Circle Journal - Quotes and Favourites

I've just started my first ever circle journal, where a group of us each fill a double page spread in each other's books and send them round until they finally make it home.

Firstly, this is mine based on favourites. I haven't done the cover yet but I will do that when it comes home.

I'm looking forward to seeing what everyone else in the group makes of it.

I now have two others to do. The one I should be doing first is song lyrics, but I just haven't found the right song yet, although I have had fun listening to loads of music and dancing around the room, purely for research you understand!

So, instead I did quotes and here is my take on that theme. I hope Jo likes them.

Octopode Birthday Card

Whooo whoo - this week I am a guest designer at The Octopode Challenge Blog and the theme is birthday, to celebrate the blog's first year. Do join in with the birthday celebrations - there are free digis to be won and blog candy from some of the DT.

Now, I don't make many cards these days so I'm a little out of practice but I did get a request to make one so here goes. I am so into the Octopode images right now that of course they had to come out again. Since the card I made was to be from a group of people I thought of the usual suspects and then mocked up a police line up background with the heights marked in inches and just stuck some of the Octopode people on there. Added a party hat and a present and it's good to go. Simples.

Thanks for looking and have a great day.

Another day, another swap

This one looks a bit odd until you know why we're making it. Yup, it's another swap over on UKScrappers, this time to make a Tim Holtz style collage. We each got to pick a colour and a theme so I went for marmalade and metal. We made 12 of 4 different size/shape bits which will get mixed up to make something like this.

These are my bits (just showing a few of each but you get the idea). Lots of Timmy metal, dictionary paper flowers, some metallic paint, chipboard hearts with watch parts and tickets. The big "Carpe Diem" bit is an extra for our ever fabulous host Leanie to do anything she likes with. Hope they're okay ad I'm looking forward to getting my little bag of goodies back.

Thanks for looking.

ATCs - Reservoir Cats and Warhol Einsteins

Just popping pics of the last two ATCs I made for the monthly swap over on UKScrappers. Quite a graphic style which is unusual for me, but both do have my current favourite of Octopode images on them, one on the front and the other on the back.

First, "Reservoir Cats", a little homage to one of my favourite gangster heist gone wrong films. I used the Octopode "Austin" cat for his sharp suit and general cool factor. Sorry about the bit of the back of a foam pad on Mr Blue's ear. I took photos very quickly before I had to send them off. I'm now worrying that it's stuck under there - oh well, not much I can do now.

I forgot to add last month's too, so here are 6 of "The 10 Einsteins", another little homage to both Andy Warhol and Albert Einstein.

Took a photo of Einstein and gave it the Warhol treatment in the style of his Marilyn Monroe pop art portraits, then added this to the back. 

Not sure whether the reservoir cats count as black and white enough but, what the hey, I'm entering it in the Octopode Challenge anyway. I always loved the bit where they're arguing over their names (Mr Pink not being happy) with Joe pointing out that they'd all want to be Mr Black.

Thanks for looking.

Alice ATC Books (again)

ATC books are now finished! All 14 of them. I may be a bit incoherent from all the glue but I am so happy to see them all done and in their little boxes.

I took a photo of all the ATCS laid out so you can see them a bit better.

From top to bottom then left to right we have:
Octopode front covers (me)
Inside front altered from an old Alice book illustration (me)
Eat me, drink me from Lexi - love the stamping and the eat me drink me bits are so dinky
Alice from Jill with a fab imaginative composition and great colouring of a classic image
I'm late from Helen - some have great shrink plastic watches and the dymo tape works so well
Rabbit from Yolanda - love the stunning background that probably doesn't show in the photo
Keys, locks and doors from Sian - very imaginative with pull out bits
White Queen from Leanie which has so much detail that again is probably lost in the photo
Caterpillar from Jane with an amazing hookah pipe of wire, beads and glass
Mad hatter from Karen with inspired Mr Depp colouring and the teeniest eyelets I've ever seen
Cheshire cat from Suzy with such yummy backgrounds and such an apt sentiment
By Royal Command by Chris which is do detailed and perfectly done, even on the back
Raven riddle - Octopode again by me
Tweedledum/Tweedledee by Suzie with gorgeous details and great colours
The Queen of Hearts by Caroline with beautiful dimension and detail that you need to see in IRL
The Jabberwocky by Laura on corrugated card with a little mini book - inspired
Inside back cover from a curlycue steampunk mad hatter paper doll which I love (me)
Outside back cover - chipboard fabric covered embellished hat (me)

Well, that's it ladies and as soon as I can get down to the post office they will be winging their way to their new homes. I love how they are all so different and yet they all look great together.

Thank you all for a fabulous swap.

Some last pics before I go.

All of the front covers - all Octopode images but all different layouts. Plus the inside covers. The back covers are in the previous post. I have now added feathers to the hatpins but haven't taken a photo of them although you can see it in the one above.

I started laying them out but they are over a metre when fully extended!

And pretty deep too for such little books.

But they do stand up and don't take up too much room if you display them like this.

Or this.

I love mine, and I hope you'll love your too when they get there.