Wednesday, January 23, 2013

12 Tags of 2013~January

This year I have decided to spread my crafty wings and try new things. So far, I have added THREE new creative things to my list:

  1. I am part of the Design Team for Lone Wolf Designs. That's definitely something new! Be sure to check back on Friday (Jan 25th) to see my first Design Team Showcase. 
  2. I'm also trying out new techniques. I have joined the Art Journal Challenge at Your Paper Pantry and I'm having fun with that. 
  3. I decided to try out the Tim Holtz 12 Tags of 2013
I really enjoyed making my tag for January. At first, I was disappointed that I didn't have hardly any of the items that Tim used to create his tag. I realized that I had to do some creative thinking and that's it's really more about trying out new techniques than making a tag that looks just like Tim's. 

This is Tim's tag:


And here is mine:


I'm not going to go into a lot of detail about how I did the techniques, but you can follow along with Tim as he gives an in-depth photo tutorial HERE.

In this photo, you can see my embossed background (Sizzix Tropical Paisley). I used 5 different colors of Distress Inks on my tag. I used Iced Spruce, Stormy Sky, Wild Honey, and Gathered Twig to color my tag and my seam binding for the top of the tag. I used Black Soot for all the stamping. After I got the tag all inked up, I sprayed it with homemade gold shimmer mist.


I don't have any of the film strip ribbon (yet!), so I improvised with this filmstrip stamp (Foto Set) and Spellbinders die (Snapshot) by Donna Salazar. I inked up some grungeboard arrows with the same inks that I used on the background and then sprayed them with homemade gold shimmer mist. I attached them to the tag with Glossy Accents. I also added some Want2Scrap bling for the butterfly trail.


I picked out a couple of TH adage tickets that went with my quote. I inked the edges with Gathered Twigs, traced the letters with Glossy Accents, then glued them down with Glossy Accents and pieces of dimensional foam adhesive. I picked up those paper flowers from the dollar bin at Michael's. I used Wild Honey to ink up the edges. The butterfly was a gift from my friend Tami. It was a bright copper and not quite the right color for this project so painted it with gold metallic acrylic paint and then rubbed a little Gathered Twigs on it. I attached it to the flowers with Glossy Accents.


Let's see...next is the quote (Travel Collage by TPC Studios). I stamped and embossed the quote on brown paper and cut it apart and inked the edges with Gathered Twigs. I used the same inking technique as I used on the big tag. I covered the entire front of the tag with Glossy Accents and spread it around in a thin layer. I then placed the quote on the tag and covered it with more Glossy Accents. I attached another one of those grungeboard arrows with Glossy Accents. I'm not sure if you can tell from the picture, but since the arrow is curved, I made one end come from behind the tag and then attached the other end to the front.


Last is the seam binding at the top. In Tim's tutorial, he stamped crinkle ribbon with archival ink and then colored the ribbon with Distress Stain. I don't have crinkle ribbon, archival ink, or distress stain. Yikes! What am I going to do?!? I used a small postal-type stamp (from the same stamp set as the quote) and Gathered Twigs to stamp my ribbon. I colored it with the same 4 colors (Iced Spruce, Stormy Sky, Wild Honey, and Gathered Twig) that I have been using throughout this project.



All in all, I'm quite pleased with how my tag turned out, even though I didn't have all the same products that were used in Tim's tag. Sometimes you just have to think outside the box and be creative with the items you already have on hand. Have you participated in Tim's 12 Tags? Leave me a comment below with a link so I can check it out!


Go and Be Creative!

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

"Black Tie Event" Stick Pin Swap

These are the stick pins that I made for the January Stick Pin Swap at The Scrap Cafe. The theme this month is "Black Tie Event" and the color choices are black, white, and/or silver. 

The beads are probably from Hobby Lobby. I used from my stash, so I'm not sure, but that is where I usually get my beads. I used the Tim Holtz "Postal" Texture Fade and embossed vellum for my card base. I attached it to a piece of black cardstock that I sprayed with homemade silver shimmer spray and then attached that layer to a piece of blue cardstock. I made a rosette with the Tim Holtz Mini Rosette Die with a piece of Colorbok silver-grey paper. I attached the rosette with 2 layers of foam tape and used that to hold 
my stick pins in place. The finished size of my tag is approximately 4.25"x5.5."


A close-up of the stick pins:


Have you tried your hand at making stick pins? They are so much fun to make! They add a nice touch to a card or scrapbook page. I encourage you to join us over at The Scrap Cafe on Facebook. It is a drama-free group and we love to share our projects. There are 2 swaps per month. You are sure to find something to interest you and expand your creativity.




Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Lone Wolf Designs~The Design Team

I am so thrilled to be a member of the Design Team for Lone Wolf Designs. If you check out the LWD blog HERE, you can see the bios of the current team. There's still room for at least one more person (and maybe more). If you think you have what it takes, check out this post for the qualifications. We would love to have you join us!

Lone Wolf Design Team Blogs
DeAnna~DeAnna's Crafts and Creations That's me!
Kris~Lone Wolf Designs LLC
Tami~Fashioned in Faith
**You Could Be Here!**

Design Team projects are posted every Friday. Be sure to "follow" or "subscribe" to all of us so you don't miss any of the fun. We hope to inspire you and push your creativity to the next level!

Go and Be Creative!

Sunday, January 13, 2013

The blog got a face lift!

My friend Kris, over at Lone Wolf Designs has asked me to be a part of her Design Team. I am beyond thrilled and honored at this request! I already have my first project done and can't wait to post it. She is also looking for at least one more Design Team member. Check out this post for all the details. You can also join us on Facebook in the LWD Discount Retail Sales Group

So....I figured it was time for the blog to get a face lift. What do you think? Since Pinterest is all the rage right now, I added "Pin It" buttons to all the photos. I'm working on a light box this week to make sure I get a better quality photo. Now, if I can just remember to watermark my photos...


Go and be creative!

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

Christmas Cards

I have been working on my Christmas cards over the last couple of days.







Supplies:
Tim Holtz Distress Ink: Crushed Olive, Scattered Straw, Forest Moss, Festive Berries, Vintage Photo, Gathered Twigs
Stampin' Up! Festival of Prints Patterned Paper, Snow Festival Printed Tags, Cardstock

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Baby Mini Album 2 (Custom Order)

This is an album for a baby, but I didn't use "baby" paper. I used "Today, Tomorrow, Forever" by Recollections. This customer needed 2 baby albums and I used this paper line for both of them. The first album was just an 8x8 album and pictures of it can be seen here. I wanted to do something a little bit different for this one. After spending way too much time on YouTube, I came across this tutorial by Kathy Orta. She made a mini album out of 5x7 cards and envelopes. How cool is that?!? After making this album with another brand of cards and envelopes, I would definitely recommend using the Recollections brand that she talks about in the video. Those envelopes and cards are very sturdy and will hold up well over time.



Check out the video below for a flip-thru of the album. I didn't do too much talking. I have been sick and have a horrible cough right now. Talking too much sends me into a coughing fit. My husband is thrilled that I'm on the quiet side right now. LOL


Supplies:
Paper: Today, Tomorrow, Forever by Recollections
Cardstock: Core'dinations and DCWV
Flower: from a swap (Thanks, Kristina! Check out her YT channel here.)
Stick Pin: I made it! : )
Ribbons and Lace: from my stash

Baby Mini Album 1 (Custom Order)

This is one of two custom baby albums for a friend at church. I didn't do a video because I was sick. Thanks for looking at ALL the pictures. : )













Thanks for looking at ALL those pictures!


Supplies:
Paper: Today, Tomorrow, Forever by Recollections
Cardstock: Core'dinations and DCWV
Cricut Cartridge: New Arrival
Flowers: Prima
Stick Pin: from a swap
Ribbons, Lace, and Bling: from swaps and my stash