Sweetly Creepy Halloween Party Favors

H1! I had my first play with Tim Holtz Burst Impresslits 3D Embossing Folder a couple of weeks ago, and I was undecided on how I would use the bursts I created. Then my long wished-for Entomology stamps and Gift Card Bag dies arrived, and I was in the business of making some Halloween party favors.

I die cut the gift card bags out of Distress Mixed Media Heavystock and blended them with Antique Linen Distress Oxide, Frayed Burlap, Hickory Smoke, and Ground Espresso Distress inks. I watered down and splattered on some of the inks left on my craft mat using my Splatter Brush. I later did the same with Black Soot Distress Crayon I had left on my mat.

I stamped the script and a few of the bugs from the Entomology set in Black Soot ink on both of what will be the front and the backs of the envelopes. The pockets were assembled and glued with Distress Collage Medium Matte. I love the detailing on the stamps, but these creepy insects look a little too realistic for my comfort. It's a little disconcerting to see those bugs squeezing their way out between the seams of the bag, isn't it?

Each of the bursts are made a little differently from each other. I used the de-bossed side of one, just to see how it would turn out. Each was colored and textured with Antique Linen oxide, Black Soot crayon, and Distress Crazing; I just varied the order of application, so they look a bit different. I love to experiment with my products, but really need to keep better records. To top off the Bursts, I cut the ring portion off some cheapo dollar store spider rings.

Cheesecloth is left over from a previous Halloween, but I distinctly recall spritzing it with Hickory Smoke and Wilted Violet Distress Spray Stains. My hands were stained for days!

I sprayed a length of twine in the same color to tie on the Halloween Typed Tokens.  The tokens were given their spooky look with Mushroom Alcohol ink and Black Soot crayon.  Everything was glued down with the collage medium--my go-to glue for adhering everything from paper to metal.

And my favorite treat fits perfectly inside. I hope I've inspired you in some way! I can't wait to see what you're creating for Halloween! Thank you for your visit and kind comments!

Hugs and Blessings!

Sara Emily

(FEBRUARY PRE-ORDER) Sizzix Thinlits Set Gift Card Bag by Tim Holtz	(MAY PRE-ORDER) Sizzix 3-D Impresslits Embossing Folder - Burst	(EARLY FEBRUARY PRE-ORDER) Stampers Anonymous Tim Holtz Rubber Stamps - Entomology	TIm Holtz Distress Mixed Media Heavystock TDA53835	Tim Holtz Idea-ology Halloween Typed Tokens
Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Crayons - 6PC Set #3 TDBK47926 (February Pre-order)	Ranger Tim Holtz Hickory Smoke Distress Spray Stain	Ranger Tim Holtz Hickory Smoke Distress Ink Pad	Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Ink Pad - Black Soot	Ranger Tim Holtz Ground Espresso Distress Ink Pad
Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Ink Pad - Frayed Burlap	(JULY PRE-ORDER) Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Pad - Antique Linen	Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Collage Medium Matte TDAK47933 (February Pre-Order)	Ranger Adirondack Alcohol Ink - Mushroom	distress splatter brush
Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Spray Stain - Wilted Violet	Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Collage Medium Crazing TDAK47957 (February Pre-Order)

Beauty in Simplicity

Hello friends! I'm still having so much fun playing with my Tim Holtz Botanical 3D Texture Fade, and seeing just how versatile it is! This time, I've given my card a clean modern vibe using Tim Holtz Ideaology Metallic Kraft Stock as the base.

To get one continuous pattern on this extra long card, I ran the 8 by 3.75 inch panel through my die cut machine with the Botanical folder, embossing the top portion of the card.  I removed the card from the folder and simply flipped it around to emboss the opposite end, using the same portion of the folder as I did the first pass.  I emboss it only to where the first pass finished. You'll notice there's a line there, but it will be covered up. And the flower is pointing upward as opposed to the downward facing ones on the top portion. This folder was so cleverly designed it works so nicely from either direction.

I sanded the panel and colored it with some shades of green and blue inks which almost disappear on the metal.

I applied clear crackle paste and allowed it to dry overnight. You can see how the paste really brings the color to life. To add some contrast, I swiped the embossed blossoms with metallic wax, using the lightest touch.  I think you could achieve similar results with Distress Crazing Medium and Distress Metallic Crayons, but the wax was out, and I'm fresh out of Crazing.

I colored a Garden Greens die cut, a length of Crinkle Ribbon,  a trio of Bouquet Findings, and a flower from my stash using coordinating inks.

The sentiment is from Tim's newly released Nature's Wonder set. I embossed it on a scrap of the metallic kraft stock with embossing ink and Ranger black embossing powder, using my Stamp Platform to make the impression. I cut it from the card using the label die from Stitched Slots. If you missed how I used those gorgeous leaves and another of those wonderful sentiments from Nature's Wonder you can view my post here.

I sanded an old sandable card stock (also by Tim Holtz) from my stash to layer my card onto. I adhered it with Distress Collage Medium Matte and also used the collage medium to adhere my assembled elements. Although this card is so simply designed, I think it packs a lot of drama from the amazing 3D embossing and metallic card.

That's all for me today! As always, I am so grateful for your time spent here and for your lovely comments!

Hugs and Blessings!

Sara Emily

Tim Holtz ideaology Metallic Kraft Stock TH93586	(MAY PRE-ORDER) Sizzix 3-D Texture Fades Embossing Folder - Botanical	Sizzix Thinlits Die Set 9PK - Garden Greens by Tim Holtz	(FEBRUARY PRE-ORDER) Sizzix Thinlits Set Stitched Slots by Tim Holtz	(February Pre-order) Tim Holtz Idea-ology Bouquet Findings
Tim Holtz Stamp Platform by Tonic Studios	Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Collage Medium Matte TDAK47933 (February Pre-Order)	(LATE AUGUST PRE-ORDER) Stampers Anonymous Tim Holtz Rubber Stamps - Nature′s Wonder

Go Where You Feel Most Alive -- Playing With Wendy Vecchi's Make Art Blendable Dye Inks

Hello friends and visitors! Today I'm sharing a tutorial at Frilly and Funkie for our weekly Saturday Showcase feature. I'll be shining the spotlight on Wendy Vecchi's Make Art Blendable Dye inks and sharing my techniques for making this gorgeous background and these life like leaves and bark. I hope you'll join me there!

As always, I'm thrilled you are here! Thank you for all your amazing comments! They make my day!

Hugs and Blessings!

Sara Emily

Challenge Shares

Country View Challenges August 2018 - Sun, Sea and Sand This is reminiscent of and inspired by my recent hiking 'holiday' to Capon Springs, WVa. In fact, the bracket fungus was harvested from a dead tree found on one of our hikes.

SumMore Fun Mood Board Challenge #35 I was inspired by the colors and the tiles.

Scrapy Land Challenge #96 Anything Goes  I used a Sizzix die set.

Love 2 Create Challenge #11 Anything Creative/Mixed Media Goes

The Artistic Stamper August's Creative Challenge - Anything Goes

Let's Craft and Create Challenge #140 - ANYTHING GOES + option LOTS OF LAYERS

Love to Scrap LTSCB #112 - Old School!

Aud Sentiments #210 Anything Goes + A Sentiment

That's Crafty Animal Magic

Word Art Wednesday Anything Goes - Weeks #348- #349

Field Notes -- An Expanding Mini Journal

Welcome! Today is the start of the second week of our two week challenge at Frilly and Funkie, and that means the Funkie side of the team gets to inspire you with their creations.  I am privileged to host the current challenge titled 'Back to Nature'. I hope you'll pop over to the blog to see all the amazing inspiration by both the Frilly and Funkie Design Team members.

Here's the brief:  Having just returned from our annual trek to the mountains of West Virginia where we observed so much natural beauty on our hikes, I couldn't help but make my challenge nature themed. You can make anything you like, from a card or tag to altered art, just be sure to include a natural element in your vintage or shabby chic project. Think real twigs, leaves, shells, pebbles. Or you could include a die cut or a stamped or stenciled image representing a natural object.

For my project, I decided to make an expanding pocket album, inspired by this tutorial by Sheila. Her samples are so neat and precise! She uses purchased coin envelopes but I made a template to cut mine. I also adjusted her measurements to fit my needs. Otherwise,  I just copied her album, putting my natural spin on it.

The Cover

To make the cover, I cut a length of manila file folder to the length and width I needed and embossed with Lumber 3D Texture Fade. I had to do some strategic folding of the card to get one continuous strip of wood grain. I layered Distress crazing, paint, crayons, and oxides until I was satisfied with the texture and color.

I colored the inside of the embossed piece with Ground Espresso and Weathered Wood paint. I cut my chipboard pieces to my desired size and covered them with paper from Wallflower paper stash. The panel's edges were blended with Ground Espresso ink. I adhered them to the prepared 'bark' strip using collage medium. I left about 1/8 inch between the individual panels so the box would fold properly. Lastly, I scored between each of the panels. I adhered magnets to the inside flap and front panel. These were not the best magnets to use; too thick to put under the paper, and they don't have the best grab. But they were the best I could get locally.

I used some die cut Fall Foliage leaves along with a twig tied with twine, mica chips and pebbles from my stash to decorate the flap. I cut the leaves from card I coated with DecoArt crackle paint and colored them with  Peeled Paint Distress Crayon and Twisted Citron oxide ink.

 The Quote chip serves as my title,  sanded and inked with Frayed Burlap and Ground Espresso.

The Pockets

I made a coin envelope template using the one I made for my Vintage Mail Folio, just reducing it in size. I traced and cut 7 from cream card stock and cut the top flaps off. I colored them with oxides (colors in links below) and stamped with Newsprint from Newsprint and Type set by Tim Holtz in black archival ink. Each one is edged with Frayed Burlap ink. I wasn't concerned over getting a good impression, since most of the stamping will not be seen on the finished product. Each was assembled and glued.

I applied super sticky tape to the center of the envelopes and layered them up on top of each other. I adhered the first and last envelope to the front and back cover to form an accordion mechanism out of the pockets.

The Tags

(Apologies over the color variation. My indoor photo light died, and it's going to be a couple of weeks before a replacement is shipped. Some of my photos were taken before the bulb blew.The light was fading as I took these photos outdoors. Just pretend the colors are the same in the second photo above as the first, which reflects the actual colors.)

I cut more cream card to fit into the envelopes, to make removable note cards which can be taken with me to make observations when I'm hiking. I cut 9 in all to make up 7 cards. I made them just a bit longer than the pockets, so they could easily be removed. I die cut 4 different Wildflowers from the #2 set from kraft card (Autumn gave me a pile of this great card when we met and crafted at the lake last spring, and I've been hoarding it. Thank you, Autumn!) I die cut words into 2 of the note cards using the Mixed Media #6 and Thin Pondering Words dies.

I adhered a plain card to the back on the one reading 'Collect' and stamped 'Miscellaneous' (Purveyor) in Watering Can ink.

I blended Antique Linen and Walnut Stain DOX on one of the plain cards and later used that to back the 'Found' card, creating an ombre' background for the die cut letters.

I adhered a wildflower to each of the die cut cards and to two of the others.

The tiniest leaves from the Fall Foliage set were cut and adhered to another card.  I dabbed a little watered down Peeled Paint Distress Crayon on them. Each card was dipped into puddles of DOX and dried until I achieved my desired effect.  This was done to each side (not photographed). I did some stamping on 5 of the panels in potting soil ink using the script from Ledger Script. I painted on a thin layer of collage medium over the front of each card to protect it and to give some additional stiffness to the card, but left the backs without any medium so I could write my field notes on them.

I hope you've picked up some 'Natural' ideas and will play along in Frilly and Funkie's current challenge, 'Back to Nature'.  As always, the Design Team will choose our four favorites from the entries, and one winner will earn the chance of a Guest Designer spot at Frilly and Funkie. If that's not enough to tempt you to play along, one lucky winner will score a generous $25 shopping spree at The Funkie Junkie Boutique. Please visit Frilly and Funkie for all the details. I hope to see you there!

Challenge shares:

Mini Album Makers August

Scrapy Land Challenge #96 Anything Goes I used 4 Sizzix die sets.
Country View Challenges August 2018 - Sun, Sea and Sand
Love 2 Create Challenge #11, Anything Creative/Mixed Media Goes
The Artistic Stamper August's Creative Challenge - Anything Goes I used 3 stamp sets.
Let's Craft and Create Challenge #140 - ANYTHING GOES + option LOTS OF LAYERS
Love to Scrap LTSCB #112 - Old School!
Die Cut Divas' Silhouettes I used silhouettes on the note cards.
SumMore Fun Mood Board Challenge #35 I was inspired by the earthy colors, the letter tiles, and the wood siding.

Thank you for stopping by! If you have questions or comments, please leave them in the comments below.  I hope you'll join me at Frilly and Funkie this coming Saturday for our Saturday Showcase.

Hugs and Blessings!
Sara Emily

The following products were used and can be purchased at The Funkie Junkie Boutique:

(MAY PRE-ORDER) Sizzix 3-D Texture Fades Embossing Folder - Lumber	Sizzix® Thinlits Die Set 14PK - Fall Foliage by Tim Holtz	(APRIL pre-order) Sizzix Thinlits Die Set 30PK - Pondering Words, Thin by Tim Holtz	(APRIL PRE-ORDER) Sizzix Thinlits Set - Mixed Media #6 by Tim Holtz	(February Pre-order) Sizzix Thinlits Die Set 7PK - Wildflowers #2 by Tim Holtz
Stampers Anonymous Tim Holtz Rubber Stamps - Newsprint and Type CMS266 (April Pre-Order)	Stampers Anonymous Tim Holtz Rubber Stamps - Ledger Script	$17.95 Stampers Anonymous Tim Holtz Rubber Stamps - Purveyor	(February Pre-order) Tim Holtz Idea-ology Quote Chips	Wallflower Paper Stash
Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Collage Medium Matte TDAK47933 (February Pre-Order)	Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Collage Medium Crazing TDAK47957 (February Pre-Order)	Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Ink Pad - Frayed Burlap	Ranger Tim Holtz Ground Espresso Distress Ink Pad	Tim Holtz Ranger Distress Paint - Weathered Wood
Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Crayons - 6PC Set #3 TDBK47926 (February Pre-order)	Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Crayons - 6PC Set #2 TDBK47919 (February Pre-order)	(JULY PRE-ORDER) Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Pad - Antique Linen	(FEBRUARY PRE-ORDER) Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Pad - Bundled Sage	(February Pre-order) Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Pad - Fossilized Amber
(February Pre-order) Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Pad - Iced Spruce	(JULY PRE-ORDER) Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Pad - Twisted Citron	(February Pre-order) Ranger Tim Holtz Distress Oxide Pad - Walnut Stain	Ranger Wendy Vecchi Archival Ink - Potting Soil	Ranger Wendy Vecchi Archival Ink - Watering Can
Ranger Tim Holtz Ground Espresso Distress Paint