Merry Christmas, Tag #11

     I only wish this season I had more time to try out these awesome techniques Tim Holtz showed for the 12 Tags of Christmas...2011. Although I only had time to complete 4 I know I will continue to try some of the other tags and the great projects he shared.
     This tag by far is my favorite. I always loved this angel image yet for some reason I just hadn't found the right project. I started with Art Philosophy cartridge by ProvoCraft and cut the tag @ 6.25". The background is so easy to make. I used cream glossy card stock and some alcohol inks. The Salt Boat Blue and Stream alcohol inks go together perfectly.
     Next I used a piece of craft plastic and stamped this beautiful sentiment: The most precious Gift of Christmas arrived in a very small bundle with no bow." You have to use Stazon ink or one that can be used on slick surfaces.

     The stars are really cool to make. Unfortunately I only had Shrinky Dink material in white. Tim had used the clear one and the effects are so stunning. Don't worry, I will be getting some to try the other techniques.Any way I like how these stars turned out. First, when working with shrinky dink material you need to cut your images 3x the size you want the shrunken article to be. I cut my stars from "Tis The Season" cartridge @ 2.25", 2.50", 2.75" and 3". this yields finished stars at 1" or less. Here's the fun part. You need to heat UTEE, Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel in a melting pot. Ranger sells these and they are great. All you do is heat the utee, drop your shrinky dink material in the pot and watch it shrivel and squirm! Once it flattens out (in seconds really) gently remove from pot with tweezers and place on a craft mat or another non stick surface to cool. It really is that easy. I finished it off with some Creative Charms rhinestones and also used a gold detail heat embossing to the horn and halo. Add a bow and you are done. Whew, I can't wait to try some more tags.

Tim Holtz 12 Tags of Christmas #6

     Ok you are not missing the other tags. I watched Tim Holtz 12 Tags of Christmas and played along when I had the supplies or time. (You know what I am talking about in regards to time at Christmas time, lol). Anyways this tag REALLY intrigued me because of the drill punch.
     I am always looking at Tim's section in my local craft store and saw this thing that looked like a huge hinge. I thought, what in the world does he use this for? (Guess I should have looked at the header to see what it was, lol). You can only imagine how thrilled I was when I saw Tim use it on the video for Tag#6! You use it to drill holes in soft metal. How cool is that!

     I decided to use this on an ornament. The wonderful thing about Tim's Tags is the inspiration he gives you. I had this glass ball hanging around and although I thought it would be nice, it didn't have the glitter I was looking for. I held onto it and decided it would be perfect for this technique of Tim's. Boy was I right!
     Thank goodness I had Tim's adornment with the wreath. I thought I could use it for something and then, along came Tim's 12 tags.First I started to drill the hole using the hand drill. The wreath was then painted with green acrylic paint and then distressed with Tim's sanding grip. After, I added some red berries also with acrylic paint. I used Ranger embossing ink to the whole wreath and covered with Kaleidoscope transparent embossing powder by Stamp N Stuff and heated the wreath to set the powder. The colors are just gorgeous!

     The inside image is from Tim's Seasonal Stack that I covered with paper glaze then cut to fit inside the wreath.You can tell from the top photo the image is of a wonderful winter countryside.I finished off the ornament by tying a red cording and a small jingle bell. After adding a white sheer bow to the top it is ready to hang. Thanks Tim for being the inspiration behind this ornament.

Vintage Style Name Plaque

     Well I told you I have been busy lately and this one of the reasons why. My youngest grand daughter is 18 months so it's beyond time to add her name plaque to her room. First of all I covered an 11" x 14" canvas with torn paper for the background that is glued with a gel medium. Next the edges and background were inked with Rangers distress ink. The name letters were cut using Base Camp. The "C" is cut @ 3'' whereas the other letters are cut @ 2 3/4" including the shadows.

     I cut out a floral flourish (say that 3 x fast, lol) and covered with the gel medium again. Once it was dry I added Rangers liquid pearls in platinum and also added a few pearl gems to give it some dimension. The leaves are from a stash that I have that I just sprayed with some smootch spritz. The flowers are by Recollections that is a great brand @ Michaels. The center flower is a sequin from Creative Charms.

     The paper I used is from my favorite company: K & Company the Peabody Scrap Pad. This also included some tags for embellishing so I made good use of them. One of the tags has her full name and birth information. The other tag has printed the info about the Saint she is named after. (Patron Saint of Music and Musicians).  These were also embellished with the liquid pearls.

     The small flowers to "dot: the :i: is cut from ProvoCraft Mothers' Day Bouquet @ 3/4" and also has a pearl for the center. Finally I used a Martha Stewart ribbon to go around the outside edge.
     As a final touch I even backed the canvas. This is so simple yet really finishes the piece off. All you do is cut a piece of kraft paper slightly larger than the canvas. Adhere the paper to the canvas with any type of glue. I love Arlene's Quick Tack. before it dries mist with water. This ensures a nice tight bond. When completely dry, trim with an exacto knife or scissors. Add tooth hangers and you are ready to hang the masterpiece! I am going to add a ribbon hanger to the back so this little girl has her own name plaque.