July - A Vintage Journey Tag Friday

This month there are 5 Fridays - and when this happens - we have a Tag Friday over at A Vintage Journey!  Any tag will do as long as it's in the vintage, shabby, mixed media, rustic style and everyone is welcome to join in and link up their tag to share with us!

I used Gertrude front and center on my tag today!   She's having a snack of leaves and standing in a bed of flowers!

I had the background of the tag already done. I had made it after watching a Saturday blog post that Tim Holtz did using Ranger Distress Resist Spray.  I put Tim's Heart Struck Stencil over the 3 1/8' x 6 1/4" manila tag and then sprayed through the stencil with the Distress Resist Spray.  I washed the stencil immediately and let the tag dry.

I rubbed Distress Oxide Inks in Seedless Preserves, Candied Apple, Squeezed Lemonade and Spiced Marmalade onto my craft mat, spritzed with water and smooshed the tag into the colors, one at a time, drying between colors. (Sorry - no photos of this process!)

I thought it would make a great background for Gertrude!  

Die cutting all the various pieces for Gertrude out of specific colors seemed rather tedious to me.

(although the pieces are conveniently marked on the back saying what color to cut them in if you are following the photo on the packaging!) 

So I thought I'd ink up an 8 1/2" x 11" piece of watercolor paper using 4 brownish Distress Oxide Inks - Antique Linen, Frayed Burlap, Vintage Photo, and Walnut Stain -  light to dark - and use that sheet for all the pieces.

The first layer was Antique Linen DOX. 

I used the same method with each color,  rubbing the ink on my glass platform,

(yes, I finally cracked and bought one!)

spritzing with water and then smooshing the paper on to the color. 

When I had the coverage and look I wanted, I dried the panel with my heat tool and went on to the next color.

Second layer of color was Frayed Burlap DOX.

Third layer of color was Vintage Photo DOX.

Fourth and last layer of color was Walnut Stain.

Then I die cut all the pieces from the panel.  My only design thought was to have the largest piece and the giraffe dots piece be from the darker areas.  I then glued Gertrude together, following both the picture and the score marks on some of the pieces. 

I did cut the mouth, eyebrows, lashes and hooves out of black card.

I wanted her to be eating some leaves off a tall tree and to also be standing in greenery and flowers so I got out the Funky Foliage die set. 

I actually missed putting on the second layer of two of the legs and a base layer over the ears (you can see those pieces in the top right corner!)  but it was too late to put them on - and luckily Gertrude looks fine -  next time I'll know better!  

DOX inks are kind of dull when they dry - so I rubbed over Gertrude with Distress Glaze and then buffed it with a paper towel - to seal the ink as well as to brighten the color a little bit.

I love long tall Gertrude, and I think using the one sheet of mixed colors worked out well!

So please check out the rest of the Creative Guides inspiring tags.  We hope you'll link up a tag that you have made to share with us!

Here's the link to A Vintage Journey Tag Friday!

Stamps:  What's Up - Avery Elle

Paper:  Water Color Paper - Canson, True Black - PTI, Manila Tag - Ranger, green, tan, red, Kraft Core Core-dinations.

Ink:  Obsidian - Altenew, Ranger Distress Oxide Antique Linen, Frayed Burlap, Vintage Photo, Walnut Stain, Seedless Preserves, Candied Apple, Squeezed Lemonade, Spiced Marmelade.

Accessories:  Gertrude Colorize Die, Funky Foliage Dies - Tim Holtz/Sizzix, Distress Glaze, Distress Resist Spray - Ranger, Linen Ribbon - Idea-ology, water mister.