am

I am a Christian, a wife, a mother, and a paper artist. I love art journaling, collage, bookmaking, zines, and letter writing. I enjoy altering books and searching thrift stores and flea markets for cool paper ephemera to use in my projects. Creating art postcards, splattering paint, and crafting with my kids are my between art time fillers. Our family homeschools, and we LOVE it!

ooks

Books on journaling, art journaling, zines made by you, journals made by you, altered books made by you.
These days, I don't get a lot of opportunity to read simply for pleasure, but, when I do, I enjoy well-told ghost, booger, or apocalyptic tales.
Some all time favorite reads, the ones I can and do go back to again and again...

The Bible
The Stand, Stephen King
The Life of Pi, Yann Martel
Coraline, Neil Gaiman
Dr. Dolittle, Hugh Lofting

I also have enjoyed some graphic novels, such as
Y: The Last Man, Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra
Anya's Ghost, Vera Brosgol
Revolver, Matt Kindt
Page by Paige, Laura Lee Gulledge

The close pairing of story and illustration in graphic novels appeals to me!

rganizing

One of my main personal goals is organizing my craft room. I love to hear about other folks unique, clever, and thrifty strategies for organizing their tools and supplies. I really enjoy giving new life to furniture pieces and odds and ends that I already have or that I can acquire inexpensively at thrift stores or yard sales.

rollecting

• unique buttons
• rick rack
• art rubber stamps
• stationery
• note cards
• cigar boxes
• lace
• trims
• sentiment stickers
• art postcards
• tobacco cards
• rhinestones
• interesting illustrations from old books
• ledger paper
• graph paper

otifs

For stickers, artwork, rubber stamps, stamped images, postage stamps, collage images....anything I can use in my paper art, the following themes or motifs I am always collecting.
* gnomes
* domestic ladies of the 1950's
* crows
* owls
* cutsey flowers * doodled/zentangled shapes
* vintage themes
* mushrooms
* suns
* anatomical drawings/illustrations
* vintage cameras
* mandalas
* snail mail theme
* birds
* nesting dolls/Matryoshka doll
* cutesy houses
* quirky sayings: I currently have a few rubber stamps that I use all the time... "Unfit for Human Consumption" "Guilt-Free Mail...No reply expected" "Psychic Dominance" "Don't try this at home" "Evidence of Art"

nspiring Artists

Charley Harper - Love his style, colors, and how he creates his subjects using the simplest of shapes without you feeling you have lost any detail.
Beth Krommes - This woman creates magic with scratch board. If you haven't visited her website, you creative world will get a whole lot bigger when you do.
Vera Brosgol - Love her illustration and tale in Anya's Ghost.
Marissa Falco, aka Miss Sequential - Her zines are ALWAYS a delight!

rivate Swaps

I would very much enjoy doing a private swap. I would like to swap one of my handmade items for one of yours...preferrably a different genre. Things I could make for you would be handmade cards, art postcards, zine, journal, altered book, or a collage.
I'd gladly do a swap for a fellow paper lover....some stash for stash.
Zines? What are we waiting for?! :)

wap Philosophy

I swap because I enjoy making special packages for someone. To brighten someone's day gives me alot of pleasure. If you do not recieve a swap from me, contact me as soon as you think there is a problem.
Also, as a courtesy to your fellow swappers, please rate your received swaps. If you don't rate me, it will leave me confused and fretting...worried that you didn't receive your special mail. :) Swapping is friendly! Swapping is fun! So, let's share the joy!

redits

If you enjoyed the beautiful drop caps used on my profile page, then check out Jessica Hische's Daily Drop Cap. She's beautifying the internet one capital letter at a time.