New & On Sale - Somewhere

Somewhere. Somewhere over the rainbow? Somewhere lost? Somewhere locked away? This kit is about those places. Lost, dreaming or on an adventure... discovery is close at hand. There is a rich selection of crafted papers to get you started and a menagerie of animals and elements to help detail your scene. I love the wide variety of looks and places this kit has. It's on sale until Wednesday, Oct 12. 


And check out what my CT did with it!!!

 

The Deviant Muse - October

The October edition of The Deviant Muse is in the shoppe and ready for download. As always, it's free!

In this issue you will find:

• Welcome our new resident designer
  
• Getting to know artist Michael deMeng
  
• Getting to know sherrieJD
• Meet our Guest - MagicalReality Designs
  
• Meet artist Greg Hanson
• Tutorials from sherrieJD and Hollie Haradon
  
• Template and alpha freebies
• Inspiration and winners
• Monthly challenges

New Collab Kit - Ode To A Muse 2

I am so thrilled to debut my new collab kit created with the wickedly talented Evelyn of Finecrafted Designs. Evelyn and I have both been fans of assemblage artist Michael deMeng's work forever. I have even had the pleasure of taking 2 classes with him. He is always inspirational and a total doll. His work is dark and a bit gritty. I find his pieces just enthralling. With his blessing, Evelyn and I set out to create a kit as a homage to him. We started tossing the idea back and forth a few months ago and suddenly we couldn't wait to start working on it! I went straight to the junkyard, gathering up neat bits and pieces. Evelyn opened her closet and got the skeletons out. Within a few weeks, we had this kit wrapped up. It came together so easily. We were so excited. The hardest part was sitting on it for 2 months for it's release today. I hope you find it as much fun to create with as we do! 


Our CTs went all out creating inspiration for you too! 

 

New & On Sale - Broken

Life isn't perfect. Some times we feel lost or broken. We see dreams shattered like glass. Pieces left in the trash. It's all real and it has a place in our art, our pages. I am a strong believer that scrap/art therapy really does help. I have found release upon creating many a page. Some people find it odd that I am willing to share these pages with the world but to me I find that when I do, the weight is lifted from my shoulders. I am sending it out into the universe. It is freed. One thing I have learned too is that I am not alone. Others have shared their feelings with me and have found strength in too. Broken is a kit that is filled with elements and papers to help you on this journey. Discarded and broken...these symbols are perfect for expressing life's not so pretty moments.


My CT did an amazing job with this kit too. 

And because I sort of suck at blogging, I forgot to post my last two kits. Eek! In Black and White is a fun and funky kit. It's filled with black and white papers and elements with punches of color. It's perfect for teenagers or pop pages. Gotta Hand It To You is a fun pack of hands in different poses. They are great for changing up perspective and getting creative with.

Halloween count down

It's that time of year and we are in full out Halloween making mode. Having won Best Home Haunt in America last year, we are feeling the need to step it up this year. We are doubling our pirate display with more animated skeletons. Nick is making 5 more that move and talk!!! We are also adding his pirate video projection behind the setup. I have been in charge of all the faux finishing of the skeletons. Straight out of the box just won't do. I antique them and gunk them up by using MinWax gelstain in Aged Oak. That stuff makes them look awesome. I also spent part of last weekend sewing pirate costumes. Now, before you get too impressed with that, my sewing skills go no further than what I learned at Mrs. Lam's knee in 6th grade Home Ec. I created the patterns by roughly sketching on the fabric around the skeleton. I then cut out the fabric, pinned it and did a straight stitch. Thank god they don't have to fit perfect!!!! Of course after me spending half a day making them, Nick ratted them up.


Another project I tackled was making wire ghosts. I had seen a photo on the net and thought they looked wicked cool and would be perfect for the hills in the backyard. I bought a 48" tall roll of chicken wire and some thin gauge wire. I wasn't sure how much to use, so I had my husband stand up and wrapped it around him and then went a little smaller. I did it in three pieces, the body, the arms and the head and shoulders. For the head, I molded it around a head form I had and then removed the head. The body was a little tricky at first but once I figured out what I was doing it got much easier. The arms are a tube of wire that is split on each end to taper into the body. I "sewed" the whole thing together with wire. They are very cool and only cost like $3.00 each to make! Can't beat that.


Alright back to painting......

Sigh........

 

This is just a personal mommy moment here. Where did my little boy go? My baby. J has grown by leaps and bounds (I have the high water pants collection to prove it too!) We were sitting outside and I was snapping away and in some of the photos, I would swear he was at least 13. No! No! No! 8 is a good age. Please baby don't grow up too fast. Love you! 

Woooo Hoooo!!!!!!

This is a serious o.m.g. moment. Look who’s name is gracing the cover of Somerset Digital Studio? Gasp! It’s mine!!! I can’t begin to tell you how good that feels. I have been working so hard for the past few years. Working on my art, my kits, my scrapping and to finally see it all coming together is so rewarding. I am truly honored and humbled by this acknowledgment. A huge thank you to Jana Holstein and all of the other wonderful ladies of Stampington & Co.

I also want to give a big shout out and congratulations to so many of my fellow deviants that are also showcased in this issue.

Fiona Randall aka anubis1
Sabina Pamfili aka Serenity
JoAnn Kinnaird aka joannknnrd
Edeena Cross aka naughtsncrosses
Beth Santos-Guol aka kewl-jive
Rachel Rerko aka stampin_rachel
Jayne Alexander aka peppapig
Melissa Haggit aka MissB
Margaret Lusier aka cmmargaret


Ladies, your artwork is so inspiring. I loved getting to know a little more about each and every one of you. Bravo!!!!