My soft underbelly is hanging out...

In keeping with my attempt to use previously unused

images from my stash, I have come to the slightly

embarrassing conclusion that I have amassed quite

a collection of cute and sweet images. It's no wonder I haven't

had a chance to play with them. What with my dark side

almost always in the creative driver's seat. 

Today's project uses a sweet, yet slightly maniacal image.

With Valentine's Day on the horizon I figured I'd play with

pinks and grays for a soft and girly Valentine look. 

Seemed like a good time to use some Martha Stewart punches.

The bat fence, and the skulls and crossbones are a couple of

my absolute favorite MS punches. I think I use the drippy goo

punch the most, though.

This image is called, "Buttons", from Make It Crafty.

She's super cute! I've had her for quite long time.

I'm glad I finally colored her up.

I kinda have a crap-ton of this sickly sweet sheer rose ribbon.

I chopped off a couple of buds, and then rubbed some gray ink

over the tops of them to grunge them up a bit. That pink was

just too bright for me in the beginning.

I'm on a frantage kick lately, and since I have some in pink that never

gets used, I figured, "why not?". I also dropped some color fragments in black, 

white, and gray into the frantage, but it barely shows. Well, actually it showed 

too much, so I added more frantage over the top to help it blend in a bit.

I also broke out my envelope punch board to make the tab that says, "loved".   

Hope I didn't lose any of my darker fiends who stop by to see my

creepier concoctions. Have no fear!

I'll be back next Monday with the antithesis of this card. 

What is the opposite of loved? 

I have a feeling you've guessed it already. 

Thank you to everyone who left me a message on my last post.

I didn't mean to sound quite so pathetic, like "No one ever stops

by to see me anymore! Boo hoo". It just seems that with the popularity

of face book and other social media sites, the traffic from blogger has really

slowed down quite a bit. I'm glad to to know you're still out there

like a silent stalker. Watching...

I'd love to enter this card in the following challenges:

Craft Hoarders Anonymous - Choose your challenge

*ink, ribbon, punching, heat embossing/ frantage, and bling* 

Monday Morning Challenge - Anything Goes

The Pink Elephant Monday Card Challenge - Anything Goes

Through the Purple Haze - Love is in the Air

That Craft Place - Love/Valentine

Kit and Clowder Ning Group - January Anything Goes 

Simon Says Wednesday challenge - Have a Heart

I miss those Wicked Wednesdays.....

I used to be on the Wicked Wednesday ATC challenge DT

a while back. I miss those days. So fun to create mini art

like that. I've been meaning to play along lately, but can never

find the time. Until today.

The current theme is Girly Stuff, and the sponsor is

Vera Lane Studio. 

I have been meaning to pick up a digi or two from

Vera Lane, and figured now was as good a time as any,

plus she offered a 10% discount to WW challenge players.

How could I say, "No!"? She has a fun and quirky feel to her 

art, and most of the girls look kinda snarky, and I really like that. 

I colored her up with Copics, highlighted her using a 

white Gelly Roll pen and Stickles. I matched her with

a fun saying from the Smeared Ink Love Lil' Grumpies set.

I think it's supposed to sound weird and stalker-ish, but 

I used it to sound like she is not happy with your attire.

That works, right?

Thanks for stopping by today.

Be sure to check out Wicked Wednesday ATC, Vera Lane,

and Smeared Ink for more inspiration, and fabulous stamps and digis. 

    

Smudgy Circus and an Oddball

Today's post is playing double duty.

Lots of pictures to follow...

First up, is my weekly DT piece for Smeared Ink.

I have used the Circus Procession digi set for my

heart worm medicine box make-over. 

The box started out like this.

And after a few coats of gesso and paint, I have the perfect background

for these wonderfully vintage circus images.

Quite the transformation, if I do say so myself. 

I covered the pocket with dp and added the creepy clown. I popped a

tiny hat on his head to lend to his creepy vibe. I used the trapeze chicks

on a tag that fits right into the pocket. 

I used a Tim Holtz ATC sized embossing folder to make the ticket.

After randomly coloring it with fired brick and mustard seed distress inks,

 I ran it over a Versamark pad, hitting all the raised bits, and then 

clear embossed it to give it some shine and stability. Oh, and I added some

of my new Paprika Stickles on the edges for some sparkle. 

I am loving the new Stickles colors! 

Look! My very first hand made tassel!

I used some red and white baker's twine, and a YouTube video

to make the tassel.

This is the little insert box. I like it.

This guy gets a hat, too!

What circus is complete without specimens and freaks? 

I popped this on the back of the box, because it was too large to go

anywhere else. The bat is from the "A Little Bit Batty" digi set.

I added the wording myself in Gimp.

I'd like to enter this box makeover in the following challenge(s):

Altered Eclectics - Anything Goes

Crafting at the Weekend - Anything Goes 

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes

And now for something a little different.

I have been stalking this artist (Lizzie Love), and her woefully sad looking

big eyed girls. I was having a hard time deciding which image to 

buy from her Oddball Art Co. Etsy shop, and then she came out with a line of darker

images, and I was in love! She's called, Big Eye Zombie Girl Image No. 49.

I colored her with Copics using bright colors, trying to keep her girly looking.

I used some spider web die cuts and a TH die cut spider. Sorta looks like 

she's fighting the spider off using her umbrella. 

I added some ribbons to keep in the theme of 

"Ripped to Ribbons" at Haunted Design House.

And it made it girly to keep with the theme of Girly and Glam.

This is about as girly as I can get.

I'd like to enter this card in the following challenges:

Oddball Art Stamp Co. - Girly and Glam  

Snarky Stampers - R is for Ribbon 

Left of Center - Girly

Paper Crafting Journey - Pretty in Pink

Thanks for stopping by!!

Ribbons at Dilly Beans

It's Friday! Which means it's a new challenge at

Dilly Beans Challenge blog.

This week's challenge is to use

ribbons!

Yay! Girly schtuff!!

Some of my fellow DT sistahs think it's funny to see me

create girly and pretty and cute schtuff. 

Someone has to show these chicks how to do it!!

LOL! That's gonna get me on some one's hex list.

I used the fabulous Seahorse #423.

Isn't she gorgeous?! I just adore Megan's style of seahorses.

I think it's the eye that really draws me in, but that mane is just fabulous! 

I received some art grab bags from Megan a week or so ago,

and I was so inspired by her tags that I had to make one!

This thing kind of got away from me a few times, but I managed to

wrangle it in and add a ribbon or two.

I used sequins, rhinestones, white gel pen, tiny die cut scallop shells,

 MS branches for seaweed, and some fibers.

I have a hard time with the whole "less is more" concept.

Drop by the challenge blog and take in the eye candy for this week.

Play along, and maybe win some free images of your very own!