Tim Holtz 12 tags of 2014 - July Tag

I had so much fun creating this tag for Tim Holtz 12 Tags of 2014!  Tim uses some really cool techniques on this one - embossing a clear water background panel  - making sand out of various powders and all the fun of summer!   Here is his tag:

I have a ton of Tim Holtz 'stuff' - but I don't have  the main items he used on his tag - so I winged it creating my own slightly different ocean stuff!  Here is my tag -  can you see all the differences?

First off, I didn't have the seahorse/sand dollar die -  so I printed a picture of the seahorse and cut it out to use as a template - and then hand cut it out of chipboard.  I used different Distress Paint colors to paint her - covering the whole seahorse in Weathered Wood and then just dabbing on Bundled Sage and Rusty Hinge to give a more scaly kind of look.  After the ink dried I covered her with Rock Candy Clear Crackle paint.

I also did not have the bubbles embossing folder Tim used - so I  used the Sizzix Summer Fun folder that looks like ocean waves with bubbles (thank you, Anne Harmon!).  I used both Weathered Wood Distress Paint and Salty Ocean Distress Ink on my tag rubbing each on my Nonstick Craft mat - spritzing with water and then running the tag through it.  After both colors were on and dried - I spritzed the tag with water.

Since I didn't have the sand dollars for the bottom of the tag -  I decided to use some real shells that I picked up off the beach on a vacation on Sanibel Island, FL several years ago (I knew I'd use them for something!).  I inked them with Versamark and then sprinkled Antique Linen Embossing Powder on them and hit them with my heat tool.  I used the Festive Greenery Sizzlet die for the sea plants - using Coredinations Kraft Core paper that I carefully sanded and inked the edges on after die cutting.

I stapled the clear embossed panel to the tag with my Tiny Attacher.   I added an eye to my little seahorse using Black Enamel Accents.  I adhered the plants and seahorse using glossy accents, bending up some of the tips/leaves of the plants for dimension.  I always back my tags with a black panel cut a little larger than my tag.  I added the Linen ribbon to the top and spread the ends.

 I covered a Word Band with Weathered Wood Distress paint - then rubbed it off with a towel so the paint just remained inside the letters.  I tied the band around my tag with blue Jute String.

I needed something else in addition to the shells to put into the fun sand that I made by mixing Utee Clear Embossing powder, Antique Linen Distress Embossing Powder, Antique Linen Distress Glitter and Glossy Accents per Tim's recipe.   

So I thought a distressed Corked Vial with a note rolled up in it would do the trick! 

First, I covered the vial with Glue N Seal and let it dry -  then I covered it with Rock Candy Clear Crackle Paint.  After that dried and crackled - I sponged Adirondack Orange Blossom Ink over it.  I added the shells and the bottle to the 'sand' and let it dry. I love how the bottle came out -  and look how REAL that sand looks!!  How cool!

Here is the note I rolled up and placed inside my little vial.  I stamped it with Archival Jet Black Ink on Kraft Glassine paper and clear embossed it.  I distressed the edges and inked them with Gathered Twigs Distress ink, rolled it up tight and slipped it into the vial - ready for someone walking along the beach to find it!!  The sentiment is from the Big Top set.

Everytime I see a seahorse - it reminds me of when our Uncle Charlie sent my sister and I two live seahorses in the mail when we were quite young.  They were miniature ones and came with a tank and instructions on feeding and care.  We called them Hans and Katrina.  They were so fun to watch and we thought it was quite exciting to have them.  You had to have some pieces of coral in the tank as they had to be able to wrap their tails around something or they would die from constantly swimming.   I'm afraid they did not last too long - it was quite hard to keep the salt water regulated properly and very easy to over feed the little things.  Our father was quite upset that his brother had sent them to us because he knew what the result would probably be... my sister and I were sad when they 'passed' and we had to have a proper burial out in the backyard.

THIS pretty little seahorse will live on forever - I'm happy to say!

Are you making Tim's tags each month??  You'll find the challenge here.  There's a new one every first day of the month!

I also posting this over at the Mixed Media Card Challenge this month is Touch of Nature - optional element -Tag  -  and the challenge is open until 7/25 so you still have time to link a project there!

Stamps:  Big Top - Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous

Paper:  Shrink Plastic, #8 Manilla Tag, Kraft Glassine - Ranger, Coredinations Kraft Core Nostalgic Collection, Black - PTI

Ink:  Ranger Distress - Evergreen Bough, Gathered Twigs, Salty Ocean.  Archival Jet Black, Orange Blossom.

Accessories:  Idea-ology - Sanding Grip, Word Bands, Tiny Attacher, Jute String, Linen Ribbon, Corked Vials; Ranger Distress Stains - Tumbled Glass; Ranger Distress Marker - Frayed Burlap, Sizzlet Festive Greenery die, Black Enamel Accents - Ranger, shells from Beach, Ranger Distress embossing Powder Antique Linen,  Ranger Distress Glitter Antique Linen, Black Embossing Powder - Stampendous, palette knife, Ranger Spritz Distresser, Ranger Paper Distresser, Ranger Distress Paint - Weathered Wood, Bundled Sage, Rusty Hinge, Summer Fun Embossing Folder - Sizzix, Utee Clear Embossing Powder, Glossy Accents, Glue N Seal, Clear Rock Candy Distress Crackle Paint - Ranger.