Year of the Rat Swap

[joanofgos]

I'd like to host a "Year of the Rat" Swap, card fronts, please. One for one. The year of the rat starts on February 7th. So the due date would probably be Feb. 5, so that they could be sent out on Feb. 7.

Should I rename this swap as the Year of the Mouse for Alsmouse? :D

If anyone is interested, just let me know.

[alsmouse]

I'd like to host a "Year of the Rat" Swap, card fronts, please. One for one. The year of the rat starts on February 7th. So the due date would probably be Feb. 5, so that they could be sent out on Feb. 7.

Should I rename this swap as the Year of the Mouse for Alsmouse? :D

If anyone is interested, just let me know.

Just keep it the Year of the Rat. Some how changing it to the Year of Tucker seems a bit much & I really don't want him to be that full of himself. He can be quite the little bother otherwise. Now are you sure you don't mean the the Year of the Rat Swap?? I figure I can arrange to send a few of Tucker's family around to brighten your days. Just imaging how much fun you would have letting his family help you distress your cards, add that special touch to your special card, make sure the inks & powders are always in just the right spot to make that special statement. :)) :evil: :)) After much training Tucker is good at making sure the glitter is in just the right spot and helps to decorate all your card stock & specialty papers. ~C8>

[Inky Whiskers]

Now are you sure you don't mean the the Year of the Rat Swap?? I figure I can arrange to send a few of Tucker's family around to brighten your days. ~C8>

Oh please tell me you wouldn't want the rat back! :shock: The PO gets PO'd when you send dead bodies thru' the mail. At least I'd try to send the body back. I might not get to grab too many pieces before they're all gone. :evil:

(for those who don't know me, I have 6 cats)

Also, are you wanting each of us to send you a YOTR card front & you'll send us each one back or is this a 1-4-1 like we often do where we're each assigned somebody to send to?

Inquiring minds want to know! :D

[alsmouse]

Oh please tell me you wouldn't want the rat back! :shock: The PO gets PO'd when you send dead bodies thru' the mail. At least I'd try to send the body back. I might not get to grab too many pieces before they're all gone. :evil:

(for those who don't know me, I have 6 cats) Actually I was thinking of sending you a clone of the 1 ton rodent :shock: that they found in Uruguay. ( see link: http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/01/16/super.rat/index.html) I figured that that sized rat might make your cats behave & maybe even give up that nasty catnip addiction they seem to have. [and you think that stuff isn't addictive, I've seen them hanging around back alleys in groups, trying to score some, keeping a watch cat on guard for a patrol dog who might bust up their little drugring. They say the best stuff is the imported catnip, up from across the border, grown in indoor, climate controlled, sites, mostly in California, Arizona & Mexico, though there is some reports of some coming up from as far away as Chile'.] Kinda a scared straight by the super rat program. Cheaper than most rehab units. And you won't have to worry about the kittyrattizi snapping photos of your cats in those rehab exploits for the rag papers, keeping your cats' good names out of the press & not spreading the awful news of how as cat parents you couldn't control their catnip addictions.:)) :))

Also, are you wanting each of us to send you a YOTR card front & you'll send us each one back or is this a 1-4-1 like we often do where we're each assigned somebody to send to?

Inquiring minds want to know! :D
And some some inquiring mindless want to know too!:)) (Boy do I need sleep or what???):)) :)) :)) :)) ~C8>

[piecesandpom]

Well, I'll have to do a mouse, with apologies to Tucker, but count me in. I love working around my little mouse stamp. . .

[j3annin3]

Oh alsmouse! Even a one ton, sabertoothed, cat eating rodent would't be able to stop those cats! They aren't there for a fix, they're there for a shipment!! For Jenna! Self medicating with the 'nip is the only thing that lets her function.

And not only is she addicted but she's a distributor as well!
Yep! Known world wide, her own label (perfectly stamped, of course) and everything. Even here in my tiny town; my cat has heard of her exotic and illicit mint products.

It's all because of the stamps! It's how she's funded that enor-mouse! stamp collection. She will say it's only SU products, but it's also a front for a more sinsiter and lucrative distributions- cat nip, spearmint, and Yes! even bee balm. She and the fog-footed six test each batch themselves, rolling and rolicking on a giant pile of hand knitted socks, in the dead of the night- on the dark of the moon..... Interventions have done nothing but force them to be ever more devious.

No, a prehistoric monster rodent couldn't stop them. Maybe Godzilla, but i hear he has a court appearance for plutonium smuggling and wont involve him self. There is no hope, there's just too great a demand and no cure for the underlinning stamp addiction. Tragic really.

[Inky Whiskers]

Dang, j3annin3! You weren't supposed to tell!!! :)) :)) :)) :)) :))

And yes, I think I'll join this merry band of of rubber addicts on a quest for blessing in the Chinese New Year. :D

[j3annin3]

Only for your own good Inky!:noway:

[ArtKar]

Count me in!

But if we send real rats, mine may escape with it's life because my dogs would be fighting my cats to see who gets it! :argue:

Karlene

[Inky Whiskers]

I vote we stick with rats made of paper & ink!!! I hate cleaning up after the cats have a snack al fresco. :eek: GROSS!!!

[alsmouse]

Oh, Alright, Paper & rubber rats & other rodenta will be fine. No live rats or prehistoric clones will be sent to celebrate The Year of Tucker (oh, sorry, The Rat). ~C8>

[Inky Whiskers]

The Year of Tucker ~C8>

"The Year of Tucker" works for me! He's the only live rat I know. I didn't bother checking the IDs of the others I've encountered at their furerals. :D

[j3annin3]

Hello Joanofgos!

may i join your rat swap?

Such a fun idea!:laugh:

[joanofgos]

Okay, Okay. The year of the Rat swap is open, but please, let's keep it to inked images of Rats. :D I would prefer not to get little (or big) bodies in the mail!

Keep repeating that the Post Office is our friend! :noway:

And I think I was on another planet, let's do a traditional swap, where we all sign up until a certain date. Then I'll pair up people. Let's have sign ups until January 30th, and a mail out date of Feb. 5th.

Does that sound good?

So far we have:

joanofgos
alsmouse
Inky Whiskers
piecesandpom
j3annin3
ArtKar

And hopefully, YOU :clap:

[XrayAmy]

I can't join but I just wanted to warn anyone getting almouse's card....be careful for "calling card" confetti from Tucker as an added "extra". :laugh:

ewwww!

[j3annin3]

I don't know, can It be The Year of Tucker, with out some Tucker Treasures Amy?

[Inky Whiskers]

....be careful for "calling card" confetti from Tucker as an added "extra"...

Been there, done that, laughed my tuckus off! :))

Amy is right, be vewy vewy caweful opening cards from Ms. Mouse as Tucker often adds his 2 cents before licking the flap. :D

[piecesandpom]

You all! Tucker, I'm sure, helped alsmouse place snowflake embellies in a storage container for my secret santa gift. No e e w in that package at all; maybe there wasn't enough room!:laugh:

[alsmouse]

I can't join but I just wanted to warn anyone getting almouse's card....be careful for "calling card" confetti from Tucker as an added "extra". :laugh:

ewwww!

Amy, are you afraid of someone getting Tucker turds??? :)) Inky has been the only recipient of any extras that Tucker added to the envie & she even posted them in the gallery for all to see. So I wouldn't be too concerned, since I do keep an eye on him while he closes the flap on the cards. Inky do you need to re-post that card to refresh their memories???

[alsmouse]

You all! Tucker, I'm sure, helped alsmouse place snowflake embellies in a storage container for my secret santa gift. No e e w in that package at all; maybe there wasn't enough room!:laugh:

You're right, he did add some snowflake embellies in your Secret Santa box. He also complained that I didn't leave him much room to add any either since I packed that box so darn tight. I think the only thing that would have fit as an extra in that box would have been a snowflake or two. :)) So, I think Amy may be an alarmist on any one getting Tucker turds as part of the Year of the Rat swap. ~C8>

[Inky Whiskers]

:o Amy, are you afraid of someone getting Tucker turds??? :)) Inky has been the only recipient of any extras that Tucker added to the envie & she even posted them in the gallery for all to see. So I wouldn't be too concerned, since I do keep an eye on him while he closes the flap on the cards. Inky do you need to re-post that card to refresh their memories???

I think it's still in my gallery. I haven't taken the time to make a list for Amy of photos needing to be moved. :o

Nothing to fear, ladies & gents, Tucker only adds the nicest of extra bits & bobs! :D

[ArtKar]

I just realized you wrote "card fronts." :confused:

Do we make a front that gets glued onto folded cardstock by the other people, or do we do a card that is blank inside???

I'm glad I re-read the first page - I was thinking it's an ATC swap!:shock:

Blonde moments,
Karlene

[Inky Whiskers]

I just realized you wrote "card fronts." :confused:

Do we make a front that gets glued onto folded cardstock by the other people, or do we do a card that is blank inside???

I'm glad I re-read the first page - I was thinking it's an ATC swap!:shock:

Blonde moments,
Karlene

We all learn what's what at some point, so please don't feel blonde about this!

'Card Fronts' are just that, a single piece of unfolded card stock with your art on one side & your info (your name, names of stamps, supplies used etc) on the back. (think postcard) They're meant to be samples of ideas, not cards to be sent for occassions. Doing fronts saves storage room! Many of my SU! swaps get the backs cut off for this reason, unless the design requires a back. i.e. there's a punched out shape w/something stamped inside meant to show thru'. A 'standard' card size is A2, which is 4.25"x5.5" when folded & made from one half of a sheet of 8.5"x11" card stock. An A2 card front would be 4.25"x5.5" made from a quarter of a sheet of card stock.

If you decide you want to send a front as a card later, just attach it to a blank card, stamp something inside & off to the PO it goes. HTH :D

[ArtKar]

We all learn what's what at some point, so please don't feel blonde about this!

'Card Fronts' are just that, a single piece of unfolded card stock with your art on one side & your info (your name, names of stamps, supplies used etc) on the back. (think postcard)

Thanks! I get it now.

[joanofgos]

Okay, it is Febuary 1 and the Year of the Rat swap is CLOSED.

Swap Assignments are SET.

ArtKar sends to piecesandpom
piecesandpom sends to alsmouse
alsmouse sends to joanofgos
joanofgos sends to Inky Whiskers
Inky Whiskers sends to j3annin3
j3annin3 sends to ArtKar

This way I (as swap hostess) have accepted my fate to get Tucker's droppings. :)) I didn't think it was fair to ask any one else to take them. They are biodegradable--right? :))

Looking forward to seeing your art.

Remember, from Wikipedia:
The Rat (simplified Chinese:鼠) was welcomed in ancient times as a protector and bringer of material prosperity. It is the first of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac related to the Chinese calendar. Rat is associated with aggression, wealth, charm, and order, yet also associated with death, war, the occult, pestilence, and atrocities.

The year of the Rat begins this year on Feb. 7. You should aim for that for your swapee. :) Posting can happen after that date.

joanofgos

[Inky Whiskers]

They are biodegradable--right? :)) joanofgos

Sometimes they is & sometimes they ain't. It's pot luck when Tucker stuffs the envie. :))

[alsmouse]

Sometimes they is & sometimes they ain't. It's pot luck when Tucker stuffs the envie. :))

Hey! no matter what the rumors are, I'm not shipping pot! now Tucker, well.........:)) And what ever Tucker treat gets "tucked" in your envie will just have to be a little rat sized surprise. :)) ~C8>

[piecesandpom]

Got my swap out in the mailbox so it's just waiting for pick up - tried a couple of new things, copics and a new gold edger. . .trying to move up my learning curve!

[Inky Whiskers]

Hey! no matter what the rumors are, I'm not shipping pot! now Tucker, well.........:)) And what ever Tucker treat gets "tucked" in your envie will just have to be a little rat sized surprise. :)) ~C8>

Me thinks I should be happy that Joan is sending me her card rather than you, Ms. Mouse. :))

[j3annin3]

Wow! good for you Karen!

i haven't even started mine yet. I apologize in advance ArtKar, i suspect my card front to you might be a teensy bit late. I'll do my best to get it done tomorrow....or at least by Friday.:o

[j3annin3]

Hey ArtKar! I am actually done and have mailed my card front to you! It's not likely you'll get until after the 7th, and for that i still apologize.....i'm pokey, my post office is pokey....But it'll get there. :wave:

[joanofgos]

Me thinks I should be happy that Joan is sending me her card rather than you, Ms. Mouse. :))

Well, Inky, you might be wishing for Alsmouse because I am running a tad late--and heading away to be a good wife and good daughter-in-law. Your card will definitely arrive after Chinese New Year. :cry: So, bad Joan. And please forgive.

[Inky Whiskers]

Well, Inky, you might be wishing for Alsmouse because I am running a tad late--and heading away to be a good wife and good daughter-in-law. Your card will definitely arrive after Chinese New Year. :cry: So, bad Joan. And please forgive.

Having been a bit bogged down myself lately, how can I refuse to forgive you? :lol: The Chinese New Year party last like a week or so, so don't sweat it. :D

Mine to j3annin3 went out today & I forgot to scan it as gettingit out the door was foremost in my mind. :blush:

[alsmouse]

Got my swap out in the mailbox so it's just waiting for pick up - tried a couple of new things, copics and a new gold edger. . .trying to move up my learning curve!

Got it today. Pretty. Love the 'rat' in the mushrooms. A a big fan of fungus so was a hit there and then had been drooling over the background stamp in catalog, "sold to the drooling fool". Were all the colors but the mushrooms done with copics? Wnderful blending! May have to put those on the wish list. Thank you for such a pretty card. ~C8>

[j3annin3]

Gosh Inky! I dn't know quite what to say. aside from thank you for now having something else to look forward to in the mail. If i were better with electronics i'd have my scanner working and would scan it for you, but, if you didn't make a back up copy, i'll be very happy to lend it back to you so you can scan it for your gallery! Just lend, mind you.....;)

[ArtKar]

Piecesandpom, your card is going out TODAY!

Happy New Year!


Karlene

[piecesandpom]

The scene is prismas and gamsol; background is copics. I don't have a 'green' that I need for leaves and stems yet so I wasn't quite satisfied, got close to my vision!

Glad you like it my 'rat' and hope Tucker isn't disappointed!

[alsmouse]

The scene is prismas and gamsol; background is copics. I don't have a 'green' that I need for leaves and stems yet so I wasn't quite satisfied, got close to my vision!

Glad you like it my 'rat' and hope Tucker isn't disappointed!
Tucker & I both like it. He wanted ot nibble a bit on it but I scolded him & told him it was for the "YEAR OF THE RAT", not FOR the rat:)) He was a little disappointed but I gave him a BBQ pork bone & he was ok. ~C8>

[Inky Whiskers]

..if you didn't make a back up copy, i'll be very happy to lend it back to you so you can scan it for your gallery! Just lend, mind you.....;)

Wait until you see it! :)) It came out fine, but sometimes an idea needs more work than time will permit. Our humidity had been in the 90's lately and waiting for ink to dry is taking forever these days. :eyeroll: Not everything can be dried with a heat tool either. :angry: Don't expect smears! I've been doing this long enough to avoid that hazzard (most of the time), but the results are not exactly what I planned in my head. Anywho, just wait & see. :D

[j3annin3]

How could i not be! i wonder sometimes if i only started up with all you crazy stampers so i could get some decent mail. :D

[alsmouse]

How could i not be! i wonder sometimes if i only started up with all you crazy stampers so i could get some decent mail. :D

So, does this mean you don't want any "indecent" mail? I could always send you some naked photos of Tucker. :blush: :o :shock: ~C8>

[Inky Whiskers]

So, does this mean you don't want any "indecent" mail? I could always send you some naked photos of Tucker. :blush: :o :shock: ~C8>

:)) :)) :)) :)) :))

Do rats get tan lines?

At the least we entertain each other & the US Postal Service! I know my mailman & mail center both appriciate the laughs they get from what comes & goes thru' me. :D

[alsmouse]

:)) :)) :)) :)) :))

Do rats get tan lines?Yes, however they are hard to see since they prefer to wear thongs. :shock: :))

At the least we entertain each other & the US Postal Service! I know my mailman & mail center both appriciate the laughs they get from what comes & goes thru' me. :D

It also keeps most of us out of the real rubber rooms so being in a virtual one is a lot safer. ~C8>

[j3annin3]

I don't know if a rat with or with a thong is indecent......You could alway post the pics and let us all decide. But better yet, i'd like to see a video of how Tucker got the thong on or off in the first place.:)

[Inky Whiskers]

...But better yet, i'd like to see a video of how Tucker got the thong on or off in the first place.:)

Maybe he uses his rat teeth? Is his thong custom made with a tail opening? :)) EGAD! Please tell us he doesn't wear a 'Borat' style bathing thong!!! :shock:

[alsmouse]

Maybe he uses his rat teeth? Is his thong custom made with a tail opening? :)) EGAD! Please tell us he doesn't wear a 'Borat' style bathing thong!!! :shock:

{j3annin3}I don't know if a rat with or with a thong is indecent......You could alway post the pics and let us all decide. But better yet, i'd like to see a video of how Tucker got the thong on or off in the first place. }

I've yet to see how he get his thong on or off as he always gets rather modest about it. Like I haven't seen it all before. :)) He's afraid to do a video since I would be posting it on the internet & he's afraid of predators. He does watch Dateline: to catch a predator, so doesn't feel good about the web & videos.
As for the tan lines, he does the tanning beds locally so as to keep that deep rich tan that he has perfected, but he still hasen't gone too metratosexual since he hasn't gotten his tail waxed like the metratosexual rats in NYC & L.A. have.
I haven't seen "borat' so I don't know if his is that style or not, but it is very tiny. I've seen it in the laundry. He at least puts it in the laundry pile, since I complained about him being a dirty rat one day & he's been a neatnick since. ~C8>

[Inky Whiskers]

I haven't seen "borat' so I don't know if his is that style or not, ~C8>

Save your sanity & don't watch it! It's one of the few movies I've ever walked out on 'cause I couldn't stand to see the rest. :eek: Of course my guys loved it and spent the entire thing rolling on the floor with tears in their eyes. :eyeroll:

Borat's thong'kini is basically a thong with bulit in shoulder straps, kinda like suspenders, that pull the suit up high & emphisize what is contained therein. It's NOT a pretty sight, as guys I've seen wearing them in photos are all hairy males of the primitive kind. :shock:

[alsmouse]

Save your sanity & don't watch it! It's one of the few movies I've ever walked out on 'cause I couldn't stand to see the rest. :eek: Of course my guys loved it and spent the entire thing rolling on the floor with tears in their eyes. :eyeroll:

Borat's thong'kini is basically a thong with bulit in shoulder straps, kinda like suspenders, that pull the suit up high & emphisize what is contained therein. It's NOT a pretty sight, as guys I've seen wearing them in photos are all hairy males of the primitive kind. :shock:
AHH, I know those. usually seen on older overweight hairy, usually Slavic men, at the Baltic resorts. VERRRRY SCARRRY.
NO, Tuckers thong is the A & F 'body' style, when they are not wearing jamms. The kind usually seen on male strippers but without sequins, but he can't get the 'time warp' thing going because the tail gets in the way. Thought I do know that if Tucker showed up at joanofgos place, she would find the right sized $$ to stuff in his thong. :)) :)) (Did you get your envie yet?)~C8>

[Inky Whiskers]

(Did you get your envie yet?)~C8>

If you're asking me, the last envie from you contained the tag ring. :D

[alsmouse]

If you're asking me, the last envie from you contained the tag ring. :D
Sorry dear, not you, I was asking Joan if she had received her YOTR envie yet. She got special Tucker Tucks in hers. :eyeroll: Just wait Joan, it is worth the wait. Tucker had a fun time with them. He "made' them special for you. :)) ~C8>

[Inky Whiskers]

Lucky Joan!!! :D

[ArtKar]

I got my card today - Jeannine did a terrifically clever job! :shock: It's too cool!

Our swap host will be very jealous when she sees the inspired 2nd part of the card package: a bookmark!

Too fun!
Karlene :clap: :clap:

[j3annin3]

aw, thanks Karlene!:D

[j3annin3]

Great Card Inky! Sharp black envelope, and love the black on black background! but the ribbon, i think, is what sets the rest of it off so nicely. The satin and the shiny gold really work! Thank You very much. :) I'd be happy to send it back to you for a visit if you'd like to scan it.

[piecesandpom]

I got ArtKar's card front today! Yipee! Nicely stamped envelope, too. I do have a question; did you stamp the fabric, too?

I'm really, really trying NOT to get into fabric stamping. I don't have a fabric store near me, don't have the right inks, would probably change up my stamp style, etc. I can see it looming on the horizon but I'm not ready to take the plunge, yet!:lol:

Let me know if I need to take a picture for you; I have some other stuff I need to edit and load to the gallery so it wouldn't be a problem!

[Inky Whiskers]

Great Card Inky! Sharp black envelope, and love the black on black background! but the ribbon, i think, is what sets the rest of it off so nicely. The satin and the shiny gold really work! Thank You very much. :) I'd be happy to send it back to you for a visit if you'd like to scan it.

You are way too kind, j3annin3! But I knew that about you already. :lol: I'm glad you like it & if I really feel the need to post it, I can make another. :D

[ArtKar]

I got ArtKar's card front today! Yipee! Nicely stamped envelope, too. I do have a question; did you stamp the fabric, too?

I'm really, really trying NOT to get into fabric stamping. I don't have a fabric store near me, don't have the right inks, would probably change up my stamp style, etc. I can see it looming on the horizon but I'm not ready to take the plunge, yet!:lol:

Let me know if I need to take a picture for you; I have some other stuff I need to edit and load to the gallery so it wouldn't be a problem!

LOL! :)) No, I didn't stamp the fabric. I ain't that good!

That is my one & only rat stamp.

I have a scan to upload once everyone gets theirs. Thanks for offering, though!

Karlene