You know what? I said today would be Dotee Dolls. I changed my mind. I don't want to really talk about then right now. Why? It's my blog and I'll blog how I want to. So yeah. Onto better subjects. If you really want me to talk about Dotee Dolls. Feel free to leave a comment telling me how i missed your favorite part.

   Moving on. The fun mess making parts! WOOTS! 

   Acrylic paint and gesso are my choice in poisons. You can't have too much or too many different kinds. Okay well you know what gesso is gesso. Whatever. 

   One fun way I like to make background for ATCs is taking some pretty white paper. Any kind of pretty white paper will do. Hell you can use any kind of paper really. It doesn't really matter. I don't care what kind of paper you use. Just make sure it can take a good beating.

   You take that whatever type of paper and cover it in a nice little coat of gesso. Get it all over it. You can let it dry if you want. I usually do. Or you can go and add some color to it. Either way you like to do it go ahead and have some fun. 

   Take some acrylic paint and add it on there. Swirl is here and there. Dab a little over there. Smooth it out over here. Whatever tickles your fancy. Let that dry. Then more gesso! Yes, more. It's all about layers here people. Then let that dry. 

   Got some cool looking rubber stamps? Get to stamping. However you like it. Make it all nice and random now. Have some fun with it. Got any kind of stencil you like? Use it. I like to take bubble wrap and run some color over it with a paint brush and use that to make some bubbles on my papers. Nice cheap homemade stamp. Couldn't ask for anything better. 

   Let that all dry. Add some more gesso. Now when you are adding gesso layers feel free to add as much as you like. However, I like to go thin. That way nothing get's too over covered but just enough to blend it altogether. 

   You can do that as much or as little as you like it. I do about maybe...6-8 layers. Depends on my mood or how fast I want to get this background done. Haha. 

   ^ That's abou what you could end up with when you are all done. Then you have some ready to go backgrounds custom made ready to be made into a nicely done ATC. I had much a bunch different colors. That way I had a little something for everything. I'll need to get to making some more though soon. 

   Another fun thing to do is take your acrylic paint and put it on some wax paper. Add some different colors. At least 2-3 colors. I wouldn't say any more or any less then that. You don't want too many because it'll just get to muddled. Too few and it wont look cool enough.

   Take your colors you've decided to add together. Put a decent amount on the wax paper. Then take something...I like using a finger and mix it together. Now not too much! Make it look like the colors are trying to mix but failing horribly. Haha. You want that swirled marble effect. 

  Take your pre-cut plain ATCs and put one right onto of the color. Lightly push on it so you get enough on it and then peel it up off the paint. If you've added enough paint you should be able to do this a few times. You don't need to cover the whole ATC. You wont get it wrong if you don't. More or less. Have some fun with it. See what you like. I prefer them either way honestly. 

   ^ There I just took red and blue and had some fun. Now once you are done if you'd like to add even better effect. Take some of you glimmer mist and spray it a few times. Then you've got some extra shimmer and shine to them. Let them dry and you've got another awesome premade ATC background. 

   Like I said it's all about the mess you make. Usually the bigger and messier the more fun you are having and the better your crafts will look in the end. Usually. Don't quote me on this. Haha. Is all part of the creative chaos theory.
   

 


  

   Well isn't today a great day. Sunday! Back to work tomorrow Yay!....WTH am I talking about? Monday's are the worst even if I don't work. Haha! 

   It's a Z kind of night. Zines and Zentangles! Zines are fun little things. Little paper books. You make them using 1 piece of paper. Anything you'd like and you can pout anything in them. Though it's best to keep them nice and flat. That way they close up all nice and neat. 

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   ^ The zine I made for my GROUP: Kawaii Minizine Swap #3 *SUMMER EDITION*
 swap. My first one ever! It was so much fun too. The template was pre-made by the wonderful hollycopter who hosted the swap. Then we got to fill it all out for our partners. We had to make 3. So, I made 1 and photocopied the other 2. However, for the sticker flake part and things to do this summer part I did them all separately. I think I might have even done the glitter outline on my name part separately as well.

   If you looked at the zone carefully you can see the slit in the middle. Along with the fold. That slit allows the paper to fold up into a mini booklet. Thus making it a zine. I've seen all kinds of themes for zines. They are another endless craft to do. No you don't have to be an artist either. There were no rules stating you have to hand draw anything. I just thought it would have been more fun to do so. That's why I did. You can use images, stamps, rub ons, and whatever else. Crafting is meant to have fun so have fun. If you are not having fun then you aren't doing that right kind of crafts!

   Zentangles are addicting and calming. I can do zentangles all day and get lost in them. For lack of better terms they are just lines, curves, dots, circles, and everything else in between. Yeah there are a lot of zentangles that have names and what not and are done a certain way but it doesn't mean you can only do them. Heck no. Tangle Patterns.com is a great site to check out to get the gist of everything. I've found some really great zentangles on there I really like.

 

   ^ Zentangles! These were made for my GROUP: Zentangle ATC swap I was in. We had to make 2 zentangle ATCs. Send 1 to both of our 2 partners.  2 partners 1 ATC each. These were fun. I'd have to say my favorite is the left one! I love both of those zentangles. Now they have fancy names to them and everything but I can't remember them. You check out that website I linked above and you'll find the name for both of them. 

   Like I said before though. Just because it isn't on that website don't think it doesn't count as a zentangle. Think of how most kids learn to draw grass. They draw lines across the paper right? Not everyone is the same length. Some are longer and some are shorter. Though there is a "pattern" of lines going across the bottom of the paper. Zentangle! Now as an adult you can make those lines straight up and down then you have a true zentangle. Also make every other one the same length and TA DA! Also who said they have to be straight up and down? You can make them wavy, zig zag, look like stairs, and anything else. You are still making a zentangle. 

   Easy, fun, addicting, and very relaxing. You will lost track of time doing them. So make sure you don't have anything important you need to do anytime soon without setting an alarm. Haha. Take it from experience. I know! 

   Dotee Dolls tomorrow! The onto the fun parts! Making the mess to create the work of art!
 

   Well sadly today I'm not starting my post off as happy as I thought I was going to...I was all excited and hyped up for the Anime Convention they have here every year around this time. Got already and headed out. Arrived and paid the new $3 admissions fee. Fine whatever. It's worth it. Get inside....disappointed. Talking about major let down.

   At first I was trying to be glass is half full not half empty type of person you know. "They moved stuff around." I told myself. Then I walked around. ALL around. Talking about crap! They have more Panels then anything! If I want to watch and talk Anime I'll jump on the Funimation Community forums and throw down there with like minded people. They had about half the amount of vendors they had last year. They didn't even have the nom nom vendors. No candy! Nowhere! WTH! 

   Of course I knew I would find nothing worth wild. I never do. No one ever have Vincent, Nanaki, or Fushigi Yugi stuff. NEVER! I did though happen to find a Fairy Tail Happy 2" pin for $2.50 not bad. That was my big haul for the day. One pin...oh goodie. 

   Though we decided to make up our convention disappointment up at the Hookah Bar! Now that was well worth  the day right there! Ahhh.....love that place! 

   Now onto the CRAFTING! 

   ^ Those are Twinchies. They are 2x2 pieces of art. 2 inchies x 2 inchies. I will have to say they were a lot easier to work with for the first time then the inchies. You get a little more room with them. These were made for my 3 Valentine Twinchies (USA) swap. They were fun and quick. I used paper flowers, Alphabet glitter stickers, Stickles, ribbon, some book pages, spray inks, a picture printed offline of a cherry blossom tree, Valentine's stickers, and some of the foam thingies you find in kids crafting areas. Like I said so much you can use to craft with in such a limited space.

   One of my more favorite fun crafts! ^ Altered Bottle Caps! These are made for my What can you make #20? swap. The group this swap was from is a group that uses other items to make something. Recycle and reuse kind of group you know. The object for #20 was bottle caps. I made some bottle cap magnets.

   Took some sharpie markers in different colors and colored the edge of the bottle cap. Found different things to put on my bottle caps. First though, I took a 1" hold punch and found backgrounds  that worked well with my objects and colors of the bottle cap and punched them out. Then I took my all time favorite adhesive! GLOSSY ACCENTS! Yes, you read that right. Glossy Accents. It makes the best glue ever! Put a little bit of that down and then put the 1"punch out on top. Ta da! You have a background. Then I took the glossy accents again and filled the bottle cap, stuck the object onto and now we wait. Wait, wait, wait, and wait some more. I usually let these dry over night. So I do them before going to bed so it doesn't seem like it's taken that long. Haha. By then next day they should be 100% dry. Then I took some flat magnets, added a bit of my Surebonder Clear 9001 High-Strength Adhesive glue. Now this stuff glues metal to metal and what not. So be CAREFUL! Imagine what could happen if you glue your finger to something...... Anywho, took a dab of that on the back and stuck the magnets on the back. Another night of waiting and WOOTS! Bottle Cap Magnets are good to go! 

   I also like to take those little metal hoop things people use for jewelry...hoop rings or something and punch a hole into the bottle cap somewhere with a nail and add charms to them that way. Makes for something even more fun. You can also do that and make charms for bracelets and necklaces. Lots of fun things to do with bottle caps besides count how many beers you've just drank. 

   Besides Zentangles, Zines, and Dotee Dolls I'm almost done talking about the crafts themselves. Then I can get into the fun part of some techniques I use for making something look a certain way. Oh and we can't forget about carving your stamps. Ugh, though that's tricky all on it's own. I've only done it a few times and it seems to take me forever to get a small one done. Haha. Though they are still really fun and help pass time quickly. Oh! Hand warmers! I love to make those too. It's about the only thing I know how to crochet. Haha. So seems I still have quiet a bit to talk about before I can go on and on about KAWAII! Sigh. Oh well. In all due time I guess.
  
 

   Alright Day two of this new blog thing. Woots. Yesterday was easier then I thought so today shall be even easier right? 

   Yesterday I left off talking about ATCs and Matchboxes. How fun was that? I think today I'll talk a little about Altered Rolos. Now, some people have no idea what a rolo even is. However, the older you are you'll know exactly what I am talking about. No, I am NOT talking about the rolo candy. Though that is some good stuff right there. Rolo is short for Rolodex. Now do you know what I am talking about? No. 

   ^ That is a rolodex. You use it to store useful information that our cell phones now do. Names, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and all that other good stuff. What does that have to do with crafting? Lots. You take the paper part of the rolodex and alter it into something else. What's nice about rolos is you can go off the edge.

   Not something I didn't explain about ATCs yesterday I totally brain farted on was you want to keep your crafting on the actual ATC. You don't want to go off the edges. Why? A lot of people like to put them in the binder sleeves. Makes sense right? Well if you figured that all out on your own kuddos to you! 

   Now to continue on with rolos. With rolos you can go off the top and a little off the sides. Why? Well look for yourself at the top picture. You can have room to spare. Nothing really blacking off the extra goodies you put on it. 

   Now this rolo I made for a swap. A.R.T.(USA)~April/Butterfly Rolo. See how I went off the top and side a little? Extra room to be creative! Awesome right? They are pretty much like ATCs. The sky is the limit do what you want. The only tricky part is the notches. See the two notches at the bottom? Those should be facing down on the front. That way when you go through your rolos you see the fronts of your rolos. Then when you flip it over to the back they notches should be on top. Again this has to do with flipping through your rolodex. The info on the back will be facing you right side up. Instead of upside down.

   So, I've gone on rambling about ATCs, matchboxes, and now rolos. What shall we talk about now? Oh I know...INCHIES! Those little buggers gave me a hell of a time when I first started making them. Why you ponder? Inchies are 1x1 inch. Yes. That's all the room you get. 1 inch x 1 inch. Nothing more nothing less.  Inchies you can have some fun and go a little off. However it needs to be stick to mostly 1x1. Your embellishments are what I'm talking about being able to go off a little. Like a tiny feather or something that sticks slightly off.

   Once you get past your nervousness of trying to figure out how to add detail to a 1x1 area they are really easy to make. They are tiny so not a lot of work has to go into them. Unless you want of course. Though remember. Sometimes more is not always better. You don't want it looking like a hot mess of chaos.

   ^ Inchies. The picture on the left is the inchies of course. Well duh you knew that. See. Simple and easy to do. Those inchies were my very first set. They were for a swap called Inchies for Beginners. Go figure. Haha. You can add anything onto them just like everything else I've talked about. Stickers, ribbon, brads, feathers, buttons, flat gems, paint, straing, and everything else. Just don't STICKER SLAP! Never sticker slap anything. You are better then this. 

   The little picture on the right of my inchies is a spur of the moment set of tiny envelopes I made for my inchies to go into during shipping. 

   Since we are talking about inchies I should talk about another tiny creative item. An Inchie Book! They are just so darn cute and easy to make. 

 

    ^ That is an inchie book. Will fit almost any inchies nicely. I say almost any because your inchies that have some bulky embellishments to them will make it a little hard to close up. It's just like a book. So yeah. The thicker something is they harder it will be to close your book. You can use the Blizzard Book Layout to make an inchie book. Just make it smaller. Ta da! Inchie book. The on the edge of the binder cut a little slit on each side and you can put some ribbon through it. Fun, quick, and easy to make.

   Well that was fun rambling I had for today. So far I've talked about 4 out of 5 crafts I do all the time. There are other crafts I do I'll ramble on about later. Though I don't do them as much. Heck, maybe I'll even share a few techniques I use to make something look a certain way. Those are always the fun messes. Who doesn't enjoy making a mess? it's just the cleaning up part that sucks. But, it's never a mess when it comes to creativity it's just Creative Chaos!
   

Well Hello there

   Well it seems Blogging seems to be the new thing to do. Just like Twitter, Facebook, and all those other wonderful websites we sit and waste countless hours sitting and staring at when we all know we should be doing something productive. 

   So, here it is. My who knows how many reasons to sit on my ass and waste time. However, I'd like to think this reason isn't as less productive as the rest! Why you say? Well look at the name for my blog ---> Creative Chaos ta-da! I'm going to try to mainly go and talk about something creative. Something to do with my crafting! Besides sleeping and my kids turning my hair grey crafting is something that takes up A LOT of my time.

   However, do not be fooled. I am sure that more then once I am going to get on here and randomly talk about something that has absolutely nothing to do with my crafts whatsoever! I do have kids now. I do lose my mind more then once in an hours time. Also I wont fail to mention I am a kawaii addict. So posting random picture and talking about my oh so lovely goodies is bound to happen!

   I will admit though I am on a good start. Look! So far I have in the works a 4th paragraph of a brand new blog and not once...okay only once have I brought up the fact this is going to be used to talk about crafting and what not. Though have I posted or actually gone into detail about anything dealing with my crafting? Hell no. See this is when you know my a.d.h.d. kicks in more then I can help. (Oh look! Squirrel!) Any who.

   Crafting I love it thanks to the wonderful site Swap-Bot.com If you have not check it out yet you should. Not only can you go there and swap almost anything you can do crafting! Awesome creative chaotic crafts. So many themes! Choices! Variety! And all that good stuff. I've learned about ATCs = Artist Trading Cards.

  Now this ^ ATC was something I just made on the fly. It was for a Sender's Choice x2 swap. I love all the ATCs I make but this is on my Top Favorite's List. I love making ATC's! Totally addicted to them. They are fun and easy. You can pretty much do anything you want. Minus sticker slapping! Please, please never do that unless it's requested. Which I've only seen it happen once. Where you actually had to make 2 sticker slapped ATCs for a swap.

   Also, there are Altered Matchboxes! Now those are fun. You can either use a pre-made bought from the store matchbox or make your own. Rachel's Matchbox Template. I personally like to make my own. It feels more "crafty" and personal. Then after you are done making and decorating your matchbox you get to fill it with wonderful goodies! It's like opening a mini gift for you every time you get a matchbox in return!

   This was a fun matchbox. I was and still am very happy how this one came out. So is my partner! This matchbox was for the February Love Matchbox Swap #5. I made my matchbox using Rachel's template. Then I had some fun. I took some book pages and covered the matchbox. Took my oh so fun to play with Glimmer Mist sprays. Spritz a little here, a little there, and ta-da! Took some embellishments and placed them in all the right places and one lovely matchbox almost ready for swapping. Look here, look there, dig around in this, in that, and we've got some goodies to fill it! Snap a picture this way, that way, and like this and that. Now we are ready to swap! The hardest part to making a matchbox is letting go. Just like every thing else I make. If I'm not sad to see it go then damnit I didn't do a good enough job!

   Now what else is there? Inchies! Rolos! Twinchies! Zines! Zentangles! Whimsey Jars! Also let's not forget my new addiction....KAWAII! However, I feel I am off to a good start with my oh so new blog. I don't want to bore anyone just quite yet. Also you're mind is probably more then blown away by the new awesomeness I have shared with you! I know mine was once found. So you should digest and pick up all your brain pieces and carefully replace them where they go and come back later. Then I'll ramble on about more chaos later on!