My ARTistic Life

New Wood Jewelry Line and Gifts Galore

I'm so excited to introduce our new Wood Jewelry Line to you! I've been working so hard on this for months. A big thanks to my Mom and Linda Larsen for their help and input too.

Our new Wood Jewelry Line includes a variety of pendants and components made out of sustainable wood that we've sanded and stained in 3 lovely colors: natural, honey butter and dark cherry. All pieces work well together or on their own. I'm just in love with them as you can tell by some of the classes I put together: Birdhouse Necklaces, Birdhouse Earrings, Inchie Jewelry, Monogram Jewelry, Owl Necklace. Will be sure to continue to share more wood inspiration...it's so fun and easy to work with. : )

Be sure to check out all of what's new!

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Last week, I asked you for your favorite words that uplift and inspire you through the day. Thank you for sharing them with me. They were great! I picked 5 and turned them into these lovely wood engraved labels. Aren't they cool? You'll see:

Smile (from Gena, Lenna and Mary)

Relax (from Gena and Lenna)

Create (from Carole)

Share (from Andrea)

Enjoy (from Paula)

I also ended up adding your words to several of our new collage sheets: Mini and XL Nature Filled Houses.

As a gift to all of you that submitted words, I'll be emailing you a $10 gift certificate to ARTchix. And please add a comment to your order "chixie labels" and I'll be sure to include a set of these wood labels as a bonus gift in your order.

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I had a lot of fun playing with these wood labels. I dabbed on some acrylic paint and then wiped some of it away so that the paint got into the etched letters.

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When the paint was dry, I added a bit of a gold touch with Gilder's Paste. And then I attached our new Green Glass Leaves with jumprings.

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Wouldn't these make adorable earrings?!

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We are also offering blank Wood Labels (in Natural, Honey Butter and Dark Cherry) so that you can add your own words....collage, rubber stamp or metal stamp them. In this case, I had so much fun rubber stamping them with Staz On ink. Looks so pretty!

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After rubber stamping the Natural Wood Tags, I dabbed on a bit of acrylic paint and then attached jumprings and Green Glass Leaves. I see another great pair of earrings in my future. : )

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Now you didn't think I was going to keep these all to myself, did you? I've been a creative, charm-making machine again! Late at night, I've been making these beautiful charms for you. Place an order today that's over $30 and I'll tuck one of these beauties in with your order. In fact, for every $50 that you spend with us, I'll include one of my handmade charms. How cool is that?

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Inca smiles and says, "Great idea!" Note how she's modeling a lovely inchie necklace.

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But wait, I've got one more gift for you! A Digi Freebie with inchie owls. Hoot! Hoot! Our current Facebook Art Challenge is Owls...pop on over to check 'em out when you can...we've got some amazing owl inspiration over there.

Get your free, high resolution digital download by simply emailing blogfreebie@artchixstudio.com.

Enjoy! : ) You're welcome to use them in your personal artwork, jewelry, journals, etc. Or hold onto them for a future project. This item is not for resell though.

See you next week with more fun and creativity! : )

 

10 Minutes to Make a Birthday Card...Just Breathe

It was my friend's birthday this past weekend and I only had 10 minutes to quickly make her a card. Luckily, I remembered that awhile ago she was looking for a sign that says "breathe." Don't we all need a good reminder to breathe now and then? So, I cut out "breathe" from My Art Challenges collage sheet.

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Okay, now I need a card for my "breathe" label. Luckily, I have some watercolored papers on hand. (Usually when I'm working on a project and I've got leftover paint, instead of tossing it, I'll paint a few pieces of paper.)

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I think this watercolored paper looks nice so I fold it in half and use a bone folder to get the crease all nice and neat.

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Bruno says "Breathe"....only 5 minutes left to do the inside of the card. By the way, I added some watercolor crayon to the edges and highlighted a few areas on the label to give a more cohesive look.

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Nice note on the inside with a Sharpie marker. Check.

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I got my friend a Michaels gift card so I wanted to attach it to the card in a fun way. I stuck it inside a vellum envelope, cut the edge so the card could easily slide in and out...and adhered it to the card with Glue Dots.

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I decide to write "happy birthday" all around the gift card. And I get the bright idea to write her name in red: "Keltie." But OH NO, only 2 minutes left and I messed up! It looks horrible! What's a girl to do???

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Thank goodness for My Art Challenges collage sheet! lol! There's a perfect little scrap on the sheet that I cut out and fits perfectly to cover my mistake. Phew! Then I add her name in glitter sticker letters. Note to self: when in a hurry, use sticker letters for goodness sakes! lol.

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I must say that making this quick card using My Art Challenges collage sheet was so much fun..despite my little mess up. I loved it so much that I want you to enjoy a copy too! So, our Special Gift this Week is a handy dandy sticker sheet of My Art Challenges. Get your copy if your order is over $25 and while supplies last.

What word would you like to see made into a special label?

What word speaks to you, uplifts you and helps you get through the day?

Leave a comment here on my blog with your word. I'll pick some of your words that I enjoy too and will put together some delightful little surprises for you. : )

Wood Houses are BACK....wanna make 'em haunted?

Great news! Back by popular demand...Our Wood Houses are here! I've also designed some fabulous Eco Hearts and Eco Doors to work with them perfectly. In addition, you'll see that we've got some new Vintage Treasures. I've decided that I want to start selling some of my vintage treasures on our website instead of etsy for now.

I'm also pleased to announce that we're trying something different this time. We're offering these fabulous items to you by the piece. So, that you can order exactly what you need...and so that you can get a nice sampling at a low price. : ) Let me know if you like it this way.

Check out all of what's new! : )

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Bruno loved birds! And so do I! If you do too, then you'll LOVE the Special Gift of the Week: A beautiful assortment of German bird scraps tucked into authentic vintage envelopes. Tied up with pretty pink ribbon. Place an order for $25 or more and get one of these Special Gifts. Offer good only while supplies last so order today.

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I am totally in love with our Wood Houses! They make the most awesome gifts! And they're so fun and easy to play with. Check out my new class: Wood Houses 101. (It will be posted on our website later today.) Jackie also wrote Playing with Wood Houses Class for inspiration too.

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If you want to turn our Wood Houses into haunted houses for quick, easy, super fun Halloween decor...this free sheet will be perfect for you! The sizes of these images work great on both the Mini and Medium Wood Houses.

Get your free, high resolution digital download by simply emailing blogfreebie@artchixstudio.com.

Enjoy! : ) You're welcome to use them in your personal artwork, jewelry, journals, etc. Or hold onto them for a future project. This item is not for resell though.

See you next week with more fun and creativity! : )

 

I heart Crackle Paint

This week, I was inspired by my art friend, the wonderful and talented Kathy Cameron. She recently played with some ARTchix goodies and brought them over for Show & Tell. Here she is with the Eco Classic ATC Accordian Book that she made all ocean-y with a series of ATCs. Isn't it gorgeous?

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Look at the detail of this amazing Eco Seahorse! Love her painting style!

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And look at the beautiful crackle paint finish! Bruno admired it too. Don't you love the way she paired the round window with a Medium Acrylic Bubble and vintage text. So cool!

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She also made these ATCs. Love how she used our Eco Windows as shadowboxes on the ATCs. And you know I love them mini kitties!

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Bruno points out the incredible crackle paint finish.

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Kathy is a crackle paint master! You can purchase some of her gorgeous art in her etsy shop.

Kathy's Handy Dandy Crackle Paint Tips:
1.  When trying to achieve a distressed vintage look, apply crackle paint in random places and corners sparingly.....remember less is more.

2.  To bring out the cracks rub over the dry crackle paint with a medium or dark charcoal pencil.  My favourite colours of crackle paint are Antique Linen and Peeled Paint but who can resist trying them all!!

3.  To create more texture, glob on the crackle paint and let it drip....it looks fabulous!

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After seeing Kathy's beautiful pieces, I couldn't wait to play with crackle paint. So, I painted up a whole bunch of our Eco Windows just for you! See how I made them in my new class: Antiqued Windows.

Special Gift of the Week: Authentic Vintage Sheet Music + 2 of My Antiqued Eco Windows. Place an order for over $25 to receive this special gift tucked inside your order. While supplies last. I've put together 15 of these special gifts...get 'em while you can.

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A cool discovery! Want creepy tombstones for your Halloween ATCs this year? Add crackle paint and charcoal following the easy instructions for my new class: Antiqued Windows.

See you next week with more fun and creativity! : )