Step Card

I was asked to make a card for someone who is moving to a new home.  Here is what I made and how.

First I cut all the bits using Sizzix and Tonic dies as well as MS 5 blade scissors for the grass.  Ran the sign through my printer and stamped it with Tim's wood grain stamp.  Hand cut and rolled the roses and die cut a piece of acetate from Tim's brick die to make a stencil for the base card.

I worked Gathered Twigs through it and repeated the pattern up the card.

Then I set about adding all the bits I had cut and the card was done!

Thanks for the visit.

Bella

My take on Finnabair style

My friend Ali H from Wales came to visit last week-end and we spend 2.5 hours playing in my study.  She brought me two pots of Silks to play with on a Finn style canvas.  You can see what we made here.

I went looking for similar paints to the Silks as they are not available here in South Africa and I found some Viva Maya Gold in Magenta to play with.

Here are the steps I took to get to the finished canvas.

First I stuck tissue paper to the canvas and used Tim's Distress paints as a base.

Then I glued on all the bits and bobs I had collected together with some of Ali's trinkets.... These range from my ink jet covers off the new ink cartriges (in orange) to parts of my sons toys from the Kinder Joy eggs... 

Added the Magenta paint over the whole lot.

I added the blue silks paint

I decided to add some more pretty bits and covered them in more paint and the final finished canvas is at the top of this post.

These are so addictive to make...Thanks Ali for showing me how.

Bella

What's on My Workdesk Wednesday No250? Tim Holtz and Finnabair!

Well dear Desker, the truth is that I did ask Tim to pose on my desk for a WOYWW photo, but alas he declined!  At least I can say that I asked!  So instead I have lots of his products, a HUGE cup and saucer that I bought especially for my desk (inspired by Nikki Davey's post here) and a canvas that I am busy with in Finn style.

Ali H from the Craft Cauldron wont be posting her desk today because she is in my neck of the world...She came for a play date on Sunday and taught me Finn techniques and brought me the best gift EVER!  Two pots of Silks paints and some trinkets to put on a canvas.  We played for 2,5 hours (not long enough, I need to move in next door to this lady!) and this is what we made.

 Here is the very special ATC Ali made me, I forgot to give her the one I made to swap, so will have to post it.  There was so much I wanted to show her, but alas, time was against us.

thanks to all who commented last week on my desk...somehow I managed to delete the post while trying to do something else...so if you went looking for it after Wednesday and it was not there...That's why...technochallenged moment!

Bella

Look who came for a play date from Wales!

Ali H from the Craft Cauldron came to Cape Town on business last February and loved it so much she brought her hubby out on holiday this week!

Today we met for lunch and then came home to my house... while the men were watching the footie on the telly...we made a dash for the study and Ali taught me how to do a Finnabair project.  The trick is in the paint!  I am very grateful for Ali's generous gift of two pots of silk paint.  One beautiful blue called Bolivian Blue and an electric green called Key Lime.  She also brought some Finn bits and pieces from her own stash and some other special things she had collected as well as two scrapbook mags to read. (I am keeping her special ATC to reveal on Wednesdays WOYWW)

I had an incredible 2.5 hours at my desk playing with Ali.  She is a brilliant teacher and I am so sad she lives so far away.  I could get used to a crafty partner like her around.

 Ali has the pics of me working on this canvas on her camera...I guess she will blog them when she gets back home!  So for now, here is Ali drying layer one and then adding the silver highlights with her finger.

Below is the finished canvas.  I am so thrilled with it and am going to find a place in my study to hang it, so I can be inspired every day and remember this very special afternoon spent with a wonderful blogland friend.

Thanks for the visit

Bella

It's Always 3 o'clock Somewhere

When I knew Tim and Mario were coming to town again, I asked a friend who was going to the USA to bring back some Starbucks stuff for me to use on a gift.  She managed to bring me a handful of serviettes and two cup holders.

After much thought about what would be personal and appropriate, I came up with the idea of a clock that says it is 3 o'clock at every hour because Mario makes a Starbucks/coffee break at that time of the day nearly every day!  I know this cos he posts his yummy looking beverages on Twitter and Facebook!

I got a decoupage clock blank,  the mechanism and hands.

I first glued the lettering and cogs onto the clock and then covered the whole thing in Gesso.  When that was dry, I glued the serviette onto the clock.

I painted in the Starbucks logo onto the front of the clock and when it was dry, I sanded it back to reveal the creases in the serviette to give it a worn look.

The numbers were die cut, glued and drop shadowed and the hands added.

Finally, I nailed the hinges and the game spinners onto the back of the clock.

The mechanism is small which left lots of space within the clock to add a mini book on a clip binder.  Here I added some (Behind the Scenes) photos which I had printed off Tim's Facebook page.

A Day with Tim, Mario and Paula Cheney in Cape Town

I must be the luckiest girl in town!  I got to see Tim and learn from him in Johannesburg last Friday at Retailers day and today I saw him again!

The projects we did today were taught both by Tim and Paula Cheney together.  We started with the Canvas, which I knew we were doing due to the fact that it was done last week-end in JHB first and there were BTS (Behind the Scenes) pics...

So being me, I set about making one for Tim and Mario to sign (yes those are micro tags from the Retailers class hanging at the bottom!)  and then today's one was dedicated to Paula.

I just need to get the photo printed tomorrow morning to add to Paula's canvas, but for now, this is a superimposed one!  If you want to make a canvas like it, this project is on page 37 of Tim's latest Compendium of Curiosities 3.

Project two was this stunning Journal.  There were so many tips and tricks and techniques in this that it kept us busy from morning tea, till we went home at 5pm...Not withstanding an hours lunch break though!

Here is the gift I made for Mario as he and Tim have their break at 3'o clock every day.  Now they can have it at any time cos this clock is always 3 o'clock...

So that is my day in a nutshell...I will blog about how I made the clock tomorrow.

Thanks for the visit.

Bella

Mini Distress ink storage box

One of our kit items from the Retailers day yesterday with Tim was two sets of the new mini inks.  They are stackable which is great, but I find that the lids clip firmly into the base above, whereas the ink pad does not stay firmly in its lid which opens as you move the stack and (like buttered toast) falls face down onto your table/project/lap/floor...or they come apart in your tote...which you then stick your unsuspecting finger into...

The other issue is that when they are stacked, you can't see the colour, or differentiate, base from lid!

So I needed a solution and this is what I did:

Here you can see that I have dragged the ink pad across some A4 paper and the stack of non decipherable colours are lying on their side above the page.

 I then set about putting double sided tape on the back of the colour strips and cut them to fit the lid and base of each pad.

 As a safety precaution I decided to make a box to store them in so I don't have accidents while transporting them places or having them on my desk.

 I used foam core board and glossy accented the tissue tape on the joins to hold it all together, then decorated some of Tim's Kraft resist paper with the inks and glued the strips to the box.

 Here are the inks inside their box

 I decided that some hardware was required and used two corner brads (I cut their tails off) to glue onto the box lid for decor.

 Then to keep with yesterdays theme of the Dragonfly set, I stamped the outside with archival ink.

 To stop the box from flapping open while in transit, I bent a Tim file tab open to 90 degrees.  Added a piece of sticky backed magnet (under the word hope) so that it would glue itself to the box in the right place when shut.  Then finally glossy accents on top of the stamping on the metal to preserve it.

Thanks for the visit.

Bella

Tim Holtz Retailers Day in JHB

I flew up to Johannesburg yesterday on the 6:30am flight landed at 8:30 and got to Emperor's Palace in time for tag 3 of the RETAILERS day as the event had started at 8am.

For those of you who have done the on line course Creative Chemistry 101/102, this was like a live version.

Tim shared wonderful tips and tricks and was a brilliant educator as always.

Here are the tags from before we broke for lunch.

Mario came round to all of us like Santa Clause and handed us each one of these to use on one of the tags...I was like a kid in a candy store, bouncing up and down on my chair as I spritzed ink onto my tag...This thing is AWESOME.

Then we were spoilt with a special stencil created just for our event by Ted at Stampers Anon. so that we have 3 designs in one.  It is just BRILLIANT!

Below is the total kit we received at the event

I took my CC102 apron with to have signed and got both Tim and Mario to leave there mark! 

 I decided to get the Compendium of Curiosities Volume 3 to add to my other two and it is also signed by both Tim and Mario.  We received this apron in our kit and I have fanned the tags out on their ring.

These are the 20 tags we created all in one inspirational marathon day! 

Having flown home on the 9pm flight and landed at 11pm...I am somewhat shattered today, but still on that "high" buzz you get from being inspired and in such wonderful company!

What's On My Workdesk Wednesday 248? Marmalade!

Hello fellow Desker!  Yes, I am back to the green mat...if you did not visit last week, I had spray painted the back of my A1 cutting mat white so it would look visually more pleasing...but...everything stuck to it, so I have turned it back over and now it is stuck to my desk...another days problem!

On my desk is Marmalade and Cream, or Marmelodious for fun.  He adopted us in December by moving onto our patio at the front of our house and rushing in the house at any given opportunity to eat Chelsea "the geriatric" dogs food.

He then moved himself in after a few weeks when he realised that the dog was not bothered with him and is now king pin, seeing as  Chelsea is now in Doggy Heaven.

This pic was taken in December of the full Menagerie: Cat on couch, rabbit on blanket and dog.  All doing their own thing!

So this is my desk.  No crafting going on.  Going to see Tim Holtz at a teachers training day in Johannesburg on Friday.  Flying up at 6:30am and home again the same day at 9pm.  2 more sleeps.

Then he is coming to Cape Town next Saturday the 15 March to run a convention.  So excited to see him twice in one week!

Supreme Scrap Tournament Round 3 Card Entry

These were the rules:

General: Make a card with lots of doodling on it.
Theme: Free
Colour: Free
Size: Free

Use: 
- Minimal of 3 elements on the card on which you doodle. 
- Doodle a quote directly on the card.
- All doodling must be hand doodled!

Not to be used: 
- No premade embellishments are allowed. 
- No images or stamps are allowed on this card, no cut out images (from pattern papers, prints, internet etc) 
- Flowers in any form. You can't even doodle flowers on your card. You can doodle anything else. 
- Alphabet stickers, alpha thickers, diecut, punched alpha, handcut alpha, stamped alpha, punched alpha, alphabet using a stencil or any other alphabet embellishment.

Allowed:
- Cutting machines and punches are allowed, except for alphabets and flowers

The Happy Birthday was drawn in pencil directly onto the card and then filled in with Zig markers.

I punched out inchies and doodled on each one, put them on pop dots and placed them evenly around the 6"x 6" card.  In the photo above you can see my printed instructions, the brainstorm idea on my paper and the inchies being test placed.

Below you can see the depth of the foam tape which just gives the card a bit of dimension.