Barter Fair Fare

This weekend's plans include participation in the end of summer Key Peninsula Barter Fair. This season our group is joining forces with the Barterers of Tacoma, so surely there will be amazing hand/homemade items galore to exchange for the goodies I've been making.
Not only will I have handmade greeting cards, but I even painted and adorned some nice pieces of wood collected from "out back." Looking for wood, who knew that simple act could make taking care of our turkeys so exciting lol
 

First Day of School

It's hard to believe but today was Rainier's first day of school. Preschool, that is! She is only three and a half years old and I guess that seems kind of early to be in school to me. Good news is, she loves it~ in fact the first thing she said to me when we got in the car this afternoon was, "Mom, why did you not leave before we started learning today?!"
I explained that today I was lucky enough to be allowed to volunteer in the classroom. I'll admit that my excitement level increased when I saw that my duties included monitoring the art project! The kids were given paper and paint: blue and yellow in big cups with even bigger paint brushes.
Watching the kids create was a nice reminder that, in art, there are no rules. And, that you can do whatever your creative spirit is leading you to make! Now, can you imagine how hard it was for me to just stand there and WATCH and not have a chance to put paint to paper myself :-)
Of course, as soon as I got home, I fixed that feeling and made one of my October Die Cut Crazy projects. I'll have time to take photos and submit it before the submission deadline for once, in part because we hare hosting my beloved in-laws this week! They are always happy to take care of the kids and I cherish both the time with them, and the time they give me for myself too.
So, what are some of your creating memories from school? I can still visualize the large sheets of paper which had lines at the bottom for a sentence and an empty space above for our illustrations. I'm sure I still have some too, thanks to my mom doing what all good moms do; saving my incredible artwork!
Since we have two prolific artists in home (not including myself), I have to try to be selective when I'm saving... not an easy task for a gal who thinks every bit of awesome should be savored for tomorrows memory loss heehee.
Hoping you're finding some time to capture some fall flavor in your crafting,
xox Anna

ATC Ready to Win!

Artist Trading Cards- or Prize Winning tickets?

If you got one of these paper gems from myself or from The Paper Wizard's booth at the Puyallup Scrapbook Expo, or saw my post through facebook, instagram, or Twitter, and wound up here, you're in luck! Simply leave a comment below before July's end, and you could be a winner! Drawn at random from a hat, the recipient may choose from either a card or scrapbook layout made by me, and I will mail it out pronto. As promised in my last post, your envelope will be beautifully decorated as well.
Your prize inside will feature a multi-layer die cut. Don't know what a die cut is? or perhaps looking for some inspiration on how to use them? Take a look at the latest edition of DieCutCrazy, a digital magazine full of terrific tutorials, product reviews, and tons of photos of projects from around the world. All for just 0.99! Search for it in your Apple store or just click here.
    The last giveaway I had was for a YouTube milestone, so if you want a bonus entry, subscribe there to my CraftWithAnna channel. Click on the Process Videos tab above for more of my 'tube-ular If you'd like to follow my blog I'd appreciate that as well.
I'm honored you dropped my blog today, and look forward to our drawings end!
-Anna

Mason Jar Madam

Inspired by Friendships

The world has gone mad for Mason Jars the last couple of years and its easy to understand why. In this fast paced and ever advancing technological age, we appreciate the simple symbols of captured space that we've grown up with.

Click on my Pinterest link to the right and then click on the search field. You'll see countless and duplicable ways to use those versatile wonders.

• Home Décor - seashells and sand, die cut paper flowers or butterflies, wine corks
• Dry Storage - detergent, beans, pasta, soup mixes, cereal
• Wet Storage - tea brewer, portable drinking glass, food preservation

With so many ideas, how can you incorporate the Mason Jar image itself into your next project? Think of the practical and whimsical applications and search your supplies for matches. With a little masking, my jars below were easily filled with stamped hearts! Leave a comment below with some of your ideas.

Filled with Fun - and LOVE!

This weekend I was fortunate enough to get four opportunities to create. Saturday after work I headed to Michael's to shop for and prep July's class samples. Oh darn, a reason to shop! Did you see last week's video from a shopping trip I took this April? So many sale items are available, but I had a good list to work off and got right to work with a custom home décor piece and TIm Holz mixed media clock.
Later in the day I enjoyed a beautiful view of Lake Nahwatzel, in Shelton. A good friend hosted me overnight in her grandparent's cabin. She always lets me bring plenty to craft with and oohs and ahs when prompted :-)  Early Sunday morning I was up working on these cards and sent a quick pic home to check in with Ray. It's awesome to have a respite from mom-ming.
Included in my overnight kit was a package of watercolor and my acrylic block. I also brought and stamped with Momento black ink for the first time. It may have been my photo-type paper, but I didn't find the ink to be as steadfast as I expected it. I love how the watercolor added such vibrant pops of color, but also subtly highlighted the jar lids on the first card.
 While stamping with the paint was possible, its not advisable if you want a crisp image. A while back I watch Kristina Warner and Jennifer McGuire stamp a text image and then paint over the top of it, and that's what I did on the "Save the Date" lable. This is a technique I'll be repeating!
After a quick dip in the lake and an even shorter search for my glasses that flew off my face when I jumped in without thinking last year, I was in the car jamming back to Gig Harbor for an afternoon class with an eager student named Laura. Together we explored the intuitive Cricut Expression. I was so proud of the card she created, I'm thinking of adding a "student gallery" tab up above! This would be a place I could show off what my fabulous students are producing under my guidance.
So where are your mason jars hiding? Think how cute a handful of fresh cut flowers out on the patio would be, inside the sturdy glass container. Thanks for checking in and don't forget to comment on how you're gettin' crafty!