The final letter: P and a wrap-up

The final Craft Barn Alpha/Dictionary letter, P has been posted.  I was afraid to create it too soon for fear we'd have something off the wall, like a dragonfly or a specific color we had to use. 

Thankfully Mickie didn't impose any twist, so I was free to create anything I desired.

There were many, many definitions of pitch, so I circled the one that most closely matched the definition I was illustrating.  As for perfect, there are a few people in this world who have perfect pitch when it comes to singing.  I'm not one of those people, but I can carry a decent tune and harmonize with the best of them.

I actually started this piece years ago.  I cut out the little girl, and accidentally dropped some packing tape on a piece of sheet music.  That's when I got the idea to add it to her head.   It was a much better transfer than last week's mailman.

I created the background by swiping various colors of acrylic paint with a faux credit card.  Then I added the music note and the music ribbon (which is paper with wire edges).  Over that I placed my letter which I learned is not mandatory, but which I have included throughout the challenge.

One final look at the little girl with the perfect pitch (letters are plastic) and this entry as well as this challenge is complete.

I decided to create a wrap-up piece to share the work I created this year for the Craft Barn. 

The problem with using the mosaic maker I use (Big Huge Labs), there is no way to divide 26 into equal rows and columns.   So here are the previous 25 entries to go with this week's entry.

Once again, I really enjoyed this year at the Craft Barn.  I enjoyed the camaraderie and was thrilled when so many of you visited and saw my meager offerings.  I'm quite sure I'm no better at stamping than I was at the beginning of the year, but I have really enjoyed seeing all the stamping projects most of you have created.  Thanks to each and every Craft Barn participant for your generous comments and caring attitude.  Thanks to Mickie for visiting each month after she took over, and Jane, who helped when I won the fortnightly prize.  Thanks to all my other readers, followers, and friends who followed me on this year long journey.  You have all been a godsend!
  

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. 

Craft Barn's latest alpha/dictionary letter: Y

Craft Barn's latest alpha/dictionary letter is Y.  Thankfully there is no twist, or I would never have been able to pick Yellow.

There were lots of choices for Y, but I had nothing I could use to illustrate any of the letters I wanted to use.  I went through my magazine images, and my very few stamps.  I finally came up with this.  At least I knew I could find a way to illustrate the word.

I only enlarged the parts I wasn't sure would show on the page.  I pointed out that yellow is a primary color and what a primary color is.

Since the background was purple, I wanted to explain why I chose it.

The word, which doesn't show too well, was created with stickers.

I painted the large yellow circle, then cut it out.  I thought the definition was wimpy, so I wanted to be sure everyone knew what yellow represented, at least on the color wheel.

And finally, the letter "Y."

For this entry, I started by painting the purple using a purple pen.   Computer generated text was added to a sheet of heavy card stock I had in my stash.  As mentioned earlier, the circle was painted, then punched out.  Finally, I added the dictionary definition and the various sticker letters.

Thanks for joining me at the Craft Barn with their latest letter Y.  Although I had planned a different post today, I misjudged how long it was going to take to create the piece I wanted to make for another challenge.  Part of the problem is, my craft room is freezing right now, and I didn't want to spend that long there.  So, again, thanks for your visit.  It truly means the world to me. 

See you at the Craft Barn.  Only two more letters to go!

Craft Barn's latest challenge: I

I've finished Craft Barn's latest alpha/dictionary challenge which is the letter I.  There is no twist.

Because the altered book I'm using is larger than my scanner, this first photo is of the middle of the spread.

Here the left shows two icebergs that have broken off glaciers. 

It also shows my letter "I".

For the right side, I actually got out my stamps and went to town.

This is the required definition, and it is how I tried to depict it in pictures.

Many who know me know I'm not especially good with stamps.  But I've gotten a bit bolder

and decided to take the plunge.   As global warming increases, I suspect we'll see more of these icebergs breaking away from parent glaciers in the near future.

Materials I used for this two page spread include a painted deli paper background, three iceberg images from three different travel magazines, the definition and letters from my Merriam-Webster dictionary, and stamped letters using very old pigment ink that I wasn't sure had enough ink for one letter much less seven.  All this was created in my dictionary dedicated altered book.

Thank you for joining me at both the Craft Barn and AEDM today.

 This is Day 14 of AEDM.

Craft Barn's Alpha/Dictionary Letter: U

Today I'm joining Craft Barn's latest Alpha/Dictionary Letter challenge, which this fortnight is U.

There were several words I had considered before finally focusing on Unforgettable.

The inspiration for my choice came from this word I found in a magazine.

Here is the definition that came from my Merriam-Webster pocket dictionary.  It's been awhile since I've sewn on any challenge entry, and I thought this page actually needed something.

I began by sewing the word to an image I found in a 1975 fashion magazine.  I then sewed the sub-assembly to a sheet of scrapbook paper.  Next I added the dictionary definition, then the letter U.  All that was sewn to a sheet of deli paper that I painted and was drying while I created the sub-assembly. Finally, the deli paper and sewn assembly were glued to the substrate, which is my dedicated altered book I used for this project.

This is Day 6 of AEDM.  Thanks for also joining me at Craft Barn, where we now have a mere four letters left this year.

Craft Barn's latest alpha letter: V

Craft Barn's latest alpha/dictionary letter is V.

I chose the Vatican because I have a photo from there.
I have photos of the museums and St. Peter's Square, along with photos of the Sistine Chapel.  However, when  I was laying out the photos, I realized I only had room for one.

This is a vacation photo of the Apostolic Palace, the official residence of the Pope.  It includes the Papal Apartments from St. Peter's Square.  

This lucky shot includes the pope standing in the window of his apartment.   The window is marked by a maroon banner hanging from the windowsill.

Here is the definition from my Merriam-Webster pocket dictionary.

I began this page by using my brayer on a sheet of copier paper.  I'm not good with a brayer, so this wasn't a particularly successful background.  However, it provided the color I needed to match the mattes I used behind the photo, the description taken from an old (1937) encyclopedia, and the definition and letter V from my Merriam-Webster dictionary.  The other element is a vacation photo showing the Vatican.

Thanks as always for your visit.  It means the world to me, especially when it's reciprocated.

Craft Barn's latest letter is about mE

Many people call me Dr. E, Queen of Free, so today I'm using that concept when I created the latest Craft Barn challenge.  I'm sure by now you've guessed the letter I'm referring to is E.

The word I chose was eyes!  Sadly, I forgot that this book is too large for my scanner, so here is the majority of it.  Now it's time to break it down.

Let's begin with the left side, where I used paint chips (or color swatches as they are apparently known in Europe), along with some images from a free magazine I get each month.

I cut a paint chip sample I picked up free at a big box home improvement store, then stamped it with pigment ink using my only large letter, which is E.  I then embossed it, but the tone on tone wasn't what I was looking for, 

so I switched to Staz-on, which dries in less than a heartbeat, with no chance of embossing the letter.  This and all the remaining stamps are foam and I had never used them before.  Remember, I'm the one who is not much of a stamper.  But I'm really good at finding free images in magazines.

The right side of the spread continues with more magazine images and two more paint chips.

Some might call this the most important side,

mainly because

of the definition and also the section of the eye I found in my American Heritage pocket dictionary.

Here it and my signature E are together.

One more look because I'm also sharing this with

Art Journal Journey and our wonderful host Valerie whose Indian Summer challenge inspired the colors I chose.  I started with yellow, orange, and brown acrylic paint and spread them across both pages using a faux credit card.  Free paint chip/color swatches became the substrate for the letters I stamped using mostly Staz-on black ink.   Free magazine images were cut to show only eyes. 

Thanks, too, for joining me for the latest Craft Barn alpha letter, E.