Tim Holtz Style December Daily 2017

Hi everyone and welcome. I've been caught up throughout the week creating a Tim Holtz style December Daily for 2017, sharing the 'work in progress' on my Instagram and Facebook pages as I've gone along. As promised, it's now time to reveal the 'finished' journal - I say finished because it's now ready for completion with photos and memories from each day through December, hence the term December Daily!

The covers have been created using Tim Holtz Christmas Baseboards, sturdy 4x6 inch decorative bases that can easily be hole punched and then decorated. Tim's new Festive Greens Thinlits dies from Sizzix work beautifully with the Holiday Greens Thinlits dies, and if you cut them from Classic Kraft Stock then they are also pre-coloured! Here are some close ups of the cover details;

Here's a video walk-through of my 'completed' December Daily so you can see each page and element in turn;

Inside the pages are made from a mix of Holiday Paper Stash, Christmas Kraft Stock, Christmas Cabinet Cards, and Idea-ology Christmas Ephemera. I did some simple stitching around each page purely to add detail, though it also adds security to the pockets and tuck spots. The smaller pieces of Ephemera and more die cuts help to decorate the pages whilst leaving plenty of space for the photos and journaling which will be added throughout December. It's as though Tim had a plan for this as his Countdown Brads are the perfect way to mark each date. Hide the back of the brads with Design Tape and Holiday Flashcards. I even created some transparent pages by stamping the Nordic Background with Archival Ink on acetate, layered it with another sheet of acetate and sandwiched a Woodlands die cut in between. Don't forget to use your Metallic words stickers to help document the photos and of course you can always add some stamping and Remnant Rubs! To finish a collection of holiday themed charms, altered with white gesso, have been hung using jump rings from the spine. I would just mention that the 'essentials' for creating a good December Daily include Carnation Red Enamel Accents for those dimensional berries, Matte Distress Collage Medium and Dina Wakley White Paint.

I hope you've enjoyed seeing inside my Tim Holtz style December Daily and feel inspired to create a memory book of your own. And as luck would have it The Funkie Junkie Boutique have a 35% off MSRP discount on Christmas/Winter products through November 24th!

Whatever you're up to for the rest of this weekend take care of yourselves and get creative! Jenny xxx

Eileen Hull Thanksgiving Treat Basket - Tutorial

Hi everyone and welcome! Last week I shared this Thanksgiving Treat Basket, created with Eileen Hull's Basket Die on my blog and on Facebook. Lots of people asked for a tutorial on how to achieve the look of rusted metal on the sides, so I'm back to share it with you all today.

Start by applying Ranger Texture Paste (or Grit Paste) through the 'Flames' Tim Holtz Layering Stencil onto the sides of the basket and set aside to dry.

Cover the dry surfaces completely with 'Ancient' Dina Wakley Media Acrylic Paint - one coat should cover them.

Dab dilute 'Evergreen' Dina Wakley Media Acrylic Paint unevenly over the surface and dry.

Dab dilute 'Lime' Dina Wakley Media Acrylic Paint unevenly over the surface and dry.

Dab dilute 'Turquoise' Dina Wakley Media Acrylic Paint unevenly over the surface and dry. You'll now have a faux verdigris look.

Re-position the stencil over the Texture Paste areas and apply embossing ink over them.

Cover the surface in Emerald Creek Crafts 'Charred Gold' Embossing Powder, tap off the excess and heat set with a heat too. You'll see the different colours included in the powder emerge and the paste bubble slightly which adds extra texture.

When cool and set, spray the surface with water before applying a few drops of Butterscotch Alcohol Ink. Carefully heat from a distance to evaporate most of the water leaving it still a little moist.

Add a few more small drops of the same Alcohol Ink randomly to darken some areas.

As you heat set this time some of the embossing powder will re-melt, allowing the Charred Gold colour to reappear on the surface.

Repeat this process for all visible sides of the basket. Use the same method, minus the initial application of Texture Paste, for the rest of the Basket pieces (including the reverse of all sides of the basket) before assembling it. At that point it's ready for trimming, filling and giving as a treat!

I hope you find this tutorial helpful and give the technique a go to make your own treat baskets.

Take care of yourselves and get creative! Jenny xx

Trick or Treat for Frilly and Funkie

Hi everyone and welcome! Suzz hosts the latest challenge over on the Frilly and Funkie Challenge blog. She's called it 'Trick or Treat!'; "I challenge you to create a vintage or shabby chic project with a trick or treat. If you are feeling funkie you might want to incorporate a trick in your design or if you are feeling frilly you can incorporate a treat. The trick or treat can be anything from a hidden pocket, unexpected design element, a treat hidden in a card or an unusual technique used on your project. Make sure to include in your blog post a description of your trick or treat!"

The team will choose their top four picks with the winner being invited to join us in a Guest DT spot at Frilly and Funkie and the next three will receive badges to display on their blogs. Everyone who enters and follows the rules will be entered into the draw to have the chance to win a $25 spending spree at The Funkie Junkie Boutique, so there are plenty of reasons for joining in the fun.

I went with the treat option for this challenge because giving people treats always makes me happy.
There's also a trick to creating the aged metallic look to that basket that I'll share in the description below.

The basket base was cut, scored and hole-punched by one die - Eileen Hull's 'Basket' die from Sizzix - being a Bigz die you can use thicker materials to create sturdy carriers (in this case I used mountboard). Before constructing the basket I applied Ranger's Opaque Matte Texture Paste through Tim Holtz 'Flames' Stencil across the sides. Every piece was coloured with a mix of Dina Wakley's Acrylic Paints (Ancient, Turquoise, Lime, and Evergreen) and then I embossed the stencilled areas with Emerald Creek Charred Gold Embossing Powder. This powder is special because it includes a mix of colours within the jar that give an instant aged effect. At this point the basket was assembled with Tim Holtz Matte Distress Collage Medium (this stuff is incredibly strong!) and some Long Fasteners. Now for the extra ageing trick - I sprayed water over the basket and dripped Butterscotch Alcohol Ink across it, allowing it to move in the moisture.

With the major assembly finished attention was turned to adding the finishing touches. Linda carries a huge range of filigree metals and charms in the store - I went for a Steampunk Gadget Bee Charm, an Owl Charm and a Tiny Jingle Bell, all of which were linked with bronze Jump Rings. To spice them up they were painted with a mix of Butterscotch and Snow Cap Alcohol Inks. When dry it's easy to take a black Sharpie to highlight the clock face features and owl eyes. They were all tied to the basket with some Seam Binding, dyed with Wild Honey Distress Spray Stain. Once loaded with treats and some Thanksgiving ephemera it was ready to be given to someone special.

Here's a short video sharing more views of this treat basket;

So for now that's my DT project for the current Frilly and Funkie challenge 'Trick or Treat!' Make sure you check out what my talented team mates have been inspired to create for this challenge, and remember to link your own shabby chic or vintage projects featuring rust to be in with a chance of winning one of the fabulous prizes that are up for grabs. With the challenge open until Tueday, November 7th there's still time to join in the fun.

I'll be back on Friday with more ideas for using Carabelle Studio designs while the special discount still applies at The Funkie Junkie Boutique.
In the meantime take care of yourselves and get creative! Jenny xxx

Frilly and Funkie Friday Focus - Carabelle Studio

Hi everyone and welcome! Just giving you a quick heads up that I'm sharing the first of a few cards made with Carabelle Studio designs over on the Frilly and Funkie challenge blog as part of a Friday Focus.

Hope you can join me over there to see this one in full and a further two more besides.

For now have a great weekend, take care of yourselves and get creative! Jenny xxx

Eileen Hull Designs Thanksgiving/Party Mini Planner

Hi everyone and welcome. I'm back for my second post of the day with a new project for Eileen Hull Designs. The Inspiration Team were challenged with the idea of creating projects for the various seasonal holidays taking place for the next couple of months. Now here in the UK we don't celebrate Thanksgiving but I love the colours we associate with this time of year and the idea of throwing a get together party. So here's a planner that is perfect for recording all those important details in the run up to the event and memories from the day itself.

The basis of this little book is the Passport die which cuts, scores and hole punches not only the covers and spine but also the pages inside. I used Dina Wakley paints to colour the cover, using Eileen's some of Stitchy Flowers dies to create stencils and more stencils from Seth Apter/Stencil Girl Products (the dots on Alpha Drips and Number Drips). The title and little flower came from Eileen's upcoming Floral Arch and Words set and the little acorns from an older Tim Holtz Decorative Strip Die.

Imagine my delight to discover a stash of old Kay & Co scrapbook papers when digging for something in the bottom of a cupboard, one of which matched the cover of this little notebook perfectly! Serendipity for sure. I used a sheet of it to cover the outside of two handmade books and frame the Bookplate at the front. You'll spot another of those Stitchy Flowers adorning it.

The books are perfect for recording guest lists, menus, seating plans and so on. I included tabs from the ever popular Journal die throughout each book for ease of reference, each covered in more of that paper.

Towards the back are two small plastic wallets which hold coordinating double-sided photo mats, ideal for adding memories of the day and turning a planner into a record of the event. All of these elements can easily be slipped in and out of the elastic ties.

Finally at the back of the book is a little ruled notepad complete with pencil. I took an idea from Anne Redfern and used Sizzix Paper Leather covered in the coordinating paper to create a pencil holder as that stuff is so incredibly durable.

 So that's it for the second little book of the day (you can find the first one HERE). My talented colleagues from Eileen's Inspiration Team have produced lots more holiday projects for you to enjoy - make sure you hop on over to Eileen's website to see them.

Time for me to pop off and get some more creating done! Whatever you're up to take care of yourselves and get creative. Jenny xxx

'Tis Near Halloween at Frilly and Funkie

Hi everyone and welcome! Sara Emily's hosts the latest challenge over on the Frilly and Funkie Challenge blog. She's called it 'Tis Near Halloween' and here's her description for the challenge requirements; "It's no secret. I. Love.Halloween. With Halloween just a few weeks away, I challenge you to create a vintage or shabby chic project with a Halloween theme. If Halloween isn't your thing, that's OK - just be sure to include orange, black and purple in your vintage or shabby chic project (These colors are not required if your theme is Halloween.) It would be a grave mistake to miss this challenge!"

The team will choose their top four picks with the winner being invited to join us in a Guest DT spot at Frilly and Funkie and the next three will receive badges to display on their blogs. Everyone who enters and follows the rules will be entered into the draw to have the chance to win a $25 spending spree at The Funkie Junkie Boutique, so there are plenty of reasons for joining in the fun.

My spooky project for the challenge is this hand-stitched notebook - the perfect place for recording potions and more.

The pages inside were created using a mix of white card and Tim Holtz 'Memoranda' Paper Stash, embellished with his Halloween Ephemera, Clippings stickers, machine stitching and stamping using Tim's 'Laboratorie' stamp set (I've only shown some of the pages in the video below as there were 72 pages in all!) Tuck spots were also added to some of the patterned pages. The front cover was made from one of Tim's Halloween Baseboards with some additional Ephemera. The back cover was created using a carrier sheet for one of Tim's large stencils added to a piece of chipboard 4"x 6" and I painted the inside of each cover with black gesso to coordinate. Finally the whole book was bound using coptic stitching to allow it to open flat on each page. See some of the pages in the following video - you can expand the screen using the icon in the lower right corner to get a closer look).

I'm very pleased to report the person this notebook was designed for was thrilled to bits with it.

So for now that's my DT project for the current Frilly and Funkie challenge 'Tis Near Halloween'. Make sure you hop on over to see what my talented team mates have been inspired to create for this challenge, and remember to link your own shabby chic or vintage projects featuring rust to be in with a chance of winning one of the fabulous prizes that are up for grabs.

I'll be back later today with a new project for Eileen Hull Designs. In the meantime take care of yourselves and get creative! Jenny xxx

Show Us Your Stamps at Frilly and Funkie

Hi everyone and welcome! For the past week it's been Autumn Clark's turn to host the latest challenge over on the Frilly and Funkie Challenge blog. She's called it 'Show Us Your Stamps' and here's what she is asking for with this one; "Our challenge this round can be summed up with one word - STAMPS! We want to see you break out those stamps and get inky. There are so many ways to use stamps, and you probably have a few you have never even used - so come play along! We cannot wait to see your stamped vintage or shabby chic creations."

The team will choose their top four picks with the winner being invited to join us in a Guest DT spot at Frilly and Funkie and the next three will receive badges to display on their blogs. Everyone who enters and follows the rules will be entered into the draw to have the chance to win a $25 spending spree at The Funkie Junkie Boutique, so there are plenty of reasons for joining in the fun.

A little while ago I was extremely fortunate when Patti Behan of Ranger Ink sent me some of the latest releases from Ranger. This including a set of Wendy Vecchi's latest embossing powders which coordinate perfectly with her Archival Inks (you can find a full list of Wendy's Designer Line here). And of course Linda carries all of Wendy's line at The Funkie Junkie Boutique! A stamping challenge was the perfect opportunity to play with some of them and so I created these cards;

Of course you'll want to know how these came together so here's the tutorial;

1. Cut a piece of Ranger Watercolor Paper 4 1/2" x  5 1/4". Dip into Frayed Burlap Distress Oxide Ink mixed with a little water and dry. Repeat to mop up some of the remaining ink. Add water droplets using a Tim Holtz Distress Sprayer and blot to remove some of the ink.

2. Use the Tim Holtz Stamp Platform to stamp Wendy Vecchi's Botanical Register Background Stamp onto the centre of the inky paper with Tree Branch Archival Ink. You may need to repeat this process to ensure the image is clear and crisp.

3. Again using the Stamp Platform, this time with a combination of Garden Patina and Leaf Green Archival Inks, stamp Wendy Vecchi's Rectangle Collage Background Stamp onto the centre of the paper. If the first impression isn't to your liking it's easy to repeat the process.

4. This time use the Stamp Platform with Wendy's Stamp It Stencil It! Prairie Flower set to add a Jet Black Archival Ink flower on one side of the paper. Remove the paper from the Stamp Platform ready for the next stage BUT leave the flower stamp in place as you'll be over-stamping the image later.

5. Use the Ranger Emboss It Dabber to apply embossing ink through the leaf section of the stencil from the Stamp It Stencil It! set.

6. Using the end of a palette knife, a small spoon or similar, add a little Carnation Red Wendy Vecchi Embossing Powder onto the flower bud part and tap off any excess.

7. Cover the remainder of the embossed section with Leaf Green Wendy Vecchi Embossing Powder, again tapping off any excess. Use the Ranger Heat It Craft Tool to melt/heat set the powder.

8. Now apply more embossing ink through the flower section of the stencil and cover in more Carnation Red Wendy Vecchi Embossing Powder, heat setting as before.

9. Finally apply embossing ink through the dot section of the stencil and cover in Garden Patina Wendy Vecchi Embossing Powder, heat setting as before.

10. Return the paper to the Stamp Tool, positioning it in exactly the same place as before, and over-stamp the flower using Jet Black Archival Ink to reveal all the details.

11. Stamp the sentiment from Wendy Vecchi's All Occasion Art stamp set in Jet Black Archival Ink onto the paper either using the Stamp Platform or an acrylic stamping block.

12. Cut a piece of card 4 3/4" x 5 1/2" and add the embossing ink to the edges of it. Cover the ink with Tree Branch Wendy Vecchi Embossing Powder and heat set as before.

13. To finish layer up the stamped paper onto the embossed card, a coordinating piece of Tim Holtz Ideaology Classic Kraft Stock (cut to 5 3/4" square and sanded to reveal the kraft core) and finally onto a 6" square white card black. I added some machine stitching detail but it is not essential.

Here's a closer look at the first version of the finished card;

For the second version I followed the same steps, replacing the Leaf Green and Garden Patina Archival Inks with Carnation Red and Cactus Flower Archival Inks on the Rectangle Collage Background Stamp. I also replaced the Garden Patina Embossing Powder with the Cactus Flower Embossing Powder when colouring the flower.

And here's a closer look at the second version of the finished card;

That's it for my DT project for the current Frilly and Funkie challenge 'Show Us Your Stamps'. I hope you've enjoyed seeing the tutorial - if you have any questions be sure to leave a comment below. Meantime do make sure you hop on over to see what my talented team mates have been inspired to create for this challenge, and remember to link your own shabby chic or vintage projects featuring stamping to be in with a chance of winning one of the fabulous prizes that are up for grabs.

I'm off to get in some more playtime with these gorgeous embossing powders.
Whatever you have planned for the rest of the week take care of yourselves and get creative! Jenny xxx