Saturday, December 17, 2016

Craft Barn's Penultimate Letter: M


Here we are at the next to the last, or as I prefer to say, penultimate fortnight, of the Craft Barn alpha dictionary letters.  This letter is M and there is no twist.  I'm hoping there's no twist next time, because I already have my final letter planned.

I had so many things I wanted to include this time, I needed both pages.  Of course, with the book larger (both wider and longer) than my scanner, I got the essentials only in the full spread scan.

Here is the complete left side.



Since it's all in the details, here is the required dictionary definition.  Wimpy, but to the point!

This little guy was so cute, I had to include this envelope and all its stars.   And because the stars matched the air mail gummed stickers I had that we in the states haven't used since forever (I got these in a trade), I had to use them.

Of course, all good mailmen make sure the stamps have post marks before they are delivered.

I think when this image, found in an old book, was popular, postal carriers were probably called mail carriers, or chauvinistically "mailmen."  But today, there are as many female carriers as there are male carriers.  And my carriers don't use whistles, either.

I tried to turn this into a tape transfer, but I got a bit too carried away in places like his face and cap, and not enough in his lower half.  Of course, the fact I chose a white background for part of the image didn't help, either.

This envelope was in with my Christmas envelopes and cards, so I used it.  The stars above the Christmas envelope are on the back flap of the cute dog envelope, and I just had to use it, along with one of the US star stamps.

For the right side of the page,

I tried to find as many international stamps as I could to show this girl and dove had been around the world.  Of course, I have all my wonderful international mixed media friends who send envelopes with stamps instead of metered mail to thank for these beauties.

I received this darling little envelope (and card seen on the left side) from a dear friend.  It was the perfect size for the bit of space I needed to cover the book background and paid homage to my dear friend.  It also holds the alpha letter, which, although apparently NOT mandatory, I've used throughout.

I had to find a way to save the flap on this envelope, so grabbed some washi tape that uses both airplanes and postage stamps.

One final look at my chosen word, MAILMAN.

Thanks a million for joining me today.  In case we get wrapped up in saying good-bye next time, I want to thank both Jane and Mickie at the Craft Barn for their support this year.  I've met many new artists and renewed several old friendships from when I played in 2014 (quotes and/or lyrics).  I've really, really enjoyed this challenge, and the twice monthly timetable was the perfect amount of time I needed to find the alpha word and illustrate it.  Again, I'm grateful to any and everyone who visits. 

28 thoughtful remarks:

Helen said...

What a great M page.. love your images! we'd be a bit stuck here with this word as we use postmen (and/or women obviously) not mailmen. but a great vision of your chosen word!

Valerie-Jael said...

What a fun page, love all the mail art pieces, I really love all the details here! Have a great day, hugs, Valerie

chrissie said...

Terrific spread with so much to look at and admire. The stamps are a fantastic idea and all so different

Love Chrissie xx

Meggymay said...

So many interesting additions on your fantastic collage pages. The mail man seems to be in a real hurry to get his mail delivered. A super idea to add the stamps.
Yvonne xx

Lesley said...

Wow great pages Elizabeth, lots to look at! I love your mailman and the cute dog! Wishing you a Happy Christmas! xx

DMS said...

This is so creative! I love the way everything needs another look because there are so many interesting details. The old fashioned mail carrier is great. It got me thinking and I don't ever think I have seen a postal worker with a whistle. Hmmm... :) Thanks for sharing!
~Jess

CJ Kennedy said...

So much to look at. I love the jaunty mailman. But as I'm partial to bears, the polar bear is my favorite.

My name is Erika. said...

I really like this collage Elizabeth. The mailman is a riot-I think he makes the page. :) Happy weekend. Hugs-Erika

Sami said...

Very interesting "mailman" page Elizabeth. I love the dog envelope, so cute, and of course all the stamps make for an interesting page.
Have a wonderful Christmas and see you again in the New Year.

froebelsternchen said...

Fantastic pages are this with just wonderful additions to it! Great!
Happy weekend dear Elizabeth!
oxo Susi

Cindy McMath said...

So much fun Elizabeth! I love this page and I think your packting tape transfer turned out great - they are not meant to be perfect (if you want perfect you could print on transparently film). Wow I can't believe you got your package already. I was not really aiming for Christmas, just wanted to get it going out of the house! So glad you enjoyed everything. I've given a lot of stuff to charity but I have also been able to share some favourite things with friends and family, which has made things a little easier. I'm looking forward to the new year when all my stuff is in one place when I will go through everything as I put it in its new place, so you never know you might have another package (but it will be more like an envelope!). I'm glad you could use the crayons - I may have made a duplicate purchase - haha (very likely). I hope you enjoy them. I had not seen you using them on your blog so I thought you could use them. Happy holidays to you my friend!

Anne O said...

Hi - what a great interpretation. I loved the commentary as well. I was very impressed with your UK stamps of 4D! This must mean that they date back to the late 1960s or early 1970s. Like you, I have enjoyed the fortnightly challenges and will miss the ones depicting the dictionary. Have a lovely weekend. Anne O

sheila 77 said...

I love the way you give us all the details, in photo and in words.
Mailman - one who delivers mail - haha! great definition.
What did I enjoy most here apart from all of it - the letter "M" in the pretty envelope - I like that you always showed the letter, it's the whole point of the challenge after all, the lady feeding the doves, the polar bears, the saving of the flap and the washi tape, and the mailman.
Super fun post Elizabeth (and Bleubeard if you helped).

Julia said...

Love love love this one! All those lovely stamps and you even have some old pre-decimal British stamps on there. Oh if only posting a Christmas card cost 4D now! I have spent a small fortune on posting my cards this year but hey ho, it is Christmas. Wishing you a very Happy Christmas. x

pearshapedcrafting said...

I love these mail pages Elizabeth! Such a wonderful spread and once again brilliant recycling! Off to catch up now (I hope ) Hugs, Chrisx

WendyK said...

A fabulous page with so much to look at. I wish our postmen were in such a hurry to deliver our mail. Love the use of envelopes and stamps, and the collage is great. Have a super Christmas.

Sandy said...

I love this - my most favorite make! You did such a fantastic job putting it altogether - so much fun - fabulous!!!
Sandy xx

Scrapmate said...

I love all the detail on your massive spread. You have made great use of your ephemera. I have loved the inventive repurposing you have done each week and enjoyed visiting your blog. Have a wonderful Christmas and a happy New Year.

Cappuccinoandartjournal.blogspot.com said...

M is for Mail!! And Mail Man!! Of course -- love it.

Arty Beginnings said...

Such a fab page -so much to look at - I love the mailman that you have found and also that stamp of James Dean! Happy Christmas! Rachel

kaybee said...

Fabulous page - so many elements. Love it!

Jeanie said...

Nice page! I really admire how you can manage to keep your challenges and art going while the holidays are happening! Bravo to you!

Elaine said...

Loving all the images you've used on this and I bet you had great fun finding all the bits and pieces. Merry Christmas to you and hope to see back doing challenges in 2017!

Crafty Claire said...

An inspired choice for M. I hope you have a lovely Christmas and a wonderfully crafty 2017 xx

gardenpinks said...

Oh Elizabeth what a fabulous spread! It has been a very interesting journey seeing all the details on both pages and you have used everything so precisely. It is so much fun. I have thoroughly enjoyed visiting your blog and seeing your alpha challenges unfold. Have a very happy Christmas and look forward to seeing you in the New Year x

Mickie said...

A-maze-ing page! Could look at it for hours there is so much to see. Thank you for joining in the Craft Barn Alpha/Dictionary Challenge. Seasons Greetings from us all xx

Craftyfield said...

It's chock full of interesting details, so much to look at! It's also very clear that you enjoyed making this page and an inspired page is always best.
Merry Christmas to you and Bluebeard!

maggie said...

I love this spread filled with so much interest and it was a fabulous opportunity for you to recycle the stamps and envelopes you've received from around the world.