IFJM Danny, Day 6

Today, Danny realizes he's been busy and happy enough that he actually missed a day in his journal.

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Danny is discovering the good side of having a home and family. He's looking forward to learning from his adoptive Mom who teaches art. So, here we leave Danny on his way. Things are looking up for him, and I think he'll be fine.

Thanks again to Roz for this delightful challenge. I have really enjoyed thinking about art from a different perspective with limited supplies.

Ta for now, ~ky

IFJM Danny Day 5!

Well, Danny has now met his new family, and it's exploring his new surroundings.

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Yesterday found him wallowing in a pit of despair at watch Mel drive away, taking all of Danny's security with him. Today, he's thinking, maybe, just maybe, this could be worth a little effort on his part. He's still a little down, but he's refusing to be sucked into depression that would result in negative outbursts. He's finally gaining the more grown up perspective of shouldering a bit of the responsibility for making this arrangement actually work.

Ok - tomorrow I will have the last entry for the official International Fake Journal Month from Danny, but not the last entry in his story.

Ta for now, ~ky

IFJM Danny Day 4

Well, Danny is moving along on his journey. Today, he completes the last leg of his travel and gets introduced to his new family. He watches his friend, Mel, driving off and leaving him with his new family. He experiences a feeling of separation, loneliness, and melancholy which surprise him.

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He also notes that Mel 'borrowed' his journal and left him a private message inside which cause emotion to well up in Danny. His drawing of the exit of Mel's truck demonstrates his sadness and fear.

What awaits our young lad? Stay tuned - he explores his new family and surroundings tomorrow!

Meanwhile, back at the ranch (sorry - all you Dallas fans will remember that line!), have you thought about accepting my Wreck This Journal challenge? There's still time! Please remember, if you're ordering this book from Amazon, it would be wonderful if you would enter Amazon's store through Stamp TV, it would be greatly appreciated!

Ok - off for some coffee and a little journal time! Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Ta for now, ~ky

IFJM Danny Day 3

So, Danny is continuing his trip across the country to a new family and home he knows nothing about. His anxiety does come through despite his attempt at courage.

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He's growing, and changing and it's likely to continue for awhile. Who wouldn't be a little nervous about that? Stay tuned for his continuing adventures!

Now, in other news: I got this cool new journal. I saw it on another site I play on, and it just really appealed to my inner child.

Yes, it's on my chopping block! You need to go thumb through this book - it's absolutely brilliant! Check it out at Amazon. I can't help but smile. Each page has a set of directions. The concept is to blindly follow those instructions - do not allow your inner critic to comment, judge, procrastinate or otherwise entangle you. Play with abandon. One of the first pages that caught my eye: STAND HERE (wipe your feet, jump up and down). Who can resist??

I double dog dare you to buy this journal and post what you do so I can see it!

Ta for now, ~ky

CHAPTER 10: QUEEN of TARTS...

"On this the White Rabbit blew three blasts on the trumpet, and then unrolled the parchment scroll, and read as follows:

`The Queen of Hearts,

she made some tarts,

All on a summer day:

The Knave of Hearts,

he stole those tarts,

And took them quite away!'

Uh ohhhhhhh...someone has stolen the Queen's Tarts! That's a no-no! We need to restore the sweetness back to Wonderland, don't you agree? That means it's time for a sweet treat here...or maybe a mushroom or two? I think I saw one floating around here that said "Eat Me"

 

Clear and Simple Stamps is this week's sponsor with a VERY generous gift certificate of $25 to ONE lucky winner!

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to incorporate FOOD into this week's project! Everyone loves a little treat, right? We can't wait to see what delectable delights YOU come up with! So get those fabulous calorie-free projects ready by Friday, April 30th, at 8 p.m. Central Time, for your chance to win the $25 gift certificate up for grabs from Clear and Simple Stamps! Please use keyword OAC10 when uploading the a public gallery, and link your project to the Oh Alice! blog using Mr. Linky...enjoy!

Here's my project for this week. I love lots of foods (most of you have endured many recipes and orations from this personal chef), and I used to make lots of sweets. However, I realize that the best treats in life are friends and family that decorate my life! That led me to make this card for this week's challenge!

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The central image is Ching-Chou Kuik's Cheshire Cat Illusion stamp from Sweet Pea stamps, and it's currently ON SALE!

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Here's a close-up of my Copic marker coloring, and the gleam in their eyes is Ranger Glossy Accents. These images are so beautiful, and spark the imagination in so many ways. I absolutely adore them!! You will see more of her images in my future work.

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I paired the image with Jillibean and Cosmo Cricket papers, and a sentiment from Unity Stamp Company's December 2009 Kit of the Month. I also used some Ranger distress ink to distress the card, and a bit of Offray ribbon to add a splash of whimsy. The layout is Card Positioning System (CPS) #163.

I hope you've enjoyed stopping by today. Please be sure to visit the other members of the Oh Alice! team and leave them some love. We really love doing these projects to inspire you so we love to know you enjoy them. Have a wonderful weekend!!

Ta for now, ~ky

All Things Unity!!

Welcome back for another dose of mojo from the All Things Unity team! Welcome to Lynn Miller as our guest ATU gal! Thanks to all of you who played along with us during our last challenge. We hope you enjoyed it!

This time we use the challenge of Up in the Sky with our Unity stamps. You can use any stamp that make you think of things you would find Up in the Sky. Such as clouds, stars, birds, planes, sun, etc. You could also use any quotes that spark you imagination in this way. Here's my sample to help you get started.

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This is Petey the peacock (by artist Lindsay Spencer!) and I just adore him! He loves to get all fixed up for a night on the town. Just a basic layout glammed up with bling! I find that simple things work reliably well.

Want to play along? You know you do!! If you do, the keyword this week is ATU04. All entries are due by May 1st at 11:59 PM EST. Please link your creation to the All Things Unity blog so we can come visit you!

Ta for now, ~ky

CHAPTER 9: Somewhere in the Sunny, Sketchy, Afternoon...

Alice in Wonderland, how do you get to Wonderland?

Over the hill or underland, or just behind the tree?

When clouds go rolling by, they roll away and leave the sky.

Where is the land beyond the eye, that people can not see, where can it be?

Where do stars go, where is the crescent moon?

They must be somewhere in the sunny afternoon.

Alice in Wonderland, where is the path to Wonderland?

Over the hill or here or there, I wonder where.

Hello! Hopefully it's a Sunny, Golden afternoon in your neck of this Wonderland! We have a Sketch Challenge for you today brought to you by our very own TASHA! Here's the sketch:

Didn't the Twisted Thirteen have just the most deliciously wild project samples for you? Here's mine:

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The stamps, leather paper and ribbons are Gina K Designs, and the papers are Basic Grey (Origins). I love love love my distress inks (used on the yellow grid paper)!! And everyone loves a little bling, right? Perfect colors for a woodland escapade to find Wonderland!

We hope you'll join us this week down the Rabbit Hole for this fun sketch. What's more? There is a VERY generous prize offering this week from The BEARY SCRAP! The Beary Scrap is a sweet one-stop shop for all of your papercrafting needs and are offering an AMAZING $20 Gift Voucher for one lucky winner this week!


So let's get started! Finish that tea and get crafting! There's no time limit to use this FABULOUS sketch, but if you want to throw your MAD HAT into the ring for the $20 Gift Voucher, please link your entry by Friday, April 23rd at 8pm CST! The winner will be announced on Saturday, April 24th with our next Challenge! Good luck!

Ta for now! ~ky

IFJM #2 - Where am I?

Danny and Mel are on a cross-country trip to find Danny's new adoptive family. In this entry, Danny contemplates the future by looking at the past. Danny writes:

Well, I got distracted. Anyway, Mel comes & gets me and next thing I know, I'm in his car and I look in the backseat and I see all my stuff. I'm like - "Hey!" Mel gives me one of his 'classic' looks and says, "Yup, you've been sprung." I'm stunned. I mean, dude - I've been sprung but every time my skewers (oh - that's the adoptive couple) always send me back. Geez - maybe I'll be back home before someone claims my coat.


My stomach sinks. I ask Mel - where to this time? He says, "You're headed to Western Kentucky." WTF? I knew I was in for a long trip - so I grabbed Mel's hoodie, wadded it up for a pillow and settled in. I just hope this time they didn't pick me because they wanted cheap labor or a babysitter. However, the past offers me little hope.

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I'm up now. Had a little nap until we had to stop for gas. We were just outside Harrisburg, PA. Mel works for the Red Abbey - so we only had enough money for children's meals at fast food stores, gas and nothing else. We're in Mel's old pickup - it's hard to sleep like that but we managed. I pestered him, but all he knew about my new skewers was that they owned a little home farm and they had a daughter that was chronically ill. Great.

I can't help but think back on the last few skewer homes I've been in. One was in Hungry Horse (no, really!) Montana where I cut wood for the 3 months I was there. Beautiful place, but my room was the chainsaw equipment shed. Oh, and don't forget the time I was in Missouri at an egg farm where I slept with the (illegal) immigrant workers in the feed shed. Yep - I smell another memorable trip. Just in time for spring, too - what this time? Planting corn? That might be corny! Ok - time to zone out.

No offense intended to any of those locales. They are real, but I mean no disrespect in my writing. They are merely examples of how some kids get treated in the system. Well - off to my next folly. More from Danny in a day or three.

Ta for now, ~ky

CHAPTER 8: You can learn a lot of things from the FLOWERS...

`Never mind!' Alice said in a soothing tone, and stooping down to the daisies, who were just beginning again, she whispered, `If you don't hold your tongues, I'll pick you!'


There was silence in a moment, and several of the pink daisies turned white.


`That's right!' said the Tiger-lily. `The daisies are worst of all. When one speaks, they all begin together, and it's enough to make one wither to hear the way they go on!'


`How is it you can all talk so nicely?' Alice said, hoping to get it into a better temper by a compliment. `I've been in many gardens before, but none of the flowers could talk.'

Hello everyone! What a sweet, sunny sign of Spring it is when all of our floral friends come out to play! The Twisted Thirteen, Doormouse and Guest Croquet Player Kim all definitely agree with Alice that you can learn a lot of things from the flowers! This week's challenge? See if you can pick up on it...

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I love these newspaper flowers. You see them everywhere these days. I used a simple scalloped punch and an old newspaper plus a brad to make this one. Fun!!

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And I adore this image! She really appeals to my inner tomboy! I colored her using my Copic markers, then cut her out and whetted her eyes and lips with some glossy accents. I accented her buttons and the edge of the Labels Nine background with Patina stickles. She's also popped up with dimensional foam to dramatize her position near the flower.

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And here she is all together. I call this project "Old News" - partly for the newspaper (collected on my recent trip to visit my husband). I also call it this because "a little birdie told me" was a code for "and everyone already knows..." LOL! I had so much fun with this project. I do hope you will join in our challenge to - did you guess it already? USE FLOWERS on your card or project!


We have ANOTHER generous prize to give away this week! We at Oh, Alice are just floored at the outpouring of generosity from these wonderful companies and are thrilled to announce that this week's prize is being donated by STAMPOTIQUE!

That's right! ONE RANDOM WINNER will be chosen to WIN a $15 GC to the STAMPOTIQUE store! (they sell rubber stamps and other goodies :) Good luck, and we'll announce the winner during next week's challenge, so get those entries in by Friday, April 16th at 8pm CST! Make sure you link your creation to Mr. Linky on the Oh Alice! Challenge Blog and use OAC8 as your keyword when uploading to a gallery.  Thanks and good luck!!


Happy Stamping and Happy Spring!
Ta for now, ~ky

IFJM Page 1 - Welcome to my world

Roz Stendahl has inspired me to attempt an event known as the International Fake Journal Month. What's a fake journal you ask? Have you lost your mind, you exclaim? How can you make a fake journal?

Easy. The journal is real. The character making the journal is fake...or at least I'm pretending to be that fake character. You wanna play along or just learn more? Start over at Roz's blog - the Official IFJM site!

This is gonna be soo cool! I feel like a little kid again playing pretend as well as drawing, doodling, coloring and journaling!! So - here's my first page about a young guy named Danny who's life is changing in a fast, permanent and rather special way. I hope you'll enjoy his adventures as he journeys into his future.

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He has written:
In the label at the top of the page: This book belongs to Danny Kettle. What's in it ain't none of your bizness.

Wow. Things have been changing fast. After 4 years of sameness, suddenly there's a rush to hurry hurry hurry. I feel like I've been tossed from a glass into a fast river. It's hard to keep my feet - I always feel like I'm forgetting things. Missing something.

See, yesterday Mel came to get me out of kitchen duty. He was in a hurry, so I left my coat on the pegs by the door. I didn't know we were leaving here forever. Dang - I had a pack of gum in the pocket.

Under his drawing, he notes: the Red Abbey Boys Home, Home for 4 years.

Be sure to check out all the other fabulous stories that are in progress beginning at Roz's page. Let yourself go and get involved in art!

Ta for now, ~ky

CHAPTER 7: We're ALL M.A.D Here...

CHAPTER 7: We're ALL M.A.D Here...

"But I don't want to go among mad people," Alice remarked.


"Oh, you can't help that," said the Cat: "we're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad."

"How do you know I'm mad?" said Alice.

"You must be," said the Cat, "or you wouldn't have come here..."

This week, we are gettin' our M.A.D on with THE GREETING FARM!! The sweet and generous Marie has generously offered her new line of Alice-inspired stamps, The Creepy Cakes to the DT and a FABULOUS prize of THREE FREE Creepy Cakes Digital Images OR ONE Rubber Single to ONE LUCKY WINNER! Thanks Marie!

Our Design Team has some wonderfully M.A.D (Monochromatic and Distressed!) examples using the CREEPY CAKES digital images and we're M.A.D about them! In fact, we liked them SO much that we hope you'll get M.A.D. with us, too! Here's my sample:

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We're also MAD about our APRIL TEA PARTY GUEST! Please join us in welcoming Kim Howard, a.k.a. BASEMENT STAMPER to our Twisted Tea party this month! She's been curiouser and curiouser to get started and we're happy to have her at our twisted little table :)

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to come up with your OWN M.A.D. creation: Monochromatic and Distressed! And remember, one lucky winner will be randomly drawn at the end of this week to win the THREE CREEPY CAKES OR their choice of single (in-stock!) RUBBER STAMP! You have until Friday, April 9th at 8pm CST to enter using Mr. Linky on the Oh Alice! challenge blog. The winner will be chosen and announced during next week's challenge right here on the blog! If you upload to a public gallery please link back here using keyword OAC7 (using the letter O rather than the number).

Thanks, good luck, and GO M.A.D.!

Ta for now, ~ky

Ingredients: Gina K pure luxury vibrant violet and lovely lilac cardstock, Basic Grey and We R Memory Keepers patterned papers, Gina K ribbon and eyelets. Ranger distressing inks.