My Cards and Tags: Tick Tock

Time, time!  What a crazy part of life is this measurement known as time.  Some days we wish it would speed up and other days we want it to slow down.  It's one of the most precious commodities we have, yet we are powerless to stop it or control its movement.  But before I get any more philosophical, suffice it to say that this week's theme at the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge blog is TIME.  What a great theme with so many possibilities for interpretation!

Here is how my creation turned out: a time keeper of sorts that I made into a tag:

 
I just wanted a visual reminder about the value of time and the fact that it is always moving.  It motivates me to get up and get something accomplished.

The dapper dude I used is from Tim Holtz's "Time Traveler" stamp set.  I heat-embossed him with black powder and colored him in with Spectrum Noir markers and chalk.  

The clock is a Tim Holtz die called, "Weathered Clock."  I also heat embossed it, though in patchier sections.  If you just dab on your embossing ink with a sponge in random areas, this is what it will look like after you shoot it with your heat gun.

The background is a combo of Washi tape, embossed stamping, gesso and paint.  The 3D butterflies are from some Martha Stewart punches.

Here is a list of several of the supplies I used that are available from Simon Says Stamp:

Tim Holtz Time Travelers Stamp Set	Fiskars Acrylic Blocks	Weatherd Clock - Alterations Die	Sizzix BIG SHOT MACHINE	Martha Stewart Classic Butterfly Punch	Martha Stewart Classic Butterfly 3 in 1 punch	Prima Mixed Media Doll Tag Pack
Spectrum Noir Markers: Turquoise	Spectrum Noir Markers: Pale Hues	Ranger Inkssentials Non Stick CRAFT SHEET Reusable 15 X 18 Stamp Paint Ink	Classic Teal - Studio Paint	Studio Gesso White	Stampabilities Polka Dot Stamp	Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Embossing Ink
Hero Arts EMBOSS WHITE EMBOSSING POWDER	Ranger Super Fine Detail Embossing Powder--Black	Heat Embossing Tool	*We R Memory Keepers CROP-A-DILE Eyelet and Snap Punch Pink	Pink Paislee Hope Chest 12 x 12 Paper	Prima Finnabair Paper	Walnut Stain - Distress Ink
Black soot - Distress ink	Peacock Feathers - Distress Ink	Pebbles Chalk

So what clever creation will you come up with for "time" this week?  I can't wait to see what you upload to the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge blog.  Your work is always inspiring and there's no time like the present (see what I did there?) to share it with the world.  Remember- you could win fifty big bucko's to spend at Simon Says Stamp.

My Cards and Tags: I Love You More than Bacon

It's been raining here all evening, so I decided to sequester myself in my craft room (like I need an excuse!) and play with my newly acquired "Tape It Kit" from Lifestyle Crafts.  It Kits are awesome because you get a ton of similarly-themed dies for a reasonable price.  The "Tape It Kit" has a bunch of dies that look like Washi tape strips.

Here's the card I made using the Tape It Kit:

See all the faux Washi tape shapes?  Too fun!  The background paper is a vintage dictionary page and all of the patterned paper is from My Mind's Eye, except for the blue and white diagonal-stripped paper which is from Basic Grey.

The flower is from Prima and the twine is also from My Mind's Eye.  Do you love the flair button?  Probably not if you're an animal rights activist or a vegetarian, but I thought it was cute.  It's from Kelly Purkey.

As usual, I smeared on some Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Peacock Feathers and Walnut Stain) to finish it off.

Great paper, clever dies, distress ink and a bacon sentiment?  Happy Friday, my friends.  It just doesn't get much better than this!  

My Cards and Tags: The Grand Explorer

PASTE!  Does that word conjure images of elementary school and that kid you sat by who would lick the paste jar from time to time?  Hopefully not!  But it is this week's theme at the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge blog.   And so I decided to go with modeling paste through stencils, which I then heat embossed with silver powder to give the backdrop of my project some 3D metallic rays.  And here he is: the man I call The Grand Explorer:

Let's start with those paste-rays.  I used modeling paste and brushed it heavily on top of Tim Holtz's "Rays" stencil.  I peeled the stencil off and saw that the paste was white...too white!  So I waited for it to dry, then I used a makeup sponge to apply clear embossing ink to the rays.  Then I shook on some silver embossing powder, like so:

I adore silver embossing powder because once you heat it up, it turns into gorgeous shimmery silver.  Once I had my metallic rays, I dabbed on some ink to color them teal, green and brown around all the silver parts.  With my backdrop ready, I built my scene on top.

The image of the winged man is from Tim Holtz's "Winged Things II" stamp set.  I stamped him on an old encyclopedia page and colored him with chalk and inks.  I also gave him an "Explore" flag.  I attached him with 3D dots to give him a little more dimension.

I made him a traveling cart out of an alarm clock image covered with tickets and other travel ephemera.  The wheels are made from some vintage buttons I had and I added some Prima flowers, too.

I finished off the top by stamping on some text (from Tim Holtz's Urban Grunge stamp set) and adding a row of pennant flags made from the Simon Says Stamp banner die.  I also tied on some fibers, yarn and ribbon from my overabundant stash.

After all of that, I'd say this guy is definitely ready to hit the road.  His adventurous life was made possible due in large part to these products, which you can get from Simon Says Stamp:

Prima Mixed Media Doll Tag Pack	Liquitex - Modeling Paste	Tim Holtz Retro Grunge 12 x 12 Paper	*We R Memory Keepers CROP-A-DILE Eyelet and Snap Punch Pink	Tim Holtz Collection Stencil in Rays	Urban Grunge Stamp Set	Silver Embossing Powder Ranger
Heat Embossing Tool	Peacock Feathers - Distress Ink	Black soot - Distress ink	Walnut Stain - Distress Ink	Simon Vintage Dictionary Paper	Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Embossing Ink	Tim Holtz Destinations 12 x 12 Paper
Pebbles Chalk	Stamper′s Anonymous Tim Holtz Winged Things 2 Stamp Set	Fiskars Acrylic Blocks	Broken china - Distress ink	Wild Honey - Distress Ink	Tim Holtz Idea-ology Lost & Found Paper Stack	Ranger Archival Ink Black
Simon Says Stamp Ribbon Banner Die	Hero Arts Basic Alphabet Stamps	Circle Pop Dots

So are you feeling the love of paste this week?  I hope so!  I love to see your creations on the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog.  Upload your masterpieces and you could win $50 to the Simon Says Stamp store.  That would buy an awful lot of paste!