creative chemistry 101 -day 7

Hello, my friends.  I thought I might not be able to post today.  There are times I really hate automatic updates on my computer.  I will be the first to admit that I'm not very knowledgeable when it comes to technology, so when I finally get comfortable using something, it's very frustrating when it suddenly changes & I have to figure it out all over again.  Today, it was Picasa.  The update left me dumbfounded, since normally when I connect my camera to the computer, it automatically begins transferring photos from the camera to the computer.  Not today, though.  Nothing happened.  And the command boxes/buttons all seemed to be missing, so I didn't know what to do.  I've only been using Picasa for a few months, so I was really stymied.  But... I have a tendency to be persistent (stubborn is what they called me as a kid).  So I decided to try one more time and finally figured how to make it work.  Whew!

Today I had a hard time getting started on my tags for Creative Chemistry 101 by Tim Holtz.  I kept finding other things to do.  The reason?  One of the techniques required distress embossing powder.  Well, somewhere I have a jar of distress embossing powder that came in a prize package.  At the time I received it, I had no idea how to use it -- I just knew it was different than other embossing powders.  So it got set aside and apparently went into hiding, because I can't find it.  So for that technique, I had to improvise. 

The first technique is nostalgic batik.  Since I couldn't find my jar of distress embossing powder, I went out to Michael's to see if they had any.  Nope.  But I did find a couple of nice stamps.  The pretty lady (Stampendous) on this tag is one of them. 

The next technique is rusted enamel. 

And the third technique is distress powder resist.  I substituted a regular embossing powder, but used a stamp that looks pretty distressed.  I know it's not the same, but it was the best I could do today. 

I hope you're enjoying my journey.  I know some of you are enjoying the class along with me.  Thanks so much for stopping by. 

born to fly - GM07

Hello my friends. It's time for another grungy Monday card. This challenge is found on Linda Ledbetter's blog, Studio L3, and it's all about celebrating the techniques and products of Tim Holtz. This week's technique can be found here. I think I need to get some ink refills for my distress ink pads. My background is rather pale.

I stamped on the dress form with a stamp from Club Stamp and the wings are stamped with lady of grace (Stampington). The sentiment is computer generated.

In order to fit the dress form on the card, I cut off the stand and tucked it underneath the bodice.

I did a lot of faux stitching and sponging along all the edges.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

more cardboard

Hi. This is my 2nd post today. I had so much fun with the last card, I decided to make another for the technique challenge on SCS.

On this second card, I used two separate boxes, so there is a difference in the width of the corrugated texture. I used a couple of Sizzix dies - caged bird and birdhouse. On the birdhouse, I inked it with vintage photo distress ink and added cherry cobbler for the roof, which I embossed with tiny mosaic embossing folder. The bird is inked with cherry cobbler. I'm always surprised when the ink completely changes color on some surfaces.

The card base is naturals ivory, inked with mellow moss and cherry cobbler. Stamps used are Gratitude (Club Stamp) and Fundamental Phrases (SU).

The button is from my stash and I tied a piece of taupe hemp through it.

I didn't get any more cards done for VSN. I guess I just ran out of steam.

Thanks for stopping by.

shabby butterfly

Happy Monday. This morning I made a card for the technique challenge on SCS. The challenge was to use corrugated cardboard. I love the many looks you can achieve with this.

I first wet one side of the cardboard and let it sit about 5 minutes, which makes it much easier to pull off that outside layer to reveal the texture underneath. After removing most of the top layer, I used my cuttlebug and two SU/Sizzix (top note & beautiful butterflies) dies to cut it. I added some antique white acrylic paint to the butterfly. Once that was dry, I stamped Lady of Grace (Stampington) in faded jeans distress ink (Ranger) and then sponged and distressed the edges. For the center, I wanted a small crochet flower, but didn't have any in the right color, so I sat down and made one, which I attached with a brad. Here's a closeup of the butterfly.

On the top note, I used a stamp from Gratitude (Club Stamp) in aged mahogany distress ink (Ranger) and added sponging and a lot of distressing on the edges, even tearing off one corner. I added a piece of my crocheted lace edging as well.

The base card is not quite navy and the vanilla layer is stamped with Dots & Flowers (Hero Arts). More sponging and distressing. The sentiment is from the Gratitude set. I attached the butterfly with dimensional tape.

Thanks for visiting today. Have a wonder-filled week.