Cre8! Three Colors, Fabric... and FIRE!

I'm really getting into blog challenges lately, not only because they make me accountable for doing art on a really regular basis, but also because I'm meeting so many talented people with cool blogs, and they always have links to OTHER cool blogs which I then check out... it's the circle of life, only Elton John isn't singing about it this time.

The uber-talented Linda B, over at the Eclectic Visions of an Altered Journey blog, posted some photos a couple of days ago that not only caught my eye, they birthed an immediate obsession over something I never would have expected. Suddenly, I'm all agog over fabric flowers. No way! Grungy, un-cute, hand-me-that-paper-distresser-and-get-outta-the-way me?! Yep.  But they're not just any old fabric flowers. They're grunged.. with FIRE!

Now we're talking: Burned, grungy flowers! That's totally my style.

(Before I continue this post, I need to take a sec to send a message to Scott, who's currently out of town: Honey, on the off chance that you read this before you get home, please take a deep breath and know that I have not burned the house down. Yes, it's me, and yes, there's fire involved, but it's a tiny little candle flame and I'm keeping a huge bowl of water and the squirt bottle nearby in case my innate clumsiness asserts itself at the wrong moment. Also, I've dressed all three cats in cute little Kevlar suits, so everything is fine. Just fine.)

Okay, I'm back.

Anyway, I was talking about how Linda B over at Eclectic Visions used a technique (one that she saw at the Little Birdie Secrets blog-- again, it's that "circle of lfe" thing) to make these lovely organza flowers. Linda B made hers extra rad by leaving a little of the charred edge on the petals, giving them a cool, shabby/vintage chic look. When I got up yesterday morning and saw that this week's Drunken Stampers Challenge is to use fabric on a card, well, I wasn't about to argue with synchronicity on that level. Off to the fabric store I went, and returned with (among other things) some purple and black organza.

I have to tell you, I had so much fun making these flowers I feel I should check into the legality of it all. Talk about instant gratification! I won't give a step-by-step here, as the folks at the two blogs I listed did a fabulous job of that. Please check out their excellent instructions if you want to torch some flowers of your own. Trust me-- you'll love it!

So, yes, I made a card around these flowers, and since the brilliant ladies at the Gingersnap Creations blog are currently hosting a "Three Color" challenge, I decided to go that route with this project. I stamped Daniel Torreate's sweet "Crafter" image (from Stampotique) on sticky-backed canvas (more fabric!), colored it with markers, rubbed Milled Lavendar Distress Ink around the edges, and frayed it with a craft pick. Then I layered the canvas onto black, then purple, then white cardstock panels, and stamped "CRE8" along the side in purple ink, then overstamped in black. (Our crafter girl, who I'm calling "Violet," looks so hip I thought I should use text speak instead of spelling out "Create.") This whole shebang was glued onto a black card, and I finished by attaching the flowers and some burned organza "leaves" with Matte Accents.

So, I had a blast with this, but the downside is, I'm now running around the house looking for any and every scrap of synthetic fabric so I can set it on fire and see if it melts in an aesthetically-pleasing way. No old prom dress is safe! Hmm... I wonder what those kitchen curtains are made of...

Hugs,
Linda