A Puzzling Situation

Have you ever had one of those days when you just felt so...well you know creative and almost like the feeling when you're dieting and you want something to eat sooooooooooo bad but you know there is nothing in the fridge that will satisfy you?
Well I had one of those days yesterday but I was good and did all my chores because Punkin said if I was very good he would bring me home a little surprise. So yeppers, I did all my housework stuff, ran errands, got my nickles worth of use out of the pool, picked okra, posted on my blog, did my Bible Study lesson, and even watched my soap then it was off and running to THE room. The Art Room and the one I sometimes refer to as my "Studio" depending on my audience of course. teee heee


And eyeing all the wonderful little supplies and goodies I stuff here and there I came upon a box of very BIG puzzle pieces. An old thick puzzle I had lucked up on at a thrift store eons ago and it was a puzzle of the United States with the World on the back, of course several states were missing hence the price of owning it for a mere .25 cents.

But I found a use for the pieces that bordered all the states, like Canada and Mexico and you know those foreign type spots. And deciding they were just too over the top and big to make as pendants decided to make pins out of them. So now that I have a small stash finished, I will glue the pin backs on them and think they will be cute worn on coats this winter or even pinned on handbags. What'cha think?

Here's one I did use as a State Pin, the Texas one which is the largest by far you know.

And I liked the way the star piece came out and it was the right size for a link at the top which could actually be worn on a ribbon around your neck I guess.

I began covering all the pieces with pretty background papers and then inked the edges and stamped some random images with most of the little girls and the women taken from Paper Imagery Designs and a few from Kristin over at Retro Cafe Art. I love buying those collage sheets.

Once those were adhered, the fun began with charms, old earrings, or what ever "found" stuff you can put your little paws on and edges were once again re-inked. Some have a very thin line of glitter glue around the edges, and the Texas has dots of puff paint to resemble studs.


The captions were taken from a little vintage book I picked up at an estate sale called The Westminster Hymnal with Vespers. I really feel a small twinge of regret in cutting up that little old book as it is copyrighted 1912. Yep, I heard you gasp and groan, but I figure it like this. I didn't buy the thing as an investment and when I'm gone to my home in the sky who knows but my kids will either dump it in the trash can or send it to the Goodwill for some lucky shmirk (did I spell that word right, and what the heck is a shmirk anyway)to make a fortune from. Anyway I cut all the little words out and thought they just belonged on these puzzle pieces.

The piece way up at the top has Latin and I don't know what it says but I know it is "clean". It's the one with the flattened bottlecap. I have a terrible wanting for bottlecaps!
What gift can this precious child give to Jesus? Why nothing more than her heart we all know. The little captions are so right on.

And to finish them off I used TripleThick Glaze by Deco Art. I love using that because one coat is all you need for a really hard, glassy finish which truly looks like glass.

This beauty has Sinned Against Thee as you can see and she has a saints medal to show it. And the little Lamb below shows her love for Jesus.

So after taking the state shapes out and putting them in a special place where I will remember for the next time I'm puzzled about what to do, I was left with an empty box. Well you all know we do not throw away a perfectly good empty box do we. So I went to work on that!

I am so influenced by the works of JoAnnA Periotti and K.C.Willis that I am always drawn to creating in that style, attempting to put my own spin on the piece while still employing some of the techniques I have learned from them. So the boxtop became a sort of hanging shrine of a little cowgirl with brightly colored yo-yos and tea dyed canvas with lots of grunge and bling.

And now I'm not puzzled and I'm also not feeling creative so think I'll read a book today and do some ironing. Oh and I told Punkin I would think of something really scrumptious for supper and maybe tomorrow I will share my little surprise with you. And THAT is just one reason why he is my Punkin Darlin.

Sending you Arty Hugs and wishes for a Fun Day!

Mollye