Monthly Archives: November 2015

The colors of the Northern Lights in a Winter Wonderland

The colors of the Northern Lights in a Winter Wonderland

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My altered art Christmas tag at the Robin’s Nest today features lots and texture and the rich and vibrant colors of the Northern Lights in a Winter Wonderland.

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Turkeys aren’t the only birds around here tonight

Turkeys aren’t the only birds around here tonight

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For my last guest post at Gina’s Designs, I shared one of my favorite kinds of projects: altered tin ornaments. 

I’m Betsy Skagen of Paper Calliope, and on this Thanksgiving Eve my heart is filled with gratitude for getting to spend the last month  at Gina’s Designs. It has been a fun and delightful adventure. 

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Spoon up some holiday bashing fun

Spoon up some holiday bashing fun

 

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One might not think it is possible to trash talk a national holiday, family traditions and my siblings with one little altered art project. Turkey Wattles! Think again! I managed to denigrate them all in one swoop and present my Thanksgiving altered trading spoon on the Altered Pages blog.

 

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Smoochy smooch! These kissing reindeer will brighten you holiday decor

Smoochy smooch! These kissing reindeer will brighten you holiday decor

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I have been loving my stint as the 2015 November Designer for Gina’s Lasercut Designs as it has challenged my creativity in new and fun ways.

This week my tutorial features this Kissing Reindeer Standing Dome. I will be forever grateful if you visit Gina’s Designs and leave a comment on my tutorial post there.

Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah and Happy Kwanzaa. xoxo -Betsy Read the rest of this entry

Create winter holiday treasure boxes

Create winter holiday treasure boxes
Create winter holiday treasure boxes

 

 

 

 

I’ve always been told that good things come in small packages. Hopefully that proves true with these mixed media winter gift boxes.

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I made all three using similar techniques and you can see the tutorial over at the ColourArte blog.

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Shine a little more light

Shine a little more light

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So this is the quickest blog post ever. Why? Because I’m too busy doing the happy dance since I’m so delighted to be back for a second week as the November 2015 Guest Designer for Gina’s Designs!

Here’s a sneak peek of the holiday lantern I made. It may look like a rusty red metal lantern, but it is made from chipboard, vellum paper and the magic of paint.

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Shine on misfit!

Shine on misfit!

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Have you ever felt like a misfit?

Today I pay homage to the king of misfits and an entire genre of misfit art. Rudolph has been on air (and in the air) for more than 50 years and he is still a misfit. Then there is Steampunk–how can a genre that combines Victorian fashion and 19th century steam-powered industrial machinery with technology, sci-fi and fantasy not be a misfit?

I hope you check it out at the Altered Pages blog. In the meantime I hope everyone who feels like a misfit can soar as high as Rudolph. Shine on!

2015 guest designer for Gina’s Designs

2015 guest designer for Gina’s Designs

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Here in the U.S. we celebrate Thanksgiving during the month of November, and I am overflowing with gratitude this month because Gina’s Designs asked me to serve as their 2015 November Guest Designer. Read the rest of this entry

Adding some color into winter days

Adding some color into winter days
Adding some color into winter days

 

 

 

When the beautiful colors of fall have disappeared, the scenery can get sometimes pretty stark up here in the Northland. I try to add as much color as possible indoors and out to my winter days.

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You can see how I decorated my lilac trees last year. If only the snow always stayed that pretty! I can tell you that is not going to happen when you live in the heart of the city.

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This year, I have already begun working on adding some indoor color. Here is a mixed media tag I made this week full of rich, vibrant color. I shared the tutorial on the ColourArte site. I hope you check it out. Read the rest of this entry