ATC Swap - In the Park

This card is an ATC (2 1/2 x 3 1/2 inches) that I just did for a swap.  Although it is very simply done, I was trying for the look of old-fashioned picture postcards...the kind they made for souvenir shops.  I have a collection of postcards that my mother started when she was young and I have continued to add to it over the years.  Without Facebook, emails, or cell phones, this was the way people used to give a short message to let everyone know they were thinking of them.  I even have a card my mother sent to her family when she went on a trip to visit relatives just to let them know she had arrived safely.  She had gone a whopping 80 miles away, a trip that would take about 2 hours now in a car if you were taking your time seeing the sights.  Back then it would take a train trip or a very long car ride (because there wasn't the Interstate with 70 mph speed limits). 

I printed a photo from City Park in reduced size to fit the ATC in black and white only onto watercolor paper.  I then used Tim Holtz Distress Re-Inkers and a water brush to add the color.  It is mounted to a manila cardstock that I sent through the printer to add the text.  This is then edged with Vintage Photo Distress Ink.

Tattered Florals Challenge

My Tattered Florals Challenge piece also doubles as one of my Birthday Club Cards I am sending off.  I used a brad with the letter K for the first letter of the name of the recipient.  The flower is made using (of course) the Tim Holtz Alterations Tattered Floral die.  I used the technique of acrylic paints scraped over manila folder paper with a palatte knife.  As well, I also used water-color paper for some parts of the flower, some Idea-ology Kraft Glassine and some regular white cardstock sent through an embossing folder after die-cutting the flower shape.

I did not have the Distress Paints, so made my own version.  Using some small plastic cups (about 2 oz size) I filled it half full (so about 1 oz) with white acrylic Gesso and one dropper full of the Distress Re-inker.  When this is wetted with water after it dries, some of the color lifts off and leaves lighter areas.  You can see this well on the pink/red flower.  This uses quite a lot of Re-Inker, so I do plan on getting the Distress Paints.  In addition, the Distress Paints when dry are supposed to stay as they are meaning they don't rewet.  This mix I made does rewet and you can continue to lift color off when you spray it with water.

The little frame around the word "celebrate" is a Grunge-board piece from the Idea-ology Elements set.  I painted it with Jacquard Lumiere fabric paint in silver.

Now to catch up on my other cards that need making.

Birthday Club Cards 3 and 4

Two more cards I did for the ATT Birthday Club. 

In my effort to make cards with only the stuff I already have, I think I did well with this one.  I used one stamp on the pink paper, from PSX Clear by Design Travel Journal.  PSX is not in business anymore, but their stamps still show up on eBay. 

This particular set I bought back in 2005.  The reason I remember so well is because they were one of the only "unnecessary" things I bought during Hurricane Katrina evacuation.  I had not brought any of my hobby things with me due to needing valuable space in the car for people and pets!  I had an order in I had placed before knowing we would need to leave for inks and papers.  The company I ordered from was able to reroute my order to where I then was instead.  So I bought this set at a store just to be able to try out my new inks.

I made the tag with the woman's face using the Idea-ology Fragment (acrylic shapes).  The woman's face is from a preprinted paper.  You simply apply a thin coat of Ranger Glossy Accents to the back of the acrylic shape and press down over the image you want to use.  When dry, trim around the image.  I love how it turned out.  I also like how the ribbon and spiral paper clips look over that gray specialty paper. 

My second card is for a gentleman in the Birthday Club, so wanted it to be more masculine looking.

The small frame is from Idea-ology Harlequin Elements Grungeboard pack, painted with a brass Jacquard Lumiere paint.  The paper is from the Idea-ology Kraft Resist Paper Stash, inked with Distress Inks, overstamped with Studio G clear acrylic stamps, and then spattered with LuminArte Twinkling H20s Radiant Rain.  I attached aged copper brads at each corner and then mounted these two panels on pop-dots.  The metal coils are copper spiral paper clips.  The bottom strip attached to the base paper rather than mounted.

My 12 Tags of 2013 February Tag

Thrilled to be able to get this one finished in time to add my picture to Tim Holtz's blog.  I used the same design and colors and from his example, but made it using an Uptown Rubber Stamps David Walker "Love Cats on Fence" stamp, as well as the "You're Purr-fect" saying from a Studio G acrylic set stamped onto the Idea-ology Vial Label.  I used two different embossing folders, a border from Cricut combined with the Sizzix Tim Holtz Alterations Texture Fade Swirl design on Core'dinations Core Color paper using a tan/kraft sheet.  The tag was done with Barn Door Ranger Distress Stain rather than the colors used in the example, edged with Black Soot Ranger Distress Ink.  The "ribbon" is the Idea-ology Hobgoblin Tissue Tape and the heart charm from Idea-ology Adornments set.  The stamp was done on watercolor paper with Ranger Archival Ink and then colored with the terrific Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Markers.

In using the Core'dinations paper to emboss and sand to reveal the design, I discovered that you actually can get a couple different looks using the same paper and embossing folder.  The first look would be if you just emboss and sand to hit the high-points of the embossed design. 

With the second look, I actually debossed (put the paper in the reverse of the normal way).  That means I put the paper in with the black front facing the side of the embossing folder with the design that feels raised.  I then sanded the paper as usual.  At this point, I reinserted the paper into the embossing folder with the black front now facing the normal side of embossing folder and embossed.  This then raised the design as it normally does when you emboss.  Sorry if I am not explaining it well.  Please note that this only works with symmetrical designs, otherwise, when you flip the paper over, it won't line up with the designs of the embossing folder.  Clear as mud?

Love it when you can get different looks out of the same products!  Examples above are done with three Cricut embossing borders.  Sorry picture is a little blurry - will have to retake and update post soon.

Birthday Club Card 2

Another card I did for the ATT 2013 Birthday Club.  The background is done taking 3 strips of different coordinating scrapbook papers. I cut them to size, positioned them on removable adhesive paper, did my inking and stamping, and when I was ready to place them on the card, removed them from the adhesive paper to adhere in place.  The sentiment is from a chipboard set.  I covered it with Ranger Glossy Accents to give it dimension and used Distress Stickles (Vintage Photo) around the edges.  The lovely flourish is also dimensional and from Tim Holtz Idea-ology Harlequin Grunge Board pack and painted with Jacquard Lumiere paints.

12 Tags of 2013 January Tag

I am working on 12 Tags of 2013 as started by Tim Holtz on his blog.  I don't have all the same products, so will be doing my own interpretation of his gorgeous tags.  My January tag is below.  Since it is already February, I am playing catch up on this one.

I especially liked how he showed that the Idea-ology Trimmings ribbon can be not only dyed with ink, but also stamped.  That makes it so easy to coordinate it with any project.

A Few of My Favorite Things

This is another project I had done for my stamping club.  I saw the template and directions for this shadow box in probably a 2006 issue of Somerset Studio http://www.somersetstudio.com/.  All the measurements and a how-to were included in that magazine.  The box is made of chipboard and covered with a preprinted paper that I inked and sanded.  I included buttons, beads, clock parts, charms, postage stamps, a stamped mini domino, and even a tag from Tazo tea and a diamond shape punched out of chocolate candy wrappers. 

All the items included represent things I like that have a personal meaning to me.  Some of the charms and beads I used I had been hanging onto for quite a while waiting for the perfect time to use them (like the Egyptian cat bead upper left and cat mask lower right).  The inside background of the box is lined with a plain white paper that I stamped a script text stamp on just to give more interest to the background.  The actual size of the box is only 6 1/4  x 5 1/4 inches.

Something very similar could be done easily with premade boxes like the Tim Holtz Idea-ology Configurations sets http://www.simonsaysstamp.com/servlet/the-28901/Tim-holtz-idea-dsh-ology-ideaology/Detail or even the 7 Gypsies Letterblock Printer Trays http://www.sevengypsies.com/.