Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Tim Holtz 12 Tags of 2013 December

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you joy, laughter, and love this season and for 2014.  Hope that you are spending the holiday doing what makes you happy.

Hubby and I are staying home for Christmas as this is a busy time of year for me at my pay the bills job.  We spent a few days last week with family for an early celebration.  Right now I'm hanging in my craft room playing with my inks, papers, dies, and paints.

Thank You so much to all of you!  I appreciate your support and comments.  Each one means a great deal to me.  Thank You for letting me share my passion with all of you.  Looking forward to another creative year in 2014.

Ah, the final Tim Holtz tag for 2013.  Wow, what a cool technique!  Check out Tim's tag and tutorial here.  I have had a great time creating my versions of his tags.  Hope you have enjoyed them too.

I don't have the Tattered Poinsettia die so I used the Apothecary Bottles die instead.


I inked up the bottle with Wendy Vecchi Archival Ink in Fern Green and Cornflower Blue.  Very subtle color but I love that it looks like a real glass bottle.  


My background is a combination of Distress paint, ink, and stencils.  The bottle label is foil tape with a rub on.  I inked a left over piece of a manila tag with ink and stain and punched out some stars which are "inside" the bottle.


The Merry Christmas sentiment is also a rub on.  The bottle and stopper were glued down with glossy accents.


The Festive Greenery Sizzlits Decorative Strip was used to cut out some accents.  I used white core'dinations card stock and inked with Distress Ink.



The final touches included flicking some white paint all over, and inking up some crinkle ribbon to match the stars.



Supplies Used:

Dry Media:  Ranger # 8 Manila Tags, idea-ology Frosted Film, Studio 490 Clearly for Art Modeling Film, idea-ology Crinkle Ribbon, idea-ology Remnant Rubs - Christmastime, foil tape

Inks:  Wendy Vecchi Archival Ink in Fern Green and Cornflower Blue, Tim Holtz Distress Inks in Tumbled Glass, Broken China, Forest Moss, Iced Spruce, Festive Berries, Wild Honey, Mustard Seed, Vintage Photo, Tea Dye, Tim Holtz Distress Paint in Picket Fence, Tim Holtz Distress Stain in Antique Bronze

Dies:  Apothecary Bottles (658715), Festive Greenery (657467)

Tim Holtz Stencils:  Dot Fade (TH006), Burlap (TH007)

Other:  EK Success star punch, paint brush, blending tools and foam


Ho, ho, ho!  Enjoy your festivities!  Thank You so much for stopping by and commenting if you so wish.

Happy Creating!

Hugs, and Merry Christmas,

Sharon





Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Boxes and Graphic 45

Good Evening!

Just a week to go until Christmas. Are you ready?  Hope you are finding time to enjoy the season. 

Boxes and more boxes. The paper mâché boxes that you can pick up from your local craft stores make a great jumping off point for some festive Christmas projects and gifts. Throw in some Grapgic 45 papers, some glitter and embellies and in no time you have a one of a kind home decor piece, a gift box or a wonderful hostess gift. 

The first set of boxes is for a class that I recently taught at Chico Scrapbooks. Using the yummy Graphic 45 Twelve Days of Christmas we decorated a set of nesting paper mâché boxes. The lids were topped off with some clear glitter. So sparkly and festive. 



On my sample I cut 1 x 1 squares to cover the sides of the boxes to look like tiles.  The ladies in my class started with my ideas and then made it their own. I love it when that happens. It makes me happy that others get inspiration from my projects and take it somewhere else. I unfortunately did not take any photos during the class so I can't share their creations. Note to self:  remember to take photos during class!

Here are some additional photos of my sample boxes. 






The second project I'm sharing is a small square paper mâché box covered with Graphic 45 Typography. I have a group of friends that has been gathering at my house every three months to work on a craft project. Everyone had a blast putting together their box.   We painted the boxes and then covered with the paper. A semi opaque medium was used as a glue and a sealer which gave a white washed effect. Didn't they do a great job?!





Each box is unique and reflects the personality of the creator. Thanks ladies!  It is so wonderful to spend time chatting, crafting, laughing, eating, and enjoying good company. 

If you are looking for a last minute gift or home decore piece why not try a pre made box covered with your favorite paper. So many possibilities!

Thanks for stopping by. I love it when you do and even more when you make comments. Happy creating!

Hugs, Sharon

















Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Christmas Gift Card Holders

Good Evening Everyone!

Hope your week is going well.  Just two short weeks until Christmas.  Just seems that December goes by at the speed of light doesn't it?

Got all your shopping done?  For the most part I do.  Hubby and I are keeping it simple and giving gift cards and home made gifts.  Now you can't just hand over the gift cards right?  There has to be something to hold the cards and make a festive presentation.  I created some cards that have a gift card holder on the inside that I wanted to share with you.

Using the Alterations dies Postage Stamp Frame and Mini Clipboard I put together a fun holder for those gift cards.  These came together quickly.  I used some Christmas paper from seasons past from my stash.  If you have these dies and some left over Christmas paper this is something that you could easily put together without much effort.


The card base and envelope are blanks that can be purchased at your craft store.  Usually come in packs of 50.  I keep these on hand so I can put together cards quickly if needed.  The papers, from my stash, are from K&Company (Tidings of Comfort and Joy by Brenda Walton) and SEI (Winter Song).  I used the sentiments from the paper collection.  Just basic measuring, cutting, layering, and gluing here.


The inside starts with a base of more paper from the collections.  Next is the die cutting.  I used the two dies together - the Postage Stamp Frame and the Mini Clipboard.  


If you are unfamiliar with Movers & Shapers dies from Tim Holtz Alterations line they are a versatile group of dies.  The base movers & shapers like this Postage Stamp Frame has a center cut out that can be used as is or you can insert shapes to create cut outs.  In this case I used the Mini Clipboard to create a holder for the gift card.  I inked up the edges of the postage frame and used some pewter distress stain to color the top of the clipboard.  Fun isn't it?



If you are looking for a festive and unexpected presentation for your gift cards this year the mini clipboard is it!  Lots of options to use the clipboard with many of the base movers & shapers die to make a card or tag.

I hope that you are taking the time to enjoy the season.  Stop and have some cookies or a hot chocolate and admire your tree or take some time to drive around and see the Christmas lights.  

Thank You for stopping by.  Happy Creating!

Hugs,  Sharon