The Winner is!!!!

The winner of my creepy doll contest is Nicole Beauchamp.. All Nicole has to do now is send me her address and I'll mail this tomorrow.

Thanks to all for playing. Remember to check out all of my creepy dolls at my etsy shop. I also have a lot of cute dolls there too!

I will be having another giveaway in November..so stay tuned.

Creepy Clay Giveaway

It's almost October so I thought I would have a creepy, scary giveaway! Well, maybe not so scary, but fun at least.

The object of this giveaway is easy. Just leave a comment and tell me your favorite scary movie.

On October 7th I will randomly pick a winner from all of the comments and mail you the creepy clay doll.

The only disclaimer I have is you have to live in the continental United States due to shipping.



This is an original one of a kind doll made
from polymer clay, wire, fur and beads.

Personalized Poster

There are only a few days left to get in on the free giveaway.

The poster will be personalized with your name or your child's name, a saying, a small poem..for instance, "live, love, laugh",,etc.

Naturally, unless your name is Madison, it won't say Madison.

Come on! Don't be shy,,leave a comment. I will ship anywhere in the United States for free for this contest.

Pumpkin Pin Tutorial & Contest

Here's a tutorial on how to make a polymer clay pumpkin pin...

You will need the following supplies...

1 package orange clay
1 package brown clay
1 package white clay
1 package green clay
1 package yellow clay
wire (black or brown)
toothpick
black seed beads

Roll an oval of orange clay (approx. 1 inch)

Use a toothpick or metal slicer to make lines in pumpkin

Break a piece of a toothpick off and insert into top of pumpkin

A pinch of brown clay over the toothpick forms the stem

Wrap the wire around the toothpick and insert into stem

Roll out an oval of white clay and attach to side of pumpkin, with the narrow part facing down. Curl this piece up near the bottom. Made an oval for the head and attach, curling the top out.
Make a small white tube and attach to body and have it touch pumpkin. Add a tiny ball for the nose. Use a toothpick to form a small open mouth.

Roll out two small white balls of clay for the pumpkin eyes. Add two tiny seed beads for the pupils. Use orange or red for the nose.

Use the bottom of a straw to indent a smile into the clay.

Make two green tear drops and attach to stem, press toothpick into leaf.

Roll 5 yellow tear drops to form flower. Place small ball of brown into center and press.


Back at 265 for twenty minutes. Let cool. Attach a pin back with E6000 glue or super glue gel.




Contest!!!

I am giving away this little Halloween pin. Leave a comment to enter the contest. Become a follower and I will put your name in the contest 5 times. Blog about me (let me know about it with a link) and I will put your name in the contest 10 times. This contest will end on Sunday, September 13, 2009. Have fun!

Christmas In July Giveaway

As promised, here's my Christmas in July giveaway. (One doll is Christmas themed, the other two are not..but, can be used as "Christmas" presents..so it's all good!)

I've made three different dolls and the winner gets to pick the doll of their choice.

The rules are simple.

• Leave a comment. For each comment you leave, you'll get a chance in the drawing.
  
• Become a follower and tell me about it and you'll get 5 chances in the drawing.
  
• Post this drawing on your blog with a picture and you'll get 10 chances in the drawing.
• Contest is open to anyone, anywhere. (Yes, any country.)

Each doll is signed and dated. They are approx. 4 inches tall. They are made from polymer clay and their hair is yarn. I've used buttons and fabric to embellish them. I think they turned out pretty cute! I've antiqued them to give them that prim look.


Pink Polly

Americana Annie

Ginger Belle

This contest will end on July 11. Have fun!

(If you are unable to leave a comment, please contact me at garritygal@yahoo.com and I'll leave it for you, in your name.)

Win A Free Cake Topper!

For those of you who follow my blog, you probably know that I have been full of angst for the last year in regard to my "craft".

You also might be familiar with me wanting to "reinvent" myself; something I've written about several times.

So it won't surprise you to know that I've started making my cake toppers again. The toppers were a source of somewhat steady income, but I really wanted to explore art in other areas.

But, after customers continued to ask about the toppers, I decided that it was foolish of me to stop making them when nothing else could replace the money right away. I didn't transition into another successful medium or idea.

Last week I redesigned my website (still needs work) and got three orders for cake toppers. So, God's trying to tell me something,,stick with what works.

In the mean time, I have been doing collage, painting and tying different ideas. As you know, I have a lot of those (ideas!)

I admire people who have found their niche and have stuck with it. I have made a valiant effort to stop worrying about what other people are doing and just do my own thing. There are certain artists on ebay who I followed just to see what they sold, but I'm happy to say I haven't done that in weeks.

To celebrate my return to cake toppers I'm going to have a giveaway of a custom made cake topper. Naturally, this won't be of interest to everyone, but, if you know of anyone who is getting married in the fall or winter of this year, having an anniversary, or a birthday or baby shower, let them know about this giveaway.

How it works


If you would like to win a custom made cake topper (wedding, baby shower, retirement, anniversary, birthday)
leave a comment. Make sure you mention that you want to be in the contest. On June 1, I will announce a winner. That's when I will need the information about the topper. This is a $35.00 value. The winner can pick a theme, hair color, flower colors, etc. There would be no additional props (I won't be adding bikes or towers, castles, etc)..

Here are some examples of cake toppers that are valued at $35.00

Baby Shower

Wedding or Anniversary Topper
Wedding topper
Birthday Topper

Remember, these are just some ideas of the toppers that I can do. If you win, you give me the idea and I'll made a whimsical topper that makes a wonderful keepsake.

Leave as many comments as you like, but only one comment per blog entry, starting today. Tell your friends, leave a link to my blog if you'd like, and feel free to use these pictures to talk about this giveaway.

One final note, since this contest ends on June 1 and it will take me time to make the topper, please understand that the winner won't get it for approx a month, so your event must be after the middle of July.

Here's a giveaway from another artist

I was visiting another blog this morning and saw this giveaway. It's a 4" by 4" painted canvas.

Here's a link to the blog. The artist's name is Catherine Holman. You'll love her style; she paints a lot of cupcakes!

Remember to comment on her blog to win.




Don't forget I'm having an itty bitty giveaway where you can win pink and green clay, some beads and wire. Just comment on my blog. The contest ends in a few days! This is a fun little package that you can receive to make your own creations. Leave a comment and good luck.

Bunny Pin Tutorial and Giveaway

Here's a tutorial of a bunny pin made from polymer clay and beads. If you would like a chance at winning this bunny, you must become a follower. Click on the Follow link (located near the top) and on March 27 everyone who is a follower has a chance to win the pin. I'll ship it out right away so you can wear it in time for Easter.


Supplies needed...

4 head pins
assortment of beads
texture sheet (rubber stamp or lace will do fine)
Stamp pad
Liquid sculpey
Oval cookie cutter (optional,,because you can cut the shape with an exacto knife)
Pink Polymer clay

Step 1:

Roll out a piece of pink clay and fold in half to make a thickness of approx. 1/4 inch.

Spritz with water and press texture sheet or rubber stamp into clay.

Use your cookie cutter or exacto knife to cut out an oval approx. 1/2 inch. Then cut out two ovals for ears, approx. 1/4 inch long.

Gently dab with rubber stamp ink




Repeat this process. Cut two ears, then a circle for a face. I attach all of the pieces with liquid sculpey. It bonds the pieces, giving them extra strength.

I then push a toothpick through the body, two holes near the bottom corners and two holes near the top corners. (click on picture to get a good view)...




At this point, you can add two small balls of pink, press onto the lower part of the face and add two small black seed beads for eyes. Bake at 265 for twenty minutes..


While it is baking, string a few beads onto the head pins.


After the bunny bakes, let it cool completely. Approx. 1/2 hour. It is still a bit soft while it cools, so be patient.


Attach the first "arm" of beads by push the head pin through the front and out the back, then twisting the wire around itself. I use needle nose pliers to do this.

Do it firmly but carefully, you don't want to scar the clay.

Attach all the "limbs."



Turn the bunny over and apply a stream of liquid sculpey to its back.



Place a pin back along the stream of liquid sculpey. Flatten a small piece of clay and slip it between the pin back, adding a little more liquid sculpey as you go. The idea is, the liquid sculpey bonds the pin back to the bunny, and the additional piece of clay gives it even more strength.

Once again, bake at 265 for 20 minutes.

Let cool...

Enjoy!

Remember you can win this pin. All you have to do is become a follower of this blog. If you are already one, great! You are automatically in the drawing. Even if you have subscribed, make sure you go to the follow this blog link. Good luck!

And the Winner is..

Congratulations to DCTM. She was the winner of the Polymer Clay Angel on a Canvas. All she has to do is send me an email with her address and I'll be shipping this little sweetie to her.

Thanks for participating in this giveaway. Come back often to read my blog. Subscribe if you like it! In a few weeks, I'll be having another giveaway. A giveaway is fun to do, it's a way to promote my business, increase readership, and pass along a little bit of happiness.

I'm going to do a tutorial later on this evening, so make sure to visit again!

Final Day of the Giveaway

Today is the last day to post to win the Angel on a Canvas. You can comment until I get home from work today, around 7 p.m. EST (I live in Michigan).. At that time, I will pick a winner. I am going to assign a number to each name. Then I'll figure out how many times that name commented. So, if Suzi is number 8 and she commented 5 times, i will have 5 Number 8s in the "hat". It makes sense to me, hopefully it makes sense to you.

This is the second giveaway I've done and I learn something each time. For instance, I think two weeks is too long to have a giveaway. People seemed to get bored, or new readers don't really understand what I'm doing. So, for April I'm going to have a three day giveaway. (really at the end of March, because I'm doing an Easter Themed Giveaway).

You can continue to comment today on the blogs from Feb 22 through today.

Good Luck and I'll be announcing a winner later tonight.

But Honestly Officer!

Today, while driving, I went through a yellow light. I admit that I would have had time to stop, but I continued through it. Thirty seconds later, a police car was following me. Where it came from I don't know. It pulled up next to me, slowed down, pulled behind me and put on the flashers.

I pulled into an alley (turned on the blinkers at the last minute) and turned off my car. I took off my seat belt, pulled out my license and rolled down the window.

The officer took his time getting out of his car and as he approached my car, he stood back, away from the door. I looked up at him as he asked if I knew why he stopped me.

"I guess I went through the yellow light," I replied.

"No, that's not it," he said, "you didn't have your seat belt on."

"Oh, yes, I did." I informed him.

"No, You didn't." He replied back.

"Officer, I did. I always wear it." I tried to convince him.

"No, you put it on when you saw me, "he said firmly.

"But, honestly officer, " I almost cried, "I'm a nut about wearing my seat belt!"

He then asked me what my driver's record was and I told him it was perfect.

I handed over my registration, insurance and license and he went back to his car. He sat for about 6 seconds and returned, handing me my information.

"Watch out for the lights," he said.

I started to swear that I had on the seat belt, but he held up his hand to shut me up.

"I'm not going to argue with you, "he snipped, "I know you didn't have it on. You put it on when I stopped you."

I took a deep breath and bit my tongue, then thanked him for not giving me a ticket. Then as I watched him pull away I called him a few unflattering names. Luckily, I was left with a warning, but it was frustrating to me because I had my seat belt on. To be accused of something you haven't done is very unsettling. If I would have received a ticket, my emotions would have gotten the best of me. I'm thankful that at least he was "nice" enough to let me go.

What a way to start my week!

New Arrivals...

Here are some things I've been working on.



Reproduction Tins with gingerbreads.


My favorite, ginger with a cupcake





Ginger holding two bunnies


Contest...

There are three days left in the contest. Don't forget to leave a comment. Rules are in the upper right hand corner of this blog if you haven't read them yet. Good luck!

Little House in the Big Woods

When I was a child, my favorite author was Laura Ingalls Wilder. She wrote the Little House books, so when I get a chance I try to read some of the books to the kids in my program. Another activity I always work in is teaching the kids to make miniatures.

Two weeks ago I combined these two favorites into an activity that was so much fun, I thought I'd share it with you.

Several years ago, my friend, Mary Ann, found a log cabin on the side of the road. It was in perfect shape, complete with furniture. She handed it off to me and I've kept it ever since. It's about 30 inches wide, 18 inches tall and about 18 inches deep. I've used it for the last 5 years in all of my school programs. It is decorated for the seasons and it's one of the highlights of my room.

So, as I read The Little House In The Big Woods, the children and I made miniatures and turned the cabin into Laura's house. Here are some pictures and explanations of what we did.

• We made miniature food, turkey, pumpkins, bread, pies
• I printed out miniature pictures, newspapers and the kids glued them to foam core to make books and hanging pictures
• We made clay pots and pans
• In the lower right hand corner there's a little mouse
• I purchased homespun material for table cloths and curtains

• Beds were made from craft sticks, padded with tissues and then the homespun fabric
  
• On the wall are the pictures of the Ingalls family
• One of the girls made some stuffed clay animals to place on a bed

• On the dinner table books wait to be read (McGuffey Readers)..I own several of these (the school I went to taught us from these books). I scanned them, and reduced them.
  
• There's a candle in the middle of the table
• The turkey is ready to be served.

• The kids sewed the curtains. I nailed a nail on each side of the window. We slipped a craft stick through the hem and hung them up.

• There are pictures of a president and a formal woman on the wall.

• Shot of the house
• The steps leading up stairs are craft sticks that we cut, painted and glued
• In the attic there is an abundance of vegetables, like carrots, pumpkins and potatoes, enough to last them the whole winter
• In the upper right hand corner of the attic are two books, "Little House In The Big Woods" and "MuGuffey's Reader."

I think the most fulfilling part of this project was that two of the girls in my program came to me last week, each with a book they had taken out from the library. Erica had taken out "The Little Town on The Prairie" and Alyssa had taken out "The Little House In The Big Woods." It's funny because even the librarian at the school knew who I was since Erica talked so much about what we had done and was so excited to read the House books.

To learn more about Laura Ingalls Wilder follow this link...Laura.

Don't forget to comment. This post is another chance to add your name to the drawing.
(The rules are on upper right side of the blog.)