An Olympic take on Tim's March Tags

Hi everyone. Over at A Vintage Journey the Design Team are sharing some 'bonus' Tim Holtz inspired projects, filling the spot which in future will be given over to winners and Guest Creative Travellers.

Many of us have chosen to take this opportunity to share our March 2014 Tim Tag takes, including me!

This month it's all about a technique called smudge stamping (find the details HERE) which gives projects a very soft, vintage feel. As soon as I saw the way Tim's tags looked they put me in mind of the fabulous quilted jackets worn by the Team US snowboarders, designed by Burton Snowboards.

You won't find me hopping on a snowboard any time soon I'm afraid, but watching all those on the Sochi slopes at the 2014 Olympics (and now at the Paralymics) was so exciting. One of the best things for me? The way competitors applauded the achievements of all those around them regardless of any political or geographical borders... there's a lesson for us all.

And so my homage; I used the patchwork idea but made it distinctly British with linen textured  manilla card as a base.

As many of these stamps required more detailed ink application I made use of Distress Markers alongside my Distress Ink Pads - colours included Fired Brick, Frayed Burlap, Stormy Sky and Faded Jeans.

As each element was stamped/smudged I used an embossing board to create a distinct border around it.

It made a change not to worry about getting a crisp and clear image when stamping!

Some areas were stencilled with the new Doily stencil (LOVE this one). Then I hand stitched along the borders to add to that fabric feel.

Detailed background = simple embellishments, just like Tim. So my umbrella men had tissue tape, inked die cuts and linen ribbon layered behind them.

You can just see that the embossed metal men were covered in Sandal Alcohol Ink to give them a gilt appearance. And stapling is always an easy and effective method for adding interest. Finally the sentiment, and of course Sticky Back Canvas was an obvious choice with Archival Ink stamping.

These will now be entered into Tim's March 2014 challenge alongside those of my amazing team mates. And as there is a Distress theme over at Simon Says Stamp Monday challenge I'm going to enter it there too.

Make sure you pop over to A Vintage Journey and see what they've been up to. It's one of the best places to get your regular 'Distress fix'!

Thanks for stopping by and for all your wonderful comments. They are very much appreciated.

Take care of yourselves and enjoy the weekend, Jenny xxx