ATCs

Lisa Fulmer aka LisaLizaLou has a monthly ATC swap on her Facebook fan page that I take part in sometimes.  Each month has a theme and it’s always so much fun to see how people interpret it in their own ways.

In April the theme was revolving around Earth Day and I had a little different take on it than I think many people did.  When I think of the earth and of preserving it, I think of trying to reuse things as much as possible – something I try to do in my art as well.  So I made these ATCs (note: you only have to make one for Lisa’s swap – I make two so that Lisa can keep one for herself) using scrap pieces of canvas as the background.  The canvas was wrapped around some items we bought for renovations on our house and I kept it so I could repurpose it.  The flowers are made from a sort of tissue paper that breakable items are wrapped in at the dollar store.  To me, these ATCs reflect the beauty of the world (and the love and hope I have for it as reflected in the charms) and show how important I feel it is to try to be as eco-friendly as possible.

This month’s theme is serenity.  While cleaning up and reorganizing in my studio I came across these papers and this colour called out to me over and over.  I began to lay these papers aside and the theme of serenity kept going through my head as I looked at them.  Perhaps it’s partly because they remind me of water and I find great peace and serenity in rivers, streams, lakes, and oceans.  Take me to the water’s edge and I will instantly calm down and let any stress within me just melt away.  I haven’t decided precisely how I will use these papers in my ATCs but they certainly have inspired me.