12 tags of 2013 - October

Hello again,

What a week, this nasty cold/flu bug I have is brutal. It's really encroaching on my creativity ( or maybe it's the cold medication hahaha) Tim's October tag is sure to inspire though, I was a glittering fool. Let's take a look...

Distress paint marbling background with some Distress ink over top to brighten the colors. The weathered clock was glittered with pumice stone and a bit of antique linen. The halloween die set from Sizzix is fab. I love every single one in the package. That's where the pumpkin and the crows came from.

More marbling on the tag, a great stamp from Stampendous was layed on top with black archival ink. The spider web was glittered and adhered with glossy accents, topped off with a murder of crows.

This one was fun too, I cut the tombstone, stained it with black soot then embossed with the cement embossing powder. I cut out the spooky cat ( before inking) so I could add him back in there as an inlay after I glitzed him up. The vine die cut was added to the top. The word (Graphic 45 steampunk spells set) was stamped on clear plastic and stuck on with glossy accents.

I can't decide on a favorite. Which one do you like the best?

You can check out Tim's complete tutorial and other uploaded links here:

http://timholtz.com/12-tags-of-2013-october/

Carnival Rides

Here we are again,

As promised, pictures of the project that started it all. I must say that compared to the ferris wheel, the carousel was a breeze. And the spinning cauldrons ride was just plain fun to do. I hope you enjoy the pics.  Thanks again to Laura Carson for her inspiration and digital files I purchased. I had so much fun.

The carousel turns on a lazy susan bearing I bought at Home Depot.

The new spiderweb die from Tim Holtz is awesome as an overlay.

The Ferris Wheel...

This project took me about a week to complete. I had to walk away from it a couple of times.

I couldn't find lampshade hoops anywhere, embroidery hoops weren't the right size and I was resigned to the fact that I wouldn't make the ferris wheel. Then the lightbulb moment hit me in the dollar store.

Splatter screens (you know, when you're frying bacon and don't want the grease splatters everywhere)

They even had knobs and a washer with them. SWEET!

Yes it turns!

Side view

Spiderweb and spider stamps from "Stampendous" 

Spinning Cauldrons...

Love how this one turned out. I wanted the base to kind of look like burning embers. I had a piece of perfect paper in my stash. I did an overlay using the Graveyard on the edge die from Tim Holtz.

Another lazy susan mechanism so it turns. Check out the skeleton riders. One is just chillin' the other has his arms up for his need for speed.

Final shot from above. 

Well that's it. I have a few more items I haven't made yet, but I think I will let this flu bug run its course and give myself a creative break for a couple of days. Thanks for stopping by. Chat soon.

Carnival Games

Hi again,

I've decided that I am a terrible picture taker. Trust me when I say, I have deleted more pictures than kept. They look good on my screen, but when I go to post them, I find that they're blurry or grainy.  It's very frustrating. Anyway...

I wanted to share the next part of the Halloween Carnival I've been working on, so without further delay, here are the carnival games.

 

Stump An Owl. I used a cobblestone stencil from Prima. The pumpkins are Stampotique. The images are, of couse, from the collage sheet bought from Alpha Stamps.

                                                                                                               Scary Meter. How scary am I? Depends if I've had my my coffee quota yet. (Really)

                                                              Next up we have Bag the Rats & Skull Toss

The trees are die cut (Tim Holtz) from chipboard glued together for height crackled and stained.

Skull beads from Michael's, pumpkin stamps from Stampotique.

So far so good? Next post will be the project that inspired it all, causing this HUGE snowball effect. I'm really happy with the way everything  is coming together. See you soon.

Help, I've buried myself in a project and I can't get up.

Hi again,

Yes I know I have fallen off the face of the earth for a while, trust me when I say it's not from me slackin' off.  I have bolted full steam ahead into a halloween project that has taken many, many hours to  half complete (hahaha). 

When I first saw the event posted on "artfully musing blog" by Laura Carson, I got a tingly, goosebumpy feeling and I knew I had to make her Haunted Carnival.  I bought the .png files and set to work. 

Check out the link here, trust me, it's the coolest thing ever. Laura Carson, you are my new internet crush.

http://artfullymusing.blogspot.ca/2013/09/halloween-carnival-event-is-here.html

I will start sharing some of the projects with you. 

Here is the ticket booth and entrance sign for the carnival. 98% of the images I am using here are from the downloads I bought from Laura Carson on the Alpha Stamps website. I went crazy at Michael's craft store as well and bought a lot of chain, skeletons and beads etc. Dollar Tree was a great resource too.

Every carvinal needs a direction sign, and buy yourself a balloon while your there.

Perhaps a Pumpkin Pet? These guys make me smile.

Feeling a bit peckish? Coffin Candy, chocolate covered spiders, heebie jeebies? Artfully Musing even has a tutorial on making the umbrellas, complete with pattern!!

Thanks so much to Laura Carson for being so generous with your ideas and instructions. I am having so much fun with your images and project. Everyone, Please check out the link I included at the top. 

I will be back with more rides and attractions soon.

Make it Crafty - My Dabble in Digi Stamps

TheseHi again,

I have been coloring like a mad woman. I happened upon some great images while surfing on Pinterest. Following the link, it put me onto a great place called "Make it Crafty" 

Zoe has some absolutely fabulous digital images to buy and download. Now, being a Christmas junkie mixed in with a little steampunk, these works of art are right up my alley. I wanted to share my favorite piece, but I LOVE them all. How can I pick just one? Here we go...

Santa's photo shoot colored with Touch markers and white pigment ink added for the spotlight area.

I love these jolly fellows, they make me smile everytime I look at them.

Santa airmail, steampunk style. The background started all white and I inked it up with Blue Iris and Charcoal fluid chalk.

Steampunk Christmas elements on a Sizzix accordian die from Karen B. the background paper is from "simple stories"

These are some more images I bought but haven't quite finished turning them into cards yet, but aren't they hilarious. 

Thank you Make it Crafty's Zoe McGrath, you made my heart smile for the past week and a half. 

I would like to link this post onto the design team call for Make it Crafty.  Imagine my surprise, thinking that I had til the end of today to get this done. (Canada time) When I saw that submissions close in one hour, My butt flew out of bed.  I've been typing and photographing like a crazy person.

Thanks for popping by, I hope you enjoyed my Christmas indulgence.

Here's the link for Make it Crafty...http://www.makeitcrafty.com/store-blog/news/make-it-crafty-new-design-team-call

Hi-biscus (Making the Cut)

Hi again,

I know, I know, another tropical card from me? Shocker.  I can't help it, I LOVE tropical stuff. Maybe because I lived in the tropics in my past life or something. Whatever the reason, I am drawn to hibiscus and frangipanni, palm trees and beaches.

The Monday challenge over at Simon Says Stamp is "making the cut". Use die cuts in your project. I have gorgeous hibiscus dies from Memory Box, Die-namics, and Sizzix (not used on this card). The flowers were cut out with the beautiful paper from Prima. Can you spot more use of dies? The cameo frame and HI are from Tim Holtz.

http://www.simonsaysstampblog.com/mondaychallenge/challenge-make-the-cut/

The background on the frame is a long story...Do you ever make something, hate it, dig it out of the trash and just keep throwing more stuff on it? Haha, that's the case here, I have no idea how I ended up with the final result but I really like it. Don't ask me what colors are on there because I really have no idea. Sadly, I will probably not be able to replicate it again. Let's call it "vintage tropical". Hehehe.

Thanks for dropping by and having a peek, now go get crafty in your create space. Talk to you soon.

12 Tags of 2013 - August (air mail)

Hi again, 

Sometimes old school is the best. Masking, over stamping, coloring on stamps with markers. These are great techniques that go way back 20 some years when I first started stamping. 

I was happy to see a travel theme pop up this week around the web. I love vintage suitcases and travel  posters. Old world maps and travel are a favorite of mine so I made a few tags to reflect that.

I used the new watercolor paper from Ranger on the 3 smaller tags. Oooooh the markers blend so nice. I die-cut the tags using the "tag and tie by" die from Tim Holtz. The larger tag is a manilla tag I had kickin' around.

 Don't be laughin' at my little suitcase! It was my first attempt and I had no pattern or template to base it on. It was one of those projects that I had in my head and I tried to create. It's kinda cute though. I was going to go to Michael's but (a) I didn't have a coupon, and (b) I had just spent over $100 at my LSS, so I improvised with what I had.

The Stamp set I used for the smaller tags is "Travel ways". And the larger is "Air Travel"

The mini suitcase was assembled using the Tim Holtz paper from "Destinations"

Washi tape is from Freckled Fawn and Recollections.

Thanks for popping by, I will be uploading the post to Tim Holtz' 12 tags of 2013 and also to the Simon Says Stamp Monday challenge - Air Mail. Check out the links here... 

http://www.simonsaysstampblog.com/mondaychallenge/challenge-air-mail/

http://timholtz.com/12-tags-of-2013-august/

Until next time, keep busy and have fun in you artsy space.