Even in winter

I'd like to start today by saying I realize most of my regular readers are not huge basketball fans, and especially not Lakers fans like I.  However, I have to say how sad I am that Kobe Bryant and his 13 year old daughter were killed yesterday, January 26, in a helicopter crash. For those of you who don't know, Bryant spent his entire basketball career with the Los Angeles Lakers, a feat nearly unheard of.  He was voted to the All Star team on many occasions and was voted MVP several times, too.  According to some stats, he was the first guard to have played 20 seasons.  My heart goes out to his family.  Now to my normally scheduled post.

Since I have a few hours between Monday Murals and T Time, I thought I would share another Art Journal Journey entry using Jo's from Let's Art Journal theme which is Something New.

However, I'd first like to share a tag I made for Tag Tuesday.   I believe I'm getting in just under the wire.  This is Michele's theme, which is Winter Scenes.

I apologize for the poor quality of the photos, but I took these in my craft room which sits on the north side of my house and is dark in winter.   The sentiment reads:

These trees thrive, even in winter.

I had intended to add white snow (AKA white glittery Stickles), but I started this before I got ill and wanted to get it in on time to meet the Tag Tuesday challenge. 

I created this using a gifted tag, blue distress ink, and the same trees I used on my Christmas tip-ins.  I added the sentiment over a piece of corrugated cardboard.

My friend Erika gave me the idea to use the tag in art.  Check out her link if you didn't see it.  That was something new for me, so it fits with Jo's theme which is Something New.   And I can't tell for sure, which I would want to file this under, but I'm joining the talented artists at Try it on Tuesday, whose themes this fortnight are White Space or Colorful Grunge.

This looks like a royal mess to me.   I have this brand new never before opened distress ink and was trying to use just a part of it on my tag.  These marks are what were left when I used both the distress ink and the dye ink I used on the trees.

For my embellishment, I cut a baby wipe I'd used to clean stamps I'd used for several stamping session, then sewed it to the background.  Some of the blue marks were from me trying to color the string I used on the tag.
I started this page by creating the tag I laid on a sheet of 110 lb card stock.  Technically, the card stock was new, fitting Jo's theme.  However, the blue distress ink had never been opened and I was making a mess by adding it direct to paper.  Although it's hard to tell, since it's so dark in the craft room, there's loads of white space, fitting Try it on Tuesday's theme.  For the assembly, I sewed the baby wipe to the page using green variegated thread.  I then added the tag over the baby wipe using a glue stick.

Thanks for your visit today.  I'm trying to make up for some of the challenges I had hoped to join before I got sick.  Please also join me at Tag Tuesday, Try it on Tuesday, and Art Journal Journey.