In the Direction of Dreams ... a canvas and matching card set.

Afternoon Everyone,

It's been a busy day for me ... well, a sort of busy day. After breakfast, I spent a good couple of hours this morning watching the new scrapbooking programme with Wendy Rhodes, hoping to pick up some useful tips. It ended in time for lunch so it wasn't until early afternoon I was able to hit the craft space, intending to do something with grunge paper but ... Outlook calendar reminded me of a birthday coming up. So I've been working on a shabby chic card today which I will probably post tomorrow. And for the last couple of days I've been working on this canvas and card set - another birthday - so the grungeboard and spool project just has to wait.

I started by making an ATC for Sarah's My Mojo Monthly. The theme this month is Play Petite ... go small, make an ATC ... so I did.

Our friend, Scott, has a lot of imagination, ambition and energy and is well on his way to realising his dreams. He recently completed an MBA, all the while building a very successful business ... he's aiming to become a millionaire before he's 40 :)) And as if that wasn't enough, he fills his spare time with distance running and the martial arts - mainly Tai Kwon Do, but he dabbles in others too. In fact, only this week he returned from Israel after completing a Krav-Maga course ... no, I don't know what it is either. Anyway, I digress, but it was thinking about what Scott does that led me to the making of this ATC. And I've finally used one of my collection of Clarity stamps.  The sentiment is a digital from Pink Petticoat. I'm afraid the photo does not do it justice - there's a lot of sparkle you just can't see!  Like Sarah, I decided to incorporate the ATC into the canvas I had started.

It's all about travel ... any kind of travel, places, directions, whatever, and maybe just a gentle reminder to write home too :) A lot of paint, distress inks, cosmic shimmer, stamping and gold embossing went into this project ... yes, I got messy for this one ... though the embellishments were kept to a minimum ... just a couple of brads, adage tickets and a tiny dragonfly.  Once again, the photo doesn't do it justice ... the colours are much better in the flesh, so to speak.

And after the canvas the card had to be simple, a ready-made card base, a bit of sponging with distress inks, stamping and heat embossing - silver this time, a ready-made greeting matted on to silver mirri card and some fab silver polka-dotted card candy - job done :)

Materials used:
- 7"x5" canvas board
- white gesso
- Adirondack paint dabber - mushroom
- Tim Holtz Distress Inks - Weathered Wood, Stormy Sky, Aged Mahogany, Black Soot, Pumice Stone
- VersaMark; fine gold & silver embossing powders
- Cosmic Shimmer - Pearl Mist, Rich Gold
- Stamps: Clarity - Postcards, Famous Places; Inkylicious - Simply Scrip;: Tim Holtz - Visual Artistry Collection
- Digital: Debbi Moore CD - Shabby Chic; Pink Petticoat - Tiny Sentiments
- Mask - Tim Holtz Idea-ology mini mask - compass
- Tools: heat gun; ink duster; make-up sponge
- Embellishments: Tim Holtz adage tickets; brads, dragonfly, card candy, greeting card topper, silver mirri card & silver/polka-dotted card candy from stash

I started writing up this post this afternoon in between cutting, sticking, distressing, and glittering, and then it was time for dinner, followed by Dancing on Ice - so many distractions :)) So now I'm sitting here in my PJ's after a lovely lazy easy Sunday - what more could a woman want :)


I hope you have all had as good a Sunday as I have and that all's well with your world.

Take care and happy crafting,