Using it!

I'm accepting Karla's challenge today & breaking into my good stuff!

I have a lot of 'good stuff' to choose from.

Years worth of hunting/gathering have left me with an art room filled to the gills with inspiration!

Like this bird nest.

Yes it's really a nest built around an old book.

 I adore combining nature - sticks & such with old & shiny!

 I get chills every time I open this drawer.

 All of it vintage, most very old.

Pay-off for years worth of dedicated pickin'.

An old torn up bag, some pins & a nest create a little wall art.

Once I got into using my 'sacred stash' I couldn't stop!

Pressed flowers are so beautiful to me.

When we go on vacation I always bring a little nature back with me.

When we went to California a couple of summers ago I brought back some ferns & blooms.

I cherish them & the memories they hold.

 I finally took those precious botanicals out of their box & created a way to display them.

I know y'all are sick to death of reading the name Bolton on my blog.

But...............

I can't help it!

 These pictures have been on the top of my inspiration file for years & years.

Combining forest green & yellow Rit dyes produced the earthiest colors for my muslin. 

 Some Queen Anne's Lace, muslin, glass & medical tape....

 That's it!

Using medical tape to frame them was also gleaned from the Bolton's circa 1990's.

I'm heading to Karla's now to see who else is breaking into their secret stash!

When I'm done there I'm heading over to this weeks lesson.

Artful Pages!

This weeks guest artist is the amazing Lenna Young Andrews.

You can see a peak at her project on her blog

Creative Lenna.

Then I gotta get to work because my class is next week!

I went to Canton last week & can't wait to show you what I found!

~Lisa

A Challenge & A Story

Last week my friend Mary at Green Paper invited everyone to an art challenge.

The rules were very simple, use all or part of a collage sheet she provided & share by today!

So here is my story of Miss Mary Hayes.

Miss Mary Hayes was secretly in love with a boy who wrote beautiful letters of the heart.

He was very romantic.

Once a week after he was paid, he would pick up a small bouquet of her favorite flowers from the corner shop. 

On their 1st anniversary he surprised her by having a charm made from one of the blooms.

She wore it around her neck until the day she died.

Miss Mary kept every trinket he ever gave her.

Little hearts, ribbons that once tied up a pretty package.

And a button that came from the last gown he saw her in.

Their relationship was very complex & veiled in secrecy.

It all came to an end when he left to fight the great war.  The last letter Mary received was on July 18, 1919.

Mary never gave up hope that her true love would return one day.

She died alone, with only her memories & some tokens of a love story.

~Lisa

Outside the Box - Art Challenge

 A couple of months ago I discoverd these soaps from  Pure & Natural, & One.  The cool recycled paper packaging & the awesome smell hooked me. I bought 4 of them!  Well, life got busy & they sat in my studio collecting dust, until today. 

 I got them down, began to play, & then I got an idea....

Are you up for an art challenge?

I've never hosted a blog party, swap or challenge before, but these little boxes inspire me! 

I would love to see what you would do with them. If you want to accept my challenge, here's the skinny.

Get yourself some of this soap either at Target, or here, or here.

We'll post our creations on June 28.

Embellish & alter your box in your own personal style.

No postage, no pressure, just take a picture & show it off!

Grab my button & link to this post so everyone else can play along. I'll have Mr. Linky set up the day before our reveal.

Update:

I am going to Target to buy a bunch of the soaps. If you can't get it on your own, I'll send you a bar for $6.   Just email me your information.