Mo(o)re Whimsies!

Blog Hop: “Love Cast in Clay!”

2012-01-31T20:29:00.001-08:00

Hello everyone! Thanks for stopping by my blog! I’d love to show you what I’ve made today with Creative Paperclay® and Amazing Mold Putty! Today I’m going to show you a simple garland made with the mold putty and paperclay. I started out with the mold putty, mixing up equal parts of the putty and then pressing some metal hearts into it that I’ve had laying around for a long time.

Once the mold was made I pressed the paperclay into it and then laid them out to dry.

Now that the clay was dry, I painted the hearts, added some small hearts to the center and strung the hearts on some cotton yarn. Now I think this turned out pretty cute don’t you? What a way to show your “Love Cast in Clay”

You can mold and make just about anything out of Creative Paperclay® and Amazing Mold Putty! Don’t forget to leave a comment on this blog and remember that you must also be a follower in order to win. The starting spot is Terri Sproul’s and the next stop from here will be :

Gini Cagle

Hop on over to her blog and leave some love!

Barbara

A Valentine Creative Paperclay® Delight Clay Project

2012-01-28T21:35:00.001-08:00

It’s hard to believe that Valentine’s Day is just right around the corner. This project turned out so cute I thought you might want to make something at least similar to it for someone special in your life. To start with I took some little hearts that I had and made a mold of them. I then filled them with Delight Clay, waited for them to start drying and then popped them out to finish drying. (They dry quicker when they’re out of the mold).

Once dry I painted them red and white. I took an 8X10 canvas board, spritzed it with some paint, used some Mod Podge and attached some green fiber, paper, string, words, flowers and my cute little hearts. Take a look at the final project and tell me what you think.

You can change the idea, use the Delight Clay in a different way etc. I’ve got to say this is one of the few times that I’ve used the Delight Clay but have to say it’s great for Mixed Media such as this or for scrapbooking or card making. It is so light weight, it takes detail amazingly and takes paint well. This project would look very nice on a little stand which is what I plan to put it on.

Don’t forget to join us for the blog hop on Feb.1, “Love Cast in Clay”. We’re going to have some awesome prizes to give away!

Barbara

Check out these Artsy Blogger Links!!

2012-01-15T15:44:00.001-08:00

Beading Arts
Do you struggle to add Swarovski rivolis to your bead embroidery? Cyndi has the solution for you in her brand new e-booklet, "Three Bezels Plus a Bonus"!

http://www.beading-arts.com/2012/01/three-bezels-plus-bonus-is-ready-to-go.html

Creative Dreamer
June is beginning a long running tutorial about creating an art/visual journal... from stuff you already have around the house! Come find out the details, then join in!

http://acreativedreamer.blogspot.com/2012/01/so-heres-what-were-gonna-do.html

Eileen - The Artful Crafter
Eileen's happy to be back in her niche. Have you found yours yet?

http://the-artful-crafter.blogspot.com/2011/07/eileens-back-in-her-niche.html

Keep an Eye Out for Someone Special
Cherie makes a picture with a Chinese fortune.

http://cherieblogs.com/2012/01/11/keep-an-eye-out-for-someone-special/

Mo(o)re Whimsies
Amazing Mold Putty and a Victorian Picture Frame

http://www.barbara-moorewhimsies.blogspot.com/2012/01/amazing-mold-putty-and-victorian.html

Amazing Mold Putty® and a Victorian Picture Frame

2012-01-11T19:32:00.001-08:00

Wow is it just me or has it been hard for anyone else to get into the swing of a New Year? I am however rather proud of the cute little picture frame that I made using Amazing Mold Putty® and also Amazing Casting Resin®. Let me tell you something about these products, there are other brands out there but from my experience I would go for these products every time. These products are just so easy to use!! To begin with I assembled the product I planned on using:

All that you have to do is knead equal amounts of Part A and Part B together and flatten it a bit and press your $1.00 bargain picture frame into the putty.

I know you’re thinking that couldn’t really do anything special and when it’s set and you pull the frame out, it looks like this: Which is even more unappealing. Once the mold was made I mixed up equal parts of the resin along with some black dye, poured it into the mold and let it set up. It was a fun process and once it was finished I used some rub and buff to burnish the edges. I then inserted a victorian picture that I had and covered it with Crystal Lacquer. I used some Petaloo flowers to embellish along with a ribbon for a hanger. I really like the way it turned out, what about you?

Aren’t these ladies beautiful? Do you see all the details that the Amazing Mold Putty® picked up when the picture frame was pushed into it? This stuff really is amazing and they weren’t bragging on themselves when they picked that name! lol Let me know what you think of the project please and ask any questions that you might have about it. You can find these products at Michaels stores and also Hobby Lobby.

Barbara

Artsy Bloggers Link–Ups for the first week of January!

2012-01-01T11:43:00.001-08:00

Hello everyone! Happy New Year to all of you! I hope that your New Year is filled with all sorts of creative goodness! Listed below are a few of the places to start looking for creativity:

Creative Dreamer
June wants to remind everyone of a great project that you can be a part of. Come read about The Butterfly Project
http://acreativedreamer.blogspot.com/2010/09/butterfly-project.html

Eileen - The Artful Crafter
Add beautiful kaleidoscope effects to your hand made cards with iris folded designs.
http://the-artful-crafter.blogspot.com/2011/10/iris-folded-card-craft-project.html

Mo(o)re Whimsies
New projects with Creative Paperclay and Viva Las Vegas Stamps
http://www.barbara-moorewhimsies.blogspot.com/2011/12/new-project-with-creative-paperclay-and.html

Please take a look around and leave a little love behind! (comment)

Barbara

A New Project with Creative Paperclay® and Viva Las Vegas Stamps!

2011-12-28T21:04:00.001-08:00

I hope that everyone had a Very Merry Christmas and got to enjoy special time with loved ones. I had a wonderful Christmas and still have one of our sons and his wife and one of the children still visiting with us. I did however take a little time out to make a couple of pieces today using Creative Paperclay® and Viva Las Vegas Stamps. I lost a couple of pictures along the way but I think you’ll get the idea. To start with I used:

Yep, Creative Paperclay® and Viva Las Vegas Stamps. After kneading the clay a bit to condition it, I rolled it out pretty thin(1/4 inch) with a fondant roller that I use. I then dusted my stamp with powder and placed it over the clay. I used my roller to roll the stamp into the clay and then lifted it off of the clay. Using an X acto knife I trimmed the excess clay from around the stamped image and set the clay aside to dry.

Once the clay was dry I used acrylic paints and glitter to color and enhance it and here’s what I ended up with:

Didn’t that turn out just beautiful? Trust me, the pictures don’t do it justice. While I was working on this combo of Creative Paperclay® and Viva Las Vegas Stamps I also used the same process to create another piece:

Isn’t this second stamp unusual? I love it! I’m going to use this in a mixed media piece. Please leave me a comment and let me know how you like these projects. Isn’t it great how you can use stamps to create something totally new with the paperclay? Stay tuned in for an upcoming blog hop that’s going to be coming up!

Hugs to you, Barbara

Your Artsy Bloggers Link-ups for this week:

2011-12-22T10:26:00.001-08:00

Beading Arts
It can be a bit hard to find nice ornament cover patterns that are free, so Cyndi has rounded up a few goodies for you!
http://www.beading-arts.com/2011/12/beaded-ornament-covers.htm

Eileen - The Artful Crafter
Learn how to make cute little patterned rosettes to embellish your paper crafts, including where to download some pretty patterned papers which can also be used for tea bag tile folding.
http://the-artful-crafter.blogspot.com/2011/10/directions-for-cute-rosettes-to.html

Mo(o)re Whimsies
Merry Christmas
http://barbara-moorewhimsies.blogspot.com

Enjoy these blogs and leave some love~!

Merry Christmas everyone!

2011-12-22T10:07:00.001-08:00

May your Christmas be all that you want it to be and all of your Christmas wishes come true! I have enjoyed every minute of time spent with my wonderful online blogger friends and those that don’t blog also. There are just so many wonderful people that I’ve met. I wish you all well in this season of Thankfulness and Love. Glory to God in the highest and on Earth, Peace and Goodwill toward men.

Love, Barbara

Great contest and giveaway going on!

2011-12-15T19:26:00.001-08:00

You really need to check out this great contest going on over at Penny Saver and Mogasa.

Do you have a Craftmas project that you’re proud of? Well what are you waiting for? Go on over and enter it into their contest. Could be a great opportunity.

Barbara

Making Some Christmas Tags!!

2011-12-14T20:07:00.001-08:00

One thing that I haven’t shown you guys, are tags that I’ve made. Yep that’s right, tags. Bet you didn’t think I knew how didn’t you? I think I’ve gotten the hang of it.

Here’s a list of most of the things that I used:

Plain white large tags

Maya Ribbons

Petaloo flowers

Chalk pigments

EK Success bling

Ranger Ink

Assorted ephemera

Reflections scrapbook paper

Ribbon

Unity Stamp & generic stamp

On this first tag I cut scrapbook paper to fit the plain tag and glued them together. I then added the rick rack from Maya Road.

I then added a stray piece of ribbon and placed another piece of paper that I had stamped believe on it.

I had grunged up the piece of paper with some gold ink and then I added some gold blingy stars and dots. I tied a gold ribbon at the top and voila’ all done!

This tag was made by chalking up a plain white tag and then using this Unity Stamp on it. I added a little bling on the right hand side and a Petaloo leaf in the lower left corner. I tied the gold ribbon to the top and done again!

Here’s my last one, another Believe tag. I love that word “Believe”. That was my word for this year. This time I used a different Reflections scrapbook paper and some Maya bling. The same gold ribbon in the top.

I just loved the way these tags turned out. Did you? I’ve seen so many tags on so many blogs lately I just had to make a few of my own. I’ve still got several more to make and I’m working on something special card/tag wise for my next post. It’ll be different!!! lol

I hope everyone is enjoying their Christmas Season!

Barbara

Winter and Christmas projects I’ve made lately….

2011-12-11T11:50:00.001-08:00

Hello everyone! I hope this Christmas Season is becoming a wonderful one for you. I’ve been rather busy taking care of my husband but, whenever I’ve had a free minute or two I’ve been creating……

These are some of the ornaments that I’ve made using, egg gourds. The first one (blue) I used Krylon® Glitter Blast and then made the designs on it using a was technique which I learned from Miram Joy. The rest of the ornaments were dyed first and then had the wax technique used on them. All of the ornaments were then sealed.

This is my next project and I must say that I’m very proud of it……..

Don’t you just love this sweet face? I know I do…………………………

But this is the whole thing!

This snowman was made using a very large gourd, Creative Paperclay® and paint. Decorated with the hat, some fleece for the scarf and buttons. He stands approximately 20” tall to the top of his hat. I currently have him for sale at the Gallery for $60. I would also sell him online for the same price but you would also have to pay for the shipping. I hope you like them as much as I do. You can email me if you have an interest in him at: lmoore@flippinweb.com

Barbara

Look at all that’s going on!! It’s the Christmas season!

2011-12-08T11:29:00.001-08:00

Does anyone besides myself watch Martha Stewart? Well even if you don’t, you really need to watch her show on December 12 because she is going to be working with Creative Paperclay® ! How awesome is that? You can bet that I’ll be tuned in!

Has your life suddenly been put into hyper speed with all of the preparations for Christmas? Well I know that it’s hard to do but just let it happen. Do what you can and then just let go of the rest and enjoy what the season is all about. It’s going to happen anyway so why beat yourself up if everything isn’t perfect? I have a husband who is down after back surgery that I have to care for, kids coming in from out of state for Christmas and my artwork that needs my attention. I’m trying very hard to go with the flow and will keep you all posted on the progress.

I also have a very dear blogger friend, Molly Wilson (Crocheting My Bestest With My Worsted)that is having major, major medical problems right now and if you will please put her on your prayer list. She needs prayer more than anything else right now, as does her husband, Jay.

http://www.favecraftsblog.com/monthly-craft-question-quantity-vs-quality/ If you have the time, why don’t you check out this post on the FaveCrafts blog with the question and replies on “What do you think is more important, quantity or quality?” Please give me a comment letting me know what your opinions are. Thanks

Barbara

Christmas crafting with Creative Paperclay®!!

2011-11-28T21:01:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone! I know it's been a little while since my last post but I have a husband who has had back surgery and for the past three weeks I've been the nurse and gopher around here. I finally made the time to work with my Creative Paperclay® though. Yay! My thoughts as I'm sure many others has turned to the Christmas Season. I saw a picture a week or so ago of a Santa that just really appealed to me, so I thought I would try to make my own version of that jolly old Elf! I started out with Creative Paperclay®, some styrofoam (a cone and a ball) and a piece of dowel. Something I didn't show in the original picture is some aluminum foil which I used for the base of the hat.

I took many pictures but had a hard time saving them and uploading them, this go round. But essentially what I did was attach the ball to the cone using the piece of dowel and some glue. I then rolled out my clay and molded it around the cone and then the ball. This was the base to which I added the facial features. I molded a hat out of aluminum foil and glued it to the head and covered it with clay. After I added all the little details it looked like this:

I do need to add that I used glue under each piece of clay that I adhered to something beside itself. He's already looking cute isn't he? After I got him to this point and he had dried, all he required was painting and sealing. Voila', now here's a super cute Santa Claus!

I would love to hear what you think of my Santa!! I also welcome any questions that you might have.

Barbara

My Amazing Giveaway Winner!!

2011-11-16T07:15:00.000-08:00

Hello all of my blogger friends!! For those of you who entered a comment on my giveaway, you know that you had to be a follower in order to win the giveaway. I'm very excited about the winner because she has been a follower of my blog for quite a long time and she's an amazing artist and crafter who has her own blog. She gives us new inspiration and crafts to try almost every day. So.......without further ado: Eileen Bergen you are the winner!!! Please send me your address so that I can send these wonderful goodies to you!

Barbara

A Very Bright Idea Using Amazing Mold Putty® !

2011-11-11T20:51:00.001-08:00

I’m just really happy about this project today! Since I received my first kit of Amazing Mold Putty®, I’m continually looking for something to make a mold of and asking my husband if he can think of anything to make a mold out of. Well the other day my husband said “ You know how you’re always pulling the wrong chain on the ceiling fan? Wouldn’t it be neat to have a fan pull that looked like a light? Then you wouldn’t have a problem anymore.” I thought that was such a neat idea that the next time I had to run errands I purchased a couple of packages of Christmas lights in two sizes and made a couple of bulbs with chains for the ceiling fans! To start with :

I collected my mold putty, the light bulbs, the chain and the resin.

These two balls are approximately the same size, because you eyeball equal amounts of Part A and Part B of the putty and I roll it into a ball to compare. When you get your two parts rolled up you quickly knead them together. You have a minute here to do that. Once you have the putty kneaded together until it’s all yellow you work rather quickly to get the putty shaped around the object that you are molding. You have around three minutes to do this. Once the putty is around the piece you are molding it will set up rather quickly. When it is completely set up and it is a piece you have put the putty all around, you can cut a split in the side of the mold to pop your piece out that you have been molding:

Easy Peasy!

Once this was complete, I wrapped tape around the mold to hold the split closed so that no resin would leak out and placed it inside a glass. I surrounded the mold with cotton balls to hold it upright without smashing it. I then mixed up some Amazing Casting Resin®:

Same thing here, equal parts of Part A and Part B which you must measure out exactly. (It comes with measuring cups and stirrers. You quickly stir the resin to mix it and pour it into your mold:

At this point you can either insert your chain before it sets up, or drill a small hole in the top after it sets up and glue the chain in. The casting resin sets up very quickly and you can watch the white bloom as it sets up. Once it set, I removed the tape and popped it right out of the mold.

This one looks lit doesn’t it? Anyway now all you might want to do is paint it and seal it and hang it on your ceiling fan. You’ll never have to worry about which chain pull is the light!! I hope this post shows you just how easy it is to make a mold and create something out of that mold.So easy to use and easy to find to purchase. I have personally checked and you can purchase these products at Michaels, Hobby Lobby or online through the Alumilite Corporation. Great stuff!

I wasn’t able to get my light bulbs painted before I had to take my husband to the hospital for back surgery. I thought we would be back home in time to do the painting but there were some complications and at this printing have not made it back home, six days later.

On another note: If you haven’t signed up for the great giveaway that I’m doing, look back a couple of posts and sign up while there’s still time.

I’m so happy to see new followers here on the blog! Maybe you will be the winner of the giveaway!

Barbara

Here’s some exciting links from the Artsy Bloggers Group!

2011-10-29T19:47:00.001-07:00

Here’s some really great Artsy Bloggers links for you! I really think you need to check them all out!

Beading Arts

Polymer clay + greeting cards = a fun mixed media necklace! http://www.beading-arts.com/2011/10/framed-polymer-clay-mixed-media.html

Creative Dreamer

June's starting a new tutorial... come join us in creating an art doll similar to the "Ode to Kate" doll!
http://acreativedreamer.blogspot.com/2011/10/so-couple-of-weeks-ago.html

Eileen - The Artful Crafter

Here’s how to use 3D clay accents to make your decoupage projects pop.
http://the-artful-crafter.blogspot.com/2011/06/use-3d-clay-accents-to-adorn-decoupage.html

Grocery Bag Paper Turkey Card

Cherie makes a homemade Thanksgiving card out of an old grocery bag.
http://cherieblogs.com/2010/11/16/paper-craft-turkey-card/

Mo(o)re Whimsies

Exciting Times and a Great Giveaway!
http://barbara-moorewhimsies.blogspot.com/2011/10/exciting-times-and-great-giveaway.html

Hope you all take the time to hop around ‘cause you might learn how to make something or you might win something! Woo Hoo!

Barbara

Exciting times and a Great Giveaway!

2011-10-27T12:59:00.001-07:00

It’s really been awhile since I started blogging and my blog has changed a great deal in that amount of time. I started my blog as a place to share my crochet and make new friends. Well……..I still crochet but not as much. My blog name then changed to More Gourd Whimsies and I started sharing my experiences with the Gourd Art that I created. I still create a lot of Gourd Art and have it in a couple of Art Galleries and plan to start selling it online. I also teach classes in Gourd Art every Saturday at the Gallery closest to me which is “Hill Country Art Gallery” and other places by appointment. Next stop……..Creative Paperclay® which I just love! I’ve used it for a really loooong time on various things and when I started Gourd Art I used it there too because it is air dry and it sticks easily to the gourd. I was chosen for the first ever design team for Creative Paperclay® and have served one six month stint on the team and have now been chosen for a second six month term. Yippee Skippy!! Now then to make things even better I was recently chosen for the Amazing Mold Putty® team!! Does it get any better than this?? The Amazing Mold Putty® is just that, AMAZING! I have had so much fun experimenting with this product AND the other product that I’ve received such as Amazing Clear Resin® and Amazing Casting Resin® FANTASTIC stuff!! Please keep an eye on both my blog and the Creative Paperclay® blog AND the Amazing Mold Putty® blog to see all of the amazing and creative things that everyone on the teams are coming up with.

I love to try new things and love creating in several different artistic mediums. I’m sure that over time you will start seeing me creating many different things and I hope you continue to follow me and ask your friends to follow also. I do notice new followers and I appreciate every follower that I have. Now to get on with the giveaway! Because my Blogeversary is here as is my birthday month of November. (I was born on the first) I’m going to have what I believe is a Great Giveaway! The lucky winner (who will be chosen at random) is going to receive:

1. A package of Creative Paperclay®

2. An Amazing Mold Putty Kit®

3. A Gourd Art piece that I’ve created.

4. A surprise

To be eligible to enter you must be a follower of my blog. Please don’t become a follower just for this giveaway, it’s not fair to everyone else. You must make a comment on this post. Entries will run from today 10-27-11 thru 11-15-11 at which time I will choose a name at random. So start commenting! You can comment once every day but it must be on this post. Good Luck!!

Barbara

Another Term on the Creative Paperclay ® Design Team and the Artsy Bloggers for this week!

2011-10-23T08:32:00.001-07:00

Wow I’m just sooo excited to be writing this post and I’m so proud to announce that I’ve been chosen to be on the design team for Creative Paperclay® once again. I’m sure that those of you who have been following me for some time now, know that I love to work with Creative Paperclay®. When I use clay on my gourds to embellish them I can’t use a clay which has to be oven baked. I would probably have scorched or exploding gourds in the oven. lol So Creative Paperclay® is the right choice for me. However since I’ve been on the design team, I have been using Creative Paperclay® in many other ways and making a lot of exciting projects. The design team for this term has grown and there are some amazingly talented people who will also be posting projects which incorporate Creative Paperclay® in their creations. You can go to the Creative Paperclay blog: http://creativepaperclay.blogspot.com to see all of the designers and you can go to www.creativepaperclay.com to order the clay. I hope all of our projects inspire you to try this wonderful product in your projects too!

Now our Artsy Bloggers links for this week are:

Beading Arts
Cyndi explains how to turn a cabochon into a simple bead embroidered pendant!
http://www.beading-arts.com/2011/10/silver-leaf-polymer-clay-cabochons-part_17.html

Creative Dreamer
A Gnome... and a free pattern for him too!
http://acreativedreamer.blogspot.com/2011/10/and-here-he-is.html

Eileen - The Artful Crafter
Rather than stashing your momâ€™s jewelry away to tarnish and gather dust, combine some of your favorite pieces into a M.O.M.s (Memories of Mom) necklace.
http://the-artful-crafter.blogspot.com/2011/06/how-to-make-moms-necklace-in-memory-of.html

Finished Afghan
Cherie finishes her stained glass afghan.
http://cherieblogs.com/2011/10/19/finished-afghan/

Mo(o)re Gourd Whimsies
What's the new project with Creative Paperclay® ?
http://barbara-moorewhimsies.blogspot.com/2011/10/see-what-new-project-is-with-creative.html

(I do hope you will all check back in again this week to hear about my giveaway! Woot! I’ve got a blogeversary, 100 posts, and a birthday coming up and the giveaway’s going to be a good one!)

Barbara

See What The New Project is with Creative Paperclay® It’s a Cutie!!!

2011-10-17T20:53:00.000-07:00

I don’t know what inspired me on this project other than the cover of the Cloth Paper Scissors magazine for July/Aug. I just loved it! Anyway I decided I wanted to try to make my own version of a doll with Creative Paperclay® These are the items that I used in my project except for paint, eyes,and glue.

To start with I trimmed a piece of styrofoam down with that nifty styrofoam cutter that you see in the back of the photo. The trimmed piece is in the front of the photo. I also used some green wire that I bought a long time ago that I retrieved from my stash to fashion two longer pieces for the legs and two for the arms. I connected the two styro pieces together with that short piece of dowel rod that you see along with some glue for stability. I then inserted the wire for the arms and legs along with a little more glue for stability. Once I had all of the body parts put together I covered them with the Creative Paperclay® and inserted the eyes. Here’s what the doll looked like when it was covered with clay, dried and ready to paint:

I also used a flower that I painted and glued on later after I finished painting my little doll up. Check out what she looked like after I got her all dolled up! hehe

So do you think that you could make your own dolly using Creative Paperclay®? I certainly think that you can! What do you think I should name her? Please leave a comment because I love hearing from you! Thanks for following to all of you new members!
Barbara

Guess what I'm up to Now!!!!

2011-10-11T20:51:00.000-07:00

Recently I applied to join the Design Team for Amazing Mold Putty and Woo Hoo I made it!! I now get to play with and design different things with the amazing mold putty. I had never tried the amazing mold putty before now and I will say that I was a bit nervous to start with. I've got to say though, this stuff is fun!!! It's so easy to use and the instructions are simple. One of the amazing things about this product is the fact that it's food safe. Of course you shouldn't make anything else in the mold if you plan on using it for food stuff. Here's what I started with:

Here's the super simple part, all you do is mix equal parts of the stuff in each of these two bottles. You mix it up with your hands just like you were playing with clay, kind of smoosh it together until the colors are blended.(One minute) then you roll a ball to get all of the cracks out of the putty and flatten it a bit to get started with your mold. You then take the item that you want to use and press it into the mold putty. After about 20 minutes or so your mold will be set up and feel rubbery. All you have to do then is pop out the item you used to make your mold and voila' you have a mold! Your mold is flexible too which is nice to work with.

I used three Tim Holtz keys, a little plastic black cat I had and a butterfly button.

Once I had my molds made I used paperclay and filled them. I let the paperclay dry in the molds overnight and then just popped them out!

What do you think of this?

I still need to sand the edges of the paperclay and then paint all the pieces and use them for embellishments!

I also received some clear casting resin and regular casting resin. I made a mold from a small glass leaf and mixed up the clear resin and added some dye (which we were given also to go with the resin) which I had mixed to make an orange color but it is still drying. The resin was easy to mix also and wasn't hard to clean up. I hope that this tutorial makes you want to run out and buy yourself some Amazing Mold Putty and use your Creative Paperclay to make some Halloween decorations, embellishments, or whatever your mind can think of. Please leave me a comment and let me know what you think of this stuff. You can click on the button on the right side of my screen to go to the Amazing Mold Putty site. And please click on the +1 button.

Barbara

Creative Paperclay and my Ghoul

2011-10-04T21:48:00.000-07:00

I’m rather pleased with the way my project for today turned out. I totally thought “outside the box” on this one. lol I started out with my Creative Paperclay and a cannonball gourd. Yep, that’s the name of this particular gourd. First I covered the whole gourd with paperclay and let that dry overnight. I then made and attached all of the ghoulish paperclay features and let them dry also. I don’t think I had this much fun with clay since I was in grade school!

The eyes are actually brads, which I just bent the posts down and pushed them right into the clay. I next attached the head to a spindle (remember me mentioning that I bought a whole box full of them quite awhile back?) and a purchased wood base. I also inserted a dowel rod through the spindle.

It’s really hard to show in a picture what the features really looked like ‘cause the clay is white. After attaching these parts together I decided to add ears and an eyeball in the back of the head. Once this was done and dried, I went to work with the paint and embellishments!!! Woo Hoo what fun!! I painted all the details spray sealed him and gave him a collar made out of “Recollections” 12X12 Cardstock. I cut strips of the cardstock, sewed them with needle and thread and glued them to the spindle. Looking good isn’t he?

Well……. he does look pretty good but you know me, I just had to add a little more. So I put another collar under the first one made out of tulle. I made it the same way as the first. Then I used some “Recollections” border and cut the skull border and hung it from the dowel rod and cut out the labels individually and glued them around the bottom of the spindle. Here are pictures of the finished ghoul:

I really had a lot of fun making this ghoulish guy! I guess he does look kind of scary ‘cause when the dog saw him he growled and then barked at him. LOL Why don’t you buy some Creative Paperclay and make yourself some Halloween fun! You can use any type of ball to cover with the paperclay. A styrofoam ball works great too.

Barbara

MORE Halloween Creative Paperclay Projects !

2011-10-03T20:35:00.001-07:00

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary…….. I came up with some new Creative Paperclay ideas! I’m really having fun coming up with decorative things created from paperclay these days, but check out the gourds I’m using along with the clay:
This is an egg gourd and yep, it’s shaped just like an egg!
This is an egg gourd with part of a mini bottle gourd glued to it.
These two gourds were the beginning of my Creative Paperclay project. They were the “skeleton” so to speak for my clay to be applied on. I do get the gourds wet before I cover them and mold the clay to look like these pictures:

To me, it’s just so much fun turning that little humble gourd and some clay into something that so neat for Halloween. Oh, in case you are wondering the whiskers on the cat are actually horse hair. I had some to use on a different gourd project. Once the clay was dry (it did take about a day and a half) It was time to paint. FUN!
The painting of the Halloween cat and raven turned out super spooky neat I thought:

The raven’s eyes were silver glitter and it made them really show up. Now I have a couple more things to decorate for Halloween. What do you think of them? I also wanted to mention that even though I use gourds a lot, you can use styrofoam or anything similar.

I want to say “Hello” to my newest followers. I have noticed you, smile. We’re getting closer to having a giveaway, so stay tuned. Also on a very personal note, I know there are several of you who have been following my blog for quite some time and you also know Molly Wilson (Crocheting My Bested with My Worsted). Well I want to ask all of you to please pray for Molly. Many of you know that Molly has MS but that’s the least of her problems right now. Night before last Molly had a massive stroke and has suffered terrible brain damage. She thinks like a 2-4 year old right now. Please pray that she won’t suffer anymore. Molly is a very kind and loving person, who even when she was having physical problems would crochet for those less fortunate. She became a very dear friend of mine through blogland and is always so supportive and happy. Please pray for her.

Barbara

Creative Paperclay and my Ghoul

2011-09-30T19:17:00.001-07:00

What a great class in Marshfield, MO!

2011-09-25T14:13:00.001-07:00

Last Friday and Saturday I had the great pleasure of teaching a gourd art class to twenty people total at the Hampton’s Greenhouse and Nursery. It was also the opening of the Hampton’s Pumpkin Patch and Corn Maze! If you live in the vicinity of Marshfield, MO, you really need to get on over there and have yourself a great time! The majority of the class was made up of Master Gardeners from Marshfield and I also had two very special young people (aged 8 and 5), we also had one lady from Portland, OR. Here are a few pictures of the wonderful students and the marvelous Gourd Art they created.

Great wood burning and isn’t this farmer just too cute? He even ended up with wire rimmed glasses and a straw hat.

Here we have a wonderfully wood burned and waxed deer and a jolly happy Santa who was also waxed. Next pic is a birdhouse being created and an apple gourd.

These two guys made a cut out gourd with fall leaves and a wood burned box.

Does this first gourd remind you of Rapunzel and Tangled? Giving a little spray on the beginning of a snowman and the young man in the last picture is applying dye to a warty gourd to make a bowl.

How do you like this beautiful peacock? Wonderful job! New wax technique.

Cleaning out the inside of a gourd which will becoming a Halloween mask. Some wood burning on what is to become a goose!

Working on some very cute penguins and helping Michael clean out a gourd with a ball and a drill!

See what I mean? You can be so creative in so many different ways with gourds! I had a very happy feeling after we headed home, because I felt that everyone was happy with what they had ultimately created. It was so easy doing this class because we got to use one of the Hampton’s greenhouses to spread out and create in. Saturday it rained and poured but there were still people who came out to the pumpkin patch and corn maze. Wow. I hope you enjoyed looking at these pictures. Wish you had been a the class cause you missed a fun and creative time!

Barbara

Fork and Talk in Little Rock, AR

2011-09-14T14:25:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!! Have I got something to tell you!! I have just been dying to talk about this for awhile now
. I attended the most amazing event ever!! Who would have thought it? Anyway, last month "Craft Gossip" put out a call for Little Rock, AR bloggers or those who could drive to Little Rock for a Fork and Talk event which was going to be sponsored by EK Success Brands. Well let me tell you, IT WAS AWESOME! I submitted an application and received an invitation from the Design Team from Little Rock.
We all met up at Trio's Restaurant in Little Rock:

It was a perfect day with lots of sunshine!

Once all of the introductions were finished, the Fun began! We started with lunch:

We had a wonderful selection of dishes to try on our menu. I was very impressed with my selection which was Quiche Lorraine and salad. Ummm, yummy.
There were 20 crafty bloggers who met at the “Fork and Talk”. I met a lot of women, who I'm hoping will become great friends. The creativity in the room was electrifying! All of the people at the luncheon had some sort of craft/art that they participated in everyday.

Can you guess how many buttons and bobs are in this jar? We played a few games of which this was one and I guessed the closest. Woo Hoo! I got to keep the jar with the stuff inside.
Working as a group, each group decorated a Dollar Store hat with stuff that was provided to us. The group I was in picked a Mardi Gras theme and our hat won! Another gift!

This is a picture of our winning hat and also our model, Scarlett. She is also the quilting guru for Craft Gossip, She is a very talented and friendly lady and I'm very glad that I was able to make her acquaintance. The four Craft Gossip Editors who planned, executed and attended this wonderful event were, Anne Weaver (Sewing Editor), Denise Felton (Needlework Editor), Stacie Hooder (Jewelry Making Editor), and Scarlett Burroughs (Quilting Editor). There were bloggers from all over and since I had traveled one of the longest distances I received……. you guessed it, another gift!
Here are some photos from this magnificent event:

When everything wound down and the wonderful day was about over, we received all of these FANTASTIC THINGS TO TAKE HOME WITH US! THANK YOU EK SUCCESS BRANDS!!

There were really too many things here for me to even list! Now do you know what I mean by an awesome get together? EK Success was soooo generous toward us all. Oh and would you believe there was one thing I didn’t get? LOL Yep EK Success carries a Gourd Edger Punch, which when I saw it I had to have. Can’t wait until it comes in the mail! We did receive three of their border punches and one is a Spider Punch, EEEEEK! It will come in handy for Halloween though.

Here's a list of the wonderful bloggers who were at the Fork and Talk this past Saturday. Please take a little time to check out their blogs and see what they do:

1. Bella Kates | Jennifer

2. Hello Ladies | Mandy

3. Bottle Tree | Angela- Little Rock, AR

4. Candice Windham Designs | Candice Windham

5. Hog Wild About Stamping | Holly

6. Idyll Hands | Erin

7. Junque Rethunque | Laurie

8. Karma per diem | Lisa

9. Leslie's Art and Sew | Leslie

10. Mel's Designs | Melony

11. Mo(o)re Gourd Whimsies | Barbara

12. Moxie Mae | Angela- Fort Smith, AR

13. Moxie Mae | Geri

14. Nook and Crannies Crafts | Andi

15. Personalized by Paige | Paige

16. Roses and Robins | Debbie

17. Roses and Robins | Kimberly

18. Ramona's handwork | Ramona

19. UnRuffled | Suzanne

20. Pork Chop Tuesday | Peggy

I really had a wonderful time and I'm in hopes that I get invited back to the next Fork and Talk!

Barbara

Do you remember when......

2011-09-05T19:22:00.000-07:00

Do you remember the beautiful hand held mirrors that maybe your mother or grandmother had on her vanity? They were usually accompanied by a brush and comb which matched it. I thought they were just beautiful and glamorous. Well a couple of weeks ago a very dear friend of mine, who knows all about my work with Creative Paperclay, suggested that I use Creative Paperclay to turn a plain Dollar Store mirror into something pretty like we remembered them to be. Well, here's my take on it. Not what I remember them to be exactly but, beautiful anyway. To begin you start with .......

A Dollar Store Mirror and Creative Paperclay

I then took the paperclay and added some paint and glitter paint to it.

I mixed up the paperclay and paint, rolled it out with a fondant roller. I spread white glue onto the mirror and covered the mirror with the paperclay and then stamped some flowers into the clay. ( the paint and glitter paint were really unnecessary in the clay itself).

Didn't the stamps make some pretty flowers in the clay? Once I had the stamps in the clay I painted the mirror both front and back and then I applied glitter paint over the paint to both the front and back. I then painted in the flowers.

It's really looking better at this point isn't it? I then painted in the branches with the flowers. Once all the paint had dried I Mod Podged some lace on the back of the mirror. I had a picture of a victorian woman which I cut out and sealed with an acrylic sealer and then Mod Podged on top of the lace. My printer uses inkjet ink which has to be sealed with an acrylic sealer or the Mod Podge will smear the ink. Once all that was dry I glued four little roses to the picture and voila', a very special mirror!

I wish the final picture had turned out a little clearer but I think you get the idea. The mirror turned out just beautiful and now I think I'll use it as a gift for a special occasion. What do you think?

Barbara

A Unique Piece

2011-09-01T18:20:00.000-07:00

I just had to take the time to do a post about this unique piece of Gourd Art that I've done. I'm not wanting to brag in any way but I am very proud of it. I entered this piece and four other pieces of Gourd Art in the County Fair. I received five Premium Blue Ribbons on the pieces (Premium Blue Ribbons come with monetary prizes) and also placed Best in Show with another ribbon on this particular piece. All I've taken pictures of so far is this Best in Show piece but I'll take pictures of the other four and post about them at another time.

I really enjoyed entering this piece and the four others in the Fair. All five pieces will be going to the District Fair on the 18th of September. Please wish me luck! If things go well for me there, I'll be taking my pieces to the State Fair for judging. Woot! I'm so excited about all this and I wonder all the time as to whether or not my work is good enough for competition. Let me know what you think.

Barbara

Artsy Blogger Link-Ups for Saturday

2011-08-26T20:48:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that another week has gone by in a jiffy now hasn't it? Well I've got a few bloggers that need their information posted so that you can do a good look around. These are the links I have this week for the Artsy Bloggers Group:

Beading Arts Want to add a bezel to a curved surface? Cyndi shows you one easy way to do it! http://www.beading-arts.com/2011/08/making-easy-bezel-for-watch-face.html
Blue and Teal Garden Glass Sculpture Another glass sculpture! This one uses blue and teal glass. http://cherieblogs.com/2011/08/24/blue-and-teal-garden-glass-sculptures/
Creative Dreamer June's red bird turned out so well, she's made a blue bird... a blue bird of happiness, of course! And she's giving it away... get entered by September 4th! http://acreativedreamer.blogspot.com/2011/08/little-bluebird-told-me.html
Creative Paperclay Necklace Something new with paperclay! http://barbara-moorewhimsies.blogspot.com/2011/08/creative-paperclay-necklace.html
Eileen - The Artful Crafter Eileen tries her hand at 3D paper tole. It's not as difficult as it looks, but does require a bit of patience. http://the-artful-crafter.blogspot.com/2011/05/how-to-create-your-own-3d-cards-using.html

You really need to check out these wonderful blogs! You might win something or learn something new! Keep your eyes peeled for some exciting news that I want to share. I won something on my gourd art and will share as soon as I get pictures. Woot! Have a great weekend.

Barbara

Creative Paperclay Necklace

2011-08-15T18:58:00.000-07:00

I must say that I totally enjoy going to other people's blogs and reading about their creative endeavors in whatever the mediums and techniques are that they use and I hope that you enjoy mine. Today I'll be showing you how easy it is to make a necklace. You can just use your imagination to design your own.

To begin with I rolled out some paperclay and cut it into this shape:

(Don't pay attention to the marbling in the clay, it had a little paint mixed in it by mistake)

Also don't pay attention to the splotches under the clay as that is on the plastic covering the table. The clay has a piece of stencil material under it and you can see through it. Anyways after cutting out the piece for my necklace, I used a rubber stamp and stamped this on it:

I then took some of the paperclay and rolled out a thin rope that I placed around the other clay piece like so:

After I reached that stage of the necklace I let the piece dry for a couple of days. I didn't have to, I just went on to other things for awhile. It probably would have been dry in just a few hours as it wasn't very thick.

Once I was ready to work on the piece again, I painted it, sealed it, and hung it on a chain. Here's what it looked like when I finished it:

I'm telling you again folks, you're only limited by your imagination. Remember that you can purchase Creative Paperclay at Hobby Lobby, Michaels and of course: Creative Paperclay! I hope that you give this clay a try and let me know how you like it!

Barbara

Artsy Bloggers Link-Up Saturday

2011-08-07T09:56:00.000-07:00

I do hope that everyone is having a wonderful weekend! Since you are now checking out different blogs, I want you to try the following:

Beading Arts:

Cyndi shares step by step how she engineered one of her recent bead embroidery pieces.
http://www.beading-arts.com/2011/07/blossoms-of-moonlit-waves.html

Eileen - The Artful Crafter

Consider the profit potential of jewelry repair and redesign.
http://the-artful-crafter.blogspot.com/2011/05/how-to-find-someone-to-repair-treasured.html

Make a Friendship Journal

Since Sunday is Friendship Day, Cherie describes how to create a friendship journal.
http://friendship.about.com/od/Gift-Giving/ht/How-To-Create-A-Memory-Journal-For-Friends.htm

Mo(o)re Gourd Whimsies

Whimsical Memory/Gift Boxes made with Creative Paperclay

http://barbara-moorewhimsies.blogspot.com/2011/08/whimsical-memorygift-boxes-made-with.html

These are some terrific blogs and I do hope that you check them out.

I want you all to know that I appreciate each and every comment that I receive and that I notice every time that a new person signs up to follow my blog. You are all appreciated!

Whimsical Memory/Gift Boxes made with Creative Paperclay!

2011-08-01T20:21:00.000-07:00

A little bit of information before starting on this post...... The beginning pictures of my project all got lost. :-( I was in a real tizzy after finding out that the card in the camera that I was using was not working. I thought maybe that the pictures were still on the camera and not on the card since I had reviewed them on the camera, anyway when I got ready to take more pictures, the first ones on there weren't there. Uh Oh! I had already gone beyond those pictures and wasn't able to start over with that project. Hmmm what to do? Well start over I suppose! I used a smaller box (jewelry) this time.Here's a list of the items that I used on the project:

Creative Paperclay                              Paint (acrylic)
A candy box or jewelry box                  Stamps
Brushes                                               Molds
Embellishments                                    Glue

Here's the start of the project:

After I rolled out some paperclay, ( I use a fondant roller ) I attached it to the box lid. I used glue between the clay and box as I didn't want the box to get to wet and disintegrate. lol I pressed the stamp into the clay to make an impression and thought it turned out quite nicely:

After I stamped into the creative paperclay I used a copper metallic paint and got it into all the creases and crevices. I then used champagne metallic paint to go over the rest of the clay and sponged a couple of colors into the the clay lightly. Once the paints were dry I glued embellishments onto the clay, making my box just adorable I think. What about you?

I gave you two different pictures to look at 'cause I couldn't get the lighting just right. The little round thing by the key is a button. Now this lid goes on a small jewelry box, but I think it would also be great as a little memory box also.

Since I did get started on the candy box to be used as a memory box, I felt that I should finish that box also. I used stamps on the big box also and used a lacy looking stamp in one corner of the top of the box and also on the sides. I used different metallic paints on this box also but I also used glitter, and a few different embellishments such as buttons, a head which was created from paperclay and a mold, butterflies cut out of paper, a tiny key and ruffles around the whole thing. See....

Here's a couple of pictures of both boxes together:

What do you think of the hummingbird that I stamped into the lid of the bigger box? I had a lot of fun making these Creative Paperclay memory boxes and I think I will put things in them as kind of a time capsule of my life. Working with Creative Paperclay is a great time and you can purchase it at Michaels or Hobby Lobby or from guess where else? Yep, Creative Paperclay!!

Barbara

Bath Salts Jar for a friend from Creative Paperclay!!

2011-07-18T18:51:00.000-07:00

Folks I'm just so excited about my project for today I can hardly contain myself!!!!!!! It really turned out so amazing. I started out with a plain old jar and lid:

I then covered both the jar and lid with paperclay. It really looked plain but that's when I started workin' it :

This was just too plain for me so I took the lid and made a rose out of the paperclay and put in the center. I then fashioned rosebuds and placed around the large rose and added a few leaves for good measure.

Now things got to be a lot of fun. I started out by painting my rose and buds a light pink and then painted the jar the same pink. I painted my leaves green and highlighted the rose and buds with glitter. I also glittered around the edge of the lid. Lid now finished! I cut out a victorian picture and Modge Podged it to the jar. I then sealed the jar and glued off white rick-rack around the picture and added a little butterfly to the side of the picture.

I think it all turned out just beautifully don't you? Now to just fill the jar with some lovely bath salts and give to a good friend!

Barbara

The Artsy Bloggers!!

2011-07-09T21:21:00.000-07:00

Well here we are, time to hook-up with some Artsy Bloggers my friends!! Please take some time to check out each of the following blogs cause they're all very talented people who have some amazing things on their blogs:

Eileen Bergen-The Artful Crafter

Take a few moments to peek into the world of another artist: Scrap Girl and SG Product Designer, Brandy Murry. You may find some inspiration to help you grow in your art.

http://the-artful-crafter.blogspot.com/2011/03/artist-profile-brandy-murry.html

Beading Arts

Cyndi has a fabulous copy of 30-Minute Rings to give away, Come and enter to win!

http://www.beading-arts.com/2011/06/book-review-and-giveaway-30-minute.html

Estate Sale Chairs: Finished!

Cherie has finished the final step in her estate sale makeover.

http://cherieblogs.com/2011/07/05/estate-sale-chairs-finished/

Laura - Taz's Corner

My Altered Book - "In The Zone"

http://tazscorner1.blogspot.com/

Mo(o)re Gourd Whimsies

Fourth of July Picture Frame with paperclay

http://barbara-moorewhimsies.blogspot.com/2011/07/fourth-of-july-picture-frame-with.html

Just link on up folks to see what's happenin' around the blogging community! Also I'm now within 15 posts of hitting 100, so.................. I'm gonna be thinkin' up some stuff to giveaway. Let me know whether you would prefer some gourd art, some bits and bobs of things, etc.

Barbara

Fourth of July Picture Frame with paperclay

2011-07-04T21:37:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! I hope that you all had a wonderful Fourth of July! I know this is the day after but I wanted to share this. Today we're going to embellish a picture frame with Creative Paperclay. I started out with an inexpensive wooden frame:

I covered the frame with glue and then added Creative Paperclay:

I then made some little firecrackers and put some blingy fuses in them, and cut some primitive stars out with an Xacto knife:

After allowing the Creative Paperclay to dry overnight, I painted the frame red, the firecrackers blue and the stars were painted white and then silver glitter was added to the stars. I then glued the stars and firecrackers to the frame and voila' a very Fourth of July frame!

I don't plan on putting a picture in mine but rather to fashion something to place on the inside of the frame without the glass. I'll turn it into a patriotic picture and frame instead. Here's wishing you days filled with sparklies!! If you don't find your Creative Paperclay at your local hobby store you can purchase it directly from Creative Paperclay, http://www.creativepaperclay.com/ and if you like working with Creative Paperclay then you need to become a follower of the Creative Paperclay blog: http://creativepaperclay.blogspot.com/ cause you can get some really nifty ideas on their blog from me and all the other design team members!!

Creative Paperclay Gourd Penguins

2011-06-20T19:59:00.000-07:00

From time to time I love to do something totally out of the ordinary and whimsical. I love penguins and thought I would show all my readers how I make a small bottle gourd into a penguin using creative paperclay. Here's what you start with:

I know it seems like not much, I did use a little glue also. I got so excited while working with the paperclay on the one gourd that I decided to do a couple more. I worked with the clay using a little glue to make sure that the clay stayed on the gourds. I made tails, wings, and cute little fat cheeks and beaks. Here's what they looked like after the clay was put on:

Still not very pretty but starting to get some character! I then used a lot of paint and some glitter to make them pretty. After all the painting was done I sealed the penguins with a spray on sealer with a gloss finish:

The glitter didn't show up that well in these pictures but it really gave the penguins a nice look. I then made little hats and scarves for the trio and they really looked good. Voila' and here they are, three little penguins ready to play in the snow. They made me feel a little cooler just by looking at them and it was pretty hot today!

Barbara

Artsy Bloggers Saturday Linkups

2011-06-11T21:50:00.000-07:00

Wow, between getting shots in my back, teaching Gourd Art classes on Saturday and getting ready for a show on the 17th and 18th of this month I've just been super busy. I've got to say though that I'm really enjoying teaching classes on Saturdays. I've had several new students and even had a young man (12 years old) by the name of Ethan today. He didn't think that he could make anything with gourds but he really had a good time and got a really good start on one. He'll be back Saturday after next with his Mom to finish up. Next Friday and Saturday I have a show and so I won't be teaching.

Here's are the wonderfully talented Artsy Bloggers! I do hope that you will check out what's going on with each one of the following bloggers 'cause they are one super bunch:

Beading Arts
Copper tubing makes wonderful beads!
http://www.beading-arts.com/2011/06/copper-bead-necklace-part-one.html

Eileen - The Artful Crafter
Follow this tutorial to make a pretty and practical seed kit featuring seed planting strips
http://the-artful-crafter.blogspot.com/2011_04_07_archive.html

Estate Sale Chairs - Part 2
Cherie covers the seats and starts on the backs.
http://cherieblogs.com/2011/06/09/estate-sale-table-and-chairs-2

Laura - Taz's corner
Mail Art and postcards, plus a big Thank You!
http://tazscorner1.blogspot.com/2011/06/mail-art-and-postcards-plus-big-thank.html

Flowers and Art
Kim is trying once again to finish up unfinished projects. Come see the first one :)
http://flowerkim.blogspot.com/2011/06/another-unfinished-project.html

Barbara

Gourd and Paperclay Apple Tree!

2011-06-06T19:13:00.000-07:00

I really hope that all you folks really like the "Apple Tree" that I've made! I've had this idea for awhile but haven't taken the time to make it until now. Well for starters, I have several spindles cause I purchased a whole box of them at a Habitat for Humanity thrift store about three years ago. So.... I attached the spindle to a wooden base that I had purchased at Hobby Lobby. ( You don't have to use a spindle, you can use a piece of broom handle or big dowel rod). Then the spindle was attached to a very large apple gourd which I had picked out and been hanging on to for just this purpose:

Pretty neat huh? I used glue to attach them and let it set overnight. Once all that was started I used dye to color the gourd ( I used red and cordovan) and sealed the dye. I then used aluminum foil to make a base trunk for the tree. I also used a candy mold to put paperclay into for the leaves and let them set overnight to dry. This is the beginning:

Doesn't that color on the apple look real? Looked like a red delicious to me. Once the ground work was done I got to have the real fun! "Creative Paperclay" to the ready.... I then covered the base, trunk, and made the limbs of my "Apple Tree". To me it looked pretty neat even without the paint. I then glued my leaves on after sanding the edges of them to make them look good and also made a little gnome door on the front and left my project overnight to dry.

I was just so excited after I got the project this far. Now that everything was dry I painted my "Apple Tree" and then sealed it well so that it would last a very long time.

So tell me, what do you think? I love it and don't think the picture really does it justice. I can certainly tell you that working with Creative Paperclay is fun, fun, fun!!! You can purchase Creative Paperclay at a lot of hobby and craft stores like, Michaels and Hobby Lobby to name a few or from the creator of Creative Paperclay, Amaco. I hope you purchase some and try a project or two yourself, I know you'll like it.

Barbara

Show-Me Gourd Society State Gourd Festival

2011-05-19T11:31:00.000-07:00

As some of you may know, the weekend of April 28th I attended the State Gourd Festival in Sedalia, MO. What a wonderful time I had! I took a new class with a new technique in waxing that was developed by Miriam Joy of Miriam Joy Gourd Creations. Terrific class and I love this new technique. I will show you some gourds made with this new technique in the near future. I taught this new technique to some of my students this past Saturday and they loved it too. So many pieces of Gourd Art to see, and ooooh and aaaaaah over. There were some very famous artists who had pieces entered into the competiions. The gourd society had several different classes and catagories in which to enter your art work. I took three pieces of my gourd art and entered them into the competition. I won blue ribbons on all three of them. The first piece was entered in the catagory "Whole Gourd any technique" the second catagory that I entered was "Cut Gourd any technique" and the third was "Useful bird house any technique".

Each leaf was woodburned unto this gourd. I used dyes for the leaf color. Between each leaf was carved out and painted black. I wanted it to resemble a pile of leaves falling to the ground.

This piece actually has a tree carved out on each side of the gourd. The tree itself was woodburned before it was cut out. I could only cut out a couple of pieces to use to clean out the interior of the gourd. Very difficult cleaning and then I used acrylic paint (Metallic sapphire blue) to color the inside. The trees were painted with crayon watercolors. I used dye for the exterior of the gourd and then sealed it.

This bird house was cleaned somewhat on the inside but not completely. The bird would use what's left in making their nest. Holes were drilled in the bottom for any drainage. The outside design was woodburned into the gourd and then the shapes were painted with crayon watercolors. I put several coats of sealer on the outside.

I hope you enjoy my blue ribbon gourds, I know I was very proud to win them!! If you are anywhere close to Springfield, MO you might want to attend the next State Gourd Festival. We voted on the last day of this festival to move the festival to Springfield, MO next year. The festival will be held at the Springfield fairgrounds. If you vacation in Branson, MO you might want to schedule your vacation for April 28, and 29th 2012. I hope to see many more people there this next year. I'm the chairman in charge of lining up the classes for it. I may even teach a class myself. Please give me some feedback cause I love to hear from everyone. You're all important to me and I have especially noticed all the new followers!!

Hugs to you XX
Barbara

Why not go check out what the other Artsy Bloggers are up to this week:

Beading Arts
And yet another chance to win a bead package giveaway!

Creative Dreamer
The final Creativity Invitation prompt is up... June hopes you'll all come play!

Eileen-The Artful Crafter
Who doesn't recycle cards and gift bags these days? This was a real simple recycling project. Look at the card Jackie gave Eileen for her birthday; and then how Jackie received it back on hers!

Laura-Taz's Corner
Art Journal Fun

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp
When spring gives you strawberries and rhubarb, you've got to make crisp!

Paperclay is for kids too!

2011-05-16T13:20:00.000-07:00

And now that school is out you might want to come up with some things that the children will enjoy doing and that will make them feel as if they have accomplished something on their own. I thought to myself that Summertime would also be a good time to make ornaments for Christmas. I started this project by simply rolling out some paperclay and using a cookie cutter to cut out some Angels........

After cutting out a couple of Angels, and poking holes in their wings, I let them dry overnight. Next day after they were dry I used acrylic paints to paint them. Once the acrylic paints were dry, I spray sealed them and added a ribbon in the hole which was poked in the paperclay the day before.

They turned out very pretty and would be so simple easy for children to make. I hope you will get some Creative Paperclay and let your children take their projects to a whole new level, you'll be glad you did You can purchase Creative Paperclay from their blog or website. You'll be glad you did.

P.S. You can use many things to make your ornaments out of, cookie cutters, cookie molds, candy molds, or just put something together freehand. It's all good and all fun!!

Put a little bling in your life!

2011-05-03T08:40:00.000-07:00

As my first post on my blog about the wonders of Creative Paperclay I want to show you what I made. I like things that have a little bling or kick to them so I decided that I'd like to have a gourd brooch that was embellished with Paperclay. I used a book just out by Maria Dellos on ink and gourds for a little inspiration.

I started out with just a piece of gourd that I had carved out of a scrap of gourd and with a face that I had already formed in a mold and which was already dry. (It helped to get things moving along a bit faster. I then attached the face to the gourd with just a little E6000.)

Before attaching the face I woodburned some squiggles on the gourd piece. I then painted the face with some metallic acrylic paint in gold, blue, & copper touches.

Once the face was attached I used some more Paperclay to make a scarf to go around the face. I then painted the scarf with metallics. (Topaz, Sapphire, Copper, Gold, Green, & Purple) It really turned into a beautiful scarf. I added a little glue and some glitter on the bottom side to enhance the scarf.

But was that enough? Oh no my friends! I then took some multi-colored yarn, wire, and some beads and added a little bling to it. I then added a pin back to the piece so that I can wear it as a brooch. As you can see that end result wasn't bad, hmmmmm, no not bad at all!

Please pardon the pictures which were taken with a black background, but trust me the whites just wouldn't photograph very well sitting on white. I love my new brooch don't you? I also love Creative Paperclay and have used it for a long time, even before gourd art. It's very easy to work with and cleans up easily with just water. It has stood out and become my favorite clay to work with on gourds. Also check out the Creative Paperclay blog for more tutorials and projects!

Barbara

While you're looking around blogland you must check out the Artsy Bloggers!

Beading Arts

Cyndi shares her method of making a charm necklace from a vintage button!

Eileen Bergen- The Artful Crafter
Believe it or not, a friend of a friend whom Eileen had never even met gave her everything she needed to explore the luscious art of silk painting.

Laura- Taz's Corner
A Recap of Found Poetry and Altered Text

Made by Nicole
Learn how to make easy paper flowers with this step by step tutorial.

Pinwheel Craft
A fun and easy summer project for kids

Creative Paperclay Design Team!!!

2011-04-24T11:05:00.000-07:00

I'm sooooo excited to be able to announce today that I have been chosen to be on the "Creative Paperclay Design Team" !!! Oh my goodness I'm just beside myself!! Woooo Hooooo!!! Now you can expect to see some posts on using the paperclay on projects twice a month from me, and also posts from the other team designers! You can see my posts here on my blog but you can also see All the designers posts on the Creative Paperclay Blog. I hope you watch my posts and tutorials and I also hope that you start following the Creative Paperclay Blog 'cause who knows what's going to start happening with this new blog! I can tell you for sure that Creative Paperclay is my clay of choice and has been for years! It's really awesome to use on gourds too as you will be able to see in times to come.

So remember to follow the new Creative Paperclay Blog and myself and try this wonderful clay for yourself!

Barbara

Just got the opportunity to post the links for the Artsy Bloggers group as I've been out of town for a few days, sorry about that 'cause I know that you can't wait to check out these terrific links to the blogs .

Beading Arts

Home and Garden Cafe

How To Create a Memory Journal

Creative Dreamer

Winner of the 100 followers giveaway!

2011-04-16T11:04:00.000-07:00

Just as I promised, there was a drawing for the 100 follower giveaway here at the house this morning! We did things the old-fashioned way, I put the numbers and names in a hat and my hubby drew out the winning name and number. And the winner is: The number two comment by Terri Sproul who said.....love your work, hope I win. Glad you got over 100. I will post on my facebook page for you....smiles. Now wasn't that sweet? Here's what the giveaway looks like........

I took two pictures of the goodies that I have for the winner! Yes the trinket box is going, along with bits and bobs and a couple of egg gourds and a small apple gourd (all of which have already been cleaned) and whatever else I can think of to fill the box. I thought a couple of small gourds might be just the thing to get someone interested in gourds. lol Congratulations Terri on winning!! This tutorial thing has been quite fun and I hope to do much more in the future.

Barbara

And now to see what all the other Artsy Bloggers have been up to this week:

Taz's Corner- Exciting News, The Altered Book Nook is Open!

Cherie Blogs - Peeptastic Centerpiece!

Moore(Gourd)Whimsies-100th Follower Giveaway Winner!

Mixed Media Artist - A shared trip of a trip to Guatemala

Made by Nicole- How to make graffiti backgrounds using materials you have on hand.

Flowers and Art- This week Kim experiments with Monoprinting

Eileen - The Artful Crafter - Learn to dye Easter eggs naturally. Not everything has to come from a kit or a mix.

Creative Dreamer - All those Altered Books June has been doing has left her with lots of pages she needs to do something with. Here's her first project...a Frame!

Kids Fun Reviewed - Chocolate covered Peanut Butter Easter Eggs. It's fun to make, fun to give these delicious handmade Easter eggs.

Check out these super duper Creative Paperclay Projects and Tutorials with Gourds!!!

2011-04-15T11:18:00.000-07:00

I hope that you all read these tutorials with a forgiving mind as this is the first time that I've EVER posted a tutorial!! But here we go:

In my first gourd and paperclay tutorial I will be making a mask. Indian mask?, Egyptian mask? African mask? lol You tell me, but I will say it was fun. To start with you have to get a gourd that you think will work for a mask. I picked this "Martin" gourd. See how moldy they are to start with?After you scrub all that moldy stuff off of them you also have to clean the insides out by scraping ( a lot ). You should really wear a mask anytime you are dealing with gourd dust as you can develop respiratory problems if you don't. It doesn't bother all people but it really does some. Better to be safe than sorry I say. Then I cut the gourd in half and used one half for the mask. See how clean the inside and outside are? .....................................................
The next step was to cut out my eyes and mouth and play with the paperclay until I came up with these neat embellishments. LOL How do you like the lips??

The paperclay was the fun part. In this case I fashioned the eyebrows, nose and lips freehand. I apply the paperclay to my gourds by simply making sure that my gourd is WET where I want the clay to go and make sure that the back of the paperclay is WET also. Easy Peasy, just stick one to the other!!!! I've never had any of the paperclay come loose because as the clay drys (let it dry for a day or two depending upon how thick the clay is) it bonds to the gourd. If a part should ever come loose, I recommend using E6000 or something similar to reattach it. Once my lovely mask was dry, I used dye on the face and ink on the paperclay to give it color........................................

The eyes were pieces of gourd that I glued to the inside and used glitter glue on for color.

Doesn't he still look a little bare?? Well after the color dried, I sealed the mask with a water based polyurethane sealer and then drilled holes in which I put feathers and ....... yep, you guessed it an old pair of hoop earrings with some little feathers glued to it. Now then isn't this guy good looking or what??????

My next tutorial is on a very small gourd which I made into a trinket box. I know a lady who has been wanting Victorian so I thought I would try to come up with something. The first process is the same as for the mask in that you clean the outside of your gourd, cut out your top and clean out the inside. I then started out with this........................................

Now this container was very "thin" so the gourd shell needed some reinforcing. Normally I would use a mixture of glue and paint on the inside but I wanted to try something different. Instead I decoupaged a piece of flowered scrapbook paper with
"Collage Pauge" instant decoupage which is a water-resistant glue, sealer and finish all in one! When that was finished and dry, I started to work on the outside and in this project I used clay molds to create some flowers, leaves, and a face which I attached to the gourd while they were still damp. I used the same technique to attach the paperclay, wet to wet and let it dry overnight. Here's what it looked like after the paperclay molds were applied..........................................

Starting to look good isn't it??? Once dry, I used paints to color the flowers, leaves and face that were made from Paperclay, PLUS I used a paint on the outside of the gourd itself. Then I took that stem off that I had been using to hold while painting and added a little glass stone for a knob and some extra little something around the face and voila' it's done????? Oops not until I get a base for it to set on and here it is!!

Well now what do you think? I was very happy with the results of both projects and of course I love to work with Creative Paperclay!!! If you have any questions on the projects that I've just posted please don't hesitate to ask a question.

Barbara

To make things even more interesting and fun this weekend why don't you check out what all the other members of the Artsy Bloggers group have been up to:

Affirmations Page - Art Journal Background

Check out this easy journal background! Taz's Corner!

Beading Arts

The final chapter of Cyndi's e-book is now available! "Fibers, Fabrics, and Beads" challenges you to integrate all the fiber arts that you already love with your bead embroidery!

A Creative Dreamer
Just a reminder that the visual journal June created all through is going to given away to one lucky follower! But you have to hurry... the give away ends at midnight on Saturday!

Moore (Gourd) Whimsies
Last Day for the Giveaway!

Make a Fish Cake
If you have a fisherman in the family they'll love this fun cake idea!

Made by Nicole
Nicole shares a mixed-media art piece that is filled love for family and friends.

The Artful Crafter - Eileen Bergen
Make these darling lamb place card holders for Easter or any special spring dinner. So cute!

Homemade Mirrors with Poetry
It's National Poetry Month! In honor of that, Cherie is showing off a mirror she made using lines from one of her poems.

Kim = Flowers and Art
Kim loves dollhouses! Come see a miniature chandelier she altered to give it more style!

Last Day for Giveaway!!

2011-04-14T18:55:00.000-07:00

Hello my wonderful followers! Please don't forget that today is the last day for you to leave a comment and get your name entered into the drawing for a giveaway I'm having because I reached 100 followers!! I'm so happy 'cause I didn't just reach 100 but went past that amount. I hope that you will also read my Creative Paperclay post! I had so much fun creating with it. The ladies in my Gourd Art class have told me that they want to try the Creative Paperclay on gourds at one of our Saturday classes. Gotta practice myself before I try to teach someone else right?

Barbara

Weekly Thoughts and Goings On

2011-04-07T20:08:00.000-07:00

How has everyone been doing this week? I've got to say that I'm very proud that I hit 100 followers and not only that but went past the 100 mark! I have also gotten several more followers through Networked Blogs! I want you all to know that you've definitely each been noticed by me. Please don't forget the giveaway that's going on here on my blog. All you have to do is leave a comment on my March 30th post and be a follower of my blog.

I've been very busy working on gourds this week. I'm trying to get a few pieces done for competition at the end of this month. Next week I plan on having a special blog along with a tutorial on Friday about making some special things with Creative Paperclay. I hope you will tune in to check it out.

This past Monday the hubby and I had to go to Springfield, MO to his endocrinologist appointment. (Diabetes doctor) While we were up there we went to Marshfield, MO to visit with some good friends Evelyn and Larry Hampton of Hampton's Greenhouse and Nursery. They have an amazing corn maze every year and they grow some terrfic pumpkins! Right now they've got all of their garden plants ready and waiting in their greenhouses. If you live anywhere near them you need to get your garden plants and flowers from them. Evelyn can definitely let you know exactly how to take care of them. You'll end up with some great vegetables, I guarantee it.

Next Friday will also be the last day to leave me a comment if you are a follower so don't let the date slip by.

Barbara

Alrighty then folks! It's time to check up on all the wonderful things going on with the Artsy Bloggers group, so here's your list of terrific bloggers, go check them out:

Taz's Corner - Free-Mixed Media Tips and Techniques! Art Journals and More...
Laura shares tips from her secret stash of techniques and tricks!

Made by Nicole
If Nothing Ever Changed, There'd Be No Butterflies - this mixed-media art piece was made using the bits of paper trash acquired during the weekend.

Eileen Bergen-The Artful Crafter
Eileen made a necklace and earring set made from shells gathered on vacation and shares the directions.

Egg Carton Easter Bunny Crafts
A quick and easy Easter for the kids (and it uses up those extra egg cartons).

The Creative Dreamer
June is sharing a recipe for Spicy Thai Peanut Noodles...yum!

Barbara Moore(gourd)Whimsies
Weekly thoughts and goings on.

Beading Arts
Cyndi has a copy of a wonderful new book "Endless Sparkle" that she is just dying to give away!

Canvas Paper House- Part 2
Second part of the canvas paper house that Cherie is making for her Aunt.

Hello and 100th Follower Giveaway!

2011-03-30T09:11:00.000-07:00

Hello there everyone! I want to clarify the giveaway rules and time sequence. The giveaway is going to run from April 1, 2011 thru April 15th at midnight. I will announce the winner on April 16th. There will be a really cool giveaway prize which I will post later. Here's the rules:

                          1. You must be a follower of this blog.
                          2. You must leave a comment on this particular blog.

That's it folks! Easy Peasy! Love you all and I hope I get a lot of comments cause I love all of the folks that follow my blog and I do appreciate all of you. Don't forget to leave a way for me to contact you. Have a Happy Happy Day!

Barbara

You know you want to check out what's going on with all the rest of the Artsy Bloggers! Here's this week's linkups:

Beading Arts
Do you like copper and turquoise together? Then you've got to check out this blog.

Creative Dreamer
The March Creativity Invitation prompt is to create a journal page, and this month June has shared her techniques to create an entire journal... now she's giving that journal away. Come put your entry in!

Eileen- The Artful Crafter
Eileen shares directions for sewing a secret pockets hanger cover. This clever organizer can also be used to organize outfits.

Kim-Flowers and Art
Kim makes a bracelet out of wool roving. Come see how !!

Laura - Taz's Corner
Laura discusses the "art" of words

Made by Nicole
You'd never guess this pretty spring wreath is made quickly and simply with ordinary paper toweFun scrapbook idea for the pirate fan in the family.

The Kid's Fun Review
Fun scrapbook ideas for the pirate fan in the family.

Cherie Burbach
Cherie talks about what to buy and what to skip at rummages this summer.

Look how close I'm getting!!!

2011-03-21T17:32:00.000-07:00

Hey folks, look how close I'm getting to having 100 followers! I couldn't believe how close it was when I checked out my blog today. Sooooo, I'm thinking that I'm gonna have a giveaway! First off I've got to reach that 100 mark and hopefully go a few over. hint hint :-) Then I'll have a two week period where people can comment on the blog, and then.......I'll have a drawing!!! As busy as it is right now in my life, I'm gonna have to give some real thought into what I'm giving away. I can guarantee that it will be a good thing. Any suggestions out there? Looking forward to some feedback on this and more followers so this giveaway can start!!! March is Craft Month so I would love to get it started before the end of the month..

Barbara

Want to know what's going on with the Artsy Bloggers? Then link up here:
8 Fun Easter Cake and Cupcake Ideas

Easter's just around the corner, so here are some yummy treats to get you started.

Beading Arts

Cyndi posted a tutorial to show how she made her Bead Soup necklace!

Creative Dreamer

June shares a background technique for the visual journal journey going on!

Eileen - The Artful Crafter

Most silk scarf painting/dying is done with a stretcher frame. But if you don’t want to spend the money on a stretcher and are not planning a detailed design, this easy dye method can yield beautiful results as well.

Kim's Flowers & Art

Kim's goal: 30 journal pages in 30 days. Take a look at her progress.

Made by Nicole

What to do when paint smears ... troubleshooting mixed-media meltdowns.

Moore Gourd Whimsies

Barbara has some exciting news to share!

Yet More Ways to Use Up Rummage Sale Fabric

Cherie makes the third project from the fabric she bought for a quarter.

Such exciting new goings on!

2011-03-15T12:15:00.000-07:00

I have had some major changes in my life lately! I must say they have been some really remarkable ones. As many of you know, I've taken lessons from an extremely talently and nationally known gourd artist by the name of Joyce Campbell. Well we've become very good friends during this past year. I spoke to Joyce a few weeks ago and she let me know that she was going to be moving to California to be close to her mother who is 86 years old now. At that time she asked me if I would like to take over her business so to speak here in Arkansas where I live. I was soooo honored that she choose me to replace her in her classes here!! Of course I said yes and it's been a whirlwind ever since. I will be having classes every Saturday just as Joyce does at Hill Country Gallery in Mountain Home, AR. I'm also now an Associate at that Gallery and am trying to put many Gourd Art pieces in there. Therefore I've been very busy because I've got Gourd Art in several other places too! Here are a few of my current works:

Somehow I managed to cut off a little bit of most of the pictures but hopefully I will get better at doing this, and hopefully you can see enough of the picture to realize what I'm doing. I've been working on several other pieces lately plus I'm making a trip to purchase uncleaned gourds for me and also for my classes tomorrow. It's a 10 hour drive round trip plus some time to pick out gourds so it makes for a very busy day. ( at least 12-14 hours) I've been purchasing a lot of tools and mediums for the classes. Here's a pic of one of the classes and one of the ladies who made a couple of gourd art masks last week:

The classes are so enjoyable and you don't have to be an expert to take a class. The students just really have fun. I even have an 80 year old man who is really good. He and his wife spend the winters in the area and this will give them something to do. He also does stained glass and you should see what he's done with the glass and gourds! I will do my best to get more posts on my blog and do it more frequently. LOL Hope you enjoyed today's post.

Another very exciting and proud moment for me is the fact that I am now a part of the Artsy Bloggers group!! Every week we link you up to everyone in the group so that you can check out what's going on with everyone in the group. Here's my linkies for this week (there are three new bloggers in the group including myself):

8 Fun Easter Cake and Cupcake Ideas

Easter's just around the corner, so here are some yummy treats to get you started.

Beading Arts

Cyndi posted a tutorial to show how she made her Bead Soup necklace!

Creative Dreamer

June shares a background technique for the visual journal journey going on!

Eileen - The Artful Crafter

Most silk scarf painting/dying is done with a stretcher frame. But if you don’t want to spend the money on a stretcher and are not planning a detailed design, this easy dye method can yield beautiful results as well.

Kim's Flowers & Art

Kim's goal: 30 journal pages in 30 days. Take a look at her progress.

Made by Nicole

What to do when paint smears ... troubleshooting mixed-media meltdowns.

Moore Gourd Whimsies

Barbara has some exciting news to share!

Yet More Ways to Use Up Rummage Sale Fabric

Cherie makes the third project from the fabric she bought for a quarter.

Barbara

AND THE OWOH WINNERS ARE.........

2011-02-17T12:07:00.000-08:00

Got your attention didn't I? Well after participating in the OWOH for the first time as a blogger, I've got to say it's been really challenging. I received 143 comments which is not too shabby for the first time. I did my winner choosing the old fashioned way by putting all the numbers in a hat and having my hubby pull out the winning numbers. In my original post I showed a picture of a gourd "apple" which I said the winner would get, but I had a little time to make another gourd project for this delightful adventure around the world! I made this small (the pics are taken kinda close) trinket box.

The pictures above don't really do any justice at all to this picture as it's much brighter. Anyway without anymore blabbering......The winner of the Apple Gourd is: #28 Tess at The Heart Of Words Congratulations Tess! And the winner of the Trinket Gourd is #40 Tere at Delightful Whimsy Congratulations to you also!

This has really been an amazingly fun time and I look forward to the new and improved version of OWOH for next year! If you haven't already done so, you need to go over to Lisa Swiftka blog and read her announcement. Once again she outdid herself this year and has really got something grand planned for next year!! Thank you Lisa for all of this and for all that you do to promote the Arts!!

Barbara

One World One Heart OWOH

2011-01-31T11:02:00.000-08:00

Hi there and welcome to my blog!! My name is Barbara Moore and I am a Gourd Artist living in Arkansas, USA. I love creating one of a kind Art pieces using the humble gourd. I love the fact that you can grow it, dry it, clean it, and then use several different techniques, everything from inks, dyes, and paints to decoupage, clay, wood burning and carving to create an Art piece that is truly unique, special and one of a kind. No two gourds are exactly alike and no two Artists work in exactly the same way.

Right now I want to show you the first prize that I will be giving away to some lucky blogger who comments on this post:

This is an apple gourd and is made into exactly what it represents. Doesn't it look like a nice shiny apple? I will post another prize later on if I receive enough comments. In order to be eligible to win the apple:
     1. You must be a blogger (from anywhere in the world)
     2. You must leave a comment on this post (and a way to reach you if you win)
     3. The winner will be announced on February 17 and I will email the winner as well as post it.

This is my first year to participate in the OWOH event and the last year that Lisa plans on doing it. I hope there are many,many,many bloggers who join in. I can't wait to read you comments!

Snowy Day!

2011-01-20T12:08:00.000-08:00

Woke up this morning to three inches of snow, more or less. It has been snowing all day so far and it really looks beautiful. I know that people back East are getting really tired of so much snow but this is the only snow accumulation that we've had so far this year. Wouldn't you know I had to get out in it today? Been at home all week and the one day I have to get out and accompany my husband to the doctor's office it snows.

I don't have any idea as to why the pictures above turned out two colors like they did but you all get the idea of the snow don't you? Unfortunately our temps tonight are supposed to dip down into the single digits. Can you say Brrrrr? I do not plan on going out anytime soon I can tell you! My prayers are with everyone who is dealing with disasterous weather right now, but I'm going to enjoy looking out at that snowy scene for a few days at least. lol

The Burial of a Nine year old and the 911 Flag

2011-01-13T11:25:00.000-08:00

As many of you know, today is the memorial service and burial of Christina Green, the youngest victim of the Arizona Shooting a few days ago. Christina was born 9-11-01, a day that will always be remembered by the American people as a day when terrorists and their acts of senseless violence changed our country forever.

As a fitting tribute to Christina and also to the American people, the 911 Flag is being hoisted by two fire trucks over the door of the church where Christina's funeral will be held. Every person attending her funeral will pass beneath that flag.

I have seen that flag and touched that flag and placed a stitch in that flag as an act of repairing it and this great country of ours which has been ripped apart by the events that occured on 9-11. This past November, my husband (who's a veteran) and myself spent the majority of Veterans Week in Branson, MO. Every year that city puts on an extraordinary series of events which honor our nation's Veterans. The Veterans Coalition held a special service regarding the 911 Flag which has been touring the country asking people to be a part of repairing the Flag. The Flag is escourted by a member of the New York Fire Department.

A wonderful ceremony was held which included the history of the flag and how it came to be and was rescued from the ashes of 9-11-01. It was said that as that flag is mended so will our country be. Oh my how I wish that flag were completely mended! We gave a donation on that day to help with the cost of taking it across this country of ours and to help meet the needs of the wonderful people who have undertaken this project.

I hope that this flag and the little girl who was born on this day and tragically taken 9 1/2 years later will help to unite this country of ours and all of its citizens. I pray that the God who watches over us will lead us and guide us in all that we do and my sympathies and condolences are with the family of Christina today and always.

Barbara

Hello My Blogger Friends

2011-01-03T20:32:00.001-08:00

As you can see by the link on my sidebar to Cindy Adkins "I Owe It All To Him" featured blog artist button, yes my very kind friend has featured me on her blog. I feel so honored that she would think of me. Cindy is just that kind of wonderful person that anyone who has met her here in blogland knows is just the sort of special person that you really need in your life. She lifts her blogger friends up and genuinely cares for them. She has been such a great supporter of my gourd art that I would like to show you a few more of the pieces that I completed before Christmas:

Each gourd that I work with is grown here in the Ozarks. After growing for three months the gourd is left on the vine until the vine turns brown. Once the green gourd is harvested, it must dry over a period of another two - four months. After drying the gourd has to be cleaned by scrubbing all the mold off of it before it can be transformed. If a gourd is opened up up you must wear a mask while cleaning it or especially cutting and sanding it. I then do my thing so to speak to it. I use many different techniques on the gourds that I work with such as cutting, burning or carving and several different methods of applying color to the gourds. I've heard it said many times by artists who work with gourds that each particular gourd "speaks" to them and I have heard that call. Each one is unique and lets you know what it should become. Some gourds will set there for a long time before you figure out what they need to be, while others you know immediately. Working with gourds has really become a passion of mine and something that I truly love to create with. I thank you again Cindy for telling others about me and what I do with the humble gourd.

Some Pics and Prices for you

2010-12-12T10:11:00.000-08:00

Well here I am with a few minutes today to post some pictures of my work along with some prices (I hope). The first picture is of a nativity that I've made that I'm ever so proud of:

Price $65.00 + shipping

This picture was taken in the daytime and it really doesn't do the piece justice as to how it looks in the dark.

The next picture up is of a smaller filigree piece that is really pretty:

Price $40.00 + shipping

I took a really terrible picture of this next one but the lighting was bad. This piece has a lot of engraving all over it with blue in the engraved spots and green over the rest of the piece:

Price $45.00 + shipping

I hope someone loves this next piece 'cause it's a real beauty! It's topped with a deer antler with turquoise inset and beads in the front and a deer head woodburned on the back which is colored in waxes. There is leather coiled on the top and engraving on the sides. The background of the piece is colored with dye. The whole piece is coated with sealer to preserve it:

Price $55.00 + shipping

Price $20.00 + shipping
Looks just like the real apple doesn't it? Of course it's much larger and you can't eat it! This piece hasn't been opened up.

Once again this is not the best picture but it is a fantastic piece. When I first saw the gourd that makes up the body of this piece, all I could think of was.....pheasant. I do believe it turned out to be a quite beautiful pheasant if I do say so myself:

Price $100 + shipping

All of my pieces are cleaned thoroughly both inside and out. The inside of the gourd is finished off with a coat of paint and the outside of the gourd is sealed completely with a coat of polyurethane to keep it nice. All you have to do is dust it with a feather duster and keep it out of direct sunlight.

If there is a particular thing that you collect or have a perchance for you can let me know about what you're willing to spend on it and I can create something for you that's custom made. Just contact me and let me know what you like or you can certainly purchase one of the pieces that I've shown you today. I have only one of each of these so it's first come first served. Thanks for looking at my art and for being so supportive of me.

Catching Up

2010-12-11T20:55:00.000-08:00

Well folks here I am again trying to catch everyone up on what's been going on in my life. All I have to say is I've been Very busy working on my Gourd Art. I now have pieces in six different places and they have been selling well. That of course makes me very happy. I have been trying to read up on what everyone else is doing and how you're all getting along though. It's just hard to read all the blogs I follow and reply to very many. My slow time will be the first three months of the year, and I say slow without really knowing that for sure, it's just what I've been told. I do plan on working on some competition pieces when I get the time and enter my first competition in April.

I haven't really done any decorating since we're not going to be home for Christmas and my hubby didn't want to drag out all the decorations if we weren't going to be home. :( I have however been listening to a lot of Christmas music, I just love it don't you? The gifts are all coming along nicely and I'm just about done with that. We'll be going to El Paso, TX for Christmas and spending a couple extra days with one of our sons and his family.

I shall try to write a little more soon and show some pictures of Gourd Art pieces that I've completed. I do want to show a nativity that I designed and made. I've made two as the first one sold in a day, I just put the other one in a shop day before yesterday so we'll see how this one goes.

I'm gonna run for now and hope to talk to you more soon.

I'm Baaaack!!!

2010-10-06T13:45:00.000-07:00

I'm so sorry that I've been gone so long but I've been SUPER busy for the last few weeks! I now have Gourd Art pieces in a gallery in Hardy, AR and in a gallery in Norfork, AR. I'm so excited and happy to say that I've sold not one, not two, but THREE of my pieces in the Hardy Gallery!! I want to thank all of my blogging friends who told me to go for it, 'cause I do believe you all helped give me the courage to give it a try. Right now I'm working on some pieces for a two-day juried craft/art show in November plus I have another gallery in Harrison, AR that I want to have pieces in by the first of November. I'm also pleased as punch to mention (if I haven't already) that I've gotten my first commissioned gourd art piece ordered and I have to have that one made by the middle of December. I want to show you some of the things that I put in the gallery in Norfork, AR.

I didn't get pictures of all of the pieces but I hope to get the rest of them soon. I made a pheasant that I'm particularly proud of, (kinda like I was proud of the penguin mother and chick). What do you think? All the ones with toppers on them are boxes and the lids lift off. I'm working on an open piece right now that has flowers and butterflies on it. I think it's gonna be a pretty one also. In addition to all the gallery pieces that I've made, my hubby and son helped me make some very inexpensive things to put in a craft shop at a pumpkin patch about an hour and a half from home. We just got those placed in the craft shop last Friday and there were several of the little pieces that sold already. If you would like to purchase a Gourd Art piece from me, just send me a message and I'll be happy to give you a price quote. These pieces would make awesome Christmas gifts! Plus they are all Ooak pieces. Gotta run for now my friends, but I would like to mention that I've been thinking about a giveaway, maybe when I hit 100 followers????

Hugs XX Barbara

Sunday afternoon fun

2010-09-20T10:04:00.000-07:00

The hubby and I took off yesterday afternoon to attend the 2010 Ozark Mountain Artists Studio Tour. The tour was spread out over a "Lot" of road in Boone and Newton Counties in Arkansas. The organizers of this studio tour went through a lot of effort to put this tour together. Anyway you pick up a map along with the names of the artists and their particular medium or mediums that they work in and off you go! There were artists who work in silver jewelry, egg tempura, acrylics, batik, woodturning, photography, ceramics, fabric, pen & ink, pencils, mixed media and mosaics. We started out in Harrison, AR and headed down Hwy. 7 to our first stop and after seeing the sign for the artists on the Hwy. we traveled down a dirt road for 3 miles until we came to the first studio. Some of the artists had their tours in their studios and some in their homes. We traveled approximately 180 miles round trip and had a wonderful time meeting a lot of artists and enjoying their art work. We didn't get to see and meet all the artists listed on the map but now we've got other places to visit next year. We'll have to see some of the ones we saw this year again. I'm such a bad person, as I didn't take any pictures. Everything was so much fun that I totally forgot to take any pictures anyway. It was such an amazing tour and we met some really nice people who were sooo hospitable. They were just as interested in my art as I was in theirs. It was a beautiful sunny day and a great thing to do on a Sunday afternoon. Wish you could all have been there!

Hugs XX
Barbara

Gourd Art and more Gourd Art!

2010-09-08T14:30:00.000-07:00

Before I get started on this post, I first want to thank every one of my blogging friends and not blogging friends who come to this blogsite and read my posts and make comments. You've all been so uplifting and encouraging in your words. You really have given me the courage to take that first step out there in marketing my artwork. I really love creating with gourds and I'm so happy to have pieces already in one Gallery! I owe a good deal of that happening to my friends who have told me to "go for it", "your work is awesome" etc. I've prayed about this a great deal and I'm hoping that this is truly what the Lord has in mind for me to do. I've asked him to give me the talent and to help me express my talent thru my work in Gourd Art. Here are pictures of my latest work. If you see something that you would love to have just contact me and I'll get you a price list.

I've got to say, I'm terrible about uploading and posting pictures but here's seven of the newest pieces that I've made. I hope you like these also.

It looks like all prayers have been answered in regard to the weather around here. We got rain all day long yesterday and today it has been raining and sprinkling all day also. God does answer prayer, our ground has been so dry that it's cracking open all over, except for the places we've been watering. So far the gourds that we have planted are doing alright but the garden is a wreck. We're still getting just a few tomatoes and peppers but that's about all. Our Stevia plants are doing very well and we'll be harvesting them soon. Stevia is not hard to grow once you get the plant established but getting them established is another story. The root system is very close to the surface. They like to be kept damp but not wet and they definitely don't like to dry out. Once they're out in well fertilized ground though they do very well as long as they have water. The bugs leave them alone altogether. Yippee! We had a terrible time with bugs in the garden this year. We've tried organic methods of insect control but they didn't work very well and I'm not going to put insecticide on something that's going in my mouth! I hope everyone else has had better luck in gardening this year. We've got a very dear friend named John who let us come pick tomatoes from his garden (He's got a very green thumb) and we made 42 jars of Salsa from the tomatoes we picked! He's also growing some gourds for me and I can't wait to see how they turn out! I think I've done enough talking for one post. I know, I should post more often. I will try.

God Bless you all!

The latest Gourd Art!

2010-08-23T09:51:00.000-07:00

Sorry it's been so long since the last post, but I've been extremely busy finishing some gourd art that I had already started. Did you guess what was in the picture? Well here it is.....

Yes, it's a lovely Vase to put your dried Fall flower arrangement in!

It is even more impressive in person. The interior is a bronze/suede looking color. The background is green and the leaves that are carved around the vase are multi fall colors.

I have taken the advice and encouragement from all my blogger friends and have entered my pieces into the "Gourd Fine Art Show" at the Ozark Classic Crafts Gallery in Hardy, AR for the month of September, the "Gourd Fine Art Show" at the Riverview Emporium Gallery in Norfolk, AR for the month of October and I'll have my pieces at the "Craftsfest" at the Baxter County Fairgrounds in Mountain Home, AR on November 19th & 20th. Yes, all my art pieces will be for sale at each of the places that I just mentioned. I would like to show you a couple more pieces that I've completed along with prices. I will be happy to ship a piece out to you and add the postage to the final price if you decide you would like to have one of my pieces. The following is a piece that took considerable time to make and is three different gourds put together. I love this piece, and I think it is very special.

Price $125.00

What do you think of my lovely penguin mother and baby? I am very happy with it.

Price $35.00

This container is done in Fall colors, with leaves engraved on the top and engraving around the edge. I used dyes on all of the outside and paint on the inside.

Price $ 35.00

This container has dyes, waxes and paint on the outside and paint on the inside. It's done in lovely Fall colors.

I have been so happy with my Art and I feel that I've finally found my calling. The Gourd Art that I showed you in my last post is also for sale, just contact me at lmoore@flippinweb.com for prices. I hope you enjoy my Artwork as much as I enjoy creating it. I'll have more later on in the week I hope and your not gonna believe one of them. Let's just say that it represents something from the animal kingdom. I would love to hear from you all as I really value your opinions.

My Gourd Art

2010-07-27T13:39:00.000-07:00

In case anyone has been wondering what I've been up to in the past few weeks besides fishing..... Oh yes, I've been fishing again! I'm the one that caught the only brown trout for the day also. hehe That is one hobby if you will, that is soooo relaxing and fun, especially on the White River where I live. The temp of the water doesn't get above 52 degrees so you can guess what that does for the air just above it, yep it's much cooler than the regular temp and if you do get hot just stick a hand or foot in and you'll cool off immediately.

But I digress from the point of this post...Several posts ago, I told everyone about a Gourd Festival that the hubby and I went to in Sedalia, MO. We both took classes there and I showed you the cute penquin and snow angel that I made in my class along with pics from the gourd art at the festival. Well about a month ago the second son was here with his family and I took the daughter-in-law and granddaughter to a craft show while the guys went fishing. The first thing I spotted when we entered the door was a wonderful gourd art booth! Needless to say I stopped and looked and oohed and aahed and talked to the women and was invited to come to some gourd art classes! It took me a couple of weeks but I did go to the class, which is taught by Joyce Campbell, who is an amazing gourd artist! I've been going to class for three weeks now and have a few things to show that I've made:

The picture above is a container which could be used for many things

How do you like my funky chickens? hehe And don't forget the beautiful swan!

Here's a glimpse of one of the projects I'm currently working on.......

Got any ideas on what this is going to be?

I really feel sooo honored to be taking classes with such an amazing artist and...she told me that my work is good enough to enter into a show with her in October!! Woo Hoo! I've never thought I was that talented but I'm happy for the opportunity to sell my wares, so to speak. I've got to get several pieces done in the next few weeks, 'cause I'm GOING FOR IT!

I would love to hear some input from all my blogerrette sisters and everyone else who reads my blog. Do you feel I'm a good enough artist to sell my wares or what?

Hugs XX

Barbara

Fishing

2010-07-12T14:08:00.000-07:00

A little while back I mentioned that I was going to get to go fishing with my hubby and two of our sons. When I did there were a couple of people who said I needed to post pictures of the event. Well I'm happy to say that the guys did let me go along, but since we had all the trout we needed at home, we did a catch and release day. That was so much more fun because we could catch twice as much or more and boy did we ever! It was definitely not a slow fishing day at all but I only managed to get one picture of the sons, and Richard's Brown Trout. That was the only Brown caught that day and he was big but we didn't think quite big enough to keep.(A Brown has to be at least 18 inches long) The other son, David caught a nice big Cutthroat Trout but released it before I could snap a picture. Other than that we caught Rainbow Trout all day and a bunch of them. I think my hubby caught the largest. I know fishing isn't quite the thing for a lot of people but I just love it, especially when the fish are biting. Oh I didn't mention that this fishing trip was on the Fourth of July did I? What a great way to spend the Fourth and then we caught the fireworks that evening. I was very sunburned, even though the sky was overcast but extremely happy at the end of the day. Here's the one picture that I got to take:

Good looking men aren't they? Richard,(the one with the fish) had stopped over on his way from El Paso, TX to Georgia where he was going to school. He's a Major in the Army and had just moved his family from Monmouth, New Jersey to El Paso,TX the previous week and had to leave them for four months to attend a school that the Army wanted him to go to in Georgia. Anyway, I love to fish and will probably go again this week as soon as the thunderstorms quit. I bet we've received six inches or more of rain in the last two days. We've really needed the rain but it would have been better if it were spread out. I hope that this week is a good one for all of you and that you get to do something that you love to do.

Barbara

Happy Fourth of July!!

2010-07-03T19:13:00.000-07:00

Hello all fellow bloggers! I would like to wish everyone a very Happy 4th of July! I'm so very proud to be an American and to live in this great country of ours. I'm sure that there are many bloggers out there who live in other countries who think theirs is the greatest but I would have to argue with that. I hope that all your holiday preparations ended in a fantastic fireworks display!

I've got to also take the time right now give a big "Thank you" to Cindy from Whimsical Musings! She has presented me with the Versatile Blogger Award! I am so happy and also humbled.

It came with these instructions:

1. Thank the person who gave you the Award.
2. Share 7 things about yourself.
3. Pass the award along to 15 Bloggers who you have recently discovered and who you think are fantastic!
4. Contact the bloggers you've picked and let them know about the award.

Here's my list:
1. I have several collections, teapots (over two hundred), ruby red glass, doilies, teddy bears, Mary Engelbreit everything!
2. I love crafting and crochet!
3. I love to go fishing and will be going tomorrow with my hubby and two of our sons. Do I have it made or what? They really help me.
4. I also love to garden even though there are some things I can't do now, and besides the veggies I have flowers blooming all Summer.
5. I'm disabled and wondering what happened, but I just put on my big girl panties and deal with it.
6. I started taking classes today in Gourd Art. I'm lovin it.
7. If you don't know it, I recently joined the Bloggerette Sorority Sisters and I'm lovin that too!
I will be notifying all of the bloggers I have chosen within the next couple of days. I love all the wonderful people I've met in blog land!

Barbara

The Blogerette Sorority

2010-06-25T18:49:00.000-07:00

Wow folks, I've got to tell you that I've really had a time getting this picture into this post! I'm just as thrilled as can be at becoming a member of the "Blogerette Sorority". This has been rush week and I've been gone for the majority of it. Anyway as a condition of our "Rush" we were required to take the picture from "Some days are Diamonds blog" which is above this post and add our own picture to it. I didn't have time to do a whole lot so I used some Mary Engelbreit background and then put the Sorority picture and a picture of myself next to it. I'm no expert at messing with pictures and such that's for sure. I've also had the Sorority button on the right side of my blog for awhile now. So far this has been a really fun thing and I do believe it will bring a lot people closer here on the blogesfere. If you so feel inclined, please join us in the Sorority. There isn't any time limit to becoming a member.

Hugs XX
Barbara

Summertime

2010-06-14T12:27:00.000-07:00

Summertime and the plants are growing and the flowers are blooming! I just had to take a picture of my favorite Hosta, Hydrangea and Astilbe. We also have Daylilies, Shasta Daisies,Clematis, Roses and Rose of Sharon blooming all around the yard. Our garden has finally started to take off. It seems like the vegetables are running close to a month behind. I know it has to do with the Spring we had. Right now it's not getting below 70 degrees at night though and in the 90's during the day. We could really use some rain here even though several people perished in the SW part of the state this past weekend because of flash flooding. I've been so sad over that and especially sad over the loss of several children.

This is a red and white hotpad that I made as part of the June 2010 CAL on Crochet Soiree. Hope I win a prize. The Summer Sling Tote that's pictured above was made for my oldest Granddaughter. I hope she likes it. She picked out the yarn from some pics that her Dad emailed to her and the lining is from some vintage fabric that I picked up at an estate sale. Her twin sisters call her a hippy.LOL Personally, I like her style 'cause she's her own person. Our oldest son will be here late Thursday evening with his family on their move to their new home in El Paso, TX. He's a major in the Army and is being assigned to a new place. Counting the son who's staying with us for awhile and this son and family there will be 10 people in my house for three days. It should be fun though. Everyone is over 21 except for the youngest who is 13. I know there will be fishing and swimming going on. I'm gonna have to quit chatting away and get the house cleaned up and ready. Ick Hope you all have a fun filled week.

What's on the hooks?

2010-05-20T13:29:00.000-07:00

I've looked at several other blogs to see what everyone is doing lately and I've seen some terrific stuff. "The Garden Bell" has some hookie goodness going on, not to mention "Pammy Sue's Place", "Attic24", "Crocheting My Bestest with my Worsted", "Shropshire Suz", and many many more. Lovely, colorful, hookie things that are so useful and beautiful at the same time. I just finished up a tote bag that will be given away as a prize at the end of the month to one lucky winner of the CAL for May at "Crochet Soiree".

Ta-Dah!

The colors in this photo really don't give the tote bag justice. The yarn is Vanna's Choice in the "Autumn" color for the body and the sides are Vanna's Choice in the "Brick" color. I love the colors and I also lined the bag and added a couple of pockets on the inside. If you are interested in winning this or winning a crocheted purse made by Molly of "Crocheting my bested with my Worsted" or a gorgeous doily made by Tamara Gonzales of "Tamara's Take" on Crochet Soiree. Just join the Crochet Soiree site (it's free ) and make at least one of two patterns which have been chosen for this contest. They are not hard to do and the names are chosen at random to pick the winners.

I've also never taken pictures of any of the granny squares that I've made so today I thought I would do just that.

I thought I'd give you two pictures of each. I'm sure that I've made well over one hundred granny squares of different types since I learned how to crochet a little over a year ago.

Well I've got to get other things made so that I can show them to you, so you all have a happy day!

Here I Am!

2010-05-07T14:27:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone! I hope this post finds everyone happy and content. I've been so busy recently that I think I may have met myself. Yes, we did go to the Gourd Festival held in Sedalia, MO and enjoyed ourselves immensely. The hubby and I both took classes and thought that they were great. We both enjoyed our instructors but I know that I got the funnest ones........."The Gourd Sisters, Lindy and Ann"! They live in Ballwin, MO and are very talented gourd artists. Here's an example of what I made in my class:

I really liked how my little gourd penguin and snowangel turned out. What about you?

Now here are some of the pictures of gourd items entered into the competition:

Yes my dears, these were all made out of gourds! Can you believe that motorcycle? There was even a tabletop working merry-go-round. I was amazed at all the beautiful things that I saw and yes I took TONS of pictures. We also bought a lot of gourds for working with and have since purchased a lot of the stuff we need to do some gourd crafting of our own! I'll show you more pictures when I get some things completed. It really was a great trip and I think I made some new friends while we were there.

This past week I made two baby bibs exactly like this first one that I made:

And mailed them off to Doug the IT guy over at Crochet Soiree 'cause he's expecting twin girls in the month of May. Now I've started working on a prize for the May CAL over on Crochet Soiree. I'm making a granny tote which will be lined as one of the prizes in Autumn colors. If you know how to crochet or want to learn how, you need to get on over to http://www.crochetsoiree.com/ right away and enter the CAL and contest. The details about it are in the Tamara's blog before last. Easy projects and nice prizes too~ Come on over and join us. Well dears I have a lot to do in a little time and I'm also going to the Farmer's Market as a seller tomorrow. I've got some lovely irises, daylilies, sweet basil, spearmint, oregano, tomato plants, zucchini plants etc. to sell. Wish me luck! More to come in the future.

HugsXX Barbara

What a wonderful week!

2010-04-22T12:17:00.000-07:00

This lovely award has been given to me by Indigo Blue!

Many thanks to you Indigo Blue, what a lovely surprise.

I now need to pass this on to 10 other beautiful bloggers. Not easy this and I will try to spread these out a bit each time I am lucky enough to get an award. So here goes:

Molly @ Crocheting My Best with My Worsted
Lucy@ Attic24
Suz@ Suz's Crochet Groove
Bev@ One Yarn After Another
Nancy & Gdog@ The Strawberry Mallard
Kate@ The Garden Bell
Deneen@ Yarns and Musings
Paulette@ Beedeebabee
Jeanne@ Creative Bliss
Beansieleigh@ Beansie Babbles

Many thanks to everyone that visits here as well. If I get another award I'll spread it around also. When I get finished with this post I have to go send out a few emails. LOL

Well I finished the scarf I was making for the CAL that's going on over on Crochet Soiree. If anyone is interested, there's still time to crochet that scarf pattern and get it entered before the end of the month. Crochet Soiree and Tamara Gonzales are giving away some really neat prizes to those who enter a scarf that they've completed.

I also finished this baby blanket this month. The body of the blanket was done entirely in backpost sc. It's a Sirdar yarn that's Cotton/Acrylic blend. I really like it but there certainly were a lot of color changes back and forth!
And then to show you one of my prized irises:

Isn't it just a beauty? And here's a picture of the red Azaleas in front of the house:

Aren't they just beautiful also? We have white and pink Azaleas too.

I hope you enjoyed the blog today and will come back to share with me. I'll be bringing back pictures from the Gourd Festival to share with you in a few days. We'll be leaving in the morning and won't be back until Monday. I'm so thankful that my oldest son will be here to take care of everything. Have a great weekend everyone.

How does your garden grow?

2010-04-15T17:23:00.000-07:00

Well friends I haven't had a lot of time to do any blogging lately as I've been very busy in the greenhouse and garden. I don't know if I've mentioned it before but my hubby and I have been growing flowers and gardening for the past few years. This year was "the" year to sell some flowers that we have propagated, so for the past few weeks we have been going to the local "Farmers Market" in a town about 15 miles from us to sell them. It was a slow start but things have started getting better. We've sold Tulips, Irises, and Loblolly Pines. This week we have Shasta Daisies, Torch Lilies, Liriope grass and some vegetables that we've gotten started in our greenhouse.....cucumbers, squash, zucchini and luffah. Yes I've been really busy and it's been especially hard on me because I can only do a little at a time and then I'm not good for anything for awhile. Boo Hoo! So enough of that.

I have however been trying to blog hop as much as possible because you all give me such inspiration and instruction. I haven't had time to do a lot of posting on your blogs but rest assured I have been reading and learning all I can.

Weekend after next we're going to go to a Gourd Festival in Missouri. It's a two day event in Sedalia, MO. We're hoping to learn a lot about Gourd Art while there. Gourds are another thing that we've planted. My hubby is quite the artist though he won't admit it and I would like to give a go at gourd painting. The festival that we are going to has classes on all types of gourd art. I think it will really be fun. I've been assured that there will be plenty of places where I can sit down. I plan on taking my camera with me and getting as many pictures as possible. In the meantime whenever I'm at the Farmers Market or at home in the evening, I'm crocheting my little heart out! I'll be posting some more pictures of crochet projects I've completed soon.

Happy crocheting!
Barbara

What a giveaway!

2010-04-11T09:59:00.000-07:00

If you haven't heard about it yet IHAN (I have a notion) they have a fantastic giveaway going on!!! This is there one year anniversary and they are giving away fantastic gifts everyday for 30 days. Unfortunately, I just found out about it but there is still time to enter for some fantastic prizes. Here's their information for getting to where you need to be:
Blog Link: http://www.ihaveanotion.blogspot.com/
Website Link : http://ihavea-notion.com/store/ Please go there and give it a look see, what a terrific store to check out.

April is here!

2010-04-02T09:27:00.000-07:00

I'm sure that Spring is here in the first part of April, but I wanted to share my last crochet experience if you will for the month of March. As you know, March was National Crochet month and my last crochet thing that I did was to crochet on the courthouse square in a town close to me. My husband and I were selling tulips and irises which we have been growing for the past few years at the Farmers Market which is held on the courthouse square every Wednesday and Saturday. As we waited for customers I had my bag of crochet and worked on it. I got to talk to several people about crochet while we were there which was a lot of fun. We've been so busy planting seed for our garden that its been hard finding the time to crochet at all. But crochet I have at every available moment!

I want to remind everyone about the Crochet-A-Long which is being held over on the Crochet Soiree website. The CAL starts on April 5th and runs through the end of the month. You should really go on over and sign up and join in "cause in addition to the CAL, they are also going to have some fantastic giveaways! Go on over and check it out http://www.crochetsoiree.com/ Hope to see you all there!

What have you done for Crochet Month?

2010-03-21T21:29:00.000-07:00

I'm sure that everyone who's reading this blog knows that March is Crochet Month! Have any of you taught someone else to crochet or maybe learned to crochet yourselves? I taught myself to crochet just a little over a year ago and I'm happy to say I'm in love with crochet! I've always got a crochet project going on.

Another thing is I have a very special crochet designer that I follow and try to promote whenever possible. Her name is Tamara Gonzales and she has a blog called Tamara's Take on the Crochet Soiree website. Here is a link to the website: http://www.crochetsoiree.com/ I hope that you each go there and read her blog. Another thing I'd like to see you all do is join us April 2 or so for a CAL that we'll have going on. We're gonna be using one of Tamara's first patterns for a scarf, which I hope everyone can use either as a Christmas present or for charity. Leisure Arts is publishing Tamara's first book which will be out in the next couple of weeks. I'll be posting more about the book just as soon as it comes out. Tamara is a great new designer kid on the block who has a wonderful personality and is a genuinely nice person. You'll love to get to know her. Let me know what you think okay? Thanks friends.

It's another giveaway!

2010-03-08T18:54:00.000-08:00

I want to let everyone know about this wonderful giveaway that's going on over at Birchberry Farms. She has started a new line of lotions to go along with her soaps and is having a wonderful giveaway. You can got to her blog to enter: http://www.birchberryfarms.blogspot.com/

One World One Heart Giveaway and More!

2010-03-08T12:48:00.000-08:00

Recently there was an outstanding blog hop called OWOH or One World One Heart giveaway, where people who had blogs and wanted to participate could sign up and giveaway one gift to a lucky person who visited their blog and signed up for the prize. Some blog sites gave away up to five gifts I believe. Anyway, I did a "bunch" of blog hopping and met a lot of very talented people who had so much to share. It was really an amazing thing both for the blogs who participated and for the people who went around and visited as many blog sites as they could. All in all, there were over "one thousand" blog sites that participated! I went to as many places as I could and signed up for a lot of gifts, and guess what? I won five gifts from different people at different blog sites!! I'm going to try to post them here and let you know who they are from:

This is a lovely "Baktus" scarf in a beautiful blue, 100% Wool sent by Hazel Henry. Thank you Hazel!

The next gift is a beautiful antique collar with a lot of handsewn pearls on it, and also some wonderful tea. This gift was from Nancy Benanito-Sgromolo.

Isn't this just the cutest little penguin ornament you've ever seen? It was designed and made by Josie Ditzler.

I won this beautiful decorated letter "B" (which is the first letter of my name, how cool is that?) And I also received this sweet pocket card with lots of embellishments for me to use to decorate something, now wasn't that sweet? The wonderful artist who did all that for me is Bee Beryl at: http://nannabeeshive.blogspot.com

Last but certainly not least of the artists who I won a one of a kind piece of art designed by themselves is, Gina Luna. You can find her blogspot here: http://inginasworld.blogspot.com

Weren't those just the most wonderful pieces of art and gifts that you've ever seen? I would highly recommend to each and everyone who reads this, that they participate in the OWOH next year, both as a blogger who joins in and gives away a gift, and as a blog hopper who goes around and meets a lot of new people and wins a lot of gifts. The gifts are a bonus, and meeting new people and making new friends is what it's all about. I plan on doing both next year, so stay tuned!!

Now then, in addition to all the wonderful gifts that I received in the OWOH, I entered another giveaway on Craftside and won a book! This is a good one and they let me choose what type book I wanted. Of course you all know that I love to crochet so I asked for a book of crochet if they had one. Here's what I received:

Isn't this just so cool? It not only has the pattern for knitting each project, it also has the pattern in crochet!!! This book is going to be so helpful. I love the Craftside blog. I think you can go there this way: www.craftside.com. Anyway give it a try and if that's wrong I'll correct it soon. I've been waiting awhile to do a blog about all these wonderful things. You all have no idea how much winning all this stuff has meant to me. I've also made friends and followers by participating that I'm so grateful for. I want to thank everyone once again. Thank you!

Moore Whimsie late breaking information

2010-02-28T12:59:00.000-08:00

Just got this info in today but want to let everyone possible know about the GREAT giveaway that's going on at
Prima Marketing. Please go check it out today 'cause you'll love it.

http://prima.typepad.com/prima/2010/02/prima-has-something-really-big-coming-your-way-------but-we-cant-reveal-it-just-yet-we-know-youre-going-to-love-it.

I don't think it'll be long now............

2010-02-21T17:42:00.000-08:00

No I really don't think that it will be that long before Spring has sprung! A scant six days and the month of February will be officially over and March will be here. Two weeks into March and wonderful daylight savings time will begin (March 14). I love daylight savings time! I'm one of those people who get a lot happier once Winter is over. Except for Thanksgiving and Christmas, Winter doesn't really have anything but cold and snow. I know that Spring is just around the corner 'cause if you can believe this we've had flocks of robins this past week and when I got up and looked out the back this morning, there were three bluebirds in the backyard! Now that made me feel all smiley as soon as I saw them. This past week we had three days where the temps were in the high fifties to low sixties, and that my friends is a mere temptation of the things to come! Of course that's after we have another bout of cold and possibly snow. However that is not going to get me down because I know what's right around the corner!

Now for my crocheting WIP's , I've been working for several days on my first baby blankie. Unfortunately, I made a poor choice in patterns, not because the blankie will turn out badly but because the blankie is made up entirely of single crochet! That's a lot of stitches folks and it's in a stripe so there's quite a bit of color changing, back and forth, back and forth because I'm only using two colors.

One other thing I want to say is that I truly appreciate each one of you who ended up at my blog while you were blog hopping in OWOH! I sooo plan on being one of the blog sites entered next year and I've got a whole year to come up with a giftie or two to giveaway. That will make it even more fun than this year, at least for me, maybe. I did a lot of blog hopping of my own and I'm soo tickled to be able to say that I won some prizes! When I receive them I will post pictures along with who's wonderful gifties they came from.

Folks if you're looking for a fantastic giveaway, you need to check out Lila Tueller, of Lila Tueller Designs because she is giving away one of the most beautiful quilts that I've ever seen. She also has prizes for 2nd and 3rd place, prizes of pattern 3 packs!
So stay tuned friends, there's,

Barbara Moorecrochet:)

2010-02-09T11:13:00.000-08:00

I think this Winter has been one of the coldest and has had more snow than there has been in many years. We got a foot of snow about a week and a half ago and the temps dropped into the teens and here we are again with us receiving about 7-8 inches of snow and the temp dropped to 15 degrees this morning. Brrrr!
And now they're talking more snow in a couple of days.

It really makes you wonder what Spring's gonna be like. Are we going to get a lot of rain? Is it going to stay Winter long past when it should have left? I'm certainly glad that I haven't had to get outside or to come into contact with anyone carrying the H1N1 virus! It won't be long before it will be time to start planting seed indoors to get a jump start on the growing season.

Has everyone been participating in the OWOH (One World One Heart) giveaway? Check out my last posting to read all about it. I can tell you this, I've been hopping all around the blogging world and checking out others blogs. The last time I looked there were over 1000 bloggers who have joined into this "Magic Carpet Ride"

What have you been working on crochet wise? I finished and mailed off two scarves for the WomenHeart project. February is Women's Heart month. I've also been working on the "Inga Bag". I finished the crochet part and now I'm down to lining it and finishing it off. I've also gotten a few squares finished and mailed off to women that I'm in a granny square swap with. Hmm what next? I don't know right now but I have a few thoughts on it.

I hope everyone can stay warm and safe and hopefully I'll be back soon!

OWOH (One World One Heart)

2010-01-28T10:42:00.000-08:00

I hope that everyone takes a little time to go and check out the OWOH blog hop. It actually started on the 25th of January and will continue until the 15th of February. Go to the link to join in on the fun. This hop is for bloggers only and was started just a couple of years ago to give bloggers an opportunity to meet other bloggers, make new friends and check out the items that other bloggers make. It's really neat but can be something that takes up a bit of time hopping from blog to blog and signing up for their giveaways. I know I'm glad that I found it and I have every intention of signing up to participate next year as a blog to go to. If you go blog hopping please come back and give me a little feedback. Thanks

Illuminate: OWOH - The Prizes

2010-01-27T23:30:00.000-08:00

Illuminate: OWOH - The Prizes

Indigo Blue: Italian holiday Giveaway - 400+Posts too.AND FleaMarketStyle giveaway

2010-01-25T19:24:00.000-08:00

Indigo Blue: Italian holiday Giveaway - 400+Posts too.

Wow folks, Flea Market Style Magazine' blogspot is having a wonderful, stupendous giveaway also! Check it out:

New blog/New contest

2010-01-24T22:30:00.000-08:00

This is something that I didn't think of to try when I first started blogging but it's a great idea. Go on over to Everyday Life and join in on her contest. She's new to blogging and is trying to get some new followers. So go on over and give it a try. I know I'm grateful for the followers that I have here. Maybe I should have a contest myself? I think that would be quite fun. Keep following the blog and find out!http://everydaylifebymandy.blogspot.com/