January ATC

Hello crafty people! I have just finished my ATC for the monthly swap at the All Things Tim Yahoo Group. This month's ATC was to be of course Tim inspired, green, and written on the back, a creative resolution. I am also entering this little guy in Hel's Sunday Stamper Challenge "time", and Studio L3's Grungy Monday Challenge "any of Tim's 12 tags techniques", which is also being sponsored by Simon Says Stamp. The time theme is pretty obvious on the card, and the techniques I've chosen from 12 tags are the tissue wrap background and creating an embossed resist. As always, I am excited to see the ATC's I'll receive in return.

To Create the 2 Tim Techniques: Using Wendy's Studio 490 Art Parts in the ATC, I stained front and back with Distress Stain in Peeled Paint.

Lifted from Wendy, I ran Perm Tac Adhesive on the ATC and placed Tissue Wrap over it, and pressed down (instead of stamping images as per Tim's technique). You can see the green tint as well as the tiny dots from the tape runner. It really creates an awesome texture and contrast.

I stained the tissue tape with Peeled Paint, which really enhanced the dots. Then I sanded over the sides, and the tissue wrap just fell off so smoothly.

I stamped a Hero Arts Time Background over the ATC with Distress Embossing Ink, covered that with UTEE, and heat embossed. This created a clear image which will resist any coloration. I inked over the ATC with Distress Ink in Gathered Twigs and Peeled Paint. The resist worked beautifully.

After embellishing with the embossed metal number 2's (from Mover's & Shaper's Mini 25), a clocked clad mini rosette, pen nib, flourishes, and sentiment, the ATC was overflowing with various textures.

I love how the clock turned out on the rosette, and the background is still visible under all the goodies.

An appropriate sentiment is embossed on the back along with my Creative Resolution for 2012...to really work on time management, so I can create everyday while still getting my other responsibilities completed. That is a huge goal that I hope I can tackle!

Supplies:

Ranger:  Acrylic Paint Dabber in Silver (frame out); Inkssentials- Glossy Accents, Crackle Accents, Big & Bossy Two-Tone Embossing Ink Pad; UTEE

Tim Holtz:  Alterations: Sizzix Dies in Mover’s & Shaper’s Mini 25, Mini Paper Rosettes; Idea-ology- Lost and Found Paper Stash (rosette), Pen Nib, Game Spinners; Stamper’s Anonymous Start/Ending wood block; Adirondack Alcohol Ink in Meadow; Distress Ink in Peeled Paint, Gathered Twigs, Embossing Ink; Distress Stain in Peeled Paint; Distress Stickles in Peeled Paint

Wendy Vecchi Studio 490:   Art Parts: ATC Art

Hero Arts: Cling Stamp - Time To Stamp

Technique Tuesday: Stamp - Life Is A Journey

Bazzill Basics Paper: Daisy Paper Flowers in Hillary

I hope your hands get creatively dirty soon!

Wax On, Wax Off!

Hello everyone and happy Saturday! Don't you just love lazy Saturday mornings when you don't have to go to hockey, baseball, or cheer practice? Boy I do and it's so rare when that happens!

Before I get going, I want to share with you what I received from Tim, after winning on his blog the other day. My mouth is still hanging open in wonderment! Can you believe all this? I am sharing with a few crafty pals as well. That is what all this is about...sharing the love!

Holy smokes Craftman...you are generous beyond words!!!

Happy Birthday Tim! May all your creative dreams come true. And you to Jennie from the Artist Stamper across the pond! Speaking of birthdays, my darling daughter will be celebrating her 12th soon.  I have been busy on her present, and oh so cleverly and sneakily designed it around a few challenges. However, as I can't read very well, so I missed the cut off date on Our Creative Corner's color challenge of "pink, purple, green, and yellow". This was the whole premise of my design...I could just smack myself...oh, just did and it hurt! I am going to submit it to the Gingersnap Creation's Spicy Supply Challenge of "wax" though.Here is a little tutorial of how this played out...a tutorial for myself, as I had some problems!

I wanted to do something Andy Warhol-ish. I loved all of his work.  He really was ahead of his time.

I applied gesso very heavily to a canvas plaque, to give texture as well as grip. After it dried I measured off 4 equal rectangles and taped the first one up with masking tape to prevent marring up the others.

I blotted alcohol ink all over the rectangle  but left open spots that were filled in with Distress Ink. It created a marbling effect that looked great on the textured gesso.

I repeated this process for all four rectangles. There was a tiny bit of bleeding over, but it didn't hurt anything. By the way, I had to mix Watermelon and Snow Cap Mixative to achieve pink. So far so good...I was worried how all this would play out.

I stamped a harlequin design design with Jet Black Staz-On  ink to create a border. I am not a good stamper at all, so I had to fill in a few spots with a black sharpie (fabulous invention).

I finally purchased Masking Sheets, and I stamped the face image on one and cut around it to create a facial silhouette, again with Staz-On so no bleeding would occur.

The face was stamped in each rectangle.

I placed the mask over each image and stamped a design in the same color ink as each rectangle. Here is where problems arose. Distress Ink is the coolest, because when you ink over something and then stamp in the same color, it shows up because the image is stamped and therefore more color rich. However...alcohol inks are more intense and I didn't have perfectly matched colors, so my background images were very faint on the purple and especially the pink. I had to use Festive Berries Distress Ink on the pink to make the speckled (or fly poop) image stand out. The purple stood out only in certain spots. I still like the effect though. It's faint, but still adds dimension.

Eyes and lips were filled in...I can't help it, I have to color this in!

Okay, here it the part I was worried about. I even needed sustenance to keep going. Will the ink come off while I'm spreading the wax? Hmm...

Who cares about that now! Look what I've done! I made a huge globby, ugly  mess, because I was so worried about the ink! (Freak the freak out was going on now!!!) I had to walk away.

I knew my trusty heat gun would save the day. I kept the plaque on it's side and started to heat it, and presto, the excess came off and a glorious smooth coating of wax covered the plaque. It dulled the background some, of course, but all the ink stayed on...woohoo!!! What is even cooler was, after I poured out the wax and started to clean up (which was a grandiose  mess) my heat resistance mat felt and looked like new again. It had a nice silky coating on it like when you first open it up. Nice!

I die cut lace trim from cardstock and butterflies and flourishes from modeling film (love this stuff).

Alcohol Ink was added to the butterflies as well as stamped images and enamel for the body, and then I heated them up and shaped as I wanted...so cool! I covered the lace in gesso to keep it strong and sturdy, so it would last for years.

I painted an ornate frame and brads with paint dabber, let them dry, sanded them, and embossed them with UTEE. What a cool vintage look.

A computer generated sentiment was added to the frame and covered up with Crackle Accents.

This is DD's crazy and usually very messy room. It blends in perfectly. I am sure she is going to love it!

 

 

Supplies:

Ranger:  Acrylic Paint Dabber in Snow Cap; Inkssentials- Enamel Accents in Black, Glossy Accents, Crackle Accents; UTEE; Melt Art Bees Wax in White; Melting Pot

Tim Holtz:  Alterations: Sizzix Dies in Festive Greenery, Vintage Lace, & Mini Butterflies Set; Idea-ology- Mask Sheets, Ornate Frame, Baubles, Jump Rings, Ruler; Stamper’s Anonymous Letters to Santa (script), speckled wood block, harlequin clear mount; Adirondack Alcohol Ink in Purple Twilight, Sunshine Yellow, Meadow, Watermelon, Snow Cap; Distress Ink in Dusty Concord, Mustard Seed, Worn Lipstick, Peeled Paint, Festive Berries, Embossing Ink

Wendy Vecchi Studio 490:   Art Parts: Clearly For Art Modeling Film in White; Stamper’s Anonymous in Believe In Art (Normandy lace) & Seriously Art (dots)

Clearly Impressed: Julie van Oosten Series in Time (face)

Liquitex: Clear Gesso

Sakura: Glaze Pens in pink, brown

Uni-Ball: Signo Broad Pigment Ink Pen in White

Artist’s Loft: Canvas Panel in 6x8

Celebrate It: White Polka Dot Tulle Wide Ribbon

I hope your hands get creatively dirty soon!

Happy Birthday Tim Holtz!!!

Happy New Year again everyone!!! I hope everything is well and wonderful with all of you. There has been a firestorm of activity here on the Artful Maven, after Tim linked it on his blog. Several new followers and subscribers have joined us. I thank each and every one of you from the bottom of my crafty heart! I hope my projects live up to your expectations and inspire you in some way.

On the 7th, Tim will celebrate a birthday! Crafters from near and far are making and sending him cards. Can you imagine the poor, weary mail-person? It will probably play out like the scene from Sleepless In Seattle...when Tom Hanks goes to unlock his front door and the mailman brings bags and bags of letters...in the rain no doubt! I am sure it will be just as crazy at Tim's abode! I finally finished the card I am sending to Tim this evening, after working on it several days. The man just sent me $100 worth of goodies and blog appreciation, so the least I can do is show some appreciation back. Thanks again Tim!

I am also entering the card in a few weekly challenges. Linda from Studio L3, is hosting the Grungy Monday Challenge of "making Tim a card". The submissions are wonderful, and if you have time, please check them out. Simon Says Stamp and Show, is hosting the challenge "something old (paper shopping bag and wire) and something new (corrugated paper and Vintage Lace die". Also, and newer to cyber world, Lisa Somerville's Blogger's Challenge, is hosting a "celebration" theme, and Paper Issues for "using numbers". Warning:  The usual...lots of pictures and a tutorial...grab some chocolate and get comfy!

I wanted to incorporate the embossed metal technique Tim taught us during 12 tags this last year.

Using Ten Seconds Studio soft metal sheets I embossed several designs with texture fades (TH Alterations Jack of Clubs, Admit One Ticket, Number Ledger, Time, & Cuttlebug Music Notes, Happy Birthday, and Gears). I also adhered a chipboard letter "t" to the back of a metal piece and molded it in and gave it some texture with the metal working tools.

I trimmed each design and grouped them as I wanted them laid out, and painted them with Ranger Adirondack Acrylic Dabbers in Gold, Espresso, and Pitch Black. Then they got a soft sanding and inking with TH Distress Ink in Black Soot.

I adhered the metal pieces onto black cardstock, coated them in Ranger Inkssentials Clear Embossing Ink, and covered them in UTEE.http://www.rangerink.com/products.htm..twice. I added some TH Idea-ology Gadget Gears, Spinners, Washers, and Brads, a clock face from the Paper Studio, a crown from Art Chix Studio, a number 7 and gears from my stash, and a headshot of Tim that I coated in Glossy Accents. Crackle Accents was also added to a few images as well.

This is my favorite part...I used a craft tag and covered it in Ranger Adirondack Alcohol Ink in Latte, Pitch Black, Caramel, and Snow Cap Mixative. I am in love with this look and color combination. It's sort of camouflagey.

Then I ran TH Distress Stain in Tea Dye all over the tag, dried that with a heat gun, and misted with Ranger Perfect Pearls Mist.  Then I distressed the edges of the tag.  Hello...I am in love even more! I almost hated to cover this up. It looks like the most beautiful piece of granite....I so need my kitchen redone!

I choose 4 different designs of TH Idea-ology Tissue Tape, stuck it down on grunge board, and coated it with Tea Dye Distress Stain. Then I used brown Craft Core cardstock and embossed a small piece using the TH Alterations Ice-icicles fade, and die cut another small piece using my new TH Alterations Vintage Lace die. I cut out the ice-icicle, now frosting, and gave it and the lace a coating in Glossy Accents.

I went around the borders of the tag with Gold Paint Dabber, adhered a strip of corrugated paper to the bottom of the tag and around the back, and adhered a cut circle from the corrugated paper onto the front and back of the tag hole. All the corrugated paper was trimmed in TH Distress Ink in Gathered Twigs and Black Soot. I had one real mother of pearl button and the backside of it was very jagged and distressed. I trimmed it out in Gold paint dabber and found another vintage looking button and did the same. I poked two holes into the corrugated paper circle and ran a double layer of wire through it and the buttons...one on each side. I curled up the wire sporadically and twisted so it would keep the buttons in place, but leaving a loop so the tag could be pulled or even hung up. I also added some TH hardware to the bottom of the tag and stapled a pattern "x" design there as well.

I cut each of the 4 pieces of tissue tape covered grunge slightly smaller than the other in pyramid fashion. They were inked with Gathered Twigs and coated with TH Distress Stickles in Antique Bronze. I adhered them to the tag from largest to smallest, on top of each other, but staggered them some to suggest uneven cake layers. The lace was adhered to the bottom layer and the frosting to the top. I placed computer generated words "happy birthday Tim" onto the frosting. Last I applied the Antique Bronze Stickles between the cake layers.

Is this over yet? Not quite but almost! I got a TH Idea-ology Pen Nib in "memoirs", dipped the tip in embossing ink and sprinkled a mixture of TH Distress Embossing Powder in Antique Linen and Close To My Heart Gold Embossing Powder onto the nib. I heated embossed it holding it with a pair of pliers. It was adhered to the top of the cake to look like a candle.

I received this vintage printed paper sack after buying something on Etsy many moons ago, but loved the print and images so much I saved it. Tim is so worthy, so I cut it in half and glued it down onto a large white envelope. After trimming and inking with Gathered Twigs and Black Soot, I gave each side a coat of  Liquitex  Gesso. The Gesso not only blended the ink even more but it strengthened  the envelope and actually padded it some, so my card will hopefully arrive safely to Tim after many miles of shipping and handling.

Phew...I am finally finished!

Tim is the "King" of the ATT Yahoo "Club"!!!

 

 

 

 I hope your hands get creatively dirty soon!