Made New

Hello, Sweet Friends!  Today, I'm sharing this easy peasey reverse canvas with a tutorial!!  It features the stamp sets from Sweet 'N Sassy Stamps, Made New and Scribble Flowers.  By the way, when you shop from this post, you are using my affiliate links.  I appreciate your support!

You will need:

a canvas--mine measures 6x6

burlap

paint or gesso

embossing paste or modeling cream

Mog Podge

stamps, paper and ink

coloring tools

decorative

tissue paper

bible page or patterned paper

To start, turn your canvas over so you are working on the back side.  The canvas is typically stapled to the wooden frame.  The burlap strips will cover the staples and create a nice rustic surface to work on.  Naturally, you could use a variety of mediums to cover, including pattern papers.  In fact, I found a paper pad at my local Hobby Lobby that is all burlap paper!  Burlap on one side, smooth paper on the other---perfect for this project!!  Cut four burlap strips and apply with a generous amount of mod podge.

 You'll have great luck piecing things together if you bevel each end.  Let it dry completely; overnight if possible.

Next, trim a piece of patterned paper or a bible page to fit inside the canvas.  

You'll want to apply mod podge to both the paper/page and the bottom of the canvas.  Insert the paper, quickly moving it into position.  You can use your heat gun to speed up the drying process for this step. 

Next, cover the burlap frame with paint or gesso.  This creates a cool shabby look! 

Let the paint or gesso dry completely.  I got a little excited and placed my butterflies in the center--I would recommend you wait until the last step--see below.

Using modeling paste (mine is gold) or embossing paste and your stencil, add a design to the frame.

Stamp your sentiment on tissue paper and trim as close to the image as possible

The tissue paper will become virtually invisible when you mod podge it to your frame.  Be sure to pick a spot that has solid coverage of paint/gesso.  Lay down a layer of mod podge, then the tissue paper sentiment, and another layer of mod podge on the top.  Let this dry completely.

THIS is the step where you stamp, color and trim your images.  Arrange the images in a pleasing way and...... 

BOOM! Your work of art is complete!

TTFN, Jane

Thoughtful Thanks

Happy Monday, Sweet Friends!  I'm saving my wordy post for Wednesday of this week--please don't miss it.  It includes an update and a piece of art I'm pretty proud of.  Today, I'm just kicking off a week of thankfulness with this quick card I made to use up few pieces of scrap.

Desperate to play with my new Winter Birds set from Sweet 'N Sassy stamps, but lacking energy and sticktoitiveness, I went with this quick easy, scrap using layout and I can't say I'm disappointed.  The most fun was watercoloring that cute little cardinal from the Winter Birds.

I also used, from Sweet 'N Sassy:  Whimsy Bouquet, Scribble Flowers and Keep In Touch, Too.

Have a great week--be blessed and be a blessing!
Jane

I got crafty with:

Wishing You Happiness

Happy Thursday, Sweet Friends!  I had fun creating this flowery resist card with some goodies from my Sweet 'N Sassy Stamp stash!  I actually do own lots of other stamps, but find that I mostly use SNSS because the images are just so inspiring.  I should really challenge myself to use a variety of goodies!

I created a resist by masking and stamping several images from Scribble Flowers:

and Whimsy Bouquet:

After stamping with versa mark, I heat embossed the images using white emboss powder.  Later, I water colored using several distress inks (Fossilized Amber, Festive Berries and and Pine Needles).

I added the sentiment from the So Happy to finish things off.  I love how bold the sentiment is--just pops right off the card!

TTFN, Jane

Celebrating Happiness

I had the joy of attending the wedding of my two friends a couple of weekends ago.  It was a smallish affair and full of joy and promise, just like weddings are supposed to be!  I wanted to do a totally handcrafted gift; mostly because those kinds of gifts were most important to me when I got married about a 1,000 years ago!

This is the card I created to go along with a hand lettered sign that recorded the date their family was established.  I ordered the sign from CreativeinHim on Etsy and I love it so much; I'm sure they do too!  I used both So Happy (the free with purchase set!! yay, you!) and Scribble Flowers, (both available at Sweet N Sassy Stamps) to create this whimsical water colored card.  I love "painting" and find it to be so relaxing and therapeutic.

I sure hope you are enjoying the Birthday Celebration over at Sweet N' Sassy Stamps and are finding lots of inspiration!

Be Awesome!  Jane

Calms His Child....

I shared this 6 x 6 canvas over on the Creative Worship blog for Sweet N Sassy Stamps last week and wanted to share it here as well. Mostly because I love it and all of you.  It's Monday and I have a day of vacation after spending some time this weekend with one of my favorite people.

That's him.....last year as a senior doing one of the things he loves most.  This year, off to college!  Gosh, I love him so much!!  College has felt like a bit of a storm in my life so far.  The letting go.  It's hard.  It's all about redefining.  And, adjusting to what they call "new normal."  The kicker is, there just is no such thing as a normal.  Am I right? 

In this walk, I'm learning that nothing stays the same.  Just as soon as I think I'm used to something, it all changes.  But, really, that is the storm.  Sometimes, the storm is a breezy rain with patches of lightening and maybe a little hail.  Sometimes, it feels like a full blown hurricane and it rages on and on....

Praise God that He both calms the storm and His children--all in His infinite wisdom!!  Where would I be without Him?

I created my canvas by started by layering bible pages in a random pattern using mod podge. I had picked up a tattered and well loved Gideon bible at Goodwill a bit ago.  I love the idea of praying over my art and found it to be a calming piece to the over all art project.  I colored several pages by applying distress inks directly to my non-stick sheet and then dipping the pages until I got the right look.  Once dry, I was able to stamp and trim images from Fantastic Flowers and Scribble Flowers.  the center sentiment, Calms His Child, is a favorite of mine as well.  A few of the other textures that can be seen are the gold background created using texture paste and a stencil and some sequins. I've been in love with sequins for quite some time now and added just a few for a little bit of bling.

I hope you enjoy!!  TTFN, Jane

Forgiveness.....

Hello, Sweet Friends!  I have some bible journaling to share today.  I'm working in Colossians 3 and finally had the chance to use my gorgeous Scribble Flowers set from Sweet and Sassy Stamps for the perfect compliment to my reflections on forgiveness.  Didn't someone once say that forgiveness is like a sweet, sweet flower?

I've been thinking a lot about forgiveness lately because I made a gigantic mistake that ended up bringing pain into the life of someone I love beyond measure.  The long and the short of it is--my mistake left my loved one feeling....forgotten, unloved and looked over.

Gosh, but those are feelings I know all too well.  To realize I was the cause of someone else feeling this way, really made me think. 

1.  I did seek forgiveness from the one I had wronged.  I was dismayed that the response didn't match the depth of my sadness over the event.  My apology was not instantly accepted!  I struggled to understand why the truth of my heart wasn't enough to change things.  I imagine this is often how Jesus has felt in reverse.  He is offering all that He is and, yet, so many of His beloved ignore the gift, or fail to understand how precious of a gift it is and simply turn it down remaining comfortable in their anger or grief.

2.  I really had to give some thought to all of the people and situations that had left me feeling forgotten or unloved.  I KNOW my recent situation and the truth is, my mistake had nothing to do with the other person--who I love more than my own life--it had everything to do with my own selfishness, my own weakness.  How often does our own brokenness affect others?  It really made me think with more compassion about those who I've felt had wronged me.  Again, in my selfishness, I've only considered my feelings.  Bearing with one another means, I must consider their story--I don't have to know it to consider that it is powerful; to offer compassion and understanding rather than jumping to the conclusion that "they're so mean, they hurt me......me, me, me!!"

Colossians 3:12-13:  "Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you forgive."  Oh, what a world it would be if only we could master this!

I'll keep trying--will you join me?

Be Awesome, Jane

I got crafty with:  Scribble Flowers and Words of Life, Collection 2

 Oh, and PS--don't forget about the matching Scribble Flower dies:

Everybody Has A Story.....

Have you ever heard, "Everybody has a story....be kind"?  I try hard to remember this. Sometimes, it's harder than others.  I work in an environment that comes face to face with those stories, yet it feels more like a puzzle to wade through most of the time.  It helps to remind myself that I don't know the whole story.  Not for the kids I serve and definitely not for the parents who are doing what they can.  It's easy to think they aren't doing the best, but I must remember, they are doing their best.....and, sometimes that just sucks.  But, I don't know their story.  I need to remember this so I can remain kind.

For many of us, the story is the storm.  Right?  The junk that defines us?  That molds us, shapes us, changes us.  I've been pondering my storm lately.  Life is hard.  Parents get sick, friends aren't what I thought, I get older, my kids start to leave, the world is full of super bad stuff, politics :), not enough money, not enough time, and on and on.....

But, GOOD NEWS....my pondering really hasn't been on the junk.  When I think about the storm, I'm drawn over and over again to the truth of Christ and the way He carries me; the ways I find Him in the middle of the storm and--strangely, my gratitude for the storm.  I'm forever amazed and grateful that I find Him there.  Have you?  Finding Him doesn't change the storm, it changes you.

I created this canvas to honor and remind.....made it for a couple of folks who know the storm too well, but have also met Him there....for this, I am grateful.

I was anxious to use the brand new Scribble Flower set from Sweet 'N Sassy Stamps! The focal sentiment is such a great image and wonderful reminder, Calms His Child, also from Sweet 'N Sassy Stamps.  I shared some of the how-to over on the Creative Worship blog.  Feel free to check it out! 

I read every comment you kindly leave for me, so if you have questions, you can comment and I will respond.


If your storm is currently raging, be sure you are not alone!  Pray for calm--He will meet you there!

Be You...Be Awesome,
Jane