Adventure Awaits You in 2015 -- CC3C #33 Tag

I'm really excited to be able to participate in the second-to-last Compendium of Curiosities 3 Challenge #33:  Altered Surfaces (p. 45).   If you have not already checked out Tim Holtz's latest book, you can order one directly from him and he will even autograph it!  The lovely Linda Ledbetter at Studio L3 is hosting these challenges and there is plenty of inspiration from the very talented Curiosity Crew.  Seriously ... drop by and see what they've been up to.  They all are amazing crafters!! 

 

I made a tag for my entry.  This year I am doing a "scrap calendar" for my Mom.  Each month, We are choosing a favorite event that happened to her during that month and taking a photo.  I'm making a tag to accompany the photo for that month's calendar page.  We will fill the days on the calendar with special memories.  My mom turned 80 in February, so I created an 80th birthday tag for the month of February.  This tag going to decorate January 2015.  It is celebrating some new beginnings for both of us.  My mom spent the majority of 2014 taking care of me.  Starting in January 2015, my mom got to lead her own life for a change :)

I've got to confess, this tag is one of my favorites.  I love the altered surface technique and I really enjoyed making the background to show off my altered elements.  I started the background with a piece of scrapbook paper (you can see part of the 12 by 12 sheet that I used in the pic to the left) that was pre-printed with some copper metallic embossing.  I used Tim's #8 tag die and die cut the paper.  I adhered the paper to a manilla tag with Glue and Seal for stability.  Then I got to have some fun!  I stenciled some Ranger Transparent Gloss Texture Paste through Tim's Flourish Stencil and let it dry.  Then I took Broken China Distress Paint and lightly swiped the paint horizontally (left to right) directly onto the tag.  I wiped the paint off of the clear embossed flourish pattern (also wiping left to right) and I could see the pattern paper underneath!  A heat tool was applied to completely dry the paint (careful not to overheat the embossed areas and bubble it). Then I went back and inked the entire tag with Walnut Stain Distress Ink. It really made the Broken China pop because all the non-painted and non-stenciled areas were filled in with that rich, dark brown.   Finally I used a Black Soot Distress Marker to add some shadowing to the embossed flourish.  Oh my goodness!  I loved the final result.  Here is a close-up of the background:

You can see that the copper embossing on the patterned paper also acted as a partial resist.  It added to this cool background.  Here is a close up of the top of the tag with one of Tim's Custom Fasteners that I colored with alcohol ink and added to my tag's bow.  The bow was colored with Broken China and Walnut Stain Distress Stain then spritzed with some water.

Let's take a look of the stars of this project -- the altered surfaces.  I can't go into details of the technique used because it wouldn't be fair to Tim and all the hard work he did to put together Compendium of Curiosities 3.  I will tell you that I applied the technique to the hammered ring charm below that surrounds a tiny custom fastener.  I used Broken China, Walnut Stain, Picket Fence, Mustard Seed, Black Soot and Ripe Persimmon Distress Paint on the ring charm to achieve the effect. In the background you can see that I embellished the bottom of the tag with a strip of Recollections trim tape.  Another strip of this trim tape was added to the right side of the tag.  You can't see much of the vertical strip because it is mostly covered with my altered pieces.  To mark the many possibilities that 2015 holds for my Mom, I added the sentiment "adventure awaits you" from Tim's Small Talk Stickers.

Here is a close-up of some other altered surfaces.  The washers originally had a verdigris treatment on them.  I used some more Ripe Persimmon, Walnut Stain, Black Soot, and Picket Fence Distress Paint to complete the look.  The number 1 for the 15 (representing 2015) came from one of Tim's Alpha Parts sets.  It primarily was treated with Broken China Distress Paint and accented with Antique Bronze, Black Soot, Mustard Seed, and Picket Fence Distress Paints.  Underneath the "1" is a metal embellishment that I treated with alcohol inks as well as Ripe Persimmon and Walnut Stain Distress Paints.  After the number 1 was adhered to the metal disk with Glue and Seal, I added a layer of Glossy Accents to the metal disk (inside the ring surrounding the 1).

The same treatment was given to the number 5 in the pic to the right.  I love the addition of the Glossy accents to the metal disk behind the 5.

That's it for my CC3C #33 Altered Surfaces Project.  I just want to remind you all that there are some amazing Tim Holtz goodies up for grabs to the Curiosity Crew's Choice winner (from Tim and Mario!!) and a sensational $50 Shopping Spree from one of my favorite online crafting stores, Inspiration Emporium ,will go to one lucky random draw winner.   I hope you have time to play.  We are almost out of challenges (wow!).

It has been such a pleasure to get in my craft room and create this past week.  Thanks so much to Tim, Mario, Linda and each of the Curiosity Crew members for inspiring me this week.  I can't remember when I've had so much fun.  And most importantly, thanks to you for dropping by!!  -- Mary Elizabeth