Gel Press® and Envirotex blog hop!

Welcome to the ETI/Gel Press Blog Hop. The designers for both companies have been creating wonderful projects. Please leave a comment on EACH blog. Tell us on the Gel Press blog and on the Resin Crafts blog as to which projects you found most interesting or inspiring. One winner will be picked, at random, Sunday, July 31, 2016, at 10pm CST. The winner will get both Petite sets of Gel Press plates and ETI Jewelry Resin! Hop now through Sunday! Winner must be 18 or over and live in the USA.

 Good Luck!

You could win THIS!!

This is my project

The first thing I did was make some mono-prints using my 12x12" Gel Press® plate with some acrylic paints and stencils.

After I had a variety of prints to choose from I cut them up into ½" by 8" strips and then cut each strip on the diagonal. I followed the directions for making paper beads here. And let me point out, I am not very good at rolling beads, a lot of them turned out wonky, but I still enjoyed doing it.

Next, I rolled each strip of paper up around a toothpick and after they were all dried I stamped on some and inked all the edges. The next part was the tricky part, coating each one with the Eti Envirotex. I had a lot of drips and runs so it was necessary to go back every 30 minutes for touch ups and clean ups but well worth the effort since one thick coat equals 50 coats of varnish and I love how shiny they are and how it brings out the Gel Press® printed papers!

Once the Eti Envirotex resin had cured I removed them from their toothpicks, trimmed off any rough edges and strung them on some elastic cording. I really like how the Gel Press® papers look , now I need to make more jewelry.

OK, since I had some papers left over I decided to make a ring too :) I used the same principles as making the beads, but this time; I sanded the edges to bring out the layers of paper and I collaged the word artist on the top layer. 

***** UPDATE *****

I'm getting some inquiries as to how to make the ring so I am adding this:

I first wrapped a strip of paper around my finger for the size I needed the ring to be. Then I slipped that first layer over a tube and kept adding more strips, about 7 I believe. The width of the ring was determined by the word ARTIST which I found in a magazine. Then I coated it with the resin, waited for it to cure and then sanded the edges. Then applied another coat of resin to finish it off.

Hope that helps :)

I think it looks pretty cool, what do you think?

I can imagine other words on the ring too; 

empowering words like faith, achieve, love, grow, etc.
Can you think of some words to inspire you?

ETI Blog

Kathy

Ann Butler

Cindi

Beth

Cyndi

Donna

Lea

Karen

Keri

Larissa

Sandee ( you are here )

Paula

Ann

Tammy

Gel Press

Remember to tell us on the Gel Press blog and on the Resin Crafts blog as to which projects you found most interesting or inspiring in order for you to be in the prize drawing! Good - luck!!

Beware of the effect of your words

"Words are a reflection of our thoughts. Positive words come from positive thoughts, negative words from negative thoughts. It is really that simple. Watch the words that come out of your mouth and you will have a good idea of the direction your thoughts are facing, and as a result, your life."

Creative Affirmations

I began with my 5x7" Gel Press® plate making a background that was a little dark, but I used dark colors intentionally.

The reason for the darker colors is that I had a ghost print that I wanted to use with the dried residue paint left on my Petite plate after a first print pull. I added a layer of white paint to it and pressed it down to get a "left over" print which were the butterflies. It needed some doodling to bring them out a little bit which is OK with me cause I love my pens and markers! 

 Trying to capture the sparkle and shimmer that ColourArte Silks add is always a bit tough to do. 

Now I know how it feels!

I am so excited! Not only did I receive my first piece of art mail, which is so CUTE but I also got a personal watercolor card designed just for me! My friend painted my little guinea pig Daisy Mae and she just made me smile from ear to ear!! It really does make your heart go pitter patter from the moment you get your mail out of the box and thumb through the bills to see something like this! Snail mail art really does make you feel special!

This is the card I am pulling out of my stash to create an envelope for today. I love that I used my hand made paper to stamp the sun, tree and bird on, it's a wonderful texture. I love making my own handmade paper with my Arnold Grummer Paper Making kits. The stamps are by Susan K. Weckesser and so is the background paper.

Here they are together as a set, hope it makes someone smile like I did today when I got my card from Jean!

Don't forget to send in your snail mail art for the show.

An afternoon of art without any focus

Planning (also called forethought) is the process of thinking about and organizing the activities required to achieve a desired goal.

This past week-end I opened up my journal to just play with no thought or planning, which is a heck of a lot scarier and stressful for me. I'm a planner, a take charge of an idea and run with it kind of person, so having an afternoon without any focus...well...it was diverting to say the least. It took many trips back and forth into the studio to finish it up too...but in the end, I really like it.

Gel Press® Petites set A ( round )
misc. dot stencil
Deco Art acrylic paints, 
decou-page paper and 
Peaceful words stencil
Old Film stencil

So what are you? A planner or a "go by the seat of your pants" artist? Do you prefer challenges and setting goals or to just take it one day at a time?

"A designer is someone who constructs while he thinks,
 someone for whom planning and making go together."
John Maeda

This is the reason why I hoard my art supplies

Using Distress Paints on my Gel Press plate® still remains one of my most fun techniques as of today. I had those distress paints sitting around since he first came out with them in 2013 ( some aren't even opened ) because, really, they didn't do anything for me, and I was first in line to buy every color he had!

... and now....well now I can't get enough of them.

 And this is why I am afraid to throw away any art supplies and hoard them all...sigh....it just reinforces my need to keep everything because you never know when you will need it or maybe learn how to use it correctly! 

To make the mask 

1. Stamp or draw your lines for the address

2. Draw your image around the lines using the stamp to guide you

3. then cut it out

or

scan and copy the stamped image and enlarge it!

Once I make my masks I can keep them forever and store them in the package along with my stamps so they are handy.

 I made this card a couple of weeks ago and you can find the video to using Distress Paints and your Gel Press® plate HERE. 

Feel free to give me a "thumbs up" and subscribe all you want...lol...

I love making mail art, it's fun to create something that will spread smiles!

Why mail art?

Why not? 

It's fun and relaxing to do and it's can be as simple or as complex as you want it to be. There aren't many rules, just make sure the address to the person it is being sent to is easily read and that there is room for a stamp. Basically, that's pretty much it; your imagination can do the rest.

Simon Says: Things With Wings

stamps :

Surf and Turf

envelope sentiment

You can find the video I made creating my envelope art over HERE!

Again, working with an existing card from my stash to make the coordinating envelope.

Go ahead and make some mail art and don't forget the open call for the "All about me" mail art show.

Open call to all envelope artists out there

I am so excited to announce that I am going to be sponsoring my first show for all artists, young old, talented and for just those who like to have fun. You only need to afford the price of a stamp to be in this show! 

I also wanted to do some sort of campaign to spread smiles: I think we need to smile more. Our world is filled with so much hatred these days and maybe my little snail mail art is just a drop in the bucket but if we all did something to make this place we live in a little bit better, then think of how much nicer the world would be!

I'm also going to be binding all the mail art after the show the show is over into a book and hoping it too can travel around and let everyone look at it. I think a book about snail mail should be put in the mail, don't you? I think it would be cool to use the same box; to forward it on and let everyone keep adding to the art on the box, just changing the "To and Froms"....would love to know what you think.

Smiles make your day better.

Sending my cards off to be published in the CardMaker Magazine so I thought I would create some smiles with this cute little postman. I sure would love to be a fly on the corporate wall when they get it.

SMILES make you feel better

 I know I have one smile ( OK, two, after all it makes me smile ) and that was from the postal worker himself. He asked if I had painted it ( as he was very carefully applying the postal stamp to the "letter" part of the package ) 

and I said "yes, I hope it makes someone smile."

His response..."Well, I know it made me smile." 

That made my day :)

 A smile helps you feel happier — and being happier helps you keep the smile going in a genuine way.

Did you know that sending mail art creates smiles?

It really does, try it today.

Challenge: Nautical/By The Sea

PITT pens

Giving old cards a new look 

This card is older, but I am currently going through my stash and making envelopes for them too. I can't send out blank envelopes any longer. 

It just won't do.

People need to communicate, why not do it by mail?

Do you want to add botanicals to your paper?

If you do then make sure to check out my design team post today over on the Arnold Grummer blog. I created a collection of bookmarks all with one template...would love for you to hop on over and check them all out.

I'm entering this bookmark in the {Itty Bitty} Challenge! July 15- July 21 over on the Unity { show and tell } FB page.

itty bitty stamp - struggle is part of it

Mail art as performance art

 "Mail art requires an actual physical interaction between the receiver/consumer and the artists’ work.  In many cases, this interaction takes the form of opening an envelope, where both the envelope and the contents are the art, but so is the act of opening the envelope.  In this way, the art transgresses from purely visual/physical art to performance/interactive art.  The act of receiving art in the mail expels the distance between art and life, bringing the experience of art straight into the recipient’s home." 
The Consecrated Eminence 

With that in mind, I created both a card and the envelope to relate to the event that I shared with the persons receiving it...which was a party. This was a lot of fun to create, drawing something that encompassed both their hospitality from the party to their generosity of giving me a gift. Looking back, I wish I had drawn the necklace around her neck...oh well, it's too late now.

 It also reflects ( hopefully with a sense of humor ) my joy in the necklace that they gave me from one of their many travels.

"Mail art is fun and easy (who doesn’t like  surprises?), but it’s also meaningful – it facilitates a direct connection between the person who made the object and person who receives it." 
The Consecrated Eminence

I think it turned out real cute and I must say I am enjoying drawing little snippets like this. Mail art and card making are fun activities, I hope you enjoyed mine.

Hey GEL friend

OK, so I couldn't resist the pun about a pun :)

My new obsession is making mail art (  It is not considered an art movement per se, but it can be said to be a genre. ) and I have discovered that the 5x7 Gel Press® plate is perfect for my envelopes so I can make matching mono-printed envies! Stoked!

Challenge: Nautical/By The Sea

one of my favorite stamp sets

Surf and Turf

colored in with my favorite

PITT pens

I'm up over on the Gel Press blog today with a step out tutorial showing how I made my envelope

and if you missed the video to the making of the matching card, you can find it HERE.

10 REASONS TO send mail

1. To write to a kid to teach them how fun it is to receive a letter. Ask for them to write back so that they can have fun sending one too.
2. To send a friend a recipe
3.  To decorate the envelope ( my personal favorite! )
4. To practice your penmanship, play with letterforms, and have fun expressing yourself on the page!
5. To congratulate someone on an achievement big or small
6.  To send a letter from your pet to a friend’s pet.
7.  To send a letter in multiple parts - like a serial podcast or tv show where they have to wait for the next episode
8. To send a cheer up message– a note to a friend who has had a tough go of it lately.
9.  To write a letter with checkbox questions that can be filled out and returned.
10.  To save the US Postal Service

more Halloween envelope art

Hand drawn envelope art with PITT pens, stamped with Envelope Sentiments and colored in with Paper Crafter crayons.

Simon Says: Create A Scene

One of my favorite cards, I just love the fact that retail always lets us know when the next holiday is around the corner. There should never be any excuses to not getting your shopping done early and on time...there are reminders everywhere like Christmas is next folks before your pumpkin is even carved, lol

A bit classier Halloween card, or maybe just for the person who doesn't appreciate the bright orange associated with Halloween.

The next time you decide to take the time to mail a card to anyone special in your life, try sending it in a personalized envelope made especially for them. Whoever receives it will not only love it to bits but it will be something for that person to cherish and hold on to their whole life.

Smiles on delivery

First off I must say that this post is extremely good at the do and don'ts of mail art. If you are planning on making some then it's worth the read.

I thought I would share some of my mail art that I made for a couple of my friends.

First off, this card goes to a friend of mine who altered one of Daisy Maes' ( my pet guinea pig ) sleeping quarters, Well, she use to sleep in it until she grew too big and could only poke her head inside so he made it into a tunnel and she loves to run in and out now. I let her chew on the card for a personal guinea pig touch and she was only too happy to oblige. The envelope is supposed to be a cow flying a kite aka as a stamp...not sure if it works...lol

Simon Says: Create A Scene

If cows could talk stamp

Then I had a prize to get out to Jean that was LONG overdue!! So I had to make it extra special! The picture of the dog actually came on the box, I just painted around it to wipe out the company information, didn't want her to think she was getting dog treats! But I loved the dachshund so he got to stay and I added a caption.

 I did paint the "snail" mail though with some neon lights paints from DecoArt...they did pretty well except for the yellow which didn't show up against the black, but it still turned out cute. I love the fact that the post office person went out of their way not to disturb the art when applying the postage, it made me smile to see how careful they were being with it.

Did you know?
Mail art (also known as postal art and correspondence art) is a populist artistic movement centered on sending small scale works through the postal service. It initially developed out of the Fluxus movement in the 1950s and 60s, though it has since developed into a global movement that continues to the present.  Mail art is considered art once it is dispatched. 

Artistic snail mail

Artistic snail mail harkens back to those olden times when you had something better than bills in your mailbox, and who doesn't appreciate getting a card?
The most important step is to actually mail it...send it out into the world. 

The background of the envelope is made from my Gel Press® plate using distress paints. I also learned something, PITT pens will blend and smooth out the Paper Crafters crayons. YAY!! I colored in my smiley face with the Paper Crafters crayons and not liking the rough surface I decided to go over it with my dried out PITT pen, and wow, look how smooth it made the crayon. Needless to say I am very pleased.

 Make something arty...on an envelope.  Then slap a stamp on there and drop it into a mailbox. You'll brighten someones' day if you do!

The video for making the Smile card can be found HERE!

Mermaid envelope art

My mermaid this month for the facebook group called 12 Months of Mermaids is envelope art, something I am sure you know I am fond of if you read my blog on a regular basis. 

 I had to block out the addresses but I wanted you to get the gist of how cool it looks to incorporate spaces in your art to write in. Well, at least I think so!

I played around with my Paper Crafter crayons, they say you can sharpen them but I haven't figured out how to do that since they twist open...yep, they keep twisting when you sharpen them too..lol And of course I used my PITT pens.

Since this card is inspired by my friend Jamie, I had to include a crab in it, they seem to love her and always let her catch them when she is at the beach.

From the last vacation that Jamie I took together down at Panama Beach Fl.

The power of a postage stamp is strong: such a simple object has the ability 

to connect others no matter how much land/ocean divides them...Sending 

mail, even something as simple as a letter, 

can truly brightens someone's day.

It's never failure if you learn something

With all the new technology of today, the golden age of handwritten letters may be past.  But receiving a card is still a treat, and whether it's handwritten, printed, or typed, it's still the best thing to get in your mailbox at the end of the day.

Now there is a lot going on here ( in a behind the scenes sort of way )...I used hot colors to depict the sun and heat and cool colors for the effect the ice cream has. So the sun, sun spots and ground...all in hot colors. Even the ground is melting like ice cream would be doing on a hot day.

The little cow is all in cool colors due to his eating the ice cream and it's chilling him out and that is melting down to the ground and cooling off the area around him too. Just love the way that the H20's blend together and even mixed together to create the green.

I don't think we ever intend to make mistakes in order to learn something new...it just happens...to the best of us! I failed miserably at a new technique I was trying which was stamping with my ColourArte H20's. I watched this video made by Leslie and thought I would give it a try but I set myself up for failure by using the wrong kind of stamp. However I did learn that by dipping a needle into the H20's I could draw the small lines that I needed to define and reline.

 And of course I had to create a little envelope art to go along with my card.

  Entering in ColourArte's monthly challenge - Sherbert