Hi, I'm Torrey. Welcome to Left Field, where creativity runs amok and imagination is ALWAYS more important than knowledge. Shoes are not allowed but ties are optional. This is a repository of snippets from my life out here in Left Field. One never knows what shiny bits of creativity will be found here... cards, scrapbook layouts, photography, poetry, recipes, ponderings, rantings and musings. It could be anything! Life in Left Field is always changing, always real, always ...interesting.

October 30, 2012

Black and White Spooktacular

So. Are y'all ready for Halloween? Alas, this year I will not be handing out candy. I will keep the house dark so as not to falsely lure the multitudes of trick-or-treaters. Just couldn't afford to hand out candy this year. It's too dang expensive. In all hopes, our house won't get egged or T.P.'d in retaliation.
Over at Bombshell stamps, it's time for our monthly blog hop...and it just HAPPENS to coincide with Halloween! Cool! So our hop mistress, Alison, tasked us with creating a Halloween project in nothing but black and white.

If you sauntered over here into Left Field from the UBER wicked Alex's blog, then you made it safe and sound. Did her raven, Edgar, peck at you? He's quite the cantankerous bird sometimes! Now, sit back...dim the lights...and read on if you dare... as you enter....

THE TORREY ZONE
***************************************************
The room is empty, except for a silhouette of a woman's profile projected onto the bare wall. 

"Good ee-vening", she says in her best Alfred Hitchcock voice.

Lightning punctuates her greeting as the lights blink out in instant response and plunge the room into utter darkness.

 Suddenly, an eery beam of light bathes the center of the room, like a spotlight caressing an empty stage, as a gathering of rattling beings (festooned in faded black tutus) emerge from the darkness and dance lithely, in unison, across the floor.

 Ghostly organ music begins to waft its otherworldly whine. The melody...hauntingly familiar. 

 Is that Swan Lake?

 Really?

 Who knew skeletons knew ballet?

Who knew they wore tutus?

Yes, this IS the Dance Macabre.

 MuA Ha ha ha ha ha ha.


Thank you for hopping by! Now it's time to skitter over to the delightfully spooky Kelli's blog  Be sure to leave treats (or tricks) along the way in the form of comments. And please play along with us and create a Black and White Halloweeny card!

Here is a complete blog list if you get lost or want to retrace your steps. It's much more effective than leaving bread crumbs.

Torrey (me)
Mari 


Ingredients:
Muertos Doll digital stamp - Bombshell Stamps
Fantasy Bombshell digital stamp (tutu)- Bombshell Stamps
Nestability die - Spellbinders (Label Ten)
Prismacolor Colored Pencils
Spiderweb border, and Drippy border punches - EK Success for Martha Stewart
rhinestone swirl, lace, ribbon - Prima
Rhinestones - Michaels
patterned paper
glitter pen - Sakura
cardstock.

I'm entering this in the following challenges:

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October 29, 2012

SSP SSP SSP!!!

Okay, so what is SSP, you ask?

SSP is a VERY old scrapbooking term that stands for "Shameless Self Promotion".

Yep, I'm here today to dish out a great big serving of SSP...and it tastes goooooooooood.

I wanted to let y'all know, I am the featured artiste for  
Rubber Stamp Madness Magazine's 2012 holiday issue!! 
It hits the stands next week...so GO! RUN! GET YOUR COPY BEFORE THEY'RE ALL GONE!!!

No wait!! Get 2 copies!!! Or 3 (they make great Holiday gifts).
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

So, the 411 on the article looks like this: 
(yes, I purposely made it so small you can't read it. HA! You'll have to go buy the magazine!)
  • Title: Out in Left Field (written by Barbara Blanks from an interview with yours truly)
  • pp  28-31
  • Total cards featured: 5
  • Featuring stamps and products by:   


House Mouse  
(Air Head stamp)

Sara  Burrier  
(Noon Fairy stamp)

(Driftwood Border stamp)

Provocraft
(Clockworks embossing folder)

(ribbon)

Aren't you just ITCHING to go read this article now ???



 

 

 


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October 27, 2012

The Natives Are Restless

Howdy folks!

GUESS WHAT???

Bombshell Stamps has released 2 new stamp sets-- and we're just ITCHING to do a feature hop to celebrate their release! Just feast your eyes on these babies!!!

and


Aren't they FaBuLoUs???
(and they come in digital AND rubber)

So, if you landed here via Jodi's wonderful blog, you made it!!! YAY! For my project--with the holidays fast approaching--I decided to turn these nifty stamps into a set of festive napkin rings and place cards for Thanksgiving. I think these make a really fun change from the typical turkey/pilgrim decor that is usually so prevalent this time of year.

Here is a "mock-up" place setting to showcase my projects for today. 
(yes, those are the plates, silverware, napkins and placemat that I use every day)

Here is one of the place cards.

...and here are ALL the place cards (it's gonna be a SMALL gathering). 
My husband said, "Gee, I see you were creative with the names". Hey...I used what I know.
(for those of you who don't know...Richard is my step-dad, Dian is my mom, and Jonathan is my smart-aleck husband).

Here are all the napkin rings.
The base for the napkin rings is (get this) a TOILET PAPER TUBE. I cut it into approximately 1-inch wide rings and covered them with patterned paper. Hey, it's what I had on hand, and it turned out to be the PERFECT diameter.



So, thank you for stopping by! Your next stop is our fabulous Bombshell Chieftess--Kathi. Be sure to pay her blog a visit. I'm sure she has something UBER spiffy to share with you.

Thanks, again, for joining us for our Indian stamp set release! Here is a complete listing of the hop participants in case...ya know. In case.

Torrey (me)
Kathi

Ingredients:
Indian Princess and Indian Warrior stamp sets - Bombshell Stamps
Prismacolor colored pencils
Kraft cardstock
patterned paper - Design Originals
raffia
toilet paper tubes

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October 21, 2012

Frightful Greetings

It's challenge time over at Kenny K's Krafty Krew. This week we're pulling out all things creepy, ghoulish, and macabre to celebrate Kenny's new line of Halloween images. Our sponsors this week are:

The prize from Kenny is the winner's choice of 5 digi's.

And our second sponsor is 
Loves Rubber Stamps
The prize is the winner's choice of a $10.00 stamp from her store!


Our theme this week is

That's Just Frightful!

So get your spooky shoes on! 
(You know...the ones with the spiders and blood all over them). 
And join us in a spooktacular challenge!

I decided to use Kenny's new "Haunted House" image. It SO reminds me of the Addams Family house, doesn't it? They're creepy and they're kooky, mysterious and spooky. They're altogether ooky, the Addams Family! Their house is a museum, when people come to see 'em. They really are a scree-am...the Addams Family. 

You're gonna be singing that all day now. 

Mwa hahahahaha. I'm pure evil.


Wanna know the BEST part about this card??? 
It glows in the dark. Don't belive me? 

Look what happens when the lights go out!!
 Cool huh?

Ingredients:
Haunted House image - Kenny K
Photoshop (for coloring)
Patterned paper - Design Originals
Glow-in-the-dark paint - Tulip
Spider web border punch - Martha Stewart
cardstock
transparency
black tulle
upholstery trim


    

 


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October 13, 2012

Watch Out, Martha

I have been such a crafty diva this week!  I mean...Martha Stewart's got NOTHIN' on me. I started out the week making the baby blanket and stuffed bear for my cousin's baby shower. Then, I made 3 cards for her (one from me and my hubby...one from my mom and step dad...one from the whole extended family). If that weren't enough...I was in charge of making the cake. I promised y'all I'd post about the cake. So here it is.

I decided to try something new for the cake. Fearless I am--to try a new recipe... for the first time... at a party. But why not? I decided to make cake pops instead of a traditional sheet cake or cupcakes. I thought they'd be cute, unique, and portable. So, I scoured the internet for recipes on making cake pops. I found one that made sense so I used it.

In THEORY, cake pops are super easy to make.
  • You bake a cake.
  • Toss baked cake into bowl.
  • Totally macerate the heck out of it until you've rendered it into crumbs.
  • Mix in a LITTLE BIT of prepared frosting.
  • Form into balls.
  • Chill.
  • Insert sticks.
  • Dip in chocolate.
  • Decorate.
  • Done.
I enlisted the aid of my dear hubby, Jonathan. I ended up making about 60 cake pops, in 3 different flavors--lemon, chocolate, and confetti vanilla...so I could certainly utilize his cake-ball making skills. You add JUST ENOUGH frosting to the cake crumbs so they'll hold together. It's sort of like fluffy Playdoh. You do NOT want it as dense as real Playdoh. We set up an assembly line and each took turns scooping, forming, and placing the balls on a cookie sheet.

Jonathan making cake balls.

Naked cake pop balls

After we made all the balls, I set up my assembly/decorating supplies. Well, I say "set up"...I pretty much just dumped it all out on the table.
I decided I wanted them to look like little baby heads with bonnets made from muffin cups. I saw this on Pinterest and thought it would be uber cute. So I drew out various babyesque faces on a piece of paper to use as a reference when I painted them on the pops. After I got a dozen of them finished...I decided 12 was enough...the rest would just sit in the muffin cups with bows tied on them.

Hmmm, they actually look more like ghost pops at this point. Oh well...it's close enough to Halloween.

I used paste food coloring and hand-painted on their faces. NOTE* the food coloring NEVER dried (even overnight)...so I ended up having to blot off their faces before I assembled them the next morning.

Here is the end result, all set up at the party.

They look like babies now!

They were a HUGE hit! I must admit, they tasted FABULOUS and were just too cute!
 
Martha better watch her back...
Torrey's in da house!


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October 8, 2012

Da Bear

So, my cousin Andrea is about to have her first baby. We're having her shower this weekend. I am in charge of the cake. I'll post about it...later in the week when I actually make it. For now, I'm posting about her shower gift.

I KNOW she's registered at Babies R Us,Target and Walmart. I KNOW there are things she NEEDS. But I just couldn't bring myself to BUY her shower gift. I figure, if I'm making the cake, and her card...I can sure as sunrise make her gift as well. It just sorta rounds out the Trifecta of creativity. For her gift, I decided to make her a polar fleece reversible baby blanket. The no-sew kind. Instead of a tied-fringe border, I opted for a braided border (actually it's crocheted, not braided). I think it looks neater. So I went to JoAnn's and bought the fleece. Andrea's doing the nursery in hot PANK. So, I found the PERFECT pattern--a black, hot pink and white patchwork of bold designs. After I finished the blanket, I had all this leftover fleece.

So, I got a wild hare (or is that bear) up my, um, backside and decided to make a stuffed bear toy with the remaining fabric. I found a really cute pattern online. At first glance I thought..."PIECE OF CAKE".  I printed off the pattern and pieced it out on the fabric. Easy peasy, right?


Problem is...I don't sew. The last stuffed animal I made was when I was 13. I was gonna dispose of it, quietly, but my mom snatched it from me claiming she "LOVED" it. Oy vay. Only a mom could love this. Before you ask...it's a rabbit. Really. Yeah, his nose came off. It was a pink pom pom.

Just look at this quality hand-stitching!

Can you believe I flunked the sewing part of Home Economics???

So, I thought now that I'm all grown up, maybe my sewing skills had finally come in--that I was, perhaps, a late sewing-bloomer. I had confidence that I could make a stuffed animal this time that actually looked like what it was supposed to be.

Then, I started looking at the directions.

The gal who made the pattern did provide illustrated (kind of) instructions. Well...sort of instructions. The lady who created the pattern is from Chile and her English--she is not so well. I give her credit though. She tried to write the instructions in English. But it was kind of like reading those instructions that come with chopsticks at a Chinese restaurant. That plus she skipped around and left out sections altogether.

Not helpful.

Thank goodness for my mom.

My mom waltzed into my studio this morning to find me sitting at my sewing machine, sighing heavily. I asked her if she would help me (she's a sewing guru...I am, not). Then we both started giggling at the thought of that sad little rabbit I made years ago.

Well...mom and I spent the ENTIRE day working on this silly bear. It went like this:
  • I'd sew pieces together.
  • I'd realize I had sewed them together wrong.
  • I'd rip out the seams.
  • I'd resew the pieces.
  • I'd pin them in place.
  • I'd stitch them together.
  • I'd realize I had the arms on backward.
  • I'd let out an exasperated scream.
  • Mom would giggle.
  • Mom cut out additional pattern pieces and laid them all out on the table.
  • Mom would arrange the pattern pieces, rearrange them, visualize the arrangement.
  • Mom would try to figure out how the heck the arm fit in the hole...then realized I had sewed them WRONG.
  • More seam ripping.
  • More screaming.
  • More sewing.
  •  ...
  •  ...
  •  ...
I finally got the sucker all assembled--LARGELY thanks to my mom's excellent sewing and spatial-relation skills. And when I finished...everything looked pretty good!! Most of the seams matched up. The angles of the limbs are close enough. Face is asymmetrical...but so is my face, so it's all good. I stuffed him and hand-stitched his neck closed. Then I tied a jaunty scarf around his neck just because.

Most important of all...it actually LOOKS like a bear. Whatya know.

Here he is sitting on top of the blanket I made. I really like him. I think Andrea will too! Will I ever consider going into the stuffed bear making business?

Not in this lifetime.




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October 7, 2012

What's Black and Orange + One Other Color All Over?

...a pumpkin dressed in a tuxedo with a purple bow tie?

 ...charcoal-broiled Cheetos and a banana?

 ...cheddar cheese dipped in old motor oil and covered with flamingo feathers?

 Maaaaaybe.

 But for today, it's our projects for the latest Kenny K's Krafty Krew challenge!

 First off, I want to explain to y'all about my choice of colors for my project...because I inadvertently misunderstood the challenge. I thought it was simply "Black, Orange + One Other Color". I noticed many of the DT members had gone with Black, Orange and some iteration of Green. I didn't want to do that. You know me...I'm a maverick. I don't usually do what other people do...and I often don't adhere to rules (she says sheepishly with a hint of impishness and a whisper of sarcasm).

 So I decided my "+1 other color" was going to be blue. CERULEAN BLUE to be exact. It goes well with orange and black, dontcha think? I sure do! It's the whole complementary color thing.

 Well, I really blew it this week. The challenge was SUPPOSED to be "Black, Orange + One Other Spooky Halloween Color". 

 Oops, my bad. At least I didn't pink carnation pink.

 So...how can I convince y'all that CERULEAN BLUE is spooky? Hmmm...I'm gonna try.
  • it is a little known fact that if you wear CERULEAN BLUE a zombie can home in on your location instantly. 
  • CERULEAN BLUE  is the color of a bright, sunny summer sky--which is TERRIFYING to vampires.
  • CERULEAN BLUE  is the color of one of Frankenstein's monster's eyes (the other is brown).
  • CERULEAN BLUE  is the color of a lovely, deep, cool lake which would INSTANTLY melt a wicked witch of ANY directional persuasion into a pool of primordial goo.
  • CERULEAN BLUE  was the color of Lizzie Borden's dress when she whacked her parents with an axe (that's what happens when a psycho chick asks for a green dress from her parents and they give her a blue one instead). 
  • CERULEAN BLUE  is the color of the feather that is needed to complete the most powerful and evil witches' potion ever brewed.
You buying ANY of this?

 Thought not.

 Oh well, it was worth a shot.
So...here is the 4-1-1 on this week's REAL challenge at Kenny K's Krafty Krew:

This weeks first sponsor is Kenny K's Downloads

The prize from Kenny is the winner's choice of 5 digis.

And our second sponsor is 

Leo at Flonz
The prize from Flonz this week is $20.00 gift voucher for Leo's store.
WOWZERS!!!!
Our theme this week is:
Black & Orange + One other Halloween color!

 Spooky color combos all round please**
**unless your name is Torrey, then it doesn't apply.

 ****************************

So, here is my NON-TRADITIONAL-Halloween-color combo card. Hey, it may start a new Halloween trend--you just gotta use your imagination. It may not be all Halloweeny, but face it...finding a talking, animated fish would be REALLY spooky! Two weeks from now, we're hosting a "Spooky Card" challenge at KKKK...I promise I'll comply. So, check back then.

But, for this project I used one of Kenny's older images (Goldfish Kid--so cute!) and colored him (er, them) up with my trusty Prismacolor pencils. The rest is just layered papers and ribbon. Simple card, but strikingly bold and versatile! I can use this for just about anything. Okay, maybe not for a "New Baby" card...wait. it still might work.

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:
Ingredients:
Nestability Die - Spellbinders (Crown Ovals)
Patterned Paper - Little Yellow Bicycle, MME
Ribbon - Offray
Prismacolor Colored Pencils
cardstock
 




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October 6, 2012

World Cardmaking Day!

Ya knew it HAD to happen, I mean there is a holiday for EVERYTHING else...so today happens to be

"MaD HaTTeR Day"!!!

Never heard of it? Me either, until today. And whatya know...it was "invented" in my childhood hometown of Boulder, Colorado. That totally figures. Wanna know more about this "kinder, gentler" version of April Fool's Day? Read HERE and become enlightened!

What's that? Today is also World Cardmaking Day? What are the odds of that??? Well, well, WELL. If that's the case I guess I had best be makin' a card or two to celebrate this auspiciously contrived occasion! 

It's true...today is World Cardmaking Day ("Cardmaking", by the way, is one word in my book...like "Scrapbooking" or "Cardstock"). There are ALL SORTS of fun goings on today in the card-making world. Click on the icon below to be whisked away to the official website with all the info!

World Card Making Day isn't just a "fluff" holiday. It actually serves two purposes:
• Celebrate the creativity of handmade cards and the personal connection that they create between friends and family.
• Kick off (and get a head start on) the holiday card-making season (for everyone except Torrey who will probably start mid-December).

To participate in the cardmaking celebrations, the girls over at Bombshell Stamps have gotten together a little BLOG HOP of sorts--except we're not hopping. We're just sharing. So, I guess you could call it a BLOG SHARE. Our theme is "MaD HaTTeR" since today is also "MaD HaTTeR DaY". We were tasked with taking a Bombshell stamp and adding a hat or hats to the image and/or design of the card. I was REALLY lucky. I got to use Bombshell Angel! She is my little go-to chameleon. With a little help from her digital wardrobe at Bombshell, along with my own sprinkling of Photoshop magic, I can fix her up for ANY occasion. I am not kidding. You name an occasion...I'm 1000% certain I can adapt our little Miss Bombshell Angel to blend seamlessly. I challenge y'all to try me on that. If you post an idea for an occasion in the comments, I'll do my utmost to meet the challenge! I'll even devote an entire blog post to Bombshell Angel and her amazing transmorphing powers!

For today's challenge. I took the theme LITERALLY....or is that LITERARILY? (wow, when you say "literarily" out loud you kind of sound drunk). I didn't just give her a hat...I transmogrified her INTO the MaD HaTTeR from Alice In Wonderland!!! How cool is that??? See for yourself! I used a combination of 2 of the digital outfits that are available for her at Bombshell Stamps. The rest of her accoutrements I conjured up in Photoshop. I'm tricky like that. I colored her all up with my handy-dandy-omnipresent Prismacolor pencils. So here is my FIRST creation. I did make 2 cards for Cardmaking Day! And, did you notice??? The paper tucked in the band of her hat (which if you remember, is the same in the REAL MaD HaTTeR's hat) just happens to coincide with today's date...COINCIDENCE? I think not. It was providence I tell you! Bonus points, two snaps and a high-five to anyone who understands the reference in the sentiment on this card AND knows what the numbers on that piece of paper in her hat mean.
Clean cup, Clean cup...MOVE DOWN!

My second card for this celebration of crafty card making people...has NOTHING to do with the Bombshell theme of "MaD HaTTeR". BUT, I did use Bombshell Angel for it! I was just dinking around in Photoshop and came up with her retro look...saddle shoes, poodle skirt and bobby socks...the works!! The remainder of the card is comprised of some hand-cut cardstock and patterned paper, some sparkle punches and a ribbon. I then went CRAZY with the glitter pen. Can't have too much bling on a 50s card in my book.
Welcome to the 50s

Thank you for joining me for World Cardmaking Day! I hope y'all get out there and create something!!! Better yet...create something AND give it away to somebody you love!

I'd like to enter one or both of these cards in the following challenges:

Ingredients for both cards:
Business Bombshell digi stamp - Bombshell Stamps
Fantasy Bombshell digi stamp - Bombshell Stamps
teacup, teapot - public domain images
hat - my own design 
Patterned Paper - MME, Flair, SEI
star punch and eyelet corner punch - Marvy
glitter pen - Sakura
Prismacolor Pencils
ribbon- Offray, Michaels
Flourish border die - Revolutions maybe?
rhinestones - Michaels
ink - Memento (Tsukineko)



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