Monthly Archives: January 2014

Sadly, I have no problem whatsoever finding a logical explanation for this

Sadly, I have no problem whatsoever finding a logical explanation for this

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Don’t worry. I’m still going to share my mixed media panic attack story with you. The last thing I want to do is add more anxiety to your life by creating undue anticipation. However, this simply could not wait.

That is a problem because I am trying to find the right balance between topics. Paper Calliope is mainly about the art of mixed media, altered art and paper crafting. However, at last count, there were one million and forty-seven crafting blogs. Trust me on this. I know. I counted.* We don’t need one million and forty-eight.

That’s why I want to bring a fresh approach by recognizing how both the act of creating and the beauty of finished art brings calm, joy and inspiration to our anxiety-ridden lives. As actress Stella Adler said, “Life beats down and crushes the soul and art reminds you that you have one.” Read the rest of this entry

Crafting is exactly like Breaking Bad

Crafting is exactly like Breaking Bad

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Help! I couldn’t update my blog because my pc was tombed beneath layers of polyurethane. Luckily, since the only way my life parallels Walter White’s is that my son is a teenager, I’m not engaged in any nefarious meth-related violence. No, I’m not wrapping bodies up in poly and finding the nearest 55 gallon drum–although admittedly if certain family members had kept pushing my buttons yesterday, it might have become a tempting option.

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Valentine’s Day is the 14th

Valentine’s Day is the 14th
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Valentine’s Day is the 14th

Although the techniques I used for this tag were similar to the Heart aMazing Tag, I was much happier with the results. To continue the chocolate box metaphor, I guess this one had the caramel filling.  Nom Nom.

When all else fails, Coke is it.

When all else fails, Coke is it.

To most closely replicate this tag, you will need some sort of red ring. I am lucky that my vintage stash contains a plethora of red, white and green plastic translucent rings. I have no idea what they were used for or where I got them. I suspect they came from a game, but that’s just a guess. In any case, scrounge around your supplies and see what you discover. If you come up empty, you can always use the plastic top from a Coca-Cola bottle.

Measure the width of the interior of the circle and using a computer and a sans serif font, print out the number 14 onto to tan or ivory paper. Choose a font size that will mostly fill your circle. If you wish, you can print several different sizes to see which one you like best.  You can always use the leftover 14s in some other Valentine collage. Center the ring over your chosen number 14 and use a pencil to lightly trace the ring. Then cut out the circle and glue the number to the back or inside of the ring. Read the rest of this entry

And the winners are:

And the winners are:

 

Paper Calliope is sweet on you!

Paper Calliope is sweet on you!

Thank you everyone for signing up to follow Paper Calliope. Since the blog is not yet a month old, we are small, but quickly growing. Feel free to send me feedback, ideas, suggestions or Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups at any time–it’s another perk of being a founding follower!

The Valentine Card winners of Paper Calliope’s first ever give-away are: Jonathan B, Jen C, Amanda W, Jill C and Wyatt N. Please send your snail mail address to info@PaperCalliope.com, so I can send you your prize. -xoxo-

Valentine’s tags are like a box of chocolates—sometimes you wrinkle your nose and just keep chewing

Valentine’s tags are like a box of chocolates—sometimes you wrinkle your nose and just keep chewing
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You Heart aMazing

I’ll be honest, this tag is my least favorite of the five. I like each of the elements on their own, but somehow they just didn’t mesh together well. I guess it is kind of like that big ol’ box of Valentine chocolates. You always end up biting into one that you don’t like. By the time you realize it, you are half way through and then you are left with the quandary of deciding whether to go ahead and finish it or stick it back in the box to disgust some other member of your family.

I’m speaking from experience, as my daughter has been known to do that with just about anything. The other day I found a solitary doughnut left in the box with the topping completely gnawed away. Now that’s an enticing breakfast. Read the rest of this entry

Ooooooh, something for free!

Ooooooh, something for free!

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Win a free Valentine–Life just doesn’t get much better than that

Since I want to entice people to my new blog, and I can’t hand out fresh baked chocolate chip cookies (but boy, were they delicious), I’m hosting a little contest. Everyone who (1) signs up to follow this PaperCalliope.com blog and (2) comments on a blog post has the chance to win a uniquely designed Paper Calliope Valentine’s Day card. I will choose five winners on January 18. Ready, Set, Go!

Today’s snow would be much prettier if there were not three more months of winter coming

Today’s snow would be much prettier if there were not three more months of winter coming

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I can’t resist adding this picture that I took outside our house this morning. We got several inches of snow and it was quite lovely. However, I’m not a fan of January since I always find it disheartening to face another three months of winter. At least the snow didn’t fall off the ornament, land between my jacket and my neck and then travel a slow, cold and torturous (but not tortuous–google it people) path down my bare skin before getting absorbed by my unmentionables. Read the rest of this entry

Enter mixed media heaven with this Valentine

Enter mixed media heaven with this Valentine

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Valentine’s Day is exactly one month away. So today I bring you the second tag in this series. I should mention that all of them use a basic alteration of a technique I learned from Tim Holtz’s 12 tags of Christmas sometimes around 2007 or 2008. Read the rest of this entry

How sweet it is

How sweet it is


Paper Calliope Chocolate Berry Valentine Tag

Paper Calliope Chocolate Berry Valentine Tag Level of Difficulty: Intermediate
 

Nothing says Valentine’s Day like chocolate and berries. Okay, flowers and jewelry can also speak the language of love pretty loudly, but those won’t be making an appearance at our house this year. At our house we stick with the less-than-$5-valentine. Thankfully, after all these years I’ve trained The Husband™ not to buy cutesy talking stuffed animals or dancing plastic flowers from the nearest Super America gas station.

Today, I’m going to share with you a non-caloric way to enjoy a delightfully rich Chocolate Berry Valentine treat by showing you how to make the first in a series of five Valentine tags.

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Hard hat required

Hard hat required

“Please Pardon the Inconvenience”. You know when you see that pain-in-the-ass phrase that you are in for endless delays and administrative purgatory.

So, I’m really sorry to say this, but please pardon the inconvenience as I move Paper Calliope’s hosting.

Hiccup #1

Unfortunately, the ability for you to subscribe to this blog keeps disappearing today. I’m working hard to fix this. You are important to me! Please visit again soon when I have this fixed so you can subscribe. You really are important. Maybe II will bake you some chocolate chip cookies, just to prove it.

Why am I inflicting this pain?

I’m moving Paper Calliope so that eventually my blog to look something like this:

Future Paper Calliope?

Future Paper Calliope?

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