iHanna DIY Postcard Swap

It’s That Time of Year Again!

~ Patty Radish ~ 2 Comments

Time for the iHanna Postcard Swap!

I love this time of year, I get to go through all the great happy mail ephemera that has been sent to me over the years, and make art with it!

But best of all, I get to make a keepsake page for my Happy Mail Journal!

And for some reason I decided to up my game and post three videos per week on my YouTube channel, so if you’re interested in seeing a video on my postcard process, go HERE.

…and if you’d like to see the process video on my keepsake page, head on over HERE.

Please let me know if you have any ideas for videos in the comments, I need all the help I can get!

Much Love,

Thank you so much for visiting,

Have a great day,

~Patty

 

Postcard Swap Tutorial…or not?

~ Patty Radish ~ 4 Comments

Today I thought I would share a short tutorial on how I made my postcards for the iHanna DIY-postcardswap, but it seems I had a few technical difficulties, i.e.: I accidentally deleted the photos…DOH!

Luckily, I didn’t delete all of the photos so I can give you a quick run down.

 I started out with some painted backgrounds, then adhered various botanical napkins, easy peasy. Some of the painted backgrounds were pretty ghastly, but the botanicals fixed that and actually made them quite interesting.

Then I embellished with the usual suspects: die cuts, postage stamps, washi tape, and chipboard letters (someday I’ll run out of these) Those butterflies at the top left were printed on Avery #8665 clear 8 1/2″x11″ shipping label paper. I purchased them from the Illustrated Faith Print & Pray shop. Follow the link, they are still available.

I just arranged the pieces in little clusters, then went around them with a #6B pencil, rounded the corners, and applied a layer of satin varnish to seal them and pop the color.

That’s about it for today. I’ve been staying super busy filling up my shoppe with Fall journal decor, Christmas journals, and ephemera packs, follow this link and have a look around. If you see something you like, use the coupon code CUSTOMERLOVE20 to receive 20% off your order.

As always, thanks for stopping by,

Have a wonderful week,

~Patty

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Taking a Breather

~ Patty Radish ~ 4 Comments

I made it on the other side of a huge goal! I’ve always wanted to get my Holiday shoppe makings finished well before the Holidays, as opposed to during, and I’ve done it!

I could stay busy till I drop with what needs to be done outside of making things for my shoppe, but I decided to push through and get it done. If you want to see what I’ve been up to, hit this link. I have a few more ideas I’d like to work on, but I’d really rather relax and have a little fun……case in point.

How cute is this? It’s a gift to me for a job well done! I’ve tried making nature themed journals in the past, but they always seemed to fizzle out, I’m hoping this one will stay the course. Actually, art journaling in general has fizzled out as of late, hopefully that’s behind me.

This page looks a bit “Spring-y”, with a little fall thrown in, but it ticks all the boxes: flowers, birds, washi…insect?

I found an old paper pad where I had jotted down some quotes quite a few years ago and decided it was time to give them a home. Another piece of flotsam put to use.

This page has been hanging on my wall waiting for a home for too long! I may color it in with pencil, but I love it just how it is. Again: mouse, bee, mushroom…sweet!

This is an example of some of the ephemera packs I made for my shoppe, I call them “Flora and Fauna”.

If you decide to visit my shoppe, and find a few things you can’t live without, be sure to use the coupon code CUSTOMERLOVE20 to receive 20% off your order.

Here is my latest page, I pulled a junk journal insert out of my shoppe. I think I may have to make more of these, they’re super fun!

It’s rather strange how relaxed I feel right now, it was totally worth all the hard work, and my studio is that much more organized too!

As per usual, I feel pretty guilty ignoring this old blog, and my Youtube channel, but there is only so much time in the day.

I signed up for the iHanna postcard swap again, so I need to get started on those now, I’ll be sure to take process photos to share.

If you’d be interested in receiving one, sight unseen, just post a comment and email your address to me by November 1st and I’ll get one out to you, international addresses included, (my email is at the top right).

Until next time,

Thanks for the visit,

Have a great week,

~Patty

 

 

iHanna Postcard Swap Happy Mail

~ Patty Radish ~ 2 Comments

Well, most of the cards have arrived. With the Holidays pretty much upon us, I thought it was a good time to share some of the gorgeous cards I will be adding to my collection!

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The artistry this time around was quite surprising! So much love and care in each card! I loved reading the notes people wrote on their cards, lovely!

IMG_0794Bright beautiful colors all around! The card in the middle was an extra one sent by sweet Jenny, I wasn’t actually on her list, she put me on it though! Thank you Jenny!

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Like I’ve said before, I wish iHanna would do this swap more often! I absolutely love it!

Thank you for stopping by,

Have a great day,

~Patty

iHanna Post Card Swap Makings

~ Patty Radish ~ 14 Comments

I think I look forward to the iHanna PCS more every time it comes around! It’s only twice a year, I wish it was at least four! But since I’m on the side of having fun, not running it, that’s easy for me to say.

I haven’t written a process post in a long time, so I thought this would be a great opportunity to share a little of mine.

Warning: this post is pretty photo heavy, so I’ll try to keep the text to a minimum.

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This is what I started out with, pages from a couple of journals that didn’t quite work out that I cut to size. This happens once in a while, I’ll over do it on the journal makings, then decide to move on.

These seemed a bit too bright, and needed a little strengthening up, so step two…

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Hoping these will do the trick! Tissue paper and napkins.

With the napkins you will want to pull the the layers apart, there are usually three, save the printed one to adhere with matte medium. (it’s a whole process I can cover in another post if you would like).

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I was concerned that the colors would fade too much, but as soon as they had dried, I was happy.

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I have had these snarky recipe cards clanking around for a few years. They are the perfect size for post cards with lines for writing to boot!

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The ephemera I have chosen to work with. I will collect things throughout the year that might work for making happy mail. I wanted to go all out “postal” themed with this swap.

IMG_9962The layering process goes as such: card base, tissue paper, main image, large stamps, washi tape, smaller stamps, die cut/punch out, and more washi. Apply a coat of satin varnish if you are so inclined. Let dry, then sand the edges smooth…my favorite part! See the rounded corners, Love!

After all the layering, varnishing, and sanding, they feel quite substantial!

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They look a bit like a mini journal page, no surprise there!

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And because I have received too many cards that look like the mail truck did a burnout on them, I make envelopes out of book pages (again, another process I can share if you would like). These were made from a 1970’s crafting book.

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So there you have it! I had so much fun making these, I decided to make more to send to some of my friends!

If I left out anything, or if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask!

Once again, thank you for stopping by,

Have a great day,

~Patty