Inchies with Wings

Inchies with Wings

OK, here’s the first batch of inchies I made for a swap. The theme is “Wings” so I decided on bugs, birds and angels. I snail mailed them today to my swap partner in Scotland, two days before the deadline. Whew!

I used a variety of materials and techniques here. Clockwise, from top:

Dream Butterfly inchie: Aluminum flash tape reverse-embossed and colored with permanent markers.

Angels inchie: Iron-on transfer on cheesecloth on a washi paper background, embellished with a bit of ribbon and gold dimensional paint.

Harmony Dragonflies inchie: Dragonflies and Chinese character stamped in black ink on red cotton, and dotted with a tiny bit of gold dimensional paint.

Ladybug inchie: Handmade paper with grass and petals serves as the background for a ladybug doodled on red paper and finished with a dome sticker. (Thanks to my sister Choi for showing me how to make ladybugs!)

Happiness Bird inchie: Iron-on transfer on cheesecloth plus a layer each of maroon and white tulle, all hand stitched together, with a hole cut in the tulle to reveal the image. Happiness stamped on a strip of handmade paper and stitched above the image.

All inchies are mounted on sturdy card. If you have questions about any of these techniques, feel free to drop me a line!

Tags: Angels, Birds, Bugs, Collage, Embossing, Handmade Paper, Inchies, Iron-on Transfers, Markers, Sewing, Stamps, Stitching, Wings

Mother and Child

Mother and Child, Collage.

Perfect for Mother’s Day! I was lucky to catch Piper and her kitty Strider in this really “Aww, that’s so sweet” moment, and knew this photo had to be in a vintage sort of setting. I converted the photo to sepia, put it in a heart-shaped frame under a vellum sheet embossed around the edges to resemble lace, and added a pink satin bow.

The background paper,  btw, is a vintage paper-backed foil giftwrap that reminded me so much of my mom – she had this ottoman upholstered in yellow leatherette with huge copper rose prints, plus recipe books covered with paper-backed foil giftwrap that was so popular at the time.

Anyway, going back to this ATC – I loved this picture so much that I made a digital scrapbbook page for it! Check it out at my other blog, Scrapbook Cats.

Tags: Art Cards, ATCs, Collage, Digital Scrapbooking, Embossing, Scrapbooking, Vellum, Vintage

Best Buds

Best Buds, 16 March 2008. Collage.

One of my more recent ATCs. Note the happy, scrapbookish style. I assembled this when I was in one of my scrapbooking moods, and I was excited to try out my new heat gun, embossing powder and clear stamps.

This card commemorates the unique, though sadly short-lived friendship of Coal (in black fur) and Tubby (in white fur). Tubby passed away a few days after this was taken, a few hours into the New Year, due to some strange malady. Coal passed away last week of September this year due to some kidney ailment.  Oh well, we’ll meet each other at the Rainbow Bridge…

Trivia: Yes, that’s a stainless steel mixing bowl they’re snuggled in!

Fun tip: Jewelry price tags are the perfect size for ATCs, and for scrapbooks as well!

Tags: Art Cards, ATCs, Cats, Collage, Embossing, Scrapbooking, Stamps

Parchment fan v.2

Parchment fan, dry embossed and finished with peral paints and metallic gel ink. Design courtesy of Janet Wilson.

This fan was made from clear (colorless) vellum, then painted with pearl paints and a metallic gel pen. I used an eyelet to hold the sections together, but maybe I should have used a cord instead to soften the look.

Anyhow, this was designed by Janet Wilson, another of my favorite parchment craft gurus. You’ll find details of the project in her book “The Art of Parchment Craft”.

Tags: Embossing, Gel Pens, Janet Wilson, Paper Crafts, Parchment Crafts, Pearl Paints, Vellum

Parchment fan

Parchment fan, dry embossed. Design courtesy of Martha Ospina.

Yes, I’m a fan pf parchment craft, thank you. Sorry, couldn’t resist the pun.

Here’s a parchment fan I made years ago. I used cream vellum to capture the look of old lace, and finished it off with a matching ribbon and gold embroidery floss. The design is featured in Martha Ospina’s book “Pergamano Parchment Craft”. Check it out!

Tags: Embossing, Martha Ospina, Paper Crafts, Parchment Crafts, Pergamano, Vellum