SDC10 – Freedom

25/06/2010 by UKMA 14 Comments

I always try to check out the Stampotique Designers Challenge and usually have an idea of what I want to do pretty quickly after seeing it.  This week was no exception till I read that ALL the stamps had to be Stampotique. That scuppered my original idea, but I did have a favourite “freedom” quote that I thought would be good to use so I shifted gears and came up with this one:

I found the little waving flag image online then printed it forward and reverse and wrapped it around a toothpick  so my little American Girl could wave it.  I used her last time I did a card, but her sweet expression and strip-y outfit fit better than the rest of the images.  I’ll have to make a conscious effort to do a different one next time!

The quote is one I remind myself of (as the mother of a teenager) quite often but it is so hard to step back when you see your kids making what YOU think are the wrong choices (along the lines of A-level revision v shooting people in Call of Duty, not driving drunk or getting involved with drugs – at that point rational thought would go out the window.  The Wrath of Mom knows no limits when it’s not just poor judgement but actual danger on the table!)

And just because once an idea takes hold I usually have to carry it thru, I did make the other card, even if it isn’t a fit for the challenge.  It uses one of my favourite stamps, the little shish kebab skewer with a space – perfect for skewering all manner of things for comedic effect.  I skewered a little screaming head, to make a warning for a pot of especially HOT dip we put out at a BBQ once.  I’ve skewered nuns, a bald Hilary Clinton, other screaming people, a family of Edward Gorey dancers, and even once poor Dan99.  But I recently bought an unneeded set of Copics from someone who very kindly included a number of stamped images she had no use for.  They were all in the “cute” range, something she would have no idea was about as far away from my style as possible.  I was delighted, nonetheless as they were PERFECT for practice colouring in.  Having done the no-mouthed girl, and I think fairly well, it seemed a shame to just toss her aside.  She merged in my head with the challenge to give me this:

If she had a mouth it would be screaming, yes? Seems to me there is a gap in the market.  All those frankly creepy no-mouth kids crave a little six-sided stamp cube, each with an expression – screaming, smiling, an O of surprise, a stuck out tongue, an unhappy face and, oh I don’t know, maybe vampire teeth?  That might tempt me to buy one someday….