Monday, January 26, 2009
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Let's go for a drink
What goes through your mind when someone says "Let's go for a drink"?
Click on the images for a better view :-D
Click on the images for a better view :-D
Sunday, January 18, 2009
A Good Year
Continuing with the masks - This layout has only a tiny detail done with a mask – the number “7.” I used a brown ink and a dense background stamp on the apricot paper. Then I placed the 7 mask on it and used a fantastix brush from Tsukineko to make a dark outline using the same brown. Then I cut out the 7, leaving a thin border of brown around the stamped design.
This same effect can be created with a stencil, but with the mask, the stamped part of the image is done first and you can get a crisper image because the stamp is applied directly to paper without a stencil in the middle. The result is much better with a mask than with a stencil.
This same effect can be created with a stencil, but with the mask, the stamped part of the image is done first and you can get a crisper image because the stamp is applied directly to paper without a stencil in the middle. The result is much better with a mask than with a stencil.
A couple of fonts
First site offers free download of a font called 'The Village Font' which is a derivative of Albertus.
Second site offers free download of the 'Planet of the Apes' font
(via BB)
Second site offers free download of the 'Planet of the Apes' font
(via BB)
Hero of the Hudson
Hats off to Chesley B Sully Sullenberger III, of California. Mr Sullenberger landed the Airbus A320 into the river shortly after taking off from La Guardia airport in New York. Both of the plane's engines were damaged after it hit a flock of geese. Of the 150 passengers and five crew on board Flight 1549, one person suffered two broken legs, but there were no other reports of serious injuries.
Indian version of the Frog Prince fairy tale
Here we have the Indian version of the Frog Prince fairy tale. Fortunately for my breakfast, the heroines in this tale did not have to kiss their froggys. They all went back to their original lives and lived happily ever after! or at least ... so I hope.
In a bizarre ritual, two minor girls, both seven, from the remote Pallipudupet village in Tamil Nadu's Villupuram district were married off to frogs on Friday night. The ceremony, an annual feature during the Pongal (harvest) festival, is conducted "to prevent the outbreak of mysterious diseases in the village''.
The girls, Vigneswari and Masiakanni, dressed up in traditional bridal finery - gilded sarees and gold jewellery - married the frog 'princes' in separate, elaborate ceremonies at two different temples in the presence of hundreds of villagers.
Amidst chanting of vedic hymns, the temple priests garlanded the brides and tied the magalsutras on behalf of the frogs pronouncing the two as wives of the amphibians before the sacred fire at the auspicious hour. The villagers threw themselves into the ceremonies with gusto. While residents living in the western part of the village acted as relatives of the brides and those from the eastern part play-acted as relatives of the grooms The ceremonies had all the usual elements of a traditional marriage including a sumptuous feast.
However, unlike the fairy tale `Frog Prince', where the ugly toad turns into a handsome prince when the princess kisses it, the Villupuram village belles bid their amphibian grooms goodbye and lead a normal life thereafter. As for the terrified frogs, they are thrown back into the temple ponds after the ceremony.
(Link)
The girls, Vigneswari and Masiakanni, dressed up in traditional bridal finery - gilded sarees and gold jewellery - married the frog 'princes' in separate, elaborate ceremonies at two different temples in the presence of hundreds of villagers.
Amidst chanting of vedic hymns, the temple priests garlanded the brides and tied the magalsutras on behalf of the frogs pronouncing the two as wives of the amphibians before the sacred fire at the auspicious hour. The villagers threw themselves into the ceremonies with gusto. While residents living in the western part of the village acted as relatives of the brides and those from the eastern part play-acted as relatives of the grooms The ceremonies had all the usual elements of a traditional marriage including a sumptuous feast.
However, unlike the fairy tale `Frog Prince', where the ugly toad turns into a handsome prince when the princess kisses it, the Villupuram village belles bid their amphibian grooms goodbye and lead a normal life thereafter. As for the terrified frogs, they are thrown back into the temple ponds after the ceremony.
(Link)
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Tips for a better life
These tips were shared by Dawn of SSR (Thanks Dawn!) and I really liked reading them - lots of sensible and positive thoughts which are always welcome. As Nettie said, some of them are easier to apply than others. But there is something in these for everyone!
- Take a 10-30 minutes walk every day. And while you walk, smile.
- Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day.
- Sleep for 7 hours.
- Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy.
- Play more games.
- Read more books than you did the previous year.
- Make time to practice meditation, yoga, and prayer. They provide us with daily fuel for our busy lives.
- Spend time with people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.
- Dream more while you are awake.
- Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
- Drink plenty of water.
- Try to make at least three people smile each day.
- Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.
- Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner with his/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.
- Don't have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
- Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
- Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.
- Smile and laugh more.
- Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate others.
- Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
- You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
- Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.
- Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about. Don't compare your partner with others.
- No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
- Forgive everyone for everything.
- What other people think of you is none of your business.
- However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
- Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.
- Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
- Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
- The best is yet to come.
- No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
- Do the right thing!
- Call your family often.
- Your inner most is always happy. So be happy.
- Each day give something good to others.
- Don't over do. Keep your limits.
The Best Job in the World!
You have just over a month to apply for this job: The caretaker of the islands of the Great Barrier Reef! Checkout the website: The Best Job in the World
Basically you get paid to live in one of the most beautiful places in the world, to swim, snorkel, and blog. And even if you are not interested in the job because yours is better - take a look at the website - browsing through the photographs is like taking a mini holiday.
Basically you get paid to live in one of the most beautiful places in the world, to swim, snorkel, and blog. And even if you are not interested in the job because yours is better - take a look at the website - browsing through the photographs is like taking a mini holiday.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Beach Babes
I used the wavy edge of a 12X12 stencil to draw the waves that the photographs follow. Once I matted the photos onto the speckled brown cardstock, I lightly pencilled onto the background cardstock exactly where I wanted the photo wave. Then I printed the title (only the word “beach”), the journalling and the sentiment. The lightly pencilled wave also helped me to determine where the flourish mask would go. I had to keep the stippling extremely light so as not to overpower the printing. Also, the background cardstock has some beachy print, and I wanted that to show a bit. After I glued the photo wave, I placed the “babes” part of the title to finish the layout.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Would you be able to walk across this?
Japan's scariest suspension bridge - and boy is it long! The video is a bit long too and there are bits towards the end that really scared the poop out of me! You can also hear the wind and the creaking ... which makes it nightmarish!
Via BB
You make me smile
For this layout, I used a border mask on the inner quadrangle. I used a stippling brush and a blue dye ink as close to the main cardstock colour as possible. I kept the colour light because I did not want a very prominent border. The stubs / tickets with the sentiments are handmade. The border on the left hand side is a pre-cut paper frill that I coloured using the same blue ink.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Bernie in Hell!
This Madoff guy made off with $50 billion of other folks money. There has to be some karma which will make him pay for the untold suffering he has caused so many! Till that bit of good news comes our way, we can enjoy seeing folks depict him as the devil ... even if it is on a habanero sauce bottle.
A New York artist has come up with a novel way to scorn the disgraced Wall Street financier Bernard Madoff: a bottle of hot habenero sauce called "Bernie in hell". Bottles of the sauce, available for sale at $10 each on Mr Gardega's website, bear a photograph of the financier with horns on his head and dollar signs for eyes. Underneath is the slogan "You're Gonna" over some flames and the words "Bernie in Hell". More text on the bottle reads, "You can take the money but can you take... the heat?!!!"
A string of high-profile names have emerged as victims of the alleged fraudster, including pioneer hedge fund manager Michael Steinhardt, Hollywood actor Kevin Bacon and Liliane Bettencourt, heiress to the L'Oreal fortune.
Mr Madoff, who spent Christmas under nightly house arrest after failing to find the four people needed to guarantee his $10m bail, was charged last month by federal prosecutors with directing an alleged Ponzi scheme through his New York investment firm. His lawyer, Ira Sorkin, has said Mr Madoff's company is co-operating with the government.
(Link)
A string of high-profile names have emerged as victims of the alleged fraudster, including pioneer hedge fund manager Michael Steinhardt, Hollywood actor Kevin Bacon and Liliane Bettencourt, heiress to the L'Oreal fortune.
Mr Madoff, who spent Christmas under nightly house arrest after failing to find the four people needed to guarantee his $10m bail, was charged last month by federal prosecutors with directing an alleged Ponzi scheme through his New York investment firm. His lawyer, Ira Sorkin, has said Mr Madoff's company is co-operating with the government.
(Link)
Everyone smiles in the same language
I watched a video by Tim Holtz demonstrating how to use his new masks. So, of course, I had to have all six! And pay an arm and a leg for shipping all the way to Hong Kong. But I indulged myself because it has been a while since I did any art related shopping.
Before I continue, I’d like to take my hat off to the new Kokuyo adhesives that I have been using lately. I’ll admit that even before I try (or buy) an adhesive the most important consideration for me is if they are refillable. I care about my environment and believe that refills (for everything!) help reduce the amount of junk we create. Kokuyo are refillable and that already gave them an edge over some of the other brands I have used.
When I actually took the applicator out to use, I saw something else that I really liked – a little flip back cover right over the sticky bit of the applicator. It is very easy to flip it open when you want to use it. Just flip it to close it again when you are done so that the glue does not pick up dust and fluff and lose its effectiveness.
After having used the glue in all the layouts and cards below, I have to say that this brand is probably the best I have ever used. It goes on so smoothly and the control is great. I was able to apply glue to really small bits of cardstock with no mess at all! Kokuyu should give themselves a pat on the back for coming out with a superb product!
While I waited very impatiently, and I know you all can empathize with the feeling, for my masks to arrive, I just had to try some of the techniques I saw on the video. I decided to apply them to stencils – which are just backwards masks. For this layout, I decided to make the stencils myself since the style I was looking for was linear and easy. I drew the arrows (one bent and one straight) on cardstock and then cut them out with an X-acto knife. You can see that the middle three arrows are the same. I just flipped the stencil.
To colour it in, I chose a blue ink as close as possible to the cardstock. Using a foam tipped Fantastix brush by Tsukineko, I first outlined the arrows. Then I filled it in with a stippling brush. Stippling is my favorite way to use colour with stencils and masks. I then stamped over the colour using the same blue to give a tone-on-tone effect. I applied the sentiment sticker on a piece of cardstock and placed it slightly off center. The placement had to be determined before stenciling so that all the arrows appear to be originating from the same point under the sticker.
Cardstock by Club Scrap mostly from the Friendship kit.
Quote sticker manufacturer unknown. The sticker is applied to a printed paper from the Club Scrap Friendship kit.
Handmade arrow stencils
Blueberry dye ink by Ranger Industries
Outline of the stencil done with Fantastix brush tool by Tsukineko
Inside colour filled in with stippling brushes
Stamped with a flourish using tone on tone.
Before I continue, I’d like to take my hat off to the new Kokuyo adhesives that I have been using lately. I’ll admit that even before I try (or buy) an adhesive the most important consideration for me is if they are refillable. I care about my environment and believe that refills (for everything!) help reduce the amount of junk we create. Kokuyo are refillable and that already gave them an edge over some of the other brands I have used.
When I actually took the applicator out to use, I saw something else that I really liked – a little flip back cover right over the sticky bit of the applicator. It is very easy to flip it open when you want to use it. Just flip it to close it again when you are done so that the glue does not pick up dust and fluff and lose its effectiveness.
After having used the glue in all the layouts and cards below, I have to say that this brand is probably the best I have ever used. It goes on so smoothly and the control is great. I was able to apply glue to really small bits of cardstock with no mess at all! Kokuyu should give themselves a pat on the back for coming out with a superb product!
While I waited very impatiently, and I know you all can empathize with the feeling, for my masks to arrive, I just had to try some of the techniques I saw on the video. I decided to apply them to stencils – which are just backwards masks. For this layout, I decided to make the stencils myself since the style I was looking for was linear and easy. I drew the arrows (one bent and one straight) on cardstock and then cut them out with an X-acto knife. You can see that the middle three arrows are the same. I just flipped the stencil.
To colour it in, I chose a blue ink as close as possible to the cardstock. Using a foam tipped Fantastix brush by Tsukineko, I first outlined the arrows. Then I filled it in with a stippling brush. Stippling is my favorite way to use colour with stencils and masks. I then stamped over the colour using the same blue to give a tone-on-tone effect. I applied the sentiment sticker on a piece of cardstock and placed it slightly off center. The placement had to be determined before stenciling so that all the arrows appear to be originating from the same point under the sticker.
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