And I Love Paper

We all do, don't we, and don't you think that the scrapbook paper world in the last 5 years or so has just gone crazy with color, textures, patterns, etc., etc.?!   I never was a "scrapper", and I think one of the  reasons  why  was because that I was never that crazy about the selection of scrapbook paper--either just plain colors or too cutesy, but not anymore.  When you go online to see all of the different kinds, you could be looking for a LONG time.  I like to go to Michael's or AC Moore's to just look at the papers for color combinations and inspiration , and I love the big paper pads that you can get with all the coordinating papers. 

And how about  the  2-sided paper?  How cool is that?!   I was at AC Moore's  last week and I found a 2-sided  one that  I really liked,  and it was not my normal colors that I would go for, but I decided to use it for my next piece using only the colors of it  (you know--the 'with one pallette thing' again).

(Love those cupboard doors!)  It's the icy blues--in person, it's actually more of a gray-blue, and the buttery creams, and white!  I never use white, and I put away the black. I usually use black for outlining or edging--I did use brown though.   So the background of this was the one side of the paper--

It's beautiful paper---scrapbook paper has come a long way.  And the flowers  have lots of texture with Golden's soft molding paste. The centers I did with tiny beads and Crsytal Lacquer, which I talked about and showed more on this post.

And how about this vase? --looks like I  finally got that 2-step crackle method down--

No.....that's the other side of the paper--I just added some highlights with paint.

And on the frame part of the door,  I combined both sides of the paper with crackle paste and those little beads again--it almost looks like it was all just painted on.

I'm really happy with the results!

But I still like to paint my own papers, and I've been busy doing just that.  This time, I wanted to use some fun colors.  I've been getting alot of different colors that I've never had before, and what better way to play around with them.

They'll be here waiting for me  when I  get  back!

Because tomorrow I'm leaving to go to the City that never sleeps, The Big Apple (do they still call it that?)---New York City!!  My son has lots of plans for us.  He teaches at a college in New Jersey, so he isn't working  right  now, which  makes it great.  And I'm  going  to  try my darndest to post photos every night, because I want you all to come along with us and have fun too.  I'm not sure about Monday's plans,  except for one.  We're going to the David Letterman show--COOL!  So if you watch on Monday night, I might just be on TV--stay tuned!

A Fun Little Technique

I've been adding on to my patchwork colleciton--

These are 4 x 12 wrapped canvases,  which I also found at Jo Ann's when I was there.  It was a  pack of 3, so I'm  making another one also.  The technique I wanted to show you is on this one--

The flowers are made from  Golden's soft molding paste--

But I actually talked about this technique here.  What I wanted to show you was this one--

I started out by applying this to the spots that I wanted to apply the beads--

Crystal Lacquer--it's just like Diamond Glaze, but I like it alot better.  You don't get the tiny air bubbles like you do with the Diamond Glaze. If you've never used it  before, the results end  up being like the  2 part resin.  It has a very glassy, dimensional look, and it's an excellent adhesive. Also, if you apply multiple layers, it will get more dimensional looking.  Which is what I did--

It was still wet here when I took these photos, but  it does dry clear, which takes a couple of hours to be completely dry. I squeeze a small amount on the surface, add whatever to it, and then keep repeating the process until I'm satisfied.  I haven't done this in a while. It's also fun when you're collaging and want to scatter things--I've used buttons, old jewelry pieces, anything!  It's nice to use for small projects.  I've  never actually used the 2 part resin--has anyone?  It looks a bit tricky.