Was April Really the Last Time I Blogged ??!!??!!

I know I've been busy, distracted, even overwhelmed at times

but April?

I apologize for my absence and I must confess that what helped lure me back

is the waning of summer

and before you know it the arrival of 

HALLOWEEN!

So my dear fellow swappers in the flickr group, if you're still out there 

and still interested

I'd like to host a Halloween swap or two.

Our past Halloween swaps have been wonderfully wicked

and diverse.

Remember....

Matchbox swaps. We've done a few.

The paper bag book swap was one of my favorites.

 We swapped twinchies

and domino books.

 I enjoyed making large tag books

of your beautiful witches.

Altering cartes de visites

spooky style

created amazing books!

 We could repeat a favorite or try something new..

dolls, banners, pocket letters...

the list is endless.

So if you are interested in swapping this season;

what would YOU like to do?

Halloween Matchbox Heaven

I have sooooo much Halloween to share with you

but have been too busy the past couple of weeks

to take pictures and blog.

I will try to play catch up over the next 10 days.

Yes, 10 days until Halloween!

Can you believe it?

 

My partner Michele

of

Nook & Cranny,

loves nature themes so I incorporated

as many flowers, berries, leaves and feathers

a matchbox top could hold.

 I even managed to fit a

mini witches broom in there.

I truly enjoyed working with all the different elements

and beautiful fall colors.

This is the finished piece... 

 with lots of

Halloween treats tucked inside.

 

Michele created a special box

for me also.

She really captured my love of whimsy

with this glam skelly!

 The altered faux watch

in the foreground

is another cherished piece she

created for me.

 

I partnered with two Michelle's

this Halloween

and this is the sweetly spooky

box I received from

Michelle

of

Something Special.

 And the box I made for her.

I covered it with cheese cloth and gesso,

then layered it with the

stretchy spider web stuff that you

find in stores this time of year.

I took a plain white mask and covered it with

white mica flakes

then embellished away!

 

If you'd like to see more Halloween matchboxes

feel free to browse around our swap group

photo album

HERE.

 

Be back soon!

Masked Beauties

Isn't this the best theme for an atc swap?

Kimberly at

ArtJoyStuff

is our hostess.

I wasn't able to capture all the detail...

liquid pearl accents, black glitter tulle

but she really is a Halloween beauty.

 

In honor of Kimberly's swap

here are some masked images for you to enjoy...

as we celebrate another

Haunted Hump Day!

 



Final Swap for the Halloween Season!

Sign-ups open now!

ANOTHER Halloween Swap & FREE Halloween Collage Sheet!

Yes, another Halloween swap...

and a vintage Halloween

image freebies

collage sheet

(courtesy Plush Possum Studios)

Happy

Haunted Hump Day!

 

 

 

Celebrating the Return of Haunted Hump Day with a Swap!

Hard to believe

but it is that magical, wonderful

time of year again

when our thoughts turn to

HALLOWEEN....

& Halloween swaps!



These are pictures of a swap I took part in

a few years ago.

 I love each artists

depiction of Halloween

 and the different mediums used

 and all the fabulous embellishments.

 In each pocket we placed

handmade tags and cards.

 Not only do these turn out great

but they're inexpensive and easy.

 Your "page" is simply a brown paper lunch bag

folded in half.

After decorating the front, back and inside

the pages are layered together.

holes punched,

and bound.

This swap is open for signups in

Vintage Dragonfly's Flickr Swap Group.

 

And one of my blog friends

who keeps me inspired

all season long

is Marfi,

 the hostess of Haunted Hump Day.

Get inspired yourself with weekly visits to

Incipient Wings.

7 More Days.....

I must admit to feeling a little sad when it gets this close.

Creating for the Halloween season

is just so much fun!

It's difficult to pack it all away for another year.

 

I hosted our 3rd annual

 Halloween Matchbox Swap

in my flickr group

and as usual am blown away

by the talented members.

If you want to partake in some

really creative and diverse

Halloween eye candy,

you can visit

HERE.

 

This is the box I altered for my partner...

 and these are a few of the goodies I sent along with it.



 

We did an altered Altoids tin swap in the

Marie Antoinette Mail Art Group.

My contribution is this witchy winged Marie

riding in her Halloween coach.

I really do need to invest in a new camera

(or possibly photography lessons!)

as I'm always somewhat disappointed with the detail

I'm not capturing in these pieces.

 

Here are a couple of vintage postcards to

add to your Halloween image

collections.

In closing this post

I must give kudos to the

Mistress of Halloween,

Marfi

for hosting

You've inspired us all

to embrace the season!



Happy Haunted Humpday!

First let me start with huge Halloween thanks

to my friend Marfi

of

Incipient Wings

for hosting this happy

Haunted Humpday event!

 

I plan on participating every Wednesday from now until Halloween

sharing my creations,

swaps

and

favorite Halloween images.

 

 I just finished making this witchy-themed

domino book.

 

 These are always fun to make

especially adding the detail.

 

I'm actually offering kits (supplies and tutorial) in my

 etsy shop

if you'd like to make your own.

 

In my flickr group I'm hosting our 3rd Annual Halloween Matchbox Swap.

If you visit the group search our photo pool

using "Halloween"

to see the amazing past creations.

Sign-up are open now.

 

I'm feeling a little wicked these days

so here's my first freebie image of the season

for you.

Happy Humpday!



Halloween Matchbox Swap

Always the biggest....

Always the best...

Hope you'll join in the frightfully fantastic fun!
Sign-ups are now open in
my flickr swap group
HERE.


We Played Halloween Tag!

My friend Kimberly always hosts the best swaps! She assembled the nicest tag books ever for her Halloween Tag Swap...

She made these beautiful witchy wood block tags for the front of our books. Each participant created 5 tags and we received a book of tags from 5 different artists.

Wendy

Michele

Holly

Tabitha

Lynn

If you missed my tags you can see them HERE. Thanks to all the artists for such wonderful tags, and a huge thank you to Kimberly for hosting yet another fabulous swap!

A Gothic Tale

A few of us from my flickr swap group collaborated to create a book of gothic arches in celebration of the Halloween season.
CassieMercedesKimWendyJenMyself

And for the cover I chose this lovely arch created by
Karla.
Bound with black binding rings covered in shades of gray seam binding and black fibers, we have ourselves a gothic tale.
Thank you ladies for a wonderful swap!