Salutations!

Embossed in purple, painted with some old liquid ink I bought many moons ago, highlighted in white gel pen, and Prisma Coloured in bright pink and orange. This one was quick and fun!

BTW, my first name is Charlotte.

My Edward

You probably can't tell by looking at it, but this is probably my most labor-intensive card to date. I'm not completely satisfied with the result, but he's okay. I do like those topaz eyes.

This card is for Miss Cheivous' Twilight swap. I used chalk, Prisma Colour pencils, oil pastels, Twinking H2Os, a blender pen, a gel pen, and acryllic paint. Whew! I'm not sure it was worth it.

Sea-Girl

This card is just like The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock, but the colors are different. I like these colors MUCH better.

Tangled Heart

Created for Four Waters' Zen Tangles swap, the background for this card is similar to the background for New England Neptune. See that post if you want to know how I made it.

This is the first card on which I've used wire and beads. Although I put a second back on the card, I don't like the way the outline of the wires can be seen on the back side of the card. How can I fix this problem?

Perfecto!

This card was created for One Forth's Mary Englebreit swap. Although I didn't carve the proof, this chef is cooking up a batch of grits. I made some of the grits buttered, and some are cheese.

The colors on this card are pretty vivid, but the scan is kind of dull. I colored this one with Prisma Colour pencils. After I colored the cards, I took a pom pom and rubbed the colored parts to make the colors smooth. I then set the whole thing by spraying on a clear coat.

New England Neptune

I love to collect seashells, but I've always been kind of afraid to carve them. I had A LOT of trouble deciding what to carve for my seashell swap, and I only decided on this shell about a week ago, after spending much time on another image. This is the Massachusetts state shell, New England Neptune.

My favorite part of this card is the background. It's made with crumpled tissue paper and a water/glue combination. I then used clear embossing powder to give it a watery look, and I edged it in opaque white.

The light blue background is also made with tissue paper, but I didn't crumple it this time. I painted the blue on top of the white, glittery tissue paper.

The stamp is two layers, and the string is embroidery thread.

Medusa

According to Greek legend, Medusa was a beautiful priestess in Athena's temple before she was cursed by Athena. With this in mind, I set out to find an image of a pretty Medusa.

Medusa is supposed to be looking over her right shoulder. I had to cut off half a centimeter or so from the bottom, and I think I messed up the way she was supposed to look a little.

The dark green is embossed, and the other colors are painted with acrylics. I finished the card off by embossing the edges gold.

The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock

I read The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S. Eliot when I was in the 11th grade, and I've been quoting it ever since.

When I signed up for Poodle Circus' poetry swap, I wanted to focus on lines 120-121.

"I grow old … I grow old …
I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled."

I couldn't find a good image, though, so I went with the last 3 lines of the poem instead.

"We have lingered in the chambers of the sea
By sea-girls wreathed with seaweed red and brown
Till human voices wake us, and we drown."

Although I envisioned this sea-girl in greens and blues, I felt like I needed to remain true to the poem and make her seaweed red and brown.

I finally bought a container of UTEE (Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel), and I used it on this card. You can't tell from the picture, but there's a thick, clear embossed layer covering this card. It really gives it an underwater feel.

The blue and red are watercolors. The pink was done with a Prismacolor pencil, and the sea-girl wears a pearl in the middle of her pendant.

Warhol's Mickey Mouse

I tried to think like Warhol on this one. I'm afraid that I failed, but I like this card nonetheless. :o)



This card is for SeattleBound's Andy Warhol swap.

Escher's Rippled Surface

I have had this stamp on my To Do List for a long time, and I finally carved it about a month ago. I had a heck of a time getting a good image with it, though. I even bought new stamp pads and everything. With the help of 3 Blind Mice, I've arrived at the conclusion that the iron-on method affects the way the rubber (PZ Orange) takes ink. It's not noticable at all when the stamp is negative, but when the stamp has lots of positive area, you can see the splotchiness. (I hope I have my positives and negatives straight there.) I've had it happen recently with 5 of my stamps, and I never had this problem before I started using the iron on method.

Our Lady of La Leche

I carved this stamp to plant at the Chapel of Our Lady of La Leche in St. Augustine, FL. (If you're ever in St. Augustine, then you simply must visit this place.)

This image is embossed on vellum. I colored it in with markers and added the black border. I was trying to make the card look kind of like a stained glass window.

I only made 5 of these.

Sherlock Holmes

I started reading the Sherlock Holmes books last year, and I absolutely love them. When Tyra, my dearest friend, asked me to carve a stamp for her City of Books event in April, I chose to do Sherlock Holmes.

I found an image that I loved, but I had no idea how to turn it into something carvable. The 3 Blind Mice came to my rescue, and I decided to carve this 2-layered stamp. Thanks, Mice!

The frame isn't on the card, by the way. I put it on electronically.

"My name is Sherlock Holmes. It is my business to know what other people don't know."