Happy Halloween!

Today is the day that things go bump in the night!

For me, it’s a fun holiday that marks the beginning of my favorite holiday - Christmas. As soon as Halloween is over I think it’s fair game to make holiday gifts, shop, bake and decorate for Christmas.

I play a card game called Rage once a month with a group of women that I’ve know forever. The winner gets a prize and then has to bring the prize for the next month. I created a basket that was Frightfully sweet. The basked had a cool artificial pumpkin that lit up, fall salt and pepper shaker and some Halloween candy. I made a tag, altered a candy container and a pin.

Halloween Tag (background is Wrinkle Free Distress Technique, tree colored via watercolor markers):

Dimension of the Grungeboard bats:

Altered Candy bottle:

Pin - inspired by the Shrink Mosaics Tim Holtz class (more on this in another post):

Tag on the package:

Overall package (I love to make pretty gifts!)

I hope you have a spook-tacular day! (or at least eat some two week old Halloween peeps - they are my favorite - once they get nice and chewy)
KAT

The Stuff:
Stamps - Eclectic Collage (Tim Holtz), Tree, Bat (Stamps by Judith); Happy Halloween (Inkadinkado)
Paper - office tag, scrap of white
Ink - Broken China, Shabby Shutters, Dried Marigold (Distress Ink Ranger); Jet Black Archival Ink (Ranger); Silver (Brillance), black stazon
Other - Close to Cocoa, Choc Chip Markers (SU); water brush, water mister, distressor (Heidi Swapp), plain grungeboard (Tim Holtz - idea-ology)

Winter Comfort

I originally planned to upload something Halloween related today -but - since I woke up to snow on the ground I thought I would share this card:

Winter Comfort:

I really like the blue and brown colors together - I’m not so sure about the layout. You picture something else in your mind and then what you are creating takes on a mind of it’s own. The felt snowflakes were white - I sponged on some Close to Cocoa ink and added some stickles so that my dirty snowflakes would have some sparkle.

Thanks for the visit!
KAT

The Stuff:
Stamps - Christmas Trinkets (Innovative Stamp Creations)
Paper - Fruitcake (Basic Grey), Close to Cocoa (SU)
Ink - Close to Cocoa (wow - a card with only one ink - this has to be a first for me)
Other - Build a Brad (SU), Felt Snowflake (unknown), Crystal and Cinnamon Stickles (Ranger)

Christmas Poinsettia

Yes, can you believe it, it’s less than two months until Christmas? Christmas is my favorite holiday and I love to decorate my house - I’ll share my trees as they go up. I plan on putting up my first two trees by the middle of November - yes, I know, it’s a sickness!

So I thought I would share two Christmas projects with you today - a card and an ornament.

Christmas Poinsettia:



I think the Poinsettia image is great and looks nice as both a card and an ornament. Techniques used are paper tole, embossing and wrinkle free distressing.

I have a Tim Holtz inspired technique to share with you tomorrow!

Happy Creating!
KAT

The Stuff:
Stamps - Christmas Trinkets (Innovative Stamp Creations)
Paper - FaLaLa (Making Memories); White, Kiwi, Cranberry Crisp (SU)
Ink - VersaMark; Antique Linen, Vintage Photo, Walnut Stain (Distress - Ranger); Cranberry Crisp, Old Olive, Pink Pirouette, Mellow Moss (SU)
Other - Memory Frames (Ranger - available at ISC), Long Rectangle Megabilities (Spellbinders), Clear EP, Cinnamon Stickles (Ranger)

Ode to Tim

Well I scheduled this post for Saturday at 9:00 am - I am now in my first Tim Holtz class!
When I take complicated classes I like to write notes so that I will remember what I learned. Usually I have a plain notepad, but, for Tim I needed something special! I was inspired by the ISC Tim Tag challenge and I thought I would make a tag book.

Ode to Tim:

The cover features:
Tim’s Distressed Inks
Fragments
Grungeboard (the A - in drunken scotch)
Lots of heavy metal from Tim’s idea-ology line

I made a page for each of the six classes. My plan is to take notes on the back of each page and to take a picture of Tim’s sample for each class and my completed creation for the front of the page. I also created a page for Tim’s signature and I plan on getting picture of me with Tim to add to the page.

Close Ups:

I know I am having a fabulously creative weekend - how about you?

KAT

The Stuff:
Stamps - Creative Collages, Branch (Tim Holtz)
Paper - Office Tag, Wanted (Cosmo Cricket)
Ink - Rust (Adirondack Ranger); Antique Linen, Walnut Stain (Distress Ink - Ranger); Timber Brown Stazon, Sage Shadow (SU)
Other - Glossy Accents (Ranger); Fragments, Swivel Clasp, Sprocket Gears, Game Spinners, Ball Chain, Jump Rings (Tim Holtz idea-ology); White Opaque Pen (Inksentials), Stream, Ginger (Alcohol Inks - Ranger); Scotch Scrapbooker’s Glue, Bind-it-all

Leaves In Copper

Another card made with the new Autumn images from Innovative Stamp Creations - I wanted to incorporate a little copper in this card.

Leaves In Copper:

A close up:

The image was embossed with Copper EP and sponged with beautiful fall colors. The tie on the card was made using a leaf punch.

Enjoy the fall colors - it will be snowing before we know it!

I’m on my way to meet Tim Holtz!!!
KAT

The Stuff:
Stamps - (all Innovative Stamp Creations) Collage of Leaves, Autumn Leaves
Paper - (all SU) Choc Chip, Very Vanilla, Really Rust
Ink - VersaMark, (rest SU) Really Rust, Old Olive, More Mustard, Choc Chip
Other - Copper EP (Ranger), Copper Brads, Copper Extra Large Eyelets, Waxed Linen String, Curvy Cutter (IK Success)

Mona Meet Tim

Today’s tag was created for this week’s Innovative Stamp Creations challenge - create a technique tag using one of Tim Holtz’s techniques from his blog.

Mona Meet Tim:

The timing for this challenge is perfect for me… You see I will spend all day Saturday and Sunday with Tim Holtz!!!! YYYYIIIIIPPPPPEEEEE I am so excited I can hardly stand it - I have been a huge fan of his for years and he is coming to a LSS and teaching 6 classes. Rhonda, my SIL and BFF, and I are spending the weekend there and taking all six classes. Just to show you why I am so excited here are samples of the classes that we are taking - Tim’s Ohio Classes. I am hoping to find all of Tim’s new stuff - my credit card is in for a work out!

Back to the challenge. I did not use a particular technique of Tim’s I used a bunch of them and his products:

Ink on craft mat and spritz (background of the tag)
Alcohol ink on fragment
Alcohol ink on transparency (butterfly wing)
Grungeboard (ink and metallic paste)
Metal idea-ology line
Tim’ Distress Inks

I tried to get a close up of the fragment and the wing but my camera just did not want to cooperate.

ISC Challenge Details:
Tags are fun and easy to alter!
Use at least 1 tag on a card, make a box, make whatsoever you desire, but you must use at least 1 technique on your tag by Tim Holtz and use only ISC stamps. To get your inspiration visit his blog and scroll under categories column!

You will be entered to win a FREE -1 pkg of Tags/Mona Lisa Stamp Sheet!
Then post your link in the comments section of the ISC blog by Sunday 10/26.
There's more.... ISC has a package of 10, #8 manilla Tags for $1.50


Now just two more days until Tim… Yiiiipppppeeeee (oh, wait I already wrote that - snicker)…
Find something that inspires you today!
KAT

The Stuff:
Stamps - Mona Lisa Arte (Innovative Stamp Creations)
Paper - Office Tag, scrap of Glossy White (behind the fragment)
Ink - Black Stazon; Dried Marigold, Weathered Wood, Tea Dye, Broken China, Vintage Photo (Distress Ink Ranger); Butterscotch, Stream (Adirondack Alcohol Ink)
Other - Grungeboard, Fragments, Sprock Gears, Game Spinner (idea-ology), fibers, metallic paste rub (Craf-T Products), Glossy Accents (Ranger)

Celebrate Fall

I’ve been having major rubber withdrawal lately - between vacation, being sick and life getting in the way I have not had a chance to be creative. Well last night I put an end to that and used the inspiration all around me - the fall leaves. You see I live in 25 acres of woods so this time of year is breathtaking!!!

Celebrate Fall:

This card is mostly mustard because most of the trees are this color right now - I think they are maples.

The strips of background is the Collage of Leaves image that I stamped in VersaMark and then More Mustard and clear embossed (this is how you can make any dye based ink emboss able). I then sponged on fall colors. The panel behind the leaf started out as Very Vanilla - I used two different distressed inks on my craft sheet, spritzed it with water and put the paper in it repeatedly - I then sponged the rust and green color on it.

I hope you have a chance today to enjoy the beauty around you!

KAT

The Stuff:
Stamps (all Innovative Stamp Creations) Collage of Leaves, Autumn Leaves
Paper - (all SU) More Mustard, Choc Chip, Old Olive, Very Vanilla
Ink - VeraMark; Antique Linen, Tea Dye (Distress Ink - Ranger); More Mustard, Old Olive, Really Rust, Choc Chip (SU)
Other - Clear EP (Ranger), Wax Linen string, Photo corner punch (su), tab punch (McGill)

Natures Secret

I’m back from the beach and a little under the weather… I’m just starting to feel better. It figures you go on vacation, have a great time and you get home and ugh…. Well at least I was not sick on vacation!

Today’s card is for a sketch challenge over at Innovative Stamp Creations.

Nature’s Secret:



I think sketch challenges are a great way to stretch you out of your comfort zone and get you to look at you stamps differently!
Challenge Details…
Make a card using the sketch posted on the ISC blog here . Using only ISC images and submit by 10/12/08 and you could win a $25 ISC shopping spree.

Thanks for visiting!
KAT


The Stuff:
Stamps - (all Innovative Stamp Creations) Harlequin Flowers 2, Butterflies, wood grain, marvels of nature, textures and sentiments
Paper - Very Vanilla, Mellow Moss, Really Rust
Ink - Really Rust, More Mustard, Pumpkin (SU); Brushed Corduroy, tea dye, vintage photo, antique linen (Distressed ink ranger)
Other - glossy accents, button, brads, chipboard