MMSA round postcards

Round postcards are fun. Makes me think about the space totally differently in terms of what I want to use on it. Last year, I worked with the circles in two different ways - a round photo on one and words around the edge on the other.

This year I wasn't as inspired. Long day at work or something. I layered both cards with old text, always a good neutral start. Leafed thru my old pics until I found this round baby, cut him in a circle and layered him on torn circles of dress pattern tissue and a used tea bag. When I came back to it, I did some pen work which led to the pic looking like a flower, which led me to the flower child caption. So simple is my thought process.

Decided to use stamps on the other one, and as I was sifting thru them, I kept coming to vehicles of various types. It wasn't much of a mental leap to planes, trains and automobiles. But I think the actual movie title is Trains, Plains and Automobiles, right? So I'm out of order. What a surprise.

oddball

This postcard began life as a punched out part of a corrugated cardboard marketing display that arrived at work a few weeks ago. I liked the shape, so it sat on my desk for at least a week. Every time I started to throw it away, I hesitated, then put it back on my desk. After a week or two of that, I put it in my back-and-forth-to-work bag and hauled it home where it sat on my art table for another week or so.

The other day I was casting about for something to work on, not too involved, not themed - just something I could throw some art at for a while until the washer finished the load of whites. I spied the cardboard piece and decided to collage it with... with... <lots of thinking at this point> with gelli printed deli papers! I have a huge box of them, so I rummaged thru and began to paste down random strips across the card.

I liked it when I was done but it needed something else so I added some vertical strips, then more little bits here and there. I loved the colors but it sat on the table for a few more days cause it just didn't feel 'done'. Then I came across the text in a magazine - glued it down, scribbled a border around it and was satisfied.

It's fairly large, almost 8" across, and it's going off to an occasional mail art friend who has sent me a few really neat cards. I'll do a post about them one of these days.

MMSA round swap - outgoing

Well, these were fun. Round postcards. Started with a cereal box, of course - my go-to cardboard source. 

Freehand cut circles about 5" in diameter and glued on gelli prints for backgrounds. 

Then chose a couple head shots of children from vintage cabinet cards. 

Layered them over another chunk of gelli, then added some words and gel pen dots.