Favorite Crafty posts of 2011 -

While stamping will continue to be one of my favorite loves, I've been discovering a love of other crafty venues in the past year.  Here are some of my favorites posts and some of my new favorite artists:

Julie Fei-Fan Balzer - She is an amazing artist and is the main reason that I decided to delve into art journaling.  She is a wonder with watercolors and the cover of my journal is a tribute to her bright cheery works (btw - my art journal is made from a composition notebook - I was too intimidated to try "creating" in  something that I had paid real money for but since this was only $1 - why not?)

Tangling - I remember watching lots of tangle videos on YouTube and being amazed at how gorgeous the works are - believe it or not it is easier then you may think.  I've printed my favorite patterns and put them in clear sleeves in a binder for reference.  This is a canvas I made to showcase one of my small tangles - here is a link to the largest one I've made.

Donna Downey - Her Inspiration Wednesday videos are such a treat!!  She is comfortable in so many mediums and is at the forefront of all new trendy things like PanPastels.  My poppy page was definitely influenced by her love of this flower.

This page makes me happy because it was it was totally me - the pattern on a favorite skirt inspired a page that even turned into a card.

Amigurumi - In my younger years I crocheted a lot - made little animals, afghans, potholders, etc.  Decided to give crocheting a whirl again with an amigurumi doll for my niece.  Got the free pattern here and am wondering now how we crocheted without the magic adjustable ring??!!

Alisa Burke - Her "peek inside my sketchbook" posts are fabulous and inspired this art journal page that I had turned into a canvas for the wall.  I just won a place in her current class - Create Daily - it starts today.  WHOO HOO!

Fabric owls - My cousin, Selena, is an owl lover so when we saw one in Books a Million it inspired a parliament of owls made from supplies I had on hand.

Coptic Handbound Art Journal - Now that my composition notebook is almost full I'm ready to start work in the handmade book I made with my friend, Kim.

Christy Tomlinson - I've taken both of her SheArt classes this year and I've learned so much.  Her videos are entertaining and informative.  Because of her I can draw a person now - go figure. . .

Carla Sonheim - Her book, Drawing Lab for Mixed Media Artists, is a great starting point for making fun projects and inspired my watercoloring in the car.

2011 has been a pretty creative year for me - branching out and trying new things is really fun!!