In the Shadow of the Trees

Here's another set of Halloween cards I made with some more of my new Tim Holtz purchases!

These cards all pretty much the same accept for variations in colors and the sentiment sticker used.

My cards were totally inspired by Richele Christensen's guest designer post over at the Sizzix Blog.

For all of the cards I used Entomology Stamps and dies, Tangled Twigs Die, Idea-ology Clippings Stickers/Halloween. 

For my first card I used black card to cut the Tangled Twigs die. A much bolder spookier? look than the lighter paper used on the others.

For the next 3 cards I used a tan Core-dinations Distress Collection paper to cut the Tangled Twigs.

I colored all my backgrounds by smooshing a watercolor panel onto my craft mat that was rubbed with DOX inks in Antique Linen, Frayed Burlap and Black Soot and spritzed with water.  Doing one color at a time and drying between colors.  Then I stamped the text stamp from Entomology over the background using Black Soot .

I stamped and die cut the insects from Entomology and watercolored them using Ranger Distress Markers and a wet paint brush.  The insects and sentiments are popped up on foam dots.

I made these all just card fronts -  adding a die cut easel to the backs so they can be displayed on a shelf or side table.

I'm linking my Halloween cards to:

Frilly and Funkie Haunted Halloween

Addicted to Stamps and More

Happy Little Stampers

Creative with Stamps

Stamps and Stencils: Spooky Fun with Autumnal Twist

Stamps:  Entomology - Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous
Ink:  Ranger Distress Oxide Black Soot, Antique Linen, Frayed Burlap.
Paper:  watercolor paper - Canson, True Black - PTI, Core-dinations Distress Collection.
Accessories:  Entomology Die, Tangled Twigs Die - Tim Holtz/Sizzix, Idea-ology Clippings Stickers/Halloween, Ranger Distress Markers Salty Ocean, Fired Brick, Spiced Marmalade, waterbrush, water, craft mat, water mister, foam dots, Tombow Glue.

Haunted Halloween

Tim Holtz had such a great Halloween release this year -  I purchased several of his stamps and dies (ugh!)  But -  I'm using them right away - so that's a big plus right??!!  I've been making Halloween cards to sell at my church fair coming up on Oct 19th and Oct 20th.

I made 4 cards using the same products and design.  Ghoulish dies from Tim Holtz/Sizzix, Graveyard die an older Tim Holtz/Sizzix die, DOX inks, and Pierced Feature Frame die from PTI.  These are actually more like vignettes for display as they are just a card front and I added a die cut Small Easel on the back so they stand up!

I made my backgrounds by smooshing Ranger Distress Oxides in Antique Linen, Frayed Burlap and Black Soot onto my craft mat, spritzing with water and pouncing a panel of watercolor paper into one color at a time - drying between colors.  

I did the same thing on another panel of watercolor paper using DOX Antique Linen, Twisted Cintron and Black Soot to cut my monster out of.

I made another panel using DOX Antique Linen and Black Soot to use for my skeletons and bats.

I die cut the Pierced Feature Frames from PTI out of black card as well as the Graveyard from Tim Holtz/Sizzix.

I used Clipping Stickers/Halloween from Idea-ology for all the sentiments.  The ghouls, sentiments and bats are all up on foam dots.

I'm linking my cards to:

Frilly and Funkie: Haunted Halloween

Paper:  watercolor paper - Canson, True Black - PTI
Ink:  Ranger Distress Oxides - Antique Linen, Frayed Burlap, Black Soot, Twisted Cintron.
Accessories:  Ghoulish Die, Graveyard Die, small easel die - Tim Holtz/Sizzix, Pierced Feature Frames Die - PI, foam dots, Tombow Glue, Clipping Stickers/Halloween - Idea-ology.

Faux Enamel Hearts

There's a new technique floating around in blog land -  Embossing Powder Faux Enamel Hearts and I just used it to make two cards.

I made this one for two challenges over on Splitcoaststampers - The Free for All challenge was Red Hot Love -  and the MIX challenge was Touch of Wow (use a technique that wows you!)

I used the Embossing Powder Faux Enamel technique on a die cut chipboard heart - and the heart on my card was the residual melted powder stuck to the parchment paper you use with the technique.  It peels right off the paper and feels like thin rubber.

I thought it looked like a graffiti heart and my card design took shape.

I used 3 Wendy Vecchi Embossing Powders on my heart -  Red Geranium, Pink Peony and Tiger Lily

For my second card I used the actual Faux Enamel heart that I created using the technique.  This time I used Cranberry, Gold and White embossing powders on the  mat board die cut heart.   Here's a close up of the heart.  It's really shiny IRL!

And here's my card.

I die cut little hearts out of cork and embossed a panel of watercolor paper along the top and bottom.  The heart is up on foam dots and I stamped the simple sentiment on the card.   I layered the panel to a piece of gold paper and then to a white card base.

Here is a link to Marion Emberson's video on the Faux Enamel technique (thanks to Nancy!)

I'm linking my red heart card to:

Frilly and Funkie Challenge -  All You Need is Love

 

I'm linking my pink heart card to:

 CAS Mix Up Card challenge -

I used cork, faux enamel technique, embossing, and stamping

 and also to the Happy Little Stampers

Red Graffiti Heart Card
Paper: Smokey Shadow - PTI DP Textures Paper Pad - JoAnn
Accessories: Betty Crocker Silicone Parchment Paper, Heat Tool, Wendy Vecchi Embossing powders Red Geranium, Pink Peony, Tiger Lily, Cupids Arrow Die Collection - PTI, Heart full of Love Die - MFT (retired), Idea-ology Small Talk Stickers/Occassions,.

Pink Enamel Heart
Stamps:  My Heart - Waltzingmouse (retired)
Ink:  True Black - PTI
Paper:  white - PTI, Canson Watercolor paper, Gold Metallic Kraft Stock - Idea-ology/Tim Holtz, white matboard - Sizzix
Accessories:  Adirondack Cranberry Embossing Powder, Copper Embossing Powder - Ranger, white embossing powder - PTI, foam dots, Tombow Glue, thin cork - Staples, Love Embossing Folders - Tim Holtz/Alterations/Sizzix, heart die - MFT (retired), heat tool,  Betty Crocker Silicone Parchment Paper - Amazon, Splendid Stitched Hearts die - Poppy Stamps.

Guest DT - Frilly and Funkie Challenge

I was SO excited when Linda asked me if I would like to be a guest designer for the Frilly and Funkie challenge!  Especially since the DT is using Eileen Hull's new Journal Die for their projects!

The challenge is - Put Your Inking Cap On  and here is the challenge description from hostess Kathy:

For this challenge we are asking you to create a vintage or shabby chic project without using any designer paper. You can use inks, mists, paints, texture paste, fabric, felt, embossing powders, pencils, markers, pastels, chalks...the sky is the limit! As long as you are not using designer paper on the front of your project, you are golden.

The lovely and creative Eileen Hull generously donated a set of her HeARTfelt Journal cover sets to each member of the team, so each of us has created a lovely Traveler's Notebook style journal to share with you for this challenge. However, you do NOT have to create a journal to play along!

If you are looking for Eileen's Journal Bigz XL Die, you can pre-order it from The Funkie Junkie Boutique.

 

 Here is my funkie journal creation!

 Before I show you more close ups -  I'll take you through my steps in making this!

 

 I started with Eileen Hull's wonderful new Sizzix Journal.  I cut it out of Cream Little Sizzles Mat Board.

 I decided to use Ranger Distress Oxides in Vintage Photo, Broken China and Peeled Paint.  I rubbed them over my craft mat, spritzed the inks with water and then dragged my covers through the inks.

I kept adding more inks, drying with my heat tool, more inks -  and when I was done - I decided to add some DOX Worn Lipstick to the mix.  I also sponged all the edges with DOX Vintage Photo.

I decided to just use DOX Vintage Photo on the inside of the covers.

Then I flicked water onto both inside and outside.

I adhered the covers at the center - overlapping the scored edge with the holes in the middle - being sure to line up all the holes. I stamped  randomly across the front covers using a Distressed Grid stamp and DOX Vintage Photo.

I cut three 17" pieces of black round elastic cord and put them through the holes at top and bottom knotting them on the outside.  These will hold the 3 signatures in the journal.

I made my pages out of brown paper that I have saved from packages I received in the mail.  I just love the crinkle sound of it when you turn the pages  

(I got this idea from Eileen Hull who used this kind of paper on a journal she made on a Facebook video!) 

I cut 15 pieces of paper each 8 1/2" x 7 1/2" and folded them all in half.  I put 5 pieces together for each signature creating 10 pages in each (when folded in half).

I slipped each signature through an elastic in the middle of each signature.

Here they are all loaded in!

Then I got to work on decorating the front of my journal.  I used Tim's Flower Garden Framelits to cut the 3 stems and 3 coneflowers out of black cardstock.  I inked the pieces with Versamark and embossed with Hammered Metal Allure Powder from Emerald Creek.

I adhered them on my cover (using foam dots just under the cone flower head and glue everywhere else), along with Quote Chips, Industrious Stickers, Clippings

and Design Tape/Chatter which I wrapped around the front and back

and continued it around onto the inside covers

 I also added a few more pages in the signatures that were smaller - just for fun!

I used the clasp piece that is on the Journal Die to close my journal.  I embossed it with the same Hammered Metal Embossing powder and sponged it with DOX Vintage Photo.  I added a piece of Linen Ribbon through the hole.

And I have to confess to you -  when I was putting the Velcro on the front of the journal -  I didn't like how it looked when I closed it  - but when I tried to pull off the Velcro - it took the top layer of the journal with it!!   SO -  I inked over the torn space - and then put a Clippings Sticker over it!

 I added 3 charms on the bindings - a crown from Prima that I colored with Pink Sherbert Alcohol Ink, an Adornment Pinecone colored with Pesto Alcohol Ink and a Philosphy Tag.

So - here is the finished product, once again - front and back!

Thank you so much Linda, for asking me to join the team this week as a Guest Designer for this fun challenge!  I really enjoyed creating my funkie journal.

I can't wait to see what everyone creates without any patterned paper!  Check it out here!

Stamps:  Distressed Grid - Cornish Heritage Farms (no longer available)

Paper:  True Black Cardstock - Papertrey Ink, Cream Little Sizzles Mat Board - Sizzix, brown paper packaging.

Ink:  Ranger Distress Oxides Vintage Photo, Broken China, Peeled Paint, Worn Lipstick,  Versamark.

Accessories:  Journal Die - Eileen Hull/Sizzix, Flower Garden Framelits - Tim Holtz, heat tool, Allure Powder/Hammered Metal/Emerald Creek, Scotch Adhesive Back Velcro, Adirondack Alcohol Inks Pink Sherbert and Pesto, Black Round Cord Elastic - Dritz, ScorTape, Craft Mat, water mister, Idea-ology Industrious Stickers, Quote Chips, Design Tape/Chatter, Clippings Stickers, Adornments/Pinecones, Philosophy Tags, Jump Rings, Linen Ribbon,  Black Stabilo Pencil.

Someone is 3 - Who Can It Be?

My adorable little grandniece, Madelyn, turns 3 today and I made this little photo book for her.

Here are some photos of my creation process followed by photos of each page of this special book/card.

I cut 4 pieces of Rustic Cream card for the pages, cutting them about 1/4" smaller than the size of the cover.  

To color the pages I swiped 3 different Ranger Distress Oxides on my mat,  Vintage Photo, Broken China and Wilted Violet Distress, spritzed with water and dragged the pages through the colors.  I would add more color and water to the mat until I was happy with how each page looked.

Here are the 4 pages (I also colored the back sides!)  This gave me 16 surfaces for photos in the book.  I used a corner rounder on all of the corners of the pages.

I used Eileen Hull's Sizzix Mini Album die for the cover of my book and colored it the same way as the pages -  being a slightly less absorbent material (Cream Little Sizzles Matboard) it absorbed the colors differently - quite a bit lighter looking - but I love it!  I tried not to get any ink on the binding piece - not for any particular reason - just my aesthetic sense!

I also colored the inside of the cover - these came out a little darker!?!  and I didn't worry about getting ink on the inside of the binding area because the pages would cover that anyway.

I folded all the pages in half and punched holes in the pages and the cover about 1" down from the top and 1" up from the bottom.  I tied a piece of Idea-ology Linen Ribbon through the pages and cover, tying it in a knot on the outside of the book.

So here's the story I made using photos of Madelyn.  I trimmed each photo to fit the page and mounted it to a slightly larger piece of Winter Wisteria cardstock to unify the look.  I made all the labels with my Brother Label Maker.

After I took the photos - I decided to add one more sentence at the bottom of the last page to sort of finish the rhyme - so the last two pages said,  Mum, Dad and James.  So now we all know it's Madelyn who's 3 - did you guess the same?

I left a few pages blank at the end so they can add photos of her birthday party.

and here is the back cover.

I'm linking my Someone is 3 book to:

Frilly and Funky Challenge

Count Me In

 And here's a photo of the princes herself enjoying her party -  theme "Frozen" of course.

Her cousins, Landon and Mila in Olaf and Anna hats Madelyn's mum had for them to make.

They all sang along with the Frozen theme song

 Madelyn and Mila

I can't stand how cute they are!!!