Pocket Pages

Remember when we were challenged to decorate Tim's Worn Covers?  Did you ever wonder when we were going to decorate pages to include in our journals, tag holders, recipe books, etc.?  Well, the time has finally arrived for Challenge No 18!  Even if you have already created your pages, there are more techniques to learn and more pages to add!  Here are my pages:

I previously created a Quote Book to store inspirational quotes along with my art tags.  I was SO ready to incorporate them into my book!  The techniques can be found on Page 36 of Tim Holtz's Compendium of Curiosities III book.  If you don't have it, you can purchase it at Tim's site here.

While I can't tell you exactly how I used/altered these pages as you have to work from your own copy of the book, I can show you close ups of some of the things I did.  I'll start with the tags:

I used Tim's door die, thrift shop ephemera (flower), Tim's woodgrain stamp from the Wallpaper and Wood set and  "The Impossible is Often Untried"  from the clear stamp set Thoughts and Phrases                    along with crinkle ribbon died with scattered straw and Vintage Photo Distress Stains.

This tag is already shown in the pocket page - a perfect fit!  I used an old ready made library pocket and a number 8 tag.  The pocket was decorated with paper from Tim's French Industrial Paper Stash and the quote from Tim's Stampers Anonymous set  Way with Words stamped over the top of the paper.  The paper I adhered to the tag is from Tim's Wallflower Paper Stash.  I ran the paper through the  Gears Texture Fade, blended color using Peeled Paint,  Black Soot and Vintage Photo Distress inks and then added Idea-ology pieces - the arrow, chit-chat stickers, gears and the swivel clasp to the tag.  The finishing touch came from the bow from Tim's Bow-tied die.

The final tag uses the Paint Marbling technique for the background.  I added stamps from the Typography stamp set as well as an Idea-ology pen nib, a mini gear and a remnant rub from the Numbers set.

I had some some tags I wanted to incorporate into the 3 Pocket Page.  I really wanted them to stick out the side edge, so I carefully cut the side edge and sealed the top edge so that I could achieve this look.

Again, I used the Wallflower Stash paper on all of the tags (I absolutely can't get enough of that paper!).  The quotes are from Tim's  clear set Thoughts and Phrases with the exception of the Mother Teresa quote on the bottom tag.  She was and is such an inspiration to me!  The stamps are from Stampers Anonymous Nature Walk and Butterflies and the bird on the bottom is cut from the Thrift Shop Ephemera.

Here is another set of pages I created:

These are fold-out pages.  Check out Page 44 for more details.  The paper is from the Wallflower Stash.  I added a painted Idea-ology piece from the Nature Adornments set and a chit-chat sticker on the bottom right piece that says dreams.  The "Cross your heart and fly" quote is from B Line Designs and "The quieter you become, the more you came hear" quote is from Inky Antics.  I created the piece at the top left using the technique on page 44 as well.

Here is the back of this fold-out page:

More Wallpaper Stash goodness along with a quote on the upper right hand piece from B Line Designs ands the words "Live with Purpose" cut from part of the large stamp in the Stampers Anonymous Way with Words set.                    .

There you have it!  I can't wait to create more pages like these for my Quote book:

Now it's your turn!  Show us your magnificent pocket pages!  For all the rules, go to Linda Ledbetter's site and read up!  You could win a wonderful prize package from Tim and Mario if your work is chosen by the Curiosity Crew!  This 18th challenge is sponsored by The Funkie Junkie Boutique who is generously providing a $25.00 shopping spree in their store.  Remember, you can't win if you don't play along!  Come join us!

Best Wishes
Susan

Woodlands & Tinsel Twine CC3 Challenge

I am still in a bit of shock that we have arrived at the month of December and the 17th Challenge!  Where has the year gone?

My husband and I managed to  get quite a bit of Christmas decorating done early this year, so I have been in the mood for a Christmas project.  The latest challenge found on page 60 of the Compendium of Curiosities III book (it's still not too late to get your own copy here) made this quite easy.  Here is the project I came up with:

I started with a shadow box frame that I already had:

I  painted the entire box with Gesso.  After the gesso dried,  I covered the frame with paper from Tim's Merriment Paper Stash.

Now for the technique.  I decided that the Woodlands tree would work perfectly inside the shadow box part of the frame.  It was just a bit too tall, so I cut the base off the tree so that it would fit inside. I followed Tim's technique on page 60 and then added some beads for "ornaments" from a red beaded garland I purchased.  Here is the finished tree along with the garland I used.

I knew immediately I wanted to have a 3D Santa Claus in my scene, so I used B Line Designs  Dear Santa stamp.  I stamped this image 3 times and colored the entire image on only one of them for the base.  I colored and cut apart a few pieces from the other stamped images, including Santa and the trim on his coat.  Some of the parts were cut out and adhered with foam tape to the ones below to create dimension.

Once I was done layering Santa I adhered the entire stamped image to the back of the shadowbox with several layers of foam tape.  I also slid the tree in next to Santa.

To decorate the outside of the frame, I began by following the technique for the tinsel twine and then I draped a section across the top of the frame, adding some red beads to several portions of the twine at the frame top.

I used some greenery I found in my stash and placed it at the top left and bottom right of the frame. I added some pinecones (so glad I hung on to those!) and berries to the greenery along with a silver snowflake.  Here again is the finished project.

What will you do with your Woodland and Tinsel Twine?  We can't wait to see!  Just remember to head on over to Linda Ledbetter's website to get all the rules and leave a comment on each member of the Curiosity Crew's website.  The Inspiration Emporium is sponsoring this challenge.  They have a hefty $50.00 shopping spree awaiting a randomly chosen winner.  The extremely generous Tim and Mario also have another fabulous prize package for the Curiosity Crew's choice!  Yay!

Now it's  your turn!  I can't wait to see what you  create with this challenge!  Have fun with it!

Susan

Layering Stencil:Embossing

Seems hard to believe the holiday are upon us and we have arrived at the 16th - yes 16th - Challenge for the Compendium of Curiosities III Challenge!  This challenge proved to be a fun one as always!  This time it is sponsored by our friends at The Funkie Junkie Boutique who have a $25.00 gift awaiting one lucky randomly chosen winner!  Tim and Mario have provided yet another "WOW" prize package for the winner chosen by the Curiosity Crew.

All of us at the Curiosity Crew have been so amazed at all the talent out there!  Thank you to each and every one of you who have been participating with us for all the challenges.  Did you know it is never too late to join us?  You can purchase your autographed copy of Tim's Compendium of Curiosity III book here.  The go to Linda Ledbetter's site to learn all about the rules.

This challenge can be found on Page 50 of the Compendium of Curiosities III book.  Here is the project I created for this challenge:

I decided to use the Festive Layering Stencil which went well with the Christmas-themed tag I wanted to create.  Here is the tag before I added all the embellishments:

As you can see, I stenciled the bottom and the side edges of the tag, leaving the center open.
Now to embellish the tag...  I die cut the Prancing Deer from cream card stock and colored it by blending Antique Linen and Vintage Photo Distress inks onto the deer.  Then I created two pinecones from brown paper using Tim's Pinecone die.

The "25" embellishment, the bells and ribbon and the "Merry Christmas" came from Tim's Christmas ephemera pack.  After adhering them to the tag, I added a Mirrored Star just above the number "25" and to the bottom right corner of the tag, a Gumdrop to "Merry Christmas" and I cut around the bottom of the bells and attached the bells and ribbon ephemera to the deer's neck.

I also used a Tidings Token that says Christmas Wishes" and attached it to a hand-made chain using jump rings.  The first jump ring is threaded through the knot in a red acetate ribbon bow I made for the top of the tag.  I adhered two die cut pinecones and 3 small "real" pinecones that I had in my stash just above the Tidings Token.

The last piece of ephemera I used was a snowflake that came in the ephemera pack:

There you have it!  This technique is quite simple yet striking.  We hope you will pull out your stash and get to creating!  We can't wait to see what you make!

Susan

Cabinet Card Pocket Challenge!

We have arrived at the 15th challenge for the Compendium of Curiosities III Challenge!  I was especially excited to do this challenge as I LOVE Tim's Cabinet Cards!  As many of you may know, I have already used them several times in past projects.  This time we will be using them again, but also adding the extra dimension of a pocket.  Here is my project:

I wish I could claim these darling little girls as my own relatives, but, alas, they are Tim's Found Relatives.  That is just fine with me as they are so precious and perfect for my piece!  I had SO MUCH fun with this challenge!  I love pulling out my stash of Tim's Idea-ology and playing around with it all until I have something I just love!

I began by using a piece from my favorite Wallflower Paper Stash to go along with the Found Relatives inside the Cabinet Card.  I also fussy cut some flowers and a butterfly from the same paper and added a small piece of butterfly Tissue Tape to the top left corner.  I used a border from the Industrious Stickers on the edge of the photo.  It looked like this:

I continued to embellish the Cabinet Card by adding the word "Together" from the Alpha Parts Framed, another small piece of Wallpaper Stash behind a Book Plate, Remnant Rubs at the top of the photo and in the center of the Book Plate, a section of floral trimming on the left edge and a few extra small fussy cut flowers at the top left corner.

To finish this project I created a large tag to fit into the back of the Cabinet Card.  I added a large eyelet at the top center.  I used Tim's Crinkle Ribbon dyed with Victorian Velvet Distress Stain to create a bow and threaded another dyed piece through the eyelet, tying it around the bow to secure it.

Once again the finished piece looks like this:

Now open up Tim's Compendium of Curiosities III book and study the Cabinet Card Pocket Technique on page 38.  If you still don't have the book, it's not too late to order your autographed copy from Tim Holtz here.  We have noticed some new artists playing along with us for the recent challenges and we are thrilled!  There is so much talent out there!

This challenge is sponsored by The Inspiration Emporium who are generously providing a $50.00 gift certificate.  Tim and Mario have yet another fabulous prize for the winner of this challenge chosen by the Curiosity Crew.  To be eligible to win, head on over to Linda Ledbetter's website to read up on the rules.  It's easy and fun!

I look forward to seeing all your wonderful creations!
Susan

Colored Crackle Halloween

Challenge Number 14 for the Compendium of Curiosities Challenge has arrived!  This time we are having fun with the Colored Crackle technique found on Page 53 of Tim's Compendium of Curiosities III book.  Still don't have the book?  Not to worry - it's never too late to join the fun!  Purchase the book here and play along!

The idea came to me for this challenge as a Halloween project.  I have seen so many awesome projects and decided that I didn't want to be left out, so here I am getting it done just before Halloween!  Here it is:

I used Tim's Crescent Moon and Stars die which I cut from cardboard.  The colored crackle technique was then applied.   I think this technique worked perfectly for the Halloween Moon!

Now, I would like to says 'thanks" to Tim for making me get a little crazy with color!  In the past I would have played it a bit more conservative  and used more subdued colors.  To show you what I mean, here is the tag I used alongside another tag with lighter colors.  I used the painted marble technique for both of them.

The one on the left just screamed "Halloween" to me, so I finally decided to go wild and use it.

I used the witch and spider stamps from Tim's Carved Halloween CMS 197 stamp set along with the                    die cut, letters to create the word "spooky" from the Tim Holtz Alterations Upon a Time alphabet strip and the number 31 from the Alpha Parts.  The Colored Crackle technique was applied to the moon and the stars.  This is what I ended up with:

Here is a close up of the colored crackle:

I think this technique worked perfectly!  The stars now have a bit of an "icy" look to them and the moon is definitely a bit spooky looking too.

After stamping the witch twice on scrap cardstock, I colored the image using Distress inks which I applied with a watercolor technique.  I then cut apart the back of the broom and jack-o-lantern, applied pop dots to the back and adhered them over the first image to create a bit of dimension.

The Alpha parts were colored with a bit of Spiced Marmalade paint and were adhered to the bottom of the tag!  I then adhered the rest of the elements to the tag.  To finish, I used Rusty Hinge and Mustard Seed Distress Stains to dye Tim's Crinkle Ribbon, made a bow and attached to the top!

Here again is the finished piece:

This challenge is being generously sponsored by the Funky Junkie Boutique.  One lucky randomly chosen winner will earn a $25.00 gift certificate.  Tim and Mario are also supplying another fabulous prize package for the winner of the Curiosity Crew Choice.  Good luck to everyone!  We really enjoy seeing all of your wonderful projects!  Thank you so much for participating!

Susan

Worn Cover Quote Book

Can't believe we have arrived at the 13th Challenge!  I hope all of you have been enjoying these CC3 Challenges as much as I have!

This week we are using Tim's Worn Cover.  The technique can be found on Page 35 of his Compendium of Curiosities III book.  Remember, it's still not too late to get your autographed copy of the book here.

Our sponsor this week is The Inspiration Emporium.  They are once again providing a $50.00 certificate to a randomly selected winner!  Tim has yet another super prize package for the Curiosity Crew's Choice as well.

Not sure about the rules?  To be sure, head on over to our lovely hostess's website, Linda Ledbetter, to study them and learn how to create a project to share with us.  

Here is my project using the Worn Cover:

This is the front cover.  I began by cutting a label for the front cover using a Sizzix die (Frame Back, Ornate #3).  I added color to the label by blending in Antique Linen and Frayed Burlap Distress Inks.  This frame was then adhered to the front cover.

I decided I wanted an album to store all the quotes I have been collecting, so I used Tim's Sizzix Alterations Block Talk lower case alphabet and die cut the letters for the word "quotes" out of chipboard.  I then painted the letters with Aged Mahogany Distress Paint and adhered them to the center of the label.

To finish the front, I adhered butterflies from the Thrift Shop Ephemera Pack which were lightly watercolored with Aged Mahogany and Scattered Straw Distress inks above and below the word "quotes".  I just HAD to use two Word Bands (I love them!) that were perfect, "Collections" and "Encourage Your Hopes Not Your Fears" which I had previously painted with Aged Mahogany Paint and then wiped off, allowing the paint to remain in the recesses of the letters.  I added two brads for each Word Band and adhered both to the front, above and below the label die.

Finally, I adhered a Custom Knob to the front using a clock face.

I then proceeded to alter the inside of the worn covers as follows:

I started by using Tim's Burlap Texture Stencil and one of my new favorite paint colors, Aged Mahogany.  I randomly added paint through the stencil directly to the cover, carefully picked up the stencil and let the paint dry.

Once the paint was dry, I added a decorative paper panel to each inside cover.  Both are from the fabulous Wallflower Paper Stash.  On one side I stamped the Stampers Anonymous Butterflies and Moths 1 image using Wendy Vecchi's Potting Soil Archival ink.  I then lightly watercolored a bit of Scattered Straw Distress Ink onto the wings.

The second paper panel is from the same paper stash.  I stamped Stamper's Anonymous "Be Confident, Find Your Wings and Fly" towards the bottom of the panel.  I added this beautiful bird from the Thrift Shop Ephemera Pack to the upper right of the panel.

I carefully tore around the edges of both panels and finished them by adding some Walnut Stain Distress Ink to the edges.  The panels were then adhered to the inside covers of the album along with some greenery die cut from the Spring Greenery die and colored with Peeled Paint and Vintage Photo Distress inks.

I used some wonderful words from the Life Quotes Remnant rubs in various places on the covers.  Finally, I added a metal butterfly from the Adornments Nature collection which was previously painted with Scattered straw and Aged Mahogany to the right hand panel.

The final touch was adding the Ring Binder to the inside of the Worn Cover by threading a Black and White Natural Trimming over the Ring Binder and through the holes in the cover to the front spine.  I tied a knot and clipped the ends of the trimming.  To finish off the project I used a Swivel Fastener  which I added to the trim knot and placed a Word Key and Philosophy Tag at the clip end and chain end.

Here are close-ups of the inside covers:

Finally, the Book spine:

Hope you like this project and are inspired to create your own Worn Cover!  You will eventually be adding pages to this album which can be used for a number of purposes such as a photo album of quote book!  Use your imagination - the sky's the limit!

Have fun!  Susan

Vintage Photo Tinting

Whether you are incorporating vintage photos into your artwork or would like to colorize some of those treasured old photos, this technique is for you!  Turn to Page 41 of Tim Holtz's Compendium of Curiosities III book, learn the technique and join us for this challenge!

If this is your first time joining us or you would like to review all the challenge rules, please head on over to Linda Ledbetter's site (our fabulous hostess) to familiarize yourself with the rules.  This week's challenge (Number 12, can you believe it?) is sponsored by the generous folks at The Funkie Junkie Boutique.  Tim and Mario also have yet another wonderful prize waiting for the winner of this challenge!

Here is my project:

I decided to use a photo of my mother when she was 2 years old.  (She is 85 now).  After following the tehnique on page 41, I then placed the photo in one of Tim's Cabinet Cards.

I didn't want to detract from the photo too much by getting carried away with embellishments, so I used a minimal number which I think accented the photo just right.  I started by placing two strips of scalloped trim from Tim's Industrious Stickers, Frames and Trims set on the top and bottom of the photo.  I then added some Tissue Tape - Elements to one side of the card (I love this one as it reminded me a bit of a growth chart). 

I spelled out M O M with Tim's Alpha Tiles Chipboard Letters tiles and adhered them directly to the photo.  The final embellishment was the lovely metal rose and leaf from the Idea-ology Adornments Nature.  I used Aged Mahogany and Peeled Paint Distress Paints to add color.  The last touch to the photo itself was to dye  thin fiber with Aged Mahogany Distress Paint, tie a small bow and adhere at the top of the letter "O".  Here is a close up:

Lastly, I used one of my all time favorite Idea-ology accents, a word band on the bottom of the card that says " Know in Your Heart that You are Loved.  Before adhering it to the card, I threaded through some Crinkle Ribbon which I had previously dyed with Aged Mahogany Distress Paint.  I was so thrilled that I could match the color I used in the bench my mother is sitting on with the rose, the fiber bow and the crinkle ribbon!  What fun!

The stamp I used as part of the tinting technique is from Stamper's Anonymous.  I think it fits perfectly and is a wonderful reminder to never stop playing!  

I hope my project will inspire all of you to pull out those vintage photos of  your family or look for "found" relatives to incorporate into your artwork.  All of us at the Curiosity Crew look forward to seeing all your beautiful and inspirational pieces!

Susan