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Monday, October 17, 2011

Dominos



dom·i·no

noun \ˈdä-mə-ˌnō\
plural dom·i·noes or dom·i·nos

: a flat rectangular block (as of wood or plastic) whose face is divided into two equal parts that are blank or bear usually from one to six dots arranged as on dice facesb plural but usually sing in constr : any of several games played with a set of usually 28 dominoes
Years ago, game pieces, well, they were used to play the game. Now they are in big demand in the crafting world. Crafters have come up with numerous ways to alter game pieces and use them in their art.

Scrabble pieces are used on art, instead of regular letters. Spinners, from games, are used as clock pieces. Bingo cards and numbers are used from cards to journaling pages.

So, only the imagination, is what limits what you can do with these little pieces of art.

I recently came across a website, "Creativeworkshops.ning.com" that offer online classes. I signed up for the "altered domino book" class and I'm loving making these little mini books!

Basically, you can use any domino, ink it up, and decorate to fit any occasion, or custom make them for someone special using old pictures.
Each page is different, and you can add little bits of lace or bling.
There is no right or wrong and this is a good way to use little bits of paper and tiny pieces of ribbon or lace. I cut out the word "Faith" out of acrylic packaging that was the back of some flowers. I used an old button from my grandmother's button jar.
I cut out a butterfly from a paperline and stamped some script and put a rhinestone on top.
I inked around the page to give it a vintage look and sewed lace at the bottom of the page.
You attach the pages, decorate and tie with ribbon. Very easy, lots of fun to make.

I have more dominos inked and ready to assemble. Give it a try and let me see your "game piece work of art."






Monday, October 10, 2011

ATC's


Artist trading cards
Artist Trading Cards (or ATCs) are miniature works of art about the same size as modern baseball cards, or 2 ½ X 3 ½ inches (63 mm X 89 mm), small enough to fit inside standard card-collector pockets, sleeves or sheets. ...

A group of us got together and thought it would be fun to start our own ATC swap. We each make cards (different or all the same) that goes along with the theme of the month, and swap with the other members.



The first month was "swappers choice" so of course I made mine to look "shabby chic." It is so interesting to see what each person makes, because it reflects each of our personalities and tastes. There is no right or wrong way to make one. The only requirements are they have to be 2 12 x 3 1x2 and not sold.


Here are examples of our first swap:

As you can see, each are completely different and as individual as the "artist" that made them.
Some are miniature paintings or works of art , while others are a collage of papers and techniques mixed in.

The possibilities are endless, and they really can become addictive to make. They are not hard to make. It's a great way to use up scraps of paper, ribbons and paints.

Lisa, the administrator of this swap, made each one of us our own box to hold all of our ATC's. Each box, like the ATC, matched our personalities. Alot of hard work went into them and she did a fantastic job on each box. Here is the box she made for me:




Next month's theme is Halloween or Fall. Here is a sneek peek of what I'm working on the for the swap:


If you would like to join our swap, we would love to have you. Please contact me thru my blog and I will pass it on to Lisa.

Happy crafting!! Cindy