Bevie of Birdhouses

Hallo,
  I had planned on getting in the craft room and doing up a couple challenges today but haven't got there yet so I will show you these quick and maybe get in the craft room after I finish off a couple chores.....
   I hate seeing any book thrown away - especially kids books but when there are torn pages and pages colored over then most folks throw them away. Here I have rescued a few - I used the covers for the roof of the birdhouses and chose pages that were still in good shape to decorated the sides and they turned out so cute.
  I hung them on the clothesline to spray them with a couple coats of acrylic sealer to make them a bit more durable. They looked so cute hanging on the line that I decided it was a good photo op.
   There are 2 Sesame Street ones, 1 Snow White, 1 Cinderella, 1 Dr. Seuss, 1 Winnie the Pooh, and 1 Arthur.
   I had fun making these - have a couple more I would like to get done but we will see how the week goes - I teach a class at work tomorrow and then friday the DD and I go to Pensacola for an ROTC Scholarship interview (and some shopping :) - and then the weekend is work again.....sigh.....I so loved having 2 weeks off.... :)
   Have a good week!!!
         Tera

Steampunk Hat an Crow pumpkin

Hallo,
  Well I have the last of my steampunk pumpkin creations for you today - a pumpkin, a witches hat an a crow.
  Its amazing how much fun you can have with some duck tape :).
  I got off work in the wee hours of the morning today (due to a decrease in the number of our patients) and it was too early to go for a walk (I don't like o go while it is still dark - have had enough times that I have almost gotten run over even in the daylight..) so I pretty much went strainght to bed.
  I figured I would sleep until the puppy got too restless and then if she got too rowdy go for a short walk and then get some more sleep, but she was a very good little girl today. I got up about 330 and took Miss Kyna for a 30 minute walk before getting ready for work.
  All for today - I hope everyone in Sandy's path is doing ok!!!
   Take Care
                                                                                               Tera

Steampunk Skull and crow pumpkin

Hallo,
  A bit more steampunk for you today. I am going to try and get a bunch of stuff done in the craft room today because after about 2 weeks off, I have to go back to work tonight - pout. Ah well, gotta pay the bills somehow....
  I had fun with these steampunk pumkins - I covered the chipboard skull and hard foam pumpkin with random strips of shiny duck tape and then added texture with various tools. I then rubbed black ink into the texture and edges of the tape.
  Then the fun begins - decorating with various and random pieces of hardware, and the crow(whose hat is an old buttom BTW).
   All for now - of for a very chilly walk this am (mid 40's with wind chill at mid-30's - VERY chilly for us here in NW Florida!!!)
   Take Care
        Tera

Zebra Baby box

Hallo,
   I have been dying to show this one off - and since my DH's niece should have gotten it yesterday or at least tomorrow (and she doesn't look at my blog I am pretty sure) I will show it to you today.
  One of my DH's Nieces is having a baby and the theme for the baby room is Zebra's - so this is a gift box with a memory book inside made just for her. (I love zebra's too so this was fun - hard part was choosing which of about 6 zebra stamps to use :)
    The main image is from Cornish Heritage Farms and colored with copics, layers cut with Spellbinders dies and edged with a silver metallic pen.
  The Zebra butts is a stamp from Rubber Stamp Ave. - stamped repeatedly in rows and colored in rainbow colors with copics.
  The mama and baby zebra running is a very old stamp from Graphistamp - and I don't think you can get it anymore except maybe Ebay. I stamp that one in long rows and colored with copics also.
  I used rows of both the smaller stamps along the sides and on the top, along with some zebra paper and zebra ribbon - and the inside has zebra paper too with a bigger design.
  I did the memory book cover to match the box and the inside pages are in rainbow colors with a zebra stamp on one corner of each page.
  All for today - off to the craft room, now that I have warmed up from my morning walk - a brisk mid- 40 ish this am but with wind chill about mid-30's.....
   Take Care
        Tera

Homecoming Pictures

 Hallo,
   A few pictures this evening - Homecoming dance tonight and the kids usually meet at the Landing here in town to take pics before hand.
  VERY chilly here tonight - the temp was about 50 but the wind was really cold!!! Needless to say the girls were a bit COLD!!!
  Left to right - Austin, Angie, Paula, Amanda and Brian - in this first picture.
   All for tonight
        Take Care
                                                                                                                      Tera

Steampunk Earring Pumpkin

Hallo,
   Well I got in more walking today than I intended on - sometime mid-morning I noticed one of the younger cats was not in its usual sleeping spot (the cats have figured out the doggy door, so the only time I can leave it unblocked is when I am sitting at the computer within sight of the door) Well I got up to make a restroom trip and came back and Shadow was gone - he had been sleeping in the chair next to mine by the computer..... so I searched the back yard quick as I was only gone a few minutes with no kitty, so I searched the house and then a more thorough search of the house(under beds, behind furniture and every hidey hole know to me), shaking the treat jar and then even opening a can of canned food for my old one, which usually brings the younger cats (and the puppy for that matter) running, and still with no Shadow.
   Ok - another massive search of the back yard, then the front yard, then the house again, and then a walk around the block - its been an hour by this time.....DS gets home and he searches the house, back yard, front yard and down the street....2 hours now, I call the animal shelter and give a description to them in case someone finds him. I leave the patio doggy door open  with a bowl of food and the garage door cracked so if Shadow comes home he has some shelter at least  and we met the DH for lunch, DD meets us after taking the ACT exam and is tee'd off at Mom (me) for letting her cat get loose.....
   After a quick lunch I come home, make signs and start walking the neighbor hood - knocked on all my neighbors doors to ask them to keep their eyes open, then knocked on the doors of the folk who live behind us, because through a whole in the fence (which should have been to small for this big fat cat) is the most likely escape route, and then I walk and hung up 3 signs and total all spent about an hour  walking, calling Shadow, Shadow, Shadow......
   DD calls (she is at home trying to do homework) Shadow is not only home but apparently was in the house the whole time - he obviously has a hiding spot that I didn't know about yet.....eyes rolling....I spend another half hour walking to take down the signs I just put up.....
   So another hour and a half walk on top of the 45 minutes with the DH and the puppy this am - I'd say I can skip the exercise bike today :)

  Today's project is another of my steampunk pumpkins - this one is my favorite!!! Between the skull on top and the big hardware for his eyes, he got a bit off balance so that is how he acquired the big ol earring  and the bolt in his lip too :).
  I used a fake carve able pumpkin and a chipboard skull and covered them with strips of shiny duck tape and then added texture with various tools. Then I rubbed black ink into the edges of the tape and the texture. Then the fun begins - adding hardware and doo dads for his face and decorations :)
  I added a silver wintery flower to the side of the skull too :)
   All for today - still have a bit of time I can get into the craft room before we go take homecoming pics with my DD's friends.....and then the Husker game!!
   Take Care
      Tera

Guy Birthday card

Hallo,
   Good morning!!! Getting an early start - after getting to bed late (stayed up until the kids got home from swim meet ) so I just may need a nap this afternoon....
   Today's card I did for the current challenge at Flourishes which is for a Birthday card. I was low on guy type cards so pulled out this fishing set and colored it up. The set is from Flourishes of course and colored with copics.
  Check out the challenge here - www.flourishes.org/blog/
   I cut the 2 panels out with Spellbinders dies and edged them with copper mettalic pen to match the DP. I used a yellow base cardstock to pull out the bit of yellow in the DP I used.
  I added some bronze pearl drops with a viva decor pen to the corners.
  I stamped the Happy Birthday on the inside but forgot to get a picture....

   On another note - I have had partial success with my rearrangement of the kittys food bowls and litter box. The puppy can't get to the food bowls (or at least hasn't yet) but someone (be it puppy or my old meow) took a piddle on the bathroom rug again this am.....sigh....ah well, I will give it another day or so and see if it works....
   Well I am going to get to the craft room for a bit before its light enough out for my morning walk and then a bit of yard work before heading back to the craft room. I will also probably have to make a run to the High School as DS didnt get out of bed in time to ride with his sister (swim meet all day yesterday and they didn't get in till after 11 so I will let him sleep a bit....)

Robin Hood Steampunk

Hallo,
   Well its been a busy semi-productive morning already - puppy has taken me for my walk and I have laundry started.
I also spent some time rearranging the front hallway - that is were the kitty's food and litter box is and the puppy LOVES kitty food but lately puppy's tummy ain't so happy with it. Miss Kyna is a very clever little puppy and has managed to get around or through every barrier I have yet devised. My main problem is that if I block the kitty food completely with the baby gate that my very sweet but very old and frail Meow  'Fancy' cannot get to the food because she can no longer jumper over the gate like the younger 2 bratty kitty's. Any gap I leave for Fancy, Kyna seems to be able to wiggle and squeeze her way through.
  Adding to that is that Kyna has chosen as her sleeping spot at night right in front of my bedroom door (guards me well doesn't she :) but that is also right in front of the gap in the baby gate so Miss Fancy - not wanting to cause a fuss in the middle of the night by telling the puppy to get out of her way she decided the last couple nights to just quietly tinkle on my bathroom rug (I figured that out this am - and here I had been blaming the puppy for the piddles....
   Ok so today we moved the kitty food bowls and littler box further back in the hallway and closed off just the food bowls so the litter box is wide open (hope Miss Kyna doesn't find that too interesting to play in or that will blow this plan) The baby gate now completely blocks the dry cat food - which old meow doesn't eat much of any way and I will just have to lift her over the gate and back when I feed her wet food - and the times she feels like eating dry food she has been eating some of puppy's anyhow (and it doesn't bother her a bit). And YES my old meow Fancy is quite the spoiled  grand old lady - she will be 22 years old come mid-December and has literally traveled the world with us from Alaska to Germany and back.
   ALRIGHTY Have you heard enough about my critters today :) - Another steampunk project for you today. I call this the 'Robin Hood' because of the apple on the skulls head - when I bought it I thought it was a small pumpkin  so when I discovered it was really an apple I had to smoke the thinking gears a bit, but still chuckle a bit at my crazy self for this one.

I used 2 decorative furniture tacks for the skulls eyes and then a copper tack and round gear looking washer thingy for the skulls earrings.
  Its a smaller piece but it was fun to do!!!
   All for today - off to hang out the second load of laundry, vacume and then the rest of the day in the craft room.
   Take Care
      Tera

P.S. If anyone has any suggestions to my critter dilemma - I would love any ideas - it would be nice for old meow to have better access to the food bowls and still be able to block off the litter box from the puppy too - I just cannot think of one at the moment .