I Love This Crazy Life: 2015

Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Tim Holtz inspired Tag- June 2015

I love the background of Tim's tag this month.

He created his plaid background by inking one of his stencils with a custom made Distress Ink pad & then stamping it onto his tag. I did not have this particular stencil and none of my stamps really created a plaid like I wanted, so I ended up creating my plaid background with some distress inks and painters tape. Lots of measuring and taping, measuring and taping... & then the tape stuck and pulled up some of my ink...Ughhh. But I refused to start over & decided to just roll with it.

I used a combination of Distress Ink in Dried Marigold/Spiced Marmalade, Mustard Seed/Fossilized Amber, & Shabby Shutters/Mowed Lawn. I also spritzed the background with a brown Tattered Angels mist & let it dry before I started the plaid.

The completed plaid was a bit darker than I envisioned it being, but here again I decided to just roll with it. To add a little brightness I mixed Mermaid Lagoon Spray &Turquoise Perfect Pearls, then splattered it onto the tag.

Here is the finished tag.

I have had the TH Bigz Floral die for awhile and this was the perfect tag to use it on. The Flower is made out of watercolor paper inked with Mustard Seed Distress Ink and then sprayed with Perfect Pearls. The leaves were actually stamped and fussy cut from an older Cocoa Daisy kit stamp and then embossed. The flower is held together and adhered to the tag with a TH metal foliage flower & brad.

There is also a piece of cardboard peeking out from the left side of the tag behind the "This is a Happy Life" piece. The cardboard was torn from a box in my scrap room & the Happy Life piece was cut from white card stock, inked in Antique Linen, the Remnant Rub saying was rubbed on and then I finished it with a few splatters of the Mermaid Lagoon/Turquoise Perfect Pearl mixture.

I finished the tag by running TH crinkle ribbon through the remaining Mermaid Lagoon/Turquoise Perfect Pearl Mixture and then dried it with a heat gun. I added the ribbon through the hole on top of the tag.

I have completed all 6 tags this year, each different, and each one pushed my creativity. Here is a recap of tags thus far.

Looking forward to the next six!

Sunday, May 31, 2015

Tim Holtz Inspired Tag-May 2015

Here I am again posting at the very last minute, even though I completed my tag the first week of May. Sheesh! Time has a way of getting by me, especially when I am chasing little baseball playing boys from field to field.

Here is Tim's tag for May:

I loved the burlap background, the layering of the ephemera, & the use of a picture. So I decided to try to include those elements in my tag.

Here is my take:

I did not have any self-adhesive burlap laying around, so I used an older Cocoa Daisy stamp to create a grid/burlap like appearance across the background of my Kraft tag. Burlap look- CHECK!

I used the Tim Holtz star stencil with colored embossing paste to add the stars. The ephemera bits are from older SEI tickets and 7 gypsies sticker sheets. Ephemera- CHECK!

Finally I added a picture of Carter from last summer's All-Star team. Picture- CHECK!

A little twine wrapped around the tag and stapled in place & crinkle ribbon inked/sprayed with Vintage Photo and Fired Brick ink and the tag was complete.

I did try to add a few metal elements here & there, but I wasn't pleased with the arrangement, so I took them back off.

I'm looking forward to Tim's tag for June, which will be up on the blog tomorrow.

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Tim Holtz Inspired Tag- April

This month I was definitely pushed out of my comfort zone. I have just recently begun collecting Distress Markers, so I was excited to see Tim use them for water coloring his tag this month. But I was a little concerned about my ability to use them for water coloring. Four tags later I was satisfied with my results. These tags really are a way to practice and hone your own skills and even though I got frustrated with myself a couple of times, I am glad I persevered.

Here is Tim's tag for April.

And here is my take.

I love how the yellow daffodils turned out. I used Distress ink is Mustard Seed and Wild Honey for the flowers and Crushed Olive for the stems and leaves. The background was a mix of Iced Spruce and Evergreen Bough with splatters of Black Soot.

I was a bit thrown by Tim's use of pumice stone around the flowers of his tag, but once I tried it, I realized that I liked it. It gives the flowers a little more depth and interest and keeps them from looking too flat.

Here is a close-up of the flowers. The stamp I used is an older one from Hero Arts. I hadn't used it much so I was glad to have a reason to use it.

I plan to use this technique again to make Mother's Day cards for my Mama and Grandma.

Saturday, March 28, 2015

Tim Holtz Inspired Tag- March 2015

I have no idea why I wait so long to post my tags...I guess I am just one serious procrastinator. I procrastinated so horribly last month I didn't even get my tag posted. The past three months I have had my tags completed within the first week of the month. I really must do better... :)

Here is Tim's tag for March.

This month I really wanted to use my new Cracked Pistachio ink and I also wanted to try Tim's technique using a stencil, embossing or texture paste, & gold embossing powder.

So, here is what I ended up creating:

I try very hard not to purchase new things for my tags, so that I push myself not only creatively, but also use up some of the extra/older stuff I have laying around. I am glad to say I was able to use some stuff this month that has been in my scrap space for YEARS. Yay!

I started with some older Tim Holtz tissue tape on the manila tag. I swiped the the Cracked Pistachio distress paint onto my craft mat and spritzed it with a little water. I ran the tag through the paint/water mix and dried it with my heat gun. I then stamped and embossed my clocks with black ink and clear embossing powder. The clock stamp I used is smaller than this Tim Holtz clock. My stamp set with this particular clock is from a Visual Artistry set that Tim put out for stores like Hobby Lobby and Michaels. The images are the same as his larger cling sets, but are on a smaller scale. I masked over each clock and then used my Dot Fade layering stencil & embossing paste to create the raised dots on the tag. I only spread embossing paste where I wanted it, knowing that I didn't want to cover the whole tag. I then shook on some older gold embossing and embossed it once I allowed the embossing paste to dry. I mixed some Gold Perfect Pearls with water and splattered it here and there on the tag.

Here is a close up of the gold embossed dots. The texture of this is my favorite part of this month's tag. That Tim Holtz is a genius!

The embellishments are a mixture of old and new as well. The mini 3, used because it is the third month of the year and also because we have three boys, was distressed with sand paper and I used a gold paint pen to add a little bit of gold to it. The fragment charm is painted with gold paint and then I used a TH rub-on on it. The "Here & Now" and "This is Life" rub-ons are from the same Remnant rub-on set as the "Lucky is a State of Mind". The "Once a Upon a Time" metal strip is a very old piece from Making Memories. Glad I could use it up, but I think I have more...Must of been bought during my phase of buying duplicates.

The crinkle ribbon at the top was colored with Cracked Pistachio distress ink mixed with water and gold perfect pearls. I dried it with my heat gun and then attached it to my tag.

I am also going to include last month's tag. I won't go through all the details, but if you have a question about something I used or how I did something, please ask in the comments section and I will get you an answer.

I hope I get time to post again before the end of next month. I am back to creating more (we had a few kid free days during Spring Break, thanks to my parents) and I spent a few days creating here and there. It is true that creativity breeds creativity. The more you create the more you want to create. Glad I found my mojo again. I sure I hope I can keep it going and we plunge head first into baseball season.

Happy Creating,

Olivia

Thursday, January 15, 2015

January Sketch Challenge @ Cocoa Daisy

Here is Cocoa Daisy sketch for January:

I really loved Christine's take on the sketch.

Such a beautiful and clean layout. I also love the color combination and the photo of the fall leaves. Photos of fall leaves always make me pause...God creates such beautiful things.

Here is my layout.

I chose to use the background blocks for pictures of Jude and scooted the journaling to the right side of the layout. I used bits and pieces of the January 2014 CD main kit "Blueprint" & the Day in the Life kit (bits & pieces are all I have left of this particular kit). I also used an older alpha set from Lilybee to complete the journaling. The journaling actually came from an Instagram post I made. I had to reword it a little to make it fit in the space I had, but the message remained the same- Jude was obsessed with balls at this age.

I was tempted to add some additional splotches of color with a mister, but decided I liked the white background the way it was. Simple, clean, with the focus on the words and pictures. Totally works for me because telling the story is the most important part. :)

Happy Creating!

Olivia

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Tim Holtz Inspired Tag- January 2015

I love almost everything Tim Holtz put out into the craft world. I especially find the things he creates with his Distress line inspirational. I use his Distress Inks on nearly everything I create, whether it is a tag, card, home decor piece, or a layout.

Each month he creates a tag tutorial to inspire crafters to create. Here is Tim's tag for January.

I have decided to try to create a tag each month based on his inspiration tag. Let's hope I can keep up & remember to share it here. :) I also plan to create my tag with materials/supplies that I already have on hand. I'm not going to go out and purchase new TH stuff just to create a tag. That being said I do currently have a cart at Simon Says Stamp full of Distress. Have you seen the new monthly Distress color?? Cracked Pistachio. I now have to decide if I need it in the full Distress line or just the ink and marker... (The whole line is currently in my cart). :) Can't wait to see what new color he debuts each month this year!

So now onto the tag I created:

I like how he created the background using his tissue wrap. I didn't have his tissue wrap, so I used a piece of light yellow tissue paper and used a glue stick to glue it down. I made sure to kind of smoosh (technical term of course) it around to ensure I got some of those great creases that would hold extra color and ink.

After it dried I painted over the whole thing with some Tide Pool Glimmer Glam by Tattered Angels. When that layer dried I used a palette knife to spread some Distress Paint in Brushed Pewter, sprayed Biscotti Perfect Pearls, and then added drops of Gold Perfect Pearls mixed with water. I dried it with my heat gun and then stamped the large saying from Tim's Way with Words Cling Mount Stamp Set in black ink. The saying didn't stamp as well as I had hoped it would, but I decided just to roll with the imperfection. To make the imperfection look a little more intentional I added more Biscotti & Gold Perfect Pearls.

The whole tag & edges got inked with Broken China Distress ink I inked the crinkle ribbon with Broken China as well and then spritzed it with Biscotti Perfect Pearls.

The embellishments include an older Charm Fragment piece. I covered the back of it with Silver Metallic Mixative Alcohol Ink and then used a Life Quotes Remnant Rub-on on the front. Added a jump ring and attached it to the crinkle ribbon.

On the bottom of the tag I used the Idea-ology Mini Numerals for 2015. The "Tell the Story" piece is from Tim's Simple Sayings Cling Mount Stamp set. I stamped it on a manila tag, cut it out, and then used Broken China ink mixed with Biscotti Perfect Pearls to paint on a watercolor-y background.

For me this tag is the perfect way to start my creative journey for 2015. This year I want to spend more time creating and using the beautiful stock pile of materials/supplies I have to TELL MY STORY.

Monday, January 12, 2015

12 things on the Twelfth- the New Year edition

I started doing this last year and fizzled out after February. I did actually complete it for a couple of other months, but didn't share it here. Hoping to do better this year.

I need to take a few better photos of the boys this week and then of course actually take a photo of me and one of Jess. I am terrible at making sure I get pictures of Jess and myself. It's really easy to get shots of the boys doing everyday things because they are so busy, but Jess and I tend to not be as exciting.

So this month I am just going to share twelve things each of the boys are doing & then I will add our twelve things later when I do the actual layout.

Disclaimer: After choosing photos of the boys, I realized I have GOT to do better with my phone photos & also use my big camera more. These are not great at all... Ughhhh! But they will do for now to tell the story.

He (Carter, 11 years old):

...Just made straight A's on his report card for the 2nd 9 weeks. His lowest grade was a 93 in math, which happens to be his best subject. He and I had a talk about the importance of checking over his work before he turns it in. That way he doesn't make careless mistakes. He is a "I like to finish my work first" kinda guy...
...Is enjoying playing basketball at school this year. He seems much more confident in his abilities and is not trying to do it all himself. After watching him play this game I was impressed with how easily he adjusts on the court. He has remarkable ball sense playing both offense and defense. Sitting on the bench with Jess & the girls all these years has taught him a lot.
...Is part of our after school book club, Wilson Page Turners. He has already finished the first book & is currently reading The Sea of Trolls by Nancy Farmer.It is over 400 pages long and is a Fantasy. I am very impressed with how well he is doing with the book and he is really enjoying it. In the last meeting he spoke up and talked about his thoughts on the book thus far.
...loves playing on the Xbox. His favorite game right now is NBA 2K14.
...is planning to ask for a phone for his birthday. We are still on the fence about getting him one.
...stayed home alone with Ethan for three hours when Jess & I had in-service at school. I left my phone with him & let the neighbor know they were here. He was a little nervous, but when I got home he was proud of himself.
...asked his girlfriend to go to the school Valentine's Dance with him. She said yes, he is excited and nervous.
...is getting more independent and likes to be by himself sometimes. Getting ready for the teen years, I guess.
...doesn't like doing chores, especially taking out the trash. He gets an attitude with us when we ask him to do something. The attitude doesn't work out well for him.
...likes watching Minecraft videos on Stampy Long Nose's Youtube channel.
...eats constantly. Our grocery bill is going to skyrocket the next few years with these boys.
...likes snuggling with Miggy cat.

He (Ethan, 8 years old):

...played his first 3rd & 4th grade basketball game on Saturday. He played really well and scored 4 points. He is really quick on defense and can steal the ball easily. He is also good at bringing the ball up the court and tries pass it into kids in the paint to shoot.
...had 2 A's and a B on his report card this 9 weeks. He brought his reading grade up from an 83 to an 89. So proud of him!
...plays well with Jude and Jude always wants him to play with him.
...loves technology. He is the one I have to constantly tell to get off the computer or iPod. He is naturally quick at anything technological.
...still can't pick out his clothes. If we don't lay them out the night before we struggle in the morning to get something picked out and get him dressed.
...eats incredibly slow. Everyone finished before he does and many nights he is left sitting at the table alone trying to finish, while the rest of us are going about our bedtime routines.
...prefers to eat junk than to eat food that is good for him. That could be why it takes him so long to eat.
...loves pestering Carter and is very good at making him angry. He enjoys making him mad.
...still only weighs about 50 pounds. He is so bony so he hurts himself easily, because he lacks fat to protect his bones.
...still sleeps with his night-night every night. I love that he still needs it.
...recently won 4 stuffed animals out of the Claw machine at Larry's Pizza, on three tries. Lucky guy!
...loves playing on the XBox. His current favorite game is Madden 25.

He (Jude, 2 years old):

...love watching Spongebob and asks to "Watch Bob pants" everyday.
...has an ever expanding vocabulary. Sometimes what he says makes perfect sense, sometimes it makes no sense at all.
...loves Thomas the train and can name all of the trains he currently has: Thomas, Charlie, Percy, Diesel, and Salty.
...likes to "Call Ma" to talk to her. My mama loves hearing his sweet "Hey, Ma!"
...says "Bless you!" anytime someone sneezes or coughs.
...cries every time I drop him off at school. It makes me feel awful!
...he loves to be at home with his family. He and I would make perfect hermits.
...doesn't like to be told No...ever! It usually results in a fit.
...is hard headed and likes to do things he wants. When he doesn't get his way he will lay down on the floor in a silent fit. He will do this anywhere.
...likes to take "Hot Showders" with Daddy.
...drags around his night-night, baby night-night, Ooo-Ooo the monkey, and Dog-dog. He sleeps with them every night.
...loves to read books. His current favorites are: Five Little Monkeys, Old MacDonald, and the Very Hungry Caterpillar.

I hope to be back later this week with my January Tim Holtz tag & my January Cocoa Daisy sketch challenge layout.

Happy Creating!

Olivia