Stamper’s Anonymous Curations Summer 2026: The Beach Thickboard Tag

Hello Everyone! I hope those of you in the U.S. had a wonderful 4th of July celebration! Today, I have the third and last project I created for the Stamper's Anonymous Curations Summer/Travel YouTube Live, featuring the stamps and stencils of Tim Holtz, as well as the launch of the Curations Oceans Horizons Thickboard pieces, that I've used here on this Beach Tag. I had this crazy idea of trying to create a beach horizon view with crashing waves from multiple angles using the pieces. It ended up taking me 1 1/2 packages of the set to complete and quite a bit of time, but I was very happy with how it came out. I hope my step outs don't confuse you much, lol. Enjoy!

 

I used two Thick Board Mini Tags...One to plan out my strategy that will go back into the package and one that will be the actual project, just to help me in planning. I used two packages of the Ocean Horizon Ornamentals because the Mini Thick Board is wider and this size is better to show the scene. I removed every piece from the first package except the large sun and the half pieces sun. In the other package I only used some of the waves. The tag hole will be the umbrella. In this picture some parts are painted white already, but I will cover that in the next step. This step is all planning the scene and having it gradually slant slightly from the horizon.

 

Using Picket Fence Distress Paint from Ranger, I painted over the Mini Tag size thick board, tag hole, sun, and 4 clouds (back and front on the clouds) that will be large waves. They would make good rocks too. Using Tumbled Glass, I lightly painted over the white in the sky area so it looks like thin clouds are about and continued on until I got to the bottom portion of the tag and stopped about 1.5" up keeping it slanted. I painted the bottom portion with Antique Linen Distress Paint. This will be the sandy beach. FYI...the spongy paint dabbers make this a lot easier instead of the flip lids on the paint. It's nice to have both for certain projects.

 

From the Mini Layering Stencils Set 38, I used the sun rays stencil, laying it on at the top where the sun would go, and pounced on Antique Linen Distress Paint with a Mini Ink Blending Tool, and cleaning that off onto the sun piece. Then I added Scattered Straw Distress Paint to the center part of the rays and cleaned that off towards the center of the sun, and finally Fossilized Amber Paint to the top rays and cleaned that off in the middle of the sun. I knew I used a little too much paint and could feel it moving under the stencil, but I'll fix that in the next step.

 

 

I laid the hole piece where it would go as a guide and added Tarnished Brass Distress Stickles (YES, I still have some!) first to the top edge where the blue meets the sand to look like wet sand that is darker than the dry sand. Then I added Antique Linen Distress Stickles to the rest of the area around the hole piece which would be the umbrella later. The Distress Stickles are more matte and not as shiny as the regular so I thought they were a good choice for the sand, and I needed to use these up as they are running low anyway. To fix the rays where the paint spread under the stencil, I used more Tumbled Glass and a detail paint brush and just brushed between the rays carrying the blue out a little further. It probably looks a little too Heavenly, but I like it.

 

This was my process for the all the waves from the Ornamentals sets...working top and then bottom to hopefully meet in the middle while looking even, and adding extra length of wave from the second set of Ornamentals, gluing it together and adding a small piece of tissue paper to help hide the seam, painting the waves, stenciling the waves, and finally adhering them. So I started on the horizon top piece, cut about 1/4" piece of extra wave using a ruler and craft knife to help cut, adhering the two pieces together with Collage Medium and adding a strip of tissue to cover the seam with the Collage Medium. I did the same to the bottom wave but angling it to fit above the sand. This was quite tedious until I got into a rhythm.

 

 

I painted the horizon piece with Prize Ribbon and then Picket Fence on the top edge. I stamped the linear dots in Glacier White Pigment Ink here and there along the top of the horizon piece, from the THMM122 Mixed Media Set. On the bottom shore piece, I painted it Tumbled glass, and then added Picket Fence to the top edge carrying it over. I also added Picket Fence to the edges of the sand where it meets the water. Then I stamped the bubbly splats in Glacier White over the edge of the waves. I adhered the horizon piece in place at the top with the straight edge up....this will be the only straight edge piece, and the rest will be wavy. Then I adhered the shore piece in place at the angle, using Collage Medium.

 

The next four pieces are wide pieces, 2 for the top and 2 for bottom. The two top pieces will be waves facing up and gradually slanting down to the left and are painted with Mermaid Lagoon and Picket Fence on the waves, then stamped with the linear dots in Glacier White after the extra additions are added with the tissue covering the seams. The bottom two pieces are waves facing down and gradually slanting up to the left and painted Salvaged Patina and Picket Fence on the waves, and then stamped with the linear dots again, after the additional length was added. It's the same process, with really only the direction of the waves different. I also clean the brush of blue color on the before or after waves to help blend the next blue into the other for more cohesiveness. I only glued down the first piece top and bottom to figure out spacing and angles. See the next step to see what I mean about the angles.

 

Before I glue down the second Mermaid Lagoon top piece and Salvaged Patina bottom piece, I laid them out and added the rest of the middle pieces on to figure my spacing, placement, and top to bottom angles. Then I glued those two down only using some spacers to help me, i.e. paintbrushes. I had to let this dry a while before moving on.

 

 

I was so busy concentrating and cleaning up the glass mat, that I did not get a better step out photo, but on the last 4 waves and big waves (clouds), same as before, adding extra length additions, tissue covering seams, painting Broken China Distress Paint this group, and Picket Fence edges. Once dry I just played with the configurations and tightness of adding them all in so that it would like rolling waves coming in, before adhereing. They are sort of bunched up, but ultimately I like the look. To finish all the waves off I used Frosted Lace Stickles which are more opaque and a little less glitzy than most other white Stickles. I added it to all the edges and then on the big waves I tried to draw movement scrolls. I adhered the sun on and added a little Glossy Accents on top to for some sheen.

I stamped the bullseye from THMM Set 139 onto the smooth side of Distress Watercolor Cardstock in Barn Door several times to make it nice and bright, using a Stamping Platform. I added two sided tape to the back, and cut it out around the last white circle. I used a black fine permanent pen to add the lines and then I tried to fold it along the lines but the two sided tape made that a bit difficult. I snipped the edges of the white along the lines and folded the borders in so that it looks like the sides of the umbrella hanging down. I adhered the hole piece to the beach portion using Collage Medium and stuffed some left over tissue in the hole trying to make it pointed and cone shape . I removed the backing of the tape and stuck the umbrella on. I had some Mini Starfish Bezel Fillers that I thought were the perfect size for the beach so I stuck them down with more Antique Linen Distress Stickles. I wanted to add the sentiment 'some beach somewhere' but I didn't see a good place to add it. 

 

Supplies:

(Paint Brush, Scissors, Mini Ink Blending Tool, Ruler, Craft Knife, White Tissue Paper, Stamping Blocks, Stamping Platform, Two Sided Tape, Black Fine Point Pen)

-Stamper's Anonymous Tim Holtz Etcetera Thickboard Mini Tags 

-Stamper's Anonymous Ornamentals (2 Sets): Ocean Horizon 

-Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Paint: Picket Fence, Tumbled Glass, Antique Linen, Scattered Straw, Fossilized Amber, Prize Ribbon, Mermaid Lagoon, Salvaged Patina, Broken China

-Stamper's Anonymous Tim Holtz Collection Mini Layering Stencil: Set 38 

-Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Archival Ink: Fossilized Amber, Barn Door

-Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Stickles: Tarnished Brass, Antique Linen

-Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Collage Medium: Matte

-Stamper’s Anonymous Tim Holtz Mixed Media Stamps/Stencil: THMM122, THMM139 

-Ranger Glacier White Pigment Ink

-Ranger Stickles: Frosted Lace

-Ranger Glossy Accents

-Tim Holtz Distress Watercolor Cardstock

-Blank Slate Mini Starfish 

Thank you truly for stopping by and for all the kind words and comments. I hope to be back in the near future. Until then, I hope your hands get creatively dirty soon!

Tim Holtz Sizzix Vault 2025 - Floristry Sidekick Side-Order Van Gogh Inspired 3 Sunflowers In A Vase

WOW, this blog is very dusty. Hello All! I hope this post finds each of you doing so well! I have not been creating much this year due to some medical issues, but I was fortunate enough to get to create a little something for the Tim Holtz Sizzix Spring Vault Launch. There are two parts to this launch with 5 sets out today, and the next part will come out on the 31st. The first five sets are the Vault Edge, Vault Industrial, Vault Atomic Retro, Vault Noteworthy, and the Sidekick Side-Order Vault Floristry, and I've used the last two to create another Van Gogh inspired Sunflowers piece, this time a 4x5 inch canvas, and using his 3 Sunflowers In A Vase as my guide. (If you missed my other two Van Gogh inspired pieces, click here for The 12 Sunflowers and here for The Poppies.) Enjoy!

I actually made two at the same time....one for Sizzix and one for home that I framed from a gorgeous little frame I found at an antique mall. 

I used this image as my guide with the dies from the Side-Order Vault Floristry to create both canvases much the same as I did the others. 

 

(Note: It's good to print off the Van Gogh 3 Sunflowers In A Vase for reference while you work, or have the pics on your phone to use for detail work.) Take a 4x5 inch canvas (I did 2, a chunky and a panel.) and using a palette knife, apply a thin layer of Opaque Distress Texture Paste from Tim and Ranger,  to the whole canvas dividing up wall (vertical lined pattern) and where the table part (about 1 inch wide horizontal line pattern) will be. Let the canvas dry about an hour.

 

Paint over the top textured area with Broken China Distress Paint. While the paint is still wet add a bit of Picket Fence Distress Paint here and there vertically (using the pic as your guide) creating stripes of color while blending them for a soft striated look. Using Scorched Timber Distress Paint, add a line of paint where the blue ends, and then dashes of Vintage Photo, Squeezed Lemonade, Mustard Seed, and Rusty Hinge filling in the whole bottom area, again using the pic as your guide. Let the canvas dry. 

 

Free hand cut the vase (about 1.5 inches tall) from scrap cardstock and add two sided tape to the back. Using the Distress Paints, Broken China, Picket Fence, Scorched Timber, Twisted Citron, and Peeled Paint, try to recreate the look of the vase in the pic. Begin die cutting the leaves and stems using scrap green cardstock backed with two sided tape, from the Floristry Side Order. Use either Twisted Citron, Peeled Paint, or Scorched Timber to paint in the leaves and stems, following the pic.

 

Emboss the vase with the Honeycomb looking Texture Fade, and then use a bit of Scorched Timber around the edges of the vase. When dry, apply Collage Medium to the canvas where the vase will go, remove the backing and stick it on, coating it with Collage Medium as you go. When dry, play with the arrangement of leaves and stems to see where they will go, and begin to stick them on with the Collage Medium as well.

 

 

Add two sided tape to the back of light and dark yellow cardstock scrap, and begin die cutting all the flower petals and centers using the Floristry Side-Order, as well as the circle from Vault Noteworthy for a few more round center pieces. Begin to layer the petals and centers by removing the backing and sticking them together until you have all three flowers with a look similar to the pic.

 

Adhere the flowers on covered them with Collage Medium. When dry, use the paints to add more detail all the parts.

 

Finish off the canvas by adding dots of Ranger Liquid Pearls in Dark Chocolate, Key Lime, and Wendy Vecchi's Sunflower, and Orange Blossom to the centers of the flowers. Let dry, and then coat the whole canvas with more Collage Medium (Crazing if you have it.).

 

Supplies:

(Palette Knife, Medium and Small Paint Brush, Scissors, Two Sided Tape, Side Kick Die Cut Machine, Die Pick)

-4x5 Inch Chunky Canvas and/or Flat Canvas

-Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Texture Paste: Opaque

-Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Paint: Broken China, Picket Fence, Scorched Timber, Vintage Photo, Squeezed  Lemonade, Twisted Citron, Peeled Paint, Rusty Hinge, Mustard Seed

-Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Collage Medium: Crazing

-Sizzix Tim Holtz Sidekick Side Order (Spring 2025): Floristry 

-Sizzix Tim Holtz Thinlits (Spring 2025): Vault Noteworthy 

-Scraps of yellow and green cardstock

-Ranger Liquid Pearls: Dark Chocolate, Key Lime

-Ranger Wendy Vecchi Liquid Pearls: Sunflower, Orange Blossom

-Print Out of Van Gogh 3 Sunflowers In A Vase 

Thank you truly for stopping by here today, and for the support. I so appreciate you all. I will be back again soonish. Until then, I hope your hands get creatively dirty soon!

Tim Holtz Sizzix Vault Series 2024 - Picture Show Pocket Watch with Gears Working Clock

Hello Everyone! I think this is a record for me...I've had sooo many messages asking for this tutorial to make the Picture Show Pocket Watch with Gears Clock, using two of the new Sizzix Dies from Tim Holtz, the Picture Show and Pocket Gears Thinlits. So I'll just jump right in...grab a snack because this is LONG, and I included many photos from different angles as this was difficult to photograph especially all the detail. OH AND....if you are going to make this, buy the miniature clock mechanism (got mine on Amazon and read first step below for the details) and 2.5 inch Dome from Sizzix ahead of time to be ready. Don't forget that I have a print button below so you can print the whole thing easily. AND PLEASE LEAVE ME A COMMENT if you are making this so I know that this tutorial was worth the time and the energy, as sometimes I wonder, so help a girl out! Enjoy!!!

This is the Clock Movements Mechanism with Short Hands and ½” Tall Shaft Clock Kit I purchased on Amazon. I could not find another kit anywhere that was small enough and had the ½ inch tall shaft (the center long part that goes through the hole in the middle), that also has the short hands. If you get any longer than ½”, the clock parts will be too big to fit under the shaker dome. The kit comes with several hands to choose from and two battery mechanisms so you can make 2 clocks with several choices of hands for $10. 

Using only the thicker Metallic Classics Kraftstock (to make the clock as durable as possible), add two sided tape to the back of a black metallic piece first and die cut the picture wheel from it from the Vault Picture Show Thinlits set. You can punch out the windows and save those for another project. You will not need this die set anymore, fyi. Add two sided tape to a gold piece and die cut the pocket watch from the Vault Watch Gears Thinlits. Die cut a silver pocket watch with no tape on the back this time, as this piece will be the very back of the clock. Take the black picture wheel and cut through all the arm pieces that are flush with the very top of the square opening as the wheel is a little larger than the pocket watch. It should look like a wagon wheel with spokes but with no outer circle wheel part. Punch a 5/16” hole in the very center of the wheel, the gold watch, and the silver watch, making sure they will all line up once adhered together. (NOTE: If you don’t have a 5/16” hole punch that is deep enough (at least 2 inches to punch a hole in the center) you can use the ‘zero’ thinlit from the Sizzix Postale Set as it’s the perfect size to fit the width of the shaft. Just die cut the zero in the center of each piece and pop it out, as I did because I didn’t have a hole punch. AND, there are enough zeros to die cut all three pieces at the same time. AND as a cool addition, if you die cut these with a pretty used up cutting pad that has lots of scratches and cuts in it, those images will transfer easily onto the Metallic Kraftstock and add a fabulous distressed detail into the paper, a bonus if you like the distressed look. If you don’t then make sure to use clean smooth cutting pads on the Metallic Kraftstock.) Remove the backing on the wheel and adhere it to the Gold Pocket Watch making sure a square at the very top is centered correctly where the number 12 will go just like a clock face. Remove the backing on the gold and adhere the silver watch piece over making sure the silver is face up (again, this part is the back of the clock). Using more Black Metallic Kraftstock, die cut the small set of numbers from the Watch Gears Thinlits. There are already the correct amounts you need for a clock on the die which is SOOOOO nice and convenient. 

Before adhering the numbers, and to make that part a little easier, die cut another silver pocket watch with two sided tape on the back (You might as well die cut 2 more in silver and one in copper while you are at it.). The die cut piece has two embossed circles in the center to help you figure out other die cuts. Use scissors to cut out the largest circle part so that there is just a 1/16^” rim left on the pocket watch. I used a hole punch a few times in the circle to help me get started cutting the circle. You can also use the circle die that comes in the set but you will still need to cut the extra little bit of ring away with scissors. Once cut, remove the backing and adhere this over the wheel pocket watch part so that now it looks like a silver pocket watch frame with square openings for the numbers. Now you can adhere the numbers better knowing the room you have a lot easier, especially for the double digit ones. I tried to position mine so that they would be seen in the same linear fashion all around the clock face. Once the numbers were down I checked on the depth of the clock shaft and hands to see how thick the borders of the clock needed to be so that there would be enough room for the hands to turn correctly, and decided to keep building up the borders a little for that reason. So I added four more silver pocket watch frames on top (silver pocket watches with the centers cut out) to add more thickness. I also wanted a thin border of copper to show for more cohesiveness with the colors of the upcoming gears, so on the copper pocket watch, I die cut the center out with the circle die that came with the set so it left a wider border of cooper than the other silver ones that I hand cut. On top of the copper, I added a silver cut out pocket watch for the very top piece. I die cut all the gears I thought I needed from each of silver, gold, and copper Metallic Kraftstock with two sided tape on the back, as well as two each of the of the handle loop pieces from the die set (one for the front and one for the back) in silver with two sided tape on the back. I also place all the gears and handle parts that had been die cut back into the machine with the scratched up die cutting plate so that the distressed design would be shown on all the pieces. To further bring out the distressed designs I dabbed on Black Soot Distress Paint from Ranger over all the pieces, waited a few minutes and then wiped off the paint leaving it in the recessed distressed designs for a more vintage look. If you want a smooth shiny look then skip the distressed plate for a smooth plate and don’t use the paint. I tested out the paint look first on the whole silver pocket watch on the bottom right of this picture to make sure I would like the look, so you can look at it to understand what I mean by distressed design with the black paint look, as well as the old cutting plate I used up top in the photo. Metallic papers will pick up all the designs on the cutting pads as you probably already know. Once the paint was dry, I inked the edges of all the gears, the handle parts, and rims of the clock with Vintage Photo Archival Ink. Then I added the handle parts on both the front and back of the clock, and played around with the gear placements until I liked it and adhered those down. I of course had left over gears and that pocket watch I didn’t use that I tested the paint on, and I will use those in another project. 

Here is the clock face up close with the gears stuck on as well as the handle parts, all ready to go before the clock mechanism goes in. I also used some of the inside circle parts (the throw away parts) from some of the gears to add centers and nail heads on the clock face. On two of the larger ones I made lines down the middle for a nail head look with the blade of my scissor.

The clock mechanism comes with not only all the parts you need and more, but with also a metal L bracket to attach the clock to a wall, but I am using this bracket as a base piece so that it can brace the clock securely on the bottom to use on a table top. Since it has a bend in it for the wall fastening I thought to bend it back to make it longer to help secure my base. I used pliers to gently bend it flush with the other part. See the original and then see what mine looks like. After I bent it in place, I attached the circle part opening around the indention for it on the shaft, and snapped it in place, then I added a little Collage Medium to the rubber circle washer and pushed it over the brace, and let that dry.

Here is a different angle so you can see the bend I made with the pliers.

I added a bit of Collage Medium on top of the rubber washer and then added the clock face on centered correctly with the 12 lined up in the middle and let it dry. Then I added the shortest clock hands in the kit in order that they go per the photo on the instructions. I used the shortest because I didn’t want to risk any hands touching the dome in the next parts. HOWEVER, depending on the length of not only the hands you need to factor in the length of the shaft in the middle, so keep that in mind when building up the borders of the clock. Also, from a distance it was very hard to see the black colored clock hands, so I ended up painting them silver with a leafing pen and toned down the gold middle part with a gold leafing pen as it was the wrong color gold and a bit too bright.

To construct dome cover, I die cut two of the pocket watches in silver with two sided tape, and then die cut the smaller circle inside the watch, to not only have a wider border but the two inside circles will be used as well. The 2.5” Shaker Dome is a tad small to fit over the whole clock face, so having the wider border on these two will make it fit great. I also snipped off the top handle parts and run all the other parts through the machine with the scratched up die cutting plate to distress those. I added the Black Soot Paint on, waited a few minutes and then wiped off the rest.

I removed the backing on the Dome and adhered it to the top of one of the watch borders. Then I added the other watch border on top of this lining up the borders best as I could. Using the small Hinge I lined it up where it would go on the bottom middle of the dome and I used a pen to make the marks where the Mini Fasteners would go. I have a jewelry mini hole punch and I used it to punch the holes for the fasteners, and then inserted them into the Hinge holes and secured them tightly with pliers following the edge of the border of the pocket watch.

Taking one of the circles, I marked where the holes would go with the other end of the Hinge on the very edge of the circle, leaving as much of a gap as possible between the Dome and circle so that there would be plenty of working room for bottom circle part later. I used the pliers again to make sure the fasteners were on tight and flat. 

Looking through my Idea-ology stash for a Swivel Clasp, I came across an old Toggle Clasp from the first release of Tim’s Assemblage line. It was perfect for that authentic look from an old pocket watch with a connecting chain, so I used an old Assemblage chain as well, and replaced the chain from the Swivel Clasp with it, using pliers to open the links and exchanging them, and using enough to go from the top of the handle on the clock to the were the ‘o’ clasp will go. On the ‘o’ part of the clasp, I took the other circle and punched a hole at the very edge and inserted a Mini Fastener in the hole on the clasp and secured it tightly with the pliers. I also wanted to make sure that the bracket on the clock would be secured with something as well, so I used a larger fastener and marked where the holes would go to secure it, but I didn’t punch them yet to make sure I would have the correct placement once the Dome was on. Then I removed the back on the Dome and added Collage Medium for reinforcement and then added the Dome on lining up everything like a clock, and let that dry.

I added the Swivel Chain on the handle of the clock and then laid the circle with the ‘o’ clasp on top of the other circle (not securing yet, so the backing is still on) to make sure things would line up and work the way I wanted, and then I punched the holes for the large fasteners to secure the bracket. I removed the backing on the circle and then pushed the fastener through and bent the arms in place, holding up the clock so that the bottom circle was just hanging there. Once the bracket was secured I adhered that circle to the bottom circle, pressing all around to make sure all parts were stuck together. Then I pushed the toggle through the ‘o’ clasp. 

Here is a close up of the fastener holding the bracket down, and the toggle through the ‘o’ clasp.

Then I adhered the Hardware Head to the front of the handle with Collage Medium. 

Supplies:

(Paper Trimmer, Two Sided Tape, Die Cut Machine, Die Pick, Scissors, 5/16” Hole Punch, Ink Blending Tool, Pliers, Mini Hole Punch)

-Tim Holtz Idea-ology: Metallic Classics Kraftstock, Hinges, Mini Fasteners, Swivel Clasp, Hardware Heads

-Sizzix Tim Holtz Thinlits (Vault Series 2024): Vault Picture Show, Vault Watch Gears

-Sizzix Tim Holtz Thinlits: Postale

-Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Paint: Black Soot

-Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Archival Ink: Vintage Photo

-Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Collage Medium: Matte

-Sizzix Shaker Domes: Circle 2.5”

-Tim Holtz Assemblage: Gunmetal Chain, Toggle Clasp

-Miniature Clock Movements Mechanism with Short Hands and ½” Tall Shaft Clock Kit

Thank you truly for all the love and support with this project...it means so much. I will be back again next week. Until then, I hope your hands get creatively dirty soon!