...and then there's this

I freely admit to being inspired by those artists out here on the web who use a variety of ephemera to create tiny masterpieces.....  Electra, this means you for one.......!!

My cousin Sue is a talented folk artist and possesses more than her fair share of ability at anything she turns her hand to, which makes gift-giving more than unusually fraught with difficulty: something store-bought just doesn't seem right.  I bought these wooden buttons from Aussie Woodcraft at the Healesville market and had something crafty in mind, but what?  After an evening blurfing (see Electra, there's that word again) I decided to combine the concept of an ATC with a collection of papers, and then frame the result.  Let me say that the frame was the easy bit.  I hunted through the big box of wooden things under the desk - and there was the perfect frame, all it needed was some sanding to neaten up the edges, and a bit of inspiration for the artwork in the centre.  The finished work has no glass because the picture is in 3D.

I've used a piece of handmade paper with a lovely textured edge for the hills; the fields are a combination of SU designer paper overlaid with green gauze ribbon, and the sky is the reverse of a lovely SU paper that matches their Fifth Avenue Floral stamp set.  The patterned ribbon at the bottom of the picture is a tiny piece from one of the TE kits. 

Merry Christmas Sue.