Land of Magnolia Book

This is a book I created for a contest that Diana was having at the Magnolia-licious US Store.  We had certain words that we needed to incorporate into the story, so that helped get some starting points.  It was so much fun to do the coloring and making up the story.  (Maybe this will help get me going on that Floral Punch book I've been thinking about for years!!!)    Was lucky enough to win 3rd place and a generous $100 gift certificate at the Magnolia-licious Store.  Didn't take long to spend that!!!
You can click on an image to get a larger picture if you want.  This little book ended up 110" long and was so fat, I had to create a belly band to hold it together.

Thanks for stopping by and as always so appreciate the comments!

A Manly Card

Some more water coloring with the distress inks.  This is a Northwoods stamp and colored with a variety of the inks:  Shabby Shutters, Peeled Paint, Forest Moss, Crushed Olive, Brushed Corduroy, Frayed Burlap, Vintage Photo, Faded Jeans, Broken China, Chipped Sapphire, Tumbled Glass and Fired Brick.  Probably stuck some Dusty Concord in there too!

Used the herringbone embossing folder and cut some triangles for the corners and attached with brads.

Heard from Ruby on the blog candy and oh my, she was excited!!!  I'm sure she will enjoy using the palette.

Enjoy the day!!!
Patti Jo 

Blog Candy Winner

Congratulations Ruby M you are the winner of the blog candy!!!!  Please e-mail me within 24 hours with your information and I'll get this package off to you!   (Click on the e-mail envelope on the sidebar.)

Trompe L'oeil Princess Tilda

I just love this Princess Tilda!  An opportunity to use some shimmer and shine and those little rhinestones that I thought I had to have!  You can find the Tilda's at Diana's here!  Oh my, I haven't used some of the Tilda's I just got and there are some adorable new ones!!!

Have always tried to do some shadowing around the images to help the dimension, and on my wandering through the internet, I ran across a technique called Trompe L'oeil, which is French for Trick of the Eye.  Thought I would give it a try.  Now this is just my version here, but think it was pronounced something like trump loy.

Edit:  Had watched a video and this was what the gal called it, but just did a little more research on Trompe L'oeil and this shading is probably stretching the description.  This really is an amazing art.  Hope the true artists don't get upset with us crafter's making the techniques into our own little craft versions!!!  :)     

Still working on how to leave the highlights, and colored this darling Tilda with the Distress Ink refills and water brush.  Mainly used Tattered Rose, Shabby Shutters, Scattered Straw, Brushed Corduroy and Pumice Stone for the shadow.  I do tend to grab a little bit of other colors to deepen too, so don't be afraid to mix and match!  These inks blend so beautifully.  Added teeny tiny rhinestones and used a Marvy DecoColor paint pen for some accents.  The flowers are from Punch Bunch:  blossoms and twig punches.

Still a little time for a chance at my blog candy that has the distress ink palette.  Check my previous posting!  It is so fun to hear from all over the world!!!

Enjoy the day!!!  Thanks for stopping by.  Would love to hear if you have tried the Trompe L'oeil or a "crafter's version"!

Patti Jo 

Blog Candy, Another Tilda and Stamps Happen

Life has been a little hectic the past few weeks but finally getting the blog candy on that I mentioned.

Just love coloring with the Distress Inks and found this nifty container to put my Distress Ink color chart into.  Friend Marion pointed out that the lid can be flipped back around to the bottom, so fantastic..... it is out of the way when using the chart.  The chart is laminated, so I put a drop of ink onto the appropriate color box.  When I'm done coloring, I just flip the lid back over the top and it keeps it ready for me the next time I color.  So far the Distress Inks I've left on the chart haven't dried completely, they are just thicker, but no problem, just add a little water.  Love working with this set up..... no waste, so handy and the chart shows me the dark and light version of the color.

So for the blog candy celebrating 10,000 hits on my blog, someone can win the Distress Ink container with laminated chart, some stamps and a few flower embellishments.  To be eligible, please sign up as a follower if you haven't already and leave a comment.  I will ship internationally too!  Not necessary to link to your blog, but would love it if you did.  I'll leave this open till April 18th at midnight CDT and give the winner 24 hours to respond.

Want to thank you all for coming by to visit and so appreciate the comments, they mean so much to me!!!

Here is another cute little Tilda holding a Dalecarlian horse.  The horse originated in Sweden and is a wooden carved toy, traditionally painted red.  Where would we be without Wikipedia!!!  :)

   Colored with Distress Inks and added a few punched flowers for embellishments.  Also added another layer of part of her hair, the bows, pocket, her arm and hand and shoes to make it more 3D!  You can find a large selection of cutie Tilda's at Diana's Magnolia-licious store here.

It's been a little while since I colored this, but believe I used Faded Jeans, Broken China, Tattered Rose, Brushed Corduroy and Frayed Burlap.  Punches are Carl and Punch Bunch.

Also here is another card I did with the Distress Inks.

This is a Stamps Happen stamp and I used the Tattered Rose, Chipped Sapphire, Brushed Corduroy, Faded Jeans, Tumbled Glass, Peeled Paint, Forest Moss, Pumice Stone, Fired Brick, Vintage Photo, Dusty Concord, Scattered Straw and Mustard Seed.

Love these little Prima roses (just a little too small for even me to make myself) and added some Punch Bunch ash leaves and some Leone Em maidenhair ferns.  Also used the Scor-pal to add lines around the frame.

One more thing, I am doing both Distress Ink water coloring classes and also Floral Punch classes, so if you are in the Minnesota metro area and are interested, please e-mail me for more information about classes.

That's it for today, but don't forget about the blog candy!  Enjoy the day!!!   Patti Jo