Thursday 28 February 2013

Super Heroes to the Rescue!

 
Original artwork by
Calvin  Lin
As Tanya mentioned in the last post, life tends to throw you a nice monkey wrench at you  when you are making plans.  So, as we decided to start a new blog, I started a new, fantastic job.  So now my free “craft” time has been eaten up.  Not to worry!  Superheros to the rescue!  Literally!

My son was itching for something new on his walls.  His wall of costumes above his bed were nice, but they were getting in the way of making his bed, and he wanted something new.  (Read, his mother was annoyed that they would never be put back!)  So, it was time to say good-bye to them and hello to some new art!  But, being the crafty person that I am, I wanted to make him something.  Something memorable, something fun, something.. yes... cheap.  Say hello to Ironman!  The original digital artwork is by Calvin Lin, and available at Society 6.  All the Avengers super heroes are there as well as others.  

But, back to my dilemma. I wanted to put art on his walls, but really couldn’t afford anything.  I had a great stock of blank canvases and a lot of simple acrylic paint.  So, I decided that I would create Ironman on canvas, based on Calvin Lin’s originals.  Now, I’ve never painted anything on canvas, but I’m the type of person that is willing to try anything out!!

After a few days of agonizing over this canvas, I decided to just start.  The canvas has a base of modge-podged old book pages.  I wanted the canvas to have a lot of texture.  After a few layers of book pages and a lot of drying time, it was time to add the base of red.  Then more, then some “dirt” smudges around.  Finally I created a stencil of Ironman’s “parts” and painstakingly put brush to canvas.


Finished background on canvas (left),
modge-podging book pages onto canvas
In the end Ironman turned out wonderfully.  After about 3 weeks of doing this in the evenings, Ironman was done.  But, my plan backfired!  My son loved the art, but he wanted more.  Silly me.. I said ok.  It took a few months, but finally they are done!  All 5 of the Avengers are here.  I had to design Hawkeye myself because my son didn’t recognize the character based on the original comic book.

Paula's version of Ironman
Now he says that he wants more superhero art.  My 2 daughters *tried* to bargain with my son to get Black Widow in their room, but eventually I guess I’ll have to make them one or two.  I don’t know what I’ve gotten myself into!

Paula

P.S. Sorry for the pictures being all over the place. I'm still trying to figure out Blogger! ARGH!
Thor, Black Widow, Hawkeye, Thor, Captain America
The Avengers in their new home!

Tuesday 26 February 2013

'C' Is For Cookie

Well! Didn't we just start with a fizzle??

Sorry if you've been waiting anxiously for a new post, folks. This is what happens when we decide on a new venture like this *just* when Paula starts a new job and I am eyeball-deep in freelance work.

Only we could manage something like this. Seriously.

Well, in times of crazy schedules and high stress, sometimes one needs a little treat to keep oneself going. KnowwhutImean, Vern?

And let me tell you, tonight was one of those nights that required something sweet and chocolatey. Enter the "cookie for one made in a mug"!

Cookie for ONE? More like Cookie for TEN!
The Monster Cookie
Yeah, it's not a mug; it's a small Corningware casserole dish. Twenty-four ounce, in fact.

I used this recipe from Zoom Yummy. The pictures looked deelish so I was verily intrigued, but leery at the same time.

I mean, it's a cookie made in the microwave. How is it going to turn out? More importantly, how is it going to taste?!?

Well, Gentle Readers, it tastes pretty good. Don't expect any crunch, though -- it's totally chewy. The taste is about what you'd expect. It certainly stopped the dessert craving in its tracks. And also on the plus side, it was definitely easy to make. The recipe claims something like a five-minute prep time, but mine definitely took longer as I had to keep dashing over to the laptop to read the next instruction or ingredient. (I'm weird that way. I always second-guess what's next.)

Bottom line? Two thumbs up. It won't replace traditional oven-baked, chocolate-chip cookies, but it will certainly do when you need something fast, warm and sweet.

Apropos of nothing, though, I realize I need a new camera. My old one died and all of my recent pictures have been taken on my phone. They're not horrible, but they're nowhere near excellent. This blog will definitely require half-decent pictures. How else will people get to see anything?

But I digress. Thanks for reading, and I promise you the next post will happen sooner rather than later!

Monday 18 February 2013

Happy Birthday To Us!

Welcome to our blog about all things crafty! We know there are myriad excellent blogs to choose from out there that instruct and inspire, so we’re glad you’ve come by here to see what we’re all about!

So why did we decide to start up a blog? The truth? Practicality!

The conversation went something like this:

Tanya: I need a place to catalogue the stuff I’ve been making lately. You know, just to have a record of it all. I’m thinking of starting a blog, but I don’t know if I really want to.

Paula: Want to do one together?

Tanya: Uh... YES!

And there you have it. What followed was a long, drawn-out conversation about the name of this blog. Because we all know the name is important. It has to be just right, or it won’t feel good. So lists of brainstormed ideas were sent back and forth, ranging from the questionable (“Two girls and their stash.” Hmm. Does that sound drug-related??) to the obscure (“Recreation Compilation.” What, too Big Bang Theory?).

Finally, the breakthrough conversation went like this:

Tanya (in a fit of mild frustration): How about “Two Girls Who Quote 80s Pop Song Lyrics”?

Paula (in a brilliant flash of insight): Hey! What about just “Two Girls Who...”?

What followed was a moment of stunned silence, the type that usually follows a discovery of genius proportions. (We may or may not have then whooped and hollered. Those details are best left private. We’ve got reps to protect, y’know.)   

And after a few more minor details -- like formatting and designing the blog, and discussing parameters and wishlists -- we arrived where we are today -- our very first blog post!

So at this moment in time, we’re not going to be so regimented as to post blog entries on specific days -- they’ll just be up when they’re up, although we promise to have new content ready as often as we can -- so we hope you’ll pop back regularly. Even better, feel free to click on the tabs on the right to “follow” this blog. That way you’ll be notified when there’s something new to see. Also, we don’t expect this to be a very tutorial-heavy blog. You’ll get our spin on what others have done (properly credited, of course!), but we’re not always going to be making things up ourselves. Although you never know!

On that note, thanks again for stopping by, and here’s to Two Girls Who... might do a few fun things! Stay tuned!