Moonrise Kingdom

Many times as an adult, I've wished for the exuberance and abandon of a child--it was so easy to be this way when I was young! This must be why I'm drawn so much to crafting where I can let go of my inhibitions and just play.

I've made this tag to link up with Simon's Monday challenge blog where this week's theme is "At the Movies" and I chose to commemorate a recent favorite called Moonrise Kingdom which celebrates the spirit of childhood and is touching, bittersweet and very, very funny.

It was released in 2012 and Netflix has made it available for streaming.

As far as my tag goes--that's a treehouse from the movie which was built on top of a utility pole and I did my best to turn some Found Relatives into boy scouts. It was fun to remember this movie and I plan on watching it again.

Ripper Street

My husband said this Found Relative photo reminds him of the Victorian era detective drama called Ripper Street that he enjoys watching hence the name of my post/tag. One of the main characters wears a Bolo hat so I suspect that's his reason for this connection.

It's my entry for Tim's September tag challenge where he introduced an archival/alcohol ink resist on Yupo. The background text in the close-up above was made using this technique with his Ledger Script stamp.

I've always wanted an easy way to make light text on a dark background and this is a great way to do it--thanks, Tim!

I began by cropping and distressing a Sophisticate cabinet card that I delaminated and pasted to a manila tag. The Found Relative (also delaminated) was cut-out and pasted to the Yupo and then cropped into an oval for mounting on the cabinet card tag.

I used copper and black Scribbles around the oval to create a pseudo-frame along with some Idea-ology ephemera (Thrift Shop) and paper strips (cigar box labels) cut from the Dapper paper stash.

The star was made by altering an Idea-ology Fastener by picking out the original image, painting in the center, applying a Remnant Rub and tinting/distressing the metal edges.

If you're on the fence about adding Yupo to your stash let me say I highly recommend it. It's great for mixed media and I've used it extensively for creating my own stencils because it's thin, easy to cut and very, very durable (see my post here).

In my opinion, the only shortcoming is that since it's actually a plastic you have to use caution with heat guns.

Firm Heart

My local library has an on-going used book sale and periodically (no pun intended), I rescue a few "picture books" to use in my collages and also seek text for phrases that might add interest to my work.

The essence of this tag is composed of those very same elements: The background is a hand-drawn map of an old city and there is text. A Found Relative was framed inside a vintage cardboard box (the sides were trimmed down to keep it in proportion with the tag) and the owl is one of my own hand-carved stamps. It was embellished with black Scribbles, a paper heart covered with dimensional medium and some Remnant Rubs.

I'm linking it to Simon's Monday challenge blog. The theme this week is Try to Contain Yourself (so funny) and participants have been asked to use some sort of container. I know, putting a container on a tag is kind of goofy but I just can't help myself--I like making tags!

No. 76

Perhaps the mood of American citizens during Mark Twain's lifetime were similar to today. Given our current events, I thought using his quote was appropriate.

This tag was made for Simon's Monday challenge blog where this week's theme is Red, White and/or Blue. I used Correspondence paper stash and stamps along with a Found Relative and Distress inks and stains.

Thank goodness for a light wash of gesso which saved the day when the tag took a direction I was not happy with. As always, you can click on the images to see more detail in a larger version.

12 Tags for Christmas - May

Adding texture with burlap and paste, learning how to tint photos with ink, then telling a story with ephemera and text--that's what Tim's tag for May was all about and it was one of my favorites this year.

My holiday version features a Found Relative photo (Occassions), Remnant Rub text, the Schoolhouse stencil and some Idea-ology vellum ephemera. The holly was stamped, cut-out and glitter-fied and I'll tell you about the happy-accident that became the frame.

The photo was thick as it had previously been mounted on heavy cardstock (an abandoned idea) and I didn't like how high it sat on the burlap. To fill in the gap, I applied a black line of 3-D Scribbles around the edge then used a toothpick to poke bumps in it (a lesser-known Distress technique ☺).

After it dried, I dotted red glitter glue over the top leaving spaces for the black to show through. (To see the detail, click the photo to enlarge it.)

I'm linking this tag to Simon's Monday blog challenge where this week's theme is Gentlemen. I can't think of a more "gentle man" than Santa!

Better

This Found Relative seems wise beyond her years and the hand-written text kept running through my head as I worked on this tag.

The background was stained with Tumbled Glass then collaged with fussy-cut Wallflower vellum and embellished with some texture (stencil by Crafter's Workshop) and crackle mediums and tinted with gel pens and oil pastels.

Braves

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Even though it's made entirely of Tim Holtz products, my entry for this year's November tag departs a great deal from Tim's inspiration piece.

At least it has an Autumn/Thanksgiving-ish theme?

All I know is I wanted to use the photo from the Occasions Found Relatives of children dressed up as Indian braves.

You may recognize the feather from the Wallflower paper stash which I embossed with a stylus to bring out the individual feather strands.

The nest/eggs background piece is also from Wallflower which I delaminated a bit by sanding the back to get it as thin as possible.


The background is a textured page from the Destinations paper stash and I added a few more darks with Distress Ink (like the shadows at the boys' feet). I topped it off with some machine stitching and Remnant Rubs and called it complete.

Tricksters

My take on Tim's tag #10 for 2015 includes a found relative photo from the Occasions set and features children in some pretty terrific Halloween costumes.

The photo's orientation is landscape so it was cut in half and layered to fit on my tag.

The creepy castle was cut from a page in Tim's Destinations paper stash and the moon behind trees is a scrapbook page found at a garage sale (maker unknown).

I trimmed it with green, purple and black Stickles and the letters were cut from Tim's big chit-chat stickers.

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As near as I can tell, there are 13 children in this photo and starting with the back-row (from left to right) there's a ghost, a kid with a mask that has Mickey Mouse type ears, a fancy lady, a cat, a witch, a colonel, a skeleton, a pumpkin ghoul, a scarecrow, a nurse, Little Bo Peep, and a couple of clowns.

What a priceless moment in time and what fun they must have had!

Note to Self

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This week's theme at Simon's Monday blog challenge is to create using only three colors and, while this tag may look like I left them out, my trio is off-white, green and sepia.

According to Google, black is not a color; a black object absorbs all the colors of the visible spectrum and reflects none of them to the eyes (in case you were wondering).☺

I used a Found Relative photo which I cut-out and pasted to the edge of a postcard and then attached to a manila tag tinted to match the postage stamp.

The backside of these photos have pretty patterned paper which I peel off (to make cutting easier) and I decided to use it to make the postcard background more interesting.

I just cut away some of the pattern, flipped it over, pasted it down then peeled away parts of it (like on the lady's face).

I added some Remnant Rubs and emphasized the shadow near the lady's feet.

(Note to self--dream big AND dream in color!)

(Another note to self--the postmark on this card is 1915 which means I used a 100-year old post card to make this tag.)

B Original

Tim's tag for August features a die-cut mixed media background.

I attempted to mimic the effect by using his Subway stamp over a scrap from the Destinations paper stash.

I also used his vellum Ephemera--the square in the upper-right corner and the checkered board behind the photo (which is a Found Relative that I cropped and altered just a bit).

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Remnant Rubs provided the black text (except the "B") and the Mirrored Star was distressed with a copper and citris alcohol ink combo.

The oval frame is a thin textured metal scrap that I tacked to the tag with hand-stitching.

A bit of machine stitching, some stamping here and there for texture (tiny black squares and splotches) and black ink to distress the tag edges finished it off.

The Fourth

Tim's July tag celebrates Independence Day and what better way to spend the holiday than to play along? I haven't any blue print stamps but except for the postage stamp and typed text, everything else here is Idea-ology.

The boys are from the Occasions photo pack, the red papers are from the Merriment paper stash, the blue is from Correspondence and the snippet of the word "July" came from Lost and Found.

The "Credo" stamp is a US commemorative from 1960 which depicts a quote from Francis Scott Key:

And this be our Motto, in GOD is our TRUST.

"Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" are words from the Declaration of Independence and our reason for celebrating today. 

Happy 4th of July!

Celebrate!

Finally, a reason to celebrate! What's the occasion? No, it's not a birthday. Instead, it's the fun of using a favorite image from the Occasions Found Relatives photo pack to make this card.

It all started with Simon's Monday blog challenge where this week's theme is stamp and mist.  I'm not a big fan of the spray inks mainly because my workspace just won't accommodate the messiness so I used an eye dropper and made splatters on a black background with diluted white paint instead.

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It kind of looked like a party so I grabbed this very appropriate photo. It took a while to fussy-cut but the job was made easier by peeling off the backing so it wasn't as thick. I stamped the border and sentiment and added some dots.

Check out this close-up--the kid was caught making a grab for cake (his expression doesn't fool me).

Gingham

I'm not always open to whatever comes next except, maybe, when it comes to crafting. I'm the type that likes to make lists and always have a plan. But since surprises and happy (?) accidents are part of making art, I am learning to embrace them.

The photo I used is a Found Relative and since Fido seems to be anticipating something, Tim's Small Talk sticker seemed appropriate here.

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Mostly, this was an experiment with my Simon Says Stamp stencil called Gingham which I used in several layers to create a background with Distress inks.

After altering and pasting on the photo, I created a border with the stencil and texture paste that I tinted with black gesso.

The butterfly (left over from another project) has a layer of clear crackle and provides a touch of sparkle.

I'm linking to the Monday blog challenge at SSS where this week's theme features Simon brand products.

Sacred Objects

As my regular visitors know, I make a lot of tags. I don't always post them here because I'm not linking to a challenge and there's nothing special in the technique I used to warrant an explanation. Instead, I just file them away on my other blog, Manila Guerilla.

But this particular tag is kind of special. It will become Tag #100 on the MG site. I've read bloggers' posts when they reach an anniversary and it's only now that I can truly appreciate their mentioning it.

A milestone to be sure, when you begin blogging you often question why you should continue but after awhile the benefits begin to show. I like having a record of my work and a place to go to admire them. And it's easy to go back and revisit techniques that I want to try again.

But the very best part is the feedback and encouragement I've received and the friendships I have made.

I used to say, "I make a lot of stuff no one ever sees." Even though it was just to entertain myself, I began to question the validity without an audience. Since I enjoyed and was inspired by the work of so many others, I decided to jump in as well.

I can hardly believe how many of us are out there on the web sharing what we make. It makes me think that there are a lot more creatives in the world than anyone could have imagined.

So, with this post, I guess it's official--I am standing up to be counted and today it's one-hundred. In honor of the day, I want to celebrate by offering my readers an opportunity to receive one of my tags. Just visit Manila Guerilla and browse for the one you'd like then leave a comment here (make sure it includes an email address). I'll contact the winners a week from today (April 10th).

(comments closed...)

Buddies

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I've spent a lot of time, lately, working with the Idea-ology Found Relatives.

When I opened my first box I have to admit I was disappointed in how thick they were--a bit like playing cards.

In some applications, a thick photo is good but I use them most for collage and in this case, thinner is better.


But now I know it's SO EASY to modify them and I thought I'd share one of the ways I do it in case you'd like to give it a try.

First, peel off the back covering. Use your fingernail or a knife to get it started then just slowly pull it off (really easy).

Then get out some sandpaper (I use Tim's sanding block) and remove as much of the paper backing as you'd like.

For really thin photos, after sanding, spritz a little water on the back and rub off more paper bits with your fingers. Be gentle at this stage because the water weakens the paper and it becomes more delicate.

I've been able to get a photo so thin you can see through it! These guys are pretty tough and you'd never be able to do this with a regular photo.

It's also much easier to trim the photo after you've thinned it down a bit and I always tint the cut edges with a waterproof ink marker so they blend into my backgrounds better.

My "Buddies" came from the new Occasions series of Found Relatives and I created this tag for the winter theme at Simon's Monday blog challenge. I did some sanding, peeling and rubbing of the background paper, pasted on the boys, then used Simon's Falling Snow stencil with some white acrylic paint.

I didn't intend to create an avalanche but that's what it looks like!

CHA 2015

I spent the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas last year creating pieces for the Tim Holtz Idea-ology Booth at the Craft & Hobby Association's 2015 Annual Show at the Anaheim Convention Center in California.

It was not possible to make them public until the show started yesterday, January 10th, so I'm proud and happy to be able to share them now. Click on the images to see a larger view.

I was asked to create a Configurations Shadow Box and it was my first time using this product. I was very impressed with the sturdy construction--it really held up well during my alterations and I had so much fun!

There are many ways to "configure" the box inserts but I settled on a combination of front and back facing surfaces, some whittled down a bit to vary the height.

Found Relatives and the Wallflower Paper Stash were fussy-cut and layered to create a secret garden, some boxes were transformed into windows with rafia curtains, and a stamped and embossed clock and picture frame reside on the walls inside.

Acrylic paint was used on the Foundations Metal Box Feet and I topped it off with a Curio Door Knob and some Linen Ribbon tinted with Victorian Velvet Distress Stain.

Tim's Burlap panels provided the support for the remaining pieces starting with my brave and patriotic heroine who's a Found Relative from the new Occasions series.

The background is a page from the Crowded Attic Paper Stash and I embellished with Industrious Sticker Trim, an Arrow Adornment Metal Charm wrapped with thread, a piece from the Thrift Shop Ephemera Pack and a Curio Door Knob. Small Chit Chat Stickers were used for the text.

I think I found the perfect Small Chit Chat Sticker for this piece which was covered with gesso before applying a page from the Wallflower Paper Stash, a fussy-cut Found Relative and a Nature Adornment Metal Charm.

I call this one "Luigi" (another Found Relative) who was placed on Tim's new Postale Tissue Wrap along with cut-outs from the Wallflower stash, Industrious trims and a Plaquette that was altered with an image transfer.

The Chit Chat stickers come in black and white, the black background worked great for this piece. The border on the top and right-hand side was cut from the pretty background paper found on the back of a Found Relative card.

Gesso was used to alter this panel and then I applied Postale Tissue Wrap, a Found Relative, some fussy-cut Wallflowers (which wrap around the left side of the panel), a piece of Foliage Metal Hardware painted to match and Tim's new Big Chit Chat Stickers.

It was an honor and a privilege to participate in this event. The Idea-ology product line is genius with an amazing variety of quality pieces that are really a pleasure to work with.

Good Old Days

Oh, how I wish for the good old days! If I'd been born 150 years ago--
I just may have been happier. I'd be a pioneer woman with lots of kids, have a rifle for hunting and a garden. I'd bake the best bread and pies, go to church every Sunday and sleep soundly at night. I would most certainly appreciate all the little things that make life sweet.

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So to commemorate my blissful thinking, I've linked this tag to the Monday blog challenge at Simon Says Stamp.

It was made with a variety of pasted papers including a Tim Holtz "found relative."  Washes of acrylic paint and swipes of distress ink provide the color.

I used stamps to fill in some blank spaces and the flowers were cut from Tim's Wallflower paper stash.

Wallflowers

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wall·flow·er

[wawl-flou-er], noun

1. a person who, because of shyness, unpopularity, or lack of a partner, remains at the side at a party or dance.

2. any of several related plants of the genera Cheiranthus and Erysimum.

3. paper designed by Tim Holtz

This tag was made from a book page background covered with an image transfer of a "found relative" and greenery cut from the Wallflower paper stash, embellished with flowers from scrapbook paper and tinted with acrylic paints.