Kate Bush / Radiohead ATC SMACKDOWN!!!!

Ok, it's not really a Kate Bush/Radiohead smackdown because they are both lovely and I'm sure they wouldn't bodyslam one another, but I digress...

I watched the new "Suspiria" movie the other day. It's a remake, or rather a re-imagined version, of a 1970's Italian film of the same name. Its a horror/thriller with quite a bit of gore so it won't be everyones cup of tea. The thing is, it stuck with me for days... the visuals, the music the themes... they're all knocking about in my head.

The soundtrack was stuck in my head, and I saw that it was done by Thom Yorke, songwriter/lead singer for Radiohead. A magic sort of music combined with all that dancing and I immediately thought of  Kate Bush. All that to explain why Radiohead and Kate Bush lyrics are all over this new set of ATC's.

So, do you know your Yorke from your Bush? I'll post the answers at the end of this post. If you'd like to own one of these, pop over to my etsy shop, all my cards are listed HERE.

How do you think you did? Here's the answers:

"I should be hoping but I can't stop thinking"This Woman's Work - Kate Bush

"Kill me again with love"

Lucky - Radiohead

"Standing in the shadows at the end of my bed"

Kid A - Radiohead

"You crush the lily in my soul"

Moving - Kate Bush

"And true love waits in haunted attics"

True Love Waits - Radiohead

"I was dropped from the moonbeam and sailed on shooting stars"

Sail to the Moon - Radiohead

"All the dreamers are waking"

Nocturn - Kate Bush

"Wax me, mould me, heat the pins and stab them in"

Bulletproof... I Wish I Was - Radiohead

"We let the weirdness in"

Leave it Open - Kate Bush

"No more under the quilt to keep you warm"

The Kick Inside - Kate Bush

"If I could be who you wanted all the time"

Fake Plastic Trees - Radiohead

"I'm having dreams about things not going right"

There Goes a Tenner - Kate Bush

And here is the gorgeous song "Suspirium" that has been in my head for days and started all this smackdown business.

Disaster and a Sudden Frida

I mentioned that my Montreal trip was a bit of a disaster. The highlight of the trip should have been seeing the amazing light show at the Montreal Basilica, Aura.

Instead, we spent a lot of time getting lost and frustrated. I cracked my phone. There was stress. There were many, many, many deep breaths and counting to ten.

I kept saying to myself. "It's okay. We'll go to the basilica. It'll be great. It will make this ridiculous trip worthwhile."

But... we went to the basilica and could not get tickets. Disaster. It was the final straw in a long string of unfortunate events and I had a short but very ugly cry meltdown back at the car. I am not usually a big baby, but this trip was a big deal for us. Our first sort of grown up vacation as a family and so much seemed to go wrong.

In the end we wandered around a really cool area of Montreal, bought some drinks to take back to the hotel, and sat in the hottub for a bit. It wasn't the end of the world. How could it be with a hottub?!

Next month I'm heading to the UK and using the Montreal disaster as a lesson in pre-planning. I'm not filling every minute, I'm allowing for spontaneity, but I have a long list of possible things to see and do and plenty of maps and routes.

One of the things on my list is an exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, Frida Kahlo: Making Her Self Up. It's a collection of personal items belonging to Frida. This mixed media Frida piece sprouted suddenly in my excitement.

I've included a little mirror, a sort of nod to her theme of self portraiture.

Old odd bits and a butterfly.

I've included hummingbirds, a symbol used in her work.

I'd really love to make the exhibit, I'm planning on it, but this sudden Frida is also a reminder to not get so caught up in that 'to-do list' that I forget to enjoy the experience and miss everything else if things go tits up.

"Nothing is absolute. Everything changes, everything moves, everything revolves, everything flies and goes away." ~ Frida Kahlo

Everything changes.

Plans change. 

This time I'll be ready to revolve too. I'll fly rather than fight against the changes.

Thanks for the lesson, Montreal.

A Little Big Fat Nature Journal

This month's AlphaStamps kit has sprouted an ATC sized nature themed junk journal.

I separated the panels from an ATC Ticket Journal as a base for many of the pages and used some Water Media ATC Cards for others.

Really I just made a whole bunch of ATC's and then stitched those suckers together. They make a lovely fat little book.

To bind the pages I simply poked three holes in one side, and tied them together with Bakers Twine which I've muddied up with a wash of brown paint.

The interior pages are a jumble of collage sheets and papers and fussy cut bits and bobs. Check the bottom for the complete list of supplies used.

I'm really pleased with how all of those wee ATC's came together to form a cohesive bookette. If you'd like to make your own, here's all the bits and pages and papers I used.

Bakers Twine - Black
Ornithology Collage Sheet
Anthology Scrapbook Paper - Entomology Butterflies
Anthology Scrapbook Paper - Herbs & Antique Wood
1 Inch Wide Paris Pocket Watch Pendant
Anthology Scrapbook Paper - Ephemera
Bees, Birds and Butterflies Collage Sheet
Blue Birds Collage Sheet
Songbirds - ATCs & 4x4s Collage Sheet
M for the Magpie Collage Sheet
Aged Parchment Scrapbook Paper
Mixed Size Butterfly Dresden Scraps
ATC Ticket Journal
La Mode - Papillon Collage Sheet
Anthology Scrapbook Paper - Antiquity Note Cards
Water Media ATC Cards - Set of 20


And if you want to find them all in one place... TA DAHHH!

Night Angel Mixed Media Triptych

This month for GSLCuts.com I've created a set of three mixed media angels. A dreamy mystical triptych.

With New Year looming I thought it was a perfect time to think of dreaming and making wishes. That's what this set is all about. Looking up and forward and making bedtime wishes listened to by Night Angels.

Each of the three elements is made using a Cross Top Triptych piece. One of the thing I really appreciate about these elements is that the front piece is made up of straight edges, making it easy to embellish with scrapbook paper.

Each of the three seperate pieces is a slightly different size, but all fit nicely on Gypsy Soul ATC Stands. This makes displaying your pieces soooo simple. AND those little stands come in a set of three  so they're perfectly matched. (AND they're pretty dang reasonable too!)

While putting these pieces together is so simple, I have a little walkthrough of the process of making them. Hop over HERE for the video.

Below are all the bits I used to create my pieces, but you should absolutely feel free to add your own special touch to create your own dreamy night angels.

Cross Top Triptych
ATC Stands
decorative scrapbook papers
acrylic paint

glitter
Brass Starburst Charm
Fancy Brass Star Charm
Star Tinsel
Tiny Mixed Size Flat-Back Pearls
Angel Wings Collage Sheet
Little People Collage Sheet

Spooky Wee Houses

Halloween is just around the corner so I thought that this month I'd make something spooky for that sweet holiday. Using products from Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts,  Canvas Corp and 7Gypsies.

I've used the Cabana Row Houses as my base. There's 5 in the set and so you can create quite a nice little haunted neighbourhood!

Some of the houses are covered using papers from 7Gypsies. Some are simply painted white, decorated with Architextures™ Parchment Rub-Ons and then distressed.

Each of the houses uses pieces from the Miniature Bookplates Shape Set as windows. Creating the rooves was super simple with burlap pieces from Canvas Corp

There are plenty of embellishment opportunites. I've used Faux Metal Number Plates 1 to 25 but don't forget the larger Faux Metal Number Plates and Gears Shape Set would be super cool for a steampunk haunted neighbourhood. Go check out all the shapes available at Gypsy Soul and I'm sure you'll find some inspiration.

For a final touch I've added plastic spider and ants from the halloween aisle at the dollar store. 

Want to make your own? I've created a walk through with some simple practical tips HERE

And here are the goods I used in making my own little spooky neighbourhood.

Cabana Row Houses

Faux Metal Number Plates 1 to 25

Miniature Bookplates Shape Set

7Gypsies Paper

Architextures™ Parchment Rub-Ons
Burlap from Canvas Corp
Plastic spiders
Vintage images
Twine/Ribbon
Acrylic Paint
Hot Glue
White Glue

Starry Tags with Tutorial for Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts

This month for Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts I've used their 3 tag set to create something starry and dreamy.

With some layers of paint, chipboard stars and glitter those kraft coloured tags are transformed.

They are the perfect backdrop for the sentiments and vintage images found on THIS Stars and Dreamers Collage Sheet (which is totally free to download because I love you.)

If you need a little guidance putting these beauties together, I've put together a video tutorial for you.

I do use a fair few layers of colour... but I honestly think that multiple washes add a depth of colour and visual interest that is incomparable to a slap of thick paint.

But hey! if a thick coat of acrylic is your thing... go for it! Art and craft is all about YOU, the maker. I wholeheartedly encourage you to do what works for you.

Here are all the bits I used to create these starry sparkly tags:

Stars and Dreamers *FREE* Collage Sheet

Gypsy Soul Tags

Keys Engraved
Printers Ornament Corners
Swirl Medallion Small

Deco Stars

Acrylic Paint (also used 

Glue
Glitter

Metal Ring
Ribbon/Fibers

Klimt, journaling and the very good visit

It has been a nutty time here.

We lost power when the transformer blew up/self destructed beside the house. There were flashing lights well into the dark until power was finally restored... but wifi was not. Phone lines were cut during the repair (and I'm not a real grown up and don't own a cell phone)... so STILL NO WIFI! It was touch and go, but I survived.

The timing of the outage could have been much worse as my art buddy Paula Mould made a roadtrip to see me!

There was much (much) booze and glitter swords! And that outstanding Wonder Woman painting.

And birthday cake with sparklers.

Then it was down to arty business. Paula and I work very differently, and have different styles but we seem to accomplish sooooo much when together. We set paint to canvas to explore the work of Klimt and created the above paintings in the morning.

In the afternoon we divided a Gypsy Soul Art Journal, each taking half the pages. When done, we randomly stacked the pages together, alternating hers and mine and created something really cool!

This isn't a design team post but I gotta say, that journal was a lot of fun. It survived our manhandling. We abused those pages and it proved sturdy little son of a gun. The number of pages was perfect for us (as we aren't really journalers) and the variety was good too. If you've got a day or two with an art buddy, I highly recommend it.

Now to spend a few days recovering... because I'm old and cannot booze like I once did. But look at the fun we had! SO MUCH FUN! SO MUCH ARTING!

P.S. I these fluffy way too high heels arrived in the mail. They have nothing at all to do with this post BUT LOOK AT THEM!!!! My new life goal is to become a Ms. Piggy/Peggy Bundy hybrid. Yay!