Listen to Your Art

Hello crafty friends and visitors! I had a little mixed media fun in my closet today with a couple of special challenges in mind. Here is my over sized tag using a "practice" journal page torn from my art journal. I ended up not using it for the intended purpose, but thought it was a great start for this tag. Rule #1-NEVER throw anything out! It may just be your next "masterpiece"!

My original project was going to have a sun on it, but I changed my mind and tore out the journal page. Here's how it started as a different project: For the background I gave my card a coat of gesso then spritzed with Dylusions blue sprays while still damp. I immediately spritzed with alcohol and splashed with some water droplets. I let this dry. Next I laid down some texture paste through a Tim Holtz Speckles stencil laid over his Rays stencil. Not at all part of my design plan for this tag, but it gave lots of texture and most would be covered anyway.

This is where I start with the plan for this tag: I chose a few blue guache colors and watered them down. I applied them to the dried tag and spritzed with water to move the color around. I flicked more alcohol and water at it for visual texture and allowed it to all dry.  Watercolor used to be my favorite art medium, but I'm quickly becoming a guache convert.

I added more stenciling using a home made bricks stencil and Distress Picket Fence Crackle Paint.

I splattered with watered down white acrylic paint and added random stamping using a Heidi Swapp musical image. The quote is actually from two separate older Tim Holtz sets--both had the word "heart" in them. The "Listen to your heart" image did not clearly imprint the word "heart", so I borrowed "art" from another "heart" quote.  These were stamped in Archival ink on Tim Holtz plain Tissue Wrap and adhered with Multi Matte Medium. Nearly seamless collaging with that Tissue Wrap! I edged the tag with Frayed Burlap Distress ink and distressed and layered with more card.

The frame is Tim Holtz Ornate Frame covered with Golden Crackle paste, and sprinkled with Holographic and Frantage (sparingly) embossing powders. When the paste was dry, I hit it with my heat tool to melt the powders. The camera barely picked up the sparkle. It's amazingly shimmery in real life! Half pearls in a gold color from my stash. Usually Golden gives the best crackle, but this jar seems to have left out it's crackle--I have yet to see good cracks come from this jar.

I hand cut the tag from heavy watercolor paper and stamped another old Tim Holtz bird image. I used Distress Markers directly on the stamp, spritzed lightly with water and stamped the image for a watercolor look. The musical notes (I hope they look like musical notes) are hand drawn and pearls added. More Frayed Burlap and distressing for the edges.

The two blue flowers are handmade using Tim's Tattered Florals and a lighter weight water color paper I used to mop up the guache paints on my craft mat. I flicked some of the papers with watered down black guache. I'm afraid I've lost some of the variegation of the flower's colors in my lack of photography skills and having to shoot this at night. I gave the white rose and the pebbly stamens a dusting of whatever was on my blending tool--I think Rusty Hinge. All the pearls and other stamens were colored with Butterscotch Alcohol ink to somewhat match the half pearls from my stash. Gold microbeads finish the flowers off. Various die cut foliage added from my scrap pile.

I hope you like my tag! I'm going to share it with the following challenges:

More Than words Mini Challenge June "Art"

Frilly and Funkie Pastels and Pearls

A Vintage Journey Texture or Embossing Paste I used texture paste on the background (not the bricks) and Crackle embossing paste on the frame.

Country View June Challenge Crackle

Mixed Media World MMW #15- From Scrap to Masterpiece My tag was created from a torn out journal page that didn't go right the first time around.

Happy Little Stampers June Mixed Media Challenge -Texture

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge Add Some Shimmer

Word Art Wednesday Challenge Weeks' #236-#237-Anything Goes

More Mixed Media Challenge-Anything Goes with Optional Color Purple Still no purple!

Mod Squad Challenge All That Glitters I used glittery embossing powders on my frame.

Thank you for your visit today and for all your lovely comments! I read and appreciate each one of them!

Hugs and Blessings!

Sara Emily

UPDATE: Yippee! I was a Top Pick at Country View!