Birdcage Swap News

Well, the time is fast approaching... I hope you have yours ready. There are 26 of us in the swap and we each send to someone different than the person who sends to us... I have done the partners and I will email you your partner in the next couple of days.

I hope you have your offering ready, or almost ready, so that we can all post off as soon as possible after 7th September... When you know your partner, you will need to get their address, obviously!! Then the cat will be out of the bag- so don't let it catch your ickle birdie!!!

I would like to have a "show and tell" on 14th September -

Take a photo of your OWN birdcage, and post it here on my blog, that day... Some of us will have received ours already, and some of us won't, but we will be able to see what we will be getting!!! OOOO, it's so exciting isn't it ... want a sneaky, eaky peaky at what I am doin?? Oh, ok then, just an ickle one... shhhh!!! just don't tell my partner...

So that's all you're getting for now. I will post again about the swap on Wednesday 7th September to remind you all to send off your birdcages... but don't forget to take a picture or two of them beforehand, so we can have a linky thingie to see them all the following week...

Thanks for joining in and thanks for your support... I needed an even number for the swap to work, and had to turn down the last person who asked if it was too late...it was only this Thursday when she asked!!!... if anyone new wants to make a birdcage BEFORE next Wednesday, let me know and I will see if we can make up anymore pairs...
Love and Light
Frankie
xx

THIS SWAP IS NOW CLOSED

WOYWW #116 - Heavy Metal Working for TIO

Where is the year racing off to??? It is impossible to keep up, and I am hanging  on to the handle with my feet flying into thin air - you get the picture??? Now stop giggling and get set for my desk exposee!!! Not know what I mean? pop over to see the wonderful world chez Julia, where ALL will be revealed - well only very decorously and in the best possible taste!!!!

 This week, on TIO, we have 3 new Design Team members, Aj, Silvia and Lyn / Blackdragon!!! Fabulous or what??? Do please pop and see their wondrous creations here...We are starting a new round of challenges and the girls have asked to baffle inspire you with song titles, for the next few weeks... It's Elizabeth's turn to start off and she has chosen Bon Jovi, Red Roses, and is DEMANDING some metal of us!!! Always keen to oblige, I decided to do an hommage to the wonderful Lin at Yours Artfully, and use terra, ferro and stuff as well as metal embossing. The bits are out ready to start...

Here, the metal has been embossed, with the "scribbly scribbly thing" pattern in some of the diamonds, and some line and wheelie patterns... I just MUST go on a course to know when to use the mats and when not!!!! I am almost there, but not precise enough...

Like the divvie that I am, I got so carried away, I forgot to take any more photos until I was well on in the process, but basically I used my pallette knife to ladle on the terra and ferro then stamp into the wet stuff with a clean, but watery wet stamp or two...

 I used the rose harlequin set from Elusive Images, always one of my faves ( that and the butterfly harlequin) so as to fulfill Elizabeth's dream of roses and metal... This blousey flower is also cut from metal using a PaperArtsy die, with the scribbly scribbly thing on it again... I rubbed with the Vintaj sand block then added some wondrous red Viva Inca Gold paste. The centre is made from a TH metal flower and a Graphics45 button, also coloured with VIG red... absolutely yumminess!!!

This is it close up and VERY personal, what wonderful colour and texture. I am LOVING working with metal, Elizabeth!!

 This wonderful textured part is the small rose stamp, pressed into the wet terra, with a wet stamp, well- cleaned afterwards... the relief really shows up well when the different metallic pastes are added and a little smidgen of black acrylic paint, all gently rubbed and  smooched...

 Well here is the whole thing, head on, so you can see the way it fits together. The terra is on the right side in sahara colour, and the hematite ferro is spread on the left, where the large rose harlequin stamp was pressed, along with the writing...

 This shot shows that and the actual metal embossed piece, also smooched and rubbed with black acrylic paint and various metallic pastes... ooooo, I LOVE the texture, don't you??

Some of the texture was made using the cup end of the metal working ball tool. The bow and tie top closure of the tag is made of that wonderfully expanding metallic ribbon, in a glorious goldy brown... The tag is larger than the #8, so I could get more yummy stuff on to it. I enjoyed making it immensely, and it did not take over long, for once!! Often I phaff about and haver quaver, but I just got on and got messy and mucky... so my stamping required no ink this week, but water saved the stamps from a fate worse than death!!

Thanks for coming over today, and looking at my metal piece. I hope you have a super week and that the weather and earth a re more peaceful for you if you have been troubled... Pretty Please leave me a comment and do try to visit my wonderful TIO DreamTeam to join in with this song...
Love and light
Frankie
xx