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Wednesday, July 22, 2015

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


19 comments:

Carol said...

What a wonderful combination of tecniques. Gorgeous tag!

Pamellia said...

Wow Mary Elizabeth, this is fabulous!! There are so many wonderful textures and techniques on your tag, it's hard to pick a favourite element! Love the overall distressed, worn look! Gorgeous work! hugs :)

Anita Houston The Artful Maven said...

Your tag is just stunning!!! I LOVE the idea behind it for the calendar...this will be a treasure! Gorgeous background...just gorgeous, and love the altered numbers! You rock! Thanks for joining us on this challenge at CC3C!!!

Yvonne said...

This tag is absolutely STUNNING! The colors, the textures, the EVERYTHING! WOWZA...I can see why it is your favorite! It's definitely one of mine too! GORGEOUS! yep...GORGEOUS!!! hehehe...Thanks for sharing with us at CC3C!

Rea' said...

Absolutely gorgeous ! Love the background and those colors ...OMG ... just gorgeous !! I can't figure out what I'm going to do yet ... so I'm visiting ... hoping to get some inspiration :)

Candy C said...

Mary Elizabeth....your tag is altered surfaces heaven! :) You did a FABULOUS job with the technique on this lovely tag. I adore your color combinations. Teal and that rusty copperish look is a favorite combination of mine! :) I'm so happy you joined us at CC3C. Thanks for sharing your lovely art! <3 Candy

Anonymous said...

Wow Mary Elizabeth this tag is GORGEOUS! I found it on Pinterest, pinned it and just had to come over say hi. All the wonderful colours and vintage goodness. LOVE IT, Karen.x

Marjie Kemper said...

Your tag is HOT HOT HOT! What a fabulous creation. Thank you for sharing it with us at CC3C!

Ruby Craft said...

What beautiful texture. I haven't tried the clear texture paste yet but I can see from your gorgeous background that I am going to have to give it a try. So Happy for you and your Mom that you are both celebrating 2015 and remembering the now" with a scrap calendar. This tag is gorgeous!

Annette Green said...

Wow! Those are some FABULOUS altered surfaces. What a sweet idea of creating this calendar for your loving Mom. I love all the layers and textures in those glorious close-ups. Thank you for your lovely art. It made my day. And thanks for joining us in the CC3 Challenge!

Cheryl Grigsby said...

I don't know what I love more. The beauty of this gorgeous tag or the beauty of the story of the relationship you have with your mom. I am so happy and inspired when life and love is expressed in art and you have certainly done that here. This tag is just stunning! That background, wow! Fabulous, just fabulous. <3

Unknown said...

Beautiful - so many deep rich colors and textures. Wow. j.

Maura said...

Gorgeous!! So deep and richly textured, and the colors are sumptuous!

Mona Pendleton said...

Gorgeous tag! Love all the patina and rust! So much fabulous detail!

barbarayaya62 said...

Finally you came back to and you are super productive! Excuse me if I can not comment more, but I have no time, then you will see later why ..... This work is amazing, full of rich detail to observe!BArbarayaya

Paper Profusion said...

Wowsers what an amazing background. Love all the chunky elements in this fab tag! Nicola x

Words and Pictures said...

Absolutely out of this world wonderful... the glossy flourish softened by the Broken China paint turns that paper into a background of pure delight, and your altered surfaces look fantastic. A completely stunning tag - I can see why it's a favourite. Magnificent!
Alison xx

sarascloset said...

I'm speechless! Mary Elizabeth, this tag has everything that I love--texture, color (LOVE!) and amazing techniques! Do you know I have been here for about 20 minutes...probably more, just scrolling and drooling, drooling and oh mying! and scrolling back to see something new! I love your altered surfaces--you knocked this one completely out of the ball park with that alone, but your background just leaves me breathless! I am so giving this one a try! I will never look at my shelves of designer paper the same! I think I may use it after all! I would like to say you've outdone yourself, but I'm not sure that's possible! Every one of your creations is just top notch in my book! This is just one more!

I also enjoyed reading your post, about the lovely project you are working on for your Mom. I don't know why she was taking care of you, but you are paying her back for sure! What a lovely, lovely heartwarming gift! Hugs!

Gabrielle Pollacco said...

Seriously GORGEOUS work Mary Elizabeth! And what a terrific gift idea! I get a lot of people asking me what to do with tags, what a unique and lovely idea! xo