A card for my boss - Une carte pour ma patronne

This week is Daycare Educator Appreciation week. Our boss is giving us a little something special every single day. Her boss (the principal) will be offering her a present as well so I volunteered to make the card. I wanted something simple that she would appreciate. She loves flowers and frog images so this stamp from Stampin' Up! (A Flower for All Seasons) was perfect for her. I simply colored the image with Prismacolor pencils, blended with odorless solvent and added a bit of Gold Liquid Pearl to the middle of the flowers (oops, looks like one of them needs to be fixed before I give the card!) The rest is pretty straight forward. I used papers from Making Memories.

Cette semaine, c'est la Semaine des Services de Gardes. Notre patronne nous donne un petit quelque chose de spécial à chaque jour. Sa patronne (la directrice) lui offrira un cadeau aussi alors je me suis portée volontaire pour faire la carte. Je voulais quelque chose de simple qu'elle apprécierait. Elle aime les fleurs et les images de grenouilles alors cette étampe de Stampin' Up! (A Flower for All Seasons) était parfaite pour elle. J'ai simplement coloré l'image avec des crayons Prismacolor, estompés avec du solvant inodore et j'ai ajouté un peu de Liquid Pearl doré au centre des fleurs (oops, il y en a une qui doit être arrangée avant que je donne la carte!) Le reste est assez évident. J'ai pris des papiers de Making Memories.

 

A Christmas card - Une carte de Noël

This is the Christmas card I made for my mom last week. I was inspired by a card made by my good friend CeeCee. The penguin and his hat were glued with foam squares to add dimension. I added a pearl on the hat's pompom, some Stickles on the heart and fine glitter on the ice's edges. The oval was also glued with foam squares.

Voici la cart de Noël que j'ai faite pour ma mère la semaine dernière. Elle est inspirée d'une carte faite par ma bonne amie CeeCee. Le pingouin et son chapeau on été collé avec des carrés de mousse pour ajouter de la dimension. J'ai ajouté une perle sur le pompon  du chapeau, des Stickles sur le coeur et des brillants fins sur les bords de la glace. L'oval a aussi été collé avec des carrés de mousse.

 

Mom's birthday card - Carte de fête pour maman

Today is my mom's birthday! Happy Birthday Mom!

I made this card for her using Stampin' Up! papers and a Sweet November stamp. The image was coloured with dye inks + blender pen as well as Prismacolor pencils blended with odorless solvent and a paper stump. The card is bigger than the usual size I make because I had to included a pocket on the inside where we could slip some money. I made the envelop to match but forgot to take a picture.

Aujourd'hui c'est la fête de ma mère! Bonne Fête Maman!

J'ai fait cette carte pour elle avec des papiers de Stampin' Up! et une étampe de Sweet November. L'image fut coloriée avec des encres à teinture + crayon-estompe ainsi que des crayons Prismacolor estompés avec du solvant inodore et un tortillon de papier. La carte est plus grande que mon format habituel parce que je devais inclure une pochette à l'intérieur où l'on pouvait glisser de l'argent. J'ai fait l'enveloppe assortie mais j'ai oublié d'en prendre une photo.

Linocut cards - Carte linogravure

I've been wanting to try my hand at making prints out of my own linocuts for a few months. I've carved my own stamps before but this was different. I still have a lot to learn about cutting through linoleum blocks and then inking it to print on paper but I did enjoy trying this new technique. I printed on book pages and watercolour paper as seen above, as well as white and kraft cardstock. I made quite a few prints so expect to see more projects featuring this image.

Depuis quelques mois, je voulais essayer de faire des impressions à partir de mes propres linogravures. J'ai déjà gravé mes propres étampes mais c'était différent cette fois. J'ai encore beaucoup de choses à apprendre sur la gravure du linoléum et comment bien l'encrer pour faire des copies sur papier mais j'ai eu du plaisir à essayer cette nouvelle technique. J'ai imprimé sur des pages de livre et du papier aquarelle comme vu ci-haut, ainsi que sur du carton blanc et nature. J'ai fait plusieurs copies alors attendez-vous à voir plusieurs projets avec cette image.

 

3rd birthday card - 3e carte de fête

Here is the last of the birthday cards I made this month. It was for my dear friend Catherine. We are both tea lovers so this image was perfect to make a card for her.

I'm keeping it short today because I have a cold and I just can't seem to think about what to write. Hopefully, tomorrow I'll be better (especially since it will be the first belly-dancing lesson of the season!)

Voici la dernière carte faite ce mois-ci. Elle était pour ma chère amie Catherine. Nous sommes deux buveuses de thé alors cette image était parfaite pour lui faire une carte.

Je garde ça court aujourd'hui parce que j'ai un rhume et je n'arrive pas à penser à ce que je veux écrire. Espérons que demain soit mieux (surtout que j'ai mon premier cours de baladi de la saison!)

Another friend, another birthday card - Une autre amie, une autre carte de fête

Last week I made a few birthday cards. This is the second one, which was for my friend and coworker, Geneviève. I used a stamp from Stamping Bella and papers from my stash. The image is coloured with pencil and odorless solvent.

La semaine dernière j'ai fait quelques cartes de fête. Voici la deuxième, qui était pour mon amie et collègue de travail, Geneviève. J'ai pris une étampe de Stamping Bella et les papiers sont de ma réserve. L'image a été coloriée avec des crayons de bois et du solvant inodore.

Birthday card for a friend - Carte de fête pour une amie

A quick post to show you a card I made for one of my friends (who also happens to be my boss.) Her birthday was last week but I didn't have time to make a card until this weekend. She loves cats so I thought this stamp from Stampin' Up! (Pun Fun) was perfect for her. Behind that card, you get a sneak peek of two other cards I made for two other friends but I won't show these until I've given them.

Un message rapide pour vous montrer la carte que j'ai faite pour une amie (qui est aussi ma patronne.) Sa fête était la semaine passée mais je n'ai pas eu le temps de faire de carte avant cette fin de semaine. Elle aime les cartes alors je me suis dit que cette étampe de Stampin' Up! (Pun Fun) était parfaite pour elle. À l'arrière, vous pouvez voir un aperçu de deux autres cartes que j'ai faites pour deux autres ammies mais je ne vous les montrerai pas avant de les avoir donné.

Ben's birthday card - Carte de fête de Benoit

This is the card I made for my brother. It's his birthday today but he received the card yesterday.

Cette carte a été faite pour mon frère. C'est sa fête aujourd'hui mais il l'a reçue hier.

 

Sometimes, when I want to make a card and I don't have an idea, I look for a sketch or colour combination to get me started. Well, for this one, I did both. The colour combination is from the Color Throwdown challenge #106: soft sky, chocolate chip, kraft and certainly celery. I added white and silver brads but the rest is that exact combination. The sketch I used is from Friday Sketchers #116.

Parfois, quand je veux faire une carte et que je n'ai pas d'idée, je cherche un modèle ou une combinaison de couleurs pour m'aider à commencer. Et bien, pour celle-ci, j'ai fait les deux. La combinaison de couleurs vient du défi #106 de Color Throwdown: doux ciel, pépite de chocolat, brune dune et certainement céleri. J'ai ajouté du blancc et les attaches parisiennes argentées mais le reste est exactement la bonne combinaison. Le modèle dont je me suis servi est le #116 de Friday Sketchers.

All supplies (except for the brads) are from Stampin' Up!

Toutes les fournitures (à l'exception des attaches parisiennes) sont de Stampin' Up!

What is your trick when you don't know how to start a project?

Quel est votre truc lorsque vous ne savez pas comment commencer un projet?

Dad's birthday card - Carte de fête pour mon père

This past Saturday was my father's birthday. This is the card I made for him. The patterned papers are from the Max and Whiskers paper pad by Basic Grey. Everything else is from Stampin' Up! except for the brads which are from American Crafts.

Samedi passé, c'était la fête de mon père. Voici la carte que je lui ai fait. Les papiers à motifs sont du bloc Max and Whiskers de Basic Grey. Tout le reste est de Stampin' Up! à l'exception des attaches parisiennes qui sont d'American Crafts.

A little bird told me - Un petit oiseau m'a dit

Today, a very simple card. The card base had the background glued to it for a couple of months. The bird had been stamped and mounted on the pieces of cardstock over two years ago (yes, you read that right.) So in an effort to use up the stuff I already have on hand, I made this little card. And since I couldn't find the right ribbon, I cut a thin piece of the lighter brown cardstock I used to mat the bird image (yes, I still have that exact cardstock in my supplies.) The flower was a simple white paper one that I sprayed with my homemade glimmer mist and then I added a bit of marker in the middle and sprayed it with water.

Have you looked through your old unfinished projects lately to see if you could complete them some other way? Give it a try!

***

Aujourd'hui, une carte simple. La base de la carte avait le papier de fond collé dessus depuis quelques mois. L'oiseau a été étampé et monté sur les morceaux de carton il y a plus de deux ans (oui, vous avez bien lu.) Alors, dans un effort d'utiliser les choses que j'ai sous la main, j'ai fait cette petite carte. Et comme je n'avais pas le bon ruban pour ajouter à la carte, j'ai coupé un morceau mince dans le carton brun un peu plus pâle sous l'oiseau (oui, j'ai encore ce même carton dans mon inventaire.) La fleur était simplement en papier blanc et je l'ai aspergée de mon "glimmer mist" maison pour ensuite y ajouter un peu de feutre au centre et l'aspergée d'eau.

Avez-vous regardé vos vieux projets non-terminés dernièrement pour voir si vous pourriez les compléter d'une autre façon? Allez-y, essayez!

Inside the artist's studio

So. This is where the magic happens. My living room/studio. It's small and I have way too much stuff for it but I've gotten used to it in the past 5 (closer to 6) years.

Now. I've already talked about my belief in signs and messages from the Universe. And this summer, I received a message in the form of a new-to-me blog. She calls herself the Mermaid and lives in a cottage near a beach. She teaches "fat, messy journal" classes to young girls in her home during summer. And the way she writes... it got me thinking...

I could do this. I could teach "fat, messy journal" classes of my own during summer. Yes, my apartment is small but with a bit of de-cluttering and reorganizing, I really think I could make my living room kid-friendly. All through this year I've been taking small steps to de-clutter my life. And I've been experimenting with new art techniques. I've also been reading about organization more (and seeing Violette's posts on this subject and the progress she's making with this is very inspiring.) I already have access to kids so that won't be an issue when it's time to get started. I even have 2 girls in mind to "test drive" this new project. Thoughts and ideas are swirming in my mind day and night (making it hard to fall asleep but that's a whole different post that I won't bore you with!)

Ever since I was a kid, I've wanted to be an artist and to teach kids (without actually being a school teacher.) So I think, no, I KNOW that this is one of those dreams that can and WILL actually come true! I'm very excited about this and will do everything in my power to make it happen. And I'll keep you all updated on my progress.

On a different note...

Yesterday, I was at my parents' house to take care of the dogs for a few hours and decided to make 2 cards (I hate the term "greeting card" but that's what they are, not ATCs.) They are both very similar: same colours, same stamps. The differences are: this one has 4 birds while the other has 2 AND this card has punched flowers with a bit of Gold Liquid Pearl while the other has Turquoise Sticklers on all the leaves of the tree. They both came out great. The other card is for an ATCSforALL member who lost family members last week. The one you see here is for a 5 year old girl, Ellie Bouchard, who is going through chemo because of a brain tumor. If you want to brighten this little girl's day, go to her website to find the address where you can mail her a card or anything else that you think she might like.

Before I go, I also wanted to share with you this video (found through iHanna's blog.) It makes me happy and I could watch it over and over.

Keeping Busy

It's been a while since I updated my blog. Well, I'm keeping busy most of the time. Creating ATCs and Chunky Pages for swaps. Cleaning my brother's apartment (doing it for one year to pay him back for the Nikon camera he sold me.) Helping my mother getting settled in her art room. And creating cards in said art room! This is one of those cards. I wanted to use more masculine colours and used new stamps that mom bought this week. (Bird is from Sandylion and sentiment is from Magenta.)

Alberta and Ava have nominated me for an award. Thanks!

CeeCee's CC#6

Another colour challenge up on CeeCee's blog. You have until tomorrow night to play if you feel like it. This challenge was, well, challenging, to say the least. I could still add a sentiment above the heart but right now, I'll leave it as is.

Candace tagged me over on her blog so I thought I'd play along.

1. What were you doing 10 years ago? I was working as a cashier at Reno-Depot, falling in love with the wrong guys and learning about wicca.

2. What are 5 things on your TO DO list? Wash dishes, fold and put away clean clothes, make skinny book pages for a swap, start exercising, eat healthy meals.

3. What are 5 snacks you enjoy? Chips, chocolate, PB&J sandwich, cereal with milk, fruits

4. Name some things you would do if you were a millionaire: buy myself a house, pay off my debts, go to Europe with my mom and throw myself a big party. Ok, maybe not that last part!

5. Name some places where you've lived: my parents' house in Pierrefonds and my apartment in Lachine (both are suburbs of Montreal for those who don't know.)

6. Name some bad habits you have: I'm lazy and messy. I'm a procrastinator. I'm very self-critical.

7. Name some jobs you've had: cashier, scrapbooking instructor and elementary school educator (lunchtime and after school program.)

I'm not tagging anyone in return but if you feel like playing along, let me know!

CeeCee's CC#5

My friend CeeCee's having another Colour Challenge on her blog so what better way to work through the funk! This card was made in about 30 minutes. It came together on its own it seems. Stamps and flower are from Stampin' Up! and cardstocks are Bazzill. Brads are American Crafts and the ribbon came in a kit from ArtChixStudio.

This was fun to make and I'll probably try to make more cards. My friend/coworker has bought 2 of my cards already and might be interested in more so that's a good thing!

CeeCee's Colour Challenge #4

I decided to play again for this round. Stamps, flowers and grey/green cardstock from Stampin' Up! The rest is from my stash. It's simple. Now I just need to find an envelop to use with it!

CeeCee's Colour Challenge

My friend Catherine (also known as CeeCee) has issued a colour challenge on her blog. This is her third one and I decided to participate in this one.

I don't have the Stampin' Up! colours so I improvised with what I had on hand. I did use a stamp and a rub-on from SU! though! The stamp says: Always on my mind - forever in my heart. Pretty, no?

The card is pretty simple but I like it.

Chaque fleur...

I'm signed up on quite a few swaps these days over at ATCSforALL. So that means, working on art for other people. Of course the Daily Art Cards are made for me but it's still not "creating for the sake of creating." So last night, while talking and hanging out with mom, I decided to make a card. All papers, stamps and ribbon are Stampin' Up! Brads are from my mom's stash. What do you think? The saying goes: Every flower is a smile from nature. Works for any occasion! I'm hoping to make a few cards to maybe sell. One of my co-workers bought a card from me friday and said she might want some more. Fun!

I've been doing a lot of extra hours at work these past weeks. Makes me happy because it means more money! I'm going in again tomorrow morning for one hour so one of my coworkers can get some rest. I have no kids and no man in my life so I get plenty of rest! Ha! Now I'm gonna go work on my first pages for a chunky book swap!

Something different and yet another tag

Here are two cards I made last week in a workshop at Bonnidée. The stamps are reproductions of Thomas Kinkade artworks and the workshop was on colouring techniques to use with those kinds of stamps. It was an interesting workshop but more my mom's style than mine. The cards came out beautifully but I doubt I'll do more like this.

So I've been tagged yet again. This time by a new blogging friend (from OWOH), Pam Bennett. So here goes... Let's see if I can still find 7 things about myself I haven't revealed yet.

The rules:1. Link to your tagger and post these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
4. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.


1. I used to have a piercing in one of my eyebrows. It hurt more than any tattoo I had done. I eventually had to remove it for a job.

2. The job for which I had to remove said piercing was in a private school.

3. 6 and a half years ago (August 2001) I went on the trip of my dreams: backpacking through England, Ireland and Scotland for a month.

4. I used to be allergic to buckwheat but now I'm not.

5. I used to be able to eat fresh mangoes but now I'm allergic to the skin (so I need to get pre-pealed mangoes or dried or frozen ones... fun.)

6. I still have all the CDs I have ever bought or received as gifts (my first CD being Ugly Kid Joe... don't ask.)

7. If I had to choose only one type of food for the rest of my life, it would be pasta. I love pasta. I really do. And the best pasta I ever had was in Rome, Italy. Seriously!

So that's that. I'm not tagging anyone cuz I think everyone I know has been tagged way too many times. If you want to play along, do so and let me know if you are so inclined.

Before I go, here is a little something I received in the mail from the talented Angela. Aren't they pretty?

More Christmas Cards

Here are four more Christmas cards that I made. Friday was a ped day at school so I was working different hours. I finished at 2pm and had arranged to meet with Catherine for some good company, good food and maybe good creations. I decided that this was a good time to do some christmas cards so I brought all my stuff to her house (she has a fun studio/office and room to work!)



I realized, while working on these, that I have a hard time doing simple things. Meaning that I usually put more than is necessary when scrapbooking or making cards. With all of these, I felt that there was something missing but eventually let them be. And I am very pleased with the results. I used supplies I already had on hand, mostly scrapbook papers from last year and Christmas themed chipboards. This year, I'm trying to use stuff that I have and to NOT buy more unless I make a big dent in my stash. So far so good.

Catherine and I spent 9 hours talking, creating, eating. It certainly didn't feel like that much time had passed when I left. It's great having a friend with whom I can talk about anything, practice and share my favourite hobbies (crafts), try new things. We are not the same age but most of the times, the age difference does not matter or even show. We get along great.


Now, about my Nanowrimo novel. I'm so caught up in the back story of one of my characters that I seem to have completely forgotten to continue the plot. I reached 40,000 words just before writing this post and am confident that I will add at least another 1000 before going to bed tonight. I am almost done with the back story and will be able to go back to the main story probably tomorrow or tuesday. Luckily, I can link everything together and it will make sense. I can already see the Nanowrimo finish line! I will definitely make it thanks to a lot of encouraging people.

Now I should go buy some food if I don't want to starve this week. Even authors have to eat some time!
PS there is another card to be shown but I thought it might be a bit messy for my scanner so as soon as I manage to take a picture of it, I'll post it here. Don't hold your breath though!

A card and Nanowrimo update

So this is the card that I made for my mom's birthday last week. I used my new favourite techniques: painting, collage, drawing and oil pastels. Since this was a card and not something in a journal or to be framed, I attached a piece of vellum on top of it. I only had printed vellum so I found a piece that was not too obstructive. I really like how everything turned out. Mom loved the card. Now she has a one-of-a-kind collage card signed SoFy (that is how I sign my name on my art, be it visual art or literary works.




Speaking of literary works. In the past week, I had a hard time working on my novel for Nanowrimo. I know I wasn't the only one but still I felt a little sorry for myself AND for my characters. After all, I created them out of thin air. Their lives depend on me! I was getting behind even when I was writing. I wasn't adding enough to my daily word count. Well, this afternoon, I sat down to write. I think I hit a wall even before I could start. I had gone grocery shopping in the morning so that meant I had food. Okay, I had a little something to eat. But then, still nothing. I read the forums on Nano, looking for inspiration. I listened to different kinds of music. Nothing. I washed some dishes to clear my mind. I don't particularly love washing dishes but I find that once I'm doing it, my mind often wanders off and I stop thinking about the little annoying things. I guess it is a way to meditate for me. So after having cleaned some of those dishes (I kept some for tomorrow, just in case!) I sat down again to write. I put on the same music I've been listening to for the past week (a mix of songs that soothe my soul) and I started writing. I told myself that I would not look at anyone's blog until I reached at least 28000 words. And it worked. After that, my goal was today's word count of 30000. And I made it! Yes! I'm back on track! So in the past 24 hours, I wrote a total of 5500 words! Woot! I'm impressed with myself!

Now it's late but I'm not tired. By body has gotten used to the late nights of writing so I think that for now, I will reward myself with some art. The colours are calling my name!