Monday, January 1, 2024

Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge New Year's Notebook using Brutus Monroe's Mixed Media Tags and Embossing Powder

Happy new year to one and all!  We are celebrating over at the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog with a "new start" theme.  We're also featuring products from Brutus Monroe.  I decided to make a tag book with the hopeful mantra of "365 new chances."  I like the idea of each new day being a restart opportunity for something good.


I started with a Brutus Monroe Mixed Media tag, which I smeared white paint onto, then covered with pinky-red-orange dots using Strawberry Daquiri paint and an Altenew Halftone stencil.


Not sure why I reached for Night-colored paint, but I did.  It was a scary color combo at first!  I also drew some abstract loopy shapes with an embossing pen, then embossed them with a heat tool and white embossing powder.


Next I stamped on some leaf shapes using a Tim Holtz stamp (Media Marks 2) and embossed those as well.  I also brought some yellow and turquoise to the party.


I stamped the numbers 365 with Tim Holtz's Sideshow stamp, cut them out, then typed the "new chances" on my typewriter.  I outlined them with Distress Watercolor pencils.


The front cover was progressing right along, so I decided to decorate the back cover, too.  I added some paint and scraps and then stamped out the sentiment using Tim Holtz's Theories stamp set.


I decided to decorate the inside of the cover, too, so away I went with white paint, some dot-stenciling, and more stamping and paint along the edges.  I used Tim Holtz's Gradient Dots stencil with some Distress Oxide spray.


I added doodling and stamping and some collage scraps and this is what it turned out like on the inside:


I cut some pages from paper in my scrap bin, folded them in half, punched two holes in them with my Crop-A-Dile and tied the pages to the cover.


I sewed on a cobbled-together fabric strip to wrap around the whole thing to keep it closed.  I also added a chunky yarn loop just because...well, why not add chunky yarn when you have the chance to?


And here's how it looks when you open it up:


This little notebook was done!  Here's hoping some positive creative energy hits all of us in 2024!  I'm grateful for every day I have to give things another try.


Here are the supplies I used that you can find at Simon Says Stamp: