Who Doesn't Love Vintage!

Vintage is a word dear to my heart...as I am sure it is for all collage and mixed-media artists. Breathing life into an object once again is thrilling. You never know where it will lead you.

In this case, my tag celebrating the magic of receiving a letter in the mail was one of the featured "Friday Favorites" on Kim's Living Vintage Blog. Kim lives in East Texas and her company deconstructs old houses, then builds new, "old" houses and renovate existing homes using reclaimed materials. Their home is breathtaking, as you can imagine!

Please visit Kim's Blog, Living Vintage. But be prepared to "oooh" and "ahhh" over the lovely photos and interesting restorations. I fell in love with her Dogtrot Breezeway...stained glass and bookshelves! HEAVEN!

What Is The Best Part Of Your Voyage?

The Adventures of Madeline

"In an old house in Paris
That was covered in vines
Lived twelve little girls in two straight lines."

Do these opening lines hold as much affection for you as they do for me? Whenever I hear author and artist Ludwig Bemelmans' rhymes, I gladly enter his evocative world of Madeline.

I recently took part in a Tag Swap. "Share Your Favourite Book" was the theme.  I am a Bibliophile...with a capital B...and I'm not afraid to admit it! So this should have been a pretty easy decision. But which book to choose??!! Each title on my list was filled with special memories and meanings.

As my list of possible contenders grew, my eye kept coming back to one title...Madeline.

Madeline, the little girl who Bemelmans lovingly crafted his stories around, was self-sufficient, ingenious, and was fearless enough to travel into a part of the world I hoped I would someday discover on my own.

But more than the enchanting story lines, the exotic locations, and the character of Madeline herself, the series is a reminder of a cherished childhood. My Mom and I would make our daily trip to the Brooklyn Public Library and rush home to read the books together. And as we turned each page it was her constant reassurance that, with a little hard work, I could accomplish anything I wanted to in life. Like Madeline, I too could be self-sufficient, ingenious, and most of all, fearless.

The substrate for my Tag is illustration board. The background is a combination of various coloured Distress Inks. I scratched into the board to give it texture and applied rubber stamped swirls. Over the background is a selection of vintage images, Washi tape, handmade paper, a Bonne Maman label, and of course Ludwig Bemelmans' lovely illustration and text. I finished the Tag with stencilled acrylic paint.

But wherever my childhood dreams encouraged me to wander, Ludwig Bemelmans' words still ring true for me...

"The best part of a voyage

By plane,

By ship,

Or train

Is when the trip is over and you are

Home Again."

What is the best part of your Life Voyage? May you always find that delicious place you call Home.

Are You That Woman?

Strong Women - Collage On A Tag

On March 8th every year we celebrate International Women's Day. With this event in mind, the March Tag Swap I joined was a celebration of women...in all our glory!

"Make it Happen" is the 2015 theme, encouraging effective action for the advancement and recognition women in all walks of life. I am delighted to see that purple is the official colour used in commemoration of the Women's Suffrage Movement, for which I have a deep appreciation.

In my life, the strongest women I know are the ones who elevate other women to be the best they can be.  They are the supportive, nurturing souls who are there to catch you when you fall and lift you up to even greater heights in celebration of your victories. I am sure you have them in your life as well.

As I started working on the Tag I came across a photo of two women seated together. I wondered...could they have been as enamoured of the Suffragettes as I am?

The substrate I used for the Tag is illustration board. The background is Citra-Solv paper from a magazine article about women. I added the vintage photo, a doily, a blossoming flower, wax infused paper, text clipped from a magazine, and finished off with sponged and stencilled metallic acrylic paint in various colours. The Tag is now on its way to a new home in California.

As artists, we can "make it happen"...not only through our work, but by being that strong woman we adore having in our lives. So, my question is...Are you "that" woman?

When Did You Last Receive A Handwritten Letter?

OPEN AT ONCE - Collage

There is something about a handwritten letter that warms the heart. Don't get me wrong, I don't dislike emails and texts. They have their place as an efficient, and quick, means to communicate. But letters...sigh...they speak in an enchanted language all their own. The choice of paper, the envelope, the stamp and any other embellishment the writer wishes to affix says just as much about them as the words they choose to add to paper.

Today is "National Send A Handwritten Letter Day". Celebrated on January 17th it is the birthday our first Postmaster General of the United States, Benjamin Franklin.

Again...synchronicity at play...I am a Lunagirl Moonbeams Design Team member. Our current challenge is Postcards and Letters. What could be a more perfect way to celebrate Handwritten Letter Day!

I recently entered into a paper swap and received a huge envelope full of beautiful postcards, paper and ephemera of all sorts from Germany. In the package was a brochure from the Sir Hubert von Herkomer's, Herkomer Museum in Landsberg am Lech in Bavaria. The tower of the Mutterturm was incredible and very romantic. I knew I wanted to add this image to the tag I was working on.

But which Lunagirl image to choose? I loved them all, but finally settled on a woman pensively holding a letter in her hand. What could she be contemplating? Was there a story unfolding as I gathered up my art supplies? I let my Muse guide me.

The old saying, "No news is good news" kept coming back to me. Inspired by Handwritten Letter Day, I thought..isn't a letter the best news of all...a little bit of magic in your hand?

The substrate for the tag is illustration board. I covered the background with Distress Ink, fluid and metallic acrylics. In addition to the lovely Lunagirl image, I added the Muttertrum, fabric, Junk Mail, wax infused and art paper, telephone book paper and other ephemera from my collection. I rubber stamped the saying on to a vintage envelope from the 1920's. Stenciling completed the tag. In honour of today...off went the tag for a "magical" tag swap.

I hope you are all enjoying "National Send A Handwritten Letter Day" as much as I am. You still have a few hours left. Why not touch someones heart in your magical way by saying "hello" with a letter?