The Birds

The challenge for the second swap was to create Twinchies with birds on them. Twinchies are 2 inch squares that become the canvas for the art.  One might think this is small so it should be easy but when I began to try to fill 4 square inches with art that was small enough and made sense, they seemed like a lot of white space.  I've made inchies (1 inch squares) and they didn't seems as hard as Twinchies.  Let's take a look at what I came up with....

OK, for the first card I was inspired by a tag that I saw on Pinterest.  The tag used products by Tim Holtz.   I didn't use those products on my Twinchie but I did take the basic idea for the meadow and the mosaic.

First I punched a 2 inch square.  I covered this square with torn dictionary pages and Modge Podge.  While that dried, I cut a second square at 1 3/4 inches.  Using ink pads from Studio G, I colored in a grassy area and sky.  I usually just turn the pad over and use it straight from the container.  The grass was made with light green up to the middle of the card and the sky using light blue down to about the middle.  I then took a darker blue and a darker green and went back over those areas stopping short of the middle.  That gives the center a lighter look.  Next I stamped flower images using Stampin' Up stamps and Staz On brown ink.  I also stamped circles on the sky area using light green ink. Once the 2 inch square was dry, I coated it with Ranger Distress Ink in walnut using a cotton ball.  While that dried, I cut the smaller square into 16 small squares.  I reassembled the scene on top of the 2 inch square.  The bird is from a Momenta stamp on card stock that I had inked with the distress ink.  To give it a raised look that wasn't too high, I put the bird on a piece of cereal box that I doubled in thickness by gluing 2 pieces together and cut it out with my Exacto knife.  It is attached with glue on top of everything.

This Twinchie was much simpler.  I punched the square from a sheet of 140 lb water color paper and covered the paper with gesso.  The moon and sky were painted using blue and white acrylic paints.  I needed a large swirl.  To get this to work, I had to tape the small card to my craft mat using painters tape on the back. I painted it using a large circle that went off the small card.  Next, I painted the swirly tree and bird silhouettes with black acrylic paint. The edges weren't very crisp since my smallest paint brush was still too thick so I went around the edges of the birds with a black gel pen.

For this Twinchie, I punched  the 2 inch square from a piece of thick white cardboard from a package of gel pens.  I always save these thick pieces of packaging because they make great bases for ATCs.  All of the inks I used on this card were from Studio G.  I stamped light blue swirls on the white card using an Inkadinkado stamp.  I antiqued the card using Ranger Distress Ink in tea stain using a cotton ball.  I then stamped the cage using black ink and the key using gold ink. Those stamps were from a bag I got at a yard sale.  Next, I stamped music on the white cardboard and used a chip board bird from Studio G as the template.  I cut out the bird, inked the edges, and attached it to the top then traced around it using white Souffle gel pen.  The little silver hearts were confetti I got in a card for Valentine's day.

  The last little birdie was started using a 2 inch square punched from a cereal box. I covered the square with gesso.  Once the gesso was dry, I used a light blue ink pad and lightly coated the gesso. Next, I stamped a variety of swirls and flowers using dark green and olive green inks.  I free hand cut out the bird shape from patterned paper and cut the wing from a scrap of dictionary page that was colored by pressing it down on blue and pink ink pads.  Once the ink was dry, I attached the bird and coated the whole thing with matte Modge Podge to seal it.  Last, I went around the bird and the edge of the card with brown marker and used white gel pen to add accents.

For the Birds

Over the past couple of weeks, I've joined 2 art swaps that revolved around birds.  The first was a Birdhouse ATC swap but the catch was that the ATC had to be in the shape of a birdhouse and still fit the overall size of an ATC (2.5 x 3.5 inches).  The swap was open to any medium so my techniques ranged from hand painting to stamping to collage.  

For the birdhouses, I started by cutting out a template to use but after creating the first house, I decided that it would make me happier to change each one.  As a result, each house is shaped just a little differently.  Each house started with a chipboard ATC and was then cut into the shape it became.  So let's take a look at them and I'll tell you how it was made.

 For the first house, I cut the shape then painted it with a coat of light blue watercolor paint.  Next, I covered parts of the shape with patterned paper.  I wish I knew where I got these papers but I have had them far too long and they weren't marked.  The trim was cut from a part of a pink VooDoo Doughnut box. The flowers were punched and the centers were inked with metallic gel pens.  The little birds were stamped on patterned paper then cut out.  Finally, the words were printed using a text box with a patterned background.

For the second house, I cut out the shape then covered it with green and yellow polka dot paper.  The chimney was also covered in the polka dot paper.  I used a scrap of different patterned paper for the base.  The roof was cut from the inside of an envelope. The flower was punched and inked.  The tiny bird was stamped and cut out then the reverse side was painted and accents were drawn on using gel pens.  The fence was free hand drawn "boards" cut out and glued together. All accents, including the roof shingles and chimney were added using gel pens.  The music notes were stamped.

 This house turned out very different than the first two.  The shape was cut and covered with plain white cardstock.  The light blue swirls were stamped using Stampin' Up stamps.  I added the light blue circle as an opening.  Once those were dry, I coated the whole thing with Delta Ceramcoat Pearl Finish paint.  Next, I covered the base of the house with Studio G glitter Glue and added the white trim using Scribbles 3D paint.  I punched fleur de lis from paper coated with the Pearl Finish.  I added the lace and accented it with Scribbles 3D paint "pearls" then attached the fleur de lis.  Finally, I made paper roses from punched flowers.  Each rose took 3 flowers that were cut and glued into this shape.  I got the idea from a video on YouTube.  I don't have a 6 petal punch so I had to improvise using my 5 petal flower.

This picture is hard to see because the roof is white and I didn't think to scan it with something over the back.  The last house was cut out without a base.  The house is painted with a coat of acrylic paint and then the black circle was added.  I punched scalloped circles and cut them in half to use as the scalloped roof line.  Before adding them to the house, I coated each one with Liquitex Light Modeling Paste to give it some texture.  I applied it using my fingers so there are ridges and peaks in the texture.  Finally, I punched flowers and free hand cut out leaves and vines.  I attached these but it still felt bare.  I decided to add the yellow butterfly that was left over from a different project.  I stamped tiny circles in light green then coated the whole butterfly with Perfect Pearls medium and powder.The trim, dots, and flower centers were made using Scribbles 3D paint.