tutorial: 1 mini project, 4 mini gifts & big happy new year

I have been a little behind since the second half of this year started. Not my fault. Seriously. I never let art or meetings or appointments or shopping take precedence over family life. Never. So I am a teeny tiny bit behind in making and delivering a few of my gifts. Nothing huge. Just a few little THANK YOU's I wanted to make sure to deliver to people that matter in my life, but might not know it, like the postman, the kids teachers, and even my bank teller. I thought since I was behind anyway it might be nice to change things up a bit and surprise them with a NEW YEAR gift instead...it works for me. And the best part is you just need some scraps and a few supplies!

I made all four of these in just under an hour. Grab this stuff to make your own: * scrap of canvas or duck cloth. Mine was only 2 inches high by 12 inches long. * some paint *paint pens *hole punch *eyelets *scissors *sewing machine *cotton balls *bakers twine *bead ball necklace chain *bead ball key chain *aircraft cable key ring *felt or fabric scraps *glue gun *silicone finger caps

Step 1. Paint circles on your canvas scrap. **If you want both sides of your canvas pouf to be the same, you will need TWO of each color circle**I took mine all the way to the edges to allow cutting and stitching later.  Add little designs using paint and pain pens. Let dry completely.

Step 2. Stitch around the edges of each circle a few times.

Step 3. Cut each circle out. You can trim your threads or leave them dangle. Cut tiny pieces of felt or fabric and stitch on for a little 3-D embellishment. Using a coordinating thread makes it pop!

Step 4. Place one of each color circle RIGHT SIDE DOWN on protected surface. Place a small dot of glue on cotton ball and lay on WRONG SIDE of circle. Run a small line of glue along outer edge of circle and place MATCHING circle on top of cotton ball RIGHT SIDE UP. Using silicone finger tip protectors, quickly press edges of circle together.

Step 5. Punch a hole near the top edge of each of your canvas poufs using a heavy duty hole punch.

Step 6. Add eyelet to hole you have punched.

Step 7. Add twine, chain or rings to complete your canvas poufs.

Enjoy what my little girl likes to call "those jelly fish things!" Hey I see an UNDER SEA party theme somewhere in there!

newsworthy: my artwork at society6

HERE IS SOME REALLY EXCITING NEWS PEOPLE!

One of my favorite originals - DOCUMENTED, is now available  as a print and other great prodcuts like these!

Also available as: Pillows, totebags, stationary, stretched canvas, framed art prints and more! See all my inspiring work here at Society 6.

art stuff: playing with these--->mixed media essentials

I confess. It has been a long time since I really USED rubber stamps.

That is not to say I don't have any - I do, but they never really jumped off the worktable and said "play with me please!" Recently a friend of mine, Roben-Marie Smith, asked me if I would be interested in working with her new line - MIXED MEDIA ESSENTIALS. Holy Moly is all I can say!

These stamps were calling my name! I knew the minute I laid my hands on these I would be stamping on more than just paper. I had to put these puppies to fabric. WOW! They rocked!

I absolutely fell in love with all of the combinations I could create with this set. I can't say whether it is the doodled nature of this line - I love to doodle, or the whimsical feel they lend to a piece of art that I love more.

It has been great to work with such a versatile set of stamps too - you can reach for anything from a funky alphabet to a scalloped edge to a doodled dot or circle!

I stamped on fabric, paper and board canvas- each and every project turned out so awesome!

I can't wait to experiment some more with these funky and modern, MIXED MEDIA ESSENTIALS stamps! Who knows what will come off the worktable next! Stay tuned! And don't forget to visit Roben-Marie Smith here for more inspiration and to see what other artists are creating with the great set of stamps!

the process: sometimes mini canvas

...because lately I love anything new and tiny. (If you follow my instagram you will know why) --->

Tiny and Pretty. Enjoy the process!

On the worktable: mini canvas love