The Beauty Of This Life

 

 Hi peeps, how's everything? Hard to believe July is almost over.... A fabulous few days of summer sun- but without the humidity and I love it! I did also manage to spend a bit more time in my art room to work in some blog challenges too. 

 I'll begin with the challenge over at Art Journal Journey with guest host Alison and the theme of "summer countryside" for this month:

 I created this page in the Dina Wakley kraft square journal. I used Dina Wakley paints, a black Stabilo All pencil, black Fude Ball pen, black Marabu Art Spray, a butterfly fussy cut from a collage sheet, and a computer generated quote.

 For the new Simon Says Monday Blog Challenge (wild with washi), and the new Tag Tuesday Challenge (flowers/floral) I made this tag:

 Products: manila tag which I covered with Tim Holtz washi tape set -Postal; Sponged over it with Distress Oxide Bundled Sage ink. Black spatters- black Marabu Art Spray, white spatters Dina Wakley white Gloss Spray. Flowers (Dina Wakley Always Flowers stamp set) stamped on kraft card stock using Versafine Onyx Black ink. bee is from a napkin. Sentiment is from Tim Holtz Clippings stickers. Tag edged with the Versafine Onyx Black ink.

 

 Let's have a break- grab a refreshment and join host Bleubeard and Elizabeth for T Stands For Tuesday. For this week I'm sharing a light yummy dinner I made for hubby and I on Saturday:

 I made a homemade basil vinaigrette  for this albacore tuna/green bean/northern bean salad with romaine lettuce and topped with grated fresh Parmesan. Some fresh Tuscan garlic bread on the side, and a Bordeaux to sip with it... a perfect summer meal! Cheers!

 And now to the index card art (continuing the daily challenge which ends July 31st). I started a new off prompt series! This time using lots of layers on the card backgrounds inspired by a method Courtney Earl - brand ambassador for The Crafters Workshop supplies. She posts the most colorful, amazing art on Instagram (scrappy_girl7867)!!

 Here are the supplies I used for the following cards:

 Not pictured are the Tim Holtz Paper Dolls I'm using or the Tim Holtz Snarky Small Talk stickers.

and for the next cards in this series I changed out some of the paint colors, stencils and such:

 Happy to join Paint Party Friday with my post as well. Have a fun filled week all!

" Since love grows within you, so beauty grows. For love is the beauty of the soul."    Saint Augustine

Another Week Of Heat!

 

 It's been another week of heat and humidity making the air feel thick like soup most of the days (feeling like up to 100 F)- even I don't like that. The early mornings and later evenings were much nicer, and tolerable. We also had daily storm warnings but somehow our valley was protected from every one that came in our area. And unlike the horrible rains in Germany that sadly caused so much damage and loss of life  we got so little I still had to water all the plants every day- sometimes twice a day. 

 As for a birdie update- the finches in the nest on our front porch have flown the coop:). And the wrens in our back yard planter are still active but there are still NO eggs.

 For T Stands For Tuesday - I'm asking a favor of you Nicole/DVArtist. I had a few requests for links to your Almond Cookie recipe I made and shared in my last post but I was unable to find that post on your blog. Perhaps you could repost it?

 And my ticket for  the link up today is one more meal from our last time in Cape May:

 

Our last dinner before leaving Cape May the next morning was at The Merion Inn. This is the place we most always have dinner to end our stay. We split a Caesar salad which came with fresh warm rolls and mini muffins. Our wine choice was J Lohr Cabernet Sauvignon and I had my usual broiled scallops with veggies du jour and their famous potato cup- yum! It was SO nice to see familiar faces along with the same wonderful service and food.

 And again this week all I have art - wise to share are my index cards for the ICAD Challenge. Only one more week and a half before the challenge ends on July 31. I have been busy watching the Tour de France (which ended on Sunday) and spending more time doing outdoor things and knocking off various doctor appointments one at a time so hopefully there will be no winter time appointments😉

ICAD 43/61

    ICAD 44/61

                                                                        ICAD 45/61

These are the last 3 of 5 in my sub series using Daniel Smith Opera Pink and Cascade Green watercolors. Please see my last post for other details.

 And now is another part of this series- for the next 5 cards I have used all the same techniques but switched out my Daniel Smith watercolors to Pthalo Blue (red shade) and Quinacridone Deep Gold: 

              ICAD 46/61

            ICAD 47/61

              ICAD 48/61

              ICAD 49/61

               ICAD 50/61

 Sorry for some of the wonky/uncentered things in this post. I tried but Blogger wasn't cooperating so well.

 Joining Paint Party Friday with my index card art!

Have a super week everyone 🤗

"People will be most creative when they feel motivated primarily by the interest, enjoyment, satisfaction and challenge of the work itself."
                                                    Teresa Amabile

Creative Play

 

 What a crazy weather week it's been in our parts again! Sudden downpours and thunderstorms in between bouts of hot sun with very high humidity and heat index levels. Luckily we never lost power nor had hail or damaging winds like some areas did. Aah, but we have yet another week of this same weather to deal with. Glad  my nesting birds have stayed safe:) Above is my latest peek at the three house finches in my front porch geranium basket. They now have most all their feathers. As for the Carolina wrens in our back porch basket- there are no eggs yet, just lots of activity.

 I spent much of this past Saturday in the kitchen baking - a French chocolate cake for my Mom's birthday dinner the next day (which I totally forgot to take any photos of), and finally I made the almond cookie recipe that Nicole (DVArtist) shared on her blog quite awhile ago for one of the T Stands For Tuesday gatherings.  I DID stop to take a photo while enjoying one or two with my coffee but it wasn't easy. These cookies are absolutely delicious- and friends and family who had some LOVED them!! So, thank you Nicole:

 and cheers to the T gang!

 For the art this week it's just going to be my latest index card art as I really didn't have time for anything else. 

Starting where I left off in my last post:

 In this off prompt series I started it with 5 landscape format cards, and then switched to vertical format for these next 5- all the backgrounds were done the same way;

 

Starting by gluing patterned tissue papers (from Joggles orders), and then adding lots of mark making with stencils, Posca pens, pencil, water soluble crayons:

before finishing each with a botanical and a sentiment from a collage sheet from Paper Whimsy:

 ICAD 36/61 flower is a Dina Wakley stamp

ICAD 37/61 flower is a stamp from Local King

      

ICAD 38/61 flower pods are hand drawn

ICAD39/61 Leaves is a stamp by Dylusions/Dyan Reavely

ICAD 40/61 Tree stamp is from Magenta

 And I am now on to another series of 10 similar style ICADs- this time using watercolors, collage, letter tiles (Tim Holtz), and a word from a typed collage sheet I've had in my stash for quite some time;) These backgrounds were inspired by You Tube Videos by Shanouki Art:

         ICAD 41/61 (for these first 5 cards in this series I am using my very favorite Daniel Smith Opera Pink, along with Cascade Green)

ICAD 42/61

 I've had these tile letters for so long and either had to find a way to use them or let them go 😁  Joining in at Paint Party Friday later this week. Will try and get back into some of the other blog challenges next week. Until then, have a super week ahead!

" The creative process includes exploring, experimenting, messing around with materials, being playful, entering into the unknown."       Natalie Rogers

Index Card Art (Mostly)

 

 

 Hi Peeps! Hope those of you in the USA had a nice 4th of July weekend. We were quite thankful that the people in the neighborhood setting off fireworks kept it minimal and safe as there were none of the fireworks that aren't legal or meant for residences ( as we have experienced in some prior years). It was just hubby and I  at home - no parties or picnics- and we enjoyed watching Yankee Doodle Dandy  on TV again:)

 The pic above is of the three sleepy, and thriving finches in the hanging basket on our front porch. The Carolina wrens in our back yard basket are still bringing in bits of this and that adding to the nest. I did not see any eggs yet. 

 There is a new guest host and theme at Art Journal Journey for this month. Alison has chosen the theme of "Summer Countryside" and so I just made this page for it:

 The page is spattered with Dina Wakley Gloss Spray in Aloe. The stencils were also sprayed with various colors of Gloss Sprays and then fussy cut. I made a super simple sun from patterned paper. the bees are from a napkin, and the sentiment is a Tim Holtz Small Talk sticker. I remember quite fondly lots of rides through the countrysides in France with family, passing many fields of flowers, grains, or animals and stopping along the road at some point for a picnic. I cherish those memories 💖 And speaking of, I am thoroughly enjoying the Tour De France live daily on TV right now!

 For T Stands For Tuesday I have another dinner to share from our last time in Cape May:

 

 We both had this delicious crab cake dinner at Hemingway's which is another fave restaurant of ours. it was accompanied by a fresh red pepper sauce, perfectly done green beans and a wonderful risotto. And yes Elizabeth, we do enjoy a good dry wine with our dinners especially when we're on vacation. At home it's only on Saturday and Sunday 😉 Cheers!

 And now on to the ICADS (Index Card A day challenge):

ICAD 29/61

ICAD 30/61

My month of June cards all together

 In June my theme was to use my index card backgrounds I had made using the Gelli Plate along with all the collage bits I have collected over the years:) For the month of July I will work in a series of themes. My first 10 cards will start with backgrounds of patterned tissue papers (which were the wrappings that came with my Joggles orders): Here are the five landscape format cards I started with:

 I think these tissue papers are just wonderful! I then did LOTS of mark making layers over them following a free online tutorial series hosted by Wendy Solganik. She had begun by creating on a large, blank sheet of watercolor paper to make a master board and then when finished cut it apart to tag or card size to further collage on. I decided to start with these patterned backgrounds.

 My cards after all the layers:

  I will be using sentiments from a digi collage sheet from Paper Whimsy  along with either a stamp image or one I drew myself. And here are my cards:

 ICAD 31/61. Image hand drawn.

                                        ICAD 32/61. Image is an old Hero Arts stamp.

                                         ICAD 33/61. Image is hand drawn.

                                           ICAD 34/61. Image is hand drawn.

                                          ICAD 35/61. Image is an old rubber stamp.

  And that's a wrap for this week! Also joining Paint Party Friday. I'll be around visiting throughout the week and weekend to see what you're all up to 😁

                          " A flower blossoms for its own joy". Oscar Wilde