Neglecting my blog :(

I know I've been MIA for a while. I cant believe its been almost a month since I've really posted anything and I have all these pictures of things I have been wanting to share but no time to do it! Sheesh! It seem's like December is always so hectic, theres no time for me to work on anything or blog really. Me and my husband are really active in our church, and so its just been super crazy busy there. We are in the Christmas Play, and thats this Sunday! Tim's helping the other men at the church today to get the Christmas food baskets together for all the needy families in our community. Tomorrow night is the 36th anniversary Christmas Caroling at the church and Tim and I are going to join the carolers! I've never done that but it sounds like a blast and I cant wait! Then Sunday morning is our special Christmas sermon and secret santa gift exchange and Sunday night is our Christmas play. Then Monday Tim are high tailing it to N.C to spend time with my family and then we are high tailing it back home on Wednesday to spend time with his family .lol. Its insanium in the cranium!! I'm not complaining, I'm just explaining where I've been and why I'm so busy. I did sit down today and update the look of the blog because I forgot to after Thanksgiving and was shocked to log in this morning to turkey's LOL. Then I also updated the look of my etsy shop. I actually sold 2 items in the last week, and got a special request on my shop and then got a request at church last night too-woo hoo!- I was on the verge of throwing in the towel with that. In all honesty I felt like I was wasting my time. I dont know what else to do to really get my shop out there and more active. I would love to add more artwork but I have noooo idea what I should create.... I know what I like and what my family and friends like but when it comes to whats popular and what would sell.. I havent got the slightest idea. But I feel like there is still hope for my shop and I'm not going to give up yet. I'm just gonna get back into the game and work my butt off. Maybe not so much this week and next week... but after the holidays I'm all in!


I did want to share a few things that I have been meaning to...



I made this ornament a few weeks back and thought I would share. I actually used the inchie cube template but enlarged it so that my cube was 2 1/2 inches. I used the same rubber stamp on all sides and colored them with colored pencil, but I used different background papers and embellishments. I made a template for this but Im not sure how to do the whole adobe pdf thing, so I'm at a loss with that .lol.

I made this little guy for our Thanksgiving center piece :) He's made of 2 styrefoam balls that I painted brown and hot glued together. Then they were covered in brown and black buttons of various sizes. After it dried I took 4 fabric leaves and glued them beside one another and placed googly eyes in the center. I took one more fabric leaf and folded it in half for the beak and gobbler ;) Then I added different colored feathers, green fiber and a round tag for a necklace. :) It was really easy and would be a GREAT craft project for kids to do.. [just dont let them use the hot glue gun alone! :)]

And finally... I found this great plain white ceramic plate at Michaels on sale for a few bucks and thought it would be really neat to try and alter it :) I had some really pretty wallpaper of The Sistine Cherubs by Raphael. Its one of my all time favorite paintings and when I saw the wallpaper way back when I HAD to have it. The entire painting would not fit so I cropped it so that at least one would fit and I glued it to the plate with E600. I used the handle of a paintbrush to make sure there was no bubbles or anything. After I allowed that to try I took tacky glue and gold leaf and very carefully edged around the image so you wont have to see where the image ends and the plate begins. It sort of covered the crease and everything and added a pretty sparkle to the plate. After that I just clear coat sealed it and let it dry for several hours before adding a second coat of sealer. :) I was so happy with the way this turned out that I decided to keep it. I am seriously considering creating more of these decorative plates but with other themes as well. If anyone would be interested in one in any sort of theme please contact me by commenting here or emailing me at redrose4384@aol.com and let me know. This could be a new item in my shop if I get enough positive feedback etc. ;)

Thats all for now. I truly hope that everyone is having a blessed Holiday Season. If I dont post until after the holiday, I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas!

God Bless,

Completed Christmas Mini House Book

[click to Enlarge]

Yesterday I finished up the House book I blogged the pages for previously. I thought it would be simple and cute to bind the pages together by using wire and spiral binding it. Sort of like a notebook. I thought it might be decorative but also give the pages space and everything since they are thick and embellished. I didnt want any of the pages to bend because there wasnt enough room for them to open up correctly. After I bound the pages together, I had fun finding all my little doodads and fibers/ribbons and adding some pizazz to it .lol. I found this gold key that I have had forever and didnt know when I was ever going to use it on anything. These great Tin stars that I purchased last Christmas, and even a large and small golden bell! It was fun :) I really love how this turned out and I sort of grew attached to it haha! Go figure! I think today I might work on Christmas cards, and a few ornament idea's I have rattling around in my brain. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

"Christmas isn't a season. It's a feeling." ~Edna Ferber

Christmas Mini House Book Pages

In the group LetsMakeSomething we had a Christmas Mini House Book mingle. Where you take a mini-house template and create a front and back cover, and 4 front and back decorated pages in a Christmas theme, then you bind it all together into a little book. They make GREAT keepsake Holiday decorations! Today I put together the cover's and the pages. This is what I came up with. I plan on putting it all together into a book tomorrow. I was so excited for the pages that I couldnt wait to share :) Tomorrow I will blog the pictures of the completed book :)

Thanks for taking a gander!

1st Card of the Season!

Yesterday I began my journey into Christmas card making! Oh boy! This is the first year that I will be handmaking all of the cards that we are sending out for the holidays. So I am a bit nervous and hope everyone doesnt laugh hysterically at my first attempt at this. This is the first card I created. I learned of a website through the Red Cross called Holiday Mail for Heroes where you can send cards to be distributed to American service members, veterans and their families in the United States and around the world.

My sister and I are trying to spread the word to get those that are interested to send at least one card this holiday season. Soooo since I was inspired yesterday with this, I went ahead and created my card which I will be sending tomorrow. It really is something nice to do for all of those that might be serving right now and can not be with family and friends for the holidays.

"Appreciation can make a day, even change a life. Your willingness to put
it into words is all that is neccessary." ~Margaret Cousins

about the fall bizarre...

I have been feeling really lousy over the past week with a nasty cold that has decided to take my voice now... *sighs* so I am just now getting to blogging about the Bizarre we had at our church. The picture is of all the craft items I created for the bizarre to help raise money for the church. We did really well with the bizarre and hot dog dinner sale. We raised over $800! WHOOPEE! We were all so excited and proud about that fact. We have just enough for our Thanksgiving and Christmas baskets for the families in our community that need a little help this year! YAY! All of my items sold except for the picture frame and the red snowman, but thats okay :) I am putting the picture frame up for grabs in my shop but I decided to keep the Snowman hee hee! Thanks everyone for their words of encouragement and everything about the bizarre and the kind words about my creations!

Have you ever?

My friend Lori posted this on her blog Fresh Picked Whimsy and thought it would be fun to post too.

Here's what you do: cut and paste the list into your blog and bold anything on the list that you have done in your lifetime so far. I honestly dont have that much to bold on my list... but maybe someday :)



1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community.
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelos David
41. Sung karoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a lawsuit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

And soon I will have #85 crossed off :D

Give the list a try its fun and interesting to learn about your friends :D

Handpainted Cardinal Star

This is another wooden unfinished item from Michaels. I added a suction cup to the top so that I could hang it in a window, but it can be replaced with a ribbon if you chose to hang it elsewhere.

The background is dark blue with lighter blue swirls. Then of course the cardinal as the focal point. The stars and the edging is in gold sparkles. The back is also painted but in solid gold. It took me a bit longer to complete this project because of all of the details and the little additions I kept adding *lol* I wish the photo was clearer but with the clear varnish the flash put a glare on it :( Here's another view, not sure how much better it actually is lol.

Holiday Magnet Clips

Another unfinished wooden item set that I found at Michaels. *lol* They are Magnet clips. You can hold cards, photos etc in the clip and stick it on your fridge :) I thought they were adorable. So I painted each one.. again there is sparkles involved. And added crystals to each one. Clear on the bear, and multi-colors on the tree :)

Holiday Picture Frame

I also found this great unfinished wooden frame at Michaels. It was a buck!! So I bought many of them as well so that I could do various designs on them. I handpainted this frame. You cant tell but the white snowflakes sparkle in clear, the berries sparkle in red and the bells on the deer collar sparkle gold. I embellished it with a nice festive ribbon on the top and bottom that I found in the discount bin at Michaels and then I added a green ribbon bow :) Since this is my first frame that I have created I think Im going to keep it and then create a few others for gifts and for the fall bizarre at the church. I have already added a picture to it :) Forgive the photo, it was dark and for some reason my camera takes grainy pictures w/out flash but if I used flash it would have glared off of the frame.. *sighs*

Best of all, Christmas means a spirit of love, a time when the love of God and
the love of our fellow men should prevail over all hatred and bitterness, a time
when our thoughts and deeds and the spirit of our lives manifest the presence of
God.”~anonymous

Snow wooden sign

I found these great wooden signs at Michaels on Discount and I just had to grab a ton of them. This is the first one that I finished. You cant tell in the picture but the snowflake and the white stripes and circles on the letters sparkle. And the crystals on the snowflake are pink, green and clear. :)

My lil sis liked it so much that she requested one in red and green :D So I finished one for her and the crystals are in clear and red. And the white parts sparkle as well, you can see it a little better with this picture but not as much as I was hoping. I hate how pics and scans never show all the details *lol*

Wooden Keepsake Box

I thought it would be nice to work on some wood items so I found this cute little unfinished keepsake box at Michaels for only a few bucks. So I painted it, added gold leaf to the top and some jewels and then varnished it. I thought the gold leaf made the carved designs pop. It turned out really nicely, I have it sitting in my living room on the coffee table at the moment :)

Alot of catching up to do....

It has been such a long time since I updated my blog. Eeesh. Seems like everytime I get the chance to sit down and type something up or share a new creation, something else pops up and I get side tracked. *sighs* But I've updated my blog look (finally) and I happen to like my little Thanksgiving theme, even if it will need to be changed in a few weeks again *lol* I have been creating things like crazy and will blog as many of them as I can today and the coming days so that I can catch up. I've really just been focusing on Christmas and the Holidays. I always get into a festive mood right after Halloween. Its my favorite time of the year, and I really enjoy making my greeting cards, and other crafts/decorations etc. I've also been really active in our church and with the holidays coming up our church is super busy with a Christmas play, fundraising, and other things. I joined the Ladies Aid of our church and this Friday we are having a 'Fall Bizarre' where we are going to sell our arts and crafts, and baked goods etc. to raise money for the Church and we use the money to create food baskets & toys for the needy families in our area. So that will be really nice. I've been creating tons of Holiday themed items for the Bizarre and will be busy mid-week baking and cooking. Eesh. Its fun and I really enjoy being active in our church. I also caught a terrible cold last week and I was really feeling aweful, but today is the first day that I have been feeling a little better. At least I can smell and breath out of my nose, even if I do have a cough still. I'm hoping by mid-week or the weekend it will be gone for good. I always get sick at least 1 time when the season's change. I guess its just the weather change. Ok well, thats just a tiny update from me. Stay tuned for tons of art creations :) Hoping all are doing well and had a fun Halloween. :)

Halloween ATC Coffin Card

I know its way past Halloween *lol* but I did create this ATC coffin card for a swap in Artistic-Creations and I never got the chance to blog about it. So here it is *lol* It was fun, At first I wasnt sure about it but I think I like how it turned out. :)

p.s the little boy collage image came from Paper Imagery Designs ;)

Sisters make the best friends

Today I finished this wall hanging. I thought it would be something fun and different to try. It all started with this blank wooden house that I found at Michaels for 50 cents on clearance. Then I hand painted a design on it and added a vintage image and the words 'sisters make the best friends',some swarovski crystals in pink and clear/white, and some fabric flowers in pink and white as well. It was fun and I sort of like how it turned out.

Finally, Autumn!

Im so glad that its finally Autumn! Its my favorite season. I love the crisp air and the beautiful colors! I'm in such an Autumn, and Halloween mood lately that I have changed my blog look for the season. =) It was fun fooling around with everything! I dont think we will be handing out candy this year for the trick or treaters, sadly. =( We live back in the woods on a private drive and there aren't very many trick or treat aged kids in our community. Thats ok... I still enjoy curling up on Halloween and watching spooky movies with my hubby, thats one of my favorite parts, other than seeing all the neat costumes everyone comes up with. We've never been to a halloween party and I havent dressed in a costume in years .lol. When I was a kid I was always a clown except for one year I remember going as Madonna when I was 10 or 11. It was an interesting year I'd have to say. I got tired of the clown get up. I'm not a big fan of clowns in the first place. But I suppose that was the easiest thing my grandparents could think of .lol. My brothers were always vampires or the hulk. They loved painting their faces with green paint and saying 'Im HULK' and the funniest year was when all of my brothers and my little sister all dressed up as power rangers lol. Too funny! What memories Autumn brings =D

Today I started a new drawing. Its a large closeup of a large sea turtle. I loved all of the details in the shell and the face/body. Its going to be a great challenge but a fun one. I am hoping to perhaps donate 10% of the proceeds to an animal organization, such as WWF.. but its going to take me at least a week or more to complete the piece =) I hope tomorrow to work more on the drawing and also create a few atc's or arches, or maybe participate in a few challenges. We'll see. Tim has to work this weekend (except for Sunday) so I'll be home alone. I'll figure something out to keep me busy =) I want to thank everyone who has left me such great feedback for my recent creations. You are all very kind! The Edward and Bella piece has received the most comments I have ever received, and I really truly didnt expect it. I didnt realize how popular Twilight has become =) Again thanks for all of your kind words and motivation! Its greatly appreciated! I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. I should be back very soon to share some creations! Happy Fall Yall! ;)

“There is a harmony in autumn, and a luster in its sky, which through the
summer is not heard or seen, as if it could not be, as if it had not been!” ~
Percy Bysshe Shelley

Edward & Bella- a graphite drawing (IF)

'Edward and Bella' (IF-Sugary)

(click to enlarge)

Tonight I really wanted to get back into drawing and I couldnt really think of anything to draw that interested me until I just started drawing this couple. I wanted to participate in the IF challenge since I have been MIA for a couple of weeks with moving. This weeks topic is Sugary. So I claim this is basically Bella and Edward both thinking 'His/Her kisses are sugary sweet' =D I know its probably not what the topic was intended for but its what my weird mind thought of .lol.

I really really love the Twilight Saga books by Stephenie Meyers. Its a really great series and in November the first film will be out in theatres! I cant wait!!! My hubby and I are taking a trip down to MS to see our best friends that I havent seen in 2 years the week the movie is released and we are all going to see it together since we are fans =) Its going to be great and Im counting down the days. We really deserve a vacation and we've never been to MS before. PLUS I really want to see my sissy =D

Anyway, I totally lost track of my point- haha! Since I started reading the series I always had specific images of the characters in my mind and this is pretty much what I had in mind for Bella and Edward. I suppose its not too far off from the actual casting for the film but just a little. Either way I like the mood in the drawing. You can feel the emotions, or at least I can. Definate Love, Lust and Adoration.

If you havent read the books, check them out. I read all 4 books in 2 weeks! LOL! Thats how great they are.

"The right thing isn't always real obvious. Sometimes the right thing for one
person is the wrong thing for someone else. So... good luck figuring that out."
— Charlie Swan from Eclipse by Stephenie Meyers

Art for a cause...

Hey everyone, I thought I would share this great art for a cause. If you go to ebay and purchase a painting from Schmetzpetz, 10% goes to the ASPCA. I love his fun, quirky stuff. I like the dachsunds I think they are cute =D Just thought I would spread the word =D ~Ande~

Hope for a cure- a gothic arch

The Gothic Arch Challenge this week is an open theme. So I thought I would create an arch for breast cancer awareness since this month is breast cancer awareness month. I thought I would take a second to think of Tim's Grandma James who passed away when he was a small child from breast cancer. She is dearly missed. Remember to be aware, do regular exams, and continue praying for a cure.

"Too often we are scared, scared of what we might not be able to do, scared
of what people might think if we tried, we let our fears stand in the way of our
hopes. Why? There's really no time to be afraid. You have nothing to lose and
everything to gain. Everything!”

Finally moved in....

Its about time too .lol. Tim and I finally got everything moved on Sunday and we have the majority of things unpacked. At least my studio is unpacked and set up... thats good right?! I still have a few things to unpack but Im really getting bored with the whole thing lol. Im really loving our new home and I hope to take a few pictures in the coming days to share =D Hopefully I can get into the creating mood soon and get back into my studio.. but until then I wanted to let everyone know that we are doing well and are settling now. I have the net so I am back... dummm dummm dummmmm. hee hee. Thanks for all the well wishes on our move, it was greatly appreciated =D

Moving..

I just wanted to let everyone know that I will probably be inactive here for a week or more because of us moving. Tim and I finally got a place closer to his work and we are sooo excited! We will be moving our things this week and hopefully it wont take forever for our phone and net to be installed! I am really tickeled pink to have our 'OWN' place!!! We rent where we are now and it stinks lol. Why not pay for something thats yours... instead of paying someone elses house payment off for them w/ your rent money lol. ya know? So yay us! I'll hopefully be back soon!

'Create Art' - Gothic Arch

"Create Art" Gothic Arch

(click to enlarge)

Last weeks Gothic Arch Challenge was Pretty in Pink =) I was late (of course) on creating mine but I did want to participate so I created one today. In Artistic-Creations this week's technique challenge was the bandana technique... so I created the background using the bandana technique.. The scan doesnt show it but the outer rim of each medallion is colored in orange, pink, and yellow. Im not really sure why scanners dull colors out but for some reason they do. This arch is so much brighter (especially the pinks) in person than in this scan. *sighs* But anyway .lol. Im not sure where the stamps and image are from. I found the quote stamp at hobby lobby. I wish I would have kept better records of where all of my stamps came from. *sighs*

“The artist must create a spark before he can make a fire and before art is born, the artist must be ready to be consumed by the fire of his own creation.” ~Auguste Rodin

The Glory of Spring- an original

'The Glory of Spring'
(Click to Enlarge)

This isnt the best photo of my newest piece but I was so excited I just had to take a quick pic and blog about it =D I just finished this piece about an hour ago... its been an on going project for 2 months now. SIGHS... Im sooooo relieved that its complete! I wanted to challenge myself with something on a large scale with ALOT of detail and I thought the contrast of the darks and lights would be a nice challenge. =) This piece measures 19x24. Im hoping to add it to my shop in the coming days, but I do want a better picture of it to show more of the details and everything. Im so thrilled with its outcome, and more relieved than anything. =)

"To see a hillside white with dogwood bloom is to know a particular ecstasy of beauty, but to walk the gray Winter woods and find the buds which will resurrect that beauty in another May is to partake of continuity.” ~Hal Borland

'Destiny' ATC

'Destiny ATC'

(click to enlarge)

Today I created another random ATC... Im about to head back into my art room and work on some more, maybe do a challenge or two just for fun. There's alot going on in this little ATC =D I created the background using acrylic paints and the credit card technique. The colors I used were Robin's Egg Blue, Antique White, and Deep Sienna. I used a page from an old dictionary in a few places. The Image used is from a collage sheet freebie by Gaby at http://gaby-cajubrasil.blogspot.com/ The Word Destiny and the definition are printed on vellum and attached with vellum tape. I drew the wings, and layered blue and cream colored fiber flowers and braded them to her hat. I also edged the image in blue ink and edged the entire card in brown ink.

"Control your own destiny or someone else will." ~Jack Welch