Playing around with grungepaper, CCC week 13

It's Monday so that means the awesome Linda L @ Studio L3 posted a new challenge.  It is also a holiday so I was home today and got to play! Charlene even dropped by for a bit and played!  (We are still working on the door sign for the cruise.)

Week 13 challenge was found on page 65, "Grungepaper Flowers".  While waiting for some stuff to dry (for our door sign) Charlene and I chatted and I created these "lilies" and Charlene cut out some stuff, but you will have to watch her blog for an update on what she did.

There are 3lilies  in the old thread spool.  Here's one by itself to give you a clearer view. 

I don't have a clue what I am going to do with my lilies, but until the idea presents itself, I will enjoy their beauty in the spool!

After I finished, I had these leftover.

I don't know about you, but I really hate throwing leftovers away.  So I asked myself:  "Self, what can you do with these?"  I didn't answer (bet some of you thought I might answer!lol) but played a bit and came up with this ATC.  I found some extra leftover petals and made the leaves.

Besides the grungepaper flowers on the ATC, there is DCWV (black) paper, glossy paper with alcohol inks, 7 Gypsy ATC transparency, Tim Holtz' Adage ticket and a button from my stash (covered with alcohol ink).

If you had a day off, I hope you thoroughly enjoyed it. If you had to work, I hope your week got off to a fabulous start!

Linda

Trip Planner

If you read the comments on this post, Charlene was right.  She knows the secret and it's all hers! 

It all started with a simple plan based on some light harassment.   The "light harassment" came from me, not that I make it a habit to harass or tease you understand.  It was just an odd moment for me, really.  The recipient was Charlene!

Charlene & I were talking about the cruise and things that we needed to do, plan, prepare, etc.  She said something about making lists and having everything planned out so she knows what she is doing and when she is supposed to do it. As she says, she is not the spontaneous sort. Me on the other hand, I can go either way, plan it or wing it. . . once the  vacation is planned and I know the general plan, I usually switch to wing it mode.  One thing lead to another (this was over a couple of weeks) and I told her to hold off on a planner.  This was probably sometime in June.

Luckily for me, Charlene had a trip to ComicCon a couple of weeks ago, so that was distracting her (at least I hope it was) from the fact I hadn't come through with the planner.  Since she got back, I reminder her not to get a planner.  I have worked on it steadily, but it just kept growing, and Growing and GROWING!!!   Even as I was putting finishing touches on it Sunday, I thought of and added 2 more elements!

I am happy to say on Sunday, August 1, she finally got her planner!  The original idea was to buy a binder, alter it a bit and hand it over.  That lasted as long as it took me to go to a couple of stores, looked at what was available, and decide that I  could use my bind-it-all and make something much better.  Simple, but better.

I started with a composition book and tore it apart - literally.  I wanted the covers for the journal.  I covered the front with grungepaper AFTER I applied the CCC Week 4 technique to it.  I also ran the (horizontal) center through my  Sizzix "Burlap" Texture Fade, added the label, dusted off my Fastenator, applied some alcohol ink to the fastener and came up with this. 

Not all the tabs are visible, but there are 16, one for each day we are gone plus one to get "ready", "set", and "go".  Don't worry, I am not showing  you everything, just my favorites. . . I will leave some for Charlene to show on her blog too!   Like I said, the planner kept growing, and there are not bind-it-all wires that are big enough, so then the plan was to use Tim's "D-rings".  Guess what? They weren't big enough either.  I ended up using  "giant" (3" binder) rings!

In addition to each tab, I included a pocket on the back of each tab, at least 4 pages for notes and journaling, confirmations we have already received (i.e., ship's itinerary) and a page for photos.  One other feature, since this is a rather "lumpy" book and writing in would be difficult, I made a portable "writing table" that can be slipped under the page she is writing on!

Even though it took me forever to complete, it was a fun project!  I used lots of techniques, some tried and true like "smooshing" (distress ink & water or alcohol inks on the craft mat then smoosh the paper into it)  and some new techniques like the page above with the ship.  For that page I lightly painted the paper in a couple of colors, wiped it off,  then stamped, then added a couple of collage elements. 

The "real" reason I made it for Charlene is so she will have all the details and I won't have to remember anything except to have fun!

So now you know what the "secret" project that kept me MIA!  If I am mostly MIA for the next couple of weeks, I will be getting ready for my youngest daughter's engagement party!   Hope you have a fabulous week.

Linda

PS - Watch Charlene's blog for more of the journal, but she may wait until we are back from the cruise as she said she'd show it a page at a time after she filled it up.

With days to spare (and a special request)

With days to spare I went into overdrive for the 3rd week of  Compendium of Curiosities Challenge (CCC) at Studio L3!   Using this week's challenge -Alcohol Ink Monoprint - I created a ton of ATC backgrounds (about 30!) and 4 card backgrounds!  I have even managed to complete 6 ATCs!!!  I have other ATCs in progress and a few that are being "re-purposed" (or you could ATCs I screwed up and "saved" them by using in other projects! lol)

Now I find a fabulous way to use a fragment!  (The piece under the fragment is one of the re-purposed pieces I mentioned above!)   The tree image is a Penny Black Stamp using Staz-on Jet Black.  The sentiment is by Great Impressions. The birds in the top left corner are from one of Tim Holtz' Visual Artistry set.

Next up is an ATC that not only works for the CCC but also the Gingersnaps Challenge #57 - Wings The sentiment was stamped using Staz-on Jet Black from a Hampton Art Stamps. (The background of the main words is another re-purposed piece!) The background stamp is Hero Art's, "Sandra's Letter Background" stamp. I used Coffee Archival Ink.  The hearts and wings are grungeboard.  The hearts and small wings were inked with Distress Ink (Hearts -Barn Door; wings Vintage Photo, I think).  The large wings were covered with Distress crackle paint (Vintage Photo). 

And here is a glimpse of the "ton" of ATC backgrounds that are waiting to become masterpieces!

If you are lucky, I will show you the other ATCs later in the week, unless of course I get distracted and make something else!  Did you see Tim's (Holtz) post today? Did you know I can get distracted pretty easily? lol  And if you haven't looked at his post, you really should! Then you will understand!

Before you leave, I have a request.  My son-in-law, Tim, (not to be confused with Tim Holtz) is preparing to depart on a deployment as I type. He is in the US Army.  He will be gone for quite awhile.  My daughter is 1,000s of miles away from the rest of her family.  Please say prayers and/or send good thoughts for his safe return and for them both to looked after by angels. 

 I love you Rebecca and Tim. 

Take care,

Linda

Dreams!

The other night I had a dream, which according to experts is not unusual. It something that everyone does,  but usually once I wake up, if I a m lucky, I vaguely remember fragments of a dream but not much else.  Remembering the outcome of a dream several hours later is unheard of for me, but that's what happened.   

Before I show you the results of my dream, let me back-up a bit and give some background.  I bought Tim's "Caged Bird" die when it was first available and sent some die cuts to a couple of ladies who live overseas.  I did not send them all the "leftover" pieces (the pieces from between the bars of the cage).  I used a variety of paper, including grungeboard and grungepaper.  I had lots of them and I couldn't throw them away, I just knew I would use them "someday".

Then I had my dream.  I didn't even remember the dream until after I was up for a bit and went into my studio.  As soon as I sat down, it came back to me. . .well the end results came back to me at least.   This is what I was compelled to create:

The first is a card front using the "leftovers"  from the top cage as are the leaves, the stem is leftover from the bottom of the cage.  I am not sure if is completed yet, time will tell.  The second project is an ATC using leftovers from the bottom of the cage as a background.  All the leftovers are grungeboard, except for the stem which is grungepaper. All the ink is Distress Ink, except for the stamp which is Archival Jet Black. The stamp is from the "Visual Artistry - Flights of Fancy" set.  The spinners, washers, brads, jump rings and foliage are all from Tim's Idea-ology line.  The clock face is leftover from a project we did on the cruise; I think it is Heidi Swapp.   The gems and the heart lock are from my stash.

Sweet Dreams!

Linda

Roasted fish?

or bunny or lamb or flower or  . . . whatever you want!

I was checking out blogs earlier and stopped by one of my favorite stops, Eileen's ArtSavesLives blog  (not my cousin mentioned in the previous post but someone I met on the Voyage to Mexico cruise with Tim Holtz).  She always has awesome projects and links not to mention a great sense of humor.   I had to do a double take when I saw her fabulous 4 x 4 canvas! (scroll down on Eileen's blog to see the canvas) I saw something that looked really familiar. . . the fish!  It is one I created sometime last year for a swap on the All Things Tim yahoo group!!!    

I used one of my fishies on my August calendar page

I told Eileen I would give the instructions on how to make that little guy (or anything else you want)!   First the disclaimer, if you try this at home (or any other place), do so at your own risk.

Now for the fun stuff!

The supplies you need are:

 * cut-out - can be any shape or size, can be free-hand or diecut.  As far as size I did not have much success with really small stuff (under an inch or so) or really big stuff (over 3-4 inches). I have used grungepaper, heavy brown grocery bags and cardstock.  I like grungepaper the best.  It is sturdier than the other papers I've used and it shrinks when it gets hot which I think adds to the overall look. 

 *Aleene's Tacky Glue - gold bottle (this is the only glue I have tried, so I don't know if anything else would work)
 * matches
 *container of water (just in case, I use a small glass bowl so not only do I have it "just in case" but I can put the used  matches in it and not worry)

 *candle - short pillar worked best for me

 * needle-nose pliers or other "holding device" you don't mind getting sooty (fingers will definitely not work for this one, lol)
 *cloth rags
 * sponges (I used $tree make-up sponges cut in half)
 * Acrylic paint - colors depend on what you are making

Step 1 - Light the candle

Step 2 - Spread the glue over the entire surface, there needs to be enough glue so you can't see the paper underneath it.

Step 3 - While glue is wet, pick up shape with pliers and hold glue surface as close to the flame as you can  (the non-glue side should be facing the ceiling)  moving slowly around until entirely burnt - about 2 minutes - give or take. 
Step 4 - Using a soft cloth rag, gently wipe off soot.  If it is done, it will be kind of a  metallic black under the soot.  If it is too "rare", it will look brownish.  If rare, return to flame for  another 20-30 seconds and re-test for doneness.
Step 5 - Once all the soot is wiped off, you can apply a little more pressure and squish the glue around (the outside is burnt, the inside is still wet) to give the object more texture.

Step 6 - This is the hardest part of all - once you have given it texture walk away from it and let it dry completely (I usually let the stuff sit for a day or two)

Step 7 - Use sponges to add color in layers.

Here are some more calendar pages and other critters I made -  

Some other notes - 

- The sunflower is the biggest object I made and was difficult to get all parts burned because of the uneven weight of the glue and trying to hold it with needlenose pliers.  Depending on the intended purpose, there is an alternative way of making the objects, especially big ones - before Step 1 you can glue a heavy piece of wire (18-22 gauge) or two between two cutouts, then proceed with Step 1.  After you completed the first side, you could glue/burn the second side and then have a totally dimenisional piece of art that can be used as a "sculpture".

- If you use to little glue and/or apply too much pressure you get a flatter surface as in my Jack-o-lantern above.

- In my examples the fish and Jack-o-lantern were made using grungepaper; the bunny, lamb, leaves and sunflower were all made with cardstock. 

If you have questions you can either leave a comment or send me an e-mail (link is in the side-bar).   

Edit:  6/3/10 9:55 p.m.

Just to clarify - "Roasted fish" is not my original idea (however, the title is my original idea! lol)- I discovered the technique in a  booklet I found at a thirft store called "Creative Living Book #99-207 - Aleene's Burnt Brown Grocery Bag" copyrighted 1991.

Going away. . .

no, not me (sorry you are stuck with me) but Bob at work received a promotion and is going to another department.  I made him this going away card.

When making cards for the office, I learned long ago not to make "just" a card because I would have to argue with people to sign it.  It wasn't that they didn't like the card (or the person for that matter) but they were afraid of "ruining" the card.  So now when I make cards for the office, I make cards with "tags".  People are happy to write a message and sign a tag.

                     

Since  Bob LOVES coupons (he loves "free" even more) I came up with the "savings" book.  It is made out of grungepaper inked with LOTS of Distress Ink - I think I used all the blues - both old and new. For the "savings" on the front I used the "drunken Aleene's" technique on grungeboard letters, the "memories and "book" are both rub-ons.  I made pockets on both the front and back covers for the "coupons".  The coupons were created by SUPER Kate - my student assistance. (She is awesome and very talented!)  She designed 4 different coupons!

You can't see it in these two photos but I even used a sewing machine!  (Frist time ever using a sewing on a  paper project!)  I used it to bind the card (there are actually 2 sheets/4 pages in the card) and I used it to sew the tab on too!  Not sure that I like using the sewing machine. I have a layout design rolling around in my head that will need to be sewn.  So, I thought I would practice a bit in case I decide to create the layout.

Thanks for sending me the photos Bob.  (I seem to always forgot to take pictures after I finish cards and before they are given to the recipients.)  Good luck with your new job - you will be awesome!

Have a fabulous weekend!

Linda