and even sharing it was a huge plate full for both of us-and oh so good! Our friends shared a roasted beet, arugula, goat's cheese salad- the one I was tempted to get:) Bill had a German beer and the rest of us had Cabernet Sauvignon.

 And for something other than my usual choice of fish of some kind I chose the Chicken Marsala and it was divine with the perfectly made sauce and bites of crab, mushrooms and asparagus on top of the tender chicken breasts which had a mound of mashed potatoes underneath.

  Hubby's choice- Chicken Parmesan! Wendy had a pasta dish,  her hubby had the meatloaf-and we all agreed our meals were wonderful. The portions were so large we each took a doggie bag home and enjoyed a second full meal the next day:) Cheers!

 The new theme over at the Simon Says Monday Challenge is "Grunge It Up", and this month's theme at Art Journal Journey is "Pockets and Tags".There is a new two week challenge at Try It On Tuesday (Splashes and Splatters) I'll join in the three with this journal page:

 Products: Manila tag, Jet Black Archival ink- Ranger Ink; Paper dolls, Snarky Small Talk, mini stapler- Tim Holtz. Gloss sprays- Lime, Fuschia, Lemon; Collage Collective; Media Journal Blue edition; Mini Favorites, Fractured Circles stencils-all Dina Wakley. Faux stitching stamp- Whimsy Stamps. Marabu Black Art Spray.

 And that's all for this week folks! Joining in at Paint Party Friday also. Wishing you a happy and safe week ahead!

"It is not the magnitude of our actions but the amount of love that is put into them that matters."

                                                        Mother Teresa

Gloss Spray Play!

 Hi Peeps! How is everyone? We've continued to bake in heat and humidity here with only relief early AM or after sunset. Hubby's had the week off so it's been nice to sit out late with a glass of wine. Needless to say it was a staycation which should have been the beach vacation. But it was still nice just to relax, meet with a couple for outdoor dining  one day, and meet with friends for outdoor swimming and grilling another day. We also ventured out to a shopping center for the first time as hubby needed to get a shirt and order a vest for our son's wedding late October. Despite all the Covid rules and distancing it actually felt good to walk about a few stores (each individual storefront is outside) including Barnes and Noble:) No crowds either so we felt comfortable. Have you gone out or met with friends or family?

 OK, on to my photo for T Stands For Tuesday and then the art play!

 For one of our dinners I made shrimp scampi along with a new quinoa salad recipe I made-and it was divine with it's tropical notes - mango, lime and unsweetened coconut shaves - along with pumpkin seeds, red pepper, and some red onion. The recipe was in our newspaper and I just knew it would be good! We chose a Pinot Noir (we don't follow wine pairing rules) and it went quite nicely with our meal. Cheers!

 I had lots of fun (and quite messy!) two days playing with my Dina Wakley/Ranger Ink Gloss Sprays after watching the online class:
 Playing with abstract flower painting using the sprays:

 This one done on watercolor page in the original Dina Wakley Media Journal.

I also practiced one on a scrap of heavy cardstock:

and then on a tag which I then added to a journal page (the page background had been done quite awhile ago with many layers):

Tag was glued to page. I added stenciling using Tim Holtz Honeycomb stencil and Fossilized Amber Distress Oxide ink to blend it into the page. Bees are from a napkin. A scrap of distressed corrugated cardboard and a Tim Holtz sentiment sticker finished it off.
Joining in at Art Journal Journey (theme is Pockets and tags); Try It On Tuesday (Words or Numbers); and the Simon Says Monday Challenge (Summer Memories). Summer flowers, summer bees, enjoying the simple things.

 A bit more gloss spray play:

My very wonky gloss spray faces on a scrap paper using the stem of Night Gloss Spray to draw them.They are meant to be abstract- you don't have a choice - because the amount of paint that comes out of the stem as you draw is very unpredictable.  I def. need more practice-;)

And a favorite of mine- puddling, moving, scraping the sprays around for abstract backgrounds!!:

 The three of these (although I cropped them square) were done on Dina Wakley's loose cotton rag watercolor sheets. Do you have a favorite? I used all Gloss Sprays in many colors so I won't list them but if you have a ? about a color just ask.

 It's a given that I will also be joining in at Paint Party Friday too:) Have a super week everyone!

" Flowers are the music of the ground. From Earth's lips spoken without sound."   Edwin Curran

Long Challenge Completed and More

                                                                58/61

                                                               59/61

                                                              60/61

                                                             61/61

 Finally the 61 day Index Card a Day Challenge on Instagram has ended and I made it through! Now I have a deck of 61 positive affirmation cards-quotes on the June cards, and words on the July cards:

 It was a fun challenge but I'm also glad it has ended as I am quite ready to move on to other things;)

 Like making birthday cards I'll be needing for this month. Our heat wave continues but it's the heavy humidity that is keeping me in more than out during the day and that gives me more time for art. I am linking these to both the Simon Says Wednesday Challenge (Anything Goes), and the Simon Says Monday Challenge ( Happy Birthday!). The Simon Says Monday Challenge is celebrating 10 years-congrats to all, and here's to at least 10 more!!

My cards:

 I decided to keep them CAS using patterned cardstocks from the same mat stack ( Mariposa -DCWV). They are prettier in person because the butterflies don't show their glittery goodness in the photo.
Other products: large white notecards (Recollections); stitched Circles dies (Our Daily Bread designs).Sentiment on cards 1 and 3 (Stampabilities Clear set). Sentiment on cards 2 and 4 (Hero Arts). Versafine Onyx Black ink, Versamark ink; Staz On Spiced Chai ink; brown cardstock (Bazzill Basics Paper); white embossing powder; washi tape (Recollections); border punch (Fiskars).

 For T Stands For Tuesday I will share the clafoutis I made and had with coffee:

 It is a mixed berry clafoutis. I make cherry clafoutis ( my French family's recipe) every summer but when Chef Joanne Weir shared this version on Instagram I knew I had to make it- blueberries, nectarines, and plums- delicious! and light too:)

 It went so well with my morning coffee. Cheers!

 There is a new challenge for the month of August over at Art Journal Journey .The guest host is Alison aka Craftytrog. Alison has chosen the theme of "Pockets and Tags" so here is my journal page:

 I have now begun playing with the Dina Wakley Gloss sprays on my journal pages and on tags and sheets of watercolor paper, following lessons from her Gloss Spray online class. I really LOVE these sprays! Here I used Lemon, Lime, Turquoise, Carnation, and Night. I also used DW Penny and Night paints,  Mini Favorites and Squoval stencils; Collage Collective; Words Collage Tissue. The tag was done at an earlier date. I have a container filled with tags I have made so now some will get repurposed;)

 Tomorrow we are expecting heavy winds, rains and damaging thunderstorms from tropical storm Isaias so if we lose power I will catch up with the T gang later. Hope things don't get too stormy where you live.

Joining Paint Party Friday later this week. TTFN!

"Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside of them was superior to circumstance."    Bruce Barton