No. 526713

I'm a Guest Designer for April at the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog and if this is your first visit here--hello and welcome!

This week's challenge is to use a Butterfly and my idea for this tag started with one I found in my Wallflower Vellum paper stash.

I cut it out and cropped it to fit inside an Idea-ology Journaling Ticket stamped with some background text (Ledger Script) using archival ink (Ranger Potting Soil).

I built a box for it by scoring 1/4" from the edges of a rectangular piece of heavyweight cardstock then folding up the sides and securing the corners.

The box was lined with a vintage dictionary page and I attached the ticket using my sewing machine. A Small Talk sticker was tinted with Antique Linen Distress ink and placed on top. 

The stitching made me think of using a textile background so, after tinting the tag edges with Walnut Stain Distress ink, I cut a piece of fabric (Eclectic Elements) and stitched it to my tag.

In case you're wondering, sometimes I peel off the reinforcement paper around the tag's hole punch before adding background papers, etc., then reapply it (which is what I've done here).

After a few practice runs on some scrap fabric, I stamped the tiny butterflies on a string (Prima Noble Darling) using, of all things, ink from a Fude Ball pen. I needed a real juicy application to get a good image on the fabric and this pigment ink pen did the trick.

To create more visual interest, I intentionally offset the placement of my tag elements including the Lace Trimmings along the bottom edge of the box.

I stitched on a button (that matched the coloring of the vellum butterfly) as well as some string tinted with Black Soot Distress Ink to help draw the viewer's eye up and over the box and match the playfulness of the tiny butterflies.

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I do hope you'll join us for this week's challenge--

what kind of butterflies inspire you?

And don't forget when you upload your creation to the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog you'll have a chance to win a $50 voucher at the Simon Says Stamp store!

Here's a list of the products I used for this challenge which can be ordered from Simon:

Tim Holtz Fabric Eclectic Elements 16763 FABRIC CRAFTING PACK 6X6 8PC	Prima Flowers NOBLE DARLING Royal Menagerie Cling Stamp Set	Tim Holtz Cling Rubber Stamps Ledger Script CMS241	Tim Holtz Idea-ology 12 x 12 Paper Stash WALLFLOWER VELLUM	Tim Holtz Idea-ology LACE Trimmings TH93216	Black Soot - Distress Ink
Antique Linen - Distress Ink	Walnut Stain - Distress Ink	Tim Holtz Small Talk Stickers	Idea-ology JOURNALING TICKETS	Ranger Archival Potting Soil Ink Pad	Ranger Fude Ball 1.5 Pen In Black

Grateful and Happy

Grateful and Happy, the names given to the last two projects I completed for CHA 2016, describe perfectly just how I felt about being asked to contribute. They were assembled on the new Idea-ology Mini Clipboards which are a great size and so much fun to decorate.

The first one features a Watch Cameo that comes with it's own glossy epoxy sticker cover for mounting an image (I used a Found Relative). Other new elements include Plain Tissue Wrap, Mirrored Hearts and Gilded Accents Remnant Rubs along with some old favorites like Chit Chat stickers, Crinkle Ribbon, a Nature Adornment and paper from the Wallflower stash.

I used tiny drops of Liquid Pearls (Ranger) around the edge of the clipboard for some extra bling.

The second clipboard was made by covering it with Wallflower paper (the clip has screws that allow for easy removal) and then attaching a new Vignette Panel on top which served as a support for my assemblage.

The panel is made from wood so I used some whiting to distress and lighten it then sanded it down to expose the grain.

A Flash Card, an image from the Photobooth collection, a Nature Adornment, some Remnant Rubs and paper from the Wallflower stash all went together so easily to complete it.

I hope I've inspired you with my projects, I sure had fun making them! If you missed my other CHA 2016 posts and would like to see them, here's a link.

Forever Young

Using the lid from a vintage cigar box this piece, made for Tim's Idea-ology booth at CHA this year, features:

a Curio Knob, Vignette Boxes, Letterpress, Big Chat, Thrift Shop Ephemera, Apothecary and Corked Vials, an Ornate Plate, Hex Fasteners, Alpha Dice, Box Corners and the new Dapper paper.

And it all started with an idea to cut-up a group photo and put people inside bottles.

I used an Occasions Found Relative for this one that featured children dressed-up in their Easter best. You can also see the Dapper cigar box strips that worked perfectly to cover the front edge of the Vignette Box.

I'd also like to point out the apothecary labels that come with the new brown vials--they make the bottles look so authentic.

To place the children inside, I removed the backing from the photo, cut-out the individuals then curled them slightly so they would fit through the neck of the bottle. To anchor them in place I used a bit of Glossy Accents and the end of a long toothpick as an applicator.

The Alpha Dice makes it easy to spell-out a variety of words as there are multiples of the most common letters in each set.

But for me, the single-most important element in this piece was the blue background paper from Dapper. I had experimented with a variety of papers before choosing this one and the moment I placed it in the background the assemblage was instantly transformed. It's really a terrific collection and I can't wait to see how others might use it.

If you're interested, here's a link to all the projects I made for this year's event.

Moments

I'm sharing another CHA 2016 project made for the Tim Holtz Idea-ology Booth today and it features one of my favorite new products--the Decorative Dome.

I placed a tiny tree branch inside, draped with a bit of feathery crochet yarn and set a tiny butterfly cut from the Wallflower paper stash on top.

Next to it is one of the new wooden Alpha Dice cubes along with a Salvaged Doll that was tinted and distressed with crackle medium.

That frame in the background? Also a new product (called Baroque) and inside is a big blue bee from the Wallflower stash embellished with some Remnant Rubs.

All of that goodness was mounted inside one of his new Vignette Boxes and the edges were trimmed with cigar box strips from the new paper stash called Dapper.

Just below that is a new Vignette Panel which can be used as a lid for the boxes or, in this example, as a surface/support for the new Mini Pocket Watch and Charms. The topper is a painted Nature Adornment and the panel features insects from the Wallflower stash. The number strip along the bottom is from Dapper.

Everything was assembled on the inside of a vintage cigar box lid lined with walnut stained burlap and a large cut-out from Wallflower. A Mini Plaquette sits in the top right corner.

I hope this post gives you a few ideas or inspiration for your next creation and here's a link to the rest of the pieces I made this year for CHA if you'd like to take a peak.

To see everything available in Tim's new release, go here. Also, I find it handy to use this page on his website to see all things Idea-ology in one place with good descriptions and also measurements.

Legacy

Every book has a story and this one began when I pasted the pages together and cut-out its center.

Its final chapter ends with a stint in the Tim Holtz Idea-ology booth at the 2016 Craft and Hobby Association Convention in Anaheim, California (CHA).

Photo Courtesy Paula Cheney via Instagram

It features three of Tim's new Idea-ology products for this year--a Vignette Box,

some Gilded Accents Remnant Rubs and the Dapper Paper Stash (cigar box strips used along the box front edges).

I also used some old favorites like the Wallflower Paper Stash, a rather famous Found Relative, some Thrift Shop Ephemera and Letterpress.

My idea for stamping onto the letterpress faces came from some artwork by Paula Cheney that's featured on Tim's packaging for the new Framed Panel. If you haven't seen The Flamboyant Mr. Albert (and Paula's great tutorial) here's the link.

The vintage postage stamps are courtesy of my Great Aunt Esther who was a collector and left them to me. One is from Argentina and the other is Belgium.

It was a thrill to be asked to contribute artwork for Tim's booth display because (as so many of you know) working with his products just invites creativity. To see my other CHA projects, here's a link.

Photo Courtesy of Mario Rossi via Instagram

So that's the story with the following epilogue: This book will soon return to anonymity and never again be seen in such magical surroundings!

- The End -

12 Tags for Christmas - July

I can't pick a favorite from my 12 Tags for Christmas series (inspired by Tim's monthly tags for 2015) since I haven't made a December version yet but this tag, for the month of July, is a top contender.

Why? I would never in a million years have combined Santa images from three of his Christmas collage stamps in this way but did so to mimic the theme from July which featured three watercolored blueprint stamps. And I think the result is pretty awesome (if I do say so myself ☺).

Using a page from his Merriment paper for a background, the stamped images were embossed and tinted. The number 25 is a cut-out from that same paper line and the cents symbol was covered up with an Ideaology star tinted with alcohol ink (click to see a close-up). 

When it comes to creating flesh tones, I find that a combination of red, yellow and violet works pretty well. And since my watercolor paper is a bit on the heavy side, stitching the images to the tag is a good way to secure them and adds another level of interest.

I can't wait to attach it to a package for my great-nephew who happens to be the biggest Santa fan in the family this year.

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!

12 Tags for Christmas - February

As promised in my last post, I'll be sharing holiday versions of Tim’s monthly tags for 2015 and today features the February tag which focused on creating a collage with ephemera.

I used Distress Stickles since they are less sparkly than regular Stickles and compliment the well-worn look of this collage technique. The star cut-outs are from his Correspondence paper.

Click to Enlarge

Look closely, and you see red paint (applied with a tiny paint brush) that highlight the bric-a-brac on the Industrious Sticker frame.

In closing, I must say I was surprised and pleased to receive comments on my first tag in this series, thank you--I appreciate your support!

Remnants

rem·nant
/ˈremnənt/

noun

a small remaining quantity of something.

a piece of cloth or carpeting left when the greater part has been used or sold.

a surviving trace.



I only have remnants of brain matter left this month after working on my entry for Tim's September tag--it was a challenge!

To begin with, I'm alcohol-ink impaired so piles of glossy stamping paper later, I finally arrived at a background that might work.

I don't have transparent gloss texture paste so I used gloss gel medium with Tim's Scribbles stencil instead. I thought it would dry clear but I believe the thicker application prevented this. It's still somewhat transparent though and the pop of alcohol ink colors shine through but it's obviously not the same effect as Tim's.

Rather than highlight the texture with archival ink I used Vintage Photo Distress stain to darken the cracks and provide some contrast.

Click to Enlarge

There's no frosted paper in my studio so I took a laser printer transparency and sanded both sides to mimic this product. I guess it's close-enough but didn't curl as easy as his did.

Finishing touches included a Foliage charm, Remant Rubs (Words), ribbon scraps and Scribbles (3D fabric paint) dotted along the tag edges.

Tim's monthly tags always challenge me and this time, after allowing myself to fail (and learn), I thankfully pushed myself through.

I am grateful for the process and the end result!