See No Evil....

Happy Monday friends...

Hope you all had a great weekend and ready for the start of a brand new week and a brand new Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge. This week our theme is called, MONOCHROME and we want you to create something that embraces our fun theme and come and join us and play along.

For my project, I chose classic black and white and because it's my favourite time of year, how could I resist the temptation of Halloween, it's impossible! So, with this in mind ~ I got my creep on and created an Etcetera tag full of darkness and mystery, telling the tale of two children who might not be all that they seem...are they just lost in the woods or is there more to their story? Who know's but it's up to you to let your imagination take control....

So, let's get started and here's how I made this tag...

To begin with I prepped my medium sized Etcetera tag and painted the surface with black gesso.

Once the gesso was dry, I then took the Flames Layering Stencil and placed it across the top section of my tag and then holding it in place, I applied a good layer of Grit Paste.

Removing the stencil, I then placed it across the bottom section of the tag and applied some more Grit Paste. To give some crusty edges to the tag and add some more texture, I then added some more paste along the edges of the tag, just applying it with a palette knife.

Allow for the paste to thoroughly dry, don't be tempted to move on to the next step until it is and once it was dry, I then used Black Soot Distress Paint and painted over the top of the entire surface of the tag.

Once this painted layer was dry, I then applied some Vintage Gold Alchemy Wax over the raised areas of paste and around the pasted edges, just using my fingertip to catch the embossing. I always use small amounts and then gradually build up the intensity, less is more ~ you can add but can't take it away as easily. I then took the Old Silver Wax and applied this over the top of the gold, allowing some areas of gold to show through. I love how the wax picks up and accentuates the paste, it actually reminds me of vintage wood carving.

After painting the hole reinforcer piece with Black Soot Distress Paint, I attached it with Collage Medium over the hole and set the tag aside to move onto the embellishments ~ it's time to build up the scene.

To begin with I took the Lace Baseboard Frame and ran the Black Soot Distress Crayon around the edges of the frame, blending any harsh lines of colour with my fingertip.

To create the twiggy background that surrounds the creepy twosome, I used the Tangled Twigs die and cut it from black card. After cutting away the central portion of the die, to reveal a hole and allow the twigs to look spiky and gnarly, I applied my Versamark Embossing pad to the ends of the twigs and then sprinkle Liquid Platinum Embossing Powder over the top. Heat emboss the powder until molten and then add some more Versamark over the top, followed by another sprinkling of powder and another blast of heat. Finally, add a last layer of Versamark but this time, just catch areas of the twigs, don't apply a solid layer and this time, sprinkle with Black Embossing Powder. Again heat emboss until molten. I attached the Tangled Twigs to the back of the Lace Baseboard Frame and then cut a panel of paper from the Abandoned Paper Stash and placed this behind the twigs.

I then used foam pads on the back of the frame to attach it to my tag.

Now to bring this spooky tale to life and to begin with I placed my Paper Doll twins onto the centre of the frame, arranging some of the twigs around the dolls to create a little dimension and leaving some others behind them.

If you look really carefully, then you might notice that the child on the left is holding something in their hand ~ they've been playing with bones and to create this I used a piece of thread which I wrapped around a Boneyard Finding. I then attached the thread at the top, placing it in the spooky child's hand, leaving the bone to dangle.

I cut a strip of Mummy Cloth and hand dyed it with Frayed Burlap and Antique Linen Distress Spray Stains and once the cloth was dry, I added some of the cloth beneath the children's feet, together with some green moss and some Boneyard Findings.

With the remainder of the Mummy Cloth, I pulled this apart to create fine strings of thread and then attached it around the top of the Lace Baseboard Frame, using Collage Medium to secure it into place.

To create the foliage up the side of the frame, I used the Garden Greens die to die cut black card and also, Mixed Media Heavystock card. After cutting panels of each card, I then coloured them with a combination of Old Paper Distress Spray Stain and Antique Linen, Pumice Stone and Old Paper Oxide Inks ~ I love how different these inks look on each piece of card but both of them have this really chalky finish which I love!

After die cutting a selection of foliage, I wanted to add some more texture to the black die cuts and for this I took my Versamark Ink Pad and just allowed the ink to kiss the foliage pieces before sprinkling them with gold embossing powder and heat embossing it.

It just creates a little more colour and texture to the die cuts which I love! I then built up my archway of Garden Greens and placed them on the right hand side of the frame, tucking pieces of moss into the arrangement to add some more dimension.

To complete the foliage, I added a creepy eye in the centre.

Now for the finishing touches and after attaching a Finnabair Rusty Clip to the side...

I attached a Halloween Snippets Ephemera piece in the top left hand corner, adhering it into place with Matte Collage Medium and adding some Black Soot Crayon around the edges...

I then added a spider adornment charm in the bottom left hand corner, which I painted with Black Soot Distress Paint to add that little bit more creepiness to it....

...and also added some Hardware pieces to each corner of the tag, again painted with a little Black Soot Distress Paint!

Finally, I used the Lost In The Darkness Quote Chip, complete with Hardware Heads attached to each side and placed this across the frame.

So that completes my project for this week and I hope you've loved this piece and enjoyed the creative process of how it all came together!

Have fun creating your projects and don't forget, if you would like to see more inspiration from my talented teamies over on the challenge blog and every week, one lucky random participant has the chance to win a $50 gift voucher from Simon Says Stamp. You have until Monday 8am Ohio time. 1pm UK time, 2 pm CET to join in and good luck....

Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by today and hope to see you again soon, love Emma xxx

Recipe for project:

Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous: Medium Etcetera Tag, Flames Layering Stencil
Tim Holtz/Sizzix: Tangled Twigs, Garden Greens
Distress Paint: Black Soot, Brushed Pewter

Distress Spray Stain: Frayed Burlap, Antique Linen
Distress Oxide Inks: Antique Linen, Pumice Stone, Old Paper
Distress Ink: Pumice Stone
Distress Crayons: Peeled Paint
Distress Marker Pens

Idea-ology: Abandoned Paper Stash, Mummy Cloth, Boneyard Findings, Halloween Quote Chips, Hardware Heads, Halloween Paper Dolls, Creepy Eyes, Lace Baseboard Frame, Wicked Adornments, Halloween Snippets

Mediums: Matte Collage Medium, Grit Paste, Black Gesso, Versamark Ink Pad
Surfaces: Mixed Media Heavystock Card, Black Card
Alcohol Inks: Mushroom
Embossing Powder: Liquid Platinum, Gold, SSS Fine Black Embossing Powder
Alcohol Ink Applicator Tool
Prima Marketing: Rusty Metal Clip, Old Silver Alchemy Wax, Vintage Gold Alchemy Wax, Hardware
Tim Holtz Media Glass Mat

Heat Gun
Tim Holtz Tonic Mini Snips
Moss

Would You Dare Take A Bite?

Hello everyone...

Another week has flown by and it's Monday already but the good news is that because it's Monday, it means that there is a brand new Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge starting today and this week our theme is all about HALLOWEEN and everything SPOOKY! As always, we would love you to join us and play along and the DT can't wait to see your projects.

This is sadly my last Halloween project of the year because it's time to pack away the ghouls and break out the snowflakes but I wanted to make a Halloween Treat Box, that could be filled with chocolate pumpkins and ready to display amongst my table decorations. So, with this in mind, I chose to create a vignette box, packed full of Tim Holtz goodies that will create a spooktacular scene including tombstones, wonky trees and an uninvited guest...

So, it's time for the brand new challenge to begin and here's how I created this piece...

 

To begin with I took the second largest vignette box and matching Vignette Panel which would become the lid and painted them both with Black Soot Distress Paint. Once the painted box and lid was thoroughly dry, I then cut and attached panels of the beautiful flocked paper (I am in love with this design, it's so rich and opulent and perfect for this project) and using Matte Collage Medium, adhered these to the sides of my box. I then cut a panel of the wood effect paper from the Paper Stash and adhered this to the lid.

At this stage, I also lined the inside of the box with paper, giving it a really nice finish before adding the Mini Foundations to the bottom of the box, which I'd altered with Mushroom Alcohol Ink, combined with a little Rose Gold Mixative.

Setting the box to one side but with the lid in front of me, I started work on this section ~ bringing Count Dracula to life!

For this I used the vampire from the Ghoulish die set and started by cutting four images from thick pieces of card, about 350gsm in weight and then layering the card over the top of one another to create one solid figure. Once the figure is set and it feels solid, I then painted it with Black Soot Paint, back and front and again allowed it to dry. I also added just a flash of Festive Berries Distress Paint to his collar.

To give some shading to the figure and add a look of being dusty and worn, I applied a touch of Old Silver Alchemy Wax around the edge.

To build up the scene, I added some cheesecloth, or Mummy Cloth whichever you have to hand which I dyed with Peeled Paint, Pumice Stone and Black Soot Distress Spray Stain and draped the cloth over the lid, attaching it with dots of Matte Collage Medium to hold it in place. At this stage, I also attached my black silhouette, applying the medium along the bottom of the die cut and just holding it in place until it felt as if it would stand. To make sure this is solid, I would leave it overnight with a support at the back!

Next, I took my Tombstones and using my fingertip, I smeared a tiny amount of Grit Paste over the surface, you only need a minimal amount. Once the paste was dry and I'd given it a dirty appearance, I added the Remnant Rubs onto the fronts (I just love the names of these people, makes me laugh every time). I attached the Ima Goner and Izzy Dead's tombstones over the top of the cloth, placing them either side of Count Dracula.

Now for my wonky trees, and for these I used the Mini Woodland trees, dyed with a combination of Peeled Paint and Pumice Stone Distress Spray Stain. Once the trees are dry, I then bend them slightly to give the weird and wacky look and attached them amongst the scene.

I used the die cut bats, taken from the Ghoulish Die set and placed these onto the trees...

...before attaching some moss in-between all the pieces and adding some pumpkins, a skull and boneyard findings. I also added some Mini Art Stones at the front, just to create a little texture. These stones are adhered with the Collage Medium and painted with metallic paints.

As the finishing touch, I added my metal gates either side of the scene.

Finally, I attached a Halloween Quote Chip, 'an uninvited guest' to the front of the box...

...and all that's left for me to do is fill it with chocolate pumpkins (thank you Marks & Spencer for making these every year because they are delicious) and it's all ready to add to my decorations!

Thank you so much for daring to drop by today and all that's left for me to do is wish you all a very happy and safe Halloween!

Don't forget, you can find more inspiration from my talented teamies over on the challenge blog and every week, one lucky random participant has the chance to win a $50 gift voucher from Simon Says Stamp. You have until Monday 8am Ohio time. 1pm UK time, 2 pm CET to join in and good luck....

See you very soon, love Emma xxx

Recipe for project:

Tim Holtz/Sizzix Dies: Ghoulish
Distress Paint: Black Soot

Distress Spray Stain: Hickory Smoke, Black Soot, Peeled Paint

Idea-ology: Halloween Quote Chips, Boneyard Finding, Halloween Remnant Rubs, Skulls, Metal Gate, Mini Pumpkins, Tombstones, Mini Woodland Trees, Mini Foundations

Mediums: Matte Collage Medium, Grit Paste

Surfaces: Tim Holtz Halloween Paper Stash, Vignette Boxes, Vignette Panels
Alcohol Ink: Mushroom, Rose Gold Mixative
Prima Marketing Art Stones
Cheesecloth

Tim Holtz Media Glass Mat

Tim Holtz Guillotine

Heat Gun

Moss from my own stash

Dr. T Bones...

Hello friends...

It's hard to believe that Halloween is just around the corner, where is October going? But as we start the final countdown, I wanted to share another of my Tim Holtz Halloween projects with you all. This is something that I had in mind ever since I saw the Etcetera Tombstone Overlays from Tim Holtz and Stampers Anonymous and something I've been working on in between my DT projects but I am so thrilled with how it's turned out and now, I can now finally welcome you to Dr. T Bones crypt...a forgotten place covered with undergrowth from years of neglect ~ a place that only the bravest will visit!

With this piece, I wanted to make the project freestanding, so that it would sit perfectly amongst my Halloween decorations and wouldn't keep falling down. So, I started by constructing the base and used the Medium sized Tombstone Overlay and also a piece of thick board, which measured, 11.5 x 17cm.

I attached all my overlay pieces directly onto the tag, using Matte Collage Medium and then gessoed the surface of both the tag and the separate board that will become the base, applying the gesso to the front and back of the Overlay pieces ~ the back is going to be on show once you've finished this piece. When the gesso is thoroughly dry, I then applied some Grit Paste onto the front of the tag, varying the thickness of the paste I was adding ~ thicker around the edges and the joins and a very light layer across the centre. At this stage, I also added the paste to the rectangular base section.

Spooky story about the photo below, is that when I took this image, the face recognition actually kept picking up on a couple of "grinning faces" in the centre of the tombstone, not once or twice ~ every single time I tried to focus and if you do look hard ~ you can actually see the effigy of a face!!!! Very spooky.....

I then added the wording and for this I used the Deco Alpha Die to cut the name from thick chipboard and the Alphanumeric Thin Die to cut Mixed Media card for the remaining letters and numbers. Attach the wording onto the central section of the tag using Matte Collage Medium. I added some more Grit Paste over the chipboard lettering. The wording reads: In Memory Of Dr T Bones, 1253 - 1331....

Allow the paste to dry thoroughly before moving on and don't be tempted to add paint until the paste is dry. Once the paste was dry, I then repeated the process on the back of the tag, again varying the thicknesses before setting it aside to dry ~ this is where you test your patience!

****cup of coffee, answered emails, clean down the desk and drying time later****

I applied a coat of Pumice Stone Distress Paint over all the pieces, including the base and back and front of the tag. Once again, you need to ensure it's thoroughly dry before moving on and you can use a heat tool to speed up this process but only gentle heat, moving the tool around as you go.

It's now time for another layer of paint and for this I dry brushed Black Soot Distress Paint over the surface ~ you don't need to go in too heavy with your paint at this stage, you want light touches and have very little paint on your brush, just enough to kiss the surface and i would suggest that you start work on the back of the tag before applying paint to the all important front section of the tag.

Allow the paint to dry and then using a sponge or scrunched up tissue paper, pick up some Picket Fence Distress Paint from your glass mat or craft sheet and just pounce the paint over the surface. I repeated this process using the Pumice Stone and Black Soot until I created the look of stone ~ all done with Distress Paint. More drying time....

To add some more layers and character to my tombstone, I then went in with Distress Crayons, Peeled Paint, Black Soot and Ground Espresso and just added colour directly onto the surface to accentuate the textures and blending out any harsh lines with my fingertips. I also added crayon to accentuate the wording.

As the final part to this section, I used a Halloween Vignette piece, placed vertically down the top section of the tombstone and added a skull and crossbones in the centre. These metal pieces were altered with a little Picket Fence Paint and a gold metallic wax before they were attached. I also placed some moss behind the vignette piece.

I also attached two Vignette Accent pieces to each corner of the tombstone, covering them with a light coverage of Grit Paste and then adding Black Soot and Peeled Paint Distress Crayon over the top of the paste once it was dry. To finish this section the tombstone, I added a screw fixing to each side and hung some chain.

To attach the completed tombstone to the base, I used Matte Collage Medium applied along the bottom edge of the tag and then placed the upright section onto the base. I added plenty of support, bottles etc to ensure the tag remained perfectly upright and straight and then just walked away and left it to dry in position overnight.

In the morning, it was absolutely 100% solid and upright and now that the hard work is all done, I can now move onto building up the scene!

I won't go into this too much as you can see what I've done...the main technique here is probably the Trophy Cup that you can see in the centre and for this, I painted the surface with gesso before allowing it to dry and then adding Grit Paste over the top. Once the paste was dry, I then added the same colours I used on the tombstone and just set it aside...

When my stone trophy cup was ready, I placed some foam inside the cup so that it would give me a solid surface for me to attach my arrangement of skulls. Once again, I attached the skulls with Matte Collage Medium, this stuff really does stick anything and then placed moss in between before attaching the urn to my base.

I attached the metal fences with Matte Collage Medium and placed these at the front of the base to appear as if they were being opened by the zombie hands, which are wrapped around the gates.

I also attached a spider adornment to one of the fingers of the zombie hand.

I added regular moss and Spanish Moss and I also took this around the back, making that as attractive as the front. 

You'll also notice on the back, I added the 'Undertaker' Remnant rub...

As a final touch I added some die cut ivy, cut from Classic Kraft Cardstock and inked with Ground Espresso DI. I left a floral bouquet, dyed with Pumice Stone and Antique Linen Distress Spray Stain and hand wrapped in Collage Paper, tied with twine and complete with a small tag that I hand cut from inked card, quoting the date.

Thanks so much for stopping by today and I hope you've enjoyed this wander through the undergrowth to visit Dr T Bones' crypt  ~ may he now rest in peace!

See you again very soon ~ love Emma x

Recipe for project:

Tim Holtz/Sizzix Dies: Deco Alpha, Alphanumeric Thin, Garden Greens

Distress Paint: Black Soot, Picket Fence, Pumice Stone
Distress Spray Stain: Pumice Stone, Antique Linen
Distress Crayons: Black Soot, Peeled Paint, Ground Espresso

Idea-ology: Skulls, Metal Gate, Halloween Adornments, Bouquet Findings, Halloween Remnant Rubs, Halloween Vignette Accents, Zombie Hands, Trophy Cup, Vignette Findings
Surfaces: Classic Kraft Stash, Halloween Collage Paper
Structure: Medium Etcetera Overlay

Mediums: Gesso, Matte Collage Medium, Grit Paste

Tim Holtz Media Glass Mat

Heat Gun
Moss and idea-ology Trophy Cup from my own stash