Week 3, CHAPTER 7: Text as Nonsense

 

Alice didn't dare to argue the point, but went on: `-- and I thought I'd try and find my way to the top of that hill -- ' `When you say "hill,"' the Queen interrupted, `I could show you hills, in comparison with which you'd call that a valley.' `No, I shouldn't,' said Alice, surprised into contradicting her at last: `a hill can't be a valley, you know. That would be nonsense -- ' The Red Queen shook her head, `You may call it "nonsense" if you like,' she said, ` but I've heard nonsense, compared with which that would be as sensible as a dictionary!' -- Chapter 2, Through The Looking Glass and What Alice Found There

Using text as pattern is a trend right now that I really love. Your challenge is to use text as nonsense - not to read but as pattern on your project! Of course you can still have words or sentiments, but we also need to see text used in a non-reading way. I have a stack of old books and dictionaries that I use for this purpose.

Our sponsor is Stamp Attack, a British company that is well known (among other things) for their fantastic Alice stamp plates which have sold to customers all over the world. In fact, Helena Bonham Carter, the actress who played the Red Queen in the Tim Burton Alice movie, purchased sets of Alice stamps from Stamp Attack, which were then delivered to the studio!  Enabler alert: Stamp Attack offers speedy worldwide shipping for only £1 on unmounted stamp orders, so go on and check out their beautiful stamps!

The winner will receive a Stamp Attack gift certificate for £13.50, which is equivalent to one of the stamp plates that the design team will be using!

You are runningout of time; you have until Friday, September 23 to enter your creation and the winner and honorable mentions will be announced on the last Sunday of the month, September 25.  All kinds of projects are welcome, they do not have to be "altered art" and as always, entries that feature some aspect of Wonderland are given two chances instead of one in the random prize drawing. You may enter multiple times as long as each project is on a separate post.

We are also saying goodbye to our  current crop of guest designers, so please leave them some special love this month as their projects have been FABULOUS! Thanks so much ladies, you have added so much to The Altered Alice! And stay tuned, there will be some special design team announcements next month too!

Your Weekly Inspiration

Click to enlarge

This one's from me, Lynne Phelps of Savvy Sisters Studio; a Wonderland shadow puppet theater art journal page. 

I could not resist making a second project to show off the fantastic text-filled silhouettes from the Stamp Attack Alice 2 plate.  I used book pages for the curtains and valance, such fun! The Alice Scrabble tile words and the keys are also from the Alice 2 plate. For all the details, including a view of the PanPastel backdrop prior to everything being added, please visit me at Savvy Sisters Studio and leave a comment! I love hearing from you!

Sandy Scholz of Stempelchaotin has another altered folder from her Mixed-Media Mahem series! Who would have thought manilla folders would ever look this good? I can't wait to see the result when all these folders featuring different techniques are joined in an album! Sandy rejoined the design team too late for me to get our sponsor's stamps to her, but I think the Octopode White Rabbit looks right at home in this setting, don't you?

You can see some of the various ways she has used stencils on this folder. Love the alphabet template she used as a stencil in the upper right corner - I feel a visit to the drafting section coming on! This green and black sunburst is the perfect frame for the rabbit! Be sure to visit Sandy's blog to see more photos and leave a comment!

Now I have a series of artist's trading cards created by Retta Fox of Foxy's Weblog. They are fantastic!

I love Queen Alice sitting in this huge chair! And that fringed trim looks so soft and perfect for this homey scene.

Retta stamped the herald rabbit, trimmed it out, flipped it over and stamped the script on the back! What a great way to make a silhouette image from any stamp! She's a clever, clever girl!

I love all the texty snippets on this one, and the vivid rabbit looks so great against the kraft background! The snippet of ribbon creates a ground for the rabbit to stand on and adds more texture.  Fun!

This Cheshire Cat looks very ready for Hallowe'en, although with that bell on his collar I don't think he'll be catching any ravens! LOVE the gray with the deep orange, what a fab color scheme!

Retta has been full of inspiration this month and her final (really!) project is this wonderful birthday card. The background design was hand stamped and if you are looking for the text, click to enlarge. There are words on the music score and I think I also see script in the background.  What's official you may ask?

Too, too funny! I laugh every time I see this! I just had a birthday last weekend and although Retta didn't know it, I feel like she made this card for me! Hah! What a GREAT card! Please visit Retta's blog to leave her a comment on all these fabulous projects!

FRIDAY is your last day to enter, so start thinking up some nonsense and create your own text-patterned projects to enter for the challenge. Be sure to check out the fabulous Alice stamps from Stamp Attack, because if you're the winner you could be selecting a set of your own, or buy a set now with only £1 worldwide shipping!

Don't be late! Enter by Friday, September 23. To enter your creation, use the linky tool below - just click the link below the thumbnail images. Please list YOUR NAME or YOUR BLOG NAME in the TITLE, for example "Alice Liddell - Illustrated Poem".  The field is long enough that you can also put the name of your piece, but please put your name first. (Note - if you are viewing this in email or through a reader, you will need to click on the title of this post to view it on the blog.)

Please leave a comment before you go, they keep me going and they mean a lot to my talented design team!