Just click your mouse anywhere on the black space,
or click and drag your mouse, it's even better!

http://www.procreo.jp/labo/flower_garden.swf

Thanks to my friend Ruthy for sending me this, xxoo Astrid

Today is the First day of the Rest of your Life!

My first CHARM SWAP!

Good Morning! My muse visits late again! Sheesh can I get some sleep! These have been waiting to be created for a month now, and they are due to be swapped! So I am glad to have been able to catch a creative wave! Here they are, aren't they kewl! They are made with clay faces, a watch face, wings, airplane panel switch covers, word beads and hearts. This will be my first charm swap and I am excited. Well off to bed, xxooo Astrid

Asia Blue-True Colors Deco Swap

I did this set of pages for a Deco Swap I am in entitled True Colors. We all pick a color and create pages using that color. Also I think Connie (owner of True Colors Deco I was working in) wanted our true colors to shine through. I received it a couple of days ago and didn't have any plans on working on it so soon, because I have other projects that are due sooner.
My muse decided to visit last night around 8 pm. Usually I am winding down things and preparing for bed. As I was cleaning up, I came upon a couple of cards that I bought the other day. They were done in a Monochromatic Blue. I looked at the chart of colors that Connie provided and Blue was available! So I started gathering all things blue, I wasn't going to work on the deco, just gather, but I started getting excited about the items I had gathered and had a pile of two different styles. One was Pre-Rafaelite and the other Asian. I didn't have a plan but let my design evolve and it took a while to adjust things on the page and I kept going and before I knew it I was in a full blown art zone, you know when you look up at the clock and hours have gone by! I started to see an Asian theme emerge, and my true colors did come out because I am an Asian lover and there is a lot of my favorite things on this page, like butterflies, dragonflies, Japanese people and calligraphy. Well the above spread is what I came up with, and I wish you could feel the textures and see the real blue hues, the scan doesn't show the "true color". I hope you like it Connie! xxxooo Astrid

Seize the Day!

I hate housework, ok I said it! I am pretty neat and organized in my household and love a clean house, I just hate to clean it myself! Let me rephrase that, I don't hate to clean, I just hate to stop what I am doing in my art studio to go and clean. And then there's the obsessive side of me that has to stick with a project until it gets done, which is good in some ways but not when it comes to taking care of kids and DH. I mean Dinner is at 6 and it usually happens right when I'm on a roll with something I am doing with my ebay store or a project that has a deadline! And the dust bunnies will come and visit if I turn my back!! And as much as I love my dog, she has thick black hair that just falls off everywhere!
So I tried something different today and I think it might be my answer! I started by setting my timer for 15 minutes. I checked my emails and ebay business , answered questions and visited my online groups. When the timer went off, I stopped and did the laundry and changed all the sheets. timer went off and went back and photographed new items for ebay, played with my doggie and timer went off and swept and mopped floors, hey I like this! And I have a loud timer, that makes sure I hear the tick tock and motivates me to get the job done! I am amazed at what I was able to do in 15 mins ! So if you're like me and hate housework, try the timer, let me know how it works! xxoo Astrid

Bee Happy

I have been sick for days with the dreaded pollen headache. It's seasonal but its seems like a very long season.I was taking OTC medicine every day and it was working up until the beginning of the week when I started feeling a dull ache in my sinus area. I looked online at pollen.com and read the high pollen counts for my area, oh that's why I feel like crap!! Up until recently I didn't even know I had allergies, just thought I was stressed, pms, or had menopause! I was in South Florida for a year and didn't have one episode, but as soon as I moved back to Gainesville within 2 days I had all the symptoms, I finally put two and two together. I went to the doctor because after three days I wasn't getting any better and I wasn't getting any work done! Now I have some prescription medicine and it's not cheap! so we'll see. I am still grateful for the pollen because I love greenery, and I love trees! Gainesville is known for being a city full of trees. The above ATC reminds me to Bee Happy under any circumstance! xxxooo Astrid

Path

I love paths and have a few pictures of paths in my photo collection. I have recently joined the digital age and I am taking pictures of everything now! This is a path that my husband and I took on Easter Sunday. It's called Payne's Prairie. It's a local state preserve and although I have lived near Gainesville, FL for more than a decade, we've only been twice. It was a relaxing walk, with birds calling out to each other and you can hear the wind through the trees. Being both workaholics, we relished getting away from computers and phones for the day and enjoyed the view and each other's company.

Another Page

Here's another page from the same Vintage Animal Deco. I used a technique that I love to do. I glue a thick image to another paper and then when dry I peel it off and end up with a torn image. That's how I did the background. Instant aging! I then glue this to another decorative paper.

Deco I am working on

This is a Deco I am working on for Hope, it has a neat wasp nest that I found on Thanksgiving Day while I was vacationing in North Carolina. It's hard to see the dimension it adds to this piece. I used some packaging to safeguard the delicate nest from any handling.

Welcome to my little Corner!

Welcome! I am working on some great projects and can't wait to share them with you, just as soon as I figure this blogging thing out! xxxoooo Astrid