christytomlinson

You have my heart....

Last day of twenty 10... This year has been packed full of memories.. Good and happy memories and sad and hard memories too... It's been a year of trials but also a year of triumphs. I've had experiences that have brought me to my knees and ones that have restored my soul. It's the year I learned to be more compassionate, more forgiving... more understanding. I learned that sometimes we need to walk away from things that are good... And cling to the ones that are BEST. I will remember this year as one of my favorites because it's the year I've finally started to grasp who I am.. why I am here and the potential I have.. as a mother, wife, sister, daughter, friend. This year has been one of the hardest and most rewarding years of my life and I wouldn't change a second of it. You have my heart twenty ten.. Can't wait for 2011!!

 

You are my sunshine.... and Audrey Bandley CD winner.

 

I love this song!  My mom used to sing that to me when I was little... and I sang it to my kids as well. I have one child in particular.. Allie Belle, who really IS my sunshine. Allie, who is 11.. LOVES yellow. Seriously this girl is obsessed! Everything she buys, she wants it in yellow. This year for Christmas she asked for yellow shoes, yellow socks, a yellow coat, yellow pj's, yellow gloves, yellow hat.. yellow bedspread.. she really seriously adores the color yellow. If you ask her, she says she liked yellow long before it became a cool color.. and I have to admit, she has. She has never been a pink girl.. she did go through a blue phase.. but yellow came on pretty early and hasn't really gone away..

A few months ago, Allie asked me if I would create an art canvas for her.. OF her.. I said sure.. but kept putting in on the back burner as I do a lot of things my kids ask me to do. (that is one of my goal for 2011 just in-case you were wondering...to listen to my kids more).  So yesterday I finally decided to make it for her.  

She loves wearing hats and headbands, so I really wanted to try and tackle a hat.. she loves wearing those knitted hats with the side flaps..  but it didn't work out as well as I had planned. (you can see here I had it sketched out.. didn't quite execute it the way I wanted to though. )

 

That is something I WILL tackle another time though.. but for now, I went with a headband.. plus it showcased her personality to much more. So this is what I ended up with!

I used an old simplicity pattern to back the 6x12 canvas with, then I used Liquitex Acrylic Professional Inks to paint the blue background and the green grass. .

 
Her dress was originally ink as well, but I just didn't love the color of yellow, so  I found some cute paper and did her dress out of that instead.Her legs and arms are painted with acrylic paints and her boots are burlap that my dear friend Margie gave me a couple of months ago. I of course added rubons for detail and also my pen for doodling.

 

 I painted the flowers with Liquitex inks and used acrylic paint for the center and stems. I used my pen to draw the leaves on and then used liqituex ink inside the leaves.  I added rubons to create dimension on the stems and  white centers. I doodled over them with pen to finish them off!

 

I also added  rubons to different parts of the canvas, as well. The banner is a rubon from American Crafts, and then I won't over it with pen and added paint to the flags to add a bit more color. . The birds are rubons from Studio Calico.

 

I stamped on it, used bubble wrap with paint, added glitter and more paint.  Last I printed out words for a title and doodled around them to keep with the whimsical feel of the canvas. I love that it totally feels like Allie. She is my sunshine!
 

 

Out of all the art I create on canvas, I think girls are my favorite.. I don't know if it's because each one ends up with a totally different personality.. or because I love fashion and this gives me a chance to play with that.. who knows.. but I love it!  I have had people ask me why I don't put faces on my girls. Honestly for me, I think its because art is personal for each person. What speaks to me in a piece, is going to be something totally different than what speaks to Allie.  The feeling or memory it creates for me, might be a different one for her. I feel like once I put a face on my girl, I isntantly give "meaning" to how she feels. Her facial expressions then tell the story instead of the words and the surroundings. If I leave that blank,the person creating it and the one receiving it.. can interpret it just as they wish to.. and just as you should!  Plus i don't think I'm that good at faces! lol.. not sure, have never tried.  My next "challenge" is to create one of my boys.. now THAT should be fun! 

Well, we are off for 5 days to a cabin we rented in Driggs, Idaho! We love to snowboard and ski as a family, and have season passes at the Grand Targhee Ski resort in Wyoming.. So for Christmas this year, we decided to rent a cabin by the resort so we could spend the whole week up there enjoying each other and our love for the great outdoors! We have invited both family and friends to come up during different times of the week so should be fun! Ben is pulling our trailer.. which means I get to bring my portable "art" studio! lol.. can't wait! All my sisters  and their daughters are excited because we are going to do art all day friday while the big boys ski and board.  I think by Friday I will be so wiped out from snowboarding, art will be a perfect way to spend the day!  I  am not sure if I will have internet up there, but I do plan to do a post on Saturday about our trip and the art we created while we were gone!   I  also have plans for next week to do a Tutorial on Gesso. I have had several emails about it.. why use it.. why don't. I will do a post about Gesso, where you can get it,  and show you why to use it and when. I will also show you many types of surfaces it can be used on and the difference if of using it and not.   Should be a fun tutorial! 

I have also been invited to participate in a fun blog hop challenge by Flip-Pal Mobile Scanner, starting Next thursday and will go for 5 weeks! Posting a new art piece each week using the Mobile Scanner (that can fit into your purse!!) .. plus they will be giving 1-2 scanners a week away on their blog! Super excited about this!!

I hope you all enjoy the rest of TwentyTen! This year as been full of so many different emotions,  and growth opportunities as a mother, sister, daughter, wife and artist.. I have been overwhelmed by the path my life took this year, but so grateful for it. Here's to 2011 being even better!

before I go, I wanted to post the winner of the Audrey Bandley CD!!! Also.. thank you.. for all the kind and sweet words about my dad, and my husbands sweet Christmas gift. It's amazing how we can connect with each other through life experiences. I loved reading your stories as well. THANK YOU..

okay okay!! onto the winner.. and she is..

Angela Gutshall | December 23, 2010 at 08:16 AM

Congrats Angela!  Email me with your address info and  I will forward it onto Audrey!

See you all Saturday!

the true meaning of Christmas..

 
So yesterday I was supposed to post the winner of the Audrey Bandley Cd.. and Christmas Eve just got crazy spending time with friends and family.. as it should be.. so I thought I would post it today.. but before I do, I wanted to share with you a story about the true meaning of Christmas.

As many of you know, my dad passed away a few months ago, on August 1st. It was one of the hardest things I have ever had to go through. I was very close to my dad.. my parents divorced when I was 7 and a few years after the divorce I moved to Boise, to live with him. Then after my husband and I got married, my dad moved to Shelley and somehow we followed.  What a blessing it was, because my children really go to know their Grandpa Campbell.  My dad was amazing.. he was one of the most, if not the most selfless people I know. He gave litterally the shirt of his back to total strangers (and his car.. and his house.. and his time..).. he was my hero. He died of a massive heart attack in church.. we were attending my younger brother's baby blessing, and so my dad and his wife, my mom and her husband, and most of my brothers and sisters were there along with grand kids, etc. They  had just got done blessing my newphew and my dad had just taken the sacrment, when my husband< Ben,  whipsered to me, "I think something is wrong with your dad".  I looked over (he was sitting next to Ben on the bench) and his eyes were closed and he looked like he was struggling for breath. He was having a massive heart attack.. He died a few minutes later.  He  was young (61).. he lived down the street from me, he was in my ward (went to the same church service as I did). He spent so much time with my kids and my family... it was a blessing..  but for the last few months I have had my moments of breakdown and meltdowns and just good old fashioned cries. There was one day in particular that caught me off guard. It was December 1st and I had decided to tackle cleaning my bedroom.. which was seriously embarrassing. I sat down in front of one of my book cabinets to start putting stuff away, when I noticed a few books my dad had given me just weeks before he died. Then I noticed an odd notebook and opened it to find pages and pages of my dads handwriting.. notes and thoughts he had written down while reading books, listening to church talks, during church meetings etc. I flipped open to a page and this caught me eye

 

It read: "we are better than we know- and closer to home than we know. Everything we do, what we do- our families, parents, grandparents- The ripple, worth without end, Love the connects us to before"

..... and I broke down.. sobbing.. crying.. it was like massive tears.. i was crying so hard I was doing that ugly little cry where your shoulders are moving up and down.. I wanted my dad. The only thing I could think of for comfort in that moment was to have something of his.. a piece of clothing, that I could wrap myself up in. I threw some boots on (still in my pj's of course).. and drove to my dad's house a block away. I knew my step mom would be at work, but I didn't think she would mind.. so I went into his closest and found that most of his clothes were already packed away.. which caught me off guard.I expected to see them all still hanging up or on the shelves. We all need to grieve and heal in our own way. I started looking for something.. I didn't know what, but I wanted something that reminded me of him. I saw sweaters, I saw shirts.. old coats, but that wasn't it.. I wanted his church shirt.. and the tie he was wearing.. the one he had one when he died. The last day I saw him.. the last time I saw him smile,  the last time saw him put his hands on my nephew's head and use his preisthood to  help issue a name and a blessing.... The last time I saw him take the sacrament and remember the atonement of our Savior. But I couldn't find it. I saw white shirts, but I just didn't think  any of those were the one. So I settled on an old flannel shirt and a sweater. I went home and wore them both.. all day.. and just like always.. the next day, I woke up and things were back to normal, life was good again.

So that brings us to today.. or maybe I should start with last night.. Every Christmas Eve, for the last years.. as many as we have lived here, we have spent it at my dad's house.. All of the kids and grand-kids that can make it, would come to his house for food and games.. but we would also..at my dad's request.. before anything else; would dress the grandkids like shepherds, and angels and someone would play the mother Mary, and the father Joseph and we always had a baby Jesus.. and my dad would read the story of the birth of Christ. It was tradition. Something we just always did. Well this year I knew it would be hard to get everyone together..and it wouldn't be the same without Dad, after all.. it was his thing.   So I wanted to just do something totally different. Something that wasn't a tradition.. maybe start a new tradition?  So this year Ben and I decided to go with some friends to an early movie and out to dinner and then come home as a family and open our family pj's and watch movies.. and hang out.  Something new.. something to just be different. Well the movie was sold out, when we showed up and so we ended up going to a movie at the cheap theatre... one that we had already seen 4 times.. (oh boy my kids loved that). OH!! and we got a flat tire on the way, so ben had to go to Walmart while we were at the movie and get our tire fixed.. so he wasn't even there.  Dinner was great but the kids were all  playing and fighting and I think our waitress was going to have a fit.... so I was kinda excited to just get home and get our "christmas" pj's on and relax and watch a movie.   Well on the way home.. it hit me. I MISSED MY DAD.. I said aloud.. " my heart missed my dad tonight".. and then I lost it.. I cried silently all the way home.. but my kids and husband knew. Everyone was silent.  I wanted to see my dad. My son, Braden,  was driving so I turned to him and whispered.. "can you take the other way home.. past the cemetery".. and he nodded his head.. yes. When he pulled into the Cemetery, I literally ran through the snow to his grave.. and again.. the big ugly cry came on.. UGH!! that is NOT  how this night was supposed to go! WHen we got home, I just knew what we had to do to make it all right.  I gathered my kids around and said.. it's tradition.. we HAVE To do it.. we were in our pj's but we didn't care. We got my dad's bible and headed over to his house to do an impromptu reading of the Christmas Story for my step mom, Maria.  at my dads house.. where it should be done.   As we drove the short block over, I could see it in my head, we would come to the door, singing a cChristmas carol, with our bible in hand.. and we would re-in-act with our little family the birth of Christ for Maria....and we would all cry and all laugh and the night would end as it should.   EXCEPT when we got there, she wasn't home.. what?  This is NOT how I imagined my night going. So back to our house we went.. we decided to just do it at our house with our kids, except when Ben read it, our kids were not paying attending and kids were fighting over who got to hold the cat.. and oh my gosh.. could this night just be over already? So we went to bed.. and all I wanted was sleep.

Well I woke up this morning, as usual, life was good again..  and was super excited for Christmas day! After we did our "presents to the Savior", our kids tore through their presents and I was just as excited as they were to open mine. I had given Ben a list.. not a long one.. but a list I just KNEW he would get me:

a gift card to Dickblick.com, knee socks to wear with my boots, a book from barnes and noble.. an Iflip video, and some bath salts.. pretty simple right?

Well, as I looked down at my gifts.. there was one that stood out to me.. it said "b+c" on it. It was a small box.. and I grabbed for it first. My husband said quickly.. no! not that one.. so I put it down and grabbed another one instead.   First gift:  a bottle of Exclamation (that I wore in high school???).. what was my husband thinking? I was thinking he was wanting to re-enact when we first met?? weird. .. Second gift:a video wall player that we had purchased this past year to use ata show, so we could play videos on how to put our jewelry together.. (we could never figure out how to get it to work, so we put it on a shelf.. we he got it out and put old pictures of past trips on it for me).. totally sweet.. but not an iflip and not really something NEW?..  Third gift: a tripod for my camera.. for work, to take steady pictures on.. okay.. so far.. we are 0 for 3.. but that's okay.. right?  I needed the tripod. So... I had the one gift left.. it was the small box that had written in black sharpie pen, (B + C).. my husband's signature way of telling me it was something special.

 

It MUST be the dickblick gift card.. it has to be! Or a note saying I could go pick out my own IFlip.. had to be!.. but then i opened the box..

 

I didn't recognize what is was...  but I heard my husband say to my son Braden, (who was recording everyone opening their gifts) .. "don't record mom on this one".. I noticed an odd looking braided thing, that looked kinda like a bracelet.. and  then I read the letter..

 

"somehow I ended up with your dad's shirt and tie. I wanted you to have a little piece of your dad with you for Christmas. I hope this is okay. I know he is doing a great thing. If he received one gift for Christmas I bet it would be to peak in on his family and be a part of their celebration too. Your Father in Heaven loves to see you happy and wants the best for you. So does your Father in the spirit world. I know it's hard  and I don't know exactly what I can do for you. Know that I see your pain and admire your strength. I love your testimony and your soul. Being in love is not about who you choose to marry and live with, it's who you can't live without. That's you. I love you, Ben"

and then it hit me.. I remembered...that at the church.. while they were trying to save my dad's life.. they brought him from the chapel out into the foyer and laid him on the floor. They cut his shirt and tie from his body and began mouth to mouth, to try and save his life. The continued until the ambulance arrived.. they never did regain a pulse.. but when the ambulance got there,  my step mom, Maria and my brothers, sister and I,  followed it to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. Back the church, one of the members, who had moved the cut shirt and tie out of the way, folded it and gave it to my husband. Ben had told Maria later that he had had it.. but she hadn't wanted it back. I had no idea he had it all along.. and for Christmas.. he made me this..

 

A simple braided bracelet, made out of a piece of my dad's  church shirt and the old- out of style tie.. he wore almost every sunday... the ones he was wearing the day he died.  I cried as I read the letter.. he was right.. Braden shouldn't record. I cried as I put the bracelet on.. I cried as I ran my fingers over the pieces of cloth that my husband so lovinglymade. I didn't get anything on my  Christmas list.. but I got the one thing, that meant more to me than ANY of those gifts combined... I was shown the true meaning of Christmas.

My husband is amazing.. I am always so grateful for his thoughtful gifts each year.. for the tender mercies the Lord puts in our paths.. to give us love and hope at the moments we need them. We are so blessed.. so blessed to have a Savior, who loved us, and came to this earth so that we could be together as families once again. I know I will see my dad some day.. I Know I will get to be with him and my own family.. I know he is in happy place, and that he is here when I need him most. I am grateful for a Father in Heaven that allows me to feel my dad's love.. when I don't think I will ever again.. wow.. I am so blessed.

I am grateful for this holiday, that allows us to Celebrate the Saviors birth.. and the true meaning of the season..

thanks for letting me share this kinda of long and personal story..  I hope you all had a wonderful christmas too..

before I go.. I promised to announce the winner of the Audrey Bandly CD.. but I think I will wait and do it another day... if that's okay.. Merry Christams to you all!  Hope it's a warm and wonderful day.. and all remember.. the true meaning of Christmas.

 

favorite artist giveaway...

I love music, it moves me.. it brings me to tears, it makes me want to dance, it helps me create art, its fun to make out too (well.. we are still teenagers at heart right? lol)..  Well a couple of months ago, I was at the funeral.. and a girl sang and played a song on the piano, that literally.. brought me to tears. It MOVED me.. it was a song called Shelter Me, that she had composed and written... and I wanted more! I found out that she was in the process of releasing her first CD.. and I told her to let me know as SOON as she did.. I wanted to get it.. well about 2 weeks ago her CD debuted and I couldn't WAIT to share it here on my blog!

Audrey Bandley is her name, and she is a christian singer. Her music is about love and God and family and all things wonderful and beautiful. Infact her music has helped me get through some hard days when I have been missing my dad.. she is just simply amazing. Her voice is brilliant and beautiful and I think you will love her too..

 

You can view her website here and listen to bits of each of the songs she has written. She has both downloads of her song and a CD available! She is so graciously letting me giveaway one of her brand new CD's, If I'm Still,  here on my blog! THANK YOU AUDREY!!! You are amazing! She simply is amazing.. These cd's make perfect christmas gifts! Or download the music and put it on your Ipod for yourself! (I know it's short notice.. but it can be an "after" christmas thought. perfect for any occasion really :))

all you need to do to enter to win is post on today's blog.. I will announce a winner Christmas Eve! She's brilliant!

oh and one last thing.. in honor of  my favorite college football team.. BSU ( (Boise state University).. I thought it would be fun to do a "style" board since we were talking about this yesterday.. to show my love for BSU!! (go blue and orange!)  We are playing in the Las Vegas bowl tonight  on ESPN (I say WE.. like I am apart of the team.. well I did grow up there and my husband went to school there.. so we are kinda like family right?) I am going to be cozying up by the fire tonight with my boys and watching the game.. can't wait!  GO team! Have a Merry Wednesday!

 

Style Boards..

So have you ever created a style board?  I create them each month, when I am desinging  my kits.. I come up with a color scheme, textures and designs I like... and then find papers, embellishments and findings.. that match my style board. You can create them digitally (which is what I usually do for my kit club), or you can create them in notebooks, on a paper, etc.  Usually when I do them on paper, I cut images from magazines, books, catalogs, snip pieces of fabric, print pictures off the internet, etc. I actually LOVE to do them in notebooks because I love to "feel" the texture of all  the things I am putting together. Plus If you keep them in a notebook, it's fun to go back and look at the different style boards. This is an example of style boards I do when creating color schemes. I found this awesome page in a magazine and loved the color scheme so much, I wanted to recreate it with papers I could include in my kits.  ( I actually taught an online workshop about this past year at Got Sketch and I THINK they are going to release it again in the new year..)..

 

WHen I do them digitally, I google search for specific things I am looking for and then save the image onto my computer.  Next I open them in photoshop and layer them in a document. Once finished, I print them out, or save them to my computer to look at later. This is the method I tend to use when  creating my kits each month. It's a ton of fun and it's very helpful when I am trying to stick with a certain feel or theme.

My blog designer, Adam, recently asked me to create a style board that represented me. He didn't know me that well and wanted to make sure the design of my blog really fit ME. That it represented me and who I was. I actually had never done one before that was all about my personal style.. so I was just as interested as he was, to find out how it would end up. 

So start,  I basically broke into four sections;

1- Actual pictures of me or my family and or art I had created

2- Prints and designs and products that I am drawn to

3-Backgrounds and textures that appeal to me

4- Type and fonts that I love

so I went to work findings images on the web that fit into those catagories (of course I already had the pictures of my personal art and life).  The funny thing is, I always KNEW I had an eclectic style and doing this exercise really confirmed to me, that I was right.

 
 

 

If you haven't ever done this.. it's ADDICTING! I spent .. um dare I say.. hours??...  finding images and actually ended up with way more than I needed. I then pulled my images into photoshop and created a style board in PDF form. If you don't know much about photoshop, you can just print the pictures from your computer, cut them out and paste them onto a paper! (collage as we like to call it :)). 

Style boards are also helpful when creating art projects. Alot of times I will see a color scheme, or text or a design I love and want to use it later on something I create. Style boards don't have to take a ton of work, but I have a leather sketchbook that I usually have on me and I jot down those ideas when they come. I also love that my phone has a camera built in.. because I can take pictures of those items when I am out and about and print them out later to put in the sketchbook next to my notes. This isn't anything new.. people have been doing it for years.. but I challenge you to do a create a style board sometime in the next few weeks.. that represents you!  For the New Year! I think it would be fun to do one at the first of each year, to see how my style has changed. So there you go! Something fun you can do over the Christmas Holiday... (not that you need one more thing to do right? lol)..

check back tomorrow on our blog when we will be giving away a CD from one of my FAVORITE artists.. she is a new artist and seriously.. I am in LOVE. I think you will love her work too! Happy Tuesday!

Pretty little packages.. and our canvas winner!

 
It's 5 days until Christmas.. are you ready? I am a little behind this year, just now mailing off gifts to those who live far away.. but hopefully the post master will work his magic and deliver them in time for Christmas! I love making handmade gifts, but don't always have the time, so I wanted to share with you a couple of little secrets of making something semi-handmade but still have that "made with love touch."

This year, for some of my closest friends, I made both necklace's and leather bracelets. I purchased the necklaces from an online store.. (they came with a few charms on them already), and then I personalized them by stamping metal tags and adding the tags to the pre-made necklaces. I also added a few extra beads and charms to them, specific to the person I was making it for.. so its not entirely handmade, but still has that personal touch.

 
 

 

For the leather bracelets, I purchased the blank bracelts (meaning they already had the clasps, etc).. and then I stained each on to the color I wantedand added vintage jewelry pieces to each one using E600 glue and thread. I LOVE buying old vintage earrings and broaches and recycling them into new pieces of art! I found most of mine at second hand thrift stores back east, but I am sure you can find them at just about any thriftstore or even online! I also used my Melody Ross ChipArt tools (stamping tools), to hand-stamp words and designs into each one.. which created another element of personal touch.

 

 

 

 

 These handmade gifts didn't take me weeks to make, but they do have a lot of meaning behind each one and the women receiving them will know how much they mean to me.. (let's hope they just aren't reading this blog post before they get them! lol).

Another great way to add a personal/handmade touch to a gift is through the packaging. I love to find unique ways to package gifts.  I love a mixture of both old and new! I purchased a bunch of burlap and cotton bags a few months ago to include in our monthly kits, so I used the left over ones to wrap my gifts up in. I hand-stamped the outside of the bags and then tied them up with bakers twine. I added a sparkly snowflake that I got in packs of three at Target (for a $1.00)and added a hand-stamped tag.. another fun personal touch and a way to say.. hey.. I LOVE YOU!

 

 

 


 
Just wanted to share some fun ideas for handmade gifts that are "semi" handmade.. that won't break the pocket book or your time.. if you aren't shipping a gift.. you still have time to make something!

on another note.. have you ever created a personal style sheet? Do you know what one is?? Oh they are so fun, especially when you are looking to create any type of art, or redoing a room, or re-designing a blog, or creating kits.. I love to create them for inspiration in creating art and they are super fun to do.. tomorrow I am going to show you what they are.. and how easy they are to put together!

okay.. so now onto our winner of the Angel Christmas Original Art piece, that I created for the free tutorial I posted last thursday on my blog! If you haven't see the tutorial on how to make the Mixed Media Christmas Canvas.. make sure to check it out!

our winner of the "for unto us a child is born" canvas is....

 Aida Pampo | December 17, 2010 at 12:34 AM

Aida! email me at christy@scarletlime.com  and send me your address!

One last thing!!!! make sure to check "THIS" blog post, to see if you were the winner of the soul restoration class... we still haven't had any claim their prize yet! 

Have a wonderful Monday! Come back tomorrow to learn about style sheets! Plus I have another great giveaway this week you are going to love!..
 

Christmas Mixed Media Canvas Tutorial

So as you know, I have two on-line websites.. Scarlet Lime and Scarlet Lime Beadart. Scarlet Lime is a monthly kit club.. where I design and put together monthly papercrafting kits and each month they debut on our website. We offer subscriptions and also one time purchases as well as offer a be inspired gallery where my artist team, designs layouts, cards and other fun projects.. using the kits each month. People often ask me why I don't also create and post layouts on my website as well, and the truth of the matter is.. well I don't really scrapbook anymore. I don't know if it's the lack of time, or the lack of motivation.. or the lack of interest.. but I don't?  Is that bad? I don't know.. I don't think so..because I am still so drawn to the wonderful papers and embellishments we use for scrapbooking!  Im in love with the designs and colors  of the papers...I love rubons, beautiful ribbons, dimensional embellishments! I still love it all! Each time I see a new release at CHA or a catalog the manufacturers send me.. I get excited just to see whats new and always get so excited to start planning my kits! 

  I have always enjoyed creating art.... whether it's in the form of a quilt, or a home decor project, or a hand sew purse, or a knitted scarf (except that is one I have never mastered), or a layout, or a canvas, or a necklaces, or .. just about anything!  AND I have to say that the scrapbooking industry has done WONDERS for the availability of most of those art mediums to flurish and expand and grow!  The papers designs and embellishments available in the scrapbooking industry have opened up huge possibilities for other art mediums to use in creative play. So while I may no longer scrapbook, I do use papercrafting products in other art mediums, I find myself doing.   I hear a lot of people say.. " oh Ihave so many scrapbooking supplies and I don't scrapbooking anymore.. I don't know what to do with them!".. well guess what? I DO!!! the possibilities are endless!

Creative people (scrapbookers, painters, knitters, photographers, digital designers, quilters, jewelry makers,  dare I even say.. bakers?.. the list goes on!).. no matter what stage of life we are in, find ourselves wanting to be creative.. and I am here to say to you.. if you think you will never use the stash of scrapbooking products you have piled up in your closet because you don't scrapbook anymore.. you are wrong! ... yes you will.. YES YOU WILL!  Do NOT GET RID OF IT!!  (I know this because I thought that once and gave away of all my scrapbooking supplies.. and OH how I wish I had them all now.. cause now i am starting over and as you know.. that is spending! lol! )

 So.. this brings me to the art I have created today.. this new series I am starting each month,(using our papercrafting kits from Scarlet Lime to create Mixed Media Art).. is one way I want to show you.. how you CAN use it.. even if you don't find yourself scrapbooking anymore.    I want to show you other possiblities you can create.. using those products. Not all of them might interest you, some you might say.. "I would never do that".. others might have you swooning because you found a new love of creative art to delve yourself into.. but I bet you will find something... SOMETHING that will catch your eye and spark that creative interest again. (cause I promise you.. it never goes away.. even if we think we don't have time for it, it never goes away :))...

I am also going to be trying new mediums.. that is what this blog is to me, trying  new things and sharing what I've created... some things might turn out.. some might not (as you will see in my video below! hehe!!!).. but im going to try.. and I am going to create.. because I LOVE CREATIVE PLAY!  Okay.. so enough with the talk already.. right? Let's get to the projects... :).

I originally was going to only creative one canvas art piece using the December Main kit, but I ended up with three.. two I like.. one.. I am not sure will find it's way on any wall in my house! lol.. but.. art is about experimenting right? The first piece of art is the ttutorial I have listed below.. It's the more simple of the two pieces as it mostly includes products from the kit and then just a few basic" art supplies. 

  "oh holy night"

 

 

 

It's a 6" x12" canvas.. created solely with the papers and embellishments from the December main kit and a few basic painting supplies. Watch the video below to see exactly what I used and download the step by step tutorial on how to put it together! I can't wait to see your version of it.. or maybe it will inspire you to create something different! But please come back and share what you have done!

The second piece is a Christmas Angel.. and is still created mostly from the kits, but uses more types of speciatly paints, as well as modeling paste, gold leafing, water color crayons, and more.  Again, there isn't a tutorial for this piece, but the good news is.. I am working on a e-course/Workshop.. hopefully to debut in January.. that will go into full detail on how to create these little angels/girls.. iincluding videos, classroom chats, down-loadable PDf's with templates and more.. so watch for that :)..here is the piece..

 "for unto us a child is born"

 

 

 
 

 


as I mentioned, I also created a third piece.. but it's still not finished and it MAY end up on the "that was a nice thought" pile.. but I DO show you what it looks like and the idea Ihad behind it in this video below.. so watch the short video.. and then click on the link under the video to download the PDF Tutorial for the "oh holy night" mixed media art piece!

 

Download ChristyTomlinson_DecMixedMediaArt2

so I hope you enjoyed the video.. and don't forget to download the tutorial (link above). I hope you find ways to use the "creative stash" I know you have!  If you want to learn more about our Monthly kits.. visit our website Scarlet Lime.  Also.. watch for some BIG changes coming up for you at Scarlet Lime in the next couple of months!  Including a brand new website.. mixed media art kits (add-on kits that have specialty supplies in them),on-line tutorials, inspiration and more.. so even if you aren't a scrapbooker.. or a papercrafter.. you may find something that will inspire you.. after all.. we are all artist! 

 oh and I have to offer a HUGE THANK YOU and shout out to ADAM!! He is the one who re-designed my blog for me.. oh my gosh.. be still my heart! I think I'm in love!!! seriously.. he is just awesome.. check out their work at Moselle Design! These guys are brilliant! Adam you ROCK!

One last thing.. in honor of my wonderful Scarlet Lime customers.. I will be giving away my angel art piece "for unto us a child is born".. simply post on this blog post.. to be entered to win! Winner will be announced Monday! Love you all!

 Have a wonderful thursday!

holidays hustle and bustle...

so SOMETIMES I under-estimate how long it takes me to do things! lol.. and my December newsletter for Scarlet Lime.. is one of those things! I have been working hard on it all day long, and not quite finished with it.. but no worries.. it will be ready by tomorrow! :) I wanted to share with you a sneak peek of ONE of the mixed media art pieces I did, using the kit we are featuring in the newsletter tomorrow  and will be posted here on my blog! Just a peak :)... and I  also wanted to annouce the winners of the two free spots into the  Soul Restoration Online Class!!!

First off.. our winners... drum roll please.. oh wait.. can I just say?? I LOVED reading everyone's posts about what their souls needed or what they are grateful for.. MY heart was full by the time I got done.. all of you have such unique stories.. makes my heart want to reach out and hug ya!  I also want you to know that I randomly chose the winners.. I knew it would be way to hard to pick two out of all those wonderful entries.. so I just did the random generator thing..it was a lot more fair and a lot less stressful! Sooooo... if you see your name below.. email me, so I can get you the details!!!

okay.. NOW drumroll :) .......

Posted by: ellen s | December 13, 2010 at 09:38 PM

Posted by: whispersandwishes | December 15, 2010 at 10:05 AM

congrats to BOTH of you ladies.. I know all of the rest of you NEED this course so bad.. i wish I had the money to give it to all of you!! Please do consider it for your christmas wish list.. tell your friends and family to forget the socks this year.. or the box of candy.. tell them.. there is this amazing on-line art course.. that will forever change you.. and that you need it.. or.. give it to yourself as the little added push you need to start 2011 off with a bang.. I promise you won't be dissapointed that you went without fast foods for a month to pay for it  :)...IT IS WORTH IT!!

so now onto the sneak peek.. I actually ended up creating two canvas pieces (okay three.. but the third one looks like it came from night-mere before christmas!).. and I will be sharing both tomorrow.. .. here is a peak at the extra one I created..

 

come back tomorrow to see more!! Have a wonderful Wednesday night! I am off to spend the night with my only girl, Allie Belle. She's 11 and loves books more than I do (which is hard cause I love to read!!).. so we are going on a mini date.. to Barnes and Noble.. enjoy some time with your loved ones too! I know I need to more..

Soul Restoration E-course Giveaway...

Happy Monday!  What better way to start than with a giveaway... last week I blogged about some upcoming e-courses that I am really wanting to take in the new year..If you haven't read it.. go! Five great classes.. that i think are worth taking!  Well, most of you know that I am a huge fan of Brave Girls Club... Melody Ross, one of my best friends, and her awesome sister, Kathy host this wonderful site. They also offer a Brave Girls Camp, 5 times a year (and going to be offering even more soon!) that is art healing for the soul!

 
I have had the privilege of attending twice this past year, once as a student in February  and again as a staff volunteer in October.  The curriculum taught at Brave Girls Camp is like no other.. It is life changing and it is beautiful and creative and you walk away from the experience with a new determination to restore who you are.. who you are meant to be. 2010 has been a hard year emotionally and physically for me.. loosing my dad, whom I am very close to and being diagnosed with Fibromyalgia.. I can't tell you how even going as a staff member in October helped me to learn, heal and grow.. and love the life I have and love the creative soul I am.  It truly is a one of a kind experience.. and I learned so much about myself. Here is a little bit of the art I created at Brave Girls in October..  

Brave Girls  camps are all sold out for 2011, but they are offering this curriculum as an on-line workshop/e-course in January.. 6 weeks of awesome artful goodness called Soul Restoration. I love it because it is a self paced class that you can log into anytime of day or night. There will be videos and downloads and inspiration like no other!   At your own pace.. in your own home.. in especially in your comfy clothes! :) lol.. you all know how I love to be comfy :).

 

 

While I have had my trials this past year, I have been SOOOO blessed and am SO grateful for everyone who has supported me through my endevors, my ups and downs, my heart ache and my celebrations.  Soooo.. I contacted Mel and asked her if I could buy a spot into her class and give it away here on my blog.. not only did she say..HECK YES.. but she said.. she would ALSO offer up a spot too! SO I am excited to be giving away not one, but  TWO spots into this on-line course!! ALl you have to do to enter is post on today's blog post.. I would love to know what your heart and soul needs right now.. or maybe even what YOU are grateful for from this past year.. I will pick two winners  this wednesday!  Also remember to check back on wednesday to see the debut of my brand new blog as well as the free on-line tutorial of how to create a canvas christmas art piece using our Scarlet LIme Tartan Plaid December kit.. it's going to be so much fun!

Help me spread about this onilne course.. share the link with your friends and family! GET IT FOR YOURSELF FOR CHRISTMAS.. it is going to be amazing and it will be an awesome  way to start  2011!!

Beadart Winner and Daily Inspiration..

Before I announce the winner of our $50 Gift Certificate to Scarlet Lime Beadart. I just wanted to say thank you to all of your encouraging comments on my mixed media art that I shared yesterday on THIS POST.. you are amazing!! After shipped orders yesterday, I went out in the garage and started another art piece.. as I mentioned in THIS POST, I recently started an on-line class called Mixed Media Mayhem.. and I have really enjoyed it! She teaches you how to use different inks and sprays and mediums that I don't normally find myself using in my art. It was great to stretch myself a bit and see if I could do an entire piece out of just inks and paints.. no paper or other embellishments.. so this is a bit different for me, but I have to say.. I am in LOVE with Liquitex Professional Acrylic Inks.. they come in a little bottle with a dropper and are so vibrant and just plain gorgeous! You can mix them with water and spray them on, but I chose to just use my finger to spread it around on my canvas (that is how I created the hearts).. I love those inks.. gonna have to get more! 

 

So.. Here is what I created yesterday using them along with acrylic paints, Ranger Sprays, a pen for doodling and some  stencils.. (oh and I had to add some rubons in there.. sorry!! lol)..

 

 

Thanks for letting me share!! Okay.. now onto our winner of the Beadart!! Thanks for everyone playing along on that 25 Days of Christmas.. MONDAY we will be posting ANOTHER giveaway.. we will be giving away 2 spots into SOUL RESTORATION.. online class by Melody Ross! Seriously.. this is a HUGE thing.. it's worth over $100.00!! and we are giving away two of them! So come back monday!!

the winner of our BeadArt Gift Certificate is..

Posted by: Donna Murdock- December 8, at 6:56 Pm 

 Congrats Donna! Email me and I will get you the info you need!
Hope you all have a wonderful friday.. and plan something fun this weekend.. Me and the hubby and our 6 kids are going snowboarding/skiing tomorrow.. can't WAIT!! I am addicting to snowboarding.. and luckily my kids love snowboarding and skiing too.. so we can do it as a family.. I mean we DO get 7 months of winter here.. might as well enjoy  it somehow right? Happy friday!