Drawing #62 - Osage

I began this piece in Oklahoma in May and named it for the county where we always like to go birding in the prairies. We found a mostly dry day to do that but I think the saturation of rain during our stay is somewhat reflected in the amount of color beyond my usual. I've worked in fits and starts and finally reached a conclusion today. I do have others in the works and the cooler weather may be conducive to getting at them. This is the usual collection of inks and pens, paint, pencil and collage.

Butterfly and Moth from our travels

The butterfly is called a Buckeye. I think they are boldly beautiful. They can be migrants in the fall, this one seen on asters at a nature preserve in Missouri 24 October 2013. The second creature is a day-flying moth that acts much like a hummingbird, its wings constantly whirring. It is such a treat to see and a challenge to photograph. This was at a botanic garden in Oklahoma.

_________________________
Designer Credits:
lift of 'Autumn Promenade' by 'casbury' 
by Anna Aspnes:
-background: ArtPlay Solids Viaggio
-photo mask: Original FotoBlendz No. 12
-frame: FineEdge Frames No. 1
-stitching: UrbanStitchez No. 3
-line: ArtPlay Palette EnRoute
-brads, transfer: ArtPlay Palette Socialize
-word art, glow: Roots Sampler
-bright color: ArtPlay Palette Bask
-brush: ArtPlay Viaggio BrushSet
fonts: Mystical, Sybil Green

__________________________
Designer Credits:
AnnaLift of ‘let us ENJOY’ by ‘Lilly-10’ 
by Anna Aspnes:
-background: ArtPlay Palette Christmas Nostalgia
-photo mask: WaterColor FotoBlendz No. 1
-frame: ArtPlay Palette Tapestry
-transfer: ArtPlay Palette Vintage Rose
-brush: ArtPlay Palette Socialize
-bead: ArtPlay Palette Barren Sunrise
font: Boopee

A Week Into November

Here's the week that got us to November!

_____________________________
Designer Credits:
-background, art stroke: ArtPlay Palette For the Record by Anna Aspnes
-mask as brush: Mask It Butterfly Vol. 1 by Dido Designs
-glow: SpookyGlows No. 1 by Anna Aspnes
-gold paint: ArtPlay Palette Tangier by Anna Aspnes
-spider: Zen & the Art of: All Hallows Eve by Maya de Groot
-bird: Like a Bird by Maya de Groot
fonts: Hurry Up, Huxtable, joeHand 2

More October - some in Oklahoma

We're back from visiting in Oklahoma where we had a great time, saw lots of birds and caught up with Jim and many of his friends. Here's the week that ended while we were there. Remember to click on the image to be able to read the text (hopefully!)

_______________________
Designer Credits:
-papers, brad, cloud, circle frame, splats: Oscraps Collab Journey
-chevron: Stamped Mess {Take a Chance} by Studio 68
-fine frame: FineEdge Frames No. 1 by Anna Aspnes
-butterfly: FlutterBy Lace No. 1 by Anna Aspnes
fonts: Hurry Up, Huxtable

Essence of Autumn Sun

A happy photo of sunny flowers hosting a small skipper (butterfly) appealed for last week's AnnaLift. We were at the Philbrook Art Museum gardens last year where I took a lot of photos. The weather has changed in the last few hours, trying to give a dusting of snow, so this sunny page is the perfect antidote. Hope all who celebrated Thanksgiving yesterday had a wonderful time doing so. I have so much for which to be thankful. Sunny days are sure among them.

_________________________
Designer Credits:
all Anna Aspnes
-background: ArtPlay Solids Viaggio
-brushes: ArtPlay Viaggio BrushSet
-brushes, transfers: ArtPlay Palette Viaggio
-edge overlay: APP Ablaze
-stars: APP Bask
fonts: Girls are Weird, Hurry Up

Inspired by Pelicans

I really have been creating scrapbook pages for various challenges, but never seem to get them posted here. Two recent ones I really like celebrate the migrant American White Pelicans we saw on our recent visit to Oklahoma.

___________________________
Designer Credits:
-background: Back Packers - Set 7 by Maya de Groot
-elements: Passion for Paper by Maya de Groot
fonts: Mystical, President

_______________________________
Designer Credits:
lift of "feathers" by Timounette 
-paper, seedhead: Amethist Lane by Jen Maddocks Designs
-stitching: All Stitched v. 2 by Kitty Designs
fonts: Erie Light, Dawn Castle

Panoramas, another make-over

The camera challenge this month at Oscraps is to create a panorama with at least two photos. I did one with new photos, but wanted to tackle a makeover of an old one too. In part I wanted to tell more of the story on the page. As a result, you'll really have to click on its image to read the text. Here is the new version.

_________________________
Designer Credits:
-graph paper: Oscraps Collab Tango
-brown paper, screw, dots: Oscraps Collab Homespun
-stitching: Aero Toni by Maya de Groot
-transfer under map: ArtPlay Palette Family by Anna Aspnes
-brush: ArtPlay Palette Great Outdoors by Anna Aspnes
-silver splash: Paint Silver No. 1 by Anna Aspnes
fonts: Chalk, Boopee, Pea Beth

And then the original which I did in 2007 with designs of my own.

Also, here is another from Lake View from the very hot 4th of July that I did for the challenge.

_____________________________
Designer Credits:
-papers, elements: Oscraps Collab DandeliOn Days
-photo assembly: FotoTransfers No. 1 by Anna Aspnes
fonts: Enchanted Prairie Dog, Pea Anderson, Lithograph

Remembering Butterflies

This week's lift design appears to Dick like balloons floating up. I looked for a set of photos to use and found I not gotten to some I took of an American Snout Butterfly in his brother's yard in Tulsa. I like them with this brown background and really like looking at butterfly pictures and remembering warmer weather. I like this particular one with its long "nose." They are more brightly colored above but can fold the wings and resemble a dead leaf.

I have finally finished my second larger drawing but I'm waiting for daylight to photograph it tomorrow.

_________________________
Designer Credits:
all Anna Aspnes
-ArtPlay Palette Ablaze
-swirl brush: ArtPlay Palette Autumn Haze
-black and white designs: MultiMedia Leaves No. 2
fonts: Boopee, Artistamp Medium

Lovely Kit Called "Serendipity"

I won a new kit by random selection just by commenting on the sneak peek of the preview. I liked what I could see and have enjoyed showing off the kit with another photo from the Philbrook gardens and an old tintype from the 1870s. The different photos called for very different looks. The colors are quite luscious.

_____________________________
Designer Credits:
kit Serendipity by Jennifer Labre
fonts: Boopee (jar), Minya Nouvelle (Maggie)

Seeing the Little Things

This week's scraplift featured a beautiful page with a very dramatic photo. My visit to the Philbrook Museum gardens October 1st gave me opportunities for some strong images. I especially love ones of the shadows of wrought iron railings on the stone stairs. It's the kind of thing I think we see that can easily be overlooked by others. I know many of us scrap these sorts of things; I've called them "unexpected richness."

_____________________________
Designer Credits:
-lift of "Thanksgiving..." by zalaine
-ArtPlay Palette Autumn Haze by Anna Aspnes
-overlay: GoldPaint Overlays No. 1 by Anna Aspnes
fonts: Jazz LET, Enchanted Prairie Dog

Lovely Day with Black Walnuts

I'm working on another of my drawings, but this one is larger and taking more time. I did a pair of pages (a before and after) for a challenge to use the High Pass Sharpen tool. I had not used it before and am finding it very helpful after reducing the size of a page for the web. I think I should have tried a different photo than this sunny back-lit black walnut in Oklahoma. I'm going to put the "before" here as I like it better. Why? Because the sharpening reduced the color in the picture. (After HERE.) This is a very pleasant memory of the light under these trees.

____________________________
Designer Credits:
-background, brads, confetti: The Gift by Fei-fei's Stuff
-pale paper, photo mask, tree stamp (recolored): Family Ties by Fei-fei's Stuff
-journaling block, word art: Sketchbook Artistry No. 1 by Sue Cummings
font: Catriel

A Philbrook Moment

I participated in a chat and associated scraplift the other day. Hadn't done that in about a year I think. It was fun and the design we were using seemed perfect for one of my photos from the Philbrook Museum in Tulsa. I always take lots of photos when we visit the gardens there. Four of us went  this time and I like the resulting page with the other three. It isn't a design I would ever have dreamed up on my own, but it is excellent.

____________________________
Designer Credits:
(chat) lift of "Wanderlust" by kalesmom4ever
-Whispering Trees by Creations by TinaMarie
-butterfly: Bits & Pieces 2 by Sue Cummings
-zigzag paper: Terra Toni by Maya de Groot
-light green circle: Sweater Weather by One Little Bird
fonts: Girls are Weird, Casablanca, Kastler

Amazed by Hazelnuts

I had no idea how a hazelnut grew, but they are part of fantastic shapes. My brother-in-law has a small tree in his garden and there were nuts still in the husks that had turned brown and looked beautiful. They were beginning to fall off the tree. This husk was stiff but brittle. Always some fascinating new thing! I've used a photo in a Member Spotlight scraplift challenge.

______________________________
Designer Credits:
lift of "Innocent Beauty" by dlhoffer
http://ozone.oscraps.com/gallery/data/500/InnocentBeautyFnl.jpg
-kit: Terra Toni by Maya de Groot
-paper strip: BackPackers - set 5 by Maya de Groot
fonts: Kunstler Script, Ligurino
__________________________________
Here's a photo of a cluster (of two) that had already fallen but not been eaten by the squirrels. Such a fabulous thing!

New Lift - Passion Flower Vine

Another week, another lift for designer Anna Aspnes. This week the theme is combining her arty approach with more traditional scrapbooking looks. An article with examples was our inspiration. (see HERE) I really liked "The Little Things" by Katherine B and did my lift of it. I chose one of my photos of a white passion flower from Oklahoma. Last year we saw Gulf Fritillary butterflies and their caterpillars on this plant. Normally this is too far north for them to reproduce.The layout has one photo but I also like a second one.

___________________________
Designer Credits:
all Anna Aspnes
-background papers, gray and white square, branch and word art brushes: ArtPlay Palette Barren Sunrise
-greenish circle, greenish square, brad, stitching: ArtPlay Palette No. 10
-frames. black and gray rectangle, staple: ArtPlay Palette Autumn Haze
-lacy brush: ArtPlay Palette Saffron Villa
fonts: FlamencoD, Dali, Garamond

RED: the joy of red flowers

On our visit to Oklahoma well-watered gardens were doing fairly well and I was especially drawn to all the beautiful flowers in red. Some of them were also drawing hummingbirds and most flowers of any color were drawing bees, moths and butterflies. I do love to photograph all those things and decided to combine some red flowers for the copycat challenge this month.

_________________________
Designer Credits:
-template by Clara (clarabear) based on "Miss You" by Phylis (whatnext) 
-background paper: Family is forever by Maya de Groot
-Hummingbird shapes: Like Home by Fei-fei's Stuff
-stitching: Sunrise Sunset by Fei-fei's Stuff
-dark paper: Free to Fly by Vera Lim Design
-white paper: Shimmer by Kitty Designs
-glitter: The Silver Flakes by Kitty Designs
-brad, button: ArtPlay Palette Barren Sunrise by Anna Aspnes
-torn paper shape (blended): ArtPlay Palette Autumn Haze by Anna Aspnes
fonts: Enchanted Prairie Dog, Dali, Mufferaw, EwieD, Ligurno, HansHand

Oklahoma Prairie

I love spending a day in the prairies in northern Oklahoma in Osage County and the Osage Nation. This fall we didn't see as many birds as some times and the vegetation was showing signs of the overly hot and dry summer just past. There was some rain though and there was some bloom of wildflowers. Time spent there is always special and we had a lovely day. I used photos and thoughts from that day for two scrapbooking challenges. One was to use at least seven of ten items, the word "Thankful" required. I finished with eight of them and a layout on the American bison or buffalo. The October camera challenge asks for a collage and page with a collection of photos that could be one day, week, year, or other reason for a series. I have lots of other photos from Oklahoma, but for now I've only used those from our one day in the Osage.

_________________________________
Designer Credits:
        8 of 10 elements:
1. word Thankful (required), 2. something red (heart), 3. at least 3 flowers, 4. a frame, 5. three squares of paper, 6. a sepia colored picture, 7 - , 8. a photo mask, 9 - , 10. the letter "S"


-background, horizontal striped paper: Blessing by Lydia Designs
-frame: I remember you by Biograffiti
-greenish paper: 52 Inspirations (Week 33) by Sue Cummings
-vertical striped paper, green flower, flower doodle: Free to Fly by Vera Lim
-photo mask: ArtPlay Palette Autumn Haze by Anna Aspnes
-brown flower: Composition by One Little Bird
-red heart: Home Sweet Home by Maya de Groot
fonts: Circus, French Script MT, EnviroD, Emboss, Bangkok

________________________________
Designer Credits:
-background paper: I Remember You by Biograffiti
-bow, stitching, grid: Composition by One Little Bird
buffalo photo by my DH
fonts: harrison, Hurry Up, HansHand, Amapola, Souvenir Lt BT

Under the weather; remembering fun creatures

I've been feeling wretched with a nasty cold or something and can barely think. Took a look at some older photos today and found ones of a nifty little caterpillar. I love all the the little furry and tufty ones and this is quite cute. It was on a picnic table under a little tree (oak I think) whose leaves were probably its food and the food of its relatives. I never try to touch these guy as they look better than they would feel and worse, some STING!

________________
Designer Credits: Fei-fei's Stuff: Like Home
-stitching: Dydyge - October Festivities, Part 4
fonts: Girls are Weird, Memorandum