Rock Candy Distress Glitter

For this 21st challenge I couldn't wait to create a Valentine themed project using this technique found on Page 55 of Tim Holtz's Comdendium of Curiosities III book!  I have noticed that we have some "newbies" (yay!) who have recently joined us for these challenges, so, as they discovered, it's not too late to get your own autographed copy of Tim's book here.  Then head on over to Linda Ledbetter's site to read all the rules!

Rocky Candy Distress Glitter is awesome!  It is just perfect for anything that needs a bit of sparkle!  Here is my project:

I started off by following the technique on Page 55.   I used Tim's Stampers Anonymous Flourish stamp and Victorian Velvet.  The background is Antique Linen.  The tag looked like this:

Don't know if you can see the sparkle very well on this photo.  Here is another look at it:

I stamped the "With all my Heart" image (B Line Designs) with Black Archival ink at the bottom of my tag over the background.

I then stamped and cut out a heart and cupid image (B Line Designs) to add to my tag.  I used Barn Door Distress ink for the heart.  I created a black mat for the heart and attached it to my tag using foam tape.  I watercolored the cupid image with Distress inks (tea dye and tattered rose for flesh color) and used a Barn Door Distress marker for Cupid's sash.  I added some Rock Candy Distress Glitter to Cupid's wing too.  After cutting out Cupid, I attached him to the tag with foam tape and positioned him alongside the heart.  The final touch for the heart was the addition of an Idea-ology Arrow Adornment on the heart.

I used Barn Door Distress Stain to dye Tim's Crinkle Ribbon which was then crinkled and heat set.  A bow was tied using a thin piece of thread and an Idea-ology heart charm was added.

The final additions to this tag were the numbers 14 from Idea-ology Alpha Parts Newsprint, a small bunch of red rose buds tied with a red bow, a a small bit of lace trim adhered to the bottom of the tag!

Here's a close up of a portion of the tag.  I think you can see the sparkle a bit better from this angle:

A huge thank you goes out to the Inspiration Emporium for sponsoring this challenge.  They will be providing a $50.00 shopping spree to the winner of a randomly chosen entry for this challenge.  Tim and Mario have yet another fabulous prize package awaiting the Curiosity Choice winner as well.

Good luck to all!  We can't wait to see your entries for this glittery challenge!

Susan




























The Inspiration Emporium is generously sponsoring this challenge and has a $50.00 shopping spree on their site just waiting for one lucky randomly chosen winner.  Tim and Mario have yet another prize package for the Curiosity Crew choice winner as well.

Good luck to all.  Thanks for participating in this glittery challenge!

Distress Watercolor - Part 2

I know I say this every time, but I really can't believe we have arrived at Number 20 for the Compendium of Curiosities III Challenge!  I hope all of you are having as much fun as we are creating these projects!

I finished this piece just before I was lucky enough to go to the Craft and Hobby Trade Show in Anaheim, California with most of my dear friends and fellow members of the Curiosity Crew, including the lovely Linda Ledbetter (unfortunately several members could not attend this year).  We have returned with lots of new ideas and inspiration which we hope to share with all of you.

Here is the card I created using this wonderful Distress Watercolor Part 2 technique:

I have wanted to use this fabulous Tim Holtz dragonfly stamp by Stampers Anonymous for such a long time!  Even though we are still in the midst of Winter, I must say that, after being in California and returning to snow and cold, I am ready for some warmer weather and dragonflies!

Have you used Ranger's watercolor paper yet?   I love it! There is so much detail on the paper and the ink colors stand out so beautifully!  

I apologize I don't have a lot of step by step photos.  However, here are a few close-ups of the card details:

After following the technique found on Page 40 of Tim's Compendium of Curiosities III book which can still be purchased here, I added some more detail to the card.  This is a silver dragonfly brad from Creative Impressions to which I added some Seedless Preserves Distress Paint (my favorite color) and placed it inside the "dragonfly" circle which is part of the stamp.

I took a scrap piece of the watercolor paper and stamped Happy Birthday from Tim's Simple Sayings.  I cut the paper to the same width as my dragonfly piece and adhered pieces of aqua card stock to the backs to create two mats.

Next I had some beautiful Birdsong Cherry Blossoms paper from Graphic 45 which I thought would make a lovely background. I adhered both stamped and matted pieces to the G45 paper.   I also wanted to add a few extra flowers, so I fussy cut several of the flowers from the paper and layered them to some foliage cut from Tim's Sizzix Alterations Spring Greenery die using green card stock accented with some Peeled Paint Distress ink.  I then adhered more foliage to the base of the card underneath the Happy Birthday sentiment from Tim's Simple Sayings stamp set.

The watercolored dragonfly image and the Happy Birthday sentiments were both layered onto aqua card stock and adhered to Cherry Blossoms background paper.  To finish this piece I used Tim's crinkle ribbon which was dyed with Tattered Rose and Spun Sugar Distress Paint, tied into a bow and adhered to the bottom of the card.

This 20th challenge is being sponsored by The Funkie Junkie Boutique.  A $25.00 shopping spree will be awarded to one lucky randomly chosen winner.  I had the pleasure of meeting the lovely owner, Linda, at the trade show.  What a wonderful and sweet person she is!

Tim and Mario have another prize package awaiting the winner of the Curiosity Crew choice for this challenge.  Head on over to Linda Ledbetter's site for all the rules on how to participate and possibly win this terrific prize package.

Come join us!  We would love to see your creations!

Susan

Fabulous Frayed Fabric

Happy New Year, everyone!  I can't believe I am sharing the 19th CC3 Challenge, Frayed Fabric, with all of you!  Somehow I managed to get it done even though I had company for the holidays.  Here it is:

I will confess that I had never used Tim's Eclectic Elements Fabric before.  However, I LOVED the finished product!  The fabric is such good quality which made it so easy to work with.

I wanted a "natural" look to this project so I decided that a burlap panel was in order to use with the fabric (LOVE Tim's burlap panels).  I also wanted to keep it simple.  I referred to the technique found on Page 66 of Tim's Compendium of Curiosity III book and followed the instructions to create the fabric background.  I used the Eclectic Elements Timepieces Neutral fabric.

This piece is dedicated to my father, so I copied his high school graduation photo which I adhered to a slightly larger black mat and then to the fabric.  It started out like this:

My grandparents had very little money (remember the piece I did with the imaginary Paris honeymoon? - that's them), and my father had a dream to be a dentist.  Without any money or emotional support, he set out to make his dream come true.  After much sacrifice, he did indeed graduate from the University of Washington with a degree in Dentistry and was a Navy dentist for many years.

I used the Alpha Part - Remember and backed it with a piece of red card stock.  I then poked a hole in the card stock below the "R" and threaded through a piece of thin jute .  The other end of the jute was used to attach a Philosphy Tag that says "Journey".  I wanted my Dad to remember this journey he was on as his accomplishment is a source of great pride, as it should be.

I loved the expression "Dare to Dream" from Tim's Simple Sayings set, so I stamped it on a piece of extra cream card stock, inked around the edges with Fired Brick Distress ink and adhered it to the piece.  I also used Alpha Tiles to spell out "D A D".  A Word Band which says "Life is about creating yourself" was threaded through a piece of natural trim, a pen nib (representing his studies) was added to the upper right portion of his photo and finally a metal Timepiece with game spinners attached was adhered over a piece from the Thrift Shop Ephemera pack.  I used Fired Brick Paint to highlight the words on the Philosophy Tag and the Word Band and also on the metal timepiece to add some color.

Here's one last look at the finished project.

There you have it!  I truly hope you will participate in this fun challenge.  Whether you are new to this challenge or have participated before, we would love to see your work!  You can still order your very own copy of Tim's book here and you will find this particular challenge technique on page 66.  Then head on over to Linda Ledbetter's site to get all the information you need about participating, including all the rules.

This challenge is generously sponsored by the Inspiration Emporium.  One lucky randomly chosen winner will win a $50.00 shopping spree to their site.  A fabulous prize package generously provided by Tim and Mario will be presented to the winner of this challenge as chosen by the Curiosity Crew.  Good luck to all of you!

All the best
Susan

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