Happy Birthday Tim!

...did you know that it is a very special day today? Oh yesh, it is the birthday of the one and only Tim Holtz, he who is the Duke of Distress, the Sultan of Stamping and the Viscount of Vintage! Well, the lovely Linda Ledbetter who runs the Grungy Monday Challenge has given us a very special challenge this week... namely to make a birthday card for Tim. HERE are all the deets...



Well, as you know, I have been bemoaning the fact that my Mojo had jetted off to warmer climes for Christmas and I was getting a smidge concerned that I wouldn't be able to join in with this fab challenge... hey, I even had considered whipping off to yonder shop and buying a card! Imagine the disgrace! Anyways... at the eleventh hour, Mr Mojo (note how I am being polite about the old rascal now he is safely home - well, I don't want him running out on me again!) Where was I? Ah yes, the eleventh hour... Mojo returned and thankfully, I finally got a smile back on my mizgog face and ink on my fingers.


So... I had fully intended to make a card... you know, like a proper card... not a tag or owt like that. I had even sketched out a design... using cogs and Brolly Man and bright colours. Errrrm... I ended up with this concoction which is only just a card because I stuck the tag onto a piece of card... even then I think it looks better off the card... anyhooo's... I have got it made! Huzzah! There are a lot of pics because there are quite a few (ahem, ok, it is overloaded) embellies on the tag - I mean card ;o)) It is a shame my photography skills are practically non-existant because it really does look nicer in the real and you can see all the little extra bits that are on the piece and not showing up, no matter how many different angles I try with the camera.


This is how I made it: The base of the tag was coloured with Antique Linen Stain, I smooshed Frayed Burlap and Vintage Photo Stain onto the craft sheet, spritzed the tag with water, dipped, twisted, lifted and dried the tag, then re-dipped for some mottled splots. I then stamped using Coffee Archival and the large background on the Papillon set. This looked a bit too brown so I gave it a dusting with Biscotti Perfect Pearls... mmm, still a bit brown... so I went in with Spiced Marmalade Distress Ink and blended a few patches... and hey, it took off some of the PP's.... which looks lovely and grungy... you will have to take my word for that though... daft camera (or person holding camera lol) Oh... and I added a torn Journal Ticket to the left hand side - it is almost obscured now though lol


I used Jet BLack Archival to stamp the butterflies... I loooove those butterflies, they are so fab! And because I had hit on the butterfly theme, I cut out one from the Crowded Attic Stack and coloured it with Walnut Stain and Spiced Marmalade DI's and popped a little vial filled with Ginger Alcohol Ink to make a body for it. The Rosette was cut using more of the butterfly Crowded Attic paper, coloured with the same DI's and then assembled... and disahhhster... one of the folds split - ooops, forgot to put Tissue Tape on the back... so... I went with it and tore a few more so it is really shabby (goodness knows how it is staying together!) I added a couple of branches and then set about making a centre piece for it. There's a combo of 7Gypsies and Idea-ology cogs... and the middle is a little brass disc that I found lurking under my desk (nope, no idea how it got there, it is probably something really important though) So... I popped this into a Texture Fade, embossed it, sanded it and then punched a hole in the middle so I could add the other bits to it. The wing was painted with Snow Cap Dabber, smudged off, slapped over with Rock Candy Crackle and then splodged with Vintage Photo once it had crackled.


Now... have you seen Wendy Vecchi's amazing technique with glass, Glue & Seal and Rock Candy Crackle? HERE are all the deets. Well, I copied her technique and applied it to the ickle Light Bulb and Corked Vial... how stinkin' cute are they!!! Naturally, I had to make sure there was a crown in the design somewhere and there it is, sitting ontop of the Vial... for the King of Kraft (hhoooohoooo made myself laff with that one) The ickle birdhouse/birdy charm... well, I was faffing with Idea-ology as you do and I popped a Corner onto a Key Hole and it looked a bit like a birdy house... so I glued them all together and added a smidge of old lace to jazz it up a bit. The little flower is a piece of Foliage and has a hole punched in it so the charm hangs prettily.


Right... I think that is just about it... I know... War & Peace already! Well, I have two weeks worth of waffling to try and catch up on! All that "gonna blog daily" bumpf... well, I am seriously going to try from now on ... starting with a brand new Sunday Stamper theme tomorrow! All that is left for me to say is... Happy Birthday to Tim... and thank you for looking!! TTFN

Hels x