Candyland Christmas Tree Decor

I took my daughter to "Decorator's Warehouse - Texas' #1 Christmas Store" to oooooh and aaaaaah.  It was beautiful.  So many fabulous ways to decorate if you have the BIG BUCKS!!!  My daughter fell in love with the Candy land scene - pastel colors, candy, cupcake and ice cream shapes and lots of glitter.

But many things they can make, I can make better.  So I bought an ice cream cone, a lollipop, and a cupcake and went to work.  Here's the Lollipop:

I made four of them.  Each took a half yard of upholstery trim that I had to remove the cloth edge from.  I used a hot glue gun to form the spiral, then glues a painted wooden craft stick to the back.  I sprayed tacky glue and covered it in sprinkles.  When it dried I sprayed it with polyurethane and added a ribbon (I used a large eye needle with the ribbon threaded in it to poke through the spiral).

I also finished a cupcake, and I'm so proud of if I'm placing the original next to it in the picture for comparison...

The pink frosted one of the left is a Raz ornament I purchased.  The one on the right is mine.  I bought the cupcake holders and made a cardboard insert to strengthen it.  Then I needle felted yellow roving onto a Styrofoam ball.  I cut another Styrofoam ball in half and placed that in the bottom of the cupcake, glued the felted ball on top, then glued on pom poms and sparkles - eh Voila!  I like mine much better!!!  I made six of different pastel colors.  I can't wait for my daughter to see them.

Christmas Time is Here!

I receive a newsletter from May Arts ribbon (www.mayarts.com).  They sell wholesale only, but they have a fun Blog with lots a ideas, tutorials, giveaways and challenges.  I finally decided to participate in a challenge.

May Arts sent me four ribbons and I was to create a Christmas project using each of them.  Here it is:

  I call it "The Gnomes at Home for Christmas"

I found these Gnome couples for sale a few years ago and fell in love - The lady reminds me of my image of the perfect Grandma:  A big smile and a big lap to hold the grandchildren on.

I made these boxes last year:

They didn't sell in my little stall in "Wishes and Dreams".  Wrong clientele - mainly people looking for Jewelry, purses, and commercially made stuff.  I'm putting these up for sale in my ETSY shop...

Cannon Pro 9000 Mark II - Great Printer!!!

My Epson Artisan finally gave up printing my heavy card stock tags, so I got a new printer for Christmas (a bit early, I know).  After much research, and some advice from Melissa Walker, creative genius behind the creations for sale at Immortal Visions on ETSY, I settled on the Cannon Pro 9000 Mark II.  It's strictly a printer, but prints my heavy card stock beautifully without a moment's hesitation!!!!!!  It will also print wide/long paper.  I love it!!

I'm keeping my Epson for the scanner and to print standard weight papers.

Speaking of Immortal Visions, check out these awesome Christmas tags I bought from her - they're just gorgeous!!   Here's the link to her store...  http://www.etsy.com/shop/ImmortalVisions?ref=seller_info

Here's the last of this season's Halloween creations - I have started on Christmas, finally.  I was thinking of the theme...It was a dark and spooky Christmas.  What do you think?

Christmas Tag Freebie

I have been spending many hours playing with Photoshop Elements.  I just finished some Christmas tags and added a link so you can download and print them.  The one shown includes an image from The Christmas Carol, illustrated by Arthur Rackham, one my favorite illustrators!

Dollar Store Crafts!

I love the way this candle turned out!  It's a glass jar from the dollar store.  I cut out black images and glued them on, then wrapped used fabric softener sheets around it and inserted a dollar store battery operated candle.

This is my dollar store foam pumpkin decoupaged with a bargain bin napkin and sprayed with glitter.

No camping this weeked due to the burn ban!  So I guess I'll have more time to create more stuff I don't need.  If you see anything you'd like to have - let me know!

The White Rabbit

I've always had a facination with the character of the White Rabbit - especially as an Edwardian gentleman.  Here's my latest representation of this fine fellow.  He's made from of clay and supporting armature.  I need to learn how to use my camera better!  I cannot seem to take good pictures.

Etsy Shop

I finally decided to list a few things on Etsy.  My shop is SisterBrute's Menagerie.

I actually sold the one item I had listed within a few days - my Forgotten Skeleton, so I listed a couple more things tonight.  It's soooo incredibly fun to know someone else likes the things I create!  Good thing, too.  They're really starting to take over the entire house - rather insidiously.

I'm still at it...

I've been busy making miniatures - books, candles, jars filled with eyeballs and fangs, etc.

Now I've started putting them together... on thrift store finds that I have re-purposed.
               

I just love my little trick or treater all wrapped up like a mummy.  Or maybe he really is a mummy acting like a trick or treater.


And this is a collage on an old plaque from the thrift store....

And here is my lighted diorama.  It was lots of work, but when I have the lights flashing in it, I know  it was worth it.  It's very spooky.

I started with a shadow box from the thrift store, and a plastic bride & groom set.  I decapitated them and added skulls from dollar tree decorations.  The fireplace is a doll house miniature.  I made a red candle from some cheese I recently ate and stuck it in a skull bead.  I printed a picture of Poe and put him in a doll house frame.  Too much fun!

More Halloween Creations

A decoupaged wooden tissue box cover...

Fabric over stretched canvas with added embelishments...

And my pride and joy...    A diorama...      Love for the Lost

Halloween is taking over

I love making decoupaged houses.  I have collected tons of miniatures to decorate haunted rooms and witch's lairs as well.  I painted some little devils and vampires and added felt capes.  I found the pattern at weefolkart.com - http://weefolkart.com/content/free-patterns-gallery#gg0

It's a really fun web site!

My latest favorite came about as I opened a padded envelope.  It was made from small white bubble wrap.   I just thought it looked like the inside of a padded cell...  I have lots of skeletons around, and a straight jacket was easy enough to make...

Here's a Freebie...  I am starting to get the hang of Photoshop Elements.  I made this collage for a chalkboard:

My fabulous craft room

OK - so maybe it's a bit hard to walk around in there, but I love it!  My home within my home. Ideas abound!  Creativity wafts through the air like a haunting memory.  I do tidy it up, but it returns to it's state of equilibrium at a remarkable speed.

Long, Hot Summer

It is so hot already!  If it weren't for swimming and crickets, I wouldn't like summer at all!

At least I no longer feel compelled to creat for anything except Halloween!!!  Below is Mariah.  She is buttery soft and sweet as can be.

And here is Buff.  He's a bit of a whiner.  I have to put in time out quite often, but I don't think he'll ever learn.  He likes the negative attention too much!

I'm having way too much fun creating spooky houses from old wooden and plastic houses and images I print.  I wondering if I should add glimmer?  I wonder if I should sell some on Etsy?

Here's a new favorite Blog for some great FREE digital images:   http://alteredbits.com/free_art.php

Back to the craft room I go!!!

Multimedia Art!?

Here's an attempt at multimedia art....

It's composed of newsprint, paper cutouts, a tag with netting and a metal heart charm, on ripped cardboard with gesso and acrylic paint.  It evolved over several months.  I call it "That's Gratitude for You".  Creative, aren't I?  (That was meant to be facetious.)

Well, it was fun to make.

A vintage Articulated Rabbit Freebie

I bought a vintage cardboard Easter decoration that had been damaged.  I scanned it then fixed it up using Adobe Photoshop Elements.  I added a foot that had been torn off, cleaned up some tears and removed the ears so it could be printed and reassembled.




  It's a Beistle.  I have no idea about the copyright.
After Easter comes Alice in Wonderland day, so here are some of my crafts in preparation.  They are found items that needed love and/or rebirth:

More Alice stuff to come!