Grungy Monday #13 and Showing a Word!

This week on Studio L3's Grungy Monday challenge, Linda has sent us to Ranger Ink, where Tim Holtz is demo-ing Adirondack alcohol inks! Now, you all know I Love alchohol, (of any sort! LOL!) but I was a little stumped on what to do..I usually also don't like looking at everyone else's posts until after I post, (which adds to why I comment so little..time and dial-up-but I do peek!) But I just didn't want to do a background, so browsed, and Donna's was first up--and it was amazing! So I told her so..and then we started emailing, and she asked a simple question about some die-cuts, and..not kidding..I'm at work... and typing my reply, when a lightingbolt, ridden by my muse, blew into my brain! All sorts of ideas were flashing fast and furious! Of course, the last hour of work, the 50 minute drive home, the feeding of the felines and husband (our puppy just doesn't eat-not sure why she's getting bigger! LOL!) some of my energy left.

So, while not quite what I visioned, I still had a ball..you see, I got to play with an early birthday present to me (and Julie...sorta ruins the surprise of a folder you'll be getting in the mail!) but I had bought the TH Rosetta die! So, I cut it out on glossy, and then pounced away with AAI's Butterscotch, Wild Plum and Cranberry with Gold. Then, went to assemble; being a little nervous, as some people on some of the groups mentioned having issues...but-WoW! It just pressed right down into the perfect little rosette!! I used Glossy Accents to attach the ends and the discs. Now I needed foliage, and thought of the Florish die--again in glossy. Hit that with Lettuce, Meadow and Butterscotch AI's, and pretty cool! Didn't want to overdo the background, so used the Wrinkle free technique on the tag with Mustard Seed, Rusty Hinge and Sage DI's (which really faded down when dry..but still look very agate-ey) I glued the flourishes and rosette down, added some bling , but it needed something, when I remembered that Simon Says Stamp and Show was about Words this week, so I used another TH die, and punched out Grow, and Ta Dah! A Two-fer! And all without using one stamp! Very weird! Also weird...the letters looked so well aligned last night--but not on todays photos! SO, go visit Linda's Studio, and see Simon Says, and then go grab some bottles of this wonderful stuff! there is still time to jump in and Play! Have a great Holiday weekend everyone!

Grungy Monday #10 & Just For Fun & SSS Tag: Get Inky with It (Distress Inks, that is!)

Good Friday Morning! It has cooled down a bit, and I was able to get in my craft room for a real quick go at three challenges! My main motivator-theGrungy Monday challenge from Linda at Studio L3. As part of our exploration of Tim Holtz's wonderful techniques and products, this week we are to play with Distress Inks to our hearts content. Well, Duh! They never leave my desk! And a new challenge for me, Just For Fun which is Something Tim! And lastly, Simon Says Stamp and show a Tag! While I feel a bit guilty on the triple duty, we do what we have to do! LOL!

So, Here it is; A tag that has been wrinkle free distressed with Ancient Linen and Victorian Velvet DI's. The edges where hit with Barn Door. The stamp is, of course, from Tim, as are the Die's, the new mini hearts and mini flourish (Straight from my new shipment from Ecletic Paperie! Thanks Daisy!)! The Flourishes (grunge paper) were inked with Victorian Velvet and the heart (grunge board) were inked with Barn Door. The heart was then stamped with the large background from Tim's Papillion set, then all were sprayed with gold Perfect pearls in a mini-mister. (Yup, just rifle through the Compendium; it's all there! LOL). I then ran the seam binding through some barn door DI, and also spritzed with the PP mix; disappointing that you can't see the gold. And--Ta Dah..done! (Ok, actually took over an hour; puppy issues, had to play with the new dies and fades to get an idea, etc.)

So, have a great crafty week everyone; enjoy your weekend!

The Stamp-tember Hop!

Wow! What a crazy week in Blog-dom! I don't know about you; but I really am pressed to keep up with it all; and still try to create and clean a house!! LOL! So, in addition to the Starving Artistamps Blog Candy Give-away and the creation of Eclectic Paperies E-Team, there is Simon Says Stamp "Stamp-tember Hop"! This one is really cool, with great prizes available. So go check them out!

The Theme is holiday fun, and I need to start my Christmas cards, so here is something I've been mulling over ever since we did the Alcohol Ink Monoprints over as the Compendium Challenge at Studio L3. Now, I'm hoping its my new monitor at work, but the photo is looking really dark here; I hope it's not so bad. I kinda like it; but it did seem a bit labor intensive for doing 15-20 cards. ( I generally do 4-5 designs of 15-20 cards each--I just can't do all one design!LOL!) Maybe it was just the stupid bow...I really hate tying little bows (or big bows..any bows really!) So, please, let me know what you think...and as I develop more of my designs, I'll share them with you.

Meanwhile, go get into the holiday spirit as well, and start Hopping!!

Working the Layers!

True to my word, I did make a separate ATC for the Simon Says Stamp and Show Challenge. And while it doesn't have half the layers that everyone else has, for me, it was quite an exercise! I realized I don't do many layers...some colorful matting, maybe...but usually I add one charm or trinket, and thats it.

So this was an ATC, with an ATC Chipboard Frame that I covered in music paper. Don't even ask where I got the frames...they came square and oval...for the life of me I can't remember...but it was from a new site I found, I believe, on the Studio L3 blog. Then because the ATC was a linen texture, I stamped the saying, and glued that in the center, with a small heart I had left over from the Crackle Technique a few weeks ago.not that you can see the rock candy distress crackle paint; but it is there! The bird and flourish were my final embellishments...the flourish is a Jolee package..pretty cool; I'll need to find more of those! I hope everyone else had fun with this challenge! And remember, Less is not always More!!