Number Tags

The tag challenge blog up and ended before the numbers were complete.  I went ahead and completed the number series on my own.

First up is #6.  Just a chosen date that reflected the beginning of school and picture day. Vintage style with coffee stain and all.

The back of #6

And the final number, #7.  Our house number in Wisconsin.

The back of #7

Looking back I notice #0 never made it's way into the series.  Oh well.  It will NOT bother me.  At least not enough to go back to this number series...at the moment.

I gathered all the tags together.  While I wasn't happen with some of them, I was very happy with others.  It makes no never mind.  The playing is what's important.

Count your blessings.

xxx

Annie

Small Creations

This month's challenge at A Monthly Challenge is to think small.  Our little creations are not to be larger than 4"x4".  That's a fun size to play with.  I made coin envelopes.  They measure 4"X3".

The one on the left is made with a scrapbook paper then decorated with torn tracing paper and a bit /of Washi tape.  The one on the right is made with a craft paper and decorated with Washi tapes.

Reverse sides

They are such fun little envelopes to make.

Recently I found a new blog to check in on called The Lost Art of Letter Writing...Revived.  In November Pemela had challenged her readers to make an Autumn Matchbox.  After reading a few of Pam's posts, I felt strongly compelled to write a letter to her.  That must mean her blog is working.  It can't just be that I like mail art.  I didn't want to make a matchbox and I certainly didn't want to deal with mail it to arrive not crushed.  So I made little envelopes for her in the theme of postal/letter writing.  

I put the two tiny envelopes inside the coin envelope.  The smallest envelope measures 1-7/8" X 1-1/4".  Pretty tiny and so adorable.  I also made her card using a Jane Austen library card and a clip art of a writer with a fun ink well hat with her quills handy and note paper streamers.  

Then I wrote the letter.  While working on the envelopes and card, I kept wondering what to write to someone I don't know.  Well, surprisingly, I didn't have any problem finding some words to write.  With email so handy and instant these days, I don't have any "real" stationery on hand.  So I took sheets from note pads and just kept Washi taping them together.  This was a really fun project.

NOTE:

The library card is from a boxed set I found at Barnes & Noble.  They are copies of real library cards from the Library of Congress.

xxx

Annie

Journaling Craze

My December 2015 Calendar Journal was a fun month to document and attempt some more creative looking day blocks.

A creative lettering style that always catches my attention is now being practiced by me ..... a lot.  Along with other styles.  Drawing letters/words is a painstakingly slow process ..... for me.  I bravely even practice it on mail art envelopes too.  I'm not so good at it.  I'm not even going to say 'yet'.  But if you view it from, say, ten feet away, not too shabby looking.  LoL

On Pinterest I see loads of something new to me.  Bullet Journals.  From what I can figure about them is that they are just lists.  Daily lists.  And people go to a lot of work making these daily lists.

My mind is not what it used to be and it never is spending much time thinking about what I 'should' be doing.  It's always thinking about PLAYING.  This means it's necessary that I make myself lists.  On-going lists.  But I just keep a spiral journal on my desk always with the on-going list of things I need to remember to do, and dates of events that I need to remember are approaching.

The pages get flipped back and forth until 'stuff' gets crossed off.  It also contains ideas and drawing illustrations of ideas for PLAYING.  I even tape things into it that I don't want to loose.  And bits of trimmed off Washi Tapes.  All kinds of stuff really.  It's just what comes to mind at the moment that I don't want to forget.  Or a lot of things that I keep forgetting until I get it written down.  It keeps me on track and on time.

My conclusion to Bullet Journals is that I already have one in a more relaxed format.

Make your day creative!

xxx

Annie

Making Cards

Happy New Year

cards

Now that traditional Thanksgiving and Christmas are past, I am free to make Annie-style cards to send to my daughter and my friends.  The people who don't look at these cards as if I were out of my mind.   

So I had a play with postage people.  It's been a while.  Adolph S. Ochs has been patiently waiting in my stash for a body.  The man's body is a Tim Holtz Found Relative card.  Adolph went on a trip to Connecticut.

Butterfly lady is still traveling.  She came about from a long awaited play time to create in my own style.

Quiet Winter also is still traveling.  This card emerged from trying a technique I found on Pinterest.

And then lastly, I needed a Thank You note.

And now for a new year to start fresh again.  May 2016 be your best new year ever!

xxx

Annie

Christmas Postcard Exchange

Last November I joined in a Christmas Postcard Exchange with other like-minded bloggers, hosted by Sheila at Sheila's Quilt World. I mailed my postcard to Lin in Paris. 

This card seems to have taken the scenic route, as it took a bit long in arriving. But finally arrived, it did.  just as I was about to start on a replacement postcard. Sometimes all we need to do is threaten our original mail art with replacement mail art. 

I did not have the long wait that Lin had. Her beautiful postcard arrived well before Christmas for my holiday enjoyment.

I love all these perfectly made hexies stitched together with such perfect and incredibly tiny, barely visible stitches. And something I've not seen before, teeny tiny beads stitched at each inside point. All finished off with a metallic thread satin stitched edge. Thank you so much Lin for this beautiful postcard. 

This day after Christmas is a great time to look back on Christmas Day and all the days leading up to it and reminisce on the beauty of this season with a smile. I hope everyone has happy hearts. 

xxx

Annie