That's Life: sizzix halloween 2023

Showing posts with label sizzix halloween 2023. Show all posts

Monday, 13 November 2023

Thank You...

Hello everyone and Happy Monday...

Hope you are all well and had a lovely weekend and now ready to join us for the brand new Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge. This week our theme is all about THANKS and THANKSGIVING and we would love for you to play along and share your makes with us.

For my project, I created a Size 8 Etcetera Tag which features old and new dies from Tim Holtz and Sizzix, including one of my all time favourite dies, Feathered Friends who is popping by to say thank you to everyone who visits my blog and socials, because it's your kind words that make all the hard work so worthwhile!

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

This project uses a Size 8 Stampers Anonymous/Tim Holtz Etcetera Tag and Heavystock Tag.

TAG BACKGROUND

To begin with I coloured my tag background using Distress Spray Stains, Mica Sprays and Oxide Sprays in the following colours.

OXIDE SPRAYS: Speckled Egg

MICA SPRAYS: Tree Lot, Unravelled

DISTRESS SPRAYS: Rustic Wilderness, Black Soot, Speckled Egg

I misted he tag with water, I then spritzed the colours listed above onto the tag, allowing them to blend. You can use more water if necessary.

Once the tag was dry, I placed the Rosette Layering Stencil over the top and applied Translucent Grit Paste through the stencil with a palette knife. Working quickly, I removed the stencil and separately applied a sprinkle of Rustic Wilderness Distress Glaze and Gold Embossing Powder over the pasted areas. Set the tag to one side to dry and once I could feel that the paste has set, I heat embossed the paste on a gentle heat setting until molten and shiny.

Across the bottom of the tag, I added my sentiment using a strip of vellum. The vellum is cut to measure 1.5cm and on the right hand side I stamped the sentiment in clear embossing ink. Sprinkle with gold embossing powder and heat emboss. Wrap the vellum strip around the tag, securing the ends at the back and on the left hand side, I hammered a nail tack through the tag. This helps to pin down that strip and secure it.

After machine stitching a border around the edge, I adhered the tag onto my Etcetera Tag.

I threaded a piece of rope through the hole in the top...

...and then hung a Heart Adornment from a mini pin. The Heart Adornment is painted with Candied Apple Distress Paint, which adds colour to the heart itself and once dry, I added a touch of gilding wax from my stash to accentuate the beading around the outside.

FEATHERED FRIEND

We can now start creating the scene and firstly, I made my feathered friend and I used the larger bird in the set for this make and cut all the pieces from Mixed Media Heavystock card. The Distress Inks that I used to colour him are as follows:

Mowed Lawn, Rustic Wilderness, Fossilised Amber, Walnut Stain, Gathered Twigs

I layered all my die cut pieces together to assemble the bird and then added the wing using foam pads which help to create movement.

I then added some white and black pen work to bring out the detail.

I placed the bird onto my tag using foam pads and sat him in a nest made from Spanish Curly Moss that I have in my stash.

ARTSY LEAVES

In amongst the moss, I added some autumn leaves and for these I used the Sizzix Artsy Leaves Die Set by Tim Holtz.

I cut all my leaves from Mixed Media Heavystock Card that I coloured with the following:

DISTRESS SPRAY STAIN: Crackling Campfire, Spiced Marmalade, Vintage Photo, Aged Mahogany, Peeled Paint, Walnut Stain

MICA SPRAY: Unravelled, Mulled Cider and Fallen Acorn

After cutting the leaves and placing the veins over them, I then added touches of gold and for this I used Prima Metal Flakes. I smeared some Flake Glue over the raised areas, and once the glue has changed colour and become translucent, I applied the flakes, removing any excess with a hard brush.

I then inked the edges of the leaves and arranged them around the bird, by tucking them into the moss.

Finally I added some dried flower stems and small clumps of reindeer moss.

We're nearly there and all that's left is to add the two Large Fasteners at the top of the tag. I cut the legs of the fastener and then hammered them to give them all those little dents before attaching them directly to my tag using Matte Collage Medium.

So that's my tag finished and I hope you love the ideas and inspiration I've used on this make...

As always, if you make anything, or if you've been inspired by anything that you've seen here on my blog ~ then please, let me know by tagging me on social media or leaving a comment here and I will be right over to take a look!

Don't forget that every week, one lucky random participant has the chance to win a $25 gift voucher from Simon Says Stamp and you can join in up to 5 times, which means you could have 5 chances to win. You have until next Monday at 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 ~ stay safe and keep well.

Love Emma xxx

Recipe for project:

Tim Holtz/Stampers Anonymous: Size 8 Etcetera Tag, Glorious Bouquet, Rosette Layering Stencil

Tim Holtz for Sizzix: Feathered Friends, Artsy Leaves

Distress Paint: Candied Apple, Black Soot, Crackling Campfire, Ground Espresso

Distress Spray Stain: Black Soot, Speckled Egg, Rustic Wilderness

Distress Oxide Spray: Speckled Egg

Distress Glaze: Rustic Wilderness

Mica Spray: Tree Lot, Unravelled, Fallen Acorn and Mulled Cider

Distress Ink: Mowed Lawn, Rustic Wilderness, Fossilised Amber, Walnut Stain, Gathered Twigs

Tim Holtz Idea-ology: Heart Adornment, Mini Pin

Surfaces: Heavystock Card, Heavystock Tag

Mediums: Foam Pads, Translucent Grit Paste, Flake Glue, Prima Steampunk Metal Flakes, Gold Embossing Powder

Glass Media Mat,

Blending Tool

Tim Holtz Rotary Paper Trimmer

Heat Gun

Hot Glue Gun

White pencil gel pen

Curly Spanish Moss from my own stash

****These are not affiliate links****

Monday, 16 October 2023

The Dance of the Skeleton...

Hello everyone....

Hope you've all had a good weekend and ready for the brand new week and the next Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge which is called ~ TEXT IT! This challenge has so many interpretations that you will be spoilt for choice and we can't wait to see what you'll make using our fun theme!

For my make, I chose to create a Halloween project that features one of the Halloween dies, Big Frights, that was part of the fabulous Tim Holtz 2023 release for Sizzix. I mixed old and new dies to make this card, and I couldn't think of anyone better to come out of the darkness and make an appearance, than Mr Bones ~ he was the perfect match for this make and I invite you to the Halloween Danse Macabre...

So, here we go ~ you're invited to the Danse Macabre and only enter if you dare!

This 'Emma Sized" card measures 13.5 x 20cm, once folded in half and is created from black card, which has a smaller panel of black card, spritzed with Crooked Broomsticks Mica Spray.

Once the card was dry, I mounted the panel in the centre of the card blank, leaving a border around the outside.

BACKGROUND

To begin with I made the background for the scene and for this I cut a panel of Mixed Media Heavystock card, 11 x 17.5cm, that I spritzed with water followed by a combination of the following sprays:

DISTRESS SPRAY STAINS: Uncharted Mariner, Walnut Stain, Ground Espresso, Speckled Egg

DISTRESS OXIDE SPRAYS: Speckled Egg

Once I was happy with the blend, I allowed the inky card to dry, before adding some stamping across the top section.

For the webs, I used the Tangled Webs Stampers Anonymous set and stamped these using clear embossing ink.

I then sprinkled white embossing powder over the top and after tapping away the excess, I heat embossed the powder until molten.

With the background complete, I machine stitched an uneven, squiggly border around the outside and then mounted it onto a panel of silver metallic kraft card, followed by black kraft card, before I matted the finished panels onto the card blank, using foam pads.

Now we're ready to build the scene....

BOO ~ BIG FRIGHTS

To begin with I used BOO from the Big Frights Die Set and using the die with the cut out letters, I cut three layers from black card, and two layers from silver metallic kraft stash. I layered the three black die cuts over the top of one another before layering one of the silver layers over the top. I then smeared some Black Texture Paste over the top of the silver card, and allowed it to dry.

Once the paste was dry to the touch, I started adding the colour to the metal to create the rusty finish. For this I used the following Distress Paints:

Black Soot, Crackling Campfire, Ground Espresso

I layered my paints one by one and dry them between each application and once I was happy with the finished, I then dried the surface and applied a light amount of Statue Foundry Wax. Heat set the wax and then repeat with an application of Sterling Wax ~ don't apply too much heat at this point as you don't want to buckle or warp the lettering. At this stage, if you need to add anymore of any colour, then just repeat until you achieve the right look.

Mount the finished wording onto the remaining silver "BOO" die cut, slightly offsetting it to create a silver shadow around the edge.

Taking the second solid layer, I created the shadow behind the lettering using Mixed Media Heavystock, coloured with the followings:

DISTRESS SPRAY STAINS; Walnut Stain, Ground Espresso, Crackling Campfire, Vintage Photo, Aged Mahogany

OXIDE SPRAYS; Antique Linen

MICA SPRAYS: Crooked Broomsticks, Unravelled, Burning Ember

I cut a second layer of the shadow from silver metallic kraft card and then adhered the inky shadow, over the top of the silver shadow, again placing it to be slightly offset.

I then fixed the "BOO" lettering over the top of shadow using foam pads and the placed the die cut onto my background, attaching it with more foam pads.

To complete the lettering, I added some Hardware Heads, altered with Crackling Campfire and Black Soot Distress Paint and also placed little clumps of moss in and around the letters.

As a finishing detail, and for all of you who suffer with arachnophobia, please look away now....I cut two little spiders using the die from the Big Frights set and placed these, so they are crawling over the lettering.

MR BONES

Now to assemble Mr Bones and once I'd die cut all the pieces and layers from Mixed Media Heavystock card, together with some black kraft card, I inked each die cut piece with Antique Linen, Pumice Stone and Frayed Burlap Distress Ink and then layered him up to create my skeleton.

Because I wanted him to be slightly lifted off the background, I did die cut an extra two solid layers, and adhered these to the back, together with a die cut shadow of silver metallic kraft card.

So Mr Bones is now ready for the party and I attached him to the card, placing him to the right of the boo lettering and using foam pads on the back to add support.

For some added texture, and to ground him, I glued and attached some moss around his feet.

In his bony hands, I placed two bones ~ these are once again cut from Mixed Media Heavystock and inked with the same colours as Mr Bones himself.

I then attached the bones in his hands, using Matte Collage Medium to hold them in place.

CLOUDS AND MOON

The clouds are die cut using the dies included with Edison, and the moon is from Big Frights. I inked all these die cuts with Distress Ink, Pumice Stone and Frayed Burlap on the clouds, Mustard Seed and Fossilized Amber on the moon.

I then attached all these pieces onto my card, fixing them in place with foam pads.

We're nearly there and because no dance party is complete without guests, I added a few friends in the shape of some bats who seem to be dancing the night away with Mr Bones. The bats are die cut from black kraft card using the bat dies in Moonlight, but there are also bat dies included in the Big Frights die that can be used. I spritzed the black card with Unravelled Mica Stain and then die cut, shaped and attached both of the bats to the card.

...and with the addition of the bats and a few die cut silver stars, that completes my card and I hope you love what I've made and enjoyed the process of putting this pieces together.

Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by today ~ stay safe and keep well.

Love Emma xxx

Recipe for project:

Tim Holtz for Stampers Anonymous: Tangled Webs

Tim Holtz for Sizzix:Big Frights, Mr Bones, Edison, Moonlight, Tim Holtz/Sizzix Big Shot Foldaway

Distress Paints: Black Soot, Crackling Campfire, Ground Espresso

Distress Spray Stains: Uncharted Mariner, Walnut Stain, Ground Espresso, Speckled Egg, Crackling Campfire, Vintage Photo, Aged Mahogany, Fossilized Amber, Mustard Seed

Distress Oxide Sprays: Speckled Egg, Antique Linen

Distress Inks: Walnut Stain, Pumice Stone, Frayed Burlap, Antique Linen

Mica Sprays: Crooked Broomsticks, Unravelled, Burning Ember

Foundry Wax: Sterling and Statue

Tim Holtz Idea-ology: Halloween Ephemera, Hardware Heads

Mediums: Matte Collage Medium, Sizzix Adhesive Sheets, Foam Pads, Black Texture Paste, Versamark Ink Pad, White Embossing Powder

Surfaces: Mixed Media Heavystock, Metallic Kraft Stash, Black Kraft Stash, black Card

Glass Media Mat

Blending Tool

Tim Holtz Paper Trimmer

Heat Gun

Moss from my own stash

***These links are not affiliate links***

Monday, 28 August 2023

Halloween Town...

Hey everyone...

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend but how, how...is it the end of August already?!?! This year has gone so quickly and here in the UK, I'm not even sure if we've had Summer ~ after a brief heatwave in June, it's not been the greatest but saying that, it suits me as I'm not someone who enjoys intense heat and I'm always ready for Autumn!

So, back to today and this week's Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge which is called Sparkle and Shine! There's so many products out there that you can use to play along with our fun challenge and I hope you'll join us and can't wait to see what you create.

For my make, I chose to create a project using Mica Stains and Tiny Lights to create plenty of shine, and quite a bit of sparkle ~ I just hope the photos can do it all justice. I combined all this with some of the new Halloween products from Tim Holtz, including the Halloween Night Thinlits Dies, the Moonlit Die and the window and shattered glass from the idea-ology release and if you dare to enter, then welcome to the dead of night....

For this make, I used a small Stampers Anonymous/Tim Holtz Etcetera Panel.

BACKGROUND

To begin with I'll start with the shimmery sparkly background for my panel and I cut a piece of Heavystock Mixed Media Card the same size as the panel itself and apppied Black Texture Paste through the brand new Fractured Layering Stencil, which was my favourite from the new Halloween release that Tim showcased on his YouTube Live on Saturday.

Once the paste is dry, I then spritzed over the top using the Mica Stains, and chose a combination of Unravelled, Fallen Acorn, Specimen, Phantom Mist and Mulled Cider, spraying each colour individually and misting a small amount of water over the top to blend them. Once happy, I dried the panel, cut a small portion away from the bottom and machine stitched a border around the outside before I adhered this onto the top half of the Etcetera Panel.

I then cut a piece of the brick wall paper from the Halloween Backdrops pack and after adding a few rips and tears around the edge, I machine stitched a border around the edge and placed this onto the panel, beneath the inked card.

To create a nice, finished edge around the panel, I added some design tape, which is the perfect width for these panels.

Across the panel, I added a ledge which will be where I place my trick or treaters. The ledge is created from a Pinked Etcetera Trim, painted with Black Soot Distress Paint and when attached with Matte Collage Medium, it slightly overhangs each side of the panel.

We're now ready to move onto the next step, the die cuts that will create the scene...

DIE CUTS

I used a selection of dies for this make, the Trick or Treaters from the Halloween Nights set, combined with bats and moon from the Moonlight set.

I began with the moon, which is cut from Mixed Media Heavystock card. This is in two separate sections and I used the smaller size moon in the pack. Once I had my pieces cut, I then spritzed the moon with Unravelled and Phantom Mist Mica Stains, allowed them to dry and then inked the edges of each piece, before layering them together to form the moon. I adhered this die cut with foam pads, placing it in the top left hand corner of the panel.

Die cut a selection of bats from black card, using the same die set and shape the wings to make them appear as if they're in flight.

Now for the trick or treaters and these are cut from black card. I cut three layers of this image and then layered them together to form one substantial die cut. You can see the depth this creates in the photo below.

I lightly spritzed Phantom Mist Mica Stain over the top of the die cut and then set it to one side to dry. After cutting another image of the trick or treaters, this time from silver metallic kraft card, I then attached the silver card to the back of the die cut, slightly offsetting it to from a shadow cast by the moonlight.

To add more detail to the black silhoutte, I used a white pencil and just drew in highlights on each figure.

For the final detail to these little people, I cut the pumpkins from cardstock inked with Carved Pumpkin Distress Ink. I then placed each pumpkin over the top of the die cut, and outlined the handle with a silver pen.

We're now ready to bring the scene to life...

WINDOW FRAME AND LIGHTS

Starting with the tiny lights, which create the perfect glow (or shine) behind the window and highlight the silhouettes so well...

To begin with, I drilled a small hole through the panel, placing it where the lights will be attached behind the window. I did this at the top of my frame and just wound the wired backwards and forwards before attaching them to the panel with hot glue. You can wait to do this when you have the frame ready to fit onto the panel, and then this will ensure you hide the lights behind the frame and get the right position.

The frame itself is from the Halloween Layers pack, which also contains the shattered window. (If you need more of the acetate/shattered windows then you can buy these separately)! I cut a panel of the shattered window to fit behind my frame. This can be attached with either matte collage medium or red line tape.

With the frame good to go, I then applied some Translucent Grit Paste around the frame, and around the windows, which I allowed to dry before altering it with a little Distress Paint ~ Black Soot, Crackling Campfire, Vintage Photo and Ground Espresso.

I cut a piece of the purple floral design Halloween Backdrops paper and attached this to the back of the frame with foam pads, and this helps to create the look of wallpaper behind the window.

On the top facade of the frame, I added a small Remnant Rub, No.31 from an older set that Tim made for Halloween a few years ago and I also attached an Adornment Star, which I altered with Statue and Sterling Foundry Wax. Remember to heat set the wax to create a permanent finish.

CREATING THE SCENE

Attach your frame to the panel with more foam pads, placing it to slightly overlap the corner of the moon.

Next, I attached the Trick or Treaters, placing them along the ledge and applying foam pads to the back for more dimension.

Add clumps of moss around the base of their feet, along the ledge and then I tucked some Spanish Moss into the arrangement.

I also added some moss around the window frame.

Adhere the bats into position, I placed two on the moon and third in the top right hand corner and then I added some small silver stars. These are always on my desk, leftover from previous projects and I cut them using the Tim Holtz/Sizzix Falling Stars Die.

Finally, I added some Bubbles and Baubles along the ledge. I chose a selection of sizes from each set and then popped them into a clip bag, together with a few drops of Amethyst Alcohol Ink. Clip and seal the bag before shaking them and coating them in the ink.

Tip them out onto a paper towel and once dry, I attached them with Glossy Accents, placing them on each side of the ledge.

Finally, I added the quote chip, "The Dead of Night", which is from the Halloween Baseboards and Transparencies set, and I placed this on the lower section of the panel, adding Hardware Heads on either side and above the quote, I attached a Boneyard Finding. I wrapped some black cotton thread around the bone and then attached it with Matte Collage Medium.

So that's my project for this week complete and as always, I hope you love the piece I've made and will be inspired to try out some of the 'tricks and treats' fo this make.